God's Protection Covenant! (Part One)

Covenant: a formal binding agreement, a promise

In Psalms chapter 91, we find one of the binding agreements that God has made with man. This covenant is just as reliable in a time of trouble as it is in a time of peace. Of course, we must have faith in that covenant and believe that our God is going to perform all of His promises just as He said He would.

Over the next few weeks, I would like to break this Psalm and covenant down for you so that you understand what God has promised us.

1. He that dwelleth (lives) in the secret (hidden) place of the most High shall abide (stay) under the shadow (protection) of the Almighty. Under this protection plan we shall be treated as God's guest. You know whenever we are visiting family or friends, we are their guest. And when we come under the roof of anyone who truly cares about us, they tend to take our protection seriously - just as they would their own flesh and blood - and they do everything in their power to make sure that no hurt or harm comes to us. The Lord does the exact same. Even if we are walking along the road, we can simply ask for the performance of this promise. Even though God is up there and we are down here, if we speak the word and believe, we will instantly be in the secret place of the most High; covered and resting under the shadow of the Almighty.

2. I will say of the Lord, He is my refuge (Shelton) and my fortress (defense): my God; in Him will I trust (have total confidence). We all know that when you go to a shelter, it's intended to be a place of safety. This piece of the covenant tells us that the Lord will be our defense, regardless of the storm that's going on in our lives. Have you ever seen the old western movies with the army posts? Everyone is usually inside the fort and they have big gates with tall walls and men walking to and fro with weapons. Those men make sure that no one comes in and that no one goes out without some sort of protection; everybody who's inside the fortress feels safe. It’s the same way with God - when we are under His shadow, Angels are continually walking around protecting God's people.

3. Surely (not liable to fail) he shall deliver (rescue) thee from the snare (trap) of the fowler (haters of God's love and light) and from the noisome pestilence (people that try to bring us their darkness). These noisome pests can be just like mosquitoes that buzz constantly in your ear. The good news here is that as long as we are covered under the Almighty's protection, those pests will have to go through God before they can get to us. However, the choice is ours, we can choose to stay under the light of God's protection or we can listen to those noisome pestilence, which might lead us astray. God leaves that choice up to us. 

4. He shall cover (conceal) thee with His feathers (feathers in the spiritual speaks of love) and under His wings shalt thou trust; His truth (trustworthiness) shall be the shield (defensive armor) and buckler (something that surrounds a person). You might be familiar with how a mother hen hovers over her chicks and if anyone comes along trying to mess with or take her babies, she’ll peck them! That mother hen sits right there covering her chicks with her feathers of love and under her wings. God will hover over us just like that mother hen and will peck anyone who tries to harm us!

I'll be back next week with more on this awesome covenant; until then --

With all that said, let the Church say Amen... and AMEN!

There's POWER in Your Words!

Words: a message, a brief talk or command

Powerful: possessing energy or great force; having authority

Let's go back to the beginning where God created the heaven and the earth; since He created everything with words. If you look at Genesis 1:3-6, each scripture starts with "and God said," "and God said," and so on. God created everything simply by speaking it into existence. Since His word tells us that we are made in His image and He created with words, in a way, we can also create with words. Now, don't get me wrong - this is not to say that we have the same power as God (not even close!), but there are some things of Him within us. Proverbs 18:21 says; "Death and life are in the power of the tongue: and they that love it shall eat the fruit thereof." In other words, we will eat death or life with just our words. Our words are powerful, so let’s make sure that we're speaking life.

I remember this time when one of my friends was angry with their supervisor, who was scheduled to go out of town for the weekend. In that moment of anger, my friend said; "I hope she ends up with two flat tires!" Wouldn't you know it - that’s exactly what happened! Words are like seeds - you plant them, water them, and they grow. That's why it's crucial that we plant seeds of life, because they have power. So, let the weak say "I am strong;" let the poor say "I am rich;" let the sick say "I am healed!"

If we want to change something in our lives, we should start with our words, because words can hurt you or they can heal you. I've often heard this saying; "sticks and stones may break my bones, but words can never harm me." Well, I'm here to tell you that is not a true statement; words are powerful and they can sometimes cut deeper than a knife. If those words are sharp enough, it's likely that you will never forget them. Even though you may forgive the one(s) that spoke them, they are always in the back of your mind.

Let’s store up words of love and words of peace, because we express our feelings with them. We can inspire ourselves and others; we can build ourselves and others up, or we can tear ourselves and others down. Our words have power, so let’s speak life; such as, "I’m blessed and highly favored by the Lord;" "I’m blessed in the city and out of the city;" and "I’m the head and not the tail." We must use our words wisely, my friends, because while they can be forgiven, there's a great chance that they may never be forgotten.

With all that said, let the Church say Amen… and AMEN!

Whose Approval Are You Seeking?

Approval: favorable opinion or acceptance.

So often we seek the approval of others instead of focusing on getting the approval that really counts. We seek to get the approval of others in the way that we dress, the cars we drive, and the way we think. We even try to gain a favorable opinion from others by the decisions we make. My friends, this should not be the case! Especially if it means that we neglect to get the approval of God, our Father. If we're not careful, we will find ourselves using all of our energy trying to please others and trying to be accepted by them and in the process of all this, we'll end up being totally miserable, because we wind-up outside of the will of God. First, let's seek God for His approval, before we worry about anyone else's. After all, His opinion is the only one that really counts.

In 1 Samuel 15:3 God told Saul, "Now go and smite Amalek, and utterly destroy all that they have, and spare them not; but slay both man and woman, infant and suckling, ox and sheep, camel and ass."  Just a few verses later, we find that "...Saul and the people spared Agag, and the best of the sheep, and of the oxen, and of the fatlings, and the lambs, and all that was good, and would not utterly destroy them." Instead of being obedient after receiving the word of God and seeking His approval, Saul listened to the people and allowed them to do what they wanted to do in order to be accepted by them. As a result of his actions, Saul was rejected from being King. Now, if you were in that situation, knowing what you know, whose approval would you be seeking?

Life would be awfully miserable if we spend it trying to please everybody else, so lets not lose focus by trying to get the praise of man more than we seek for the praise/approval of God. If we allowed it, people will tell us how to live our lives, how to raise our children, and will even tell the pastors how to run the Church. We must remember to seek God's opinion in all things and be the people that He has called us to be in order to fulfill our destiny. While we may disappoint man, we should seek the approval of God and make every effort not to disappoint Him.

With all that said, let the Church say Amen… and AMEN!                     

The Lord Wants Us to Thrive!

Thrive: To flourish, to prosper, to be healthy.

Jesus said in His word, "I am come that they (we) might have life, and that they (we) might have it more abundantly" (John 10:10).  The Lord doesn’t want us to simply exist - He wants us to thrive!  There are so many people out there that are simply existing - they're murmuring and complaining and blaming others for their misfortunes. What those folks don't realize is that, in all actuality God is the head. He wants us to come into agreement with Him and confess that where we are is His master plan. He wants us to be successful both naturally, spiritually, and financially. Let’s stop complaining and start thriving.

Jeremiah 29:4 tells us, "Thus saith the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel, unto all that are carried away captives, whom I have caused to be carried away from Jerusalem unto Babylon." As the scripture continues, verses 5 and 6 reminds us that God is telling us to thrive - regardless of what our situation may be, we must thrive; "build houses... plant gardens, and eat the fruit of them.... take wives, have children, give your daughters to husbands, and your sons to wives that they might have children that we may increased and not diminished." Whatever your case (or situation) may be, don't forget that the Lord has allowed it. He allows things to bring us down just so He can take us higher -- but we must be mindful to praise Him and be thankful in all those situations.... after all, there is always something to be thankful for even when it doesn’t appear to be!

The Lord didn’t want them or us to just exist in the land, He wanted them and us to flourish, to prosper, and be healthy. We must leave off the pity party and start thriving right where we are.  When those things come up to interrupt our day, you should immediately start praising God because that’s another opportunity to thrive in order for the Lord to take us higher.

Just a few examples of how God wants us to flourish: Abraham was blessed greatly, he had flocks, herbs, silver and gold (Genesis 24:35); Boaz, a mighty man of wealth (Ruth 2:1); God gave Solomon wisdom, knowledge, riches and honor (2 Chronicles 1:12). These men thrived, they were in good health, and died a good old age. 

My friends, remember that God is the head over all things and all situations. You and I might not be planting gardens or getting married; but we are here doing something and whatever it is, God wants us to thrive right here where we are!

With all that said, let the church say amen... and AMEN!