Encouragement: I chose you....

Today I bring you words and thoughts of encouragement from Jeremiah 1:4-10
The Lord said to me,
“Before I formed you in your mother’s womb I chose you.
Before you were born I set you apart.
I appointed you to be a prophet to the nations.”
I answered, “Oh, Lord God,
I really do not know how to speak well enough for that,
for I am too young.”
The Lord said to me,
“Do not say, ‘I am too young.’
But go to whomever I send you and say whatever I tell you.
Do not be afraid of those to whom I send you,
for I will be with you to protect you,” says the Lord.
Then the Lord reached out his hand
and touched my mouth and said to me,
“I will most assuredly give you the words you are to speak for me.
Know for certain that I hereby give you the authority
to announce to nations and kingdoms
that they will be uprooted and torn down,
destroyed and demolished, rebuilt and firmly planted.”

Biblical Studies Press. (2006; 2006). The NET Bible First Edition; Bible. English. NET Bible.; The NET Bible (Je 1:4-10). Biblical Studies Press.

It really encourages me when I look into the bible and find all these dudes that try to find excuses that they are not good enough to be God's person for the moment.

I have struggled being a "Blog writer for Jesus". Doing this blog has pushed me to points where I am thinking "Who am I to be writing encouragement notes? I am not ........ {insert excuse of the moment here}. I am the one who needs encouragement!!!" However, if God wants something seems He gets His way with or without your cooperation.

So how does God treat those He has called for action. 


First He reassures His agent. 


Then He basically says and I paraphrase here "Hey you, I choose you and I gave you the tools to what I have called you to do.  Now get to it!"

"Do not be afraid of those to whom I send you, "

“I will most assuredly give you the words you are to speak for Me.
Know for certain that I hereby give you the authority"

So given all this do I think I am called? 


I think God calls us all. We must each search ourselves to look for the signs of God's hand in our lives. 


It is important to remember and to know that when we have even the slightest interest in the things of God be assured you are called.

So with all this do I think I can do what God calls me to do?


No! but with His help and guidance and the touch of His grace, I will submit to Him and try to allow Him to order my steps one day at a time, one step at a time. The ultimate goal is to bring glory to God in all we say and do.


Praise Him, walk in the freedom of grace only He can provide. Let Him order your steps. Take it all one day at a time and in each day strive to make a difference in this old world.

Amen
Music Encouragement: Order My Steps

Encouragement: A shield that protects me.

Today I bring you encouragement from Psalm 3

Psalm 3
1 LORD, how numerous are my enemies!  Many attack me.
2 Many say about me,  “God will not deliver him.” (Selah)
3 But you, LORD, are a shield that protects me;
you are my glory and the one who restores me.
4 To the LORD I cried out,
and he answered me from his holy hill. (Selah)
5 I rested and slept;
I awoke, for the LORD protects me.
6 I am not afraid of the multitude of people
who attack me from all directions.
7 Rise up, LORD!
Deliver me, my God!
Yes, you will strike all my enemies on the jaw;
you will break the teeth of the wicked.
8 The LORD delivers;
you show favor to your people

Biblical Studies Press. (2006; 2006). The NET Bible First Edition; Bible. English. NET Bible.; The NET Bible. Biblical Studies Press.

 It is so easy to lose our way.  We start out with great goals to serve God and some where along the way we will lose our focus and wander down a trail that God perhaps did not want us to go down.  


 In the fog we walk until something awakes us.  A loud call to return to the Lord.  A call to repent.  We then may find ourselves in over our heads surrounded on all sides.   When we are on this edge we often exclaim this in our hearts. "Rise up LORD! Deliver me my God!" 


We then can only refocus, and return to the Lord, clinging close to Him and even though many exclaim "Many say about me, “God will not deliver him.” "  We need to trust in His grace and mercy, knowing that we are not worthy of His love.  But that is why Jesus went to the cross, to pay for all our sin, that we may have standing before God under the covering of Christ.


When we reach this point it can be very hard because
there is nothing we can do to justify where we have wondered.  It is then that we can take hold of the words of the Psalm


"But you, LORD, are a shield that protects me;
you are my glory and the one who restores me. 
 To the LORD I cried out,
and He answered me from His holy hill. (Selah)
I rested and slept;
I awoke, for the LORD protects me."

I often ask "Why did you let me go my own way Lord"  Perhaps He lets us go so that, He may impart iron into our being, that from the bumps, bruises scrapes of our wondering we will have the reminders of His Grace that will allow us to serve Him better.

Every day is a fresh start, God promises "As thy day so shall thy day be."  Just enough strength for each day, nothing more nothing less. 

What is behind we can not change.
We need to learn from yesterday, that we may try to hold our focus on Him and make a difference in the world with all the Glory of our efforts to be directed at Him.

God does take us as we are and fills us with His Spirit which starts to mold us on the wheel of life, changing us from within to become more and more like His Son.

Amen


Musical Encouragement Just As I am Brian Doerksen