Part 4 (2/2)

Ready Minds Now these [Jews] were better disposed and more n.o.ble than those in Thessalonica, for they were entirely ready and accepted and welcomed the message [concerning the attainment through Christ of eternal salvation in the kingdom of G.o.d] with inclination of mind and eagerness, searching and examining the Scriptures daily to see if these things were so.

-ACTS 17:11 One of my much-published writer friends taught a series of cla.s.ses at a writers' conference on beginning writing. He wanted to reach people who felt G.o.d had called them to write and show them how to get their articles and books published.

At the beginning, he asked the attendees how long they had been writing and if they had ever published. Two women, who sat in the front row, said they had both been writing for almost twelve years, but had not yet published anything.

At the end of the first lecture, my friend overheard one of the women say to the other, ”Oh, we know all of that. We don't need to come back to this cla.s.s.”

They may have already known the things he was teaching, but there was no evidence they had applied what they knew. He also commented that the most eager students in the cla.s.sroom were those who had already begun to publish. They wanted to learn and improve. Only people who are humble enough to continue learning will ever succeed.

That incident makes me think of an event in the book of Acts. The apostles Paul and Silas preached in Thessalonica, and the people tried to kill them, so believers helped them flee. From there, they went to the city of Berea. Luke records that the people there were fair in their thinking. They received the message ”with all readiness,” or, as I like to say, they had ready minds.

That means those were people who were open to G.o.d-they were willing to hear what G.o.d said, no matter whether it was good news or bad.

If I asked any group of Christians, ”Are you ready-minded?” they would immediately say that they were. That's what we a.s.sume being a Christian means-ready, open, willing to hear G.o.d, and to be obedient to what He says.

For many people, being ready-minded means that they are ready and open if the message is what they want to hear. If it's not what they want to hear, they don't try to kill the messengers like the Thessalonians, but they say, ”Oh, we know all of that,” and stop listening.

What does it really mean to be ready-minded? It means being willing to turn away from every lie and deception that Satan offers. It means being willing to say, ”I was wrong.” It means that instead of listening only for what we want to hear, we listen for what we need to hear.

To be ready-minded means we discern the source of the voice. We love to hear words that make us feel good and encourage us, but we don't like words that make us aware of our shortcomings. In Satan's battle for our minds, one of his tricks is to convince us that a message isn't important or that we already know it. He may even say that the message is not correct, and by doing so, he prevents us from hearing what we really need in order to gain our own freedom.

For example, a pastor preached a sermon against gossip one day. He aimed his message at one woman-who delighted in telling people tales about others. What she didn't know, she allowed her imagination to fill in. At the end of the service, she said to the pastor, ”That was an excellent message. A lot of people in this church need to hear that.”

The pastor said she wasn't being sarcastic or hypocritical. She simply didn't get the message. She didn't have that ready mind-the mind that was open to receive a message of grace and help from G.o.d. It never occurred to her that she needed the message. To have a ready mind is not always easy. In fact, the more seriously the Holy Spirit wants to deal with us, the more Satan tries to convince us that we already ”know all that” or it's not something we need to hear.

Lord Jesus, please give me a ready mind. Enable me to hear You clearly and easily. Enable me to say, ”Yes, Lord,” no matter what Your Spirit has to say to me. I want to have a ready mind that pleases You in everything. I ask this in Your name. Amen.

26.

Positive Belief [For Abraham, human reason for] hope being gone, hoped in faith that he should become the father of many nations, as he had been promised, so [numberless] shall your descendants be. He did not weaken in faith when he considered the [utter] impotence of his own body, which was as good as dead because he was about a hundred years old, or [when he considered] the barrenness of Sarah's [deadened] womb. No unbelief or distrust made him waver (doubtingly question) concerning the promise of G.o.d, but he grew strong and was empowered by faith as he gave praise and glory to G.o.d, fully satisfied and a.s.sured that G.o.d was able and mighty to keep His word and to do what He had promised.

-ROMANS 4:18-21 The story of Abraham amazes me no matter how many times I read it. It's not just the birth of a son when he was a hundred years old. That's a miracle. But just as amazing is the information that he waited twenty-five years for the fulfillment of the promise. He was seventy-five when G.o.d promised him a son.

I wonder how many of us would believe G.o.d and live in expectation for twenty-five years. Most of us probably would have said, ”I didn't really hear from G.o.d.” ”Oh, I guess maybe G.o.d didn't really mean that.” Or, ”I need to go somewhere else to get a fresh word from the Lord.”

Sarah and Abraham did have problems holding on to that promise. As a means of attempting to get what they wanted, they had Sarah's handmaiden, Hagar, bear him a son, but G.o.d let him know that wasn't the way it was going to be. I believe their actions delayed the arrival of G.o.d's promised child.

In our impatience, we often take matters into our own hands. I say we get ”bright ideas”-plans of our own, which we hope G.o.d will bless. These plans open the door for confusion and chaos. Then their results must be dealt with, which often delays our miracle.

When Moses came down from Sinai after having received the Ten Commandments from G.o.d, He saw the wickedness of the Israelites who had become impatient in waiting. In anger, he broke the tablets on which G.o.d had written the commands. Although we can understand Moses' anger, we must remember that it was not initiated by G.o.d. Therefore, Moses had to ascend Mount Sinai again and once more go through the process of obtaining the Ten Commandments. Moses may have enjoyed a momentary emotional release, but it cost him a lot of extra work. This is a good lesson for all of us. We must pray first and agree with G.o.d's plan, not plan and pray that our plan will work.

It's often difficult to believe G.o.d and hold on year after year after year.

Sometimes after my meetings, people come to me and tell me many sad stories. I encourage them to become positive and upbeat. Some people will listen to every word I say, nod, maybe even smile, and then they say the most negative word of all: ”But . . .” With that single word, they are negating everything I've said. That's not the spirit of Abraham.

The Bible gives us promises, hope, and encouragement. G.o.d promises good to those of us who serve Him. Despite the adversity of our circ.u.mstances-and some people have absolutely terrible situations-G.o.d still promises good. Our sense of goodness, however, may not be the same as G.o.d's. Getting what we want immediately may not be best for us. Sometimes waiting is the best thing because it helps develop the character of G.o.d in us.

The Lord chooses to do good to us and to make us happy; the devil chooses to do wrong and to make us miserable. We can remain patient and keep believing G.o.d's promises, or we can allow the evil one's whisper to fill our ears and lead us astray.

Too many of us have ignored the fact that G.o.d is the originator of miracles. He specializes in doing the impossible: He provided a son to barren Sarah; He opened the Red Sea for the Israelites to walk across on dry land; He destroyed Goliath with a single stone from a slingshot. Those are miracles. That's the Holy Spirit at work, defying the laws of nature (He made the laws, so He can break them).

Hebrews 11 is a chapter about faith and the people of G.o.d who dared to believe the promises. ”But without faith it is impossible to please and be satisfactory to Him. For whoever would come near to G.o.d must [necessarily] believe that G.o.d exists and that He is the rewarder of those who earnestly and diligently seek Him [out]” (v. 6).

As I consider that verse, I can see how the devil creeps in. He says to us, ”Yes, that's true. Those were special people. You are n.o.body. G.o.d won't do anything special for you. Why should He?”

That is a satanic lie-and one that too many easily accept. G.o.d loves each of us, and the Bible says He's our Father. Any good father loves to do good things for his children. G.o.d wants to do good things for you and for me.

Expect a miracle in your life. Expect many miracles.

Positive belief in G.o.d's promises yields good results because the Good One sends them to us. Refuse to give up, and you will see the result of your positive belief.

Dear Father in heaven, forgive my lack of belief. Forgive me for allowing Satan to deceive me or make me think I'm worthless or unworthy of Your miracles. I am worthy because You made me worthy. You are the G.o.d of the impossible, and I ask You to help me wait on You and never give up. In the name of Jesus Christ my Lord, I pray. Amen.

27.

The Waiting G.o.d And therefore the Lord [earnestly] waits [expecting, looking, and longing] to be gracious to you; and therefore He lifts Himself up, that He may have mercy on you and show loving-kindness to you. For the Lord is a G.o.d of justice. Blessed (happy, fortunate, to be envied) are all those who [earnestly] wait for Him, who expect and look and long for Him [for his victory].

-ISAIAH 30:18 This verse has become one of my favorites, and it has often been a source of encouragement to me when I've had hard times. The Living Bible paraphrases the verse like this: ”Yet the Lord still waits for you to come to him, so he can show you his love; he will conquer you to bless you, just as he said. For the Lord is faithful to his promises. Blessed are all those who wait for him to help them.” Let's think of the implication of the promise. G.o.d waits for us. As I think of that promise, it staggers my mind. The Creator of the universe and the Giver of all life has chosen to wait for us-waits for us to come to our senses, waits for us to respond to His love, waits for us to turn to Him for help.

That's a staggering thought. G.o.d wants to show us love.

Perhaps as much as anywhere else, Satan attempts to build a mental stronghold right there. When we contemplate G.o.d's love for us, many of us can't take it in. We can only think of our failures, our shortcomings, and dozens of other reasons why G.o.d shouldn't love us.

That reminds me of a kind man I've known for many years. One day he took care of a situation for me that he didn't have to. I was surprised and deeply touched. ”You are probably the kindest man I know,” I told him.

He stared at me in shock. ”Me? Kind? Oh, I can be mean-spirited and cruel,” he said. For several minutes, he explained to me that he couldn't possibly be a kind man. ”I live with myself all the time, and I see all my defects.”

”Maybe that's the trouble,” I told him. ”You see your defects so clearly, you don't see your caring, compa.s.sionate qualities. You discount all those things.”

He never could accept that he was kind. I also used the word gentle and that surprised him, too.

Perhaps that's how it is with many of G.o.d's people. We are so absorbed by our failures and all the wrong things we see about ourselves, it's hard to believe that G.o.d wants to bless us. If we read, ”G.o.d wants to punish you,” we wouldn't have trouble saying, ”Yes, that's what I deserve.”

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