“So let God work his will in you. Yell a loud no to the Devil and watch him make himself scarce. Say a quiet yes to God and he’ll be there in no time. Quit dabbling in sin. Purify your inner life. Quit playing the field. Hit bottom, and cry your eyes out. The fun and games are over. Get serious, really serious. Get down on your knees before the Master; it’s the only way you’ll get on your feet.” After submitting yourself to God, you can resist the devil and he’ll flee from you. People have said, ” the devil made me do it”, which solidifies the fact that you don’t know who you are in Christ Jesus. Once you find out who you are in Christ Jesus, then you can speak out commands with the authority rightfully belonging to you, and the devil WILL leave you, running as if he is terrified. What a switch in roles, you ordering the devil out of your life. Many people don’t believe he exists, while he’s running havoc in their lives. Temptations are a part of life. What you do with them when they come can either make you stronger by not taking the bait, or it’ll open the door to something that will bite in the you know what eventually. The devil is very real, and he will steal, kill, and destroy if you let him.

“The Lord is my Rock, my Fortress, and my Deliverer; my God, my keen and firm Strength in Whom I will trust and take refuge, my Shield, and the Horn of my salvation, my High Tower.” David speaks here on how he has discovered how God is basically seven things to him. He is a Rock, you can count on him no matter what the circumstances, he won’t bail on you. He’s our Fortress in times of life battles we have someone to go to that keeps us from harm. He’s our Deliverer from evil, bad situations, and bad people out to get you, etc. He is our Strength when our energy has waned, because God’s strength is made perfect in our weakness. The Lord is our Shield of protection in the heat of our confrontations, and everyday challenges of demonic attacks. He is the Horn of our salvation, calling every living soul to repentance and rightful entry into His Kingdom and family. And He is our High Tower, the highest form of escape a battle weary Christian can have, up above the battle in your life, where you can look down and see your enemies plans for you before it happens. Positioning ourselves in the Lord before the fight is vital. To wait to be prepared for a battle is too late. Be a David, find out for yourself who God is to you. The deeper you seek Him, the more revelation will flow unto knowing Him and trusting Him.

“Fight the good fight of the faith; lay hold of the eternal life to which you were summoned and [for which] you confessed the good confession [of faith] before many witnesses.” Fighting the good fight of faith should be a way of life. We come into all sorts of trails, crises, hurts and pains. Trusting the Lord through them until victory over them is achieved, is the position we must take in general. Faith is simply trusting and then acting on it. When we do this concerning God’s word, no power can come against that. Confessing with your mouth and believing in your heart is how you release your faith. It’s a good fight because you always win. We are called to eternal life when we make that great confession of our belief in the finished work at Calvary. Many are called few are chosen. Eternal life with God is for everyone who will accept it. It isn’t forced on you, because God wants willing souls to come to Him. We come by faith, trusting it’s real. You are chosen when you receive Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior of your life. Walk by faith, not by sight. Trust God’s word over facts, because facts can be, and are superseded by truth. Use your faith to change the things around you that affect you. Truth is faith’s forerunner, so run with it and fight the good fight.

“And this is the confidence (the assurance, the privilege of boldness) which we have in Him: [we are sure] that if we ask anything (make any request) according to His will (in agreement with His own plan), He listens to and hears us.” If we ask anything according to His will, He hears us. Anything isn’t asking Him to help you rob a bank or have someone else’s spouse. This passage is written to Christians, and the message is clear as to praying or asking for anything according to His will, which is His word, which is the bible. When we pray or ask according to God’s will, He definitely hears our words, because we’re praying back His words to Him, and that gets the job done on a higher level of return. Being in agreement with God’s plan for your life puts you in the upper echelon of God’s very important people for His service, and the abundant life for us that goes along with it. We must know the Lord’s will before we can pray or ask according to it. “Meditate on His word day and night, that you may observe to do all that’s written there in, and you will make your own way prosperous”. He is a rewarder of those who diligently seek Him. Seek, and you shall find, knock, and the door will be opened. Ask, and it will be given you. You have not, because you ask not, and when you ask, you’re asking for personal unrelated gain not in line with your purpose in life, so the answer isn’t coming.

“Strive to live in peace with everybody and pursue that consecration and holiness without which no one will [ever] see the Lord.” As much as lies within us we should thrive to live at peace with everybody, and to be holy; because without holiness no one will see the Lord. Well, how do we become holy, glad you asked. To be holy is obtained by walking in the fruit of our newly recreated human spirit, (happens at the new birth). Love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control. Nine fruit that rests on the bed of love. All of these fruits must be developed to the best of our God given ability. Peace will be our portion regularly as we exercise these fruits of the spirit in our everyday life. Practicing being mindful of these God given attributes will position us for the holy living the Lord as prescribed. Self-control is one of the most necessary fruits during development. Because people will test you, to pull you out of the program. Patience must have its perfect work in you as well. Try not to overreact over the little things. Choose your battles, keep your peace, and be holy as your Father God is holy.

“Cause me to hear Your loving-kindness in the morning, for on You do I lean and in You do I trust. Cause me to know the way wherein I should walk, for I lift up my inner self to You.” David talking here to God, asking Him to cause David to know the way wherein he should walk, by lifting up his inner self to God. The real you is your spirit your heart. Your heart must be in it to get God’s attention. The Lord can through His Holy Spirit speak to your new recreated human spirit, and download direction, safety stops, and even how to go about your everyday business. “Acknowledge Him in all your ways and He will direct your path.” David has already put his trust in God from past experiences of victory in battle and now has experience with the Lord in trusting the fact, God always comes through on your behalf. God’s unfailing love for us is always active, and in the morning God would give David downloads for his assignments as king. As you slow yourself down from this fast paced world, you’ll begin to see things in a different light. If you don’t make time, and space for God’s direction you’ll not have it. Trust your gut, that still small voice of your conscience, the “knower” in you. Most times, that’s God speaking to you. As you study God’s word, the bible, clarity of the voice of God will be yours.

“Forget the former things: Do not dwell on the past. See, I Am doing a new thing!” Many of us wish certain things in the past that we’ve done, and are not proud of, could just never come back into our thought life. Yes it happened, yes you’ve screwed up like everyone else in one way or another has. We can’t go back and change it, but we can guard against it happening again. This verse speaks more specifically about not dwelling on the former things so you can be in tune with what’s to happen now and in the near future. When our minds are caught up on past bad experiences, we can’t clearly discern the God given plans for us that will position us for greatness. Forgetting those things that are behind and start reaching for the high calling of God which is in Christ Jesus for your life. There’s a plan, destiny, and purpose that you can’t afford to fall behind schedule with for your life. As we continue being caught up with the past, our best future is slipping away. Once we confess our wrong doings to God, and asked forgiveness, that’s it! Your sin is in the sea of God’s forgetfulness, so stop bringing it up again and again. Your building a wall of darkness that God has already torn down by the blood of Jesus. Leave your past there, your future demands all your attention.

“Whoever pursues righteousness and love finds prosperity, and honor.” Our own righteousness is nothing, it’s the righteousness that comes by faith in God that changes things. Earnestly seeking after and craving righteousness and love will bring you to Zoe life, prosperity, and honor. These are the attributes of truly living as God intended for mankind. Zoe life is the life of God allowed to thrive in you. This is another life option available for those who diligently seek after God. This life has grace and favor benefits necessary for living above the evil in this world. It is possible for those who believe to go beyond the natural limitations of this world’s system, and be all they’re supposed to be. The kingdom of God is righteousness, peace, and joy in the Holy Ghost. If we could just see beyond our emotions and the distractions, and temptations meant to ensnare us, we’d be living on another level in life, unstoppable by anything or anyone in this world. Your business is your own, so go beyond what others think you should be doing and pursue these attributes of God, and change your life now!

“You have heard that it was said, You shall love your neighbor and hate your enemy; [Lev. 19:18; Ps. 139:21, 22.] But I tell you, Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you,” Back in the days of the law, the old testament, it was an eye for an eye and tooth for tooth mentality, which is in line with being influenced by the law. Today we live in the dispensation of Grace, the new testament. The text today are the words of Jesus. He fulfilled the law by keeping every commandment given to Moses on the mount. Jesus overcame this feat by using the word of God (as we are to now do), and not by the divine powers He had before His earth walk. It had to be done by working the word of God, thereby giving us the example, and legal passage to do the same to fight evil. This command from Jesus to love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, is based on the agape love of God. Fulfilling this command brings a maturity in your fellowship with the Lord. The closer we draw to God, He’ll draw closer to us. Without His teachings and your understanding, it could be difficult to love your enemies. And loving them doesn’t mean hanging out with them regularly, or at all. Your position of love should not be predicated on whether you like or don’t like someone, or what they’ve done to hurt you, etc. Your emotions cannot have any say in this task of keeping love first. The winner is in you, let him out!

“But [the time is coming when] the earth shall be filled with the knowledge of the glory of the Lord as the waters cover the sea.” The glory of God is one of the most foundational questions to answer in all Christianity. It is so central to the gospel, God’s word. The glory of God can be known as the manifested presence of God. Which can happen during a church service or conference. It is when God through the praise and worship of His people, shows up in this natural physical realm to heal or deliver those in need. When a miracle occurs, that’s the ocular proof of the glory of God. The parting of the red sea, Jesus healing people when He walked the earth, and anything that breaks through the natural laws that govern this world. It is a move of God that always brings comfort. In the bible it’s talked about as the glory cloud, which when you’re in it, you become overwhelmed with such peace, comfort, and a warmth in your soul you can’t explain, and sometimes you can’t even stand in it, but you love it when it happens. The text today is saying how the earth shall be filled with His glory. There’s coming a move of God, that the entire world will be aware of. This move of God will manifest His glory in different ways. However it comes, it will be in agreement with God’s plans for these last days of earth as we know it.