Category: Devotions

Divine Provision

"Then Abraham raised his eyes and looked, and behold, behind him a ram caught in the thicket by his horns; and Abraham went and took the ram and offered him up for a burnt offering in the place of his son."  Genesis 22:13 NASB

I'm not sure if you have read Genesis lately, but this story has been on my mind for many days now.  God has been telling me lately that He has already made provision.  I have been praying on many things, my move, my issues at work, lost relationships, and just where my life is going.  I'll tell you, the enemy should have patted himself on the back for the discord and confusion he spread in my life.  But I digress, because God has already given me a way of escape from all of this; all I have to do is remain in faith and keep trusting God for my manifestation.  Jeremiah 1:5 tells us that God knew us before He formed us in the womb.  He already knew everything that was going to happen to us–He knew the mistakes we would make, the friends we would choose, the relationships we would batter, and how life would go for us.  Psalm 139:16 reminds us that all of our days have been recorded.  So God ALREADY knows!  He already knows.

Our power lies in our remaining in faith until the thing we are waiting for manifests.  In the passage surrounding today's scripture, God told Abraham to take his promised son Isaac to be sacrificed to him.  Oh I pray I had Abraham's obedience!  But I guess I can get it after waiting for the promise to manifest like Abraham did with Isaac.  He took Isaac on the 3-day journey to the region of Moriah as God directed.  The key in these scriptures lies in Abraham being willing to sacrifice his only son–his son of promise–to God BUT holding on to the promise that God would provide.(Gen 22:8)  Some chapters back, God told Abraham his descendants would be like the sands on the beach and the stars in the sky–innumerable (prior to Ishmael).(Gen 15:5)  So he knew God would have to make a provision, He had to provide something.  And likewise for you–if you are believing God for anything, you must stand in faith on the promises of His holy word to come true for you. 

Don't allow the enemy to keep you crippled because of sin in your life.  Repent, turn away from it and go back to the Lord like the Prodigal Son!  Don't allow the naysayers in the crowd to tell you death has come to what you are seeking God for, only believe, like Jesus instructed Jairus in the healing of his daughter. (Mark 5:35)  Keep asking God, pray unceasingly for your breakthrough.  Don't let diagnosis after diagnosis tell you restoration of healing is unattainable, be like the woman with the issue of blood and grasp the hem of His garment!(Mark 5:28)  Trust God and stand in faith on the promises of His word.  God already made provision for you before you were formed in the womb.  Before your mother even knew she would have you, God has already provided for you.  Even when Job lost everything, he stood firm in his faith and God restored EVERYTHING he lost twofold.  Trust God and praise Him in advance to usher in your breakthrough!

Abraham called the name of that place The LORD Will Provide, as it is said to this day, "In the mount of the LORD it will be provided."  Genesis 22:14 NASB

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"No weapon formed against you shall prosper; and every tongue that rises against you in judgment you shall condemn. This is the heritage of the servants of God and their righteousness is of me," says the Lord.  Isaiah 54:17
http://lifeinspiredbygod.blogspot.com/

Time to Lift Your Anchor

"Cast your burden upon the LORD and He will sustain you; He will never allow the righteous to be shaken."  Psalm 55:22

I know I have used this scripture before, but it is so appropriate.  For many days now it has been on my mind how often we let our regrets keep us anchored in the past.  I thought for a while of all the things I regret, most importantly, moving back to South Carolina.  But then I quickly remember how God allowed me to restore my relationship with my father, connect with and minister to my cousin and other family members, share my story (the part that so far has been written), experience true love (even if it was short-lived), and just grow in leaps and bounds.  My past few years have been like the pressure that carbon goes under to become a diamond, and I know I will shine once God is through with me.  I am sure every one knows what an anchor is, but for clarity's sake, I'll define it here:  An anchor is a device, normally made of metal, that is used to connect a vessel to the bed of a body of water to prevent the vessel from drifting due to wind or current.  (Thanks Wikipedia!) 

Many times in life we need an anchor and should be led of the Spirit to the correct ones.  The most important anchors include our faith, the Word of God, and His Spirit that all serve to keep us grounded in the truth of who God is and what plans He has for us.  However, there are times when our own negative meditations on the effects of past choices and decisions serve to sever us from our lifeline, our anchor in God.  We become so focused on what should, would or could have been had we not made that choice or on the more popular, 'I wish I'd never ____ (fill in what you wish you never had done, experienced, said, etc).  It is when we focus on the problem instead of finding the solution, through the heavenly direction only the Father can give, that we lose hope.  We become submerged, much like an anchor, into the miry clay that forms our past.  We take that same clay and build homes there, and reside in the pains of lost loves, lost jobs, failed families and relationships, until we are shaken to the core by a divine intervention.

Ships only drop anchor when they are at a port.  Usually in most cases, the porting of said ship is a temporary thing.  We are to revisit our past only for the purpose of forgiveness (be it ourselves or others) and to understand the lesson that God was teaching us.  Notice that when the ship's time to depart has come, the anchor is reeled up and the ship leaves to go to the next destination.  Do not allow your regrets to keep you bound to the place that God has already made provision for you to leave!  Your provision is in the death and resurrection, the extension of God's grace to you that insured your life.  Jesus died so that you can let go and go to the next place, the place He has prepared for you!  God promises to sustain you.

"Commit your way to the LORD; trust in him and he will do this:"  Psalm 37:5 NIV
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"No weapon formed against you shall prosper; and every tongue that rises against you in judgment you shall condemn. This is the heritage of the servants of God and their righteousness is of me," says the Lord.  Isaiah 54:17
http://lifeinspiredbygod.blogspot.com/