False Visions Lead To False Prophets

[S] Ezekiel 13:9 --
 ⁹"So My hand will be against the prophets who see false visions and utter lying divinations They will have no place in the council of My people, nor will they be written down in the register of the house of Israel, nor will they enter the land of Israel, that you may know that I am the Lord GOD.

[O] This passage linked my mind to the video of John Piper's message of "No, Mr. President: John Piper's Response to President Obama on Abortion" because there are so many people (saying prophetic words) based one false visions and deceit.  It so happens to be our current government leaders are doing their best to lead this country to preserve her freedom and peace however, they seemed to be locked up in the deceit of this world and so their genuine efforts are nothing other than what God speaks of through Ezekiel in this verse.

[A] Just thinking about this makes me feel real helpless because I'm just one voice and a weak one at best but I will continue to boast about our Lord God in Heaven who is in full control regardless.  I will continue to stay as one of His people and pray for the leaders of this country such that they, too, would soon see the glorious God who cares for them to provide the real truth to set them free from their own bondage of intellectual deceit.

I will also continue to pray for my children and their friends in Christ so they would grow up to shake this world upside down as Paul did for the cause of Christ.

[P] Dear God, I praise You for granting Your wisdom and love to have captured my children at early ages.  I will continue to encourage them and to raise them to have true visions from You to lead Your people in the right path of freedom away from all the false teachings from this world.  In Jesus' name. Amen.

Cool Heart of Cold Heart?

[S] Ezekiel 11:19-20 --
 ¹⁹"And I will give them one heart, and put a new spirit within them And I will take the heart of stone out of their flesh and give them a heart of flesh,
 ²⁰that they may walk in My statutes and keep My ordinances and do them Then they will be My people, and I shall be their God.

[O] At first having a heart of stone sounds cool somewhat like having a tough heart.  But in contrast to having a heart of warm flesh, it doesn't sounds that cool anymore -- in fact, it sounds real cold!  Even after God's warning about how He will utterly destroy His rebellious people He still writes this beautiful statement of His love for His people.  He wants to give us the heart of unity which is living and breathing the life He gave us such that we would, from the bottom of our hearts, voluntarily follow His ways and acknowledge the relationship with Him that He is our God.  After all the grief His people put on His heart, He still longs for their hearts to turn to Him and call Him their God.  That's all He desires!  And having such a heart is real cool.

[A] When is the last time I truly called Him my God (and I'm His child)?  He put a new spirit and a new heart of flesh in me so I may do just that.  I should start off the day by calling Him "My God!  I love YOU!  Thank You for giving me the heart of the living flesh so I may call You just that."

[P] Dear Heavenly Father, thank You for being my Father especially after my earthly dad was called by You about a year ago.  Your love portrayed in this passage overwhelms my heart and I want to call You my God every day and want to display actions reflecting Your lovely characters.  I am so glad You replaced my heart of stone with the living heart of flesh.  In Jesus' name.  Amen.

Hearing Before Taking Actions

[S] Revelation 3:22 --
 ²²'He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches.'"

[O] Hearing comes first before we can take any action because unless we have the information of what to do, there isn't much we can do.  When you learn a new language, the hearing opens up first so that the student will begin to hear what others say in that new language; then that student can repeat what he hears to start working on the pronunciation.  I believe same progression is required in learning "God's language."  I must first learn to hear His words correctly so I comprehend His information; and then I must replicate what I hear in my own life through right actions (also knowns as obedience).  As this verse sates, God wants me to hear what the Spirit says to me; however it also implies I need to have the faith to obey what I hear from Him even though at times it may not make any sense to me.  Just today we heard a message based on Jeremiah 38:14-23 titled, "The Danger of Unbelief" where King Zedekiah who was the last King of Israel had the opportunity to act according to God's commands because he had enough faith to want to hear God's words/instructions through Jeremiah but he had too much doubt to obey what he had heard.  And because of that he and his whole family were destroyed just as God had told him.

[A] Doing Life Journaling is a very good step to take but I feel I need to focus more on the "A"pplication section because without applying what God tells me will not really make the difference in my life to make any impact.  In order to take the right actions it will definitely require steps of faith on my part because God's ways are not my ways and my mind will play tricks on me to justify on not obeying His instructions.  I need to pray for discernment and wisdom to avoid such mistakes.

[P] Dear God, do continue to speak into my heart such that I would hear Your Spirit and to follow what I hear.  May my life transform by obeying one thing at a time from the daily devotions I have with You.  In Jesus' name.  Amen.

First Love, First

[S] Revelations 2:3-4 --
 ³and you have perseverance and have endured for My name's sake, and have not grown weary.
 ⁴'But I have this against you, that you have left your first love.


[O] Perseverance and endurance to serve God and to keep His name holy is all good, but they must originate from the first love of God.  Without the love these will only turn into my own efforts of doing God's work without relying on God.

[A] Must re-examine my heart daily as I involve myself into His ministry.  Is it based on the first love or based on my own efforts of keeping up with the ministry?

[P] Dear God, please keep my heart warm with Your first love!  I want to please You with my first love kindled at all times even before carrying out Your ministry.  In Jesus' name.  Amen.

As Parched Land Thirsts For Rain

[S] Psalm 143:6 --
    ⁶I stretch out my hands to You;
         My soul longs for You, as a parched land. Selah.

[O] This passage reminds me of a story where a seminarian went to his professor and asked:  Would you teach me the right way to pray to God?  The professor asked the student to follow him down to the swimming pool and he suddenly pushed him into the pool.  The surprised student came up and grabbed the side of the pool to get out when the professor grabbed his head and pushed him down under water and kept it there for a few seconds and then let go.  The surely-surprised and angry student finally came out of the pool and challenged the professor what was that all about.  The professor calmly explained:  That's how you should pray to God -- in total desperation just like how you were trying to get some air.  I wonder how desperate I am seeking God.  Is my soul longing for Him as a parched land?  In NLT version it says: I thirst for you as parched land thirsts for rain.  Many times, I don't realize how parched my soul is and so not desperate for the refreshing rain from God.

[A] Stretch out my hands to God and seek the refreshing rain of His sweet Spirit to quench the thirst of my soul every day.  This definitely includes doing the devotions, but also the fact of realizing how dried up my soul is and to request His rain to fall on me.

[P] Dear God, rain on me with Your quenching Spirit today.  May my soul be rejuvenated with the refreshing power from You above.  In Jesus' name.  Amen.

Humility Before Teachable Heart

[S] 3 John 1:9 --
 ⁹I wrote something to the church; but Diotrephes, who loves to be first among them, does not accept what we say.

[O] Diotrephes refused to accept the teachings and leadership of John (the Apostles) because he wanted to be the leader instead.  Leadership positions are not born or claimed but needs to be earned through mutual respect.  This respect is established when we are humble toward each other and seek to be servant leaders rather than the top-down-dictator-style leaders.  And every leader disrespect of his position needs a leader he looks up to for guidance; however, if they all want to be the first among others, then there won't be any unity stirring up pure disorder.  Saying it a slightly different way, every leader must have teachable a heart to be an effective leader.

[A] Never catch myself at the top looking down at everyone; rather, be on my knees looking up to everyone I serve.  With so many factors in life this is not the easiest to do so need to apply wisdom and practical thoughts in order to be the servant leader with a teachable heart.

[P] Dear God, give me a teachable heart so You and other leaders I go under may mold my heart to become a leader that You desire me to become.  I struggle a lot on how to be such a leader at home, work, and in ministry so I ask for Your wisdom to lead me every day.  In Jesus' name.  Amen.

If You Heard It, Then Follow It

[S] Jeremiah 38:24 --
 ²⁴Then Zedekiah said to Jeremiah, "Let no man know about these words and you will not die.

[O] This statement (scene) is very ironical because it is King Zedekiah who should've been concerned about dying and not Jeremiah.  Although it is true that Jeremiah had many people seeking to kill him, Jeremiah was not afraid because he had already surrendered his life to God and trusted Him to protect him; and even if not, he will still be God's presence dead of alive.  However, Zedekiah had a much greater choice to make here about whether to trust and follow God or to stay in his own comfort zone of safety (he was deceiving himself).  Especially knowing what happens to him later, Zedekiah's ignoring of God's warning to him was a bad mistake, but I also make similar mistakes of ignoring God's advice just like Zedekiah.

[A] If I'm not interested in following what God will advise me, don't even bother listening to Him.  Turning that around, if I am going to read or listen to God's word, then listen with the open heart of obeying His words.

[P] Dear God, Your care for me in this world full of so many people really touches me as I meditate on how You personally cared for Zedekiah and Ebed-melech.  Zedekiah refused to follow the personal message clearly presented to him while Ebed-melech trusted in God enough to save Jeremiah and You knew where each of them were and provided Your grace accordingly.  Thank You for being such a warm and personal God.  In Jesus' name.  Amen.