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7/23/24 In Awe of God

“Do not defile what I call holy. Do not use My grace to be nonchalant about My commands and My heart issues. I need you to move your heart back to an awe of Me and My Word. You need to shake off the influences of your world and its manmade wonders. Your world has lifted itself up to diminish Who I am. It has determined what you should call holy and worthy of wonder. It attempts to tell you what to fear. Do not be fooled. Do not be taken in. I spoke the world into existence. Start there to regain your perspective.”

Gen. 1:31 NIV 

God saw all that he had made, and it was very good.

Psalm 111:2 NIV 

Great are the works of the Lord; they are pondered by all who delight in them.

Psalm 150:1-6 AMP 

1) Praise the Lord! Praise God in His sanctuary; praise Him in the heavens of His power!

2) Praise Him for His mighty acts; praise Him according to the abundance of His greatness!

3) Praise Him with trumpet sound; praise Him with lute and harp!

4) Praise Him with tambourine and [single or group] dance; praise Him with stringed and wind instruments or flutes!

5) Praise Him with resounding cymbals; praise Him with loud clashing cymbals!

6) Let everything that has breath and every breath of life praise the Lord! Praise the Lord! (Hallelujah!)

John 19:11 NIV

Jesus answered, “You would have no power over me if it were not given to you from above…”

Rom. 11:36 AMP  

For from Him and through Him and to Him are all things. [For all things originate with Him and come from Him; all things live through Him, and all things center in and tend to consummate and to end in Him.] To Him be glory forever! Amen (so be it).

 

We all love to sit in lofty places. No matter where we are in life, every one of us has a need to be in some form of control. Somehow, we need to be equal to or more than someone else. We have a desperate need to consider our opinion as valuable as anyone else’s. Sometimes we even feel that our way is better than God’s way.  It is called pride and Satan loves to have us wallow in it in any form.

The opposite of pride is full submission to the Lord and His ways over independence and having our own way—at all times. In that full submission, our wonder can only come from Him. Our awe originates in Him. Our every breath is understood to initiate in Him.

Nothing—not the supposed wisdom and authority that man says he has, not the accomplishments to which he can point; and especially, not the independence from God that he has established—should turn our heads from the wonder of our Lord in any way. God calls it foolishness. So should we.

You are my Wonder, Lord!

Jim Corbett

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7/23/24 Seasons

There are seasons in our lives that make us change or allow us to change either our direction or our way of living. If properly addressed, each season can make the difference between success or failure, sometimes even life or death.

There is a season upon us that requires critical attention. Because of political, social, and physical pressures, husbands and fathers will soon be traveling uncharted waters. Never before in the history of this land - and even this world - has there been a more critical time to understand, prepare, and act, if we and our families are to survive the challenges on the horizon. Soon, our lack of preparation may cause us to be wide-eyed and out of answers. When those we love look to us for guidance and direction, we will have none unless we turn to the Lord with diligence now.

In the season that is fast approaching, only spiritual prowess, an intimate relationship with our Father, and a clear understanding of His plan for our lives and the lives of our families will allow us to overcome the enemy of all we hold dear. As a Christian man overseeing a Christian family, we have been given a mandate to prepare properly for any season, so that those we are stewards of have an environment where they can prosper spiritually, too. How prepared are you for the challenging season that could be upon us at any moment?

Let’s talk more!

Jim Corbett

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7/22/24 Reflecting

“Prepare! Prepare your heart as a bride would prepare for that special day. Adorn yourself with the righteousness that is in Jesus. Submit to holiness. Become the mirror of the One Who died to attain your love.”

Hebrews 10:14 NIV

…because by one sacrifice he has made perfect forever those who are being made holy.

1 Peter 1:15-16 NIV

15) But just as he who called you is holy, so be holy in all you do;

16) for it is written: “Be holy, because I am holy.”

Rev. 19:7 KJV 

Let us be glad and rejoice, and give honor to him; for the marriage of the Lamb is come, and his wife hath made herself ready.

 

So many of us will regret the many wasted moments we’ve squandered in our lifetime, moments that we could’ve spent getting to know our Lord, rather than presenting foolish, self-serving petitions. The Revelation verse above indicates the responsibility of the wife of the Lamb to prepare herself, to make herself ready. It seems to me that the time has come for those who understand the times and seasons—who observe the signs and understand their implications—to awaken from the slumber of selfishness and prepare to please the Lord as their only priority.

Wake up my heart, Lord,

 Jim Corbett

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7/22/24 The Trojan Horse

We’re all familiar with the mythological story of the giant wooden horse that was left outside the walls of Troy and mistakenly identified by its citizens as a gift. Totally undiscerning, they brought it inside the city walls, making themselves completely vulnerable to attack. The Greek warriors inside the horse waited for the opportune moment, and then made a beeline for the city gates and opened them to let in the rest of the troops. End result: Troy is overrun and destroyed.

One of the most insidious measures used by the enemy in his attempt to destroy our marriages, wreak havoc in our families, and even weaken our walk with the Lord is busyness. It is a Trojan horse that incessantly tries to creep into our lives, sometimes without notice. It takes diligence and a watchful mentality to catch it before it is able to kill, steal, or destroy.

Urgency, other people’s agendas, job deadlines, church responsibilities, good causes, free time, etc. constantly surround us. All these things can be worthy of our attention, but not at the expense of neglecting our time with the Lord. When we become wrapped up in busyness, we lose our perspective on what really counts the most, and the enemy usually has little trouble defeating us in crucial areas of our lives.

Long ago, a very wise person shared with me that our lives are a series of decisions between the urgent and the important. The urgent looks very much like the important, but may have nothing to do with God’s plan for our lives. The important things are those things God desires us to address. They further the kingdom of God, glorify Jesus, reinforce family values, and undergird children who on their way to living significant lives.

Isn’t it time to become aware of any Trojan horses that have been sent your way to kill, steal, and destroy? Isn’t it time to practice discerning the difference between those things that are important and those things that are simply urgent? Better yet, isn’t it best to spend time with the Lord to know which things He’s asked you to participate in on His behalf?

Let’s talk more!

Jim Corbett

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7/20/24 Called to Account

“You need a clear understanding of accountability. I am the only one Who can really call you to account. Because of My grace and My mercy, that prospect is good for you. Because I am a Righteous Judge, some of you will be very surprised. I will honor My Word. I will judge your stewardship according to It. I will expose your real motives, not your actions.

“Some of you feel secure in your stewardship of My money, time, and My Word because you have been deceived. You have fallen for the lies of the uninformed and have managed everything from a place that allows you to remain comfortable, when others are hungry, physically and spiritually. That never was My way. It is your responsibility if you call yourself by Jesus’ Name.

“One day you will be exposed to absolute truth. Some of your gifts will not be gifts at all, because you gave them with a wrong heart. Some of your usage of My Word will be exposed for the horror that it is. Many of you have not redeemed your time by placing value on My moments for the sake of others. Turn your hearts while there is still enough time to do so. Come to Me and receive My perspective of your actions. You are accountable for what you know. It is best for you to know My truth.”

Psalm 106:12-15a AMP 

12) Then [Israel] believed His words [trusting in, relying on them]; they sang His praise.

13) But they hastily forgot His works; they did not [earnestly] wait for His plans [to develop] regarding them,

14) But lusted exceedingly in the wilderness and tempted and tried to restrain God [with their insistent desires] in the desert.

15) And He gave them their request, but sent leanness into their souls…

Isaiah 2:22 AMP  

Cease to trust in [weak, frail, and dying] man, whose breath is in his nostrils [for so short a time]; in what sense can he be counted as having intrinsic worth?

Hosea 4:6 AMP

My people are destroyed for lack of knowledge; because you [the priestly nation] have rejected knowledge…

Matthew 6:19-21 NIV 

19) “Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy, and where thieves break in and steal.

20) But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where moth and rust do not destroy, and where thieves do not break in and steal.

21) For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.”

Matthew 7:21-23 NIV 

21) “Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only he who does the will of my Father who is in heaven.

22) Many will say to me on that day, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name, and in your name drive out demons and perform many miracles?’

23) Then I will tell them plainly, ‘I never knew you. Away from me, you evildoers!’”

 

Just after Jesus left, being called a Christian or a follower of Jesus was something that truly set you apart. At first, there was an awe; people wanted to lift common followers up as gods. Others wanted to stone God’s messengers because of their uncompromising truth. Wherever they went, there was no mistaking that the presence of God had made an impact through those who bore the Name of the Crucified One, because they acted like the One they followed.

Today, we willingly deny God’s absolute truth in our actions if someone so much as threatens us from a distance. We compromise His ways and form them to our advantage, so that they fit into our puny worlds. We walk past the needs of others, even God’s workers; and side with other hypocrites to maintain our comfort. The Word has not changed! Jesus certainly has not changed. How can we really believe that our actions will not be judged by a Righteous Judge? Have we become so arrogant, so pompous, as to compromise His Word without so much as a check in our spirits?

Forgive me and change me, Lord,

Jim Corbett

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