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4/11/25 Journaling

I know that journaling may seem like a topic unrelated to raising up a child or restoring a marriage; but in reality, they work hand in hand because journaling only comes from quietly waiting on God. That kind of quiet – far from the din of everything we do as men - is so very important in receiving what is needed to overcome the challenges of marriage and child raising. Journaling those moments and reviewing what the Lord gives you can make an incredible difference over time.

In my research, I have found very few men who journal their quiet time with the Lord. Most say they simply don’t have the time, or that they don’t spend enough time with Him to require journaling. What an incredible indictment! That attitude is a perfect spawning ground for mediocre marriages and wayward children.

Think of this; sitting quietly with the Lord and allowing Him to minister to your spirit, give you insights into your challenges, and present you with answers and direction for your concerns. Then think about how important it would be for you to jot down all that He gives you. Now think about how important those notes and encouragements would be if you could refer to them weeks, months, or even years later. With journaling, you have unparalleled wealth at your fingertips whenever you need it. Journaling also allows you to remember His faithfulness in times past whenever you encounter a new challenge. It’s like treasure hidden away for a later date. Got a pen?

Let’s talk more!

Jim Corbett

4/10/25 Choose Your Camp Wisely

“For many years now, I have been telling you to prepare for the final fulfillment of My Word. Some of you have responded to My heralding with absolute abandon. You have seen the signs all around you that confirm what I have been telling you, and you have initiated whatever changes were needed to respond to My wooing. Life as you knew it has fallen away in your heart, and your only reason for existing is to be totally prepared and part of those who will usher in the coming of My Son. Even though things seem to take longer than expected, you remain faithful to what you know to be true in your heart.

“Others of you are just now responding to the events all around you. You are applying what is very evident before you because you see its application to My Word and are beginning to adjust your priorities. Things are changing so fast that their implications have become very clear. Soon, you will move with zeal in the direction of holiness because you will finally know that what once was in your world can never be again. You see it and are making proper decisions to apply your lives to what is happening. You have determined to be ready and will soon sell out completely to what you know to be truth.

“The remainder of My church does not, as of this time, understand where their priorities should be. They are still attempting to find only solace in Me for their personal needs, rather than responding to the Holy Spirit’s call to holiness. Their eyes are only on themselves and their desires for their kind of abundant life.

“My caution to them is to wake from your slumber. Shake loose from anything that hinders you from choosing holiness as your only desire. Exchange your old life for My new life in Jesus. There is still time, but do not wait too long.”

Isaiah 48:3 NIV

“I foretold the former things long ago, my mouth announced them and I made them known; then suddenly I acted, and they came to pass.”

The Lord always warns His people of what He is doing to accomplish His will and fulfill His plans. Throughout history, it seems that there have been several responses to what the Lord is saying at any given time. Basically, I see that these responses come in three seasons or waves.

I have observed that there are those who are very responsive to the slightest movement in the heavenlies. Their ears are so tuned to the heart of the Lord that He has a mouthpiece to herald His heart to begin to stir His people. This heralding begins at a time when there is little or no evidence of the heralding being needed. Usually, most do not hear what is being said; and these few are labeled as fanatics. Because of their great love for their Lord, however, they quietly press on, holding what they have been told in prayer and sharing only with those who have ears to hear.

I believe that the next group responds to concrete evidence and its application to the Word. Their great love for the Lord motivates them to be very sensitive to their world and its biblical application. Wanting to accomplish the Lord’s will, they recognize the times and seasons as they happen, and respond in kind. They implement on a large scale what the first group has been saying for a long time. Generally, it seems that this group hears what the Lord is saying in time to respond and move with Him to accomplish His will.

The third group usually submits to any movement of God only through great pressure. When things become too difficult for them to handle, they seek God’s help in solving their needs; and therefore do not move from their comfort zones unless it is absolutely necessary. They are only moved by what is best for them and usually miss much of what the Lord is really saying until it’s too late. When what was being proclaimed for a long time does come to pass, this group is usually scurrying to do just enough to get in on what is happening. Usually, it seems that they miss out completely.

Wanting to hear and respond quickly,

Jim Corbett

4/10/25 Getting Honest with Yourself

Men, if you are typical of the Christian man of today, you function as if you are unable to recognize your spiritual impotence to the point that you do not desire to see the character of Christ reproduced completely in you or in those around you as your priority in life. As a typical Christian man, you have chosen to set aside God’s desire for your life in order to fulfill your own concept of what your life should be, or maybe just survive in an incredibly difficult world. You feel that you are spiritually comfortable and adequate, and see no need to consistently act as Jesus would act and love as He would love in your family.

Like a gelded horse that no longer has an interest in mares, most of you have little Christ-like spiritual enthusiasm toward the people within your circle of influence or for your part in God’s plan for mankind. Remember, we are talking priorities. If you would really get honest with yourself, your thoughts are not continually on where others will spend eternity or on who they could become in this lifetime through your influence on them by the way you represent Jesus. Even the spiritual well-being of your family, those God has entrusted to you as His steward, falls somewhere behind economic challenges, your job demands, the home and yard work, the toys you want to acquire, and the sports teams you idolize. If this is you, you are impotent in discerning the things that are important to God.

As an example of your impotence, if you sports fans would also get honest with yourself, you’d admit you focus more on whatever teams you follow than on the spiritual condition of your wife and children. Even if you do care about their spirituality, you probably have little ability, little desire, and few tools to foster their spiritual growth, to do whatever it takes to have them able to present a significant life to God. If you are not that heavy into sports, you can substitute the word “sports” with any other personal god, such as worry, fear, work, success, money, or worldly power, etc., to which you’ve pledged your allegiance.

[Even attempting to gain a significant life for your own good shows your spiritual impotence.]

If you take that same “getting honest with yourself” and carry it further to the point of getting honest with God, you will have to admit that the things that are important to God have been placed somewhere behind the things that give you some semblance of purpose for your life here, not eternally. Focusing on your personal fulfillment for so long, you may have actually become impotent in even discerning the things that are important to God.

Think of the eternal impact of those last statements if they are true for your life. Ask the Lord to reveal how accurate they might be for you. They may not be exactly where you stand with God; but more than likely, they’re quite close to the spiritual impotence you experience every day, if you are like Christian men in general. To whatever degree you are dealing with spiritual impotence in your life, the sooner you realize and admit it, the sooner you will be on your way to a significant, world-overcoming life in God’s eyes.

(From The Father Factor by Jim and Merry Corbett)

Let’s talk more!

Jim Corbett

4/09/25 Just the Beginning

“You are seeing all things that I have created in your world so far fall in their place. Through My Word, you have seen the creations of the heavens and the earth. You have seen the creation and rebellion of My angelic beings. You have also seen the creation of mankind. Each and every one of My creations has an order that is to be followed and is functioning in My plan. I have designed it to be that way. There is no guesswork in anything that I do.

“Both My angelic creation and your creation have an initial period that allows proper choices to be made, and then there is a conclusion that fits within My overall plan. You are now part of the initial period - the earthly portion of your life. Your world, as you know it, will no longer exist once all of My purposes for it have been fulfilled. Once they are accomplished, you will remain with Me to fulfill the plans that I have for the eternal future. That may seem relatively unimportant at this moment in your life, but do not limit its impact in regard to your future.

“You need to remove your focus from the immediate and begin to realize that I have much more for you to do once your creation has fulfilled its initial purpose. Just as the angelic creation had a time to be involved in the playing out of their initial purpose to then function in My plan because of their choices, your involvement today directly impacts your future with Me. Your choice to serve Me was only the beginning. Your actions and daily choices have far more impact than you know.

“What you do each day, the choices you make, the decisions you follow, really play a part in your eternal future. Make proper choices. See a larger picture than what is presented to you each day by your life. I am a very creative God. Do not limit Me because you cannot see beyond what is happening in your little world.”

Joshua 24:15b NIV

“…then choose for yourselves this day whom you will serve…”

Matthew 24:35 NIV

“Heaven and earth will pass away, but my words will never pass away.”

I often wonder what the timeframe was that the angels had to make their decision to follow God. How much time did Lucifer have to influence that decision? How long did they function with God before the rebellion was exposed? Did they spend all of their “days” in the rebellion plot, weeding out those who would remain faithful to the Lord and those who would rebel, or did “life” go on as usual, in service to God, while all things were playing out?

I know that those things are not necessary for us to know in order to function or they would have been revealed to us through the Word. It is fascinating, however, to understand that there was some sort of timeframe whereby the angels functioned; and then there was a conclusion to life as they knew it for some of them. Once the heavenly rebellion was concluded and the “players” of God’s plan had solidified their positions by their actions, God went on to His next work – us.

Now we, as a human race, are in the same sort of initial timeframe that the angels had. We have been created. Biblical history has shown us of a rebellion - this time with a means for redemption through Jesus Christ - and this very day we are on our way to the conclusion of this timeframe in our lives. What happens next, only God knows.

What does seem of paramount importance, however, is how we redeem each moment that the Lord has given us before He closes this portion of history. Our days are definitely numbered. What we do with each one seems to have a definite impact on our function in God’s economy, not only for today; but also for the futures to come.

Needing to function in God’s plans, not mine,

Jim Corbett

4/09/25 Too Many Times

When I was young in the Lord, I had many besetting sins. Even though I loved the Lord with all my heart, the bondages had not yet fallen away. The Lord was removing them one at a time and I had many left to address.

Once after many failures, I cried out to the Lord, asking Him how He could continue to forgive me. It seemed like the thousandth time I had come to Him. In the quiet of the evening, He came to me and said, “Do you know that I forgive you no longer unto My remembrance? I don’t have a bad memory; I choose to forgive and forget, never remembering the last time you offended me. Your sins are as far as the East is from the West.” He then told me I had a million “forgivenesses” in my account and many more after that if I needed them.

Our Father is on our side. He knew how many times we would fail Him even before He asked us into His kingdom, and He still asked us! He is in the forgiveness business as long as we are in the repentance business. That means we always have His power available to us to do whatever tasks we may have on hand with the knowledge that He is with us.

Men, there are times when you and I fall down on the job concerning our families. If things are so bad that the possibility of reconciliation seems hopeless, we can be confident that the Lord is with us in our time of need. He is waiting for us to call out to Him, and by the power of His Holy Spirit, He will do whatever it takes to help us overcome our situation.

You can’t fall down one too many times. He will be there, enabling you to repent. Your life is His. It was His idea in the first place, and He delights in your need of Him.

Let’s talk more!

Jim Corbett

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