12/16/20 Time to Respond

Why is it we so often need to be afflicted in order to consent to being changed?  If only we could respond when, as the Word states, His kindness leads us to repentance.

I believe the key lies in getting to know our God, and coming to an understanding of Who Jesus really is.  If we don’t really know Who Jesus is, how can we know what we ought to be like?  The more we know Him, the clearer it becomes Who He isn’t.  With Him as our example, we begin to see those things in us which are not acceptable - things we just didn’t consider all that serious before they were exposed by God’s Truth - Jesus.

The world can’t possibly see Jesus if they see only us. Our families will need to find some other way to know Him if we don’t choose to know Him ourselves. They won’t be able to rely on us to help them find truth. Our offices of husband and father will become those of a weak steward. That is not a good thing!

“Lord, please draw us.  We can only pursue a relationship with You and choose Your ways over our ways by Your grace - whether it be through kindness or affliction. Help us, Lord!”

Let’s talk more!

Jim Corbett

Open post

12/15/20 Enveloped in His Presence

“When was the last time you were so caught up in worship that time had no meaning? How often do you rejoice in My presence? When has honest praise enveloped your entire being to the point that nothing else mattered? Have you ever been so aware of our intimacy that you were dropped to your knees by My power? These postures are your heritage and should be your daily experience! You are designed to be enveloped in My presence. You have been reborn to become intimate with Me.

"To enter into the kind of wealth that is yours will cost you, however. The price is a readjustment of your priorities. I must be first, last, and everything in between in your life. I must never be your second place. You have no idea how much you miss by having other loves. You have no idea how much you will gain by practicing a life of having Me as your first love. Study My Word and see what Jesus has done for you. Ask Me to show you what I have provided for your life. It is foolish to settle for less.”

 Psalm 37:4 NIV

Delight yourself in the Lord and he will give you the desires of your heart.

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!)

 

It amazes me how we are willing to settle for scraps in the street when we have been invited to a daily banquet of the presence of our Lord. To know the heart of God, understand our portion in His kingdom, have astounding peace for any and every situation, dwell in our rightful place of intimacy with the Almighty, and be able to pour the wealth of our Lord into anyone and everyone who needs it, only come from one place. They are only available after we make the unalterable decision to give God His rightful place of being truly first in every moment of our lives.

Prioritize my life, Lord,

Jim Corbett

12/15/20 Are You Ready?

One day, possibly early in the morning, a worn sandal touched the edge of the Jordan River. The time had come for the next portion of the plans of God to be set in motion. Quietly, with no fanfare except for the comments made by John, the baptizer, the eternal consequences of people’s choices from that time onward would be made known to them. The people who lived in that time period would need to conform to the plan that unfolded before them, whether they wanted to or not. Their lives had changed from that very moment. No one could stop what had been set in motion. This season in the plan of God will continue until He says it’s over.

Shortly before this season concludes, it is generally believed that an application of grace will be available to the end generation of people, so that they might reveal to the world the true character of Jesus Christ. It is also an accepted teaching that there will be a wooing, or heralding, to draw intimately close to Jesus for those Christians who choose to be a part of that move of God, shortly before the final call.

For several years now, the discerning ones within the church have sensed that particular wooing to holiness, an exhortation to deep repentance, a bridal call to single-heartedness and complete submission to the will of God.  Make no mistake, as sure as the times changed when that sandal of the Messiah was on the edge of the Jordan, the present times will change when the Lord decides to finalize His current bridal call. Have you responded?  Maybe you, as a husband and father, should consider doing so before He says, “Enough; all is completed.” Maybe those you are a steward of will benefit from your decision to prepare spiritually for what is ahead. What do you think?

Let’s talk more!

Jim Corbett

 

Open post

12/14/20 Every Step of the Way

“You need to never fear. I have always taken care of those who are called by My Name. I hover over you with a jealous love, one that can never be extinguished. In time, you will understand the fullness and depth of that love. For now, however, I am able to reveal only portions that you can comprehend. Under no circumstances should you think that I have left you. That is impossible for Me to do. I have placed My Spirit within your inner being. I am part of you.

"With that confidence, you can overcome any and every circumstance that comes your way. You can be assured without a doubt that all works together for good, even those things that look bad at the time. One day you will see My love at work in them. One day you will be able to comprehend the fullness of My plan. One day you will understand your part as I reveal why things unfolded as they did. You will see My love at work. For now, you become obedient to My Word. You walk in My precepts. You live the life that I have planned for you. I will be with you every step of the way. I love you.”

Isaiah 38:17 NIV

Surely it was for my benefit that I suffered such anguish. In your love you kept me from the pit of destruction; you have put all my sins behind your back.

Jude 21-23 NIV

21) Keep yourselves in God’s love as you wait for the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ to bring you to eternal life.

22) Be merciful to those who doubt;

23) snatch others from the fire and save them; to others show mercy, mixed with fear-hating even the clothing stained by corrupt flesh.

 

Walking in God’s love means something very different to me the longer I study the Word. When I first came to the Lord, His love was all about my freedom, comfort, safety, and pleasure.  His love was a tickly, feely, emotional kind of thing that I used for my benefit and hung onto because of my desperate need for a reminder of my physical safety in Him. Although I do believe that I was allowed to experience that portion of His love to help me through my brokenness, limiting the Lord to that perspective throughout life would condemn me to the milk of His character and His Word.

I believe the strong meat of His Word only comes through an understanding that the love of God has little to do with the safety of my flesh. In fact, my flesh cannot survive the love of God. It is doomed under His Lordship.

My understanding of walking in God’s love certainly includes the uplifting, emotional aspect; but also the confidence and trust that He cares, no matter what circumstances result as I walk in obedience to Him. I can be confident that His love brought me to a relationship with Him through Jesus Christ. I am safe forever. In that relationship, however, my part is His purpose and His purpose alone, no matter what that might bring.

Wanting to understand more each day,

Jim Corbett

12/14/20 If Someone Would Only Say I’m Sorry!

Without knowing it, most people are walking around with a wounded spirit because of the harm someone has caused them in the past. We may have forgiven them, which is the only way to bring about complete healing; but somehow the pain just doesn’t go away. What we don’t know is that our spirit, in essence, has a hole in it. It is as if we have been stabbed, possibly many times, by the words or actions of others. We are trying to function as if we’re whole; but, in reality, we’re attempting to cover our wounds with a tiny bandage to stop the bleeding, while continuing on with life. Spiritual wounds are very real and very debilitating.

When asked, I have found that most people who walk in woundedness have never had anyone who wounded them say that they’re sorry, either because the offender is unaware or incapable, or the individual has passed away, leaving things unresolved. Standing in for those who can’t or won’t repent to the wounded person, I have said “I’m sorry. Please forgive me for all the harm I’ve caused you,” and I extend that apology to you as well as a representative of the man or woman who has harmed you and is incapable of asking for your forgiveness. Will you make the choice to forgive that person?

If you receive that apology, and can truly forgive the offender (whether man, woman, father, mother, family member, or friend) as if he or she had said the words, you will be well on your way to discovering why you have led a powerless life as a man, or why you keep attempting to find something to fill the void that you feel as a woman. Your healing has begun.

Let’s talk more!

Jim Corbett

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