Tag: Faith

“Look closely at those whom I have placed in your life. Pray to see why they are there. Some are there to expose who you really are. Others are there to represent who I am. Still others are there simply to bless you with what I have done in them. Nothing is by chance when you are part of My life. Make sure you begin to honor each moment that you have breath. Time is passing and you will miss much that I have for you if you only concentrate on your needs. Cherish everything. Enjoy the days that are yours. Make sure that when your time is complete, you have few regrets because of wasted moments, inordinate fears, or broken relationships. You can never recoup what was planned through them once they have passed. Stop looking only for results. Enjoy Our trip together and with others that I give you. I designed it especially for you.”

Eccl. 3:1 AMP

to everything there is a season, and a time for every matter or purpose under heaven:

Ps. 90:12 AMP

So teach us to number our days, that we may get us a heart of wisdom.

Romans 15:1-7 NIV

1) “We who are strong ought to bear with the failings of the weak and not to please ourselves.

2) Each of us should please his neighbor for his good, to build him up.

3) For even Christ did not please himself, as it is written: “The insults of those who insult you have fallen on me”

4) For everything that was written in the past was written to teach us, so that through endurance and the encouragement of the Scriptures we might have hope.

5) May the God who gives endurance and encouragement give you a spirit of unity among yourselves as you follow Christ Jesus,

6) so that with one heart and mouth you may glorify the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ.

7) Accept one another, then, just as Christ accepted you, in order to bring praise to God.”

 

I have the great honor of being an observer and sometimes, it seems, almost a participant in the lives of certain people who are experiencing a Christ-like, God-ordained life modification. They are going through challenges that are forming them into the image of Jesus. It is incredibly exciting to witness astounding growth, as they submit to heavy trials, joyful times, and everything in between.

What is most interesting, as I observe their lives, is how real it all is. They are the Gospel of Jesus Christ, the work of the cross, and the power of the resurrection from the tomb being worked out and fulfilled right before my eyes. As they are being formed, I am seeing how truthful the Word and its promises really are. How horrible it would be to have missed the opportunity by deciding not to get involved.

Thank You for every Christ–life experience,

Jim Corbett

“Repentance is the only way to win My favor. There can be no intimate interaction between Us unless you maintain a humble, submissive heart. I have toppled kingdoms because of their pride in their own strength and resources. I have delayed My provision to them in time of need. I have used the unlikely, the underdog, the seemingly weak to destroy their pompous attitude and humble them for all the world to see. When they came to repentance, I restored My lifeline to them so that they once again could accomplish My work.

“For many years I have called you, My people, to repentance. I have asked you to humble yourself so that I can move freely through you. Instead of seeking Me with an open heart, allowing My Holy Spirit to expose every hidden sin, you have chosen to correct the wrongs that you see in those who do not know Me. You have attempted to change your world and call it My way of doing things. That is pride, and I am not with you in it. How much success have you had? How much closer has the world drawn to Me? If you are truthful, even with all your activity, things have gotten darker. You have also become weaker because you have been too busy to spend enough time with Me to gain My strength and hear My heart.

“How long must I continue to call you before you hear Me? What will it take before you understand that My goal is your proud heart, not your zealous activities that look like My work. You need to wake up! You need to rediscover what I originally taught you. If you look back through the corridors of time, you will observe the religious activity and the prideful attitude of those who believed they were doing My work. In reality, they were very busy maintaining their own lordship immediately before I humbled them, whether they be nations or individuals. It will be like looking in a mirror. That should terrify you enough to bring you to repentance. You know what is coming next if you don’t! I will humble you.”

 2 Samuel 14:14 NIV

“God does not take away life, instead he devises ways so that a banished person may no longer remain estranged from him.”

2 Chronicles 7:13-14 NIV

13) “When I shut up the heavens so that there is no rain, or command the locusts to devour the land or send a plague among my people,

14) if my people, who are called by my name, will humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven and will forgive their sin and will heal their land.” ( Another translation reads, ”I will hear THEM from heaven…”)

 

In the time that I have been a follower of Jesus Christ, I have lived through the foolishness of the fist-waving, foot-stomping, devil-commanding, power-praying, finger-pointing, people-condemning, sign-carrying, bible-thumping, rights-demanding, holier-than-thou spectacle that some call Christianity. In a specific time of need, I have seen thousands of people attend rallies designed to unite themselves against the enemy.

One such rally even called in a “Christian minister” who called himself a maledictionist. He was called to bring curses down upon the particular enemy of that time. Thousands attended that meeting. It was shameful. All the world saw the foolishness done in the Name of Jesus to change our world.

What is so fascinating about almost all of these functions is that the 2 Chronicles 7:14 verse above is used as a rallying cry for their justification. It is held high as the definitive verse to show the righteousness of our battle, the sureness of our victory.

I have meditated long and hard on 2 Chronicles 7:14 and have come to the conclusion that it means exactly what is very clear the first time you read it. God was calling His people (Christians) to repent of their own sins if they wanted their land healed, not come against the wrongs in the land and those committing them. We are to represent the character of Jesus to them so that they might accept Him and turn from their wicked ways through His power.

That is not a very popular position to take. The usual immediate response when pointing to the verse and taking it word for word is, “You mean we are supposed to sit around and do nothing?” It is as if humbling ourselves, praying, seeking the face of God, and turning from our wicked, prideful, not needing God ways is far behind “rallying for a cause” on the fruitful works activities list. Seemingly, praying, repenting, and seeking God with all our hearts are considered inactivity, rather than the most honored activity of our Lord.

A good friend of mine said the Lord told him that we are at a crossroads, as a people and as a nation. I totally agree with him. I would suggest, however, that we have been there for some time. God, in His graciousness, has been calling us to intimacy through repentance for quite a while. He has used the incredible sin in our land to drive those who see it to their knees and remind us of our own desire to be independent of Him. He has also used it to show us that we would rather proclaim His promises, use His Words, and flaunt our heritage before those who are needing Jesus, than humble ourselves, pray, seek His face, and turn from our wicked ways, asking for forgiveness of our sins. That act alone testifies of the pride and independence that He is after in each of us.

Forgive me, Lord,

Jim Corbett

“Compare your petitions to Me with those who have gone before you! Include those who were passionate to bring glory to Jesus on their way to the arena that was filled with waiting lions and jeering crowds. Examine your heart and your needs to see if your requests have value in the light of eternity. How much of what you request from Me is for the well-being of others? How much is for your comfort, rather than for your desire to go deeper with Me no matter what the cost?

"Is there ever a time that you come to Me wanting nothing for yourself? Have you ever had only My plans in mind and seek Me to implement them in My power? Have you ever sought Me for the power to defend My reputation and the reputation of Jesus? Have you ever wept for how most of the church offends Me with their weak religion and carnal presentation of My cherished Word? Have you ever waited in My presence until you knew for sure what the desires of My heart were? Do you think that maybe it’s time for you to grow up? I do!”

Exodus 33:13a NIV  

“If I have found favor in your eyes, teach me your ways so I may know you and continue to find favor with you.”

Isaiah 55:8-9 NIV

8) “For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways,” declares the Lord.

9) “As the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts.”

 

In our pride and selfishness, we miss so much of what the Lord really has for us. We whine and squirm throughout most of the trials that have been sent our way to purify us, missing the point for them. Our attentions are so self-focused that the Lord can rarely use us to implement what is on His heart for those in our little world.

I am convinced that if ever the Lord would show us the comparison of our lives to the passionate life that He intends for us, we would be amazed and ashamed as to how far off course we are most of the time as we move in concert with our own needs, rather than in His desires for us.

Forgive me, Lord! Change my heart,

Jim Corbett