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11/11/24 Press in Now

“Press in. Press in to Me for whatever part of the character of Jesus that’s needed in your life. You need to respond to My call during this season. You will need the wisdom I have for you. You will need the faith that you will gain by Our fellowship. I am about to test those who say that they have little need of Me. I am about to break the pride of those who will not serve Me now but are Mine. You press in now. Gain what I have for you. Carry what I give you to those who will be reeling from My hand upon them. My hand will bring them to their knees. My heart will hold them while you show them Jesus. Press in now!”

John 20:21 NIV

Again Jesus said, “Peace be with you! As the Father has sent me, I am sending you.”

Rom. 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 but, 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.

II Cor. 1:3-4 AMP

3) Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of sympathy (pity and mercy) and the God [Who is the Source] of every comfort (consolation and encouragement),

4) Who comforts (consoles and encourages) us in every trouble (calamity and affliction), so that we may also be able to comfort (console and encourage) those who are in any kind of trouble or distress, with the comfort (consolation and encouragement) with which we ourselves are comforted (consoled and encouraged) by God.

II Cor. 5:20a NIV

We are therefore Christ’s ambassadors, as though God were making his appeal through us.

 

So often we forget what our real purpose is. We become so involved with the matters of our own lives and the needs of our own hearts that we pass by so many opportunities given to us by the Lord. The world really does take care of its own in its own way. We are called to take care of our Father’s children in His way. His way is the way of Jesus. His way has eternal value, not temporal fixes.

Send me with Your heart, Lord,

Jim Corbett

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11/11/24 Pursuing a Higher Standard

As a husband and father, would you do anything to change your ways if you realized the lives of your wife and children are gifts that will be presented to God one day? Who they become will be laid at the feet of our Lord. Because you hold these offices, you’re a steward of those lives. You’re responsible to provide an atmosphere for them to become all they can be in Christ and you’ll answer to God for the result.

You see, as Christian men, you and I are called to a higher standard than those who live in the world. We’re to love more, serve more, and have God’s higher purposes in mind for everything we do. We are God’s representatives on this earth. He owns our lives, which makes us stewards of them for His honor and glory.

In the world, husbands and fathers are considered a success if their marriage is outwardly OK and their children are accepted by society’s standards. You have a higher call. God asks that your marriage be an example of the relationship of Christ and His church. He asks that your children come to know Him personally through their submission to Jesus as their Savior and Lord and serve Him with all their hearts. He asks you to pave the way for that to happen through the power of the Holy Spirit. Success in His eyes is far different than the supposed success of the world. Which will you choose?

Let’s talk more!

Jim Corbett

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11/09/24 Look Beyond the Fear

“Fear is a tactic used by the enemy to nullify your effectiveness. When you fear, you make improper decisions and rash judgments. You tend to look at your circumstances and then attempt to change them on your own. Usually that brings you to a place that is not My perfect place for you. When you are driven anywhere by fear, much time is required to bring you back to a place of real safety in Me.

 “I ask you, My children, to determine in your heart to stand in the freedom that you have found in Me. Do not be moved by those things that challenge your physical security. Be moved by the things that allow you to remain free, no matter what is transpiring around you. That is your real place of safety.”

Luke 10:19 KJV

“Behold, I give unto you power to tread on serpents and scorpions, and over all the power of the enemy; and nothing shall by any means hurt you.”

2 Cor. 10:5 AMP

[Inasmuch as we] refute arguments and theories and reasonings and every proud and lofty thing that sets itself up against the [true] knowledge of God; and we lead every thought and purpose away captive into the obedience of Christ (the Messiah, the Anointed One),

Gal.5:1 NIV

It is for freedom that Christ has set us free. Stand firm, then, and do not let yourselves be burdened again by a yoke of slavery.

 

During my early years with the Lord, one of the subdivisions near my home blocked off two streets during the Halloween season. About sixty houses on those two streets went all out in decorating their homes with the most macabre scenes I have ever seen. Most were animated in some way, and sometimes people would hide behind bushes and jump out when you passed by. You could only walk down the streets, which added to the fright of the night. There was an astounding darkness that encompassed the times that the displays were up, and thousands upon thousands of people came with their children.

(To combat the darkness, we set up a brightly lit, human demonstration of the recording, “The Champion,” by Carman. In the midst of all of the horror, every five minutes or so, the words “Jesus is the Champion” rang out throughout the night. Many people came to the Lord. The Halloween celebrants of the subdivision didn’t like us at all, but that’s another story)

During one of the evenings, a man - having just walked through one of the dark roads with his screaming four or five-year-old child on his shoulders - dropped the child hard to the ground and proceeded to scold him. The child was frightened beyond normal fear. He was shaking uncontrollably. Then the dad jerked the child away after repeated tongue lashings and nasty remarks, mainly focused on what a wimp he considered his son. He kept asking, “Why are you always so afraid?”

Fear is a very real weapon, which Satan will continually employ to try to nullify us. He uses it to capture his people. He also tries to inundate God’s children by using fear to get us to react to whatever is making us afraid, instead of relying on God. The most important action anyone can take when fearful is to draw close to God. He calls us to become familiar with His presence, to practice it during times of peace, so that we are comfortable being there when things get rough.

God is the source of our peace. He knows that when we are in His presence - sitting on His lap, and viewing our challenges from His lofty perspective, high above the din - we are where we have been born to be. From there He whispers His love to our heart, drowning out any clatter of fear.

Throwing down the junk and tucking in with my Father,

Jim Corbett

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11/09/24 Just Say Yes

Make sure you respond to the call God has for your life. Make sure you don’t choose to take the easier road by living a life that’s different than God intended.

If you follow hard after God, you’ll probably feel like you’re on the outside looking in within the church. I'm not talking about doing weird things that discredit the integrity of the Gospel. I mean that if you follow the example of the life of Jesus and move only when and where God tells you, people will not understand. You may find yourself giving away your possessions, taking a lesser job so you can reach people, or - heaven forbid - trusting God completely for your provision while you go into full time service.

One of the most heart-wrenching sights you'll ever see is the  emptiness in the eyes of those who have not responded to the call of God, usually because of fear or their lust for worldly goods. Those desires may be simple things, like security, new clothes, or a new car. They understand deep down that they have heard the call of their Creator and have said "no" when asked to fulfill His desires for their lives. Nothing,  absolutely nothing, will satisfy the emptiness of soul that follows.

After saying “no” to the Lord, most of them eventually find themselves working feverishly at some other ministry or filling a myriad  of church positions to cover up the emptiness. The end result is almost always an involvement with other weary, often critical people who are also doing good works, attempting to make a difference of some sort to cover their pain, rather than following after God's original plan for their lives. How sad! How grievous to God. Just say yes!

Let’s talk more!

Jim Corbett

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11/08/24 Overcome Selfishness through Service

“When Jesus died, He was thinking of everyone but Himself. It was the perfect act of selflessness and set the pattern for you to live. If you focus only on yourself and your needs, you have little or no time to think of the needs of others. Not only are you useless to My plans, but you become useless to those around you. Selfishness is murderous to any relationship. It hinders Me from pouring My wealth into you because you will misuse it. It eventually kills any hope of service to others. It also destroys the ability for those around you to see the heart of Jesus through how you act. Overcome selfishness through service. Serve as Jesus served. Come to Me to learn His heart and to gain Mine. Then walk in Our love toward others.”

Exodus 17:12 AMP

But Moses’ hands were heavy and grew weary. So [the other men] took a stone and put it under him and he sat on it. Then Aaron and Hur held up his hands, one on one side and one on the other side; so his hands were steady until the going down of the sun.

Joshua 24:15 NIV

“But if serving the Lord seems undesirable to you, then choose for yourselves this day whom you will serve, whether the gods your forefathers served beyond the River, or the gods of the Amorites, in whose land you are living. But as for me and my household, we will serve the Lord.”

Proverbs 3:5-6 NIV

5) Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding;

6) in all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make your paths straight.

Luke 12:19-21 NIV

19) ‘And I’ll say to myself, “You have plenty of good things laid up for many years. Take life easy; eat, drink, and be merry.” ’

20) “But God said to him, ’You fool! This very night your life will be demanded from you. Then who will get what you have prepared for yourself?’

21) “This is how it will be with anyone who stores up things for himself but is not rich toward God.”

Luke 23:34a NIV

Jesus said, “Father, forgive them, for they do not know what they are doing.”

 

The fastest way to stop someone from seeing the heart of Jesus in your actions is to think and act only for yourself. Walking past the needs of others is the opposite of the heart of Jesus. Going to Father God with a continual laundry list does not resemble nor define the kind of relationship for which Jesus died. Consuming what you have been given on yourself consumes wealth designed for Kingdom use.

Teach me Your ways, Lord,

Jim Corbett

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