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11/02/24 Birth Pangs

Sometimes the responsibility of holding our offices of husband and father becomes pretty overwhelming, especially if we’re attempting to hold them in a way that pleases the Lord. Standing in the gap for another until Christ is fully formed in that person - which is very much a part of our duties as stewards - is hard work. Paul described the process as if being in the pains of childbirth.

My own experiences in laboring for my wife and family have sometimes seemed more than I can bear. It’s not that they had gone astray or were in such dire need of prayer outwardly; I just knew that they needed spiritual intervention, possibly to thwart off intended warfare by the enemy. In those times, it’s vitally important to remain in the gap for them, no matter what the cost might be.

Being a husband and father is no light duty. These offices are highly regarded by the Lord. They carry major responsibilities that are designed to benefit others rather than ourselves. It is a continual death to our own needs for the best interests of those He holds dear. It is sometimes painful, but most often incredibly rewarding as we see those we love prospering in Christ.

As you wait on God for your family, be ready to fight the fight for them at every opportunity. The labor pains may be intense at times, but the joy you are giving the Lord through your involvement in their lives is worth every effort put forth.

Let’s talk more!

Jim Corbett

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11/01/24 Rushing to God’s Heart

“Fools rush to their past sin. They focus on the world and its demands. My children rush to My heart. I call those I love to an intimacy with Me. It is there you will find everything needed to live the kind of life that Jesus lived. His kind of living overcomes the world.

“Come to intimacy. Come into My presence. Jesus has won that place for you. His death destroyed the barrier between us. His life is the example that you can follow. His power is yours if you choose to walk in it. His love gives you the right to call on My Name and be called by His.

“You are part of My plan. Come, so that I can show you your part. Come to Me, so that I can show you My love. Come to Me, so that I can show you My ways. Come to Me, so that you can know My heart. Come to Me just because you can. I am waiting.”

Luke 23:44-45 NIV

44) It was now about the sixth hour, and darkness came over the whole land until the ninth hour,

45) for the sun stopped shining. And the curtain of the temple was torn in two.

Hebrews 4:16 NIV

Let us then approach the throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need.

 

Access to the inner chambers of God has been provided for us by the work of Jesus on the cross. His death and subsequent resurrection opened the door of communication for us. We now have unlimited audience with God whenever we have any kind of need, question, or just a desire to spend time with Him. It is one of the covenant commitments God made with Jesus for us. In God’s eyes, we have exchanged our old carnal life for a new spiritual life that is accepted by Him forever. The covenant cannot be broken.

In prayer, there is a connection between what God does and what you are to do. Prayer (communication with God) is the vehicle that Father God has established for us to navigate from the physical realm to the spiritual realm and back again to accomplish His will from heaven to earth through us.

Through this communication and because of the work of Jesus, God brings Himself, His plans, and His very being into His established tabernacles – us. Within the communication, we present our requests for all that is necessary for us to become who we need to be. Our Father also communicates His will to us. It is true communication between the Creator and His creation, with Father God all the while fine tuning our encounters with Him through the Holy Spirit.

Teach me how to stay there, Lord,

Jim Corbett

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11/01/24 Nothing of Ourselves

If you are like most of us guys, plans, ideas, challenges, and a myriad of other mind games consume our time and cause us to seek outcomes that seem logical to us. We think our way into scenarios, feeling that it’s part of our function as husbands and fathers. Although planning for the future is good and necessary, plans that originate with “logical us” instead of God easily crop up, and a life ordained by us doesn’t glorify Him.

Although our Father in heaven wants us to steward our time wisely and make our days count, He is training us to leave every moment we live in His hands.  For most of us, that’s a hard thing to do even though we know that it’s right and it’s what Jesus did. He fully submitted to His Father’s will, doing nothing of Himself.

There’s probably not much you and I can do about how we’ve taken charge of our lives in the past. There is, however, an awful lot we can do from this time forward. Wisdom would say that it’s time for each of us to fully surrender to the Lord in every area of our lives. The example of Jesus fully surrendering His every thought, action, desire, and outcome to His Father is a pattern that pleases the heart of God. It’s also a formula for success as He sees it.

Let’s talk more!

Jim Corbett

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10/31/24 His Love Never Changes

“My heart is really with those of you who are selling out to Me. Thank you. I have great love for all of My children. What you do or don’t do does not determine how much I love you. My love never changes. Your desire to press in and know Me does, however, allow Me to reveal more of Myself to you. I can show My plans to you. I can share My heart. We can work on yours together. Thank you for hearing My call to holiness. Thank you for pressing in and desiring intimacy. I am delighted when My children understand My ways and walk in obedience to them. My ways always lead to intimacy.”

Matthew 19:14 NIV

Jesus said, “Let the little children come to me, and do not hinder them, for the kingdom of heaven belongs to such as these.”

Mark 6:30-32 NIV

30) The apostles gathered around Jesus and reported to him all they had done and taught.

31) Then, because so many people were coming and going that they did not even have a chance to eat, he said to them, “Come with me by yourselves to a quiet place and get some rest.”

32) So they went away by themselves in a boat to a solitary place.

John 5:19-20 NIV

19)  Jesus gave them this answer: “‘I tell you the truth, the Son can do nothing by himself; he can do only what he sees his Father doing, because whatever the Father does the Son also does.

20) For the Father loves the Son and shows him all he does.”

 

Jesus was always showing us His relationship with His Father, so that we would emulate Him when He restored our relationship with Father God. So many of us miss one of the most important results of the death and resurrection of Jesus—our acceptance into the presence of God. No small thing!

Immature believers go to God for things. Mature believers go for more of God and His ways. The mature heart longs to please God and is a wonder to behold. This is the passionate heart of Jesus. It is also the bridal heart, prepared and waiting for Christ, the one that will overcome and even prosper during the perilous times ahead. As Jesus is one with the Father, the mature or bridal heart beats in unison with Them both.

This heart sees only the Father’s will as important, only the Father’s plans as worth addressing throughout life. The world, the cold church, and all else in the physical realm hold no audience with this heart. There is no purpose but God’s purpose, no plan but God’s plan, no future but God’s future. This heart is untouchable in its alliance with God. It is in total freedom in its chosen “slavery” to only the Father’s will.

Develop a mature heart in me, Lord,

Jim Corbett

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10/31/24 The Husband Bride

When I first came to the Lord, I couldn’t comprehend how a man could also be part of the bride of Christ. “Macho Me” had great difficulty surrendering my masculinity to some bridal story in which I was to play a part.

Over the years, I have learned of the wonder and privilege I have as a member of God’s family, and how I was to prepare for my role as a man, a husband, a father, and a waiting bride. I learned that the epitome of being a man is to prepare myself for Jesus as a waiting bride would prepare for her wedding day. I’m to be sincere about my intentions, focused on my preparations, and meticulous about my appearance before Him. I am to prepare to honor Him and join myself with Him, having gained His kind of heart through my preparation - all for His joy and glory. I want to do that!

Let’s talk more!

Jim Corbett

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