March 11, 2019 (continued)
I’ve been learning more and more about the promises of God in the Bible. Our salvation is not by works, so don’t get me wrong with what I’m about to say; but, once we are saved God expects us to work for Him through our faith and because of our faith to share it with others. He will also bless us for it. This is one of those times that I wish I could do a brain dump. Getting the thoughts going through my mind at warp speed to come out on paper takes intentionality, and that can be hard for me at times. [Sigh… picture hair around my forehead being puffed up by the release of my breath.]
I’ve been learning what it means to truly rely on God and have Him be active in my life – not to do it passively or as a second thought or a last resort. And, while He’s always with me, I’ve really been learning what John 15 means. Specifically, John 15:5-8 has been speaking to me for some time now.
It says, “I am the vine; you are the branches. If you remain in me and I in you, you will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing. If you do not remain in me, you are like a branch that is thrown away and withers; such branches are picked up, thrown into the fire and burned. If you remain in me and my words remain in you, ask whatever you wish, and it will be done for you. This is to my Father’s glory, that you bear much fruit, showing yourselves to be my disciples” (NIV).
That sums up a lot of what I’ve been learning lately. I’ve been learning what it means to remain in Him and how to do that. There’s also the promise that Jesus gives in that verse. It almost seems too good to be true. I’ve had to take time to examine it a bit closer. I’ll go into that in a minute; but, do you see that last part about bearing fruit as Jesus’ disciples and it bringing God glory? I have a hard time explaining what the fullness of this Bible passage means to me. There are a lot of passages in the Bible to back up the various teaching points of these four verses.
Allow me to go into the promise that God gives us in this passage. I was looking for a caveat when I first read it. There is one, but not much of one really. It’s a promise with a narrow path, yet wide in berth at the same time. It’s found when He tells us that if we remain in Him and His words remain in us that we can ask whatever (emphasis is mine) and that it will be done for us. So, what does this mean exactly? It means that if I keep God at the center of my life and live life according to His will that He is willing to do a whole lot for me so that my life can be an example of His goodness – and that it will bring Him even more glory. It’s a win-win situation! Thank you, Jesus! So, that story that I mentioned about Dr. Jeffress’ daughter… that’s a perfect example. Now, no one is perfect, but I have to believe that she was living a life holy and pleasing to God and was bold enough and had enough crazy faith to ask God for something so specific. Her path was narrow in that she was following the will of God and how He wants us to live life as Christians and that allowed her to be wide open in what she asked God for as a blessing in her life. She was very specific and God chose to answer her prayers. By doing so He is now getting even more glory and more people have knowledge of how awesome our God can be when answering our prayers! You can be specific in your prayers. I also believe that God often wants us to be specific – it brings Him more glory! I believe that I have spoken about this in previous blog posts (?? If not, I will).
I’m being doubly specific in my prayers right now; well, maybe more than that. But, I’m asking God to bring Kyle back into my life after he introduced us to one another twice already (read this past blog post to see what I’m talking about https://waitingexpectantly.com/2018/10/20/gods-guidance-and-bold-prayers-part-2/). I’m also praying for it to happen in a way that God wows me and blows my mind again. I have an idea in my head that would wow my heart. God’s wowed me already; I want to see how he’s going to do it this time when he reconnects us. I’m a romantic at heart, so we’ll see.
I’m also praying that it happens on a specific date (I’ll speak more to that below) – I don’t want to put God in a box – although some might say I’ve already done so by having a specific date in mind.
Dr. Robert Jeffress said, “Faith is not believing God will do what we want Him to do. Faith is believing God is who He says He is and acting accordingly.” Friend, that’s exactly what I’m doing. I’m examining the promises of God, my freedom in Him, and using what I believe to be God’s providential hand in my life to ask for this crazy prayer request and for God to answer the desires of my heart (which I believe match His will) by bringing back to me something that I believe He already ordained by showing me His knowledge and the longings of my heart in ways that I hadn’t even fully comprehended at that point.
There are also many miracles in the Bible! How about the resurrection of Jesus after His crucifixion on the cross. Or, what about Shadrack, Meshack, and Abednego in the fiery furnace. Now, that’s some bold faith! I could go on and on, but I think you get the point – God does all kinds of miracles in all sorts of situations!
God’s been working in my life to show me more of Him and His loving personality. I’ve learned of His promises, grace, mercy, hope, and forgiveness. But all of this can be summed up by saying that I’ve learned of His love for me (us as a people in general). That sounds so cliché, but it’s true. What if this is not just for me (His glory never is), but it’s meant to be a shining light for other people to see so they can see what crazy (bold) faith can do when you give God room to work?
Are you constantly trying to be in control of your life? Is it working – really? Where do you need to give God room to work in your life?
God Bless,
Penelope G.