10.16.07
“A GODLY WITNESS!”
Isaiah 43:10-12
“You are my witnesses,’ declares the LORD, ‘and My servant whom I have chosen, so that you may know and believe Me and understand that I am He. Before Me no god was formed, nor will there be one after Me. I, even I, am the LORD, and apart from Me there is no Savior. I have revealed and saved and proclaimed— I, and not some foreign god among you. You are my witnesses’ declares the LORD, ‘that I am God.’ “
More and more I feel that I know less and less about the ways of God. There seems to be impossible situations in life that are beyond our comprehension and ability to control. When we pray, God does not always answer in the manner or in the timing that we would expect. Does that mean that God is unfair? No! It simply means that we cannot put God in the bottle of our own understanding.
God says that we are to be witnesses of His mighty presence, but so many time we are consumed with the gods of this world—money, jobs, prestige, family, church, sports, recreation, etc.—that we do not experience the presence and power of God Himself.
It is interesting that the list of man-made gods that I have just mentioned may be good things, even necessary things, but they can begin to control us in such a manner that God is pushed out of our life.
Knowing God and experiencing God is so fundamental to spiritual maturity that words fail to explain or describe the process. God has always desired that we as His children, know Him and enjoy Him. The problem with “things” in our life, is that they frequently separate us from our God.
Great care must be taken to spend quality time with God. It is only as we spend time with Him that we will be able to observe how He is working in our lives. In our flurry of activities, we can become so involved in other things that we do not see how God works. We pray for a particular matter, but quite often forget what we had prayed for; so when God answers, we fail to recognize the answer and Give Him the glory.
I have shared this with you before, but it is worth sharing again. Years ago we had a Prayer Chain Captain by the name of Blanche Laird. She was a dedicated prayer warrior of the highest order. Not only would she fervently pray for each prayer request as she passed it on to other members, but she would document the date and time of the request in a Prayer Notebook. In a separate column Blanche would record the time and manner in which the prayer was answered.
One day Blanche went to the Post Office and inadvertently left her Prayer Notebook on the counter. She was aghast to arrive at home and find it missing. She called the Post Office but nothing had been turned in at the counter. Blanche immediately took the matter to the Lord in prayer.
Meanwhile, back at the ranch so-to-speak, a young woman from a law office had gone to pick up the mail. She had accidentally also picked up the “Prayer Notebook.” My wife, Joyce, was working in the same office at the time. The young woman asked Joyce if she knew a Blanche Laird? Joyce replied that she did and that Blanche was the Prayer Chain captain at our church.
That young woman was stunned to read the requests and especially that almost all of them had a notation as to when and how the prayer had been answered. In that moment in time, she knew that there is a God in heaven who not only hears when we pray, but He answers! Do you?
How strong is our faith? Do we believe God enough to bring all of our needs and concerns to Him and then watch carefully as He demonstrates His plan and purpose? May we be doers of His Word, not simply hearers!
Blessings dear hearts. Walk with God today, trust Him completely and be a blessing.
- - - Pastor Cecil