Count on God to Hear Your Prayers

Listen to God as He Listens to You   

‘My God will hear me’ is a promise made in Micah 7:7b.  I love that. My God will hear me.  This is so wonderful that it is almost incomprehensible.  One could get carried away with a continual string of requests.  There is certainly no problem or request too small to bring to God’s attention.  He wants to be involved in every moment of your life.  However, what we want to remember is good manners.  If God is listening to us, shouldn’t we listen to God?  Or, let’s make it more personal.  If God is hearing ME when I pray, shouldn’t I hear God when He communicates with me?

 You have undoubtedly been in close contact with at least a few people in your life who have an ability to ‘talk your ear off’ while having no ability to hear a word you say.  Encounters with these people are not pleasant.  It is only good manners to listen to what other people are saying as well as talk yourself.  In a private conversation between two people, both people should be able to not only speak but to be listened to by the other person as well.  It is an overwhelmingly wonderful blessing that God will hear His children when they pray.  It is an equally overwhelmingly wonderful blessing that God speaks to His children.  It would be wise to try to listen to what He has to say!

 How then do we ‘hear’ God?

 The first way is obvious.  We read what is written down in the Bible. The Bible is written specifically for every individual Christian, and through it God speaks directly to each of His children.  It is speaking directly to you personally, as well as to me personally.  We have been given rules of conduct by which we are to live in the word of God.  We have the commandments.  We have the love one another clause.  We have the forgive one another clause.  We have the treat others the way we want to be treated clause.  These things are definitely God speaking directly to every individual believer.  Once we hear what the Bible says, we are to do what the Bible says.  This is all very straight forward and easy to understand.  If we really hear what God speaks to us, then we will follow His instructions.  After all, we want God to hear us and do the things we ask.  How rude to ignore the things He asks of us. (It is also plumb stupid.)  Those wanting God’s full attention when praying should rightly give God their full attention when He speaks.

 Hear the Lord when He says in Psalm 119:11, ‘Thy word have I hid in mine heart, that I might not sin against thee.’ 

 Also remember James 1:22 which instructs to not only hear the word of the Lord, but to do the things we are instructed to do.  It says, ‘But be ye doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving your own selves.’   There is a stern warning in that verse.  If someone calls themselves a Christian but is able to continually habitually set aside the things God says to do, perhaps they are deceiving themselves regarding their faith.

 What then is a ‘doer of the word’ supposed to do?  We have instructions in Micah 6:8 which says, ‘He hath shewed thee, O man, what is good; and what doth the LORD require of thee, but to do justly, and to love mercy, and to walk humbly with thy God?’

 A similar verse of instruction is in Deuteronomy 10:12 which says, ‘And now, Israel, what doth the LORD thy God require of thee, but to fear the LORD thy God, to walk in all his ways, and to love him, and to serve the LORD thy God with all thy heart and with all thy soul,’.

 God is not first looking to see how many souls His children point toward Him.  He is looking to see how well each one of His children obeys Him.  If God’s children aren’t conforming to His image, how are they going to point others to Him?  Conforming to the image of Christ is progressive.  No one is converted one day and a mature Christian the next day.  However true converts begin the life long process of being more Christ-like in their actions as soon as they are born again.  They should want to tell others about Jesus and the way of salvation.  However, the true mark of a believer is that they do the things Christ says to do regarding their own personal actions.

 God also speaks to you through your conscience.  There are things you know to be wrong.  Don’t do them.  How simple is that?  Something to think about is that if you want to do something, but you know it will not lead you closer to God, then you should not do it.  For instance, that beautiful singing voice God gave Melodye Smith may get her an offer to travel and sing with a country band.  Melodye knows the band plays in nightclubs and bars.  She really wants to do accept the offer.  But, she has misgivings.  She KNOWS her Christian life will suffer.  More money than she now earns is offered.  Melodye is tempted.  What do you think she should do?  Based on the simple truth that she will not be led closer to the Lord by accepting the offer, Melodye should turn down the offer. 

 That is obviously a fanciful example, but people face choices every day.  Often the issue is clouded by ‘more money’ or ‘more prestige’, but the question is still the same.  Will this hinder my Christian walk?  Listen to your conscience.  If it is telling you ‘not a good idea’, listen!

 Remember that God will NEVER EVER lead you to go outside the boundaries He has set for all His children.  The most important thing a child of God can do is to be obedient to God.  Through obedience His children have an avenue to a life that is blessed by God.  The boundaries set by God are for the protection of His children.  They are not for set up to cause us grief.  Jesus says his yoke is easy and His burden is light.  I just love that passage.  Matthew 11: 28-30 tells us, ’(28)  Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.

(29) Take my yoke upon you, and learn of me; for I am meek and lowly in heart: and ye shall find rest unto your souls.

(30)  For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.’

 Any child of God who would like to lighten his or her own burden should begin with obedience to God. 

It is by faith that we know ‘My God will hear me’.

It is by faith that we know God will help us to hear Him.

What we do with what we hear is the measure of our Christian walk. 

 It is absolutely true that our salvation is received by grace through faith.  (Ephesians 2:8

 For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God:’.)

 But to show evidence or verification of salvation, then look to the works of your own self.  This is NOT to look to see if you have completed some mighty deed that attracts the attention of the world.  But rather look inside yourself. 

Have you hidden God’s word in your heart?

Are you a doer of the word as explained in Micah 6:8 and Deuteronomy 10:12?

Strive to become a ‘Bible driven Christian’ – someone who hears what the Lord has to say.

 Come Unto Me

http://www.cyberhymnal.org/htm/c/o/comeunto.htm 

Hear the blessèd Savior calling the oppressed,

 “O ye heavy laden, come to Me and rest.
 Come, no longer tarry, I your load will bear,
 Bring Me every burden, bring Me every care.”

 Refrain 

Come unto Me, I will give you rest;

 Take My yoke upon you, hear Me and be blessed.
 I am meek and lowly, come and trust My might.
 Come, My yoke is easy, and My burden’s light.

Are you disappointed, wandering here and there,

 Dragging chains of doubt and loaded down with care?
 Do unholy feelings struggle in your breast?
 Bring your case to Jesus—He will give you rest

Refrain

Stumbling on the mountains dark with sin and shame,

 Stumbling toward the pit of hell’s consuming flame.
 By the powers of sin deluded and oppressed,
 Hear the tender Shepherd, “Come to Me and rest.”

Refrain

Have you by temptation often conquered been,

 Has a sense of weakness brought distress within?
 Christ will sanctify you, if you’ll claim His best.
 In the Holy Spirit, He will give you rest.

Refrain

Enjoy Today to Prepare for Tomorrow

‘Whatsoever they hand findeth to do, do it with they might;’ Ecclesiastes 9:10a
There has been a great deal said recently about the uncertainty of the future. Economic collapse is predicted. Food shortages are predicted. Lawlessness is predicted to increase. Persecution of our Christian brethren is on the rise, and there is legitimate concern that it may be invading even the ‘land of the free and the home of the brave.’ It seems foolish not to prepare. And I am not talking about just storing 3 extra cans of chili and a box of powdered eggs in the pantry. Food storage, self defense, mobility, grab and go bags, at least three plans for each potential disaster should be on the top of everyone’s list of things that must be done before next Tuesday. Or, should they? Let’s look at things from a slightly different angle.

Why not enjoy life right now?
Why not eat, drink, and be merry today?
After all, we don’t even know if we have tomorrow.

So, let me propose a slightly different approach to preparedness. Be prepared to enjoy life! Take it one day at a time. Follow your interests. Follow your opportunities. You might be surprised at how much these things will help you in being prepared for whatever the world throws at you.

You could start like this.

First, consider your duties. Your first allegiance is to God, then to your family. For most people there is a job that requires a lot of your time, and your duty is to do a good job, whether you like the job or not. If you are the homemaker, then you have a lot going on that must be done repeatedly. (By the way, if you are in a situation where one person in the marriage team works outside the home, and the other stays home to care for the family and manage the house, then the duty of the one who works outside the home does not stop when he/she walks through the door after a hard days work. That person is still required to do whatever needs to be done to make the home run smoothly.)

But then what? No matter how busy your schedule, there will be a little time that you are able to be selective in what you do. The choices you make then can enrich your life and help you be prepared for the future, both mentally and materially. The point is to not be frivolous or unkind in how you spend a few extra minutes now and then, but rather to be industrious in exercising your mind and body. You never know how something learned today, no matter how unimportant it may seem, may be a ‘lifesaver’ tomorrow.

Now, consider your likes. What is something that you sincerely and consistently enjoy? I enjoy spending time with my family. I just like to be part of their lives. What this requires on my part is setting aside how I would probably manage the day if it were just me, or just me and Jerry. I do what the group wants to do, or needs to do. This has put me out of my comfort zone on many occasions. For instance, if you have been reading my articles long, you know that my family goes camping fairly often. When I was a child, my family went camping. Honestly, while I love the great outdoors, I love indoor plumbing more. If it were just me, I would definitely be a ‘picnicer’ instead of a ‘camper’. A few hours of communing with nature would be sufficient for me. I would especially enjoy it if the weather was lovely and I had my camera. I would take photos all day, and go home and view them on my computer that evening. However, in learning to camp I have gained some survival skills that would be helpful in any primitive environment. I have also learned to enjoy something that was not really my cup of tea to begin with. That in itself is a survival skill that is more valuable than most skills. Adaptability cannot be overrated as a survival skill. (An extremely important thing you can learn while camping is how to consistently build a campfire under a variety of conditions. You absolutely cannot overstate the importance of being able to efficiently build a fire. The time to learn that skill is long before you actually need it. Cooking on a campfire is another skill that needs to be learned before you actually need it. A hint on cooking is to put your coals from the main fire in a small ring of rocks that will hold your skillet just above the coals for the actual cooking.)

Many years ago, my mom asked me to go with her to take oil painting lessons from a local artist. He was a very fine Christian man, an artist with not only an ability to paint, but an ability to teach that skill to others. He gave lessons from his home. His wife worked at a day job away from home. To mom’s old fashioned way of thinking, it just wouldn’t look quite right for a married woman to be in a man’s house when his wife was at work, even if he did give art lessons. So mom asked me to go with her and take lessons. I agreed because I liked to spend time with my mom. Well, guess what? I absolutely loved the lessons. Oil painting is something that I love doing even now. So, I got a twofold blessing there. I spent time with mom and I learned something wonderful. The principles that apply to oil painting (color, composition, perspective) apply to many things that we deal with in our daily lives. They have been helpful in everything from how to put together a nice looking clothing outfit to how to design/decorate a room that is functional and looks nice as well. I didn’t need to read those books that came out a few years ago on what colors to wear together and how to dress for your size. And the books on makeup – I just always go with the theory that ‘any old barn looks better with a coat of paint’ and slap on a little foundation and a few other things in the morning.  By the way, I have sold a few paintings/  I have also bartered paintings for things I needed/wanted.  That is how I got my first Siberian Forest Cat.  Now I actually raise them!

I could give you many examples of things that I did for the purpose of just spending time with my family or one family member that were out of my comfort zone. I usually enjoyed whatever it was that we did, but often I learned to do and even like something that I would not have normally tried as well..

Here are some examples of things that people I know have done that provided them with a lot of enjoyment at the moment, taught them new skills, and helped them ‘be prepared’ for the future. (By the way, changes and disasters are coming. We just don’t know what, when, where, why, or how.)

My father in law retired from his job. He had time on his hands. He began to grow a garden. Before retirement, he thought that it was his Christian duty to mow down anything and everything that dared sprout on his property. He could mow at midnight during the dark of the moon without fear of mowing down anything that shouldn’t get whacked with the lawn mower because everything had already been whacked! All he had to do was avoid running into the bricks on the house. But, with time on his hands, and opportunity, he started to grow a garden. It turned out that:
He grew most of the produce for his household for years.
He ate foods that were fresher and healthier.
As his health began to deteriorate, he had incentive to keep on working at growing a garden. Between football and gardening, he stayed busy up until the very end of his life.
In becoming a gardener he learned a useful skill and enriched his life besides.
He was a hands on sort of person. He had the time to garden. He had the place to garden. A good neighbor offered to lend him a tractor to begin with. He stepped out of his comfort zone and into gardening. His hands found something to do and he did with his might.

Because of all the produce that was suddenly available for ‘free’, my mother in law leaned the skill of canning vegetables and making pickles. Don’t discount that as unimportant. She was frugal with her money anyway, but this allowed her to save a little money on food that she then had available to spend somewhere else. My mother in law had the time, and the opportunity. She stepped out of her comfort zone and into ‘produce management’. Her hands found something to do and she did it with her might.

My brother Wade was invited by a very good friend to go visiting/soul winning at a local county jail. He went to spend time with his friend. An ulterior motive was to watch over his friend, as my brother wasn’t quite sure that his friend would be safe working that closely with prisoners. Then, he saw the need of the prisoners and now has his own prison ministry. His hands found something to do and he did it/does it with his might.

My mom wanted a way to make extra money after dad died. She heard about raising hypoallergenic Siberian Forest Cats. She took a leap of faith and got herself a male and female cat. (Actually, my son bought her the cats. He prefers to tell people that he set his gramma up in business – and he doesn’t like relatives teasing him that he set his gramma with a cat house.) She has enjoyed the company of the cats, and sold several litters of kittens. This would not be for everyone because it does take a lot of time, and the money is not that much. However, given mom’s circumstances, the money and company are sufficient for the effort. This was definitely out of mom’s comfort zone by about a million miles, but it was something her hands found to do, and she did it with her might.

There are two important things to look at when considering how to spend your time that is not already committed to fulfilling the things you are bound by duty and love to do. I don’t know which is more important, but the things are:
opportunity, and
inclination.

What are you inclined to want to do? As I mentioned, I am inclined to want to spend time with family. If they invite me to do something, then I am going to do it, and make an effort to be an enjoyable companion, and enjoy whatever it is that we are doing. It doesn’t always work out as well as I would like, but I don’t want to ever regret missing the opportunity. There are things that you are inclined toward doing as well. What are these things?

What opportunities present themselves? I will give you a big word of advice here. An opportunity is not necessarily, even not likely, to be something that will promise to make you a ton of money immediately. Just quit looking at ‘opportunity’ like that. It is more a chance to do something you could/might enjoy, and learn something at the same time.

Then there is adaptability. Little things crop up every day that require you to adapt to something that is slightly different. It can be as small as adapting to Lipton tea instead of Luzianne tea according to whatever is available or on sale. Or maybe you have to adapt to Coke instead of Pepsi, or (perish the thought) you have to take a thermos of coffee instead of stopping in at Starbucks. If you can set a pattern/paradigm of adapting to small changes as cheerfully and quickly as possible, then you are practicing for surprise changes that are coming in everyone’s future. The quicker you adapt, the quicker you have set a ‘new normal’ in small situations, the better you are prepared to adapt to bigger changes in your future.

So, we are up to three things to keep in mind in order to be prepared:
• Inclination
• Opportunity
• Adaptability
I really couldn’t say what order of importance these three things should be in.
An important point is that even though these three things should be considered, they must not over shadow the fact that preparing for the future requires actually living like the Christian you profess to be on a daily basis. That means treating others the way you want to be treated. Loving others the way Christ loves us. It means actually doing the things that Christ says to do.

‘‘Whatsoever they hand findeth to do, do it with they might;’ Ecclesiastes 9:10a

There well may be a lot of practical things that you find to do that are specifically related to preparedness for hard times or social turmoil or economic downturns. There will likely be more opportunities to just learn and do things at a particular moment in time. You will be surprised at how what seems like just a way to pass the time today will be very helpful to you tomorrow.

Enjoy today, and thanks for reading my article.


If you found this article helpful you may enjoy my book 'Everyday Prepping for Beginners'

$2.99 on Kindle

Idol Worship

Why do People Worship Idols?

Why Do Men Love Idols More than God?
By Barbara Henderson

In ancient times, there were people who openly worshiped idols; images of something to which they prayed requesting that some gift or favor be granted them. They may have thought that their image of gold, silver, or even wood was just a representation of some deity; but, never the less, it was a manmade object to which they prayed. Idols were/are appealing because:

Idols do not see your sin.
Idols do not hear your sin.
Idols have no authority to require that you turn from your sin.
Idols have no power to condemn you for your sins.
Idols have no divinely inspired book of rules by which you are to live, thus you are allowed to do what is right in your own eyes.
Idols are just a disgusting form of self worship, allowing the idolater to indulge whatever sin their heart desires.

Idol worshipers are really worshipers of their own lusts.
For the heart in rebellion against God, idols provide a way to set their own ways above the ways of righteousness according to God. Today, people in general are still idol worshipers. They may not bow down to an image made by someone who is an idol maker by trade, but they are still idol worshippers.

Common idols include:
One’s own self righteousness. How can someone righteous in his or her own eyes ever come to an understanding of the need of salvation as explained in the Bible?
A desire for the goodwill of men. Matthew Henry says, ‘It is no new thing for what is done faithfully, in conscience toward God, to be misrepresented as done obstinately, and in contempt of civil powers.’ (Daniel 6:11-17) What will the good will of men do anyone on judgment day?

An example of seeking the good will of man on the global scale is government officials and so-called preachers of the Gospel of Jesus Christ proclaiming alliances with Islam. They proclaim it to be a religion of peace, and even worse, proclaim God Almighty to be a different name for Allah. Allah is simply a created being just as everything and everyone else. He has no power to create anything. He has no power to cast anyone into hell.

Why do they speak such lies and heresy? It is because they desire the good will of men. Eventually those who continue to follow the exact teachings of God are misrepresented as ‘haters’ and as ‘standing in the way of peace’.

Impatience. Temporary success, recognition, and self gratification are the pillars on which decisions are made. No thought is given for the eternal or even near future consequences of immediate actions.

One’s own preferences. People prefer certain things in life. For instance, everyone has preferences in music. In fact, music is probably one of the most divisive things in all creation. In music, God’s preferences are seldom considered. Music is a gift to mankind from God. Through Godly music we are able to praise and worship God. Ungodly music is often preferred by many who call themselves Christians. They love their ‘music’ more than they love God. Their music is an idol. In their love affair with their idol, they take the idol to church with them and flaunt their own preferences above the righteousness of God.

One’s own glory. When someone supposes themselves to have accomplished all on their own, whether making a fortune or passing through great trials successfully, the glory of accomplishment is kept for that person alone. They don’t consider that the great men of the Bible such as Moses and Daniel were very clear that their accomplishments were done through the power of God, and not anything in themselves. Those who love to take credit may have ‘glory’ today, but what will they have on judgment day?

Idol worshipers may have a guilty conscience. They know their actions are not in line with what God wants them to do. In order to reconcile their sin with the will of God, they ‘sacrifice’ their sinful preferences to God. That means they bring their idols to church because they cannot live without them. They present these idols to God as though they were worshiping Him, when in reality, they are just indulging their own desires. That is where you get a lot of garbage and pure baloney in the church. Yoga and other pagan practices are brought into the church. Mindless meditation is common in the church. It has replaced meditating on the goodness of God and His words.

When a church separates families more than it brings them together, the church system is being worshiped more than the things of God. Some idol worshipers don’t like their home life, so they invent things to do at church in order to avoid improving their marriage and home. Hen parties called ‘ladies meetings’ and other such nonsense is pushed on silly women. Men’s visitation is another avenue of escape for men not happy at home. Such activities may be done in sincerity and have good value. However, no matter what ‘activity’ it may be, if it separates family more than it brings them together, it is definitely NOT something of which God approves. Those neglecting family in favor of service to the church or socialization with church members are neither worshiping nor pleasing God. For some Christians, being the ‘most faithful’ church member becomes an idol.

Growth oriented churches love to ‘grow’ more than they love to teach the truths of God, build strong families, and properly disciple new converts. Growing a larger church becomes an idol of more importance than the things of God. In the end, there may be a large structure filled with people who are totally ignorant of the original purpose of the church.

Whatever is placed before God is an idol.
Christian priorities should be:
God - love God with all your heart and mind and soul.
Family – love and do what is best according to God for your family.
Church – Christians are to attend a church that teaches the truths of God without apology or deviation.

After these three priorities, there is work and love of country.

It is easy to point out reasons for idol worship, and common idols.
It is much more difficult to avoid living as an idol worshipper ourselves.
This requires that Christians:
Stay vigilant because the devil really is trying to destroy them
Are willing to acknowledge sin when they realize something is sin. This includes
practices in the church that come from heathen/infidel/pagan worship instead of from the teachings of the Bible (yoga, mindless meditation, ungodly music….)
Are willing to turn from sin once it is identified .

The better you know God the more you will love Him.
The more you love Him, the more you will seek to please Him.

The true and sincere follower of Christ must:

‘Study to shew thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth.’ 2 Timothy 2:15

AND do the things Christ says to do.
‘And why call ye me, Lord, Lord, and do no things which I say?’ Luke 6:46

All people, including Christians, will think, speak, and act according to the priorities of their hearts. Christians should examine their own lives constantly to make sure their own thoughts, speech, and actions are in line with what is pleasing to God.