Then I heard ‘With the word of God, you have taken limits out of your life’.
I said to myself this is profound. I would like to know more about this message. So, I turned to what I call the best tool created in modern times to assist me get more informed- Google. However, I start first, with a little story about one of my sons.
My Conversation
I recall a conversation with one of my sons and he had a grouch to pick with a family member. Guess what his grouch was? he said, I worked so hard to earn an honors degree from college and all this family member could tell me was ‘Thank God for His Mercies’. Then I said to him, what was the issue with what this family member said, and he responded, I worked too hard not to get any credit for my hard work and have someone write it off as simply God’s doing. And I said to him, ‘the bible says the best runner does not always win the race. The race is won by whom God has chosen to win the race, period. Over time, he came to understand the ‘God Factor’ in everything, not just successes but even failures and we tend to joke about this all the time now.
Proud of Our Achievements
Like my son, if we have achieved certain things or heights in our lives thus far and we think we achieved them by our ability only, and we are proud of our achievements, then know that we have yet to tap into God’s will for our lives. We have been missing great opportunities in leaps and bounds which those who fully understand and depend on God benefit from.
The other perspective I have seen which I consider a missed opportunity is to do with an individual being called by God for a specific assignment but the individual docks the assignment. God will ask us to do something bigger than ourselves that requires more than our ability.
Resources, Public Perception, and Reputation
A lot of people look at the assignment and look at their resources, public perception of them, and their reputation and say, thank you God but no thanks…. Am not doing this. What if I fail, the shame and the disgrace? Where will I hide my face on this planet? God, please I pass on this one.
What we must realize as children of God, is that God means the best for us His children. I quote here a relevant revelation that I am yet to write on which says, ‘The significance of your call equates the level of attack you receive from satan’. (I will develop this topic in another post). The point I am making here is simple; the assignment that attracts satan’s attention is certainly significant. But the average individual will just throw his or her hands up in the air and say, Lord, I pass on this one. But just as the attack is fierce from satan so also is the huge reward from God. Can we just imagine getting a Huge Reward from God on Earth and the icing on the cake of being called to greater Glory in the Salvation of Christ Jesus, to Eternal life in Heaven?
The Lack of Courage and the Spirit of Fear
Generally, people lack the courage to take on certain assignments of God. The spirit of fear takes over them before they even think about the assignment. What we forget is that for every assignment God gives us, God empowers us. (A post for another day).
God wants us to believe Him for bigger things in our lives than we have yet to experience. It would be so sad to die short of God’s beautiful plans for us before we live this planet Earth.
Just show up in Faith, Courage, and The Word of God
We should want to live so that people demand to know how we do the things we do. We do nothing. God Does It. We only show up in faith, courage, and the word of God, and God does the rest. It is that simple though tough for us as humans.
One sad example I like to refer to is the generation of people who experienced signs and wonders and miracles being delivered out of Egypt yet died in the wilderness short of what God had for them in The Promise Land.
God did everything possible to get them to believe Him and take risks in trusting Him to enter a Promise land, even naming it the “Promise land” full of Milk and Honey, indicating God promised this to them – it was theirs by faith, yet they fell short of the finish line. I am not saying it is easy. All I am saying is, it is worth the battle and Trust in God’s Promises. God does not make empty promises. In the book of Isaiah 55:11, God says ‘So, shall My Word be that goes forth from My mouth; It shall not return to Me void, but it shall accomplish what I please. And it shall prosper in the thing for which I sent it’.
They Turned Back and Limited God
One scripture in the Bible clarifies what happened to the Israelites as a warning to us.
“Yea, they turned back and tempted God, and LIMITED the Holy One of Israel.” Psalm 78:41
God wanted to do more than the Israelites would let Him do. He wanted to bring them into the promise land – and He wanted to do it in one year. But it took them forty years. How sad. What a missed opportunity.
God will ask us to do something bigger than ourselves that requires more than our ability.
Israel said to Moses and Aaron, the nations in that land are mightier than we are, that was true in the natural. God wanted them to trust Him and keep moving forward. Instead, they instantly limited God.
“The Word preached did not benefit them, because it was not mixed with faith in those who heard it.” Heb. 4:2
Jesus is called Redeemer. He redeems All the hurt, rejection, pain, and trauma in our lives – caused by ourselves or by others. Every problem is an invitation to discover something of God. He knows what is inside us, the hidden abilities we are not aware of. Don’t ask for a comfortable life, a life of ease, or things we can manage well. We should ask God for assignments that when accomplished, He will be pleased with us. We make Him proud when we courageously accomplish the assignment. When the mission is accomplished, He puts His Seal on us. ‘ Hallelujah.
The Seal of God
The seal of God is what I call, a one-way super ‘first-class ticket’ to Heaven. In addition to Heaven as a reward, we still get to inherit the best of the land in our lifetime on Earth. We get to inherit the land full of milk and honey on Earth. It is a double WAMI like they say. We benefit both on earth as it is in Heaven.
We should ask God to give us a tough assignment, a vision, that requires God’s direct involvement and His entire Heavenly Host’s support to accomplish the assignment. This is when we discover the Authority and Power our Lord Jesus Christ has given us. Especially Authority and Power over satan, the evil one, his demons, and his evil spirits. In the book of 1John, Chapter 2: 13, the Apostle says ‘Because you knew him who has been from the beginning, because you are strong, and the word of God abides in you, you have overcome the evil one’. And overcoming the evil one gives us the merit of God’s seal already on Earth.
God Can and Does Lead us to Adventure and Risky Situations Sometimes
Therefore, know ye All, that The Spirit of God can and does lead us to adventure, into risky situations, and challenges. But the reward for courage, faith, and trust in God is unimaginable. In the book of Numbers, chapter 13; 2, all the 12 spies except Joshua and Caleb voted not to enter the Promise Land because they saw the Giants’ descendants of the Nephilim. 10 spies said the assignment to take possession of The Promise Land was impossible and they should return to Egypt. Only Joshua and Caleb said, “God’s got this – we can certainly do it!” You know the rest. Faith-filled optimistic people live longer and healthier than people who live in fear, lacking Faith and lacking Trust in God.
God Chooses The One That He Has Empowered
It is interesting to note that God chooses people for certain assignments because He God, knows He has endowed them with the wherewithal and empowered them to perform the assignments successfully. But fear and ego hinder people. If the word of God abides in us and we stand strong and know our Lord Jesus Christ, we should be able to see that we are sure to clinch the title ‘King of Champions’; not in our strength but in the strength of the Divine Holy Trinity, One God.
The Missed Opportunity
When we dodge the call of God for an assignment, we miss the opportunity for God to show up for us as The Omnipresent, The Omniscient, and The Omnipotent God. The question I ask us All is, are we willing to hid God’s call? Are we willing to trust and obey Him? If we trust and obey Him, the rewards are unfathomable.
Jesus sent disciples to get a donkey for Him to ride triumphantly into Jerusalem. “The Lord has need of it.” Jesus said. The Lord needs Good Shepherds to shepherd His flock on Earth. Are people courageous enough to speak on ‘The Lord’s side’? Courage comes from faith and faith comes from the hearing of the word of God. Therefore, as children of God, and good Christians, we must be ‘Word of God Centered’ rather than ‘Fear Centered’. This way, we take the Limits Off of God in Our lives.
Four Lepers Defied Fear
In the book of 2 Kings, chapter 7, 4 lepers defied fear in their position of despair and lack and chose to go into the Syrian camp, saying to one another, “If we go inside the city there is no food – we would die. If we go into the Syrian camp they will either kill us or give us food. If we don’t take any risks, we will surely die. “Why sit we here until we die?” and they chose to defy fear and went into the village. What did they find? They found an abundance of good things everywhere with no one to resist them or challenge them. They walked in and took possession because they had courage and believed in Providence and the Help of God.
Fear of Failure Is Real
Fear of failure is real. But a greater fear is to live your life playing it too safe.
The lepers took the risk and started walking towards the enemy camp. They started moving towards the Syrian camp. When they got there the camp was empty, nobody was there. The Lord made the approach of just 4 lepers to the Syrian camps sound like the noise of chariots and horses and all the Syrians fled. Can we imagine the Power of God? The point to note here is that the lepers started moving and took the risks to try something rather than sit there and do nothing. And God showed up strong for them. They had more goodness and benefits than they bargained for.
I guarantee you that if we hear from God about what He wants to do with our lives – it will scare us. But the question is “Why sit we here until we die?”
Conclusion
Put God’s Word first place in your life – keep it before your heart and eyes. Believe and Trust what it says about your situation. Don’t settle for less than what God promises you.
We all need to commit the rest of our lives to God and say;
Each one of us needs to say, God, I am taking the limits off of You working in my life. I am excited to see what You will do with me. I am going to start moving with whatever You show me to do next.
Praise The Lord God Almighty, Praise The Lord Jesus Christ, Praise The Lord, The Holy Ghost- Divine Holy Trinity, One True God.
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