In His book, “The Knowledge of the Holy”, A. W. Toer says, “What comes into our minds when we think about God is the most important thing about us. The history of mankind will probably show that no people has ever risen above its religion, and man’s spiritual history will positively demonstrate that no religion has ever been greater than its idea of God.” Noting in all our lives will impact our relationship with people, self-concept., decisions, and purpose like the way we think of God. Everything in our lives consciously or unconsciously comes back to one thing: Whom do I visualize God to be in my heart. What we are and what we become cannot be separated from our understanding of God. What do we do? Psalm 46:10 says, “Be still and know that I am God!” “Being still” is more than a passive “let go and let God.” Being still means that we take time to reflect on what we see and observe in nature, then run that through the grid of the Word of God, as we rest in our relationship with Christ. Take time today, to see and recognize the wonder of God. Stop and ponder! … READ MORE

The first step in perseverance is to understand where our true strength: With God. Nehemiah understood what God told Zerubbabel through the prophet Zechariah, as he was attempting to rebuild the temple. “Not by might, nor by power, but by my spirit, saith the LORD of hosts” (Zechariah 4:6) Nehemiah then evaluated his opposition and then took a stand to persevere to the end. Perseverance starts with a willingness to do the work that is set before us. In order for that to happen, we need to understand what needs to be done. It is also important to remember that in order to accomplish the work set before us, we must get everyone around us on the same page. No work can be accomplished by a “lone wolf” doing everything by themselves. God in His wisdom has designed life so that we work TOGETHER to do a task. As we seek to do a work for the Lord, we must determine to allow others to do the work that is their part. … READ MORE

There is no such thing as a faithful ministry that is not costly. In order to work through the pin of ministry, we must be willing to persevere till the end. In the book of Nehemiah, we are told about how God worked in the heart of Nehemiah to go to Jerusalem and rebuild the wall of that great city. The world understood that the rebuilding of the Walls would also mean that Jerusalem would once again move toward a city of prominence. Any time we are attempting to do a work for the Lord, we will incur opposition. We can do all the prayer preparation, and presentation of the work, and we will still face those who will oppose what we do. Like Nehemiah we need to turn to God in the face of opposition, and understand that our true strength lies with the Lord. Zechariah 4:6 reminds us that “not by might, nor by power but by my Spirit, saith the LORD of hosts” Take time to look at Nehemiah 4:13-23 and see how to persevere through the work that God has called you to do. Don’t loose heart, but continue to stay focused on the goal set … READ MORE