1 Peter 1:7, “That the trial of your faith, being much more precious than of gold that perished, though it be tried with fire, might be found unto the praise and honour and glory at the appearing of Jesus Christ:”

Hello OTP family! Have you ever been in the place where God has revealed himself to you in some profound way through his word? A place where you are so grateful and thankful because of the revealed word. Where you are standing on this new revelation and decreeing and declaring this word over your life? Then the next thing you know it seems the very gates of hell are breaking through in your life? A time where it seems that nothing you do to fix the situation works. If you answered yes to any of these questions or the statements resonates with your experiences – do not be alarmed. God is just working that newly revealed word out in your life.

The bible tells us that our faith must be tried. The trial of our faith is a foundational point of the believers life. We are told to study the word… “Study to shew thyself approved unto God, a workman that neededeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth.” (2 Timothy 2:15). We study to know God’s word so we can, in turn, apply the word to our lives and stand upon it. God is faithful, that he promised in John 14:26, “But the Comforter, which is the Holy Ghost, whom the Father will send in my name, he shall teach you all things, and bring all things to your remembrance, whatsoever I have said unto you.” This is why it is so important that every believer spend time in the word of God. How can God remind you of something you never took the time to study (hide in your heart) before?

Getting back to the topic. We do not live in a vacuum. The enemy is also aware of what God is doing in your life. He is not all knowing like God. But he does know how to understand human behavior. He also hears the words that you speak. He sees the difference in you when you are standing on the word of God by faith – using that word to fight against his plan of attack. Just like God allowed Satan to attack Job, he also gives him permission to pick at our lives too. But just as with Job, God places parameters around just what the enemy can do against us. He declares the end from the beginning (Isaiah 46:10). You will not be in this thing too long. Another thing to remember is God also promised he would not put more on us than we are able to bear (1 Corinthians 16:13).

So when the revelation of the word – a particular scripture, or principle – comes, just know a trial is coming too.

But be encouraged, we also serve a God who always causes us to triumph (2 Corinthians 2:14). But understand, we do need to walk through the fire. However, there is a blessing in knowing that God is in the fire with us. Hallelujah!

Back to my testimony. I find myself in this very situation and I bring you salutation from the middle of the journey. I am still in the fire, fighting the good fight of faith. The weirdest thing is, I am thankful for my journey. I am seeing everyday just how faithful God has been to his word. As God sees us standing upon (decreeing and declaring) his word, he watches over it to perform it (Jeremiah 1:12).

For me, the moment I began to rejoice in the deep knowledge of this biblical principle and share the word with others, I also began to be tried by this same word. Here’s the thing – God has been faithful. He has supplied all of my needs – in ways I never imagined. Most importantly, I am happy and content. I don’t have any regrets. I am just thankful.

No, I am not fully on the other side of this thing yet. It is tough and I have to remember and speak the word daily. Yes, it is a daily battle. But I am also not sitting in sadness and tears. I am standing in the light of God’s word, knowing he has my back.

With a full heart I choose to lift up my head to where my strength comes from. I choose to give God praise, rather than complain about what I don’t have or the unfairness of the situation.

My prayer for you – if you find yourself in a similar situation – do not give into despair. Understand 2 Corinthians 4: 8 – 9, “we are troubled on every dies, yet not distressed; we are perplexed, but not in despair; Persecuted, but not forsaken, cast down, but not destroyed;” Understand, what ever trial you are in, it is because you have been built to survive it. Not only that, you were also made to thrive in spite of it. Do not let it define you, it is just something you are temporarily going through at the moment. Eventually, you are going to testify how God brought you successfully through it. Stronger than ever before.

Have a blessed night.

Psalms 23:5-6, “Thou preparest a table before me in the presence of mine enemies:

thou anointest my head with oil; my cup runneth over.

Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life: and I will dwell in the house of the LORD for ever.”

GM OTP Family! Welcome to another day full of blessings and God’s goodness. 

God is truly a wonder and so very true to his word. I am truly amazed at the faithfulness of God. He watches over his word to perform it (Jeremiah 1:12). I can say with surety and experience – God is actively ensuring that His promises and pronouncements will come to pass exactly as He intended. But we do have responsibility in this equation. 

We have to:

• know the word,
• pray the word to God,
• and finally stand on that same word by faith.

Once we have met our requirements then the ball is back in God’s court. He actively looks for his work mixed thoroughly with our faith. This frees God to move according to his promised word.

With this in mind, we must understand that faith without works is dead (James 2:17). If you truly believe the word of God then your faith must be in action. True belief is not passive and must be demonstrated through actions. This reinforces our responsibility as noted above – know the word, pray the word and stand by faith on the word.

Doing this keeps our cup full and running over.

This begs the question – What is in your cup?

But before we delve deeper into that, let us first examine the overflowing cup. The overflowing cup is an expression of profound gratitude and overwhelming abundance. It symbolizes that you have received so much of God’s goodness, blessings, and prosperity that – as a result – has caused your own cup not just to fill to the brim, but overflow on to what is under and surrounding it. John 10:10 confirms that Jesus came so that we might have life, and life more abundantly!

This “cup” that is being referred to here is your life in Christ. Your life should show an abundance of God’s mercies. The evidence of God’s promises should be seen through your life. Now, do not be fooled, we are not saying that you should have a life of ease and trouble free. In fact, the opposite is true. As the saints of old use to say – this is a suffering way. Jesus tells us in John 16:33, in the world you will have tribulation. We are instructed to take up our cross and follow him. And advised to arm yourself with this mindset, understanding that suffering is a part of the Christian life. But that is also comfort provided – Jesus said I overcame the world and you can too!

To this end come the promises of God. Even though we are apart of a suffering way, we are also given tools to effectively deal with whatever the enemy throws at us. Additionally, we are given power (through the Holy Ghost), and authority in Jesus’ name to both thrive and triumph. 

In other words – the deck has been stacked in our favor. But if we don’t know the word of God, it becomes hard to understand just who we are in Christ, and by extension, it is difficult to fully operate in this power and authority freely given to us.

Let’s look at what is in that cup again – there should be the peace of God, joy, favor, patience, healing, provision, and wealth – just to name a few. Whatever you need is in this cup. We just need to access it through faith. 

From this overflowing cup, we should also pour out to those who God has placed in our circle of influence. Charity starts at home before it is shared abroad (1 Timothy 5:8). God expects you to share his goodness with everyone you can. When you do this God will enlarge your territory, so you can reach more people than you ever thought possible. 

What is in your cup? Whatever you need. Search the scriptures. Find that firm foundation that you need, then pray that scripture back to God. Tell him what you need and how you are standing on his word by faith. Then every day of your life, put that word in action. This is the works that should be attached to your faith. Before you know it, you will have just what you need based on just what you asked of God. 

Remember, the scripture says you have not because you asked not (James 4:3). Do not be afraid or timid when it comes to seeking God. He is a rewarder of those who diligently seek him (Hebrews 11:6). It is his will for you to do just that. The best part? God promises if you seek him, you shall find him (Matthew 7:7). Let God fill your cup til it overflows.

Have a blessed day!

But it takes a new perspective!

Proverbs 3:5-6, “Trust in the LORD with all your heart,  and do not lean on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge him, and he shall direct thy paths”

NIV translate vs 6 as: “in all your ways submit to him, and he will make your paths straight.”

Hey OTP family! They say if you do what you have always done, you will get what you always gotten. So it makes sense that if you want something different, something  better, something greater, then you will have to do something different. Change is possible. However, to get there, you must change the way you operate. This includes a new perspective, and taking different actions.

They say the definition of insanity is doing the same things but expecting a different outcome. With this in mind, let’s step away from the crazy and take steps toward the change we so desperately need. 

If you are anything like me, you enjoy being in control. Making your own decisions and managing the outcome as best as you can. The problem with this, is our decisions are based on faulty knowledge and experiences. We have a very limited view of our situation, so our solutions to problems only address the portion we can see. There is a certain amount of interpretation of perceived facts that lead to an educated guess. But this is also faulty system because. Our perception is not always based in reality.

However, we serve an omniscient, omnipotent, omnipresent God.  He is all knowing, all powerful, and everywhere at the same time. There is nothing hid from him. He is our source. And we should allow him to be our navigator.

He is also faithful. God provides the answer to our current dilemma in Proverbs 3:5-6. We are our own worse enemy when it comes to figuring out what comes next. Why? Because we have reasonable intelligence and access to resources that gives us a false sense of our own ability to get things done. We tend to think we don’t need to depend on God to help us work things out. This is the opposite of faith. 

Faith requires us to forsake everything, and totally depend on and trust in God for everything. This includes relinquishing our decision-making capabilities. Total transparency moment – yes, you will still make decisions. However, now your decisions should be God directed. Yes, God will guide you, but ultimately, you still need to choose to follow the directions he provides.

How does Proverbs 3:5-6 work in real time?

-We must first totally submit ourselves to God.

-Then we must give the situation to God.

-Next, we ask God to direct our path. To show us the way we should go.

-Finally, we listen for the answer. This requires us to develop our spiritual ear to hear what God is saying to us.

We must learn to patiently wait on God. This is not a passive state of waiting. We will continue to do what God has called us to. We will continue to work in ministry. What is key here – to understand we are not desperate! There is always time to wait on the answer from God, and not allow the enemy to trick us into making moves that God has not ordained for us. We will wait on God in praise and worship. This is where we learn to hear God!

Once we have that witness from God in our spirit we know that the path has been made straight. We now have the direction we need. Often times, this is scary because it may seem counterintuitive to what we think is the plan of God for us. But stretch out in faith and make the move that God is propelling you toward. If you follow as he leads, you will have good success. Remember the first part of our scripture text – “Lean not to your own understanding.” You have to trust God and follow as he leads.

I am not saying that this process is easy. It will take daily dedication and practice. But if you remain faithful to the process. Be mindful of the commitment you made to change your MO (method of operation), you will experience the power of Proverbs 3:5-6 in your life.

This is how change is possible. Because it does require us to view things from a new lens. This new lens brings a new perspective and a new way of doing things.

Personal testimony – I have been applying this to my own life and must admit I have less anxiety because of my new perspective. I am very much a work in progress but I have to say that I am enjoying the journey. I can testify that Matthew 11:28-30 is true. 

Have a blessed day,