A Heart For Jesus

“The name of the second he called Ephraim, “For God has made me fruitful in the land of my affliction.”” Genesis‬ ‭41‬:‭52‬ ‭ESV‬‬ “For God has made me fruitful in the land of my affliction”. How many times have I read that verse and never really thought about it? We all know the story of Joseph, and how God used him even in the midst of his struggles and difficult circumstances and brought about good. Can He do the same for us? For me? Can God make me fruitful in the “land of my affliction“? And what is the “land of affliction” we are in? This “land” will be different for everyone. We may not like the circumstances we’re currently experiencing. We may not like the trials that daily come our way. We may ask God how long we must endure? But what if, like Esther, we were “made for such a time as this”?(See Esther 4:14). What if I chose to believe the lesson Chuck Swindoll presented in a devotional reading I had, “I am here by God’s appointment”; I am in His keeping”; I am under His train

  “Fear of man will prove to be a snare, but whoever trusts in the Lord is kept safe.” Proverbs‬ ‭29‬:‭25‬ ‭NIV‬‬ There is so much truth in this proverb! For the “fear of man” will most definitely “prove to be a snare”! When you fear what others think; or fear what they may say of you, that is a trap. When you live your life as a “people pleaser”, such as myself, you will never measure up; never be quite good enough. When you allow your fear of someone else’s opinion to determine how you act or respond to a given situation, you set yourself up for being controlled by them. You place yourself under their thumb so to speak.  ‭‭‬‬But where does this fear come from? What is at its roots? For me, it is a fear of rejection. The fear of being disapproved of; of disappointing someone or of being told I’m wrong or just being selfish. This “fear of man” is straight from the pits of hell. Living in fear of others, or with a fear of rejection and need for approval is not the life Jesus came to giv

  “But this command I gave them: ‘Obey my voice, and I will be your God, and you shall be my people. And walk in all the way that I command you, that it may be well with you.’” Jeremiah‬ ‭7‬:‭23‬ ‭ESV Why is it so hard to listen? Why is it so hard to understand and accept what the Lord may be asking of us? Why is it so hard to obey? Especially when He promises that if we obey His commands and walk in His ways we will be blessed?  Obedience, a nine letter word, that especially in my past, made me cringe. My motto was, “it’s my life I’ll do what I want” or, “you can’t tell me what to do”. I struggled with authority figures because I couldn’t stand the feeling of someone else thinking they could control me. I always wanted things to go my way. I still struggle with control issues but the Lord has definitely been changing my heart and mind; teaching me about surrender and trusting in Him.    The Biblical definition of obedience is, “hearing the word of God and acting on it”. It’s not alway

“What then shall we say to these things? If God is for us, who can be against us?” Romans‬ ‭8‬:‭31‬ ‭NKJV‬‬ This one is difficult for me to think about. Who can be against us? Really? I can think of a few who could be against me! As I was reflecting on this question a few things came to mind. What if we lived in an area where being a Christian could get us killed? What if we weren’t allowed to meet together for Bible study? What if we had to hide the fact that we were followers of Jesus because of the risk of persecution or even imprisonment? Yet there are people in this world who suffer these things, and they still practice their faith! They still worship God and study His Word! Oh to have such a strong faith, that doesn’t cower at the least bit of opposition! But then... Consider Jesus. He definitely understands what it is to be persecuted. I wonder if he ever felt like giving up? Did the Devil tempt him at every turn? Luke 4:13 says, after He was tempted in the desert, that the devi