A Peculiar People

God wants you blessed!!!

1 Pet. 2:9 But you are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, a Holy nation, a peculiar people belonging to God, that you may declare the praises of Him who called you out of darkness into His wonderful light.

The Greek word for peculiar means to be over and above - hence abundance, plenty; riches, wealth, property, that which is one's own, and belonging to one's possessions.

In 1 Chr. 4:10 we find an interesting prayer from an obscure man who is made note of in a long line of geneologies.

"And Jabez called on the God of Israel saying, 'Oh, that You would bless me indeed, and enlarge my territory, that Your hand would be with me, and that You would keep me from evil, that I may not cause pain!' So God granted him what he requested."

The mark of God on His people is His presence, His hand, His blessing. The rest of the world will know that we are a people belonging to God, set apart for Him, because of the blessings that God bestows upon our lives.

Jabez called on God, because he knew only God could change his future and turn him into a blessing instead of a pain. God calls us to lead a high life - a life with God's hand upon it. He wants to expand our territory - lands, wealth, our influence.

God wants to empower us, and enable us to live a Holy life, extravagantly blessed by God.

Most believers shrink from living at this level of blessing and influence, but in fact, it is the very life God has called us to live.

Believe God for something so big, that unless God comes through, utter failure is inevitable. Trust Him to increase your territory in 2010 - we are His ambassadors, sent to do good works and be a blessing.

May God's people be marked by His presence and His favor upon their lives! We are blessed to be a blessing!

The Blessings of Obedience

Obedience is the foundation of faith. Obedience makes it easy to believe and trust God. God demands our obedience throughout scripture and declares that it is the measure of our love for Him. "If you love me, you will keep my commandments."

The Lord tells us specifically in scripture what will happen when we obey Him, and what will happen when we disobey Him. All of God's blessings come upon us when we listen and obey. But He also tells us that when we disobey Him, curses will come upon us, and He lists those curses explicitly.

God sets before us blessings or curses, life or death. And if the decision is not obvious enough, He tells us what the right answer is - choose life!

The reason God commands obedience is because He knows what will bring us joy and satisfaction, and what will destroy and harm us. He knows that when we are in right relationship with Him, we will be full of joy and be satisfied. We can trust Him with this. "No good thing does He withold from those who walk uprightly". Everything that God gives us is good. But we have an enemy who wants to kill us, steal our relationship with God, and destroy everything good that God has given us.

Obedience to God secures His blessing - God's blessing is His very presence and favor with us and upon us. Oh the things that we forfeit when we choose to do things our own way, instead of trusting in God. What joy and what peace could be ours if only we would trust His way.

Break the cycle of self-reliance this new year. God wants us to know that He is fully and completely worthy of our trust. He knows our needs, our desires, and He alone knows how to satisfy us like no other can. He is faithful, and He is GOOD.

Whatever part of us we are withholding from God, or are fearful of turning over to Him, I challenge you to trust Him with it this year. Give it to Him and know that He has good plans in store for you, nothing but good. All of His thoughts towards you are good. The only things He asks us to give up are things that would eventually bring us harm and keep us from His goodness.

When we choose to hold on to OUR ways, we forfeit the grace of God that could belong to us. He will empower us, enable us, and equip us as we yield to Him.

May 2010 be a year of total surrender to God - total trust in Him. Nothing held back. Even that one thing that has been so difficult to put into God's hands.

"In quietness and trust is your salvation". Give God the reins and watch and see what God will do! Let God see your love for Him through your obedience and trust in Him.