A Place Called “There” Can and Help

Perfection is achieved, not when there is nothing more to add, but when there is nothing left to take away. —Antoine de Saint-ExupéryStart with the “can do” portion of a task – How do i eat an elephant? One bite at a time. To often i focus too much on the “can’t do” portion of an important task and end up not making a move at all. Instead, i am to focus on the “can do” portion so that i’ll gradually gain the sufficient tools and momentum to take on the harder parts later. (³Through skillful and godly Wisdom is a house (a life, a home, a family) built, and by understanding it is established [on a sound and good foundation], ⁴And by knowledge shall its chambers [of every area] be filled with all precious and pleasant riches.) Wise planning, common sense and keeping abreast of the facts. Example: Psalm 27:4 One thing have I asked of the Lord, that will I seek, inquire for, and [insistently] require: that I may dwell in the house of the Lord [in His presence] all the days of my life, to behold and gaze upon the beauty [the sweet attractiveness and the delightful loveliness] of the Lord and to meditate, consider, and inquire in His temple. If i am not consistently spending one hour in His presence then what makes me think i could spend all the days. i need to start with a “can do” portion of the task. Otherwise i will become frustrated and most likely quit when i fail at “all the days of my life” a few times.

“Love what you do. Believe in your instincts. And you’d better be able to pick yourself up and brush yourself off every day.”

Help people with the same problems i have – Solving my problems in life isn’t always easy. my toughest problems often require the most creative solutions—solutions that are outside my scope of thinking. But when i help people solve problems that are similar to my own, i find it easier to solve my own problems. By solving the same problem from different perspectives, i’ll find the all-inclusive answer that seems to work repeatedly. Solving these types of problems will become second-nature to me and eventually i’ll be able to solve my own problems, even the toughest ones. There is a point to be made here. i have found that there are two groups of people, those that have problems and those that are problems. i can help and walk with those that have problems as they are like me. Those that are problems would rather be victims and spend their days grumbling and complaining. All i can do for them is interceded on their behalf that they would desire the truth of the word for their lives.

“The third-rate mind is only happy when it is thinking with the majority. The second-rate mind is only happy when it is thinking with the minority. The first-rate mind is only happy when it is thinking.” A. A. Milne

There are no accidents without value. When you get hit hard and land on your back, look for the reasons and for the value in this. Open your heart and trust this happened for a reason. Perhaps it was to test your determination or to alert you to the fact you were on the wrong path. Either way, trust the experience is happening for a reason and be open to making adjustments in order to keep moving forward.

In closing, i don’t want to wait until the time is just right to take the first step toward achieving my desires. The time will never be just right. i am making the choice to start where i am right now and going for what matters most in my life. Where i end up tomorrow or one year from now is up to me and the choices i make to be the fullness of what and who God meant me to be.

” To the man who only has a hammer, everything he encounters begins to look like a nail.” —Abraham Maslow

A Place Called “There” Goals and Destiny

There is no distance on this earth as far away as yesterday.  ~Robert Nathan

Move closer to my goals on a daily basis – i should devote at least a couple of hours a day to what i am trying to accomplish. On average, the total number of hours a person sleeps and works in a day is 16 hours. That leaves another 8 hours of free time that can used for anything that i want. i am not able ever tell myself that i “don’t have time.” Instead, i must make a way to blend what i currently do with what i desire to do. Except in rare and unfortunate circumstances, i am responsible for the quality and condition of my life. my career, my relationships and my happiness are all under my control. Sometimes i choose to do nothing when i get hit hard because it’s just easier and less painful that way. But the real pain is only deferred. i have to live with myself. i have to live with the voice in my gut, my inner wisdom, that still small voice of the Holy Spirit, that says i gave up too soon or didn’t try hard enough. When i hear this inner voice speaking to me, it’s usually right. It’s my choice, then, to get up and keep moving forward.

i have to ask myself, how badly do i want it? How badly do i really want to achieve what i am working so hard to accomplish? When i get hit hard, i have an opportunity to answer this question. It’s one thing to say i want to do something, or to be something. But to walk through the pain; to get up and keep moving forward knowing there may be more pain ahead, is a test of my determination and resolve. When i find myself getting back on my feet, i have indeed answered this question and there’s no doubt i will keep moving forward.

“Would you keep a chive on your tooth just because you enjoyed last night’s potato?”  From the television show Boston Common

Embrace destiny and ride the wave of momentum – When i reach a point in my life when things seem to be working in my favor, i should milk it for all it’s worth. This is my best opportunity to work harder than i’ve ever worked before because i’m already moving at a faster pace because of the momentum behind me. When i have momentum, the work that i do will have a greater effect than usual and i’ll make much more progress than at any other time. The story of Nehemiah comes to mind. The opportunity presents itself and Nehemiah goes for it. He seizes the moment of favor.

Nehemiah 2 So the king said to me, Why do you look sad, since you are not sick? This is nothing but sorrow of heart. Then I was very much afraid ³And said to the king, Let the king live forever! Why should I not be sad faced when the city, the place of my fathers’ sepulchers, lies waste, and its [fortified] gates are consumed by fire? ⁴The king said to me, For what do you ask? So I prayed to the God of heaven. ⁵And I said to [him], If it pleases the king and if your servant has found favor in your sight, I ask that you will send me to Judah, to the city of my fathers’ sepulchers, that I may rebuild it. ⁶The king, beside whom the queen was sitting, asked me, How long will your journey take, and when will you return? So it pleased [him] to send me; and I set him a time. ⁷Also I said to the king, If it pleases the king, let letters be given me for the governors beyond the [Euphrates] River, that they may let me pass through to Judah, ⁸And a letter to Asaph, keeper of the king’s forest or park, that he may give me timber to make beams for the gates of the fortress of the temple and for the city wall and for the house that I shall occupy. And the king granted what I asked, for the good hand of my God was upon me.

While i am looking at the things i need to do to keep moving forward i must also keep these closing thoughts in mind . Watch my thoughts, for they become words. Watch my words, for they become actions. Watch my actions, for they become habits.
Watch my habits, for they become character. Watch my character, for it becomes my destiny.

A Place Called “There” Associate and Open

“Courage does not always roar. Sometimes courage is the quiet voice at the end of the day saying, ” I will try again tomorrow.” Mary Ann Radmacher

“If your actions inspire others to dream more, learn more, do more and become more, you are a leader.” John Quincy Adams

Associate with people who inspire me – i have noticed when i associate with someone long enough, their habits and ways of thinking start to rub off on me. That’s because states of mind are contagious; they are transmittable from one mind to another. If i hang around someone who thinks little of themselves and has self-destructive habits, i’ll eventually show signs of being influenced by them. A perfect example of this is when i was a teenager. I hung around with a group of kids that i did not fit in with. i was not a prankster and did not live life on the wild side. One Halloween i decided to go out with them. No costumes were involved it was a night for pulling off pranks. I had become part of the group… so i thought. My prank was to tie a string across a road. Not much problem there, but what i also had to do was tie a frog by its leg from the string. Still not so bad, unless the frog is window high and is directly in line with a car’s windshield. Yes the car came, yes the frog was hit and yes shortly after i found myself running like crazy because the police were looking for whom had done it. This was not me. At least until my desire to be accepted became greater than my values and that put me in the place of doing what i thought would get me accepted. Mind you it was not their fault. They were being who they were at that time and i willingly joined in. If i hang around those who are confident and aim high in life, the same subsequent effect will occur. It’s been said that if you want to be an eagle then hang around eagles, not turkeys. This is why i like to be around people who speak and act on the word. They stir up my spirit to be more in tune with the word and that causes my actions to change accordingly.

Have an open mind – When someone closes their mind to something, they will cease to learn and grow in that area. All because someone doesn’t agree with something doesn’t mean they should be completely ignorant about it. i have several people around me that cause me to have an open mind. We do not always agree about things but we respect each other enough to challenge each others beliefs and actions. Yet while keeping an open mind i am careful to discern for well dressed lies. If i choose to be more receptive to ideas that i am not used to, i may have more opportunities to  look at a different perspective that could prove beneficial. Again an open mind does not mean that i will listen to just anyone. The association with a close dozen or so is where this works for me.

i close with this thought, “Character is so largely affected by association, that i cannot afford to be indifferent as to who or what my friends are.”

A Place Called “There” Love and Strength

When I stand before God at the end of my life, I would hope that I would not have a single bit of talent left, and could say, “I used everything you gave me.”  ~Erma Bombeck

Continuing with looking at what moving forward looks like. Thus far i have looked at Think, Focus, Aim, Give. Today is Love and Strength.

Do what i love – Only by doing what i love (Psalm 27:4) will i have enough motivation to persist during times of difficulty. All i have to do is look at what i love, then develop my habits and find a way to make a living while doing them. Today’s post is not so much about the how, but still more about the what. In order to move forward in life, i need a firm foundation to step from. (Habakkuk 2 ¹[OH, I know, I have been rash to talk out plainly this way to God!] I will [in my thinking] stand upon my post of observation and station myself on the tower or fortress, and will watch to see what He will say within me and what answer I will make [as His mouthpiece] to the perplexities of my complaint against Him. ²And the Lord answered me and said, Write the vision and engrave it so plainly upon tablets that everyone who passes may [be able to] read [it easily and quickly] as he hastens by. ³For the vision is yet for an appointed time and it hastens to the end [fulfillment]; it will not deceive or disappoint. Though it tarry, wait [earnestly] for it, because it will surely come; it will not be behindhand on its appointed day.) Understanding what and where i want to go in life will provide vision and spirit – my foundation. The how will come together when i know i want to keep moving forward.

“I arise in the morning torn between a desire to improve the world and a desire to enjoy the world.  This makes it hard to plan the day.” Elwyn Brooks White Improving the world will require more of me than enjoying the world. One is living as a spectator and the other requires active participation. For the believer i do not see the spectator as a true or viable option.

Develop my strength and faith – Because of heredity,environmental influences, and who i am created to be, i have strengths or the potential for strengths. I learned long ago that i must focus on my strengths. It used to be that i focused on my weaknesses so that i would be good at everything or at least better. Sports is a good example. i am not particularly good at any sport but i played them often when i was younger. The hope was that if i did it long enough i would get better. When it came time to picking teams i was always last and no matter how hard i tried and how many sports i endured i remained the last one picked and the humiliation finally caused me to quit playing sports. i then tried playing guitar. i never got good enough to do anything with it other than write songs for myself and family. I decided to work in areas of strength. After many years of attempts, i found that i am good at the word. Not in memorizing it but in applying my life to it. It is a strength that i continue to work on, improve in and enjoy.  (Nehemiah 8:10 Then [Ezra] told them, Go your way, eat the fat, drink the sweet drink, and send portions to him for whom nothing is prepared; for this day is holy to our Lord. And be not grieved and depressed, for the joy of the Lord is your strength and stronghold.) my strength in the Lord is my best asset for moving passed the resistance i’ll run into.

Faith: A strong belief in something without proof or evidence. Faith is believing it from the moment you pray it until the moment it is manifest. At the end of the day when i am weary from all of the effort and energy i have expended and i am sore and tired from being hit hard so many times, yet the dream is not realized, the one thing that tells me to keep going; to get up tomorrow and to keep moving forward, is my faith.That is my faith in God. i need to learn to honor this and cherish it. Faith in God  is what gives me energy and hope. And if i let it, my faith in God will deliver me to wherever i want to go in life.

“Here is the test to find whether your mission on earth is finished.  If you’re alive, it isn’t.”  Richard Bach

A Place Called “There” – Aim and Give

“Don’t ever give up on something or someone that you can’t go a full day without thinking about.”

Life can hit hard. Sometimes i get knocked down (Proverbs 24:16 For a righteous man falls seven times and rises again, but the wicked are overthrown by calamity) when i don’t even see it coming. Some are cheap shots, some are glancing blows and some bring me to my knees. When this happens, it’s not about how hard i get hit; it’s about how i find the strength to keep moving forward. It’s about having the will to continue in spite of the obstacles. It’s interesting where my  inspiration can be found at those times.

Aim high – i must think about the goals i have set for myself. Are they really the most that i am capable of? Are they the most that i am capable of through God? Chances are, i am better than i think and i can do things that i previously never thought possible. (Mark 10:27 Jesus looked at them and said, “With man this is impossible, but not with God; all things are possible with God.”) i have potential inside of me, like a seed but i need to elevate my thoughts to harmonize with the potential i have in Him. If the goals i have set for myself are mediocre, double their size and tell myself that i am good enough to achieve them. i’ll only attempt what i think i can do and who i am depending on makes all the difference. So it bears repeating,  (All [things that are] Mine are Yours, and all [things that are] Yours belong to Me; and I am glorified in (through) them. [They have done Me honor; in them My glory is achieved.] John 17:10 )

Give more than i receive – One of the greatest guarantees in life is if i give the best that i have to offer, i am almost certain to be rewarded. In the world anything that is noteworthy is only attainable by first giving something of equal or greater value. In the Spirit world or according to God, yes, we must give but what we give is given back to us by God and is far more than equal to our giving.

Life is not ment to be lived alone. i may feel that it would be better sometimes, but this was and is not God’s plan. (Luke 10:27 And he replied, You must love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength and with all your mind; and your neighbor as yourself.) There are many people who would extend their hand and lift me up if asked. All i have to do is ask. i am to consider co-workers, neighbors, anyone in my community. Often times i am afraid to ask because i don’t believe i am worthy to receive the help. Other times i am not sure that anyone will help. I must think about this: i am surrounded by millions and millions of people by design – for a purpose. A hand to grasp, a shoulder to cling to, and a face to radiate hope, all can help me to keep moving forward.

 Whatever my goal, my dream, or my desire, (Delight yourself in the LORD and He will give you the desires of your heart. Psalm 37:4) i am worthy of achieving it. The closer i get to it is when the enemy of my soul will begin putting doubt in my mind by playing the self-limiting tapes that say, i am not worthy. (James 1:7 says, “a double minded man is unstable in all his ways and should expect nothing from the Lord.) i am to replace that old tape with a newer one that contains the truth – i am worthy to have my heart’s true desire and to keep moving forward.

Isaiah 58:14 Then will you delight yourself in the Lord, and I will make you to ride on the high places of the earth, and I will feed you with the heritage [promised for you] of Jacob your father; for the mouth of the Lord has spoken it.

“I know that you believe you understand what you think I said, but I’m not sure you realize that what you heard is not what I meant.”

A Place Called “There” Think and Focus

Be not angry that you cannot make others as you wish them to be, since you cannot make yourself as you wish to be. – Thomas à Kempis, Imitation of Christ

Ecclesiastes 8:17 – Then I saw all the work of God, that man cannot find out the work that is done under the sun–because however much a man may toil in seeking, yet he will not find it out; yes, more than that, though a wise man thinks and claims he knows, yet will he not be able to find it out.

Man… if that doesn’t express how i feel sometimes. It’s like i am on a never-ending treadmill and the pace just keeps getting faster and faster, yet i look around and see that i have gone nowhere.

If i keep doing what i am doing right now, where do i see myself in one year? Yes, i’ll make progress in some areas of my life but are they the areas that i care most about? Are they the areas that mean the most to me? Are they the onething i desire?

i would love to move forward in certain areas of my life but let’s face it, sometimes it’s hard. Sometimes i get so used to thinking a certain way that i can’t seem to make a first definite step, even though i know deep down in my heart that it’s the right thing to do.

With that in mind, i will compile a list of actions i can take every day that will make a difference in moving toward “There.”

Think as if – my present circumstances are the result of my past thinking and my future will be the result of what i am thinking now. my thoughts have to be higher than my present circumstances for me to rise higher. (Proverbs 23:7 As a man thinketh, so is he.) Constantly i am to remind myself that i already have what i am striving for. (Ephesians 4:29, “Watch the way you talk. Let nothing foul or dirty come out of your mouth. Say only what helps, each word a gift.”) If i do this, my behaviors and mental images will become aligned with God’s will for me. (Psalm 19:14, “May the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be pleasing to you, O LORD, my rock and my redeemer.”) One of my overall favorite verses is Philippians 2:13 [Not in my own strength] for it is God Who is all the while effectually at work in me [energizing and creating in me the power and desire], both to will and to work for His good pleasure and satisfaction and delight.

Focus on one definite goal  – If i direct my energy toward too many objectives at once, i  won’t make enough progress in any direction. In order to move forward, i have to literally walk down a singular path (Psalm 27:4 One thing have I asked of the Lord, that will I seek, inquire for, and [insistently] require: that I may dwell in the house of the Lord [in His presence] all the days of my life, to behold and gaze upon the beauty [the sweet attractiveness and the delightful loveliness] of the Lord and to meditate, consider, and inquire in His temple.)toward a major definite purpose that defines who i want to be. ⁵ But if any of you needs wisdom, you should ask God for it. He is generous to everyone and will give you wisdom without criticizing you. ⁶ But when you ask God, you must believe and not doubt. Anyone who doubts is like a wave in the sea, blown up and down by the wind.^7-8 Such doubters are thinking two different things at the same time, and they cannot decide about anything they do. They should not think they will receive anything from the Lord. One definite goal without wavering or doubting, responding to the call of being righteous in I Am. At the end of each day i desire to hear the words, “Well done good and faithful servant.” That does not imply that i got it right all day, but it does say that God saw the intent of my heart as good.

Give thanks for what you are now, and keep fighting for what you want to be tomorrow.  ~Fernanda Miramontes-Landeros

 

A Place Called “There” – Psalm 27:4c

Psalm 27:4 (Amplified Bible) One thing have I asked of the Lord, that will I seek, inquire for, and [insistently] require: that I may dwell in the house of the Lord [in His presence] all the days of my life, to behold and gaze upon the beauty [the sweet attractiveness and the delightful loveliness] of the Lord and to meditate, consider, and inquire in His temple.

2 Corinthians 3:18. Paul wrote, “And we, who with unveiled faces all reflect the Lord’s glory, are being transformed into his likeness with ever-increasing glory, which comes from the Lord, who is the Spirit.” i am being transformed into His likeness as slow as the process may seem.  i am trying to imagine what ever-increasing glory, which comes from the Lord will look like.

inquire in His temple. The earthly temple is to be patterned after the heavenly one. Hebrews 9:23-24 reads, “It was necessary, then, for the copies of the heavenly things to be purified with these sacrifices, but the heavenly things themselves with better sacrifices than these. For Christ did not enter a man-made sanctuary that was only a copy of the true one; He entered heaven itself, now to appear for us in God’s presence.

God’s presence is always with me and i cannot live without it, yet i find myself hungering for God’s presence more and more. How can i long and hunger for something that is already all around me and dwells within me? When i talk about experiencing the presence of the Lord, i am really talking about the realization of abiding in God’s presence… of being able to perceive His presence and becoming conscious of Him. Although God is always with me, there are obvious times when His presence within me seems to be there in greater measure, and it seems that i experience God’s intimate presence in a greater capacity. God’s manifest presence is what changes my life and reveals His glory.  If i want to walk in the presence of the Lord, then i need to be practicing the presence of God. One of the ways i can do this is through worship. By placing myself before Him in a place of adoration, i make room for Him, and through focusing my attention on Him,there is an increase in my awareness of being in the Presence of God. Learning how to soak in God’s presence through worship is one of the most valuable things i can do with my time. Another way i can abide in the presence of God is to abide in His Word. Jesus said, “if you abide in Me and My Words abide in you, you will ask whatever you will and it shall be done for you.”

There is a cry in my heart for greater intimacy. i believe it will come in part through my worship… worship in new songs that are God-breathed, new songs that are birthed in another world and they bring that world to me, new songs that are so touched by His presence that they capture my heart for Him. There, in the secret place, i am captivated by His love and consumed with His purpose for my life. There, in the intimacy of worship, i lay down my life in pursuit of the greatest privilege ever offered to me… to be a lover of God.

The best answer to my distractions… (is) a preoccupation with God’s Person and His will. This is possible for me because “i am a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a person belonging to God, that i may declare the praises of Him who called me out of darkness into His wonderful light.” 1 Peter 2:9

One thing have I asked of the Lord, that will I seek, inquire for, and [insistently] require: that I may dwell in the house of the Lord [in His presence] all the days of my life, to behold and gaze upon the beauty [the sweet attractiveness and the delightful loveliness] of the Lord and to meditate, consider, and inquire in His temple.

THIS IS WHY! “so that i may become blameless and pure, a child of God without fault in a crooked and depraved generation, in which i shine like stars in the universe as i hold out the word of life” (Philippians 2:15)

A Place Called “There” – Psalm 27:4b

Psalm 27:4 (Amplified Bible) One thing have I asked of the Lord, that will I seek, inquire for, and [insistently] require:

that I may dwell in the house of the Lord [in His presence] all the days of my life,

Dwell: to live or stay as a permanent resident.

David says, my preeminent desire—the one thing that I prize above all others—is to be in God’s presence and to enjoy His beauty. i want my preeminent desire to be in God’s presence and enjoying His beauty.

Remember Peter’s reaction when he saw Jesus’ glory on the Mount of Transfiguration. In Matthew 17:2 it says, that Jesus, “was transfigured before them. His face shone like the sun, and his clothes became as white as the light. Just then there appeared before them Moses and Elijah,
talking with Jesus.” In response Peter said, (Matthew 17:4) “Lord, it is good for us to be here.”

i know that place, but it is more visitation than habitation. When i am there i sense the blessedness, the joy, the happiness that comes from close contact with the glory of Jesus. William Plumer paraphrases David’s words this way: “I have desired one thing preeminently. I have desired it so much that in comparison I have desired nothing else.” David wanted to be with God, in His presence because there was beauty and joy there. For me this is not an ambition to hold a position but it is to enjoy the constant presence of God.

The Hebrew word translated ‘beauty’ means, (KAB) “to be lovely… to be pleasant, delightful” To be with God and see Him is delightful. The word is filled with similar words. In Psalm 84:10-11 it says, “Better is one day in your courts than a thousand elsewhere; I would rather be a doorkeeper in the house of my God than dwell in the tents of the wicked. For the LORD God is a sun and shield; the LORD bestows favor and honor; no good thing does he withhold from those whose walk is blameless.”

NO GOOD THING DOES HE WITHHOLD FROM THOSE WHOSE WALK IS BLAMELESS!!  That does not mean that i have arrived. David was not a perfect man but according to God he was a man after God’s heart in the midst of his imperfections.

In Psalm 73:25 Asaph says to God, “Whom have I in heaven but you? And earth has nothing I desire besides you.”

All the days of my life – Through all its changes, in every variety of situations, until I reach the end. Life will end, and i have no clue as to when that will be; but as long as my life should continue, i am confidently assured that everything needful for me is provided for me. my words are the utterance of a heart overflowing with joy and gratitude in the recollection of the past, and full of glad anticipation (as derived from the experience of the past) in regard to the future.

I am going to take a few moments to gaze upon His beauty through the words found in Revelation 4:2  “At once I was in the Spirit, and there before me was a throne in heaven with someone sitting on it. And the one who sat there had the appearance of jasper and carnelian. A rainbow, resembling an emerald, encircled the throne. Surrounding the throne were twenty-four other thrones, and seated on them were twenty-four elders. They were dressed in white and had crowns of gold on their heads. From the throne came flashes of lightning, rumblings and peals of thunder. Before the throne, seven lamps were blazing. These are the seven spirits of God. Also before the throne there was what looked like a sea of glass, clear as crystal. In the center, around the throne, were four living creatures, and they were covered with eyes, in front and in back. The first living creature was like a lion, the second was like an ox, the third had a face like a man, the fourth was like a flying eagle. Each of the four living creatures had six wings and was covered with eyes all around, even under his wings. Day and night they never stop saying: ‘Holy, holy, holy is the Lord God Almighty, who was, and is, and is to come.’ Whenever the living creatures give glory, honor and thanks to him who sits on the throne and who lives for ever and ever, the twenty-four elders fall down before him who sits on the throne, and worship him who lives for ever and ever. They lay their crowns before the throne and say: ‘You are worthy, our Lord and God, to receive glory and honor and power, for you created all things, and by your will they were created and have their being.'”

that ed may stay as a permanent resident in His presence, all the days of ed’s life.

A Place Called “There” Psalm 27:4a

As i was driving to the center this morning Psalm 27:4 came to mind. i could not shake it although i didn’t try very hard. This has been a foundational verse for me and for the prayer room for the past four almost five years. During that time it has sometimes sounded like pie in the sky. Other times it sounds simple. One thing for sure is that today i was reminded of it for a reason. i can call it “here” or “There” and it would make no difference. In our Tuesday Community Meeting the question was asked, “what are you doing here?” i didn’t answer it then because i had forgotten what i was doing “here.” Yes there is much going on and it could all be described as God’s work or at least good work but it is not what i am doing “here.” Psalm 27:4 is what i am doing whether “here” or “there.” At least that’s what i’m trying to do, although distracted often. i am going to bring this verse to life for me by making it personal, as though i were the one who wrote it and was making the request to the Lord as we stand together face to face.

Psalm 27:4 (Amp) One thing have I asked of the Lord, that will I seek, inquire for, and [insistently] require: that I may dwell in the house of the Lord [in His presence] all the days of my life, to behold and gaze upon the beauty [the sweet attractiveness and the delightful loveliness] of the Lord and to meditate, consider, and inquire in His temple.

One (being a particular, unique, or only individual, item, or unit) thing (anything that is or may become an object of thought) have i asked of the Lord,

One particular, unique, individual object of thought, one main object, one thing that i have especially desired, one thing which has been the object of my constant wish. The ruling desire of my heart as a psalmist, have i asked of the Lord

 that (indicating a person, thing, or idea) will I seek, (to go in search or quest of, to seek the truth, try to find or discover by searching or questioning, try to obtain) inquire for, (to make investigation, to seek to learn by asking) and [insistently] (earnest or emphatic in dwelling upon, maintaining, or demanding something, persistent, compelling attention) require: (to ask for authoritatively or imperatively)  

David is saying, one thing have I desired of the Lord,…. Not to be returned to Saul’s court; not to his own house and family; not to have an affluence of worldly riches and honours; but to have constant abode in, the house of the Lord; an opportunity to focus continually on the worship of God; which is excused and neglected by many, and is a weariness to others, but was to the psalmist preferred above everything else.

i am saying, one thing I desire of the Lord,…. Not to be returned to the worlds works; not to my own house and family; not to have an affluence of worldly riches and honours; but to have constant dwelling in, the house of the Lord; an opportunity to focus continually on the worship of God; which is excused and neglected by many, and is a weariness to others, but is what i prefer above everything else.

Now if that’s true how do i become so easily distracted. This most definitely is much easier for me to write about as a hope or a wish rather than living it out. God said that he David, was a man after His own heart. my heart is willing but my mind is weak. i wish i could write that i have been successful at accomplishing the words i have just written and dissected. While there have been moments, they have been fleeting. i am not giving up! This will I seek after, by incessant prayer, until obtained. Perseverance in prayer is the way to succeed, as appears from the parable of the widow and unjust judge.

I close with this thought. One of the great tragedies of mylife is that i do not appreciate the beauty of God as i should. The Bible tells me that God is exceedingly beautiful. Thus, this could be the answer as to why i am so easily distracted and that these words are still a hope or a wish and not reality.

A Place Called “There” Kingdoms

Being “There” or “Here” could be like tomorrow… it never comes because when you get there it is today. There, may never arrive because when you get there it is here. Also the only way i see the grass as being greener on the other side is if i am on the KINGDOM OF THE WORLD side.

If you have not chosen the Kingdom of God first, it will in the end make no difference what you have chosen instead. There are marked differences between the two kingdoms.

KINGDOM OF GOD – God’s Ways: Isaiah 55:8,9  “ For My thoughts are not your thoughts, Nor are your ways My ways,” says the LORD. 9 “ For as the heavens are higher than the earth, So are My ways higher than your ways, And My thoughts than your thoughts.”

 KINGDOM OF THE WORLD – Man’s Ways: Proverbs 14:12 12 There is a way that seems right to a man, But its end is the way of death.

KINGDOM OF GOD – Jesus: Revelation 19:16 And He has on His robe and on His thigh a name written: KING OF KINGS AND LORD OF LORDS.

KINGDOM OF THE WORLD – Satan: I John 5:19 We know that we are of God, and the whole world lies under the sway of the wicked one.

KINGDOM OF GOD – Invisible/Supernatural: Colossians 1:16 For by Him all things were created that are in heaven and that are on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or principalities or powers. All things were created through Him and for Him.

KINGDOM OF THE WORLD – Visible/Natural: 2 Corinthians 4:18 While we do not look at the things which are seen, but at the things which are not seen. For the things which are seen are temporary, but the things which are not seen are eternal.

KINGDOM OF GOD – Spoken Word of God: John 6:63 It is the Spirit who gives life; the flesh profits nothing. The words that I speak to you are spirit, and they are life.

KINGDOM OF THE WORLD – Spoken words of man: Proverbs 18:20 A man’s [moral] self shall be filled with the fruit of his mouth; and with the consequence of his words he must be satisfied [whether good or evil].

KINGDOM OF GOD – Holy Spirit: Luke 11:13 If you then, being evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to those who ask Him!”

KINGDOM OF THE WORLD – Natural Mind: Romans 8:7 Because the carnal mind is enmity against God; for it is not subject to the law of God, nor indeed can be.

KINGDOM OF GOD – Angels of the kingdom of God: Hebrews 1:14 Are they not all ministering spirits sent forth to minister for those who will inherit salvation?

KINGDOM OF THE WORLD – Angels of the kingdom of the world: Jude 6 And angels who did not keep (care for, guard, and hold to) their own first place of power but abandoned their proper dwelling place—these He has reserved in custody in eternal chains (bonds) under the thick gloom of utter darkness until the judgment and doom of the great day.

KINGDOM OF GOD – Reborn Spirit: Romans 8:14 For as many as are led by the Spirit of God, these are sons of God.

KINGDOM OF THE WORLD – Unborn Spirit: Ephesians 2:1 AND YOU [He made alive], when you were dead (slain) by [your] trespasses and sins.

KINGDOM OF GOD – Believe: John 6:29 Jesus replied, This is the work (service) that God asks of you: that you believe in the One Whom He has sent [that you cleave to, trust, rely on, and have faith in His Messenger].

KINGDOM OF THE WORLD – Unbelief: James 1:12-15 Blessed is the man who endures temptation; for when he has been approved, he will receive the crown of life which the Lord has promised to those who love Him. 13 Let no one say when he is tempted, “I am tempted by God”; for God cannot be tempted by evil, nor does He Himself tempt anyone. 14 But each one is tempted when he is drawn away by his own desires and enticed. 15 Then, when desire has conceived, it gives birth to sin; and sin, when it is full-grown, brings forth death.

KINGDOM OF GOD – Faith: 2 Corinthians 5:7 7 For we walk by faith, not by sight.

KINGDOM OF THE WORLD – Fear: James 2:14-26 But let him ask in faith, with no doubting, for he who doubts is like a wave of the sea driven and tossed by the wind. 7 For let not that man suppose that he will receive anything from the Lord; 8 he is a double-minded man, unstable in all his ways.

In closing i use two more comparisons of the two kingdoms.

KINGDOM OF GOD – “Followers of Jesus are to be different-different from both the nominal church and the secular world, different from both the religious and the irreligious. The Sermon on the Mount is the most complete delineation anywhere in the New Testament of the Christian value-system, ethical standard, religious devotion, attitude to money, ambition, life-style and network of relationships-all of which are totally at variance with those of the non-Christian world. And this Christian Counterculture is the life of the kingdom of God, a fully human life indeed but lived out under the divine rule.” John Stott

KINGDOM OF THE WORLD – “Now the works of the flesh are manifest, which are these; Adultery, fornication, uncleanness, lasciviousness, / Idolatry, witchcraft, hatred, variance, emulations, wrath, strife, seditions, heresies, / Envyings, murders, drunkenness, revellings, and such like: of the which I tell you before, as I have also told you in time past, that they which do such things shall not inherit the kingdom of God.”

 

A person filled with the love of God, is not content with blessing himself alone, but races through the whole world, anxious to bless all whom he comes in contact with.