THE PASTOR'S CORNER... Gerry White
Try To Recover Your Own Power
When You're Tempted
I would like each of you to think of the top two or three things that cause the most trouble in your life right now.
Now, I would you to measure how strong each thing is on a scale of 1-10. Where 10 is the greatest.
•
How much effort does it take to deal with those issues?
•How often do you feel hopeless? You can’t take it any longer?
•How do you imagine your life next week, will this thing still be a problem?
•As long as you have this trouble, does your future look dark?
•Do you say to yourself, things just won’t work out the way I want them to?
•Do you work on your troubles by yourself or with someone else?
Psalms 60:11-12 (NKJV) “Give us help from trouble, For the help of man is useless. Through God we will do valiantly, For it is He who shall tread down our enemies.”
Jeremiah 9:23-24 (CEV) “The Lord says: Don't brag about your wisdom or strength or wealth. If you feel you must brag, then have enough sense to brag about worshiping me, the Lord. What I like best is showing kindness, justice, and mercy to everyone on earth.”
I need to admit:
1.I have no control over these things that cause trouble in my life.
Until you realize your helplessness, you will be unwilling or unable to turn outside yourself for the help you need!
Psalms 146:3-5 (CEV) “You can't depend on anyone, not even a great leader. Once they die and are buried, that will be the end of all their plans. The Lord God blesses everyone who trusts him and depends on him.”
Proverbs 3:5 (NIV) “lean not on your own understanding”
Jeremiah 10:23 (AMP) “O Lord I know that [the determination of] the way of a man is not in himself; it is not in man [even in a strong man or in a man at his best] to direct his [own] steps.”
You must remain responsible – responsible to recognize your helplessness and turn to God for help.
2.I must believe in God who is much greater than I am.
Hebrews 11:6 (CEV) “Without faith no one can please God. We must believe that God is real and that he rewards everyone who searches for him.”
3.I will turn my troubles over into the care of God.
Jeremiah 17:5-8 (GW) “This is what the Lord says: Cursed is the person who trusts humans, who makes flesh and blood his strength and whose heart turns away from the Lord. He will be like a bush in the wilderness. He will not see when something good comes. He will live in the dry places in the desert, in a salty land where no one can live. Blessed is the person who trusts the Lord. The Lord will be his confidence. He will be like a tree that is planted by water. It will send its roots down to a stream. It will not be afraid in the heat of summer. Its leaves will turn green. It will not be anxious during droughts. It will not stop producing fruit.”
A good example of living in the dry places in the desert is Ahab and Jezebel – 1 Kings 21
Ahab was king over Israel, he turned more of his life and will over to his wife, Jezebel, than to God.
Jezebel loved her husbands emotional dependence on her, because she had someone to control.
Ahab wanted Naboth's vineyard. But the owner had no interest in selling or swapping. So the king stomps home, throws a pity party and quits eating. Jezebel assumes her role, not by consoling but enabling, rescuing, and controlling Ahab.
Jezebel had Naboth murdered, and then tells the king to seize the vineyard.
Instead of assuming you must help control what troubles others, encourage them to turn their troubles over to God.
It never seems possible you can get any weaker or lower than you do when you
"hit bottom," but that's where you end up every-time you leave God out of your life.
1 Corinthians 1:25 (MSG) “Human wisdom is so tinny, so impotent, next to the seeming absurdity of God. Human strength can't begin to compete with God's "weakness."
I MUST PRACTICE LIVING MY LIFE JUST LIKE I'M ALREADY IN THE KINGDOM OF GOD!
Luke 14:16-21 (NIV)
Jesus said:
"A certain man was preparing a great banquet and invited many guests. At the time of the banquet he sent his servant to tell those who had been invited, 'Come, for everything is now ready.' "But they all alike began to make excuses. The first said, 'I have just bought a field, and I must go and see it. Please excuse me.' "Another said, 'I have just bought five yoke of oxen, and I'm on my way to try them out. Please excuse me.' "Still another said, 'I just got married, so I can't come.' "The servant came back and reported this to his master. Then the owner of the house became angry and ordered his servant, 'Go out quickly into the streets and alleys of the town and bring in the poor, the crippled, the blind and the lame.'
Jesus said
Luke 17:20-21 (NKJV)
"The kingdom of God does not come with observation; For indeed, the kingdom of God is within you."
You cannot look into heaven and watch the spectacular scenes, but you can live it!
You are not here today by chance. God has brought you here today to decide when you’re going to change the way you live your life and start living as KINGDOM LIFE!
Jesus said Matthew 6:32-33 (NLT) “Your heavenly Father already knows all your needs, and he will give you all you need from day to day if you live for him and make the Kingdom of God your primary concern.”
How do you know how to live the KINGDOM LIFE?
Matthew 6:9-15 (NKJV)
“Your kingdom come. Your will be done On earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread. And forgive us our debts, As we forgive our debtors. And do not lead us into temptation, But deliver us from the evil one. For Yours is the kingdom and the power and the glory forever. Amen.”
Step One: I am to live my life as I will in the KINGDOM.
Galatians 2:20 (NIV) “I have been crucified with Christ and I no longer live, but Christ lives in me. The life I live in the body, I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me.”
Step Two: I am to thank God for His daily provisions to meet my needs. In the Kingdom, I will no longer work for my provisions. God will supply them for me in the KINGDOM as He does on earth – so I will give thanks
Step Three: I am to forgive everyone of every debt against me.
You will not remember the hurts, pain, and suffering others have done to you. Forgiveness is automatic the moment you enter the KINGDOM. Make forgiveness automatic today!
Step Four: I am no longer tested in the KINGDOM! Demons cannot tempt me to sin in the KINGDOM.
But they can and do now! Jesus was tempted by the devil for forty days. He was and you still are!
The Bible says James 1:14-15 (AMP) “Every person is tempted when he is drawn away, enticed and baited by his own evil desire (lust, passions). Then the evil desire, when it has conceived, gives birth to sin.”
Romans 8:1-9 (GW) “So those who are believers in Christ Jesus can no longer be condemned. The standards of the Spirit, who gives life through Christ Jesus, have set you free from the standards of sin and death…Therefore, we, who do not live by our corrupt nature but by our spiritual nature, are able to meet God's standards. Those who live by the corrupt nature have the corrupt nature's attitude. But those who live by the spiritual nature have the spiritual nature's attitude. If God's Spirit lives in you, you are under the control of your spiritual nature, not your corrupt nature.”
Satan is always looking for a crack in your armor so he can get at your heart. Impurity is that crack in the armor. Some small sin or lack of righteousness can make you vulnerable to Satan.
•Who is it knocks so loud?
•A Lonely little sin.
•Slip through, I answered,
•Soon all hell was in.
Proverbs 4:23 (AMP) “Keep and guard your heart with all vigilance and above all that you guard, for out of it flow the springs of life.”
There is no reason whatsoever that you should not have an absolutely clean and pure heart at this very moment. If you need cleansing, simply ask God for his forgiveness. He is willing and ready to cleanse you from all sin.
The Kingdom of God is not of this world, the Kingdom of God is in you!
Prayer:
God I admit I have no control over things that cause trouble I my life, and I turn my troubles over to you. Today, I will take the steps to live as I am in the KINGDOM, thank God for His daily provisions, forgive everyone of every debt against me, and live under the control of my Spiritual nature. In Jesus’ name.
Publisher's Note: Gerry White is the pastor of Lighthouse Baptist Church and Christian Academy in Hurricane.
The congregation of Lighthouse Baptist Church
worships the Lord every Sunday morning.
Traditional worship service is at 9:00. Contemporary worship service starts at 10:30.
Sunday School meets at: 6:00 p.m.
Wednesday night worship service is at 7:00.
AWANA meets at 6:45 Wednesday nights from
September through May.
Lighthouse Christian Academy is a Bible-based
Christian School, pre-school through 6th grade.
Day Care is 1-5 years old. There is also an
after-school program.
Lighthouse Baptist Church and Christian
Academy are located at 2440 US Route 60, in
Hurricane.
The church phone number is: 304-562-3900.
PutnamLIVE.com invites Putnam County pastors to submit a column each week for publication-free of charge as a spiritual outreach to the community. The subject matter may be selected by the pastor. Please submit columns to: PutnamLIVENews@AOL.com.
Columns will be rotated among each pastor so that a variety of pastors will have an opportunity for publication.
PutnamLIVE.com reserves the right to edit for space, grammar, and publication style, but will not change the integrity of editorial content.
