Quote from Forum Archives on September 12, 2005, 5:00 pm

Posted by: masinick <masinick@...>

Word for Today, Mon, 12 Sep 2005: My Utmost For His Highest: "By Spiritual
Confusion"
Dear friends,

The spiritual life is not always clear cut and obvious. In fact,
to the people in the world around us, the Bible tells us that the
world will regard what we consider as divine wisdom to be
foolishness. God says that He will use the lowliness and
foolishness, as viewed by the world, to accomplish His purposes
and confound those who refuse to accept Him and trust Him by
faith.

In fact, if you read this message clearly, you will readily see
that it is the advancement and testing of our faith that God is
after. He desires people who will believe Him and trust Him by
faith, even when all the usual signs and indications would point
to something else.

My own testimony to you is this: while I was looking for work and
what to do, I questioned myself, I questioned what I was doing
and where I was going. I decided to take a journey along
whatever path it led me on. I finally decided, though it took a
while, to simply live by faith. I figured that God has His hands
firmly upon my life because I have seen His Hand at work before.
I figured that there were many cobwebs, many dirty, filthy
things, that God had to clean and polish before He could take me
to where He wants me to be.

As of Tuesday, I have a good paying job. It will provide for my
family. I do not see that as the final path along the journey,
but I do see it as God's latest provision for our family. My
heart's desire is to read the scriptures, look to my God each and
every day, keep a short account of sin, and when I do fail, admit
it freely and quickly to my God, and rely on Him to thoroughly
cleanse me and redirect me along His intended path.

I pray that each one of us will take seriously the importance of
giving God the important first place in our hearts. That means
that God is more important than our jobs, our friends, our
status, our homes, or anything else. It means that we trust God
to provide for us, direct us where He wants us to be, and it
means reading His Word and discussing it privately with Him. It
means sharing our faith with others, pointing and leading people
to Christ.

Yours in Christ,
Brian

___________________________

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/ MY UTMOST FOR HIS HIGHEST -- www.heartlight.org/
--/------------------------------------------------------------------

September 12, 2005

BY SPIRITUAL CONFUSION

Ye know not what ye ask.

Matthew 20:22
www.SearchGodsWord.org/desk/?query=mt+20:22&sr=1

There are times in spiritual life when there is confusion, and it
is no way out to say that there ought not to be confusion. It is
not a question of right and wrong, but a question of God taking
you by a way which in the meantime you do not under stand, and it
is only by going through the confusion that you will get at what
God wants.

The Shrouding of His Friendship. Luke 11:5-8. Jesus gave the
illustration of the man who looked as if he did not care for his
friend, and He said that that is how the Heavenly Father will
appear to you at times. You will think He is an unkind friend,
but remember He is not; the time will come when everything will
be explained. There is a cloud on the friendship of the heart,
and often even love itself has to wait in pain and tears for the
blessing of fuller communion. When God looks completely shrouded,
will you hang on in confidence in Him?

The Shadow on His Fatherhood. Luke 11:11-13. Jesus says there are
times when your Father will appear as if He were an unnatural
father, as if He were callous and indifferent, but remember He is
not; I have told you - "Everyone that asketh receiveth." If there
is a shadow on the face of the Father just now, hang onto it that
He will ultimately give His clear revealing and justify Himself
in all that He permitted.

The Strangeness of His Faithfulness. Luke 18:1-8. "When the Son
of Man cometh, shall He find faith on the earth?" Will He find
the faith which banks on Him in spite of the confusion? Stand off
in faith believing that what Jesus said is true, though in the
meantime you do not under stand what God is doing. He has bigger
issues at stake than the particular things you ask.

MY UTMOST FOR HIS HIGHEST - by Oswald Chambers //
=============================================================== /===
www.heartlight.org/devotionals/my_utmost /

--
Brian Masinick, mailto:masinick@yahoo.com
Home page: www.geocities.com/masinick/

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