renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings as
eagles; they shall run, and not be weary; and they shall
walk, and not faint."
I came upon something that I thought was very interesting.
It is a list of what is considered to be the worlds top 7 birds.
I'm going to give you this list along with just a sentence or
two of description.
1. The number one bird on this list is the Rainbow Lorikeet.
This bird is found mostly in Australia and Tasmania, in
the rain forest, coastal bush and is one of the most unusually attractive birds in the world.
China and is reknown for its magnificent display of color.
3. Number three is the Bali Bird of Paradise. This bird is
found mostly on the Island of New Guinea. Their
spectacular plumage can take your breath away.
4. Number four is the Scarlet Macaw. Native to the humid
evergreen forests in the American tropics, this bird is thought
to be truly spectacular in appearance.
5. The Stork Billed Kingfisher takes the fifth place in this list.
It is a wonderfully colorful tree-dweller that is native to
Eastern Asia.
6. Number six is the Painted Bunting. It is often described as
the most beautiful bird in North America - referred to as a
living rainbow that will gladden the heart.
7. And lastly, number seven is the Keel Billed Toucan. This is
the national bird of Belize. It spends most of its time high up
in the canopies of the rainforest and is described as "blow
your mind beautiful!"
Ok, here comes a question. What are each of these birds
known for? What is the thing they have in common that
got them on this list of the 7 top birds in the world?
Its their beauty. They were judged by man as the most
beautiful, spectacular and magnificent of all birds. They
were judged on their outward beauty.
So why didn't the Lord use one of these wonderful creations
of His in Matthew 10:29? "Are not two sparrows sold for a
farthing? And one of them shall not fall on the ground with
out your Father."
every continent accept the Antarctic. There nothing that makes
this little bird stand out! It is mostly a drab brown in color.
So why is this little bird the one used in the example of our
Heavenly Father's care?
are or what we look like! We are just as ordinary as that little brown sparrow! Outward beauty is not what determines our Heavenly Father's care of us! God's love and care for all who
are His children, is not based on looks, status, talent, wealth, or accomplishments! God does NOT look on the outward appearance...God looks upon the heart!
Lets look at 1 Samuel chapter 16. I'm just going to give
you a little background to the verse that I want to look at.
We find that the Lord had rejected Saul as King because of
his disobedience to Him. So God directed the prophet Samuel
to go see Jesse the Bethlehemite, for it was from among his
sons that a King for Israel would be chosen.
So Samuel did as God told him too and came to Jesse. And
he prepared a sacrifice and invited Jesse and his sons to come.
One by one Samuel looked upon the sons of Jesse and each
time thought, "This is the one!" But each time came God's rejection.We find that God said this in verse 7, "Look not on
his countenance, or on the height of his stature; because I
have refused him: for the LORD seeth not as man seeth;
for man looketh on the outward appearance, but the LORD looketh on the heart."
Finally after all the sons that were present were refused by God,
Samuel asked Jesse is he had any more sons. His youngest son,
David, who was just a lad, and out tending the sheep was called, and the LORD told Samuel that this was he who should be
anointed King.
Samuel's picks for King were based on outward appearances,
but God knew David's heart was tender towards Him.
How often do you make decisions based on what you can
see? We cannot see anothers heart. We are told in Proverbs
21:3, that "the LORD pondereth the hearts." Often what is
in ones heart is hidden behind a passive face, a smile or an unassuming manner, hidden from man but not from God!
However may I tell you that what is in our hearts will either
keep us weighed down or allow us to soar like the eagle!
This devotional is mostly directed at the child of God, how
ever there might be some reading this that do not know the
Lord as Savior. May I say to you today that the Lord God
is pondering your heart! However the only condition
that He see's your heart in is that of a lost person. Your
heart is rebellious towards Him. In other words, you are
not saved. Your heart is unresponsive to His free gift of
salvation and everlasting life through His Son, Jesus Christ.
The first step all must take is that of repentance and
acceptance. Seeing your sin for what it is; seeing God for
the Holy God He is; and repenting of your sin and accepting
His free gift of salvation that He is offering to you.
Jeremiah 17:9 says this about the heart of man, "The
heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately wicked,
who can know it?" Notice it tells us that our hearts are
deceitful. Your heart is lying to you, telling you that you
are a good person, that your high morals, good works and
right living are enough to get you to heaven. But that is a
lie straight from Satan. The last part of the verse asks a
question, "Who can know it?" The answer is God. We
can try to hide our sin from the world, but God knows, and
we cannot hide from Him. Romans 3:23 says, "For ALL
have sinned, and come short of the glory of God."
So if your heart is in this condition today, please believe
me when I tell you that there is a solution for your lost
condition. Romans 6:23 tell us, "For the wages of sin
is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through
Jesus Christ our Lord." If you find yourself with a
heart that is deceitful and desperately wicked, that is
rebellious to the Lord, please accept the gift of salvation
that is offered to you today!
For believers, you are either living a life of defeat, weighed
down by sin; or a life of victory.
We are instructed in Proverbs 4:23 to "Keep thy heart with
all diligence; for out of it are the issues of life." So how
do we keep our hearts with all diligence? I often compare it
to cleaning our homes. We do a thorough housecleaning and
end up with shining furniture and spotless floors. But in a
weeks time, there are the smudges on the coffee table again
and cobwebs in that corner that I scrubbed and goodness, there
are the dust bunnies gathering under the beds! Housecleaning
is not a one time thing (although I know we all wished it
were!) We have to be constantly scrubbing that corner and vacuuming under the furniture don't we! We need to do it
with all diligence.
Its the same thing with our hearts. We have to be constantly
on guard, constantly scrubbing out those corners where sin has
snuck back into again. And it comes in usually without any
awareness on our parts!
So what do we have to be watching for? I have a come up
with a list of some dangerous sins that we must guard our
hearts from. And also what we replace it with. If you take something away you should always fill up that space with something good! Empty spaces in our hearts are the devils playground!
1. Anger and bitterness These two go hand in hand because
anger is the fuel which propels bitterness through our whole
being. These can totally ruin a persons life. Not only does it
have physical repercussions on ones health and mentality, but
it will twist the inner fiber of our very being until we are
warped and totally useless to the Lord. But most importantly
this conditional totally cuts off our fellowship with the Lord.
We find in James 1:20 "For the wrath of man worketh not
the righteousness of God." And again in Psalms 37:8 "Cease
from anger and forsake wrath: fret not thyself in any wise
to do evil." It goes on to say in Eph 4:31 "Let all bitterness
and wrath, and anger, and clamour and evil speaking be put
away from you, with all malice..."
If you'll notice in this verse that bitterness, wrath and anger
also lead to other things! Sin never leads to anything better,
always to something worse! Clamour, evil speaking and malice.
Evil speaking doesn't need any explanation. But I want to just
clarify the meaning of these other two words so that there will
be no confusion as to the destructiveness of anger and bitterness
in our lives.
Clamour is defined as, loud complaint, to bellow, burst out,
hurl, roar.
And malice is the intension or desire to do evil, ill will,
vindictiveness, vengefulness, revenge.
These things should NOT be present in a believers life. So
how do we get rid of them? We stop feeding our old sin nature
and start feeding the new creation we are in Christ! How do
we blot out anger and bitterness? Fill that spot with the love of Christ! Anger and bitterness cannot exist in the same place as
love does. I know from personal experience that this is not
easy. Anger and bitterness are like mold, once it gets a hold
its very hard to scrub clean, but with persistence it can be
eradicated.
I had someone in my life that had done me much evil. This
lady seemed to find joy in humiliating me and telling lies
about me. I thought I would never be able to forgive her,
had a lot of anger and bitterness towards her. I knew
it was wrong but I was so angry I couldn't even pray for her!
So I started by asking the Lord to help me just pray for her,
in fact at first my prayer was "just help me say her name!"
I was so angry I couldn't even say her name in prayer. But
over time, with some failures I admit, my prayers for her
started to take on sincerity, the anger and bitterness started
to dissipate and today, we email and keep in touch with each
other. She has never asked forgiveness and I stopped looking
for an apology. Love replaced that need for an apology. Love replaced the anger and bitterness. This was not a human love,
this was a love produced by Christ alone, a supernatural love.
All these replacements I'm going to mention can only be done through the Lord, not on our own!
Matthew 22:37-39 says "Thou shalt love the Lord thy God
with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy
mind. This is the first and great commandment. And the
second is like unto it, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as
thyself."
Love is not a suggestion, it's a commandment, and we would
do well to pay heed.
2. Worry Proverbs 12:25 tells us that "Heaviness in the
heart of man maketh it stoop:" I know that there is not one
person here today that has not battled worry in your life.
We are familiar with that heaviness that comes from carrying
around a burden that is too heavy for us in the first place! We
find that worry takes its toll on us physically, sleeplessness,
headaches and so on.
I love this little childrens chorus:
Said the robin to the sparrow,
"I would really like to know,
Why these anxious human beings,
Rush around and worry so!"
Said the sparrow to the robin
"Friend, I think that it must be,
That they have no Heavenly Father,
Such as cares for you and me!"
Unfortunately this is how we tend to live our days isn't it?
We worry about things that we have no control over, that
doesn't concern us or that we think we can change. Do you
realize that there is NO amount of worry that can change
anything accept our fellowship with God! Worry robs us of
the peace that is ours through Christ! We read in Phil 4:6 & 7,
"Be careful for nothing (stop worrying!) but in every thing
by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests
be made known unto God. And the peace of God, which
passeth all understanding shall keep your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus."
We worry about things that we have no control over, that
doesn't concern us or that we think we can change. Do you
realize that there is NO amount of worry that can change
anything accept our fellowship with God! Worry robs us of
the peace that is ours through Christ! We read in Phil 4:6 & 7,
"Be careful for nothing (stop worrying!) but in every thing
by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests
be made known unto God. And the peace of God, which
passeth all understanding shall keep your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus."
Faith replaces worry in the life of a child of God. God has
promised to be our Guide, Strength, Light, Friend, Savior,
Burden bearer, Comforter, Sustainer, Joy, and the list goes on
and on. What do we have to worry about when Jesus holds
our hands and is our constant companion on this life's journey?
We tend to worry when things aren't going the way we think
they should. Time and time again I've been reminded of what
we read in Isaiah 55:8 & 9 "For My thoughts are not your
thoughts, neither are your ways My ways, saith the LORD.
For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways
higher than your ways, and my thoughts than your thoughts."
We fret and worry instead of trusting God to work things
out. God usually works things out in ways that we can't
even imagine!
When we worry we are really saying, "I don't trust you God!"
Wow, can you imagine saying that to our Heavenly Father!
But our actions are saying that very thing. And what kind
of testimony are we being to the unsaved around us, when
they see us fretting and stewing over our problems the same
way they do over theirs?
out. God usually works things out in ways that we can't
even imagine!
When we worry we are really saying, "I don't trust you God!"
Wow, can you imagine saying that to our Heavenly Father!
But our actions are saying that very thing. And what kind
of testimony are we being to the unsaved around us, when
they see us fretting and stewing over our problems the same
way they do over theirs?
God's ways are different from our ways, His thoughts are
different from our thoughts! Look at all the time and energy
wasted when instead we should have been putting faith into
action.
different from our thoughts! Look at all the time and energy
wasted when instead we should have been putting faith into
action.
God visualizes faith for us as a grain of mustard seed in
Matthew17:20. Have you ever looked at how tiny a grain
of mustard seed is? We really don't know the power of faith
at our disposal do we? Replace worry with faith. I am not
saying that your problems will not disappear! But I am
saying that you will see the power of God working in your
life as never before!
Matthew17:20. Have you ever looked at how tiny a grain
of mustard seed is? We really don't know the power of faith
at our disposal do we? Replace worry with faith. I am not
saying that your problems will not disappear! But I am
saying that you will see the power of God working in your
life as never before!
3. Discontent This is a sorry state to be in. Someone who
is discontent tends to be a complainer. Nothing is good
enough, nothing is the way they think it should be. This
kind of person is very tiring to be around. And honestly, if
you're in this kind of company for very long...its contagious!
You will start seeing things through a critical eye. You will
start thinking that what you have is not good enough. A close cousin to this sin is envy. If your discontent with what you
have its usually because you want what you have seen
elsewhere! Looking on the things of others is a very
dangerous pitfall, whether it be material possessions, wealth, status. This is something we actively have to fight!
is discontent tends to be a complainer. Nothing is good
enough, nothing is the way they think it should be. This
kind of person is very tiring to be around. And honestly, if
you're in this kind of company for very long...its contagious!
You will start seeing things through a critical eye. You will
start thinking that what you have is not good enough. A close cousin to this sin is envy. If your discontent with what you
have its usually because you want what you have seen
elsewhere! Looking on the things of others is a very
dangerous pitfall, whether it be material possessions, wealth, status. This is something we actively have to fight!
Hebrews 13:5 tells us "Let your conversation (this means
your life) be without covetousness: and be content with
such things as ye have:"
The Apostle Paul stated in Phil chapter 4 and verse 11,
"For I have learned in whatsoever state I am, therewith
to be content." Contentment is a learned state to be in.
We have to actively participate in this lesson. We will
learn this state when we realize that where we are and
what we possess is what God wills for us at that time and
place.
There is a song whose verses go like this:
Like a sparrow Lord I want to be,
Content with provisions you make for me.
O'er flows my heart abundantly,
That like the sparrow you care for me.
I need not fear the end of day,
Your arms of love protect always;
Fear of tomorrow I'll never know,
With my trust in You, who loves me so!
From set of sun till dawn of day,
Your love will be constant all the way.
I need not fear alone I'll be,
"I'll never leave thee," You've promised me!
Like a sparrow Lord I want to be,
Content in the place You have for me.
Peace takes the place of discontent,
When you know needs are Heaven met!
A way to rid our hearts of the spirit of discontent is to adopt
a thankful attitude! You cannot complain and be thankful at
the same time! Its like water and oil, the two just don't mix.
If we emptied our lives of discontent and complaint and
replaced it with a thankful spirit can you imagine the sublime fellowship we would experience with our Heavenly Father!
Listen to these three verses. 1 Thess. 5:18 "In every thing
give thanks; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus
concerning you."
Eph. 5:20 "Giving thanks always for all things unto God
and the Father in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ,"
Col. 3:17 "And whatsoever ye do in word or deed, do all in
the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God and the
Father by Him."
If we live day by day viewing all things as coming from the
Lord we will have that thankful spirit in the midst of trouble,
trials, the lack of things, family problems and so on. Once
again, remember, that what comes from God's hand, whether
we understand it or not, it is ALWAYS thankworthy!
I was reminded when I was preparing this of a time that our
family went through that was very hard. Money was tight
and we ended up having to go to the food bank on a regular
basis for a while. I hated it, to the point of tears every time
I had to go. I felt humiliated and embarrassed to be seen
coming out of there with the groceries. One day I took my
son Paul with me. He was about 6 or 7 at the time. When
we got home (me holding back the tears) he emptied all the
bags out on the kitchen floor and then looked up at me
excitedly. "Look mommy, God gave me all my favorite
foods! We need to thank Him right now!" I was so taken
back. My little boy taught me such an important lesson
that day. God provides for us in many different ways and
I was sinning in not having a thankful spirit for HIS provision
for our family. That was a very special moment for me as I
held Paul and we BOTH thanked God for the food.
What a testimony we would have to the world if we had
a thankful attitude instead of a complaining, discontented
response in the midst of our trials! I think of the Apostle
Paul and Silas in Acts chapter 16. If anyone had reason to
lament their situation they sure did! Arrested, beaten, put
in stocks and thrown into the depths of a cold damp Roman
prison. However in verse 16 we read, "And at midnight
Paul and Silas prayed and sang praises unto God."
Their incredible testimony in the midst of such hardship
and pain brought about the salvation of their jailor, and
subsequently his family! What kind of testimony do we
have in our trials? Can people look at us and see the hand
of God at work in our lives, or do they see someone that
complains and gripes just like they do?
We NEED to be thankful. Whatever our situation, our
problem...it comes from God's hand and it is sent for our
good and for His glory...every thing.
4. Pride This steals into our hearts so very easily doesn't
it! We are reminded in Proverbs 16:18 that "Pride goeth
before destruction."
We are nothing outside of Christ Jesus. We read in
Proverbs 16:5 "Every one that is proud in heart is an abomination to the LORD:" Our pride makes us an
abomination to God! Abomination means to disgust...
we disgust God! Proverbs 8:13 says "Pride, and
arrogancy, and the evil way, and the forward mouth,
do I hate."
What is pride? Simply stated, pride is lifting ourselves up.
Gal. 6:3 "For if a man think himself to be something,
when he is nothing, he deceiveth himself." There is never
any reason to lift ourselves up. There is nothing in us that
deserves to be glorified! Everything we are, every thing we
have is through Jesus Christ and Him alone. Why does the
sin of pride creep into our lives? Because of old sinful
nature that we still possess likes to be lifted up, it likes to
be glorified. There is absolutely nothing in ourselves that
is praiseworthy! Everything we are, everything we have
and everything we will become is only through Jesus Christ
and Him alone.
There is one easy way to combat pride in our lives. Spend
our time and our energy lifting up Christ! When we lift up
Christ, setting our eyes on Him alone; when we magnify,
glorify, praise and exalt HIM, we will become abased, we
will be in our correct position.
John said this in John 3:30 concerning the Lord Jesus,
"He must increase, but I must decrease." What was he
saying? God MUST have the pre-eminence. Unfortunately
we tend to live this in reverse, with the "I must increase"
mentality.
When the world looks at us, they must only see Christ
reflected back at them. We in essence become a mirror for the Light of the world, Jesus Christ. When you see a candles
light reflected in a mirror, it is brighter then when you just see
the candle by itself. The mirror reflects the image back
even brighter to the observer, who only sees the light, not
the mirror. We need to mirror the image of Christ back
to this dying world, they shouldn't see us at all, just His
image increased.
The Psalms are full of praises to the Lord. I love to pray
the Psalms back to God in my devotions!
"O God, my heart is fixed; I will sing and give praise."
Psa. 108:1
"I will praise Thee O Lord among the people: I will
sing praises unto Thee among the nations. Psa. 108:3
"Be Thou exalted" Psa. 108:5
"Oh that men would praise the LORD for His goodness,
and for His wonderful works to the children of men!"
Psa. 107:15
"Let them now that fear the LORD, say, that His mercy
endureth forever." Psa. 118:1
"Sing unto the LORD, bless His name; shew forth His
salvation from day to day." Psa. 96:2
"Give unto the Lord the glory due unto His name."
Psa. 96:8
Pride disappears in the presence of the majesty and
greatness of our wonderful Lord and Savior. When we
magnify, glorify and lift up the right person we will not
be found abhorrent to the Lord.
Jeremiah 17:10 states, "I the LORD search the heart,"
What is He finding in His search? Remember we can't hide
what is in our hearts from God.
These things, Anger/bitterness, worry, discontent and pride
are sins that weigh us down. Our hearts are entangled,
stooped, uneasy and deceived. Its only when we choose
(yes its our choice whether we continue in this state!) to
rid our hearts of these things and replace them (with His
help!) with love, faith, thankfulness and praise to the Lord
that we will truly understand Isaiah 40:31
"But they that wait upon the LORD (there's the key...
waiting, its God's doing!) shall renew their strength: they
shall mount up with wings as eagles; they shall run, and
not be weary; and they shall walk and not faint."
Have you ever watched the majestic eagle in flight? They
soar so effortlessly! They just glide along on the winds of
the heavens, above the clouds. God wants that for each of us.
He doesn't want us entangled and burdened down with the
cares and worries of this world. When we purge our hearts
and fill it with God honoring, God glorifying traits, we will
know the joy of soaring to new heights of God's blessing that
He is just waiting to share with us!
So what's God's plan for each of us?
WAIT: Let God speak to you, showing what needs to
be repented of and forsaken in your life. Psa. 51:10
"Create in me a clean heart O God, and renew a
right spirit within me."
RENEW: Fill up the vacant spaces in your heart with
God's Word. Psa. 119:11 "Thy Word have I hid in my
heart, that I might not sin against Thee."
SOAR: Soar into the life of victory that God wants you
to have. Isa 40:31 "...they shall mount up with wings
as eagles; they shall run, and not be weary; and they
shall walk, and not faint."
greatness of our wonderful Lord and Savior. When we
magnify, glorify and lift up the right person we will not
be found abhorrent to the Lord.
Jeremiah 17:10 states, "I the LORD search the heart,"
What is He finding in His search? Remember we can't hide
what is in our hearts from God.
These things, Anger/bitterness, worry, discontent and pride
are sins that weigh us down. Our hearts are entangled,
stooped, uneasy and deceived. Its only when we choose
(yes its our choice whether we continue in this state!) to
rid our hearts of these things and replace them (with His
help!) with love, faith, thankfulness and praise to the Lord
that we will truly understand Isaiah 40:31
"But they that wait upon the LORD (there's the key...
waiting, its God's doing!) shall renew their strength: they
shall mount up with wings as eagles; they shall run, and
not be weary; and they shall walk and not faint."
Have you ever watched the majestic eagle in flight? They
soar so effortlessly! They just glide along on the winds of
the heavens, above the clouds. God wants that for each of us.
He doesn't want us entangled and burdened down with the
cares and worries of this world. When we purge our hearts
and fill it with God honoring, God glorifying traits, we will
know the joy of soaring to new heights of God's blessing that
He is just waiting to share with us!
So what's God's plan for each of us?
WAIT: Let God speak to you, showing what needs to
be repented of and forsaken in your life. Psa. 51:10
"Create in me a clean heart O God, and renew a
right spirit within me."
RENEW: Fill up the vacant spaces in your heart with
God's Word. Psa. 119:11 "Thy Word have I hid in my
heart, that I might not sin against Thee."
SOAR: Soar into the life of victory that God wants you
to have. Isa 40:31 "...they shall mount up with wings
as eagles; they shall run, and not be weary; and they
shall walk, and not faint."
