Heart Tracks - Living In The Promise

"For all the promises of God in Him are Yes, and in Him Amen, to the glory of God through us." 2 Corinthians 1:20....
"Great is Thy faithfulness, Lord unto me. Morning by morning new mercies I see. All I have needed Thy hand has provided. Great is Thy Faithfulness, Lord unto me."

We have a great deal of interest in the promises of God, but mainly I think, as concerns how they most benefit us. Because of this, books containing "all of His promises" are usually big sellers. I know. I've bought them. I'm not saying that it is wrong to claim a promise in response to a need, but I do ask just how it is that we approach these promises. Do we think they, and the Bible that contains them, to be much like having a genie and his bottle? Rub (claim) the promise three times and there, the prayer is answered. Even more, what really is going on in our heart and spirit when we do plead His promise? Do we abide in it, or just present it to Him as something He's obligated to do? More, are we yielded in it? Are we surrendered to Him as to how He works in the carrying out His promise? Must it be according to our expectations, or His? Last, and this may be the most important; is His promise something He's led us to, or what we looked up and sought to apply to our situation? There's a great difference between the two. In the first, it's a promise that His Spirit has led us to. In the latter, it's a promise that we've chosen and placed before Him, along with all our demands and expectations concerning it. I think most of us, including me, have usually chosen the latter.

Another aspect here is that of seeing His promises as a kind of "emergency chute" if all our other sources of hope don't come through. In my prayer journal I've written down, "Forgive us Father, for being so quick to call on the Doctor, the Insurance company, our investments professional, or even Triple A, before we seek You. Do Your miracles that You may be glorified in our lives." There's a two-fold failure for us that this prayer addresses. First, the main emphasis on so much of our prayer is ourselves. We want Him to work to make our lives better, more comfortable, and less troublesome. We look more at us than we do to Him. Second, we lose sight of that greatest purpose in His answering our prayers is that He would be glorified. For most of us, how deep does our desire for His glory to be seen really go? What's winning out? Our desire to see our benefits come to pass, or His glory to be seen?

Last, in so much of our claiming of the promise, even with right heart motives, there comes a great deal of frustration and disappointment. The reason for that is found in something my first pastor said to me as I walked through great sorrow and difficulty. He gave the simple and powerful advice that I needed to ask the Father to lead me to the promise or promises He had for me in this place....and then "live in that promise." So few of us know that kind of life. That of abiding in Him, His Word, His Promise. But if we will, then those promises become so much more than words. They come alive.....because He has spoken them, and what He speaks lives. And we, in our lives, can enter into that Word and experience its power and life. In that way, we abide, we trust, and we can wait. And in all of it, we have peace, joy, and life.

Wherever you walk today, whatever you face, He has a Word for you there. A Living Word. Live there. Let its truth saturate every part of your being. Then allow Him to bring to pass all aspects of how He means to work it into your life. Really, is there any other way to live?

Blessings,
Pastor O