Sunday, September 20, 2009

Rejoice Always

There were many things I could have written to you about today. This is what I sensed was the best topic among the many.

Phil 4:4 Rejoice in the Lord always. I will say it again: Rejoice! 5Let your gentleness be evident to all. The Lord is near. 6Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. 7And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.

Today we are almost through Rosh Hashanah/Feast of Trumpets 2009. This would indicate to me that we have to wait awhile more for the Lord. The Lord has made it clear to me that it is no use to try and pin down the exact "day and hour." We are instructed to be ready every day. There is no argument (except from the insane) against such a readiness. We are ready every day for our Lord.

This daily readiness is closely allied with our word from the Lord today. We are to rejoice in the Lord always. Always means constantly, every hour of every day and more. Paul said "I will say it again: Rejoice!" That was a point of emphasis with him. How can he tell us to rejoice always in such a sick and evil world? He gives us the reason for our constant rejoicing: the Lord is near...Phil 4:4 Rejoice in the Lord always. I will say it again: Rejoice! 5Let your gentleness be evident to all. The Lord is near.

"The Lord is near" is the reason for our constant rejoicing. What problems do we have that he cannot solve? What troubles us today that he cannot move out of our way? Who stands against us today that our Lord's cannot save us from? The Lord is near. He is our "one stop shopping" answer to everything. I know that there are many people in the world who mock such a notion. They consider the worship of our God to be a fantastic delusion and they mock us for it. These people only mock themselves. How do the mockers of the world explain away my 40 years of answered prayer? Do you know how many prayers I have said over my lifetime? Do you know what the statistical probabilities are against having lets say 1,000 consecutive prayers answered?

The Lord is near, so in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. We are to pray with thanksgiving...notice the wording here. How did Paul start of off here in Phil 4? REJOICE ALWAYS.....then he tells us to pray WITH THANKSGIVING. This is powerful stuff friends. If only we could learn how to fully declare our God's praise. If we could learn to keep his praises, his glory and overflowing thanksgiving to him on our lips at all times....well, we could turn the world upside down.

The longer I walk with the Lord, the more I see the simplicity he has called us to. Our Lord told us: Matthew 11:30 For my yoke is easy and my burden is light." I believe him. There are few things necessary for us to walk with our Lord. We are to believe, be humble, have faith, obey, praise him and tie that all together with love. We don't need any man to hand us some degree to figure that out do we? No, we don't.

It has been written here for months now. We are being called back to the fundamentals of the faith, to a simplicity "in Christ" that seems to elude this world. Men set themselves up as "guru's" and "experts" and "scholars" to control other men. They set themselves up in a system that attempts to force us into reliance on them. We are reliant on no man, but on our faithful Creator alone for everything. Our faithful creator is near, so do not be troubled. Pray with thanksgiving for the things you need and rest "in him."

We may have years to wait for our Lord or he could come back for us tonight, who knows? We don't need to know. We need to remain "in him," and watch for him everyday. While we patiently wait, lets do the things that please him. Lets love, be faithful, be obedient and especially lets have his praise on our lips with thanksgiving all the time. We are dearly loved children, grace and peace