God's Economy

We could talk about the economy in terms of saving, investing, business, interest rates, inflation, etc. But what about your personal economics in terms of your relationship with God. This world’s economy is not God's economy.

Jesus instructed His disciples in Matthew's Gospel, when things are looking down, we should look up.

"Lay not up for yourselves treasures upon earth, where moth and rust doth corrupt, and where thieves break through and steal: But lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust doth corrupt, and where thieves do not break through nor steal:For where your treasure is, there will your heart be also. ... No man can serve two masters: for either he will hate the one, and love the other; or else he will hold to the one, and despise the other. Ye cannot serve God and mammon. Therefore I say unto you, Take no thought for your life, what ye shall eat, or what ye shall drink; nor yet for your body, what ye shall put on. Is not the life more than meat, and the body than raiment? Behold the fowls of the air: for they sow not, neither do they reap, nor gather into barns; yet your heavenly Father feedeth them. Are ye not much better than they? Which of you by taking thought can add one cubit unto his stature? And why take ye thought for raiment? Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow; they toil not, neither do they spin: And yet I say unto you, That even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these. Wherefore, if God so clothe the grass of the field, which to day is, and to morrow is cast into the oven, [shall he] not much more [clothe] you, O ye of little faith? Therefore take no thought, saying, What shall we eat? or, What shall we drink? or, Wherewithal shall we be clothed?(For after all these things do the Gentiles seek:) for your heavenly Father knoweth that ye have need of all these things. But seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you. Take therefore no thought for the morrow: for the morrow shall take thought for the things of itself. Sufficient unto the day [is] the evil thereof."
(Matthew 6:19-21, 24-34)

Kingdom principles supersede temporary mortgage meltdowns and financial collapse. Putting God 1st is the key to overcoming in every area of our lives. The theme of our 2010 Spring Conference is "Good News for Challenging Times," featuring special guests Mike Rovner & Chuck Damato. They will be teaching biblical principles that will change your life! You don't want to miss this exciting meeting!RSVP NOW! For more information click this link. http://bit.ly/d8vrJg

Great Expectations

by Gerald Macy (public domain)

Oh never sit we down and say,
"There's nothing left but sore."
We walk the wilderness today,
The promise land tomorrow.

And though age wearies by the way,
And hearts break in the furrow.
We'll sow the golden grain today,
And harvest comes tomorrow.

Build up heroic lives,
And all be like the sheathen saber,
Ready to flash out at God's call,
Oh victory of labor.

Triumph and toil are twins,
And ay, joy's sun, the clouds of sorrow.
Ti's the martyrdom today,
Brings victory tomorrow.

(I shared this at the commencment of my eighth grade graduation.)

Two Kinds of Storms

Jesus said, "Peace be still." Those words in the midst of that tempestuous moment must have calmed more than the wind and the waves. Albert Barnes puts in this way, "There is something exceedingly authoritative and majestic in this command of our Lord. Standing amidst the howling tempest, on the heaving sea, and in the darkness of the night, by his own power he stills the waves, and bids the storm subside. None but the God of the storms and the billows could awe, by a word, the troubled elements, and send a universal peace and stillness among the winds and waves. He must, therefore, be Divine." Words can have their meanings and definitions, but when the "Word made Flesh" speaks with such commanding authority, all of the kingdom must bow, in heaven, on earth and under the earth. Light and darkness stand at attention. Even so must the very fear and anxiety within us bow to the calming command of the One who set the very stars in their places, and ordered the sun to rule the day, and the darkness to rule the night. In one moment Peter and the other disciple are questioning if the Master even cares for their well being as the stormy sea batters the little boat and slaps them coldly in the face. In the next moment another kind of chill shuddered their souls as their sea of doubt turns to humble tranquil surrender in the wake of the absolute Lordship of Christ...:

People's New Testament Commentary adds, "Such an astounding display of power, the control of the storm in which men are as helpless as infants, filled them with awe. What manner of being could he be whom storm, wind, and sea obeyed? They had not yet learned that the word which the sea obeyed was the word in obedience to which the world itself was made." Is it any wonder that these same fear filled disciple burst out of that upper room on that great day of Pentecost as the men who "turned the world upside down?" This same Jesus, who arrested the wind and the waves on that day, is the very same Spirit of Christ who released the rushing mighty wind that filled the place where they were sitting, with cloven tongues of fire that consumed their timidity and turned them into the Apostles of the New Covenant!

In our past, we have lived in the bondages of fear, anxiety, timidity and doubt. We have now been empowered by the same Holy Spirit who enables us to break free from the controlling influences of our past, and go forth, living the rest of our lives in power and love and a sound mind of the Spirit of peace! Jesus in the Prince of peace! Jesus is the King of kings, and the Lord of lords! He is Lord of all, and He is Lord of the storms of my life!

Read my book, "IDENTIFYING GOD". To order a copy, or for more information contact me at edhan362@yahoo.com