GOD’S PLANS (part-18)

YOU ARE SPECIAL AND GOD HAS PLANS FOR YOU!

BIBLE PASSAGE:
“Oh, the depth of the riches of the wisdom and knowledge
of God! How unsearchable his judgments, and his paths
beyond tracing out!”
(Romans 11:33)

MEDITATION:
We need to guard ourselves against LOWERING the standard of
God’s Word to our level of understanding, or political correctness.
And we also need to guard ourselves against raising our standard
of tradition ABOVE the standard of His Word.
    The Spirit and the bride say, “Come!” And let the
    one who hears say, “Come!” Let the one who is
    thirsty come; and let the one who wishes take the
    free gift of the water of life. I warn everyone who
    hears the words of the prophecy of this scroll: If
    anyone adds anything to them, God will add to
    that person the plagues described in this scroll.
    And if anyone takes words away from this scroll
    of prophecy, God will take away from that person
    any share in the tree of life and in the Holy City,
    which are described in this scroll.
    (Revelation 22:17-19)

The Bible is not meant to be something our mind judges. We can
argue with it, but why would we? We can pick up any other book
and read it, but the Bible is a book that reads us.

It pulsates with life and power. His Word has a life of its own. It is
the voice of God to us. We can’t refuse it, deny it, distort it, or dilute
it. We can only bow before it.

We are living in a time when people want to reconstruct God’s Word
so it will appear to be an approval of their lifestyle which does not fit
the boundaries He established for mankind. We are also witnessing
attempts to discredit God’s boundaries and include other ways for
becoming Heaven bound.

Think about that for a moment. Some believe in Heaven because they
have read or heard about it in the Bible. But, they have chosen not to
believe the Bible in its entirety. Consequently, they miss out on all the
blessings we are promised by our Creator.

So, what do they do? They create a human being as their Messiah and
not only follow his or her teaching and guidelines, but they also want
to extinguish anyone who doesn’t adhere to their beliefs. If we read the
entire Bible, we will see that it has a theme of ‘love’. Love for our Creator,
love for His Son, and love for others.

It encourages us to ‘love’ others into having a desire to be a part of
God’s family. It doesn’t teach us to coerce or force anyone to follow
His command for receiving salvation. There’s a reason for that, isn’t
there? It’s because God’s plan for mankind is a result of His sincere
love for us. Why? Because that’s how He is defined.
    Whoever does not love does not
    know God, because God is love.
    (1 John 4:8)

ACTION:
Rather than question the Bible or argue with it, we should spend
time allowing His Word to flow into our heart and mold us into
the person God designed us to be when He created us.
    “For I know the plans I have for you,” declares
       the Lord, “plans to prosper you and not to harm
       you, plans to give you hope and a future.”
       (Jeremiah 29:11)

God considers you and me as special individuals, regardless of
what others may think of us. Because He created us and we are
special to Him, He has plans for us. If we are going to discover
His plans, we must join His family (through salvation).

Then, we need to read His Word regularly with a thirst to see
what He wants to say to us collectively and individually. If we
read self-help books, we read them with an intensity to learn;
we should read the Bible with the same intensity.

If we receive a letter from a person we are in love with, we don’t
parse their words or look for grammatical mistakes, do we? No,
we look for the intent of the letter and their expressed feelings 
of love toward us.

That’s exactly what the Bible is! It is God’s ‘love letters’ to us, which
also includes instructions for becoming members of His family, and
how we should live our lives in a manner that is pleasing to Him which
is our expression of our love for Him and His Son, Jesus.

Only a loving Creator would want us to mimic His characteristic of
love. And only a loving Heavenly Father would have plans for us to
allow His live to flow through us. When we become a member of His
family, He gives us a new purpose for living our short time on earth.

But that’s not all; God also equips us for fulfilling His purpose for
our lives; He gives us His Holy Spirit to guide us and at least one
spiritual gift designed to fit the person He created us to be. He also
begins a ‘sanctification’ process that purges us of the things outside
His boundaries (unrighteousness) and fills us with what’s required
(righteousness) for living a life of love, purpose and hope.

God wants to transform us from being selfish and self-centered to
a selfless person who is filled with His love. He doesn’t create us to
become ritualistic and follow some procedures without feelings.
When we look at His ‘ten commandments’ we can see they are
pointing us toward love.
    Love for God:
        1. You shall have no other gods before Me.
        2. You shall not make for yourself a carved image.
        3. You shall not take the name of the Lord your God in vain.

    Love and respect for the days God has given us:
        4. Remember the Sabbath day, to keep it holy.

    Love and respect for parents:
        5. Honor your father and your mother.

    Love for other people:
        6. You shall not murder.
        7. You shall not commit adultery.

    Love and respect for what God has provided for others.
        8. You shall not steal.

    Love for honesty and truth.
        9. You shall not bear false witness against your neighbor.

    Love and appreciation for what God has provided for us.
       10. You shall not covet.

His guidelines for living don’t include unloving things like:
    – Create man-made images if you want to worship an object you can see.
    – The days are yours to use selfishly however you want to use them.
    – Have contempt and disrespect for your parents
       because they didn’t raise you the way you wanted them to.
    – Eliminate the life of those you don’t like
       or unwanted children who were created by Me.
    – It’s okay to have sex with anyone you choose,
       even if they don’t want it; after all it’s only an ‘affair’.
    – If you see something you like,
       it’s okay to take it, even if it belongs to someone else;
       maybe I made a mistake and blessed the wrong person.
    – It’s okay to tell lies if it will benefit you in some way.
    – It’s okay to have an unhealthy desire for My blessings
       to others, if what they have will satisfy a desire of yours.

Think about how some people are only existing without a purpose
for living. God doesn’t want those who belong to Him to flounder
through life with no specific purpose which leads to an eternity
with Him.

He has blessed us with an opportunity to not only have a purpose
(a good purpose) for living, but for also receiving His blessings.
He doesn’t force us, but lets us freely choose the kind of life we
want to have which is, pleasing Him, or pleasing self. It is a choice
we must make, and choosing not to choose is a choice to continue
living a life for self.

Pray,
“Heavenly Father, thank You for Your Word! Thank You
for my salvation, and for considering me special, even if
others might not. Help me to read the Bible on a regular
basis so I can develop a fellowship with You and discover
the plans You have specifically for me. Guide me as I try
to follow your plans for my hope and future.”

BLOG: utvolwoody.wordpress.com