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Tag Archives: God’s plan

Mercy and Perseverance

29 Jun

MountainI’m continuing the series about understanding God’s mercy. If you boil it all down to a simple phrase, here’s what I see in Scripture. Mercy is the favor God shows to His sons and daughters.

As you know, we consider blessed those who have persevered. You have heard of Job’s perseverance and have seen what the Lord finally brought about. The Lord is full of compassion and mercy.
James 5:11

One thing that’s abundantly clear from Scripture, the walk of mercy will require perseverance. Of all the people for James to use for an example, did he have to pick Job? The simple truth is that Job drove his friends crazy. The big question on everybody’s mind is; why was Job at a standstill? According to his friends it was because he must have been doing something wrong.

That kind of thinking was absolutely incorrect. Job was being trained for a higher walk in God. As I’ve said before, promises are for spiritual children. In order to get them to obey you must say things like, “Clean your room and you can have ice cream.” Adults don’t live like this.

Therefore, I urge you, brothers, in view of God’s mercy, to offer your bodies as living sacrifices, holy and pleasing to God – this is your spiritual act of worship.
Romans 12:1

Many times I’ve preached from this verse telling my congregation the importance of laying their lives down as living sacrifices. But until I understood the concepts of Biblical mercy, it was always in a legalistic vein. Notice the motivation we’re to use to propel us to offer our lives before God.

Is it in view of God’s law? Maybe it’s in view of the promises? NO!!! It’s as we keep the Lord’s mercy in our sight that we have the drive necessary to lay our lives down on His altar. That’s how powerful the walk of mercy can be. In order to obtain it, it’s worth the greatest cost we can imagine. The total surrender of our lives to God’s plan.

God simply asks you to make the offer, wholeheartedly. Why do we make this life altering decision? It’s because we know that this is the Lord’s desire. No strings attached, no hidden agendas. “Lord I want to know You, because only You are worthy of the investment of my life.” We only obtain mercy through becoming a willing sacrifice.

This is why I made such a bold claim earlier in this series. This isn’t something that you can just try for a day. It would be just as foolish as trying a diet for a day, and then saying that it didn’t work. If we want the benefits of mercy, then this walk must consume our lifestyle. Only then will we have that “blank check” in the spirit.

May I never boast except in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ, through which the world has been crucified to me, and I to the world. Neither circumcision nor uncircumcision means anything; what counts is a new creation. Peace and mercy to all who follow this rule, even to the Israel of God.
Galatians 6:14-16

If you desire to walk this walk, you must know that mercy makes this the only rule. “Boast only in the cross.” Do you want power? Do you want to live above the law and the promises? Then you must learn to walk the way of mercy.

You must pursue God simply to know Him. You must offer all you are to God, simply because He desires it. Then, when you see the manifestation of His power in your life, boast only in the cross. This is the secret to how Jesus lived and ministered in the world.

Question: What must you do to begin walking in God’s mercy?

© Nick Zaccardi 2015

 
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Posted by on June 29, 2015 in Power of God, Revival, Sonship, Spiritual Walk

 

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One More Week

08 Apr

TimingI’ve been posting about the fact that the Holy Spirit in us is jealous over us. He’s passionate about His love for us. Ignoring or rejecting His attempts to work in us gives the Holy Spirit emotional pain.

We talk a lot about faith. Without it we can’t receive anything from God. If we truly trust God, then we’ll delight in His plan to renew our lives.

Rejecting the Lord’s instruction is the opposite of faith. We can see this in the example of Moses.

By faith Moses, when he had grown up, refused to be known as the son of Pharaoh’s daughter. He chose to be mistreated along with the people of God rather than to enjoy the pleasures of sin for a short time. He regarded disgrace for the sake of Christ as of greater value than the treasures of Egypt, because he was looking ahead to his reward.
Hebrews 11:24-26

I’ve heard different people teach about this verse and I think we’ve missed the real point. The writer isn’t saying that sin only gives you pleasure for a short time. Actually, if you spend enough money, you can sustain the pleasure of a sinful lifestyle for quite a long time before it catches up with you.

This verse literally says that Moses chose not to enjoy the pleasures of sin for this little time only. In other words, he didn’t say to God, “Let me have one more month as a royal Egyptian before I follow your plan for my life.”

“Pharaoh’s birthday is in two months. That kind of celebration will never happen again. I’ll attend it, then after that I’ll identify with Israel.”

The trap is that it will never be the right time to live for God. It will never be the right time to listen to and obey the Holy Spirit in us.

Scripture says that Moses was looking ahead to the reward. Do I look ahead to the reward that the Holy Spirit is holding out to me? The choice is – do I want to go where the world is leading me to or where the Holy Spirit wants to take me?

So I say, live by the Spirit, and you will not gratify the desires of the sinful nature. For the sinful nature desires what is contrary to the Spirit, and the Spirit what is contrary to the sinful nature. They are in conflict with each other, so that you do not do what you want. But if you are led by the Spirit, you are not under law.
Galatians 5:16-18

That’s why we need the Holy Spirit’s leading. If we submit to His process then there’s no need for the law. It’s when our heart sides with the flesh that the conflict starts. My spirit wants to submit to Christ and my flesh wants to chase after the world.

I need make the choice to follow the Spirit’s leading. Not tomorrow. Not next week. But today – while the Holy Spirit is seeking my attention. Don’t ignore His gentle voice calling for your fellowship.

Question: Is there something in your life that’s been hindering you from fully submitting to the Holy Spirit’s leadership?

© Nick Zaccardi 2015

 
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Posted by on April 8, 2015 in Faith, Prayer, Revival, The Church

 

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You Can Change Your Family

01 Dec

 

Jet Plane to NowhereI’m posting about Sonship and how it’s a part of God’s plan to work in His people. The Lord is leading us from glory to glory.

By the way, you may notice that I mostly use the word son, rather than sons and daughters. Check out my post, Sonship Includes Women Too, to see why I do that.

In speaking about Sonship, it’s the very reason why God has called pastors into the ministry. Our calling is to help the process of becoming like Christ. Paul speaks of this in his letter to the Ephesians. He says that the ministry gifts (of which pastoring is a part) are given…

…to prepare God’s people for works of service, so that the body of Christ may be built up until we all reach unity in the faith and in the knowledge of the Son of God and become mature, attaining to the whole measure of the fullness of Christ.
Ephesians 4:12-13

The goal then, for every believer, is to be like Jesus. This means we’re to talk like Him, work like Him and love like Him. Jesus Himself said that we were to do His works.

It’s the work of the Holy Spirit in us to achieve this result. But, in order for that to happen, we must cooperate with Him. It’s at this point – me cooperating with the Spirit of Christ – that the life changing power of God manifests. As this takes place it becomes evident to those around that we are walking as sons of God.

Yet to all who received him, to those who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God – children born not of natural descent, nor of human decision or a husband’s will, but born of God.
John 1:12-13

This verse should cause us to jump up and praise the Lord. The implications alone are staggering. The word right in this verse is the Greek word exusia. It literally means that we have the authority or permission to be God’s children.

If you remember, authority means that we have the right to use power. This means that because God has adopted us, we have the right to use the power of a son of God. Sonship, then, is a position of authority.

But now, notice what this entails. In order to walk in the authority associated with Sonship, we must receive Him and put our faith in His name. When we asked Christ to be our Lord and Savior we took on a new family name. We now are of the household of Christ – we are Christians.

When you’re a member of a family you always carry with you the authority and the power of your family name. This is true whether your name is Smith or Trump. We now carry the family name of He who spoke the world into existence. Yet for the most part we live in spiritual defeat. It’s time for us to rise up and be who God has destined us to be.

Question: What does the word Christian mean to you?

© Nick Zaccardi 2014

 
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Posted by on December 1, 2014 in Power of God, Sonship, The Church

 

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I Give Up!

19 Nov

Dead EndIt’s so easy to give up when times are tough.  That’s the difference between surface Christians and overcomers.  Which kind are you?  Only you can make the choice to keep going forward.  This is what it takes to make it to your destiny in God.

Let us not become weary in doing good, for at the proper time we will reap a harvest if we do not give up.
Galatians 6:9

Realize that God has a good plan for your life.  Whether we know it or not, God has us walking a good path.  He wants the best for us.  He knows what will fulfill us better than we do.  But we must continue to the end if we’re going to enter our destiny.

Know that everything worth having requires effort to obtain.  Sometimes the road we’re on seems rough and steep.  That shouldn’t stop us, however.  Struggles are a part of life.  If it were easy, everyone would be walking in the blessings of God.  It takes an attitude of perseverance to make it over the hills of life.

Keep your eyes on the finish line.  Don’t let your present hardship become the focus of your attention.  Keep your vision upon Christ and His plan for your life.  That’s what can sustain you during the difficulties that you encounter.  If you can see the goal, then you know that it’s not over yet.  God will have the final word in your life.

Keep moving forward, no matter what happens.  I love to go out hiking.  But it doesn’t always turn out well.  There have been times that I’ve been injured on a hike.  It would have been very easy for me to let weariness and despair take over.  I felt very much like laying down on the ground and giving up.  I had to keep telling myself, “Keep putting one foot in front of the other – you’ll eventually come to the end.”

Understand that moving slowly is better than standing still.  This is probably the best advice I could give you.  No matter how slow you think you’re going, don’t give up.  You will make it!  Never look at your life in terms of a sprint to the finish.  You need to see yourself as being in it for the long haul.  The victorious finish of your race depends on it.

Maybe you’re going through a seemingly impossible situation right now.  Give it over to God in prayer, if you haven’t already done so.  It could be that you’ve taken the responsibility for the problem back to yourself.  Let go of it and allow God give you the strength you need to see it through.

Questions: Have you ever felt like giving up?  How have you found the strength to continue on?

© Nick Zaccardi 2014

 
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Posted by on November 19, 2014 in Encouragement, Power of God, Prayer

 

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How to Purchase Revival

28 Jul

Fake MoneyI’ve been posting about why revival seems to be delayed. I ended my last post by saying that we are not waiting for revival, but revival is waiting for us. The Apostle Paul wrote about this principle.

And he made known to us the mystery of his will according to his good pleasure, which he purposed in Christ, to be put into effect when the times will have reached their fulfillment — to bring all things in heaven and on earth together under one head, even Christ.
Ephesians 1:9-10

In this verse Paul talks about the mystery of God’s will. He’s not talking so much about what God’s will is. The mystery is how God’s will comes to pass on the earth. Even today, how God’s will works is a mystery to most Christians.

“We may never understand the way God moves.”

Paul makes it clear that this mystery has been made known to us. It doesn’t matter what you call it. The verse uses God’s will, good pleasure, and purpose to describe what He plans to do on earth. What we need to understand is how His will is put into effect.

That’s the mystery that He has made known to us. This verse literally says that His will is put into effect in the economy of filling the time. The word economy is usually used to describe our monetary system. It’s a way of tracking the flow of assets in society.

We need to understand that filling time is a part of God’s economy. Think about the financial words we associate with time. We spend time, run out of time, save time, and lose time just to name a few. There is an economy of time in the Kingdom of God.

We must realize that time is a commodity. It’s something tangible. It can be traded and exchanged for stuff. That’s what we do on our jobs; we are trading our time for our employer’s money.

In God’s Kingdom, it’s time that purchases the fulfillment of vision and prophecy. Here’s the problem. We’ve learned to become cheerful givers of money. But we’ve become stingy misers with our time.

Getting back to the original question – how do we lay hold of revival? God wants us to repent – change our thinking. He wants us to turn around. Then He’ll send times of refreshing – revival.

We need revival – we may even want revival. But are we willing to do what it takes to initiate revival? If I said that revival would cost a million dollars, someone would come up with it. If I said revival will cost 2 weeks of your time, very few people would make the investment. It’s going to take our time – that’s the commodity of the next revival.

I wrote the outline for this series of posts a while ago. Since then I had the opportunity to meet with a friend of mine with a prophetic ministry. She said that the Lord had been speaking to her about the coming revival.

She said that God impressed her that it won’t be a revival as much as a revolution. Later on I thought about it. The word revolution comes from the word “revolve.” A turning around. It’s time for the church to turn around.

God’s people are spending too much time on their own desires. We have become a generation who gives God the bare minimum that we can get away with. It’s time to turn the tide. Are you willing to give God your time?

Question: Why is our time so hard to turn over to the Lord?

© Nick Zaccardi 2014

 
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Posted by on July 28, 2014 in Revival, The Church

 

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Vision – Get it in Writing!

21 Jul

NI’ve been posting about the importance of knowing God’s vision for your life and ministry. Without vision it’s easy to be distracted into areas that don’t fulfill God’s plan for you.

If you have no clear vision from the Lord, then that needs to be one of your greatest priorities in prayer. Spend the time necessary to hear from the Holy Spirit. Without a clear vision, you’ll never have a sense of fulfillment and accomplishment that’s a part of the life of a victorious believer.

But knowing God’s vision for your life is only half of the issue. Once you have a grasp of God’s plan for you, there’s more you can do to solidify it.

In my last post I talked about a verse from the prophet Habakkuk. It bears repeating.

Then the LORD replied: “Write down the revelation and make it plain on tablets so that a herald may run with it.
For the revelation awaits an appointed time; it speaks of the end and will not prove false. Though it linger, wait for it; it will certainly come and will not delay.”
Habakkuk 2:2-3

There’s more to vision than just knowledge of its particulars. It also needs to be declared openly so that you can run with it. It needs to be constantly before your eyes so that you’ll not lose sight of it. This means that you need to write it down in a clear, understandable language.

Never apologize for or water down the dream God has given you. There may be some details of it, which other people aren’t ready to hear just yet, but the general direction should be clear.

There’s been a lot of talk over the years about having a “mission statement.” Once again, man tries to take credit for something that God told us to do a thousand years ago.

A mission statement is merely a vision that’s written down and declared. You can only hit as high as you aim. If you expect nothing from God, I can guarantee that you will get it!

But when you’re willing to take a risk, and declare publicly what God has placed in your heart, then you’re a candidate for a supernatural ministry. As an example to you, I’ll share the mission statement God has given me for my life and ministry.

My mission: “To search out and study the deeper truths of God’s Word, then by making them plain and understandable through the teaching of Scripture, cause individual believers as well as the body of Christ to live up to their God-given potential in Christ.”

Having a written vision is very important. There are so many things that can be done. Having a written statement allows us to filter out the excess. If it doesn’t somehow bring us another step closer to the vision, then no matter how good it is, we don’t need it.

Excellence requires vision. But that vision must be birthed in the mind of God and not man. This requires a listening heart and an abundance of time in the presence of the Lord. It will not be a quick and easy process. But if you make a decision to be excellent and follow it through before God, then He will see to it that you know the vision He has called you to attain.

Question: What is your personal mission statement?

© Nick Zaccardi 2014

 
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Posted by on July 21, 2014 in Ministry, Prayer, Spirit of Excellence

 

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How to Enter the Place of Blessing

14 Jul

MountainI’ve been posting about how we struggle against God’s will sometimes. Surrendering to the Lord is really the only option. That’s the place of blessing.

So Jacob called the place Peniel, saying, “It is because I saw God face to face, and yet my life was spared.” The sun rose above him as he passed Peniel, and he was limping because of his hip.
Genesis 32:30-31

Peniel – it’s a place of blessing, yet a place of struggling. Peniel means, “face of God.”

We use that term lightly. We say, “I’m going to seek the face of God.” What we mean is that we’re going to pray. It should be obvious by now that the struggle comes not by prayer alone, but when we find ourselves before God’s face.

Suddenly our life comes into sharp contrast with the life of Christ. We see how far we’ve fallen short of God’s standard. We hear the Spirit of God calling us to change. We must count the cost. Is God’s destiny for my life worth the effort it will take to lay hold of it?

No one has yet been disappointed by his or her destiny in God. You won’t be the first. Commit to the change. Set your face to the vision God has given you.

The verse says that after that day, Jacob always walked with a limp. His life had an evidence of the change he underwent. The changes you go through in your walk with Christ should be just as plain.

Sometimes our decision to do God’s will is the greatest struggle of our lives. Usually it’s because of the good things that we have to lay down in order to follow God’s plan. More often than not, we have to overcome ourselves.

The writer of the book of Hebrews puts it this way…

Let us, therefore, make every effort to enter that rest, so that no one will fall by following their example of disobedience.
Hebrews 4:11

In talking about entering God’s rest, he tells us that it will require some effort – a struggle. This is because our flesh fights against entering that place of reliance upon the Holy Spirit. In the natural, we want to take the credit for the blessings we enjoy.

In reality, we must do what it takes to put down the old man, and pick up God’s will and plan for our lives. That’s usually where the biggest struggle comes into play. But if we’ll overcome ourselves, then we find that we’re in the place of rest and blessing in the Holy Spirit.

Really seek God’s face today. Seek His life-changing power. Be prepared to give your all in exchange for His blessing.

Question: What’s your biggest struggle right now?

© Nick Zaccardi 2014

 
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Posted by on July 14, 2014 in Power of God, Prayer

 

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Know When to Give Up

11 Jul

SunriseIn my last post I talked about the times we find ourselves wrestling against God’s plan for us. We’re looking at Jacob as an example of this.

Then the man said, “Let me go, for it is daybreak.”
But Jacob replied, “I will not let you go unless you bless me.”
Genesis 32:26

No, God wasn’t getting tired. No, God wasn’t going to turn into a pumpkin when the sun came up. Why then did He impose a time limit? Purely and simply out of His love for Jacob. God knew that having fought all night, Jacob was getting to the end of his strength.

The Bible teaches elsewhere that God will not allow our struggles to go beyond our ability to endure. This is how God worked with Jacob. He made Jacob fight to the end of His strength. Up to this point, Jacob always found the easy way out of his troubles.

The scheme, the bribe, the fixed fight, whatever it took to win without breaking a sweat – that’s who Jacob was. God, however, knew he was better than that. He was created to father a nation. Through this experience God taught Jacob that he was able to overcome by his inner strength and determination alone, without all the scheming.

God wants to do that with us as well. He’ll allow us to get to the end of our strength so that we’ll cry out to Him. Don’t drop out of your fight too quickly. Make the determination to lay hold of the prize God has called you to obtain.

The man asked him, “What is your name?”
“Jacob,” he answered.
Then the man said, “Your name will no longer be Jacob, but Israel, because you have struggled with God and with men and have overcome.”
Jacob said, “Please tell me your name.”
But he replied, “Why do you ask my name?” Then he blessed him there.
Genesis 32:27-29

You would think that because he wrestled with God, Jacob would get in trouble. Nothing could be further from the truth. God doesn’t care if you struggle with Him as long as you learn the lesson He’s trying to teach you.

Up to this point in his life, Jacob had been trying to buy, fight, and steal his way to the blessing of God. Now he was to learn that the only way to obtain it is by freely receiving it from the Lord’s own hand.

He spent his life fighting God and man. Now God tells him that he has overcome. Overcome what? He has finally overcome himself. He now has the control to take his life and lay it at the feet of the Lord.

How do we know this? God gives him a new name – Israel – that means, “conquered by God.”

Perhaps you’ve been struggling in your walk with the Lord. Maybe there is an area in your life you’ve been refusing to turn over to God.

It’s time for you to give up and receive the blessing God’s been waiting to give you. Today, allow yourself to be overcome by God.

Questions: Are there areas, right now, where you’re struggling against God? What will it take for you to give up?

© Nick Zaccardi 2014

 
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Posted by on July 11, 2014 in Power of God, Prayer

 

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Are You Wrestling with God?

09 Jul

OLYMPUS DIGITAL CAMERAWe all face hardships in our lives. Sometimes it’s our own doing. There are even times that our goals are in direct opposition to what God is trying to accomplish in us.

Many Christians come up with their own plan for their lives. Then they pray about it simply to have God bless it. Unfortunately, if it’s not God’s plan, there will be no blessing no matter how hard you pray. You’ll simply find yourself struggling against God’s purpose in your walk with Him.

The Patriarch, Jacob, found himself in just such a position.

So Jacob was left alone, and a man wrestled with him till daybreak.
Genesis 32:24

We know from the context of Scripture that God came down to Jacob this night and wrestled with him. He was alone. His family couldn’t save him. His possessions couldn’t save him. He found himself totally alone with God.

This is the power of time alone with the Lord. If God wants your undivided attention, He knows just how to get it. We need to take the time to hear His voice speaking to us. It would save us a lot of grief in the long run.

When the man saw that he could not overpower him, he touched the socket of Jacob’s hip so that his hip was wrenched as he wrestled with the man.
Genesis 32:25

This portion of Scripture always bothered me. How could Jacob, a man, beat God in a fight? There was something not right about it.

Then it occurred to me – if it was God’s intent to beat Jacob in a fight, the Lord could have squashed him like a bug. God could have done it with a word, never even laying a finger on him. As it turns out, the fight was not for God’s benefit. The Lord didn’t need to prove He could win. It was all about getting Jacob’s attention.

This shows me the love of God. When we find ourselves struggling against His will, He lowers Himself so as to fight at your level of ability. Like a father wrestling on the floor with his child, the goal is not to win, but to instruct.

I find that it’s easier to have these wrestling times with the Lord in private. In public you have to act like everything’s okay. When you’re alone, you can take your time and struggle through some issues without the usual distractions.

Don’t be afraid to tackle some big issues with the Lord. Remember that He’s not out to hurt you, but to make your life better than you could ever do it on your own. Give Him the chance to help you fight through your struggles.

Questions: Have you ever found yourself struggling against God’s plan? What were the issues? How did it turn out?

© Nick Zaccardi 2014

 
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Posted by on July 9, 2014 in Prayer

 

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Our Final Exam – What’s On It?

21 Apr

ClassI’m posting about God’s ongoing work of salvation in us. God desires to continually bring about changes in us.

But what happens if I don’t allow God to continue with His plan to renew my life? Paul gives us some insight into the question. In the letter to the Corinthian church, Paul is addressing a group of mostly baby Christians. According to the Apostle, they’re not babies because they lack experience, but because they chose not to grow up.

By the grace God has given me, I laid a foundation as an expert builder, and someone else is building on it. But each one should be careful how he builds. For no one can lay any foundation other than the one already laid, which is Jesus Christ. If any man builds on this foundation using gold, silver, costly stones, wood, hay or straw, his work will be shown for what it is, because the Day will bring it to light. It will be revealed with fire, and the fire will test the quality of each man’s work. If what he has built survives, he will receive his reward. If it is burned up, he will suffer loss; he himself will be saved, but only as one escaping through the flames.
1 Corinthians 3:10-15

When we are initially saved we’re placed onto the foundation of Christ. It’s afterwards that the building program begins. We have the choice to build for ourselves – wood, hay, and straw. Think about it in the natural. All over the world wood, hay, and straw are normal building materials. They’re used because they’re readily available and easy to build with.

It’s a lot more difficult to build with gold, silver or costly stones. They speak of what’s built by the spirit. If we submit to the will of God for our lives, then we’ll see a beautiful structure arise. Not only that, but it will be beyond our expectations for what we could have ever accomplished on our own.

The good news is that we’re told how it will all turn out. We’re not in the dark. We know what we’ll be judged on. The test is fire.

You can build some elaborate and beautiful houses with wood, hay and straw. I’ve seen some grandiose mansions around the country. Here’s the problem, they’re not going to be judged on how high they were built or how ornate they are. They’re going to be doused with gasoline and lit up.

Think about what’s important to you right now. The test is not how high you climbed up the corporate ladder. It’s not how much money you accumulated. It’s not even about how many good deeds you did or how many friends you have on Facebook.

The judgment will be based upon how close you stuck to the Plan. Did you allow the Holy Spirit to work His changes in your life? The final exam is how close your life came to God’s will for you.

That’s what will matter the most to you in the end.

Question: How high on you priority list is knowing and accomplishing God’s will for your life?

© Nick Zaccardi 2014

 
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Posted by on April 21, 2014 in Faith, Ministry, The Gospel

 

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