God Is On The Move In (Even) My Life

From Pastor Jim Martin's A Place For The God-Hungry:

God really is on the move.

Yet, sometimes we get distracted by those people who seem to have everything going their way.

What do you think when your friend finally gets her dream job? What do you think when your friend is about to get married? What do you think when your friend finds out that she is pregnant?

If you are like many, this is what you think: “Where is my dream job? Why can’t I be married? When are we going to have children?” [read more...]

It's a very timely encouragement. And during sub-D caregroup today, there was a prophecy that encouraged me. And two video teachings that Eugene played for us - Bruce Wilkinson, author of the famous Prayer of Jabez - they were about the wrong and right responses to faith.

Putting all the pieces together so far, I think God allowed me to go through the Marah experience to reveal what was in my heart. And very frankly, I saw how sour and vindictive I can become, and even petty too. Thank God for his good Spirit, who reveals the innermost secrets of my heart to me... I suppose, thank God, that I have grown in my maturity of response over the years, especially in faith, a patient spirit, and thanking God no matter what. But my heart still struggled with a sour spirit, to be honest.

But as Peter encouraged me (after gently correcting me), no one's perfect. But it's a process. Ah. Praise God for such a wise and wonderful shepherd He's given me. =)

Do you remember the Joseph story in the book of Genesis? Joseph had been sold as a slave and is now in Egypt, working in Potiphar’s house. Potiphar was one of Pharaoh’s officials – the captain of the guard.

Joseph is far from home, far from his family, far from the land.

Yet, the writer of Genesis wants you to know that God is very near. “The Lord” is mentioned five times in 22 verses (39:2, 3, 5, 21, 23). This is a surprise after reading the previous two chapters in which so very little had been said about God. Now the writer wants you to know that God is very much at work.

If you are like many people, you live as though there is really nothing significant happening in your life:

• My family is ordinary. We are just trying to get by. Nothing about us really stands out.
• My church is vanilla. It is not a great church. We have so many weaknesses. There is nothing about us that would impress anyone.
• My job is just a job. It is not an important job or something that might interest you or someone else.
• My ministry is not that impressive. Perhaps there are no glowing statistics to pass on. Maybe all you can see are the obstacles in your ministry.

When God is with you, what looks discouraging, may in fact, be the place where God is working in a mighty way. What may look ordinary can be the very avenue where God is working in extraordinary ways.

Thank God for this article! I stumbled on it right after I got the bad news, so I was pondering even in the midst of my ranting. That He answered my prayer even before I prayed it. (I like this God.)

Isaiah 65:24
"Before they call I will answer; while they are still speaking I will hear."

And... Kim Leong, Kim Chun's brother, shared this verse with me over supper that he had read:

Deuteronomy 4:7
What other nation is so great as to have their gods near them the way the LORD our God is near us whenever we pray to him?

He said, "I was typing out the verse on my handphone, when suddenly my thumb covered the first half of the verse... and I read these words: 'the LORD our God is near us whenever we pray to him'. Wow!"

Wow. A webpage, a young believer's testimony and Bible verse... a subd CG, a prophecy, a neighbour He sent along to encourage me (yes, Andrew my neighbour)... God's really super-gracious and kind to an undeserving sinner like me. There's so many more, but yes, God has prepared me well for the bad news with, well, a holy dose of the Good News. =)

=) But yup. I guess I have some things harder than a lot of other bros. However, just now, I kissed my dad goodnight. And as I went out of the room, I realised how fortunate I am to be born into a family - and a Christian one at that. So many people don't have caring fathers - or even fathers in the first place. Yet I am privileged by God's grace. I read a horror story about young children being abused by so-called missionaries. (thank God one of them grew up with a passion to help abused children.) But yes, I haven't been abused by any Christians and got put into a good church. So when I see the magnitude of all the good things that I have been given by our heavenly Father... there are simply too many blessings to count.

And I even get to see Him working in my life and even hearing from Him so clearly a lot of times... even get to witness signs and wonders... hmm... then actually, what's there to complain about, actually? Sure, I have this disappointment, and it's a pretty sore one.

God knows that the disappointment is in due part to my earnest hope that He would be glorified through what I had hoped would turn out. But since it doesn't look like it's going to work out... I felt disappointed, wondering how is God now going to be glorified through this then? When things seem to be going smoothly for all the other bros around you, you start wondering what's wrong with you.

But putting everything into perspective, what does it matter? Even if it matters, the important thing is that in every way, whether good or bad, Christ be preached. And because of this I rejoice.

Yes, and I will continue to rejoice, for I know that through my brothers' prayers and the help given by the Spirit of Jesus Christ, what has happened to me will turn out for my deliverance. I eagerly expect and hope that I will in no way be ashamed, but will have sufficient courage so that now as always Christ will be exalted in my body, whether by life or by death. For to me, to live is Christ and to die is gain.

Yes, to live is Christ - I must remind myself! - and to die is gain.

=)