Be Careful What You Wish For - You Just Might Get It

ADVISORY: If you haven't already, then check out episode 2 of "60 Seconds of Faith" for the foundation of this week's message.

Hello,

I hope you're enjoying my series so far and I trust that it has been of benefit to at least some people. Today's post is all about watching how the words we speak can frame the boundarie to our life.

I'm going to try and keep repetition to a minimum because if you've read my blog at all, you'll know I've covered a lot of what I'm about to say already. But as always, it's helpful to have a refresher...

Long time readers will remember an analogy I used in a past post regarding driving a car & how you will go in the direction you are looking. What also rings true at this point is that you have the power to shape your destiny based on the choice of words you use.

If your dialogue is filled with "cannot's" & "won't's" then don't be surprised if you miss the good things that are happening right under your nose!

If you forever find yourself talking to yourself & your family and friends about what you haven't got and what you cannot do, then just how are your seeds of faith going to get sown? How is your life going to be lived on a higher plain?

Angels & Blessings

I heard once a great story that illustrates this point well: -

God was preparing blessings for his children and he had one in particular that he wanted to bless. So he instructed one of the angels to get to work preparing a certain blessing and to let Him know when it was ready. Needless to say, he did that and then just as he was about to deliver it, God raised his hand causing much confusion.

"Master, I thought you said you wanted to bless this person?"

"I do..." He said, pausing momentarily to listen to something indistinct that the angel couldn't quite make out

"Isn't it in Your nature to bless?"

"Of course it is," He smiled and then said "Listen to what he's saying though."

Closer inspection revealed that the person was offering up complaint over complaint over the state of their life and wondered why they never got any good breaks.

God paused, looked at the angel and said...

"How can I ask you to deliver it to an attitude like that?"

Says more than I need to on the subject don't you think?

Someone once said that faith is the currency of heaven and the way you show God your faithfulness is by watching what you say.

I've been there, believe you me, complaining about how I have no job or no money to do this, that or the other and if I'm honest, it wasn't until I heard Pastor Stephen Furtick of Elevation Church, North Carolina suggest that instead of obsessing over what we would like to do when we have "x, y or z" in our lives, to start by being faithful with what we do have!

The more I thought about this, the more it rang true because how else can you expect to get more if what you are doing with what you've been given is to bury it in the ground: -

‘Master, I know you have high standards and hate careless ways, that you demand the best and make no allowances for error. I was afraid I might disappoint you, so I found a good hiding place and secured your money. Here it is, safe and sound down to the last cent.' Matt 25:24-25 (emphasis added)

What kind of a way to live is that?!

In response to the "faith currency" idea I've mentioned, a preacher I once listened to then went on to say that when we show faith, we are exchanging our prayers for the blessing, with faith being the currency, or middle man I like to think of it, resulting in the following transaction taking place: -

Prayer + Faith = Blessing

Now it doesn't always work like that, because sometimes God blesses, just because He can!

Watch the response from the servant's master a little further down: -

The master was furious. ‘That’s a terrible way to live! It’s criminal to live cautiously like that! If you knew I was after the best, why did you do less than the least? The least you could have done would have been to invest the sum with the bankers, where at least I would have gotten a little interest. ‘Take the thousand and give it to the one who risked the most. And get rid of this “play-it-safe” who won’t go out on a limb. Throw him out into utter darkness.’ Matt 24:26-30 (emphasis added)

What a curious choice of words "at least I could have got interest", in other words he was indirectly saying to the man, if you'd have been careful from the beginning then what is reaped would have been more than that which is sown.

Just Another Lesson Learned

The lesson here is simple, in only looking at what you haven't got and what you cannot do, you're limiting what God can do, even though He is limitless!

If all you do is spend your days idling around and looking at what's wrong then what of what's right in your life? It'll pass by and go relatively unnoticed because your attention is focused on the lack/wrong in your life.

Again, it's all about focus, isn't it?

The more I say, for example, I have no job, then the more I'll see how many jobs I'm applying for that I'm not hearing back from, the amount of interviews I haven't got. In other words, my mind will go looking to join the dots from A to B to C trying to find links in similarities as to other things that I haven't got.

In reality, I have God, so I have everything I need!

What if you don't have Jesus though?

Then it's worth giving it a try, getting to know Him, invite Him into your life and see what a difference He can make.

Final Thought

I'll close up on today's posting by saying that if you are interested in finding out more about God then head on over to your local bible-based church and give it a try... what have you got to lose? ;)

In the Manchester area of the UK, you can always head on over to !Audacious and who knows, I might just see you there! :D

Until next time...

Peace off!

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