Amanuensis

Habakkuk 1:2-4 How long, O Lord, must I call for help? But you do not listen! “Violence is everywhere!” I cry, but you do not come to save. Must I forever see these evil deeds? Why must I watch all this misery? Wherever I look, I see destruction and violence. I am surrounded by people who love to argue and fight. The law has become paralyzed, and there is no justice in the courts. The wicked far outnumber the righteous, so that justice has become perverted. 

Yet I am still with you. Breathe, Child. Look to Me. Stop looking at all that is of your world. Look to Me. My love has not ended. My presence has not ended. My protection and provision have not ended. Look at those. Gratitude. Acknowledgement of Me and what I do. The rest is unimportant, really.

Nahum 1:3 The Lord is slow to get angry, but his power is great, and he never lets the guilty go unpunished.

I know you are frustrated, Child, with the levels – the ever increasing levels it seems – of evil and injustice in your world. And yes, it is sinking into darkness. Yet, you have My Word, My Promise, that all this does not go unseen nor unpunished. I may not act against them during their lives there, but I will mete out appropriate justice when they stand before Me. I give you My Word. They will not be allowed to escape from what they have brought upon themselves. That being said, do not lose sight of the fact that none of you is perfect, none of you can stand before me without fault or sin or grievance done to Me and My Children. So, free your mind from worry, free your mind and heart from bitterness, anger and unforgiveness. Give it all to Me. I will deal with it. You can be assured. Watch yourself. Monitor your own actions and words and thoughts. Bring them before Me daily for judgment and in repentance when necessary. Keep your side of the road clean, as you learned so long ago. I will help you. I will honor your attempts to be the child I created you to be. You are only able to control – and never perfectly – your own life. So, do not allow the enemy to distract you constantly with what others are doing, with the evil being perpetrated, by the lies and injustice. Do not focus on that. Instead, think about your life, your walk, your relationship with Me. Focus on Me. On My Word. On My Promises. On My Holy Spirit, dwelling within you, teaching you, helping you, guiding you. That is what will give you the life I want for you. And that is what will free you to live at peace and able to serve Me while you are in your world. That is the key. Controlling your mind, heart and actions. Commit them to Me and I will help you channel them appropriately. The world – your world – needs more of that and less of the constant spinning over what is happening around you. 

Jonah 1:3 But Jonah got up and went in the opposite direction to get away from the Lord. He went down to the port of Joppa, where he found a ship leaving for Tarshish. He bought a ticket and went on board, hoping to escape from the Lord by sailing to Tarshish.

You laugh, you shake your head, but really my Child, where is your Tarshish? Where do you try to escape to to avoid Me? What is the destination of the ticket you purchase when you want to avoid My commands? Television? Reading? Shopping? Surfing on the internet? In Jonah’s day, aside from reading, none of what you do to avoid Me existed. I visited him and told him to go to Ninevah. He did not want to so he tried to go in an opposite direction – went so far as to purchase a ticket and board a seagoing vessel to escape. That’s dedication above and beyond the things you can readily do to escape My direction. He had to physically board a boat and leave his town. That’s dedication. Yet, you know the story. I was on the boat with him. He dragged Me on a needless trip in the hopes that I would not follow. Well, as you know, I was with him. Just as I am with you watching TV, reading books, shopping, internet surfing…whatever it is you do to avoid Me and what I am asking of you, I am there. Do you really think I just go away? Also, do you think I enjoy what you are doing? Harmless activities in and of themselves become hurtful to you and your life when they are done to avoid what I seek, what I know would be best for you, what I know would help you and your life and your fellow man. Remember that old adage: just because you can does not mean you should. Focus on that: I am always with you. I am in whatever it is you are doing. So, is what you are doing pleasing to Me? Is it beneficial to My plans? Is it beneficial to your life? Perhaps if you always acknowledge that I am with you in everything you will choose more wisely what you do with your time. Think about it, Child. Pray about it. I will honor your request for help….or I will allow you to plunge onward without My help in this. You choose, as always.

Jeremiah 8:8-9 “How can you say, ‘We are wise because we have the word of the Lord,’ when your teachers have twisted it by writing lies? These wise teachers will fall into the trap of their own foolishness, for they have rejected the word of the Lord. Are they so wise after all?”

11-12  “They offer superficial treatments for my people’s mortal wound. They give assurances of peace when there is no peace. Are they ashamed of these disgusting actions? Not at all – they don’t even know how to blush!”

9:3 “My people bend their tongues like bows to shoot out lies. They refuse to stand up for the truth. They only go from bad to worse. They do not know me,” says the Lord. 

This is what I would say to My Church: you are twisting My Word into lies that soothe your own souls. You are changing the meaning of My Word to allow you to live in sin and selfishness. You have taken the Word out of context to conform to the evil desires of your current culture. You give partial Truths in order to condone blatant sin. Do not be deceived, I am aware of every lie you tell, every twist and turn you place on My Word. I see it all and forget nothing. I am aware that you take My Scripture and “interpret” it in a way that allows those whom you teach to sin blatantly, confident that I approve – or at least that I will automatically forgive. You twist the message of salvation into a mere “prayer” that is supposed to cover all sin before the prayer is said and all that is committed after – even those actions that are done in full knowledge that it is sin. You twist My mercy into a blanket of automatic coverage. You leave out sanctification. You leave out obedience to My Lordship. You leave out holiness. You leave out personal responsibility to adhere to My Word. You leave out everything but My “love”, My “mercy”, My “forgiveness”. You leave out the price that was paid for these, as well as the expectations attached to those who would benefit from them. If I am Lord, where is obedience?  If I am King of Kings, where is adherence to my Word? If I am indeed omniscient, where is the knowledge that I see all that you do, that I am aware of all that you say and even think, that I am privy to the state of your heart?  Where is the acknowledgement that I am indeed Lord over all? You accept that – even welcome it – when you need help, when you are frightened, when you are lacking resources, when you are hurting. Yet you ignore that fact when it comes to your every day life – a life which should reflect Me. If you are Mine, where is the effort to become more like Me?  If you are Mine, if you truly “love” Me, why do you commit egregious sin against Me and My creation – blatantly, openly, in full expectation that I either condone it or will automatically forgive it?  You obviously have not spent enough time truly getting to know Me, My Word, the history of My people. Do not live your life in such a way that, when you leave your present life, you are surprised when I tell you that I never knew you.

Isaiah 30:2-3 “For without consulting Me, you have gone down to Egypt for help. You have put your trust in Pharaoh’s protection. You have tried to hide in his shade. But by trusting Pharaoh, you will be humiliated, and by depending on him, you will be disgraced.”

Whom do you trust? Upon whom do you depend? Do you really trust Me to provide all that you need? Do you really depend upon Me for your life, your provision, your safety, your all? Or is it just ideas? Do not miss this, Child. “Pharaoh” is your world – jobs, friends, banks, plans, ideas. “Pharaoh” is anything or anyone to which you turn instead of turning to Me. Do you trust? Do you believe? Do you know – really know – that I created you, that I love you, that I want what is best for you? And that I will see that you are safe, provided for, loved? Yes, the help you need, the direction you seek, the plans that will work out for you – they may end up coming from the “world” – but if you seek Me first, leave it in My hands, wait on My perfect timing – that all comes from My intervention. It will be the perfect help, the perfect direction, the perfect plans – because it all came from Me. Otherwise, it will either fail or only partially work out. And, in that, your trust in Me will begin to erode. Your public confession of faith in Me will be tarnished – as will others’ opinion of My nature. It always comes down to the same set of questions, the same issues that need your focus – do you trust Me? Will you wait on Me? Will you obey Me? You will never do these things perfectly, but as time goes by – with your heart in the correct posture – you get better and better at it. In the meantime, I do not change. I stand ready to fulfill My promises. 

Isaiah 26:3 You will keep in perfect peace all who trust in you, all whose thoughts are fixed on you!

Have you not seen this? Do you finally recognize the depth of this Truth? You have been through a long set of battles. You have been stripped of much of what you trusted to make your life work, much of what you based your identity upon. You have been stripped bare, bleeding, crying out for relief, fearful of what would come. And that drove you to rely upon Me much more. It drove you to keep your eyes focused on Me. It drove you to My arms – outstretched over you in protection and provision. Focus, Child. You have seen what I will do. You have seen My provision, My protection, My love for you. You have experienced that peace that is promised in Scripture – peace in all circumstances. Stay close. Stay in the Word. Things are about to become more rocky, more unstable in your world. But I remain – stable, sure, unmoving. I will continue to be your Protector, your Provider. Eyes on Me, Child. Especially in the days to come. 

Nehemiah 9:28 But as soon as they were at peace, your people again committed evil in your sight, and once more you let their enemies conquer them. Yet whenever your people turned and cried to you again for help, you listened once more from heaven. In your wonderful mercy, you rescued them many times!

How many times have you read passages like this, Child, and wondered how the Israelites could be so senseless? How many times have you thought they were foolish to turn against me when their enemies, those from whom I had saved them, were at the door – always ready to attack and take them captive once more. Do you not see? Is your life any different? You may not have literal armies at your doorstep – outside the barriers of your walls – your enemies may not be throngs of armed men. But they are real nonetheless. Your enemies are addictions, compulsions, lies, evil thoughts, doubts, failures to trust, attitudes and words and the harm you inflict on those around you. Those enemies are not only just as real as those the Israelites faced, they are just as deadly to your faith and your relationship with me. Just as when My children Israel abandoned their love for Me and began to worship false idols – golden calves and other items – so you do in your worship of those things in your life that take your focus away from Me. Shopping, electronics, television, food, your selfish wants and desires…. So many idols in your modern day lives. They are just as much a sin as setting up a “temple” for false gods. So, when you abandon your focus on Me, on My Word, on obedience – you open the door for your enemy to come in and tear down all the work you have done to clear out your idols. You open the door for your enemy to come in and tear at the fabric of your faith, to dissolve your resolve to live for Me, to weaken your trust in Me – in essence to take you captive again. Yet, I hear when you cry out. I am still here. I still save. But, Child, really, wouldn’t it be better to just stay the course, remain solid in your faith, stay in My Word, walk with Me?  Each time you allow your enemy to take you captive, you lose precious time, you lose depth of faith, you lose pieces of yourself. Look up, Child, not around. I am here. I am faithful. I am trustworthy. I satisfy eternally more than any and all idols you have chosen to worship in the past or will choose to worship in the future. 

Ezra 3:11-13. Then the people gave a great shout, praising the Lord because the foundation of the Lord’s Temple had been laid. But many of the older priests, Levites, and other leaders who had seen the first Temple wept aloud when they saw the new Temple’s foundation. The others, however, were shouting for joy. The joyful shouting and weeping mingled together in a loud noise that could be heard far in the distance.

Do not miss this Child. There were those who had never seen my earlier Temple. They were overjoyed to see the foundations of a new place to worship, to sacrifice, to follow my commands. The elders, however, those who had been in my first Temple, Solomon’s Temple, grieved its loss. They remembered what had been, and what had been destroyed. Do you see? I honor both emotions. I honor the grieving, the sadness over what has been lost. I honor the joy and celebration of what is being rebuilt – what is new. I honor the respect and sense of loss for what was in the past, as well as the excitement and joy over what is being created. Process it all. And look to me to honor both.

1 Chronicles 29: 3 “And now, because of my devotion to the Temple of my God, I am giving all of my own private treasures of gold and silver to help in the construction. This is in addition to the building materials I have already collected for his holy Temple.”

David was not chosen to build My Temple. Yet, even in the disappointment of that decision, he chose to create the plans given to him for its construction. He spent years collecting all the materials needed for its construction – every aspect. Then, on top of it all, he donated all of his personal treasures for its construction. Will you be a David? When I tell you “no”, will you yet apply yourself to the task that you have not been chosen to lead? Will you be a generous servant in the “construction” process?  Will you humble yourself and yet apply yourself to the task I have asked be completed?  This has been a problem for you. You like to lead. Yet, I have not chosen any leadership position for you at the moment. I have chosen for you to be a humble servant. Will you? Will you give sacrificially even though I have denied your request? Your response will demonstrate whom you serve. 

1 Chronicles 28:20 Then David continued, “Be strong and courageous, and to the work. Don’t be afraid or discouraged, for the Lord God, my God, is with you. He will not fail you or forsake you. He will see to it that all the work related to the Temple of the Lord is finished correctly.”

You are my temple. Your life here is about building – perfecting – that temple. Do you not believe I will assist you in its construction, just as I did Solomon in building my Temple in Jerusalem? Do you not believe it is as important to me – if not more so – than a physical building? You are the Temple of My Holy Spirit. He indwells you. So it is of utmost importance that your body – your mind – your spirit – your soul – be whole and pure and worthy of His indwelling. That is the process of sanctification. Your continued “building” process – the daily improvement of the temple that is you. Your enemy would distract you. Keep you off the task of perfecting that temple. But that is the primary focus. Is your heart pure enough for My indwelling? Are your thoughts worthy to share with Me? Be strong. Be courageous. Do the work. I am helping you, for you cannot do any of it absent My help. I am with you. In this, as in all things. Look to Me as you look inside yourself critically. Look to Me as you address those things you observe that are not worthy of My presence. Look to Me and do not be discouraged. I will make a way. I will help you finish the temple. I will be with you in all of it and working alongside you throughout. See how I gave David specific details for construction of every part of the Temple – even down to the specific instructions of the gold meat hooks. Every little detail. Nothing was missing. Do you not believe I have the same details in mind when it comes to you? To your life? To your temple? I am consistent, Child. I do not bend or sway or change. My plans are detailed and perfect. Trust them. Trust Me to bring them to fruition in you. Just surrender. Remember the magnet you used to have on your refrigerator?  “Surrender Dorothy”. Well, you are right back there. Surrender. All if it. All the time. To Me. Will you? When you do, the work will continue full force.