God's Plan for You

In Revelation 1:8, Jesus introduces himself as the Alpha and the Omega, the beginning and the end. In Heb 12:2, He is described as the author and the finisher of our faith. It is of the utmost importance for us to always remember the He starts stuff in our lives with the intentions of finishing it. Some of you might be right in the middle of Junk City, USA wondering if there really is a place called The Promised Land. Let me assure you, our journey with Jesus only takes us through Junk City. Let me give you something to shout about. He might have brought you there for a while but it is only because it is His way of bringing you into the promises of God.
How did God create the universe which includes the world that we live in? He had a plan from the very beginning. He didn't create birds to fly before He created a perfect atmosphere for them to fly in. He didn't create them with only one wing so they would fly around in circles. The oceans and rivers were created before the fish of the sea. Here again, they were created perfectly adapted to swim, live and breathe under water. Jer. 29:11 says-For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, saith the LORD, thoughts of peace, and not of evil, to give you an expected end. He had a plan for the birds, He had a plan for the fishes and He has a plan for you. Notice the last part of that verse. His plans include giving us an expected end.
How many of you out there would just like to see the nasty n0w-nows that you are going through right now to just end already!!!! Me, too!!!!!
How did God's people get tangled up into being slaves in Egypt fo four hundred years? God "began" or "authored" that through a promise to Abraham in Genesis 15:3. Have you ever wondered just what was on God's mind when He said that much lest when He began to bring it about? The only answer I can give is, He is the Alpha and the Omega, the beginning and the end, the author and finisher of our faith. God had a plan that far surpassed any of their imaginations. Did they have to live in a manner that they did not want to? Yes. Did they have to go through stuff that made it look like God had forsaken them? Yes. Then what was God doing? He was finishing their faith and culminating His promise to Abraham four hundred years earlier.
We have got to understand. God's promises include the beginning of something and the expected end. The expected end is whatever God has promised in His Word. It would do us good to read the great "Road map to Heaven" to find out what it really says. No where in the Bible does it say that God would leave us destroyed along life's highway like a piece of trash. His Word is full of "bringing them out" promises. Go find them.
Why did Moses have to run away from Egypt and go into the desert to live? Why did God appear to him in the burning bush and make him come back? Boy, I hope you're looking for great theological answers to those questions. I have many but not enough time to go into it. Let's just plainly say, "Jer 29:11." God had a plan all along that started with a promise to Abraham and ended with the children of Israel being delivered out of Egypt with a great victory. Yes, God's plan included slavery to a wicked nation. Yes, God's plan included much hardship. But it wasn't more than they could bear. Yes, from everyone's view point, it looked like God had forsaken them, but He hadn't. His plan was far greater than they could see at the time. Why Moses? Why not Aaron? The Alpha was proving they He was the Omega. Just like creation, when He spoke the word to Abraham, He had an Exodus plan in mind. Did He give Abraham all the details? No. Abraham did not need to know the details. Romans, Galatians and James all say that Abraham believed God and God counted that for righteousness. Abraham trusted that God had a better plan than he could imagine.
We all look at the situations that we face and say, "Just what was God thinking about?" Jer. 29:11 says, that he is thinking about doing us good and not evil. He is thinking about bringing us into a place of peace. His Word also says that there is great joy and abundance promised to us. His plans for us don't stop in Junk City, USA or The Nasty Now-Nows Valley. Just like the children of Israel in Egyptian bondage. All those four hundred years, God's intentions were to bring them out not leave them there. His plan was years ahead of them. He had every situation worked out. All they had to do was follow Him, love Him and obey Him and leave the rest up to Him. God help us to see that He has a plan that He has sworn to be faithful to. Then let us be faithful to the Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the end, the author and the finisher of our faith.

This Is The Day

In 1 Samuel, chapter 17, we read about the day that David killed Goliath. Think about how David's day got started. Did he jump up out of bed and say to himself, 'Boy, I really, really, really, feel like killing a big ole giant today?' No, he didn't. His heart and mind was being obedient to his father's command. (There's a two hour sermon just in that.) His daddy had told him to take some corn and some bread to his three older brothers. They had enlisted in Saul's army which was busy fighting the Philistines. His daddy wanted David to find out how the battle was going and how his brothers were doing. Typical daddy stuff. David wasn't even thinking about being really rich, but today would be that day. David probably hadn't given much thought to whom he would marry. And a princess surely wasn't one he would have given a thought to. But, today would be that day.

What was King Saul thinking when he woke up that morning? Was he thinking, 'Boy, it would be really peachy-keen if some sweet little shepherd boy would come along out of nowhere and whip this big, bad ole giant that's been making fun of me and my girlie-men.' U-h-h-h, nope. He had listened to Goliath's challenge twice a day for 40 days for a champion from the army of Israel to come out to fight him man-to-man. Undoubtedly, he walked through his army, talking to his men to see who would take on this 9 foot warrior. He made promises to the toughest of them that he would give them riches, his daughter's hand in marriage and make his family free from taxes. I can just imagine, that he had a couple of guys picked out that would make some real good son-in-laws. But, there was no man that wanted to answer Goliath's challenge.

What was Goliath thinking during all of this? King Saul described him as "a man of war from his youth." This big guy had trained his whole life for this one big challenge----to make fun of Israel's army. His thoughts were probably of just how bad he was going to mutilate whoever it was that came against him. He had trained almost all of his life and he couldn't wait for this day to come.

Did I say trained? Oh, yeah, trained. We-e-e-l-l-l-l. Just how did David train for this day. David started his training the very day that he was anointed to be king over Israel. His daddy and his older brothers told him to go back out and tend to the family sheep farm, Mr. King over all Israel. Can't you just hear their jeers? He trained by being faithful in what his father told him to do. He went through long hours in the pasture lands tending the sheep. However, the anointing of the Holy Spirit began to communicate with David. Psalms of praise began to come to him as he began to enjoy keeping his mind on the God of all creation. Through keeping these sheep, God was training David to throw that small insignificant sling. As a sheep would begin to wander away from the rest, he would sling a stone on the other side of the sheep to scare him back into the safety of the herd. If his aim was short, it scared the sheep away from the herd and David would then have to chase him. I would say he learned real quick how to place his shots. Don't you just imagine that, every day, David got in some sling-shot practice as well as some worship practice as he was being faithful to his father's command? Even so, God has us practicing things that seem so small and of very little importance.

David had no idea how important that sling would be to him until that day came. David probably figured that he was just wasting his time out there with those smelly, aggravating sheep. However, God saw it as a proving time for his future. David's ability with a simple, little sling was the opening of the door to many things for him. That day God manifested His love and provision to the entire kingdom of Israel. That day God began manifesting His approval on the life of a lowly shepherd boy. That day changed, forever, the path of David, the son of Jesse. That day came because David chose to be faithful in the small jobs that were given to him. It was one of many "pay days" that God would bless David with.

But, what about Goliath? He had trained physically harder than David did and for a longer period of time. It was pay day for Goliath, too. He had chosen the course of the cursed. When you choose to sin, the only pay day you have to look forward to is death and destruction. There's a high energy bill that has to be paid for all of the "bright lights" that some work hard for. It's called the pits of hell. One day, the debt would be demanded in full. And this was that day.

But, what about King Saul? When that day came, was he extremely joyous that his kindom was now safe and the Philistines defeated? Not really. You see, King Saul had sinned against God by worshipping God the way he wanted to and not the way that God had said to. God had taken the anointing from him and had placed it on David. When David was ushered into Saul's tent, he began to tell the king of how God was with him when he slew the bear and the lion. Then he began to assure the king that God was the one that would help him slay Goliath. No doubt, as David was talking, Saul remembered the day when the prophet Samuel anointed him with oil and the spirit of prophecy came upon him. He knew he had lost out with God because God told him so. Now, on that day, he sees David under the same anointing that he once had. His heart began to weigh heavier and heavier under the foreboding thought that his successor was standing in front of him with the anointing and favor of God that he could have had. In a modern phrase, God was "in his face" about his sins and about his awful future. Pay day was coming for the back-slidden King Saul. That day was going to be stretched out into years of absolute agony for the man who missed God. Every day from then until he took his own life would be remorse, on top of remorse, on top of remorse.

What is today to you? Is it a day that you will choose to turn from God or not answer His call? Is this a day that you will choose to antagonize God or his servants? Or, is this a day that you will lift up your heart in praise to the Holy One and sing, "This is the day that the Lord has made. I will rejoice and be glad in it." Stay faithful to Him in the little things. There is a day that God is working on right now that will begin your turn into healing and prosperity. Don't miss it by being unfaithful or falling away from God. Be faithful in the little things that He has asked you to do. You might destroy some giants one day.