Grasshopper Christains Read Numbers 13: 23-33

Why is it that some Christains have so much success in life and others seen to struggle all the time? Why is it that some Churches are growing and growing and others are not? Why is it that in some Churches there are people being healed and in others there is just talk of healing? Why is it that some Churches are able to accept people as they are and some won't even let you in, if you aren't dressed right? Why, because some Christains and Churches don't look at the people around them but they look at the places that God wants to take them!! They don't think about what might happen, they just believe in what God said "will" happen!! They are not Grasshopper Christains!
Grasshopper Christains settle for less. They are satified with just getting by and not going to the boss and ask for a raise! I'm just a grasshopper in the bosses sight! They settle for a small membership when Jesus said in Mt.28:19 to "teach all nations" They are like grasshoppers to the world that really need to hear the Word of God! Grasshopper Christains just expect the pastor to pray for healings instead of the whole Church standing and agreeing in the most powerful name of JESUS!! They look at the disease as being bigger than the Word of God. Grasshopper Christains will look just at the outside of a person and not the inside. They talk about the way someone dresses and not how they can help to dress that person. They make the person look small to them , oh yeah, like a grasshopper! There are too many Grasshopper Christains and Minsters in God's Church today!! Too many of us are willing to settle for less when God wants us and His Church to have more!!
The passage today shows us two very different ways we can live as Christains. We can live as grasshoppers like most of the "spies" did, they lived in fear and was focusing on themselves and not on the Word and promises of God. God had promised to give them the land already but they focused on the "giants" instead of the Giant Word Of God!!! They wanted the easy way out. They were willing to settle for less. That's just what Grasshopper Christains do.
Joshua and Caleb on the other hand didn't focus on themselves or the "giants", but focused and believed in the Word and promises of God. They believed that if God was going to give them the land ,surely He'd give them victory over the "giants" too.
In God's Word there are many things He has promised and even given to us,yet we have just settled for less. We don't like dealing with the big issues that are facing God's Church today. It's time we stop being grasshoppers and start being "more than conquerors through him that loves us"(Romans8:37)God wants us to live in victory and wants us act like it too! God doesn't want no Grasshopper Christains, He wants some Giant Killing Christains!!
Which one are you??
"Father,help us to not be afaid of change, for sometimes that very change, can be your blessing for us. Help us to not just settle for less on our jobs and at our Churches and even in our homes. We love you and want to do your will but we can't do it alone, we need your help. Make us into Giant Killing Christains today!! In Jesus mighty name,AMEN"

And A Pinch Of Jesus! II Kings 4:38-41 & John 3:16

I love a good stew.I love mines with everything you can put in it. The more ingredients the more hearty the stew. In today's passage of scripture there was a great pot of pottage (stew) being made for the sons of the prophets. These prophets were basically in prophet's school and Elisha was the Headmaster. He told them set this great pot out and let's have a meal. It would be like a big crawfish boil today everyone going out and bringing some ingredient for the boil. The Bible goes on to state that one man gathered some "wild gourds"(squash) that was poisonous and not knowing this fact,added them to the pot. In other words he didn't do this thing on purpose. He was trying to do what was right and it ended up almost killing everyone including himself. The Bible states that they cried to Elisha saying "there is death in the pot".(kjv)Read Romans 6:23 and compare.
Now let's look at how Elisha solved this problem. The simple thing to do would be to pour out all the great pot of pottage and start all over again. They could have made sure no bad things or ingredients was put into the new pot. They could try and make things "good".But God doesn't work that way!
Verse 41 reads:"But he (Elisha) said,Then bring meal. And he cast it into the pot; and he said, Pour out for the people, that they may eat.And there was no harm in the pot."(kjv) What did Elisha do in this situation? He didn't give up on the pot he just added another ingredient!!!All the work they had put into the stew would have been for nothing!!So he put a pinch of meal in the pot and the pottage gave life instead of death.
God did the same thing for us.(Read Jn.3:16) This world(pot) was full of death(sin) and He didn't throw the pottage(us) away,He just added another ingredient!! Jesus! Jesus! Jesus!!!!
Sometimes our lives are just like that pot of pottage. We try to do everything right and then we are faced with the sin in our lives. We try and take the easy way out. We say if I just quit doing this or stop going there, then everything will be alright. If I leave her or him alone I won't have to deal with "my" sin. Let's just empty the pot out and start over again!!!!
God and Elisha showed us that sometimes it's not what we take out of our lives that brings us life but what we add to it!! We need to add a pinch of Jesus to our pot!! Every time sin threatens to take away the life and things that God has given you, it's time for another pinch of Jesus!! When you are at the end of you rope and can't seem to hold on any longer add a pinch of Jesus!! And if you need more than a pinch season your pottage to your taste!!
There is no easy way in life not to get to where God wants us to be. Sin is something we cannot overcome on our own, that is why God give us the ingredient we need; JESUS!! Add a pinch today!!!
"Father, we all have sins in our lives that we can't run away from. We can't just take the easy way out and throw them out, for they will still be there. Help us to turn to your son Jesus the main ingredient we need in this life. In Jesus name we pray,AMEN!"

Part III "Salvation-God's Love In Action"

We have been looking at how God wants us to act in any problem or situation. The example He used was the deliverance of the children of Israel from their bondage (problem) in Egypty.We all have found ourselves in situations that seems so hopeless. In this text the children of Israel found themselves between two choices. They could try and fix the problem themselves or return to Egypt or they could trust God to fix the problem. They could flee or they could take a stand and trust God and not focus on the problem. Sometimes we use all our energy trying to fix things that God has already fixed!We act as if God doesn't know or care about our problems and situations. We claim ownership of what(problems)that isn't even ours to owe. We lose our faith in God.
In the last part of this series God shows us why He wants us to "Fear not" and to "Stand still". It's like a math problem:Fear not + Stand still= Salvation and Deliverance. If we follow this equation to the letter something will happen. God takes ownership of our problems!! You see God wants to show us something. He wants to show us that He loves us!!
Lets look into the text and see God's love in action. Verse 13 says,"Fear ye not,stand still, and "see" the salvation of the Lord,which "He will show you" today.(kjv)You see if we have fear, it causes us to flee and if we flee, we can't stay still and see what the Lord has for us. God wants us to "see" His power,grace,mercy,healing,Love! Too many times we give in to the problem and not give into God. Too many times we try and fix things we can never fix without God's help. Too many times we run to people or to things searching for the answer when all we have to do is follow the equation! Here is the reason why we should follow the equation.
Verse 13 continues as follows:"for the Egyptians(problems) whom ye have seen today,ye shall see them again no more forever".(kjv) Forever!!God wants to not only fix your problem but He wants to fix it FOREVER!!You see we all have some types of "Egyptians" in our lives.We've tried to fix things our way and the problem still seems to be there. The Egyptians claimed ownership of the children of Israel.They didn't want to let them go, they wanted to possess them! That is just what satan wants too! He wants us to submitt to our problems. He wants to possess us with our problems.He wants us to claim ownership of our problems. When you own something it's up to you to fix it! He want us to go everywhere accept to God! Why? Because he knows that if we go to God the problem won't be our problem anymore!! Verse 14 reads:"The Lord shall fight for you, and ye shall hold your peace."(kjv) How much of our lives have we given up trying to solve our own problems? How much pain have we endured because we ran before God showed us His answer?
God has given us an example in His Word of how we should deal with the Egyptians(problems) in our lives.He wants to show us His love in action. He wants us to trust Him in the smallest or largest problems. He wants to fight for you today. There is someone today that needs to know that God loves you and has not forgotten about your situation. "Fear not" and"Stand still" and "See" the salvation of the Lord!!!
Proverbs 3:5&6 gives us another "life equation" to follow. 5."Trust in the Lord with "all" thine heart;and lean "not" unto thine own understanding.(problem solving,feelings,emotions)6."In all thy ways acknowledge Him, and He shall direct thy paths."(kjv) God will solve our problems if we "trust" Him with them. Today make youself a promise to stop taking ownership of your problems and give them over to God. Don't you want to see what He can do with them!!!!!
"Father my prayer today is that someone recieve this Word of knowledge and comfort and hope.Help us to see that you are ready and willing to dispose of every problem and situation we face. Father, we know you love us because when sin became a problem for us, you sent your son Jesus to give us a permanent solution to that problem. We claim no ownership rights to to any of our problems but give all ownership rights over to Jesus the "Rock" of our salvation. In the mighty name of Jesus Christ,Amen".