"My soul, wait thou only upon God; for my expectation is from him."Psalms 62:5

It never ceases to amaze me, the way the devil uses our offenses and our "offendedness" to divide and conquer marriages, relationships, churches -- even entire nations! Many of us are not careful enough about the things we say and more importantly, we get offended way too easily. As we were discussing this topic recently, a good friend gave this analogy, and we loved it: If you are holding a baby and his little arm swats you in the face, would you take offense to that? Of course not! We know the little guy didn't intend to hurt us. We respond with "awwww" or laughter or something to that effect. But if it is a friend, a family member or a brother or sister in the church who offends us with a little swat of his words or actions, we are undone. We expect more from them! What hypocrisy! We become angry, and we want to defend ourselves, fight back or leave forever. Jesus said NO! He said that even if someone despite-fully uses us, that means on purpose, that we are to respond in love! We as human beings are troubled and sinful. We are not perfect, and we should never expect others to be, no matter what their positions are in the church. God is perfect, and He is the one from whom our expectations should come -- no man. Someone once said, "to forgive is to set a prisoner free and discover that the prisoner was you." Brothers & Sisters, let's make it a point to forgive each and every way someone has offended us -- and ask the Lord to heal and restore us -- that we may be a beacon of His love, especially to those who've offended us! ARE YOU OFFENDED?

"Salvation belongs to the Lord. Your blessing is upon Your people."Psalms 3:8

Jesus told His disciples to go into the deep waters and let down their nets for fish. When they did, their nets were filled up with fish to the point of breaking. Being fishermen and businessmen, they may have been tempted to start doing business. I mean, think how much they could make! But God had a different purpose. The disciples' occupation as fishermen was just a vehicle for God to demonstrate His great power and love. He wasn't blessing them with fish so that they would get excited about fishing -- He was blessing them with fish so that they could get their eyes off their fishing and on to the greater call He had for them! Thankfully, they left the fishing business and went off with the Lord to do great and mighty things. Too many of us are wrapped up in fish. We seek the Lord for His blessings, prosperity, and success. But true discipleship is focusing not on the blessings of the Lord, but on the Lord of the blessings! Brothers & Sisters, we can rejoice in our blessings, but let's not dwell on them! Let's set our eyes on the Lord and the calling He has for us. When He sees that we have pure and willing hearts, He will be faithful to use us to accomplish His glorious plan! LOOK BEYOND THE BLESSING!

"Examine yourselves as to whether you are in the faith. Test yourselves. Do you not know yourselves, that Jesus Christ is in you?—unless indeed you are disqualified. But I trust that you will know that we are not disqualified."2 Corinthians 13:5-6

I came across this interesting story by Leslie B. Flynn in her book Dare to Care Like Jesus. A Christian baroness, living in the highlands of Nairobi, Kenya, told of a young national who was employed as her houseboy. After three months he asked the baroness to give him a letter of reference to a friendly sheik some miles away. The baroness, not wishing the houseboy to leave just when he had learned the routine of the household, offered to increase his pay. The lad replied that he was not leaving for higher pay. Rather, he had decided he would become either a Christian or a Muslim. This was why he had come to work for the baroness for three months. He had wished to see how Christians acted. Now he wanted to work for three months for the sheik to observe the ways of the Muslims. Then he would decide which way of life he would follow. The baroness was stunned as she recalled her many blemishes in her dealings with the houseboy. She could only exclaim, "Why didn't you tell me at the beginning!" I'm sorry to be the bearer of bad news but the minute we label ourselves "Christian", we must know that people will be watching us everywhere we go. This does not mean that we have to be perfect (although that is what the world often expects to see)! But what it means is that we have to be daily walking in repentance, frequently examining our behaviors and motives, and praying for God's deliverance from all the ways we fall short. We must be bettering ourselves for the Kingdom every single day! Yes, it must be the main focus in our lives! Brothers & Sisters, none of us have arrived. We all have work to do. Let's make it a point to be in daily, or even hourly contact with the Lord, asking Him to restore our hearts and minds for His sake and for the sake of all who are watching! HAS SOMEONE BEEN WATCHING?

"Do you not know that you are the temple of God and that the Spirit of God dwells in you? If anyone defiles the temple of God, God will destroy him. For the temple of God is holy, which temple you are."1 Cor 3:16-17 ; "in whom the whole building, being joined together, grows into a holy temple in the Lord in whom you also are being built together for a dwelling place of God in the Spirit."Ephesians 2:21-22

What an amazing thought that a holy and infinite God dwells within our bodies when we come to faith! This awesome God so desires to inhabit our very beings ... wow! Now imagine how that God is constructing this magnificent temple of living stones, believers around the world, and fitting us together into a masterpiece; stones of every color, every size, and differing weight, and fitting them TIGHTLY and perfectly together for His glory! Imagine walking into a glorious Temple, a visual masterpiece exemplifying His temple of Living stones…and gazing at the splendor of gold, silver and precious gems … imagine the awe of the beauty you're taking in! Now brace yourself and imagine a person entering this glorious place, taking a sledgehammer and smashing the walls ... hitting every stone ... doing all he can to desecrate and destroy all this wonder and beauty … you'd say it's the height of insanity, a massive blasphemy against the magnificent work of the Creator! But how often do we ourselves as His body pick up our hammers, big and small, and do this destructive work? There is a proverb of Solomon – “Life and death are in the power of the tongue”. Our tongues can become "hammers" of destruction and death to His precious children, His Holy Bride. in the Temple of God, His Body. Words can build up … and sadly, can also destroy! Brothers & Sisters, use words, not as hammers of destruction, but as skillful building tools inspired by the Holy Spirit to build one another up … polishing each and every precious stone in God's Temple. Our Lord is a builder, the Living Word who says, "Let there be! And it IS! …so let us also be aware before we open our mouths to speak, as we will be judged for every idle word! We have the words of life to speak into anyone's life today. And "A word fitly spoken is like apples of gold in settings of silver." [Proverbs 25:11] LEAVE YOUR SLEDGEHAMMERS HOME!

"And Enoch walked with God; and he was not, for God took him."Genesis 5:24 ; "To them God willed to make known what are the riches of the glory of this mystery among the Gentiles: which is Christ in you, the hope of glory."Colossians 1:27 ; "You have a few names even in Sardis who have not defiled their garments; and they shall walk with Me in white, for they are worthy."Revelation 3:4

Sometimes, the more significant, powerful, or influential someone is, the less you know about him or her. There are some people of influence whose names most of us have never heard, and about whom we know almost nothing, yet they make decisions which affect millions of lives. Enoch, is a Biblical character about whom we know hardly anything besides his age and genealogy; but we do know this -- that Enoch walked with God -- and then God took him. What an example! Is there anything greater that can be said about someone than, "He walked with God"? Enoch's life was eternally distinguished by this one characteristic: his personal relationship with the Lord. He somehow maintained a degree of divine fellowship that was so pleasing to God that He just transformed the man's earthly body and took him to glory without ever experiencing death; and this was long before the Holy Spirit was poured out on all flesh. But this ought to be the simple secret of the life of every believer: walk with Him, because the mystery that was hidden from mankind is now revealed to us through His Son – "Christ in you – the HOPE OF GLORY"; so that now, every truly born again soul can walk with the living God through His constantly indwelling presence. Do we realize the amazing opportunity we've been given? Brothers & Sisters, the simplicity of this truth cannot be overstated. The Lord Himself told Martha, "One thing is necessary"... intimacy with Him; a conscious choice to walk with God, to think about Him, to look at Him, to talk with Him, rest in Him, obey Him, care about him, serve Him, and love Him in a million ways. We are all guaranteed the resurrection that Enoch experienced because Jesus walked with God and totally pleased Him. And we have the choice to follow His example of intimacy...just as our brother Enoch did. SIMPLY WALK WITH HIM!

"For you see your calling, brethren, that not many wise according to the flesh, not many mighty, not many noble, are called. But God has chosen the foolish things of the world to put to shame the wise, and God has chosen the weak things of the world to put to shame the things which are mighty; and the base things of the world and the things which are despised God has chosen, and the things which are not, to bring to nothing the things that are, that no flesh should glory in His presence."1 Corinthians 1:26-29

If He was a man of the world, Jesus would have chosen the elite of His day to accomplish His mission -- however He used simple fishermen. These men were considered uneducated, lacking "social status", wealth or worldly distinction of any kind -- yet these "simple" men were the ones the Lord selected to build the Kingdom of God. When the children of Israel were slaves in Egypt, God didn't send an army to deliver them, He sent a single man. But a single man of God was shown to be greater than the most powerful kingdom on Earth. Throughout the Bible, we read of the Lord choosing and using the weak things of the world to confound and shame the wise and powerful. God seems to love revealing His awesome power through humble vessels, so that no flesh can glory in His presence. Brothers & Sisters, don't allow the enemy to convince you that God cannot use you because you are "flawed", weak, or seemingly inconsequential. No, instead, remember that He uses the base, despised, nonentities of this world, ordinary, often broken, people...to do extraordinary things. Our God is not looking at your wealth, your social status or your education -- He's looking at your heart! If your heart is willing and your life is available, then He is more than able to perform miraculous work through you for His Kingdom's sake. With so much work to be done, don't allow the enemy to stifle or steal the Lord's vision for your life –- He has a plan to use you to confound the wise of this world, and to bring to naught the things that are! CONFOUND THE WISE OF THIS WORLD!

"For it became him, for whom are all things, and by whom are all things, in bringing many sons unto glory, to make the captain of their salvation perfect through sufferings. For both he that sanctified and they who are sanctified are all of one: for which cause he is not ashamed to call them brethren,"Hebrews 2:10-11

After nearly completing his first overseas cruise, a young ensign was given an opportunity to display his capabilities at getting the ship under way. With a stream of commands, he had the decks buzzing with men and soon the ship was steaming out the channel en route to the states. His efficiency established a new record for getting a destroyer under Way, so he was not surprised when a seaman approached him with a message from the captain. Strangely though, it was a radio message and it read: "My personal congratulations to you upon completing your underway preparation exercise according to the book and with amazing speed. In your haste, however, you have overlooked one of the unwritten rules--make sure the captain is aboard before getting under way." We may think our lives are in order. We may have them managed them to a tee and people may wish they were us -- our businesses are prospering, our kids are doing well in school, our marriage is sweeter than ever. But if the Captain is not on board, at some point, we're going to have to head back and start again. Brothers & Sisters, let's make sure the Lord is on board our lives today. There's so much more we can do when He is! ALL ABOARD!