As we prepare to celebrate July 4th, I am reminded of the truths this Nation was founded upon and the lack of that truth that is prevalent in today’s society.
As we celebrate the 4th of July, we remember that as a Nation, we declared our independence from England and its King. Of course one of the reasons for this breaking away from England was pure in that we wanted freedom to Worship. However, in doing so, we also unknowingly planted a seed of Independence, not only as a country, but as a disconnect from the King and his control. We declared our independence from the Sovereignty of THE KING. Make no mistakes; this country was founded for the purpose to worship the one true God. Sadly, I believe that seed produced a harvest far greater than ever imagined which has resulted in this great nation once again attempting to declare its Independence from God. This is evidenced with some of the great battles we watch playing out before our eyes and plastered across social media and news networks. Regrettably, we have strayed far from our Judea-Christian roots that grounded us, and we find our values again being challenged
BUT THERE IS HOPE!
Since the inception of our country, and throughout all of history, our currency has always reflected those monumental words, “IN GOD, we trust.” I heard the voice of the Lord simply say to me that America has enjoyed His blessing and favor and with every item purchased, we continued to sow a seed of declaration letting the entire world know that in “God” (Yahweh) we place our trust. Apart from God, we can only expect calamity and chaos.
The key to America once again walking in blessing and favor back at the root of our existence, and that is our dependency upon God and returning to our Christian values as a nation. 2 Chronicles gives us the clear solution to this Mayhem that we are experiencing.
2 Chronicles 7:13-14
(13) When I shut up heaven and there is not rain, or command the locusts to devour the land, or send pestilence among My people, (14) if My people who are called by My name will humble themselves, and pray and seek My face, and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin and heal their land.
I found verse 13 particularly interesting. First, who was it that shut up heaven and there was no rain? Who commanded the locust to devour the land, and who sent pestilence among the people? Look up the scriptures and you will find that this is the Lord speaking to Solomon. But why would a loving God do these things, especially to His people? The answer is simple, to get them back to the state of being where there are abiding under the shadow of the Almighty- dwelling in the secret place- walking in obedience to the word of the Lord. That
is where we find safety and protection—when we listen to and obey the word of the Lord. So how do we find the answer to the situation? Let’s look at verse 14.
TO THE CHRISTIAN BELIEVERS:
The verse begins, “If MY people who are called by My name”. Now, who do you suppose He is speaking to, the Christians or the unbelievers? Without a doubt, God is speaking to those who call Him their God- the Christians. We must first come to grips with the fact that we, as Christians, are the ones who are responsible for change. We hold the key, not Congress, not a political party, and surely not another social/economic program instituted by our government. We as Christians hold the key. Let’s continue on to see exactly what the Lord’s instructions continue to say.
HUMILITY:
I am afraid to say that many Christians today have fallen to the sin of pride and self-sufficiency. We have begun to walk without love and humility and we have figured out the ”business” of the Church. As a result, we have so many ministers and Christians who have lost touch with the good news of Jesus Christ. In many evangelical churches today, we even hear how people are refuting the 10 Commandments as being no longer relevant for today. But always remember that Pride cometh before the fall and a haughty spirit before destruction.
James 4:8-10 gives us another timely word regarding this subject: He states,
“Draw near to God and He will draw near to you. Cleanse your hands, you sinners; and purify your hearts, you double-minded. Lament and mourn and weep! Let your laughter be turned to mourning and your joy to gloom. Humble yourselves in the sight of the Lord, and He will Lift you up.”
PRAYER:
Society has made every attempt to make sure that we take prayer out of our schools, out of our business and out of society. It is a sad day when Christians who gather to pray are disbanded, yet some Muslims in this country are afforded extra breaks so they can go and pray to their god. Yet again, where are our Godly values and principles that this country was established upon? Now, more than ever, we must be intentional on gathering for prayer and asking God for mercy upon our nation.
WORSHIP:
Worship is a major key. In worship, we encounter the presence of God. We discover how magnificent and Holy HE is, and how miniscule we are without His presence dwelling within us. When we behold HIS face, we experience the Holy
Spirit at work within our lives to call us to repentance in certain areas that we may have overlooked in our own lives.
Worship is the key to God’s presence, and it is our Worship that will draw Him close to our presence so we can experience a divine exchange from His throne room into our hearts.
We are very mindful of the power of worship, and your prayer and financial support help us to create these moments every month for people to discover the presence of God and allow His Holy Spirit to bring hope to their hopeless situations, and encouragement to those who are worn down from the battle.
REPENTANCE:
“Repentance”, that is what this scripture is alluding to. But why does He say this to the church? Simply, because we have too much sin in the camp. We have forgotten that there is a Heaven to gain and a Hell to shun. We have been more concerned with the advancement of our own priorities and agendas that we have erred into sin. No, I am not talking about killing people and robbing people, however, we have been guilty of killing people through the slander of the tongue. We have been guilty of covetousness when we see the church growing by leaps and bounds and see how much money is coming in their offerings while we are trying to simply keep the lights on at our churches. How about this one….rebellion! You know, the word says that rebellion is as the sin of witchcraft. I wonder today when prophets come to our churches if they are identifying witches and covens, or if they are simply picking up on the spirit within the church….by those who are called by His name.
THEN…..
The Bible is full of if-then statements, and this is one of those keys illustrations. When we do our part, we know that God will do His part. So, what does He say that He will do?
GOD RESPONDS:
God promises, that when we meet his qualifications and requirements- when wehave done everything He instructed us to do- then He would hear from Heaven. God is not a God who does not respond. Oftentimes, when we have not heard from God, may we be reminded of this scripture and ask ourselves if there is something He has asked us to do that we have not yet done. When we fail to do what He has already instructed us to do, Heaven is silent.
FORGIVENESS:
Thank God for forgiveness of sin. Thank God that when we confess our sin, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sin and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. Thank God that the forgiveness of sin was provided through the shedding of the blood of Jesus on the cross. And remember that what God calls clean, let no man call unclean!
HEALING:
This is what our great nation of America is looking for….a solution to the turmoil that is being recognized. Jesus Christ is the only one who holds the key to healing, and this will be the only way that America will ever be healed and the strong nation it has been over the past 400 years. One Nation Under God… with liberty and justice for all!
I believe that God is asking you and I to make our stand today. In the midst of all the world is saying, He is simply looking for someone who will stand in agreement with Him and connect with His words and apply them. I believe that when we as Christians humbly seek the face of God in Worship, and pray and cry out to God on behalf of our nation, God will hear from Heaven and we will experience a mighty wave of God’s Glory and Awakening upon the earth. Prophetically, I believe this is the season we are entering into.
To that end, we will continue to create safe places for people to discover and practice the presence of God. We will continue to herald the message of Hope found only in HIS presence. We will continue to share hope and encouragement to the lost and unsaved, as well as those who have grown weary in their pursuit of God’s presence, and we will stake our dependence upon God declaring, “IN GOD WE TRUST”.
Michele and I thank God for you, your prayers and your continued financial support. You are the backbone of this ministry! We could not do what we do without your help! Please give your best gift this month to help us share this message of Hope discovered through worship as we encourage others to Declare their Dependence Upon God.
IN GOD WE TRUST!
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