This morning I prayed about returning to the text we were studying before the break. We will get back to it soon, but the Lord wanted me to flow in the vein I was flowing in yesterday. All year we have been learning about “Refined Focus”. This is truly a time when we need to maintain our focus.
A couple of months ago we did a detailed study of a passage in 2 Corinthians 5. In that study that covered verse 16. There is a line in verse 16 that in the Easy to Read Version (ERV) reads, “From this time on we don’t think of anyone as the world thinks of people.” This is how a few others translations read:
NIV: “From now on we regard no one from a worldly point of view.”
NLT: “We have stopped evaluating others from a human point of view.”
GNT: “No longer, then, do we judge anyone by human standards.”
I bring this up because there is an abundance of political rhetoric right now. Democrats and Republicans are tearing each other apart. Those who support #BlackLivesMatter and those who #BackTheBlue are at each other’s throats. Black men are afraid when a squad car pulls them over and the families of police officers are afraid that their Daddy or Mommy may not make it home from their shift. Once again, this is not a time for the church to be silent. This is a time for the church to be led of the Spirit and to offer hope. God has called us to be HOPE-dealers!
So what does this mean to you today? A few things.
- There is far too much discussion about the personalities of our presidential candidates, and not enough about the policies they will enact if elected. As a Born-Again believer, you are not supposed to take the worldly point of view. It’s okay to have a discussion about the election, but offer God’s perspective. When people come to you they should hear something different than what they are hearing on TV. Why? Because you are filled with God’s Spirit.
- America is, without question, a darkening place right now. People are losing hope. They are looking at two underwhelming candidates for president, they are watching a seemingly unending barrage of police shootings on TV, they fearfully watch as police officers themselves are being hunted, and bombs continue to go off all around the world in terrorist attacks. This is NOT the time for the church to be silent. Light does its best work in the dark. There are only two things the Bible says God is: God is light and God is love. The world needs both right now. Since God lives IN you, this is your time to shine. Allow the love and light of God to flow through you today!
- You are a Born-Again believer. The God of Hope lives IN you. You cannot allow yourself to adopt the hopelessness of the world. My prayer for you is what Paul prayed for the believers in Rome. He said, “Now may the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, so that you will abound in hope by the power of the Holy Spirit.” (Romans 15:13). May you enter each day filled with the excitement and expectation of God’s joy and the serenity and stability of His peace. May you abound with supernatural hope every day of your life, and may that hope spill over into the lives of everyone you come in contact with.
- Don’t get distracted. Don’t allow yourself to delve into the hopelessness of the world. You are a child of the Most High God. Keep your heart and mind fixed and focused on Him! If you do, you will abound in hope, you will be light in the midst of darkness, love in the midst of hatred, and you will have answers when those who are lost come looking for clarity. Get excited. When the world is seemingly going crazy, the church is able to shine! You are the church and God will SHINE through you.
Closing Confession: Father, this is a season of refined focus for me. I refuse to be distracted and I refuse to be dismayed. I keep my eyes on You Father. You give me the words to say, You lead me in the works to perform, You bring me before the people I need to be before, and You bring people to me who are hopeless and who need to hear a Word from You. I am in You and You are in me. Therefore, I am light and love, because You are light and love. When people come to me they don’t hear what they are hearing from the world. They hear what heaven is saying. I am a source of hope. I am a source of encouragement. I have the answers, because You give them to me. I am in this world, but I am not of it. I am born from above. I live like an ambassador from heaven in this world. I represent You daily. Thank You Father for living in me, working through me, and for making me a HOPE-Dealer every day of my life! I declare this by faith. In Jesus’ name. Amen.
This is Today’s Word! Apply it and Prosper.
