God’s Self-Description

 Scripture:

“This is what the LORD, your protector, says, the Holy One of Israel: “I am the LORD your God, who teaches you how to succeed, who leads you in the way you should go.” ‭‭Isaiah‬ ‭48‬:‭17‬ ‭NET‬‬

Observation:

God is speaking in this passage and He tells His people that He is their protector. God protects what belongs to Him. He goes on to say that He teaches us to succeed and leads us in the way we should go. We are never left on our own to figure things out. He is with us, protects us, leads us, and teaches us how to succeed.

Application:

God delights in blessing His people. He loves to prosper those who are fully committed to Him. He is faithful to His word and does what He says He will do. We can trust our God. He is the only one who can lead us into all truth and bless our lives with prosperity. We must learn to trust Him more and more each day. We must listed for His voice and follow Him completely. We can then walk in His abundant provision. 

Prayer:

Father, You are good and Your mercies are new every morning. You are my strength and my shield. You are my help and my source. Thank You for loving me, caring for me, and showing me my next steps at all times. Continue to guide me into all truth. Lead me into a life that You can prosper. Help me to accomplish everything You put me in this world to accomplish. I am Yours.

Forever,

Jeff

Joshua and Jordan

 Scripture:

“For I will pour water on the parched ground and cause streams to flow on the dry land. I will pour my spirit on your offspring and my blessing on your children. They will sprout up like a tree in the grass, like poplars beside channels of water. One will say, ‘I belong to the LORD,’ and another will use the name ‘Jacob.’ One will write on his hand, ‘The LORD’s,’ and use the name ‘Israel.’”” ‭‭Isaiah‬ ‭44‬:‭3‬-‭5‬ ‭NET‬

Observation:

This is a word for Israel given by Isaiah. He says that God is going to pour water on dry ground and make streams flow on dry land. He said He would pour His Spirit on their offspring and bless their children. He said they would be like trees along the banks of a river. He said one would say, “I belong to the Lord” and the other would write on his hand, “The Lord’s”. My sons are Joshua and Jordan Jacob. 

Application:

I am taking this word today as a prophetic word for my personal direct descendants. I want to see God pour out His Spirit on my two sons. One of them already has “YHWH” tatooed on his hand (wrist). They are both “Jacob” by name. Joshua has a tatoo of Psalm 23:4 “I will not be afraid because You are with me.” 

Prayer:

Father, I thank You for this today. I claim that both my sons will have an outpouring of Your Spirit in their lives. May they walk with You and know You intimately. Let them follow You and grow into trees of righteousness.  Let them both be set apart for You and Your purposes.

Forever Yours,

Jeff

God’s Not Tired or Unwise

 Scripture:

“Do you not know? Have you not heard? The LORD is an eternal God, the creator of the whole earth. He does not get tired or weary; there is no limit to his wisdom. He gives strength to those who are tired; to the ones who lack power, he gives renewed energy.” ‭‭Isaiah‬ ‭40‬:‭28‬-‭29‬ ‭NET‬‬

Observation:

Isaiah brings a powerful word to God’s people. He tells them that God does not get weary and there is no limit to his wisdom. He ten tells them that God gives strength to the tired and renewed energy to those who lack power. Basically, He gives us whatever we need to keep on going forward.

Application:

God is infinitely wise and powerful. Therefore, nothing is beyond Him and He can be trusted with whatever we give Him. When we are tired, He gives us strength. When we are faint, He restores us. We can trust God with every aspect of our lives. In our weakness, He is made strong. He is faithful, generous, kind, and powerful. He is able to defeat any and every enemy that we face. Our job is to humble ourselves before Him and glorify His name.

Prayer:

Lord God Almighty, You are incredible and it is an honor to serve You. Help me to serve You well and to never forget Your awesomeness. Help me to never forget that You are the source of every good thing in my life. You are my strength when I am tired, my joy when I am down. You are my peace in a storm and my fortress when under attack. You are my everything and I bless You this morning.

Yours,

Jeff

Intense Devotion

 Scripture:

““For a remnant will leave Jerusalem; survivors will come out of Mount Zion. The intense devotion of the LORD who commands armies will accomplish this.” ‭‭Isaiah‬ ‭37‬:‭32‬ ‭NET‬‬

Observation:

Isaiah gives King Hezekiah a word about the enemies of God and their overthrow of Judah. God told him that only a remnant would be leaving Jerusalem at this time and that survivors would come from Zion. He then reminds the king that “the intense devotion of the LORD who commands armies with accomplish this.” 

Application:

God is not only devoted to His people, He is intensely committed to His people. God’s devotion is intense! I love this picture. We can know that God is intensely devoted to us and that He will accomplish what He says He will accomplish in our lives. We can trust Him. He has proven Himself over and over again. Our job is to trust the commander of heaven’s armies to do what He says He will do.

Prayer:

Commander of Heaven’s Armies, You are worthy of praise and worship. You are my king, my rock, my fortress, and my God! You are everything to me. Help me to trust You more, even when the battles are raging against me. Help me to rely on You and Your intense devotion to me rather than trying to fight on my own. You are the commander I can trust.

Yours,

Jeff

Responding to Your Enemies

 Scripture:

“They were silent and did not respond, for the king had ordered, “Don’t respond to him.”” ‭‭Isaiah‬ ‭36‬:‭21‬ ‭NET‬‬

Observation:

The king of Assyria was telling God’s people that they were going to be attacked and destroyed. He told them that their God would not be able to help them because none of the gods of the other countries had rescued them. King Hezekiah told them that God would fight their battles and defeat the Assyrians. When they were taunted by the Assyrians, the king told them not to respond. 

Application:

There are times when the enemy wants to taunt us and tell us we are going to fail. He wants us to think that God won’t rescue us. Sometimes silence is the best option. When we respond, it is easy to give into fear, panic, or thoughts of destruction. There are times when the best response is no response. Rather, we put our confidence in God and not ourselves. When the enemy can’t get a response, he gets nervous because he realizes that we are not going to be controlled by fear.

Prayer:

Lord God Almighty, show me when to respond and when to be quiet. Teach me to to battle well. Show me how to respond in each and every situation. Let my ears be open and my eyes be upon You. You are my help and my healer. You are my strength and my confidence. You are my everything.

Yours Forever,

Jeff

The Voice of God

 Scripture:

“You will hear a word spoken behind you, saying, “This is the correct way, walk in it,” whether you are heading to the right or the left.” ‭‭Isaiah‬ ‭30‬:‭21‬ ‭NET‬‬

Observation:

This is a promise given to Israel, and to us as children of God. In the context, God’s people were returning to Him and this is the promise of those who follow the Lord. It says, “You will hear a word spoken behind you.” That voice will tell you the correct way to walk. In the New Testament we are told to walk in step with the Spirit. We were meant to be led by the Spirit of God.

Application:

This verse promises us that we will hear the voice of the Spirit, showing us what to do and which way to go. When we need direction, we should listen for the voice of the Spirit. When we need guidance, we should listen for the voice of the Spirit. We should be hearing words spoken behind us giving us direction and leading us to a closer walk with Christ. As for me, I want to live a Spirit-sensitive life and to be led by Him every day.

Prayer:

Lord, You know my desire to hear Your voice clearly. You know every detail of my life and the direction I should be going at any given time. Guide me Holy Spirit. Teach me Mighty God. Show me things to come and help me prepare for them. I want to hear the voice of God clearly. 

Your Son,

Jeff

Exalt the Lord

 Scripture:

“O LORD, you are my God! I will exalt you in praise, I will extol your fame. For you have done extraordinary things, and executed plans made long ago exactly as you decreed.” ‭‭Isaiah‬ ‭25‬:‭1‬ ‭NET‬‬

Observation:

Isaiah cries out to the Lord and says, “You are my God! I will exalt you in praise.” He started by making it personal. He declared God to be HIS God. He then moves into praise and exaltation. He declares that God has done extraordinary things and fulfilled His prophetic words. Isaiah knew God and was ready to extol His name.

Application:

The more we know God, the more we love Him. The more was know Him, the more impressed we are. The more we walk with Him, the more we see His awesomeness and want to extol His name. I want to know God more intimately every day. I want to exalt and extol the Lord forever. I want to see Him working and declare His praise.

Prayer:

Lord God Almighty, You are awesome and I love You. You are worthy of my praise. I extol You. I exalt Your name. You are holy, righteous, mighty, majestic, and powerful. You are worthy of my very best. You are amazing! Help me to live in awe of You at all times and to declare Your goodness to the nations.

Yours,

Jeff