Have you ever considered that you have a divine appointment when you get up early for your quiet time of prayer and meditation on His Word? . . . That Jesus is patiently, personally waiting to meet with you there?
Have you ever thought of going to church as a divine appointment? . . . That Jesus is patiently, personally waiting to meet with you there?
Have you ever thought of the Bible study you belong to as a divine appointment? . . . That Jesus is patiently, personally waiting to meet with you there?
What a difference it would make in our attitude of expectancy and our habit of consistency if we truly wrapped our hearts around the knowledge that each is a divine appointment, that Jesus Himself is waiting to meet with us.
Blessed is the man who listens to me,
watching daily at my gates, waiting at the
posts of my doors.
Behold, as the eyes of servants look to the hand of their masters, as the eyes of a maid to the hand of her mistress, so our eyes look to the Lord our God, until He has mercy on us.
This shall be a continual burnt offering throughout your generations at the door of the tabernacle of meeting before the Lord, where I will meet you to speak with you. § In every place where I record My name I will come to you, and I will bless you.
Where two or three are gathered together in My name, I am there in the midst of them. § The hour is coming, and now is, when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and truth; for the Father is seeking such to worship Him. God is Spirit, and those who worship Him must worship in spirit and truth. § Praying always with all prayer and supplication in the Spirit. § Pray without ceasing.
Prov. 8:34; Ps. 123:2; Ex. 29:42; 20:24; Matt. 18:20;
John 4:23–24; Eph. 6:18; 1 Thess. 5:17
His name will be called . . . Counselor.
The Spirit of the Lord shall rest upon Him, the Spirit of wisdom and understanding, the Spirit of counsel and might, the Spirit of knowledge and of the fear of the Lord. His delight is in the fear of the Lord.
Does not wisdom cry out, and understanding lift up her voice? “To you, O men, I call, and my voice is to the sons of men. O you simple ones, understand prudence, and you fools, be of an understanding heart. Listen, for I will speak of excellent things, and from the opening of my lips will come right things … Counsel is mine, and sound wisdom; I am understanding, I have strength.”
The Lord of hosts … is wonderful in counsel and excellent in guidance. § If any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask of God, who gives to all liberally and without reproach, and it will be given to him. § Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways acknowledge Him, and He shall direct your paths.
Isa. 9:6; 11:2–3; Prov. 8:1, 4–6, 14;
Isa. 28:29; James 1:5; Prov. 3:5–6
When I know that my loved ones are coming home I begin to prepare for them. My son, Jonathan, loves barbecued spareribs on the grill and homemade apple pie. I prepare those things for him, so that when he walks through the door of the house he knows he was expected and welcome, because this is his home!
Considering how I prepare for my children when I know they are coming home, I love to think of the preparations God is making for my homecoming one day. He knows the colors I love, the scenery I enjoy, the things that make me happy. All these personal details will let me know when I walk into My Father’s House that I am expected and welcome because He has prepared it for me! And in the same way, He is preparing a glorious homecoming for you!
“Not by might nor by power, but by My
Spirit,” says the Lord of hosts.
Who has directed the Spirit of the Lord, or as His counselor has taught Him?
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.
The wind blows where it wishes, and you hear the sound of it, but cannot tell where it comes from and where it goes. So is everyone who is born of the Spirit. § Born, not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God. § My Spirit remains among you; do not fear! § The battle is not yours, but God’s.
The Lord does not save with sword and spear; for the battle is the Lord’s.
Zech. 4:6; Isa. 40:13; 1 Cor. 1:27–29; John 3:8; 1:13;
Hag. 2:5; 2 Chron. 20:15; 1 Sam. 17:47
Do as You have said.
Establish Your word to Your servant, who is devoted to fearing You … So shall I have an answer for him who reproaches me, for I trust in Your word … Remember the word to Your servant, upon which You have caused me to hope … Your statutes have been my songs in the house of my pilgrimage … The law of Your mouth is better to me than thousands of coins of gold and silver … Forever, O Lord, Your word is settled in heaven. Your faithfulness endures to all generations.
God, determining to show more abundantly to the heirs of promise the immutability of His counsel, confirmed it by an oath, that by two immutable things, in which it is impossible for God to lie, we might have strong consolation, who have fled for refuge to lay hold of the hope set before us. This hope we have as an anchor of the soul, both sure and steadfast, and which enters the Presence behind the veil, where the forerunner has entered for us, even Jesus.
Exceedingly great and precious promises.
2 Sam. 7:25; Ps. 119:38, 42, 49, 54, 72,
89–90; Heb. 6:17–20; 2 Peter 1:4
Although God was actively involved throughout the Creation process, in the beginning the “earth was formless and empty, darkness was over the surface of the deep” (Gen. 1:2,NIV). If you and I had been present at that time to view the earth, we might have had the impression that because we could not see any evidence of God’s activity, He was not doing anything. Yet at that very time, “the Spirit of God was hovering over the waters” (Gen. 1:2, NIV). He was actively preparing Planet Earth to receive His Word and be transformed into a place of beauty and purpose.
Are you concerned for a friend whose life is like “the surface of the deep”– undulating, unstable, always changing, and moody? Even though you have prayed without ceasing, have you seen no evidence of God’s activity in that person’s life? Have you therefore concluded that God is not active? Place your faith in the God of Creation and be encouraged! He is active whether or not you and I can see evidence of His activity.
