God Has Everything Under Control

Hosea 12:6 “But you must return to your God; maintain love and justice, and wait for your God always.”

Tenth Avenue North- By your side

"Why are you looking for love? Why are you still searching as if I'm not enough?"

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In high school I often wondered if I would have a high school sweetheart or not.

I would spend lots of time analyzing who it would be and if we would eventually get married like the stereotype suggests. In junior college, every new guy I met was possibly my future husband! At this point I wasn’t consumed by it, but I was entertaining the thoughts in my head a lot more than I should have been: (where would we live? Will we end up going to the same university after this? What will it be like bringing him to thanksgiving with our family?) Now, these thoughts are by no means straight evil. They are however, focusing on what is below rather than what is above. Philippians 4:8 says, “Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable—if anything is excellent or praiseworthy—think about such things.” If we dissected those thoughts, I am afraid we would be terribly ashamed to find out that compared to God almighty, these thoughts are useless garbage.

Also, Philippians 3:8 says, “What is more, I consider everything a loss compared to the surpassing greatness of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord, for whose sake I have lost all things. I consider them rubbish, that I may gain Christ.” So if we are dwelling on these thoughts; daydreaming about the future and what will happen: (ex: Is he going to ask me out? What will I wear if he does, how should I do my hair?) we are not focusing on God. I realize it is humanly impossible to think about God every minute of every day, BUT it should be our goal to worship him in everything we do. That means honoring him in our thoughts as much as possible and praying as much as possible (1 Thessalonians 5:17.) If our thoughts are not holy like he is, we should bring them under Christ’s submission (2

Corinthians 10:5.)Furthermore, by worrying we are telling God that we don’t trust him. At OU I find many girls who are in serious God-fearing relationships and who are about to graduate college. In this situation their worries don’t consist of jumping to conclusions about every guy they meet. Instead, their thoughts focus on knowing if he is the right one or not.

(Is this the man you picked out for me God? I know you confirmed it once, but I’m still not sure. What about is background? You confirmed it again, but what about his family, are those going to be my relatives? Okay, okay, so you clearly spoke to me and told me this is THE guy, but is it really?)

These thoughts aren’t trusting God. God is truth (John 14:6) and truth doesn’t change. If God speaks something to you it is truth. When the scriptures say to do something he means it, he’s not going to change his mind 3,000 years later.

Earlier this week I was worrying about how I would act if I were to begin a God-centered dating relationship. I had never done that, I had no clue, and suddenly I was frantic to figure it out! Then like a gentle whisper, God let me know that he already had a plan and everything was already taken care of. I started to say, “But…”

“Shh…if you will just let me lead, I will give you everything you ever wanted.”

Pslam 37:4

At that point it became clear to me. We can think about it all we want. We can worry, we can analyze, we can discuss and pray and cry and wonder—but in the end, God’s plan will prevail either way (Proverbs 16:9.) So what good does it do to fret?

1 Peter 5:7 (NIV) “Cast all your anxiety on him because he cares for you.”

AKJV: “Casting all your care on him; for he cares for you.”

ISV: “Throw all your worry on him, because he cares for you.”

If God has everything under control, why not let him do it?

Matthew 6:25, 26-27

“Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or drink; or about your body, what you will wear. Look at the birds of the air; they do not sow or reap or store away in barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much more valuable than they? Who of you by worrying can add a single hour to his life?”

You ARE good enough.

Something I see lots of people (especially girls) struggling with, is self-worth and feeling good enough for other people and for God. Even in my cockiest days as a wordly teenager, deep down I knew I depended on everyone else’s opinion of me, and I ran to things they said would make me cool in order to be deemed worthy in their eyes. Then God showed me true freedom. True freedom came when I realized the only thing that matters is God’s opinion, and the only person I have to impress is him. Furthermore, I don’t even have to impress him, because he has already loved me enough to sacrifice is son for me and give me a free gift of reconciliation if only I will reach up and take his hand. How beautiful.

This situation still makes me feel unworthy, but it’s a different kind of unworthiness, this kind springs up out of humility and ultimately results in my desire to worship God all the more. Isaiah 43:1 says, “ But now, this is what the LORD says—he who created you, Jacob, he who formed you, Israel: ‘Do not fear, for I have redeemed you; I have summoned you by name; you are mine.‘“ How beautiful it is to know the God of the universe, who creates all living things; who knows every star by name, who rules over all peoples in all nations in all worlds—THIS God, is the one who still cares enough to know every hair on your head (Matthew 10:30-31), every thought in your mind (Psalm 94:11), and every care in your heart (1 Peter 5:7.) When you feel like there is no one to talk to, and no guys like you, and your friends suck, remember that THAT God who rules over everything, is right there beside you, waiting for you to grab his hand and walk next to him.

John 3:16 “For God so loved the world (that means YOU personally, every single individual on this Earth) that he gave his only begotten son, (he gave up his only son for you) so that whosoever believeth in him (even you,) shall not perish, but have everlasting life.

Here are some verses about being worthy in God’s eyes:

• Titus 3:5 “He saved us, not because of works done by us in righteousness, but according to his own mercy, by the washing of regeneration and renewal of the Holy Spirit.”
• Psalm 139 (entire chapter)
• Psalm 45:11 “The king is enthralled by your beauty; honor him, for he is your lord.”
• Psalm 45 (entire chapter)-God thinks you’re a princess J
• Jeremiah 33:3 “Call to me and I will answer you and tell you great and unsearchable things you do not know.”—he promises to be right there for you whenever you need him.
• Zephaniah 3:17 “The Lord your God is with you, he is mighty to save. He will take great delight in you, he will quiet you with his love, he will rejoice over you with singing.”

Also, here is a video beautifully affirming what I just explained:

Isaiah 41:13 (MSG)

“That's right. Because I, your God,
have a firm grip on you and I'm not letting go.
I'm telling you, 'Don't panic.
I'm right here to help you.'”

Ready or not..Here he Comes!

Ephesians 6:12

“For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms.”

Colossians 1:16

“For by him all things were created: things in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or powers or rulesr or authorities; all things were created by him and for him.”

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Whew! What a day. Guys if I could some up today in one sentence I would say this:

“Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is near.”

Guys all day long I had phone calls about spiritual issues.

Text messages asking for prayer, conversations about healing and destruction. God is working hardcore within us, which also means satan is trying even harder to win us back. John 10:10 says the theif comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full. God wants us to have a full and meaningful life making disciples just as bad as Satan wants us to suffer and be miserable for eternity. Revelations tells us that God has won the war, but each day its up to us to help fight the battle. Ephesians chapter 6 says,

“Finally, be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power. Put on the full armor of God so that you can take your stand against the devil’s schemes. For our struggle is not against the flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world, and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms. Therefore put on the full armor of God, so that when the day of evil comes, you may be able to stand your ground, and after you have done everything, to stand. Stand firm then, with the belt of truth buckled around your waist with the breast plate of righteousness in place, and with your feet fitted with the readiness that comes from the gospel of peace. In addition to all this, take up the shield of fiath, whih which you can extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil oen. Take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of god. And pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests. With this in mind, be alert and always keep on praying for all the saints.”

What do we need to fight against the devil who tries to steal our joy?

• · Truth. Truth is found only in God and in his word. Nothing else on earth is completely 100% true and unchanging. John 14:6- Jesus said, “I am the way, and the truth, and the life, no one gets to the father except through me.”
• · Righteousness. As hard as it is to believe, we will never have righteousness on our own. It’s impossible. But with God’s help we can do all things (Philippians 4:13) See also: Matthew 6:33, Psalm 3:8
• · Readiness that comes from the gospel of peace. Pslam 34:14 “Turn from evil and do good; seek peace and pursue it.” Philippians 4:6-7
• · Faith. Hebrews 11:1, Galatians 3:26, Ephesians 2:8-9
• · Salvation. John 3:16, Romans 3:23, Romans 6:23, Romans 5:8,
• · Prayer. Philippians 4:6, 1 Thessalonians 5: 17 “Pray Continuously”

I don’t know what you believe or where you are in your walk with Christ, or if you even have a walk with Christ. But one thing I do know is this. Jesus is coming back and he’s coming back soon. We are running out of time to run around acting like the lost when we’re saved. There is no more time to act like you don’t know better. There are people all around us who are going to hell when the rapture comes and we are doing nothing about it. It’s time to step up. Quit turning to sex instead of God. Quit turning to alcohol instead of confronting your troubles. The devil is trying his hardest to keep you miserable and keep you “enjoying” the life that you were not made to live. Stand up and fight sister! Ephesians 2:10 says we are ALL God’s masterpiece’s and he has specific good works he called each and every one of us to be doing. What are you doing with your life in the end of times? Will you look back and regret not reaching out to that girl at lunch? Will you look back and regret spending more time studying history than studying the bible?

Just something to think about…

Matthew 4:17

“Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is near.”

Specific Prayer for Your Specific Man!

Do you ever pray for your future husband? If you answered yes, is that "Yes, I pray a very generic prayer: dear God please help prepare my future husband today, amen."

Have you ever thought about specifically praying for him, with details requests?

God has been so good to me lately, he has shown me the value of praying specific prayers for my future husband. At first I started praying for his struggles with temptation, since we all know this is a huge thing for men. Then I started asking God to develop godly characteristics in him; the kind of characteristics that will make him a strong leader who will allow me to willingly follow him.

This past week God took it a step further. He led me to make a list of the very specific godly qualities I wanted in a husband such as:

• Someone who puts the needs of others before his own. Philippians 2:3-4 "Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit. Rather, in humility value others above yourselves, not looking to your own interests but each of you to the interests of the others."
• Someone who invests his time wisely. Ephesians 5:15-17 "Be very careful, then, how you live—not as unwise but as wise, making the most of every opportunity, because the days are evil. Therefore do not be foolish, but understand what the Lord’s will is."

• Someone who invests his money wisely. Proverbs 3:9 "Honor the Lord with your wealth, with the firstfruits of all your crops."

This is only 3 examples, I had 20 total (however there is no magical number.) Most of mine were based off of huge lessons God has taught me about life, and most of these lessons had scripture to go with them, which is the most important part.

I am now committing to daily pray through each of the specific qualities for my future husband. I am no longer asking God for just a godly man. I am now asking him for a godly man with specific godly characteristics that line up with my values.

At the end of my prayers however, I am careful to say "but God, let your will be done and not mine." My saying this I am recognizing that God has the ultimate authority in my life and he has the ultimate man already picked out for me.

Try making your own list. What qualities are important to you? What life lessons have shaped you and taught you your system of values? What characteristics does your family have that are necessary to have in a husband? What scriptures do you base your life around?

Then commit to pray for these in a man daily. God will bless you for asking (Matthew 7:7) AND think how cool it will be to tell your husband one day all that you have been praying about! I am even keeping a journal so I can prove it. :)

God bless you girls today!

Feel free to comment/question.