Blog In Audio:
Greetings,
As leaders we must lead God’s people in difficult times. We do this by setting an example in faith, hope, and love in all things. This is the witness to our true identity, testimony, and purpose in Christ in all things and at all times. Not all things are good, but God is good in all things. Many people believe that God is in control, but I believe that God is in charge. He can intervene because He owns all things, but in many things, we are in control. He gave us dominion over the works of His hands.
Psalms 8:4 What is man that You are mindful of him, and the son of man that You visit him? 5 For You have made him a little lower than the angels, and You have crowned him with glory and honor. 6 You have made him to have dominion over the works of Your hands; You have put all things under his feet…
Because of this, we often experience the consequence of our own actions or even the actions of others in life. My garden produces plants that benefit my life as well as weeds that require my cultivation. In the same way, the world is filled with things that are both good and bad. I don’t believe that this is because God’s will is both good and bad. I believe that God’s will is always good, but bad things happen that prove how good God really is. Bad things not only prove how good God is, they also prove how good His people can become in the midst of bad things and bad situations.
Romans 8:28 And we know that all things work together for good to those who love God, to those who are the called according to His purpose. 29 For whom He foreknew, He also predestined to be conformed to the image of His Son, that He might be the firstborn among many brethren. 30 Moreover whom He predestined, these He also called; whom He called, these He also justified; and whom He justified, these He also glorified.
In these words, Paul reveals to us that all things work together for good. He was not saying that all things are good. He was saying that God is always good in the midst of all things and He is intimately and practically involved in our lives. He wants to partner with us in all things and He invites us to partner with Him to see our true purpose fulfilled in all things. God is with us and He calls us to be with Him in all things. The true testimony of life is for us to become a testimony of the image of Jesus in the midst of our world in all things. This is true on good days and bad days. It is true in the midst of beneficial things and weeds that seek to require our attention and distract us from the real things growing in the garden of life. We must know that there are both good things and bad thing happening in our world, but the bad things are not the purpose of our day. God who is good in all things is the purpose of every day! Our predestination is found in Christ and not in ourselves. That predestination is to bring the love and life of God into our world in all situations. We were born in our world for such a time as this for the predestined glory of God in our day.
God takes what the enemy intended for evil in our lives and He turns it for good. I don’t believe that He is in control of every detail; I believe that He is in charge of every detail. He is not a distant God who does not want a relationship with human beings. He has not just simply sovereignly determined the future. He has determined the future with an intimate relationship with a wonderful family. This is a process of grace whereby the internal realities of God’s kingdom manifest in external ways in our lives. So, we face pressure, but we persevere. God is our God, we are His people, and we live together in all things. This is the testimony of righteousness, peace, and joy in the Holy Spirit from within our hearts.
God wants us to know in our hearts that church is not a place we go, it is something we are. We don’t just go there for training or for a Sunday service. We are the church! This is a challenging time, but a time for us to manifest as the true church of Christ. Now that our corporate gatherings are being hindered, we must rise to the challenge and intentionally connect through creative measures of our hearts. We are each part of the Provers 31 woman, the co-reigning partner of Jesus as the body of Christ. We know who our Husband is. We are dealing in the real-estate of the earth on behalf of our family name. We carry the family name; the family character, nature, way, power, and authority. We are the church. We are each sons and daughters. We are overcomers. We are facing pressure and we are finding grace to cheerfully endure. We are cheerfully enduring and the testimony of Christ within us is transforming our hearts and our minds. The power of God in us is stronger than the pressure that is against us and what is manifesting is the character of Christ from within for such a time as this.
Food For Thought,
Ted J. Hanson
Help us fulfill our Mission!
Donations can be made at the link on the home site of:
Checks can be made payable to House of Bread Ministry and sent to:
House of Bread Ministry, 3210 Meridian St., Bellingham, WA 98225
