God Can Shut And Open Doors

God Can Shut And Open Doors "You will keep in perfect peace him whose mind is steadfast, because he trusts in you." Romans 26:3 What do you do when God allows doors to shut in your life. With the economic problems over the past 6 years, since the housing bubble burst, I am dealing daily with more and more people who have lost their job, and those who are dealing with great financial hardships. I receive messages for prayer every day from people who need employment, people who need financial needs met. However, what I am dealing with in increasing numbers are people who have lost their job after 5, 10, 20, even 30 years of employment. Today, I have a very practical word for you, especially those who are out of work, those who are struggling financially, those who are business owners and have either had to shut down or are just barely hanging on. First of all, never forget that the Lord loves you and He knows your pain and He knows your needs. He is with you each step of the way, even though you may feel like He has abandoned you in your darkest hour. Jesus promised to never leave you nor forsake you. He will see you through these difficult days. Life is made up of seasons. The older you get, the easier it is to look back on your life and see those clearly defined seasons. You can see them begin and end. Nothing happens in our life that God doesn't allow to happen. That is often hard to swallow, especially when we are facing hard times. It is interesting that very few people question why God allows the good things to happen to us along our journey through life, but will always question God when we are faced with difficult circumstances. However, let me give you some counsel today that may help you. We get comfortable with our life. We get comfortable with our job. We get comfortable in making the money we need to live on. We get comfortable with how our life operates. We get used to the way we live. When something changes, we lose that comfort level. Most people don't like change. So when we lose our job, or when we can't pay our bills, or when our business is failing, it turns our life upside down. People instinctively seek the Lord in prayer for their job, for their finances, for their business. That is natural. They pray for God to basically put things back the way they were. I want you to know today that often things happen in our life because God is allowing one season to end and a new season to begin. Never forget, He loves you and cares about you. He loves to bless His children, and only wants the best for you. He often is allowing one season to end and a new season to begin so He can bless you more than you have ever known. Sadly, most people would rather keep things the way they are since that is what they are comfortable with, when God is trying to change things so He can bless you in a greater way! When we lose our job, when we are having financial difficulties, when we have a failing business, most people need outside counsel. It is their life and because they are so invested in things the way they are, they can't see anything else. Often it takes an outside pair of eyes from someone who knows the Lord to give you wise counsel and to help you see other paths that you may not be even thinking about. We are so focused on how we want things done and how we want God to move, we often don't even see or consider other paths. Having wise counsel from the outside can often help us see that there are options we never even considered, ways to get things done we simply haven't thought of. In many cases, it is as simple as God closing the door on a season in your life in order to move you into a new and better season. He may allow you to lose your job so He can give you a better job. He may allow you to suffer financial hardships to help you reorganize the financial side of your life so that you can move forward and as He blesses you, make you a better and wiser steward of what He entrusts into your care. So my word for you is to fear not, and while change is never comfortable, embrace it. Be excited by it. Life is exciting. Know that as you seek first the Kingdom of God and His righteousness, He will insure that your day to day needs are met. Robert W. Brock My Daily Devotional Volume Seven November 15

God Is In Control

God Is In Control “Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your heart and your minds in Christ Jesus.” Philippians 4:6-7 Just this morning I turned on the television and saw the gloom and doom that is facing our nation. There is very little we can find comfort in, as our world seems to be upside down and seems doomed to be crashing before our very eyes. The changing economy appears to be spiraling downward with no end in sight. Unemployment is rising each day, and many are left without any income to take care of their families. There is an increased number of home foreclosures, leaving people without shelter. There are wars, and threats of war all around the globe. Terrorism is abounding, as hatred against others and their beliefs is taking the life of many. Heinous crimes of murder, robbery, rape and abuse of others fills our newscasts.. The ups and downs of the stock market, is causing financial distress and making the future insecure for many who have worked hard and are seeing their future as bleak. Political elections and promises made by our governing officials, indicate that our nation and our government is turning against God in all areas of our life. What are we Christians to do? Do we join in the pity party and begin to worry about our future? As believers, we have the awesome privilege to have a personal relationship with the One true living God. He is the Creator of all things and knows all things. He sees beyond the outward appearance into the heart of man. Nothing takes Him by surprise. His Word tells us to: Stop worrying, be content in all things. Pray about everything. Share our specific requests with Him. Whenever my mind starts to wander into worry, I stop and bow my head asking God for help. Robert W. Brock My Daily Devotional Volume Seven November 14

Make God A Habit

Make God A Habit "He is like a tree planted by streams of water, which yields its fruit in season and whose leaf does not wither. Whatever he does prospers." Psalm 1:3 Many of the business experts say that if you do something for thirty continuous days, it will become a habit. I know that for the past 15 years I have religiously started my day off with reading God's word and writing my daily devotionals. I can't imagine starting my day any other way now, as it has become a habit, a discipline. There have been days where I have said to myself; I'll just roll over and sleep for another hour or so, however, that inner voice reminds me it is time to get up, and spend time with God. I can relate to the scripture above, as I can see the comparison of being like the tree planted by the streams of water. My roots started out shallow, but each day they have grown deeper. I've weathered the storms, and I've learned to trust in God instead of myself. I grew up in the South and during the winter homeowners with lots of pine trees on their property dread a heavy snow or ice storm. These tall, thin trees are top heavy and have shallow root systems. When snow and ice build up on the upper branches, they can fall over easily. Oak trees on the other hand, have root systems that anchor them firmly against weather, weight, and wind. The author of the scripture above used a firmly established tree to represent a person who "meditates day and night" on God's Word. Because that tree has sunk its roots deeply to gain nourishment from the river, it "yields its fruit in season." When we sink our spiritual roots deep into God's Word, we will be blessed because our life is based on truth, which affects not only our actions, but our reactions to whatever life brings. Meditating "day and night" is a discipline, a habit. Start your day with God, let it become a habit. Robert W. Brock My Daily Devotional Volume Seven November 13

Plant Your Seed

Plant Your Seed "He who goes out weeping, carrying seed to sow, will return with songs of joy, carrying sheaves with him." Psalm 126:6 One of my favorite hobbies is working in my garden during the summer, and I spend much of my time outside. My love of nature and watching things grow, has given me much pleasure over the years. Having grown up on a farm, I enjoy sowing a seed and then watching it grow. Most Christians, I am sure, have watched seeds that they have sown, such as helping someone in need, and then possibly teaching them about Jesus, and finally leading them to Christ. God expects each of us to sow these kinds of seeds every day. But, what do we do when God asks us to sow those big seeds; ones that gets us out of our comfort zones? When I think about these times, I think about the story of Abraham, when God asked him to take his son Isaac up on the mountain, to be sacrificed. This was a really big request, and one that would test the faith of anyone. This kind of request would get almost anyone out of their comfort zone, but I believe that God asks many people to step outside their comfort zones, and plant those big seeds. This past week, I heard the testimony of Joni Erickson, the champion diver that is now paralyzed, talking about what God has done in her life, and the ministry that God has given her, which has resulted in many souls being won for Christ. These kind of stories happen only when we step out of our comfort zones, and obey the call of God. Perhaps you are being called today by God to plant a seed, that is outside your comfort zone, and are holding back because of fear of the unknown. You can rest assured that if God is asking you to sow this seed, you will be rewarded many times over, and your harvest will be overflowing when you obey. Don't hesitate, answer God's call, and you will return with songs of joy, carrying sheaves. Robert W. Brock My Daily Devotional Volume Seven November 12

God Is With You

God Is With You "All the days ordained for me were written in your book before one of them came to be." Psalm 139:16 Several months ago I got an e-mail from a friend, telling me that she had just lost her 34 year old son, and had set by his bedside for 6 weeks, before he went to be with God. Just 4 years earlier she had lost her husband of 40 years. It is difficult to deal with these kind of losses, but so many people that I deal with in my ministry, go through these kinds of difficulties every day. Many times these times can cause anyone to ask the question, "why are these things happening to me"? I know in my own experience, it was difficult for me to understand why God allowed my father to be killed in World War II, when I was only 2 years old. No one knows what God's plan is for our lives, but He tells us in the scripture above, that He knew us while we were still in our mother's womb, and knew all the days ordained for us before any of them came to be. We can never understand why tragedy's such as these happen, that can affect our lives so dramatically, but we must believe that this was all in God's great plan for us. We must have enough courage and faith to say "God, I don't understand it, but I trust you." We need to put our complete trust in God and give our hurts and pains over to Him. He tells us, "You will keep in perfect peace him whose mind is steadfast because he trusts in you." Isaiah 26:3. I encourage each of you to continue to trust in God during your difficult times as He is always with you. "Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil, for you are with me; your rod and your staff they comfort me." If you are dealing with a difficult situation in your life today, I want you to know that God is with you, He knows what you are going through, as this is all part of His plan for your life, but He will give you victory. Robert W. Brock My Daily Devotional Volume Seven November 11

God Hears Our Prayers

God Hears Our Prayers "And I will do whatever you ask in my name, so that the Son may bring glory to the Father." John 14:13 If you are like most people there are times when it feels like you just cannot go another day, as the stresses of daily living are getting you down. There are troubles that are threatening your peace and joy in life, and you are waiting on God to answer your prayers. The waiting seems to go on forever, and it seems like God is not listening and just refuses to answer your prayers. God wants His best for you and He is not ignoring you, as He has heard your prayers, and knows what you need. We want our prayers answered in our time frames and know what we want the answer to be. Our time frame is not always God's time frame, and His answer is not always what we want to hear. It is important to know how to wait on God for your answers to prayer. The bible tells us to believe that we have what we ask when we pray, and we shall have it. Then we are to believe without doubting. We are to know in our heart that God will do what He says. Then we wait knowing that He will carry out and keep His promises to us. The minute we start trying to figure out how or when He will do it we have just stepped into doubt, and thus we have just delayed our answer. He wants us to let our petitions be made known to Him, but He does not want us to worry about them, or when they will be taken care of. He wants us to trust Him to do as He says, and get our minds off our selves and turn it to the needs and petitions of others. When we do this we are saying Father, I have brought you my needs and I trust you to handle it for me. While you wait for God to answer your own prayers, spend your time thinking about the needs of others. You are expecting God to bless you by answering your prayers, so think about who you can bless today as you wait on God for your own blessings. Robert W. Brock My Daily Devotional Volume Seven November 10

Teach Your Children

Teach Your Children "Jesus said, Let the little children come to me, and do not hinder them, for the kingdom of heaven belongs to such as these" Matthew 19:14 When we study our Bibles we see where the disciples wanted to stop the children from getting to Jesus because they thought that they would distract Him from teaching to the adults. In our world today we too, as parents, can keep our children from entering God's presence by how we live our lives. How? Some parents may keep them so busy and on a schedule that there is no time for stories about the Bible. Sports, hobbies, and the pursuit of our own personal pleasures, can keep parents from spending the time with our children, telling them about God, taking them to church, getting them involved in Sunday School, where they will be taught about the Bible and what God wants them to hear. We can become so busy that we don't pray in front of them, or at the family meals. We can become so busy that we don't have a devotion time together or pray together. Jesus shows us in the scripture above just how important children are to Him, He took the time for them that was needed. Our children need their parents to teach them how important it is to have God in their lives. Teaching them about God is the most important things that we as parents can give them. He said, "(Proverbs 22:6 NKJV) Train up a child in the way he should go, and when he is old he will not depart from it". This is not the responsibility of a minister or a Sunday school teacher, it is our responsibility as parents to bring our children close to God. It is by our walk and our actions each and every day of our life to show them that we make God first in all that we do, and that we trust Him for everything that we do. Our children need to see God in our daily lives, and through this we can bring God into our homes and let Him touch them. Robert W. Brock My Daily Devotional Volume Seven November 9