Are You Standing On Business For God?
Are you standing on business for God?
But no forreal, are you standing on business for God? Are you living on fire for Him, by your obedience and faithfulness? In these dark times, living on fire for God is no easy feat. For many Christians are living lukewarm for the Lord and then even more people are choosing to not believe in Jesus Christ as their Lord and Savior, which in turn is living a life that is cold. It is neither good to be lukewarm or cold, but even worse for a Christian who believes in Jesus Christ to know better and choose to live a life that is not fully honoring the Lord; these believers have one foot in and one foot out and here is what God says about them: “But since you are like lukewarm water, neither hot nor cold, I will spit you out of my mouth!” (Revelation 3:16 NLT)
I am not here to spread judgment or to make you feel less than if you are a lukewarm Christian, because I have been there. What I am doing is attempting to encourage you to get on fire for God, in order that you can fully live the life that God has for you and carry out the call on your life; “For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the Lord, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future. 12 Then you will call on me and come and pray to me, and I will listen to you. 13 You will seek me and find me when you seek me with all your heart” (Jeremiah 29:11-13 NIV).
Let us not diminish the difficulty of being on fire for God, for it honestly does take true sacrifice, and man oh man does it hurt. It requires you to die to yourself, your flesh. Which in essence, is your desires and ways of thinking. Is it okay to have desires and goals? Yes! However, if they go against the very will that God has on your life then they need to be sacrificed and given onto Him. For it is better to be in the will of God, than out in these streets living aimlessly with no direction or protection (Ephesians 5:17; Proverbs 16:3; Romans 8:28). Trust me, I messed around and found out! I’m far from perfect, but I have tried to do life my way and all that resulted in this was coming to the end of myself each and every time. I thank God for His love, grace, and faithfulness because He always drew me back to Him. However, it was required of me to use my free will to choose to draw near to Him! For God will not force His way into our hearts. He desires for us to know Him and experience His true love. However, God gives us direct instructions to encounter Him which is only through a relationship with God, Jesus Christ (His Son), and the Holy Spirit (Matthew 3:16-17); “Draw near to God and He will draw near to you. Cleanse your hands, you sinners; and purify your hearts, you double-minded” (James 4:8 NKJV). Most importantly, He wants you to draw near to Him, for He loves you, and wants to utilize you to bring glory and honor to His Kingdom on earth, as it is in Heaven, while you are on earth. For we each have a unique purpose and are called by God with the same goal in sight; how many souls can we bring to the Lord to become saved before our time on earth is up? How many opportunities will we take to spread the gospel? To encourage others to seek the Kingdom of Heaven? To heal the sick, the widowed, the needy? Will you use the gifts that God has imparted you with to carry out the call He has on your life as His vessel? If you have no idea of what those gifts are and what your purpose on this earth is (the call on your life), then it is time to seek God’s face day and night! Let us not make this overly spiritual; it's pretty simple really…He is desiring a relationship with you. The same time that you give to your family, friends, career, school, etc. God desires. For God says, “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your might” (Deuteronomy 6:5). God wants and desires first place in your life, will you give it to Him?
Here are three practical tips that you can follow out today to draw near to God so that He can draw near to you:
1: Pray to God, which means to talk with Him. Have a conversation with Him, whether you are at home, in the shower, in your car, on a walk, at the gym, etc. Start talking to Him about your day, desires, heart, things that bring you pain and joy. Similarly to how we engage in conversation with our family and friends.
Scriptures on prayer:
Matthew 6:9-13
9 “This, then, is how you should pray:
“‘Our Father in heaven,
hallowed be your name,
10
your kingdom come,
your will be done,
on earth as it is in heaven.
11
Give us today our daily bread.
12
And forgive us our debts,
as we also have forgiven our debtors.
13
And lead us not into temptation,
but deliver us from the evil one.
Philippians 4:6,7
6 Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. 7 And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.
1 John 5:14 NIV
This is the confidence we have in approaching God: that if we ask anything according to his will, he hears us.
Matthew 6:6-8
6 But when you pray, go into your room, close the door and pray to your Father, who is unseen. Then your Father, who sees what is done in secret, will reward you. 7 And when you pray, do not keep on babbling like pagans, for they think they will be heard because of their many words. 8 Do not be like them, for your Father knows what you need before you ask him.
James 5:13-18 NIV
13 Is anyone among you in trouble? Let them pray. Is anyone happy? Let them sing songs of praise. 14 Is anyone among you sick? Let them call the elders of the church to pray over them and anoint them with oil in the name of the Lord. 15 And the prayer offered in faith will make the sick person well; the Lord will raise them up. If they have sinned, they will be forgiven. 16 Therefore confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you may be healed. The prayer of a righteous person is powerful and effective.
17 Elijah was a human being, even as we are. He prayed earnestly that it would not rain, and it did not rain on the land for three and a half years. 18 Again he prayed, and the heavens gave rain, and the earth produced its crops.
Matthew 18:19,20 NIV
19 “Again, truly I tell you that if two of you on earth agree about anything they ask for, it will be done for them by my Father in heaven. 20 For where two or three gather in my name, there am I with them.”
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2: Read God’s word through the Holy Bible day and night. Do not over complicate this. Start with 5 or 10 minutes throughout your day for it is important for you to be equipped with the Word so that you can resist the deception and temptation of your flesh and the enemy, Satan.
Scripture on reading the Holy Bible:
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3: Fast. If you have never fasted, here is a guide on fasting from my church in the DMV called Union Church: https://theunionchurch.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/04/Fasting-Guide.pdf
To fast is to consecrate yourself, sacrificing your fleshly desires, and drawing closer to God. I have done fasts in which I had no food and just water, or one meal for a period of time…I’ve completed the Daniel's fast (Daniel 10), and I have done fasts from social media, sweets, and shopping. Do not overcomplicate this; in essence what are you willing to give up that is near and dear to your heart for a period of time to draw closer to God? Remember it should be a daily prayer for you to have God empty you of yourself and fill you up with all of Him; to die to yourself and flesh.
Scriptures on fasting:
“21 There, by the Ahava Canal, I proclaimed a fast, so that we might humble ourselves before our God and ask him for a safe journey for us and our children, with all our possessions. 22 I was ashamed to ask the king for soldiers and horsemen to protect us from enemies on the road, because we had told the king, “The gracious hand of our God is on everyone who looks to him, but his great anger is against all who forsake him.” 23 So we fasted and petitioned our God about this, and he answered our prayer.” ~ Ezra 8:21-23 NIV
“At that time I, Daniel, mourned for three weeks. 3 I ate no choice food; no meat or wine touched my lips; and I used no lotions at all until the three weeks were over.” ~ Daniel 10:2-3 NIV
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So, are you willing to stand on business for God and His Kingdom? Are you willing to sacrifice yourself, which is your way of thinking and desires for the Lord? Are you willing to pray the prayer that asks God to empty you of yourself and to fill you up instead with all of Him? God is calling His children more than ever to live a righteous and holy life, that is honoring to Him. There is no more time for being cold and lukewarm, He is calling us to be on fire for Him. To be both obedient and faithful. Please do not let another day go by, for your time on earth is numbered…you do not know how long you have, so use the time today, right now, to be on fire for Him! Go out and be a blessing onto others and God will use you! It is both an honor and blessing to be chosen by God and used by Him to spread His love through His gospel! I encourage you and pray for you that God does a shifting in your heart, that He turns your heart to flesh from stone, and draws you closer, but that most importantly that you will choose to use your free will to draw near to Him, Amen!
Love,
Brya
Worship Songs to Listen to:
He’s Gonna Make a Way by Maverick City Music
A Call to Love and Obedience
“And now, Israel, what does the Lord your God require of you? He requires only that you fear the Lord your God, and live in a way that pleases him, and love him and serve him with all your heart and soul.” ~ Deuteronomy 10:12 NLT
“And let the peace that comes from Christ rule in your hearts. For as members of one body you are called to live in peace. And always be thankful.” ~Colossians 3:15 ~ NLT
“Therefore the Lord, the God of Israel, declares: “I promised that your house and the house of your father should go in and out before me forever,” but now the Lord declares: “Far be it from me, for those who honor me I will honor, and those who despise me shall be lightly esteemed.” ~1 Samuel 2:30
“You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your might.” ~Deuteronomy 6:5
“Do you not know that you are God’s temple and that God’s Spirit dwells in you?” ~1 Corinthians 3:16
“Therefore, if anyone cleanses himself from what is dishonorable, he will be a vessel for honorable use, set apart as holy, useful to the master of the house, ready for every good work.” ~2 Timothy 2:21
“In all things I have shown you that by working hard in this way we must help the weak and remember the words of the Lord Jesus, how he himself said, “It is more blessed to give than to receive.” ~Acts 20:35
“And whatever you do, in word or deed, do everything in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him.” ~Colossians 3:17
