Sunday, December 3, 2023

 
 
 
 
Don't you love to get into God's Word and experience the revelation of what He is saying for your life and what He is doing among us in the world today! Through this blog, we will explore the heart of God and the flow of His Spirit. At times we will discuss those spiritual issues that many of us want to know more about. Get ready to go deeper into the Word of God.

DEEPER IN THE WORD -- December                   

DEEPER IN THE WORD -- December     

 



 


  Peace!  Can You

   Really Have It?

  
Jeanne Alcott
 

     Today in our society, there’s much discussion about peace and how it’s missing many times.  There seems to be much turmoil and confrontation.  It’s not just between nations but also between individuals.

     The more stressful type of place where a person is the more blowups and confrontations increase.  There are tensions in the home, the workplace, and even among Christians.  So God wants to show you the peace you have and the power of it.  When you feel stressed or put out or you’re insulted or you’re simply tired of what’s going on around you, you can pull out your peace and use it.

     You can replace frustration or anger or agitation with something that can work for you in a powerful way.  Instead of giving into what you feel or think at the moment, when someone is doing something to disturb you, here’s what you can do.  You can have peace when there is conflict!

     Sometimes when there is a standoff between two people, if one of them refuses to enter into the conflict and desires peace, they may be considered the weaker of the two.  But they are actually the stronger.  It takes a strong person to seek and pursue peace in a confrontation.  With there being so much opportunity around us to enter into a war of words, it takes power within us to be able to abstain from that.

     Everyone wants to be heard.  We want to make our thoughts and desires known.  So at times it may be tempting to talk or act in a way that can result in a blowup.  But as a believer, because we have the peace of Christ given to us, we have the power to do just that.  Stop talking and acting in a way that can result in the blowup.


The Word of God instead of War of Words.

     Instead of having a war of words, we have the Word of God.  That’s on what we can rely to give us the power to handle confrontation and conflict in the right way.  See, when we decide that we’re going to rely on the peace within us, then here’s what happens.  We get access to God’s wisdom of how to handle every situation.  And that’s what we will miss if we don’t rely on peace.  We won’t have wisdom and the smarts to cope with and overcome what is happening that is so disagreeable.  It’s really to our benefit to operate in the peace that we have from Christ.


Operating in peace benefits you.

     This makes me think of what a man did who was trying to deal with something that could have been very confrontational.  Because he stayed in peace, he came up with a powerful idea to defuse the problem.  He’s an older man who had purchased a home that was just down the street from a junior high school.  He was so proud of the home.  It had been well-kept and was just the right size for him at this time in life.

     But he was warned by the neighbors that the kids going to the junior high would drive him crazy.  Sure enough as soon as the school year began, that afternoon three young boys were walking home from school and as they did, they made every kind of noise they possibly could.  One of the worst things they did was go by each house that had a trashcan out in front and they would beat on it.  Now these are the noisy kind of trash cans, not some of the plastic ones you see today.  So you can imagine how much noise they made.  They did this all the way down the street.


It was time for confrontation.

     This man has this nice home he has purchased; he wants peace and quiet.  You may know how it is to pay for a place, then have someone ruin it.  Not to mention, these kids are way out of line.  So how would he handle this confrontation?

     Because he allowed peace to come up within him, he was given the wisdom of God on what to do.  The next day, as the kids started their usual performance of noisy behavior, the man went out to greet them.  Here’s what he said, “You kids are so much fun.  You express your excitement, and I like seeing that.  In fact, to make sure that you keep this up, I want to give each of you one dollar for every day that you come by and make this noise down the street.”

     Well, of course the kids thought this was great.  So they just grinned at each other and said they would do it.  Over the next few days they were faithful to make their noise and beat the trash cans and each day they earned a dollar.  Then one day, the man went out to talk to the kids again.  This time he appeared to be somewhat sad.  He explained to them that the recession had put a big dent in his income and so from now on instead of one dollar he could just pay them fifty cents to beat on the trash cans.  Well, they were not happy about that, but they decided to agree to it.

     So over the next few days they continued the obnoxious noise making.  Then after a few days, the man had to talk to them again.  This time he said, “I’m sorry, but I haven’t received my Social Security check yet.  So I’m not going to be able to give you more than twenty-five cents.  Will that be okay?”

     When he said that, the main kid who was heading up the group said, “A lousy quarter?  If you think we’re going to waste our time beating these cans around for a quarter, you’re nuts.  No way, Mister.  We quit!”  From that day on, the man had peace on his street.


We will be issued the solutions we need.

     God will show us what to do when there’s a conflict if we will allow ourselves to operate in the powerful peace He has given us.  It’s amazing the ideas and wisdom that can come to us.  Situations can be resolved.  After all, isn’t that what we’re after?  We want things resolved.

     Instead of pushing for our selfish desires or allowing pride to get in the way, we say to God that we want His will done and things to be resolved.  Once we pray that to Him, then we will be issued the solutions that we need.  God will come through because we have allowed His peace to guide us.  When we think it’s impossible to have it, God will show us how He can give us the resolution and peace we desire.  We can have it in the midst of the worst kind of conflict.


Conflict when Jesus was born.

     Just think of the conflict that existed when Jesus was born.  We know the famous scripture in Luke chapter 2 that describes how when Jesus was in the manger, an army of the troops of heaven appeared to some shepherds.  You know what those troops were saying?  They were praising God and saying, Glory to God in the highest [heaven], and on earth peace among men with whom He is well pleased [men of goodwill, of His favor].  (Ref. Luke 2:14.)  Do you know what was going on in the land at that time when those troops were talking about peace?

     The territory was under Roman dominion.

     There was conflict all around.
         Suppression.
         Oppression.

     Did the shepherds wonder how in the world those angels could be talking about peace at such a time?  The Jews had desired freedom and peace for years.  They had been taxed a great deal by the Roman government in order to finance the lifestyle of the Romans that was so lavish.

     There they were just trying to feed their families and pay for their homes.  That wasn’t their definition of peace.  If God wanted to give them peace, why didn’t He just come down and defeat and destroy the Romans?  This is where we have to understand what kind of power we have with peace.

     Jesus did not come to destroy people but to lift them up.

     He didn’t come to make people captive but to set them free.

     He takes those who are blind to what truth is and opens their eyes.

     He delivers those who are oppressed.

     Raises up the downtrodden.

     Heals those who are bruised and crushed and broken down by calamity.  (Ref. Luke 4:18.)  That’s why at His birth heaven announced peace among those who have His favor.  Who has His favor?  Those who accept Him as their Savior.  We have the favor of God when we believe on Jesus as the Son of God and receive forgiveness.

     We are the ones to whom He has given the power of His peace even.  Yes, we have that power even in the midst of the conflict those people were experiencing back then and what we experience now in the world and in our private homes and workplaces.  When Jesus came, peace was announced as a gift from God to those who would believe.


How do we have peace?  From where does it come?

     When we entered into salvation, Jesus told us that He gave us His peace.   (Ref. John 14:27.)  How could He give us this?  Because He paid the price for it.  Always remember that.  When you feel yourself getting disturbed or fearful or aggravated, the very peace that Christ purchased for you is available.  Then when you use it, you will be powerful.

     But as soon as peace goes, so does your power.  You no more have the ability and stability that you need to make it through the conflict.  However, when you reach out with your spirit and you tell God that you want to operate in His peace, that’s when power takes over.  Your mind expands to be able to think the thoughts of God—how He would resolve what’s happening.  You see a way when there didn’t seem to be a way.
 

Peace put you in a position of power.

     That peace puts you in a position of power.  You now can take control of the spirit forces that are trying to cause problems and contention and strife.  You are in control and can see God’s will done.  See, when spiritual peace is allowed to take over, it has authority over the conflict that Satan is trying to create.  And that’s why we should use the peace that we’ve been given.

     A woman wrote about how she saw this happened of all places at Union Station in Washington DC.  Union Station is a major transportation hub and millions of people go through it each year.  On the day that this woman, Deborah, was there, it was very busy and she noticed how noisy it was.

     The public address announcer was calling out arrivals and departures.  Everywhere you heard cell phones and pagers and you name it going off.  Horns were honking outside, babies crying, and she heard a security guard yell at a man who was about to enter a forbidden area.

     On top of that, three women were having a conflict and in order to hear each other above the noise, they decided to stand up on a bench so they could keep arguing.  Then Deborah noticed a man in front of her who was pacing in a circle because he was so nervous.  Now, that is not an atmosphere of peace.

     Perhaps you work or live in an atmosphere that is not peaceful.  So what can you do?  When everything seems ripe for there to be a blowup or meltdown, where do you go?  You go to the peace that’s within you.  That’s where the power is.

     So, all of a sudden, in the midst of so much going on, Deborah heard someone begin to sing, “What a Friend We Have in Jesus.”  Then came the verse,

     “O what PEACE we often forfeit,

     O what needless pain we bear,

     All because we do not carry

     Everything to God in prayer.”

     As those words were heard among the crowd, here’s what happened.  The women, who were arguing, stopped and took their seats.  Those who had been walking around tense and hurried, began to relax.  Everyone wanted to hear the singing.

     As it continued, people began to sing with the person.  The women who had been in a confrontation, we’re singing now.  The man who had been pacing in a nervous way in front of Deborah stopped.  Then he said, “Nice, huh?  I don’t even believe in Jesus, but that’s nice.”

     You see, when we evoke the peace of Jesus, we can overcome the principalities and powers that are working to cause conflict and fear.  So during the day, remind yourself that you have powerful peace and therefore you have authority to use it.  You are in a position of power.  Then you can see the great results God will give you.
 

See peace operate for you.

        What a message for you at this hour!  I believe that’s why God is speaking to your spirit right now.  He wants you to know that no matter what has happened, He is there for you and will help you with His blessing and direction.

     So share with us what you’re facing.  God has called us to be here to pray with you and intercede, then to give you His Word for your life.  So make sure you contact us right away by clicking here.  We can see God do something powerful.  Jeanne and John

 

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CURRENT TEACHING

 


You've Got This!
five-part message
by
Jeanne Alcott
Airing
Dec 4-8

 
 

Think about when you’re trying to accomplish something or get to a better place in some way, what are some of the most encouraging words you can hear at that time?  How about this.  You’ve got this!  That’s what God is speaking deep into your heart.  He’s telling you how much power and grace that He has put within you to handle what confronts you.  Good challenges and bad challenges.  You have so much in you that you’ve got this.  All of His power, goodness, and blessing are behind you to have great victories.
I.    Believe You Can Achieve.
II.   Strike the First Blow.
III.  Say Yes and Watch. 
IV.  Stay in the Fight. 
V.   Wait for the Moment.    
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