Promises Made Promises Kept
Illus. The Weight of a Prayer by Dr Wheeler Jones
Louise Redden, a poorly dressed lady with a look of defeat on her face, walked into a grocery store. She approached the owner of the store in a most humble manner and asked if he would let her charge a few groceries. She softly explained that her husband was very ill and unable to work, they had seven children and they needed food.
John Longhouse, the grocer, scoffed at her and requested that she leave his store. Visualizing the family needs, she said, "Please, sir! I will bring you the money just as soon as I can." John told her he could not give her credit, as she did not have a charge account at his store.
Standing beside the counter was a customer who overheard the conversation between the two. The customer walked forward and told the Grocer the he would stand good for whatever she needed for her family.
The Grocer said in a very reluctant voice, "Do you have a grocery list?
Louise replied, "Yes, sir." "Okay," he said, "put your grocery list in the scales and whatever your grocery list weighs, I will give you that amount in groceries."
Louise hesitated for a moment with a bowed head, then she reached into her purse and took out a piece of paper and scribbled something on it. She then laid the piece of paper on the scale carefully with her head still bowed.
The eyes of the Grocer and the customer showed amazement when the scales went down and stayed down. The Grocer staring at the scales, turned slowly to the customer and said begrudgingly, "I can’t believe it."
The customer smiled and the Grocer started putting the groceries on the other side of the scales. The scale did not balance so he continued to put more and more groceries on them until the scales would hold no more.
The Grocer stood there in utter disgust. Finally, he grabbed the piece of paper from the scales and looked at it with greater amazement. It was not a grocery list, it was a prayer which said, "Dear Lord, you know my needs and I am leaving this in your hands."
The Grocer gave her the groceries that he had gathered and placed on the scales and stood in stunned silence. Louise thanked him and left the store.
The customer handed a fifty dollar bill to John as he said, "It was worth every penny of it." It was sometime later that John Longhouse discovered the scales were broken; therefore, only God knows how much a prayer weighs.
How many believe God can answer every prayer request, no matter what?
Matt. 21:21,22 MSG
21-22. But Jesus was matter-of-fact: “Yes —and if you embrace this kingdom life and don’t doubt God, you’ll not only do minor feats like I did to the fig tree, but also triumph over huge obstacles. This mountain, for instance, you’ll tell, ‘Go jump in the lake,’ and it will jump. Absolutely everything, ranging from small to large, as you make it a part of your believing prayer, gets included as you lay hold of God.”
How many here truly believe God can answer your prayers, no matter what?
If there is a hesitation in your spirit, when you hear that question asked, there shouldn’t be?
I mean, do some of us really think that our problems and situations are harder for God to answer and work out, than the problems, needs, wants and desires of our friends and neighbors!
Should we not expect, as great or greater miracles to be done in our lives, than the fantastic miracles we read about in the Bible?
If we believe the promise of the scripture and we can take Jesus at His Word, we should!
Well, I don’t know that’s setting the bar awl fully high, Jesus did some pretty amazing things?
And I would say to that…....you are more than correct with that summation, His actions were and are amazing, His words were and are also quite amazing, everything about Jesus is Amazing!
John 1:1-3 NKJ
1. In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.
2. He was in the beginning with God.
3. All things were made through Him, and without Him nothing was made that was made.
I share this next scripture with you, because I want you to realize, truly what we have been given, through and by our relationship with God, that we have with Jesus, our Lord and Savior!
John 14:12 NKJ
12 “Most assuredly, I say to you, he who believes in Me, the works that I do he will do also; and greater works than these he will do, because I go to My Father. 13 And whatever you ask in My name, that I will do, that the Father may be glorified in the Son. 14 If you ask anything in My name, I will do it.
Absolutely everything, ranging from small to large, as you make it a part of your believing prayer, gets included as you lay hold of God’s capabilities!
God wants to bless and give to His Children! Are you a child of the most high God?
Well then Let me say that again, with Greater Clarification!
“God…....wants…....to…....Bless…....you....and.....Give…....to…...you!!
Do you believe you are blessed? You should, before your feet ever hit the ground in the morning you need to remember and declare God this amazing truth, “God has already prepared blessings waiting for you to arrive at each and every day!”
God not only wants to Bless you, God is willing to go to great length’s to do whatever it takes to make your request and desires come to fruition!
Absolutely everything, ranging from small to large, as you make it a part of your believing prayer, gets included as you lay hold of Gods capabilities!
Absolutely everything? Yes everything! Every single solitary concern! TBS. all of Gods promises, are Yes and Amen!
God is very aware of how much power His Words possess, when you proclaim them and speak them in and over your life!
Do you know what happens when you make promises? You’re held accountable and expected to keep them aren’t you?
God would have never made any promises, if He didn’t mean them and intend on keeping them and being true and responsible for each and every one of them!
Isaiah 55:8,9,11 HCSB
8. “For My thoughts are not your thoughts,
and your ways are not My ways.”
This is the Lord’s declaration.
9. “For as heaven is higher than earth,
so My ways are higher than your ways,
and My thoughts than your thoughts.
11. so My word that comes from My mouth
will not return to Me empty,
but it will accomplish what I please
and will prosper in what I send it to do.”
As I was preparing this week, I was thinking about a lot of things.
Prayer request, praise reports, things on my to do list and the shorter hours of day light to accomplish them. Looking forward to the time change coming up again, that takes place twice a year.
Altering time…....after thousands of years of trying by man, a simple law by congress, passed just a few short years ago, made it a reality, well at least on paper anyways.
The lawmakers in Washington always like to take the credit for coming up with something new or original, don’t they?
Hollywood has depicted time change in all manners and scenarios and generally people are quite intrigued with the idea of altering time.
Man has never had an original thought that wasn’t Gods idea or thought, in the first place.
Illus. by sermon central
The famous American author, Samuel Clement, Mark Twain, attended a Sunday service. He met the preacher at the door afterward to shake his hand. And he told him that he had a book at home with every word he had preached that morning.
The minister assured him that his sermon that morning was an original. But Twain was adamant. The preacher asked to see the book. So, Twain sent it over the next day. When the preacher opened the package he found a dictionary. And inside the cover Twain had written, "Words, just words."
Jeremiah 32:26,27 NKJ
26. Then the word of the Lord came to Jeremiah, saying,
27. “Behold, I am the Lord, the God of all flesh. Is there anything too hard for Me?
One word from man may help for a moment, One Word from God, is all that you will ever need! One word from God, can and will propel you to victory your whole life long and shower you with a lifetime of His Grace and Favor!
God is omnipresent, which means; always present everywhere: continuously and simultaneously present throughout the whole of creation.
God knows no time, because He owns time! He can start time He can stop time! If God chooses He can make more time, or speed up or slow down time! He has already been to the future, there is no place in time God hasn’t already inhabited.
God has already been at this very moment, where we are at right now…....thousands of years ago and maybe even as recent as yesterday.
Absolutely everything all of the time, ranging from small to large,
as you make it a part of your believing prayer, gets included as you lay hold of Gods capabilities!
Joshua 10:5-14 NKJ
5. Therefore the five kings of the Amorites, the king of Jerusalem, the king of Hebron, the king of Jarmuth, the king of Lachish, and the king of Eglon, gathered together and went up, they and all their armies, and camped before Gibeon and made war against it.
6. And the men of Gibeon sent to Joshua at the camp at Gilgal, saying, “Do not forsake your servants; come up to us quickly, save us and help us, for all the kings of the Amorites who dwell in the mountains have gathered together against us.”
7. So Joshua ascended from Gilgal, he and all the people of war with him, and all the mighty men of valor.
Illus. from bible places.com
A little back ground info on Gibeon. In verse six says do not forsake your servants. At first glance it may appear that there was a great relationship between Gibeon and Israel. First impressions are always correct.
Gibeon is and was an Arab village of el-Jib, which sits on the north side of the hill and preserves the biblical name of the city inhabited by the Gibeonites. These people tricked Joshua into making a treaty with them; later the Israelites would be forced to defend their ill-made ally. The city of Gibeon sits on the west side of the Central Benjamin Plateau.
8. And the Lord said to Joshua, “Do not fear them, for I have delivered them into your hand; not a man of them shall stand before you.”
9. Joshua therefore came upon them suddenly, having marched all night from Gilgal.
10. So the Lord routed them before Israel, killed them with a great slaughter at Gibeon, chased them along the road that goes to Beth Horon, and struck them down as far as Azekah and Makkedah.
11. And it happened, as they fled before Israel and were on the descent of Beth Horon, that the Lord cast down large hailstones from heaven on them as far as Azekah, and they died. There were more who died from the hailstones than the children of Israel killed with the sword.
( verse 8 said; And the Lord said to Joshua, “Do not fear them, for I have delivered them into your hand; not a man of them shall stand before you.”
One word from God is all you need, One Word from God is more than enough!)
12. Then Joshua spoke
(what’s another word for spoke? How about Prayed and ask God for direction? And what did God do? God gave him what he ask for!)
12.Then Joshua spoke to the Lord in the day when the Lord delivered up the Amorites before the children of Israel, and he said in the sight of Israel:
“Sun, stand still over Gibeon;
And Moon, in the Valley of Aijalon.”
13. So the sun stood still,
And the moon stopped,
Till the people had revenge
Upon their enemies.
Is this not written in the Book of Jasher? So the sun stood still in the midst of heaven, and did not hasten to go down for about a whole day.
14. And there has been no day like that, before it or after it, that the Lord heeded the voice of a man; for the Lord fought for Israel.
Is there no length, that God will not go to for His Children?
Is there nothing that God won’t do for those that Love Him?
Is there nothing that is not possible, when you put your faith and trust in God?
Praise God, shout Hallelujah, God is a prayer answering God!
Absolutely everything, ranging from small to large,
as you make it a part of your believing prayer, gets included as you lay hold of God.”
Is there nothing that God can’t and won’t do for His Children? The answer is no, nothing is to large a task for The God Of All Things Possible!!
Absolutely everything, ranging from small to large,
as you make it a part of your believing prayer, gets included as you lay hold of God.”
The scoffers still say that was then, that was a long time ago, yes it was, in our limited way of thinking and understanding, yes it was.
But to the God of unlimited possibilities, to the God who knows no time constraints and is not bound by our understanding of time. For all we know, the battle at Gibeon could have happened, in Gods realm of possibilities, as recent as just yesterday!
What we do know is this, Gods Word is true, God is not a respecter of persons, Gods Word never returns void and there is just as much power in the words of that time stopping miracle today, as the day it happened!
God is the same yesterday, today and forever! The amazing this battle took place before the promise of Jesus, was delivered.
How much more is possible in our lives, for us who have received the Promise of the salvation message Jesus offers?
Whatever you hath need of today, is possible, when you put your faith and trust in God, through your relationship with Jesus!
Isaiah 40:28-31 NKJ
28. Have you not known?
Have you not heard?
The everlasting God, the Lord,
The Creator of the ends of the earth,
Neither faints nor is weary.
His understanding is unsearchable.
29. He gives power to the weak,
And to those who have no might He increases strength.
30. Even the youths shall faint and be weary,
And the young men shall utterly fall,
31. But those who wait on the Lord
Shall renew their strength;
They shall mount up with wings like eagles,
They shall run and not be weary,
They shall walk and not faint.
You see, God has even given us a promise of ongoing time altering. But those who wait on the Lord
Shall renew their strength;
He can give back, the years that the devil has stolen from us, God already has! TBS. in 1 John 4:17 as Jesus is, so are we in this world, Amen?
What Jesus has available to Him, we have available to us. As Jesus is the world we in this world or not just words that you will find in the dictionary! Those words are a declaration, that life changing declaration is a promise from the God of all things possible!
The Everlasting God, the Great I Am who not only makes Promises, but also Keeps His Word!
Start declaring and proclaiming God’s Promises over your life, God’s Words over your every situation. Something supernatural happens when you release God’s Words over your life into the atmosphere!
They go relentlessly to work accomplishing everything their assigned to do, until. Until they complete the assignment!
There is power, there is life, there is Victory in His words!
There is power, there is life, there is Victory in your words when you believe and declare His Words!
Life giving,
*life altering!
*life changing!
*life extending!
*abundant far, above and beyond life to be lived starting right now!
Amen? Amen!
