Day Forty
“Speak to Your Mountain”
Truly I say to you, whoever says to this mountain, ‘Be taken up and cast into the sea,’ and does not doubt in his heart but believes that what he says is going to happen it will be granted to him. Therefore I say to you, all things for which you pray and ask, believe that you have received them and they will be granted to you.
Mark 11:22-24
In some ways this marks the end of an exciting pilgrimage, but in other ways it really signifies the beginning of a lifelong adventure of walking with God. I believe the Lord has preserved some of His best truth for us here at the end of this forty-day challenge.
We started this journey with a commitment to fast and to pray about some goals we have set. We have faced many mountains over these past forty days and will undoubtedly face many others in the future. For far too long the church has been intimidated by mountains; may this not be the case anymore. By faith may we believe and speak with courage, conviction, and confidence to our mountains.
Did you notice the call of Jesus for us to speak to our mountains? I am stopping from writing right now to speak to several mountains that are standing in the way of this church. The mountain of the price of our land and the lack of funds - I speak to in the name of Jesus to be removed. Today we celebrate the bountiful provision of God. I speak to the mountain of unbelief that has kept many living in lack for far too long. I speak to the mountain of hardened hearts, closed nations, and lack of funding for missionaries. I speak to the mountain of this book being kept from publication and distribution around the world for the glory of God.
Take some time today to look at your mountain and speak to it with the full assurance of what God has promised, expecting the mountain to be moved. Many victories have been won over the last forty days and today we celebrate by listening to the testimonies of God’s people. Please take time to gather with others and give glory to God through your testimony of what the Lord has done.
There are still are and will always be mountains that need to be moved. Let us not retreat from the challenge. Let us run to our mountain with more faith and with more determination and speak to it with hearts of conviction. I like what D.L. Moody once said about believing God. He commented, “When God is your partner, make your plans large!” Let us hear from the Lord as He sets His dreams in our hearts and let us believe God to be our partner in making those dreams come true.
It is hard to believe what the Lord has done in my own heart in the past week. You see, it was a week ago today that the Lord called me to write this book. I have written both day and night for the last seven days. That is not to say that I have not had breaks to rest, to eat, and to enjoy my family and friends. I have written in the wee hours of the morning as well as into the late evening. God has moved this mountain. I had a tight deadline to get this finished in time for FBC Paradise to have it as we embark on our 40 Days to Trust and Obey. There were a couple of occasions when I wondered if the mountain of finishing this book could be completed. I did not write one single sentence this past Sunday. I was too tired and distracted with other things. But God birthed this book in my heart. Like I have said before, I have felt compelled to write it. Today after seven days, the Lord has inspired and completed a book.
Often throughout this process people have asked me how it was going. Like no other book I have ever written, this book has flowed. I know people have prayed for me and God moved the mountains of fatigue, writer’s block, and distractions to accomplish His purposes. This book is His - He can do with it as He pleases. My simple prayer has been and will continue to be that God uses it for His glory here in Paradise, TX and beyond. It is all about Him. He is a mountain mover and when most would say it is impossible to write a book that has any substance in seven days, I believe that God, through this book, is proving them wrong.
My constant prayer over this assignment is that God would use it and work powerfully in the lives of people. As I complete this last day, I hope and am asking the Lord to allow me the great privilege of rejoicing with people in our church and around the world as I hear the testimonies of what the Lord has done in you, for you, and through you. If you have a testimony and want it shared on a broader scale to give God greater glory, please email them to me at pastorfbcparadise@embarqmail.com and we will publish them on our website and my blog. You can visit both of those at the addresses found on the back page.
After all of this time, we still have our old nemeses of doubt lurking in the shadows, seeking to undermine our faith. May our words, our minds, our full assurance in the promise of God, and our confidence that God will step in and save the day deal a death blow to this adversary. Satan will never give up opposing God and God’s promises to us, but neither will God cease advancing His purposes in this world. Now we have come to the end of this journey together but that does not mean that the adventure is over. Join with me in living your life to promote the glory of God and in inspiring people to keep trusting in the Lord so that He gets the glory. There is still much to be accomplished, there are many more mountains to be moved, and countless more impossible things to trust God for.
Father, thank You for these precious people who have walked closely with You these last forty days, who have heard from You and who by faith take You at Your word. I thank You for the miracles You have worked. I thank You for all the creative ways You have stepped in and intervened in the lives of Your people. I thank You for the burdens You have lifted, the peace You have given, the marriages You have restored, the lost You have claimed, the mountains You have moved, and most of the all the glory You have gathered in the process.
I plead with You to keep working in astounding and profound ways both in and through our lives to accomplish Your purposes. I ask You to take this little book and put Your blessing on it, give it Your favor, and use it to meet with Your people and to inspire people to trust You more. We rejoice in Your faithfulness and we delight that You are a promise-keeper, more than able to handle any situation that comes our way. I ask You to stir a deeper desire in us for You than for Your answers and that You entrust to us greater assignments in Your kingdom. You are faithful and have earned the right to be trusted by all of us. Therefore we believe that what we have prayed for we shall receive, humbly and gratefully, from Your hand. Give us endurance to trust You for the remainder of our lives in every situation, at all times, and with gutsy confidence in You and Your promises.
Steps to Trust and Obey:
Today is set apart to be a day of celebration with others who have gone through this challenge with you.
Take time to testify about how the Lord has worked in your life over the last forty days.
What specific things has the Lord spoken to you?
Has the Lord called you to obey Him in any specific ways? As you have obeyed the Lord in the faith, what have you experienced?
Will you live the remainder of your life to promote the glory of God?
Website: wwwparadisefbc.org
Blog: www.fbcparadise.blogspot.com
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