"Jabez cried out to the God of Israel, "Oh, that you would bless me and enlarge my territory! Let your hand be with me, and keep me from harm so that I will be free from pain." And God granted his request."  (1 Chronicles 4:10)   

Lord, remember your servants today and bless them.  Enlarge our territory and keep us from evil!  Pray this for someone today!

In prayer this morning, the Lord lead me to Acts chapter 19, which gives account of the riot at Ephesus.  Let's read starting with verse 23:

"About that time there arose a great disturbance about the Way. A silversmith named Demetrius, who made silver shrines of Artemis, brought in no little business for the craftsmen. He called them together, along with the workmen in related trades, and said: "Men, you know we receive a good income from this business. And you see and hear how this fellow Paul has convinced and led astray large numbers of people here in Ephesus and in practically the whole province of Asia. He says that man-made gods are no gods at all. There is danger not only that our trade will lose its good name, but also that the temple of the great goddess Artemis will be discredited, and the goddess herself, who is worshiped throughout the province of Asia and the world, will be robbed of her divine majesty. When they heard this, they were furious and began shouting: "Great is Artemis of the Ephesians!" Soon the whole city was in an uproar. The people seized Gaius and Aristarchus, Paul's traveling companions from Macedonia, and rushed as one man into the theater. Paul wanted to appear before the crowd, but the disciples would not let him. Even some of the officials of the province, friends of Paul, sent him a message begging him not to venture into the theater."

The account goes on to say that crowds went on yelling, etc. for two hours.  Then the city clerk came out and said that everyone knew that Ephesus was the guardian over the great temple of Artemis and that because this was fact and undeniable, they should quiet down and not do anything rash.    Basically he was telling them that they were the majority (consensus) and so anything causing a riot would not be able to be justified.  Then the clerk dismissed the assembly.

There were a few things that stuck out to me in this passage:

 First of all, we need more Paul's - those who are not afraid to tell things like they are and draw a line in the sand.  We need men and women who rightly divide the Word of truth and operate in discernment.  God calls all of us to shine our lights in a dark world.   Lord, help us to be steadfast and immovable in what we believe -  no matter what the crowd says.  If none go with us, still we will follow!  Paul was also an encourager of those in the faith.  In times like these, we need to be encouraging each other to fight the good fight of faith and not give up!

Secondly, we need to be careful not to be like the Ephesians and worship the god of our hands - or anything else that we set up in our lives (idols).  This goes not only for the world, but for the church as well.  Spirituality is not a business.  It's not something we should look to materially profit from.  Yet, when we continually cater our churches to what is desired by those 'consuming' whatever it is we are selling - we are steering ourselves far from the will and purposes of God.  We shouldn't be lowering the bar in order to become more "marketable".  The more we compromise to gain numbers and pad our budgets, the more we will HAVE to compromise to keep those numbers and budgets.

The biggest (and final) impression I am getting with this passage is that we can expect more riots and public displays of discontent by those who feel they have a consensus as we live out the last days.   Anyone can have a notion of what is "right" and widely acceptable... even saying facts to substantiate such views are undeniable.  But, apart from the standard of God's Word, the crowd is in danger of forcing our families, our states, our churches, our nation, and our world into destruction and chaos.    But remember, God will never leave or forsake us no matter what the consensus decrees!

Because the Word says that lawlessness and sin would abound in the last days, there will be no reasoning with those inciting these riots or expecting them to abide by the law.  In fact, they will be so convinced that they are "right" and justified in what they are doing that those who hold to Biblical standards will be the ones accused of doing wrong! 

We see this happening in many facets of life today - man lives as he sees fit and lives by the standards he has created.  There is no telling him otherwise.   Furthermore, he will fight until he gets what he wants - even if that means threatening the rights of others.   Yes, we see this all around us!

The church is in for a battle and widespread persecution in the form of overt opposition.  Don't expect it to decrease in the days ahead.  We need to hold steady to the faith we profess and expect the Lord to watch over us and fight for us.  He will be our fore-guard, walk beside us, and be our rear guard.
Don't ever forget - with God, we are always going to be the majority.

"So do not throw away your confidence; it will be richly rewarded. You need to persevere so that when you have done the will of God, you will receive what he has promised. For in just a very little while,"He who is coming will come and will not delay." Hebrews 10:35-37

Have you ever heard God telling you to do something and then you wonder if you really did or not?   Are you trying to be obedient and operate in faith, but you just don't understand what lies ahead?   Is the enemy ridiculing you and making you feel foolish for "listening to God" and trying to convince you that you never really heard from Him?  If so, then today's verse is for you! 

Sometimes in life, God asks us to do something without any visible evidence of the outcome.  At first, we are on fire realizing that God has spoken to us, but then over time - if we don't see the "promise" soon enough, we begin to waver and doubt.  The road gets intimidating.  We may have just enough light for the step we're on... and that light may seem more like a match head than a flaming torch! 

For so many of us, today is a day requiring great and unmeasurable faith.  But faith is not a unique quality to our generation.  Those who have walked before us had to endure to receive the promise as well.  Think of Abraham, who was willing to follow after God - not knowing where he was going...or perhaps Noah who began building a boat to the ridicule of friends and neighbors. 

No dream is too large, no mountain too tall when God is the one leading!  Remember that all things are possible through Him.  He just expects us to remain faithful and trusting along the way.  

Are we willing to lay down our agendas, plans, purposes, and expectations in return for what God wants for our lives?  If the answer is "yes", then you have picked up your cross to follow Him.   It may be tempting to lay it down when the journey gets long or when others point and stare, but don't give in.  

Ask yourself today, what is more important - trusting in outward appearances or trusting in an Almighty God?  Keep your eyes fixed on Him - not on anything else around you.
 
HE is our confidence. Hold steady and stand your ground. Don't doubt.

Join with prayer warriors and intercessors across the nation as we fall on our knees and pray for God for transformation; individually and collectively.  Go to Call2Fall.com    Expectant Prayers is joining in... won't you???

"The living, the living—they praise You, as I am doing today; fathers tell their children about Your faithfulness." (Isaiah 38:19)

Fathers have such an important role in society and in establishing the spiritual condition of their families- so why do so many feel insignificant? The enemy attacks dads! Let's remember to pray for them today; that they will impact the world for God one child at a time!  Don't forget to do something nice for the dad in your life this weekend.  Let them know how special they are!