Fear No Fear

(All scripture from the NET, netbible.org, all rights reserved)

Always rejoice, constantly pray, in everything give thanks. For this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus.
1 Thessalonians 5:16-18 (emphasis added)

There are seven (7) C’s to effective communication. Clear, Concise, Concrete, Correct, Coherent, Complete, and Courteous. These are ‘rule of thumb’ guidelines to promote communication without misunderstandings, misguided feelings, and truly gets across what each participant in the conversation wants to express. Like most good rules, they are based in common sense. Everyone can see their value, even if everyone doesn’t follow them – like the speed limit. When it comes to communication, we write many books on it. Do TED Talks, presentations, have meetings, and hire life coaches. People’s promotions are stymied because of poor communication skills. People have even been fired over it. Yet when it comes to Adonai, we don’t worry about it. We submit our list of requests, say ‘thy will’, and then go out and do what we want – bemoaning consequences when poor decisions come back to us. But we are co-heirs with Jesus. Partners yoked together. It is VITAL that we have good communication if we are to stay synched together in all we do.

There are those who are going to say that Jesus wasn’t clear when He spoke. That since He always taught in parables, people misunderstood what He said. It is true that He taught in parables. And it is true that He did it so that some would not truly hear His words (Mark 4:12). We ONLY receive salvation through Jesus (Acts 4:12). When we do, we get the Spirit of Truth which gives us access to the mind of Messiah so that we can understand all things (1 Corinthians 2:16; 2 Corinthians 5:17; Philippians 2:5; 1 John 2:20). This SAFEGUARDS the Truth and revelations of Adonai. He does NOT want people accessing these truths from another source or from human reasoning because they would not be PURE truth. They would be slanted, shaded, and less than complete truth. The TRUTH is absolute, objective, and from Yahweh’s point of view – NOT ours. It is only by Jesus, through the Spirit of Truth, that we perceive these truths from Elohim. Jesus even gave a Rosetta Stone about it. One of the parables (sower of the seed) was given (Matthew 13:1-9; Mark 4:1-9; Luke 8:4-8), was to show us HE is the source of Truth and the MANY ways Truth is stolen/lost. Elohim WANTS us to have the truth and to have knowledge and to fully understand it. That can’t happen outside of Jesus.

Prayer is how we communicate with Adonai. Through prayer we present our issues, talk to Him, and also listen to Him. It is an open door line of communication. Our own personal red phone. Our direct line of communication from our spirit to the Father. We don’t need to struggle to be heard or feel that we haven’t been. Jesus lives inside us and through His Ruach HaKodesh, we connect to the Father. “Jesus replied, “If anyone loves me, he will obey my word, and my Father will love him, and we will come to him and take up residence with him” (John 14:23). We only need to speak and He’ll hear us because if WE can hear us HE can hear us since He is INSIDE us. We’re not knocking on the unlocked, open gates of heaven. We’re speaking to one we invited into our heart (Revelation 3:20). We are speaking to the one we are grafted into and connected to (John 15:5). Even someone deaf and mute can be heard with the quietest of whispers in their head. The born-again believer is NEVER without communication with Elohim. “For the eyes of the Lord are upon the righteous and his ears are open to their prayer. But the Lord’s face is against those who do evil” (1 Peter 3:12). We can just TALK to Him. We don’t need to follow a formula or to blather on over-explaining things. In fact it’s better we don’t constantly repeat the same things over and over, because that isn’t conversation. That’s talking over someone trying to brow-beat them with your opinions. “When you pray, do not babble repetitiously like the Gentiles, because they think that by their many words they will be heard” (Matthew 6:7). It is not volume, but conciseness that is heard. When we know what we want to say and say it clearly. It helps us focus our own thinking as well as communicate what is in our hearts and minds – like in any other conversation. Yes, He knows what’s in our hearts (Luke 16:15), but spoken words hold power and help form reality (Hebrews 1:3). When we speak, it helps form our requests, our thoughts, and our desires. It is the best way to communicate and understand ourselves. Shouldn’t we use that with Adonai too? I think it’s vital and I think Jesus approved of clear, concise, verbal communication with Elohim – though of course He also hears our thoughts and there is nothing ‘wrong’ with silent prayer.

Concrete and correct words are VITAL in our prayers – which is why concise thinking is so beneficial. Jesus said of prayer that “And whatever you ask in prayer, if you believe, you will receive” (Matthew 21:22). James warns us “But he must ask in faith without doubting, for the one who doubts is like a wave of the sea, blown and tossed around by the wind. For that person must not suppose that he will receive anything from the Lord, since he is a double-minded individual, unstable in all his ways” (James 1:6-8). If we’re not sure of what we’re asking for and if we haven’t put any thought into what we’re saying, how can we put any trust into His answering us? Prayer is NOT us trying to get Elohim to move on our behalf. We’re not trying to make Him DO anything. Prayer is communication and the things we’re communicating is our willingness to submit to His Word and our desire to see His will come to pass. “So pray this way: Our Father in heaven, may your name be honored, may your kingdom come, may your will be done on earth as it is in heaven” (Matthew 6:9-10). We are aligning with HIS will. His will IS the Word. Period. That is what He is watching over to make sure it comes to pass. He is EAGER to perform it (Jeremiah 1:12). If our prayers are based in His Word – not His Word twisted to conform to our ideas, but His Word as He intended it – there is every reason to eagerly expect the physical arrival of our petitions. His Word is Truth, it sanctifies us, it can renew and transform our thinking, it is a Blessing, and it is our surest way to have confidence we are walking in His Way. His Words are THE MOST correct words we could EVER speak. I know for me and my family, we try to never pray if there isn’t a clear verse to stand on (a verse correct in context, not cherry picked so that a word or phrase matches our desires). It is an excellent way to pray.

‘Lord, use me’ is a fine prayer, but it limits Adonai in what He can do. ‘Lord, make me usable’ is an excellent prayer that enables Adonai to do what He wants because we are submitting to the refining process we all need to be truly effective in seeing His will come to pass on the Earth. If we aren’t speaking the words that mean the thing Adonai laid on our heart, our prayers will be less than effective. Take healing. By His stripes/bruises/wounds we have ALREADY been healed (Matthew 8:16-17; Isaiah 53:5; John 3:16-18). When we pray ‘please heal me’, it is an ineffective prayer. Jesus ALREADY provided your healing. So what’s better? Receiving your healing. Standing against hindrances. Standing on healing scriptures. Spending time SEEING yourself well. SEEING your future. Praising and thanking Him for your healing. These are all more effective than asking for something He already gave you. Effective prayer is praying for the CORRECT things. Fellowship with Ruach HaKodesh while we read the Word helps us to discover what is correct. Being guided by Him. And of course praying in the spirit when we just don’t seem to have the words or to form the picture is awesome. Do WE understand what we pray when we do it in the spirit? Not unless you’ve asked for the interpretation. But your AUDIENCE, Adonai Elohim Most High, DOES. That is complete praying. That is wholesome praying.

Jesus is our PARTNER. We don’t DEMAND things. That makes for a broken working relationship. Elohim is our Good Father. We don’t DEMAND things. That makes for a broken relationship. We are reverent. Respectful. Full of worship and love. We intimately know who WE are. If we even have a GLIMPSE of Him, we’ll be humbly submissive. He is RIGHTEOUS and ALMIGHTY ELOHIM. He is the END of all things and the BEGINNING of all things. Because of Jesus, we have a relationship with Him. Communion together. But HIS is the right thinking. HIS is the correct point of view. We always need to remember to develop and change our thinking to match His, not try and get Him to give us what we want. His things (whether morals, viewpoint, or physical things) are WAY better than anything WE can think of anyway. We will be more blessed, more joyful, more content, more healthy, more whole, than we could ever be on our own.

Take advantage of what He is offering us. Take advantage of the partnership that is possible with and in Jesus. Yoke to Him, and accept His rest, His healing, His Blessing, and everything else that is part of salvation. Communicate effectively, with reverence and purpose, every day. Seek Him and He WILL be found (Deuteronomy 4:29-31). He is all the best in life. Accept it from Him and talk – really TALK – with your partner and co-heir starting right now. Seek to not pray long, but not go long without prayer. Constantly touching base. Consistently seeking Him. And never, ever, stop (1 Thessalonians 5:16-18).

Daily Affirmation Jesus IS Messiah: Zechariah 11:4-6

“The Lord my God says this: “Shepherd the flock set aside for slaughter. Those who buy them slaughter them and are not held guilty; those who sell them say, ‘Blessed be the Lord, for I am rich.’ Their own shepherds have no compassion for them. Indeed, I will no longer have compassion on the people of the land,” says the Lord, “but instead I will turn every last person over to his neighbor and his king. They will devastate the land, and I will not deliver it from them.”” Messiah, at His coming, would find Israel to have unfit leaders. Leaders who were not doing as they had been tasked. Corrupted leaders who would burden the people instead of lightening their loads. “Then Jesus said to the crowds and to his disciples, “The experts in the law and the Pharisees sit on Moses’ seat. Therefore pay attention to what they tell you and do it. But do not do what they do, for they do not practice what they teach. They tie up heavy loads, hard to carry, and put them on men’s shoulders, but they themselves are not willing even to lift a finger to move them” (Matthew 23:1-4). The leaders of the people DID all the right things, but their hearts were hard and swollen with their self interest. Ultimately, they chose to try and eliminate Jesus than turn back to Yahweh in their hearts. They were unfit to rule. Jesus IS the Messiah!

Your Daily Confession of Jesus/Yeshua’s Identity:

Yeshua is the Christ, the Son of the living God.

Matthew 16:16b