We should never look outwardly for what we lack inwardly. There are many people in this world who believe that by having the best of possessions or by having a certain stature in society that they will have peace and joy within their hearts. The sad truth is that if we are not content from within, then everything this world has to offer us will not be sufficient enough to fill us. We must remind ourselves that first and foremost we are spiritual beings which resides in a physical body. Our spirit man is what yearns to be close to God, but our fleshly desires keep us from being in communion with the Lord. That is why the Bible says that the spirit lusts against the flesh and the flesh against the spirit. We are enticed to follow after our fleshly desires in order to feel fulfilled, but I want you to know that only God is able to give us what this world could never give. (Galatians 5:17) (James 4:1-8)

When we surrender our hearts to the Lord and commit our life into His Hands, we will receive what this world could never give us. The Bible declares in Isaiah 26:3 “Thou wilt keep him in perfect peace, whose mind is stayed on Thee: because he trusteth in Thee.” With God we receive all that we seek after. We receive Peace, we receive Strength, we receive Joy, we receive Encouragement. The Lord gives us all that we lack. He also takes all of our filthiness and exchanges with His Holiness. He erases our past and gives us a secured future. The exchanges that we receive with the Lord are unimaginable, yet thankfully they are available to all who call upon Him. (Psalm 51:8-13) (Colossians 3:15)

God's goodness towards us isn't predicated on our goodness because He already knows of our sinfulness and yet His love never weakens or wanes towards us. Knowing this truth, We can confidently come to the Lord and receive from Him all that we are lacking. We read in Psalm 34:8 “O taste and see that the LORD is good: blessed is the man that trusteth in Him.” We can't take anyone's word that God is good; we have to try Him for ourselves. We have to trust in the Lord for ourselves and experience His goodness firsthand. That is when we will grow to trust the Lord when tough times come our way. That is when we will know that God is on our side helping us in everything that comes our way. Be encouraged to seek the Lord and receive from Him all that you have been lacking. (Isaiah 1:18-20) (Psalm 61:1-8)

I hope this message inspires and challenges your heart to come home to the Lord and receive all that He has stored up for you.


HOMEMADE HAPPINESS

The Italian dinners we had after church every Sunday when I was a boy were feasts fit for a king. There were mounds of pasta. There were potatoes, chicken, and meatballs which had been slow cooked for hours in tomato sauce. There were salads too covered in olive oil and vinegar. Most of all, though, there were loaves of Italian bread ready to be devoured. They were great with butter and even better when you dipped them in the sauce. My Grandma, whom we called "Nanny" would always bake them a day ahead so they would be ready. I remember watching her hand knead the dough. I would often ask to help but only because I wanted to have a bite of the dough before she placed it in the pans to bake. After they were done she would set them on the counter to cool and the whole house would be filled with their Heavenly aroma.

One day I foolishly asked Nanny why she didn’t just buy bread at the store to save time. “Cause they’re not as a good,” she said in her thick Italian accent. Then she laughed, smiled, and gave me a pinch of dough to nibble on.

Nanny was right. Today I buy my bread at the store and it isn’t as good. It is factory made and lacks all the taste, warmth, and love that Nanny put into hers. I think that Nanny knew way back then that the best way to bake bread or to make joy was by cutting out the middle man.

I hope that one day all of us realize the same thing. Store bought happiness is a sad substitute for homemade joy. All the pleasures made and sold by the middle men of this world are bland, fleeting, and temporary at best. If you want lasting love, permanent peace, and unending joy then you have to follow God’s cookbook and bake them in your own soul. Remember, God loves us and invites us every day to His table for a feast of goodness and delight. All that He asks is that we roll up our sleeves and help Him a bit with the cooking.

By Joseph J. Mazzella


Read and meditate on these scriptures:

Psalm 103:10-13 “He hath not dealt with us after our sins; nor rewarded us according to our iniquities. For as the heaven is high above the earth, so great is his mercy toward them that fear him. As far as the east is from the west, so far hath he removed our transgressions from us. Like as a father pitieth his children, so the LORD pitieth them that fear him.”

2 Peter 3:9 “The Lord is not slack concerning his promise, as some men count slackness; but is longsuffering to us-ward, not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance.”

Ezekiel 33:11 “Say unto them, As I live, saith the Lord GOD, I have no pleasure in the death of the wicked; but that the wicked turn from his way and live: turn ye, turn ye from your evil ways; for why will ye die, O house of Israel?”

Romans 10:9-11 “That if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved. For with the heart man believeth unto righteousness; and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation. For the scripture saith, Whosoever believeth on him shall not be ashamed.”

All of these scriptures can be found in the King James Version Bible.


Today’s Selected Poem: HE TOOK MY PLACE
Click here to read --- http://www.Godswork.org/inpoem170.htm

Today’s Selected Testimony: THE LORD WILL HELP YOU THROUGH
Click here to read --- http://www.Godswork.org/testimony129.htm


In Christ’s Service,

Dwayne Savaya
God’s Work Ministry