Thursday’s Awakening
Topic: Don’t turn back
Sneak-Peek: When God give you a one-way ticket, don’t pay for round-trip.
Don’t look back at the life you use to live or the life you
are about to leave. Don’t turn back to the man/woman you use to have or the one
you are about to leave. Don’t block what Jesus has for you. Don’t look back and
desire the things you use to do, eat, or watch.Sneak-Peek: When God give you a one-way ticket, don’t pay for round-trip.
God is saying don’t look back at the mate you use to have.
Don’t block or hinder what he is trying to give to you by reminiscing, comparing
or worshipping your past. He cannot send you what you are unwilling to accept.
When your eyes are turned back you can’t see forward. God knows what you need
and he will send what is best for you.
Trust him; allow him to send who he has for you.
Don’t make a detour, pick up a hitch hiker, and wonder why
your wanderer doesn’t want commitment.
God has been gracious to us by saving us.
We must praise him by refusing to turn back.
Look forward and put the past behind you. God is pricking
your heart and taking you to new places in him. He is taking you from a place
of comfort to an unknown place. We often fear the unknown and desire to
turn-back to the familiar. We often exaggerate our past in our minds, thinking
we cannot get anything better in our future.
Jesus is taking us to a place of complete submission to him.
He is giving us the destination but he is not providing the turn-by-turn
directions.
Genesis 19:15-16
At dawn the next morning the angels became insistent. “Hurry,” they said to Lot. “Take your wife and your two daughters who are here. Get out right now, or you will be swept away in the destruction of the city!”
At dawn the next morning the angels became insistent. “Hurry,” they said to Lot. “Take your wife and your two daughters who are here. Get out right now, or you will be swept away in the destruction of the city!”
When Lot still hesitated, the angels seized his hand and the hands
of his wife and two daughters and rushed them to safety outside the
city, for the Lord was merciful. 17 When
they were safely out of the city, one of the angels ordered, “Run for your
lives! And don’t look back or stop anywhere in the valley! Escape to the
mountains, or you will be swept away!”
God loves us so much that even when we hesitate to obey him,
he seizes our hands and forces us to safety. Are we going to go? Are we going
to answer the call?
God is saying don’t turn back. He is taking us by force out
of a sinful place, to a place of safety and salvation. He is saying don’t turn
back to listening and watching programs that promote sinful thoughts and deeds.
He is trying to create in us a pure heart and a right spirit.
Genesis 19:18-21
“Oh no, my lord!” Lot begged. 19 “You have been so gracious to me and saved my life, and you have shown such great kindness. But I cannot go to the mountains. Disaster would catch up to me there, and I would soon die. 20 See, there is a small village nearby. Please let me go there instead; don’t you see how small it is? Then my life will be saved.”
“Oh no, my lord!” Lot begged. 19 “You have been so gracious to me and saved my life, and you have shown such great kindness. But I cannot go to the mountains. Disaster would catch up to me there, and I would soon die. 20 See, there is a small village nearby. Please let me go there instead; don’t you see how small it is? Then my life will be saved.”
21 “All
right,” the angel said, “I will grant your request. I will not destroy the
little village. 22 But
hurry! Escape to it, for I can do nothing until you arrive there.” (This
explains why that village was known as Zoar, which means “little place.”)
God is always trying to take us somewhere
vast. God is always trying to expand our territory but we always negotiate for
something smaller out of fear. God is not going to deliver us to kill us. He
knows they best place for us, it may mean we have to travel through some rough
patches but it is better in the end. Jesus is looking for a surrendered heart.
He is looking for us to enter the destination in the navigation and trust that
he knows the best route.
When we make up our minds to serve God we
are entering Jesus into our navigation system. Don’t worry about traffic,
detours, weather conditions, or accidents along the way, just allow God to take
the wheel, and he will lead us to salvation. When we board a plane, we don’t
ask the pilot which way he is taking; we take our seat listen for directions
and trust he is going to take us to our destination.
Allow Jesus to be your pilot. Take your seat,
listen & and follow directions till you arrive at your destination.
Genesis 19:23-26
23 Lot reached the village just as the sun was rising over the horizon. 24 Then the Lord rained down fire and burning sulfur from the sky on Sodom and Gomorrah. 25 He utterly destroyed them, along with the other cities and villages of the plain, wiping out all the people and every bit of vegetation. 26 But Lot’s wife looked back as she was following behind him, and she turned into a pillar of salt.
23 Lot reached the village just as the sun was rising over the horizon. 24 Then the Lord rained down fire and burning sulfur from the sky on Sodom and Gomorrah. 25 He utterly destroyed them, along with the other cities and villages of the plain, wiping out all the people and every bit of vegetation. 26 But Lot’s wife looked back as she was following behind him, and she turned into a pillar of salt.
Don’t turn back to the food you use to eat,
the drinks you use to drink, the habits you use to have, the spending you use
to do, the things you use to say, or the lifestyle you use to live.
When God removes us by force we have two
options, follow him and live or turn back and perish.
When God begins to minister to our heart,
he moves us, and he moves people physically away from us. Do you ever wonder
why you suddenly “fall out” with a good friend or why your mate does something
so egregious you are forced to move on? Do you wonder why your employer
terminated your employment or contract? God knows we are hesitant to leave some
people, places, or things when he is directing us to move on. Sometimes he has
to force them out of our lives to save us.
He still gives us a choice, are we going to
perish as Lot’s wife perished or are we going to obey God and let him have the
wheel?
Don’t turn back! God removed that person,
place, or job from our lives for a reason. He is trying to save us. Jesus is
trying to deliver us. The Holy Spirit is trying to guide us.
Don’t turn back! God is changing our eating
habits and our lifestyles, for us to be in health and prosper even as our soul
prospers. God is kindling our anger and regulating our emotions, to take us to
a peaceful place in him.
Do not turn back to the familiar and perish
as Lot’s wife perished. Don’t go to the small place when God has vastness and
abundance waiting for you.
When God says move, move, your life depends
on it.
Put your name in the story. When God gives
you a one-way ticket don’t pay for round-trip. Leave your baggage and go!
Pray
Lord we love you. Lord we thank you. Lord you are gracious
and just. Forgive us for hesitating and resisting your will for our lives.
Thank you for seizing our hands and directing us to a place of safety. You are
most holy and righteous. Please remove our desire for our past and help us to
embrace our future. Help us to leave our baggage behind and fly in first class
on Jesus Airlines. We thank you for sending your angels of protection. Give us
the courage to follow you. In Jesus name. Amen
God Bless you!
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