HAND-CUFF GOD? CRACKED POT? AM I FOREVER TRAPPED?
By Wade Martin Hughes, Sr. Kyfingers@aol.com
PLEASE SENT MY REGRETS?
Luke 14:18 (KJV) And they all with one consent began to make excuse. The first said unto him, I have bought a piece of ground, and I must needs go and see it: I pray thee have me excused.
Luke 14:18 (MSG) "Then they all began to beg off, one after another making excuses. The first said, 'I bought a piece of property and need to look it over. Send my regrets.'
ONLY GOD... IS CHANGE POSSIBLE?
One dark night a man got lost while hiking the paths in a great mountain chain. Seems like the more the man walked the more lost he became. Hour after hour he prayed to find his way. But the darkness and the fog surrounded him. he was about to give up, when he heard some wild animal getting closer and closer.
Fear overcame the man lost in the darkness and he started running as fast as he could. He fell down and listened closely and the wild animal, maybe a bear or a mountain lion was advancing on him. So he jumped up and started running again. He was exhausted and the next thing he knew he ran over a cliff. He started praying as he was falling. He begged God, save me? Please, save me? The man fell several hundred feet.
About that time the man thought he was going to splat, he accidently grabbed a branch and was hanging on for dear life. He yelled and yelled... PLEASE, SOMEONE COME AND SAVE ME... It was hopeless. No one was near enough to hear his screams. So he returned to praying to God. He knew he was going to die and only God COULD HELP HIM. So he cried and prayed the most earnest prayer of his life. He promised God if you save me I will serve you all the days of my life.
Finally after what seemed to be an eternity, the man heard a voice very clearly. The man said: WHO IS THIS? The answer came down to him as he was hanging on the branch. THIS IS GOD, MY SON. The man said: IF THIS IS REALLY GOD, SAVE ME AND GET ME DOWN FROM HERE.
Then God answered him: DO YOU TRUST ME? IF YOU REALLY TRUST ME, JUST LET GO OF THE BRANCH. The man said: GOD, if you don't mind, could I have a second opinion. God said sure: I AM TELLING YOU, TRUST ME AND LET GO OF THE BRANCH.
The man said: I AM SO SORRY GOD, BUT I CAN'T LET GO, I WILL FALL TO MY DEATH. So for hours the man hung on... to the branch. His hands were killing him. His arms were black and blue. He would pull himself up and hang a leg over the branch. Between the fog and the darkness the man could not see. Every now and then the man would see what time it was. If he could just hang on until the sun came up, just maybe someone would see him and save him.
Several times God would speak real clearly, JUST LET GO OF THE BRANCH, I WILL TAKE CARE OF YOU. The man would answer, I am sorry God, but I do not want to die. The darkness started fading and the sun came up and melted away the fog, the man could see more and more. Finally late in the morning the fog was go and the man could see. HE WAS 4 1/2 FEET FROM THE BOTTOM OF THE CANYON. HE LET GO OF THE BRANCH AND SLIPPED HIS FEET BACK ON THE GROUND.
The man was angry at God and said: WHY DID YOU MAKE ME HANG ON ALL NIGHT LONG? God replied to the man: DID I SAY TRUST ME AND LET GO OF THE BRANCH?
This little story illustrates for us both the love of God and His Divine provisions. ONLY GOD!
TWO QUESTION WE NEED TO ADDRESS?
1.) CAN GOD? vs. 2.) GOD CAN!
CAN WE NOT SEE WE HAND-CUFF GOD? STUPIDITY CAN LIMIT THE POSSIBLITIES THAT GOD HAS PLANNED FOR US... GOD HEAR ME: ONLY ONE MORE TIME...
Judges 16:28 And Samson called unto the LORD, and said, O Lord GOD, remember me, I pray thee, and strengthen me, I pray thee, only this once, O God, that I may be at once avenged of the Philistines for my two eyes.
Samson could have asked God for many miracles? Can God? or God can!
I BELIEVE IN ETERNITY SAMSON WILL SEE THE POTENTIAL FOR GOD'S WORK AND HOW HE REFUSED TO LET GO OOF THE BRANCH AND TRUST GOD... BE HONEST, ARE YOUR WORDS, ATTITUDES AND THOUGHT PATTERNS LIMITING THE MOVE OF GOD IN YOUR DAILY LIFE?
CAN GOD? vs GOD CAN! God's precious word assures us that God desires to move and open up miracles for us. WE HAVE PLACED LIMITATIONS AND ALLOW CIRCUMSTANCES TO DEFINE OR RE-DEFINE OUR PRAYER REQUEST?
Please God I am hanging by a thread. My family is doomed...
LISTEN TO THE WORDS: THERE IS NOT A CHANCE IN HELL FOR US TO MAKE IT...
YOUR RIGHT THERE IS NOT A CHANCE IN HELL --- BUT MY FRIEND THERE IS A CHANCE IN HEAVEN. GOD LOVES YOU, HE HAS A DESIGN TO NOT SHOW HOW STRONG YOU ARE---
GOD DESIRES TO SHOW THE WORLD HOW STRONG HE IS...
2 Chronicles 16:9 For the eyes of the LORD run to and fro throughout the whole earth, to shew himself strong in the behalf of them whose heart is perfect toward him. Herein thou hast done foolishly: therefore from henceforth thou shalt have wars.
WANT TO PLAY THE BLAME GAME?
WE TEND TO ALLOW PROBLEMS IN OUR FAMILY TREE TO LIMIT GOD'S PLAN...
WANT TO TALK DYSFUNCTIONAL AND LIMITING THE MOVE OF GOD...
YOU HAVE WRONGED ME... AND I HATE YOU!
Genesis 27:41 And Esau hated Jacob because of the blessing wherewith his father blessed him: and Esau said in his heart, The days of mourning for my father are at hand; then will I slay my brother Jacob.
Esau makes a promise AS HATRED RULES THIS FAMILY...
Esau blamed his brother JACOB for all his problems?
ESAU DID YOU FORGET WILLFULLY AND VOLUNTARILY SELLING YOUR BLESSING?
CAN GOD? vs GOD CAN...
In one night, WITH ONE VISITATION FROM GOD'S EYES GOING TO AND FRO...
CAN GOD? vs GOD CAN...
IT COST A LIMP THE REST OF HIS LIFE...
JACOB COULD NO WIN THE FIGHT, BUT LET ME TELL YOU SOMETHING... GOD CAN.
GOD FOREVER CHANGE A SUB-PLANTER, A CHEATER INTO A PRINCE WITH POWER FROM GOD...
Genesis 32:26 And he said, Let me go, for the day breaketh. And he said, I will not let thee go, except thou bless me. 27 And he said unto him, What is thy name? And he said, Jacob. 28 And he said, Thy name shall be called no more Jacob, but Israel: for as a prince hast thou power with God and with men, and hast prevailed. ASK JACOB: CAN GOD? ASK ISRAEL: GOD CAN!
ASK MOSES...
MOSES ALLOWED HIS PAST TO DICTATE HIS FUTURE...
MOSES HAD AN APB OUT ON HIS LIFE...
MOSES TRIED TO DO THE WORK OF GOD IN THE FLESH
IN ANGER MOSES KILLED AN EGYPTIAN...
Moses could not understand his own people not understanding he was trying to help them...
God calls Moses... CAN GOD? Well, I am handicapped?
Exodus 4:10 And Moses said unto the LORD, O my Lord, I am not eloquent, neither heretofore, nor since thou hast spoken unto thy servant: but I am slow of speech, and of a slow tongue.
GOD WAS NOT CAUGHT BY SURPRISE... DO YOU THINK GOD KNEW OF MOSES' SPEECH IMPEDIMENT? MOSES, WHO MADE YOUR MOUTH?
Exodus 4:11 And the LORD said unto him, Who hath made man's mouth? or who maketh the dumb, or deaf, or the seeing, or the blind? have not I the LORD?
Moses got up one morning, put his sandals on his feet. He got his brown bag lunch and left the house.
When Moses returned home that evening the question was not CAN GOD? The answer was GOD CAN...
One encounter with God and a bush would forever change this man?
Exodus 3:4 And when the LORD saw that he turned aside to see, God called unto him out of the midst of the bush, and said, Moses, Moses. And he said, Here am I.
Would we be too busy to see the burning bush? WILL WE SAY: GOD CAN? or GOD CAN?
GOD CHANGED A MAN RUNNING FROM THE LAW TO BECOME A FRIEND OF GOD...
ARE YOU TIRED OF MAKING AN OFFERING OF EXCUSES?
WHAT MIGHT HAPPEN IF WE TRUSTED GOD ENOUGH TO LET GO OF THE BRANCH IN THE DARKNESS? IT TOOK NO FAITH WHATSOEVER TO LET GO OF THE BRANCH AFTER THE FOG WAS GONE? AND THE LIGHT REVEALED THE GROUND JUST BELOW THE FEET?
Psalm 68:1 Let God arise, let his enemies be scattered: let them also that hate him flee before him.
WHAT ABOUT CRACKED POTS?
I once read a lesson about to clay pots that was tied on either end of a long pole. The women of the village would walk to the well and fill the pots with water and carry the vessels back to the village. Over time one of the clay vessels developed a little crack and would slowly leak some water as the lady walked down the path.
The other pot was talking and said, I AM BETTER THAN YOU! JUST LOOK, YOU ARE A CRACKED POT, YOU SLOWLY LEAK OUT. The cracked pot felt so bad, and felt like it was letting the family down because of small crack. One day the cracked pot was remembering it's failure and was so sad.
One day the owner felt the saddest of the cracked pot. The lady stopped and rested. The lady said: CRACKED POT, I LOVE YOU. YOU ARE SO DEAR TO ME? The cracked pot thought, WHY DO YOU LOVE ME?
The lady looked at the cracked pot and said: LOOK AT THE PATH WE WALK SEVERAL TIMES A DAY... LOOK ON YOUR SIDE OF THE PATH? The cracked pot looked and saw that on the side that it was carried there were beautiful flowers all along the way. See the cracked pot leaked just enough water along the path to allow beautiful wild flowers to grow... all the way home. See if the cracked pot had been perfect there would have been no flowers growing.
Jeremiah 18:4 And the vessel that he made of clay was marred in the hand of the potter: so he made it again another vessel, as seemed good to the potter to make it.
SURE, OUR ENEMY WANTS US TO FOCUS ON OUR IMPERFECTIONS, FAILURES AND WEAKNESSES? Our enemy accuses us before the Father...
After Calvary: WHO CAN ACCUSE US? WHO CAN CONDEMN US?
JESUS TAKES THE FIERY DARTS OF THE ENEMY--- JESUS HAS EMPTIED OUR ACCUSER'S QUIVER AND QUENCHED EVERY FIERY DART--- HE HAS BROKEN THE SHARP ARROW HEAD
OFF FROM HELL'S WEAPONS.
Isaiah 54:17 No weapon that is formed against thee shall prosper; and every tongue that shall rise against thee in judgment thou shalt condemn. This is the heritage of the servants of the LORD, and their righteousness is of me, saith the LORD.
JESUS BECAME OUR SURETY! OUR SUBSTITUTE...
Isaiah 55:1 Ho, every one that thirsteth, come ye to the waters, and he that hath no money; come ye, buy, and eat; yea, come, buy wine and milk without money and without price.
Conclusion: My friend, let us not hand-cuff the plan of God. God arise, ONLY GOD CAN BRING US VICTORY AND DEFEAT THE ENEMY. CAN GOD? GOD CAN!
His servant, Wade Martin Hughes, Sr. Kyfingers@aol.com
