Sometimes, the world has success and failure mixed up!Paul wrote...What has
happened to me has really served to advance the Gospel. Philippians
1:12
There were may who thought he was a failure because of his
captivity, but Paul knew the truth. He was a "Prisoner for the
Lord". His situation, which seemed so adverse, was really a
blessing, because it put him in a position to go before kings and
make them listen to his testimony. Paul's captivity made a captive
audience out of them
Sometimes God puts us in positions and allows us to go through
things that may seem bad at the time, but they aren't; they will
actually propel us to a destination where we will
be able have a great effect on a certain audience---a group
that we would never have the opportunity to reach in any other
way.
Often, what seems to be failure can really be success. And,
sometimes what seems to be success can really be failure. We have to
look at our situation (and that of others) with God's eyes,, and that
is only possible as we stay very close to God, abiding in Jesus and
constantly renewing our minds, putting God's Word above our own
opinion.
Do you feel like a failure?Do you feel
YOUR CIRCUMSTANCES (like sickness, DISABILITY, POVERTY)
has stopped you from fulfilling God’s plans for you (or your own
plans for yourself?) oR, MAYBE YOU ARE IN PRISON AND YOU THINK
THAT YOU HAVE MISSED YOUR WINDOW OF OPPORTUNITY
AND CAN NO LONGER FULFILL YOUR DESTINY.
NOT TRUE!!Sickness,POVERTY,DISABILITY,EVEN INCARCERATION can’t stop you. Only YOU
can stop you.
We
have to do what we know to be right. We need to accept the
assignments that God gives us and reject the assignments that we
know are NOT from him, no matter how attractive they look. And we'll
need to pray and seek God to know the difference.
This can be hard. I've had problems with this. We think if it's
something that might lead someone to the Lord then we should
absolutely do it. And what if there are two or more opportunities
for the same time period?
IT
HAPPENED TO PAUL! HE WAS
STOPPED FROM DOING CERTAIN THINGS THAT SEEMED GOOD AND GOING CERTAIN PLACES
THAT SEEMED NEEDY!
Acts
16:6-7 6Now when they had gone throughout Phrygia and the region of
Galatia, and were forbidden of the Holy Ghost to preach the word in
Asia, 7After they were come to Mysia, they
assayed to go into Bithynia: but the Spirit suffered them not.
Why
would God stop anyone from going anywhere or doing something to
further the gospel? We think that if it's something
we believe will lead people to the Lord it has to be
good--right? Sometimes there are things that happen simultaneously
and they both seem good. How do we pick? How can we let one of
these opportunities go? It would be wrong--wouldn't it? Not
necessarily...and for many reasons. There are reasons why
God might stop us.
1.It’s
not the right time and people aren’t ready--and if we bombard them
with the Gospel when they're not ready, it might TURN THEM OFF and
actually prevent them from receiving at the RIGHT time.
2.There
is great danger there for now. Yes, God can protect you, but only IF
HE SENDS YOU! IF IT'S THE RIGHT TIME. If you don't have a definite
leading or word from God to go into the place of danger, you will be
on your own and suffer the consequences.
3.GOD
HAS ANOTHER PLACE FOR YOU TO BE! Another situation that is ripe and
ready for you to minister to. That's what happened to Paul.
REMEMBER--GOOD IS THE ENEMY OF BEST.
If Satan can't stop you by tempting you with bad things, then he
will throw a few good things your way as decoys, to stop your from
doing what is best--what is God's perfect will for your life.
Acts 16:9-109And
a vision appeared to Paul in the night; There stood a man of
Macedonia, and prayed him, saying, Come over into Macedonia, and
help us. 10And after he had seen the
vision, immediately we endeavoured to go into Macedonia, assuredly
gathering that the Lord had called us for to preach the gospel unto
them.
GOD HAD
A MISSION FOR PAUL IN MACEDONIA.
In
Philippi of Macedonia, Paul met Lydia, a key to what God was going
to do in that place. Had Paul not been prevented from going to the
other places, he would have missed his timing with Lydia. A great opportunity
would be lost. GOD’S TIMING IS THE KEY. Sometimes, IF THE DEVIL
CAN'T KEEP YOU FROM DOING SOMETHING FOR GOD AND HE CAN'T TEMPT YOU
WITH SOMETHING BAD, WHAT HE'LL DO IS THROW SOMETHING ELSE
THAT LOOKS "GOOD" IN YOUR WAY TO KEEP YOU FROM DOING WHAT IS
"BEST".
On the
other hand, people tried to stop Paul from going to Jerusalem
because they foresaw the things that would happen to him. But, he was ready to endure anything for the
sake of the gospel.
WHEN
JESUS REVEALED THE PLAN FOR HIM TO SUFFER, PETER TRIED TO STOP JESUS
FROM GOING THROUGH IT, BECAUSE HE JUST COULD NOT UNDERSTAND HOW
SUFFERING COULD BE A PART OF HIS DESTINY. AND YET, WE KNOW THAT
SUFFERING—DYING ON THE CROSS WAS HIS DESTINY AND WITHOUT IT,
WE WOULD HAVE NO DESTINY.
Matthew 16: 21-22 21From
that time forth Jesus began [clearly] to show His disciples that He
must go to Jerusalem and suffer many things at the hands of the
elders and the high priests and scribes, and be killed, and on the
third day be raised from death. 22Then Peter took
Him aside to speak to Him privately and began to reprove and charge
Him sharply, saying, God forbid, Lord! This must never happen to
You!
Before we're too
harsh in our judgment of Peter, remember, Jesus was their leader,
their Messiah---Peter
and the others
did not yet understand the death of the Cross---the plan that
was revealed in the scriptures--that suffering and death could be a
part of His destiny. It must have
seemed horrible when they were told that Jesus--their Messiah would,
not only suffer at the hands of religious leaders, but be be killed.
Peter entirely missed the part about Jesus being resurrected--missed
it even when it happened! Until it was brought to his remembrance.
So, Peter must have thought
he was doing a good thing by taking Jesus aside, and quietly
trying to reason with him, thinking he was doing a good thing,
saying "it can never happen to you!"
JESUS
TURNED AWAY FROM PETER AND RESPONDED TO THIS BY SAYING:
VS 23But Jesus turned away from
Peter and said to him, Get behind Me, Satan! You are in My way [an
offense and a hindrance and a snare to Me]; for you are minding what
partakes not of the nature and quality of God, but of men.
We look at things from a humanistic point of view and satan
uses this to rebuke the actual things that God would have us
to go through. I'm not saying that God makes us sick or gets us into
trouble, but He uses it.
IF WE LOOK AT THINGS FROM A HUMANISTIC POINT OF VIEW,
WE WILL GET THINGS UPSIDE DOWN, INSIDE OUT, AND TOTALLY WRONG.
SUCCESS WILL LOOK LIKE FAILURE AND FAILURE WILL LOOK LIKE SUCCESS.
If people were to look at YOUR LIFE, THEY MIGHT
SEE A TOTALLY FALSE VIEW OF WHAT IS HAPPENING. THEY MIGHT LOOK AT
SICKNESS, DISABILITY, JOBLESSNESS, PRISON, HOMELESSNESS AND
SAY—“THAT’S TOO BAD” THEY REALLY MISSED IT.
BUT THEY WOULD BE WRONG!
IF PEOPLE WERE TO LOOK AT my life,
superficially, they would proBably see a destiny short circuited by
illness. Perhaps they’d see wasted talent and many lost
opportunities. That’s not what God sees. That’s not what I see
(although I used to).
I would not be doing what i’m doing TODAY if i were able to
live a normal life.
I
would not be ministering through the internet. I would be out
teaching, singing and doing whatever I could do. I would have a
front and center ministry. I would not be doing websites or speaking
to you today.
If you
were “normal”—you would be out doing what other people are doing,
but you would not be ministering to people on the internet either.
THERE ARE A LOT OF PEOPLE OUT THERE DOING FRONT AND CENTER
MINISTRIES, BUT FEW ARE MINISTERING TO THE SICK, THE HOMELESS, THE
PRISONERS, YET THAT IS A GREAT PART OF OUR COMMISSION.
You are in a situation now to do the things that are not being
done, reaching out in love to these needy people.
That
doesn’t mean that this will be our situation forever. God has great
plans for our future.
Maybe you've done what you know to be right and things seemingly
"haven't worked out". You don't know what really is happening. One
day you will. A seeming failure can be your greatest success. The
reverse is also true. You might have done what you know to be wrong
and be thinking that you got away with it. Maybe you cheated and got
a reward for it and everything turned out okay. Not a chance. You
reap exactly what you sow. What appears to be good can turn to ashes
in a split second.
Maybe you feel like a failure, because you've tried so hard and
nothing seemed to happen, or at least it didn't happen like you
expected. You just keep on keeping on, my friend. What seems
like failure will turn to be success and you will see that your
time---your life---wasn't wasted.
TRUST IN GOD AND BE OBEDIENT. HE WILL LEAD YOU TO RIGHT WHERE YOU ARE
SUPPOSES TO BE—AND AT THE RIGHT TIME.
"Success is failure turned inside out, The silver tint of clouds of
doubt, So stick to the fight when hardest hit; It's when things seem
worst that you must not quit" (Anonymous).
That is so true—and that’s why we must not be weary in well doing,
because IN DUE SEASON, we will reap, if we don’t quit.
