I have been thinking about the bully. The one who takes. They take what they can't or won't go through right channels to get.
"For behold, I am raising up the Chaldeans, that bitter and hasty nation, who march through the breadth of the earth, to seize dwellings not their own. They are dreaded and fearsome; their justice and dignity go forth from themselves. Their horses are swifter than leopards, more fierce than the evening wolves; their horsemen press proudly on. Their horsemen come from afar; they fly like an eagle swift to devour. They all come for violence, all their faces forward. They gather captives like sand. At kings they scoff, and at rulers they laugh. They laugh at every fortress, for they pile up earth and take it. Then they sweep by like the wind and go on, guilty men, whose own might is their god!" Habakkuk 1:6-11 ESV
Evening wolves are hungry wolves who have not eaten yet.
It is interesting. Jesus has something to give not to gain.
"Passing alongside the Sea of Galilee, he saw Simon and Andrew the brother of Simon casting a net into the sea, for they were fishermen. And Jesus said to them, 'Follow me, and I will make you become fishers of men.' And immediately they left their nets and followed him. And going on a little farther, he saw James the son of Zebedee and John his brother, who were in their boat mending the nets. And immediately he called them, and they left their father Zebedee in the boat with the hired servants and followed him. And they went into Capernaum, and immediately on the Sabbath he entered the synagogue and was teaching. And they were astonished at his teaching, for he taught them as one who had authority, and not as the scribes. And immediately there was in their synagogue a man with an unclean spirit. And he cried out, 'What have you to do with us, Jesus of Nazareth? Have you come to destroy us? I know who you are--the Holy One of God.' But Jesus rebuked him, saying, 'Be silent, and come out of him!' " Mark 1:16-25 ESV
Come follow and Jesus will make you into something. He will give to you. Notice the demons were worried about what Jesus would do. He had power. If they had His power they would destroy and they feared that Jesus was like them. He wasn't and isn't.
He will not tell you that you are lacking and make you hungry to get more. He will declare that it is finished and make it so that you can rest in His supply. A life of freedom.
"As when a hungry man dreams, and behold, he is eating and awakes with his hunger not satisfied, or as when a thirsty man dreams, and behold, he is drinking and awakes faint, with his thirst not quenched, so shall the multitude of all the nations be that fight against Mount Zion." Isaiah 29:8 ESV
" 'Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they shall be satisfied. 'Blessed are the merciful, for they shall receive mercy. 'Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God. ... 'You are the salt of the earth, but if salt has lost its taste, how shall its saltiness be restored? It is no longer good for anything except to be thrown out and trampled under people's feet. 'You are the light of the world. A city set on a hill cannot be hidden. Nor do people light a lamp and put it under a basket, but on a stand, and it gives light to all in the house. In the same way, let your light shine before others, so that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father who is in heaven.' " Matthew 5:6-8, 13-16 ESV
Righteousness comes after meeting the Savior. Mercy and purity are part of the new nature. These are all things you only have if they are given to you. They can not be taken. God gives us these things in His Son. We want more of what we have and not what we can not get.
A blessed person does not seek a blessing. They have a blessing already.
The World, the flesh and the Devil are all bullies. They are all a product of disconnection from the divine.
"And we know that for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to his purpose. For those whom he foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the image of his Son, in order that he might be the firstborn among many brothers. And those whom he predestined he also called, and those whom he called he also justified, and those whom he justified he also glorified. What then shall we say to these things? If God is for us, who can be against us? He who did not spare his own Son but gave him up for us all, how will he not also with him graciously give us all things?" - Romans 8:28-32 ESV
The voice I need to listen to is the one that tells me what God has done. Then faith is produced in me and what is and always will be can be manifested in and through me. I hunger for what I already have... right standing.
A young girl or boy looking for acceptance makes for easy prey. If a child is loved and accepted they have a better chance in this world. If they know that they are covered by God's own blood nothing can master them for they have already been mastered by the gracious King.
People see the power of acceptance and try to harness it but the basis of acceptance is not a person's worth alone. Christ is the reason God accepts us. Each soul is worth more than all we see and hear and yet souls are lost everyday. Christ's blood is the payment for our acceptance. Superficial acceptance produces a contradiction in the soul that lacks power and produces prey.
Christ will never drive us. Grace will give us what he has done and the voice that tells of Christ's glory is a voice that we can find rest and healing in. The new voice replaces the old just as love casts out fear.
Grace worked in and out of a person produces a portion that transcends the personality. I thank God for the different people in my life who had a portion that fed me grace. The styles have been different because each person is different. The portions have been grace portions.
"As the Father has loved me, so have I loved you. Abide in my love." John 15:9 ESV
God use us today. As we rest in You and receive from You our lives can have an overflow that blesses those around us. Let our words be words of grace today.
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