Snakes and Birds

This was written April 7, 2010 and to my searching I have not repeated it with you, so I shall today.

IDOK Devotion for Wednesday, April 7, 2010
Snakes and Birds

I am posting a response I received on Monday from a Sister IDOK. I think you will find it encouraging. I am meditating on your questions from this morning. I want to encourage you not to give up, or get discouraged, but to press on in prayer and in person. We cannot choose eternal destiny for others, we can only present the Good News and offer the gift of Salvation. The response is up to each person. But we can continue to pray that the Holy Spirit will hover over all of the lost and the Jesus rejecters, revealing the truth to them all!

Jeremiah 32:26-28 (NIV) 26 Then the word of the LORD came to Jeremiah: 27 “I am the LORD, the God of all mankind. Is anything too hard for me?

I’ve also read the 3^rd chapter of Micah in a few translations and I’ve decided we need an army of Micah(s) in America.

(The Message Bible) 8But me—I’m filled with God’s power, filled with God’s Spirit of justice and strength, Ready to confront Jacob’s crime and Israel’s sin.

See what I mean? Whose names would you fill in for Jacob and Israel? And how ready are we to confront? How politically correct are we trying to be? And why? Would you agree there’s a fine line to walk? This Scripture has come to mind this week – do you think it fits?

Matthew 10:16 “Behold, I send you out as sheep in the midst of wolves. Therefore be wise as serpents and harmless as doves.

A little google-ing rendered this: serpents are prudent and discreet, cautious and avoid danger if at all possible. (http://bible.cc/matthew/10-16.htm )

Now, harmless as doves: To be harmless is to lack the capacity to injure or to be free from inflicting physical or mental damage. Other translations use “innocent” or “inoffensive” instead of “harmless” for this verse. Innocent means to be harmless in effect or intention. Inoffensive means to be giving no provocation. Doves aren’t referred to as the birds of peace for nothing. Their temperament is calm and their disposition is sweet. Doves do not bite. At most they might slap you with a wing if they are guarding the nest or do not want to be picked up. Doves really are harmless.

http://www.vcmagazine.org/article.aspx?volume=10&issue=9&article=harmless

This is what I think — it is not too hard for God to enable us by His Spirit and His Might to be wise as serpents and harmless as doves and when we are we can do some good in this world! We can even affect Washington. Do you believe this?

This is encouraging, ABBA, to be wise as serpents. You know I’m not crazy about snakes but I do respect them and I agree they are cautious and they don’t go looking for trouble. And doves, I can see that about them, calm and a sweet disposition. Oh, my goodness, DADDY, what that would do for us – to be calm and have a sweet disposition. How wonderful that would be if the Body of Christ was full of calm, sweet tempered, cautious, not looking for trouble but willing to stand and defend when Your Word is violated, people. That is good. This needs to be so in us. And Your Word has already told us You can do it in us and through us. Forgive us for being so distracted that we have not submitted to You for this transformation. I am presenting myself again for You to do this in me. To empty me of me and fill me with You and I am praying for a bunch of IDOKs and Readers to do the same. You are so good to us. So good to never give up on us, and, ABBA, there’s a young man on my mind, he has done some really stupid, stupid, stupid things and now he is trapped, held captive and You are the ONLY ONE who can free him and at this point to my knowledge he is not going to cooperate with You. But You said nothing is too hard for You, so I am asking You to get him to the place of cooperating with You. He has a family that loves him; I don’t want to see him self destruct and I pray he will not. And there are many, many other requests and You know better than I what they are and what is needed. So we are trusting You to do what is best for all listed here. I’m still concerned about American politics, America’s rampant sin practices, including greed and insatiable desires for power – the corruption is so bad that without Your help this Nation will be destroyed. Please have mercy. Please raise up an army of ‘Micahs’. I get so frustrated, so often – help me stop doing that and trust You and just simply wait upon You and watch You work in me and in my sisters and brothers. I’m still asking You to raise up people to pray churches into Houses of Prayer. And I want in on it. You know I could go on talking to You until I fall asleep but for this post let me close and ask You to give our IDOKs, visions, personal visions for each of them as to what You want them to do in regards to churches being Houses of Prayer and us being wise as serpents and harmless as doves in this corrupt land and I am asking because I am confident that this is what Jesus is praying for us too. Amen and amen.

Kathie