ESTHER’S WARRIORS MINISTRY
I pray this finds you well and prospering! So many issues are surfacing and swirling around as we approach the Presidential election. In Esther’s Warriors we commit to pray for our Nation. In this season we pray for wisdom and discernment for all who will be casting their vote in November. Freedom as we know it and our very history of democracy lie in the balance. We are in a very precarious place tipping toward socialism more and more. Our first responsibility is to pray. Following that we must be well informed and study the issues. Now is not the time to haphazardly vote the party of our fathers. This is the season to carefully look at the facts and exercise due diligence in making your choice. Our future as a Nation as we have known it since its inception is at stake.
Hypocrites in Heart
In reading Job this week I came across a phrase in Job 36:13 that really struck a chord. “But the hypocrites in heart store up wrath….” As we know heart issues are critical to our spiritual walk. It is always a heart issue. What does it mean to be a “hypocrite in heart?” To walk in hypocrisy is to be double-minded, insincere, not to be trusted. A hypocrite says one thing but does another. Likewise, he/she thinks one thing but says another.
We know that to be double-minded is to be unstable in all our ways (James 1:8). If we are seeking peace in our life we need to keep a close watch on our heart. Being nice to someone’s face yet talking about them behind their back is being a hypocrite as well as a gossip. God honors neither of these. It is hypocrisy to go to church to seek the Lord yet talk about others in our church or, worse yet, those who worship elsewhere. God does not honor this either.
Consider Your Choices
As we grow spiritually we will be more and more convicted if we try to remain “hypocrites in heart.” If we follow the Holy Spirit’s lead we will live as cited in James 4:8, “Draw near to God and He will draw near to you. Cleanse your hands, you sinners; and purify your hearts, you double-minded.” As we draw closer to God we will become more focused on Him and His ways and begin to cleanse our hearts. If instead we choose to remain hypocritical we will continue to “store up wrath” in our lives. We will live in a constant state of emotional turmoil. The choice is ours to make and live out in our life.
Use Wisdom as You Build
Your House
Jesus tells us in Matthew 7:24, “Therefore whoever hears these sayings of Mine, and does them, I will liken him to a wise man who built his house on the rock: and the rain descended, the floods came, and the winds blew
and beat on that house; and it did not fall, for it was founded on the rock.” If we choose to live our lives on the solid rock of God’s Word we will weather the storms of life with stability and strength. Choosing to be a “hypocrite in heart” is contrary to Kingdom living and will therefore “store up wrath” in one’s heart and discord throughout one’s life. A tool I like to use when slipping out of Kingdom walk is to ask myself if I would be comfortable sharing whatever is taking place with Jesus? Taking it one step further, how would I justify my thought/action face to face with Him on judgment day? Either one of these is enough to divert me right back to the Kingdom road.
Take some time this week to really pray about and think about any area in your heart that may hold hypocrisy. Ask the Holy Spirit to help you permanently carve out that portion. To walk in hypocrisy breeds every evil work in your life. Choose to walk in Kingdom principles. Choose to walk with a pure heart. Choose to walk in peace and live the abundant life Jesus died to give you.
‘Pray the States’
Join us this week as we ‘pray the states’ toward the 2012 Presidential election. We are praying for each state in the order of admission to the Union. Please cover Michigan admitted to the Union January 26, 1837, in prayer. Pray for wisdom and discernment for the political leaders, pastors and church leaders, the people residing in Michigan and for all in our Nation. Each state is important in forming our United States of America. We commit to pray for a different state each week so we not only provide prayer cover but also to make us aware that our country is bigger than the space we personally occupy in it. These are our United States. Let us pray that we will arise united ‘for such a time as this!’
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A Prayer Request and
Personal Blessing
Thank you for your continued faithfulness to pray. Please keep our servicemen and women and their families in prayer for salvation and safety. They are our frontline on the battlefield, let us be their frontline in the spirit. Also, let us cover all who have come home wounded that they and their families will receive the kindness, help and support they need to go forward in their lives. God bless all our military personnel and their families. May God richly bless the United States of America and keep her safe.
As we continue to see the devastation of natural disasters across our land from the wildfires in the West to the severe conditions in the East, let us be diligent to pray for all affected by these calamities. Millions are without power in extreme heat conditions, homes have been destroyed and many have lost their lives. Prayerfully consider what you may be able to do to help whether through donation of time or money. This is our country and we all need to pull together for the safety and restoration of all.
May God richly bless you this week. Choose to keep your heart free from hypocrisy. Choose to live in the peace and grace of the Lord. Amen and amen!