RUSSELL SANDERS

4-21-2023

SPEAK BLESSINGS UNTO THE LORD

Psalm 103:2 says, “Bless (praise) the LORD, O my soul, and forget not all His benefits.” To bless the LORD is to both give Him praise and to speak of His attributes with that praise. Psalm 103:3-5 goes on to list seven specific benefits that come from blessing the Lord. Here are those benefits:

1. “Who forgiveth all thine iniquities.” Yes, all of them. But you also need to forgive yourself.

2. “Who healeth all thy diseases.” There is nothing He cannot heal.

3. “Who redeemeth thy life from destruction.” He came to redeem you from the destructive habits of alcohol, tobacco, or self-mutilation, or any other demonically driven behavior. Deliverance belongs to you.

4. “Who crowneth thy life with lovingkindness…”

5. “…and tender mercies.” A crown of His love and His never ending mercies that are extended to you despite your shortcomings.

6. “Who satisfieth thy mouth with good…” Good food satisfies the mouth, but your mouth is satisfied with good words and blessings to others that proceed out of it.

7. “So that thy youth is renewed like the eagle’s.” Youthful energy and good health can be yours throughout all your years.

Oh, how great are these benefits. But they are only yours if you claim them. Ask for them of the Father in the name of Jesus.

(See Helen’s message in today’s newsletter.) 

HELEN SANDERS

4-21-2023

YOU HAVE NOT BECAUSE YOU ASK NOT

Christianity is full of religious traditions that cannot be backed up by scripture. One of these is that unless you are perfect you cannot take holy communion. 

I have known several people that refused communion because they had sinned years earlier. They were bound by their “past” and it controlled their lives. Many live this way. They are tormented by demonic spirits over their past. I would ask this question to them, “Have you repented of your sin?” If the answer is yes, then that sin is washed away by God to never be thought of again by Him. You can ask God for your needs knowing that your heart is right with Him. 

Then there are those that refuse to ask God for “little things” because they think he is too busy with other’s problems that they think are more important than their “little thing.” God is all knowing, and for us to think he is too busy to help us with the little things is actually being prideful. We refuse to receive from God because we have “tied his hands” with our wrong thinking.

Then there are those in James 4 that Jesus’ brother taught about. Some do not receive from God because of this. It says in James 4:24, “Ye lust, and have not: ye kill, and desire to have, and cannot obtain: ye fight and war, yet ye have not, because ye ask not. Ye ask, and receive not, because ye ask amiss, that you may consume it upon your lusts. Ye adulterers and adulteresses, know ye not that the friendship of the world is enmity with God? Whosoever therefore will be a friend of the world is the enemy of God.” 

These scriptures show us that our wrong motive in asking will cause us not to receive. It shows us that we cannot be friends with the world and the world’s way and be right with God. A friend of the world goes after the things of the world. A friend of God seeks after things of God.”

We should always check our motives when we ask God for anything. Is it to build our kingdom or his. Is it going to glorify God, or glorify ourselves? It is never wrong to ask God for things whether it is finances, healing, knowledge, or anything else if it is done with the right motive. For instance, we wouldn’t ask God to give us money to be a drug dealer, or to open a liquor store. Those things are contrary to what God would have us do. 

God looks at our heart and knows us better than we know ourselves. Don’t limit God in your asking. Just make sure your motive in asking is the right kind of motive.