This past week, a friend sent me a text. It said ‘God told me to send you a scripture, here it is.’I read the scripture reference she had sent, and one word in the scripture captured me immediately.
The scripture is from Job 22:28, in the Amplified Bible, it says; “You shall decide and decree a thing, and it shall be established for you and the light of God’s favor shall shine upon your ways.”
Although I have read this scripture many times and taught on it several times, I don’t remember ever reading it in the Amplified Bible.
The word ‘decide’ jumped out at me. I knew God was speaking directly to me with that scripture and I knew he was drawing a line in the sand for me.
As I shared earlier, I have faced a few difficult challenges since the new year began. It has been hard, to say the least. I have been standing against this war in my mind lately and it has grown tiresome. I knew God was telling me this is D-day – the day to decide what you are going to REALLY believe. Decide.
To decide means; to solve or conclude (a question, controversy, or struggle) by giving victory to one side. To reach a conclusion or form a judgment or opinion about (something) by reasoning or consideration. Come or bring to a resolution in the mind as a result of consideration.
In other words, there are times in our life when we must settle it once and for all – what and whom we will believe.
The Bible says this in several different ways, here are a couple. In Joshua 24:15, it says “choose you this day, whom you will serve, as for me and my house, we will serve the Lord.”
Deuteronomy 30:19 says; “this day I call the heavens and the earth as witnesses against you that I have set before you life and death, blessings and curses. Now choose life, so that you and your children may live.”
However you say it, the truth remains, there comes a time when you must decide whose side you are going to be on. The times of sitting on the fence has passed – either you go fully God’s way or you are not going God’s way at all.
I am reminded of a scene in the movie War Room. The elderly lady asked the woman how her prayer life was, was it hot or cold. She replied, ‘it’s neither hot nor cold, maybe warm, like most people.’ The older lady served her a lukewarm cup of coffee, which of course she couldn’t drink. And she got the point. God doesn’t want lukewarm. He wants hot, red-hot on fire for him, but if he can’t have hot, he doesn’t want cold, and he has something to say about that.
“So, because you are lukewarm—neither hot nor cold—I am about to spit you out of my mouth.” Revelation 3:16
Are you fully sold out to God? Have you made your decision to follow him without reservation? Is that decision resolute, have you made the final conclusion? Many of us think we have and say we have but the truth is when adversity comes, we often decide what the word says is not strong enough and we attempt to take care of things ourselves or go another direction.
We ‘try’ the word, or think we do but the fact is that the word is trying us. Many try tithing and giving but when they don’t see immediate results they often stop. When they stop, they completely cut off their source of supply, they cut off the covenant blessings that belong to tithers and givers.
Many try the word ‘by his stripes I was healed.’ Yet when their body says something different, they lay down that word and try something else.
I remember years ago I was praying to God and it sounded something like this; God, I wanna be someone who pleases you. I wanna lay hands on the sick and see them recover. I wanna walk in the blessings of God. I wanna take your word to the nations.
In the midst of this, what I thought was an awesome prayer, God said to me ‘are you always gonna be a wanna be?’ It stopped me in my tracks. You see, either I am with him or I’m not, and if I am with him, all these things already are true in my life. I just have to decide to walk in them.
James 1:6-7 says; “but let him ask in faith, with no doubting, for he who doubts is like a wave of the sea driven and tossed by the wind. For let not that man suppose that he will receive anything from the Lord;”
Friends, it is time to decide if you are really with him or not. To really be with him means you commit to stand on his word no matter what, believe him no matter what and to trust him completely with your heart, your family, your marriage, your business, your money and your will. When you really decide THEN you will declare and those words will have enough power to be established. Why? Because whatever you ask in prayer….fully believing…it shall be done for nothing shall be impossible to you.
It’s a promise – one you can’t count on – simply decide.
In closing, I am reminded of the words of an old song…I have decided to follow Jesus, I have decided to follow Jesus, no turning back, no turning back. May this be our declaration today.
