Committing Our Future Into His Hands – Last Day 2014 Devotional

“Father, into thy hands I commend my spirit”: and having said thus, he gave up the ghost” 
Luke 23:46

My friends and brethren,

A lesson that we can learn from Jesus on the cross, appropriate for this time of the year ending is this: 
Commend yourself to the loving hands of your Father!

(I have, in addition, embedded the recent Rick Joyner’s admonition into it, as well as the December 10 instructional dream)

We can apply this lesson to ourselves in at least two ways.

FIRST, right here and now we can recognize and trust that, for his own good purposes, he is either bringing or allowing every event into our lives — “for of him, and through him, and to him, are all things” (Romans 11:36). Therefore we can glory even in tribulation, knowing that tribulation works patience, and patience experience, and experience hope, so that the love of God is shed abroad in our hearts by the Holy Ghost which is given to us (Romans 5:3-5).

SECOND, we can commend ourselves to our loving Father’s hands for the future, to carry us from this world to the next. There is no door in our lives so mysterious, troubling, or sorrowful as the door of Death. And yet, as believers, we can rest in our Father’s certain and unwavering promise that death is — as it was for his Son Jesus — but the door that leads us to his lap.

Do you have worries, fears, sorrows, pains, or discouragements? Commend yourself to the loving hands of your Father and know that he will never let you go.

As the year closes today, and a new one is poised to usher us into a blessed, glorious, healthier, prosperous and victorious year in the joy of our God, let us take time to reflect again, in order to move forward.

This is the time of year when many are making resolutions for the coming year. Why not make this one? May this be the year in which we seek the Lord in every way we can, seek to know our calling and purpose, and do what we need to do to make our calling and election sure.

In II Corinthians 13:5, the apostle exhorts believers to: “Examine yourselves as to whether you  in the faith. Test yourselves!” (NKJV) There are a number of ways we should periodically test or evaluate ourselves. The New Year is a good time for this. In light of what we have been covering, where would you categorize your relationship with the Lord at this time?

CONVERT
Are you still just a convert? There is nothing wrong with this when we are newly converted, but if we have stayed there for long, we may have gotten on the path of life, but we are not walking it. The river of life is flowing, going somewhere, and so are the lives of all who are in the river.

DISCIPLE
Are we a disciple? Do we wake up each day thinking of our Master, how we can learn from Him, learn about Him, become more like Him, and do His works? Are we living the life of a disciple as He defined it in the verses we covered these last two weeks?

SERVANT
Have we graduated from this to become a servant of the Lord, doing all things for Him and for the sake of His gospel? Do we count everything that we have as the Lord’s, holding back nothing as our own, even our time? Have we learned to do everything as unto Him, even the drudgery, doing it cheerfully as an offering unto Him?

FRIEND
Recently I was told that now I am a friend, not just a servant. As He began showing me what being a friend entailed, I felt I was almost starting all over again in my relationship with Him, it was so different. It was much better, but very different. Still I can only claim to be a beginner at this, a novice. For that reason, I will not elaborate on what this means until I understand it better and am doing it better. However, this is the main goal of my life right now, and it is the most exciting thing I’ve ever done.

SON
There is another level—sonship. I think this is available for those who become true and faithful friends of God, but it is a much higher calling. It is a calling so high that even the Apostle Paul near the end of his life did not think he had yet attained it (see Philippians 3). At one time in my life, I thought I knew a lot about this, and I was certainly going to be one. I was young and presumptuous. All I know for sure right now is that it is the highest calling in all of creation, and that there will be a manifestation of this at the end of this age, as we are told in Romans. Of course, I would like to attain to it, but I am overwhelmed right now with just trying to be a friend of God.

The point is, if we do a true evaluation of where we are, first let us determine that we are going to be the best we can be at this level, and seek to go to the next one. Most of what needs to be done on any of these levels is up to us. Many are called, but few are chosen—few go on to “make your call and election sure” (see II Peter 1:10). The work must be of the Holy Spirit, and only the Spirit can beget that which is spirit. However, the Holy Spirit is the Helper, not the “doer.” He won’t do His part until we do ours.

Our part is to seek so as to find, to knock until the doors are opened, ask until we receive, and take up our crosses each day to follow Him. That means sacrificing things we may want to do for things we need to do. It means not loving our own lives even unto death, so the life of Christ can be manifest in us. In the end, it will pay off many times over, because those who seek to save their lives will lose them, but those who lose their lives for His sake will find them. That life we find by losing our own lives, or selfishness, will be more abundant than we could ever make happen for ourselves.

The December 10 The Dream & The Instruction:
 Instructions in my dream

1. I was to clean up some of my already worn clothings. Finally, some ‘sisters’ were able to help me to get someone to get them washed for N450.00. I saw someone like Ps Bakare looking on with some interest. The implication of the amount N450, I do not have a clue yet. It may not mean anything sha.

2. Bro Longinus (a son now in Canada. The one that had the dream of the high rise office building in June) suddenly came around, it looked like he came via the US instead of Canada. We (certain group of brethren and I) were to make some prayers, supplications. Bro Dele Iyoha (Phoenix) gave out his wrist watch, through Longinus, for a limited time for us to use. He sent warning that it was going to cost us some money for the time we keep it for use. I was wondering if it was wise for us to have retained the watch and be paying accumulating costs. Isn’t it possible to use any other watch? However, the watch was quite of peculiar design, not rotary in facial setup. I remember that there was something on the face of the watch impressing on the mind of the wearer about THE FRUIT OF THE SPIRIT! 
Ref: Galatians 5: 22, 23 “But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, meekness, self-control; against such there is no law”

3. Then we were asked to go read the book of James in order to accomplish the task.
Which task? I can’t clearly remember but was very important!

Points that I think are clear to be given attention:
1. Walk clean and keep garments washed promptly.
2. Pay attention to being fruitful. Always checklist yourself with the virtues of LOVE.
The Fruit is Love; its character is manifest by growing in Joy, Peace, Goodness, Gentleness, Longsuffering, Faithfulness, Meekness and Temperance (self control).
3. Do a study on the Book of James to access new levels of obedience walk with God.

I pray that 2015 will be your best year yet, and that the glory of the Lord will be manifest to you and to all who you love.

The Liteman T/Rick Joyner