Carl McKever's Blog: Author's Blog - Posts Tagged "inspiration"
Week #1: You Can Be Well
Are you well? Do you want to feel well? Did you know you can be well and never ache again? Today, I am reminded of the story of a man who suffered an infirmity for 38 long years. He was crippled and couldn’t walk. Every year, around a certain time, an angel would come down and stir the waters of the pool of Bethesda. There was nothing spectacular about the pool, except the power the water possessed once it was stirred by the angel. Year after year, he tried to get to the edge of the pool. I’m not sure if there were crutches back then or even a walker, but I can imagine the struggle getting there.
Coming to the pool of Bethesda was similar to Christians going to a gospel concert for their favorite music band. This event was popular! The people of the town knew about it! They couldn’t wait and just as people line up to audition for American Idol, people began lining up in anticipation of the angel stirring the water in the pool. No one had sympathy or a bit of compassion to help the man into the pool and after so many years, his soul also became crippled. He lost faith, he lost courage, and he lost determination in reaching the edge of the pool.
Life throws us many ups and downs and at times, we too can feel crippled in our spirit man. We can lose courage or hope for a brother or sister we’ve been praying for. We can damper our faith, a little bit, when it comes to a healing or deliverance we’ve prayed for year and year. I can imagine just how this man felt. The story gets better though. Jesus shows up on the scene! Has Jesus showed up in your situation yet?
When Jesus shows up, He does something very unique. He asks him one question – “do you really want to be made well?” Sounds a bit sarcastic, right? It wasn’t. Jesus knew of the man’s infirmity before He showed up on the scene and the answer the man needed was standing in front of him. It’s important to know Jesus already knows your circumstance and when He arrives, He is coming with the answer to your problem. He is the answer! Just like this man, we can complain and give God all kinds of excuses to why we aren’t healed or delivered. He’s omniscient and knows everything about us; even the strands of hair in our heads.
Today, I challenge us to take up our beds and walk in victory! We do not have to live in defeat, worry, frustration, and pain. Jesus is the answer! Jesus has arrived and He’s saying to you and me, “do you really want to be well?”
Coming to the pool of Bethesda was similar to Christians going to a gospel concert for their favorite music band. This event was popular! The people of the town knew about it! They couldn’t wait and just as people line up to audition for American Idol, people began lining up in anticipation of the angel stirring the water in the pool. No one had sympathy or a bit of compassion to help the man into the pool and after so many years, his soul also became crippled. He lost faith, he lost courage, and he lost determination in reaching the edge of the pool.
Life throws us many ups and downs and at times, we too can feel crippled in our spirit man. We can lose courage or hope for a brother or sister we’ve been praying for. We can damper our faith, a little bit, when it comes to a healing or deliverance we’ve prayed for year and year. I can imagine just how this man felt. The story gets better though. Jesus shows up on the scene! Has Jesus showed up in your situation yet?
When Jesus shows up, He does something very unique. He asks him one question – “do you really want to be made well?” Sounds a bit sarcastic, right? It wasn’t. Jesus knew of the man’s infirmity before He showed up on the scene and the answer the man needed was standing in front of him. It’s important to know Jesus already knows your circumstance and when He arrives, He is coming with the answer to your problem. He is the answer! Just like this man, we can complain and give God all kinds of excuses to why we aren’t healed or delivered. He’s omniscient and knows everything about us; even the strands of hair in our heads.
Today, I challenge us to take up our beds and walk in victory! We do not have to live in defeat, worry, frustration, and pain. Jesus is the answer! Jesus has arrived and He’s saying to you and me, “do you really want to be well?”
Week #2: Attention!
I remember being a Staff Sergeant for JROTC my junior year in high school. Whenever my captain or lieutenant needed the attention of our platoon, he would shout “attention”. Everyone in their squad knew to stop what they were doing and listen completely to him. We needed his instruction. Thankfully, we were not preparing for battle, but we needed instruction on how to protect our high school, represent them, and how to march properly during ceremonial parades in the city.
Every day, I thank God for the opportunity of being a Christian writer and writing blog posts to uplift and encourage others. This week, the word “attention” stayed on my mind. Just like my JROTC experience, God wants to be the captain and lieutenant of our lives. He wants to instruct us. I love Matthew 6:33 because it’s a great reminder to seek God’s attention first and everything else would be added in our daily lives.
Inside each of us is a need for attention. We want to feel valued and loved. God values us and loves us. He values us because He created us in His image and likeness. He loves us because He sent His Son, Jesus, to die on the cross for our sins. Matthew 5:6 tells us those who are happy, fulfilled, and satisfied are those who hunger and thirst after righteousness. Every day, I pray we make it our goal to live right and treat others rightly.
The world offers us many opportunities to be recognized and stand out above others. Sometimes, we can tear others down in order to lift ourselves up. As I thought about the word “attention”, I thought about how God repeatedly says “attend unto my words” to the early Biblical prophets. Time after time again, God used His prophets to minister and speak to the people of Israel. They kept straying away and every time they took their focus and “attention” off of God and placed it on idols, they found themselves in trouble and despair.
Many times we find ourselves in the midst of many troubles. The good thing is love knows no borders. The Lord told Hosea to go marry a promiscuous wife named Gomer. When I read the chapters of this book, I pondered why the Lord would tell Hosea to do that. God had a purpose and a plan and this was within His will. He wanted to show the people of Israel their love towards Him and the longevity of His love towards His people. No matter how many times Gomer ran around and cheated on her husband, Hosea went and rescued her. Imagine God rescuing us from our troubles with His love.
This week, I pray you and I take time to give God our full attention. He wants to instruct us and love on us. I strongly believe He wants to pour a deep revelation of His Word upon His children. May we silence our everyday distractions and focus on Him. Spend time in His presence. Let Him show you things to come and mysteries you could never imagine or dream of. Love you.
Every day, I thank God for the opportunity of being a Christian writer and writing blog posts to uplift and encourage others. This week, the word “attention” stayed on my mind. Just like my JROTC experience, God wants to be the captain and lieutenant of our lives. He wants to instruct us. I love Matthew 6:33 because it’s a great reminder to seek God’s attention first and everything else would be added in our daily lives.
Inside each of us is a need for attention. We want to feel valued and loved. God values us and loves us. He values us because He created us in His image and likeness. He loves us because He sent His Son, Jesus, to die on the cross for our sins. Matthew 5:6 tells us those who are happy, fulfilled, and satisfied are those who hunger and thirst after righteousness. Every day, I pray we make it our goal to live right and treat others rightly.
The world offers us many opportunities to be recognized and stand out above others. Sometimes, we can tear others down in order to lift ourselves up. As I thought about the word “attention”, I thought about how God repeatedly says “attend unto my words” to the early Biblical prophets. Time after time again, God used His prophets to minister and speak to the people of Israel. They kept straying away and every time they took their focus and “attention” off of God and placed it on idols, they found themselves in trouble and despair.
Many times we find ourselves in the midst of many troubles. The good thing is love knows no borders. The Lord told Hosea to go marry a promiscuous wife named Gomer. When I read the chapters of this book, I pondered why the Lord would tell Hosea to do that. God had a purpose and a plan and this was within His will. He wanted to show the people of Israel their love towards Him and the longevity of His love towards His people. No matter how many times Gomer ran around and cheated on her husband, Hosea went and rescued her. Imagine God rescuing us from our troubles with His love.
This week, I pray you and I take time to give God our full attention. He wants to instruct us and love on us. I strongly believe He wants to pour a deep revelation of His Word upon His children. May we silence our everyday distractions and focus on Him. Spend time in His presence. Let Him show you things to come and mysteries you could never imagine or dream of. Love you.
Week #3: Thirsty
I could never ever forget my intense need for Mountain Dew sodas on my first corporate job. Well, it was everyone’s need on my floor and the floor below me. The daily count would be somewhere between six to eight Mountain Dew soda bottles. You could pretty much say everyone on my team was a Mountain Dew addict. The vending machine company tried replacing those sodas with Diet Mountain Dew to see if we would choose a different Pepsi or Coca Cola brand. It didn’t work. The diet version tasted the same as the original to us.
I can even remember drinking one soda and still feeling thirsty. Before I could get from one conference room to another, I found myself going to grab another soda. It was tempting and I spent about $5 a day on the vending machine. This was a bill; more like a monthly payment. I knew I could drink water and be satisfied, but I kept to my choice because everyone else enjoyed the same thing.
Have you ever drunk something, besides water, over and over again and still felt thirsty? Today, I want to talk about water, but not the ordinary water you are thinking of. Society knows water is good for them and they know it can kill any source of thirst. It’s recommended to drink 8 glasses of water a day. Water existed before we did. When God created the earth and He made the seas, oceans, and rivers, He created water. He made each human being with 60% of water.
A thirst is a strong desire for something. Everyone has a desire they want to fulfill in life. The Bible recalls a story of a Samaritan woman who went out to a well to fetch some water. She went out in the sunniest and hottest time of the day. Everyone else came to the well in the evening, but she came at this time because the Samaritans did not favor her. When she arrived at the well to fetch water, she saw Jesus beside the well exhausted from His long walk. Jesus asked her for a drink.
The woman was confused because Jews did not socialize with Samaritans. Jesus simply told her if she continues getting the water from the well she will continue being thirsty. The water Jesus offered her would quench her thirst forever. Imagine someone giving you a water bottle filled with water that will forever quench your thirst? You could save a lot of money on water. To summarize this passage, Jesus reminds her of the truth. She has five husbands and the one she is currently with, she is not married to him.
The only way to fulfill our desires and find complete satisfaction in them is worshipping the one who gave us those desires. When we worship Him in spirit and in truth, He satisfies us in a way the world cannot satisfy. Rather than being thirsty on carnal things, we will begin to become thirsty on spiritual things and see God’s perspective towards the carnal things. Be blessed.
I can even remember drinking one soda and still feeling thirsty. Before I could get from one conference room to another, I found myself going to grab another soda. It was tempting and I spent about $5 a day on the vending machine. This was a bill; more like a monthly payment. I knew I could drink water and be satisfied, but I kept to my choice because everyone else enjoyed the same thing.
Have you ever drunk something, besides water, over and over again and still felt thirsty? Today, I want to talk about water, but not the ordinary water you are thinking of. Society knows water is good for them and they know it can kill any source of thirst. It’s recommended to drink 8 glasses of water a day. Water existed before we did. When God created the earth and He made the seas, oceans, and rivers, He created water. He made each human being with 60% of water.
A thirst is a strong desire for something. Everyone has a desire they want to fulfill in life. The Bible recalls a story of a Samaritan woman who went out to a well to fetch some water. She went out in the sunniest and hottest time of the day. Everyone else came to the well in the evening, but she came at this time because the Samaritans did not favor her. When she arrived at the well to fetch water, she saw Jesus beside the well exhausted from His long walk. Jesus asked her for a drink.
The woman was confused because Jews did not socialize with Samaritans. Jesus simply told her if she continues getting the water from the well she will continue being thirsty. The water Jesus offered her would quench her thirst forever. Imagine someone giving you a water bottle filled with water that will forever quench your thirst? You could save a lot of money on water. To summarize this passage, Jesus reminds her of the truth. She has five husbands and the one she is currently with, she is not married to him.
The only way to fulfill our desires and find complete satisfaction in them is worshipping the one who gave us those desires. When we worship Him in spirit and in truth, He satisfies us in a way the world cannot satisfy. Rather than being thirsty on carnal things, we will begin to become thirsty on spiritual things and see God’s perspective towards the carnal things. Be blessed.
