Turn Back

God Hears It AllGod hears more than just the prayers we pray. He hears everything we say. It is possible to say all the right things in prayer, and then nullify them with negative talk. Let your words be "Yes, Yes," or "No, No." Make your everyday conversation support your prayers. Otherwise, your prayers will be rendered worthless.

Deuteronomy 1:34-35 - "And the LORD heard the voice of your words, and was wroth, and sware, saying, Surely there shall not one of these men of this evil generation see that good land, which I sware to give unto your fathers."

I Will Not Give You Their LandGod rules the affairs of men. God told Moses not to meddle with the descendants of Esau or Lot who dwelled east of Jordan. "I have given..." their lands to them; and "I will not give you of their land." They had a divine posterity. Everyone must find their God-given place and respect everyone else's place, too. You cannot have theirs.

Deuteronomy 2:5 - "Meddle not with them; for I will not give you of their land, no, not so much as a foot breadth; because I have given mount Seir unto Esau for a possession."

When God Says "No"Moses desperately wanted to go into the Promised Land, but God's punishment stood. God loves to hear and answer prayer, but we must understand that even prayer must sometimes yield to His greater sovereign purpose.

Deuteronomy 3:24-26 - "O Lord GOD ...I pray thee, let me go over, and see the good land that is beyond Jordan, that goodly mountain, and Lebanon. But the LORD was wroth with me for your sakes, and would not hear me: and the LORD said unto me, Let it suffice thee; speak no more unto me of this matter."

Seek Him, Find HimMoses knew that Israel would be sorely tempted by the gods of the heathen. He sternly warned them that if they worshiped idols or images of any kind, or if they worshiped such as the sun, moon or stars, God would drive them out of the land and destroy them. Moses urged them to always quickly turn back to God anytime they erred, and God would save them.

Deuteronomy 4:29 - "But if from thence thou shalt seek the LORD thy God, thou shalt find him, if thou seek him with all thy heart and with all thy soul."

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A Proven Success

And the son said unto him, Father, I have sinned against heaven, and in thy sight, and am no more worthy to be called thy son. But the father said to his servants, Bring forth the best robe, and put it on him; and put a ring on his hand, and shoes on his feet....for this my son...was lost, and is found. – Luke 15:21-22, 24

Prove yourself. In today's world, that's what you constantly feel you have to do, right? On the job, among friends, even at home you're always working to win the approval you need. Working to convince those around you that you deserve the salary, the friendship and even the love they give you. Is there any escape? You better believe there is! It's called grace. Unearned and undeserved favor and acceptance. And there's only one place you can find it—in the heart of God Himself. There's no better picture of God's grace in action than in the story of the prodigal son. Few of us today can really feel the impact of that story like those first Jewish listeners Jesus told it to. You see, by their standards the prodigal son had committed some of the most despicable acts possible. He'd not only taken advantage of his father and spent his inheritance in riotous living, he'd left the nation of Israel and made covenant with a foreigner—a pig farmer! That was as low as you could get. In their eyes, that boy's rebellion was so serious his father's only recourse was to disown him. But that's not what this father did! He welcomed his repentant son home with open arms. He offered him grace—unmerited favor—that was based on the father's love rather than the son's performance. Next time you catch yourself struggling to make up to God for something you've done wrong, working to win His approval, let the story of the prodigal son set you free. Let it remind you that, in spite of your sins, your Father has received you with open arms. He's put a robe of righteousness on your back and His signet ring on your hand. He's put the shoes of sonship on your feet! Do you feel unworthy of all that? Sure you do. You were unworthy of it. But God hasn't based His relationship with you on your worthiness. Jesus has based it on His love and worthiness. You don't have to struggle to prove yourself to Him. As far as He's concerned, you're a proven success.