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Matt 5 - 7 The Beatitudes & The battle belongs to the Lord!!!

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I so love reading the Beatitudes.  My most favourite part of the bible I think, one in which when things are coming at me I just love to read and feel immersed by his word that gives me life and direction.  Sometimes even get Jim to read it over me, just brings peace.

Anyway I want to share this as something the Lord has been showing me this week is that we most get hurt by the people we respect and honour the most.  The words that those people bring can hurt right deep in our soul and it can damage quite badly.

God has been taking us on a journey that many people don't understand, have not experienced and perhaps don't want to.  God sometimes calls us to do/say things that we don't understand and can't work out in our heads, but after being obedient to him, see why and see how powerful it was.  But in the process people judge us, judge our motives, judge our heart.  People often misunderstand us.  For me that has been one of the hardest and most hurtful things of my journey -  being misunderstood by the people I love.  But the Lord is teaching me that I am to 'dance to the audience of one', that I need to hide in the shelter of his wing, that he protects me no matter what people think, say or do,  I have to come to that place that I trust in him alone and not in man.  Paul writes "I care very little if I am judged by you or any human court (1 Cor 4:3-4) indeed, I do not even judge my-self.  My conscience is clear, but that does not make me innocent.  It is the Lord who judges me."  We need to come into a place where it is the Lord who judges our heart and we are innocent or guilty to him and in that, need to change depending on what he says.

But as I say it has been one of the hardest things for me as the arrows of the enemy come at me.
In the Beatitudes Matt 5:11 says, "Blessed are you when people insult you, persecute you and falsely say all kinds of evil against you because of me.  Rejoice and be glad, because great is your reward in heaven, for in the same way they persecuted the prophets who were before you."
I have to keep trusting in him, keep checking my heart that my conscience is clear, keep looking at Jesus and the words of his that bring life, that bring encouragement and like that above to know that I am blessed in his Kingdom, that great is my reward in heaven.  Matt 10:28  Do not be afraid of those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul.

I believe we are in a time where we are called to stand and be the people of God he has called us to be.  In so doing we are going to be persecuted, misunderstood, judged  but knowing that GREAT IS OUR REWARD IN HEAVEN!!!  Thank you Lord and when we learn and come into a place that those words no longer hold power, we are free in another area of our life!  Words only hold the power that we give them.  Saying that, I don't have it all together all the time, but less and less am I feeling the effects of the wounds at the hand of my brother.:   Feel free to pray for me in this.:)  Thank you Jesus!

Song:
In heavenly armour we'll enter the land
The battle belongs to the Lord
No weapon that's fashioned against us will stand
The battle belongs to the Lord

And we sing glory, honour
Power and strength to the Lord
We sing glory, honour
power and strength to the Lord.

When the power of darkness comes in like a flood
the battle belongs to the Lord
He's raised up a standard, the power of his blood
the battle belongs to the Lord

When your enemy presses in hard, do not fear
the battle belongs to the Lord
Take courage, my friend, your redemption is near
the battle belongs to the Lord!

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