Obedience

“Your obedience will give you a long life on the soil that God promised to your ancestors and their children, a land flowing with milk and honey…” Deuteronomy 11:8-9, The Message

Not only will obedience to God bring you favor upon favor, it will bring favor upon favor to your family’s lives as well... 

we can’t ask for more than that!

Good soil

“Other seeds fell on good soil and yielded grain some a hundred times as much… some sixty times as much, and some thirty… As for what was sown on good soil, this is he who hears the Word and grasps and comprehends it…” Matthew 13:8, 23

So… are you good soil?  Are you just reading the Bible, or are you truly reading the Bible?  When you hear the Word, do you just listen, or do you truly listen?  Reading and hearing the Word is one thing, but reading and hearing the Word is a whole new ball game. Make sure that you are letting the Word fall on good soil, (deep within your soul), then live the Word out loud.  Be a filter for God, and may you be the good soil that reaps more than your mind can ever imagine

Making fleshly decisions.

“Though it was planted in good soil where water was plentiful for it to produce leaves and to bear fruit, it was transplanted, that it might become a splendid vine… Will it thrive? [NO!]… It will not take a strong army or many people to pluck it up… It will wither in the furrows…” Ezekiel 17:8-10

When you, in yourself, without direction from God, try to put yourself somewhere that God doesn’t want you to be, you will quickly realize that things aren't working out as your flesh had planned.  It is so important to let God prompt your big decision making; if you don’t feel Him when decisions need to be made, see if you can back off making the decision for a bit, and ask God to help you!  I do know and understand that there will be times when decisions must be made, with or without God, so in those instances step out in faith of what you think God wants you to do - don’t worry, He’ll catch you if you trip and fall, then He'll stand you back up, and put you on the right path.

Remember, our flesh is selfish, and full of selfish motives, so make sure your relationship with God consistently strengthened:  Read His Word, listen for His voice, talk to Him, have faith in Him, honor Him, and make Him your first priority in all things and at all times.  You can think of it in this way:  If you fail to keep God first in everything, then all you are doing is playing Russian Roulette with your life, and you will always have to be on guard as to which bullet may be the one that destroys you.

Seek God ~ you can’t live without Him.