This week, through Sunday, has been designated as a week of fasting and prayer for Gospel Life Community, to contemplate about God's plan for you, to receive word from the Lord about His plans for you and for Gospel Life, to enlighten you in your role as related to your church and to the people around you and to receive spiritual strength, guidance and direction.

At the Core Group meeting yesterday, each one no doubt received direction from the Holy Spirit as challenges were presented.  Every member of the body of Christ certainly gets what is appropriate to do or not to do based on what the Spirit tells them.

"Fasting" is an act of faith. It does not merely indicate one's physical choice of abstaining from eating food for a designated period of time, but it can be choosing not to do certain things.  A diabetic who is unable to be without food for any length of time may choose to "fast" by denying himself the use of the internet for a designated period or by choosing to stay away from the daily visit to the shopping mall (if that is a habit that's not easy to break from). One can use certain ways of denying self and promoting spirituality, spending time in reading God's word and praying that its impact in one's life is more than just incidental.

Prayer changes things.  You may or may not believe this. But the apostle James has this to say: "The earnest prayer of a righteous person has great power and produces wonderful results."

JAMES 5:16 NLT

Every evening this week the church doors will be open at 6:30 p.m. for those who are able to come and participate in a season of prayer.  Again this is being done in conjunction with Gospel Life's week of fasting and prayer referred to above.

Tito  Cabrera has volunteered his time to make sure there is someone who will open the church sanctuary for prayer and devotion everyday at this time.  Please join the group of prayer warriors who will gather for an intense session of wrestling with our Lord, just like the patriarch Jacob did in his time.

Our Good News Hour messenger yesterday is a local man whose name is George Rivera, founder and CEO of Total Resources International.

His message was essentially a testimony regarding the circumstances of his family's story from multimillions, to depression, to restoration.

The text he used at the beginning of his talk is Matthew 6:33, emphasizing that God asks us not only to seek His Kingdom first, BUT ALSO His righteousness, for "all these things" to become yours as well.

He testified that God is very creative, who does mighty things in our lives.  At his company the workday starts with prayer, so does every meeting for plans, strategies, production or whatever else they are meeting about. He also said that his company is God's business, and that their philosophy is not about self but about service to others. Because of this, the blessings to him and to his company are shared widely through different philanthropic undertakings that his company and his family does.

His company is helping children in many parts of the world and at the same time it has reaped the distinction of becoming the leading supplier of first aid and emergency equipment in the U.S. by becoming the exclusive supplier of emergency kits and supplies for companies like WalMart, Walgreens, Costco, CVS and many others.

One of the most recent products that his company has been given an exclusive right to manufacture and distribute is an antibacterial, hemostatic gauze (stops bleeding) for all kinds of actively bleeding wounds such as gunshot wounds, deep cuts, and even active arterial bleeders.

Mr. Rivera repeated in more ways than one that God blesses us not because we are good, but because He is good. 

Many of the company employees hold their own bible studies for others and the company holds a praise and worship service in the company compound on company time, whether the employees attend the services  or not, every Wednesday at 12:30 p.m.

Despite many challenges, he encouraged everyone to always look for victories, because if we don't believe in victories, then we don't believe in Jesus' resurrection.

He highlighted his testimony by quoting Joshua 1:3-9 where God promised Israel that no one will ever go against them as long as they followed what Moses instructed them to do.  "Be strong and of good courage."

He also quoted Romans 8:31-39 where Paul says, "If God is for us, who can be against us?" and that "nothing can separate us from the love of God..."

His challenge to everyone is to make God's word a practical experience by following it and "fixing your intimate relationship with God." He invited especially those who may not have yet given their hearts to Jesus to repeat the "sinner's prayer" with him to close his message.

"And my God will meet all your needs according to His glorious riches in Christ Jesus." Philippians 4:19

Have you ever gone through a time of complete dependence on God for your material needs? Perhaps you lost a job and could not generate income on your own. Perhaps you got sick and could not work. There are circumstances in our lives that can put us in this place.

When God brought the people of Israel out of Egypt through the desolate desert, they had no ability to provide for themselves. God met their needs supernaturally each day by providing manna from Heaven. Each day they would awake to one day's portion of what they needed. This was a season in their lives to learn dependence and the faithfulness of God as provider. By and by, they entered the Promised Land. When they did, God's "supernatural provision" was no longer required. "The manna stopped the day after they ate this food from the land; there was no longer any manna for the Israelites, but that year they ate of the produce of Canaan" (Josh. 5:12). In both cases God was the provider of the need.

For most of us, we derive our necessities of life through our work. Like the birds of the fields we are commanded to go out and gather what God has already provided. It is a process of participation in what God has already provided. Sometimes it appears it is all up to us; sometimes it appears it is all up to God. In either case we must realize that the Lord is our provider; the job is only an instrument of His provision. He requires our involvement in either case.

"You may say to yourself, 'My power and the strength of my hands have produced this wealth for me.' But remember the Lord your God, for it is He who gives you the ability to produce wealth, and so confirms His covenant, which He swore to your forefathers, as it is today" (Deuteronomy 8:17-18).

Acknowledge the Lord as the provider of every need you have today. He is a faithful provider. 
 

(Today God Is First (TGIF) devotional message, Copyright by Os Hillman, Marketplace Leaders.)

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