Ed Christian's World

Ask, Seek & Knock…

In Matthew 7:7 Jesus says, “Seek and you shall find.” There is a real key here, a secret. In Hebrew/Aramaic, which He spoke, the word for seek is Bachar.

This is not just a nice gentle word. Bachar is a heavy word, a violent word. Bachar means to plow, to turn over and to break forth. God did not call us to seek the Lord, but to plow forward, overcome, turn over and do whatever you have to do to seek the Lord.

True seeking is linked to plowing, you have to persevere. Sometimes it takes work, sometimes you feel like giving up, but you keep going. The Lord causes our hearts to be plowed. He says, “Break up your fallow ground”.

Get your life turning, seeking God and tuned to receive His blessings. Plow with breakthrough actions. You want to seek the Lord, you want the blessing, then seek him with all your heart and press.

When it seems hard, you will break through. So if you want a breakthrough, break up your fallow ground and His blessings will reign upon you. Seek, plow and you shall find.

Sow righteousness for yourselves, reap the fruit of unfailing love, and break up your unplowed ground; for it is time to seek the Lord, until he comes and showers his righteousness on you. Hosea 10:12

Seek to plow today, let God’s Word and Spirit have their way, and plow over the dormant, fallow ground in your life and walk.

Walk daily with God at your side!

Love always,

Ed

The Baby Prophet…

Zechariah says an amazing thing in Luke 1:76, “You, my child, will be called a prophet of the Most High.” The amazing thing is that he is talking to a baby, but this is not baby talk. He is saying you are going to be a prophet, a Navi in Hebrew, of El Elyon, the Most High.

These are awesome, beautiful words to a baby. The baby cannot fathom what he is saying; yet he is going to grow into it. So it is with your calling. You cannot fathom the calling, the hope that God gives us. Yochanan was a little baby version of what he would be, John the Baptist.

We are little baby versions of what we will become if we obey and grow. The baby cannot understand the calling, but you keep going, just obey. Yochanan, John the Baptist, obeyed God and as he obeyed, he fulfilled his calling. Those words came true.

You have an awesome high holy calling on your life. You do not have to understand it or God’s way. Just obey and you will become the fulfillment of the call on your life.

Like newborn babies, crave pure spiritual milk, so that by it you may grow up in your salvation, 1 Peter 2:2

Don’t hinder the growing-up process, get rid of all malice, pretense, envy and hurtful talk from your life.

Walk daily with God at your side!

Love always,

Ed

Servants…

When I was growing up, I used to read comic books about superheroes. What made them superheroes were the super powers given them. Superheroes are myths. But there does exist one superhero for real, and with true super powers, unlimited powers. Who? Jesus.

It is He who said “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to Me.” In Hebrew prophecy, Jesus is called, ‘the Servant of the Lord.’ There’s a connection. The one who most serves the Lord and does His will, is the one who will most walk in the power and the Authority of God.

That One is Jesus. And on top of that, it is His will that you walk in the same power. The key is, serve the Lord. Do His will. Stop doing what is not His will.

The more you walk in the will of God, the more power you will have – so that you can say “I can do all things through Jesus who strengthens me.” Get super into His will and you will have super power to become a little super hero!

Then Saul said to David, “May you be blessed, David my son; you will do great things and surely triumph.” 1 Samuel 26:25

Today, dare to live as a superhero – walking in the will and mission of God and do all things by the power of Jesus in the Spirit of the Almighty!

Walk daily with God at your side!

Love always,

Ed

Love In The Perfect…

John 3:16, “For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever would believe in Him, would not perish, but have everlasting life.”

That could be called the greatest sentence. But it’s interesting that the greatest sentence in the world is not in the present tense, it’s in the past tense, “God loved.” Why is that? Why doesn’t it say that God loves the world?

In Greek, the people who wrote and thought this, wrote and thought in Hebrew Aramaic. In Hebrew there is no real past tense. But what there is, is the perfect tense, and that’s what’s used as the past tense.

So when things are written with what we see as the past tense, it’s really in Hebrew perfect tense. It doesn’t mean that it is necessarily finished in the past, but what it means is, it is complete, it is done.

What does it say? God’s love for you, is not unfinished; it’s perfect, it’s full, it’s complete. Don’t take away from it, don’t add to it, just receive it; for God so loved you, perfect tense.

“I have loved you with an everlasting love; I have drawn you with unfailing kindness.” Jeremiah 31:3

Today, learn the secret of resting in His finished and perfect work in your life.

Walk daily with God at your side!

Love always,

Ed

The Olah…

In the Bible, there were several different kinds of sacrifices. The most awesome one was called the “Olah” and it means the burnt offering, a sacrifice.

In Psalm 97:9 it says, “You O Lord are most high and exalted.” That word, exalted is the Hebrew word Olah. In other words, God is exalted in a complete sacrifice that goes up to heaven.

Thus there is a link in Hebrew between praising the Lord, exalting the Lord and lifting up a sacrifice. When you praise Him you are lifting up a sacrifice. We must live a life of sacrifice. God gave everything for us.

He sacrificed Himself. Salvation is free but it is precious too. When you lift up your sacrifice to Him, your treasure, your goal, your will, your future; then you are praising Him.

When you have lifted it up to Him your total sacrifice then you have offered up your Olah. Bless the Lord with your Olah and God will be exalted in your life.

Through Jesus, therefore, let us continually offer to God a sacrifice of praise—the fruit of lips that openly profess his name. Hebrews 13:15

Lift up your sacrifice to God, and do so with praise, worship, and thanksgiving.

Walk daily with God at your side!

Love always,

Ed

Good to Your own Soul…

In Proverbs 11:12 it says, “He who despises his neighbor lacks sense but he who has wisdom keeps silent.”

I remember in junior high there was a gym teacher who must have said something to the lunch lady about her hairnet that caused the lunch lady to say something back to the gym teacher about his pot belly.

The next moment these two were almost in a fist fight. They were screaming at each other. We were shocked. Finally the janitor broke up the argument and took the gym teacher away over something stupid, the littlest thing.

It says, “He who has wisdom keeps silent.” The littlest things have destroyed marriages and families. For less, for nothing, giving voice to it, there is a real important principle in the Lord; learn not to act on the bad.

Hold off; don’t react, don’t speak, but wait. When there’s anger or anything bad, hold off. Wait until you can act on the good. As soon as you have good in your heart act upon it, speak it, do it, love. Be like Jesus not like the gym teacher and the lunch lady.

A gentle answer turns away wrath, but a harsh word stirs up anger. Proverbs 15:1

Good To Your Own Soul Use wisdom today, do not act on any bad emotion or thought – but be quick to act on the good.

Walk daily with God at your side!

Love always,

Ed

Tracing Jesus…

Did you ever have to draw something in school and you tried and got a mess? But then you see the masterpiece. You trace a picture and put the masterpiece behind your paper; follow the lines and soon you have a pretty good image.

In 1 Peter 2:21, it says that the Lord is, in the original language, the word is huppogrammos, which means the underwriting. It means the writing that’s placed underneath that scribes use to copy.

So Jesus’s life is the huppogrammos, the underwriting. Let me tell you how to apply this to your life. When you follow your own will, you’ll end up with a mess. But your life can become a masterpiece. How?

Realize Jesus is not just the teacher or the hope in your life; he’s the huppogrammos. It means He’s the one you trace. How do you put Him up to your life? You line up your life, your heart His way, and see if it lines up.

The minute you start tracing it you guide everything by that. Follow your course as Jesus because He is the underwriting, the huppogrammos, and your life will become a masterpiece.

For we are God’s handiwork, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do. Ephesians 2:10

Seek today to follow the footsteps of Jesus in every situation – what would Jesus do? Go and do likewise.

Walk daily with God at your side!

Love always,

Ed

Secrets of The Lilies…

Jesus said, “Consider the lilies.” Now that’s a command. Have you obeyed it? Jesus is teaching us a lesson. Lilies don’t have to worry about clothes, or money, or working; lilies don’t spend their days worrying, toiling or struggling.

So learn to be more like them and you’ll be blessed. But there’s more. Jesus could have used more examples of things that don’t work for a living. He could have considered the chair, or the log. But he said, “Consider the lilies.”

In order to learn the lesson, you have to consider the lilies. It’s really hard to worry or have anxiety when you’re thinking about lilies. It’s written in Philippians 4:8, “Dwell on whatever is good and pure and excellent. Let your mind dwell on that.”

Try to not think about things you need to dwell on, but what is good and pleasant and of God, as the lilies of the field. It’s Jesus’s anti-anxiety command. Consider the lilies. Have you obeyed that command lately?

If not, you’re probably bent out of shape. Set up time today, stop everything and stop disobeying God with anxiety. Fulfill the command and consider those lilies.

God sees all of us as beautiful lillies. Especially when we clothe ourselves in humility, kindness, and empathy for others. When we come to Him, he cleans off the ugliness of sins so we are beautiful as lilies.

Consider how the wild flowers grow. They do not labor or spin. Yet I tell you, not even Solomon in all his splendor was dressed like one of these. If that is how God clothes the grass of the field, which is here today, and tomorrow is thrown into the fire, how much more will he clothe you—you of little faith! Luke 12:27-28

Deeply meditate on Luke 12:27-28 today, take it personally, what is God saying to you, and apply it.

Walk daily with God at your side!

Love always,

Ed

The Power of Being One…

In Matthew 5:8 The Lord said, “Blessed are the pure in heart for they shall see God.” Purity is linked to oneness – being one hundred percent pure.

The word in Hebrew for oneness, singleness of mind and heart, is Echad. It says, the Lord our God is Echad, one. “Blessed are” in Greek is makarios, in Hebrew it’s ashray. Jesus is quoting a Psalm. Ashray means happy or joyful.

Let’s put it together. Happy or joyful are those who are pure in heart, who are single minded. In Hebrew, also means to be clean, clear and bright. Being single of heart is having one motive. A pure heart will be blessed, happy, and joyous.

If you want joy, live a life of oneness, singleness of motive and action in your heart, mind, and in all things and you’ll be blessed. Your heart will have joy. If your heart is single to God, your heart will be blessed with ashray.

Blessed are the pure in heart, the single-minded, the single-hearted for God for they shall have joy because that’s what blessed means. Be blessed. Be one. The power of being one.

Slaves, obey your earthly masters in everything; and do it, not only when their eye is on you and to curry their favor, but with sincerity of heart and reverence for the Lord. Colossians 3:22

Today, make it your aim to live single-minded in everything you do – no ulterior motives – just pure and undivided motives for God.

Walk daily with God at your side!

Love always,

Ed