Wilderness What?

At 2am I kept hearing (thinking) read Luke 4, Luke 4, go look at Luke 4...so I got up and got my glasses, bible and laptop. I go to bible gateway so that I can look at multiple translations for the same passages.

Luke 4 opens with the Wilderness, my very first thought, not gonna lie, was wilderness what? Oh, no Lord? I read the whole chapter in a few translations. Several things caught my attention. I wanted to list a few - maybe food for thought? maybe just for Stacy (in which case - thanks for reading anyway)

Luke 4:13 says that after being tested to the extreme - the devil retreated temporarily - lying in wait for the next opportunity.

The bible says Submit yourself to God, resist the devil and he will flee(Retreat)...we send him packing when we stay resolved and believe God's word and speak God's word to any and all situations.

The devil is seeking whom he may devour - don't give him an opportunity in your life.

Verse 32 in the message caught my attention because it used some very illustrative words - "—his teaching was so forthright, so confident, so authoritative, not the quibbling and quoting they were used to."
forthright - direct, straightforward, without evasion

confident - full of conviction, certainty

authoritative - able to be trusted as reliable, true

quibbling - to argue or raise objections about TRIVIAL matters. Evade the truth. OUCH!

The word is so powerful and the word pictures it paints leaves me in awe.

Lord that I may be found forthright, confident and authoritative after spending time with you! People are so done with quibbling - they don't need another DEBATE or show, they need truth! Thank you for being the source of truth!

After spending time with His Father in the wilderness, Jesus left with power to heal the sick, Shut the devils mouth and proclaim the truth.

I need more time with my Father. I don't like the sound or thought of the "wilderness" as I feel that’s been the bulk of March - August...but I do want to pray for people and them be healed, I do want to send the devil packing every single time he thinks he has an opportunity to tempt or test me and more than anything I want to proclaim the message of hope with authority!

This chapter ends with Jesus finding a quiet place to be ALONE with His Father again, EARLY in the morning. Ministry will wear you out and your only source of strength is to be alone with the Father. After the crowd finds him, they beg him to stay and I love His answer to them - "42 At daybreak, Jesus went out to a solitary place. The people were looking for him and when they came to where he was, they tried to keep him from leaving them. 43 But he said, “I must proclaim the good news of the kingdom of God to the other towns also, because that is why I was sent.”

This chapter ends with Jesus being the example of what he later calls us all to at the end of the four gospels. One word sums it all up - GO!


**Please be in prayer with me as CLC goes to Fort Lenord Wood, Waynesville and shares God's love this coming Sunday.**
** Please pray for our missions team that is leaving the end of October to Haiti.**

** Please pray for me that I will take every opportunity to meet with my Father no matter the time, study the word and do the very next thing in obedience even if its 2am, 3am or midnight.**
I pray for you all!
MUCH LOVE
Never Give Up!
Endure



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