TODAY’S PROPHETIC NUMBER – 8/21/2023
Genesis 8:21 – And the Lord smelled a soothing aroma. Then the Lord said in His heart, “I will never again curse the ground for man’s sake, although the imagination of man’s heart is evil from his youth; nor will I again destroy every living thing as I have done.”
Every day, you produce an aroma before the Lord. The sweet smell of who He made you to be reminds the Lord of His everlasting covenant with you. If you preach the name of Jesus, let your life be a demonstration of His character. Be an imitator of God. When you choose His ways again and again, especially when it hurts or costs, your life begins to smell sweet. What aroma is your life producing?
Declaration: God’s ways are better than my ways. I choose to obey even when I don’t understand.
THREE PAINFUL TRUTHS
When it comes to pain, there are three truths you can count on:
- Life is painful — even for believers.
- Sometimes it is good to feel pain.
- Pain is only temporary.
It is a lie from the pit of hell that God doesn’t want us to feel pain. In fact, hoping to help unbelievers make a decision to follow Jesus, many well-meaning Christians resort to false advertising. They actually tell people once they become a believer, their problems will vanish and Jesus will make everything great.
Now, this is the truth, but not here on this earth and not right now. What is true of life on this earth?
“In this world you will have trouble, but take heart! I have overcome the world.” – John 16:33b
Jesus, himself, warned there would be pain in this life. He experienced physical, emotional and spiritual pain every day He was here on earth. He was aware of the human condition before He became an embryo in a Jewish teenager’s womb, yet He came anyway. Why?
To establish an end point for your pain through salvation!
I can’t help but think the main reason God is a jealous for His throne–that He doesn’t want you and I to follow the devil’s example and want to be our own god–is because the job of God is so painful, He’d never wish it on any of us!
As a parent, it is painful to watch your children struggle. It’s painful to watch them be sick, hurting, lost, lonely, prideful, angry, imprisoned or addicted. This is what God feels watching us, His kids. He is the perfect Father, yet we rebel against Him. Oh, how we grieve Him!
So, don’t buy into the lie that the Christian life should be painless. As long as you’re walking this earth, you will continue to experience, and even cause, pain as sure as sparks fly upward. Just make sure your prayers fly upward too because Jesus has overcome this world.
From my book: Soul Invasion: Supernatural Sanity for Your Messed Up Mind