Thursday, February 25, 2010

Tapping In

Have you ever had something that looked like such a blessing deteriorate before you ever got a chance to lay hold of it?  I had that happen just recently.  Someone offered to buy all the maple syrup I could produce at a good price.  Now, I love tapping trees for maple syrup so that sounded like a good deal to me.  And what a blessing!

Well, it didn't take long for just about everything to go from sweet to sour. One mountain after another arose and threatened to put an end to all of it.  Talk about disheartening.  God, I thought, what is going on here?  It looked so good...  I'm telling you, the mountains that stood in the way just seemed too big and it was difficult for me to find the faith to move them.  Jesus never spoke of a mountain too big, though.  No, He said to Him who has faith, nothing shall be impossible (Matthew 17:20).

As I thought about how to make this work, I started looking everywhere but my Source.  I looked everywhere for answers, supplies and help.  But that doesn't make much sense.  I can no more expect to receive the miracle I was looking for under my own strength than I can expect those sap buckets to fill up if I don't first tap into the maple trees (the source).  "Thus says the LORD, 'Cursed is the man who trusts in mankind and makes flesh his strength, and whose heart turns away from the LORD."

Did I pray about what to do?  Of course.  But I fell into the trap of looking to my own strength to make this come together.  Not only is that next to worthless, but I also had one who was working against me all that time, the Devil, trying to convince me that it was all up to me to make this come together.  You may as well give up, He'd say, God's not going to do a thing for you.  Look at you, you can't gather even a little bit of faith concerning this.  What do you do in a situation like that?  TAP IN!  Tap into God--tap into your Source.  Don't let your blessing be stolen from you!  Jesus said there is one who comes to steal, kill and destroy (John 10:10).  If something is being stolen from you, guess what?  It's not God.  No, the rest of that verse in John 10:10, Jesus says, "I came that they may have life, and have it abundantly."  So TAP IN! Tap into those promises by seeking them out in God's word.  Seek out the promises that pertain to your situation and doing all to stand, STAND therefore! Build your house of faith on the Rock of God's promises and nothing is strong enough to bring it down (Matt 7:25).


Finally, after about a week of nothing but struggle and disappointment this verse came to me:  "Therefore humble yourselves under the mighty hand of God, that He may exalt you at the proper time, casting all your anxiety on Him, because He cares for you" (1 Peter 5:6-7).  On the heals of that verse came these verses: "Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God.  And the peace of God, which surpasses comprehension, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus" (Philippians 4:6-7). So I prayed, Lord, I cast this care upon you.  I'm not even going to touch it again in thought life.  I thank You for supplying my needs in this situation and now I'm expecting the peace of God which surpasses comprehension to come on me.  And wouldn't you know that within minutes a peace that I have never experienced in my life came on me.  It's literally an indescribable peace. It is not just peace in the sense of not worrying about something.  No, it's an indescribable rest deep within your very spirit.  It's too deep to be described simply as "peace."  It's indescribable peace.  When that  came, I knew the answer had as well.  Within a half hour, I received a telephone call that changed everything.  The mountains were removed, making it possible to go through with the deal.  But it didn't happen until I tapped into my Source.  

Whatever mountain you are facing today.  Tap into your Source and stop trusting in your own strength.
"And my God shall supply all your needs according to His riches in glory in Christ Jesus" (Philippians 4:19)

Tuesday, February 23, 2010

Welcome to Full Gospel Life!

Hello, friends, my name is Andy Bodfish. (Pronounced "Bod" as in "Body" and "Fish" as in "Fish"). :) I am starting this blog under the recommendation of a truly great friend. The purpose of this blog is to share with you the truth of the Word of God in such a way as to leave you with your faith encouraged, strengthened and built up in the Lord.

You know, there is no circumstance, no problem too big; there is no sickness or disease too strong or incurable; no mountain, no valley, no river too wide or too deep; there is nothing in this world or out of this world too powerful, too insurmountable, too difficult or impossible or overwhelming that God, through His word can't handle.

Faith always finds a way. Faith is always victorious. "And this is the victory that overcometh the world, even our faith." 1 John 5:4

I welcome any and all questions about the Bible. Whether it be a question about a particular passage, or just a general question about a post I may make. In fact, I believe that the direction this blog goes depends completely upon people writing in, commenting on, and questioning what I have said in a blog. So please, feel free to write and comment on anything you wish and let's see what the Lord reveals to us.