The Lord says: "You may have heard things are going to get worse on earth. But as for you My beloved, look to Me and put your trust in Me. Do not allow yourself to be afraid or be dismayed. In fact, expect Me to do something big in your life this year! Because I am releasing My super abundant grace and favor upon you, in spite of what is happening around you on earth."
Hallelujah!
Ephesians 3:20 (NKJV) says, 'Now to Him who is able to do exceedingly abundantly above all that we ask or think, according to the power that works in us...'
Whose power is this? His power! God's power! He who does great miracles! He who does great and marvelous things beyond our limited imagination! This word 'power' here is 'dunamis' in Greek, and it can mean 'miraculous power, miraculous ability, miraculous strength, mighty (wonderful) work'.
So, in spite of whatever that's happening around you in this world, the Lord your God is able to do exceedingly abundantly above all that you ask or think of, according to His 'miraculous power, miraculous ability, miraculous strength, mighty (wonderful) work' that works in you!
Ephesians 3:20 (Amplified Bible, Classic Edition) puts it this way, 'Now to Him Who, by (in consequence of) the [action of His] power that is at work within us, is able to [carry out His purpose and] do super abundantly, far over and above all that we [dare] ask or think [infinitely beyond our highest prayers, desires, thoughts, hopes, or dreams]...'
Hallelujah!
Here, you see that the Lord your God is able to carry out His purpose and do super abundantly far over and above all that you even dare to ask or think of! He is an infinite God, and He is setting you free from your finite way of seeing things, and into the realm of His infinite, super abundant power that is at work within you!
Psalm 31:19-20 (NKJV) says, 'Oh, how great is Your goodness, which You have laid up for those who fear You, which You have prepared for those who trust in You in the presence of the sons of men! You shall hide them in the secret place of Your presence from the plots of man; You shall keep them secretly in a pavilion (shelter) from the strife of tongues.'
You see, in spite of whatever that's happening around you in this world, the Lord has reserved for you His goodness, laid up for you His goodness, and prepared for you His goodness, if you trust in Him and fear Him! And no evil, no evil man, can touch you or take away the goodness of God from you!
Isaiah 64:3-4 (NKJV) says, 'When You did awesome things for which we did not look, You came down, the mountains shook at Your presence. For since the beginning of the world, men have not heard nor perceived by the ear, nor has the eye seen any God besides You, who acts for the one who waits for Him.'
He will know how to act for you, and He will know how to do great, marvelous things for you who wait on Him and hope in Him! In fact, He has begun to work behind the scenes for you, even if you can't see it with your finite, physical eyes yet!
Philippians 4:19 (NKJV) says, 'And my God shall supply all your need according to His riches in glory by Christ Jesus'.
Not according to your finite mind, not according to the scarcity on earth, but according to the riches of His glory, His heavenly realm, His heavenly economy!
This word 'riches' here is 'ploutos' in Greek, and it can mean 'fullness (of His wealth and possession), abundance'. And it's not just about material things, but more importantly the abundance of His wisdom and favor - heavenly wisdom and heavenly favor!
So, people of God, are you expecting all that mentioned above to happen in your life this year? Are you expecting God to do great things in your life this year? You should be!
Your part today is to ask! Ask for all the above! Ask, and you shall receive!
Now that's what happened to Moses in Exodus chapter 33. At that point of time, Moses was very disappointed and frustrated with his situation. He was at a seemingly dead-end road, and he didn't know what to do anymore. And that's when he asked God. Exodus 33:18-19 (NKJV) says, 'And he (Moses) said, "Please, show me Your glory." Then the Lord said, "I will make all My goodness pass before you, and I will proclaim the name of the Lord before you. I will be gracious to whom I will be gracious, and I will have compassion on whom I will have compassion."'
Notice when Moses asked, "Please, show me Your glory", the Lord then answered, "I will make all My goodness pass before you..." You know what? The Lord has pleasure in showing you His glory by showing you His goodness! That is how God shows His glory! One way that God shows His glory is by manifesting His goodness in your life! And in Christ, you can receive!
This word 'goodness' is 'tuwb' (from the word 'towb') in Hebrew, and it can mean 'good in the widest sense, beauty, gladness, good pleasure'. Do you see that? The Lord has pleasure in sharing His goodness with you, His gladness with you, and the beauty of His glory with you! It's very much like a good earthly father who would want to share all the goodness with his beloved children. And how much more your Abba Father, your Heavenly Father?
So, don't miss this time and season. This is your time and season to ask, believe and receive. Never let any naysayers talk you out of this! Never let the devil talk you out of this!
In Mark 11:24-25, Jesus Himself said, 'Therefore I say to you, whatever things you ask when you pray, believe that you receive them, and you will have them. And whenever you stand praying, if you have anything against anyone, forgive him...'
Jesus was saying when you ask, ask believing, ask in faith! But do not limit God. Do not think that when you ask like that means like that, and that is how God's going to answer you - like that means like that! Never limit God. God can answer you even in ways that you cannot imagine possible. God can answer you in His sovereign way. It may not necessarily be in the way that you thought it's going to be answered. And that makes things so exciting, and that's what walking by faith means!
Of course there's one area that Jesus also mentioned whenever you ask and pray, "...if you have anything against anyone, forgive him..." Never let unforgiveness hinder what you ask from God. Never let unforgiveness hinder the goodness of God from manifesting in your life. Let go and release those who hurt you. Like a river, let forgiveness flow. As you receive forgiveness from the Lord, let this forgiveness flow in you and flow to others. Learn to let go. Learn to forgive others. And that's how you can walk in greater and greater measure of God's glory and God's goodness!
In Exodus 34:10, the Lord said to Moses, "Behold, I make a covenant. Before all your people I will do marvels such as have not been done in all the earth, nor in any nation; and all the people among whom you are shall see the work of the Lord. For it is an awesome thing that I will do with you."
Here's the background to this verse: God's covenant with the people was being renewed after Moses had made the two new tablets of stone for God to write on. But before that, Moses broke the first two tablets of stone in frustration and disappointment, after seeing his people forgetting God, forgetting what God had spoken through him, and seeing that they began to worship the golden calf. It broke his heart. So, in his frustration and disappointment, he broke the first two tablets of stone that God had asked him to make.
At that time, seemingly at a dead-end road, not knowing what to do anymore with his people, and not knowing what to do anymore with his life, Moses asked and pleaded God, "Show me now Your way!" (Exodus 33:13) and "Show me Your glory!" (Exodus 33:18) Moses also said, "If Your presence does not go with us, do not bring us up from here!" (Exodus 33:15) It means if God's presence does not go with him, he will not go any further.
Beloved of God, are you currently in a situation like Moses at that time? Broken, disappointed, frustrated, not knowing how to go about anymore, not knowing what to do anymore?
Take heart. The Lord loves you. The Lord sees what you are going through, just as He saw what Moses went through at that time - his disappointment, his frustration, not knowing what to do and how to go about anymore, seemingly at a dead-end road.
The Lord will show His glory by manifesting His goodness to you, if you look to Him today. Just as He did for Moses, I want to believe from the bottom of my heart that He will do the same for you. He will show you the way. He will lead you and guide you from here. You need not be afraid or be dismayed. There's an answer for you. Amen.
