Do you want evidence that faith without deeds is useless? James 3:20 (NIV) – Thur 19th Apr

Are you in right standing with God, and have you been fasting and praying fervently for a need and it appears justice has not been done and God is nowhere near you? Why don’t you try true fasting approved by the Lord in Isaiah 58? (please read and pray about this chapter today):

· Break every yoke of oppression starting in your own house - stop pointing fingers at your spouse, children, brother, sister, neighbour, workmate or any other person
· Then turn your attention outside your home. Look out for the poor and SPEND YOURSELF on their needs - food, clothing, shelter and most importantly do not turn away your own flesh and blood i.e. your brother, sister, mom, dad, etc who may be in need

What is the gain of carrying out these deeds and requirements and going about like mourners before the Lord?
· If you have a need, He promises that, your LIGHT will BREAK FORTH like DAWN – wow!
· If your are SICK, your HEALING will not only APPEAR but QUICKLY- wow!
· Your righteousness will go before you and God’s GLORY will follow your good works
· You can now call upon His name and he will say HERE I AM – wow!
· He will GUIDE you and meet all your needs when everybody around you is struggling to make ends meet
· You will be successful and flourish like a WELL WATERED GARDEN (or a flower well supplied with rain) – wow!
· Regardless of how big a mess any place is when you get there, the blessing of the Lord upon you will turn that into a delightful place – you will be A RESTORER / REPAIRER OF BROKEN WALLS and He will obviously give you the means, grace and ability to do so – wow!

However, having dealt with the human side of the equation, don’t put your relationship with God on the back burner!

· Honour the Sabbath day and be delighted and proud to go to church to worship Jehovah Shalom your God on Sunday. Be as keen to go to church as you are when going to that highly rewarding job every day – yes, even on a rainy day!
· Be so delighted in this day that YOU DO NOT DO AS YOU PLEASE (you know what the Holy Ghost is saying to you right now) or even SPEAK IDLE WORDS

For doing all this, the Lord promises the following fruits of obedience:

· You will be approved as one WHO DELIGHTS in the Lord – wow!
· God will take you to PLACES here on EARTH where you have never or ever dreamt of going. Although I am still learning to delight in the Lord, the Lord has already proved himself very faithful to me in this area. This may not mean much to you because of your background, but this poor man grew up in a rural area where he had to walk approximately 7 miles to the nearest primary school and then back everyday. And in the last 10 or so years of knowing and walking with the Lord, I sometimes wonder and give glory to the Lord God when I find myself on planes going places. For example he has (CAUSED ME TO RIDE ON THE HEIGHTS OF THE LAND) and taken me to England, Vancouver the western cost of Canada, the foothills of the Himalaya Mountains in India, across the Nile River in the heart of the Sahara desert, the Namib Desert and many other places.
· I am not bragging but illustrating what the Lord has done for me. He also ends this chapter by saying – FOR THE MOUTH OF THE LORD HAS SPOKEN! - meaning you are free to pay or not to pay heed to these things, but this is what I will do – wow!