Be Planted

William Burchfield Park

Day 56
Give your heart to Me, with all of its passions and desires, for I have made you passionate and emotional, and I can fill every need of your heart, to a point that exceeds all of your expectations. Do not look to the world or the people of the world to meet any of your needs. I am the One who meets your needs. See, I have engraved you on the palms of my hands.

Thus says the Lord, "Cursed is the one who trusts in mankind and makes flesh his strength, and whose heart turns away from the Lord. For he will be like a bush in the desert and will not see when prosperity comes, but will live in stony wastes in the wilderness, a land of salt without inhabitant."

Blessed is the one who trusts in the Lord and whose trust is the Lord. He will be like a tree planted by the water, that extends its roots by a stream and will not fear when the heat comes; but its leaves will be green, and it will not be anxious in a year of drought nor cease to yield fruit [Jeremiah 17:5-8].

See, I have engraved you on the palms of my hands; your walls are always before me [Isaiah 49:16].

Build from Vision

Day 55
Form good habits by building good molds to be filled. From my word come the building materials, the resources to use to lay down a mold over your foundation, which is your connection to Me, the Lord Jesus Christ. Lay down the boards one at a time, conforming your will by deciding to follow and then doing it. Make conscious efforts all day long to communicate with Me. Seek Me and listen to Me.

Then when you hear, lay another piece of the mold by acting in obedience. You are never on your own. I am guiding you, but you must allow yourself to be led, or you will miss it.

Keep laying down pieces of the molds. When I see that a mold is complete, in just the form I want it, I will begin to pour in the cement, which conforms and transforms your spirit and soul to my spirit and my ways.

Toronto

This is a slow process. Sometimes we have to tear up bad parts of the mold you have been building. Be careful to lay them according to my blueprint, my word that you know. Each act of obedience is another board laid in the mold.

I am revealing to you a vision of what the final project will look like. You cannot see it all at once, or you would be overwhelmed and lose sight of the task at hand. Keep building your molds, one board at a time, with the vision of my revelation in your eye.

For he said to Judah, "Let us build these cities and surround them with walls and towers, gates and bars. The land is still ours because we have sought the Lord our God; we have sought him, and He has given us rest on every side." So they built and prospered {2 Chronicles 14:7].

And it will be said, "Build up, build up, prepare the way, remove every obstacle out of the way of my people" Isaiah 57:14].

"As I have watched over them to pull up, to break down, to overthrow, to destroy and to bring disaster, so I will watch over them to build and to plant," declares the Lord [Jeremiah 31:28].

And now I commend you to God and to the word of his grace, which is able to build you up and to give you the inheritance among all those who are sanctified [Acts 20:32].

Microscopic to Massive

Day 54
Persevere in small things, taking every thought captive and submitting it to Me. I have made provision for every area of life. I have missed no details. I am the God of intricate design, and I have fashioned everything in detail, from the microscopic to the massive, majestic oceans and the vast expanse of the universe and beyond. There is not one detail unknown to Me. Do you think that I can forget you, or anything that is of concern to you, my child, and the one for whom I sacrificed my own Son and created a world to live in?

It is from Me that life, wisdom, love, joy, and peace flow, not from any of your efforts. Your purpose and function is to know Me, the Creator, and to reflect my glory. Respond to Me in faith, confidence, surrender, conformity to my ways, and obedience in all things. My way is the opposite of what the flesh wants to do. Get to know my ways, and you will always recognize the ways of the flesh, so that you may put it to death and be more than a conqueror over the ways of sin and death. My word to you is life.

Blue Mountains - Jamaica

I am the Lord, and there is no other; apart from me there is no God. I will strengthen you, though you have not acknowledged me, so that from the rising of the sun to the place of its setting men may know there is none besides me. I am the Lord, and there is no other. I form the light and create darkness, I bring prosperity and create disaster; I, the Lord, do all these things [Isaiah 45:5-7].

Thus says the Lord, your redeemer, and the one who formed you from the womb, "I, the Lord, am the maker of all things, stretching out the heavens by myself and spreading out the earth all alone" [Isaiah 44:24].

Therefore, since Christ has suffered in the flesh, arm yourselves also with the same purpose, because he who has suffered in the flesh has ceased from sin [1 Peter 4:1].

For Christ also died for sins once for all, the just for the unjust, so that He might bring us to God, having been put to death in the flesh, but made alive in the spirit [1 Peter 3:18].

Do You Know What to Do?

Ferguson Park - Okemos, Michigan

Day 53
To know my word is to know Me and my ways. Become acquainted with all my ways; then you will know how to walk in them. You will know what Jesus would do in any situation, because you will know Me. My ways are not your ways. That is why you must study them, to learn them. I have revealed myself to you so that you can teach my ways to others.

When you see Me as I am, then you can be like Me by reflecting my glory. Then others can see Me. This is the purpose of your life: to know Me and glorify Me. Be faithful to be my witness to others. I love them as I do you.

You need only to fulfill the responsibility I have set before you. You are not accountable for how others react to what I tell you to do. Keep on track with what I have told you and keep in line with what you know you should do. You obey, and my Spirit will use my word to turn the hearts of others. Do not determine your own steps and your courses of action by how you feel or by how others respond to you. You must follow my ways. My Spirit will compel you, and you will not falter or fail when you obey Me in faith, believing.

I will meditate on your precepts and regard your ways. I will delight in your instructions; I will not forget your word [Psalm 119:15-16].

Now may the God who gives perseverance and encouragement grant you to be of the same mind with one another according to Christ Jesus, so that with one accord you may with one voice glorify the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ [Romans 15:5-6].

But the word is very near you, in your mouth and in your heart, that you may observe it [Deuteronomy 30:14].

It's Who You Know

Day 52
The more of my word you get stored in your heart, the more your heart will be changed. From desires to attitudes to speech and actions, you will reflect my glory, and my will will be accomplished in your life. It is Me that you must stay connected to, not your own ideas or goals. Let my word, which reveals my character, dwell richly in you. It is life and it holds all the keys to unlock the answer to every question. You must know it, or you will lack answers, and sometimes you will take the long way around, because you do not know my word. It will never stop being the most important thing you do -- to know my word and to know Me.

And we, who with unveiled faces all reflect the Lord's glory, are being transformed into his likeness with ever-increasing glory, which comes from the Lord, who is the Spirit [2 Corinthians 3:18].

Open my eyes, that I may see wonderful things in your law. Give me understanding, that I may observe your law and keep it with all my heart [Psalm 119:18, 34].

With all my heart I have sought you;
Do not let me wander from your commandments.
Your word I have treasured in my heart,
That I may not sin against you [Psalm 119:10-11].

Burden-Bearer

Day 51
Lay your burdens down. I can carry all your burdens. When you try to juggle too many bundles, you cannot stay focused on the task at hand. One important focus is to keep getting my word into your heart.

Commit your way to Me and give it thought. Take each step in faith. You have the resources. Commit it to Me, and follow through. I have prepared your heart, and I am preparing the way before you. There is little time, and there is much to be accomplished. Your mission field lies before you. I have chosen you for specific tasks, and I have made you ready.

Obey my instruction. Be sure that you spend time with Me. Stay in my word. Follow my leading in each step, and don't turn from it.

Trust me for results. My word will accomplish what I sent it forth to do. Your job is to make it available and clear, to set it before the eyes and ears and hearts of those I have given you to minister to. It is a great responsibility, but I have made you greater than the task. I will do what I have promised.

Blessed be the Lord, who daily bears our burden, the God who is our salvation [Psalm 68:19].

Commit your works to the Lord and your plans will be established [Proverbs 16:3].

Commit your way to the Lord, trust also in him, and He will do it. He will bring forth your righteousness as the light and your judgment as the noonday [Psalm 37:5-6].

Only be strong and very courageous; be careful to do according to all the law which Moses my servant commanded you; do not turn from it to the right or to the left, so that you may have success wherever you go [Joshua 1:7].

Look and Listen

Michigan State University

Day 50
Be looking for Me all day long. I am your constant companion, and my Holy Spirit is your guide. Look to Me for counsel. When you don't know the way, I will show you. Make constant communication with Me a habit. I desire to share many things with you. This is your most intimate relationship. It will become your lifeblood.

I will instruct you and teach you in the way which you should go; I will counsel you with my eye upon you [Psalm 32:8].

I have many more things to say to you, but you cannot bear them now. But when He, the Spirit of truth, comes, He will guide you into all the truth; for He will not speak on his own initiative, but whatever He hears, He will speak; and He will disclose to you what is to come. He will glorify me, for He will take of mine and will disclose it to you. All things that the Father has are mine; therefore I said that He takes of mine and will disclose it to you [John 16:12-15].

The secret of the Lord is for those who fear him, and He will make them know his covenant [Psalm 25:14].