How to overcome personal problems that may hinder you in ministry!!!!!

[Bishop W.C. Maddox D.D.]

It’s Personal

Isaiah 44: 6 Thus saith the LORD the King of Israel, and his redeemer the LORD of hosts; I am the first, and I am the last; and beside me there is no God.

Every now and then we face obstacles that we can’t overcome by ourselves.

Every now and then we need someone who will deal with us on a personal level to help us out in certain situations………

Have you ever had a time when you thought that you would not make it?

Have you ever had a time where the trials, tribulations, or obstacles are so specific that you can’t just go to anyone and everyone for sound council?

Have you ever had a time where things were so overwhelming, where it seemed like there was no hope for a change in your situation, or in your condition? Have you ever had a time when it seemed like there was no way out of the trouble that you were in?

It might be that family situation that seem hopeless, or that illness, or that addiction, or that job situation, or that bad decision.

I just want to let you know that God said that He is the first, and He is the last, and beside Him there is no other God. And because God is a good God, God has the solution for your every situation and condition…..personally. It was personal, when God created the heavens and the earth. It was personal, when He said let there be light. It was personal, when He reached down into the clay. It was personal, when He formed man. It was personal, when He breathed the breath of life into man. It was personal, when man originally sinned. And since it was personal, God showed His love for us in this that while we were yet sinners, while we were at the club, while we were angry at the church, while we were in gangs, or in our addictions, while we didn’t care about God, while we were in our perversions, our lusts, our rebellions, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us, and for that we ought to give Him the praise we should thank God that He is God and that he looked at us and said…. “my relationship with them……is personal.”

God says in our verse ….. “I am the first and I am the last”…….this shows us the Sovereignty of God. In order for God to be the first, then God had to exist before anything else. In order for God to be first, then He had to bring all creation into existence, without the aid of something else bringing Him into existence, some call this aspect of God as being an uncaused, first cause. In order for God to be first, and create every thing else, then God had to be more powerful than everything else, or as we say, omnipotent. In order for God to be first and to have power over everything, then God had to know about everything created, so He would have to be all knowing or as we say, omniscient. In order for God to be first and in order to be omniscient, then God has to encompass or be everywhere in His creation at the same time or He might miss something, and we call this omnipresent.

Since God is the one who created everything, then we should know that God can remove, anything, so if there’s anything in your live that needs to be removed, you can go to God. Since God is omnipotent or all powerful then that means that nothing is more powerful than God, so if you need some power in your life, you can go to God. Since God is omnipresent or present everywhere at the same time, then that means that when you need some help with your situation, you can turn to God because He’s right there with you. Since God is omniscient or all knowing, then that means we can confess and repent to God of anything that we’ve done wrong, without being ashamed, because God already knows about it. When we look at the verse, we notice that God says, “I am the first and I am the last” He does not say I am the first and I will be the last. This lets us know that God is the first and the last at the same time and in order for God to be omnipotent, omniscient, omnipresent, the first and the last, at the same time, then God has to operate outside of time, which lets us know that God is eternal and that God created time. We see this in Genesis 1:1 when the scripture says “In the beginning God” which further lets us know that there is no time that God doesn’t know about anything because time is part of His creation. So when you are in your time of anger, just remember that in the beginning, God knew that you would be angry. When your time of temptation comes, just remember that in the beginning God knew that you would be tempted. In the beginning God knew you would struggle with that loneliness. In the beginning God knew you would struggle with that addiction. No matter what the weapon is that gets formed against you, remember that “In the beginning,” God already knew about it, and God has got the solution for it. We might say that is fine that He knew about it….but what is He going to do….about it. When we go back to our verse we find that God says “Thus saith the LORD the King of Israel, and his redeemer,” we notice that God says the King of Israel. The name Israel is God’s symbolic name for Jacob and for those who would come after Jacob in the faith, so God is talking to those who believe in God in the way that Jacob believed on God. Also we notice that God says, “his redeemer” which lets us know that this is a personal belief and a personal relationship, with a personal Savior, providing a personal salvation, with personal provisions, for personal blessings, under a personal providence, with personal action, by a Sovereign God and John tells us that, “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. The same was in the beginning with God. All things were made by him; and without him was not any thing made that was made. In him was life; and the life was the light of men. And the light shineth in darkness; and the darkness comprehended it not. And the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us,

In other Words, God provided us a perfect, personal, Savior in Jesus Christ,

who went through everything in the flesh, that we go through in the flesh, but in every trial, and every temptation, Jesus had an answer, and Jesus has an answer for your personal situation. When you think that there is nobody in your corner, just remember that God is omnipresent, in other words, God is with you. When you think you are powerless, just remember that God is omnipotent, God has the power to help you out When you think that nobody knows what you are going through, remember that God is omniscient, you can turn to Him because He knows all about it. And when you think God doesn’t care, remember He‘s the Savior. He’s a Sovereign God who wants to save you, and God cannot be personal with you, unless God is Sovereign over all. Remember that in God’s creation….It’s personal.

May God Bless You and Yours,

Bishop W.C. Maddox

Mesarim Tabernacle

Global Christian Leadership Association

http://www.globalchristianleadershipassociation.com/