The Burt (Not Ernie) Show - Believing God’s Promises & Understanding Your Identity in Christ

Since God Is for Us, Who Can Be Successful Against Us? - Episode 97 - Romans 8:29-31

Well, hey there! Hello hello to you! So glad you are here for this episode of TBNES, the podcast where we work at getting the promises of God into the people of God where they belong. Because if you believe what God has promised, guess what happens? Your thinking changes. And your behavior, as in your actual way of living, changes too. The way you look at people and circumstances and blessings and struggles - all of that changes too.

 

It’s so important to mind what we think, to pay attention to not just what we say we believe, but what we truly believe, what we live by, what thoughts govern our decisions, our actions, our behaviors and our responses. 

And via this podcast, we really do allow the Word of God to renew our minds and impact every aspect of our lives.

 

I’m Jan L. Burt and you’re listening to TBNES, part of the Spark Network, now playing in the Edifi app. This is episode 97.

Last week, in spite of losing my voice and really just struggling through the week to speak at a summit I was part of and working on the podcast, which involves a lot of talking which is hard to do when your voice goes bye-bye, but I just asked the Lord to make it not the worst and I just did the work and released episode 96. In that episode, we took a look at a few verses in Romans 8 as part of this current series, and we honed in on verse 28. Such a well known Bible verse, and one that brings basically light, like a bright spotlight, into the dark places in our lives. And that’s how things can feel sometimes, ya know? Health diagnosis can feel like a really dark place. Job loss or maybe you’re of the age where your parents are older, maybe they are no longer living. That can really be a dark place, I mean grief as a whole is just heavy darkness and there isn’t really a fast forward button you can push, you can’t jump ahead 15 seconds and then jump ahead a bit further. Nope. We each grieve in our own way, at our own pace, and it isn’t always linear, this whole grief thing, is it? We go this way and then that way, from step one to step five and then back to step two. You have to just go through it. Not get through it, not put your head down, try to file it away somewhere and get so ultra busy with the things in life that can easily become busy busy busy, that’s not healthy grief. Not get through it, not even really work through it, but be much with the Lord as you just go through it. 

 

If I am going to deal with a Red Sea in my life, a Jordan River in my life, I really want to go through it holding the Lord’s hand. I don’t want to go around it, fly over it, and I only want to cross on a boat if the boat has Jesus there at the stern. If He is walking on a dry ground path through the sea, that is where I want to walk. That’s my route if that’s His route. If He is walking on top of the water, then I also want to be atop the waves because that’s where my Jesus is and I want to be with Him, as in much with Him, every single day. And if He is in the boat, even asleep on a cushion, then I want to be in that boat with Him. When He says, “Cross to the other side, Jan” then that’s that. And when He says, “Stay here on this shore for a while,” then that’s that. 

 

And this week, we get to look at three verses from Romans chapter 8, verses 29, 30 and 31.

 

Can I read those verses to you from the Amplified Bible today? 

 

For those whom He foreknew (and loved and chose beforehand), He also predestined to be conformed to the image of His Son (and ultimately share in His complete sanctification), so that He would be the firstborn (the most beloved and honored) among many believers. 

And those who He predestined, He also called; and those whom He called, He also justified (declared free of the guilt of sin); and those whom He justified, He also glorified (raising them to a heavenly dignity).

What then shall we say to all these things? If God is for us, who can be (successful) against us?

 

Wooo! Wow. Did you hear that?

 

So right on the heels of Romans 8:28, we read these three incredible verses. 

As we talk through these verses, bit by bit, grabbing all the promises we find therein, let’s start back in verse 28 for one sec. We know with great confidence that God who is deeply concerned about us causes all (not some, but all) things to work together as part of His plan for good for those of us who love Him and are called according to His plan and purpose. 

 

For those whom He foreknew (hey, just don’t forget that he knows you and He foreknew you - He knew what would break your heart to the point of crying out to Him, and I am talking about a salvation experience here, like your heart gets so broken by the astounding grossness of your own filthy sin that you cry out to Jesus - and God knew just when that particular breaking would happen for you.) Fall on the Rock and be broken or it will fall on you with a crushing weight, kind of with a final death blow. That’s from Matthew 21, verse 44. A broken heart leading to repentance and salvation found in Christ alone is a good, good thing.

You and I, we were foreknown. There is a comfort in that. You didn’t slide into the Kingdom when they weren’t looking, and if people have made you that way, just remember that this verse states clearly God foreknew you. You are in His family, the family of God, because that’s where He wants you. Foreknown. Really, let that comfort you.

 

That word “foreknew” means loved and chosen beforehand, so ya know what? Ya know what, devil? Ya know what all y’all who treat me like trash, who use me to get what you want but then toss me aside (anybody listening today who has ever, ever felt like this?) Ya know what? I am loved and chosen beforehand. Beforehand! You cannot possibly be an afterthought when God loved and chose you beforehand. These are your promises, my friend! And you have got to know that you know that you know these promises are your truth. Truth matters. God’s promises need to be your truth. Loved and chosen beforehand. Boy, that’s so good! 

 

And not only that, but God predestined you and me to be conformed to the image of His Son, Jesus. As we walk the path of our lives, as we run the race set before us, we are actually in the continual process of being sanctified. Being made more and more like Jesus. We will ultimately share in complete sanctification, Jesus said He didn’t lose any which the Father gave to Him, and He is gonna get us there right on time and we will be in good shape upon arrival. No damaged goods sliding into heaven. Nope. Sanctification is your promise, and it is even now taking place. He intends for you to look like His Son. And doesn’t God get what He intends to get? Um, yeah. Jesus is going to be so celebrated, so honored, as the firstborn among MANY who are believers. And you are one of that many. 

Predestined, chosen and loved beforehand, being sanctified. Oh you’ve got some good things being spoken over your life today, my friend! You need to live like this is true for you. Because - spoiler alert - it is 100% true.

 

And those who He predestined, He also called. Okay, so I am called. And you are, as well. Called. When we know that we have been called by God, we walk with our head a little higher, with some pep in our step. We are called! And we can never be un-called when it was God who did the calling. So we walk with some assurance that we are going to get to our destination, not just our final destination, not just the end game, but also getting to every other destination God has in store for us in this life, here in the land of the living. And He does have destinations. There are stopping places, for sure, and also there are places where  He will have us pick up the pace and get to moving forward. 

 

And since you know that He called you (and you should know that because He says so right here in the eighth chapter of the book of Romans!) then you need to know that He also justified you. To be conformed to the image of Jesus, God’s Son, you can’t be all filthy with sin. Rolling around in it, that’s not fitting for your calling. God justified you, He declared you free of the guilt of your sin, and so be wary of sin infiltrating your life. Now we all sin, of course we do, but don’t roll around in it. Don’t play patty cake with it. Avoid it, mature and grow beyond childish ways, keep praying to be delivered more and more, on a continual basis, from the grasp of sin. 

 

Basically I’m saying don’t willingly go on back to the stuff God delivered you from. He has a better way for you. You’ve been called. That’s an honor, it’s a privilege, and it is also a responsibility. So ya know, act like it.

 

And those he justified, He also glorified. You can live today with a level of dignity that corresponds to who you are in the Kingdom of your God. Dignity. It matters. A lot, actually. Think about what it means to be dignified, to live a dignified life. Sometimes that means we don’t dignify a certain situation with a response, with an emotional response. Sometimes it means we are the quietest person in the room and sometimes not the quietest. A heavenly minded dignity should permeate the lives of all who have been predestined and chosen and called and are being sanctified and are justified because it’s a mark of God’s hand on our lives. 

 

Now, here is verse 31, our final verse for today.

What then shall we say to all these things? 

This level of promise warrants some kind of a response, doesn’t it?

What then shall we say to all these things?

If God is for us, who can be (successful) against us?

 

You got an answer for that there question? Cuz I sure don’t. I cannot think of one person on this planet who can be successful against me in light of all we just read. It cannot happen. Not should not, not I hope not, no. Cannot. Nobody, not even the devil himself, can be successful against you.

 

Did you know that? Did you really, really know that?

You need to know that. 

 

In that big meeting tomorrow, when your teenager is in some kind of rebellion and you are frazzled by it, when inflation is high and wages don’t seem high enough. 

Who can be against you? 

Who can actually be a success in their fight and attacks and scheming against you? 

Nobody. Nobody at all, no not ever, nada. 

Isaiah says no weapon formed against me shall prosper. It doesn't say it will not be formed against me, that would be an untruth and there is no untruth in the Word of God. It is gonna form, because the devil hates those who love Jesus. Bottom line, he always lies and always hates and so he isn’t going to wake up one day and be like, “Hey, I’ma stop lying and no more hate in my little black heart.” No. He does what he does. Think of the line from the original Jurassic Park movie, when Dr. Alan Grant says, “The other kind just do what they do.” and he was talking about the meat eaters, well, they eat meat. Not very comforting for the little girl he was talking to, but it was the truth boiled down to an explanation that was necessary. No sense dwelling on why meat eaters eat meat, because there isn’t a solution to that. Just surviving that reality. Well you and I get to do a whole lot more than just survive this reality.

Those weapons, no matter how many or how varied or how well thought out or how intense or how sneakily they come at us, none of them will prosper. 

And no one on this planet can be a success in their attempts that are against you. Because your God is for you, He has called you, He is sanctifying you and making you more and more like His dearly loved Son, He foreknew you and loved you and He chose you, He called you, He justified you, He is giving you a level of dignity that is so far beyond this world, it’s eternal dignity fit for His eternal Kingdom. 

 

That’s who is for you. That’s who is for you.

 

And that wraps up this podcast episode about God’s promises for you.

 

Now hey, hang on for a second - if you are encouraged or blessed or both by this content, would you leave a review or share this episode with somebody and if you are interested in reading my devotional The Power of God’s Will - 40 Days of God’s Promises you can find that on Amazon. And be on the lookout for my course on Psalm 91. Praying this psalm over your life, your loved ones lives, it is a forever game changer and every believer needs to do a deep dive study on this psalm. You’ll pray better and more effectively, you’ll have more of a mind at peace, those people you are praying for will see God’s hand moving in their lives, and you will do nothing but benefit by taking this course. That may sound like quite an outcome I’m promising, but it’s a promise founded solidly on the Word of God so I make that promise with boldness. And I want you to step up, take the course, and see things move and improve in your world. 

 

I’m off to Nashville for the Spark Network Podcast Conference and I am expecting to learn so much, and to implement what I learn as soon as I get back next week. 

But don’t worry, episode 98 will drop right on time, just like the usual.

 

Hope you’ll be back for that as we look at a few more verses from Romans 8.

Thanks for listening - praying for you, appreciate you, excited to see God opening new doors for you on the regular.

 

You’ve been listening to TBNES, part of the Spark Network, now playing in the Edifi app.

 

Jan L. Burt is an author, speaker, podcaster, homeschooling veteran, mother to five, and has been happily married to Tony for thirty years. She served in youth ministry alongside her husband for twelve years & has led several Bible studies for women as well as hosting two online prayer retreats.

Jan is the  author of the new book “A 60-Day Prayer Journal for Parents” & “The Power of God’s Will – 40 Days of God’s Promises Devotional” (available on Amazon) & “The Once-A-Year Homeschool Planner” (a multi-grade, multi-subject planning system) – which can be found at JanLBurt.com. She has also been a regular contributor to The Old Schoolhouse Magazine. Find Jan  Instagram: @JanLBurt or at her website JanLBurt.com or at her YouTube channel, “God’s Promises for You with Jan L. Burt”. 

 

 

God’s Good Plans for Your Life - Romans 8:28 - Episode 96

Well hey there, hello to you and welcome to this episode of The Burt (Not Ernie) Show - getting the promises of God into the people of God, one podcast at a time. I’m so glad you’re here!

 

Today we are continuing our look into the eighth chapter of the New Testament book of Romans, and we are landing on some really big verses in this episode. In fact, for many believers, one of today’s verses may well be the most quote/unquote popular verse they know.

Romans 8, verses 26, 27 & of course, Romans 8:28. It’s not so well known for no reason! This verse, and the verses that surround it, are of tremendous value to those who follow Christ. And anything of tremendous value is worth investing in, right? Our time, our thoughts, our response, our prayer lives, our level of belief. As we get started today, can I just encourage you to be ready and willing to hear what these verses promise? 

 

You’re listening to The Burt (Not Ernie) Show podcast, part of the Spark Network, now playing in the Edifi app. This is episode 96.

 

This series on Romans 8 has been so good for me as I’ve worked on each episode. And I’ve gotten some really wonderful feedback about this series, so I’m thankful I followed the Lord’s leading and began this series. My prayer throughout this series has been, and continues to be, that we will be better because we better understand what the Bible says to us from Romans chapter 8. To think better because we know better. To love better because we better know the Father’s love for us. To pray better because we better understand the promises found in this portion of Scripture. To believe for better and better things, because Romans 8 teaches us that the Lord God Most High does indeed have better things for us than we have previously experienced. (And that’s true no matter what good things you and I have already experienced - there is always more that God has in store. Once we step into eternity, being in the never-ending presence of our Savior, well that will be one amazing day, won’t it? So even when things get tough here in this life, we know that we have incomprehensible goodness coming in our future. But I also want to say that I believe there is so much good for us yet to come to pass right here in the land of the living, as it says in Psalm 27:13)

 

I hope this series on Romans 8 has been encouraging to you - and after this episode, we will have three more episodes looking at promises we find in this chapter. But today, well today is a very special episode. There is a rich, treasure trove of hope for us from the verses I am about to read. Ready? Let’s go!

 

Romans 8:26-28, from the Amplified:

26 In the same way the Spirit [comes to us and] helps us in our weakness. We do not know what prayer to offer or how to offer it as we should, but the Spirit Himself [knows our need and at the right time] intercedes on our behalf with sighs and groanings too deep for words. 27 And He who searches the hearts knows what the mind of the Spirit is, because the Spirit intercedes [before God] on behalf of [a]God’s people in accordance with God’s will.

28 And we know [with great confidence] that God [who is deeply concerned about us] causes all things to work together [as a plan] for good for those who love God, to those who are called according to His plan and purpose.

Now in the few verses just prior to these Paul was talking about hope. All of creation is longing for the day when Christ will be revealed. And we who have hope in Christ are always, in some measure, hoping for what we have not yet received. We have not arrived, we are still living on this earth and haven’t gone on to be with the Lord in heaven yet. We aren’t hoping for what we already have, because that would not make any sense. But a person hopes for what he or she does not yet have, as it says in verses 24 & 25. 

 

The first thing we want to take note of from verse 26 is that the Holy Spirit helps us in our weakness. I’ve got weak places in my life - in my thinking, in my behavior, with my tongue (anybody else ever say stuff that just is wrong? I sure do!). Weak places, that’s where the Spirit of the Living God comes to us and helps us. Don’t skip past this too quickly! It’s so important to really get a hold of this. He helps us right where we need some helping, and the Bible tells us that we need help in our weakness. Paul is not mincing words here, so let’s actually accept what the Bible is saying. We sometimes want some help for x-y-z…in our finances, maybe, or in our health. With that certain coworker, in some aspect of our relationships, maybe in our marriage or with our siblings (cuz that all changes when you grow up, am I right? Siblings as adults is sometimes like a bag of cats - just watch out, it can get scratchy and wild!) And those are all things to pray about, to seek the Lord’s wisdom and guidance and help with. But in this particular passage, it is telling us that we need help in our weakness. So, in your work stuff, perhaps you are mainly praying about things from a “Help me deal with this difficult person - guide me as I prep for this big presentation - bless the work of my hands and give me favor and increase.” Really good things to pray about! I mean, everything is a good thing to pray about when we see God as our loving, caring, good Father, ya know? But that’s not exactly “weakness”. Lord, I need a raise. A struggle, a need? Yup. A weakness? Well, not necessarily. So we need to first off, acknowledge we have weak spots and then be willing to let the Holy Spirit be the Lord over those weak spots. Come to me this week, Holy Spirit, and help me in my weakness. That’s just simply agreeing in prayer with what this verse says. And it’s good to pray according to the Word of God, to get yourself to fully yield to the sovereignty of God by praying for His will, as He has revealed it in His Word, to come to pass. His will be done in your life, in my life, now. In the right now. That's solid praying right there. 

 

And this verse continues with some direction about our praying, our prayer life. And it should be a prayer life. If your praying doesn’t have some life to it, if it feels dead, it isn’t what God would have it to be. He wants it alive, full of hope and excitement, with time to ask and seek and knock and time to listen to hear what He has to say to you. 

 

When we don’t know what prayer to pray, or how to offer a prayer to the Lord, this verse promises that the Spirit will help us. As in, He sorts it all out perfectly. He gets the right thing across the finish line at the right time. He is never late, He is never forgetful or absent-minded, and He cannot fail in any aspect of His work. If He promises that He knows our needs (and He does), if He promises to help us in our weakness (and that’s exactly what He promises), if He will intercede for us at just the right time (and He surely will do just that) then we can, we must, stand on it. 

 

It’s not a crime to be weak, my friend. To have times when you have no clue how to pray, you just know you need to pray. And the Holy Spirit can do something - He wants to do something - He is going to intercede for us. Don’t fear weakness. Fear prayerlessness far more than you ever fear weakness! A prayerless life for the believer is not good, it’s like poisoning your own well and then wondering why in the world you feel sick all the time. But when we don’t know how to pray, when life has knocked the wind out of us, we can easily end up not praying. Ask the Holy Spirit to do as He has promised in these verses, to intercede for you and to make that intercession line up with the will of God. 

 

Let’s read verse 27 again - And He who searches the hearts knows what the mind of the Spirit is, because the Spirit intercedes [before God] on behalf of [a]God’s people in accordance with God’s will.

 

If you sense the Lord is searching your heart, can you remember this verse rather than panic and get uneasy during the searching process? Think of it as more of a search and rescue, He is searching your heart and He is always ready, willing and able to rescue you - it’s more of a search and rescue than a search and recovery. When you hear on the news that some type of search, maybe after a tornado or other natural disaster, transitions from rescue to recovery, a loss of life is indicated. God is not in the loss of life business. He is in the healing, restoring, delivering, blessing, forgiving, offering grace and mercy, discipling, rescuing business. Think of those times accordingly when you sense the Lord searching your heart. 

 

Let Him search! He knows what the mind of God is, and that’s incredible to have as a sort of covering over your life, because He knows the mind of God in any and every situation or circumstance or relationship or health problem or financial problem or global pandemic problem or inflation problem or can’t find a job problem you have today, may have tomorrow, or will ever have over the course of a lifetime. Let Him do that searching! And let Him take what He finds as a result of the search. He will take it, lifting that burden from your shoulders (provided you allow Him to do that!) and He will then intercede for you, on your behalf, from that place of knowing fully, exactly, perfectly and completely what the will of God is. 

 

Oh the searching is only scary when we look at it in the wrong light! It’s actually so, so good! You are blessed, my friend, when the Holy Spirit stands in intercession for you. You want that! You want Him to intercede for you and then to do it again tomorrow if you need it again tomorrow. He is interceding on behalf of God’s people in accordance with God’s will.

 

Now, lemme ask you, how’s that for a promise???

 

And now, we arrive at Romans 8:28.

And we know [with great confidence] that God [who is deeply concerned about us] causes all things to work together [as a plan] for good for those who love God, to those who are called according to His plan and purpose.

 

God has a plan.

 

Did you need to hear that today?

God has a plan.

Not just a plan for the entirety of the world, as a whole, in large part, for the masses.

Of course, this is my Father’s world & as Creator, as Sovereign, He has an overarching, all-encompassing plan. Of course He does! If not, how could He be the God of all creation, the One Who Is, Who Was, and Who Is To Come? 

 

But you and I, as individuals, He has a plan for us too. For me. For you. No child of God is left out of His plan. None who is in the beloved can be out of the plan. He doesn’t forget anything or anyone, not for a millisecond. 

God has a plan. 

And He causes all things to work together as part of that plan for good for those who love God and are called according to His plan and purpose.

 

There is so much in this verse. One sentence, and a handful of words, and the way we look at our lives and every moment of our lives, is changed. (Like the quote from the book The Four Feathers, “Three little white feathers and the worlds at its end.”) Well, regarding Romans 8:28, a handful of words and nothing is at its end!

 

This verse changes the way we view life, the way that we think, and subsequently the way that we live.

Do you live in belief? Do you live what you would call a believing life? Or do you live more in the land of unbelief? Not the land of make believe, but the land of unbelief.

No Christian should remain in a place of unbelief for too long. Short stops in that place, my friend! Get about the work of believing; the way you get up and get dressed and head to work in the morning, as a habit, with no mental arguing back and forth about the merits of going to work each and every day verses the risks involved with such a daily venture, which could, after all, result in something awful taking place. Why, anything could happen today, say, on the way to work or as I grab my morning cup of coffee, and then there is the first hour of the workday, who knows what that may bring! How will I survive it? I don’t think I could endure it if that first hour was at all challenging, difficult, taxing, or wearisome. Nope! Not going to work today. Maybe when my employer gets me an iron clad guarantee that I won’t have any stress or struggle or any problems or hard tasks whatsoever, then I will go back to work. Until then, work is too risky. 

 

Newsflash: many of us treat faith in this manner.

It seems risky to believe that a promise like Romans 8:28 could really be true. What if it doesn’t prove true for me? This seems dangerous, maybe even foolish, to really be one of those people who live their days believing that God works out all things for their good, so long as they love Him and are called according to His purposes and His plan. Well, I just don’t know if I can go that far today. Maybe tomorrow I will try again; but today, I’d better play it safe, not take any risks, and just wait for God to increase my faith if He actually wants me to believe His Word.

 

Listen, I have to tell you, God really does want you to take Him at His Word, by faith. And you don’t need to wait for more faith to come along; you need to believe based on the faith you already have. When Jesus was asked to increase the faith of His disciples, did He not respond by telling them that so much that was seemingly miraculous, utterly impossible in our own strength, could be accomplished by faith the size of a mustard seed? Oh, that’s exactly what He said. And I’m guessing that you and I both have that amount of faith at the very least. 

 

The verse Romans 8:28 is a favorite when we pray for others; not exactly a go-to verse when we pray for ourselves. We know it by heart and can recite it at any moment, but we may not believe it, even as we speak it.

 

Yet, we desperately want it to be true - and not only true, but true for us! Now! Today!

What if it can be true for you today? What if it is true? What if?

 

What wonder, what possibility, what dreams open up to us when we believe this verse is indeed 100% true for you and for me, right now, at this moment?

 

God has a plan. He has a plan for you. A plan to work all things, and that little three letter word all really does mean all, nothing left out or forgotten or oops, all except for that part…no, it truly means all things will work for your good if you love the Lord your God (and oh I hope that you do!) and are called according to His purposes. 

If you meet those two conditions, then Romans 8:28 isn’t merely a promise from the Bible; it is your promise from the Bible.

 

What does it mean to be called according to God’s plan and purpose? 

Paul was called to be an apostle of Christ through the will of God (1 Cor 1:1 & Romans 1:1 that was kind of his resume, if you will). 2 Timothy 1:9 says we are called with a holy calling. John 6:44 states that no one can come to Jesus unless God calls him, so if you are a follower of Jesus, you’ve been called. In Matthew 22 we read about many being called and few being chosen. Have you responded to the Lord’s call to surrender your life to Him? If so, you know what it means to be called by God. It is His will that none should perish, but that all should be saved. He made the way to salvation possible and His desire is for all mankind, every single person on this planet, to answer His call.

 

I don’t want you to think that this is something only certain disciples of Jesus get, this being called.

Are you walking with Him day by day? Well, how could you walk with Him without that calling? It’s certainly not our flesh that allows us to follow Jesus! Our flesh won’t be in eternity with us, so it has no reason to deny itself! The here and now is all the flesh has, and it wants for nothing beyond the here and now. 

But for those who have been called and who, much like Zaccheus, responded when the Lord said, “Hey! Come on! Come along with me, follow me, come down from that tree - I need to dine with you today, I have some things to share with you.” Much like that instance, we who are called according to God’s plan and purpose have this promise, this unbreakable promise, that all things will work for our good.

 

I don’t need to pretty this up and describe how “good” could mean this, that or the other and might feel pretty doggone bad. Um, that sort of bothers me. And it bothers me because we can so easily, so quickly, so readily excuse away God’s word and God’s promises with that kind of thinking. 

Who is helped by such talk? If you have lost a loved one, it’s not helpful to say ridiculous things like “God must have needed them more than you needed them.” What? That’s a terrible way to try and comfort someone who is deep in grief! You’d be far better off to just sit with them in their grief, just be there but be silent than to say things like that. 

The good promised here is inherently good, it is the kind of goodness that originates from God and it just cannot be explained away as bad is good in opposite world. He loves you so very much and He has so much good for you. Nothing He does is ever outside of His unending love and loving kindness toward you. He is for you and He is not ever against you. And He is working, right now, all things for your good. This is a positive! 

God is generous. God is kind. God empowers His people. God is faithful. God is trustworthy. God is love. The Great I AM has promised that He is deeply concerned about you and that He is working all things to work together as a plan (He does not do random!) for good for you. 

 

Don’t lose hope, my friend. Hang on to your hope because it will not let you down or disappoint you. Hope in your God, and expect to see the goodness of the Lord in the land of the living. In your land. In your life.

 

Romans 8:28. What. A. Promise!

 

As I wrap up today’s episode, I want to mention a couple of things - voting for the Spark media podcast awards closes at the end of February, so get your vote in today for The Burt (Not Ernie) Show.  I’m nominated for best female podcast and I’ll put the link to vote in the show notes. Spark Media Podcast Awards - Vote Here for The Burt (Not Ernie) Show - Best Female Podcast - THANKS FOR YOUR VOTE!!!

 

 And also, I’ve got something new coming up soon. A course on prayer, specifically on Psalm 91. I’m going to have some options for founders to join my course early at a discounted price of $25 rather than the $50 it will normally cost. If you’d like to be a founder, please let me know by emailing me at JanLBurt@outlook.com and just say founder info in the subject line and put your name and email address in the body of the email. I will send out some info via my email list in the next few weeks, so you can sign up for that and keep an eye on your inbox when the course goes live at the founder’s rate. Visit my website JanLBurt.com & scroll down just a smidge and drop your email and you’ll be on the list! Hope you’ll join me, cuz it’s gonna be good!  Don’t miss this lower rate because this course is life changing, I really do mean that, people have used those exact words to describe it. Growing your prayer life can change everything so please be part of the Psalm 91 course. 

 

Next week we are going to look at verses 29, 30 and 31. Don’t miss it, be sure to subscribe to this podcast wherever you listen and feel free to leave a review, too. 

Thanks so much, I appreciate your support and your continual listens. And for all those who listen to The Burt (Not Ernie) Show in countries other than the US, I am so glad you are listening and if you happen to be in a country that is well difficult for Christ followers or maybe is enduring difficult things right now, please know that I see the list of countries that listen and I pray for you. You are not alone, and you are not standing alone. Praying for you, and then praying for you some more. The Lord sees. And Romans 8:28 is for you, it is for you. Praying you will see it come to fruition even at this very moment. 

Thank you for joining me here!

The Inexhaustible Hope of God’s Word (Romans 8:16 & 17) Episode 95 (Romans 8 Podcast Series)

Jan is a speaker at the Life Skills Leadership Summit - grab your tickets HERE!

Spark Media Podcast Awards - Vote Here for The Burt (Not Ernie) Show - Best Female Podcast - THANKS FOR YOUR VOTE!!!

Well hey there - hello again to ya. So glad you’re joining me today for this episode of The Burt (Not Ernie) Show. We are looking at a couple of verses from Romans chapter 8 - verses 16 & 17. This is the fifth podcast episode in our series on Romans 8, and I must say today’s verses are good. Good stuff coming your way. I’m your host, Jan L. Burt, author, speaker, homeschool veteran, ministry leader, and an award winning podcaster…but really I’m just a woman running hard after Jesus on the daily, trying to encourage people to believe God’s promises as I run my race and press on toward the prize of the high calling I have through Christ Jesus, my Lord. 

 

The Burt (Not Ernie) Show is part of the Spark Network, now playing in the Edifi app. This is episode 95.

 

Romans 8, verse 16 & 17, from the Amplified Bible reads like this:

 

The Spirit Himself testifies and confirms together with our spirit (assuring us) that we (believers) are children of God. 

And if (we are His children), (then we are His) heirs also: heirs of God and fellow heirs with Christ (sharing His spiritual blessing and inheritance), if indeed we share in His suffering so that we may also share in His glory.

 

Alright, well now, that’s quite a bit packed into two verses. 

 

I’ve said this before, but it bears repeating - God’s Word holds within it more hope, more promise, more of the very breath of life, than we can ever use up or exhaust. It is quite literally inexhaustible. Which is absolutely incredible to think about. We don’t have much in this life that fits that description, that meets that qualifier. But God’s Word holds within it all things inexhaustible. Need hope today? God’s Word has it. Joy? Peace? Love? Truth? Guidance? Clarity? Strength? Understanding? Wisdom? Practical knowledge? It’s all right here, ours for the taking, if we would but open it, read it, and believe it. 

 

So let’s really, truly believe these words today.

 

The Holy Spirit, who is of course God - not kind of God, not partially God, and not merely the third member of the Trinity (and yes, there is one very popular, even famous, modern day preacher who stated that exact thing in one of his books…and it’s not maybe who you might think, not somebody super charismatic, but someone you might label as more conservative - and look, that’s just dangerous to say. The Holy Spirit is fully God, and He is not to be trifled with. So that’s what I call to mind when I read about the Spirit of the Living God in the Bible). The Holy Spirit who is fully God, and in whom there is no shadow of turning, and who so graciously tells us that He is no respecter of persons (your rank, your popularity, your position, your whatever don’t matter to Him - He does not respect you more or less based on such things, and frankly, being the Lord God of Heaven’s Armies…um, we’re never gonna move His needle with such things.) 

If you feel like you are praying from a small place, from a low estate, from a funk, from a rough spot, don’t stop praying! Pray more! Pray bigger, bolder prayers than you’ve ever prayed before from that exact place where you feel small or in a funk. Because your God is not a respecter of mankind. And your low estate is just the runway for the take-off of a miracle. Let Him be glorified in your big praying. Don’t pray small when you feel small. Feelings are fickle, like people’s tastes. Fickle things don’t rule over the life of a child of God. 

 

The Holy Spirit testifies and confirms (hey now, if God confirms something, who on earth can un-confirm it? Yeah, nobody that’s who. That ain’t happening.) He testifies, and He cannot lie, it’s impossible for Him to do so, so if He testifies about something, well then that’s it. Done deal. Finitio. And in verse 16, the Holy Spirit does both the testifying and the confirming, so there isn’t any wiggle room and there is no getting out of this promise. See what I’m getting at here? I’m painting this picture for you that is the absolute reality in God’s Kingdom, and I want you to accept it, to believe it, as an absolute reality in your day to day, walking around life. 

 

He testifies and confirms along with our spirit to assure us that we who are believers in the Lord Jesus Christ as Messiah, as Savior of the world, we are children of God.

 

Is this a promise, or is this a promise?!? 

 

I’m going to read this verse again and I just want you to listen and then to do what the verse says, to be in agreement with the Spirit that you are a child of God (provided you know Jesus personally, that is - this is a conditional promise in that it only applies to those who are in Christ, who are saved, who believe on Him for forgiveness and eternal salvation). 

 

So if that’s you, as I read, you sort of give a nod, something like you answer in the affirmative. And hey, if you can, if you’re in a place where you can do so, answer out loud. Yes, Lord. Amen, Lord. Like, when you do that, you are talking to the devil and he must , must,  must flee when you resist him. Actively agreeing with the Word of God is resisting the devil. 

 

Romans 8:16 (AMP) - the Spirit Himself testifies and confirms together with our spirit (assuring us) that we (believers) are children of God.

 

Amen to that!

 

If God says we’re children, that He has testified that’s who we are and He has confirmed that that’s who we are, then that is who we are.

 

Alright, I have hopefully laid a solid & firm foundation for verse 17.

 

I just want to mention a couple of things here before I continue - if you would consider voting for this podcast as part of the Spark Media awards, I’m nominated for best female podcast and voting is open through the end of February of 2022. I’ll put that link in the show notes. Spark Media Podcast Awards - Vote Here for The Burt (Not Ernie) Show - Best Female Podcast - THANKS FOR YOUR VOTE!!!

 And also, I’ve got something new coming up soon. A course on prayer, specifically on Psalm 91. I’m going to have some options for founders to join my course early at a discounted price of $25 rather than the $50 it will normally cost. If you’d like to be a founder, please let me know by emailing me at JanLBurt@outlook.com and just say founder info in the subject line and put your name and email address in the body of the email. I will send out some info via my email list in the next few weeks, so you can sign up for that and keep an eye on your inbox when the course goes live at the founder’s rate. Visit my website JanLBurt.com & scroll down just a smidge and drop your email and you’ll be on the list! Hope you’ll join me, cuz it’s gonna be good! 

Okay, back to verse 17. You ready? If you’re not, you better get ready. Put your lap belt on, cuz this plane is gonna take off. And you do not want to miss this flight. Okay, ready?

 

Romans 8:17 (AMP) - and if (we are His) children, (then we are His) heirs also; heirs of God and fellow heirs with Christ (sharing His spiritual blessing and inheritance); if indeed we share in His suffering, so that we may also share in His glory.

 

It’s settled that we are God’s children, and according to 1 John, we are His dearly loved children. Some of us grew up in homes where we were children, but maybe didn’t feel loved, let alone dearly loved. This truth is vital for us as disciples of Jesus. You gotta know that you know that you are dearly loved as a child of God. And God, who is faithful and who does nothing outside of His lovingkindness, is the One who dearly loves you. 

 

As His child, you are also an heir. A fellow heir with Christ, and you get to share in His spiritual blessing and inheritance. So what does that look like for us? Well, you can take something in the Bible and you can pray it and you can expect that it won’t be an unanswered prayer. The Word of God does not, will not, cannot return to God void, but rather it will do, must do, can’t not do (to use a double negative) what He has sent it forth to do. Speak God’s Word out loud. This is part of your inheritance as an heir. Speaking, praying, God’s Word, out loud, changes things. In your living room and on the other side of the world. We can’t neglect our inheritance, our spiritual blessings, and think we are living in the fullness of all the Lord wants to give us. 

We can pray, “Give me the nations, Lord, as part of Your Kingdom!” and we can expect Him to move and act, to rescue people from the lost-ness that floods this world. Your prayers, and mine, can build an ark that offers rescue, deliverance, hope, and protection from the floodwaters engulfing this planet. 

 

Don’t believe me? That’s alright! I don’t want you to believe me; I want you to believe the Word of God. 

 

Try this: each day for the next 30 days, for one month solid, read and pray out loud Psalm 91. Now you may get to about day 6 and be like, this is monotonous, what am I even doing? But keep going. By day 30, you will not be the same. You are going to find yourself praying that over people and situations and circumstances all the time. And things are gonna happen. Mountains will start to move. Grace will begin to flow. Take the Kingdom of God by force, as it says in Matthew 11:12. Take it by standing in prayer, by praying God’s Word, by choosing to believe that every single promise God has made is absolutely, unequivocally true for you, and all He has planned and purposed and in store for you will be yours. Nothing less! Shalom - that word means nothing missing, nothing broken. 

 

I’ve just given you a plan to start seeing God work and move in your life, and it can change the entire trajectory of how you live out your days on this planet. Do it by faith if you must, and by that I mean you may not be feeling it when you start praying Psalm 91 out loud on that first day of the 30 days straight. That’s okay! Be strong enough and courageous enough (see Joshua 1:9) to just get started. Trust God enough to do this even if you don’t feel like you can totally trust Him in all the things just yet. Try it! And in the words of the movie A Christmas Story, I double dog dare ya. I really will be such a goofball as to double dog dare you to do this if it will get you to try it! Don’t have a lot of belief in this kind of thing? Well, here. Take some of my belief and get started with that. Like, this is an heirloom seed, not GMO, it will take root and it will grow and it will bear fruit and that fruit will be seed-bearing, in season and out of season, like a tree planted by streams of waters whose fruit never fails because it’s roots go down deep into the nutrient rich, well watered soil and it never winters, it just keeps on producing. That’s what I’m giving you - an heirloom seed of my belief for you to start with. And just wait until you see what God does from there!

 

Again, he is no respecter of persons. You can have as much Jesus, as much of all He has promised, as you want. As you like it, so be it. So ya know, why not go for the gusto? Why not? Let’s just ride this sucker for all it’s worth and live all the way into the grave…not exist until the grave overtakes us.

 

It does say in verse 17 that we gain this inheritance in part by sharing in His suffering. You and I are going to suffer. It’s an untruth to say that when you come to Christ you never have hard times again. Oh, you do. Some will break your heart! When people reject Jesus and you understand the eternal, forever consequences…that will break your heart. In the church body, as Jesus and Paul stated so clearly, there will be wolves and they come in to mislead the flock and even to devour the sheep. You may be made fun of, treated badly, because of your belief in Jesus and in God’s Word. But those who don’t know Jesus, they suffer too. We suffer from victory, as a part of procuring our spiritual blessing and inheritance. They suffer with no victory on the horizon, because without Jesus even the greatest earthly victory amounts to nothing other than something akin to another notch on the devil’s belt. Ya know the saying, “Smoke ‘em if you’ve got ‘em?” Satan’s got ‘em, and he smokes ‘em. He does what he can with every opportunity he gets and he is not going to leave anything on the table. 

 

Suffer for Jesus, or suffer to give Satan what he wants. Really, there is no other option. There is no in-between. 

 

Your suffering when you know Jesus, as a child of God, comes with the promise that you will share in His glory.

 

Now think on that for a moment. 

Christ’s glory, and He is willing to share it with us. With you.

 

This is a promise among promises. 

 

This is beyond our ability to understand or comprehend.

And yet, this is what God is offering to us today.

 

And it is for today!

Today is the day you are listening to this podcast, so today is the day that God planned for you to hear what these verses from Romans 8 have to say.. And that means, today is the day He wants you to believe this is for you, to step into it, and to receive all He desires to give you as His dearly beloved child.

 

Thank you for joining me for part five of the Romans 8 series, and don’t forget to get on my email list at JanLBurt.com for info about being a founder for the course. 

 

Next time we are looking at verses 26, 27 and 28.

 

Yup, it’s time to talk about that oft quoted, so famous among believers verse, Romans 8:28. And we’re gonna discuss it in context with verses 26 & 27 because we want to know all of what God says so that we can get all of what He has promised.

 

Don't miss next week. Invite your friends, subscribe to The Burt (Not Ernie) Show, all that stuff. Big week on the show for episode 96 so make plans, make some room in your schedule, to catch that episode. 

 

I’d love it if you left the show a review & thanks in advance for doing so.

 

Praying God’s richest and fullest blessing and favor over you this week, and expecting Him to do exceedingly, abundantly above and beyond all you could ever think, ask, dream or imagine. Wont’ He do? Oh, I do believe He will!

 

See ya next time!

Bye bye!

 

You’ve been listening to The Burt (Not Ernie) Show, part of the Spark Network, now playing in the Edifi app.

Jan is a speaker at the Life Skills Leadership Summit - grab your tickets HERE!

Spark Media Podcast Awards - Vote Here for The Burt (Not Ernie) Show - Best Female Podcast - THANKS FOR YOUR VOTE!!!

Jan L. Burt is an author, speaker, podcaster, homeschooling veteran, mother to five, and has been happily married to Tony for thirty years. She served in youth ministry alongside her husband for twelve years & has led several Bible studies for women as well as hosting two online prayer retreats.

Jan is the  author of the new book “A 60-Day Prayer Journal for Parents” & “The Power of God’s Will – 40 Days of God’s Promises Devotional” (available on Amazon) & “The Once-A-Year Homeschool Planner” (a multi-grade, multi-subject planning system) – which can be found at JanLBurt.com. She has also been a regular contributor to The Old Schoolhouse Magazine. Find Jan  Instagram: @JanLBurt or at her website JanLBurt.com or at her YouTube channel, “God’s Promises for You with Jan L. Burt”. 

Are We Living by the Holy Spirit’s Power? Romans 8-13-15 Episode 94

Spark Media Podcast Awards - Vote Here for The Burt (Not Ernie) Show - Best Female Podcast - THANKS FOR YOUR VOTE!!!

Well hey there, hello again. Welcome to this episode of The Burt (Not Ernie) Show - the podcast that puts the promises of God into the hearts & minds of God’s people. I’m Jan L. Burt, author and speaker, podcaster and prayer retreat leader, and I am so glad you’re here today. We are taking a look at the promises we find in chapter 8 of the book of Romans, and believe me you, there are indeed some wonderful things promised to us. The Burt (Not Ernie) Show is part of the Spark Network, now playing in the Edifi app. This is episode 94.

 

Romans 8, verses 13, 14, & 15. These verses are our focus this week, and they are hefty. There is some meat on these bones, ya know? This is not like baby food, and that’s a good thing because we don’t want to be spiritually immature. We want the meat of God’s Word because we are feeding, consuming, ingesting, as spiritually mature people. In the physical realm, we all begin as newborns and we grow from there. We grow in every way. Now I am going to share a very personal story about one of our children, and how as a newborn she did not grow. She was less than her birth weight at 11 weeks of age. It was scary to say the least, it was a huge relief when at 12 weeks she regained her birth weight and as the remainder of her first year went on, her development was something we did not take for granted, let me just put it that way. What was automatic and not given too much thought with her siblings was reason for celebration and rejoicing and a huge relief to us as her parents. We celebrated weight gain in ounces because we had to focus for so many weeks on weight gain (and weight loss) in grams. Grams. 

 

So if I seem passionate about this week's subject matter, and about the promises that hold so much hope and life and vitality and purpose for us as the Lord’s people, part of my excitement is linked to this very real life experience we went through with our baby. Nothing could have prepared us or readied for that season, but nothing can take away from us the empathy we have, the compassion, the care for others going through similar situations. It was hard fought, our daughter’s health, hard fought in terms of what we did, what we tried, how many doctors we saw, and also very hard fought on our knees in prayer. 

 

When I say that we do not remain infants, we all begin there but we don’t remain there and we don’t want to remain there, this personal situation with our newborn is what immediately comes to mind for me. It’s not a joke to me when I say that I don’t want anyone to remain a spiritual infant. Babyhood is not a forever stage of life. Our daughter could not stay 5 lbs forever. One of two things was going to happen. Improve and grow and get bigger and live. Or, not improve and not grow and not get bigger and not live. That was it. We did not have other options. And it’s not an unrealistic expectation that followers of Jesus would grow to spiritual maturity. In fact, it would be unrealistic for believers to remain in the infancy stage. Any pastor worth his salt would tell you this. Sometimes we need to be told, in the words of oh so many ‘80s parents, to “Grow up!”, ya know? You can read about this concept in 1 Corinthians 3, in particular verse 2. I’ll put that in the show notes because it is worth reading. Paul penned these words, and they are in the canon of Scripture, and so we should do as it says and be happy when we are fed spiritual meat rather than milk. 

 

So that’s our framework for this week’s episode and I’m reading from the Amplified Bible today, Romans 8, verses 13-15. Here’s what it says:

13 for if you are living according to the [impulses of the] flesh, you are going to die. But if [you are living] by the [power of the Holy] Spirit you are habitually putting to death the sinful deeds of the body, you will [really] live forever. 14 For all who are allowing themselves to be led by the Spirit of God are sons of God. 15 For you have not received a spirit of slavery leading again to fear [of God’s judgment], but you have received the Spirit of adoption as sons [the Spirit producing sonship] by which we [joyfully] cry, “Abba! Father!”

 

For if you are living according to the impulses of the flesh, you are going to die. Look, if somebody has been telling you that the Word of God is, like, genteel, they didn’t tell you right. Now one of the fruits of the Spirit is gentleness, but the Bible always speaks pretty frankly. This verse shows us the way to die, the path of death. It’s good to know! Don’t want to walk that path, so thank You, Lord, for giving us this in Your Word. But if you are living by the power (ooh that’s noteworthy, by the power of the Holy Spirit) you are habitually putting to death the sinful deeds of the body, and you’ll really live forever. 

 

You know that you are living by the Spirit’s power how? When you are habitually (hey, that actually means this should become a habit, second nature, so listen up now and find out what it is you should be so good at habitually that it’s automatic) - habitually putting to death the sinful deeds of the body. And then you will really live forever. I don’t want to kind of live, to sort of live, to semi live. I want to really live, fully live, totally live. And here’s how I get to do that, by habitually putting to death the flesh (like, kill off and just annihilate, decimate, crucify your flesh - that’s what this means, my friend!) That is the way to live. Don't walk a path that leads anywhere other than where God wants you to go. Where He leads, then you follow. And He will always be leading you toward life and never be toward death. That’s an overarching promise from the Bible for you and for me. That is for certain God’s will, and sometimes we struggle, we feel like we don’t know what God’s will is. But this much, this right here, we do know. We know it absolutely and with utter certainty. So, walk this path. Live, and do that living by putting to death sinful deeds. 

 

I could spend a whole lot of time talking about what exactly those sinful deeds might be, what all does this verse entail? Well, I will probably write a blog post about this on my website JanLBurt.com, because it’s important. This isn’t just hey don’t covet what your neighbor owns, don’t steal from your employer, don’t live as a hard-hearted unforgiving person. It can be a lot of things - how’s your thought life? Not talking about, say, lustful thinking or something along those lines, but do you think well of yourself? Do you talk to yourself in ways that you would never talk to someone else? That’s sort of what I’m thinking could be a big issue for many of us, not the quote/unquote big sins but ones that are still super damaging, but not always readily addressed. So I’m adding that to my work calendar and I’ll be writing that, doing a lot of praying over it, and look for it soon at my website. 

 

Okay, so in verse 14 it says that all who allow themselves to be led by the Spirit of God are sons of God.

Now, language matters. Verb tense - well, that matters. The way I just said it is how we kind of think of it. But the tense is actually continual. In the Amplified it says, “For all who are allowing themselves to be led by the Spirit of God are sons of God.” (emphasis added)  This isn’t a one-off, not one and done. Are we continually allowing ourselves to be led (hey, that means we’re not in charge - we are not leading the way - if the Spirit is leading then we are to be doing what? Following. And let’s try to follow closely, think about a war zone and you need to follow your CO… you gonna fall behind and just risk it? No. Just, no. Follow closely and attentively and with a good attitude!) 

 

Like a litmus test, you will know if you are a child of God by this evidence. Are you allowing yourself to be led by the Spirit? Not one time I allowed the Spirit to lead me and I came to Christ and received His salvation. Are you right now, today, still allowing Him to lead? Don’t say Yes to that if you aren’t actively following where He is intentionally leading. 

 

Verse 15 - we may need to break this power packed verse up a bit. For you are not - oh boy, Paul is preaching now! He is telling us who we are not (and that is one of the main purposes of this podcast - look, we have got to know who we are and who we are not according to the Word of God. This is not optional! To mature in Christ, you gotta know this stuff!) For you are not - let’s listen up because this should be like key for us. Okay, who am I not? Not only do I want to get excited about who God says that I am. I want to be excited about who the Spirit of God says I’m not. (Like the kid who is defending himself against the accusations of some other kid, we can as children of God say to our accuser, “I’m not!”) Know who you are - know who you are not - and know your seasons, your times in your life. I cannot overly stress how vital, like your vital signs kind of vital, those three things are!

 

For you have not received again a spirit of slavery leading to fear. You are not a slave. You are not an orphan. You are not meant to live in fear. You are a free man, a free woman. You are a child of God, dearly loved and well looked after, you live by faith in the Son of God. Because you know that all God’s promises for you are true, they are all yes and amen through Christ Jesus your Lord. (2 Corinthians 1:20)

 

Anybody else just love the Word of God? I mean, we take these three verses and we discover a wealth of treasure. Then we open our Bibles and read a chapter or two and do it again the next day. It’s like a  gold mine that can never be depleted or fully exploited. 

 

But you have received the Spirit of adoption as sons. 

It’s verses like this that help us understand what it means to have Jesus as Lord of our lives, living on the throne of our hearts. You’ve received Him and you have been adopted. You’re in, baby! Don’t you dare forget that!

 

The Spirit produces sonship. You wanna challenge whether or not the Spirit of the living God can do what only He can do? Don’t question the Spirit’s power. The Spirit produces sonship. That’s comforting, that’s hope, that promise for today and for all the future. This is good stuff! 

 

By which we joyfully cry, “Abba! Father!”

 

Having God as your Father should move you to joy. If you cannot get joyful about this, then what on earth can you possibly be joyful about?

 

Your sports team winning a championship? Your fat bank account? 

Landing your dream job? Buying the classic car you’ve wanted since you were a teenager? Losing twenty pounds? Those are treasures, sure, but they are not The Treasure. Those are gifts, but they are not The Gift. Those are special, but they are not The Special One.

 

Here is joy, my friend. Joy for you and for me. You have a Father. He is God. Be joyful about that!

 

Take these promises, these truths that are for you, and believe them today. Don’t skip to the next podcast on your playlist and forget about this.

 

This is not forgettable stuff. Bear it in mind, all week long this week, think on it over and over. And next week, I’ll be back here for episode 95, Romans 8 verses 16 & 17, and those are powerful. They can change your life, those two verses, and I really do mean that. Your life can be changed by the two verses we’ll look at in the next episode. So, come hungry. Come expectant. Come ready to see the Lord move in your life based on what He has to say to you in Romans 9:16-17.

 

I’ll see ya then!

 

You’ve been listening to The Burt (Not Ernie) Show, part of the Spark Network, now playing in the Edifi app.

 

See you next week!

Bye bye.

 

1 Corinthians 3:2(NIV) - I gave you milk, not solid food, for you were not yet ready for it. Indeed, you are still not ready.

 

2 Corinthians 1:20 (NIV) - For no matter how many promises God has made, they are “Yes” in Christ. And so through him the “Amen” is spoken by us to the glory of God.

 

 

Spark Media Podcast Awards - Vote Here for The Burt (Not Ernie) Show - Best Female Podcast - THANKS FOR YOUR VOTE!!!

Jan L. Burt is an author, speaker, podcaster, homeschooling veteran, mother to five, and has been happily married to Tony for thirty years. She served in youth ministry alongside her husband for twelve years & has led several Bible studies for women as well as hosting two online prayer retreats.

Jan is the  author of the new book “A 60-Day Prayer Journal for Parents” & “The Power of God’s Will – 40 Days of God’s Promises Devotional” (available on Amazon) & “The Once-A-Year Homeschool Planner” (a multi-grade, multi-subject planning system) – which can be found at JanLBurt.com. She has also been a regular contributor to The Old Schoolhouse Magazine. Find Jan  Instagram: @JanLBurt or at her website JanLBurt.com or at her YouTube channel, “God’s Promises for You with Jan L. Burt”. 

Letting the Spirit of God Bring You Back to Life - Episode 93 - Romans 8:10 & 11

Well hey there, hello to ya today. I’m Jan L. Burt, host of The Burt (Not Ernie) Show, and I am so glad you’re joining me as we look at a couple of verses from the New Testament book of Romans. The Burt (Not Ernie) Show is part of the Spark Network, now playing in the Edifi app. This is episode 93

 

Romans 8 is our topic for this series of episodes on the podcast, and this is the third episode in the series. Today we are looking at Romans 8, verses 10 & 11 in both the King James and the Amplified. 

 

I’m going to read these two verses from the KJV first.

 

Romans 8:10 & 11 (KJV) - And if Christ be in you, the body is dead because of sin; but the Spirit is life because of righteousness. But if the Spirit of Him that raised up Jesus from the dead dwell in you, He that raised up Christ from the dead shall also quicken your mortal bodies by His Spirit that dwelleth in you.

 

Okay, so this is rich language, isn’t it? Not words we throw around in normal daily conversation, but so rich! 

 

The first sentence states that your body is dead because of sin if Christ is in you, which is true for all believers who have accepted Jesus’ death at Calvary as our personal atonement for our personally committed sins. We may stagger a bit at this statement, though. Wait - if Christ is in me then how is my body dead because of sin? Well, that’s going back to the concept of our flesh (episode 92 covers that in detail) and in the flesh, in me without the Holy Spirit regenerating me, in me dwells no good thing (see Romans 7:18 to read the verse I am taking those words from). Baptism is a public funeral of sorts, we are agreeing that we are buried with Christ and are raised to new life in Him. His power accomplishes it all, not any of mine. The flesh is just, well, trash to use a modern slang term. Once Christ is in you, the flesh is dead and you know it’s dead; you understand how vile sin is and what it cost the Lord to pay the price for the sins of all mankind, and you don’t really want to try and pretty it up and keep it alive anymore because you understand that it’s just dead, it’s trash. If Christ be in you, the body is dead because of sin.

 

Then it goes on to say “but the Spirit is life because of righteousness”. Now that’s some good news right there! God’s righteousness is yours through Jesus and it does it’s magnificent work in your life through the Holy Spirit. Where the Spirit of the Lord is there is freedom, it says in 2 Corinthians 3:17. Freedom. Liberty. Life. You’ve been freed, you’ve been liberated, to new life through Christ Jesus. And the Spirit in you is that life. Big promises for you and me in these verses. Let’s grab hold of them and live them out, let’s be among those who believe all that God has promised to us. 

 

But if the Spirit of Him that raised up Jesus from the dead dwell in you, He that raised up Christ from the dead shall also quicken your mortal bodies by His Spirit that dwelleth in you. When the Holy Spirit dwells in you, the promise here is that He will quicken your mortal body by His Spirit. That dead flesh can be utilized now to do the Lord's will, to bring about His purposes, to accomplish the good works that He preordained and planned out for each of His followers. By the same power that raised Jesus to life again. That’s what gets done what God wants gotten done. Not our flesh, but His Spirit. 

 

The King James uses the word “quicken” while the Amplified says the Spirit will give life to your mortal bodies. 

 

When God sets about quickening somebody, watch out! Stand back and get ready to see something! It’s one of the most amazing things we will see while living on this planet, the quickening of a person via the Holy Spirit of the Living God. 

 

I do not want to miss out on any of this kind of quickening, this life given to my mortal body by the Spirit of God, like none of it. How much do I want to miss? None. Zero. And I don’t want you to miss any of it, either. 

 

Let the Spirit bring you back to life. Prune what needs pruning; mature whatt needs maturing. Bring us back to life, Lord, and all the glory is Yours. This regenerating work is a precious work, and we should expect to see it having an impact on the little corners of the world in which we live.

 

Let me read these two verses from the Amplified now. 

 

Romans 8:10 & 11 (AMP) - If Christ lives in you, though your (natural) body is dead because of sin, your spirit is alive because of righteousness (which He provides). And if the Spirit of Him who raised Jesus from the dead lives in you, He who raised Chrsit Jesus from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies through His Spirit, who lives in you. 

 

What is says here is exactly what God means for it to say.

And it is God speaking to us today through His Word.

So our response needs to be to take Him at His Word, take this seriously. Because it is serious!

 

Often we take work seriously, we take our health seriously, we take finances seriously, we take parenting seriously. Some people take sports, like their favorite teams, very seriously. 

 

Do we take prayer seriously? Do we take the Word of God seriously? Do we take tithing seriously? Do we take our spiritual health seriously? 

Now I’m not trying to pick on anyone, I’m just asking a few questions in an attempt to get us to always take seriously what God is saying to us from the Bible. 

 

Your natural body is dead - and your spirit is alive because of the righteousness that He provides.

 

You may be getting older and feeling as if your work for the Kingdom of God is waning. Not true! Not true at all. The ages of men the Lord used for His Kindgom work vary greatly all throughout the Bible, and there is no retirement plan or governor placed on the work we do at this age or that age. You may be feeling all sorts of things in your natural body, but the Word of God says that even though your natural body is dead, it’s alright. Your spirit is alive and well and can be thriving day after day after day. That’s the promise! And does God ever say, “oops, my bad”? No. He makes promises and He keeps those promises. 

 

He who raised Christ Jesus from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies through His Spirit who lives in you. 

 

I haven’t mentioned this in a while, but today I am going to talk about this word “will”.

 

Whenever we find the word will in one of God’s promises, we need to remind ourselves (like, actually preach to ourselves!) that when God says will, He means it!

 

He WILL give life to your mortal bodies through His Spirit who lives in you.

He will do this!

And He is willing and able to do it right now, today, in this very season of your life.

 

I’ve experienced Him do this work in my life, in my broken and sometimes sickly and unwell body again and again and again. My mom used to say I was a sickly child, kind of an old school phrase, but I got older, gave my heart to Jesus, and bit by bit, day by day, began to not want to live under that curse of the flesh any longer. To not be a sickly child who had grown into a sickly adult. No, sir. I shrugged that off and kept walking by faith and praying and believing God was gonna do what these verses say He will do. 

And He has. Time and again, my sickly areas have become well. 

 

So this is a verse of promise. And there is no way God is exclusive or plays favorites. Just believe it and keep seeking this, keep praying for this. Your Healer loves to heal. Your Deliverer loves to deliver. Your Redeemer loves to redeem. Your God is so very good. 

 

This is a shorter episode of the podcast today, and so I’d like to speak a prayer of blessing over you before we wrap up the show.

 

Lord, I ask today that by the power of Your Holy Spirit which indwells your dearly loved children that You would give life to Your people today. In areas where they face sickness, bring Your new life. Heal and restore, protect and deliver, bless and highly favor them today. I’m asking for this work today, because today is the day we are looking at these verses from Your Word and so today is the day we are trusting You to act in accordance with Your Word. We know that none of Your Word returns to You void, but it will always always accomplish that for which You have sent it forth. So, do Your will in the lives of every listener today. Move and act, bring new life, fresh hope, excitement about the days before us. And never stop moving, working, blessing, healing, delivering, favoring, protecting, guiding, and loving Your people. I ask this all in the mighty name of Jesus, the Son of the Living God, Savior of the world, who is set to return in might and power and splendor in glory. Do Your will in us, for us, and through us today. Amen. 

 

Lord bless you and keep you today, my friend! I’m so glad you joined me for episode 93 of TBNES podcast, part of the Spark Network which is now playing in the Edifi app. Check out that app if you haven’t yet. 

 

And hey, my podcast is up for an award - I am going to share the link to go vote in the show notes, kind of like the people’s choice awards sort of thing, listener’s favorites. You just visit www.sparkmedia.ventures/site/awards and cast your vote. There are drop down menus so you can pick the category (best female podcast or best solo podcast are the two categories that apply to this show)  and then pick the podcast TBNES and I’ll just say thank you in advance for voting! 

 

I will be at the Spark Awards this year, they take place in March in Nashville and it will be awesome to be there for the conference and the NRB and the awards and just all kinds of remarkable things that I am beyond thankful I get to be part of. Just as I mentioned earlier, God has things for me to do and I am not too aged to do those things - getting the promises of God into the people of God is the task He has given me and I am trying to, by the power of His Spirit and not in my own strength, to be a good steward. When He returns I want to present Him with a ten-fold increase on what He gifted to me - because what He has gifted to me is not for me or about me, but for His Kingdom purposes and for all of you. So thanks for listening. You are the people  of God in this world, and I am so honored to be able to talk with you week by week. So, yeah, just thanks. Just thanks to you all.

 

I’ll see you next time for episode 94 where we will keep looking at Romans chapter 8 and discovering the rich promises He holds out to us in this passage.

 

Lord bless you, have a fantastic day. 

Bye bye! 

 

Jan L. Burt is an author, speaker, podcaster, homeschooling veteran, mother to five, and has been happily married to Tony for thirty years. She served in youth ministry alongside her husband for twelve years & has led several Bible studies for women as well as hosting two online prayer retreats.

Jan is the  author of the new book “A 60-Day Prayer Journal for Parents” & “The Power of God’s Will – 40 Days of God’s Promises Devotional” (available on Amazon) & “The Once-A-Year Homeschool Planner” (a multi-grade, multi-subject planning system) – which can be found at JanLBurt.com. She has also been a regular contributor to The Old Schoolhouse Magazine. Find Jan  Instagram: @JanLBurt or at her website JanLBurt.com or at her YouTube channel, “God’s Promises for You with Jan L. Burt”. 

Romans 8:3 & 6 - FULFILLED!! (Episode 92) - Part 2 of the Romans 8 Podcast Series

Well hey there - hello, hello! Welcome to episode 92 of The Burt (Not Ernie) Show! I’m your host, Jan L. Burt, and I am so glad to have you here today. We are taking a look at the promises we find in Romans chapter 8, and this is the second podcast episode in that series. Verses 2 & 6 of Romans 8 will be our main focus, and to really grab hold of what God has promised us, we will take a look at verses 3,4, & 5. The Burt (Not Ernie) Show is part of the Spark Network, now playing in the Edifi app. This is episode 92.

 

On the last episode we began this new series and to kick it off we discussed the powerful promise God gives us in Romans 8, verse 1. If you haven’t listened to that episode, #91, I’d encourage you to be sure to do that cuz it’s really good stuff in that verse. 

 

And today’s verses? Also really good stuff!!

 

In the CSB, Romans 8:2 says: because the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus has set you free from the law of sin and death.

 

You are no longer under condemnation because the law of the Spirit of life in Jesus has set you free from the law of sin and death.

 

This is real freedom, folks! And as a follower of Jesus, I kind of am a freedom fighter. I don’t want to ever stop talking about the freedom that can only be found in Jesus. 

 

And I really love how this verse uses the phrase “the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus”.

 

Here is what it says in the AMP - For the law of the Spirit of life [which is] in Christ Jesus [the law of our new being] has set you free from the law of sin and of death.

 

The law of our new being. You are a new creation, the old has gone and the new has come. You are new. And you are free. How great is that to remember every now and then? Cuz we forget! I mean, I seriously doubt I am the only one who needs this reminder on a regular basis. You are new. You are free. There is like an actual law in the spiritual realm that states that Jesus has set you free from the law of sin and death. And that, my friend, is a real thing, the law of sin and death. The phrase dead in your sins is truth. That’s what we all are without Jesus. Just flat dead in our sins. And death? It is eternal when you don’t Jesus personally. Like hell doesn’t somehow get less intense over time. Oh no. A billion years of eternal punishment and damnation and total separation from God does not bring souls even one second closer to the end. It goes on and on and on and some of the things Jesus said in the New Testament seem to imply that if anything, it gets worse. And those jokes about being there with your buddies? Nah. I find no evidence of that in the Bible. You aren’t palling around with anyone. And satan isn’t gonna be kind of nice or a semi-good guy when upon arrival, like you’re all on the same team or something. No. He hates.It’s what he does, he just hates and hates some more. And he won’t get less hateful or hate-filled when eternal punishment begins. There is no reason for hell to be the reality for anyone because Jesus paid the ultimate price so that you and I have our ticket to heaven punched. All we have to do is believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Messiah, that He paid for our sins and repent, turn from our sinful way of living and come into His kingdom by means of Jesus, the only way into the Kingdom of God. So there is an actual law at work in our world, wherein sin must be dealt with. But wow oh wow, Romans 8 shows us that that law (the law of sin and death) is superseded by the law of the Spirit of life. In light of the little snippet I just shared regarding the law of sin and death, isn’t this totally awesome news?

 

The promise here in this verse is so good! It is literally the promise of life. New life right here on this raggedy old planet earth and then eternal life thereafter. Once you are in Christ, your eternal life has begun. And it won’t ever stop. It’s an incredible promise from an incredible chapter in the Bible. Thank You, Lord.

 

The next few verses go on to say that what the law could not do because it was weakened by the flesh (that’s all of mankind, me and you and everyone, the flesh) what the law could not do, God did. 

 

When you start feeling like you just can’t get across the finish line, like maybe this is all just too much and you don’t think you can live well in this sin tainted world, full of hurts and evils and just all the stuff we encounter day after day - when you start feeling that way, then Romans 8:3 is a good word for you. What man cannot do, God can do. He knows you and I have got to have the Spirit of the Living God within us or we won’t hold up so well. God did what the flesh made not doable. And God is still God, is He not? So we can, and we should, ask Him to help us when we need it. Which is for me every day. 

 

Through Jesus the requirements of the law were fulfilled. Fulfilled. That does not hint at some kind of remaining work to be done, does it? No. Fulfilled. There isn’t some scrap here and bit there and another hunk of work down the road a ways that you and I are going to have to take care of as far as meeting the requirements of the law goes. And where there is a law, there is a requirement to be met. Jesus did that. Fulfilled. Somebody may need to remember that word “fulfilled” every  now and again. The devil comes in to lie to you about your status as a child of God and you may need to say to him, “Fulfilled. Romans 8. Fulfilled.” 

 

Now I’m not reading all of the chapter of Romans 8 today, but I want to encourage you to take a look at it sometime. Just see for yourself what it says, cuz it is really good. Big promises for you. 

 

And I want to move on to verse 6, (we’re jumping from verse 2 to verse 6) and let’s look at this in the AMP.

 

Now the mind of the flesh is death [both now and forever—because it pursues sin]; but the mind of the Spirit is life and peace [the spiritual well-being that comes from walking with God—both now and forever]; 

 (my thoughts real quick - the mind of the flesh is death both now and forever - you cannot pretty up, clean up, straighten up your flesh. It is what it is, and it is death now and  death forever, and death always. Don’t try to compromise with the flesh, improve upon it or make it better somehow. Don’t get into some partnership type thing with what the Word of God says is death… just crucify it. The way you and I are to deal with the mind of the flesh which is death both now and forever is to crucify it. Don’t mess around with it, don’t play patty cake with it, just kill it off.)

 

You may be wondering, “Hey now Jan, where is the promise in this verse?”  And it’s here, I promise, it’s here! 

 

Because of what Jesus did for us, we now have the gift of living under the law of the Spirit of life - we pretty well established that, right from the start of this episode. And this verse gives us this information about a massive benefit, a promise, we get because of what verses 1 and 2 state. The mind of the flesh is death, and that’s now and forever, so a permanent state that we can’t possibly change or fix or alter in our own strength.  The CSB uses the word “mindset”. This is about our mindset. You hear a lot about mindset from a whole lot of different sources, Instagram, books, all over the place. But this is where we find what we really need to know about our mindset - right here in the pages of the Bible. 

 

I’ve heard the saying, “Mindset matters.” and it really does. That’s a very true statement. So, if something matters, why would we get our info about that particular topic from all these other places but not from the Bible? I want every single thing the Lord has for me. You are probably the exact same way. And verse 6 of Romans 8 tells me that the mind of the Spirit is life and peace, it is the spiritual well-being that comes from walking with God. It isn’t gonna fade away with time. This promise of life and peace is huge!

 

To be able to know without any doubt whatsoever, for all the days that lie before us, come what may in the physical sense, we can and we will have life and peace because that’s what it means to have the mind of the Spirit, well, that sounds amazing.

 

Ever meet someone who is not at peace, and you can just tell that no matter what you say to comfort them or encourage them, they are not going to be at peace because the issue is in their mind? And you and I, we can’t really get into someone’s mind and change their thinking. What we think reveals itself in how we live, who we think we are often leads us down roads in life that we didn’t really want to travel, ya know? So those folks who don’t have any peace of mind, they can’t be talked out of that. It’s not that simple because there is a very real spiritual element involved. Their mindset is holding them hostage, in a sense.

 

But for those of us who know Jesus, well, we are no longer slaves, so of course no part of us can be held hostage (unless we allow it, that is), and our thoughts cannot be overrun by this lack of peace we see so many people dealing with. It’s just such a great verse, such an amazing promise! 

 

The CSB says Now the mindset of the flesh is death, but the mindset of the Spirit is life and peace.

 

What’s your mindset today? I sure hope it’s not one of death, one of living according to the flesh. And the flesh, it can be loud and demanding and agitated and downright bossy. But the mindset of the Holy Spirit? Well there ya go, buddy boy, that’s life and that’s peace and that is exactly what God wants you to have.  Every. Single. Day.

 

No days off. No exceptions. This is your promise today. This is for you. And this is really, really important!

 

Because if you don’t want for yourself the things God wants for you, then you are wanting the wrong things.

 

I’m going to repeat that, because it is crucial. So woo hoo, listen up, you need to hear this.

 

If you do not want for yourself the things that God wants for you, then you are wanting the wrong things.

 

The Lord wants you to have peace of mind, a truly healthy mindset. He says so in Romans 8. And He provided the way to have peace of mind, to be able to live a life that doesn’t just endure or keep on plugging away, trudging along day by day. That’s not life the way Jesus wants you to have it. 

 

And I really want each one of us to begin to want for ourselves what God wants for us. If He wants it, then I gotta want it too.

 

That’s gonna be a wrap for today’s episode of The Burt (Not Ernie) Show. And I want to encourage you that this chapter can be your chapter. There is no reason why you can’t start living in the reality of all of Romans 8 right now, today. Next time, we are looking at verses 10 and 11, on episode 93. 

 

And coming up very soon is a guest spot I did on Michele Bowman’s podcast, Woman Where Is Your Confidence. She talks to women about having the confidence that comes from Jesus, and I am looking forward to sharing more about that podcast when it is released in February of 2022.

 

I’m praying that you begin to fully live with a Holy Spirit led mindset and that any and all thoughts that don’t come from Him just slip away like smoke in the wind. And I do believe that is a prayer that God will answer.

 

This is TBNES, part of the Spark Network, now playing in the Edifi app. 

 

Lord bless you today!!

~ Jan

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Romans 8:1 - Who Are You...? (Episode 91) - Part 1 of the Romans 8 Podcast Series (Don’t declare yourself guilty when the Messiah, the very Son of God, says you are not guilty!)

Well hey, hello there everyone. Welcome to The Burt (Not Ernie) Show - where we focus on changing the way we live our lives as a result of knowing and believing God’s promises. 

TBNES is part of the Spark Network, now playing in the Edifi app. This is episode 91.

 

It’s January of 2022 as I record this & I am starting a series here on the podcast. Romans 8 is an incredible, absolutely incredible chapter of the Bible. It’s been said of Romans 8 that if all we had was this one chapter of the Bible, we would understand salvation and sanctification and Jesus’ sacrifice and how to live as Christ followers. And that’s not a bad way to describe Romans 8. So for the next several episodes, we will be looking at the promises found in this chapter. 

 

I’m pretty excited about this  - I mean, I guess I do always get excited when I dive into the Word of God, so that’s not new at all, but this chapter has so much promise, it just needed a series of podcast episodes so that we can really dig in to those promises. Because who are God’s promises for? The people of God. For His children. 

Now everyone is part of His creation, for sure that is a fact Jack. But only those who have made Jesus their personal Lord, personal savior, to those He has given the right to be called the children of God. (John 1:12). The promises here are for His children. And trust me, if you don’t know Jesus personally just yet, He really wants you to take that step and follow Him, to turn from your old life, old sinful ways (and the ground is level at the foot of the Cross, so there is not one person who does not have sinful ways… this is something everyone who comes to Jesus, who responds to Him when He is calling, has to deal with. Acknowledge your sinfulness, accept His payment for all your sins, all your sinfulness, in full on the Cross, and then live with Jesus as Lord of your life.) 

If you are in Christ, you are one of His disciples, you are a child of God, then the promises here in Romans 8 are yours. Because as the Apostle Paul wrote, all God’s promises are yes and amen through Jesus Christ our Lord. Don’t doubt that this is true. It is true, because it says so in the bible - 2 Corinthians 1:20. 

 

Well, let’s start at the very beginning, because it’s a very good place to start (referencing Julie Andrews in the Sound of Music there…) 

 

Romans 8 verse 1, from the Amplified.

Therefore there is now no condemnation (no guilty verdict, no punishment) for those who are in Christ Jesus (who believe in Him as personal Lord and Savior).

 

Alright, well I’m thinking you probably already totally understand why I am so excited about this series in Romans. I mean, this is just verse one! And the promise it holds for us, and make no mistake it is for us, here and now, this promise is massive. No condemnation. No guilty verdict. No punishment. 

There is no God but the One True God who makes and keeps such a promise! 

 

Okay, the first word in this verse is “therefore”. So something came just prior that led to this statement. And the book of Romans is a letter Paul wrote to the Christian church in Rome, just an FYI there. As a letter, it didn’t originally have chapter and verse divisions, right? So we can hop back to chapter 7 and read a couple of verses to get a reference point that makes the word “therefore” much more clear. 

 

Romans 7:24-25 CSB - What a wretched man I am! Who will rescue me from this body of death?  Thanks be to God through Jesus Christ our Lord! So then, with my mind I myself am serving the law of God, but with my flesh, the law of sin.

 

I feel that! The struggle is so very real, is it not? 

But then, chapter 8. 

 

Paul states the issue, who is gonna rescue me from this body of death? From my own wretchedness? 

Thanks be to God through Jesus Christ our Lord. 

Therefore, because of Jesus, there is now no condemnation. 

 

Beautiful! 

Romans 8:1 in the CSB says: Therefore there is now no condemnation for those in Christ Jesus. 

Says basically the same thing, but there is that extra punch in the Amplified Bible. No guilty verdict, no punishment. 

 

This is final! Jesus paid it all. That’s not simply part of a worship song we sing on Sunday mornings. It’s an absolute fact! And it’s good news! Jesus paid it all - Romans 8:1 is final. You can’t put a comma where God places a period. Don’t add an addendum, don’t go trying to amend God’s work. Jesus finished this work at Calvary. It is finished, He said. (John 19:30)

 

We are the clay, God is the potter and we don’t get to add or subtract to or from His work. No no no. No condemnation. No guilty verdict. No punishment. So long as we are in Christ Jesus. 

Nothing gets past the King of kings, the Lord of lords. If you are in Christ, then this promise is your promise and it can’t not be your promise. No thing is sneaking past Him. You know that, I know you do. But do you live like maybe some of your stuff, your issues, you junk, the garbage snuck by Him? It didn’t, my friend. It’s actually not possible. What can sneak past the King of all kings, the Lord of all lords? Again, don’t try putting a comma where God puts a period. And this verse ends with a period. You won’t find a comma in Romans 8:1. 

 

Now the devil is a chronic liar who never stops lying because, as Jesus said, the truth is not in him (see John 8:44). The devil is gonna tell you repeatedly, not one and done but in a beat you down and wear you out kind of way, repeatedly tell you that you are under some kind of condemnation.

 

You and I, we have to know the Word of God so well that we immediately recognize the devil’s lies. And shut those lies down. Nope, not listening satan. No. That's a lie spoken by the father of lies and you are not my father, and I listen to Him. Romans 8:1. You can speak this verse out loud to your enemy when he starts spewing his condemnation lies to you. Remind him of the truth. If you are in Christ Jesus, may as well live every single day like you are IN CHRIST JESUS, know what I mean? Speak God’s word, speak the truth, and believe it. 

 

If the devil reminds you of, say, an argument with your spouse. Now maybe you are really good at letting the quote unquote big stuff go, you know you’re forgiven and not under condemnation. But that argument, man you said a couple of things… eww, why did I say that? Man, that was not cool. And it’s hanging on. You feel icky about it. That is you feeling condemned. Feeling guilty. Waiting on some punishment to land in your lap. But what does Romans 8:1 say? If you are in Christ Jesus, then you cannot be under condemnation. 

These are the real life scenarios we deal with in the spiritual realm. Ask forgiveness of others and of God as often as you need to. Keep those accounts short in your relationships. And then receive God’s forgiveness. It’s yours. He died for you to have it. He really wants you to live forgiven. When something is clinging to you, ya know that feeling, it feels clingy, pray on that exact thing. And say out loud if possible, Nope! That is under the blood of Jesus and I am forgiven and I am not condemned, because Romans 8:1 promises that there is no condemnation for me. 

 

Once we really like actually begin on the daily, every single day -  I really mean that -  on the daily start to live our lives in the reality of this verse, our lives change. 

 

It’s true! 

Because what we really, truly believe impacts - directly impacts - how we live. What we think - what we say silently to ourselves and what we say out loud to others - what we post on social media - where we spend our time - where we spend our money - even things like whether or not we exercise, even just getting outside and talking a walk on a nice day, getting some sunshine, watching a sunset - what books we read (or never read at all) - our friendships - small group attendance & small group participation - sleep habits - how much junk food and junk television we consume - our frustration level - to some extent even our personal hygiene and habits - all those things are directly and indirectly influenced & impacted by what we, as followers of Jesus, actually do with this verse Romans 8:1.

 

What you and I believe matters so very much. 

We need to be about the work of believing the Word of God.

 

Let me read to you once more from both the AMP & the CSB.

Romans 8 verse 1, from the Amplified.

Therefore there is now no condemnation (no guilty verdict, no punishment) for those who are in Christ Jesus (who believe in Him as personal Lord and Savior).

Romans 8:1 in the CSB says: Therefore there is now no condemnation for those in Christ Jesus

 

Who are you to declare yourself guilty when the Messiah, the very Son of God, the Lamb slain before the foundation of the world, says you are not guilty? Not under condemnation? If He says there is no punishment, who are you to keep on inflicting differing degrees of self-punishment? 

 

Hmmm --- are you picking up what I’m laying down?

 

If Jesus is your personal Lord and Savior, this is yours. So live like it. Do you wonder if your car is maybe possibly not actually your car when you hop in to drive to work? Probably not. That would be weird (unless it’s not your car then this analogy is what’s weird). No, but the car, it’s your car. My SUV is mine. I drive it because it’s mine. The title is in my name. The insurance bill comes to me and I pay it. My car. Mine. I never wonder if maybe tomorrow it won’t be mine. It’s mine til I sell it and sign the title over to someone else. It just is. 

 

Same for this promise. It’s mine. You can’t take it from me, you can’t trick me out of believing it, you cannot steal it away. It is mine. The Lord gave it to me. I’ve got the title deed to this promise. 

 

It’s also yours. It is for Y-O-U. It is for right now, this very day. And it is such good news.

 

Romans 8 - so much in this chapter. And it is going to be amazing to grab hold of what’s in here for us. Because we won’t be the same - we are learning it, we are believing it, our thinking is changing and how we live is changing and the devil cannot trick us with his lies about condemnation. Those days are done, my friend.

 

Lord bless you today, and I really do mean that, it’s not just something I say when I sign off, I mean it and I expect it to be true, I am saying it and praying it for you. Lord bless you today! 

 

Please subscribe to TBNES so you don’t miss any of the Romans 8 series, and share it somebody or a whole bunch of somebodies, and I am starting to work on something new, creating a course based on two online prayer retreats that I led in a private group. So a course about prayer - it’s so important, our prayer lives, and so that’s my next big project and I would appreciate your prayers for me as I work on that. 

 

Thanks for joining me today to start this series on Romans chapter 8 - This is episode 91 of TBNES podcast, part of the Spark Network now playing in the edifi app. See you next time! 

Jan L. Burt is an author, speaker, podcaster, homeschooling veteran, mother to five, and has been happily married to Tony for thirty years. She served in youth ministry alongside her husband for twelve years & has led several Bible studies for women as well as hosting two online prayer retreats.

Jan is the  author of the new book “A 60-Day Prayer Journal for Parents” & “The Power of God’s Will – 40 Days of God’s Promises Devotional” (available on Amazon) & “The Once-A-Year Homeschool Planner” (a multi-grade, multi-subject planning system) – which can be found at JanLBurt.com. She has also been a regular contributor to The Old Schoolhouse Magazine. Find Jan  Instagram: @JanLBurt or at her website JanLBurt.com or at her YouTube channel, “God’s Promises for You with Jan L. Burt”. 

 

The Great Commission & Psalm 138:8 - The Lord Wants to Accomplish That Which Concerns You - Episode 90

Well hey there, hello to you & welcome to The Burt (Not Ernie) Show podcast, part of the Spark Network, now playing on the edifi app - getting the promises of God into the people of God, one episode at a time. I’m your host, Jan L. Burt, and I’m so glad you’re joining me today! This is episode 90.

 

In this episode let’s take a look at a verse from the book of Psalms. There is always so much hope, honesty, and encouragement in the Psalms - it is a book we don’t want to neglect. And the particular verse I am going to read to you in a moment is from Psalm 138, getting toward the end of the book of Psalms. Verse 8 of Psalm 138. I am reading today from the Amplified Bible.

 

Psalm 138:8 - The LORD will accomplish that which concerns me; Your (unwavering) lovingkindness, O LORD, endures forever --- Do not abandon the works of Your hands. 

We find here both a personal declaration and then a sort of prayer for this truth to continue to prevail.

 

There are some strange and unbiblical teachings that have been floating around the interwebs - so when I use the word declaration here, please know I’m not using that word the same way as it’s often being used wrongly. This isn’t manifesting something or declaring something as a means to manipulate God or try and be the boss of Him, overriding His will. Those things are not Biblical. And this verse from Psalms isn’t that kind of declaration, not in the least.

 

It is, however, a human being stating that God is going to accomplish the things He has planned. And there is nothing wrong with saying that out loud, for others to hear, for your own ears to hear, and for the devil to hear, too. Nothing at all wrong with declaring that. 

 

So what is it that the author of this psalm said, again? The Lord will accomplish that which concerns me. And God’s unwavering lovingkindness endures forever. 

What God intends for you is for you and He does not want it prevented, stopped, delayed, deferred or deterred. God wills for His will to be the will that is accomplished. True for you and true for me.

 

If it is encouraging for you to remind yourself of that, then please do so! 

And remind others, too!

 

When God begins to move, to act, to change things, I don’t find much evidence in the Bible for slow movement. The Exodus took place quickly once God began moving. Joseph rose to power in Egypt overnight once God began to move. The church grew by the thousands once the Spirit of God began to move in the book of Acts. The promise may not happen on the same day that it is given, but it will come to pass and when it is time to get the ball rolling, when God says to move, that’s the time for things to really start moving. So, beware when people tell you to slow down as it relates to something the Lord is saying to be busy about right now. We don’t hold back from the Lord; we go all in with Him and we do exactly what He says, exactly when He says. Safe bets yield nothing in God’s Kingdom.  

 

The Lord wants to accomplish that which concerns you, my friend. So that implies that there is value in what concerns you - because if it’s something God wants, which is what this verse says, then it is of value to Him. 

 

Psalm 138:8 - The LORD will accomplish that which concerns me; Your (unwavering) lovingkindness, O LORD, endures forever --- Do not abandon the works of Your hands. 

 

His unwavering lovingkindness is your promise as you keep on doing the things He has called you to do. The good works that He prepared in advance for you to do. Not you doing my good works, or me trying to work at what He wants you to be doing. Let His lovingkindness, which endures forever, be the promise you bear in mind as you follow Jesus and do what He asks of you. Let Him accomplish that which concerns you. And stay vigilant in prayer about the people or the circumstances that will try and slow down or hinder or hamper you from doing the good works He prepared in advance for you to do. 

 

It’s not our want-tos and hope-sos that accomplish the will of the Lord, it is us doing what James says to do - to be doers of the Word, and not hearers only. Some people in the church do a lot of hearing, but not much doing. Now, you will see this coming from a mile away outside of the church, outside the body of Christ. When it takes place within the church, that’s when we stumble over it, ya know? We question if God really laid that certain thing upon our heart. If maybe we heard wrong. If we are on the wrong track. But there is a way to know what His will is. The Word of God, when we open it, and the Holy Spirit, our Counselor, and the time we spend in prayer are all ways to know for certain what God’s good and pleasing and perfect will truly is. We can know the will of the Lord, but we get muddled up in our thinking sometimes and we start wondering if we can hear Him at all. But we can, according to the Bible! And that’s such great news for us! If some folks within the church are regularly the ones who say, “Slow down. Not so fast. Might want to think about that. What are your priorities?” when it comes to doing what God is leading you to do, then maybe, just maybe, they are the ones who aren’t hearing from the Lord? Perhaps they have some fear of stretching out their tent pegs and preparing room for the work God is going to do next? Where there is no vision, the people perish. Don’t let someone else’s lack of vision cloud your vision. Trust Your good God to guide and direct your steps, and He will. He is more than able to tell you this is the way, walk ye in it. Turn now to the right, now go to the left. That’s not difficult for Him at all. And if you want to know His will day by day, moment by moment, in every relationship, in every endeavor, in every nook and cranny and aspect of your life, and you truly want to know His will in order that you might do His will, if you just don’t want to miss it for the world, then you won’t. He will make it clear. Just be prepared that sometimes people may be quote unquote encouraging you to be cautious, to be careful…and that quote unquote encouragement could really be discouragement. Your courage comes from the Lord God Most High, the Almighty One, the Great I AM. He has no lack of courage to give to you. Discouragement, literally a lacking of courage, that is not from God. I never in my bible see the Lord stripping away courage and encouragement from those who want to do His will. And there is no shadow of turning with Him, so He isn’t going to suddenl;y begin to do a thing that contradicts His word. 

 

Trust God enough to trust His word, because He is the Living Word. 

And remember, He will never ever abandon the works of His hands.

He holds you in the shallow of His hands, right there in His palm. You are safe, you are secure, and you are held by the One who is going to accomplish that which concerns you.

 

Naysayers don’t hold a candle to that, ya know?

 

Lord bless you today as you continue to live in the light of the promises of God.

 

This is episode 90 of The Burt Not Ernie Show, part of the Spark Network, now playing in the edifi app.

 

I’d love it if you would subscribe via whatever platform you listen on and share the podcast with your friends and family. 

 

Thanks for listening and I’ll be back next time for episode 91!

 

God bless - bye bye! 

 

Jan L. Burt is an author, speaker, podcaster, homeschooling veteran, mother to five, and has been happily married to Tony for thirty years. She served in youth ministry alongside her husband for twelve years & has led several Bible studies for women as well as hosting two online prayer retreats.

Jan is the host of the podcast “The Burt (Not Ernie) Show” & author of the new book “A 60-Day Prayer Journal for Parents” & “The Power of God’s Will – 40 Days of God’s Promises Devotional” (available on Amazon) & “The Once-A-Year Homeschool Planner” (a multi-grade, multi-subject planning system) – which can be found at JanLBurt.com. She has also been a regular contributor to The Old Schoolhouse Magazine. Find Jan  Instagram: @JanLBurt or at her website JanLBurt.com or at her YouTube channel, “God’s Promises for You with Jan L. Burt”. 

A Clarion Call for the New Year from Isaiah 58:6-11 ~ Episode 89

Well hey there, hello hello to you! Happy New Year!

 

Welcome to this episode of The Burt (Not Ernie) Show, part of the Spark Network, now playing in the edifi app. This is episode 89.

 

We made it to 2022. And I am praying that this year will be an amazing one for you. By faith, I am choosing to believe that this year, we will indeed see the goodness of the Lord in the land of the living. And we will see our God on the move! 

 

He is up to some amazing things, my friends, and we are blessed to be alive at this point in time to see Him moving in this world. Get some excitement going for what God is doing now and what He is going to do in the coming days and weeks and months. He is good and he is faithful, and He can be nothing less. 

 

Today we are hearing what God has said to us from the book of Isaiah, chapter 58, verses 6 thru 11.

 

I will read those verses from the Amplified. 

 

“(Rather) is this not the fast which I choose, to undo the bonds of wickedness, to tear to pieces the ropes of the yoke, to let the oppressed go free and break apart every (enslaving yoke)? 

Is it not to divide your bread with the hungry and bring the homeless poor into the house; when you see the naked, that you cover him, and not to hide yourself from (the needs of) your own flesh and blood?

Then your light will break out like the dawn, and your healing (restoration, new life) will quickly spring forth; your righteousness will go before you (leading you to peace and prosperity), the glory of the LORD will be your rear guard.

Then you will call, and the LORD will answer; you will cry for help, and He will say, ‘Here I am.’ If you take away from your midst the yoke (of oppression), the finger pointed in scorn (toward every form of) wicked (sinful, unjust) speech,

And if you offer yourself to (assist) the hungry and satisfy the need of the afflicted, then your light will rise in darkness and your gloom will become like the midday.

And the LORD will continually guide you, and satisfy your soul in scorched and dry places, and give strength to your bones; and you will be like a watered garden, and like a spring of water whose waters do not fail.” 

So, that’s a lot. 

 

Kind of a clarion call, I suppose, to us who follow Jesus in the new year. Let’s just think about these words from the book of Isaiah. Really think about them and whether or not we, each of us, are doing these sorts of things. Cuz to get the blessings, all that God has promised here, and it’s a lot and it’s really, really good stuff, these promises - but the getting of the promises is linked to the doing of some things that are important and dear to the heart of our God. 

 

What kind of fast does God choose? Good to think about in a brand-new year… because so many are fasting of all kinds of things right now. And in all honesty a lot of that fasting is self-serving. Food related to losing weight or getting more fit to look better, stuff that is vanity. Health related? That’s being a good steward of the body God has given you to do His will in this world. Wanna be more cutesy in your jeans? Yeah, that’s not about health. God knows when we say we’re fasting or eating this certain way for our health but really it’s for our looks. Let’s this year not pretend He doesn’t really know. He knows… He always knows….(yeah, I just quoted a movie right there). 

 

He chooses this kind of fasting: to undo the bonds of wickedness. To tear to pieces the ropes of the yoke that bind people and to let the oppressed go free. 

 

Sounds a bit different than our version of fasting, doesn’t it? When is the last time you or I got busy about undoing bonds of wickedness. In prayer. Fasting to remind us to pray each time our stomach starts to rumble and growl, to stop and pray with some intensity for the bonds of wickedness to be undone and for the oppressed to go free. Donating money normally spent on coffee and big work lunches to whatever causes the Lord leads us to where people are fighting to get other people new levels of freedom. That kind of fasting. Not skipping lunch to lose a few pounds (and what we call intermittent fasting in the US is called starvation in third world countries… and those folks would think we were nuts to starve ourselves by choice when we have access to enough food, we don’t watch our children waste away to nothing, we starve ourselves by choice to look better in our blue jeans and we rename self-starvation “intermittent fasting”).  Look, the way I see it, fasting belongs to the Lord. He came up with it and it’s not about your dress size. Let’s be brave enough to call things as they are and stop doing things to serve ourselves but pretending it’s for the Lord’s sake. Because according to Isaiah 58, if it’s for the Lord’s sake, the evidence will be in undoing other people’s bonds, letting them go free who have lived oppressed. So if our fasting isn’t leading to talking about Jesus and the freedom we have in Him, if it isn’t drawing us to prayer, then is it the kind of fast our God chooses? And if He didn’t choose it, is it really a fast unto Him? 

 

Divide your bread with the hungry, that’s God’s chosen fast. Take care of the poor, that’s God’s chosen fast. Don’t hide yourself from the needs of your own flesh and blood, that is God’s chosen fast. 

 

And then the promises can break forth in your life - Then your light will break out like the dawn, says verse 8, and your healing, your restoration, your new life will quickly spring forth (oh man, when God moves quickly it is life-changing!). Your righteousness will go before you and it will lead you to peace and prosperity. Need some peace? Could you use some prosperity? Try fasting God’s chosen fast and as you do that, which is literally in real life walking in righteousness, then that’s your direct path to quickly springing forth peace and prosperity. This is the way, walk ye in it.

 

And not only the blessings I just mentioned, but as you walk along this path of life, walking in righteousness, breaking those bonds of oppression off of others by being a freedom fighter and showing people Jesus has freedom for them, God promises that His glory will be your rear guard. You will be protected from any sneaky enemy attacks from behind. So good, this promise! It’s so good!

 

And now more promises, more blessings, that have to do with your praying. 

When you call, the Lord will answer. You cry for help, He will say “Here I am”. 

 

You take away from your midst the yoke of oppression (God says you are to do that - that’s me and you, right? Not our government, not our pastors, but God says you… me. We must do this.) Get rid of the finger pointing in scorn. Scorners and mockers are not highly favored according to the Word of God. So, let’s not highly favor them. Don’t be a scorner and stop being a mocker if you are one. Just stop. It’s important to do what the Bible says to do, and when it says not to do something, let’s not do it. Let’s stop doing that.  Wicked, sinful and unjust speech do not please the Lord. 

 

Assist the hungry. Most of us can do that some way, somehow, can we not? If you need some ideas, email me at JanLBurt@outlook.com and I have some ideas for you that are easy and will really help people in need. 

Then your light will rise in the darkness. Your darkness will not be dark anymore.  What part of your world seems too dark today? This is how you push back that darkness and get God’s light to shine and break forth over your dark places. Your gloom will become like midday. Sun shining at high noon in the summertime - that’s what your gloomiest, darkened winter night will become. God says He will do this exact thing and when He says will, does He ever not really mean it? Rhetorical question.

 

The Lord will continually guide you and He will satisfy Your soul in a scorched and dry land. This is a huge promise and there is no reason any of us should not grab hold of it and run with it in the new year. It’s too good to lay aside and too vital to ignore. When you have a check-up, your vital signs are taken for a reason. They are revealers, right? This is your spiritual vital sign check-up, and you need to pay attention to what is being revealed right now regarding your spiritual health. 

 

God will give strength to your bones and you will be like a watered garden, you will be lush and lively and vibrant and will bear good fruit. Like a spring of water whose waters never fail. The Living Water, Jesus, will spring forth from your life continually. Not stagnant water, but fresh and always flowing waters. 

 

I pray that these verses will be a great way to start your new year and get your focus on Jesus. It’s easy to focus on Jesus at Christmas and then focus on yourself in the New Year. This year let’s fast God’s chosen fast and see real change, real freedom, start to flow out of us like living waters. It’s a good year to be alive, my friend. And it’s a great time to be a freedom fighter according to God’s Word here in Isaiah 58 verses 6 thru 11.

 

Lord bless you and keep you and may His face shine upon you today and every day of 2022. Thanks for listening today. Please share The Burt (Not Ernie) Show with your friends or on your social platforms. And remember it is now playing on the edifi app as part of the Spark Network.

 

God bless! Bye Bye 

 

 

A 60-Day Prayer Journal for Parents - on Amazon

I'd like to invite you to subscribe to my new YouTube channel - God's Promises for You (subscribers helps get the videos in more search results on YouTube, which means more people hearing about His promises!) ~ https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCOaqejjmiy-g0lGZMhH-FuA

 

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21 Days of Prayer - 21 Prayer Devotions to Impact Your Life

Episode 88 - Lamentations chapter 3 - Endings and Beginnings and God’s Blessings on Them All

Well hey, hello there!

Welcome to this episode of The Burt (Not Ernie) Show - getting the promises of God into the people of God one show at a time. TBNES is part of the Spark Network, now playing on the Edifi app.

 

Today we are doing that thing that comes so naturally to mankind at the close of a year… looking back in reflection and with thanksgiving, mourning what needs to be mourned, celebrating all that there is to rejoice about, praising God for all He has done in the last 12 months, and taking time to pause, reflect a bit, and remember whatever it is that each one of us needs to remember. (And if you maybe don’t feel like you are all that great at this, ask the Holy Spirit and He will show you what needs to be remembered… we can, and should, always always depend on the Spirit of the Living God to show us what we need to see. Ask him, and He will answer you!) And it is of course the time of year for looking forward. Sometimes, or honestly most of the time when we reach this point on the calendar, these few days between Christmas and the new year, we don’t simply LOOK ahead, we lean hard into the future, we pull toward it. More than a healthy time or reflection, quieting ourselves before the Lord so that we can fully dedicate all that just occurred and all that is about to occur to Him alone, we do far more than look ahead toward the new year with a listening ear and a calm, quieted heart. We rush ahead and leave behind things that God may just want to do a bit of work on… He may have some closure He wants to bring before we jump straight on into a brand new season. And a new year is, like it or not, a new season. 

 

We only get to do this whole end-of-year thing once every twelve months, so let’s sort of relax enough to see what He wants us to see, listen for what He is speaking, and move forward into 2022 at His pace… because, if we are honest, the pace we choose is not usually the same pace God chooses, and the pace we choose is usually not perfect. But as for God, His way is perfect. So let’s just close this thing out His way, at His pace. (Psalm 18:30 says that) 

 

And that brings me to the verses for this episode, which is episode #88. 

 

The Old Testament book of Lamentations is where we will be today. 

 

I will read it from the Amplified version, and I hope it brings you just buckets full of peace and trust and a calmness as we embark upon a new year. (Which I personally sense is going to be a pretty remarkable year overall for God’s people - I think it may start out much like 2020 and 2021, but in a matter of weeks I really think we are going to see things happen within the kingdom of God that will make a beautiful mark on the world at large. Just how I sense the Lord leading as I pray over the coming year & I am always ready to live my life in light of His good and perfect and pleasing will, as I am sure you are. So, let’s see what these verses have to say to us at this time of both exiting and entrance, shall we?) 

 

Lamentations 3:21-23 Amplified - 

 

But this I call to mind, Therefore I have hope.

It is because of the Lord’s lovingkindnesses that we are not consumed,

Because His [tender] compassions never fail.

 

They are new every morning;

Great and beyond measure is Your faithfulness.

 

I am pretty sure you’ve heard these verses before. And with good reason! They are so, so good. Always encouraging, always bringing hope. Filled with the promises of our loving Father. We can hear these words and we know what His will is for us. So of course these are often referenced. They bring hope. And that is what the world needs. Always. There is not a time when the world as a whole doesn’t need hope, and we as followers of Christ have the only actual hope that works, and that is the hope we have in Jesus. 

 

Which is why I have said many times before, we ought to be the most hopeful people on the planet. 

Wouldn’t that be something for 2022, if believers everywhere were the most hopeful people in the world? Now, that would be a sight! What kind of change would that bring to people who are hurting, confused, grieving, and seeking light at the end of the tunnel?

 

Verse 21 - But this I call to mind, therefore I have hope

Look, if we aren’t doing this, we are gonna be flailing around and feeling all sorts of hopeless. And that, my friend, is not our identity as Christians. Hopelessness is not our bag, not our dealio. 

If we don’t call some certain, specific things to mind, we will feel very hopeless. 

So let’s make sure we call these things to mind - daily! Get that Bible open every day! Pray to your good Father every day! Trust Him and believe Him and grow in Him every day!

 

No matter what, we can choose to say, “But this I call to mind, therefore I have hope.” 

 

Verse 22 - It is because of the Lord’s lovingkindnesses that we are not consumed, because His (tender) compassions never fail.

 

Yeah, there is a whole slew of hope here. These are our promises as we wrap up 2021 and look toward 2022. On the last day of the year, these words are true. And on the first day of the new year, they also prove true. 

Because of His lovingkindnesses (oooh, that’s a plural word! Many many lovingkindnesses are implied here! So expect a lot of them, because He promises a lot of them!) we are not consumed. We Are Not Consumed. Got that? You will not be consumed. He said it, it’s His promise to keep because He is a perfect promise maker and a perfect promise keeper. His lovingkindnesses are what you are going to see, experience, live with in 2022. 

His tender compassions never fail.

It’s enough to just say “compassions”. But God makes sure we know they are tender compassions. Your God is tender toward you.

 

Try a little tenderness, the song says.

God has the corner market on that. 

And He will never fail in his tender compassions toward His people, His children.

 

Verse 23 - They are new every morning; Great and beyond measure is Your faithfulness!

 

Every. Single. Morning. 

When are God’s tender compassions new?

That’s how often. On the daily.

 

Oh this is a very remarkable promise for us. 

 

Great and beyond measure is Your faithfulness, Lord Most High!

 

Just say that to Him today - tell Him out loud how good He is. How you know that you know that you know He is so, so good. 

Great is His faithfulness toward you and toward me.

It is beyond measure.

 

What’s the last thing you found to be un-measurable? Beyond measure?

The ocean? The sky? And God’s faithfulness. 

 

Can you join me in taking time, even if it’s just ten to fifteen minutes, and sit with the Lord, listening for Him to speak to you about the last year and the upcoming year. And as you sit with Him, don’t say a whole lot, mostly just listen, but do remember this great and beyond measuring faithfulness. I know you will be blessed and encouraged as you do so. 

 

Thanks for joining me today for this episode of TBNES, part of the Spark Network now playing in the Edifi app. 

 

I’d love to invite you to sign up for my email list at JanLBurt dot com where I will be sending out some info about a way to set the new year apart and dedicate it to the Lord. You can also check out my latest book, A 60-Day Prayer Journal for Parents, available on amazon. Not much better way to spend the first 60 days of the year than praying intentionally big prayers over our children, ya know? So grab a copy and I know it will be a lasting blessing to your family.

 

Have a wonderful day, a blessed remainder of 2021, and a very happy new year to you, my friend.

 

See ya next time for episode #89! Bye Bye.

 

Jan L. Burt is an author, speaker, podcaster, homeschooling veteran, mother to five, and has been happily married to Tony for thirty years. She served in youth ministry alongside her husband for twelve years & has led several Bible studies for women as well as hosting two online prayer retreats.

Jan is the host of the podcast “The Burt (Not Ernie) Show” & author of the new book “A 60-Day Prayer Journal for Parents” & “The Power of God’s Will – 40 Days of God’s Promises Devotional” (available on Amazon) & “The Once-A-Year Homeschool Planner” (a multi-grade, multi-subject planning system) – which can be found at JanLBurt.com. She has also been a regular contributor to The Old Schoolhouse Magazine. Find Jan  Instagram: @JanLBurt or at her website JanLBurt.com or at her YouTube channel, “God’s Promises for You with Jan L. Burt”.