Scripture:
Zechariah 10:1
Ask the Lord for rain
In the time of the latter rain.
The Lord will make flashing clouds;
He will give them showers of rain,
Grass in the field for everyone.

The Deep Places
Something you should get from every word, every sentence, and every paragraph in the Word of God is that it points you back to a loving Father who desires that your relationship with Him be made right, so that you know you can depend on Him, trust Him, and invest your life in Him.

But here in verse 1 of chapter 10, so much is packed into this tiny verse. First, Zechariah reminds us that it is the Lord who provides what we need: "He will give them showers of rain." This is a reminder that God has what I need, and He can supply it.

So our first takeaway is that I should "Ask the Lord." My prayer life should grow stronger, because God has the power to deliver the things I need. So I need to ASK.

The second is this: "latter rain." There are two things here. First, this is a reference to rain that penetrates the deep places of the soil. Second, it comes in perfect season, referring to springtime. God sends what you need, and listen: He sends it at the RIGHT TIME!

Today our God-Shot is that God KNOWS and HAS what you and I need, and He is able to PROVIDE it. Not only that, but what He brings will SATISFY the NEED. See, God is able to reach the deep places of your life, the needs that go beyond the surface, which only the latter rain could penetrate and only the right season could bring to fruit.

Q: What are you asking of the Lord?
Q: What deep place in your life do you need the Lord to reach into?
Q: Are you trusting His provision in your life?

Father, I thank You that You can reach into the deep places of our lives, reaching the depths of our needs like no other. You are Jireh. You are a loving Father who cares for His children, who meets their needs IN SEASON, who reaches into the deepest of our needs, and who touches our very souls. Thank You for Your presence in our lives. In Jesus' name, Amen!

Scripture:

Zechariah 8:12

‘For the seed shall be prosperous,
The vine shall give its fruit,
The ground shall give her increase,
And the heavens shall give their dew—
I will cause the remnant of this people
To possess all these.

The Word of God teaches us that while we labor, it is the Lord who brings the increase. We often miss that everything we have and everything we can do comes from the Lord. "The earth is the Lord's, and the fulness thereof" (Psalm 24:1). All that we have and all that we are comes from God. He gives us strength to do the work; He makes what we do fruitful and brings increase; He gives us the talents we need to accomplish the work set before us. This is why giving back to Him is a heart thing, not a church thing.  

So today, our God-Shot is to remember that when I accomplish anything, it is not "look what I did," or "look at the work of my hands,' but rather "look what God did in me," "look what God did through me."   If we see Him as our Jireh (provider), that would shift our gratitude and our dependence upon the one who brings increase.  

Q:  What great things have you accomplished that you could not have done without the Lord?  And what are you grateful for today?

What if you have been BLESSED to be a BLESSING!

Lord, thank you for all that you have provided, all the blessings, all the increase; thank you for what you have done in and through me. I pray that you would continue to cause what I put my hands to prosper and bring you glory. I pray that you would cause our area of influence to increase and the reach of our hands to do your good work to be blessed, in Jesus' name, amen

Scripture:

Zechariah 3:3-5

3 Now Joshua was clothed with filthy garments, and was standing before the Angel.
4 Then He answered and spoke to those who stood before Him, saying, “Take away the filthy garments from him.” And to him He said, “See, I have removed your iniquity from you, and I will clothe you with rich robes.” 5 And I said, “Let them put a clean turban on his head.”
So they put a clean turban on his head, and they put the clothes on him. And the Angel of the Lord stood by.

"By His Grace"

If you have been in church for any time, you may have heard it said, "Our righteousness is like filthy rags" (Isaiah 64:6). That is because our goodness can't get us into heaven; we cannot work our way in; it is the fallen nature of man that sets us back.   It is only in Christ that we are made right with God, and when we are saved, we put on Christ, His righteousness.   This picture here in Zechariah of the High Priest Joshua is a picture of what Christ does for us, takes our filthy rags, our sin and shame, and takes it away... Breathe that in for a moment; let that hit you differently today.   He replaces our sin with His righteousness; the Angel takes his filthy rags and gives him "rich" robes, then places a clean turban. This is a picture of restored dignity and honor; the Lord restores his honor, his place in the Kingdom.   This vision is a foreshadowing of what Christ has done for you and me; this should cause your heart to pump this morning.

Today our God-Shot is to remember that apart from Christ we are not good enough, like filthy rags, that we could never by good works make our way to heaven.   Today is a reminder of our great need for Christ and His presence, His Holy Spirit in our lives to lead us into all righteousness.   

Your past has lost its power because Christ has removed it like filthy rags and given you a new future... Let that simmer...

Lord, I thank you that because of you, I can face tomorrow, that I have a future and a hope, that my good could never have taken me in, but yours can, that you have exchanged my past and my shame for your righteousness; and because of it my filthy rags have been exchanged for garments of white, robes rich, and you have given us back our dignity and honor, thank you Lord that you sent Christ to redeem us, in Jesus' name, Amen!

Scripture:

Ezra 5:5,6:3-6

5:5 But the eye of their God was watching over the elders of the Jews, and they were not stopped until a report could go to Darius and his written reply be received

3 In the first year of King Cyrus, King Cyrus issued a decree concerning the house of God at Jerusalem: “Let the house be rebuilt, the place where they offered sacrifices; and let the foundations of it be firmly laid, its height sixty cubits and its width sixty cubits, 4 with three rows of heavy stones and one row of new timber. Let the expenses be paid from the king’s treasury. 5 Also let the gold and silver articles of the house of God, which Nebuchadnezzar took from the temple which is in Jerusalem and brought to Babylon, be restored and taken back to the temple which is in Jerusalem, each to its place; and deposit them in the house of God”—

"Who Can Stop His Plans"

When you and I set out to do the work of the Lord in our lives, believe you me, the enemy will not like this, and he will do whatever he can to thwart the plan and cause trouble. If you read Ezra chapter 4, you will see that the enemy comes in pretending to worship God and wanting to help, but the elders are not fooled and refuse to let them. In turn, the enemy sends letters to the king slandering the work, claiming that these "rebellious people" will only rebel against the king. Sure enough, when the king looks back, he sees that their rebellion against God actually landed them in captivity in Babylon. But you and I know that this plan is from God to see the temple rebuilt, and here we discover that nothing will stop that.   

I included Ezra 5:5 because after they are stopped and discouraged in chapter 4, they are able to get back to work, but some inspectors see the work and question them, but God had His eye on them... 

Let that sit with you for a moment. God has His eye on you and the things that you are doing for Him, He is with you, yes you will see difficulties; yes the enemy will try to discourage you, and derail the progress, but God is with you in it.   

Not only was God with them, but He had the King fund the whole rebuild, restore the treasure to the house of the Lord, and provide the sacrifice.  

Today our God-Shot is that "Nothing can stop the plan of God in your life."   (Philippians 1:6) Nothing can stop it!.   Be aware that the enemy is always going to try to stop the plan of God in your life, always going to try to discourage, slow down, derail the plans so that you get frustrated and give up, but today remember that God is with you and the plan of God cannot be stopped, that is what Phillipians 1:6 says the good work that He began in you He will bring to completion. 

Lord, I pray that you would encourage those who have been derailed by the lies of the enemy, that they would not give up, that they would know that you have had your eye on them since they set out to do your work, to walk in your purpose, help them, supply their needs, send encouragement, those will labor with them, those who will speak encouragement in the name of Jesus'. Amen!

Scripture:

Daniel 10:12-13

12 Then he continued, “Do not be afraid, Daniel. Since the first day that you set your mind to gain understanding and to humble yourself before your God, your words were heard, and I have come in response to them. 13 But the prince of the Persian kingdom resisted me twenty-one days. Then Michael, one of the chief princes, came to help me, because I was detained there with the king of Persia.

The Resistance 

I think many of us don't want to think about forces working against us and God's plan for our lives, but the fact is that doesn't change the truth: there is a resistance- forces working to keep God's plan from you, to delay, to discourage and yes even to derail the plan of God in our lives. 

The angel tells Daniel God heard your words and sent a response to them.    This is a great reminder that God hears our prayers and is acting on behalf of us, He is acting on them, sending power and strength into the situation.  The good news is that nothing can stop the plans of God; they may try to resist, but His plans will always prevail.

Today our God-Shot is to be aware that the enemy doesn't want you to receive the answers, doesn't want you to step into the plan, or even hear the plan of God, much less see the answer to your prayers.   Be diligent, be alert. The Bible says that we should be alert (1 Peter 5:8) because the enemy is looking for ways to devour us.

Maybe today you needed to know that your prayers have not fallen to the ground, and that there may have been a delay because all of hell does not want you to receive it, but be of good courage; the Lord will prevail, and the answer will come.

Thank you, Lord, that no resistance can withstand you, not even the demonic forces, in the spiritual realms. Thank you, Lord, that you hear our prayers and answer them, that nothing can stop your plans, your work in our lives, not even the gates of hell. We praise you and thank you for your mighty hand today... In Jesus' name, Amen!