24/01/2018 - THUNDERS AND RAINS

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So Samuel called to the LORD, and the LORD sent thunder and rain that day; and all the people greatly feared the LORD and Samuel. 1 Samuel 12:18

When the people of God do not stay alert, the Lord becomes saddened. We must always read the Scriptures and meditate on those things that catch our attention. Otherwise, we will not hear the Father´s voice and, consequently, we will not understand His will. Proof of this was given when the Israelites asked for a king, although Samuel was the anointed one of the Lord. Such request did not come from the heart of the Most High, thus, it should have never been made. 

For a long time, they wanted to be like the other nations, but the Lord had planned for them to be different. But, since they insisted so much, they had their request answered. However, the Most High showed them they were wrong. It´s good to examine your petitions. If you are insisting in something God has not promised you, you will sadden His heart. There are people who will get lost forever if they prosper. Is it worth it? 

What is better: go through life with trials and gain your salvation, or to have abundance of goods and go to Hell?  Therefore, never rise up against the heavenly ordinances; if you do so, you will find yourself in what Kenneth E. Hagin called God´s permissive will, in which He will have no responsibility fore what happens to you. It´s better to live by His will, in which the Lord strives to protect you from all evil assaults. Halleluiah! 

It was time to harvest the wheat when it did not rain in Israel. So Samuel called the people and told them how much God was displeased with them. He reminded them of what the Lord had said about His refusal to give them a king. So, he told them that although it never rained in those days, he would call on the Lord to send them a heavy rain. This way, they would know that they had hurt the One whom they should obey, praise and respect. 

Although the Israelites had acted on their own, despising the will of the Most High to always reign over them, the prophet showed them that God is so good that He would not fail to answer them in their needs, as long as they feared Him and served Him, giving heed to His voice and not being rebellious towards His decisions – both they and the king now commanded the nation. The Lord is good! 

In order for them to know that their wickedness was great, Samuel warned them that he would cry out to the Lord, and He would send a heavy rain. Those words certainly sounded a bit strange to them, because it was very unlikely to rain in those days. However, when the prophet called upon God, He answered with rain and thunders. The people immediately feared the Lord and Samuel. Their loss must have been enormous, seeing the wheat crop get lost. 

The lesson we learn is that we must never ask for anything outside of God´s will; since He is omniscient, He knows what is best for us. He who is carried away by his own reasons and does what pleases himself, will discover that he acted wrong. But, many times, they discover too late. The loss of part of the wheat crop was the beginning of many they would suffer. 

In Christ, with love,

R. R. Soares