Be Willing 1 Chronicles 28:9-10 Psalms 51:10-12 Daniel 3:28-29 Matthew 23:37 Matthew 8:1-3 2 Corinthians 8:10-12 2 Corinthians 9:6-8 John 6:38 Psalms 143:10 Isaiah 1:18-20 1 Chronicles 29:5 11.13.19

BE WILLING

BREAD

⁹ “And you, my son Solomon, acknowledge the God of your father, and serve him with wholehearted devotion and with a willing mind, for the LORD searches every heart and understands every motive behind the thoughts. If you seek him, he will be found by you; but if you forsake him, he will reject you forever. ¹⁰ Consider now, for the LORD has chosen you to build a temple as a sanctuary. Be strong and do the work.”  1 Chronicles 28:9-10 (NIV)

¹⁰ Create in me a pure heart, O God, and renew a steadfast spirit within me. ¹¹ Do not cast me from your presence or take your Holy Spirit from me. ¹² Restore to me the joy of your salvation and grant me a willing spirit, to sustain me.  Psalms 51:10-12 (NIV)

²⁸ Then Nebuchadnezzar said, “Praise be to the God of Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego, who has sent his angel and rescued his servants! They trusted in him and defied the king's command and were willing to give up their lives rather than serve or worship any god except their own God. ²⁹ Therefore I decree that the people of any nation or language who say anything against the God of Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego be cut into pieces and their houses be turned into piles of rubble, for no other god can save in this way.”  Daniel 3:28-29 (NIV)

³⁷ “O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, you who kill the prophets and stone those sent to you, how often I have longed to gather your children together, as a hen gathers her chicks under her wings, but you were not willing.”   Matthew 23:37 (NIV)

 ¹ When he came down from the mountainside, large crowds followed him. ² A man with leprosy came and knelt before him and said, “Lord, if you are willing, you can make me clean.”  ³ Jesus reached out his hand and touched the man. “I am willing,” he said. “Be clean!” Immediately he was cured of his leprosy.  Matthew 8:1-3 (NIV)

¹⁰ And here is my advice about what is best for you in this matter: Last year you were the first not only to give but also to have the desire to do so. ¹¹ Now finish the work, so that your eager willingness to do it may be matched by your completion of it, according to your means. ¹² For if the willingness is there, the gift is acceptable according to what one has, not according to what he does not have.  2 Corinthians 8:10-12 (NIV)

⁶ Remember this: Whoever sows sparingly will also reap sparingly, and whoever sows generously will also reap generously. ⁷ Each man should give what he has decided in his heart to give, not reluctantly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver. ⁸ And God is able to make all grace abound to you, so that in all things at all times, having all that you need, you will abound in every good work. 2 Corinthians 9:6-8 (NIV)

³⁸ “For I have come down from heaven not to do my will but to do the will of him who sent me.” John 6:38 (NIV)

¹⁰ Teach me to do your will, for you are my God; may your good Spirit lead me on level ground. Psalms 143:10 (NIV)

¹⁸ “Come now, let us reason together,” says the LORD. “Though your sins are like scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they are red as crimson, they shall be like wool. ¹⁹ If you are willing and obedient, you will eat the best from the land; ²⁰ but if you resist and rebel, you will be devoured by the sword.”  For the mouth of the LORD has spoken.   Isaiah 1:18-20 (NIV)

“Now, who is willing to consecrate himself today to the LORD?”  1 Chronicles 29:5 (NIV)

BUTTER

“The invitation to enjoy God is not icing. It is the cake of Christianity. If he is not enjoyed in real measure, then he is not truly believed, trusted, feared, obeyed, or worshiped. God is not seeking disinterested praise, but “worship in spirit and truth” (John 4:24). He isn’t enlisting dutiful soldiers, but those who will serve with gladness (Psalms 100:2). He is the kind of God, so rich and full, so free and secure, that he will not settle for human compulsion and going through the external motions. He calls, and effects, the willing and eager. He wants, and is worthy, to capture the heart. The trust he wins is not disinterested faith (as if that were really possible), but the kind of faith that enjoys him (2 Corinthians 1:24; Philippians 1:25; Hebrews 11:6).” David Mathis

“God doesn’t reveal Himself to the curious or the careless, but to those who are ready and willing to obey.”    Warren Wiersbe

“God often will use the unqualified to do the unexpected. The Lord can change the world with an ordinary person who will say, ‘Lord, I am willing to be that person.’ Will you step forward? God can do a lot with a little. God can do a lot with you.”    Greg Laurie

“God doesn’t call people who are qualified.  He calls people who are willing, and then He qualifies them.”    Richard Parker

“The risk of grace is that we turn our lives over to God. Abandoned. Surrendered. We no longer have to defend ourselves because we are convinced that he loves us so much, but we no longer try to run our own lives. He is our Lord, our master, and the one we follow. We don't know where he will lead, but we are willing to go there because we are convinced that life in him is truly the Grand Adventure. We don’t know what he will ask us to do, but we’re willing to do it because we’re sure he knows best. We respond to him like a loved child responds to his mother [or his Grammy I would add].  We may not understand everything, and we may ask a million questions, but when we don’t get answers, we still trust our Heavenly Father because he has proven himself to us. . . The deeper we press into the price Christ paid to rescue us, the more we’ll be amazed by his love, and we’ll delight in honoring him all day, every day.” Tim Clinton & Josh Straub, God Attachment.

“The more willing you are to own up to your sin, the more willing God is to forgive you.  When you come clean, God will clean your record.  If you are willing to use your lips for confession, you will find your Father willing to use His lips to kiss you.”   Paraphrased, Charles Spurgeon

“Instead of trying to comprehend My Incarnation intellectually, learn from the example of the wise men. They followed the leading of a spectacular star, then fell down in humble worship when they found Me.  Praise and worship are the best responses to the wonder of My Being. Sing praises to My holy Name.  Gaze at Me in silent adoration.  Look for a star of guidance in your own life, and be willing to follow where I lead.”    Sarah Young

“The Lord didn’t ask for gold-star performances in this life. He didn’t ask me to prove my significance to the world. Or to prove myself to Him. He didn’t ask me to prove anything at all. He is the One who approves, declaring us beloved while we were yet sinners.  He asks now only for my heart, my willingness, my hands—even when my hands haven’t seemed all that useful.”  Ann Voskamp

“Chosen one of God, may you find it easy to follow your King. May you find your life when you are willing to lose it for the sake of the Kingdom. May our Lord lift you up to a place higher than you could ever dream. May your choice to follow Christ echo throughout all generations that follow you, and may you receive rewards on earth and in heaven for your commitment to live for our mighty Lord. In Jesus' name, Amen.”   Sheri Rose Shepherd

“God doesn't call the qualified. He qualifies the called.  Don't let Satan convince you otherwise. He will try. He will tell you that God has an IQ requirement or an entry fee. That he employs only specialists and experts, governments and high-powered personalities. When Satan whispers such lies, dismiss him with this truth: God stampeded the first-century society with swaybacks, not thoroughbreds. Before Jesus came along, the disciples were loading trucks, coaching soccer, and selling Slurpee drinks at the convenience store. Their collars were blue, and their hands were calloused, and there is no evidence that Jesus chose them because they were smarter or nicer than the guy next door. The one thing they had going for them was a willingness to take a step when Jesus said, ‘Follow me.’”   Max Lucado

“A yieldedness to the will of God is not demonstrated by some one particular issue:  it is rather a matter of having taken the will of God as the rule of one’s life.  To be in the will of God is simply to be willing to do His will without reference to any particular thing He may choose.  It is electing His will to be final, even before we know what He may wish us to do.  It is, therefore, not a question of being willing to do some one thing:  it is a question of being willing to do anything, when, where, and how, it may seem best in His heart of love.  It is taking the normal and natural position of childlike trust which has already consented to the wish of the Father even before anything of the outworking of His wish is revealed.  This distinction cannot be overemphasized…There must be a covenant relationship of trust in which His will is assented to once for all and without reservation.”    Louis Sperry Chafer  

HEART SAVOR 

·         God desires willing hearts from His children.

·         If the willingness is there, the gift is acceptable.  Indeed, our God loves a cheerful giver.  This is, of course, is not merely just about money.  It encompasses our time, talents, approachability, service, etc., etc., etc.  Whatever God calls for us to do with our lives.  We are not our own, we are bought with a high price and we are to honor God with our beings.      

·         Jesus willingly came down to do God’s will and we are to do likewise.  ⁶ Whoever claims to live in him must walk as Jesus did. 1 John 2:6 (NIV)