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Created: Saturday, 31 August 2013 22:26

Last Updated: Monday, 16 September 2013 18:35

Published: Saturday, 31 August 2013 22:26

Written by Mark Neddeau

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He that is our God is the God of salvation; and unto GOD the Lord belong the issues from death. PSALM 68:20

Friends,

Sin brought about death on this planet. We know that spiritual separation from God is the direct and obvious result of sin (we are dead in our sins, but he is LIFE and LIFE more abundantly). This "death" opened doors to us that would otherwise never have been opened. Jesus spoke to Peter and gave him the keys to the kingdom of heaven, but according to Revelation 1:18 we find our great God and savior saying "and the Living one. I was dead, and behold, I am alive forevermore. Amen. I have the keys of Death and of Hades".

This means that he never meant for mankind to possess or utilize the keys to death, only the keys that would unlock life and power to us (Acts 1:8). But the door of struggle was opened to us, and remains ours, until we return to the ground.

GEN 3:17-19 And unto Adam he said, Because thou hast hearkened unto the voice of thy wife, and hast eaten of the tree, of which I commanded thee, saying, Thou shalt not eat of it: cursed isthe ground for thy sake; in sorrow shalt thou eat of it all the days of thy life;

Romans 14:12
So then, each of us will give an account of ourselves to God. -and-

GAL 6:5 For every man shall bear his own burden.

But, I thought God had the keys to death and Hades, so why do I have to deal with my own problems? Why do I have to carry my own burden? I think I understand what the writer was saying in these issues. The burden we carry, if for God, is one of focus and lightness. The burden we carry, if for us, is one of chaos and flesh-led desires. Either way, those burdens are our own. But it is up to God whether those burdens and or those lives end. Regardless of what we believe or think, God IS. He is a force unto himself who does as it pleases him to do. In this regard, then, we must begin to see the keys we carry in the proper light. The problem is that the weight of the world can crash in on us. We can feel that we have no options, no strength, and no way out.

2 COR 5:3 inasmuch as we, having put it on, will not be found naked. 4 For indeed while we are in this tent, we groan, being burdened, because we do not want to be unclothed but to be clothed, so that what is mortal will be swallowed up by life. 5 Now He who prepared us for this very purpose is God, who gave to us the Spirit as a pledge.…

We sigh deeply and groan, being burdened, because we want to be "clothed", to be cared for - and when this doesn't happen, when we feel left out, we can often find ourselves facing the option of ending our own life, or choosing to no longer carry the burdens assigned us. The problem is this: The keys of DEATH belong to God! We cannot choose to take our own life back, to end our life by judging that we are worthy of death, because God has that priviledge ALONE! Suicide is anathema to God because it places the power of choice in our hands without the keys to legally commit. In other words, since God alone retains the locking mechanism of LIFE ITSELF, we cannot become the instrument of our own death! It places us squarely at odds with God, and endangers our very soul.

So? How can we cope?

We find 2 ways in this world: 1) Counseling - Psychiatrists, Sociologists, pastors, and so on - a worldly or man-based approach that locks us into session after session. (Not that we stand against this practice, as it clearly and absolutely has a place in our survival, stability, and recovery).

-OR-

2) Counselling - with the Great Counselor! 1 PET. 5:6 Therefore humble yourselves under the mighty hand of God, that He may exalt you at the proper time, 7 casting all your anxiety on Him, because He cares for you. 8 Be of sober spirit, be on the alert. Your adversary, the devil, prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour.

As for me, my prayer is to you, O Lord, wrote David in Psalm 69. Not a counselor in the secular realm, or to a pastor ad nauseum, but to God alone, who truly has the power the change you and your thoughts, and free you from the burden of self-destruction!

Psalm 69:29 shows us a sudden change in tempo. 29 But I am afflicted and in pain; May Your salvation, O God, set me securely on high. 30 I will praise the name of God with song And magnify Him with thanksgiving.… This change reflects a man who understands that God is the answer! David knew God had keys to secure his future or his doom depending upon his own actions, and so he opted to rejoice and call out with thanksgiving, transforming his fate to that of salvation!

It's not just time in prayer and praise, though. It is TRUTH in prayer and praise. The fervent and effectual prayer of a righteous man avails much (1 Tim 5:16), and so we must be prepared to be honest. Our motives must reflect the power of the God we serve and the integrity of his holy Name. Don't let these words just fall out of your mouth, but act upon them. Make an attempt to really change by putting all your trust in him. Put my words and God's Word to the test! Try true prayer from an honest desire to succeed and release to him the power of life and death that is his, anyway. Gain the councel that you need to overcome, not just get by!

To God belongs the power of life (not the pastor). You need to start praying for your will to start praying. Increase your prayer time only as you increase your belief that it is not up to you when this will all end. Increase your prayer time as you begin to realize a greater connection to a great God. Take your burdens before the Lord. In all your ways acknowledge him, and HE will direct your paths (using HIS OWN keys).

He can answer you in a way that man cannot, and that you can act upon. You can understand, change, and overcome.

In Love,

Elders Mark and Dana Neddeau