by donfinto | Nov 8, 2017 | The Good Report
October 31 is now past, but I need to tell you some of God’s timing that I did not know until this trip to Israel.
Most of us probably did know that this date was the 500-year anniversary of Martin Luther’s action that helped to trigger the reformation. Five hundred years ago on October 31, 1517, Martin Luther tacked his 95 theses on the door of the Wittenberg Castle cathedral that sparked a major revival among believers. It was a revival that led to reclaiming the clear teaching of Scripture that faith is “credited… as righteousness” (Romans 4:3).
What you probably did not know, and we did not know until recently, is that on this same date in 1917, an 800 Australian/New Zealand horse brigade mounted the charge against the Ottoman Turks to retake Beersheba, which led later to General Allenby being able to retake Jerusalem.
Not only that, the Balfour Declaration also happened at this same time 100 years ago when “His Majesty…” the king of England, through his foreign minister Balfour, spoke positively about creating a homeland for the Jewish people. All of which led to the United Nations decision in November of 1947 (70 years ago) and the reestablishment of the nation in May of 1948.
I heard some one say one time that “when God’s timing and God’s promise intersect, God intervenes, and looks for those who will participate with Him in what He is doing in that generation” (the opening chapters of the God’s Promise and the Future of Israel book).
We are living in God’s timing. Let us be careful to participate in what He is doing in this generation.
-Don Finto
by donfinto | Oct 25, 2017 | The Good Report
Our lives are in His hands.
Have you ever stopped to think that the enemy would like to kill every believer in
the world so that the witness of Jesus would be eradicated from the earth – no
witness of Jesus would be found anywhere?
Like David, “[Our] enemies are in hot pursuit of [us]; all day long they press their
attack (Psalm 56:1). “They watch [our] steps hoping to take [our lives]” (v. 6).
The good news is the enemy does not have that kind of power. Jesus “holds the key
to death” (Revelation 1:18). “From the Sovereign LORD comes (daily) escape from
death” (Psalm 68:20).
“All the days ordained for [us] were written in [His] book before one of them came
to be” (Psalm 139:16). This is why it was only after “David had served God’s
purpose in his own generation,” that “he fell asleep (Acts 13:36). The enemy had no
power to take him out prematurely.”
This is why I make a part of my daily declaration that I, like David, will not “fall
asleep” until I have accomplished God’s purpose for me in this generation. This is
why I choose to walk confidently into the future – no fears – with an ever-increasing
awareness that the only safe place in the world to be is in the will of God. If we live,
we are the Lord’s; if we die, we are His – all to His glory that He may “be exalted in
[our bodies], whether by life or by death. For to [us], to live is Christ; and to die is
gain” (Philippians 1:20-21).
Pause and ponder. Rejoice in Jesus! Breath in His confidence. Exhale all fear.
Your life is in His hands.
by donfinto | Oct 18, 2017 | The Good Report
Jesus was the world’s best encourager. He saw more in people than they saw in themselves. He saw their destiny and He called it forth.
“In this world we are like him,” John told us (1 John 4:17). One of our roles is to encourage: to see more in people than they see in themselves, and call it forth.
When I think of my early life, there are three people who stand out as major encouragers.
The first was my grandmother who, when I was walking the wrong way, would say, “That’s not who you really are,” and I began to believe her.
The second was a voice teacher I had while I was in college. I could not afford voice lessons, but one day, she called me to her office and gave me a voice lesson. She pulled music out of me that day like never before and never since. She “inspired me with confidence” (that’s one of Webster’s definitions of “encourage”).
The third was a private German tutor I had in Frankfurt, Germany, in our earlier years when Martha and I lived there. The tutor thought I could learn to speak German without a typical American accent, and because she believed in me, I did.
Who have been encouragers in your life? Who are you encouraging?
“Encourage one another,” Paul told the Corinthians (2 Corinthians 13:11). “Encourage one another daily,” the writer of Hebrews said (3:13). “Encourage the fainthearted,” Paul said on another occasion (1 Thessalonians 5:14).
Stop for a moment and ask the Lord if there is someone to whom you need to reach out today with a word of encouragement. That one phone call or visit could turn their lives around. See more in them than they see in themselves. Call forth their destiny. Encourage one another daily!
