Is It Enough?

"Is it enough...?" Matthew 10:25

Jesus knew the cost and He paid it anyway. Is this Enough? Is Jesus Enough? Is His Presence Enough? Is our service unto Him Enough in all that He is asking? Is He enough? This question can be answered with another question....do we seek holiness or solutions?

Holiness seeks to do the Father's will and He become enough...Solutions often come with a striving our need to satisfy our wills and have answers. I have to always remind myself that answers are not my business...they are God's and although this is usually a painful process dying to self it brings peace. Holiness is desiring Gods will and way by faith. Jesus came to do the Father's will...to give His life for others. In Isaiah 42:1 He is called the Lord's Servant and in Matthew 20:25-28 we read of His description of a true servant of God, as we read of His example to us...and His Servant's heart toward each of us...not only in His service in the past but in each day of our life. His unending love towards us, His care, leading, and intercession. He served while on earth and He continues in heaven....and we read what this looks like;

"Whoever desires to be great among you, let him be your servant. And whoever desires to be first among you, let him be your slave; just as the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give His life a ransom for many." Matthew 20:26-28 Is it Enough?

"When Jesus said 'let him be your servant' this was a choice. When Jesus said 'let him be your slave', it shows how deep our service should go. When He said that 'that He did not come to be served', 'but to serve, it shows the essential heart of the servant. When Jesus said 'and to give His life for many', it showed how far servants should go'. (D.G)

As servants of God may we hear and heed the call of God on our lives in these days in which we live...and obey that call. May we turn our time and energy to serving God whether married through our family and using our lot in life to serve the world...or if our lot in life is singleness, serving Him without the responsibilities that a family brings....it's in our service to God for His purposes that brings fulfillment and the abundance of life...Is it Enough?

Service brings sacrifice and suffering and the great need for the power of the Holy Spirit in our life. It is an unconditional laying down of our self, all rights, and our self's desires...for the sake of God's kingdom. A true surrender and the power of Christ to do the work of the Lord in all that"He lays upon us, for it is the Lord and He will do what seems good to Him" 1 Samuel 3:18...For the sake of the kingdom...Is it Enough?

Our service to God is in the works but also in the waiting...it too is in the every day, mundane, duties in life. It is in the blessings and in the afflictions...it is in our being, in all things. It is in the home, in the church, in the places God takes us. True service with lasting fruit always begins in the heart of with a heart surrendered and always led by the Spirit. It is by the Spirit as Isaiah 42:1 also tells us that "I have put My Spirit upon Him", and Jesus being filled with the Spirit and through the power and outpouring of the Holy Spirit ministered to others and was able to do what was before Him...as is with us today as believers. ..Is it Enough?

Isaiah 43:10 the Lord has given me many times reminding me of our purpose in knowing God and serving Him..."you are My witnesses...My servant whom I have chosen...that you may know and believe in Me...and there is no one who can deliver you out of My hand...I work...and who will reverse it?" . He allows us to know Him and serve Him with all our lives...we are His witnesses for a work He desires to do and no one can reverse His ways or plans! And this all is such a gift we have been given....but the gift goes on.....

…….yes, we are His witnesses, walking Epistles, love letters to this world. Why? For God to keep us and give us as a covenant to the people...to open blind eyes...to bring out prisoners from prison...those who sit in darkness. Isaiah 42:7....to bring the blind to a way they did not know..to make darkness light before them and the crooked places made straight. (vs 16)…..Is it Enough?

Our afflictions often come as opposition comes in to try and hinder this work. If the 'walls were to be built', Nehemiah must bear the voices of opposition and continue through the Word and prayer while working for the Lord. Our greatest service comes most often through our greatest trials...because of the transforming power they have in our life to change us more into the image of Christ. "We need Calvary hearts for a Calvary Ministry", crucified lives that bear the passion of our Savior to minister His love, grace and power....lives crucified and desiring to be placed on the altar of affliction for His purpose...and to proclaim our crucified Lord in the ministries He has given us in our homes, church and in the world. To proclaim our crucified Lord....Is it Enough?

The Lord gave me this Word in Isaiah last April...as I packed up our home and we put in on the market. As I walked through every memory and event in our life through all that we had. We were led to continue to move forward in all that God was asking, no matter the cost. The unknown future was still before us...the diagnosis real...the changes continued...our plead relentless for healing...believing that nothing lies beyond our Saviors ability to restore. Ultimately we knew that His healing came on Calvary...and our hope comes from Him alone...not the professionals although we are blessed by the work of their hands and the wisdom God can give them. It was His power in the present that we needed. His power brought healing to our hearts....His power we can limit in the moment we are living if we are not abiding in Him.....and this power is what we needed most. It is what keeps us going on and moving forward in Christ....it is our choice but regardless, we can never change God's plans or order for a moment...but we can rest in His presence. Is it Enough?

After serving the Lord for 20 years with busy schedules and coming by my husbands side...ministering to others, God needed me now in this season to serve my husband fully. I was serving others in a different way, in a way God needed and in a way He was asking of me. A way that required more trust again and more stretching of my faith...more surrender. It was my service to God to continue to serve my husband first but in a greater and in a different way and with greater love and devotion...and this would grow over ten months to then caring for him in a way that was so beautiful to me despite my pain. He had always cared for me fully and sacrificially for so many years...and although he was battling a dreadful disease, he was continuing to care for me....especially spiritually knowing what I needed....and my service to the Lord was serving His servant, my husband and I could not do Enough for him and for Him, my Lord. I could only seized each day, embracing all that God allowed...while first maintaining my relationship with him....understanding nothing but knowing He understands everything and that as I believed I would see His glory by living in His presence each moment of my day...Is it Enough?

Is it enough? Is it enough for me....for God to bring into my life whatever He is asking of me? Whatever God allows? To change me..to change us and use all for His glory? This is a question continually on the forefront of my mind...one that needs to always be asked and one that will bring emotions...emotions to then lay before the Lord for His work in our heart...a turning over in our soul that begins to say, Your will be done. Is it Enough?

The scriptures tell us that "A disciple is not above his teacher, nor a servant above his master. Is it enough for a disciple that he be like his teacher, and a servant like his master." Matthew 10:24-25 We are the Master's servants as servants of Christ. If Jesus was perfect, as He was, it should not surprise us when affliction, attacks, trials of many come. Jesus' ministry went throughout the cities, teaching...healing...but when He saw the multitudes He was moved with compassion because they were weary and scattered...and He said that the harvest truly is plentiful but the laborers are few....persecutions will come...times of affliction and suffering...but the Holy Spirit will be promised...and He who endures to the end will be saved. Matthew 9&10. Is it Enough?

He will not fail, His Servant Jesus ministers His love and gently, tenderly helps us all along the way...as Isaiah 42:3 pens... "A bruised reed He will not break, and smoking flax He will not quench".... A reed is fragile and when bruised it can break as we too can break when fragile and under great affliction, hurts and great trial...becoming weak and vulnerable …..and often our light can dimly burn as there is often much smoke and so little fire but even that smoke He will not put out. Much depression or discouragement comes...because so little prayer and testimony. We find our life bent, bruised, shattered and maybe beyond repair. But Jesus sees when others don't and He works in the quietest of ways...He refreshes us constantly. This is true of too of our service as we see Jesus' example...servants not needing to speak of their service and care what others may see them doing but "servants who know it is enough that they have borne witness to the Lord" . ..servants who are used to help strengthen the bruised reeds and fan a flame of fire within their hearts. Is it Enough?

The Jesus I know and who I am still learning to know more of comes to the broken, He heals...as only He can do. He restores our weary hearts and He fans our smoldering smoke to a flame. He puts His Spirit upon us...He Revives us again. In doing so, He then gives us the privilege to be His servants to have His heart for the lowly, broken and for the hurting as well. To live our lives in service to Him, being a witness to all He has done in our lives, bending with in the humility of Jesus over those who are bruised reeds and smoking flax.....to be used of Him.....Is it Enough?

No one truly comprehends our heart like You. Precious Savior with nail pierced hands You don't just place bandages on our broken places, you restore and revive. You come as we bring our heart to You. You stay helping us along until we are strong and the fire in our hearts are in full flame. Revive me, revive us....use us as Your messengers, Your Servants, living sacrifices. Lives given in Service, Sacrifice and Suffering, for the sake of the Kingdom...for all of Eternity. It IS Enough.

"When the burnt offerings began, the song of the Lord also began" 2 Chronicles 29:27

Michelle A. Guerra