Make Every Effort

God is revealing a powerful revelation in our day; it is the revelation of rest. We can access the power of this profound truth through faith in what God has declared in his word. The rest we are speaking of requires a concentrated focus on and an unconditional acceptance of the provision of God’s grace provided to us through Jesus Christ.

Heb 4:8-11 For if Joshua had given them rest, God would not have spoken later about another day. 9 There remains, then, a Sabbath-rest for the people of God; 10 for anyone who enters God’s rest also rests from his own work, just as God did from his. 11 Let us, therefore, Make Every Effort to enter that rest, so that no one will fall by following their example of disobedience.

It may sound like an oxymoron to say that you must do your best or make every effort to enter this place of rest, but this is precisely what God is saying. The ideologies of this world based upon obedience to the law can never give you access to the beautiful rest of God because access is granted by faith alone. You must, therefore, set your mind fully on what God has declared about you; this means setting your mind on things above. Col 3:2-3 Apostle Paul told us that we can be “transformed by the renewing of our minds.” Rom12:2 Oh yes, we can become something entirely new through the renewing of our minds!

Please don’t miss this most crucial point: making every effort is not talking about trying to live righteously before God; instead, it is about giving the most significant effort of your life towards reigning in your mind to make it focus on the truth that you are already righteous because of the blood of Jesus, and therefore loved beyond compare. Believe it or not, this will be the most humbling and challenging road you will ever travel because there is nothing you can earn or deserve. Yes, this road requires your greatest effort because it demands that you believe that you are already righteous in God’s sight even though you still sin and have areas of failure.

To believe that you are righteous in God’s sight, outside of your works, grates against the self-righteousness of your human nature. Everything within your natural nature will try to reject this simple yet powerful truth. But make no mistake, the powerful truth of God’s rest is why Jesus came to this earth! This simple yet profound truth puts within your reach the opportunity of a lifetime! Accessing this abundant life offered by God will require the humility and faith of a child. This is why Jesus said, “unless you come like a little child, you will in no way enter the kingdom of God.” Mat 18:3 This is not about doing right: it is about believing right! The byproduct of believing right is doing right! – Not vice versa!

I want to offer you a double-dog-dare-you challenge today! I challenge you to make the most significant effort you have ever made in all of your life to receive the truth of this rest God is offering you! Yes, it will require you to give up anything you could do to impress God or others! Yes, it will require you to live a life not based upon you, but rather upon God himself!

My dearest friend, I believe this Encouraging Note is signaling that your greatest days are ahead! The purpose of Jesus coming to this earth is about to be revealed in and through you! Focus in! Fully receive! Are you ready–will you believe? Will you set your mind on what God has said is true? Today is your day to enter in! The importance of this Encouraging Note cannot be overstated! One thing I am entirely convinced of is that today, God is calling you to…

Make Every Effort