The rate of change in our society and in the Kingdom is astounding right now. Waiting 2 years for a cell phone contract to expire means watching 50 models introduced – all better than the one I just bought. 2012 was a year of total chaos for Sue and me. In the summer it got so bad that we sought advice from a bankruptcy lawyer and budget counselor. At exactly that time of personal setback, I was coaching a brother who caught the message of Releasing Kings and ran with it. In the last six months he bought two restaurant franchises which are both profitable. The owner of the franchise liked his spirit and gave him the opportunity to open a third that is even more profitable. While visiting with a customer in the new restaurant he was invited to come to another city to open a fourth which will be even more profitable than the first three. That customer turned out to be a banker. They are providing land, grants, and low interest loans to help him open the fourth restaurant. He will net more in a month than he previously made in a year, and his ministry will include nearly 100 employees. He started from a failed restaurant and a down season and now he calls me once a week with more good news… and Sue and I are now out of debt, thanks to two significant miracles from the Lord, our accountant, and our real estate agent.
My point is that there are seasons (Kairos moments) when God leads us through valleys and mountain tops. Kairos is a Greek word that is translated as time, seasons, due time and opportunity. When we understand times and seasons in the Kingdom, we can cooperate with what the Lord is doing in our lives and turn them into opportunities.
When things go wrong – If our story isn’t a great victory and our lives seemed overwhelmed by the chaos of life, it’s easy to lose sight of our course in life… and doubt that there is a course. In fact, even as believers, if we become separated from what the Father is doing, our lives do lose meaning very quickly. James describes this reality in poignant terms; we start to believe that the future cannot be predicted and that our lives are just a mist – soon to disappear without a trace of significance.
Why, you do not even know what will happen tomorrow. What is your life? You are a mist that appears for a little while and then vanishes. James 4:14 NIV
Job says it even more eloquently. Listen to this:
“Does not man have hard service on earth? Are not his days like those of a hired man? 2 Like aslave longing for the evening shadows, or a hired man waiting eagerly for his wages, 3 so I have been allotted months of futility, and nights of misery have been assigned to me. 4 When I lie down I think, ‘How long before I get up?’ The night drags on, and I toss till dawn. 5 My body is clothed with worms and scabs, my skin is broken and festering. 6 “My days are swifter than a weaver’s shuttle, and they come to an end without hope. 7 Remember, O God, that my life is but a breath; my eyes will never see happiness again. Job 7:1-7 NIV
God designed us to have a vision for our lives and to make a plan. When a season of chaos, testing, or warfare comes, it’s easy to give up on that plan in a spirit of fear. Instead of being the head and not the tail we volunteer to become a “hired man” or a “slave”… selling ourselves and our time to another with a survival mentality. This spirit of resignation takes the life out of everyone (including believers) and leaves us with no reason to live. We can actually come to a place of despising our own life… spiritual suicide.
So that I prefer strangling and death, rather than this body of mine. I despise my life; I would not live forever. Let me alone; my days have no meaning. Job 7:15-16 NIV
Exposing the lie – Your life does have meaning and purpose. God has written a dream in your heart that is fulfilling to you personally, rewarding from the ministry it provides to others, abundant from a financial standpoint. That’s the message of being a King in the Kingdom. There is a price tag for the preparation and there is some warfare to go with it. But, we are well able to transform chaos to Kairos moments of great victory. In fact, that is our Kingdom purpose for being here. Here’s how!
For the Lord gives wisdom, and from his mouth come knowledge and understanding. 7 He holds victory in store for the upright, he is a shield to those whose walk is blameless, 8 for Heguards the course of the just and protects the way of his faithful ones. Prov 2:6-8 NIV
Jesus our Wisdom – The very first step is to hear the voice of God in terms of wisdom, knowledge and understanding. It’s not a bunch of formulas or principles. It’s simply a heart-level awareness that there is a plan and a purpose that specifically includes me and that because Jesus dwells in my heart, I will survive, prosper and eventually reach a great victory. No matter how overwhelming the chaos gets, I believe there is an answer and that I will champion my portion of the cause of the Kingdom.
Jesus our Victory – My life is heading toward victory, not defeat. I know that within the Kingdom there is a dream that is already mapped into my heart’s desires by God. I know that if I can believe it and put the plan in place to make it happen, that God will direct my steps through the chaos to victory after victory. It’s not that hard. God did not make it impossible to achieve his purposes and to work with him. The enemy does not have the power to defeat Kings. We do have the power to move from a spirit of fear into power and love and wise decisions.
Submit yourselves, then, to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you. 8 Come near to God and he will come near to you… Humble yourselves before the Lord, and he will lift you up. James 4:7-10 NIV
For God has not given us a spirit of fear, but of power and of love and of a sound mind. 2 Tim 1:7 NKJV
Jesus our protector – “Shield” in proverbs 4:7 (Magen 4043) means shield, figuratively protector, and also the scaly hide of the crocodile. It comes from another word (ganan 1598) that means “hedge of protection.”
We are soft before God on the inside, but when the chaos and cruelty of life come knocking we have the scaly hide of a crocodile to withstand anything the enemy can dish out. Jesus is that protection. He is our fortress, our high tower, a buckler, a stronghold and a refuge. We are hidden in Him… bullet proof!
It’s not just protection in the sense of survival either. He “guards our course” and “protects our way.” Our part is to have a course and be on our way. Our part is to map the desire of our heart into a plan so that God can direct our steps. See Plans of the Heart; Steps From the Lord.
Jesus our provider – Let me close with one final aspect of the victory that God has for us. Money is an essential tool of ministry. It frees us from being the “hired man” and the “servant,” and allows us to bless others and carry out our Kingdom purpose. When money becomes the goal, it simply flies away. But if you can see it as a Kingdom tool, God will show you how to produce it in abundance so that your cup runs over. It doesn’t just fall out of heaven. Wealth is tied to wisdom, work, and creating value for others. You can take a world full of chaos and confusion and arrive at a Kairos season of purpose and victory. That’s our assignment in the Kingdom… bringing heaven to earth.
But remember the Lord your God, for it is he who gives you the ability to produce wealth, and so confirms his covenant… Deut 8:18 NIV
Blessed is the man who fears the Lord, who finds great delight in his commands. 2 His children will be mighty in the land; the generation of the upright will be blessed. 3 Wealth and riches are in his house, and his righteousness endures forever. Ps 112:1-3 NIV
I love those who love me, and those who seek me find me. 18 With me are riches and honor, enduring wealth and prosperity. Prov 8:17-18 NIV
I walk in the way of righteousness, along the paths of justice, 21 bestowing wealth on those who love me and making their treasuries full. Prov 8:20-21 NIV
The blessing of the Lord brings wealth, and he adds no trouble to it. Prov 10:22 NIV
All hard work brings a profit, but mere talk leads only to poverty. 24 The wealth of the wise is their crown, but the folly of fools yields folly. Prov 14:23-24 NIV
Humility and the fear of the Lord bring wealth and honor and life. Prov 22:4 NIV
