Wednesday, April 27, 2011

Paying Your Vows!!!!

So today, I finally got an opportunity to sit and listen to a sermon my brother bought over to the house by Dr. Juanita Bynum. It is entitled "Paying A Vow". Now I am NO Juanita Bynum and I will not re-preach her sermon however, there were somethings that were said in this sermon that made the Baby in me jump. So listen up as I talk about what stood out to me.

So let me give you her sermon text... Well she just really said 1 Samuel never gave chapter and verse but she went on to talk about Hannah and how she wanted a son and prayed to God for a son. We all know the story so I will not take the time to recount it. But the story can be found in 1 Samuel 1.

My Situation:
Now I will talk about the things that stuck out to me and I took note of. My situation does not cause God to move in my behalf. I can pray about my situation all day long but until I am ready to make a vow to God... A real vow, it all just talking. Now we all know how Hannah's nemesis taunted her because she had no kids. Even though it bothered Hannah to tears and she prayed and fasted about that thang. God was not concerned about it. In other words what people say and do does not concern God. He does not have to prove himself to anyone. If he chooses to do it...it's because that was how he intended it to be down from the beginning. Now listen to this it was not until Hannah made a vow to God that God took heed to her reply and the Man Of God spoke into her situation.

The Vow:
Now I am not saying you have to make a vow to god all the time. But most of the time when we make vows it is in the heat of the battle. When things are going very wrong. We are emotional, mentally, spiritually and financially spent. Our friends are few far and in between. We are left alone and we are desperate for change. Sound familiar. We say something to the effect of: God, If you get me out of this situation, I promise I will ____________. (You feel in the blank). the Question that then struck me is Linda what Vows have you made that you have not honored. The tears began to fall because I have made many vows. I hate to admit it but some I have forgotten and God has redeemed me from the situation and a few more since then. So then she made another point that slapped me in the face. We are so busy decreeing and declaring a thang...but God can not trust us to keep his word but we want God to honor everything He has promised us.  So now I ask you this...What if the promises that God has promised you is being held up because you have not paid your vow. yeah I know...Light build huh.

Now What:
Let's go back a bit let me talk about the Decree and Declare scripture. Here is it is the KJV: it says,
"Thou shalt make thy prayer unto him, and he shall hear thee, and thou shalt pay thy vows. Thou shalt also decree a thing, and it shall be established unto thee: and the light shall shine upon thy ways." Job 22:27-28
So basically, we have been decreeing things and declaring things but we have not paid our vows. So when what we decree and declare does not come to past we want to shake our finger at God and ask why? PAY YOUR VOW!! Cant you just hear him saying that in return. So Sister and Brothers... Now what.

Well if you are like me, you repent ask God to truly forgive you for lying to HIM. Ask him to bring back to your remembrance all the things you need to make payment on. He will. He has not forgotten.

Now another point that came and slapped me full in the face is this. Not all vows are honored and accepted. He only accepts those that bring him glory. So when you make a vow to god if he can use that thing you have vowed he then accepts your vow. With that said...When Eli told Hannah she would have a child Hannah was not pregnant yet. However she praised God because she knew that His word was faithful and she had a bargaining chip on the table. She would give God the child he gave to her. God had need of a prophet and she had need of a son. So see Her vow was something that would bring God glory in the end. It was not for that day but ten twenty years from that day. Samuel would be used to anoint King David and Jesus would come through the lineage of that King. So you see, We may be holding up our own blessing because we can not be trusted to keep our vows.

Pay Your Vows... I know I am asking God to help me do just that.I am sure there will be more to come but not until I finish the tithing series, I still owe one more lesson :)!

Be blessed and encouraged!

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