BVOV Magazine 2013 - present

Be in a Hurry for God! Look at 2 Corinthians 8:7: “Therefore, as ye abound in every thing, in faith, and utterance, and knowledge, and in all diligence….” The Greek word for diligence means “eagerness, earnestness” or “haste” ("Strong’s Exhaustive Concordance of the Bible"). You are to grow in diligence—in earnestness, zeal and haste. When something you want has gone on sale, for example, that sale may only last a few hours. There is a deadline. You have to get to the store before everything is sold. That’s when you become diligent and hasty. You might even put off a meal for a while. There may be only a few items left at the sale price, so you make a beeline straight to the store. You need to be just as diligent regarding the things of God. The “sale” is about to end. There is enough for everyone, but the Word of God tells us only a few will be diligent to take advantage of it. Jesus said: “Enter ye in at the strait gate: for wide is the gate, and broad is the way, that leadeth to destruction, and many there be which go in thereat: Because strait is the gate, and narrow is the way, which leadeth unto life, and few there be that find it” (Matthew 7:13-14). There will be those who decide to get in line in a hurry. They will make a beeline for God, forgetting about everything else. They will want to do the work of the Lord. Be Diligent To Do God’s Work As Paul said, we are to abound in all diligence. So shake yourself! Get up and start moving in a hurry! Stop lying in “Delilah’s lap,” allowing your head to be stroked by the world, feeling good because everything is OK with you right now. Things might be OK with you, but is everything in your life OK with God? God sees a world of people who need His Word––people who need what you have found in Jesus. God wants those who know the truth, who have been called to share that truth with others, to be diligent about doing His work right now. Proverbs 12:24 says, “The hand of the diligent shall bear rule: but the slothful shall be under tribute.” The diligent are the ones who ride the high places. There are saints of God who ride the low places and live beneath their privileges, but that is not the will of God. That choice rests in the hands of every believer. The people who ride the high places with God will be eager to know His perfect will for them and walk in it. They will want to flow in the power of the Holy Ghost, and worldly things will not matter to them. The Diligent Receive From God “The soul of the sluggard desireth, and hath nothing: but the soul of the diligent shall be made fat” (Proverbs 13:4). The soul of a lazy person wants everything he sees and everything others have. You might say, “I want to flow in the Spirit and have the love of God flowing through me.” But it will not happen unless you take the proper time and are diligent to receive what God has for you. The soul of the diligent will have everything that belongs to him--everything God has promised. He will have protection, resources, anointing, vision by the Holy Ghost and knowledge--the exact knowledge--of the Lord. The time is coming when hearing from God will be the dividing line between making it and not making it. It may not be in a week, a month, a year or even a decade, but it’s coming in our lifetime. The Spirit of the Lord is warning the Church of the Lord Jesus Christ about all that is coming. He is spreading this message all around. He has taught us about faith so that we will be able to take the shield of faith and stand. And He is turning up the anointing which breaks every yoke (Isaiah 10:27). Make the quality decision in these last days to stand up and be counted among those who give diligence to make their calling and election sure. “For if ye do these things, ye shall never fall.” V Adapted from "Success Strategies From Heaven" by Keith A. Butler. Keith A. Butler is founder and president of Keith Butler Ministries, ministering throughout the world. He is also the founder and senior pastor of Word of Faith International Christian Center in Southfield, Mich. For information visit wordoffaith.cc. * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * Watch "Live Your Faith" with Keith Butler on VICTORY Channel® Sun. 6:30 a.m. & 5 p.m.; Thu. 9 a.m.; Sat. 3:30 p.m. & 12:30 a.m. ET * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * 10 : BVOV

• Cover