My Shepherd Has Set His Heart Upon Me

Believers with spiritual maturity, lead by the Holy Spirit and bearing in evidence the Fruit of The Spirit (See Galatians 5:22-25)we will always find that these believers are familiar with deep waters and firey furnaces of testing. They have learned to not be dependent on others for their happiness or spiritual strength. They have been tested and have proven that the very Life of, GOD is within them. They exhibit grace abd and mercy to all those around them. The LORD Jesus Christ has both been revealed to them and is revealed in them. They have been tested in their inner man by the fire of trials. Our only strength is GOD Himself. This is the witnesses of both The LORD Jesus Christ upon the earth and the apostle Paul. Satan constantly came against them but our LORD Jesus has raised up a standard against him (See, Isaiah 59:19 and 1John 4:4) We find peace and rest in our Shepherd, Whose heart is set on each of us. ( See Job 7:17-18 and Psalm 23 and 1Peter 3:2) In 1 Thessalonians 3:3 the apostle Paul says "That no man should be moved/ shaken by these afflictions: for you yourselves know that we are appointed this ." See also Acts 20:23. The, Holy Spirit affirmed to Paul that in every place he would go to, chains of imprisonment, hardship, affliction and suffering were prepared for him and waiting for him. Selah..... Afflictions prove that GOD has set His Heart upon us. We will be tested and tried often so that His love and His care is revealed to us. In John 15:18-20 The LORD Jesus declared “If the world hates you, know that it has hated me before it hated you. If you were of the world, the world would love you as its own; but because you are not of the world, but I chose you out of the world, therefore the world hates you. Remember the word that I said to you: ‘A servant is not greater than his master.’ If they persecuted me, they will also persecute you" Mark 8:34 "And calling the crowd to him with his disciples, he said to them, “If anyone would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross and follow me." We must learn to encourage ourselves in The LORD as David did in 1 Samuel 30:1-6 He turned to his Shepherd and The Lover of his soul. We as born again believers have to learn to live from the inside out. In the trials of life we learn to turn to The Holy Spirit Who dwells within us. (See Romans 8:9,1 Corinthians 3:16, 2 Corinthians 6:16) Everything is with Him and in Him. When GOD sets His heart upon us, we will be tested and tried often. But, the longer and harder our affliction, the more deeply GOD has set His heart upon us to show us His love and care for us and to fulfill His ultimate purpose in each of us which is that we should be conformed to the image of His Son. See Romans 8:28-29 Selah Shalom shalom