"Now the word of the Lord came unto Jonah the son of Amittai, saying, Arise, go to Nineveh, that great city, and cry
against it; for their wickedness is come up before me. But Jonah rose up to flee unto Tarshish from the presence of
the Lord..." JONAH 1:1-3
"And the word of the Lord came unto Jonah the second time, saying, Arise, go unto Nineveh, that great city, and
preach unto it the preaching that I tell thee. So Jonah arose, and went unto Nineveh, according to the word of the
Lord." JONAH 3:1-3
Hello all and God bless you! May you prosper and be in health even as your soul prospers and is in health because
you run to Him who is the restorer of your soul, the one who lifts up your head and who is your help, even the God
and Father of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ (3 JOHN 2; PSALM 23:3; PSALM 3:3; PSALM 40:17 , 63:7; EPHESIANS
1:3)!!
Over the past few months I have been reading the books of the Bible that are known to theologians and Bible
scholars and Bible students as the minor prophets. I have so been blessed by time spent with God as I have asked
Him to continue to speak into my life words of direction, correction and affirmation as I read through these books!
What I will be sharing with you are a few of the things that God has spoken to me during these times and hope will be
a blessing to you and your life and to where you are with and in Christ!
What I would like to share with you in this posting is not something that the Lord has uttered to me as of late, but a
testimony of something that He spoke into my life some years ago that I know will be a blessing to you, if not now,
sometime, because we all come to those points in our lives and our walks with Christ where we are not sure where to
go or what to do. We know that a certain period of our lives is coming to an end and we are on the brink of something
fresh and something new but we're not quite sure what to do about it! And, because we love God and we want to be
found in His will for our lives and doing His will, we don't want to make any hasty decisions but yet it seems to be
increasingly difficult to remain where we are, doing what we are doing!
Before I go any further I want to address two things: For some of you, what I am sharing and am about to share will
hold no interest whatsoever, and that's fine! In light of that, pray for those for whom this is and will be a ready word
from God! Again, you might be beyond the content of this posting or simply not experiencing this particular dilema in
your life at this time, but for those who are in that place where this testimony is a word from God to them, this is a
very real struggle and whether they live or die, literally, can hinge upon whether or not they receive from God the thing
that they are needing, crying out to God for and praying to God about! Pray for them that they might be able to
receive the engrafted word of God to the saving of their souls and the continuance of their maturation in Christ Jesus!
Also, this posting will be primarily a testimonial and may not contain many biblical references. Some Christians would
judge the content of a message as from God or not from God on the basis of how many scripture references are
contained in the communication! I hope you are not one of these because my Bible says that our testimony-- the
things that we've seen God do in our lives that we choose to share with others-- is a powerful thing! Revelation 12:11
says, "And they overcame him (the devil!) by the blood of the Lamb and BY THE WORD OF THEIR TESTIMONY..."! Our
experiences with God are powerful things not only having affect in our lives but having affect in the lives of others
when we choose to tell them what good things that God has done for us! A testimony has the power to destroy the
negative influence of the enemy in a persons life, averting that individual from disaster! No wonder the psalmist
declared, "Let the redeemed of the Lord SAY SO " (PSALM 107:2)! Your testimony has power! Your story of God's
goodness in your life, being told, has the power to defeat the influence of the devil in the lives of people around you!
Open your mouth and tell folk about the great things that God has done for you today!
A word that God spoke into my life some years ago that had its basis in the life of the prophet Jonah is still an
encouraging, inspiring and comforting word to me today as I move forward in life and service to Jesus Christ. It's
interesting how the word of God sticks with you and that something spoken into my life some 6 to 7 years ago is still
as fresh to me today as when God first spoke it and still has an innate ability to comfort my soul and embolden me in
the path that he has called me to walk to the praise of His glory! My prayer for you as you read this, my brother, my
sister and my friend, is that you would be encouraged, inspired and comforted, knowing that God knows exactly who
you are and where you are and what you need! He has not forgotten about you although it might be that you put Him
on the shelf a long time ago. God the Father still knows your name and number and as scripture says, He is faithful to
us even though we be faithless toward Him. May the goodness of God showered upon your life lead you back to
where you belong...by Jesus' side (ROMANS 2:4)! In Jesus' name, so be it!
At the time, I was living in Temple, Texas attending a small church where I was the minister of music for some 7 to 8
years. It had only been some three or four years since I felt God calling me to start making music again in the genre of
heavy metal but this time using it as a vehicle to lift up the name of Jesus Christ. It was a wonderful experience. For
the time that I worked this area of service in the Temple, Texas area, the groups that I put together played at
interdenominational churches, Catholic churches, Methodist churches, on a float at a city parade during the Christmas
season and at a couple of clubs in the area. These groups were comprised of Christians, non-Christians and some
who didn't know if they were Christians or not but had a desire to serve Jesus! More than anything, I knew that I had
been a Christian witness to those that I worked intimately with as that period of time in my life and service to God
came to a close.
During the latter part of the 1990's, things began to change within and without. The church that I was attending and
served in as the minister of music was shutting down and eventually did. This left me feeling a void because beyond
the heavy metal music, this was the primary reason for me being in Temple, TX and the reason I stayed for some
period of time after the church shut their doors in the hopes that, possibly, we would re-open for public service. That
never happened. Also, my mode-of operandi concerning the heavy metal ministry was beginning to change and I
began to feel strongly that I needed to be working with a more like-hearted, like-minded group of musicians which,
through the course of my time in Temple I couldn't seem to find. I was torn between possibly moving to another city to
find these like-hearted, like-minded individuals and staying to work what was just beginning to get rolling! Also, I was
growing increasingly dissatisfied with my own personal life in terms of my financial situation, my attitudes, my actions,
and my relationships. It seemed it was time for a change and that God was closing doors both within and without.
But what next? Where do I go? What to do?
I was feeling so conflicted, not wanting to leave for fear of missing something that God might do and yet wanting to
leave for fear of something I might miss for not leaving. I was also fearful of what I might become if I stayed in Temple
longer than I ought. I prayed and sought God asking Him to order my steps and direct my paths in His will, asking Him
to give me an understanding of the times and what I ought to do, crying out to Him to not let me miss His will.
I'm not going to go into the details of how I got to the wonderful-in-every-way Dallas-Ft. Worth area, how I married a
wonderful Christian young woman and how I teamed up with a group of Christian brothers who love Jesus and are
striving to please Him in every way and we are currently ready to release our first CD together (LAING, ASHES, (c)
2005) to the glory of God. But I will say this...God is faithful and if you will call out to Him in your time of need, He will
answer you and show you great and mighty things that you know not of (JEREMIAH 33:3)! He'll show you the way
out; He'll show you the next step; he will direct your paths!
It was in this valley of decision that I heard about a Christian singles conference being held in Austin, TX. I knew a
couple of Christian friends that were going and it was suggested that I go. I decided to go hoping that maybe this
outing would hold a key to the next step I should take. It was good to get out of Temple, but after a day and a half of
being away I still hadn't happened across what I was looking for. The next day we were all to meet at a park where
there would be food and games and a good time for all. It was here that I met a particular brother in the Lord and for
some reason I felt that I should talk to Him about my situation and how I was feeling. Pay attention, because what he
said next was a word from God that blessed my life and helped me get through those transitional times and still
ministers to me today!
I told him where I was at and he simply told me this: IF GOD COULD GET JONAH, WHO DIDN'T WANT TO DO HIS
WILL, INTO HIS WILL, HOW MUCH MORE CAN GOD GET YOU, WHO WANTS TO DO HIS WILL, INTO HIS WILL!
This was what I came for! That was what I needed to hear! It wasn't a date, a place, a time or a person but it was
a word from God that I needed, spoken through one of His servants, to get me through to the next place! This was a
word that held me through those difficult times of transition and that the Holy Spirit of God still uses today when I face
challenges of different sorts!
IF GOD COULD GET UNWILLING JONAH INTO HIS WILL, HOW MUCH MORE CAN HE GET YOU WHO ARE WILLING INTO
HIS WILL!
I've written all this just to tell you this: Be at peace, God has known your end from your very beginning and He sees
your love for Him, He sees your desire for Him, He sees the fear of the Lord that you are walking in, wanting to make
sure that you know, that you know, that you know you are doing what is right by Him! And because your heart is bent
towards Him, His heart is bent towards you and because you have acknowledged Him in all your ways, you can be
assured that He WILL direct your paths and order your steps in His will! You won't miss it! Continue to watch and
pray! You will know His answer, His direction, His path for you when it comes! Continue to seek first the Kingdom of
God and His righteousness and all THESE THINGS shall be added unto you, even as it concerns the next step that you
are to take, for if God was able to get unwilling Jonah into His will, how much more is He able to get you, who are
willing, into His will! Wait, wait upon the Lord and He will strengthen your heart and give you the desire of your heart!
In Jesus' name,
AMEN!
Jeff Saenz
SLAVES WAGE
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