1 Now the angel who talked with me came back and wakened me, as a man who is wakened out of his sleep. 2 And he said to me, “What do you see?”So I said, “I am looking, and there is a lampstand of solid gold with a bowl on top of it, and on the stand seven lamps with seven pipes to the seven lamps. 3 Two olive trees are by it, one at the right of the bowl and the other at its left.” 4 So I answered and spoke to the angel who talked with me, saying, “What are these, my lord?”

5 Then the angel who talked with me answered and said to me, “Do you not know what these are?”

And I said, “No, my lord.”

6 So he answered and said to me:

    “This is the word of the LORD to Zerubbabel:     Not by might nor by power, but by My Spirit,’

    Says the LORD of hosts.  – Zechariah 4:1-6

God’s people should be the most positive, joyful people on earth. This joy should be a by-product of a healthy, intimate relationship with Jesus. In today’s climate, we are barraged with messages of self-improvement and positive thinking based on self-accomplishment.  These philosophies are promoted as tools for us to fulfill our greatest potential and overcome the mountains in our lives. 

God calls us to work heartedly, as to the Lord and not to men (Col 3:23).  We must ensure that our mindset is in concert with His Spirit, not in ourselves.  Evil spirts love to lure us away from dependence on God to self-based psychology.  The deception is makes us think, or even provides, more power, prosperity, and significance outside of God.

The result is heresy. Our faith in God becomes faith in faith. It is born out of simple hard work and self rather than hard work through obedience to God’s Spirit.  To the natural person these philosophies sound good. However, we have to be aware of anything that puts the burden of performance only on ourselves rather than on God. There are times in our lives when God doesn’t want us to climb every mountain. Sometimes He wants us to go around or to wait for Him while He is working in our lives and the lives of others.  Only the Spirit can inform us of the path that puts us squarely in His will for our lives.

The byproduct of communing with God and going down the path He has chosen is immense peace and Joy.  Resting our burdens on Him takes the weight off our shoulders.  His yoke is light, we aren’t called to get there alone.  We must let our Great Shepard guide us in the paths of righteousness for His name sake (Psalm 23).

God Bless.

Ron