"GOD IS FAITHFUL"
These are the words on the epitaph that is cut into the headstone of the great bible scholar and teacher, Derek Prince. Derek Prince was my pastor's pastor, and of all the possible things that could've been written about him, he choose instead to state an attribute of God that we as His children and His Beloved need to know down deep:
"GOD IS FAITHFUL".
God is our heavenly Father.
He is steadfast and never changes.
He will never leave us or forsake us.
His mercies are new every morning.
He turns what was meant for evil into that which is good.
He turns weeping into gladness.
He doesn't look at the outer facade, He looks deep into us,
seeing only what He knows is there.
He takes things and those that the world callS "unqualified" and "foolish",
And creates the most extraordinary, the most valiant
He searches the salvage yards, not the palaces, of humanity,
Seeking out and restoring that which is broken,
He lifts up the heads of the despairing,
He replenishes what the locusts have eaten,
Giving beauty instead of ashes,
Eternal life springs from where death's grip reigned.
His banner over us is love.
Let us all now declare together:
"GOD IS FAITHFUL!"
Tuesday, January 31, 2012
Monday, January 30, 2012
Forward
Multitudes, multitudes in the valley of decision!
For the day of the LORD is near in the valley of decision.
Joel 3:14
"Therefore, since we have so great a cloud of witnesses surrounding us, let us also lay aside every encumbrance and the sin which so easily entangles us, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us, fixing our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of faith, who for the joy set before Him endured the cross, despising the shame, and has sat down at the right hand of the throne of God. For consider Him who has endured such hostility by sinners against Himself, so that you will not grow weary and lose heart.
Hebrews 12:1-3
"If you are in the same place today as you were yesterday, then you are backslidden."
-Smith Wigglesworth
Backsliding... A condition no Christian wants to be in.
We are engaged in a marathon, the distance to the finish line is measured in time, not in length, and none of knows exactly when we will reach it. We are to keep running, nonetheless, no matter what. Our lives as followers of Jesus can sometimes be like swimming against the current, or trying to run on a conveyor belt that's going the other direction. If we grow weary as a runner can and stop we moving forward in our spiritual lives then we will find neither rest for our souls, nor are we are standing still the way the Lord told Moses and the children of Israel to do, we are sliding backwards. The race is being run on an upward slope, with many forces, many hurdles, working against us. We have an adversary who is crafty, who seeks out every weakness in our armor, who's purpose is to wear us out, knowing the race is a long one. Discouragement, lack of vision, worry, anger, and fear can bog us down, causing the "runner" to want to quit, but when we look up, when we maintain our focus and fix our eyes on-and stay fixed on Jesus, when we hear the voice of the Good Shepherd calling to us, we will stay overcomers, and keep going.
God promises us beauty instead of ashes, strength when we are our weakest, and there is no temptation that Jesus has not already endured-and conquered-to give us abundant life.
"Never never never give up..."
Winston Churchill
For the day of the LORD is near in the valley of decision.
Joel 3:14
"Therefore, since we have so great a cloud of witnesses surrounding us, let us also lay aside every encumbrance and the sin which so easily entangles us, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us, fixing our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of faith, who for the joy set before Him endured the cross, despising the shame, and has sat down at the right hand of the throne of God. For consider Him who has endured such hostility by sinners against Himself, so that you will not grow weary and lose heart.
Hebrews 12:1-3
"If you are in the same place today as you were yesterday, then you are backslidden."
-Smith Wigglesworth
Backsliding... A condition no Christian wants to be in.
We are engaged in a marathon, the distance to the finish line is measured in time, not in length, and none of knows exactly when we will reach it. We are to keep running, nonetheless, no matter what. Our lives as followers of Jesus can sometimes be like swimming against the current, or trying to run on a conveyor belt that's going the other direction. If we grow weary as a runner can and stop we moving forward in our spiritual lives then we will find neither rest for our souls, nor are we are standing still the way the Lord told Moses and the children of Israel to do, we are sliding backwards. The race is being run on an upward slope, with many forces, many hurdles, working against us. We have an adversary who is crafty, who seeks out every weakness in our armor, who's purpose is to wear us out, knowing the race is a long one. Discouragement, lack of vision, worry, anger, and fear can bog us down, causing the "runner" to want to quit, but when we look up, when we maintain our focus and fix our eyes on-and stay fixed on Jesus, when we hear the voice of the Good Shepherd calling to us, we will stay overcomers, and keep going.
God promises us beauty instead of ashes, strength when we are our weakest, and there is no temptation that Jesus has not already endured-and conquered-to give us abundant life.
"Never never never give up..."
Winston Churchill
Sunday, January 29, 2012
Material and Immaterial
Why is it that almost without exception that material wealth causes people to walk away from God?
"Be careful to follow every command I am giving you today, so that you may live and increase and may enter and possess the land that the Lord promised on oath to your forefathers.
Remember how the Lord your God led you all the way in the desert these forty years, to humble you and to test you in order to know what was in your heart, whether or not you would keep his commands. He humbled you, causing you to hunger and then feeding you with manna, which neither you nor your fathers had known, to teach you that man does not live on bread alone but on every word that comes from the mouth of the Lord.
Your clothes did not wear out and your feet did not swell during these forty years.
Know then in your heart that as a man disciplines his son, so the Lord your God disciplines you."
Deut.8:1-3
The Lord knows the hearts of the children of Israel, so He warned them, told them, warned them of the consequences, and the disasters that would befall them if they turned away from Him, and became a wicked, idolatrous, adulterous people. But slowly and surely there was a slow fading away, one decision leading to another, one day a bit colder, and a bit farther away from the Lord. They willfully exchanged worshipping God and communing with Him for created things, Paul said, "exchanging the glory of God for a lie..."
We live in a material world, in a wicked and adulterous generation. Many, even those who profess Jesus and call themselves "Christians", have embraced mammon worship, the love of created things, entertainment as a lifestyle, as in the days of a declining Israel, or the times of Rome on the verge of being sacked by the Visigoths, and totally unaware of the Lord's warnings to His children.
"Observe the commands of the Lord your God, walking in his ways and revering him.
For the Lord your God is bringing you into a good land—a land with streams and pools of water, with springs flowing in the valleys and hills; a land with wheat and barley, vines and fig trees, pomegranates, olive oil and honey; a land where bread will not be scarce and you will lack nothing; a land where the rocks are iron and you can dig copper out of the hills.
When you have eaten and are satisfied, praise the Lord your God for the good land he has given you.
Be careful that you do not forget the Lord your God, failing to observe his commands, his laws and his decrees that I am giving you this day.
Otherwise, when you eat and are satisfied, when you build fine houses and settle down, and when your herds and flocks grow large and your silver and gold increase and all you have is multiplied, then your heart will become proud and you will forget the Lord your God, who brought you out of Egypt, out of the land of slavery.
He led you through the vast and dreadful desert, that thirsty and waterless land, with its venomous snakes and scorpions. He brought you water out of hard rock. He gave you manna to eat in the desert, something your fathers had never known, to humble and to test you so that in the end it might go well with you.
You may say to yourself, “My power and the strength of my hands have produced this wealth for me.”
But remember the Lord your God, for it is he who gives you the ability to produce wealth, and so confirms his covenant, which he swore to your forefathers, as it is today.
If you ever forget the Lord your God and follow other gods and worship and bow down to them, I testify against you today that you will surely be destroyed."
Deuteronomy 8:4-19
Beloved, let us make sure, guard, protect, and nurture our relationship with the One who has given us everything, including eternal life. If you have grown cold, or worse- lukewarm- return to Him, draw near to Him, He is waiting for you, for us, to repent and "come home". Cast off the sins that so, so easily ensnare us and trip us up, trash every idol, everything that is immaterial, that will rust and decay.
Choose life.
"Be careful to follow every command I am giving you today, so that you may live and increase and may enter and possess the land that the Lord promised on oath to your forefathers.
Remember how the Lord your God led you all the way in the desert these forty years, to humble you and to test you in order to know what was in your heart, whether or not you would keep his commands. He humbled you, causing you to hunger and then feeding you with manna, which neither you nor your fathers had known, to teach you that man does not live on bread alone but on every word that comes from the mouth of the Lord.
Your clothes did not wear out and your feet did not swell during these forty years.
Know then in your heart that as a man disciplines his son, so the Lord your God disciplines you."
Deut.8:1-3
The Lord knows the hearts of the children of Israel, so He warned them, told them, warned them of the consequences, and the disasters that would befall them if they turned away from Him, and became a wicked, idolatrous, adulterous people. But slowly and surely there was a slow fading away, one decision leading to another, one day a bit colder, and a bit farther away from the Lord. They willfully exchanged worshipping God and communing with Him for created things, Paul said, "exchanging the glory of God for a lie..."
We live in a material world, in a wicked and adulterous generation. Many, even those who profess Jesus and call themselves "Christians", have embraced mammon worship, the love of created things, entertainment as a lifestyle, as in the days of a declining Israel, or the times of Rome on the verge of being sacked by the Visigoths, and totally unaware of the Lord's warnings to His children.
"Observe the commands of the Lord your God, walking in his ways and revering him.
For the Lord your God is bringing you into a good land—a land with streams and pools of water, with springs flowing in the valleys and hills; a land with wheat and barley, vines and fig trees, pomegranates, olive oil and honey; a land where bread will not be scarce and you will lack nothing; a land where the rocks are iron and you can dig copper out of the hills.
When you have eaten and are satisfied, praise the Lord your God for the good land he has given you.
Be careful that you do not forget the Lord your God, failing to observe his commands, his laws and his decrees that I am giving you this day.
Otherwise, when you eat and are satisfied, when you build fine houses and settle down, and when your herds and flocks grow large and your silver and gold increase and all you have is multiplied, then your heart will become proud and you will forget the Lord your God, who brought you out of Egypt, out of the land of slavery.
He led you through the vast and dreadful desert, that thirsty and waterless land, with its venomous snakes and scorpions. He brought you water out of hard rock. He gave you manna to eat in the desert, something your fathers had never known, to humble and to test you so that in the end it might go well with you.
You may say to yourself, “My power and the strength of my hands have produced this wealth for me.”
But remember the Lord your God, for it is he who gives you the ability to produce wealth, and so confirms his covenant, which he swore to your forefathers, as it is today.
If you ever forget the Lord your God and follow other gods and worship and bow down to them, I testify against you today that you will surely be destroyed."
Deuteronomy 8:4-19
Beloved, let us make sure, guard, protect, and nurture our relationship with the One who has given us everything, including eternal life. If you have grown cold, or worse- lukewarm- return to Him, draw near to Him, He is waiting for you, for us, to repent and "come home". Cast off the sins that so, so easily ensnare us and trip us up, trash every idol, everything that is immaterial, that will rust and decay.
Choose life.
Thursday, January 26, 2012
Paradigms, Perspectives and Possibilities
"Immediately Jesus made His disciples get into the boat and go ahead of Him to the other side to Bethsaida, while He Himself was sending the crowd away.
After bidding them farewell, He left for the mountain to pray.
When it was evening, the boat was in the middle of the sea, and He was alone on the land. Seeing them straining at the oars, for the wind was against them, at about the fourth watch of the night He came to them, walking on the sea; and He intended to pass by them.
But when they saw Him walking on the sea, they supposed that it was a ghost, and cried out; for they all saw Him and were terrified. But immediately He spoke with them and said to them,
"Take courage; it is I, do not be afraid."
Then He got into the boat with them, and the wind stopped; and they were utterly astonished, for they had not gained any insight from the incident of the loaves, but their heart was hardened. "
Mark 6:45-52
In this passage, Jesus had just finished feeding the five thousand, with a couple of fish and five loaves of bread. Somehow though, the disciples were still clueless as to the personhood and nature of who Jesus actually was. Walking across the Kinneret (Sea of Galilee) was nothing for the One who is able to command the seas, the winds, revive the dead, heal the sick, but the disciples were self-focused, looking for a messiah who would kick out the Romans, restore the Davidic dynastic line, in other words, fill their shopping list.
The disciples were worldly, their hearts were still stone, and although they had dropped everything career-wise, materially and followed Him, they were still without the revelation of the knowledge of who He really was, and is today: the Son of the living God.
These men spent most of those 3 1/2 years with Jesus. They heard him, saw how He lived and loved, and yet they didn't "get it".
Do we "get" Him, do we have that insight that was so illusive even to those who surrounded Him? Today, I want to put this out there: We who are His disciples, who are called by His name and know all about Jesus, the miracles, etc. that He did...
Are we drawn by who He is and His holiness, worthiness, magnificence, or are we just looking to the "benefits" part of what it means to follow Jesus?
How do you "see" Jesus?
In the end, it took the crucifixion,resurrection, and indwelling of the Holy Spirit for the disciples to gain the insight needed, and in the end they made the hard choices, the right choices, even losing their temporal earthly lives to gain eternity with Jesus.
Beloved, the time is coming, and even now has come in some countries, where our brothers and sisters are making those choices, who love Jesus more than their own lives, and are laying them down for Him.
Real insight and revelation is what gives us the strength to fearlessly make these choices.
Are you prepared to do likewise?
After bidding them farewell, He left for the mountain to pray.
When it was evening, the boat was in the middle of the sea, and He was alone on the land. Seeing them straining at the oars, for the wind was against them, at about the fourth watch of the night He came to them, walking on the sea; and He intended to pass by them.
But when they saw Him walking on the sea, they supposed that it was a ghost, and cried out; for they all saw Him and were terrified. But immediately He spoke with them and said to them,
"Take courage; it is I, do not be afraid."
Then He got into the boat with them, and the wind stopped; and they were utterly astonished, for they had not gained any insight from the incident of the loaves, but their heart was hardened. "
Mark 6:45-52
In this passage, Jesus had just finished feeding the five thousand, with a couple of fish and five loaves of bread. Somehow though, the disciples were still clueless as to the personhood and nature of who Jesus actually was. Walking across the Kinneret (Sea of Galilee) was nothing for the One who is able to command the seas, the winds, revive the dead, heal the sick, but the disciples were self-focused, looking for a messiah who would kick out the Romans, restore the Davidic dynastic line, in other words, fill their shopping list.
The disciples were worldly, their hearts were still stone, and although they had dropped everything career-wise, materially and followed Him, they were still without the revelation of the knowledge of who He really was, and is today: the Son of the living God.
These men spent most of those 3 1/2 years with Jesus. They heard him, saw how He lived and loved, and yet they didn't "get it".
Do we "get" Him, do we have that insight that was so illusive even to those who surrounded Him? Today, I want to put this out there: We who are His disciples, who are called by His name and know all about Jesus, the miracles, etc. that He did...
Are we drawn by who He is and His holiness, worthiness, magnificence, or are we just looking to the "benefits" part of what it means to follow Jesus?
How do you "see" Jesus?
In the end, it took the crucifixion,resurrection, and indwelling of the Holy Spirit for the disciples to gain the insight needed, and in the end they made the hard choices, the right choices, even losing their temporal earthly lives to gain eternity with Jesus.
Beloved, the time is coming, and even now has come in some countries, where our brothers and sisters are making those choices, who love Jesus more than their own lives, and are laying them down for Him.
Real insight and revelation is what gives us the strength to fearlessly make these choices.
Are you prepared to do likewise?
Wednesday, January 25, 2012
Filling Stations
And He said to them, "Come away by yourselves to a secluded place and rest a while." (For there were many people coming and going, and they did not even have time to eat.
Mark 6:31
This week I was talking to my wife and some siblings in the Lord about my desire to start withdrawing to a solitary place, just like Jesus did frequently. I was listening to Misty Edwards of IHOP-KC talking about the fasted lifestyle, but not just fasting from foods, but from all the things that bombard us constantly. All of this input, huge amounts of media, the cares and demands of daily life, create tremendous noise and distractions.
The Lord through His Holy Spirit speaks to us in a "still small voice", in a whisper, requiring us to lean in and be attentive, to be still and turn off everything else. When I say everything, I mean to say-as the Lord is saying to me- everything: Starting with our smartphones, iPads, twitter, Facebook, tumblr, email,text messages, TV, radio, CD/DVD, phone calls...everything.
Just us and Him alone in the Garden, sitting in our Father's lap, on our faces with the Holy Spirit, attended by the burning ones, the seraphim crying HOLY HOLY HOLY nonstop before Him.
This is a hunger and thirst that is inside most of us, that will only be satisfied by quiet times at the "filling station".
Jesus said, "Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for they will be filled.
"And early in the morning, while it was still dark, He arose and went out and departed to a lonely place, and was praying there."
Mark 1:35
"And immediately He made His disciples get into the boat and go ahead of Him to the other side to Bethsaida, while He Himself was sending the multitude away. And after bidding them farewell, he departed to the mountain to pray."
Mark 6:45-46
Today, beloved, listen to that still small voice, turn off the noise and come away, meet Him in the Garden soon and often, whether an open country field, your closet, or other any place that affords you a time of solitude, that precious time to meet with Him.
Mark 6:31
This week I was talking to my wife and some siblings in the Lord about my desire to start withdrawing to a solitary place, just like Jesus did frequently. I was listening to Misty Edwards of IHOP-KC talking about the fasted lifestyle, but not just fasting from foods, but from all the things that bombard us constantly. All of this input, huge amounts of media, the cares and demands of daily life, create tremendous noise and distractions.
The Lord through His Holy Spirit speaks to us in a "still small voice", in a whisper, requiring us to lean in and be attentive, to be still and turn off everything else. When I say everything, I mean to say-as the Lord is saying to me- everything: Starting with our smartphones, iPads, twitter, Facebook, tumblr, email,text messages, TV, radio, CD/DVD, phone calls...everything.
Just us and Him alone in the Garden, sitting in our Father's lap, on our faces with the Holy Spirit, attended by the burning ones, the seraphim crying HOLY HOLY HOLY nonstop before Him.
This is a hunger and thirst that is inside most of us, that will only be satisfied by quiet times at the "filling station".
Jesus said, "Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for they will be filled.
"And early in the morning, while it was still dark, He arose and went out and departed to a lonely place, and was praying there."
Mark 1:35
"And immediately He made His disciples get into the boat and go ahead of Him to the other side to Bethsaida, while He Himself was sending the multitude away. And after bidding them farewell, he departed to the mountain to pray."
Mark 6:45-46
Today, beloved, listen to that still small voice, turn off the noise and come away, meet Him in the Garden soon and often, whether an open country field, your closet, or other any place that affords you a time of solitude, that precious time to meet with Him.
Tuesday, January 24, 2012
Taking It Back
"From the days of John the Baptist until now the kingdom of heaven suffers violence, and violent men take it by force."
Matthew 11:12
I am really angry. Recently I have heard news about old friends, believers, some of whom are sick, depressed, discouraged, and basically entirely immobilized!
These were powerful brothers and sisters who, for a variety of reasons, are now powerless, held captive by unbelief, discouragement, depression, and more.
The Word says that "the fervent prayers of the righteous avail much"...we are called to be soldiers, warriors, waging war, taking it all back by violent, forceful prayer and worship, and we are to do this without ceasing.
How are you responding today in the face of trials and difficulties?
Put on your armor, today beloved, right now... wage war in the spirit, take it all back today.
Matthew 11:12
I am really angry. Recently I have heard news about old friends, believers, some of whom are sick, depressed, discouraged, and basically entirely immobilized!
These were powerful brothers and sisters who, for a variety of reasons, are now powerless, held captive by unbelief, discouragement, depression, and more.
The Word says that "the fervent prayers of the righteous avail much"...we are called to be soldiers, warriors, waging war, taking it all back by violent, forceful prayer and worship, and we are to do this without ceasing.
How are you responding today in the face of trials and difficulties?
Put on your armor, today beloved, right now... wage war in the spirit, take it all back today.
Sunday, January 22, 2012
Heartbroken 305
I want to share the Word of the Lord that He is speaking to me today:
But I have this against you, that you have left your first love. Therefore remember from where you have fallen, and repent and do the deeds you did at first; or else I am coming to you and will remove your lampstand out of its place-unless you repent.
Revelation 2:4, 5
Part of my testimony is that at the time of my ultimate brokenness, and subsequent restoration, that the Lord told me:
"I HAVE THIS AGAINST YOU...RETURN TO ME, I'M YOUR FIRST LOVE..." this word from the throne broke my heart, but it was necessary because I had embraced the junk of this world.
Somehow I had strayed so far away from my first love, Jesus...it had happened slowly, insidiously...I had pursued other loves, and I had failed to realize and understand who The Lord really is, and how jealous, ragingly jealous the Lord our Bridegroom is regarding relationship with each of us, and how important we are to Him.
"Yet even now," declares the LORD,
"Return to Me with all your heart,
And with fasting, weeping and mourning; And rend your heart and not your garments."
Now return to the LORD your God,
For He is gracious and compassionate,
Slow to anger, abounding in lovingkindness
And relenting of evil.
Joel 2:12, 13
Our home coming can only happen when our hardened hearts are broken,
when we are willing to lose our own lives to gain the Abundant life.
In Joel 2, His spirit is poured out, but only after our hearts are broken.
We are to be transformed, yielded, holding nothing back.
We may think that we understand God, that He is altogether like us, but He is not!
Let us not think that we can have hide things, dark things, from everyone, including Him and put on a nice show, a nice god-like veneer, but God sees everything, and knows everything!
In this time, even now, the Lord is exposing everything: deception, lies, rhetorical hair-splitting, and rationalizing away idolatrous, sinful living.
That is a weighty and sobering thought, don't you think?
We are in the valley of decision, beloved, we can either fall on the Cornerstone and be broken and surrendered to Him, return to Him, and enter into real relationship with our First Love, or eventually be crushed because of our unbelief, our unwillingness to surrender self interests and self desires.
The Children of Israel were at a similar place, as Joshua spoke plainly to them, and I will leave you with this:
If it is disagreeable in your sight to serve the LORD, choose for yourselves today whom you will serve: whether the gods which your fathers served which were beyond the River, or the gods of the Amorites in whose land you are living; but as for me and my house, we will serve the LORD."
Joshua 24:15
But I have this against you, that you have left your first love. Therefore remember from where you have fallen, and repent and do the deeds you did at first; or else I am coming to you and will remove your lampstand out of its place-unless you repent.
Revelation 2:4, 5
Part of my testimony is that at the time of my ultimate brokenness, and subsequent restoration, that the Lord told me:
"I HAVE THIS AGAINST YOU...RETURN TO ME, I'M YOUR FIRST LOVE..." this word from the throne broke my heart, but it was necessary because I had embraced the junk of this world.
Somehow I had strayed so far away from my first love, Jesus...it had happened slowly, insidiously...I had pursued other loves, and I had failed to realize and understand who The Lord really is, and how jealous, ragingly jealous the Lord our Bridegroom is regarding relationship with each of us, and how important we are to Him.
"Yet even now," declares the LORD,
"Return to Me with all your heart,
And with fasting, weeping and mourning; And rend your heart and not your garments."
Now return to the LORD your God,
For He is gracious and compassionate,
Slow to anger, abounding in lovingkindness
And relenting of evil.
Joel 2:12, 13
Our home coming can only happen when our hardened hearts are broken,
when we are willing to lose our own lives to gain the Abundant life.
In Joel 2, His spirit is poured out, but only after our hearts are broken.
We are to be transformed, yielded, holding nothing back.
We may think that we understand God, that He is altogether like us, but He is not!
Let us not think that we can have hide things, dark things, from everyone, including Him and put on a nice show, a nice god-like veneer, but God sees everything, and knows everything!
In this time, even now, the Lord is exposing everything: deception, lies, rhetorical hair-splitting, and rationalizing away idolatrous, sinful living.
That is a weighty and sobering thought, don't you think?
We are in the valley of decision, beloved, we can either fall on the Cornerstone and be broken and surrendered to Him, return to Him, and enter into real relationship with our First Love, or eventually be crushed because of our unbelief, our unwillingness to surrender self interests and self desires.
The Children of Israel were at a similar place, as Joshua spoke plainly to them, and I will leave you with this:
If it is disagreeable in your sight to serve the LORD, choose for yourselves today whom you will serve: whether the gods which your fathers served which were beyond the River, or the gods of the Amorites in whose land you are living; but as for me and my house, we will serve the LORD."
Joshua 24:15
Friday, January 20, 2012
Threshing Floors
"On that day Gad went to David and said to him, “Go up and build an altar to the Lord on the threshing floor of Araunah the Jebusite.” So David went up, as the Lord had commanded through Gad. Araunah said, “Why has my lord the king come to his servant?”
“To buy your threshing floor,” David answered, “so I can build an altar to the Lord, that the plague on the people may be stopped.”
Araunah said to David, “Let my lord the king take whatever pleases him and offer it up. Here are oxen for the burnt offering, and here are threshing sledges and ox yokes for the wood. O king, Araunah gives all this to the king.” Araunah also said to him, “May the Lord your God accept you.”
But the king replied to Araunah, “No, I insist on paying you for it.
I will not sacrifice to the Lord my God burnt offerings that cost me nothing.”
So David bought the threshing floor and the oxen and paid fifty shekels of silver for them.
Excerpts from 2 Samuel 24:18-25
"Then Solomon began to build the temple of the Lord in Jerusalem on Mount Moriah, where the Lord had appeared to his father David. It was on the threshing floor of Araunah the Jebusite, the place provided by David."
2 Chronicles 3:1
Threshing is a process where whole wheat stalks, and anything that looks like wheat (tares, weeds) are thrown onto the threshing floor, and then beaten, tossed, shaken, and beaten repeatedly, separating the grains on wheat from the chaff. It is a violently actively process designed to separate and purify.
It was while I lived in Israel that I first discovered that the place that Solomon built the Bet HaKnesset haGadol, the Temple, was the very threshing floor David bought from Araunah! I still wonder and marvel at the fact the God chose the resting place for the Ark of the Covenant and the Holy of Holies to be the threshing floor, not an oasis like En Gedi, or Eden...a threshing floor. Somehow, threshing, brokenness, refining, purity, surrender are tied together with worship, entering into His presence, holiness, abiding and communing with our Master/Bridegroom, in ways I feel in my heart, but can't even put words to...
Threshing, a synonym of refining, is part of our lives. The refining we experience, while difficult, is never without purpose, it's part of the process our Father uses to "beat the chaff" out of us. When finally we surrender, what's left is pure, polished, bright, and shiny. The Bridegroom is ironing the wrinkles out the the Bride's wedding dress...
John the Baptizer proclaimed that the "chaff would be gathered up and thrown into the unquenchable fire" (Luke 3:17, Matt 3:12)...when we are going through trials, "on the threshing floor", let us embrace the process, knowing the end result, and not be caught with any chaff clinging to us!
“To buy your threshing floor,” David answered, “so I can build an altar to the Lord, that the plague on the people may be stopped.”
Araunah said to David, “Let my lord the king take whatever pleases him and offer it up. Here are oxen for the burnt offering, and here are threshing sledges and ox yokes for the wood. O king, Araunah gives all this to the king.” Araunah also said to him, “May the Lord your God accept you.”
But the king replied to Araunah, “No, I insist on paying you for it.
I will not sacrifice to the Lord my God burnt offerings that cost me nothing.”
So David bought the threshing floor and the oxen and paid fifty shekels of silver for them.
Excerpts from 2 Samuel 24:18-25
"Then Solomon began to build the temple of the Lord in Jerusalem on Mount Moriah, where the Lord had appeared to his father David. It was on the threshing floor of Araunah the Jebusite, the place provided by David."
2 Chronicles 3:1
Threshing is a process where whole wheat stalks, and anything that looks like wheat (tares, weeds) are thrown onto the threshing floor, and then beaten, tossed, shaken, and beaten repeatedly, separating the grains on wheat from the chaff. It is a violently actively process designed to separate and purify.
It was while I lived in Israel that I first discovered that the place that Solomon built the Bet HaKnesset haGadol, the Temple, was the very threshing floor David bought from Araunah! I still wonder and marvel at the fact the God chose the resting place for the Ark of the Covenant and the Holy of Holies to be the threshing floor, not an oasis like En Gedi, or Eden...a threshing floor. Somehow, threshing, brokenness, refining, purity, surrender are tied together with worship, entering into His presence, holiness, abiding and communing with our Master/Bridegroom, in ways I feel in my heart, but can't even put words to...
Threshing, a synonym of refining, is part of our lives. The refining we experience, while difficult, is never without purpose, it's part of the process our Father uses to "beat the chaff" out of us. When finally we surrender, what's left is pure, polished, bright, and shiny. The Bridegroom is ironing the wrinkles out the the Bride's wedding dress...
John the Baptizer proclaimed that the "chaff would be gathered up and thrown into the unquenchable fire" (Luke 3:17, Matt 3:12)...when we are going through trials, "on the threshing floor", let us embrace the process, knowing the end result, and not be caught with any chaff clinging to us!
Thursday, January 19, 2012
Surprises
“No one knows about that day or hour, not even the angels in heaven, nor the Son, but only the Father. As it was in the days of Noah, so it will be at the coming of the Son of Man.
For in the days before the flood, people were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, up to the day Noah entered the ark; and they knew nothing about what would happen until the flood came and took them all away.
That is how it will be at the coming of the Son of Man.
Two men ill be in the field; one will be taken and the other left.
Two women will be grinding with a hand mill; one will be taken and the other left.
“Therefore keep watch, because you do not know on what day your Lord will come.
But understand this: If the owner of the house had known at what time of night the thief was coming, he would have kept watch and would not have let his house be broken into.
So you also must be ready, because the Son of Man will come at an hour when you do not expect him."
Matthew 24:36-44
Last night I was at a weekly men's meeting, a Bible study/discussion sort of forum.
The question was raised: Are you ready right now for the return of the Son of Man?
As we round tabled this, back and forth, I considered and realized the facts:
Jesus promised He would return, He told us that no one would know exactly when-it would be a surprise, but we are to keep watch, to have our spiritual affairs in order, to be ready.
As it was in the days of Noah so it will be at the coming of the Son of Man...are you ready?
I don't say this arrogantly, or rhetorically, or accusatorily... But, if the heavens rolled back like scrolls and Jesus returned now- will you be found ready? Does your heart belong to him, really belong to Him- do you love the Lord with all your heart, soul, mind, and strength, or are your thoughts occupied by the rising and falling the Dow, who will take the Super Bowl, the World Series, the next American Idol, that new house &/or car you are buying...?
Beloved, who do you love? Do you long to be at the ultimate Wedding feast, or are you just too busy to even really think about something that seems to be so far off?
Noah's neighbors had ample opportunity, ample information, and ample time to make wise choices, and yet I'm sure the doors to the ark were covered with the finger nail marks of those desperate and surprised when the Flood came.
Don't be found among those surprised...get ready, be ready.
Stay ready.
For in the days before the flood, people were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, up to the day Noah entered the ark; and they knew nothing about what would happen until the flood came and took them all away.
That is how it will be at the coming of the Son of Man.
Two men ill be in the field; one will be taken and the other left.
Two women will be grinding with a hand mill; one will be taken and the other left.
“Therefore keep watch, because you do not know on what day your Lord will come.
But understand this: If the owner of the house had known at what time of night the thief was coming, he would have kept watch and would not have let his house be broken into.
So you also must be ready, because the Son of Man will come at an hour when you do not expect him."
Matthew 24:36-44
Last night I was at a weekly men's meeting, a Bible study/discussion sort of forum.
The question was raised: Are you ready right now for the return of the Son of Man?
As we round tabled this, back and forth, I considered and realized the facts:
Jesus promised He would return, He told us that no one would know exactly when-it would be a surprise, but we are to keep watch, to have our spiritual affairs in order, to be ready.
As it was in the days of Noah so it will be at the coming of the Son of Man...are you ready?
I don't say this arrogantly, or rhetorically, or accusatorily... But, if the heavens rolled back like scrolls and Jesus returned now- will you be found ready? Does your heart belong to him, really belong to Him- do you love the Lord with all your heart, soul, mind, and strength, or are your thoughts occupied by the rising and falling the Dow, who will take the Super Bowl, the World Series, the next American Idol, that new house &/or car you are buying...?
Beloved, who do you love? Do you long to be at the ultimate Wedding feast, or are you just too busy to even really think about something that seems to be so far off?
Noah's neighbors had ample opportunity, ample information, and ample time to make wise choices, and yet I'm sure the doors to the ark were covered with the finger nail marks of those desperate and surprised when the Flood came.
Don't be found among those surprised...get ready, be ready.
Stay ready.
Wednesday, January 18, 2012
To Do List
"The Spirit of the Sovereign Lord is on me,
because the Lord has anointed me
to preach good news to the poor.
He has sent me to bind up the brokenhearted,
to proclaim freedom for the captives
and release from darkness for the prisoners,
to proclaim the year of the Lord's favor
and the day of vengeance of our God,
to comfort all who mourn,
and provide for those who grieve in Zion—
to bestow on them a crown of beauty
instead of ashes,
the oil of gladness
instead of mourning,
and a garment of praise
instead of a spirit of despair.
They will be called oaks of righteousness,
a planting of the Lord
for the display of his splendor."
Isaiah 61:1-3
I was reading Isaiah 61 yesterday, this passage that Jesus read in the synagogue in Nazereth, at his "coming out", the beginning of his earthly ministry.
He said, "THIS SCRIPTURE IS NOW FULFILLED IN YOUR HEARING".
As I reread this, I heard the Holy Spirit say to me,
""Jesus told you that greater things than these are you able to do", as you embrace the Cross, casting aside your self: preaching, binding and healing, proclaiming, comforting, releasing, bestowing, anointing, planting."
These are some of the many facets of the diadem we call love.
Beloved, if the Spirit of the Lord is on you, it is also in you;
I believe that this word is for you also, part of your "to-do list",
as we are called to imitate and follow The King of Kings- Jesus.
We can do all these things through Christ who strengthens us.
because the Lord has anointed me
to preach good news to the poor.
He has sent me to bind up the brokenhearted,
to proclaim freedom for the captives
and release from darkness for the prisoners,
to proclaim the year of the Lord's favor
and the day of vengeance of our God,
to comfort all who mourn,
and provide for those who grieve in Zion—
to bestow on them a crown of beauty
instead of ashes,
the oil of gladness
instead of mourning,
and a garment of praise
instead of a spirit of despair.
They will be called oaks of righteousness,
a planting of the Lord
for the display of his splendor."
Isaiah 61:1-3
I was reading Isaiah 61 yesterday, this passage that Jesus read in the synagogue in Nazereth, at his "coming out", the beginning of his earthly ministry.
He said, "THIS SCRIPTURE IS NOW FULFILLED IN YOUR HEARING".
As I reread this, I heard the Holy Spirit say to me,
""Jesus told you that greater things than these are you able to do", as you embrace the Cross, casting aside your self: preaching, binding and healing, proclaiming, comforting, releasing, bestowing, anointing, planting."
These are some of the many facets of the diadem we call love.
Beloved, if the Spirit of the Lord is on you, it is also in you;
I believe that this word is for you also, part of your "to-do list",
as we are called to imitate and follow The King of Kings- Jesus.
We can do all these things through Christ who strengthens us.
Tuesday, January 17, 2012
Don't Stop (Believing)
After a long time, in the third year, the word of the Lord came to Elijah: “Go and present yourself to Ahab, and I will send rain on the land.” So Ahab went off to eat and drink, but Elijah climbed to the top of Carmel, bent down to the ground and put his face between his knees.
“Go and look toward the sea,” he told his servant. And he went up and looked.
“There is nothing there,” he said.
Seven times Elijah said, “Go back.”
The seventh time the servant reported, “A cloud as small as a man's hand is rising from the sea.”
So Elijah said, “Go and tell Ahab, ‘Hitch up your chariot and go down before the rain stops you.’ ”
Meanwhile, the sky grew black with clouds, the wind rose, a heavy rain came on and Ahab rode off to Jezreel.
1 Kings 18:1, 42-45
Elijah heard the word of the Lord promising the end of the three year long drought, but first he had to face off against the pagan prophets of Ba'al, and afterwards he had to contend in prayer for the fruition of God's promise of rain.
Many of us have had prophetic words, promises spoken over us, some of them some time ago, and at first we may be excited, praying vigorously, but as time passes discouragement can come if the prophetic promises are delayed, and soon our prayers can erode away. Look at Elijah and what he faced, he knew the faithful God he served. He didn't listen to any whispers of doubt from the enemy that may have snuck into the back of his mind, his strong faith taking captive such thoughts. He prayed, and when nothing happened he continued on, and when still nothing happened, he continued on...
He knew in his heart that the rain was coming, his unshakeable faith in God sustaining him.
In your own life don't be discouraged when things don't happen according to your ideas and schedules. Your ideas and ways simply aren't God's, and everything happens for a reason, and works together for your ultimate good, and we have to trust that our Father/King/Master who has been around forever know a little bit more than we do.
Beloved, don't stop believing and trusting, this is what faith is.
Keep on praying, talking to your Abba, till something happens...don't quit...keep running this race we call life.
See you at the finish line.
“Go and look toward the sea,” he told his servant. And he went up and looked.
“There is nothing there,” he said.
Seven times Elijah said, “Go back.”
The seventh time the servant reported, “A cloud as small as a man's hand is rising from the sea.”
So Elijah said, “Go and tell Ahab, ‘Hitch up your chariot and go down before the rain stops you.’ ”
Meanwhile, the sky grew black with clouds, the wind rose, a heavy rain came on and Ahab rode off to Jezreel.
1 Kings 18:1, 42-45
Elijah heard the word of the Lord promising the end of the three year long drought, but first he had to face off against the pagan prophets of Ba'al, and afterwards he had to contend in prayer for the fruition of God's promise of rain.
Many of us have had prophetic words, promises spoken over us, some of them some time ago, and at first we may be excited, praying vigorously, but as time passes discouragement can come if the prophetic promises are delayed, and soon our prayers can erode away. Look at Elijah and what he faced, he knew the faithful God he served. He didn't listen to any whispers of doubt from the enemy that may have snuck into the back of his mind, his strong faith taking captive such thoughts. He prayed, and when nothing happened he continued on, and when still nothing happened, he continued on...
He knew in his heart that the rain was coming, his unshakeable faith in God sustaining him.
In your own life don't be discouraged when things don't happen according to your ideas and schedules. Your ideas and ways simply aren't God's, and everything happens for a reason, and works together for your ultimate good, and we have to trust that our Father/King/Master who has been around forever know a little bit more than we do.
Beloved, don't stop believing and trusting, this is what faith is.
Keep on praying, talking to your Abba, till something happens...don't quit...keep running this race we call life.
See you at the finish line.
Monday, January 16, 2012
The Power of Praise
Praise the Lord.
Praise God in his sanctuary;
praise him in his mighty heavens.
Praise him for his acts of power;
praise him for his surpassing greatness.
Praise him with the sounding of the trumpet,
praise him with the harp and lyre,
praise him with tambourine and dancing,
praise him with the strings and flute,
praise him with the clash of cymbals,
praise him with resounding cymbals.
Let everything that has breath praise the Lord.
Praise the Lord.
Psalm 150:1-6
Praise the Lord. It is something that we are told to do, suggested we do, encouraged to do. It is easy to praise Him, sort of a "gimme a high-five" when thing are going awesome, when health is robust, when love is in the air, when bank accounts and investment portfolios are robust. But when we are being pruned, when navigating life's stormy waters it is difficult to praise Him, because we can forget the reason that the Lord God/the Uncreated Creator of the Universe/ King deserves praise is not because of what He does for us, but because of who He is.
He is always worthy of all our praise, and when we remember this, and we unleash our praises we move through a progressive Supernatural dynamic, especially in our own weakness, that Scripture describes:
Praise the Lord Ps.150:6
The Lord inhabits the praises of His people Ps.22:3
In His presence is fullness of joy Ps.16:11
The joy of the Lord is our strength Ne.8:10
Praise brings us into His presence, where fullness of joy is found,
And fullness of joy is our strength!
Let everything...and everyone ...that has breath praise the Lord!
Praise God in his sanctuary;
praise him in his mighty heavens.
Praise him for his acts of power;
praise him for his surpassing greatness.
Praise him with the sounding of the trumpet,
praise him with the harp and lyre,
praise him with tambourine and dancing,
praise him with the strings and flute,
praise him with the clash of cymbals,
praise him with resounding cymbals.
Let everything that has breath praise the Lord.
Praise the Lord.
Psalm 150:1-6
Praise the Lord. It is something that we are told to do, suggested we do, encouraged to do. It is easy to praise Him, sort of a "gimme a high-five" when thing are going awesome, when health is robust, when love is in the air, when bank accounts and investment portfolios are robust. But when we are being pruned, when navigating life's stormy waters it is difficult to praise Him, because we can forget the reason that the Lord God/the Uncreated Creator of the Universe/ King deserves praise is not because of what He does for us, but because of who He is.
He is always worthy of all our praise, and when we remember this, and we unleash our praises we move through a progressive Supernatural dynamic, especially in our own weakness, that Scripture describes:
Praise the Lord Ps.150:6
The Lord inhabits the praises of His people Ps.22:3
In His presence is fullness of joy Ps.16:11
The joy of the Lord is our strength Ne.8:10
Praise brings us into His presence, where fullness of joy is found,
And fullness of joy is our strength!
Let everything...and everyone ...that has breath praise the Lord!
Sunday, January 15, 2012
Plan B
But Abram said, “O Sovereign Lord, what can you give me since I remain childless and the one who will inherit my estate is Eliezer of Damascus?” And Abram said, “You have given me no children; so a servant in my household will be my heir.”
Then the word of the Lord came to him: “This man will not be your heir, but a son coming from your own body will be your heir.” He took him outside and said, “Look up at the heavens and count the stars—if indeed you can count them.”
Then he said to him, “So shall your offspring be.”
Genesis 15:2-4
God Himself promised Abram (Abraham) and Sarai (Sarah) a son, but the Lord did not tell them when it would happen. After years of waiting for what they perceived as being patient without the promise (Plan A) being fulfilled, they decided to resort to "Plan B", a plan of their own, to "help God" along...
"Now Sarai, Abram's wife, had borne him no children. But she had an Egyptian maidservant named Hagar; so she said to Abram, “The Lord has kept me from having children. Go, sleep with my maidservant; perhaps I can build a family through her.”
Abram agreed to what Sarai said. So after Abram had been living in Canaan ten years, Sarai his wife took her Egyptian maidservant Hagar and gave her to her husband to be his wife. He slept with Hagar, and she conceived."
Genesis 16:1-4
Jeremiah 29:11 tells us that God has a plan for our lives, a plan for our benefit, for our good, not for evil. When a word is spoken over us, when Plan A (God's will) is revealed, patience, trust, and obedience must be exercised. The Word says that "Abraham believed God and it was credited to him as righteousness", and yet he grew tired of waiting, doubt crept in, replacing faith and trust. The result was disastrous, the result was Illigetimacy manifested in rebellion in the descendants of Ishmael. Throughout history the world has paid a heavy price ever since, and contention between the children of Abraham through Isaac (the eventual Plan A), and those descended through Ishmael, the impetuous result of a "Plan B".
We know this and many other passages where a "Plan B" was chosen with negative outcomes!
They stand as lessons for us on what not to do! Why then do the people of God (including myself) sometimes grow so impatient, and seek to "help God out", taking up their own plans?
The Scriptures tell us to persevere, endure, wait on the Lord, sticking to the Lord's plan of our lives.
Beloved, stick to Plan A, God's plan, even if we have not seen the fruit yet...scrap any other plan.
He is faithful to complete it.
Then the word of the Lord came to him: “This man will not be your heir, but a son coming from your own body will be your heir.” He took him outside and said, “Look up at the heavens and count the stars—if indeed you can count them.”
Then he said to him, “So shall your offspring be.”
Genesis 15:2-4
God Himself promised Abram (Abraham) and Sarai (Sarah) a son, but the Lord did not tell them when it would happen. After years of waiting for what they perceived as being patient without the promise (Plan A) being fulfilled, they decided to resort to "Plan B", a plan of their own, to "help God" along...
"Now Sarai, Abram's wife, had borne him no children. But she had an Egyptian maidservant named Hagar; so she said to Abram, “The Lord has kept me from having children. Go, sleep with my maidservant; perhaps I can build a family through her.”
Abram agreed to what Sarai said. So after Abram had been living in Canaan ten years, Sarai his wife took her Egyptian maidservant Hagar and gave her to her husband to be his wife. He slept with Hagar, and she conceived."
Genesis 16:1-4
Jeremiah 29:11 tells us that God has a plan for our lives, a plan for our benefit, for our good, not for evil. When a word is spoken over us, when Plan A (God's will) is revealed, patience, trust, and obedience must be exercised. The Word says that "Abraham believed God and it was credited to him as righteousness", and yet he grew tired of waiting, doubt crept in, replacing faith and trust. The result was disastrous, the result was Illigetimacy manifested in rebellion in the descendants of Ishmael. Throughout history the world has paid a heavy price ever since, and contention between the children of Abraham through Isaac (the eventual Plan A), and those descended through Ishmael, the impetuous result of a "Plan B".
We know this and many other passages where a "Plan B" was chosen with negative outcomes!
They stand as lessons for us on what not to do! Why then do the people of God (including myself) sometimes grow so impatient, and seek to "help God out", taking up their own plans?
The Scriptures tell us to persevere, endure, wait on the Lord, sticking to the Lord's plan of our lives.
Beloved, stick to Plan A, God's plan, even if we have not seen the fruit yet...scrap any other plan.
He is faithful to complete it.
Saturday, January 14, 2012
Unchangeable
Though my father and mother forsake me,
the Lord will receive me.
Psalm 27:10
Keep your lives free from the love of money and be content with what you have, because God has said,
“Never will I leave you;
never will I forsake you.”
Hebrews 13:5
I was watching our wedding video with some friends, filmed in 1988, last week.
In the video some folks that were good friends at the time sang the Michael W. Smith song, "Friends"... Friends are friends are friends forever ... We haven't seen or heard from any of them in many years though.
I would not have expected that to happen, at that time, but the truth is that human relational dynamics are uncertain and sketchy. The one certainty about people is that if we place our trust and hope in them alone we stand a great chance of being terribly let down.
People's attitudes change, they move geographically and emotionally-in each of our lives, they come and go.
But as for God...He never changes, His dynamics are love and we are always on His mind. The Scriptures tell us that even if our own earthly parents were to forsake us, that God will take us up, receive us with open arms.
Beloved, fix your eyes on Jesus, trust Him...you will not be disappointed.
the Lord will receive me.
Psalm 27:10
Keep your lives free from the love of money and be content with what you have, because God has said,
“Never will I leave you;
never will I forsake you.”
Hebrews 13:5
I was watching our wedding video with some friends, filmed in 1988, last week.
In the video some folks that were good friends at the time sang the Michael W. Smith song, "Friends"... Friends are friends are friends forever ... We haven't seen or heard from any of them in many years though.
I would not have expected that to happen, at that time, but the truth is that human relational dynamics are uncertain and sketchy. The one certainty about people is that if we place our trust and hope in them alone we stand a great chance of being terribly let down.
People's attitudes change, they move geographically and emotionally-in each of our lives, they come and go.
But as for God...He never changes, His dynamics are love and we are always on His mind. The Scriptures tell us that even if our own earthly parents were to forsake us, that God will take us up, receive us with open arms.
Beloved, fix your eyes on Jesus, trust Him...you will not be disappointed.
Friday, January 13, 2012
Diversions
"Your word is a lamp to my feet
and a light for my path."
Psalm 119:105 NIV84)
"Jesus answered, “It is written: ‘Man does not live on bread alone, but on every word that comes from the mouth of God.’”
Jesus said to him, “Away from me, Satan! For it is written: ‘Worship the Lord your God, and serve him only.’”"
Matthew 4:4, 10
"Pray continually; give thanks in all circumstances,
for this is God's will for you in Christ Jesus.
Avoid every kind of evil."
1 Thessalonians 5:17, 18, 22
What are the two most powerful weapons in a Christian's arsenal?
Are they not prayer and the Word ?
After fasting for forty days and being tempted by satan, the Lord Jesus who had all power and authority did not use His authority, per se, but the power contained by the living and active Word, saying to the devil: IT IS WRITTEN.
Charles Spurgeon said," Show me a Christian who's bible is falling apart, and I'll show you a Christian who's life isn't."
We know that we need to ask-seek-knock, and pray without ceasing, so here is my question: If we know the power contained here, then why is it so difficult to stay in the Word, and keep on praying?
Let us remember we have a cunning adversary, who knows every trick, and will use them all, every diversion to sidetrack us from "eating the scroll" and proclaiming prayers, in both our natural and supernatural tongues.
Let us remember to be aware that this war is not one of flesh and blood, but is raging over and around us in the spiritual world.
Eat the scroll, stay in your bible, pray without ceasing.
Defeat is not an option.
and a light for my path."
Psalm 119:105 NIV84)
"Jesus answered, “It is written: ‘Man does not live on bread alone, but on every word that comes from the mouth of God.’”
Jesus said to him, “Away from me, Satan! For it is written: ‘Worship the Lord your God, and serve him only.’”"
Matthew 4:4, 10
"Pray continually; give thanks in all circumstances,
for this is God's will for you in Christ Jesus.
Avoid every kind of evil."
1 Thessalonians 5:17, 18, 22
What are the two most powerful weapons in a Christian's arsenal?
Are they not prayer and the Word ?
After fasting for forty days and being tempted by satan, the Lord Jesus who had all power and authority did not use His authority, per se, but the power contained by the living and active Word, saying to the devil: IT IS WRITTEN.
Charles Spurgeon said," Show me a Christian who's bible is falling apart, and I'll show you a Christian who's life isn't."
We know that we need to ask-seek-knock, and pray without ceasing, so here is my question: If we know the power contained here, then why is it so difficult to stay in the Word, and keep on praying?
Let us remember we have a cunning adversary, who knows every trick, and will use them all, every diversion to sidetrack us from "eating the scroll" and proclaiming prayers, in both our natural and supernatural tongues.
Let us remember to be aware that this war is not one of flesh and blood, but is raging over and around us in the spiritual world.
Eat the scroll, stay in your bible, pray without ceasing.
Defeat is not an option.
Thursday, January 12, 2012
Optimism
The angel of the LORD came and sat down under the oak in Ophrah that belonged to Joash the Abiezrite, where his son Gideon was threshing wheat in a winepress to keep it from the Midianites. When the angel of the LORD appeared to Gideon, he said, “The LORD is with you, mighty warrior.”
“But sir,” Gideon replied, “if the LORD is with us, why has all this happened to us? Where are all his wonders that our fathers told us about when they said, ‘Did not the LORD bring us up out of Egypt?’ But now the LORD has abandoned us and put us into the hand of Midian.”
The LORD turned to him and said, “Go in the strength you have and save Israel out of Midian's hand. Am I not sending you?”
“But Lord,” Gideon asked, “how can I save Israel? My clan is the weakest in Manasseh, and I am the least in my family.”
Judges 6:11-15
How did Gideon view himself when the angel appeared to him? He saw himself as weak, unable, powerless, the least of the least. But Gideon was already known in the heavens, and by the Lord of the Heavenly Armies (Adonai Tza'ot) Himself as a mighty warrior. God searches our hearts, He looks at things not as always as they are but how they can be, I dare say will be, as we surrender our way, and plug the Lord's directions into our heart, which is our navigational system. Pilots learn to trust their instruments, flying where they cannot see...in the same way, we are to walk by faith, not by sight.
As fathers, mothers, spouses, friends, leaders, encouragers, how do we see and respond to others? How do we view ourselves?
Do we condemn when there is a stumble, if we or others get off the narrow Path, or do we put our arms arounds them, get face to face with them, and tell them-GOD HAS A GREAT PLAN FOR YOU AND IT'S GOING TO BE FULL OF HIM. The omniscient and omnipotent God loves, hopes, and believes in each of us...what a staggeringLy awesome thought.
We are already famous in Heaven and there are volumes in the annals of the Library of eternity, that will declare what we will yet become, the victories that lie ahead, all for God's purposes and ultimate Glory.
He is our father in the sight of God, in whom he believed–the God who gives life to the dead and calls things that are not as though they were.
Romans 4:17b
“But sir,” Gideon replied, “if the LORD is with us, why has all this happened to us? Where are all his wonders that our fathers told us about when they said, ‘Did not the LORD bring us up out of Egypt?’ But now the LORD has abandoned us and put us into the hand of Midian.”
The LORD turned to him and said, “Go in the strength you have and save Israel out of Midian's hand. Am I not sending you?”
“But Lord,” Gideon asked, “how can I save Israel? My clan is the weakest in Manasseh, and I am the least in my family.”
Judges 6:11-15
How did Gideon view himself when the angel appeared to him? He saw himself as weak, unable, powerless, the least of the least. But Gideon was already known in the heavens, and by the Lord of the Heavenly Armies (Adonai Tza'ot) Himself as a mighty warrior. God searches our hearts, He looks at things not as always as they are but how they can be, I dare say will be, as we surrender our way, and plug the Lord's directions into our heart, which is our navigational system. Pilots learn to trust their instruments, flying where they cannot see...in the same way, we are to walk by faith, not by sight.
As fathers, mothers, spouses, friends, leaders, encouragers, how do we see and respond to others? How do we view ourselves?
Do we condemn when there is a stumble, if we or others get off the narrow Path, or do we put our arms arounds them, get face to face with them, and tell them-GOD HAS A GREAT PLAN FOR YOU AND IT'S GOING TO BE FULL OF HIM. The omniscient and omnipotent God loves, hopes, and believes in each of us...what a staggeringLy awesome thought.
We are already famous in Heaven and there are volumes in the annals of the Library of eternity, that will declare what we will yet become, the victories that lie ahead, all for God's purposes and ultimate Glory.
He is our father in the sight of God, in whom he believed–the God who gives life to the dead and calls things that are not as though they were.
Romans 4:17b
Wednesday, January 11, 2012
Refining
See, I have refined you, though not as silver;
I have tested you in the furnace of affliction.
Isaiah 48:10
The process of producing forged steel is quite interesting:
The raw iron ore is mined, after which it's taken the the mill where it is crushed, put into a furnace at extremely high temperatures, and after the impurities are burned away, the material is shaped under high pressure, and then the steel is beaten on...the result is extremely strong tempered (forged) steel.
I have found this analogy quite apt for certain stages of our lives in Christ. We do not escape the fire, rather, we can be sure that it is coming, and perhaps even now has come as we endure various trials.
"But who can endure the day of his coming? Who can stand when he appears? For he will be like a refiner's fire or a launderer's soap. He will sit as a refiner and purifier of silver; he will purify the Levites and refine them like gold and silver. Then the Lord will have men who will bring offerings in righteousness"
Malachi 3:2, 3
What should be our response as we are going through the fire?
Anxiety to the point of ulcers, hypertensions, depression or other illnesses?
Should we hang our heads down, or wonder why it is that we are experiencing these various hardships and trials?
Do we think that we are alone, that our brothers and sisters are not going through similar things?
This third I will bring into the fire;
I will refine them like silver
and test them like gold.
They will call on my name
and I will answer them;
I will say, ‘They are my people,’
and they will say, ‘The Lord is our God.’ ”
Zechariah 13:9
No, my brothers and sisters, we are being tried and will continue to have various trials, until He either comes for us, or we go to Him. The Word tells us this very thing.
I write this as I'm going through the furnace myself, but am confident of this very thing:
We will endure and triumph as we focus on Jesus, endured terrible trials for our sakes, we are more than conquerors through Him who loved us.
Beloved, look up, lift up the Light of your countenance, forget what lies behind...its going to be worth it all.
I have tested you in the furnace of affliction.
Isaiah 48:10
The process of producing forged steel is quite interesting:
The raw iron ore is mined, after which it's taken the the mill where it is crushed, put into a furnace at extremely high temperatures, and after the impurities are burned away, the material is shaped under high pressure, and then the steel is beaten on...the result is extremely strong tempered (forged) steel.
I have found this analogy quite apt for certain stages of our lives in Christ. We do not escape the fire, rather, we can be sure that it is coming, and perhaps even now has come as we endure various trials.
"But who can endure the day of his coming? Who can stand when he appears? For he will be like a refiner's fire or a launderer's soap. He will sit as a refiner and purifier of silver; he will purify the Levites and refine them like gold and silver. Then the Lord will have men who will bring offerings in righteousness"
Malachi 3:2, 3
What should be our response as we are going through the fire?
Anxiety to the point of ulcers, hypertensions, depression or other illnesses?
Should we hang our heads down, or wonder why it is that we are experiencing these various hardships and trials?
Do we think that we are alone, that our brothers and sisters are not going through similar things?
This third I will bring into the fire;
I will refine them like silver
and test them like gold.
They will call on my name
and I will answer them;
I will say, ‘They are my people,’
and they will say, ‘The Lord is our God.’ ”
Zechariah 13:9
No, my brothers and sisters, we are being tried and will continue to have various trials, until He either comes for us, or we go to Him. The Word tells us this very thing.
I write this as I'm going through the furnace myself, but am confident of this very thing:
We will endure and triumph as we focus on Jesus, endured terrible trials for our sakes, we are more than conquerors through Him who loved us.
Beloved, look up, lift up the Light of your countenance, forget what lies behind...its going to be worth it all.
Sunday, January 8, 2012
Tearing Off The Shrouds/Glory With The Bridegroom
There is magnificence and majesty that blazes in the heavens over us.
While we go about our everyday lives, this incredible event takes place at the throne room. This world, in spite of its beauty, cannot compare to what is taking place in the heavens.
After this I looked, and there before me was a door standing open in heaven. And the voice I had first heard speaking to me like a trumpet said, “Come up here, and I will show you what must take place after this.” Each of the four living creatures had six wings and was covered with eyes all around, even under his wings. Day and night they never stop saying:
"When he had said this, Jesus called in a loud voice, “Lazarus, come out!” The dead man came out, his hands and feet wrapped with strips of linen, and a cloth around his face.
Jesus said to them, “Take off the grave clothes and let him go.” "
John 11:43-44
Jesus calls to us, desires to rip off these shrouds that impede us: Discouragement, depression, self-indulgence and selfishness, the cares and worries of this world, fleshly desires. These things and legions like them, keep us "down here", but the Lord wants us to experience what the angels and the elders see. I want to see what they see!
Isaiah and Ezekiel were forever changed, ruined for lesser things:
"In the year that King Uzziah died, I saw the Lord seated on a throne, high and exalted, and the train of his robe filled the temple."
“Woe to me!” I cried. “I am ruined! For I am a man of unclean lips, and I live among a people of unclean lips, and my eyes have seen the King, the Lord Almighty.”
Isaiah 6:1, 5
I am not satisfied with the day to day drollness of life here, and sometimes it is really hard to push through difficulties, afflictions...I need to remember the words of Isaiah: "He gives rest to the weary..."
We are not made for this world, and I long to hear those words from the Lord, "Come up here, I have things to show you", or better yet, "your time there is over, well done good and faithful servant, enter into your rest, let me show you around your new home, as we head over to the throne room!"
This is not morbidness, and it is not death I long for; it's the beginning of real life, it's being united with the Bridegroom, and until He either comes for me, or I go to him, I will long for that day.
While we go about our everyday lives, this incredible event takes place at the throne room. This world, in spite of its beauty, cannot compare to what is taking place in the heavens.
After this I looked, and there before me was a door standing open in heaven. And the voice I had first heard speaking to me like a trumpet said, “Come up here, and I will show you what must take place after this.” Each of the four living creatures had six wings and was covered with eyes all around, even under his wings. Day and night they never stop saying:
“Holy, holy, holy
is the Lord God Almighty,
who was, and is, and is to come.”
Whenever the living creatures give glory, honor and thanks to him who sits on the throne and who lives for ever and ever, the twenty‑four elders fall down before him who sits on the throne, and worship him who lives for ever and ever. They lay their crowns before the throne and say:
“You are worthy, our Lord and God,
to receive glory and honor and power,
for you created all things,
and by your will they were created
and have their being.”
Rev. 4
In our experiences in this life we can accumulate debris, where we can become wrapped up in the ho-hum day to day living, forgetting to look up, shrouded in the cares and concerns of this world, just as Lazarus' corpse was in its burial clothes.
But Jesus called to a dead Lazarus, penetrating the shrouding:
"When he had said this, Jesus called in a loud voice, “Lazarus, come out!” The dead man came out, his hands and feet wrapped with strips of linen, and a cloth around his face.
Jesus said to them, “Take off the grave clothes and let him go.” "
John 11:43-44
Jesus calls to us, desires to rip off these shrouds that impede us: Discouragement, depression, self-indulgence and selfishness, the cares and worries of this world, fleshly desires. These things and legions like them, keep us "down here", but the Lord wants us to experience what the angels and the elders see. I want to see what they see!
Isaiah and Ezekiel were forever changed, ruined for lesser things:
"In the year that King Uzziah died, I saw the Lord seated on a throne, high and exalted, and the train of his robe filled the temple."
“Woe to me!” I cried. “I am ruined! For I am a man of unclean lips, and I live among a people of unclean lips, and my eyes have seen the King, the Lord Almighty.”
Isaiah 6:1, 5
I am not satisfied with the day to day drollness of life here, and sometimes it is really hard to push through difficulties, afflictions...I need to remember the words of Isaiah: "He gives rest to the weary..."
We are not made for this world, and I long to hear those words from the Lord, "Come up here, I have things to show you", or better yet, "your time there is over, well done good and faithful servant, enter into your rest, let me show you around your new home, as we head over to the throne room!"
This is not morbidness, and it is not death I long for; it's the beginning of real life, it's being united with the Bridegroom, and until He either comes for me, or I go to him, I will long for that day.
Saturday, January 7, 2012
The Liberating Mechanics of Forgiveness/Releasing
Consider this scenario: You have been hurt, wronged, slandered, perhaps the victim of a crime, or any other scenario where you have been wronged. You might be hopping mad, and you have a right to be, and in your anger, tears, and with your teeth gritted together you utter the words: "I WILL NEVER FORGIVE OR FORGET."
Then Peter came to Jesus and asked, "Lord, how many times shall I forgive my brother or sister who sins against me? Up to seven times?" Jesus answered, "I tell you, not seven times, but seventy-seven times.
Matthew 18:21, 22
Why would Jesus say this? How could He tell us that we have to forgive those who have sinned against us? How could He possibly know how we feel or what we have been put through?
He got up on that cross for us, and among His last words in that body were, "Father forgive them..."
Unforgiveness is costly...much more so than we sometimes realize. The heart of flesh turns to stone, roots of bitterness form, every waking thought is consumed by hatred, anger, holding onto that pain, it requires tremendous emotional and spiritual maintenance to stay there.
In farming and rural areas there is a contest known as a "tractor pull".
In the contest, the tractor pulls a huge sled loaded with weights, and as it goes forward the weights move forward! increasing the load until the tractor is immobilized.
As we walk forward the weight of unforgiveness and its burdens becomes heavier, and eventually it can change our destiny, changing our focus from Jesus to ourselves... In it are contained poisonous elements of selfishness. In the cup of unforgiveness is slavery and death-physical and spiritual.
Jesus issued us a warning:
"For if you forgive As we walk forward the burden becomes heavier.other people when they sin against you, your heavenly Father will also forgive you. But if you do not forgive others their sins, your Father will not forgive your sins. "
Matthew 6:14, 15
Consider now what happens when we forgive! We release it all to the Lord, casting these burdens away, and as we do, we release not only those we wouldn't forgive, but more importantly, ourselves.
I believe our forgiving others is a form of worship, and it goes up as incense before the Lord...
Life begins anew, the same mercies we extend are extended to us, slavery is replaced with freedom and truth.
Then Peter came to Jesus and asked, "Lord, how many times shall I forgive my brother or sister who sins against me? Up to seven times?" Jesus answered, "I tell you, not seven times, but seventy-seven times.
Matthew 18:21, 22
Why would Jesus say this? How could He tell us that we have to forgive those who have sinned against us? How could He possibly know how we feel or what we have been put through?
He got up on that cross for us, and among His last words in that body were, "Father forgive them..."
Unforgiveness is costly...much more so than we sometimes realize. The heart of flesh turns to stone, roots of bitterness form, every waking thought is consumed by hatred, anger, holding onto that pain, it requires tremendous emotional and spiritual maintenance to stay there.
In farming and rural areas there is a contest known as a "tractor pull".
In the contest, the tractor pulls a huge sled loaded with weights, and as it goes forward the weights move forward! increasing the load until the tractor is immobilized.
As we walk forward the weight of unforgiveness and its burdens becomes heavier, and eventually it can change our destiny, changing our focus from Jesus to ourselves... In it are contained poisonous elements of selfishness. In the cup of unforgiveness is slavery and death-physical and spiritual.
Jesus issued us a warning:
"For if you forgive As we walk forward the burden becomes heavier.other people when they sin against you, your heavenly Father will also forgive you. But if you do not forgive others their sins, your Father will not forgive your sins. "
Matthew 6:14, 15
Consider now what happens when we forgive! We release it all to the Lord, casting these burdens away, and as we do, we release not only those we wouldn't forgive, but more importantly, ourselves.
I believe our forgiving others is a form of worship, and it goes up as incense before the Lord...
Life begins anew, the same mercies we extend are extended to us, slavery is replaced with freedom and truth.
Friday, January 6, 2012
Conquering Depression
The people walking in darkness
have seen a great light;
on those living in the land of the shadow of death
a light has dawned. (Isaiah 9:2 NIV84)
More than ten percent of Americans suffer the effects of chronic depression and anxiety. Everyone knows the awful oppression, the "dark cloud" that can hover over us. It is debilitating, often times making it difficult or impossible to function, immobilizing the oppressed/depressed person. Just where the enemy wants to put us!
Many are worried about 2012 being the "end of the world", because of Mayan calendars, or Nostradamus predictions...
But my Bible says to "cast ALL my cares on my God", that Jesus Himself is the "Light and the abundant Life", the God who loves us and cares for us is omnipotent and omnipresent.
Fear, doubt, worry are not from God...these dark things smell like smoke, and are from the author of lies, just like the serpent caused Eve to doubt what the Lord told Adam.
Below are some scripture verses that encourage me (there are so many)!
Remember: When God is for us, who can be against us? The trials will come, but Jesus said "take heart" - meaning: be encouraged, strengthened, emboldened, and preserverance and endurance will be produced.
Many are asking, “Who can show us any good?”
Let the light of your face shine upon us, O Lord.
You have filled my heart with greater joy
than when their grain and new wine abound.
Psalm 4:6, 7
An anxious heart weighs a man down,
but a kind word cheers him up.
Proverbs 12:25 NIV84
“Arise, shine, for your light has come,
and the glory of the Lord rises upon you.
See, darkness covers the earth
and thick darkness is over the peoples,
but the Lord rises upon you
and his glory appears over you.
Isaiah 60:1, 2
have seen a great light;
on those living in the land of the shadow of death
a light has dawned. (Isaiah 9:2 NIV84)
More than ten percent of Americans suffer the effects of chronic depression and anxiety. Everyone knows the awful oppression, the "dark cloud" that can hover over us. It is debilitating, often times making it difficult or impossible to function, immobilizing the oppressed/depressed person. Just where the enemy wants to put us!
Many are worried about 2012 being the "end of the world", because of Mayan calendars, or Nostradamus predictions...
But my Bible says to "cast ALL my cares on my God", that Jesus Himself is the "Light and the abundant Life", the God who loves us and cares for us is omnipotent and omnipresent.
Fear, doubt, worry are not from God...these dark things smell like smoke, and are from the author of lies, just like the serpent caused Eve to doubt what the Lord told Adam.
Below are some scripture verses that encourage me (there are so many)!
Remember: When God is for us, who can be against us? The trials will come, but Jesus said "take heart" - meaning: be encouraged, strengthened, emboldened, and preserverance and endurance will be produced.
Many are asking, “Who can show us any good?”
Let the light of your face shine upon us, O Lord.
You have filled my heart with greater joy
than when their grain and new wine abound.
Psalm 4:6, 7
An anxious heart weighs a man down,
but a kind word cheers him up.
Proverbs 12:25 NIV84
“Arise, shine, for your light has come,
and the glory of the Lord rises upon you.
See, darkness covers the earth
and thick darkness is over the peoples,
but the Lord rises upon you
and his glory appears over you.
Isaiah 60:1, 2
Thursday, January 5, 2012
Compulsions
I do not understand what I do. For what I want to do I do not do, but what I hate I do. And if I do what I do not want to do, I agree that the law is good. As it is, it is no longer I myself who do it, but it is sin living in me. I know that nothing good lives in me, that is, in my sinful nature. For I have the desire to do what is good, but I cannot carry it out. For what I do is not the good I want to do; no, the evil I do not want to do–this I keep on doing. Romans 7:15-19
A couple days ago I found myself thinking about why people (including myself) do the things we sometimes do. We "know better" usually, but sometimes we do the very things we ought not to, succumbing to compulsions, impulses, trading a better, more excellent way for immediate gratification.
A certain man of Zorah, named Manoah, from the clan of the Danites, had a wife who was sterile and remained childless. The angel of the LORD appeared to her and said, “You are sterile and childless, but you are going to conceive and have a son. Now see to it that you drink no wine or other fermented drink and that you do not eat anything unclean, because you will conceive and give birth to a son. No razor may be used on his head, because the boy is to be a Nazirite, set apart to God from birth, and he will begin the deliverance of Israel from the hands of the Philistines.”
Judges 13:2-5
Then Manoah prayed to the LORD: “O Lord, I beg you, let the man of God you sent to us come again to teach us how to bring up the boy who is to be born.”
Judges 13:8
Samson went down to Timnah and saw there a young Philistine woman. When he returned, he said to his father and mother, “I have seen a Philistine woman in Timnah; now get her for me as my wife.” His father and mother replied, “Isn't there an acceptable woman among your relatives or among all our people? Must you go to the uncircumcised Philistines to get a wife?”
But Samson said to his father, “Get her for me. She's the right one for me.”
Judges 14:1-3
Samson was a son of promise, an angel with a name beyond human understanding announced his arrival. Through him the people of Israel would begin to be delivered from the oppression of their arch-enemies, the inhabitants of Gaza, the Philistines.
His parents were so impacted by that angelic encounter and the subsequent meeting when the angel returned that they wanted the angel to give them the "owner's manual" on raising this Nazirite boy.
They did the best they could, but this boy/man grew up spoiled, impetuous, lacked self control, trusted his own strength, (which wasn't his at all, but God-given for a specific purpose), lusty, and compulsive, given over to knee-jerk reactions, generally caused by another reaction to yet another compulsive act of his own doing!
Because he gave into immediate gratification (eating honey from dead lion carcass, repeated involvement with foreign women, giving away the secrets of his strength)... He traded the delayed promises of God and as a result it cost him his freedom. His enslavement to his fleshly nature had already enslaved him, all his enemies had to do was shackle him, and it was game over, or was it?
In spite of these flaws, Samson had ruled as a judge in Israel for 20 years, and he was somewhat redeemed, though it cost him his life, three thousand of his enemies were crushed (literally) as Samson prayed and was strengthened one last time, his last performance for his captors "bringing down the house".
Beloved, submit yourself to His will, rather than our own.
Tread lightly down the narrow path, and prayerfully.
A couple days ago I found myself thinking about why people (including myself) do the things we sometimes do. We "know better" usually, but sometimes we do the very things we ought not to, succumbing to compulsions, impulses, trading a better, more excellent way for immediate gratification.
A certain man of Zorah, named Manoah, from the clan of the Danites, had a wife who was sterile and remained childless. The angel of the LORD appeared to her and said, “You are sterile and childless, but you are going to conceive and have a son. Now see to it that you drink no wine or other fermented drink and that you do not eat anything unclean, because you will conceive and give birth to a son. No razor may be used on his head, because the boy is to be a Nazirite, set apart to God from birth, and he will begin the deliverance of Israel from the hands of the Philistines.”
Judges 13:2-5
Then Manoah prayed to the LORD: “O Lord, I beg you, let the man of God you sent to us come again to teach us how to bring up the boy who is to be born.”
Judges 13:8
Samson went down to Timnah and saw there a young Philistine woman. When he returned, he said to his father and mother, “I have seen a Philistine woman in Timnah; now get her for me as my wife.” His father and mother replied, “Isn't there an acceptable woman among your relatives or among all our people? Must you go to the uncircumcised Philistines to get a wife?”
But Samson said to his father, “Get her for me. She's the right one for me.”
Judges 14:1-3
Samson was a son of promise, an angel with a name beyond human understanding announced his arrival. Through him the people of Israel would begin to be delivered from the oppression of their arch-enemies, the inhabitants of Gaza, the Philistines.
His parents were so impacted by that angelic encounter and the subsequent meeting when the angel returned that they wanted the angel to give them the "owner's manual" on raising this Nazirite boy.
They did the best they could, but this boy/man grew up spoiled, impetuous, lacked self control, trusted his own strength, (which wasn't his at all, but God-given for a specific purpose), lusty, and compulsive, given over to knee-jerk reactions, generally caused by another reaction to yet another compulsive act of his own doing!
Because he gave into immediate gratification (eating honey from dead lion carcass, repeated involvement with foreign women, giving away the secrets of his strength)... He traded the delayed promises of God and as a result it cost him his freedom. His enslavement to his fleshly nature had already enslaved him, all his enemies had to do was shackle him, and it was game over, or was it?
In spite of these flaws, Samson had ruled as a judge in Israel for 20 years, and he was somewhat redeemed, though it cost him his life, three thousand of his enemies were crushed (literally) as Samson prayed and was strengthened one last time, his last performance for his captors "bringing down the house".
Beloved, submit yourself to His will, rather than our own.
Tread lightly down the narrow path, and prayerfully.
Wednesday, January 4, 2012
Letting Go
"Train up a child in the way he should go, And even when he is old he will not depart from it."
Proverbs 22:6
A child straddles his/ her shiny new bicycle without training wheels for the first time, as their parent steadies it and holds it upright. As the child starts to pedal, the parent runs along with the new rider, continuing to guide and encourage and then suddenly the parent releases their grasp on the bike. It is with the full knowledge that their beloved child may fall as they learn to ride solo, but there is no choice but to let go, trust the child, and what has been poured into them, calling encouragement,
" YOU ARE DOING AWESOME... I KNOW YOU CAN DO IT...THAT'S IT... SHAKE IT OFF...GET BACK UP..."
We don't want to see the rider fall, we only want them to do well, so it can be tough to let go, but unless we do, the child's development will be thwarted , their growth arrested.
The opportunity and gift of parenthood is an earthly glimpse into what our heavenly Father experiences in the relationship that has existed since Adam between Him and each of us.
We are stewards, not owners, of these prized possessions-they are God's, not ours.
The scriptures tell us we are "beautifully and fearfully made", each one so special, each child is a gift.
We are to remember the Father/Child relationship aspect of our lives in Jesus, how He loves us, and all of the parental experiences we go through with our kids - are reflections of our lives in the Lord.
Parenting is like gardening, it requires diligence and faithfulness; love is the fertilizer. Some seeds take longer to sprout and blossom than others. Gladiola bulbs lie dormant in the ground through long cold winters, but when seasons change and the warmth of the sun falls on them, something suddenly is activated and a common bulb turns into a beautiful plant.
Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. It does not dishonor others, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres.
1 Corinthians 13:4-7
Proverbs 22:6
A child straddles his/ her shiny new bicycle without training wheels for the first time, as their parent steadies it and holds it upright. As the child starts to pedal, the parent runs along with the new rider, continuing to guide and encourage and then suddenly the parent releases their grasp on the bike. It is with the full knowledge that their beloved child may fall as they learn to ride solo, but there is no choice but to let go, trust the child, and what has been poured into them, calling encouragement,
" YOU ARE DOING AWESOME... I KNOW YOU CAN DO IT...THAT'S IT... SHAKE IT OFF...GET BACK UP..."
We don't want to see the rider fall, we only want them to do well, so it can be tough to let go, but unless we do, the child's development will be thwarted , their growth arrested.
The opportunity and gift of parenthood is an earthly glimpse into what our heavenly Father experiences in the relationship that has existed since Adam between Him and each of us.
We are stewards, not owners, of these prized possessions-they are God's, not ours.
The scriptures tell us we are "beautifully and fearfully made", each one so special, each child is a gift.
We are to remember the Father/Child relationship aspect of our lives in Jesus, how He loves us, and all of the parental experiences we go through with our kids - are reflections of our lives in the Lord.
Parenting is like gardening, it requires diligence and faithfulness; love is the fertilizer. Some seeds take longer to sprout and blossom than others. Gladiola bulbs lie dormant in the ground through long cold winters, but when seasons change and the warmth of the sun falls on them, something suddenly is activated and a common bulb turns into a beautiful plant.
Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. It does not dishonor others, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres.
1 Corinthians 13:4-7
Monday, January 2, 2012
Kings/ Choices
"Here is your king," Pilate said to the Jews.
But they shouted, "Take him away! Take him away! Crucify him!"
"Shall I crucify your king?" Pilate asked.
"We have no king but Caesar," the chief priests answered.
John 19:14b-15
Jesus is our King, proclaimed here even from the mouth of Pilate. We were created for one primary reason, to love the Lord, with everything we are made of, as summed up in the first and greatest commandment, and to worship Him alone. God's people, both the natural (our Jewish siblings) and thoses grafted in branches (those from the other flock Jesus told his disciples about, non-Jews, all who believe). But there is a flawed trait, a corrupted idolatrous, adulterous character, that causes His most precious masterpieces to chase lesser kings, worthless things, prostituting themselves, trading positions of privilege for worthless legacies of curses and judgement.
But when they said, "Give us a king to lead us," this displeased Samuel; so he prayed to the Lord. And the Lord told him: "Listen to all that the people are saying to you; it is not you they have rejected, but they have rejected me as their king. As they have done from the day I brought them up out of Egypt until this day, forsaking me and serving other gods, so they are doing to you. Now listen to them; but warn them solemnly and let them know what the king who will reign over them will claim as his rights." But the people refused to listen to Samuel. "No!" they said. "We want a king over us. "
1 Samuel 8:6-9, 19, 20
Who is your king, who has control and authority over you? Who, or what, is the number one thing that you think of, dwell on, has sway over you? Is it a career, a person, an item? If your honest, real answer is anything other than the King of Kings, then you are in a prodigal place, and the Father desperately wants you to come back home.
There will only ever be one King, one Father, one Bridegroom for us, His Creation, and nothing will ever satisfy or fill that "God-shaped vacuum" except the Uncreated Creator.
No matter where you are, what you have done, what line or boundary you have violated,
it's never too far or too late.
Come home today.
But they shouted, "Take him away! Take him away! Crucify him!"
"Shall I crucify your king?" Pilate asked.
"We have no king but Caesar," the chief priests answered.
John 19:14b-15
Jesus is our King, proclaimed here even from the mouth of Pilate. We were created for one primary reason, to love the Lord, with everything we are made of, as summed up in the first and greatest commandment, and to worship Him alone. God's people, both the natural (our Jewish siblings) and thoses grafted in branches (those from the other flock Jesus told his disciples about, non-Jews, all who believe). But there is a flawed trait, a corrupted idolatrous, adulterous character, that causes His most precious masterpieces to chase lesser kings, worthless things, prostituting themselves, trading positions of privilege for worthless legacies of curses and judgement.
But when they said, "Give us a king to lead us," this displeased Samuel; so he prayed to the Lord. And the Lord told him: "Listen to all that the people are saying to you; it is not you they have rejected, but they have rejected me as their king. As they have done from the day I brought them up out of Egypt until this day, forsaking me and serving other gods, so they are doing to you. Now listen to them; but warn them solemnly and let them know what the king who will reign over them will claim as his rights." But the people refused to listen to Samuel. "No!" they said. "We want a king over us. "
1 Samuel 8:6-9, 19, 20
Who is your king, who has control and authority over you? Who, or what, is the number one thing that you think of, dwell on, has sway over you? Is it a career, a person, an item? If your honest, real answer is anything other than the King of Kings, then you are in a prodigal place, and the Father desperately wants you to come back home.
There will only ever be one King, one Father, one Bridegroom for us, His Creation, and nothing will ever satisfy or fill that "God-shaped vacuum" except the Uncreated Creator.
No matter where you are, what you have done, what line or boundary you have violated,
it's never too far or too late.
Come home today.
Sunday, January 1, 2012
Leading and Following
Jesus answered, “ You must follow me.”
John 21:22b
"Then he said to them all: “If anyone would come after me, he must deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow me".
Luke 9:23
I was discussing aspects of spiritual life with a mature and respected brother of mine the other day, and the topic of shepherding came up. My brother has been a pastor and leader before and the comment that he made to me that struck me was, " As a pastor, I led by example...I would never ask my sheep to do anything that I didn't already do, and model, for them first."
Further meditation on this question: I asked the Lord, why are believers referred to as sheep, and not as cattle, or other animals?
The answer came quickly: Sheep are not driven as cattle are, they are led, with the flock responding to the vision of the shepherd and the sound of his voice.
"My sheep listen to my voice; I know them, and they follow me." (John 10:27 NIV)
We are to keep our eyes fixed on the Good Shepherd, Following Him, but we are also shepherds to others in our lives. Follow the example of Jesus, and others who have taken their places in the "great cloud of witnesses". In your church, whether you are the pastor, elder, usher, or part of the body, in your home and family, in the workplace-wherever-follow Jesus' example, and you'll find that others will do likewise!
John 21:22b
"Then he said to them all: “If anyone would come after me, he must deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow me".
Luke 9:23
I was discussing aspects of spiritual life with a mature and respected brother of mine the other day, and the topic of shepherding came up. My brother has been a pastor and leader before and the comment that he made to me that struck me was, " As a pastor, I led by example...I would never ask my sheep to do anything that I didn't already do, and model, for them first."
Further meditation on this question: I asked the Lord, why are believers referred to as sheep, and not as cattle, or other animals?
The answer came quickly: Sheep are not driven as cattle are, they are led, with the flock responding to the vision of the shepherd and the sound of his voice.
"My sheep listen to my voice; I know them, and they follow me." (John 10:27 NIV)
We are to keep our eyes fixed on the Good Shepherd, Following Him, but we are also shepherds to others in our lives. Follow the example of Jesus, and others who have taken their places in the "great cloud of witnesses". In your church, whether you are the pastor, elder, usher, or part of the body, in your home and family, in the workplace-wherever-follow Jesus' example, and you'll find that others will do likewise!
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