Between Rocks and Hard Places/ Desolation 5

And He said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for My strength is made perfect in weakness.” Therefore most gladly I will rather boast in my infirmities, that the power of Christ may rest upon me. Therefore I take pleasure in infirmities, in reproaches, in needs, in persecutions, in distresses, for Christ’s sake. For when I am weak, then I am strong. 
II Corinthians 12:9-10

I am in a very difficult spot; between the proverbial "rock and a hard place". 
Allow me to explain: After enduring a life threatening, extended illness that kept me out of work for more than 6 months I returned to work for about 4 months. I was so happy to return to a relatively healthy state of being with all it's busy-ness. Then the unthinkable happened... I injured my back.
So with a great deal of pain, two trips to the ER including another 2 day hospital stay over the last 6 weeks, I find myself unemployed, all my benefits terminated, no financial resources, and in need of surgery. There are so many questions swirling about - my mind  just has a great big cerebral "?", like the big question mark on the pole that grocery chain Trader Joe's employees carry about the store -and honestly, many tears of anguish, physical pain from my spinal injury, loss, and the realization that a chapter of my life is ending. 
A rock and a hard place.
But I have choices of what I allow in that space between rocks and the hard places. I can allow desolation to be a place of hopelessness and negativity (which are not thoughts from God but from the devil), or  I can realize that the place between the rocks and hard places is my Mt. Horeb, where both Elijah and Moses found renewal as they were stripped of all but His presence. It was at this desolate place that they thanked, worshipped and dwelled with Him. They were prepared for their greatest revival and exploits. New beginnings. Double portions. The knowledge that God has not forsaken or abandoned me, but has brought me here for times of intimacy and "FaceTime", just me and Him. My problem with being busy is that although I desire to keep Him first, and give the first fruits of my time to The Lord, I have a hard time keeping this commitment, and He is Jealous.
So I will treat this new season as a gift from God...I have no idea where I am going, but I know that He is with me, leading and guiding me, and He is God over everything, especially over my circumstances.

Hope and Faith

Hope deferred makes the heart sick, But when the desire comes, it is a tree of life.
Proverbs 13:12

“Hope itself is like a star- not to be seen in the sunshine of prosperity, and only to be discovered in the night of adversity. ”
― Charles Spurgeon

The definition of faith is things that are hoped for that are yet unseen. 
It is hope that drives what we call faith. We hope and believe for certain things and can rest in an assurance that is driven and given to us through God's Holy Spirit. 
Elijah was assured in the Spirit that rain would come even when he prayed under a hot and cloudless sky from atop Mt. Carmel, and as he prayed on in faith and hope the sky was filled with dark rain clouds, pregnant with promises.
Even when we don't yet see the fruit of His promises yet, we know that if He said it, we can believe it - there is hope and faith, working together.
We are strengthened. We are believers. God's Word is true.
Jesus said, "if it were not so, I would've told you so." John 14:2b
It is the devil who wants to rob us of hope and faith, leaving us sick and despondent, if we listen to his whispers of dark and doubtful things.
He incessantly tries to whisper to us, "did you really hear God say that to you?"
Do not listen to the lies of  the great liar, beloved!
Today, say YES and AMEN to God's promises...let faith and hope arise anew in each of us!

Reflections

"Then the Lord God formed a man from the dust of the ground and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life, and the man became a living being." 
Genesis 2:7 

I began reflecting on why our Creator chose to fashion mankind in His glorious image from the dust of the earth. Why didn't He make us from something else, something precious and rare, perhaps gold or silver? No, He chose the most common, the dirtiest, the lowest stuff that is nothing more than cast-off material. He formed Adam and breathed His Ruach HaKadosh into him, and made mankind just a little lower than angels. But there was a Fall.
Without the Father's love, grace, mercy and the revelation of all that He is and has for us, that comes only with the indwelling of the Holy Spirit, what are we really?  
Before Jesus apprehends us, we are walking dead, not knowing that we aren't  really alive, never knowing what real love is, never even knowing why we truly exist.  We are just empty vessels,  a valley of dry bones. We strive to find purpose and meaning to answer the questions:
Why am I here? What is my purpose?
We are just fancy arrangements of dust, until His Holy Spirit changes everything in us.
By  Him, and Him alone, our hearts are transformed from stone to flesh.
We can live, move, and have our being, and able-no,  more than able, to reflect God's glory in all that we do, not because of ourselves, but because Christ, the Hope of Glory, lives in us.

Rerouting

"Your ears shall hear a word behind you, saying,
“This is the way, walk in it,”
Whenever you turn to the right hand ,
Or whenever you turn to the left."
 Isaiah 30:21

"There is a way that seems right to a man, but its end is the way of death." (
Proverbs 14:12, 16:25 

Most of us are familiar with GPS or navigation devices these days. When we go the wrong direction or make a wrong turn, the device will quickly let us know by proclaiming, " REROUTING", followed by the new directions to get us back on track headed to our destination. The most sophisticated systems take into account  where the heavy traffic is and avoid it, and can be tailored to avoid certain types of roads, or not, even picking the shortest distance, or the fastest time to arrive. Sometimes the path we are directed towards is unfamiliar to us and is contrary to the way we would've naturally chosen.
The Lord lays out the best path for us, and gives us his Holy Spirit to lead and guide us, who speaks to us softly, whispering to us: " This is my way, the way that you should go."  Sometimes that direction may seem like the wrong way, but as we move forward trusting the Lord with all our hearts, and not leaning on our own understanding, we eventually see a great outcome. Without the Holy Spirit GPS we would just pick another way that may seem right to us but actually leads to a dead end. Hearing His voice and following Him requires that we spend time before Him in prayer and meditation, "presenting our supplications" and "being still and knowing that He is God".
If you hear that still small voice staying REROUTING follow  it.
There is no plan that is as good as His.

Gatekeepers/ Fatherhood

Then the Angel of the Lord called to Abraham a second time out of heaven, and said: “By Myself I have sworn, says the Lord, because you have done this thing, and have not withheld your son, your only son — blessing I will bless you, and multiplying I will multiply your descendants as the stars of the heaven and as the sand which is on the seashore; and your descendants shall possess the gate of their enemies. In your seed all the nations of the earth shall be blessed, because you have obeyed My voice.”
Genesis 22:15-18

Why have you despised the commandment of the Lord, to do evil in His sight? You have killed Uriah the Hittite with the sword; you have taken his wife to be your wife, and have killed him with the sword of the people of Ammon. Now therefore, the sword shall never depart from your house, because you have despised Me, and have taken the wife of Uriah the Hittite to be your wife.’ Thus says the Lord : ‘Behold, I will raise up adversity against you from your own house; and I will take your wives before your eyes and give them to your neighbor, and he shall lie with your wives in the sight of this sun. For you did it secretly, but I will do this thing before all Israel, before the sun.’ ”
II Samuel 12:9-12

This weekend I attended an Encounter Weekend workshop. In one of the sessions the speaker spotlighted Abraham's willingness and obedience to God  even to sacrifice his son, Isaac, the angel of the Lord stopping Abraham's hand as he began the downstroke to kill his beloved son, against King David's sin of adultery with Bathsheba, the wife of Uriah, and subsequent murder of Uriah, and all the adversity, intrigue, rape, perversion, near overthrow of his kingdom by his son, Absalom, (who's very name meant "Father of Peace"), death, darkness and a kingdom ultimately divided and conquered.
Abraham's descendants were blessed because of his faithfulness, but David's descendants paid a heavy price because of his shortsightedness, even though David was forgiven.
I began to reflect on my (our) personal responsibility as a father(s) to be a gatekeeper and guardian both of my (our) current generation(s) and those to follow. My (our) sins would be visited on my (our) descendants to the third and fourth generations and possibly even to the tenth generation, but so will my (our)obedience..."obedience is better than sacrifice..." 1Sam 15:22.
In the light of such impact my actions are guided by viewing the big picture. choosing today to obey God and unleash supernatural long reaching blessings on our families, those who follow us, who in turn will be empowered to obey the Lord, becoming gatekeepers, and in turn, setting up a supernatural chain reaction of blessings not curses.

Trials and Joy 186

"My brethren, count it all joy when you fall into various trials"
James 1:2

"The Lord is my strength and my shield; My heart trusted in Him, and I am helped; 
Therefore my heart greatly rejoices, And with my song I will praise Him."
Psalms 28:7

We all know James 1:2... When trials come that we are to count it all joy, right?
We all nod our heads affirming this.
We read it and say that we understand it, right up until that moment when the trial of trials sucker-punches us right in the face.  We struggle even to catch our next breath,
so devastated at that moment that tears and cries of anguish haven't  come yet.
Debilitating fear and the uncertainty of the future can immobilize,
if we do not acknowledge and activate a promise and great spiritual acknowledgement:
THE JOY OF THE LORD IS OUR STRENGTH!
I know that Daniel laughed in the lion's den, Paul never ceased to rejoice in the Lord- ever!
Enduring stonings, shipwrecks, put on trials, scourged,
these men of God had caught the revelation of God's great love and power, and God's great promises.
Trials are meant to bring joy, and joy releases supernatural strength!
Remember this beloved, and as I write this,
I too invoke these principles of promise for supernatural strength in the face of  natural weakness.

And we know that all things work together for good to those who love God, to those who are the called according to His purpose. What then shall we say to these things? If God is for us, who can be against us? He who did not spare His own Son, but delivered Him up for us all, how shall He not with Him also freely give us all things? Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or sword? As it is written: “For Your sake we are killed all day long; We are accounted as sheep for the slaughter.” Yet in all these things we are more than conquerors through Him who loved us. For I am persuaded that neither death nor life, nor angels nor principalities nor powers, nor things present nor things to come, nor height nor depth, nor any other created thing, shall be able to separate us from the love of God which is in Christ Jesus our Lord. 
Romans 8:28, 31, 32, 35-39 NKJV

Transitions/Moving Day 185

I wrote this from my hospital bed today.
It seems that some heavy lifting I did while trying to hoist a couple 50lb.bags of mulch from my wife's van caused a re-injury to previous  damage to my lower back.
Apparently I'm not 29, 39, or even 49 any more.
The plain facts of mortality.
The older I get, the more I grow in maturity in Jesus as I seek after Him.
It comes, though, with the realization that my body is aging, wearing out.
Everyday is a day closer to my  'moving day" when I will finally be "clothed in my heavenly habitation".
I must decrease so that He must increase...in every conceivable and inconceivable aspect,
in every facet of my earthly life.

"For we know that if our earthly house, this tent, is destroyed, we have a building from God, a house not made with hands, eternal in the heavens. For in this we groan, earnestly desiring to be clothed with our habitation which is from heaven, if indeed, having been clothed, we shall not be found naked. For we who are in this tent groan, being burdened, not because we want to be unclothed, but further clothed, that mortality may be swallowed up by life. Now He who has prepared us for this very thing is God, who also has given us the Spirit as a guarantee. So we are always confident, knowing that while we are at home in the body we are absent from the Lord. For we walk by faith, not by sight. We are confident, yes, well pleased rather to be absent from the body and to be present with the Lord. "
II Corinthians 5:1-8

Someday in the future, at a predestined time known only to my Father, I will be present with the Lord. This of course means that I will be absent from my earthly body, just as all who have gone before me, and those who will have their own "moving days" after mine.
Not a morbid thoughts, rather glorious ones as we consider beholding Him in all His glory!
How exciting, beloved!
So the next time you are faced with sickness, aches, pains, & tears,
remember that we are headed to one Neighborhood, to mansions crafted for us by our Shepherd/Carpenter, where illness,anguish, tears, and fears are banished.
Joy and love are standing orders in this Place of Endless Worship.
Rejoice in The Lord!

The Quest 312

"As the deer pants for the water brooks, So my soul pants for You, O God. My soul thirsts for God, for the living God; When shall I come and appear before God?" Psalms 42:1, 2 

My days are spent in one of two modes: either I am in the presence of  my almighty Father/Abba, or I am in search of Him. The difference in the modes? My heart. Am I striving in my own strength, or resting in His? Am I looking at my circumstances at the moment, or am I gazing into His face as I sit in His lap. Am I feeling the palpitations of my own stessed out heart beat, or feeling the steadiness, love, and power of His?
"Where can I go from Your Spirit? Or where can I flee from Your presence? If I ascend to heaven, You are there; If I make my bed in Sheol, behold, You are there. If I take the wings of the dawn, If I dwell in the remotest part of the sea, Even there Your hand will lead me, And Your right hand will lay hold of me." Psalms 139:7-10 
So I choose the path that leads to the fullness of life. My quest is Jesus and all that He is.
The promise of abundant life-joy, a realization that He is right here with me, that His hands are holding me and guiding me. In the remotest parts of the earth and the remotest corners of my heart..."Let his left hand be under my head And his right hand embrace me." Shir HaShirim 2:6
Jesus said: "Peace I leave with you; My peace I give to you; not as the world gives do I give to you. Do not let your heart be troubled, nor let it be fearful. John 14:27
Beloved, my prayer is that the greater the search, the more fervent the quest and hunger for Jesus, the greater the presence and in dwelling of His fullness in us all.

Head Over Heels/Compulsion 311

"... that you, being rooted and grounded in love, may be able to comprehend with all the saints what is the width and length and depth and height— to know the love of Christ which passes knowledge; that you may be filled with all the fullness of God.
Ephesians 3:17-19

"We love Him because He first loved us."
I John 4:19

Recently I had an opportunity once again to share Jesus with a close relative.
The objections popped up over and over as my wife and I tried to explain why it is that we believe.
The usual questions arose: how can we know for sure there is a God?
How can God allow terrible things to happen to innocent people, what about aliens,
if there is a God how do you know we have the right "religion"?
"But the natural man does not receive the things of the Spirit of God, for they are foolishness to him; nor can he know them, because they are spiritually discerned." I Corinthians 2:14 
I was compelled in our discussions to keep coming back to my testimony and the very thing that won my heart and soul: that God loved me and knew everything about me even when I thought of myself as a lost cause, with a love so furious that He sent His only Son to bear the penalty I (we) deserved, making a way for me (us) out of hell and into eternity in heaven.
I was aware of all his questions, all his issues, because I was in the very same place, BC- before Christ- but every pre-BC paradigm has been overturned- "for the love of Christ compels me" (2 Cor.5:14a). It is my prayer for him, and for every other "pre-believer",  that they would be seized by the revelation of God's love, falling head over heels in love with the Ultimate Lover, and be compelled, drawn and driven, receiving all that God has for them.
Come quickly Lord Jesus!

Church in Unlikely Places 192

"For where two or three gather in my name, there am I with them.”
Matthew 18:20

I had a praise and worship session recently with a brother and sister in the Lord in an unlikely place: my showroom office. I am not at all unaccustomed to having"church" anywhere and everywhere, but how breathtaking when He chooses to just show up!
These friends came looking just for a car, or so they thought…it was a divine appointment.
There was laughter, testimony, praise, prayer, and tears as we fellowshipped about spiritual things, and testified about things the Lord is done, and is doing even now.
Jesus told his disciples: "For where two or three gather in my Name, there I am with them."
There is no better purpose or reason to gather together than under the banner of Jesus.
In Him we are meant to live, move, and have our being-living epistles, living stones…
each of us an important addition branching out from the Chief Cornerstone.
Take any and every opportunity to gather, beloved, exalting His Holy Name-
as there is no "inappropriate" place or time for events such as this.

Water and Stone

There are times in our lives where we find ourselves in a desert. 

We may feel parched, dry, covered with the dust of our toil and struggles. 

Weary and  exhausted, we find ourselves spiritually panting for the refreshment of "mayim chaim"- living water.  

The revival and restoration that only the Ruach HaKodesh, 

the Holy Spirit, can bring: 

"As the deer pants for streams of water,

    so my soul pants for you, my God.

² My soul thirsts for God, for the living God.    
When can I go and meet with God?"
    
Psalm 42:1-2

It is times like these that we must go to the Rock:

"From the ends of the earth I call to you,
    I call as my heart grows faint;    lead me to the rock that is higher than I."

The children of Israel sojourned in the desert and water poured from a rock as Moses followed the Lord's commands. To my spirit rock (stone) is a picture of strength, stability, and the basis of where renewal and revival emanates from.

"Do you not know? Have you not heard? The Lord is the everlasting God, the Creator of the ends of the earth. He will not grow tired or weary, and his understanding no one can fathom. He gives strength to the weary and increases the power of the weak. Even youths grow tired and weary, and young men stumble and fall; but those who hope in the Lord will renew their strength. They will soar on wings like eagles; they will run and not grow weary, they will walk and not be faint."
Isaiah 40:28-31


Lean on the Rock today beloved, and be restored as you soak in the mayim chaim.

A Conversation with An Atheist 187

"But in your hearts revere Christ as Lord. Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have. But do this with gentleness and respect,"
1 Peter 3:15

"They overcame  by the blood of the Lamb and by the word of their testimony; they did not love their lives so much as to shrink from death. "
Revelation 12:11

Recently I had an opportunity to share my testimony with an Jewish atheist. Yes, there is such a thing...and in fact I was also one. When I think about what an atheist should "look" like  she did not fit that bill at all.  She was an older woman in her 70's, very cordial. She told me that she was a "rational and intelligent thinker", and was an epidemiologist. She only believed in what she could see, measure, and evaluate.
But there was something in life that is missing for her...
I didn't debate with her, instead the answer I gave her was what Yeshua had done in and is doing through me, my history. As I recounted  how I came to know this Yeshua/Jesus, the tremendous impact of reading the bible (Gospel of John) for the first time, the tears welled up in her eyes as they did mine, and I could see that her hardened heart was touched, that a seed had been planted.

"What, after all, is Apollos? And what is Paul? Only servants, through whom you came to believe—as the Lord has assigned to each his task. I planted the seed, Apollos watered it, but God has been making it grow. So neither the one who plants nor the one who waters is anything, but only God, who makes things grow. The one who plants and the one who waters have one purpose, and they will each be rewarded according to their own labor. For we are co-workers in God’s service; you are God’s field, God’s building."
1 Corinthians 3:5-9

Eric Liddell, the Scottish runner/missionary immortalized in the film, Chariots of Fire, said:
"We are all missionaries…wherever we go, we either bring people nearer to Christ, or we repel them from Christ."

We never know how the things we say or do may influence those around us.
Sometimes it is not the "information" but what has been imparted that makes an impact.
Sometimes we plant, sometimes we water, and sometimes we harvest.
Those around us are watching and  listening.
Let's remember that the fields are ripe with the harvest,
and we are all called to tend those fields.

Deeper 228

"The man brought me back to the entrance to the temple, and I saw water coming out from under the threshold of the temple toward the east (for the temple faced east).
The water was coming down from under the south side of the temple, south of the altar. He then brought me out through the north gate and led me around the outside to the outer gate facing east, and the water was trickling from the south side.
As the man went eastward with a measuring line in his hand, he measured off a thousand cubits and then led me through water that was ankle-deep.
He measured off another thousand cubits and led me through water that was knee-deep.
He measured off another thousand and led me through water that was up to the waist.
He measured off another thousand, but now it was a river that I could not cross, because the water had risen and was deep enough to swim in—a river that no one could cross.
He asked me, “Son of man, do you see this?”
Then he led me back to the bank of the river.
When I arrived there, I saw a great number of trees on each side of the river.
He said to me, “This water flows toward the eastern region and goes down into the Arabah, where it enters the Dead Sea.
When it empties into the sea, the salty water there becomes fresh. 
Swarms of living creatures will live wherever the river flows. 
There will be large numbers of fish, because this water flows there and makes the salt water fresh; so where the river flows everything will live.
Fishermen will stand along the shore; from En Gedi to En Eglaim there will be places for spreading nets. The fish will be of many kinds—like the fish of the Mediterranean Sea.
But the swamps and marshes will not become fresh; they will be left for salt. 
Fruit trees of all kinds will grow on both banks of the river.
Their leaves will not wither, nor will their fruit fail.
Every month they will bear fruit, because the water from the sanctuary flows to them.
Their fruit will serve for food and their leaves for healing.”
Ezekiel 47:1-12

The Lord has been speaking to me about the direct correlation in this scripture
between the distance travelled to the depths of the river of living water.
The distance travelled is our walk.
As we move forward seeking the things of the Spirit,
going farther, persevering and reaching forward to "apprehend
that which has apprehended us",
Jesus takes us deeper, and deeper still.
Standing 'still" leads us to a place of stagnation where we can become like swamps and marshes,
not able to receive the "living water" and the deeper things that the Lord desires us to experience and possess.
Today beloved, move forward, go deeper, fix your gaze on Jesus.
He is faithful to complete the good works He has begun in each of us!

Hearing Aids/The Voice

"My sheep listen to my voice; I know them, and they follow me. I give them eternal life, and they shall never perish; no one will snatch them out of my hand."

John 10:27, 28 

Recently because of a 60% hearing loss stemming from a life threatening illness this year, I got hearing aids. They are technological marvels, and a great help ( I guess that's why they are called "aids"!). After using them from the last month I have realized something crucially important: they amplify all sound, background noise, etc., not just that which is my focus, and the greatest "aid" is my ability to focus my senses on the source, that which I strive to hear and understand.

In the world we live in we are surrounded by a cacophony of noise, from countless sources, spiritual perhaps even more so than environmental.These 'noises" attempt to distract us and obscure the most essential of voices: the Shepherd's. He is constantly but quietly calling us, leading and guiding us. The Holy Spirit, the Ruach HaKodesh is our "hearing aid" .
His voice quietly cuts through the "white noise"calling to us as we must use our hearts and all of our senses we hear Him: "This is my Way...walk in it." 
Beloved, tune in today, listen intently to the Voice and follow Him.

(Ungodly) Thoughts About God 4

“For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways,” declares the Lord. “As the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts."
Isaiah 55:8, 9

We live in a performance based, conditional world. We are bombarded with media that worships perfection. The influences from worldly sources can factor into our own belief processing and form suppositions -incorrect and ungodly ones- that adversely affect our relationship with our Heavenly Father.
Here are a few of them:

#1: "I am loved by God as long as I perform well."
Well, no! God loves us just the way we are, calling us with amazing love and grace. Diplomas, trophies, credentials, wealth, in and of themselves mean nothing.
"And so we know and rely on the love God has for us. God is love. Whoever lives in love lives in God, and God in them. This is how love is made complete among us so that we will have confidence on the day of judgment: In this world we are like Jesus. There is no fear in love. But perfect love drives out fear, because fear has to do with punishment. The one who fears is not made perfect in love. We love because God first loved us." 1 John 4:16-19

#2: "God isn't interested in the small details of my life."
Wrong!   "And even the very hairs of your head are all numbered. So don’t be afraid; you are worth more than many sparrows." Matthew 10:30, 31
It is beyond comprehension for the natural mind to realize that the same God who hangs every celestial body in the heavens and created the universe also has each of us on His mind, and knows our most intimate thoughts. He desires for us to have the faith of children, climb up onto His lap in prayer, and confide in Him. No concern of ours is too small to give over to Him.

#3: "God uses suffering and sicknesses to teach me a lesson."
Wrong again! "The thief comes only to steal, kill, and destroy; I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full." John 10:10  If God is the fountainhead of abundant life, than who is the one who brings illness, pain, lack, and suffering? That's right...the devil, who is a thief, accuser and deceiver. But I found that even in the midst of life threatening illness that God met me, took me to my future heavenly home for a quick tour, and sent seraphim to minister to me. In the depths and the heights I could feel God's love billowing over me.

#4: My life is mine to fix...I messed it up so I am the one who needs to fix it."
You can't. Broken can't repair broken.  But Jesus can, will, and does! He is the Restorer, hallelujah!
 "Fix our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith. For the joy set before Him, He endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of God. Consider Him who endured such opposition from sinners so that you will not grow weary and lose heart."

It is only when we cast all our cares on Jesus and totally surrender that such paradigms are overturned. Beloved,  remember that a steady diet of God's Word and getting frequent "facetime" with Him will give us a right perspective, and true knowledge of the Holy.

- Thanks to AJ Jones

Losses and Gains

But whatever were gains to me I now consider loss for the sake of Christ. What is more, I consider everything a loss because of the surpassing worth of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord, for whose sake I have lost all things. I consider them garbage, that I may gain Christ"
Philippians 3:7, 8

The most important lesson that I have learned in the last 7 years is about losses and gains. When we arrived in Tennessee I had substantial finances, was going to build our dream home. My mind was centered on earthly things and material gains, not Jesus. I had turned aspirations and goals into idols. Thoughts about my messiah? Usually lasted  for about 2 hours on Sundays. But then came  trials, losses, and stripping away-of hundreds of thousands of dollars,  a business, 60% of my hearing, health for a season. It has been said , "You never know Christ is all you need, until He is all you have."  Having had all these things stripped away there is nothing now to keep me from the "surpassing worth of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord". Weighed on the scales of eternity that stuff I chased after was like dust, just garbage, compared to the richness of having been brought so near to my Saviour. In the grand scheme of things these have been small losses and great gains. I concentrate on He who is worthy to receive all glory, honor, power, and praise. Our needs continue to be met, and I am grateful to still have 40% of my hearing...everything emanates from Him. 

Beloved, dwell on Jesus, who is our greatest gain, and forget the losses.

"He is no fool who gives what he cannot keep to gain what he cannot lose."

Jim Elliot

The Source

The power of the Lord came on Elijah and, tucking his cloak into his belt, he ran ahead of Ahab all the way to Jezreel. 
1 Kings 18:46 

The Sovereign Lord is my strength; he makes my feet like the feet of a deer, he enables me to tread on the heights. 
Habakkuk 3:19 

In 1Kings 18, we read that Elijah was a very busy prophet!
Over the course of a couple days on Mt. Carmel he faces off against 450 false prophets of Ba'al. Then he goes to the top of the mountain, praying relentlessly until the downpour begins. This all sounds so exhausting, and he probably was.
But the scriptures tell us that the power of the Lord came on Elijah and in the middle of the downpour he ran the 17 miles to Jezreel, outrunning Ahab! 
Standing on his chariot, as he grasped the reigns of his steeds, Ahab must've thought that he was really moving. Down the mountain pass, towards his home in Jezreel, he thundered...but then out of the corner of his eye he catches sight of something unbelievable, no-impossible! In my spirit I can see him wiping his eyes, wondering if his eyes playing tricks on him. Can you imagine the look on Ahab's face?
Elijah on foot, with his cloak tucked into his belt, blows past him, leaving him in the proverbial "dust".
Beloved, our own lives are often so busy, exhaustion and stress are so common in the world we live in. But don't ever forget or doubt, that the same spirit, the Holy Spirit, that raised Jesus from the dead, and supercharged Elijah is available to us!

Stone to Flesh/ Death to Life

I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit within you; I will take the heart of stone out of your flesh and give you a heart of flesh. 
Ezekiel 36:26

But they found the stone rolled away from the tomb. Then they went in and did not find the body of the Lord Jesus. And it happened, as they were greatly perplexed about this, that behold, two men stood by them in shining garments. Then, as they were afraid and bowed their faces to the earth, they said to them, “Why do you seek the living among the dead? He is not here, but is risen! Remember how He spoke to you when He was still in Galilee Luke 24:2-6

This morning at our Resurrection Service (otherwise known as "Easter"), I had an revelation about, well, receiving revelation. Revelation comes from the Holy Spirit, and the Holy Spirit is gentle. He doesn't come unwelcomed or uninvited. In ancient times the dead were interred in caves, with disc-like stones rolled across the entrance,  stone sealing the tomb in permanence-in death.  Just as the stone was rolled away at the Resurrection, bringing revival and newness of  life, when a heart of stone is "rolled away" and changed into a heart of flesh, revelation can come forth. As the Holy Spirit fills us, we move from knowledge/ information to impartation. Not only can it come, but I  say with assurance that it does come, as those awakened can testify to!

"See, I am doing a new thing! Now it springs up; do you not perceive it? I am making a way in the wilderness and streams in the wasteland."
Isaiah 43:19

Today is a new day, beloved.  Let us move forward, striving to apprehend that which has apprehended us.

The Acquisition/Sold Out

“The kingdom of heaven is like treasure hidden in a field. When a man found it, he hid it again, and then in his joy went and sold all he had and bought that field.

Matthew 13:44

Imagine that you are an ordinary farmer, plowing the earth of an ordinary field, preparing the land for planting. You are working the land, having leased this property for years, doing what you've always done, just keeping both hands on the plow. The blade is carving through the ground as you concentrate to keep the furrows straight, then suddenly as a clod of earth is turned, you notice a glimmer, the rays of the sun reflecting something different, just for a moment. In all the time you've been tilling this land you have never seen anything like this before; stopping the plow you begin digging, sifting the dirt through your fingers. Then you find it: a huge diamond, and as you brush off the rest of the dirt even your untrained eyes can see its amazing color, clarity, and size.

Your mind is spinning, your heart is beating out of your chest. Looking about, you bury the diamond again, carefully marking the place, and acting nonchalant, you race home. As quickly as possible you liquidate every asset, selling off everything. Everyone close to you thinks you have lost your mind. There is nothing seemingly special about this property, those near and dear to you try to dissuade you, but you are determined. Approaching the land owner, you try not to be over eager and strike the deal of a lifetime, acquiring  the field, both the seller and buyer overjoyed at the outcome.

We sometimes use the term for a person who is on fire and focused on OneThing-Jesus our Messiah- as "sold out". When the Lord breaks through and plows things up, we find Him if we are seeking...  in the Spirit we catch a glimmer as the veil is parted. The sum value of  everything else is as dust on the scales, compared to the weight of glory found in Jesus, we strive to apprehend that which has apprehended us (Phil.3:12). 

Beloved, let's be "sell outs"...trade the good things in life for the best.

Staying Tender 310

See to it, brothers and sisters, that none of you has a sinful,
unbelieving heart that turns away from the living God.
But encourage one another daily, as long as it is called “Today,”
so that none of you may be hardened by sin’s deceitfulness.
We have come to share in Christ,
if indeed we hold our original conviction firmly to the very end.
As has just been said: “Today, if you hear his voice,
do not harden your hearts as you did in the rebellion.”
Who were they who heard and rebelled?
Were they not all those Moses led out of Egypt?
And with whom was he angry for forty years?
Was it not with those who sinned,
whose bodies perished in the wilderness?
And to whom did God swear that they would never enter his rest if not to those who disobeyed?
So we see that they were not able to enter, because of their unbelief.
Hebrews 3:12-19

The above text is read at Passover (the Hagaddah, meaning literally "The Telling") from the book of Exodus recounts the amazing story of God delivering the entirety of the nation of Israel from 400 years of slavery in Egypt. The people saw the plagues, walked through a parted Red Sea, were led by a pillar of fire by night and cloud by day, drank water from a rock, ate manna from heaven, never had to deal with shoes or clothes wearing out, and saw Moses speaking directly to God. Can you imagine that? What would be our response to such things? Yet these people, including Moses and Aaron, all died without entering into the Land of Milk and Honey, their bones scattered in the deserts, their children being the ones who claimed the inheritance. Only Caleb and Joshua, totally believing the Lord, the only two of the twelve who had spied out the land choose to believe, and brought back the good report, entered in. Two out of millions.
As strangers and sojourners in a strange land, we need each other. We are to share our testimonies, being transparent about our struggles and triumphs, lifting each other up when we stumble, encouraging one other. Rebellion comes when we take our eyes off the Lord, and turn our focus inwards towards ourselves.
Deception is not detected by the deceived ones.
We are our brothers' and sisters' keepers.
We are responsible for each other, provoking and sharpening one another in love,
right up until we cross the Jordan and enter our rest.
Hear His voice today beloved. Stay tender.

Vision 229

“You is kind. You is smart. You is important.”
― Aibileen Clark to toddler in The Help

When the angel of the Lord appeared to Gideon, he said, “The Lord is with you, mighty warrior.” 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?” “Pardon me, my lord,” Gideon replied, “but how can I save Israel? 
My clan is the weakest in Manasseh, and I am the least in my family.” 
Judges 6:12, 14, 15 

"Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit. Rather, in humility value others above yourselves, not looking to your own interests but each of you to the interests of the others."
Philippians 2:3, 4

How do you see yourself?
How do you see others?
How do you think our Father sees us?

In The Help,  Aibileen speaks life over her young charges, declaring that they are kind, smart, and that they matter (are important). I was reminded as I watched this that these are words not forgotten as we mature, just as words spoken that are hurtful are not forgotten.
They either nourish our lives or poison them.
Gideon is one of my favorite Bible personalities. In his self assessment to the angel, I see myself, and in my mind echo th words that were spoken over me by my mother that scarred me: " you'll never be half the man your father is."  Gideon grew up being reminded of what he couldn't do, as well as his family's diminutive position within Israel's tribe hierarchy. But God saw Gideon's heart, and He had a different plan.
Using our natural eyes we tend to see ourselves one of two ways: very low self esteem like Gideon, thinking they have nothing to offer, or an inflated ("legend in their own mind") conceited ego/mindset   as if  they're "God's gift", which causes them to look down on everyone else.
We can also look at others in their current state and see only their many faults, instead of seeing them the way God sees each of us-a work in progress. A vessel needing to be filled. A possibility. Worthy of receiving the same grace and mercy that our Heavenly Father has extended to us.  Revelation  comes from The Helper, the Holy Spirit, who creates a new mindset, revealing that all things are possible-for each of us- through and with Jesus.
"I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me." Philippians 4:13 

Wrong in the Name of Righteousness 193

"When Jesus’ followers saw what was going to happen, they said, “Lord, should we strike with our swords?” And one of them struck the servant of the high priest, cutting off his right ear. But Jesus answered, “No more of this!” And he touched the man’s ear and healed him."
Luke 22:49-51

The disciples of Jesus were committed to their perception of righteousness.
The Holy Spirit had not yet fallen on them...they were zealous in their own minds,
and so they raised their swords, thinking that they were protecting their Master and themselves. But they misunderstood. They had somehow missed the message of the first and second greatest commandments: loving God first, and loving others secondly, and therefore what would flow outwards as such a response.
Jesus restored an injured man of the harm that a disciple acting wrongly had caused.

In the history of the Church, countless wars have been waged in the name of Jesus and a wrong sense of righteousness. In my humble opinion, the Church has been fragmented by doctrines and dogmas, the Body of Christ  dismembered, by a wrong sense of what the righteousness of God really is supposed to manifest, namely unity, restoration, renewal, and reconciliation:
"For by the grace given me I say to every one of you: Do not think of yourself more highly than you ought, but rather think of yourself with sober judgment, in accordance with the faith God has distributed to each of you. For just as each of us has one body with many members, and these members do not all have the same function, so in Christ we, though many, form one body, and each member belongs to all the others. Be devoted to one another in love. Honor one another above yourselves." Romans 12:3-5, 10

Beloved, ask the Holy Spirit to enable us to extend the same grace to those we have previously judged, and probably misjudged, spoken against, or caused discord in the Body-just as our Father has extended so much undeserved grace and mercy on each of us. 

Father Knows Best

"The righteous perish, and no one takes it to heart; the devout are taken away, and no one understands that the righteous are taken away to be spared from evil."
Isaiah 57:1

“For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways,” declares the Lord. “As the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts."
Isaiah 55:8, 9

An amazing young man in Kansas City died this week, after being fatally injured in a terrible car accident.  The prayers  of thousands for his healing were going up to the heavens for 2 days as he lay in critical condition. He  loved the Lord with all his heart and he loved others as himself. He was actively involved in ministry, both locally and internationally. He was a worshipper, had a girlfriend he loved, and his whole life was before him, but the Father who had ordered his steps and the numbers of his days took his home. Why?
At least that is the way we, the creatures, see things. The good, the righteous are taken from among us, suddenly and without warning, and those who are left behind, find ourselves struggling to find answers to unanswerable questions. Why, God?
It is in this place, when there are no more tears left, when we are too exhausted to cry any longer, when we are finally quieted and still and falls into our Abba's comforting arms that we realize, yet again, that we are just the clay, and we must trust in a great truth: Father knows best. We can't not lean on our inadequate, shallow understanding.
Let us ask our Father to help us to see things from a heavenly perspective: "no eye has seen, what no ear has heard, and what no human mind has conceived the things God has prepared for those who love him. 1 Corinthians 2:9

"Most assuredly, I say to you, unless a grain of wheat falls into the ground and dies, it remains alone; but if it dies, it produces much grain. He who loves his life will lose it, and he who hates his life in this world will keep it for eternal life." John 12:24, 25

No mind can conceive what waits for us, but for those of us who have been caught up into heaven, who have been granted a brief glimpse into what is coming, we are rendered homesick and lovesick. The way time here is measured is changed, and everyday that passes is a day closer to going home,. Death has no sting-it has become a way-point, like changing planes at an airport.
So remember, beloved, Father knows best.

Shake Well Before Using 8

“Simon, Simon, Satan has asked to sift all of you as wheat."
Luke 22:31

"Shake well before using".

These instructions are often on the labels of all sorts of products.
 It seems that when the container, or vessel,  sits for a while, the ingredients have a tendency to separate. The heavy, thick, and dense stuff settles to the bottom, the light stuff to the top.
The only way to reconstitute the ingredients and make it usable for what it is intended for is to follow the maker's directions: shake that container vigorously before using.
Similarly, our Maker knows that our "ingredients", especially our God- given gifts, have a tendency to settle.  As we sit , shelved and undisturbed or unchallenged, or perhaps frozen by a variety of fears- of man, failure, foolishness, rejection, discouragement, and more, we can become inert and ineffective. But the Lord in His omniscience knows that the very things we can often dread - upheaval, shaking, pruning, and refining- brings reconstitution and restoration to a vessel, as trials can stir our gifts. Instead of devastation, potency is restored, and the vessel (us) is no longer rendered inert but transformed into powerful and useful, each able to fulfill our destinies!
It is what we are created for.
So don't fear a shaking, beloved.
You are about to be used for His Glory.

The Greatest of These (Abridged)

Love suffers long  and  is  kind to me when I don't deserve kindness, but judgement;
Love  does not envy me but rejoices in my success;
Love does not parade itself nor does it flaunt or agonizingly tease me in my downfalls or failures,
it is not puffed up nor does it behave rudely, even when every right to do so exists,
Love does not seek its own, is not provoked, love thinks no evil nor ever wishes me any harm;
Love does not rejoice in iniquity, but  rejoices in the truth;
Love bears all things, turning the other cheek to me,  in the face of offensive or wreckless behavior,
Love believes all things, and hopes continually for all things to my benefit and goodness,
Love endures all things even when I am thoughtless, causing pain and injury.
Love never fails. Love never fails. Love never fails.
Tongues, knowledge, prophecy....it will all fade away, and what will remain?
Faith, hope, love, these three stand ; but the greatest of these is love.
Lord, let me go and do likewise.
I Corinthians 13

King's Ransom

"Your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit  who  is in you, whom you have from God,  and you are not your own.  For  you were bought at a price; therefore glorify God in your body and in your spirit, which are God’s."

I Corinthians 6:19, 20 

" The bishop approached him and said, in a low voice, 'Do not forget, ever, that you have promised me to use this silver to become an honest man.' 

Jean Valjean, who had no recollection of any such promise, stood dumbfounded. The bishop had stressed these words as he spoke them. He continued solemnly, 'Jean Valjean, my brother, you no longer belong to evil, but to good. It is your soul I am buying for you. I withdraw it from dark thoughts and from the spirit of perdition, and I give it to God!" 

~Victor Hugo, Les Miserables

Believe it or not, last night was the first time I have ever seen any version of Les Miserables, although I heard a great deal. I was so struck by the truth that was spoken by the bishop to a wicked and depraved Jean Valjean, after this criminal was caught red handed with the bishop's silver wares. In the 1996 movie the bishop pulls back the hood shrouding this convict's face, the metaphor of moving from darkness to light, from evil to good, as he says the above words that changed a man, and everyone he touched, forever. 

As I tearfully watched this it hit me, yet again, but in a new and profound way: This is what God who loves us so furiously, beyond what we can fathom, has done for each of us beloved! He has paid a King's ransom for us-the price was the very life of His Son. Without His redemption we would only be what judgement measures: liars, thieves, adulterers, and worse.  As I watched that scene it was a reminder, and it was as if I was that criminal and Jesus Himself was pronouncing over me the words of the bishop. Ransomed by the love of the Father, now go out and do likewise. We are not to listen to the accuser, who like Inspector Javers, is always trying to use judgement and self righteous offense  to remind us of the old man, in ourselves and others. We have been forgiven and ransomed. Let us be ambassadors of love. 

This is the message of the Gospels.

Serendipity/ Kairos

ser·en·dip·i·ty  

The occurrence and development of events by chance in a happy or beneficial way: "a fortunate stroke of serendipity".

"And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who  have been called according to his purpose."

Romans 8:28 

I love the word serendipity.
The definition of serendipity is a"chance" development of events producing a beneficial outcome, but  in God there are no "chance" outcomes! What the world calls "coincidence" is what  I called God-incidence, when God does amazing things and chooses to remain silent. A better term would be "kairos"- Kairos (καιρός) an ancient Greek word meaning "the right or opportune moment (the supreme moment"). A momentous convergence of timing and opportunity, divinely orchestrated to glorify Himself and bless us simultaneously.
God works out all things for the good of those who love Him, even in the face of a seeming disaster;  when we are in the midst of trials let us remember that "it ain't over, till it's over, which means when God says it's over.
Furthermore remember the words of Jesus Himself: “Therefore do not worry, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’  For after all these things the Gentiles seek. For your heavenly Father knows that you need all these things. But  seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added to you. Matthew 6:31-33
Jesus is the "author and finisher" of our faith (Heb.12:2)...it starts and ends with Him, and let us fix our gazes on Him, and not be overly concerned about the process, and rejoice even when we don't understand some things that may be happening in our lives currently.
Serendipity...Kairos... God is on the throne  and in control!

Peace Makers or Peace Keepers? 188

"Come now, let us reason together.."
Isaiah 1:18

"As iron sharpens iron, so one man sharpens another."
Proverbs 27:17

We all know the old adage, "If you don't have anything good to say, don't say anything at all."
Perhaps this is rhetorically correct, but sometimes isn't an uncomfortable discussion or confrontation necessary - that may bring provocation and conflict-before reconciliation or peace can be achieved? Let me rephrase this: What happens when no confrontation comes?
Let me propose to you: Not peace, not reconciliation, but unrest and more trouble.
Matthew 5:9 reads : "Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called children of God".
Peace is the result, when contention and unrest are dealt with thereby bringing reconciliation and sought. Sometimes making peace is the result of a battle, or on a personal relationship level,
the result of  some wrestling and exposing things that may be unpleasant to discuss,
but nonetheless must be worked through, in love,  to resolution.
Peace keepers are not the same as peace makers;
peace keeping is nonconfrontational but never deals with the issues.
The UN "peacekeepers are the foremost example I can think of here.
Being confrontational doesn't mean being unloving...it means that you care enough to resolve, it takes courage, love and a sound mind, and may require even sacrificing personal comfort levels to remedy.  Offense, bitterness, and hurtful thoughts, real or imagined, grow and thrive in fertile pastures of nonconfrontation.
So, beloved, don't confuse the two: peace making or peace keeping.
Today, let's ask God to help make us peacemakers. 

Overcast 189

"For his anger lasts only a moment, but his favor lasts a lifetime; 
weeping may stay for the night, but rejoicing comes in the morning. "
Psalm 30:5

"But for you who revere my name, the sun of righteousness will rise with healing in its rays. And you will go out and frolic like well-fed calves. "
Malachi 4:2 

This morning I was talking to a friend, whom the Holy Spirit uses to deliver a word to me quite regularly. 
To be honest, I was telling him that I felt heavy hearted, and the message he delivered to me was this: "Sometimes emotions can be like cloud cover that obscures the sun from our sight;
Go outside and turn your face towards the sun." 
Does this mean that the sun is not shining? 
No, of course not, even in overcast weather, or when we have "clouds" over us, 
the Son of righteousness is shining, and with this realization we are able to bask in his healing rays. God's mercies are new every morning, and in the morning sunlight we are meant to be. 
The power of the Son's love and His righteousness burns off dark emotions that are like clouds, fog, and other inclement elements...today beloved turn your face and your heart towards the Son....

Gifts in Unusual Wrapping 194

"And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose."
Romans 8:28 NIV84)

Last night we had a couple over for dinner; and although we have been friends for some time,
they had only been to our home once before. As we stood in the kitchen, I began to recount some of our history in this house and how things happened,  seemingly terrible events that ended with incredible blessings. Take our roof, for instance...the original roof that really needed repair was dmaged in a windstorm that resulted in our house getting a new roof, that was much better than the original. Consider the floorings and master bathroom ... on a Thanksgiving Day the hot water heater which was located in the master bedroom closet (of all places!) burst a main water supply pipe and the floors were damaged throughout the house. We ended up with an insurance settlement more than sufficient to replace the grungy worn out flooring throughout the whole house and remodel our master bathroom .
The blessing that was really over the top for me was what happened as a result of my recent illness and hospitalization. I had prayed for some time for the Lord to give me more time to spend with my family. My youngest daughter was growing up so quickly, my job requiring so many hours.
I was stricken with a MSSA (staph) infection so severe that it brought me through heaven's threshold into the throne room of the Almighty, causing endocarditis which is an inflammation of the interior lining of the heart muscle. It damaged one of my heart valves and severely damaged my hearing.
I convalesced at home though for 5 months, at the same time we decided to home school Elli, and so I was able to spend 5 months with my wife and my youngest daughter. How many of us get to spend such a significant amount of uninterrupted real time with those we love, especially our children in their formative years?

Isaiah 61:3 reads that God will "give a crown of beauty for ashes"; how amazing is that thought?

Beloved, perhaps you are in the middle of trials, or sitting on an "ash heap", or  maybe you have just passed through one of life's valleys. Search your memories and recount how many times God has given you beauty for ashes, restored what locusts have devoured, or replaced mediocrity-with something extraordinary.

Forgiveness, Unforgiveness, and Honesty 313

When someone does something, whether intentional or not, that is hurtful or offensive, or both... what do you do? Sure, we all know that Jesus Himself told us how to handle offense:
"For if you forgive men when they sin against you, your heavenly Father will also forgive you.  But if you do not forgive men their sins, your Father will not forgive your sins." 
Matthew 6:14, 15
Here's the truth: If we don't forgive others their sins against us, our Father will not forgive us! Jesus said it, and God is not just a man that He should lie.

I need to make a confession right here: Recently I was hurt by the actions of some folks I considered close to me. I was offended, I felt they were inconsiderate, and what they did made me feel like they didn't care. I had every right to feel this way, they were dead wrong, and I wanted to hang onto my own self-righteousness. I said that I was not offended, which was a lie. I lied to others about this, saying I was "fine" and I lied to myself, but I couldn't lie to the Lord. He sees into the core of our thoughts, our hearts. I was very much offended. Instead of addressing it and determining in my heart to forgive immediately, I let it fester and take root. I was not forgiving a man his offense against me. Some would perhaps argue that grace would cover my unforgiveness, but I take Jesus at His word, over the words of Paul.: "Your Father will not forgive your sins", and I will chose to forgive, and not just this infraction but all others who have offended or hurt me. The prospect of standing before my Father in heaven and instead of hearing Him say, "Well done good and faithful servant", He declares, " Cast him out into utter darkness, I never knew him" is  frightening, and this must be part of my walk, working out my salvation with fear and trembling. There is another facet of this, too, where I am not the offended, but in fact the offender. How many have I hurt and offended? What would happen or does happen when they walk in offense and there are other roots of bitterness? Is not gossip fueled by these very things?
I have been forgiven much, by others I've hurt who have loved me and covered me even when they had the "right"  not to. But even more than that, I have been loved, covered, and forgiven, really forgiven, the Son taking my place on the cross meant for me.

The Point of It All

"Though I speak with the tongues of men and of angels, but have not love, I have become sounding brass or a clanging cymbal.  And though I have  the  gift of prophecy, and understand all mysteries and all knowledge, and though I have all faith,  so that I could remove mountains, but have not love, I am nothing.  And  though I bestow all my goods to feed the poor, and though I give my body to be burned, but have not love, it profits me nothing. Love suffers long and is kind; love  does not envy; love does not parade itself, is not puffed up;  does not behave rudely, does not seek its own, is not provoked, thinks no evil;  does not rejoice in iniquity, but  rejoices in the truth;  bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things. Love never fails. But whether there are  prophecies, they will fail; whether  there    are  tongues, they will cease; whether  there is knowledge, it will vanish away.  For we know in part and we prophesy in part.  But when that which is perfect has come, then that which is in part will be done away. When I was a child, I spoke as a child, I understood as a child, I thought as a child; but when I became a man, I put away childish things.  For  now we see in a mirror, dimly, but then  face to face. Now I know in part, but then I shall know just as I also am known. And now abide faith, hope, love, these three; but the greatest of these  is  love."
I Corinthians 13:1-13 NKJV

Refuge 195

"I will say of the  Lord ,  “He is  my refuge and my fortress; My God, in Him I will trust.” 
For He shall give His angels charge over you, To keep you in all your ways. 
In  their  hands they shall bear you up, Lest you dash your foot against a stone. 
“Because he has set his love upon Me, therefore I will deliver him; 
I will set him on high, because he has  known My name. 
He shall  call upon Me, and I will answer him; I will be with him in trouble; 
I will deliver him and honor him."
Psalms 91:2, 11, 12, 14, 15

Today I was discussing with a friend some of my testimonies regarding close calls,
situations where I was sheltered from impending serious injury and disasters.
There were 3 bicycle accidents where I was thrown over the handlebars,
one of which was late at night on a drawbridge 40 feet above Biscayne Bay.
I was not wearing a helmet in any of these, I could've broken my neck or other bones, got a concussion or worse. Just a few scrapes and scratches.
I had a motorcycle accident where I car turned right in front of me,
3 serious car accidents, 2 involving pick up trucks, 1 with a big delivery truck while I was driving a small Datsun (Nissan) car, and yet I was protected. He delivered me yet again from a near accident involving a gasoline tanker that jack knifed on a wet highway that had been right next to me only seconds before, shortly after I was born again...Hallelujah!
There have been many other close calls, too many to count.
The Lord has been my refuge and my shelter, and He is yours too.
Beloved, look back at your life,  recount with joy the goodness of the Lord, and give thanks always.
A mighty fortress is our God!

"Be strong and of good courage,  do not fear nor be afraid of them; for the  Lord  your God,  
He  is  the One who goes with you.  He will not leave you nor forsake you.”
Deuteronomy 31:6 

A Practical Lesson

"For in this hope we were saved. But hope that is seen is no hope at all. Who hopes for what they already have?  But if we hope for what we do not yet have, we wait for it patiently."
Romans 8:24, 25

Have you ever heard someone say, "God, please give me patience, and give it to me right now?"
Well, this is my prayer. It's not just mine though, I would have to say that most of us struggle with grasping the discipline of  learning to be patient, learning to wait on the Lord.
One of  my most recent blogs deals with this very thing; it's indeed a major struggle!
Yesterday was Shabbat and we were having a guest over for a Shabbat meal, and I needed a loaf of challah bread. Now, we normally just buy one from a supermarket bakery...it's fast, easy, and convenient. So I'm thinking to myself, "I'll just go buy a challah", but the Holy Spirit breaks in and whispers: " this Shabbat, Hugh, you and Elli are going to make your own challah." I google "challah recipes" and as I am reading the recipe I notice the primary ingredient : patience.  It takes over 4 hours to mix, knead, proof and bake challah, but the end result was this big, beautiful challah loaf, and I thanked my Father for that small and practical lesson.
Patience. It is required, not easily attained, and of course, it takes time. Embrace it,beloved,  learn it, and enjoy the fruit it will ultimately bear.

"But those who  wait on the  Lord shall renew  their  strength;
They shall mount up with wings like eagles,
They shall run and not be weary,
They shall walk and not faint. "
Isaiah 40:31 

Deferment/ Expectation v. Reality

"Hope deferred makes the heart sick, but a longing fulfilled is a tree of life."
Proverbs 13:12

Stricken with a life threatening illness and hospitalized for a month, followed by 5 months of healing and convalescence...I was more than ready to start back to work, or so it seemed.
 I had been approved to start driving a car again. I had been going faithfully to rehab for cardio and vertigo issues, completed the sessions, and so I scheduled my return. I was welcomed back with tremendous warmth from all my colleagues, which was really great! But that day I fell flat on my face. I encountered difficulties I had not expected.  I had high expectations for myself; for my performance and ability to adapt, but I left confused and tired.
My hopes had not been realized, my expectations were in fact not realistic.
I was reminded by everyone that I needed to take it easy, take it slow, and learn to be patient and learn to wait on my Jevovah Rophi, my Healer.
It's true; hope deferred makes the heart sick. I have had more than my share of weariness and weaknesses. I confess here and now that I am impulsive and am inclined to run ahead on my own, not waiting on the Lord. Like an impatient Abraham who couldn't wait for the Lord to bring him a son without Sarah's bright idea, or Moses, who when dealing with a thirsty Israel struck the rock twice,  not waiting for the water to gush out as an always faithful God said it would.
My impatience.  I struggle to acquire and apply patience,  the very thing that is essential to reaching higher, diving deeper and really getting the fullness of the relationship that the Father promises.
Do you?
"He gives strength to the weary and increases the power of the weak.  
Even youths grow tired and weary, and young men stumble and fall;  
but those who hope in the  Lord will renew their strength.
They will soar on wings like eagles; they will run and not grow weary, they will walk and not be faint."
Isaiah 40:29-31

52 Days 182

In spite of tremendous odds against them,
Nehemiah and a relatively small group of God's people
rebuilt the broken down walls around Jerusalem in just fifty-two days.
Their enemies tried everything:
lies, fear, discouragement, false prophets, threats, and more,
and the more the work progressed the stiffer the opposition became.
Nehemiah, though, knew the voice of the Lord,
and he also recognized the lies of his enemy, and was not deceived!
We are not to be deceived either.
As sons and daughters of the one true living God who are building or rebuilding that "wall", or whatever that work He has commissioned in our lives , the enemy tries to sneak in and sow his tares.
 A few seeds of fear here, a few of discouragement there,
some lies sprinkled in for good measure…
but God has not given us a spirit of fear, but of courage and a sound mind,
planted and rooted deeply in God's love.
Perfect love, specifically God's love, casts out all fear,
and when God is for us, nothing, absolutely nothing, can stand against us. 
NO WEAPON FORMED AGAINST US WILL PROSPER.

So think on those such as these, beloved...Moses, Joshua, Nehemiah, David, Gideon, Barak, Abraham, Noah, Peter, Paul, and so many others in that great cloud of witnesses that some day we will be part of...our God is an awesome God!

"When word came to Sanballat, Tobiah, Geshem the Arab and the rest of our enemies that I had rebuilt the wall and not a gap was left in it—though up to that time I had not set the doors in the gates—  They were all trying to frighten us, thinking, “Their hands will get too weak for the work, and it will not be completed.” But I prayed, “Now strengthen my hands.”    One day I went to the house of Shemaiah son of Delaiah, the son of Mehetabel, who was shut in at his home. He said, “Let us meet in the house of God, inside the temple, and let us close the temple doors, because men are coming to kill you—by night they are coming to kill you.”    But I said, “Should a man like me run away? Or should someone like me go into the temple to save his life? I will not go!”  I realized that God had not sent him, but that he had prophesied against me because Tobiah and Sanballat had hired him.  Remember Tobiah and Sanballat, my God, because of what they have done; remember also the prophet Noadiah and how she and the rest of the prophets have been trying to intimidate me.  
So the wall was completed on the twenty-fifth of Elul, in fifty-two days."
Nehemiah 6:1, 9-12, 14, 15