Psalm 30:12 "To the end that my glory may sing praise to You and not be silent. O Lord my God, I will give thanks to You forever."
I was looking for a Thanksgiving prayer that I had given at a ladies meeting a number of years ago and not finding it on my computer, I pulled out a thumb drive on which I had saved a number of things from my old computer. Well, it wasn't there either, but I saw a document called "My Testimony" and decided to see what it was. It was my testimony that I had given at church, I guess it must have been about 5 or 6 years ago. To tell the truth, it was probably not a good idea that I read it..... I don't know how good it is to go back in time, especially when the Lord has brought me so far, but I read it anyway.
As I read about my failures, disappointments, heart break, and then rejoiced again at the miracles the Lord had done in my past.....as I finished reading it and remembered what I had gone to the flash drive to find, the old Thanksgiving prayer. It seems foolish now, looking for an old prayer, even thought it was so beautiful and fit with the day coming up, thanking the Lord for family and friends, for His blessings and grace; it still falls short of what is in my heart.
When I look inside my heart now, as I let myself look at what the Lord has done in my life, how could I ever think that something someone else had written could truly express my heart, my heart today. All the things I read in "my testimony", those times I remember having my heart freeze up to everything, become stone, in reality the flesh just hanging on by a thread of what you might consider... call it hope, maybe even desperation for something to fill my heart, to ease the pain. So many years, it seems like it took so many years for me to realize that that hope I was desperately looking for, was there all along.
My heart, my heart is so filled with love for my Lord. What was once a stone has become a fountain that flows with love, it is filled by the River of Life from the throne of my Lord, never running shallow, never running dry, but is constantly restored with His love, with His Words of encouragement and clarity....the Holy Spirit never failing to show me the way I should go, never ceasing to remind me that I am exactly who the Lord designed me to be, that there is nothing I can not do in Him, for He strengthens me daily, He restores my soul....to His glory. He restores me so that my life can glorify Him alone.
My Thanksgiving prayer has more words than space would ever allow, but can be condensed in these precious words, these words that will spill out of my heart, out of my spirit and through my praise, in my constant worship to my God, my Lord and King.....
I love You, I love You, I love You, my Lord. I love You, I love You, I love You, my Lord. I thank You, I thank You, I thank You, my Lord. I thank You, I thank You, I thank You, my Lord.
11-17-12
Saturday, November 17, 2012
Sunday, November 4, 2012
LET IT BE ME
Mark 10:37 "They replied, "Let one of us sit at your right and the other at your left in your glory."
As the disciples argued over who was to be the most important, the ones that should be on the right and the left, sitting with Jesus in His glory, I feel it must have saddened my Lord greatly, His knowing that their desire, although being heartfelt, was not truly understood. Even, the mother of James and John, she came to Jesus asking for favor for her sons. He asked of them "Can you drink the cup I am going to drink?" (Matthew 20:22) He knew that they had no knowledge of what was to come, and He also knew that in their human form, their fear would betray them.
I was left wondering about this myself. I love the Lord so much. I desire to be with Him. What I would have given, I think so often, to have walked with the crowds of people, along those dirt roads with Him. To have seen the miracles, to have heard His Words, the lessons He taught; to have seen those eyes of love looking into mine..... How would I have felt listening to the disciples arguing foolishly among themselves to be the ones He would choose to be near him......would my mind, would my heart have wanted that place for myself? Would you have desired that place also?
After the question was asked, the desire made known, the air must have been so still. I can imagine the birds even stopped their singing to listen to what the Lord would say, how would he answer them? As the Lord spoke again, he assured them that they would indeed drink of His cup....but the places next to Him were not His to grant, but the Father, who had already prepared this for His chosen. Drink of His cup.....the disciples certainly did, in time, do just this. And yes, my friends, those of us that choose to follow our Lord, to serve others as He served, to speak His truth to all, and to show His love without fail....we will all drink of His cup.
We are to serve others, put ourselves last, not first, fearlessly speak of truth as God leads us, show His love, His compassion, His forgiveness to all.....keeping nothing of Him for ourselves, but to give freely of His love to all.....we can never run out of the things of the Lord, as we give out, He pours back into us. True servants of the Lord must always be willing to sit in the back, to serve quietly but consistently with His love, His strength, His joy.
After thinking on all these things, knowing that drinking of His cup could bring condemnation, hatred and scorn from the world, criticism, bitterness, persecution.....and yes, even death....this cup, this very cup that gave us all life, could one day, determine our death also.....
.......would you still be clamouring to be first, pushing ahead crying out "let it be me...", would you still desire this place......will you?......will I?.......Selah.
Let us pray that we will all walk the walk that we talk; only with the strength, the power, the Spirit of the Lord will this be possible. Let me take the place You have designed for me, my God, and let me do Your will, only Your will. Let me be the servant You desire of me to be, let me live my life for You, for You alone. More of You, my King, so much less of me.
11-04-12
As the disciples argued over who was to be the most important, the ones that should be on the right and the left, sitting with Jesus in His glory, I feel it must have saddened my Lord greatly, His knowing that their desire, although being heartfelt, was not truly understood. Even, the mother of James and John, she came to Jesus asking for favor for her sons. He asked of them "Can you drink the cup I am going to drink?" (Matthew 20:22) He knew that they had no knowledge of what was to come, and He also knew that in their human form, their fear would betray them.
I was left wondering about this myself. I love the Lord so much. I desire to be with Him. What I would have given, I think so often, to have walked with the crowds of people, along those dirt roads with Him. To have seen the miracles, to have heard His Words, the lessons He taught; to have seen those eyes of love looking into mine..... How would I have felt listening to the disciples arguing foolishly among themselves to be the ones He would choose to be near him......would my mind, would my heart have wanted that place for myself? Would you have desired that place also?
After the question was asked, the desire made known, the air must have been so still. I can imagine the birds even stopped their singing to listen to what the Lord would say, how would he answer them? As the Lord spoke again, he assured them that they would indeed drink of His cup....but the places next to Him were not His to grant, but the Father, who had already prepared this for His chosen. Drink of His cup.....the disciples certainly did, in time, do just this. And yes, my friends, those of us that choose to follow our Lord, to serve others as He served, to speak His truth to all, and to show His love without fail....we will all drink of His cup.
We are to serve others, put ourselves last, not first, fearlessly speak of truth as God leads us, show His love, His compassion, His forgiveness to all.....keeping nothing of Him for ourselves, but to give freely of His love to all.....we can never run out of the things of the Lord, as we give out, He pours back into us. True servants of the Lord must always be willing to sit in the back, to serve quietly but consistently with His love, His strength, His joy.
After thinking on all these things, knowing that drinking of His cup could bring condemnation, hatred and scorn from the world, criticism, bitterness, persecution.....and yes, even death....this cup, this very cup that gave us all life, could one day, determine our death also.....
.......would you still be clamouring to be first, pushing ahead crying out "let it be me...", would you still desire this place......will you?......will I?.......Selah.
Let us pray that we will all walk the walk that we talk; only with the strength, the power, the Spirit of the Lord will this be possible. Let me take the place You have designed for me, my God, and let me do Your will, only Your will. Let me be the servant You desire of me to be, let me live my life for You, for You alone. More of You, my King, so much less of me.
11-04-12
Saturday, November 3, 2012
LOVE LIFTED ME
John 19:26 "When Jesus saw his mother there, and the disciple whom he loved, standing nearby, he said to his mother, "Dear woman, here is your son".
When Jesus looked out, through eyes that were clouded with his sweat, his blood and his tears (yes, I have no doubt there were tears, as hurt, betrayal, pain filled his being), He saw his mother, and other loved ones there.....but only one disciple, John. Young John whose love for His Savior, His Master, His Teacher was greater than any fear of those that might want to harm him also. He was there, he was there to watch as life was taken from the One who had lifted him from the ordinary man he was to a man that knew what beloved truly meant.
All the other disciples fled, hid in fear of man. When the bad grew worse, they grew distant, love was overcome by fear of man. Fear of man truly can grip one in ways we never dream until we are faced with that undenying situation, will we stand, or will we let fear overcome our love for the Lord.
Can you not imagine the torment that plagued the disciples as they were hiding in fear? As they could not overcome the fear that drove them away from where Jesus hung.....do you feel that disappointment they felt in themselves, that guilt, that shame? You may think of yourselves as the stronger type, you would not flee, you would stand tall....but look back, has that always been the case? Have you always stood up for Jesus, for His Word.....at work, at play, at life.... Now when one word, one stance, one head held high can mean so much to yourself, your family, your country.... do you stand tall, not fearing what men might say, what they might think...is fear overtaking the love of the Lord, for what He has taught us in His Word, for the values He has placed on life....on love your neighbor as yourself......on love the Lord with all your heart, with all your soul, with your life....
Wow.....this is so turning into a different place, Father, than when You began to give this to me...I thought I would be speaking of rejecting fear because of our love for our Lord, and as I see it is that, it is also much more. It is loving who we are in You, who You have made us to be. To stand in the shadow of the Cross, to stand there and not hid the fact that we are followers of Jesus, that He is our Beloved Lord, to do what the Word teaches us, to stand for the values, for the basic values of life that Your Word instills into each one of us. Freedom to be who we are in You; protecting the gift of life You gave to us, forsaking all to be counted in You.
Love lifted me from the pits of despair, from the place where the enemy held me captive in sin. Love showed me the way to redemption, to salvation, to freedom. The love of the Lord, my God, has shone down on the path of life given me, guiding me, teaching me all along the way to be secure in that love, to fear not; but to follow Him in all things. Love....the sweet love of my Lord.
I realize this seems to go in many directions, and as it concerns me a bit, the Lord says that those who truly love Him will be able to follow it's meaning without confusion, and for those that are confused, they were not meant to understand. The hidden meanings that become clear for those that truly seek the Lord, the open love for all that will accept it.
My Lord, my Life, how I love You, how I thank You for the very breath You have given me, the ability to hear Your voice and the love that lifts me closer and closer to You each moment.
11-03-12
When Jesus looked out, through eyes that were clouded with his sweat, his blood and his tears (yes, I have no doubt there were tears, as hurt, betrayal, pain filled his being), He saw his mother, and other loved ones there.....but only one disciple, John. Young John whose love for His Savior, His Master, His Teacher was greater than any fear of those that might want to harm him also. He was there, he was there to watch as life was taken from the One who had lifted him from the ordinary man he was to a man that knew what beloved truly meant.
All the other disciples fled, hid in fear of man. When the bad grew worse, they grew distant, love was overcome by fear of man. Fear of man truly can grip one in ways we never dream until we are faced with that undenying situation, will we stand, or will we let fear overcome our love for the Lord.
Can you not imagine the torment that plagued the disciples as they were hiding in fear? As they could not overcome the fear that drove them away from where Jesus hung.....do you feel that disappointment they felt in themselves, that guilt, that shame? You may think of yourselves as the stronger type, you would not flee, you would stand tall....but look back, has that always been the case? Have you always stood up for Jesus, for His Word.....at work, at play, at life.... Now when one word, one stance, one head held high can mean so much to yourself, your family, your country.... do you stand tall, not fearing what men might say, what they might think...is fear overtaking the love of the Lord, for what He has taught us in His Word, for the values He has placed on life....on love your neighbor as yourself......on love the Lord with all your heart, with all your soul, with your life....
Wow.....this is so turning into a different place, Father, than when You began to give this to me...I thought I would be speaking of rejecting fear because of our love for our Lord, and as I see it is that, it is also much more. It is loving who we are in You, who You have made us to be. To stand in the shadow of the Cross, to stand there and not hid the fact that we are followers of Jesus, that He is our Beloved Lord, to do what the Word teaches us, to stand for the values, for the basic values of life that Your Word instills into each one of us. Freedom to be who we are in You; protecting the gift of life You gave to us, forsaking all to be counted in You.
Love lifted me from the pits of despair, from the place where the enemy held me captive in sin. Love showed me the way to redemption, to salvation, to freedom. The love of the Lord, my God, has shone down on the path of life given me, guiding me, teaching me all along the way to be secure in that love, to fear not; but to follow Him in all things. Love....the sweet love of my Lord.
I realize this seems to go in many directions, and as it concerns me a bit, the Lord says that those who truly love Him will be able to follow it's meaning without confusion, and for those that are confused, they were not meant to understand. The hidden meanings that become clear for those that truly seek the Lord, the open love for all that will accept it.
My Lord, my Life, how I love You, how I thank You for the very breath You have given me, the ability to hear Your voice and the love that lifts me closer and closer to You each moment.
11-03-12
Saturday, October 27, 2012
THE CLEANSING PROCESS
2 Samuel22:38 "I have pursued my enemies and destroyed them; neither did I turn back again till they were destroyed."
White as snow. The Lord said He would make me white as snow. My sins forgiven, He will cleanse me, He will make me and mold me into what He wills. But I know there is a process. As I was forgiven of my sins, some of those sins that were deeply ingrained, that it was a constant battle as the enemy threw those temptations, those remembrances of the sin in front of me. It was difficult for me until that day when I saw that I needed to actively pursue those besetting sins, those temptations until I was the victor not the victim.
As long as we just ask forgiveness of our sin, especially those sins that seem to be a part of who we were; you know, the ones you excuse with one reason or another....."it's okay, everyone does it", or "I just can't seem to stop doing this, surely the Lord understands that", and trust me, the enemy will help you with your excuses until it seems like it is just part of your life. Don't fall into that pit...and it is a pit. Notice how, when you continue in a practice that you have asked forgiveness for, asked for help in overcoming, and you proceed anyway....remember how you feel afterwards....dirty, ashamed, just lost. Your habits, your vices, whatever it is, excessive drinking, smoking, lust....and if the Lord tells you to give up that drinking, smoking, lustful thoughts or actions, lying, stealing.....gossiping....(that hurts, doesn't it). But when you know the Lord is leading you to His place, His plans for you, and He, through the Holy Spirit, brings those things to you, He does so, so you can deal with them. The Lord cannot take away your sin until you are ready to give those things up. He will forgive us, but unless we move away from those things, those habits, those sins, we are victimizing ourselves. There will be no victory.
So I had to go after those things. When the Lord would bring them up to me, I did not leave them dormant, I decided to attack those things, to see why I felt I needed that in my life, actively seek the Lord for His help, to call upon the Name of Jesus when those things came against me. There is action on the part of each of us when we are called into the service of the Lord. There is an action that is needed to rid ourselves of sin, so we can be cleansed. We need to desire with all our hearts to be cleansed, to be made white as snow; it only takes place when make the move to be victorious over our sinful nature.
Instead of hiding when those things come into your mind, look them straight on and remind the enemy with his lures that you are not the person you once were, you are a new creation in Jesus. You will not fall back into those traps, you will look at the situation and reason with your mind...."I do not need this, I do not have to accept these things as part of me, I am God's child, a child of the King and He is all I need." Your mind cannot argue with God's Word. Your mind cannot overcome truth with deception.
The process sometimes takes time, but as long as we are giving ourselves, devoting our lives to our Lord, the end result is so worth it all. I did not overcome overnight, but I did overcome. Now each time the enemy throws a word, a picture...whatever he can use to remind me, I lift my hands to Heaven and thank my God that I am victorious, I am cleansed, I AM becoming the person He made me to be. A day by day walk, this path the Lord gives us, but we are not alone, He is always with us; He is always holding our hand, and He gives us the strength and power to become white as snow. 2 Samuel 22:33 "God is my strength and power, and He makes my way perfect."
10-17-12
White as snow. The Lord said He would make me white as snow. My sins forgiven, He will cleanse me, He will make me and mold me into what He wills. But I know there is a process. As I was forgiven of my sins, some of those sins that were deeply ingrained, that it was a constant battle as the enemy threw those temptations, those remembrances of the sin in front of me. It was difficult for me until that day when I saw that I needed to actively pursue those besetting sins, those temptations until I was the victor not the victim.
As long as we just ask forgiveness of our sin, especially those sins that seem to be a part of who we were; you know, the ones you excuse with one reason or another....."it's okay, everyone does it", or "I just can't seem to stop doing this, surely the Lord understands that", and trust me, the enemy will help you with your excuses until it seems like it is just part of your life. Don't fall into that pit...and it is a pit. Notice how, when you continue in a practice that you have asked forgiveness for, asked for help in overcoming, and you proceed anyway....remember how you feel afterwards....dirty, ashamed, just lost. Your habits, your vices, whatever it is, excessive drinking, smoking, lust....and if the Lord tells you to give up that drinking, smoking, lustful thoughts or actions, lying, stealing.....gossiping....(that hurts, doesn't it). But when you know the Lord is leading you to His place, His plans for you, and He, through the Holy Spirit, brings those things to you, He does so, so you can deal with them. The Lord cannot take away your sin until you are ready to give those things up. He will forgive us, but unless we move away from those things, those habits, those sins, we are victimizing ourselves. There will be no victory.
So I had to go after those things. When the Lord would bring them up to me, I did not leave them dormant, I decided to attack those things, to see why I felt I needed that in my life, actively seek the Lord for His help, to call upon the Name of Jesus when those things came against me. There is action on the part of each of us when we are called into the service of the Lord. There is an action that is needed to rid ourselves of sin, so we can be cleansed. We need to desire with all our hearts to be cleansed, to be made white as snow; it only takes place when make the move to be victorious over our sinful nature.
Instead of hiding when those things come into your mind, look them straight on and remind the enemy with his lures that you are not the person you once were, you are a new creation in Jesus. You will not fall back into those traps, you will look at the situation and reason with your mind...."I do not need this, I do not have to accept these things as part of me, I am God's child, a child of the King and He is all I need." Your mind cannot argue with God's Word. Your mind cannot overcome truth with deception.
The process sometimes takes time, but as long as we are giving ourselves, devoting our lives to our Lord, the end result is so worth it all. I did not overcome overnight, but I did overcome. Now each time the enemy throws a word, a picture...whatever he can use to remind me, I lift my hands to Heaven and thank my God that I am victorious, I am cleansed, I AM becoming the person He made me to be. A day by day walk, this path the Lord gives us, but we are not alone, He is always with us; He is always holding our hand, and He gives us the strength and power to become white as snow. 2 Samuel 22:33 "God is my strength and power, and He makes my way perfect."
10-17-12
Sunday, October 21, 2012
THE BEST IS YET TO COME
Habakkuk 1:5 "Look among the nations and watch...Be utterly astounded! For I will work a work in your days Which you would not believe, though it were told you."
If you are like I am, in the, well, I don't know if you would consider this to be the fall or beginning of winter of my life. I think a lot of things go into play, other than age, when you consider what season of your life you are in. But, back on track, it is the older years of my life, and now, it seems like I have just begun to live. A lot of us, and up until a couple of years ago, I did too, see ourselves as winding down our lives, instead of just beginning. The Lord, our Awesome God, has His plans for us all, plans that astonish us, and our friends and families as well.
This verse in Habakkuk, I read it this afternoon and the words "work" and "days" radiated to me. His work begins when He has planned it. Our days, I truly believe are in the mature days of our lives, not only age, but our spiritually mature days. Yes, we think, if I were younger, there is so much I could have done, had the Lord called me to it then. But, if you will look back, I am sure you will agree with me, were we spiritually ready for the work the Lord had for us; would we have followed closely after Him; or would we have argued with Him as to His timing, how it worked with our life at that time. The Lord knows us only so well. We may have been in church many years back then, but were our minds, our hearts, as yielded as we thought they were?
These past few years, as I have grown closer and closer to my Lord, as my thoughts center on Him, as my heart yearns for His Presence, I can see what I had dreamed and thought was gone, the stirring of my heart to work in ministry, but not seeing.....Ezekiel 12:22 "Son of man, what is this proverb that you people have about the land of Israel, which says, "The days are prolonged, and every vision falls?" These are our thoughts when we get to a certain age, and what we dreamed of has not come true, we fall into that pattern of believing the voice of the enemy that tells us, "too bad, your God has forgotten your dreams, you are past the age of usefulness to Him". Have you also heard that? The enemy is so good at making us feel as though we were passed up.....but not true. Our Lord never passes by without seeing us, without seeing our heart's desire to serve Him....He waits, though, until His timing is right to place us on the path He has made for us, His plan for our life. His perfect timing, His perfect plan. Just because you see others in what we might consider the prime time of their life being used by the Lord does not mean He does not have a time, a path, a plan for us. He has a plan for each of His children, and I believe He has special plans for those of us whose heart desire is to serve Him with all that is in us.
I have found, that now, at this time of life I am in, that the best is just beginning, and I know it will get better each and every day, as I keep myself yielded to Him, as I keep my worship, my love songs flowing up to Him, and as I seek His face, long for His Presence...yes, my Lord, I know, the best is yet to come.
10-21-12
If you are like I am, in the, well, I don't know if you would consider this to be the fall or beginning of winter of my life. I think a lot of things go into play, other than age, when you consider what season of your life you are in. But, back on track, it is the older years of my life, and now, it seems like I have just begun to live. A lot of us, and up until a couple of years ago, I did too, see ourselves as winding down our lives, instead of just beginning. The Lord, our Awesome God, has His plans for us all, plans that astonish us, and our friends and families as well.
This verse in Habakkuk, I read it this afternoon and the words "work" and "days" radiated to me. His work begins when He has planned it. Our days, I truly believe are in the mature days of our lives, not only age, but our spiritually mature days. Yes, we think, if I were younger, there is so much I could have done, had the Lord called me to it then. But, if you will look back, I am sure you will agree with me, were we spiritually ready for the work the Lord had for us; would we have followed closely after Him; or would we have argued with Him as to His timing, how it worked with our life at that time. The Lord knows us only so well. We may have been in church many years back then, but were our minds, our hearts, as yielded as we thought they were?
These past few years, as I have grown closer and closer to my Lord, as my thoughts center on Him, as my heart yearns for His Presence, I can see what I had dreamed and thought was gone, the stirring of my heart to work in ministry, but not seeing.....Ezekiel 12:22 "Son of man, what is this proverb that you people have about the land of Israel, which says, "The days are prolonged, and every vision falls?" These are our thoughts when we get to a certain age, and what we dreamed of has not come true, we fall into that pattern of believing the voice of the enemy that tells us, "too bad, your God has forgotten your dreams, you are past the age of usefulness to Him". Have you also heard that? The enemy is so good at making us feel as though we were passed up.....but not true. Our Lord never passes by without seeing us, without seeing our heart's desire to serve Him....He waits, though, until His timing is right to place us on the path He has made for us, His plan for our life. His perfect timing, His perfect plan. Just because you see others in what we might consider the prime time of their life being used by the Lord does not mean He does not have a time, a path, a plan for us. He has a plan for each of His children, and I believe He has special plans for those of us whose heart desire is to serve Him with all that is in us.
I have found, that now, at this time of life I am in, that the best is just beginning, and I know it will get better each and every day, as I keep myself yielded to Him, as I keep my worship, my love songs flowing up to Him, and as I seek His face, long for His Presence...yes, my Lord, I know, the best is yet to come.
10-21-12
Saturday, October 13, 2012
HE BRACES US
Psalm 84:7 "They go from strength to strength" till each appears before God in Zion."
Is it just me, or do you, my friends, also see the Lord is so many things. I just turned on the TV, and two ladies sat down on two lawn chairs to visit, and the backs of the chairs have a brace of sorts in the form of a cross. Top to bottom, and side to side, in the middle of the back of the chair. I was struck with these thoughts when I saw that and knew I was to share with you.
The Lord braces us top to bottom, from the top of our heads....our thoughts, He strengthens our thoughts to be of His, and as we ask Him, He keeps our thoughts on Him, not on things that the enemy would use to distract us. He braces our eyes, shielding them from the enemy's deceptions; our earsshut off from the destructive words of the world, but open to hear His sweet voice.
The Lord braces our backs and our legs making us strong to do the work He puts before us. His brace extends side to side to give strength to our arms to lift others up from their misery and hurt with His love and words of encouragement. Our hands He makes stronger each day as we extend His blessing to all those we meet.
Our feet are made strong in Him so they can follow His way, the path He puts in front of us, failing not to keep us in the Light, His precious Light.
As the body weakens toward the end of the day, our precious Lord gives us rest and He restores the braces He has built inside of us with His everlasting love, His hand going back and forth, top to bottom, side to side, seeing that our heart is strengthened and braced with His special balm of healing power; that all the dings, the darts of intended hurt, all those places are smoothed over by His loving hands. When we awake, we can rise with more strength than the day before, with the braces He has restored to serve us another day in Him.
Yes, friends, all this from seeing the back of a chair. I like the thought that the chair I sit in, the chair with the braces so strong to hold me, are the lap of my Father. Can you feel His heart beating through to you, as you sit there, Strength holding you, Love restoring you, and pure Joy beating in your heart.
If you are not seeing the Lord, His hand, His thoughts in things around you in your daily life, I would like to think that you will ask Him to draw you nearer, draw you closer to Him each day. Father, let Your thoughts always flow in my mind, my heart and my spirit, and let me see You everywhere I look. I would not desire to live any other way, but Your way.
10-13-12
Is it just me, or do you, my friends, also see the Lord is so many things. I just turned on the TV, and two ladies sat down on two lawn chairs to visit, and the backs of the chairs have a brace of sorts in the form of a cross. Top to bottom, and side to side, in the middle of the back of the chair. I was struck with these thoughts when I saw that and knew I was to share with you.
The Lord braces us top to bottom, from the top of our heads....our thoughts, He strengthens our thoughts to be of His, and as we ask Him, He keeps our thoughts on Him, not on things that the enemy would use to distract us. He braces our eyes, shielding them from the enemy's deceptions; our earsshut off from the destructive words of the world, but open to hear His sweet voice.
The Lord braces our backs and our legs making us strong to do the work He puts before us. His brace extends side to side to give strength to our arms to lift others up from their misery and hurt with His love and words of encouragement. Our hands He makes stronger each day as we extend His blessing to all those we meet.
Our feet are made strong in Him so they can follow His way, the path He puts in front of us, failing not to keep us in the Light, His precious Light.
As the body weakens toward the end of the day, our precious Lord gives us rest and He restores the braces He has built inside of us with His everlasting love, His hand going back and forth, top to bottom, side to side, seeing that our heart is strengthened and braced with His special balm of healing power; that all the dings, the darts of intended hurt, all those places are smoothed over by His loving hands. When we awake, we can rise with more strength than the day before, with the braces He has restored to serve us another day in Him.
Yes, friends, all this from seeing the back of a chair. I like the thought that the chair I sit in, the chair with the braces so strong to hold me, are the lap of my Father. Can you feel His heart beating through to you, as you sit there, Strength holding you, Love restoring you, and pure Joy beating in your heart.
If you are not seeing the Lord, His hand, His thoughts in things around you in your daily life, I would like to think that you will ask Him to draw you nearer, draw you closer to Him each day. Father, let Your thoughts always flow in my mind, my heart and my spirit, and let me see You everywhere I look. I would not desire to live any other way, but Your way.
10-13-12
Sunday, October 7, 2012
EQUAL OPPORTUNITY
Numbers 23:19 "God is not a man that he should lie, nor a son of man, that he should change his mind."
After spending the night across town with some dear friends, I was traveling back home this morning and just spending time with my Father. I was thanking Him for being my Lord, my God, and then my spirit was just grieving for those that choose not to know Him. I was thinking about those that choose these strange, to me, religions such as Scientology and others like that. I have no idea about a lot of their ways, but I was wondering out loud to the Lord, "who do they pray to?". When they have needs, fears, who do they pray to? And I was just grieving that so many people just turn away from the Lord, when He loves us all so.
The Lord spoke into my spirit, "They all have equal opportunity, they all have the same opportunity as you to know me." Then the verse above came into my spirit. Our Lord does not lie, when He says He is our Father, He is just that. When I began thinking about His being my Father, your Father, the Lord spoke again to me and said "all are born of man, but not all are born of God". We are all born of man, but only those of us that CHOOSE to call upon our Lord, that ask for forgiveness, redemption of our sin, and choose to love Him with all our hearts, are born of God. Not all are born of God. Those even who call themselves Christians, but whose hearts are self-seeking and are using the platform of our Father for self gain, they are not truly born of God. We have all seen this, and it becomes more evident daily. Beware of false prophets......
Everyone has the opportunity to know our Lord and God. Those that have not heard, will hear, as the Lord will make certain that the gospel is brought to every man, woman and child on earth. He has said it and it will become so. So everyone will have the same opportunity, equal to all, to know Him as their personal Savior, to be redeemed of sin, and to be born of God. Until they know, they do not know or truly understand their sin. It is when we become aware of the nature of Christ, when we hear of Him, that makes our sin so evident, so besetting, so horrifying.....it makes us fall before our Lord, thanking Him for His sacrifice, for His blood, and ask Him to come into our hearts. We are made righteous only in Him, nothing of ourselves, and but for our Savior, have no hope. But in Him, and through Him, we have hope, we have peace, we have joy. All can have this same hope, the same peace found only in the Lord and the joy that makes everything worth while.
For those of you that do not know my Savior, He can be your Savior also. A minute to look at your life as it is, that's all it takes for you to recognize the path of destruction you are on, the fears you face, the emptiness you feel. Look at what you are.....now, look into the eyes of Jesus, and you will see what you can be. This is your time, your opportunity....do not look away, give Him your heart today, give Him what you are, right now, and then watch as He takes what was sin, born of man and makes perfected in Him, a new man....born of God.
10-07-12
After spending the night across town with some dear friends, I was traveling back home this morning and just spending time with my Father. I was thanking Him for being my Lord, my God, and then my spirit was just grieving for those that choose not to know Him. I was thinking about those that choose these strange, to me, religions such as Scientology and others like that. I have no idea about a lot of their ways, but I was wondering out loud to the Lord, "who do they pray to?". When they have needs, fears, who do they pray to? And I was just grieving that so many people just turn away from the Lord, when He loves us all so.
The Lord spoke into my spirit, "They all have equal opportunity, they all have the same opportunity as you to know me." Then the verse above came into my spirit. Our Lord does not lie, when He says He is our Father, He is just that. When I began thinking about His being my Father, your Father, the Lord spoke again to me and said "all are born of man, but not all are born of God". We are all born of man, but only those of us that CHOOSE to call upon our Lord, that ask for forgiveness, redemption of our sin, and choose to love Him with all our hearts, are born of God. Not all are born of God. Those even who call themselves Christians, but whose hearts are self-seeking and are using the platform of our Father for self gain, they are not truly born of God. We have all seen this, and it becomes more evident daily. Beware of false prophets......
Everyone has the opportunity to know our Lord and God. Those that have not heard, will hear, as the Lord will make certain that the gospel is brought to every man, woman and child on earth. He has said it and it will become so. So everyone will have the same opportunity, equal to all, to know Him as their personal Savior, to be redeemed of sin, and to be born of God. Until they know, they do not know or truly understand their sin. It is when we become aware of the nature of Christ, when we hear of Him, that makes our sin so evident, so besetting, so horrifying.....it makes us fall before our Lord, thanking Him for His sacrifice, for His blood, and ask Him to come into our hearts. We are made righteous only in Him, nothing of ourselves, and but for our Savior, have no hope. But in Him, and through Him, we have hope, we have peace, we have joy. All can have this same hope, the same peace found only in the Lord and the joy that makes everything worth while.
For those of you that do not know my Savior, He can be your Savior also. A minute to look at your life as it is, that's all it takes for you to recognize the path of destruction you are on, the fears you face, the emptiness you feel. Look at what you are.....now, look into the eyes of Jesus, and you will see what you can be. This is your time, your opportunity....do not look away, give Him your heart today, give Him what you are, right now, and then watch as He takes what was sin, born of man and makes perfected in Him, a new man....born of God.
10-07-12
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