We felt that the death sentence had been passed on us. But this happened so that we should rely, not on ourselves, but only on God, who raises the dead. From such terrible dangers of death he saved us, and will save us; and we have placed our hope in him that he will save us again, as you help us by means of your prayers for us.
2nd Corinthians 1:9-11a Good News Translation
We've all gone through those times where the battle truly is in our minds - the voice of the accuser running down the list of our past failures, reminding us of each and every one. How do you fight that? The only effective weapon is the Word of God, sharper than any two-edged sword...
Who we are is based on the Truth of God's Word, not the voice of the accuser - the father of all lies. So when the list runs, I CHOOSE to be grateful because I am reminded of all that God has brought me out of; how He has delivered me; how He has saved me, is saving me now and will save me, according to His Truth. And that makes me start singing the old song, ♪♫ When I think about the Lord... It makes me want to shout, Hallelujah! Thank You, Jesus!♪♫ The battle is the Lord's and the victory is ours!
Prayer:
Father,
We pray from Hebrews 6 - We have this hope as an anchor for the soul, firm and secure. It enters the inner sanctuary behind the curtain, where our forerunner, Jesus, has entered on our behalf. Right into Your very presence, O God, our Strength, our Deliverer! We want to be with You! Help us, Father. In Jesus' Name we pray. Amen
Thursday, June 14, 2018
Wednesday, June 13, 2018
Eating Light
O taste and see that the LORD is good...
Psalm 34:8a
I love summertime foods! Ice-cold watermelon, straight-from-the-garden fruits and vegetables, Yum!! It's a season of just naturally eating lighter fare. Summer seems to be so much healthier for our physical bodies!
However, summer is also the time when people tend to slack off spiritually. They're out of town more on the weekends and they tend to not go to church when they're not at home. Oftentimes, they don't pack their Bible (and somehow forget that it's available on their phone via Google or an app).
Here's the thing - we eat every day to sustain our physical life, right? How often do we eat to sustain and grow our spiritual life? Are you a little hungry or are you starving? Cry out for nourishment - 1st Peter 2:2-3 NLT reads, Like newborn babies, you must crave pure spiritual milk so that you will grow into a full experience of salvation. Cry out for this nourishment, now that you have had a taste of the Lord’s kindness.
Psalm 34:8a
I love summertime foods! Ice-cold watermelon, straight-from-the-garden fruits and vegetables, Yum!! It's a season of just naturally eating lighter fare. Summer seems to be so much healthier for our physical bodies!
However, summer is also the time when people tend to slack off spiritually. They're out of town more on the weekends and they tend to not go to church when they're not at home. Oftentimes, they don't pack their Bible (and somehow forget that it's available on their phone via Google or an app).
Here's the thing - we eat every day to sustain our physical life, right? How often do we eat to sustain and grow our spiritual life? Are you a little hungry or are you starving? Cry out for nourishment - 1st Peter 2:2-3 NLT reads, Like newborn babies, you must crave pure spiritual milk so that you will grow into a full experience of salvation. Cry out for this nourishment, now that you have had a taste of the Lord’s kindness.
Psalm 119:103 declares, How sweet Your words taste to me; they are sweeter than honey.
In John 1:14 we are told, The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us.
And a few chapters later, Jesus Himself declares He is the Light of the world. So eating Light spiritually, also sounds like good eating to me. It's summertime - Help yourself to more!
Prayer:
Prayer:
Father,
Jeremiah said, When your words came, I ate them; they were my joy and my heart’s delight, for I bear Your name, Lord God Almighty. Help us to remember that our best nourishment comes only from You. In Jesus' Name we pray. Amen
Tuesday, June 12, 2018
A Helping Hand
And the Lord said, “Simon, Simon! Indeed, Satan has asked for you, that he may sift you as wheat. But I have prayed for you, that your faith should not fail; and when you have returned to Me, strengthen your brethren.”
Luke 22:31-32 NKJV
I am often surprised that we (myself included) allow ourselves to be deluded into believing that since we are Christians, nothing is supposed to touch us. That we can be shocked and confused when something less than wonderful comes our way… or when we fall down… Let me encourage you in the Word because after all, we are supposed to encourage one another while it is called Today.
Proverbs 24:16a - The godly may trip seven times, but they will get up again.
Job 5:19 - From six troubles He will deliver you, Even in seven evil will not touch you.
Selections from Psalm 37:
24 Though they stumble, they will never fall,
for the Lord holds them by the hand.
25 Once I was young, and now I am old.
Yet I have never seen the godly abandoned
or their children begging for bread.
34 Put your hope in the Lord.
Travel steadily along his path.
He will honor you by giving you the land.
39 The Lord rescues the godly;
He is their fortress in times of trouble.
40 The Lord helps them,
rescuing them from the wicked.
He saves them,
and they find shelter in Him.
Jesus said, Satan has asked for you, that he may sift you as wheat. But I have prayed for you, that your faith should not fail; and when you have returned to Me, strengthen your brethren.
Prayer:
Father,
I pray for my brothers and sisters in Christ. I pray that we will be strong in the power of YOUR might – that we will lean on Your arms and not trust the strength of mere man. Let that same Spirit that raised Christ from the dead and that now resides in every follower of Christ RISE UP and cause us to be the overcomers You intend for us to be! You’ve done Your part – the shed Blood of the Lamb. Give us Your strength to do what You have planned for us to do. I pray for everyone reading this, whether on the Promise list or forwarded by a friend, for a renewing and a reviving of the Holy Spirit in their lives. Pour in, Father. We need more of You. In Jesus’ Name we pray. Amen
Luke 22:31-32 NKJV
I am often surprised that we (myself included) allow ourselves to be deluded into believing that since we are Christians, nothing is supposed to touch us. That we can be shocked and confused when something less than wonderful comes our way… or when we fall down… Let me encourage you in the Word because after all, we are supposed to encourage one another while it is called Today.
Proverbs 24:16a - The godly may trip seven times, but they will get up again.
Job 5:19 - From six troubles He will deliver you, Even in seven evil will not touch you.
Selections from Psalm 37:
24 Though they stumble, they will never fall,
for the Lord holds them by the hand.
25 Once I was young, and now I am old.
Yet I have never seen the godly abandoned
or their children begging for bread.
34 Put your hope in the Lord.
Travel steadily along his path.
He will honor you by giving you the land.
39 The Lord rescues the godly;
He is their fortress in times of trouble.
40 The Lord helps them,
rescuing them from the wicked.
He saves them,
and they find shelter in Him.
Jesus said, Satan has asked for you, that he may sift you as wheat. But I have prayed for you, that your faith should not fail; and when you have returned to Me, strengthen your brethren.
Prayer:
Father,
I pray for my brothers and sisters in Christ. I pray that we will be strong in the power of YOUR might – that we will lean on Your arms and not trust the strength of mere man. Let that same Spirit that raised Christ from the dead and that now resides in every follower of Christ RISE UP and cause us to be the overcomers You intend for us to be! You’ve done Your part – the shed Blood of the Lamb. Give us Your strength to do what You have planned for us to do. I pray for everyone reading this, whether on the Promise list or forwarded by a friend, for a renewing and a reviving of the Holy Spirit in their lives. Pour in, Father. We need more of You. In Jesus’ Name we pray. Amen
Monday, June 11, 2018
Lest I Forget - Reminding Myself
We love each other because he loved us first.
1st John 4:19 NLT
I have come to the conclusion that left to my own devices, I would be THE most selfish… because I know how selfish I am now and that’s with me trying to follow Christ. However, I have GREAT hope!
You see, since following Christ, there are things I won’t do now because I know the selfish act would hurt someone. But I sure used to and didn’t think twice about it… There are things I say now that pierce my heart as soon as they’re out of my mouth, but they’re fewer and farther between. And even at that, I’m encouraged because they DO pierce my heart whereas before I would have heedlessly used them to slice and dice. Because of Christ, I’m quicker to apologize and seek forgiveness.
Before Christ, I used to pride myself about how fiercely I loved those I considered mine. Now I know I didn’t have a clue. The only way I can love others – the ONLY way they can love me – is because He loved us first.
In our sin… In our selfishness… In the absence of all things holy… When we were unlovable by any standard, He loved us.
You’ve seen it lots of times in e-mails. Let me share it again.
I asked Jesus, How much do You love me?
This much! He replied.
Then He stretched out His arms and died… because He loved us.
Prayer:
Father,
Lest I forget Gethsemane; Lest I forget Thine agony; Lest I forget Thy love for me – lead me to Calvary! In Jesus’ Name I pray. Amen
Sunday, June 10, 2018
The Heart Knows
For the Lord himself will come down from heaven with a commanding shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trumpet call of God. First, the Christians who have died will rise from their graves. Then, together with them, we who are still alive and remain on the earth will be caught up in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. Then we will be with the Lord forever. So encourage each other with these words.
1st Thessalonians 4:16-18 NLT
Do you ever watch the YouTube videos of the soldiers returning to their families? From the youngest to the oldest, the depth of honesty in their response is overwhelming. All pretense, any pride for-the-sake-of-appearances, and all self-consciousness are thrown aside and what you experience is the intense integrity of the love and the long-anticipated reunion... and I cry every time with the overwhelming emotion of it.
In every situation imaginable, people are going on with their day-to-day living, doing whatever they need to do to cross one more day off the calendar toward that homecoming, but inside is that deep longing, the on-the-edge gnawing awareness that a part of you is missing and will soon be coming back. And the closer the day looms, even when you don't know the exact date, the more you feel it. The heart knows...But it's very clear in those videos whose hearts are involved and who are just observers...
Are we anticipating the return of Christ in that same manner? Are we crossing off the days that make it one day closer to His return? We don't have the exact date, but we know it's soon. Can't you feel it? The heart knows... Is your heart involved or are you just an observer? Will it be a grand reunion or grave regret? The choice is still yours. He loves you. Give Him your heart today.
Prayer:
Father,
Our hearts are responding to Your most famous act of love - You loved us so much that You gave Your only Son, so that whoever would believe in Him will not perish, but have eternal life. How extraordinary that if we confess with our mouth that Jesus is Lord and we believe in our heart that You raised Him from the dead, we will be saved. We can hardly stand to wait much longer. I know You're the only One who knows when You will send Jesus so we can be reunited. Even so, come quickly, Lord! In Jesus' Name we pray. Amen
1st Thessalonians 4:16-18 NLT
Do you ever watch the YouTube videos of the soldiers returning to their families? From the youngest to the oldest, the depth of honesty in their response is overwhelming. All pretense, any pride for-the-sake-of-appearances, and all self-consciousness are thrown aside and what you experience is the intense integrity of the love and the long-anticipated reunion... and I cry every time with the overwhelming emotion of it.
In every situation imaginable, people are going on with their day-to-day living, doing whatever they need to do to cross one more day off the calendar toward that homecoming, but inside is that deep longing, the on-the-edge gnawing awareness that a part of you is missing and will soon be coming back. And the closer the day looms, even when you don't know the exact date, the more you feel it. The heart knows...But it's very clear in those videos whose hearts are involved and who are just observers...
Are we anticipating the return of Christ in that same manner? Are we crossing off the days that make it one day closer to His return? We don't have the exact date, but we know it's soon. Can't you feel it? The heart knows... Is your heart involved or are you just an observer? Will it be a grand reunion or grave regret? The choice is still yours. He loves you. Give Him your heart today.
Prayer:
Father,
Our hearts are responding to Your most famous act of love - You loved us so much that You gave Your only Son, so that whoever would believe in Him will not perish, but have eternal life. How extraordinary that if we confess with our mouth that Jesus is Lord and we believe in our heart that You raised Him from the dead, we will be saved. We can hardly stand to wait much longer. I know You're the only One who knows when You will send Jesus so we can be reunited. Even so, come quickly, Lord! In Jesus' Name we pray. Amen
Saturday, June 9, 2018
More Than > Less Than
Yet in all these things we are more than conquerors through Him who loved us.
Romans 8:37 NKJV
What is the first word to come to your mind when you make a mistake or forget something? What is your perception of yourself as a human being - Is your focus on strengths first or weaknesses?
I have noticed that generally, the first word out of someone's mouth when they make a mistake or forget something is one of three in their self-talk: Dummy. Stupid. Idiot. On top of that, self-perception usually focuses on inadequacies, flaws, weaknesses. Bottom line. We're human. We have all of those and often it makes us feel 'less than'.
Although, if we're purposefully following Christ, our identity should be in Him. However, I can count on one hand the number of people I know who can look in a mirror and see the 'fearfully and wonderfully made' person in their reflection. (King David, Psalm 139:14)
It's perfectly okay to be honest with ourselves about our weaknesses, as long as we recognize and walk in the grace of God and His love which enable us to overcome. But in being that honest about weaknesses, let's not buy into the subtleties of the enemy of our soul whose goal it is to keep our focus on our 'less thans'. Remember, he wants to kill, steal and destroy our lives and purpose.
The point I want to make is this - let's be sure when we experience those weaknesses that we remember (or seek out) the Truths that are written in His Word. For starters - in our weakness, God is strength (see 2nd Corinthians 12). (If you want/need more examples, Google "We say God says".)
If God is in it, we will win it! He makes us more than our less thans... because He is.
Prayer:
Father,
Thank You for making provision for our every need - spiritual, physical, financial. Your love is overwhelming and overwhelmingly good. Teach us to trust You in ALL things and help us to get our Truths from Your Word only. In Jesus' Name we pray. Amen
Romans 8:37 NKJV
What is the first word to come to your mind when you make a mistake or forget something? What is your perception of yourself as a human being - Is your focus on strengths first or weaknesses?
I have noticed that generally, the first word out of someone's mouth when they make a mistake or forget something is one of three in their self-talk: Dummy. Stupid. Idiot. On top of that, self-perception usually focuses on inadequacies, flaws, weaknesses. Bottom line. We're human. We have all of those and often it makes us feel 'less than'.
Although, if we're purposefully following Christ, our identity should be in Him. However, I can count on one hand the number of people I know who can look in a mirror and see the 'fearfully and wonderfully made' person in their reflection. (King David, Psalm 139:14)
It's perfectly okay to be honest with ourselves about our weaknesses, as long as we recognize and walk in the grace of God and His love which enable us to overcome. But in being that honest about weaknesses, let's not buy into the subtleties of the enemy of our soul whose goal it is to keep our focus on our 'less thans'. Remember, he wants to kill, steal and destroy our lives and purpose.
The point I want to make is this - let's be sure when we experience those weaknesses that we remember (or seek out) the Truths that are written in His Word. For starters - in our weakness, God is strength (see 2nd Corinthians 12). (If you want/need more examples, Google "We say God says".)
If God is in it, we will win it! He makes us more than our less thans... because He is.
Prayer:
Father,
Thank You for making provision for our every need - spiritual, physical, financial. Your love is overwhelming and overwhelmingly good. Teach us to trust You in ALL things and help us to get our Truths from Your Word only. In Jesus' Name we pray. Amen
Friday, June 8, 2018
Turn It Off - by request
My sister, Michelle, asked me to re-post this one today. She said somebody needs this again...
***************************************************************************
But when you pray, go away by yourself, shut the door behind you, and pray to your Father in private. Then your Father, who sees everything, will reward you.
Matthew 6:6
I remember being in my early twenties when I read the first article about how much more I could get done if I would multi-task. Oh, I thought it was marvelous! Today, the ability to multi-task is highly regarded - both in the business world and socially. But it's become a Frankenstein of sorts.
Thirty years ago, multi-tasking meant making lists or catching a few paragraphs of a good book while you were waiting in inevitable lines. Now, it's checking e-mails while you're talking or texting to someone on your phone, and IM-ing in another window, with YouTube playing in the other window, and Facebook notifications in yet another window, and perusing what's available on Amazon in still another, while checking your bank balance in the final window to see if you can afford to purchase what's on Craig's List in the window that's in the far right corner of your monitor... unless of course, you have a dual monitor, in which case you can add a lot more...
It's the constant state of partial attention that makes me crazy. With all this technology, we supposedly accomplish all that much more. However, the fact of the matter is, we do not. And lest you think I have finally reached the age of being an old fogey, out of touch with today, let me tell you that even Intel "sees information overload as a serious problem" in its own company. Balex Research has estimated that the corporate world lost an average of $900 BILLION dollars in revenue due to time inefficiencies having to do with "information overload." 1
And while I will agree that the next generation coming of age has unbelievable technical ability and more intelligence at the literal tips of their fingers, I also find an overwhelming number of techies - no matter what age they are - have very little ability for sustained attention, have absolutely no patience, they cannot and will not tolerate anything or anyone that slows them down, and they are most uncomfortable with silence. And you can flat forget about being still, so it is not only the corporate world that has lost...
In Psalm 46, God challenges us to Be still and now that I am God. When was the last time you remember being absolutely still before God? When was the last time you turned off everything - music, cell phones, TV in the background - EVERYTHING - and got before the Lord with your total attention on Him (and not with one eye on the clock)? Just asking, not accusing.
We complain that we cannot hear the voice of God. Scripture describes it as a still, small voice. Listen, He's speaking... If we can't hear it, then let's turn something off.
Prayer:
Father,
Forgive us for not being fully in the moment with You, while always expecting You to be fully in the moment with us. Help us to focus our whole heart, our whole mind, our whole strength on You. In Jesus' Name we pray. Amen
I remember being in my early twenties when I read the first article about how much more I could get done if I would multi-task. Oh, I thought it was marvelous! Today, the ability to multi-task is highly regarded - both in the business world and socially. But it's become a Frankenstein of sorts.
Thirty years ago, multi-tasking meant making lists or catching a few paragraphs of a good book while you were waiting in inevitable lines. Now, it's checking e-mails while you're talking or texting to someone on your phone, and IM-ing in another window, with YouTube playing in the other window, and Facebook notifications in yet another window, and perusing what's available on Amazon in still another, while checking your bank balance in the final window to see if you can afford to purchase what's on Craig's List in the window that's in the far right corner of your monitor... unless of course, you have a dual monitor, in which case you can add a lot more...
It's the constant state of partial attention that makes me crazy. With all this technology, we supposedly accomplish all that much more. However, the fact of the matter is, we do not. And lest you think I have finally reached the age of being an old fogey, out of touch with today, let me tell you that even Intel "sees information overload as a serious problem" in its own company. Balex Research has estimated that the corporate world lost an average of $900 BILLION dollars in revenue due to time inefficiencies having to do with "information overload." 1
And while I will agree that the next generation coming of age has unbelievable technical ability and more intelligence at the literal tips of their fingers, I also find an overwhelming number of techies - no matter what age they are - have very little ability for sustained attention, have absolutely no patience, they cannot and will not tolerate anything or anyone that slows them down, and they are most uncomfortable with silence. And you can flat forget about being still, so it is not only the corporate world that has lost...
In Psalm 46, God challenges us to Be still and now that I am God. When was the last time you remember being absolutely still before God? When was the last time you turned off everything - music, cell phones, TV in the background - EVERYTHING - and got before the Lord with your total attention on Him (and not with one eye on the clock)? Just asking, not accusing.
We complain that we cannot hear the voice of God. Scripture describes it as a still, small voice. Listen, He's speaking... If we can't hear it, then let's turn something off.
Prayer:
Father,
Forgive us for not being fully in the moment with You, while always expecting You to be fully in the moment with us. Help us to focus our whole heart, our whole mind, our whole strength on You. In Jesus' Name we pray. Amen
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