742

On the Seventh Day, God Ate a Magnum Ice Cream Bar AND Corn on the Cob, 08SEP

I want to start earnestly returning to my witness that the Lord awakened me to change MANY aspects of my life, to correct my path moving forward, to understand that I was not in charge of me – HE IS IN CHARGE OF ME, if I let Him be.  God dreams bigger than we do. So, 4 1/2 years ago, my mental focus and internal conversations with Him led me to Jesus, THEN my physical dramatic change of losing 70 pounds over the course of 9 months was a direct result of my focus on HIM. The changes were SIMULTANEOUS. A new exercise focus gave me stress reduction, and then came my crucial change of eating habits (and thus weight loss). All were all powered by my focus on HIM… Plus I got new friends to compare notes with… I do believe that was ON PURPOSE – so the Lord reminds me to give HIM all the praise and glory!!! I can take no credit for the focus of anything that “I put my mind to”…. that all belongs to the Lord… give credit where credit is due.

WHY? BECAUSE HE WANTS EVERYONE TO KNOW HIM! He uses us for His messengers.

I want everyone (YOU) to know that YOU can call on the LORD to help you lose weight, break bad habits, and live healthier – YOU can do it – if I can do it (and do it again) then you can too.

Call on the Lord and there is no better focusing power. NONE.

Our compliance helps our follow thru.

We all know that the mountain that has to move is us, WE OURSELVES ARE OUR OWN MOUNTAIN.

“Then Jesus told them, “I tell you the truth, if you have faith and don’t doubt, you can do things like this and much more. You can even say to this mountain, ‘May you be lifted up and thrown into the sea,’ and it will happen.”

Yes, the Lord moves mountains – I was and am that mountain that the Lord wants to move.

This mountain means anything holding us back.

Yes, realizing my body was a temple was coupled with my awakening – BOTH started the same week – BOTH took months to see results – BOTH were well worth the time: HIS time and mine.

If the Lord doesn’t build the house, the builders are working for nothing.
If the Lord doesn’t guard the city, the guards are watching for nothing. (Psalm 127)

Focus is good.  All good things come from the Lord (James 1:17)

“No temptation has overtaken you except what is common to mankind. And God is faithful; he will not let you be tempted beyond what you can bear. But when you are tempted, he will also provide a way out so that you can endure it.”

My weight was holding me back.  I realized I had my grandmother’s body before I was 30 years old and she had a stroke at age 60… My cousin Mike died at 52. I had gestational diabetes too…

I lost 70lbs because of the Lord over the course of 9 months – He gave this to me to be a witness to HIM –

I believe that I am to teach, to encourage, to plant seeds in people – that their faith can be their focus.

So, with shoulder surgery and life, I forgot my focus and lost my exercise, and then those carbs snuck back in. I forgot to teach what I was taught, until the Holy Spirit intervened (again) thru the urging of a dear friend… So, it’s time for me to refocus. And re-share…

And on my renewed healthy eating plan, carb snacking is allowed on the SEVENTH DAY. Yes, I can indulge in some carbs that I restrict the rest of the week. This 7^th day I had delicious corn on the cob, a perfect peach, and half a Magnum ice cream bar.

Today I am back to a 6 day regime of low carbohydrates…. Healthy foods are easy to find. Foods are for feeding the temple. I am also trying to pick walking back up to reduce stress… The Lord gives focus and great substitute foods and redirection… the Lord is good, the Lord is GREAT!

I am the mountain the Lord needs to move…

They say when the Lord wants to move a mountain, sometimes He hands you the shovel…

Move with me, won’t you?

Find your focus by finding your faith.

Be His

BE WELL

I believe in you.

God loves you and I do too!

---

I will share the ketogenic eating plan too – which may work better with men –  my original weight loss was not ketogenic but low carb high protein – anything low carb is best!  https://www.healthline.com/nutrition/ketogenic-diet-101

As always check with your doctor and all that jazz! 

BELIEVE and look for the tools… Find that the Holy Spirit moves the right motivations and motivators to you. Be real and Be true. Be sustainable. The Lord loves you enough to provide for you! The Lord never changes – the primary sustainable motivator!

Every good and perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of the heavenly lights, who does not change like shifting shadows. He chose to give us birth through the word of truth, that we might be a kind of firstfruits of all he created. James 1:17-18

I have put my trust in you. Show me the way I should go, for to you I entrust my life.
Rescue me from my enemies, Lord, for I hide myself in you.
Teach me to do your will, for you are my God; may your good Spirit lead me on level ground. For your name’s sake, Lord, preserve my life; in your righteousness, bring me out of trouble. Psalm 148

741

Prepare for Rain, 07SEP

They always say watch out for what you wish for…

God wants to pour out His love on us.

He finds ways to seep love to your soul, even when you are not looking.

He will also cast into the fire all the fruitless branches of your life.

That means more flow of His love to the rest of you.

Prepare for rain.

From the movie “Facing the Giants”:

“I heard a story about two farmers who desperately needed rain. And both of them prayed for rain, but only one of them went out and prepared his fields to receive it. Which one do you think trusted God to send the rain?” Well, the one prepared his fields for it. Which one are you? Mr. Bridges, the seasoned adviser, continued to instruct the football coach in need of awakening his team, developing leaders and skills, letting the Lord grow the faith:

“God will send the rain when He’s ready. You need to prepare your field to receive it.”

Everything in our lives is subject to being blessed by the Lord, so get ready…

Everyone in our lives can experience renewed faith, so encourage them…

Every field can be watered if it’s ready, and prepared.

Every rainbow is different than another, and personal.

Every blessing will come in His time and perpetuate.

Prepare your own fields for rain.

God won’t send rain to wash-out your faith, only to grow it….

Prepare your soul for soaking.

Prepare your faith for fanning.

Prepare your eyes for opening.

Prepare your heart for healing.

Prepare your life for living.

Prepare your spirit for sharing.

Prepare your love for letting lose.

Prepare your fields for rain, the Lord wants to grow something out of you.

Amen

 

740

I marvel at how the Lord aligns scriptures and us – the bible is so big and yet the same scriptures are placed in the same sightlines for us thru different avenues – that is because all roads lead to the Lord when we pick up on His clues…

Isaiah 58: THE LORD WILL GUIDE YOU ALWAYS!

“Shout it aloud, do not hold back.

Raise your voice like a trumpet.

Declare to my people their rebellion

and to the descendants of Jacob their sins.

2 For day after day they seek me out;

they seem eager to know my ways,

as if they were a nation that does what is right

and has not forsaken the commands of its God.

They ask me for just decisions

and seem eager for God to come near them.

3 ‘Why have we fasted,’ they say,

‘and you have not seen it?

Why have we humbled ourselves,

and you have not noticed?’

 

“Yet on the day of your fasting, you do as you please

and exploit all your workers.

4 Your fasting ends in quarreling and strife,

and in striking each other with wicked fists.

You cannot fast as you do today

and expect your voice to be heard on high.

5 Is this the kind of fast I have chosen,

only a day for people to humble themselves?

Is it only for bowing one’s head like a reed

and for lying in sackcloth and ashes?

Is that what you call a fast,

a day acceptable to the Lord?

 

6 “Is not this the kind of fasting I have chosen:

to loose the chains of injustice

    and untie the cords of the yoke,

to set the oppressed free

    and break every yoke?

7 Is it not to share your food with the hungry

    and to provide the poor wanderer with shelter—

when you see the naked, to clothe them,

    and not to turn away from your own flesh and blood?

8 Then your light will break forth like the dawn,

and your healing will quickly appear;

then your righteousness[a] will go before you,

and the glory of the Lord will be your rear guard.

9 Then you will call, and the Lord will answer;

you will cry for help, and he will say: Here am I.

 

“If you do away with the yoke of oppression,

with the pointing finger and malicious talk,

10 and if you spend yourselves in behalf of the hungry

and satisfy the needs of the oppressed,

then your light will rise in the darkness,

and your night will become like the noonday.

11 The Lord will guide you always;

he will satisfy your needs in a sun-scorched land

and will strengthen your frame.

You will be like a well-watered garden,

like a spring whose waters never fail.

12 Your people will rebuild the ancient ruins

and will raise up the age-old foundations;

you will be called Repairer of Broken Walls,

Restorer of Streets with Dwellings.

 

13 “If you keep your feet from breaking the Sabbath

and from doing as you please on my holy day,

if you call the Sabbath a delight

and the Lord’s holy day honorable,

and if you honor it by not going your own way

and not doing as you please or speaking idle words,

14 then you will find your joy in the Lord,

and I will cause you to ride in triumph on the heights of the land

and to feast on the inheritance of your father Jacob.”

For the mouth of the Lord has spoken.

738

Capture HIS-story, 05Sep

Crazy dream!!! I woke up suddenly, instantly and completely.

In my power nap’s dream I was swerving in my Subaru and about to smash full speed into the middle barrier on the highway – instantly I awoke never so startled and calm at the same time knowing it was a dream!

Instantly, my eyes locked across the room on this inflatable thunder stick: “CAPTURE HISTORY” –  It was a noise maker from the inaugural season of the Overwatch video game league…  But instantly I read history as HIS-STORY.

You can say I think about God too much or not enough… All I know is that I don’t know how or when I will meet my maker – all I know is that for the last five years I have been obsessed with trying to make sense of my path on His plan… He wants me to tell His-Story. I want to tell His-story. I want Him to be known in the minutia as well as the whole.

He wants us to live our story which is His story…

I want to finish posting any backlog of my writings before I hit that wall… whew…

I want to help spread the Good News always…

His story, not mine…

How beautiful…

Grace’s feet are Angel’s wings now…

“But do not forget this one thing, dear friends: With the Lord a day is like a thousand years, and a thousand years are like a day.” 2 Peter 3

736

Spirit-Confidence not self-confidence – Trickle Effect, 04SEP

“Blessed is the one who trusts in the Lord, whose confidence is in Him” Jeremiah 17:7

So chapter 2 of the Book of Acts tells of Peter preaching and converting 3000 people all at once.  I actually prayed that EXACT thing when I awakened. I stood at our local 911 memorial knowing that in 2 months I had gone from disbelief in Jesus to 100% believing… and I held the 911 steel, representing 3000 people who died, and prayerfully were saved by God, and I asked the Lord: “Can I possibly preach like Peter to convince 3000 people to follow Jesus? Can I?”

I asked – then I backtracked in fear and lack of self-confidence… Did I ask too ambitiously? I don’t know…  I don’t know how, when, and if I could do that…. None of this is for me to know… I know I could talk to 3000 people – that is not out of my self-confidence – but would I be given the opportunity to reach 3000 all at once or maybe a few at a time?… ONLY GOD KNOWS…

Maybe I have the opportunity but it is up to me to seize it.

We are all on God’s strengthening “steering committee”…  it’s God’s Spirit not ours anyway – but it’s our navigation to use our skills to mature His Kingdom at the same time we are maturing ourselves…

Truth – we don’t need self-confidence, we NEED SPIRIT-CONFIDENCE !!!

What I do know is that the Lord turns around INDIVIDUAL HEARTS, one at a time… A TRICKLE EFFECT… the Holy Spirit seeping in… Singular faith conversations between two people will have Jesus present and the Holy Spirit is simply waiting to permeate the conversation. We have to invite the Holy Spirit to use us to speak for furthering His greater plan.

Sometimes Jesus comes in floods (like for me) but ALWAYS He flows… He knows the Way…

We need to let the Living Water keep seeping into our own lives…. Let us all want to be dripping wet with faith….

—–

Trickle Effect, 05SEP2015 – #257 edited https://debbieupper.wordpress.com/2016/12/23/email-with-professor-about-trickle-effect-05sep-257/

It interests me how Jesus truly didn’t want to be considered a sideshow attraction… He wanted people to dig deep within themselves, He wanted individual conversions…. And even though miracles also worked to convince folks, in the retelling of the events,  Jesus’s intent in miracles was simply showing MERCY not magic – simple kindness to deserving believers who were in bad straights…. He could have done flamboyant pre-advertised miracles with grandeur, but He didn’t… It was all about the faith of the person asking for mercy. Jesus said it’s our faith that changes lives – our lives – others too…

Thinking about our modern avenues of trying to spread the Gospel to the masses, we wonder: “What is the best way to reach people?”  God could have waited and sent Jesus in our day and age, when mass media would have spread (or squashed) His message like wildfire… But He didn’t…

God choose a trickle effect of spreading the Good News…

Some try a big scale approach. Some present directed philosophical pinpoints of information… Think of the debate people had with free education when it started, questioning if it is better to water down education for the masses, for more to understand at the same time? or keep education at high level for only a few?… I think with faith, God wants the trickle effect – big and small….  Yes, even at mega churches there is the trickle effect – it might be the person sitting next to you, with whom you can discuss the message’s meaning, where conversations about Jesus occur, and wheels start turning – where God becomes REAL to you.

The Way knows the Way to connect… the Holy Spirit in action…

God wants us to come to Him – one by one – by our own realization that Jesus is the Way, the Truth and the Life!

AMEN

Stay tuned… The Way has a Way with Winning the Wayward…

From Mark 7:36-37  Jesus commanded them not to tell anyone. But the more he did so, the more they kept talking about it.  People were overwhelmed with amazement. “He has done everything well,” they said. “He even makes the deaf hear and the mute speak.”

From John 14:10-12, 27 (NIV)

“… The words I say to you I do not speak on my own authority. Rather, it is the Father, living in me, who is doing his work. Believe me when I say that I am in the Father and the Father is in me; or at least believe on the evidence of the works themselves. Very truly I tell you, whoever believes in me will do the works I have been doing, and they will do even greater things than these…”

“…the Advocate, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, will teach you all things and will remind you of everything I have said to you.”

From Acts 2: 14-

Peter Addresses the Crowd

Then Peter stood up with the Eleven, raised his voice and addressed the crowd: “Fellow Jews and all of you who live in Jerusalem, let me explain this to you; listen carefully to what I say. These people are not drunk, as you suppose. It’s only nine in the morning! 16 No, this is what was spoken by the prophet Joel: “‘In the last days, God says, I will pour out my Spirit on all people. Your sons and daughters will prophesy, your young men will see visions, your old men will dream dreams. Even on my servants, both men and women, I will pour out my Spirit in those days, and they will prophesy.

I will show wonders in the heavens above and signs on the earth below, blood and fire and billows of smoke. The sun will be turned to darkness and the moon to blood before the coming of the great and glorious day of the Lord. And everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.’

“Fellow Israelites, listen to this: Jesus of Nazareth was a man accredited by God to you by miracles, wonders and signs, which God did among you through him, as you yourselves know. This man was handed over to you by God’s deliberate plan and foreknowledge; and you, with the help of wicked men, put him to death by nailing him to the cross. But God raised him from the dead, freeing him from the agony of death, because it was impossible for death to keep its hold on him. David said about him:

“‘I saw the Lord always before me.  Because he is at my right hand, I will not be shaken.

Therefore my heart is glad and my tongue rejoices; my body also will rest in hope, because you will not abandon me to the realm of the dead, you will not let your holy one see decay. You have made known to me the paths of life; you will fill me with joy in your presence.’

“Fellow Israelites, I can tell you confidently that the patriarch David died and was buried, and his tomb is here to this day. But he was a prophet and knew that God had promised him on oath that he would place one of his descendants on his throne. Seeing what was to come, he spoke of the resurrection of the Messiah, that he was not abandoned to the realm of the dead, nor did his body see decay. God has raised this Jesus to life, and we are all witnesses of it. Exalted to the right hand of God, he has received from the Father the promised Holy Spirit and has poured out what you now see and hear. For David did not ascend to heaven, and yet he said: “‘The Lord said to my Lord: “Sit at my right hand until I make your enemies a footstool for your feet.”’

“Therefore let all Israel be assured of this: God has made this Jesus, whom you crucified, both Lord and Messiah.”

When the people heard this, they were cut to the heart and said to Peter and the other apostles, “Brothers, what shall we do?”

Peter replied, “Repent and be baptized, every one of you, in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins. And you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. The promise is for you and your children and for all who are far off—for all whom the Lord our God will call.”

With many other words he warned them; and he pleaded with them, “Save yourselves from this corrupt generation.” Those who accepted his message were baptized, and about three thousand were added to their number that day.

The Fellowship of the Believers

They devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching and to fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to prayer. Everyone was filled with awe at the many wonders and signs performed by the apostles. All the believers were together and had everything in common. They sold property and possessions to give to anyone who had need. Every day they continued to meet together in the temple courts. They broke bread in their homes and ate together with glad and sincere hearts, praising God and enjoying the favor of all the people. And the Lord added to their number daily those who were being saved.

735

Acts 12/16 – Broken Chains, 03SEP

The Acts 12 and 16 scriptures remind us that the Lord breaks the chains around us and on us. Chains of addiction, chains of indecisiveness, or anything holding us back from living His path for us.

Back in 2017 I was breaking scar tissue in my shoulder after rotator cuff repair and remembering we are to walk away from these chains that Jesus already broke for us… we are to be free… live free…  remain free…

Step out of your chains. You are released.

---

Broken Chains, 12Sept 2017

https://debbieupper.wordpress.com/2017/09/18/broken-chains-12sept-490/

I knew I had to write about broken chains while popping adhesions of scar tissue in my shoulder during physical therapy… So, many parallels to the release of us from the weight of chains, of life-stress holding us down… The adhesions popped with active stretching after my post-op inactivity laid down a rare case of tremendous scar tissue. These were painful powerful releases of my shoulder’s mobility from chains… I heard many pop over the course of four months… yes, I heard them as powerful as I felt them… so when the doctor said there was no choice, time for more surgery, I REJOICED because I needed this opportunity to improve from only 70% mobility, my doctor says I am too young to not achieve 100%… It will be a precise calculated cut of tissue… Second surgery is the price I gladly pay for my shoulder freedom.

Release…

Can you imagine what a tremendous visual it is for God breaking our physical, mental, emotional chains in order to be free?…  God calms our hearts, cheers our hearts, cleanses our hearts…

God paid the price by sending Jesus to do this for us! Jesus is a ransom for our bondage. We are able to walk past the gates of our prisons. Jesus lets us break free of the chains of the world crushing in on us, radically freeing us from the chains of sin. God frees us with a Savior!

Jesus came to free EVERYONE.

God broke our restrictive chains, but it is up to us to realize that we are free to live in His LIGHT… GRACE is not something we deserve but we are gifted this freedom because God LOVES us!

It’s a process… It’s walking forward… It’s following stepping stones to the LIGHT… The path is narrow but it is sure… Look for the lighted stepping stones… even take a step in JOY.

Step out of your chains. You are released.

At our women’s retreat, my beautiful spiritual friend spoke about these chains being broken –  BUT WE NEED TO LIFT THEM OFF... I can see her doing the movements of removing chains… We have to stand up to shake them off.

Step out of your chains. You are released.

Keep walking in the LIGHT to new life… Forever…  Keep walking away from your chains.

There’s a praise song “Love Came Down” “LOVE broke thru the darkness, now I can finally see, Paid the price for my freedom, No more chains on me…and the Savior came, and He took the blame, changed everything… ”

————–

Here are two scripture stories about being released from prison chains:

Acts 12 NIV

Peter’s Miraculous Escape From Prison

It was about this time that King Herod arrested some who belonged to the church, intending to persecute them. 2 He had James, the brother of John, put to death with the sword. 3 When he saw that this met with approval among the Jews, he proceeded to seize Peter also. This happened during the Festival of Unleavened Bread. 4 After arresting him, he put him in prison, handing him over to be guarded by four squads of four soldiers each. Herod intended to bring him out for public trial after the Passover.

5 So Peter was kept in prison, but the church was earnestly praying to God for him.

6 The night before Herod was to bring him to trial, Peter was sleeping between two soldiers, bound with two chains, and sentries stood guard at the entrance. 7 Suddenly an angel of the Lord appeared and a light shone in the cell. He struck Peter on the side and woke him up. “Quick, get up!” he said, and the chains fell off Peter’s wrists.

8 Then the angel said to him, “Put on your clothes and sandals.” And Peter did so. “Wrap your cloak around you and follow me,” the angel told him. 9 Peter followed him out of the prison, but he had no idea that what the angel was doing was really happening; he thought he was seeing a vision. 10 They passed the first and second guards and came to the iron gate leading to the city. It opened for them by itself, and they went through it. When they had walked the length of one street, suddenly the angel left him.

11 Then Peter came to himself and said, “Now I know without a doubt that the Lord has sent his angel and rescued me from Herod’s clutches and from everything the Jewish people were hoping would happen.”

12 When this had dawned on him, he went to the house of Mary the mother of John, also called Mark, where many people had gathered and were praying. 13 Peter knocked at the outer entrance, and a servant named Rhoda came to answer the door. 14 When she recognized Peter’s voice, she was so overjoyed she ran back without opening it and exclaimed, “Peter is at the door!”

15 “You’re out of your mind,” they told her. When she kept insisting that it was so, they said, “It must be his angel.”

16 But Peter kept on knocking, and when they opened the door and saw him, they were astonished. 17 Peter motioned with his hand for them to be quiet and described how the Lord had brought him out of prison. “Tell James and the other brothers and sisters about this,” he said, and then he left for another place.

——

Acts 16

Paul and Silas in Prison

16 Once when we were going to the place of prayer, we were met by a female slave who had a spirit by which she predicted the future. She earned a great deal of money for her owners by fortune-telling. 17 She followed Paul and the rest of us, shouting, “These men are servants of the Most High God, who are telling you the way to be saved.” 18 She kept this up for many days. Finally Paul became so annoyed that he turned around and said to the spirit, “In the name of Jesus Christ I command you to come out of her!” At that moment the spirit left her.

19 When her owners realized that their hope of making money was gone, they seized Paul and Silas and dragged them into the marketplace to face the authorities. 20 They brought them before the magistrates and said, “These men are Jews, and are throwing our city into an uproar 21 by advocating customs unlawful for us Romans to accept or practice.”

22 The crowd joined in the attack against Paul and Silas, and the magistrates ordered them to be stripped and beaten with rods. 23 After they had been severely flogged, they were thrown into prison, and the jailer was commanded to guard them carefully. 24 When he received these orders, he put them in the inner cell and fastened their feet in the stocks.

25 About midnight Paul and Silas were praying and singing hymns to God, and the other prisoners were listening to them. 26 Suddenly there was such a violent earthquake that the foundations of the prison were shaken.

At once all the prison doors flew open, and everyone’s chains came loose. 27 The jailer woke up, and when he saw the prison doors open, he drew his sword and was about to kill himself because he thought the prisoners had escaped. 28 But Paul shouted, “Don’t harm yourself! We are all here!”

29 The jailer called for lights, rushed in and fell trembling before Paul and Silas. 30 He then brought them out and asked, “Sirs, what must I do to be saved?”

31 They replied, “Believe in the Lord Jesus, and you will be saved—you and your household.” 32 Then they spoke the word of the Lord to him and to all the others in his house. 33 At that hour of the night the jailer took them and washed their wounds; then immediately he and all his household were baptized. 34 The jailer brought them into his house and set a meal before them; he was filled with joy because he had come to believe in God—he and his whole household.

35 When it was daylight, the magistrates sent their officers to the jailer with the order: “Release those men.” 36 The jailer told Paul, “The magistrates have ordered that you and Silas be released. Now you can leave. Go in peace.”

37 But Paul said to the officers: “They beat us publicly without a trial, even though we are Roman citizens, and threw us into prison. And now do they want to get rid of us quietly? No! Let them come themselves and escort us out.”

38 The officers reported this to the magistrates, and when they heard that Paul and Silas were Roman citizens, they were alarmed. 39 They came to appease them and escorted them from the prison, requesting them to leave the city. 40 After Paul and Silas came out of the prison, they went to Lydia’s house, where they met with the brothers and sisters and encouraged them. Then they left.

 

734

Acts 10: That Avoid Favoritism Scripture… 02SEP

Peter spoke of a  great vision in Acts 10, details give us strong imagery…. So often we also get strong images, get a lightning bolt of scripture even populating our brains. This happened to me with the favoritism scripture… The Acts 10 story about Peter reminds us we are not supposed to show favoritism in whom we share faith with, be with, share with and especially not show favoritism in extending grace and forgiveness!!!!

I want to share the time when God sent a lightning bolt of scripture into my head, no denying that God’s Word comes to help us – and this time forced me to listen… we have a powerful GOD! We are under HIS wing…

I had these beautiful handmade cards made by a woman at church for me to send special people, and I was going to hold them back for certain people… So one day, instead of sending one nice card to a woman whom comes randomly twice a year to our church (for many reasons I am not so certain are spiritual),   I thought I could just send a plain old card because who knows if she would really appreciate it… Then just like a lightning bolt, the James scripture about favoritism shot immediately to the front of my brain… Yeah, I apologized to God, and I sent a most beautiful scriptural card to her, how dare I show favoritism…

One of my dear friends always says: “don’t judge people who sin differently than you do”…

The “favoritism forbidden” scripture in James pertains to how we forgive people!!! Who are we to show favoritism in our forgiveness???… “Love your neighbor as yourself”!!! Yes, love and forgive all God’s children… That’s tough sometimes, so we ask the HOLY SPIRIT to move us into compassion and ask Jesus’s love to intervene. We ask to be emptied of our begrudging ways, our focus on our needs… It’s mercy we need to show, no matter how much it hurts… This can be tough to do, but it’s the right thing to do…

If we have an interest in faith building, then we are to not tear down the foundation… If we have an interest in sharing the Word, then we must let the Word shine thru us.  We always can try to be like Peter and even in uncomfortable new situations, understand that the Lord wants us to be with believers and pre-believers as God needs us to be.

They have received the Holy Spirit just as much as we have.

We can drop favoritism and focus on faith…

Amen

---

James 2:1

“Favoritism Forbidden
My brothers and sisters, believers in our glorious Lord Jesus Christ must not show favoritism.  Suppose a man comes into your meeting wearing a gold ring and fine clothes, and a poor man in filthy old clothes also comes in.  If you show special attention to the man wearing fine clothes and say, “Here’s a good seat for you,” but say to the poor man, “You stand there” or “Sit on the floor by my feet,” have you not discriminated among yourselves and become judges with evil thoughts?

Listen, my dear brothers and sisters: Has not God chosen those who are poor in the eyes of the world to be rich in faith and to inherit the kingdom he promised those who love him? But you have dishonored the poor. Is it not the rich who are exploiting you? Are they not the ones who are dragging you into court? Are they not the ones who are blaspheming the noble name of him to whom you belong?

If you really keep the royal law found in Scripture, “Love your neighbor as yourself,” you are doing right. But if you show favoritism, you sin and are convicted by the law as lawbreakers. For whoever keeps the whole law and yet stumbles at just one point is guilty of breaking all of it. For he who said, “You shall not commit adultery,” also said, “You shall not murder.” If you do not commit adultery but do commit murder, you have become a lawbreaker.

Speak and act as those who are going to be judged by the law that gives freedom, because judgment without mercy will be shown to anyone who has not been merciful. Mercy triumphs over judgment.”

---

Acts 10

Then Peter began to speak: “I now realize how true it is that God does not show favoritism but accepts from every nation the one who fears him and does what is right. You know the message God sent to the people of Israel, announcing the good news of peace through Jesus Christ, who is Lord of all. You know what has happened throughout the province of Judea, beginning in Galilee after the baptism that John preached— how God anointed Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy Spirit and power, and how he went around doing good and healing all who were under the power of the devil, because God was with him.

“We are witnesses of everything he did in the country of the Jews and in Jerusalem. They killed him by hanging him on a cross, but God raised him from the dead on the third day and caused him to be seen. He was not seen by all the people, but by witnesses whom God had already chosen—by us who ate and drank with him after he rose from the dead. He commanded us to preach to the people and to testify that he is the one whom God appointed as judge of the living and the dead. All the prophets testify about him that everyone who believes in him receives forgiveness of sins through his name.”

While Peter was still speaking these words, the Holy Spirit came on all who heard the message. The circumcised believers who had come with Peter were astonished that the gift of the Holy Spirit had been poured out even on Gentiles. For they heard them speaking in tongues and praising God.

Then Peter said, “Surely no one can stand in the way of their being baptized with water. They have received the Holy Spirit just as we have.”  So he ordered that they be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ. Then they asked Peter to stay with them for a few days.

733

A Prayer for the Family of Baby Grace, 30AUG

Thought I would share this devotion prayer with you that I wrote and shared with a family who had precious few moments with their baby. The prognosis was dim, but the LOVE was as bright the Light could ever be.

One day, the day after the baby lived and then passed, I sat in the car ready to go to work and I was thinking about those precious few minutes that baby Grace had on earth and I saw a photo of LOVE being poured out to her while anointing her for her trip to heaven…. So, I got back got out of my car, and told my 18-year-old daughter (who had been a preemie) that I changed my mind to stay home from work most of that day and we would finish all the preparation for her college trip for the next day. So, through the reminder of Baby Grace’s precious moments and my witness of beautiful love poured out to them, I have been tremendously reminded to juggle my hectic schedule with the much MORE important love of God’s gift of family – and my time with them and them with me…

God gifted precious few minutes for an outpouring our love to baby Grace and baby Grace was gifted the few minutes on earth to be blessed with having an outpouring of love to her. God wanted to show her, show her family, and us “how deep and wide His love is” by giving her love of family. Time, even if short, was heaven on earth… LOVE never ends…

Here’s the devotion:

FAMILY is a gift FOREVER for whom you can pour out your LOVE.

LOVE is a gift for the giving.

LOVE the Lord and LOVE one another.

GRACE is a gift of LOVE.

GRACE is a gift from GOD.

GRACE is a gift of endless LOVE, under all circumstances and surpassing all understanding.

GRACE is a gift of FORGIVENESS for all.

GRACE is a gift of LOVE ETERNAL…

ETERNAL LOVE is FOREVER because of the gift of GRACE.

GRACE IS LOVE.

LOVE IS GRACE.

LOVE is in EVERYONE whom GOD LOVES.

LOVE is GOD.

GOD LOVES EVERYONE.

GOD LOVES YOU.

GOD LOVES GRACE.

LOVE GRACE.

GRACE LOVES YOU.

Amen

732

See Nothing to See Everything, 26AUG

I couldn’t see well yesterday after the eye doctor’s drops, fittingly my Acts 9 scriptures and writings were nearly finished before the appointment… of course Acts 9 is about God using blindness so that Saul/Paul could see ONLY the Lord. Of course it was about seeing, of course…

Saul had to learn to trust the Lord to see. We all do.

I had to trust the eye doctor. Especially since I get sick to my stomach whenever I go. I have to trust him touching my eyes and knowing I will become out of commission for hours. I want to avoid these visits, but I am compelled to go, I have rare narrow angles (maybe 5% of the population) where my iris is pushed forward and bunched up like a squished rug – I attached a photo. This could block the drainage, and cause pressure and glaucoma.  So far so good! But I “have to keep an eye on it”.

Fittingly, as I don’t have time to sit down and read right now, Bible Gateway online with David Suchet has superbly reading the bible out loud while I drive or while I take a walk… I don’t use my eyes but my ears to get just as close to my Lord.

https://www.biblegateway.com/audio/suchet/nivuk/Acts.9  Give a listen!

Acts 9 is the story of blindness – both spiritual blindness and human blindness – and the use of blindness as a tool to finally see… it is a story about ruthless Saul, who hunted anyone following “the Way” and how he becomes Paul, one of the most prolific bible writers…  Saul is blinded during a conversation with the Lord on the road to Damascus- “he opened his eyes and he saw nothing” – which means he knew he was supposed to see – he knew there was nothing – he knew that he didn’t know what had happened. Then the Lord led him to healing – the blindness caused Saul to be in the need to be led…

We too should realize that we need to be led – by the Lord Himself.

It is EARTHSHATTERING to have the Lord Himself hunt you down for a conversation… it is better to listen before it gets to a crisis… to listen ahead of time knowing the Lord will send others help you, give you warnings, give you encouragement. Just know it is the Lord and the Lord alone who calls your name, moves your spirit…

Do you hear Him calling? Listen for the whisper.

When the scales dropped from Saul’s eyes due to the work of Ananias, Saul knew that the Lord changed him. He was blinded so that He could see. And now Saul, who became Paul, only wanted to know the Lord MORE.

We surely want to know the Lord better! To see! To feel! To ask for our scales to be shed… to become a disciple like Apostle Paul, if the Lord can forgive him, He can and does forgive us! You have to trust the Lord to give up yourself….

Look at the trust that Ananias gave the Lord – to risk death by approaching Saul/Paul – yet in doing so he impacted all future Christians gaining new life in Christ…. Amazing trust! Ananias trusted the Lord with his life for that task. A fool for Christ.

Look at the trust by Jesus’s followers – tremendous trust and forgiveness on their part to accept this ruthless man Saul changed into Paul, but they did!!!… fools for Christ.

If we trust the Lord, we will get a whole new life. It is not always an easy one, for Saul/Paul or us…

Jesus promised suffering and yet Paul counted it all as a gain – to know the presence of God – to know his purpose. Paul’s passion never wavered, as he always felt like he had not yet obtained the glory he kept working… When Saul was called, nothing else mattered, NOTHING, except trusting the Lord… Paul later had such suffering in prison, such thorns in his side, he said it taught Paul to be humble… Yes, Paul wrote from prison to inspire, teach, praise, warn, and be whom the Spirit led him to be…

All of us have a calling to move from our Saul to our Paul… Thorns of persecution for being “fools” don’t matter…

Others may see nothing – we see with our faith…

Others may see a fool – we see Salvation…

We know salvation…

Trust and you will know nothing else.

It is wise to be a fool for Christ.

Amen

---

 

Paul writes in Corinthians 4:

He will bring to light what is hidden in darkness and will expose the motives of the heart. At that time each will receive their praise from God.

Already you have all you want! Already you have become rich!

We are fools for Christ, but you are so wise in Christ!

731

JESUS is Proof – We are Not to Tarnish, 25Aug

I pieced this together few days ago thinking about my Dad’s love of coins – and read Michael Card’s commentary on the women at the tomb Easter morning…

Anyone called into His service becomes Proof of Him shining thru us.

Risen Jesus is the Proof.

We think of a proof coin as untarnished and pure, and oh so shiny!!!! Then what about us? We are coined in His image – are we as shiny? pure?

As humans we easily forget how amazing it is to be called by God for His service – and we begin to tarnish, like silver, become dull with our shine, in need of help…

As we enter the world, the messy world, our Proof coins get opened we become handled coins, sometimes scuffed up, sometimes lost, sometimes found… Our human ways can beget human flaws…

But the shine is still there. It really does simply need shining and it just really needs elbow grease…  Elbow grease means we put in the work to share the Word.

If we forget that our blessings are for His service, then we become dull… Is there proof of love in everything we do? – all my work, all my education, all my fun stuff, all my singing, all my friends, all my amazing adventures, all my life adventures – everything – all my “I happened to be in the right place at the right time”?

The truth is the right time came before the right place, before I even came to be – because the right timing for me – for us – for Him is HIS time…. and now we must parlay that into HIS SERVICE. His time to shine thru our service.

To make a difference in the world, we have to be out in the world and SHINE HIS LOVE. There is nothing compared to seeing the evidence proof, witness of TODAY’S Jesus… The women who entered the tomb witnessed the evidence for a risen Christ – but it was not proof until they saw HIM. We have God’s love in us, but we are not proof of the Risen Christ until we shine it.

God made us in His image – Jesus looks like us… We look like Jesus and we can be like Jesus and therefore we have the ability to be Proof of His Love.

730

A HEAD OF MY ENEMY, 24AUG

I’m glad to set this devotion down, out of my head. Because I have been thinking about it for weeks…

It is related to a favorite praise song – Defender.

The Defender lyrics speak of God knowing what is best for us and speak about Him going to win our war before we even know He’s gone.

And the lyrics talk about him bringing us the head of our enemy…. So, before you say that is archaic and grotesque and awful, or even if it is figurative – let me tell you my take on it – YES, God will bring you a head of your enemy because most of the time your enemy is your own HEAD. A HEAD of my enemy is me getting AHEAD of myself…

A HEAD of my enemy is me getting AHEAD of myself… 

I do it all the time, I get ahead of myself!!!!

I over think things and I think of things that I should just give up to God.

I need to pray to focus on the Holy Spirit to move me and even keep me still… We all need to focus on the fulfillment of the Holy Spirit’s needs, not ours. I have to stop running to catch up.

I have to be still enough to be caught…

A great sermon reminder this past week was: “what if you are asking for a specific thing but God wants to give you something EVEN BIGGER?”… Therefore, give up your own agenda and let the Lord bring you what He knows you need and He will bless you even more …

Yes…

Defender – You go before I know –

The lyrics ring so very very true and also are telling of the old testament story of Jehoshaphat – God went ahead of him, won His war. Jehoshaphat was told to send out praise singers ahead…  To let God fight your battles and win THE war also rings true for the story of Deborah of the book of Judges, as she told Barak that God had already done the work, all he had to do was fulfill his duty – be the Lord’s…

Us too…

Be the Lords…

Amen

---

Defender

https://youtu.be/F9cSRFt42iQ

You go before I know

That You’ve gone to win my war

You come back with the head of my enemy

You come back and You call it my victory

—

You go before I know

That You’ve gone to win my war

Your love becomes my greatest defense

It leads me from the dry wilderness

 —

All I did was praise

All I did was worship

All I did was bow down

All I did was stay still

—

Hallelujah, You have saved me

So much better Your way

Hallelujah, great Defender

So much better Your way

—

You know before I do

Where my heart can seek to find Your truth

Your mercy is the shade I’m living in

You restore my faith and hope again

—

All I did was praise

All I did was worship

All I did was bow down

All I did was stay still

—

Hallelujah, You have saved me

So much better this way

Hallelujah, great Defender

So much better this way

Hallelujah, You have saved me

So much better Your way

Hallelujah, great Defender

So much better Your way

—

When I thought I lost me

You knew where I left me

You reintroduced me to Your love

You picked up all my pieces

Put me back together

You are the defender of my heart

—

When I thought I lost me

You knew where I left me

You reintroduced me to Your love

You picked up all my pieces

Put me back together

You are the defender of my heart

—

Hallelujah, You have saved me

So much better this way

Hallelujah, great Defender

So much better Your way

Hallelujah, You have saved me

So much better this way

Hallelujah, great Defender

So much better Your way

—

All I did was praise

All I need to do is worship

Lord I will just bow down

I’m just gonna stay still

729

Blue papers, 18AUG

Well at church today we had a powerful service with a call to prayer for 50 days and fasting for 21…  I have lots of things that I could fast from – food and other – we were given blue strips of papers to think about what is on OUR AGENDA vs GOD’S AGENDA – but I didn’t have a blue paper, so I just stuck my nametag up in the pile at the end of prayer at the rail – I gave up my nametag – the Lord knows my name and I probably was vainly wearing it anyway to want people to know me….  And besides, I struggled with it during the service as it kept coming off getting stuck in my long hair while singing…  So I saw this calling to fasting as a good time to acknowledge a prideful desire to be known in my new church is that PRIDEFULNESS that I should just give up to the Lord – and as for meeting people, guess what? the Lord is handling me meeting new people PLENTY FINE  – He always does…

I have been so blessed to be welcomed into that church with a wall of friendliness just like the wall of voices that hit me when we started singing… wow those people sing!!! I am the newest member of the band – I fit in as if God had that in mind, hmmmm…

Why? Why give up my agenda? Why am I called to be in a band? To raise my voice in praise? To make disciples – that is the paramount reason to be in a church and out from a church – to make disciples. This congregation’s taglines are “to know God, to make Him known, to live the Abundant Life, and to be an authentic Christian community” – all to make new disciples. People forget our existence is to help new folks follow the Lord – church is not about the music or the munchies – not about what you get out of the service but what you put into the worship – it is for us to find the direction and strength and gain ideas to GET THE WORD OUT – it is for us to get spiritual feeding and then go out and feed – “BE THE CHURCH” as my previous pastor “PJ” used to say – meaning to go out from the doors and work thru the Holy Spirit thru the Great Commission make new disciples for the Kingdom!!!

If you want to work on the Great Commission then you have to figure out how – what skills – and where – ACTUALLY YOU DON’T HAVE TO FIGURE THAT OUT – JUST ASK GOD – HE ALREADY KNOWS YOUR SKILLS – YOU DON’T GET UNLESS YOU ASK!

Blue papers or not, I personally should give up lots of things – but what really zapped me well in this sermon was the fasting for boldness – for exercising demons out – Matthew 17 – for having faith – that is powerful fasting for a certain reason – “Because your faith is much too small. What I’m about to tell you is true. If you have faith as small as a mustard seed, it is enough. You can say to this mountain, ‘Move from here to there.’ And it will move. Nothing will be impossible for you.”

A month of prayer couldn’t come at a better time!!!

A month of fasting? well – as for food – it is time to get myself back into better shape – better health – I pray to increase the chances of God moving my mountain by moving myself first – that is a good mountain to move!

OK – I am ready to start the book of Acts… from the first verses it looks like a good read! I hope we can journey together if I “get my Acts” together LOL…

---

Jesus Taken Up Into Heaven

1 In my former book, Theophilus, I wrote about all that Jesus began to do and to teach ² until the day he was taken up to heaven, after giving instructions through the Holy Spirit to the apostles he had chosen.³ After his suffering, he presented himself to them and gave many convincing proofs that he was alive. He appeared to them over a period of forty days and spoke about the kingdom of God. ⁴ On one occasion, while he was eating with them, he gave them this command: “Do not leave Jerusalem, but wait for the gift my Father promised, which you have heard me speak about. ⁵ For John baptized with water, but in a few days you will be baptized with^[b] the Holy Spirit.”

⁶ Then they gathered around him and asked him, “Lord, are you at this time going to restore the kingdom to Israel?”

⁷ He said to them: “It is not for you to know the times or dates the Father has set by his own authority. ⁸ But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you; and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.”

⁹ After he said this, he was taken up before their very eyes, and a cloud hid him from their sight.

¹⁰ They were looking intently up into the sky as he was going, when suddenly two men dressed in white stood beside them. ¹¹ “Men of Galilee,” they said, “why do you stand here looking into the sky? This same Jesus, who has been taken from you into heaven, will come back in the same way you have seen him go into heaven.”

---

Note – I am now only 6 weeks behind posting – this post was 6 weeks ago and I am pleased that the Lord broke my fast by making me write – I also have been catching up backlogs – AND praying – AND seeing differences in both the boldness that I am praying for AND I have lost weight – yeah – my fast from excessive carbs was perfect timing and not only did I get encouragement from my church band family, I got a plan. Not only did I get a plan, I got purpose once again from the Lord – and He is moving the mountain that is me – in 6 weeks low carb I have lost some weight, noticeably…  My prayer is to tell people that indeed God is alive – and He has tremendous strength to impart to each of us… All you have to do is be OPEN to His plan. Amen!

728

Our Shepherds Feed, We Sheep are Loved, 17AUG

I’m in the book of Ezekiel these days – He is a prophet – I had never read it until now but wow, it is chuck full of teaching and prophecy and correction and direction for the wandering people of Israel and for us…

In summary, the book, like the whole bible, tells the story of how God loves us, restores our path, brings us (collectively the whole world) once again to WHOLENESS thru our Messiah, Jesus, and we will complete our journeys with Him into a new place called: “THE LORD IS THERE”…

I haven’t read it all, it’s a lot… but a blessed gift of 2 videos help cover the whole book:

https://youtu.be/R-CIPu1nko8

https://youtu.be/SDeCWW_Bnyw

Specifically reading Ezekiel 34, we are reminded that GOD LOVES US…  Ezekiel warns shepherds that they must take care of their flock… that rulers, who are supposed to be shepherds, will be judged for how they take care of their sheep over themselves…

…and it reminds the sheep, us as sheep, that they will be sought out by God – we will be searched out – both the lean sheep and those who are over-indulgers – GOD WILL FIND US – God will lovingly hunt us down for correction AND compassion (Psalm 139 style). He is our Shepherd.

‘For thus says the Lord God: “Indeed I Myself will search for My sheep and seek them out. 

“You are My flock, the flock of My pasture; you are men, and I am your God,” says the Lord God.

THANK GOD!!!!

---

Psalm 139 (NIV)

For the director of music. Of David. A psalm.

1 You have searched me, Lord,

and you know me.

2 You know when I sit and when I rise;

you perceive my thoughts from afar.

3 You discern my going out and my lying down;

you are familiar with all my ways.

4 Before a word is on my tongue

you, Lord, know it completely.

5 You hem me in behind and before,

and you lay your hand upon me.

6 Such knowledge is too wonderful for me, too lofty for me to attain.

7 Where can I go from your Spirit?

Where can I flee from your presence?

8 If I go up to the heavens, you are there;

if I make my bed in the depths, you are there.

9 If I rise on the wings of the dawn,

if I settle on the far side of the sea,

10 even there your hand will guide me,

your right hand will hold me fast.

11 If I say, “Surely the darkness will hide me and the light become night around me,”

12 even the darkness will not be dark to you; the night will shine like the day, for darkness is as light to you.

13 For you created my inmost being; you knit me together in my mother’s womb.

14 I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made; your works are wonderful,  I know that full well.

15 My frame was not hidden from you when I was made in the secret place, when I was woven together in the depths of the earth.

16 Your eyes saw my unformed body; all the days ordained for me were written in your book before one of them came to be.

17 How precious to me are your thoughts, God!  How vast is the sum of them!

18 Were I to count them,  they would outnumber the grains of sand — when I awake, I am still with you.

---

Ezekiel 34  (NKJV)

Irresponsible Shepherds

34 And the word of the Lord came to me, saying, 2 “Son of man, prophesy against the shepherds of Israel, prophesy and say to them, ‘Thus says the Lord God to the shepherds: “Woe to the shepherds of Israel who feed themselves! Should not the shepherds feed the flocks? 3 You eat the fat and clothe yourselves with the wool; you slaughter the fatlings, but you do not feed the flock. 4 The weak you have not strengthened, nor have you healed those who were sick, nor bound up the broken, nor brought back what was driven away, nor sought what was lost; but with force and cruelty you have ruled them. 5 So they were scattered because there was no shepherd; and they became food for all the beasts of the field when they were scattered. 6 My sheep wandered through all the mountains, and on every high hill; yes, My flock was scattered over the whole face of the earth, and no one was seeking or searching for them.”

7 ‘Therefore, you shepherds, hear the word of the Lord: 8 “As I live,” says the Lord God, “surely because My flock became a prey, and My flock became food for every beast of the field, because there was no shepherd, nor did My shepherds search for My flock, but the shepherds fed themselves and did not feed My flock”— 9 therefore, O shepherds, hear the word of the Lord! 10 Thus says the Lord God: “Behold, I am against the shepherds, and I will require My flock at their hand; I will cause them to cease feeding the sheep, and the shepherds shall feed themselves no more; for I will deliver My flock from their mouths, that they may no longer be food for them.”

God, the True Shepherd

11 ‘For thus says the Lord God: “Indeed I Myself will search for My sheep and seek them out. 12 As a shepherd seeks out his flock on the day he is among his scattered sheep, so will I seek out My sheep and deliver them from all the places where they were scattered on a cloudy and dark day. 13 And I will bring them out from the peoples and gather them from the countries, and will bring them to their own land; I will feed them on the mountains of Israel, in the valleys and in all the inhabited places of the country. 14 I will feed them in good pasture, and their fold shall be on the high mountains of Israel. There they shall lie down in a good fold and feed in rich pasture on the mountains of Israel. 15 I will feed My flock, and I will make them lie down,” says the Lord God. 16 “I will seek what was lost and bring back what was driven away, bind up the broken and strengthen what was sick; but I will destroy the fat and the strong, and feed them in judgment.”

17 ‘And as for you, O My flock, thus says the Lord God: “Behold, I shall judge between sheep and sheep, between rams and goats. 18 Is it too little for you to have eaten up the good pasture, that you must tread down with your feet the residue of your pasture—and to have drunk of the clear waters, that you must foul the residue with your feet? 19 And as for My flock, they eat what you have trampled with your feet, and they drink what you have fouled with your feet.”

20 ‘Therefore thus says the Lord God to them: “Behold, I Myself will judge between the fat and the lean sheep. 21 Because you have pushed with side and shoulder, butted all the weak ones with your horns, and scattered them abroad, 22 therefore I will save My flock, and they shall no longer be a prey; and I will judge between sheep and sheep. 23 I will establish one shepherd over them, and he shall feed them—My servant David. He shall feed them and be their shepherd. 24 And I, the Lord, will be their God, and My servant David a prince among them; I, the Lord, have spoken.

25 “I will make a covenant of peace with them, and cause wild beasts to cease from the land; and they will dwell safely in the wilderness and sleep in the woods. 26 I will make them and the places all around My hill a blessing; and I will cause showers to come down in their season; there shall be showers of blessing. 27 Then the trees of the field shall yield their fruit, and the earth shall yield her increase. They shall be safe in their land; and they shall know that I am the Lord, when I have broken the bands of their yoke and delivered them from the hand of those who enslaved them. 28 And they shall no longer be a prey for the nations, nor shall beasts of the land devour them; but they shall dwell safely, and no one shall make them afraid. 29 I will raise up for them a garden of renown, and they shall no longer be consumed with hunger in the land, nor bear the shame of the Gentiles anymore. 30 Thus they shall know that I, the Lord their God, am with them, and they, the house of Israel, are My people,” says the Lord God.’

31 “You are My flock, the flock of My pasture; you are men, and I am your God,” says the Lord God.

 

727

God’s Peace Transcends All Understanding, 14Aug

“Rejoice in the Lord always. I will say it again: Rejoice! Let your gentleness be evident to all. The Lord is near. Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.” (Philippians 4)

We cannot comprehend the Lord’s peace completely but we surely can experience it… we often ask for worldly things and experiences and yet Jesus is much better… Peace beyond understanding, is anything more valuable than that?… We are directed to ask (and it is achievable to receive) the highest level of peace by attempting to be the most humble and letting the Lord take over. Letting God take control. Yes, this is hard to give up loyalty to the world – to think that we have it all together – to think that our plans are better than His – yet He knows better when we don’t – GRACE is the gift to get us back on track – Grace gives us back to God. Jesus ransomed us so that we will return to peace…

Peace beyond understanding is better than the world…

I’d rather have Jesus than silver or gold.

I’d rather have Jesus than riches untold. 

“You don’t have what you want because you don’t ask God for it.  And even when you ask, you don’t get it because your motives are all wrong—you want only what will give you pleasure.” (James 4)

I’d rather have Jesus than men’s applause. 

I’d rather be faithful to His dear cause.  

“They say that God is passionate that the spirit he has placed within us should be faithful to him. And he gives grace generously. As the Scriptures say, “God opposes the proud but gives grace to the humble.” So humble yourselves before God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you. Come close to God, and God will come close to you. Wash your hands, you sinners; purify your hearts, for your loyalty is divided between God and the world.  Humble yourselves before the Lord, and he will lift you up in honor.” (James 4)

He’s fairer than lilies of rarest bloom.

He’s sweeter than honey from out the comb.

It is only by the Spirit that we call out to the Spirit – Grace is looking for us so that we may continue to serve God. God’s love is immeasurable – His peace is beyond understanding. Grace is forgiveness.

Forgiveness is a way forward for God…

Forever is the journey and the destination…

Peace is God’s plan – for Him – for you – for Him.

Amen

—–

I’d Rather Have Jesus

George Beverly Shea  https://youtu.be/oHg-o2eGzM4

Selah

I’d rather have Jesus than silver or gold.

I’d rather be His than have riches untold.

I’d rather have Jesus than houses or land.

I’d rather be led by His nail-pierced hand.

 —

Than to be the king of a vast domain 

or be held in sins dread sway.

I’d rather have Jesus than anything

This world affords today.

 —

I’d rather have Jesus than men’s applause.

I’d rather be faithful to His dear cause.

I’d rather have Jesus than worldwide fame.

I’d rather be true to His holy name.

 —

Than to be the king of a vast domain 

or be held in sins dread sway.

I’d rather have Jesus than anything

This world affords today. 

 —

He’s fairer than lilies of rarest bloom.

He’s sweeter than honey from out the comb.

He’s all that my hungering spirit needs.

I’d rather have Jesus and let Him lead, 

 —

Than to be the king of a vast domain or be held in sins dread sway.

I’d rather have Jesus than anything 

This world affords today.

726

Thank you God, for Red Letters, Spirit and Truth, 12AUG

I woke up singing: “Thank you God, for Red Letters – and the ground began to shake” in my head, the verse by Crowder, which I sang yesterday in church. This resonates so clearly today as well – our Spirit loves to sing praises – that is the truth – the spirit and the truth – “Thank you God for Red Letters” – the speaking words of Jesus…

I can feel the ground shake. I can because it did. It shook under me and shook apart my pride and self-centeredness, that is why God works so hard to shake the faulty ground that we stand on in each of us… We must worship in Spirit and Truth.

At fellowship and refreshment time, I discussed this Red Letters song with 4 kind souls – 4 kingdom women. We liked the song but we didn’t know what the color red in the Red Letters reference was all about. We thought it was the blood of Jesus – or the sign above His cross, turns out the song artist meant the RED WORDS in a special bible he saw at his grandmother’s church – the “Red Bible” – indicating the speaking words of Jesus to standout and change hearts. By asking my question, I learned. If we ask the Lord questions, He will gush living water responses to us and thru us…

Jesus is the strong living water to wear our mountains down into sculpted servants, called to go out to the fields to harvest for the Kingdom. Singing is a great way that the Lord can puts words of Spirit in our hearts… The spirit wants to be known. Our singing carries us out into the fields of harvest, ready to work.

Jesus told the Samaritan woman that we are to worship in Spirit and in Truth…. The Samaritan Woman left her water flasks and picked up Kingdom water instead. She became the conduit to intrigue others with her witness so that they would ask their own questions. Jesus visited with them all – as He was there to do “the work of the one who sent me”. So are we. God directs the flow of our witness. What can be way more powerful than a general gush of faith is God’s channeled focused movement of Living Water – Word and Witness and Winning Hearts. God wants to pump witness water into His Kingdom… He does…

Worshiping in Spirit and Truth, that’s where we worship best, and that causes us to share…. the scriptures of the Words of Jesus will be the only thing that will change hearts… we are but directed channels of His Word.

Thank you God for Red Letters.

Thank you Lord for moving the mountain of me.

Thank you God for Spirit and Truth.

Thank you Lord for doing the work – and now for sending us into YOUR Harvest.

Amen

(PS The Lord is so faithful to allow me to stand and sing WITHOUT screaming at the top of my lungs like that Samaritan woman running up and down the street, telling everyone that she met the promised Messiah, because I still have that scream inside of me… ONLY God understands the intensity of our internal conversation screams… OUR reverberations of His Spirit surely shake us, shake our ground. And like the Samaritan people – they had to see and hear Jesus for themselves – so do we – we need to hear those red letters and feel the shake)

---

John 4

The woman said to Him, “I know that Messiah is coming” (who is called Christ). “When He comes, He will tell us all things.”

²⁶ Jesus said to her, “I who speak to you am He.”

The Whitened Harvest

²⁷ And at this point His disciples came, and they marveled that He talked with a woman; yet no one said, “What do You seek?” or, “Why are You talking with her?”

²⁸ The woman then left her waterpot, went her way into the city, and said to the men, ²⁹ “Come, see a Man who told me all things that I ever did. Could this be the Christ?” ³⁰ Then they went out of the city and came to Him.

³¹ In the meantime His disciples urged Him, saying, “Rabbi, eat.”

³² But He said to them, “I have food to eat of which you do not know.”

³³ Therefore the disciples said to one another, “Has anyone brought Him anything to eat?”

³⁴ Jesus said to them, “My food is to do the will of Him who sent Me, and to finish His work. ³⁵ Do you not say, ‘There are still four months and then comes the harvest’? Behold, I say to you, lift up your eyes and look at the fields, for they are already white for harvest! ³⁶ And he who reaps receives wages, and gathers fruit for eternal life, that both he who sows and he who reaps may rejoice together. ³⁷ For in this the saying is true: ‘One sows and another reaps.’ ³⁸ I sent you to reap that for which you have not labored; others have labored, and you have entered into their labors.”

The Savior of the World

³⁹ And many of the Samaritans of that city believed in Him because of the word of the woman who testified, “He told me all that I ever did.” ⁴⁰ So when the Samaritans had come to Him, they urged Him to stay with them; and He stayed there two days. ⁴¹ And many more believed because of His own word.

⁴² Then they said to the woman, “Now we believe, not because of what you said, for we ourselves have heard Him and we know that this is indeed the Christ, the Savior of the world.”