You, O Lord see the hearts of men. They deceive themselves because their hearts are sick and desperately wicked. You alone search the heart and mind. Men are in need of your loving touch yet in their ignorance they are like blind and deaf men and they cannot see the evidence of their sin. They worship idols that they make from wood and stone, hammered in the ground so they do not move! They seek rain from them but from You alone Lord does the rain come. They deny the words I speak warning them of impending danger. They deny the words written in Your book of the Law.

BUT, for the remnant whose hearts truly desire to know; You will reveal Your love and salvation. Then they will say with me “Your Word! I found it! I devoured it as I would a slice of the sweetest bread of heaven! Your word is my joy, my delight.” The tree planted by the streams of water brings forth blooms as they push down their roots and drink of Your living water. They are the ones that will grow strong, vibrant and produce fruits that are everlasting.

Where are you planted? Is the word of God your delight and joy! Share these truths with someone today!

In Isaiah we meet the Almighty God and his servant Isaiah. God speaks to him saying; As God, I allow men to find Me for I desire to act on their behalf. I send my Holy Spirit to seek them, find them, and then as they receive My word--indwell them. I remind them I will never leave them nor forsake them. My eyes rove to and fro throughout the earth seeking those who are humble and contrite of spirit and who tremble at My word. These are the ones I seek and on their behalf I offer My response. Heaven is where I dwell and where I sit upon My throne. The earth is my footstool. I have created it all for those who bow the knee to Me. I send the rain upon the just and the unjust so that they may be without excuse that they never knew Me. I will send more so that those who remain that have not heard will hear. How can they hear without someone preaching to them? I will send them as My herald to proclaim the good news of My kingdom.

Precious Father, Lord God Almighty, Precious Savior Redeemer, Precious Illuminating Holy Spirit, how humbling to know that You have chosen to allow me

to come into your presence and to know you. Keep my heart humble. Keep my priorities aright. Keep me close to your heart so I can hear your footsteps and hear your word proclaiming your everlasting lovingkindness an compassion.

From sunrise to sunset ponder these questions:
How does one nurture and develop their sense of spiritual mindset and vision for the current day and beyond?

Does what we do make a difference in our daily walk with God?

That is a daily question we all should ask. I wonder what the answer would be if we could stop and ponder that for a bit each day. What is your spiritual vision today? How would you answer this?

Here's a couple of thoughts to get you started:

NASB 119:15 I will meditate on Your precepts And regard Your ways.
NET Psa 63:6 whenever I remember you on my bed, and think about you during the nighttime hours.

Beauty in the Barrenness

Often the barrenness of our landscape is seen as without merit. But, as you ponder it there is a beauty that can be seen beyond its starkness and you begin to have a view of what our Lord faced for 40 days. It is a beauty of God’s handiwork in that it reflects only what is needed to sustain life for the creatures He has placed there. Each one is perfectly crafted to live in this environment with tough outer skins, special eyelids that keep out the dust and foreign intruders. Their feet are molded to walk on hot dry portions of the desert without being scorched. They can climb the barren rocks and hide in crevices where our peering eyes cannot see them. They gather liquids from the plants that grow and are nourished with the minimal rains that they store until replenished once again from the vital but infrequent rainfalls. It was in this environment Jesus fasted, prayed and was tested by the enemy and came forth as “gold refined in the fire”. He spent time with the creatures of His handiwork and was blessed by their presence. Is this how we see our barrenness? Do we see it as a marvelous introduction to all that God created and see it as “good”? Or do we sit in our barrenness, be it spiritual or physical, and only see the mirages of water and refreshment? Walk with Jesus in the barrenness and meditate with Him on this beauty where life is quiet and without earthly intrusions. Allow Jesus to walk with you and teach you His truth about Himself, His creation, His plans for you and His love for you. The enemy may come as your intruder into this blessed place but with a Word you can send him into the crevices of darkness away from your eyes and away from your heart. God allows the enemy of temptation, so that you may as Jesus, cling to Him and seek your refreshment from Him. He wants to teach you what can only be taught in the times of barrenness. Will you allow Him this privilege?

Photo from R. Inskip on US journey across America...Arizona

Today my Bible students and I waded through...yes waded through Gen 23. It is interesting that few commentators have dealt with this chapter and yet if one mines the truths herein there is a wealth of information that is not only intriguing but also worthwhile.

Within this chapter we learn of the death of Sarah. Trivia question: who is the only woman whose death is recorded? You are right if you said Sarah! Who is the only woman whose age is recorded? If you said Sarah you are right again! How about her place of burial? Sarah again. And what woman in the Bible is the only one whose name was changed? Yes, Sarah again. Sarah must have been pretty important for us to glean these points about her life. We might also add that Sarah is the only woman to have birthed a child after the age of 90+.

But in this chapter only 3 verses deal with the death of Sarah. The rest of the chapter is about the burial bargain Abraham struck with Ephron the son of Zophar which ended up being the most costly cemetery plot in all of biblical history. Note limited to biblical history! Many cemetery plots have cost more in dollars and cents but this one cost more than any other plot of ground in the entire Bible. In fact, Abraham ended up paying 400 shekels of silver for a cave, a field, the trees in the field and the boundary line. In addition, he also had to pay the taxes on this property from this time onward. In sharp contrast King David spent only 50 shekels of silver for the land belonging to Araunah for the plot of land that would house the Temple. Jeremiah only spent 7 shekels of silver for his plot of ground.


So what is the significance of this story in the Bible? First it shows that purchasing of a cemetery plot is vital to mark the site of a death. Secondly, where the plot is located is irrelevant to us but to Abraham it demonstrated that he had "moved on" from Haran to Canaan and trusted God for the future. Thirdly, family plots are not a new thing and in fact this is the first family plot and the first place that the word grave is used in the Bible. In this family plot not only would Sarah be buried but also Abraham, Isaac, Rebekah, Jacob and Leah. Jacob's first love, Rachel would be buried in Bethlehem and her son Joseph would be buried in Shechem and our Savior in Jerusalem. Fourthly, Abraham knew that he needed to own a burial plot not borrow it. Jesus was laid in a borrowed tomb but He needed it only for 3 days. Abraham needed a grave for posterity! To take it as a gift from Ephron meant that he now owed him something in return or if he borrowed a grave from another it would have to be returned. Fifthly, if Abraham only owned the cave and Ephron's field was sold to another the entrance then might be restricted thus cutting off a family inheritance's entrance. And lastly and most importantly, Abraham's purchase revealed his faith in the Promises that God gave him about the land being a gift from God to his descendants.

So what questions are we to ask based upon this story? First have you planned for your death and/or do you plan like Abraham to wait for death of your loved one to occur? The story is told of a man who had two cemetery plots, one on the east coast and one on the west coast. The man's son seeing that the end was near asked his father which grave he would like for his son's to choose. The man answered: surprise me. Is that your choice?

Are you prepared as Abraham to purchase a plot for a high price or will you go to the bargain basement for your loved one?
Important questions to consider.

Trivia point: King Herod erected an edifice over the Cave of Machpelah to protect it. Today the Palestinians control this edifice. They have set up centopahs for each of the deceased in the cave but have closed off the cave. The centopah's are memorials draped in green cloths which are embroidered in gold.One wonders what Abraham would have said to all of this "show". We know he is not there as recorded in Luke 16 where the rich man speaks to him across the chasm and now in the presence of the God he love having been taken there when Jesus took the saints from Paradise to Heaven!

God has a secret place; a place in which He hides me. It is called the cleft of the rock and His shadow covers me as He passes by. When I am in that secret place as His child I can be sure that my prayers are heard by Him for He is my avid listener. As I wait in the secret place my heart grows fonder for I know that He is nearby. It is here that I find I can seek forgiveness and ponder His character. It is here hidden from the world that I can hear Him say “I am compassionate and my love is steadfast in my lovingkindness”. In this secret place I can hear His Voice which is powerful and majestic like a rushing mighty waterfall. It is here that I can sing, praise and give Him thanks for His eye is upon me. This is my place of refuge when in a moment my life can come tumbling down. It is here that I cry “Abba Father.” What is my secret place? It is my place of prayer and adoration, confession and thanksgiving where I can be transparent and vulnerable and away from the probing eyes of others and the noise of the world. I can pour out my musings and my inner heart thoughts. I love my secret place...in my prayer chair where I meet God each day. Where is your secret place?

What Mask Are You Wearing Today?

There is a saying “know thyself”. Interestingly David did not quite agree with that statement as he wrote: Psa 139:23 Examine me, and probe my thoughts! Test me, and know my concerns! Only God knows us and we fool ourselves before we fool anyone except God alone. We fool ourselves because our heart is desperately wicked: Jer 17:9 "The heart is more deceitful than all else.." But, God has a way of bringing home His revealed pearls of wisdom and although we would rather keep those pearls hidden in our oyster of protection, He opens it and drops in a grain of sand to show us the falseness of what we think and how we act. He is gracious to reveal it in glaring color so that we may be “taught, reproved, corrected and/or trained in righteousness" to be more Christ-like.

There are two stories that are similar in length, ideas, and patterns and from those we see how this truth of 2Tim 3:16 is so very true. Analysis shows us two very similar families with two brothers under the same roof. The first set of sons in the OT are about 15 yrs apart in age. The age of the set of sons in the NT is not revealed. Age is really irrelevant in either story. What is relevant is the outcome, the unrevealed and then revealed behaviors with similar reactions. What is also intriguing is what triggered that same reaction.

In Gen 21 we meet the two boys who have the same father, but different mothers. The parentage again is irrelevant to the outcome but God has given us that nugget of information to reveal to us that one was called the son of the flesh and the other the son of promise. We know very little of the first 15 yrs of the oldest son’s life other than he was the son of a man of God and a Egyptian handmaid. We also know that this son was born when the man of God was very old and his first wife was barren. A third detail is that he was circumcised at age 13. Since he was the son of a later life we can make some assumptions: he was pampered and was the delight of his father’s life. Enter into the equation a son of promise that the man of God had clearly heard spoken of in conversations between he and God and yet had not yet been revealed. He enters the scene at approximately 15 yrs after the first son’s birth. Move ahead approximately 3 yrs when the second son is weaned and a huge celebration is held in his honor. Now the pampered first son reveals what perhaps had been hidden due to the sole attention he had received prior. He begins to mock and ridicule the little one. In fact the mocking was serious enough to gather the attention of God who spoke to the man of God and said listen to your first wife and send the son away. And without a word, the man of God obeys.

Fast forward to the NT and we see a similar situation in a home of a doting father and two sons. The one is a rebel and he insists on his inheritance early and he leaves the home and wanders the world, squandering his inheritance until none is left. The second son has remained at home, obediently tending the farm day after day. But, one day the “rebel” appears on the scene as a rag-a-muffin, dirty, unshaven, and hungry. The father seeing him afar off runs and draws him into an embrace. Next we see the father planning a huge celebration. As the older son returns from the field he hears music and asks a servant: what is going on? The servant reveals that his brother has returned and the father has planned a huge celebration. Now we see the true character revealed as he angrily speaks to his father: Look! These many years I have worked like a slave for you, and I never disobeyed your commands. Yet you never gave me even a goat so that I could celebrate with my friends! But when this son of yours came back, who has devoured your assets with prostitutes, you killed the fattened calf for him!’ Luke 15:29

What do we see in each of these older brothers? Both had been submissive to their parents, had been obedient and had received the sole attention of the father while the other son was not a part of the family scene. But, when the second son arrives and receives attention the pampered son reveals what was truly in his heart: jealousy, anger and selfishness.

What do these two stories have to teach us? First we all have that carnal nature within and we cover it with a false façade. But, when attention is given to another when we feel it should be given to us, our false façade falls away and reveals what is truly within us. James tells us the fruit of jealousy: Jam 3:16 "For where there is jealousy and selfishness, there is disorder and every evil practice." May we beware of the sin of jealousy and learn from these stories so that we do not fall victim as these two brothers did. Where today have you felt the spark of jealousy in your heart? Slay the enemy of jealousy so that there is peace and harmony.

A Love Letter's Signature

[Lev 26-27] A Love Letter’s Signature:
We all have received letters signed with a dramatic signature and flowing script;

With All My Love, _______.

The book of Leviticus is a love letter from the Father to His children. He has bestowed upon them His privileged love, His private land collection, His wealth, His possessions and more. As we read this we are struck by His reminder of “I am the Lord your God who brought you out of Egypt, out of bondage”. Over and over He has told the Israelites of this fact so that by now it is imprinted upon their mind. They have heard it and heard it and heard it until they sleep hearing it, eat hearing it, walk hearing it, work hearing it. One would think that by now they would be saying it along with God…but wait…Numbers is but ahead as is Judges, the Kings and Chronicles. All present a history of the children who heard yet chose to reject.

Today as I walked into the Assisted Living place to teach my precious senior saints whom I have grown to love deeply, as my passionate love letters, I looked for one in particular. Not finding him I went looking for him. I asked him if he was coming only to hear once again, “I don’t think so”. He has heard the gospel over and over, he has seen and felt my love for him and yet to my grief he has chosen to not have any interest in spiritual matters. My heart, like God’s, is heavy. He has seen the blessings that God has poured out upon him just as God said “I send the rain upon the just and the unjust”. Why? Because He is not willing that any should perish. That is why He sent his son, His only son. The tears are heavy on my eyelids as I am sure they are on God’s.

Chapter 26 is God’s farewell letter of His instructions to the children of Israel. It is His signature of His thoughts to them. It is His way of saying, I have done all I could to, I have told you all I could tell you, now it is up to you to choose. If there was ever a clear cut conclusion to a “letter” or to a “book” this is it. As we have been reading each day through God's Love Letter of Leviticus we have been told that we are to be holy as He is holy and now God says without holiness there will be the consequences.

Are we listening? Or are we like the Israelites who are there living in the Presence of the Most Holy God and yet becoming dull of hearing? Where are you today? It is my prayer that this verse describes you.

1Cor 3:2-3 You yourselves are our letter, written on our hearts, known and read by everyone, revealing that you are a letter of Christ, delivered by us, written not with ink but by the Spirit of the living God, not on stone tablets but on tablets of human hearts.

Service with a capital "P".

Feb 21 [Lev 24-25] Throughout the book of Leviticus we have been confronted with these words “thou shall be holy as I am holy”. Holiness should be our ongoing view towards our destiny Heb 12:14 Pursue peace with everyone, and holiness, for without it no one will see the Lord.
As Aaron and his sons worked inside the Tabernacle they were brought face to face with the visual reminder of their need for purity and holiness in the private areas where they tended the lampstand, the incense altar, and the table of shewbread as well as themselves. Outside, the people, who never saw this area, knew that by providing the pure beaten olive oil and the loaves of unleavened bread, they were demonstrating their understanding of the pre-eminence of the Holiness of God and the position of Aaron and his sons. They were charged with these tasks that they may participate in the purity and holiness surrounding the Tabernacle where the Presence of the Lord God dwelled.
Centuries later Malachi, as God’s prophet, called the people to account for forgetting not only their act of service but also their disdain of the sacrificial system. Thus they had lost sight of their destiny! They questioned its purpose, its plan, and its provision. They did not understand their position as a people holy to the Lord God, chosen to be his people, prized above all others on the face of the earth. (Deut 14) Instead, Malachi charged them for their faithlessness by treating the table of the Lord as if it is of no importance.
How quickly we lose sight of our part in the service for the King of Kings and as Malachi notes we are saying: ‘How tiresome it is.’ or, ‘It is useless to serve God. How have we been helped by keeping his requirements?”
OR are you of the group that recognizes this error, those who respect the Lord---these are the ones that the Lord notices and records their service in His scroll of remembrances.
How do you see the service you offer to your church, your pastor, your Sunday School teacher? Do you see it as an offering of beauty and purity or do you see it as a tiresome task? Do you see it as a sign that you are chosen by Him as His peculiar people? Can you recognize with Paul: that your labor is not in vain in the Lord?
Application: Today see your gift of beaten oil or your unleavened bread as your offering to the Lord to assist those in leadership that they may equip the saints for the work of ministry, that is, to build up the body of Christ, (Eph 4). See yourself as God’s chosen generation to carry forth His word. (Ps 78)

What part of "NO" do we not understand?

We hear today, “what part of NO do you not understand”. Jehovah asks “what part of defilement do you not understand?” In Lev 18 “You must not have sexual intercourse with a male as one has sexual intercourse with a woman; it is a detestable act”. In other words, homosexuality is not only wrong but it is detestable in the eyes of Jehovah. What we read in Lev 18 is spoken about in Romans “For their women exchanged the natural sexual relations for unnatural ones, and likewise the men also abandoned natural relations with women and were inflamed in their passions for one another. Men committed shameless acts with men...” Jehovah is reasoning, no He is commanding!!! His people and us in the 21st century. Lev 18:24-25 “‘Do not defile yourselves with any of these things, for the nations which I am about to drive out before you have been defiled with all these things. Therefore, the land has become unclean and I have brought the punishment for its iniquity upon it, so that the land has vomited out its inhabitants.” Did you grab that? It is not only a detestable act but it defiles the person AND the land. In the NY Times there was an article titled “Gay Marriage, Passed, Awaits Veto by Christie” with a picture showing those in the Assembly rejoicing over the passage of the same sex marriage law. Excuse me! Paul wrote Eph 5:11-12 “Do not participate in the unfruitful deeds of darkness, but rather expose them. For the things they do in secret are shameful even to mention” and yet here we see that our governmental leaders who should be examples of godliness revealing that even though “they fully know God’s righteous decree …they not only do them but also approve of those who practice them.” In essence they are thumbing their noses at God and openly and flagrantly disobeying Him. End result? We are beginning to see the effects of this defilement in the people and now in the land. How much longer will God’s mercy be upon us? We need strong leaders around the world to stand against this mockery and defilement. We need to protect our next generation (Ps 78) or we will stand accountable because we refused to stand and proclaim His truth. Principle: We are to love the sinner but hate the sin. May we be bold today! Pray for our leaders! Pray for our nation! Pray for those who are blind to the truth!
A good article on the truth; http://bible.org/article/homosexuality-christian-perspective

Is instant gratification biblical?

Is instant gratification biblical? Lev 15 In this section God gives the prohibitions, the instructions for cleansing and the once again “separate but not equal rule” for those whose bodies have had a discharge. In the middle of this chapter we come across the discharge from a woman in particular with all of its drama of adding the “unclean, unclean” status. But, let’s put our focus on the woman in particular because Jesus meets such a woman in the gospels. This is a woman who, like the Samaritan woman at the well, is clearly revealed as one who faced the rejection and maybe even persecution from the physical and spiritual community.

She has each day to choose where she goes, with whom she interacts, the times she goes to the well to gather water for the washing, which has for twelve long years, not achieved the intended purpose. She feels their stares, their whispered words behind her back, and her feelings of abandonment. She has seen the Dr.’s now for 12 yrs who have sapped not only her energy but her bank account. She is perhaps homeless, family-less, friendless, and without hope. Her priest has declared her unfit for worship and this is the longing of her heart. She, like the Jews of WWII, wears a Yellow Star defining her as “unclean”, rejected, contaminated. She hears, like them, “Unclean Jew”. She is not only personally unclean, but all that she touches is considered unclean, and whoever comes in contact with her is contaminated.

In the midst of this she hears the rumor that that Jesus the healer has come to town. She hears the whispering women speaking of how just a touch will bring about an instant cure. Really? And so a plan is set into motion with covert actions, a plan to disguise her as a person, the hiding of the Yellow Star, a scarf to conceal her anonymity from the crowd and the Master. She quickly and with some effort, melds into the crowd searching for Him, pushing to gain a position by where she can just touch the hem of his garment. And then it all happens…and the world stands still. She touches and instantly like the speed of light, a snap of a finger, a blink of an eye the rushing fire of His power moves through her being and she knows without a shadow of doubt that she is healed! Healed! As her mind gathers momentum to what this will mean she is brought back to reality with the words of the Master: “Who touched my garment”. But, Master, look at the crowd, they are all pushing against you! NO, one has touched me, Who is it? In a moment as all eyes move about the crowd silence is deafening. She discreetly with fear and trembling breaks free of the crowd, who now recognize her as the “unclean woman”, and a hush and whispers follow her. But, as she falls at his feet and bears her heart she hears not condemnation but "My daughter, your faith has healed you…go in peace”. Eight days later, following the rules and instructions of Lev 15, we see this same woman now clothed in new garments as she walks into the same priest who declared her unclean. She brings two offerings; a turtledove and a pigeon and offers to have her status of “unclean” revoked. The Yellow Star is torn from her old garments and it is tossed upon the brazen altar…Priest listen to my testimony! I met the Master and I am clean!

As this woman was unclean and in need of cleansing, so are we unclean in our state of sin. It is only the Master’s touch that will instantly cleanse us. We have sought counselors, Dr’s, sage friends, but it is only Jesus that can cure us! How desperate are you? Are you bold to seek instant healing? Come to Jesus!

Honoring of Parents gone astray....

Jan 25 [Gen 38-40] Jacob’s Sons: Reuben, Simeon, Levi, Judah; Joseph.
Even though the Law has not been given at this point in history we know that the principle of which Paul spoke is also true: Rom 2: these who do not have the law are a law to themselves. That means that even apart from the Law we know what God requires and that is why Rom 3:23 for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God stands as our standard. One of the Ten Commandments is to honor your father and mother. In these chapters we see both the positive and negatives of that commandment in the lives of these sons.
Moses does not give us much detail about the first three sons. We know that Reuben dishonored Jacob by laying with Bilhah. We also know that Simeon and Levi were ruthless and murdered the Shechemites. But other than those brief accounts we have no other details. But now the fourth son, Judah has an entire chapter devoted to him. Why? God has a plan which must be completed for Judah as it will be through his line that Jesus will come. Judah’s greatest need is, as we said about Jacob, forgiveness and reconciliation. But, first we must understand for what he needs those precious gifts and so the Holy Spirit gives us a detailed account of his life.
Judah: Although not willing to stoop to murder, he callously orchestrates the sale of his brother Joseph to the Ishmaelites and also provides the plan to deceive Jacob. When his plan to become the new heir apparent fails and Jacob is inconsolable, Judah, unable to cope, runs away. Like Lot, Judah looks, sees, chooses, and settles away from his father and brothers. He thus dishonors his parent in his choices. Gen 38:1 At that time Judah left his brothers. Truth: We can run away from our sin but as Num 32:23 tells us “know that your sin will find you out.” As the story unfolds we find the consequences of sin continue to escalate. Judah intermarries with a Canaanite, raises three sons, two of whom are so evil God removes them, makes a promise knowing he will not keep it, and finally impregnates his daughter in law unknowingly. When confronted with his sin, he condemns himself with these words: Gen 38:26 ““She is more upright than I am, because I wouldn’t give her to Shelah my son.” Stay tuned to see how God will break Judah’s spirit.

Now the Holy Spirit turns our attention to the first one that Judah offended: Joseph. Sold into slavery, he rises to prominence only to be unjustly accused and thrown into prison. Joseph, unlike his brothers, has a God-ward focus. Listen to his words when tempted by sin: Gen 39:9 “how could I do such a great evil and sin against God?” In prison Gen 39:23 “the Lord was with him and whatever he was doing the Lord was making successful”. Enter two new prisoners who have dreams that Joseph interprets rightly. To the cupbearer Joseph pleads to be remembered to Pharaoh that he might be released. Gen 40:14 But remember me when it goes well for you, and show me kindness. Make mention of me to Pharaoh and bring me out of this prison, for I really was kidnapped from the land of the Hebrews and I have done nothing wrong here for which they should put me in a dungeon.” But…..the chief cupbearer did not remember Joseph – he forgot him.

What is our “take away” from today’s reading?
1. You may be like Judah, running away from your sin. You are in need of forgiveness and reconciliation. God continues to chip away at the hardness of your heart. Will you allow the Holy Spirit to pierce your heart and to release you from that bondage? Or you may know someone like Judah…will you be ready to forgive and reconcile when God is finished His work of the heart?
2. Joseph paints a picture for us of how to resist temptation: resist and flee which is what he did. If you are confronted with sin today, what will you do?

originally posted on https://www.facebook.com/bible.org

Jan 23: [Gen 32-34] Encounters with God should not only change us but be reflected in our lifestyle but “old ways die hard” and so it is seen in our reading today. The unequal yoke of Jacob and Laban has been severed and the journey back to Canaan has resumed. As we journey with Jacob we note something significant. God spoke to Jacob back in Paddam-Aram and now comes directly to Jacob. Why does God do that? Because Jacob has the greatest need in his life of forgiveness. In hearing of the advancing arrival of Esau Jacob, full of fear, reaches out to God and in turn God responds. Notice the parts of Jacob’s prayer:
1. Adoration: “O God of my father Abraham, God of my father Isaac,
2. Confession: I am not worthy of all the faithful love you have shown your servant.
3. Thanksgiving: With only my walking stick I crossed the Jordan, but now I have become two camps.
4. Supplication: Rescue me, I pray, from the hand of my brother Esau, for I am afraid he will come and attack me, as well as the mothers with their children.
5. Reminding God of our step of obedience and Claiming of His promises: you said to me, ‘Return to your land and to your relatives - I am doing this .’ And you said, ‘I will certainly make you prosper and will make your descendants like the sand on the seashore, too numerous to count—I am claiming this!
In God’s response we see two things; 1. it is God that comes to Jacob, 2. God wrestles with Jacob. It is not until God struck the socket of his hip so the socket of Jacob’s hip was dislocated that Jacob yielded to God and sought His blessing.
Why is this recorded for us? Our greatest need is to meet God and to recognize our need of His forgiveness. God could have responded by just blessing Jacob but instead He provided a reminder of this encounter lest Jacob forget. It was not until Jacob relented that God reminded him: “you have fought with God and with men and have prevailed.” In this Jacob was then set free of the unequal yoke of he and Laban, freed to complete his journey back to Canaan and freed to lead his family in the ways of the Lord. That is the gift God gives to us when we prevail and God forgives and releases us of the past.
There is a now a new responsibility given to Jacob: to lead his family in the ways of the Lord, but old ways die hard. Look at the next chapters and see a man who has the spirit of fear, (I am afraid of Esau) a man of weak faith, (Jacob divides his family and sends gifts to appease Esau) a man who still deceives (tells Esau that he will meet him in Seir but instead goes to Shechem) and a father who does not lead righteously, (daughter Dinah is not supervised, is captured and raped---but Jacob waits on his sons rather than being Dinah’s protector.) Thus in this account we see “like father like son” in that they too deceive the men of Shechem and later murder and pillage. At the end we see Jacob lamenting his loss of prestige instead http://www.blogger.com/img/blank.gifof seeing how his sons are a picture of his failed leadership.
What are we to learn from this? God expects fathers to lead, live righteous lives and to model righteous living. Perhaps you had a dishonorable father and you can resonate with this story. Seek to forgive that father so that God can bless you. Perhaps you are a father and want to raise godly children. Here are few suggestions: 1. immerse yourself in God’s word, study Proverbs and learn how to raise a wise child, 2. study the lives of godly fathers; Joshua: be strong and courageous, Hosea: a father who lives to restore and reconcile, Boaz; a man of character and integrity. Perhaps you are a man who is not yet a father either by choice or design: live a model life and disciple other young men who are in need of a role model.


originally posted on Facebook for bible.org

Challenges that Grow Us

As I am being stretched to write more and more I find that my mind is being challenged to find new words and new ideas to bridge that gap between what I know and what I need to know. And then as an online missionary with GMO I am finding that those new words that I am practicing to add to my vocabulary are not viable. These are people with limited vocabularies and are just beginning the walk of a Christian. They are the "newbies" ...the babies and they must be fed milk. Two in particular today came across my desk with this request: teach me how to pray. Seems like I remember the disciples asking that very question of Jesus. He taught them the model "disciples prayer"...which we refer to as the Lord's Prayer.So today as I was answering these emails in the quiet of the morning hour God spoke to me and said use the "KISS" method..."Keep It Simple Sweetie"...and so I did. Here's what I wrote to them:
This is a method I have used often using the word ACTS

A= Adore God for who He is. Honor Him by speaking to Him of His love and His provision for you already. Tell God how you love Him. Just as you honor others by speaking their name first in a conversation, use God’s Name first as well. Holy Father, Lord God Almighty and other names.
C = Confession 1 John 1:9 tells us that if we have sinned we can come to Him and He will hear our prayer of confession. You must be clean in your heart and in your mind.
T = Thanksgiving. Thank God for the blessings He has already given to you. Thank Him for this day, thank Him for this new faith you now have.
S = Supplication. Ask Him to provide for your needs and the needs of others. Ask Him to lead you to the church where you can worship.

And so the KISS method is off, now to wait to hear if they will respond back to me.
Today is Sanctity of Life Sunday. Go feed the babies of the Christian community. Ask God to lead you to a "newbie/baby" today. Or come and join me and become an online missionary.

And to my friend Linda...praying for you....

Did you ever have “one of those days”? Today is that. It is “one of those days”. Let me explain what I mean. It is a day in which you cannot focus no matter how hard you try. You sit and stew thinking, what is the next thing I ought to be doing only to draw a blank. It is a day in which no matter what you eat, you want more not because you are hungry but because you are unsatisfied. It is a day in which you just want to be outside because it is sunny and inside it is gray and your desk beckons to be cleansed of its clutter. You can think of a million things to do only to realize that none of them is really what you “want to do”. But, what do you want to do? That is the 64 dollar question with no apparent answer. And so it becomes “one of those” days. You aren’t happy nor unhappy. You are just “here”. You feel like a boxer in a ring bouncing off the ropes seeking a relief from whatever it is and you can’t seem to find the words to explain what “it” is. It just “is”. So what does one do on those days? Get away? Not possible. Go and shop? Not reasonable when the closet is already bulging. Call a friend…now that is a distinct possibility. Write a blog…another distinct possibility. Take a break and just read…another distinct possibility. Sometimes just a different focus for a time will change one’s viewpoint…and sometimes that is just “what the Dr. ordered”.

To all of that…. “see ya later” sounds like a great way to end this blog…

Friends…what are they, what is our responsibility towards them. Today I had two encounters which gave me reason to believe the truth of Pro 27:17 As iron sharpens iron, so a person sharpens his friend. A friend then is one who comes alongside no matter the circumstance to do just that “sharpen” or to be sharp, be alert, be keen. That should be our sole purpose in life for another that we are sure those for whom we care are sharp to face the onslaught of the trials of life, the attacks of the world and the ways of the “accuser of the brethren”. Alert means to be on guard, to be watchful. Keen has the idea of having a very fine edge; as a keen razor, or a razor with a keen edge. Note that of the three attributes or characteristics all are active and thus setting aside of personal needs to attend to another’s.

Today in these encounters it became apparent that friendship is not only a two way street but one that is fraught with hazards of overstepping, inserting self where one is not wanted or needed. Thus this sharpening comes at a heavy cost and one not taken lightly. When the person seeks to sharpen his knife he first takes a sharpened piece of the same material and rubs it against the intended implement. What is the bladesmith’s purpose? It is to remove the dross that is hindering the ability to cut with accuracy. That should be our total purpose in life, to be accurate not only with implements but also with words, with thoughts, with our prayers.

May today we be used to sharpen and to be used of the Holy Spirit to cause another to be sharp, alert and keen in the throes of life’s trials and circumstances.

Today began as any other...up at 6 a.m. and off to my Prayer/Reading Chair. Little did I know that within an hour the "accuser" would show up to test my resolve to be as Job who, in all of what life threw him, would be recorded in history as the man who was righteous or as the Bible describes him "blameless". No matter what transpired it was said of him "In all this Job did not sin, nor did he charge God with moral impropriety."
Yet, the "accuser" rests not! He is known as the liar, the father of lies, and the author of strife. Into this blessed time of quiet and peace he would enter with his arsenal of sharpened swords and spears to penetrate the deepest part of my heart. How would I respond? Clearly, as in the case of Job, there was in heaven a discussion brewing between the "accuser" and God over my responses. How would I respond...in my carnality or in my grace given nature? A test! Would I pass or fail? What would be written above in God's journal kept by my angel who is recording each and every word and thought, every facial countenance and expression? If I could see God's face would it shine with the smile of His love or would I see a tear rolling down His face? Would the "accuser" sign another guilt paper and insert it into my book or would my book stay unstained by his signature?
The "accuser" knows his time is short and I am his willing subject when I forget...forget God's promises, God's love, God's testimony of me His daughter, forget who I am in Him.
How did this test go? I sought the help of my blessed husband who gave me the wisest counsel and hug and thus sent the "accuser" into his dungeon to forge more of his skills. Being on my guard is a moment by moment thing.

Jan 3...where has the year gone already?

Today in my reading I was struck by this one word: Remember: To have in the mind an idea which had been in the mind before, and which recurs to the mind without effort.
What things have come into my view this day which have circumvented my "remembering". God's Word says He remembers but I find that I forget. What am I to remember:
1. His promises Jer 29:10 Then I will fulfill my gracious promise to you
2. His love for me Jer 31:3 ‘I have loved you with an everlasting love.That is why I have continued to be faithful to you.
3. His plan for me jer 29:11 know what I have planned for you,’ says the Lord. ‘I have plans to prosper you, not to harm you. I have plans to give you a future filled with hope.

But as I look back on just these past few hours I have been so completely immersed in my tasks that I have "forgotten". I have forgotten His love, His promises, His plan. For that I need this reminder to remember. So today as I wrote my post on https://www.facebook.com/bible.org I sought to remind the readers: REMEMBER...Do not forget. Be alert for the enemy comes dragging his worldly treasures to distract you and me with his "deadly d's" of disappointment, distraction, disharmony, etc. etc. I can only be successful as I stay close to Him, so close I can feel His breath, hear His voice and be reminded of His love for me.