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Showing posts from July, 2023

The Doxology, The Greeting and the Benediction

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' Now to our God and Father be glory forever and ever! Amen. Greet every saint in Christ Jesus. The brothers who are with me greet you. All the saints greet you, especially those who are from Caesar's household. The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ be with your spirit. Amen .' Philippians 4:20-23 (EHV) And now, this day, I declare that I shall praise Him. He is worthy of my praise. My praises go out to Him today. I will praise Him all day. To God, whom all blessings flow, for He is my Father in Christ, Glory, forever and ever and for all eternity! Amen. And why does this verse in Philippians inspire me so? It is because of Christ Jesus and all of the great things that He has done. It is because of His present mercies and the hope of glory to come. It is because of the glory that is His. His blessings flow out of it and unto me for I am nothing without Christ. He is everything. He means the whole world to me. He completes me. He saves me. His kindness is my ...

I Abstain

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  “Remember the Sabbath day by keeping it holy. Six days you shall labor and do all your work, but the seventh day is a sabbath to the Lord your God. On it you shall not do any work, neither you, nor your son or daughter, nor your male or female servant, nor your animals, nor any foreigner residing in your towns. For in six days the Lord made the heavens and the earth, the sea, and all that is in them, but he rested on the seventh day. Therefore the Lord blessed the Sabbath day and made it holy.' Exodus 20:8-11 ( This is to be a day about remembering to take a day off and so much more. This is a special day, one that is set apart as time to be given to the Lord. It shall be one day out of every seven. I shall not find ways to rebel or try to get around the commandment. God can't honor my tricks and is serious when He tells me that I am not to work on that sacred day nor am I to have anyone or anything working for me. This command is based on Him and He even se...

She/he Inquired of the Lord

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  ' “But what did he do?” they asked. “How did he heal you?”' John 9:26 NLT How excited I get when I read God's Word. The entire 9th chapter of John is so amazing. The chapter tells of how Jesus heals a man born blind. This young man was blessed with a miracle healing, and then you see the religious leaders of the day, trying to discredit the miracle, trying to trip up the young man, trying to catch Jesus in some kind of magic or breaking sabbath laws.   Why? Simply. Why can't we accept God's Grace and rejoice with those that are healed? Why do we have to know every detail, and try to figure out the exact steps or maybe the lack thereof? Here we are. Crossroads between the spirit and the flesh. The flesh, always looking away from God and for the negative, the spirit only working with Jesus  and bringing us closer to Him. But what did he do? The specifics please. Inquiring minds need to know. Can we get you to change your story? Can we find proof ...

God is Dwelling, God is Restoring

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'But this is what the Lord says:   “Yes, captives will be taken from warriors, and plunder retrieved from the fierce; I will contend with those who contend with you, and your children I will save.' Isaiah 49:25 (NIV)   This morning I am focusing on the promises of God. Today I am meditating on Your every Word God. Your Words are life to me. They were spoken for me that I might believe! If the Lord has said it then I must believe it. I am not ignorant of who You are. For You have introduced Yourself to me as the great I Am! I am not going to fail this test by questioning Your authority or by doubting that You will do what You say You will do. These were Your promises to Your people throughout the ages and these are my promises today. These are Your promises sent directly from You to me. Your promises bring Hope. Help is on the way. I find myself thinking about what the Lord says to me all day long. You speak wonderful words of Hope, the hope that comes f...

Respecting God's Boundaries

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'The true God is the Creator of all things. He is the owner and Lord of the heavenly realm and the earthly realm, and he doesn’t live in man-made temples .   He supplies life and breath and all things to every living being. He doesn’t lack a thing that we mortals could supply for him, for he has all things and everything he needs.    From one man, Adam, he made every man and woman and every race of humanity, and he spread us over all the earth. He sets the boundaries of people and nations, determining their appointed times in history.    He has done this so that every person would long for God, feel their way to him, and find him—for he is the God who is easy to discover!    It is through him that we live and function and have our identity; just as your own poets have said, ‘Our lineage comes from hi m . ' Acts 17:24-28 (TPT)     When considering boundaries it's good to consider that God sets the boundaries for all the peoples and...

Ruthless Pursuit of Holiness

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  Phinehas (Eleazar’s son and Priest Aaron’s grandson) has done well. He saved the Israelites. Because he was so zealous on My account, tolerating no compromise, I did not consume the people of Israel with My jealousy So I want you to declare this: “I, your God, do pledge to Phinehas a covenant of peace, not only for him but for his descendants too. I promise they will always be priests because in his jealousy for Me, Phinehas covered the wickedness of the Israelites.” Numbers 25:11-13 (TPT) What a severe reaction to sin. The priests were given the commandment from God and the directive by Moses to kill anyone that had married someone of another race. God looked upon this matter as more than ethnic cleansing, it was sin. Sin and rebellion and idol worship could not be tolerated for those were the very things that would destroy His people if it went unchecked. When Phinehas saw the effects of it that is just what he did. He took a sword and ran it through the bellies ...

Sealed With the Spirit

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'But on this humbled ground, a tiny shoot, hopeful and promising    will sprout from Jesse’s stump; A branch will emerge from his roots to bear fruit. And on this child from David’s line, the Spirit of the Eternal One    will alight and rest. By the Spirit of wisdom and discernment.    He will shine like the dew. By the Spirit of counsel and strength    He will judge fairly and act courageously. By the Spirit of knowledge and reverence of the Eternal One,    He will take pleasure in honoring the Eternal. He will determine fairness and equity;    He will consider more than what meets the eye, And weigh in more than what he’s told. So that even those who can’t afford a good defense    will nevertheless get a fair and equitable judgment. With just a word, He will end wickedness and abolish oppression.    With nothing more than the breath of His mouth, He will destroy evil. He will clothe hims...

God is Magnificent

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' God is magnificent; he can never be praised enough.   There are no boundaries to his greatness. 'Psalm 145:3 (MSG)   The Lord over me is the Lord over all. He is my Lord and He is the Lord. My God is good and He is very good. I worship His majesty in all of His glory. He is perfection. My God Reigns! I can praise Him for the rain. I can praise Him for the rain He provided over this past weekend that came just at the right time to help the corn grow. I can praise Him that each ear is filling out to perfection because of the rain that He provided. God provides the rain for the crops so in this way God provides for the farmer. God provides for me and my husband who is a farmer. The farmer provides for the rest of us by producing the crops that we eat. I prayed for the rain and God saw my need and answered my prayer. Because of the rain, there are no boundaries to God's greatness. For the seed to grow it takes rain. For the seed to grow it takes a farmer...

When Trust is Broken, Try Hope

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' Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ. God is the Father who is full of mercy and all comfort. He comforts us every time we have trouble, so when others have trouble, we can comfort them with the same comfort God gives us. We share in the many sufferings of Christ. In the same way, much comfort comes to us through Christ.' 2 Corinthians 1:3-5 (NCV)  We can praise God because we know that He is the Father of Mercy and more. He is God the Father of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. He loved us enough to offer up His own son to save us. He is the God of all comfort. He provides for our comfort and restores our peace through all of our afflictions. He is the God of love and peace.  We can know that He lives and that He loves us. He is the God of patience and comfort. We can see that He is slow to anger and that He is patient with us. He is the God of hope.  When trust is lost we know that we can still find our hope in Him. He never fail...

Garment of Praise

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'God has chosen you and made you his holy people. He loves you. So you should always clothe yourselves with mercy, kindness, humility, gentleness, and patience.  Bear with each other, and forgive each other. If someone does wrong to you, forgive that person because the Lord forgave you.    Even more than all this, clothe yourself in love. Love is what holds you all together in perfect unity.' Colossians 3:12-14 (NCV)  So be it. We are to be fruit bearers. The fruit of the Spirit is Love. We are to do everything in love. We are, so why can't I?  Even when I don't see it in others, then all the more in me. Even when something that someone has done or said brings condemnation on me, I am to forgive that person, take off the spirit of heaviness and put on the garments of praise. Even when someone does me wrong I am to forgive them because the Lord forgave me and clothe myself in His righteousness. Forgiveness. This is what it looks like to walk in perf...

A Song For You

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'Where were you when I laid the foundation of the earth?       Tell me, if you have understanding.   Who determined its measurements—surely you know!        Or who stretched the line upon it?     On what were its bases sunk,        or who laid its cornerstone     when the morning stars sang together        and all the heavenly beings shouted for joy?' Job 38:4-7 (NRSV) When I call on Heavenly Father for help in the big and small things of life and in the things needing His creativity I would not hesitate to put on a praise and worship cd or to sit behind a piano and sing and shout just as the angels did. I sing to create. I sing to bring my dreams into existence. I sing through just about anything with everything that I've got. Songs seem to be part of my creativity. Songs seem to go side by side with my victory. Holy Spirit fills my mouth with the W...

A Pillar of Fire

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'Do you see what we’ve got? An unshakable kingdom! And do you see how thankful we must be? Not only thankful, but brimming with worship, deeply reverent before God. For God is not an indifferent bystander. He’s actively cleaning house, torching all that needs to burn, and he won’t quit until it’s all cleansed. God himself is Fire!' Hebrews 12:28-29 (MESSAGE ) I will worship the Lord with a thankful heart, full of respect and fear for Him, for He is full of mercy and grace for me and has given me access to His Kingdom that is unshakeable. I am to worship Him. For, whenever I see just what I have been given in Christ, how else am I to live? He is worthy. I live for Him. As a Child of God I am to live with a grateful heart and with lips of praise. God, You are alive and as active as can be. You are in the house cleaning business. You rip out all of the dirty old warn-out carpets and torch and burn all of the evidence. You never tire and you never shy away from any...

Break Forth into Singing

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'Eternal One: Sing, childless woman, you who have never given birth.   Raise a joyful shout, you who have never gone through labor. You, whose husband is dead, will bring forth much more than the fertile one who has a husband.   Enlarge your house. You are going to need a bigger place;   don’t underestimate the amount of room that you’ll need. So build, build, build. You will increase in every direction to fill the world. Your offspring will take over the nations; Your people will revitalize long-abandoned towns.' Isaiah 54:1-3 (VOICE) I love my husband. God is my spiritual husband and He has blessed us with three amazing children. He has blessed us and He has seen to it that my entire family is musical. We love to sing. We love to sing His praises. Now my children are having their own children. Those grandchildren of ours are being raised in musical homes! Oh how the Lord blesses us when we raise a banner and a shout to Him! For the childless woman, ...

My Praise

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'Heal me , O Lord , and I shall be healed; Save me, and I shall be saved, For You are my praise.' Jeremiah 17:14 (NKJV) There are none healed that the Lord does not heal. There are none saved that the Lord does not save. Because of His mercy and grace He does not fail me, He is the reason for my praise.  My prayer to You O Lord, in my hour of need, is that You heal me of all my diseases and that you save me from all my sins. Because of Your great love for me, I know that You hear me and my soul can boast in You. With my heart wide open I plead my case and You alone shall... You shall because You can. You shall heal me. You shall because You can. You shall save me. You never let me down. You are my praise. What a natural progression. I pray to You because You can. I pray and You move. Because I need you and my heart is broken, You do not despise me. My Heavenly Father, how can you do anything else? Because You cannot lie and I know that all of Your promises ar...

Are You Ready?

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'So always be ready , because you don’t know the day your Lord will come.' Matthew 24:42 (NCV)   What must I do to be ready? Is a prayer every week on Sunday enough to secure myself and my family a place in God's Kingdom?  How can I neglect the spiritual things of life for the majority of my day and then have the hope that my flesh won't take me into something that might destroy me? It is written, 'So always be ready...' I need to always be ready for the unknown and for the certain things that are going to happen. I must prepare for both the good and the bad things that will happen in my life that I don't know about and have no control over. Those inevitable moments that might just make or break me. Since I don't know the future. I don't know the day and I cannot know the hour in which the Lord will return. I can know this much. I can be prepared for it. I can know that life is short and then the judgment. I can know that the Lord...

Legend of the Will Seeker

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'Trust in the Lord with all your heart;   do not depend on your own understanding. Seek his will in all you do, and he will show you which path to take.' Proverbs 3:5-6 (NLT) I am taught to place my trust in God. Not in man. Not in government. 'In God we trust' is more than a slogan or just a phrase, it is what we believe. It's a law. It's the way we act on what we believe. It's a lifestyle that leads the people of those great nations that follow their Lord. To the ones that place Him at the center of their homes, He alone makes everything turn out right. To the ones that place Him at the center of their lives, He alone justifies them through faith in Him. It is by faith that I find my happiness in Him when I seek with all diligence and sincerity His Will. When I seek Him I find Him and everything that is good and anything that is great comes from Him. Out of my fears for the future, can arise faith and boldness in me to do His Wil...

Trust and Obey

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'Jesus answered, “You don’t really know what I am doing, but later you will understand.”' John 13:7 (CEV)   Today I take another leap of faith. Looking first, then leaping, even if into the clouds of the unknown. I do this thing with full faith and knowledge in God, that He doesn't ask me to figure everything out. No, not even His own disciples always knew everything that He was doing. They were only asked to have faith and to believe in the One that sent them. I have faith in Him and know that He never leaves me to the tasks He sets before me without weapons nor does He make me go through them alone. He is always with me. He only asks me to trust Him. I do trust Him. It's a requirement. There are so many lessons that He wants me to learn. He is the Great Teacher. I look to Jesus for lessons in humility and in kindness. He shows me how He lived His own life as an example of how I am to treat others and to be kind and to live my own. I am to live like Ch...

Don't Forget to Celebrate

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' Nehemiah said, “Go and enjoy choice food and sweet drinks, and send some to those who have nothing prepared. This day is holy to our Lord. Do not grieve, for the joy of the Lord is your strength.” Nehemiah 8:10 (NIV) The direction went out to all. Go and enjoy. Everyone was included in the instruction to go. He was not pointing to a certain group but even included those that had nothing prepared. Send some choice food and sweet drinks to them. No fasting. No grieving. This is a holy day unto the Lord! To the rich and to the poor, to the widows and to the orphans, to the young and to the old, he said, do not grieve.  The wall was completed. The work was finished. The first great revival and preaching and understanding of the Word had taken place! It was time to celebrate with good food and drink. Find the joy in that. The strength is right there. Find the Lord in that. The joy is right there. Joy. Joy. Joy.   Some may have legitimate reasons to grieve. Thi...