Dear Suzanne, Rebecca, Anna and Mikayla,
Woe is me, my mother, That you have borne me, A man of strife and a man of contention to the whole earth! I have neither lent for interest, Nor have men lent to me for interest. Every one of them curses me. --Jeremiah 15:10
Jeremiah was a persecuted outcast among His own people because of the destruction he foretold as God's prophet. People avoided him like they would avoid calls from a collection agency today. The Lord then encourages him by telling Him that it would be well with the remnant and that he himself would not be turned over to the enemy. He would not, however, relent from bringing judgment on His people nor would He shield Jeremiah from the persecution that came and would come would from his own people.
In response Jeremiah says this:
Remember me and visit me, And take vengeance for me on my persecutors.In Your enduring patience, do not take me away. Know that for Your sake I have suffered rebuke. Your words were found, and I ate them, And Your word was to me the joy and rejoicing of my heart; For I am called by Your name, O LORD God of hosts. I did not sit in the assembly of the mockers, Nor did I rejoice; I sat alone because of Your hand, For You have filled me with indignation. Why is my pain perpetual And my wound incurable, Which refuses to be healed? Will You surely be to me like an unreliable stream, As waters that fail?--Jeremiah 15:15-18
Remember God had just finished telling Jeremiah that destruction would come...He would not relent. Jeremiah then tells God what is on his heart. He asks God to remember him, protect him, and take vengeance on his enemies. He tells Him that His word was like food to him and that it was the joy and rejoicing of His heart. But in the next sentence he reminds God of how much His people are suffering and how much he is suffering and how difficult a job God had given him. He even says that God is like an unreliable stream...as waters that fail. Uh oh...Jeremiah called the fountain of living waters an unreliable stream. Now I like how Jeremiah did not pretend and just speak the words that he knew he should...he truly did pour out his heart. I was "with" Jeremiah at first...especially when he was talking about how difficult a job God had given him. Jeremiah was, however, God's spokesperson and as such more was required...Here was God's reply...which I was a little shocked at...but God really spoke to my heart through it. After all....we who name the name of Christ are all ambassadors of Christ...we need to represent Him truthfully. Here is God's reply:
Therefore thus says the LORD: “ If you return, Then I will bring you back; You shall stand before Me; If you take out the precious from the vile, You shall be as My mouth. Let them return to you, But you must not return to them. And I will make you to this people a fortified bronze wall; And they will fight against you, But they shall not prevail against you; For I am with you to save you And deliver you,” says the LORD. “ I will deliver you from the hand of the wicked, And I will redeem you from the grip of the terrible.”--Jeremiah 15:19-21
Did you notice what the Lord says in verse 19...I had to look three times...and then make sure I knew who He was talking to. The Lord tells Jeremiah "if you return, then I will bring you back". Wow..God is saying Jeremiah needed to repent! Now in the reread I understood why. Jeremiah was not speaking words of faith...and He was misrepresenting God's character. (My guess is that the meditation of his heart had not been on what is right in the hours before he spoke those words either). God told Jeremiah that He would restore him if he would stop uttering worthless words and begin to utter worthy ones...take out the precious from the vile. (15:19)
Girls, this is such an important lesson for us! What are we meditating on? Do we speak words of faith to one another when we are discouraged...do we think or speak them to ourselves...do we remind ourselves when we get discouraged of who God is and what He has done?? Or do we whine, complain and doubt? Now if you are hearing from your lips words of doubt, whines and complaints, especially in your unguarded moments, the chances are very good that you are not meditating on the right things. Your mind is on yourself rather than God. Look at what Jeremiah said and see where He went wrong. "I did not sit in the assembly of the mockers, Nor did I rejoice; I sat alone because of Your hand, For You have filled me with indignation. Why is my pain perpetual And my wound incurable, Which refuses to be healed? Will You surely be to me like an unreliable stream, As waters that fail?" His words are saying that he thinks he deserves better because of what he has done and what he has been through. He questions God and even tells Him He is unreliable!
So many times I find myself thinking like Jeremiah here. Focusing on what I am not getting instead of being thankful for what I have. Meditating on doubt or whining and complaining against God. When we do that, we don't even have to call the Fountain of living water an unreliable stream because we are already telling Him by our complaining and whining that we can't trust Him. Out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaks, as a man thinks so he is and anything that is not from faith is sin.
Our access to His grace is by our faith....when we speak or meditate on words of doubt or when we question God we quench the Spirit and do not walk by faith. Listen to your words and thoughts, girls, in unguarded moments...they will reveal much about your heart. If you are complaining against God...feeling dissatisfaction or perhaps even anger for where He has you and what He has you doing and/or facing, then you need to repent. I know God does not want us to ignore what we are feeling...that would be self-deceit and He Himself tells us the keep our hearts with all diligence. So what do we do...exactly what Jeremiah did...pour our heart out to God...He is not surprised at what we are going to tell Him. Repent, ask God to align our will with His and increase our faith. When we falter, we are to renew our minds with Scripture and remember what He has done for us in the past and the hope we have for the future. God promises us tribulation, but He also tells us that He will be with us and that we are more than conquerors...the battle has already been won and the battle is not ours anyway. His grace is sufficient. His love is perfect. We are to trust Him through it all. I end with some verses in Philippians.
Therefore, my beloved, as you have always obeyed, not as in my presence only, but now much more in my absence, work out your own salvation with fear and trembling; for it is God who works in you both to will and to do for His good pleasure. Do all things without complaining and disputing, that you may become blameless and harmless, children of God without fault in the midst of a crooked and perverse generation, among whom you shine as lights in the world, holding fast the word of life, so that I may rejoice in the day of Christ that I have not run in vain or labored in vain. Yes, and if I am being poured out as a drink offering on the sacrifice and service of your faith, I am glad and rejoice with you all. For the same reason you also be glad and rejoice with me.--Philippians 2:12-18
Love
Mom
Showing posts with label Lamentations. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Lamentations. Show all posts
Wednesday, October 13, 2010
Tuesday, October 12, 2010
Sin Makes You STUPID!
Dear Suzanne, Rebecca, Anna and Mikayla,
Lamentations 1: 9 ..She did not consider her destiny; Therefore her collapse was awesome;
Here is the fourth reason not to sin...
Sin makes you stupid - For Judah the warnings were loud and clear...several prophets preached to her of coming judgment...Jeremiah for 40 years. God's people, however, played with fire and they got burned. They refused to believe that their rejecting the word of God and living according to their own desires would bring God's punishment. Sin always eventually or sooner rather than later brings judgment.
Now all of us know that judgment is coming...both believers and unbelievers. I was an unbeliever for 35 years, and I knew that judgment was coming; but I kept putting off coming to the Lord. I thought I had to clean myself up to go to God...or I thought my life would be boring as a Christian and figured I would have fun while I could...but the bottom line was I did not want to admit my need...I thought I could fix whatever situation I got myself into. The things I did were so stupid...I knew they would have consequences later on but I did them anyway...Sin really does makes you stupid. AND it never starts off big...it starts off small and as your heart becomes hardened against the conviction of the Spirit it increases until you find yourself doing things you would have never thought possible. You begin to be blind to consequences and you lose the ability to see around corners, so to speak.
Finally, the Lord in His goodness, mercy and compassion, allowed my heart to be broken over a situation and I KNEW I had nowhere else to go. Romans 6:23 says that the wages of sin is death...but the gift of God is eternal life in His Son. The ultimate judgment is hell and it is reserved for those who go all their lives refusing to look up and acknowledge God. The Bible tells us that even the demons believe and tremble...but knowing with your head and believing with your heart are two different things. When your heart believes something your actions will follow...You can believe something intellectually and do nothing about it. Romans 1 tells us that we are all without excuse.
For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men, who suppress the truth in unrighteousness, 19 because what may be known of God is manifest in them, for God has shown it to them. 20 For since the creation of the world His invisible attributes are clearly seen, being understood by the things that are made, even His eternal power and Godhead, so that they are without excuse, 21 because, although they knew God, they did not glorify Him as God, nor were thankful, but became futile in their thoughts, and their foolish hearts were darkened. 22 Professing to be wise, they became fools, 23 and changed the glory of the incorruptible God into an image made like corruptible man—and birds and four-footed animals and creeping things.--Romans 1:18-23
When I think of sin making us stupid, I think of the story of Moses lifting the serpent up in the wilderness...the very story Jesus was telling Nicodemus in John 3. Here is what Jesus said in John 3 and the story from Numbers follows:
And as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, even so must the Son of Man be lifted up, 15 that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have eternal life. 16 For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life. 17 For God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world through Him might be saved.--John 3:14-17
4 Then they journeyed from Mount Hor by the Way of the Red Sea, to go around the land of Edom; and the soul of the people became very discouraged on the way. 5 And the people spoke against God and against Moses: “Why have you brought us up out of Egypt to die in the wilderness? For there is no food and no water, and our soul loathes this worthless bread.” 6 So the LORD sent fiery serpents among the people, and they bit the people; and many of the people of Israel died.
7 Therefore the people came to Moses, and said, “We have sinned, for we have spoken against the LORD and against you; pray to the LORD that He take away the serpents from us.” So Moses prayed for the people.
8 Then the LORD said to Moses, “Make a fiery serpent, and set it on a pole; and it shall be that everyone who is bitten, when he looks at it, shall live.” 9 So Moses made a bronze serpent, and put it on a pole; and so it was, if a serpent had bitten anyone, when he looked at the bronze serpent, he lived.--Numbers 21:4-9
Would you believe that many refused to look at the serpent on the pole and died! It seems like such an easy thing...just look at the serpent on the pole and be healed...don't look and die! Many, many many of us do the same thing. We refuse to lift our eyes to the cross and believe and be saved. We know in our heart of hearts that judgment is coming and yet refuse to look. God does everything He can to get our attention...just like he did for Jerusalem, but He will not force belief on anyone. If we continue in that refusal, we will ultimately die in our sins and live eternally separated from God.
Even after coming to God through belief in His Son, we can still resist the Spirit of God. Maybe we start to make a practice of a certain sin and continue in it, despite God's warnings to us...knowing that God will not allow us to get away with it forever...knowing the law of sowing and reaping...knowing there will be a day of reckoning. Yet in our pride we refuse to acknowledge it, because we are loving our sin at the moment more than we are loving God, or we are allowing offense and unforgiveness to cloud our vision. Now, no one, not even us (John 10:28) can snatch us out of His hand, but we miss out on so many of His blessings this way and have to be led around like a mule rather than guided with His eye.
I don't know about you but I do not want to have to be harnessed and led around like a mule...I would much rather God be able to guide me with His eye. What is the remedy? James says it best in Chapter 4 beginning in verse 7.
Therefore submit to God. Resist the devil and he will flee from you. 8 Draw near to God and He will draw near to you. Cleanse your hands, you sinners; and purify your hearts, you double-minded. 9 Lament and mourn and weep! Let your laughter be turned to mourning and your joy to gloom. 10 Humble yourselves in the sight of the Lord, and He will lift you up.
There is your prescription and it is filled with humility...Girls, when we draw near to God and receive with meekness the implanted word which is able to save our souls; He changes us and conforms us into His image. We see ourselves as sinners in need of a Savior and readily put off our sin knowing the price that was paid for it. We put off our offenses and forgive knowing HOW VERY MUCH we have been, are and will be forgiven!! The Word, girls, "ARIGHTS" our thinking. Going any length of time without it causes our mind to become clouded...He wants us to seek Him daily...The Bible is your sword of the Spirit...it is your only offensive weapon. If you do not use it, you are defenseless against the wiles of the enemy. As you saturate yourself with the Word...it washes the filth of the world away...As we keep our minds on Him by keeping in the Word, we are transformed daily into His image.
Our sin does make us stupid...but the fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom and with Him is knowledge of the Holy One. I will end with the last half of Proverbs 1 starting in verse 20.
20 Wisdom calls aloud outside;
She raises her voice in the open squares.
21 She cries out in the chief concourses,
At the openings of the gates in the city
She speaks her words:
22 “ How long, you simple ones, will you love simplicity?
For scorners delight in their scorning,
And fools hate knowledge.
23 Turn at my rebuke;
Surely I will pour out my spirit on you;
I will make my words known to you.
24 Because I have called and you refused,
I have stretched out my hand and no one regarded,
25 Because you disdained all my counsel,
And would have none of my rebuke,
26 I also will laugh at your calamity;
I will mock when your terror comes,
27 When your terror comes like a storm,
And your destruction comes like a whirlwind,
When distress and anguish come upon you.
28 “ Then they will call on me, but I will not answer;
They will seek me diligently, but they will not find me.
29 Because they hated knowledge
And did not choose the fear of the LORD,
30 They would have none of my counsel
And despised my every rebuke.
31 Therefore they shall eat the fruit of their own way,
And be filled to the full with their own fancies.
32 For the turning away of the simple will slay them,
And the complacency of fools will destroy them;
33 But whoever listens to me will dwell safely,
And will be secure, without fear of evil.”--Proverbs 1:20-33
Love
Mom who is done with reasons not to sin even though Lamentations gives many more...
Lamentations 1: 9 ..She did not consider her destiny; Therefore her collapse was awesome;
Here is the fourth reason not to sin...
Sin makes you stupid - For Judah the warnings were loud and clear...several prophets preached to her of coming judgment...Jeremiah for 40 years. God's people, however, played with fire and they got burned. They refused to believe that their rejecting the word of God and living according to their own desires would bring God's punishment. Sin always eventually or sooner rather than later brings judgment.
Now all of us know that judgment is coming...both believers and unbelievers. I was an unbeliever for 35 years, and I knew that judgment was coming; but I kept putting off coming to the Lord. I thought I had to clean myself up to go to God...or I thought my life would be boring as a Christian and figured I would have fun while I could...but the bottom line was I did not want to admit my need...I thought I could fix whatever situation I got myself into. The things I did were so stupid...I knew they would have consequences later on but I did them anyway...Sin really does makes you stupid. AND it never starts off big...it starts off small and as your heart becomes hardened against the conviction of the Spirit it increases until you find yourself doing things you would have never thought possible. You begin to be blind to consequences and you lose the ability to see around corners, so to speak.
Finally, the Lord in His goodness, mercy and compassion, allowed my heart to be broken over a situation and I KNEW I had nowhere else to go. Romans 6:23 says that the wages of sin is death...but the gift of God is eternal life in His Son. The ultimate judgment is hell and it is reserved for those who go all their lives refusing to look up and acknowledge God. The Bible tells us that even the demons believe and tremble...but knowing with your head and believing with your heart are two different things. When your heart believes something your actions will follow...You can believe something intellectually and do nothing about it. Romans 1 tells us that we are all without excuse.
For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men, who suppress the truth in unrighteousness, 19 because what may be known of God is manifest in them, for God has shown it to them. 20 For since the creation of the world His invisible attributes are clearly seen, being understood by the things that are made, even His eternal power and Godhead, so that they are without excuse, 21 because, although they knew God, they did not glorify Him as God, nor were thankful, but became futile in their thoughts, and their foolish hearts were darkened. 22 Professing to be wise, they became fools, 23 and changed the glory of the incorruptible God into an image made like corruptible man—and birds and four-footed animals and creeping things.--Romans 1:18-23
When I think of sin making us stupid, I think of the story of Moses lifting the serpent up in the wilderness...the very story Jesus was telling Nicodemus in John 3. Here is what Jesus said in John 3 and the story from Numbers follows:
And as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, even so must the Son of Man be lifted up, 15 that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have eternal life. 16 For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life. 17 For God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world through Him might be saved.--John 3:14-17
4 Then they journeyed from Mount Hor by the Way of the Red Sea, to go around the land of Edom; and the soul of the people became very discouraged on the way. 5 And the people spoke against God and against Moses: “Why have you brought us up out of Egypt to die in the wilderness? For there is no food and no water, and our soul loathes this worthless bread.” 6 So the LORD sent fiery serpents among the people, and they bit the people; and many of the people of Israel died.
7 Therefore the people came to Moses, and said, “We have sinned, for we have spoken against the LORD and against you; pray to the LORD that He take away the serpents from us.” So Moses prayed for the people.
8 Then the LORD said to Moses, “Make a fiery serpent, and set it on a pole; and it shall be that everyone who is bitten, when he looks at it, shall live.” 9 So Moses made a bronze serpent, and put it on a pole; and so it was, if a serpent had bitten anyone, when he looked at the bronze serpent, he lived.--Numbers 21:4-9
Would you believe that many refused to look at the serpent on the pole and died! It seems like such an easy thing...just look at the serpent on the pole and be healed...don't look and die! Many, many many of us do the same thing. We refuse to lift our eyes to the cross and believe and be saved. We know in our heart of hearts that judgment is coming and yet refuse to look. God does everything He can to get our attention...just like he did for Jerusalem, but He will not force belief on anyone. If we continue in that refusal, we will ultimately die in our sins and live eternally separated from God.
Even after coming to God through belief in His Son, we can still resist the Spirit of God. Maybe we start to make a practice of a certain sin and continue in it, despite God's warnings to us...knowing that God will not allow us to get away with it forever...knowing the law of sowing and reaping...knowing there will be a day of reckoning. Yet in our pride we refuse to acknowledge it, because we are loving our sin at the moment more than we are loving God, or we are allowing offense and unforgiveness to cloud our vision. Now, no one, not even us (John 10:28) can snatch us out of His hand, but we miss out on so many of His blessings this way and have to be led around like a mule rather than guided with His eye.
I don't know about you but I do not want to have to be harnessed and led around like a mule...I would much rather God be able to guide me with His eye. What is the remedy? James says it best in Chapter 4 beginning in verse 7.
Therefore submit to God. Resist the devil and he will flee from you. 8 Draw near to God and He will draw near to you. Cleanse your hands, you sinners; and purify your hearts, you double-minded. 9 Lament and mourn and weep! Let your laughter be turned to mourning and your joy to gloom. 10 Humble yourselves in the sight of the Lord, and He will lift you up.
There is your prescription and it is filled with humility...Girls, when we draw near to God and receive with meekness the implanted word which is able to save our souls; He changes us and conforms us into His image. We see ourselves as sinners in need of a Savior and readily put off our sin knowing the price that was paid for it. We put off our offenses and forgive knowing HOW VERY MUCH we have been, are and will be forgiven!! The Word, girls, "ARIGHTS" our thinking. Going any length of time without it causes our mind to become clouded...He wants us to seek Him daily...The Bible is your sword of the Spirit...it is your only offensive weapon. If you do not use it, you are defenseless against the wiles of the enemy. As you saturate yourself with the Word...it washes the filth of the world away...As we keep our minds on Him by keeping in the Word, we are transformed daily into His image.
Our sin does make us stupid...but the fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom and with Him is knowledge of the Holy One. I will end with the last half of Proverbs 1 starting in verse 20.
20 Wisdom calls aloud outside;
She raises her voice in the open squares.
21 She cries out in the chief concourses,
At the openings of the gates in the city
She speaks her words:
22 “ How long, you simple ones, will you love simplicity?
For scorners delight in their scorning,
And fools hate knowledge.
23 Turn at my rebuke;
Surely I will pour out my spirit on you;
I will make my words known to you.
24 Because I have called and you refused,
I have stretched out my hand and no one regarded,
25 Because you disdained all my counsel,
And would have none of my rebuke,
26 I also will laugh at your calamity;
I will mock when your terror comes,
27 When your terror comes like a storm,
And your destruction comes like a whirlwind,
When distress and anguish come upon you.
28 “ Then they will call on me, but I will not answer;
They will seek me diligently, but they will not find me.
29 Because they hated knowledge
And did not choose the fear of the LORD,
30 They would have none of my counsel
And despised my every rebuke.
31 Therefore they shall eat the fruit of their own way,
And be filled to the full with their own fancies.
32 For the turning away of the simple will slay them,
And the complacency of fools will destroy them;
33 But whoever listens to me will dwell safely,
And will be secure, without fear of evil.”--Proverbs 1:20-33
Love
Mom who is done with reasons not to sin even though Lamentations gives many more...
Wednesday, October 6, 2010
He is our Portion...
This I recall to my mind, Therefore I have hope. Through the LORD’s mercies we are not consumed, Because His compassions fail not. They are new every morning; Great is Your faithfulness. “ The LORD is my portion,” says my soul, “ Therefore I hope in Him!”--Lamentations 3:21-24
Dear Suzanne, Rebecca, Anna and Mikayla,
So in Part 1 we looked at exchanging the spirit of heaviness for the garment of praise and in part 2 we were reminded to remember like Jeremiah did, that His mercies and compassions fail not when that spirit of heaviness hits...that I can praise Him because I am NOT getting what I truly deserve. Instead I am getting His truth and His grace upon grace poured out in my life.
Next, (and last) we are to remember that the Lord is our Portion.
Whom have I in heaven but You And there is none upon earth that I desire besides You. My flesh and my heart fail; But God is the strength of my heart and my portion forever--Psalm 73:25-26
I cried out to You, O LORD I said, “You are my refuge, My portion in the land of the living.--Psalm 142:5
I am going to go back here to the moment of my salvation...the moment it became completely evident to me that something inside of me had changed dramatically and that I WAS NOT responsible for that change. I had gone through many self-help books both from the library and bookstores....I FINALLY cried out to God and bought a bible. I had tried reading the bible many times in my life. The strangest thing for me was that I could read anything else and understand what I was reading...but I had never understood the Bible. I always had to put it back on the shelf because it was like I was reading another language...there simply was no understanding. I did not have ears to hear. For some reason the Lord heard my cry this time and gave me the ears to hear His word. The Lord knows our hearts and must have known that this time I really did want His help. I remember coming home...sitting on the couch....opening the Bible up to Genesis 1 and before I reached Genesis Chapter 2 tears were streaming down my cheeks. The Spirit had spoken to my heart. I understood! Not just chapter 1 of Genesis but that He was my Rock in this world. He was my Portion. That this book I had in my hands was exactly what I needed. It was black and white, it was definite and most importantly it had answers. Truth truly resided here in this book. I knew at that moment that I could stand. I knew that I had what I needed to raise my family..to make it through life in this world. My eyes were opened to the God who created the universe and who also cared for me. Circumstances would change, emotions would change, my life would change but He would not. Jesus Christ the same today, yesterday and forever. He would be my guide, my strong tower, my help, my strength and my hope. Girls, I went from quicksand to the Rock. Psalm 40:1-3 speaks to me of what the my God did that day in my heart.
I waited patiently for the LORD; And He inclined to me And heard my cry. He also brought me up out of a horrible pit, Out of the miry clay, And set my feet upon a rock, And established my steps.He has put a new song in my mouth—Praise to our God; Many will see it and fear; And will trust in the LORD.
It truly happened in the blink of an eye...and His word by His grace has never been far from my heart or my reach since.
How do we have peace and confidence then and put off that spirit of heaviness? We remember, by His Spirit that dwells in us, that HE is our Portion. He does not change...in Him we have peace...in the world...tribulation...but He has overcome...so He says be of good cheer..we face this world already victorious. To base our life on anything else is to base it on that which is always changing....and thus constantly disappointing. To base it on Jesus Christ is to base it on that which is eternal, unchanging and has value beyond this world.
No one knew discouragement like Jeremiah. Here is the summarized advice that he gives that span the next 20 verses. Listen to his words, girls and be helped and blessed. Hope in Him, wait patiently for Him, surrender to Him, know that He will not cast off forever, know that though He causes grief He will show compassion for He does not afflict willingly, search out your ways and examine them,and turn back to Him Finally, we are back to where we started in the beginning...Praise Him...lift up our hearts and hands to God in heaven and watch Him deliver!
Love
Mom...who has tears streaming down her cheeks in gratitude and thankfulness for what He and He alone has accomplished in my life.
Here is Psalm 40 in its entirety...
1 I waited patiently for the LORD;
And He inclined to me,
And heard my cry.
2 He also brought me up out of a horrible pit,
Out of the miry clay,
And set my feet upon a rock,
And established my steps.
3 He has put a new song in my mouth—
Praise to our God;
Many will see it and fear,
And will trust in the LORD.
4 Blessed is that man who makes the LORD his trust,
And does not respect the proud, nor such as turn aside to lies.
5 Many, O LORD my God, are Your wonderful works
Which You have done;
And Your thoughts toward us
Cannot be recounted to You in order;
If I would declare and speak of them,
They are more than can be numbered.
6 Sacrifice and offering You did not desire;
My ears You have opened.
Burnt offering and sin offering You did not require.
7 Then I said, “Behold, I come;
In the scroll of the book it is written of me.
8 I delight to do Your will, O my God,
And Your law is within my heart.”
9 I have proclaimed the good news of righteousness
In the great assembly;
Indeed, I do not restrain my lips,
O LORD, You Yourself know.
10 I have not hidden Your righteousness within my heart;
I have declared Your faithfulness and Your salvation;
I have not concealed Your lovingkindness and Your truth
From the great assembly.
11 Do not withhold Your tender mercies from me, O LORD;
Let Your lovingkindness and Your truth continually preserve me.
12 For innumerable evils have surrounded me;
My iniquities have overtaken me, so that I am not able to look up;
They are more than the hairs of my head;
Therefore my heart fails me.
13 Be pleased, O LORD, to deliver me;
O LORD, make haste to help me!
14 Let them be ashamed and brought to mutual confusion
Who seek to destroy my life;
Let them be driven backward and brought to dishonor
Who wish me evil.
15 Let them be confounded because of their shame,
Who say to me, “Aha, aha!”
16 Let all those who seek You rejoice and be glad in You;
Let such as love Your salvation say continually,
“The LORD be magnified!”
17 But I am poor and needy;
Yet the LORD thinks upon me.
You are my help and my deliverer;
Do not delay, O my God.
Dear Suzanne, Rebecca, Anna and Mikayla,
So in Part 1 we looked at exchanging the spirit of heaviness for the garment of praise and in part 2 we were reminded to remember like Jeremiah did, that His mercies and compassions fail not when that spirit of heaviness hits...that I can praise Him because I am NOT getting what I truly deserve. Instead I am getting His truth and His grace upon grace poured out in my life.
Next, (and last) we are to remember that the Lord is our Portion.
Whom have I in heaven but You And there is none upon earth that I desire besides You. My flesh and my heart fail; But God is the strength of my heart and my portion forever--Psalm 73:25-26
I cried out to You, O LORD I said, “You are my refuge, My portion in the land of the living.--Psalm 142:5
I am going to go back here to the moment of my salvation...the moment it became completely evident to me that something inside of me had changed dramatically and that I WAS NOT responsible for that change. I had gone through many self-help books both from the library and bookstores....I FINALLY cried out to God and bought a bible. I had tried reading the bible many times in my life. The strangest thing for me was that I could read anything else and understand what I was reading...but I had never understood the Bible. I always had to put it back on the shelf because it was like I was reading another language...there simply was no understanding. I did not have ears to hear. For some reason the Lord heard my cry this time and gave me the ears to hear His word. The Lord knows our hearts and must have known that this time I really did want His help. I remember coming home...sitting on the couch....opening the Bible up to Genesis 1 and before I reached Genesis Chapter 2 tears were streaming down my cheeks. The Spirit had spoken to my heart. I understood! Not just chapter 1 of Genesis but that He was my Rock in this world. He was my Portion. That this book I had in my hands was exactly what I needed. It was black and white, it was definite and most importantly it had answers. Truth truly resided here in this book. I knew at that moment that I could stand. I knew that I had what I needed to raise my family..to make it through life in this world. My eyes were opened to the God who created the universe and who also cared for me. Circumstances would change, emotions would change, my life would change but He would not. Jesus Christ the same today, yesterday and forever. He would be my guide, my strong tower, my help, my strength and my hope. Girls, I went from quicksand to the Rock. Psalm 40:1-3 speaks to me of what the my God did that day in my heart.
I waited patiently for the LORD; And He inclined to me And heard my cry. He also brought me up out of a horrible pit, Out of the miry clay, And set my feet upon a rock, And established my steps.He has put a new song in my mouth—Praise to our God; Many will see it and fear; And will trust in the LORD.
It truly happened in the blink of an eye...and His word by His grace has never been far from my heart or my reach since.
How do we have peace and confidence then and put off that spirit of heaviness? We remember, by His Spirit that dwells in us, that HE is our Portion. He does not change...in Him we have peace...in the world...tribulation...but He has overcome...so He says be of good cheer..we face this world already victorious. To base our life on anything else is to base it on that which is always changing....and thus constantly disappointing. To base it on Jesus Christ is to base it on that which is eternal, unchanging and has value beyond this world.
No one knew discouragement like Jeremiah. Here is the summarized advice that he gives that span the next 20 verses. Listen to his words, girls and be helped and blessed. Hope in Him, wait patiently for Him, surrender to Him, know that He will not cast off forever, know that though He causes grief He will show compassion for He does not afflict willingly, search out your ways and examine them,and turn back to Him Finally, we are back to where we started in the beginning...Praise Him...lift up our hearts and hands to God in heaven and watch Him deliver!
Love
Mom...who has tears streaming down her cheeks in gratitude and thankfulness for what He and He alone has accomplished in my life.
Here is Psalm 40 in its entirety...
1 I waited patiently for the LORD;
And He inclined to me,
And heard my cry.
2 He also brought me up out of a horrible pit,
Out of the miry clay,
And set my feet upon a rock,
And established my steps.
3 He has put a new song in my mouth—
Praise to our God;
Many will see it and fear,
And will trust in the LORD.
4 Blessed is that man who makes the LORD his trust,
And does not respect the proud, nor such as turn aside to lies.
5 Many, O LORD my God, are Your wonderful works
Which You have done;
And Your thoughts toward us
Cannot be recounted to You in order;
If I would declare and speak of them,
They are more than can be numbered.
6 Sacrifice and offering You did not desire;
My ears You have opened.
Burnt offering and sin offering You did not require.
7 Then I said, “Behold, I come;
In the scroll of the book it is written of me.
8 I delight to do Your will, O my God,
And Your law is within my heart.”
9 I have proclaimed the good news of righteousness
In the great assembly;
Indeed, I do not restrain my lips,
O LORD, You Yourself know.
10 I have not hidden Your righteousness within my heart;
I have declared Your faithfulness and Your salvation;
I have not concealed Your lovingkindness and Your truth
From the great assembly.
11 Do not withhold Your tender mercies from me, O LORD;
Let Your lovingkindness and Your truth continually preserve me.
12 For innumerable evils have surrounded me;
My iniquities have overtaken me, so that I am not able to look up;
They are more than the hairs of my head;
Therefore my heart fails me.
13 Be pleased, O LORD, to deliver me;
O LORD, make haste to help me!
14 Let them be ashamed and brought to mutual confusion
Who seek to destroy my life;
Let them be driven backward and brought to dishonor
Who wish me evil.
15 Let them be confounded because of their shame,
Who say to me, “Aha, aha!”
16 Let all those who seek You rejoice and be glad in You;
Let such as love Your salvation say continually,
“The LORD be magnified!”
17 But I am poor and needy;
Yet the LORD thinks upon me.
You are my help and my deliverer;
Do not delay, O my God.
Monday, October 4, 2010
Weeping or Whining....
My eyes overflow with rivers of water For the destruction of the daughter of my people. My eyes flow and do not cease, Without interruption, Till the LORD from heaven Looks down and sees. My eyes bring suffering to my soul Because of all the daughters of my city.--Lamentations 3:48-51
Dear Suzanne, Rebecca, Anna and Mikayla,
The content of this study is not mine. I will use my own words to explain but the ideas and the title are Jon Courson's. I was so encouraged after reading it that I thought I would interrupt the Spirit of Heaviness series to share this post with you.
This is a topical study from Lamentations 3:48-51. Jon Courson considers the prophets Jeremiah and Jonah and discusses their similarities. Here they are:
1. Both Jonah and Jeremiah hesitated when called to ministry. Jonah hesitated out of hostility...he did not wanted to preach to the hated Ninevites. He wanted God to annihilate them. Jeremiah hesitated out of self-doubt. He said, "Lord, I can't speak...I am but a child."
2. Both Jonah and Jeremiah were sent into a city. Jonah was sent into Nineveh--the capital of the powerful Assyrian Empire. God had a hard time getting Jonah into Nineveh. (if I can say that) He needed a storm and a big fish to get him there. Jeremiah was sent to Jerusalem. God's city. In contrast to Jonah it was impossible to get Jeremiah to leave Jerusalem. In fact, Nebuchadnezzar sent an emissary to Jeremiah telling him that he could go anywhere else in the empire...Jeremiah chose to stay with the people.
3. They were both separated from their families...Jonah by physical distance and Jeremiah from his friends and family emotionally when his friends abandoned him and his brothers betrayed him.
4. Both were manhandled and both were cast into a pit...Jeremiah a cistern and Jonah the belly of the whale.
5. Both cried out to the Lord and were delivered.
6. Both Jonah and Jeremiah preached to the people. This is where it really gets good. Jonah preached a one sentence sermon to the entire city of Nineveh. "In forty days Nineveh will be destroyed." He offered no solutions, compassion or instruction. Jeremiah preached to Jerusalem for more than 40 years with tears and a heart filled with compassion.
7. Jeremiah and Jonah both saw the people respond to God. Jonah through his one sentence sermon saw the whole of Nineveh turn and repent in dust and ashes. Jeremiah after preaching for forty years, did not have one convert. He witnessed the rejection of God. Who would be the popular preacher today? I love what Jon Courson says here. Jonah would be on the cover of Christianity Today and Jeremiah would be sitting in the back row of one of Jonah's Effective Ministry seminars battling discouragement. But what an example Jeremiah is for us of endurance, obedience and leaving the results to God. Girls, the greatest revival took place through a man whose heart was NOT right with God. Paul says in 1 Cor 4:5 that we are not to judge anything before its time. Ministries cannot be evaluated based on who is successful and who is not because only God knows the heart.
8. Both Jonah and Jeremiah sat on a hillside at the end of their ministry. Jonah whined about his gourd that had been destroyed by a worm, but Jeremiah wept for the people who were facing judgment. The very people he had warned for forty long years. The people who had rejected, imprisoned, tortured and mocked him. I might have thrown an "I told You So" party if I had been Jeremiah. Not Jeremiah, he wept! He had compassion on them.
So what do we do...do we weep for those who walk in darkness. Jon Courson's asks "if our tears were measured over the last 5 years...how many were for the unsaved? We are so concerned with our little world. So concerned whether our gourd is providing us with enough shade...so concerned with our comfort...that we become very, very small people.
So how do we become more like Jeremiah? In Luke 19:41 it says "And when he was come near, he beheld the city and wept over it." Jesus stopped on a hillside outside of Jerusalem just as Jeremiah had done and wept over the city. Knowing that they would reject Him and crucify Him. Knowing that the city would be destroyed in a few very short years. The answer girls is what the answer always is...Jesus. How do we become more like Him? By spending time with Him...as we spend time with Him and His word we become more like He is. We see with His eyes...our hearts soften and expand...His grace and His love are there and shed abroad in our hearts by His Spirit.
I want my whining to turn into weeping and my self-pity to compassion...Lord...soften my heart!
Love
Mom--who hopes you are noticing that the solution is always to immerse yourself in His word...
But we all, with unveiled face, beholding as in a mirror the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from glory to glory, just as by the Spirit of the Lord--2 Cor 3:18
Dear Suzanne, Rebecca, Anna and Mikayla,
The content of this study is not mine. I will use my own words to explain but the ideas and the title are Jon Courson's. I was so encouraged after reading it that I thought I would interrupt the Spirit of Heaviness series to share this post with you.
This is a topical study from Lamentations 3:48-51. Jon Courson considers the prophets Jeremiah and Jonah and discusses their similarities. Here they are:
1. Both Jonah and Jeremiah hesitated when called to ministry. Jonah hesitated out of hostility...he did not wanted to preach to the hated Ninevites. He wanted God to annihilate them. Jeremiah hesitated out of self-doubt. He said, "Lord, I can't speak...I am but a child."
2. Both Jonah and Jeremiah were sent into a city. Jonah was sent into Nineveh--the capital of the powerful Assyrian Empire. God had a hard time getting Jonah into Nineveh. (if I can say that) He needed a storm and a big fish to get him there. Jeremiah was sent to Jerusalem. God's city. In contrast to Jonah it was impossible to get Jeremiah to leave Jerusalem. In fact, Nebuchadnezzar sent an emissary to Jeremiah telling him that he could go anywhere else in the empire...Jeremiah chose to stay with the people.
3. They were both separated from their families...Jonah by physical distance and Jeremiah from his friends and family emotionally when his friends abandoned him and his brothers betrayed him.
4. Both were manhandled and both were cast into a pit...Jeremiah a cistern and Jonah the belly of the whale.
5. Both cried out to the Lord and were delivered.
6. Both Jonah and Jeremiah preached to the people. This is where it really gets good. Jonah preached a one sentence sermon to the entire city of Nineveh. "In forty days Nineveh will be destroyed." He offered no solutions, compassion or instruction. Jeremiah preached to Jerusalem for more than 40 years with tears and a heart filled with compassion.
7. Jeremiah and Jonah both saw the people respond to God. Jonah through his one sentence sermon saw the whole of Nineveh turn and repent in dust and ashes. Jeremiah after preaching for forty years, did not have one convert. He witnessed the rejection of God. Who would be the popular preacher today? I love what Jon Courson says here. Jonah would be on the cover of Christianity Today and Jeremiah would be sitting in the back row of one of Jonah's Effective Ministry seminars battling discouragement. But what an example Jeremiah is for us of endurance, obedience and leaving the results to God. Girls, the greatest revival took place through a man whose heart was NOT right with God. Paul says in 1 Cor 4:5 that we are not to judge anything before its time. Ministries cannot be evaluated based on who is successful and who is not because only God knows the heart.
8. Both Jonah and Jeremiah sat on a hillside at the end of their ministry. Jonah whined about his gourd that had been destroyed by a worm, but Jeremiah wept for the people who were facing judgment. The very people he had warned for forty long years. The people who had rejected, imprisoned, tortured and mocked him. I might have thrown an "I told You So" party if I had been Jeremiah. Not Jeremiah, he wept! He had compassion on them.
So what do we do...do we weep for those who walk in darkness. Jon Courson's asks "if our tears were measured over the last 5 years...how many were for the unsaved? We are so concerned with our little world. So concerned whether our gourd is providing us with enough shade...so concerned with our comfort...that we become very, very small people.
So how do we become more like Jeremiah? In Luke 19:41 it says "And when he was come near, he beheld the city and wept over it." Jesus stopped on a hillside outside of Jerusalem just as Jeremiah had done and wept over the city. Knowing that they would reject Him and crucify Him. Knowing that the city would be destroyed in a few very short years. The answer girls is what the answer always is...Jesus. How do we become more like Him? By spending time with Him...as we spend time with Him and His word we become more like He is. We see with His eyes...our hearts soften and expand...His grace and His love are there and shed abroad in our hearts by His Spirit.
I want my whining to turn into weeping and my self-pity to compassion...Lord...soften my heart!
Love
Mom--who hopes you are noticing that the solution is always to immerse yourself in His word...
But we all, with unveiled face, beholding as in a mirror the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from glory to glory, just as by the Spirit of the Lord--2 Cor 3:18
Sunday, October 3, 2010
The Spirit of Heaviness - Part 2
This I recall to my mind, Therefore I have hope. Through the LORD’s mercies we are not consumed, Because His compassions fail not. They are new every morning; Great is Your faithfulness. “ The LORD is my portion,” says my soul, “ Therefore I hope in Him!”--Lamentations 3:21-24
Dear Suzanne, Rebecca, Anna and Mikayla,
I have been reading through Lamentations and have reached Chapter 3. In the first two chapters Jeremiah laments the tragedy of the judgment and destruction of Jerusalem. God's people had rebelled against Him and ignored His warnings. The time for judgment had come. Chapter 3 begins with the prophet's own pain and suffering as he watches his people face judgment...the people he had preached to with tears for forty years without one convert. Imagine his distress. Jeremiah paints a graphic word picture of his suffering for us in verses 1 through 18. He tells us that God was like his enemy aiming arrows at him that pierced his loins and although his prophecies had been fulfilled, the people were still against him and ridiculed him. In verse 16 he says he is covered with ashes. The final verse of this lament says "And I said, “My strength and my hope Have perished from the LORD.” Remember my affliction and roaming, The wormwood and the gall. My soul still remembers And sinks within me." Are you getting the picture? Okay...now we come to the turning point where he takes his eyes off of his own misery, looks at the Lord instead and says in verse 21 that he has hope! Here he remembers God's mercy! He remembers that it is through the Lord's mercies that we are not consumed and that His compassions fail not. Girls if we do not remember this our souls will sink within us just as Jeremiah's did.
I am a woman who has been forgiven much and truly think I do see the Lord's mercy and compassion. Sometimes, however, the Lord reaches deep into your soul and shows you in a more personal way a truth that you have prayed to understand more.
Such was my experience today after reading chapter 3. While watching home video footage that had been taken in 1994 prior to my salvation, I had the opportunity to see up close and personal what my life and my family's life had been like without the Lord. Now I remember it in the general sense but seeing it on tape and seeing the contrast of what it is today was a gift from Him to me. It allowed me to see with marked clarity the Lord's mercies in not consuming us. It also showed me how He took us from a life of self-worship, emptiness and eternal damnation to a life filled with and lived for Him whose end was heaven. As I watched with spiritual eyes that I did not have back then I was so thankful for His faithfulness and was grateful that He did not give me what I truly deserved...death. You know what...I may not be getting exactly what I want right now, but I am very grateful that I am not getting what I deserve. And even in not getting what I want I know that whatever I am or am not getting is the Lord's mercy and goodness to me. I know that He works all things in my life as a believer together for good. I am appreciative to the Lord for the miracle He and He alone has wrought in my life and in the life of my husband and you, my daughters. I saw the blessings I would have missed and what our end would have been without Him and I SHUDDERED.
After watching those videos I can see is His faithfulness, His compassion and His mercy in a way I was unable to before. This generated hope in my soul and reminded me to remember, like Jeremiah did, that His mercies and compassions fail not when that spirit of heaviness hits...that I can praise Him because I am NOT getting what I truly deserve. Instead I am getting His truth and His grace upon grace poured out in my life. So sing and exchange the spirit of heaviness for the garment of praise and be grateful to Him that His compassion and His mercies fail not!
Love,
Mom
“The LORD bless you and keep you; The LORD make His face shine upon you, And be gracious to you;
The LORD lift up His countenance upon you, And give you peace.”--Numbers 6:24-26
Dear Suzanne, Rebecca, Anna and Mikayla,
I have been reading through Lamentations and have reached Chapter 3. In the first two chapters Jeremiah laments the tragedy of the judgment and destruction of Jerusalem. God's people had rebelled against Him and ignored His warnings. The time for judgment had come. Chapter 3 begins with the prophet's own pain and suffering as he watches his people face judgment...the people he had preached to with tears for forty years without one convert. Imagine his distress. Jeremiah paints a graphic word picture of his suffering for us in verses 1 through 18. He tells us that God was like his enemy aiming arrows at him that pierced his loins and although his prophecies had been fulfilled, the people were still against him and ridiculed him. In verse 16 he says he is covered with ashes. The final verse of this lament says "And I said, “My strength and my hope Have perished from the LORD.” Remember my affliction and roaming, The wormwood and the gall. My soul still remembers And sinks within me." Are you getting the picture? Okay...now we come to the turning point where he takes his eyes off of his own misery, looks at the Lord instead and says in verse 21 that he has hope! Here he remembers God's mercy! He remembers that it is through the Lord's mercies that we are not consumed and that His compassions fail not. Girls if we do not remember this our souls will sink within us just as Jeremiah's did.
I am a woman who has been forgiven much and truly think I do see the Lord's mercy and compassion. Sometimes, however, the Lord reaches deep into your soul and shows you in a more personal way a truth that you have prayed to understand more.
Such was my experience today after reading chapter 3. While watching home video footage that had been taken in 1994 prior to my salvation, I had the opportunity to see up close and personal what my life and my family's life had been like without the Lord. Now I remember it in the general sense but seeing it on tape and seeing the contrast of what it is today was a gift from Him to me. It allowed me to see with marked clarity the Lord's mercies in not consuming us. It also showed me how He took us from a life of self-worship, emptiness and eternal damnation to a life filled with and lived for Him whose end was heaven. As I watched with spiritual eyes that I did not have back then I was so thankful for His faithfulness and was grateful that He did not give me what I truly deserved...death. You know what...I may not be getting exactly what I want right now, but I am very grateful that I am not getting what I deserve. And even in not getting what I want I know that whatever I am or am not getting is the Lord's mercy and goodness to me. I know that He works all things in my life as a believer together for good. I am appreciative to the Lord for the miracle He and He alone has wrought in my life and in the life of my husband and you, my daughters. I saw the blessings I would have missed and what our end would have been without Him and I SHUDDERED.
After watching those videos I can see is His faithfulness, His compassion and His mercy in a way I was unable to before. This generated hope in my soul and reminded me to remember, like Jeremiah did, that His mercies and compassions fail not when that spirit of heaviness hits...that I can praise Him because I am NOT getting what I truly deserve. Instead I am getting His truth and His grace upon grace poured out in my life. So sing and exchange the spirit of heaviness for the garment of praise and be grateful to Him that His compassion and His mercies fail not!
Love,
Mom
“The LORD bless you and keep you; The LORD make His face shine upon you, And be gracious to you;
The LORD lift up His countenance upon you, And give you peace.”--Numbers 6:24-26
Tuesday, September 28, 2010
You Become what You Worship
Jeremiah 10:14-16
Everyone is dull-hearted, without knowledge; Every metalsmith is put to shame by an image; For his molded image is falsehood, And there is no breath in them.15 They are futile, a work of errors; In the time of their punishment they shall perish.16 The Portion of Jacob is not like them, For He is the Maker of all things, And Israel is the tribe of His inheritance; The LORD of hosts is His name.
Dear Suzanne, Rebecca, Anna and Mikayla,
You become like what you worship...That is my message to you today...you become like what you worship. Yes, I am repeating myself. So think of what you are worshiping and imagine what will be your essence if you continue down that road. See your end so to speak.
Now, I worship the true and living God but there are things in my life that at times I pay too much attention to or even put before God. I do not, by the grace of God, make this a practice. By the grace of God, I repent when the Lord shows me what I am doing...and I am ever so thankful that He shows me. When I really think about what I would resemble if, as I said before, continued down that road without repentance...I SHUDDER. The word shallow comes to mind...empty headed and definitely dependent on the praise of men. None of which are qualities I desire.
Romans 1:19-25
because what may be known of God is manifest in them, for God has shown it to them. 20 For since the creation of the world His invisible attributes are clearly seen, being understood by the things that are made, even His eternal power and Godhead, so that they are without excuse, 21 because, although they knew God, they did not glorify Him as God, nor were thankful, but became futile in their thoughts, and their foolish hearts were darkened. 22 Professing to be wise, they became fools, 23 and changed the glory of the incorruptible God into an image made like corruptible man—and birds and four-footed animals and creeping things. 24 Therefore God also gave them up to uncleanness, in the lusts of their hearts, to dishonor their bodies among themselves, 25 who exchanged the truth of God for the lie, and worshiped and served the creature rather than the Creator, who is blessed forever. Amen.
Paul is saying here that we as fallen, unsaved human beings are without excuse and even though we know that there is a God from our own conscience as well as the evidence of creation, some of us (well okay..many of us) will suppress that truth and refuse to honor God as God. Why? Because we like darkness more than light. We love our sin more than we love God. Eventually God gives us over to our own desires and we become futile in our thoughts and our hearts are darkened. We wind up serving the creature rather than the Creator! God lets us have our own way! Uh oh...our own way is NEVER a good thing. If we are not worshiping Him we are worshiping something else...and as the Bible says...because we are not worshiping the true God our foolish hearts will eventually be darkened...
I am thanking God that the "Portion of Jacob" is mine. I was praying and asking the Lord last night to show me the antidote for idol worship. I knew there must be an answer and that it was probably obvious. As I was reading Lamentations...another book written by Jeremiah I found it.
Lamentations 3:24 “ The LORD is my portion,” says my soul, “ Therefore I hope in Him!” The antidote to idol worship is to immerse yourself in Him and remember that it is in Him that you live and move and have your being. How many times have you said to yourself..."if i just had or if this would just occur then I would be okay"...How many times? Finally you go to where you should have gone at the outset...to the Lord and spend time with Him and return realizing that it really wasn't any of those things that were needed or were going to make it better...IT WAS HIM YOU WANTED...HE WAS WHAT WAS NEEDED. The Lord doesn't just give me a portion...HE is my portion. He is the Becoming One...He becomes whatever we need. In Him we find such satisfaction in our souls that nothing else matters.
Girls, may you never fool yourself in thinking that you can live after your own desires and that somehow the grace of God will make up for it or His love will cover it. God said, "Tear your heart, not your garments." He doesn't want an outward display. He wants an inward work in your heart and your total devotion to Him. If there are things you are putting before God even today...repent...stop...go in the other direction. If your life is filled with an outward display but not much of an inward change...surrender to Him right now and ask Him to do that work in your heart.
"The LORD bless you and keep you; The LORD make His face shine upon you, And be gracious to you; The LORD lift up His countenance upon you, And give you peace.”’ --Numbers 6:24-26
Love
Mom
Everyone is dull-hearted, without knowledge; Every metalsmith is put to shame by an image; For his molded image is falsehood, And there is no breath in them.15 They are futile, a work of errors; In the time of their punishment they shall perish.16 The Portion of Jacob is not like them, For He is the Maker of all things, And Israel is the tribe of His inheritance; The LORD of hosts is His name.
Dear Suzanne, Rebecca, Anna and Mikayla,
You become like what you worship...That is my message to you today...you become like what you worship. Yes, I am repeating myself. So think of what you are worshiping and imagine what will be your essence if you continue down that road. See your end so to speak.
Now, I worship the true and living God but there are things in my life that at times I pay too much attention to or even put before God. I do not, by the grace of God, make this a practice. By the grace of God, I repent when the Lord shows me what I am doing...and I am ever so thankful that He shows me. When I really think about what I would resemble if, as I said before, continued down that road without repentance...I SHUDDER. The word shallow comes to mind...empty headed and definitely dependent on the praise of men. None of which are qualities I desire.
Romans 1:19-25
because what may be known of God is manifest in them, for God has shown it to them. 20 For since the creation of the world His invisible attributes are clearly seen, being understood by the things that are made, even His eternal power and Godhead, so that they are without excuse, 21 because, although they knew God, they did not glorify Him as God, nor were thankful, but became futile in their thoughts, and their foolish hearts were darkened. 22 Professing to be wise, they became fools, 23 and changed the glory of the incorruptible God into an image made like corruptible man—and birds and four-footed animals and creeping things. 24 Therefore God also gave them up to uncleanness, in the lusts of their hearts, to dishonor their bodies among themselves, 25 who exchanged the truth of God for the lie, and worshiped and served the creature rather than the Creator, who is blessed forever. Amen.
Paul is saying here that we as fallen, unsaved human beings are without excuse and even though we know that there is a God from our own conscience as well as the evidence of creation, some of us (well okay..many of us) will suppress that truth and refuse to honor God as God. Why? Because we like darkness more than light. We love our sin more than we love God. Eventually God gives us over to our own desires and we become futile in our thoughts and our hearts are darkened. We wind up serving the creature rather than the Creator! God lets us have our own way! Uh oh...our own way is NEVER a good thing. If we are not worshiping Him we are worshiping something else...and as the Bible says...because we are not worshiping the true God our foolish hearts will eventually be darkened...
I am thanking God that the "Portion of Jacob" is mine. I was praying and asking the Lord last night to show me the antidote for idol worship. I knew there must be an answer and that it was probably obvious. As I was reading Lamentations...another book written by Jeremiah I found it.
Lamentations 3:24 “ The LORD is my portion,” says my soul, “ Therefore I hope in Him!” The antidote to idol worship is to immerse yourself in Him and remember that it is in Him that you live and move and have your being. How many times have you said to yourself..."if i just had or if this would just occur then I would be okay"...How many times? Finally you go to where you should have gone at the outset...to the Lord and spend time with Him and return realizing that it really wasn't any of those things that were needed or were going to make it better...IT WAS HIM YOU WANTED...HE WAS WHAT WAS NEEDED. The Lord doesn't just give me a portion...HE is my portion. He is the Becoming One...He becomes whatever we need. In Him we find such satisfaction in our souls that nothing else matters.
Girls, may you never fool yourself in thinking that you can live after your own desires and that somehow the grace of God will make up for it or His love will cover it. God said, "Tear your heart, not your garments." He doesn't want an outward display. He wants an inward work in your heart and your total devotion to Him. If there are things you are putting before God even today...repent...stop...go in the other direction. If your life is filled with an outward display but not much of an inward change...surrender to Him right now and ask Him to do that work in your heart.
"The LORD bless you and keep you; The LORD make His face shine upon you, And be gracious to you; The LORD lift up His countenance upon you, And give you peace.”’ --Numbers 6:24-26
Love
Mom
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