II Timothy 2: 25-26
Gently instruct those who oppose the Truth. Perhaps God will change those people's hearts and they will learn the Truth. Then they will come to their senses and escape from the devil's trap. For they have been held captive by him to do whatever he wants.
O my Father, when I read these verses I think of those I love, who do not know You yet. They have been caught by the enemy and are imprisoned in his trap, held captive by him to do what he wants. They think they're making their own choices.
O Father, please give me opportunity to say Your words to them, words of grace and Truth, words that would be hard for them to hear, but clothed in velvet. Words that will grab hold on them and draw them out of the devil's trap, back to You. Help me, Father, to "snatch them out of the flames" so they can live, not die. So their lives can be filled with Your vibrant Life, not the deadness the enemy wants to inflict on them.
Grant me Your grace for them, Your understanding, gentleness, compassion and attraction; Your beauty, Father, reflected through me to them, to draw them back to You.
Even so, come, Lord Jesus!
Tuesday, May 23, 2017
Monday, May 22, 2017
I Trust His Constancy
II Timothy 1: 12
I am not ashamed ... for I know the One in Whom I trust and I am sure that He is able to guard what I have entrusted to Him until the Day of His return.
O my Father, thank You so much for Your wonderful promises; thank You for being a good God Who is faithful and will always do what You have said. Thank You for Your constancy, for never changing, for always being the good, strong, faithful, compassionate God that You are.
Thank You for Your love for me, Your love that pulled me out of the pit I had dug for myself, and placed my feet on that solid Rock that will never be moved. Thank You for loving me so much that You sent Your only Son to take upon Himself my debt of sin, and His willingness to do it.
Thank You for making me Your own, and for that wonderful work that You started in me. Thank You that You will never let me go, but will finish what You began in me on that day; and I will be seen as a glorious trophy of Your grace!
Even so, come, Lord Jesus!
I am not ashamed ... for I know the One in Whom I trust and I am sure that He is able to guard what I have entrusted to Him until the Day of His return.
O my Father, thank You so much for Your wonderful promises; thank You for being a good God Who is faithful and will always do what You have said. Thank You for Your constancy, for never changing, for always being the good, strong, faithful, compassionate God that You are.
Thank You for Your love for me, Your love that pulled me out of the pit I had dug for myself, and placed my feet on that solid Rock that will never be moved. Thank You for loving me so much that You sent Your only Son to take upon Himself my debt of sin, and His willingness to do it.
Thank You for making me Your own, and for that wonderful work that You started in me. Thank You that You will never let me go, but will finish what You began in me on that day; and I will be seen as a glorious trophy of Your grace!
Even so, come, Lord Jesus!
Sunday, May 21, 2017
Don't Be Afraid To Surrender
Jeremiah 38:17-19
Then Jeremiah said to Zedekiah, "This is what the Lord God of Heavens Armies, the God of Israel, says: 'If you surrender to the Babylonian officers, you and your family will live, and the city will not be burned down. But if you refuse to surrender, you will not escape! This city will be handed over to the Babylonians, and they will burn it to the ground.'"
"But I am afraid to surrender," the king said.
II Chronicles 36:13
Zedekiah was a hard and stubborn man, refusing to turn to the Lord, the God of Israel.
King Zedekiah, we are told, "was a hard and stubborn man," refusing to submit to his God. But he also refused to submit to Nebuchadnezzar, to whom he had pledged a loyalty oath.
Even though he had sought out Jeremiah and promised to not allow him to be killed, he was too afraid to submit to what Jeremiah told him. He really didn't believe that he couldn't escape and decided to "take his chances" anyway.
So King Zedekiah was captured, forced to witness his sons' executions, then had his eyes gouged out. How much better things would have been for him if he would only have allowed his heart to be softened toward God!
O my dear Father God, You are good, kind, forgiving; a merciful Potentate to those who submit to You. And You are not willing that any should perish, but that all would come to repentance. But, like Zedekiah, many are too hard, proud, and stubborn to want to submit to Your love. They have bought the enemy's lies and allowed themselves to be deceived into thinking that they "know better," like Zedekiah did. And their end will be no better than his.
Please, Father, show Yourself strong to my loved ones who do not yet know You; soften their hard hearts, and draw them to Yourself, no matter what it takes.
Even so, come, Lord Jesus!
Then Jeremiah said to Zedekiah, "This is what the Lord God of Heavens Armies, the God of Israel, says: 'If you surrender to the Babylonian officers, you and your family will live, and the city will not be burned down. But if you refuse to surrender, you will not escape! This city will be handed over to the Babylonians, and they will burn it to the ground.'"
"But I am afraid to surrender," the king said.
II Chronicles 36:13
Zedekiah was a hard and stubborn man, refusing to turn to the Lord, the God of Israel.
King Zedekiah, we are told, "was a hard and stubborn man," refusing to submit to his God. But he also refused to submit to Nebuchadnezzar, to whom he had pledged a loyalty oath.
Even though he had sought out Jeremiah and promised to not allow him to be killed, he was too afraid to submit to what Jeremiah told him. He really didn't believe that he couldn't escape and decided to "take his chances" anyway.
So King Zedekiah was captured, forced to witness his sons' executions, then had his eyes gouged out. How much better things would have been for him if he would only have allowed his heart to be softened toward God!
O my dear Father God, You are good, kind, forgiving; a merciful Potentate to those who submit to You. And You are not willing that any should perish, but that all would come to repentance. But, like Zedekiah, many are too hard, proud, and stubborn to want to submit to Your love. They have bought the enemy's lies and allowed themselves to be deceived into thinking that they "know better," like Zedekiah did. And their end will be no better than his.
Please, Father, show Yourself strong to my loved ones who do not yet know You; soften their hard hearts, and draw them to Yourself, no matter what it takes.
Even so, come, Lord Jesus!
Saturday, May 20, 2017
Families Who Love The Lord
Jeremiah 35:18-19
Then Jeremiah turned to the Recabites and said, "This is what the Lord of Heaven's Armies says: 'You have obeyed your ancestor Jehonadab in every respect, following all his instructions.' Therefore, this is what the Lord of Heaven's Armies, the God of Israel, says; 'Jehonadab son of Recab will always have descendants who serve me.'"
This is a wonderful promise to the Recabites, to know that they would always have family who serve the Lord, however far their neighbors stray. Even in the midst of a wayward and perverse nation, there would be those who remain strong in the Lord.
O my Father, please grant me and my late husband, who loved you dearly and followed you closely, this same blessing, that our children and grandchildren and their children after them would know and serve You.
Teach me to obey all that You have commanded me; to love You with all my heart and soul and mind and strength, and to love others as I love myself. Father, I have loved myself with a very self-centered and self-serving love--now teach me to love others with this same focus, to be other-centered and other-serving, regardless of the cost to myself.
And continue to draw all my children and grandchildren and their children after them to yourself, that they all may know, love and serve only You.
Even so, come, Lord Jesus!
Then Jeremiah turned to the Recabites and said, "This is what the Lord of Heaven's Armies says: 'You have obeyed your ancestor Jehonadab in every respect, following all his instructions.' Therefore, this is what the Lord of Heaven's Armies, the God of Israel, says; 'Jehonadab son of Recab will always have descendants who serve me.'"
This is a wonderful promise to the Recabites, to know that they would always have family who serve the Lord, however far their neighbors stray. Even in the midst of a wayward and perverse nation, there would be those who remain strong in the Lord.
O my Father, please grant me and my late husband, who loved you dearly and followed you closely, this same blessing, that our children and grandchildren and their children after them would know and serve You.
Teach me to obey all that You have commanded me; to love You with all my heart and soul and mind and strength, and to love others as I love myself. Father, I have loved myself with a very self-centered and self-serving love--now teach me to love others with this same focus, to be other-centered and other-serving, regardless of the cost to myself.
And continue to draw all my children and grandchildren and their children after them to yourself, that they all may know, love and serve only You.
Even so, come, Lord Jesus!
Friday, May 19, 2017
Not My Own Selfish Self
Psalm 86: 11-12
Teach me Your ways, O Lord, that I may live according to Your truth! Grant me purity of heart, so that I may honor You. With all my heart I will praise You, O Lord my God. I will give glory to Your Name forever.
O my Father, thank You so much for Your unfailing love, Your mercy, Your compassion. Your grace is so great to me. Your Truth, O God, is what I seek, for I desire to know You. You are my Lord, O God of my salvation.
You have rescued me from the quicksand of my own indulgent desires and placed my feet upon the Rock; and I will never be moved, for that Rock is unmovable. Strengthen me, O Lord, to live according to Your Truth.
Grant me purity of heart, so that I may honor You. Allow the thoughts of my heart and the words of my mouth and the works of my hands to be only of You, my Lord, not of my own selfish self. Empty me of me, O Lord, that I may be filled with You.
Even so, come, Lord Jesus!
Teach me Your ways, O Lord, that I may live according to Your truth! Grant me purity of heart, so that I may honor You. With all my heart I will praise You, O Lord my God. I will give glory to Your Name forever.
O my Father, thank You so much for Your unfailing love, Your mercy, Your compassion. Your grace is so great to me. Your Truth, O God, is what I seek, for I desire to know You. You are my Lord, O God of my salvation.
You have rescued me from the quicksand of my own indulgent desires and placed my feet upon the Rock; and I will never be moved, for that Rock is unmovable. Strengthen me, O Lord, to live according to Your Truth.
Grant me purity of heart, so that I may honor You. Allow the thoughts of my heart and the words of my mouth and the works of my hands to be only of You, my Lord, not of my own selfish self. Empty me of me, O Lord, that I may be filled with You.
Even so, come, Lord Jesus!
Wednesday, May 17, 2017
The Final Culmination
Psalm 87: 4-7
I will count Rahab (Egypt) and Babylon among those who know Me--also Philistia and Tyre, and even distant Cush (Ethiopia). They all have become citizens of Jerusalem! Regarding Zion it will be said, "Everyone enjoys the rights of citizenship there." And the Most High will personally bless this city. When the Lord registers the Nations, He will say, "They have all become citizens of Jerusalem." The people will dance and sing, "The source of my life springs from Jerusalem."
O my Father, Your Plan is glorious! Your Plan to bless Your own, including those of Yours from every Nation, every Tongue, every Tribe, is wonderful! Thank You, Father, for what You are going to do, and for what You have done, and for what You are doing even now. You are seeing to it that Your whole Plan will be perfectly fulfilled, every detail fitting into its place in the Grand Scheme. You have told us so much, so many of the details, so long before they came about; and I have read the last chapter, the final culmination of all we can know in this world. And You will receive all the glory, for You have done it all!
Even so, come, Lord Jesus!
I will count Rahab (Egypt) and Babylon among those who know Me--also Philistia and Tyre, and even distant Cush (Ethiopia). They all have become citizens of Jerusalem! Regarding Zion it will be said, "Everyone enjoys the rights of citizenship there." And the Most High will personally bless this city. When the Lord registers the Nations, He will say, "They have all become citizens of Jerusalem." The people will dance and sing, "The source of my life springs from Jerusalem."
O my Father, Your Plan is glorious! Your Plan to bless Your own, including those of Yours from every Nation, every Tongue, every Tribe, is wonderful! Thank You, Father, for what You are going to do, and for what You have done, and for what You are doing even now. You are seeing to it that Your whole Plan will be perfectly fulfilled, every detail fitting into its place in the Grand Scheme. You have told us so much, so many of the details, so long before they came about; and I have read the last chapter, the final culmination of all we can know in this world. And You will receive all the glory, for You have done it all!
Even so, come, Lord Jesus!
Tuesday, May 16, 2017
Law? Or Grace?
Romans Chapter 3
What advantage, then, is there in being of the tribes of Israel? What value is there in circumcision? Much in every way! First of all, they have been entrusted with the very words of God.
So what if some did not believe? Would their lack of faith nullify God's faithfulness? Of course not! So God is True even if every man is a liar.
As Psalm 51:4 says, "So that You may be proved right when You speak and prevail when You judge."
So God gave His Law to Israel, so they could demonstrate to the World how good life can be when His rules are followed. But, being human, they never did fully implement the kind of society God showed them in the Law, and they all ended up carried away into slavery. But He's not given up on them.
So we know that whatever the Law says, it says to those who are under the Law,
God's rules apply to all of His Creation: the Natural Laws and the Moral Laws.
so that every mouth may be silenced and the whole World held accountable to God. Therefore no one will be declared righteous in His sight by observing the Law; through the Law we become conscious of sin.
No one has ever yet been able to obey all of God's rules for living, either in the moral, financial, emotional or natural realms; we have all fallen short at one time or another, some more, some less. That is why "the ground is level at the foot of the Cross."
There is no difference, for all have sinned, and fall short of the Glory of God, and are justified freely by His Grace through the Redemption that came by Christ Jesus.
God presented Him as the Sacrifice of Atonement (full and absolute payment), through faith in His Blood. He did this to demonstrate His justice, because in His forbearance He had left the sins committed beforehand unpunished--
Because all the animal sacrifices could only cover the sins, not pay off the debt to take them away.
--He did it to demonstrate His justice at the present time, so as to be Just and the One Who Justifies those who have faith in Jesus.
Although Jesus' Blood can pay off the debt of everyone who ever lived, not everyone wants to come to Him. Only those who "seek Him with all their heart," will find Him. Those who choose any other way will not find Him.
There is nothing we can do that will make God choose us, nothing we can do to convince Him that we deserve Heaven. Everything we do is contaminated by our sin-nature. (Isaiah 64:6 says that "all our righteousnesses are as filthy, uncleanable menstrual rags" in God's sight.)
All we can do is to believe that He already loves us more than we can imagine, and has already done all the "work" that needs to be done for our Salvation from our sins and our Redemption out of this painful, sorrowful World System. He can never love us more than He already does, and nothing can ever diminish His love for us. While we were still His enemies, Jesus Christ died in our place, that's how God loves us (Romans 5:8).
So stop trying to get God to notice you. Give it up, and let Jesus take your sins, your death, on the Cross. Die to yourself. Then He will give you that New Life, in addition to the one you already have, and you will know that you are forgiven and cleansed, and see with New Eyes, know with New Understanding, and fall on your own knees to willingly give Him all the praise and glory.
Even so, come, Lord Jesus!
What advantage, then, is there in being of the tribes of Israel? What value is there in circumcision? Much in every way! First of all, they have been entrusted with the very words of God.
So what if some did not believe? Would their lack of faith nullify God's faithfulness? Of course not! So God is True even if every man is a liar.
As Psalm 51:4 says, "So that You may be proved right when You speak and prevail when You judge."
So God gave His Law to Israel, so they could demonstrate to the World how good life can be when His rules are followed. But, being human, they never did fully implement the kind of society God showed them in the Law, and they all ended up carried away into slavery. But He's not given up on them.
So we know that whatever the Law says, it says to those who are under the Law,
God's rules apply to all of His Creation: the Natural Laws and the Moral Laws.
so that every mouth may be silenced and the whole World held accountable to God. Therefore no one will be declared righteous in His sight by observing the Law; through the Law we become conscious of sin.
No one has ever yet been able to obey all of God's rules for living, either in the moral, financial, emotional or natural realms; we have all fallen short at one time or another, some more, some less. That is why "the ground is level at the foot of the Cross."
There is no difference, for all have sinned, and fall short of the Glory of God, and are justified freely by His Grace through the Redemption that came by Christ Jesus.
God presented Him as the Sacrifice of Atonement (full and absolute payment), through faith in His Blood. He did this to demonstrate His justice, because in His forbearance He had left the sins committed beforehand unpunished--
Because all the animal sacrifices could only cover the sins, not pay off the debt to take them away.
--He did it to demonstrate His justice at the present time, so as to be Just and the One Who Justifies those who have faith in Jesus.
Although Jesus' Blood can pay off the debt of everyone who ever lived, not everyone wants to come to Him. Only those who "seek Him with all their heart," will find Him. Those who choose any other way will not find Him.
There is nothing we can do that will make God choose us, nothing we can do to convince Him that we deserve Heaven. Everything we do is contaminated by our sin-nature. (Isaiah 64:6 says that "all our righteousnesses are as filthy, uncleanable menstrual rags" in God's sight.)
All we can do is to believe that He already loves us more than we can imagine, and has already done all the "work" that needs to be done for our Salvation from our sins and our Redemption out of this painful, sorrowful World System. He can never love us more than He already does, and nothing can ever diminish His love for us. While we were still His enemies, Jesus Christ died in our place, that's how God loves us (Romans 5:8).
So stop trying to get God to notice you. Give it up, and let Jesus take your sins, your death, on the Cross. Die to yourself. Then He will give you that New Life, in addition to the one you already have, and you will know that you are forgiven and cleansed, and see with New Eyes, know with New Understanding, and fall on your own knees to willingly give Him all the praise and glory.
Even so, come, Lord Jesus!
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