Mark 7: 20-23
And then He added, It is what comes from inside that defiles you. For from within, out of a person's heart, come evil thoughts, sexual immorality, theft, murder, adultery, greed, wickedness, deceit, lustful desires, envy, slander, pride, and foolishness. All these vile things come from within; they are what defile you.
All these horrible things come out as the overflow of what is filling the heart. The first item on this list is "evil thoughts." We choose what we want to think about. Everything we do always begins with a thought, whether good or bad. So it is very important to choose to think good thoughts. (See Philippians 4:8-9 for God's thought list.)
Whenever a thought crosses my mind that happens to be selfish, or lazy, or unkind, I don't want to dwell on that idea; I try to deliberately replace it with something more wholesome. I'll think of a Bible verse that counteracts that temptation, as Jesus did. Or if it's a song that's playing in my head, then I'll turn on Christian Radio to replace it with something honoring.
Everything we do starts with a thought, then fills the heart, then overflows into our life. I need to remember this, especially when I'm in the heat of the battle. I don't want to go on automatic at those times, so I need to plan ahead, before the stuff hits the fan, to know what I'll do. Then I'll be able to think more clearly, without my brain being muddled in the passion of the moment. That's my goal concerning this.
O my Father, please search my heart and know me. Show me any of these vile things You find there, that I may confess and forsake them and be forgiven and cleansed. Wash my inner parts that I may be a fit sacrifice, a vessel suitable for Your use.
O Father, please continue to help me fill my heart with Your good ideas and attitudes and emotions, by having self-control over what I allow to play in my head, and in my thought processes. Help me to always remember how sweet and kind and strong is Your love for me, so I will fill my heart with that to overflow onto all the other people in my little world.
Even so, come, Lord Jesus!
Friday, October 20, 2017
Thursday, October 19, 2017
A New Song
Psalm 40: 3
He has given me a new song to sing, a hymn of praise to our God. Many will see what He has done and be amazed. They will put their trust in the Lord.
O my dear Father in Heaven, You are continually blessing me day by day with such great and wonderful things. Your plans for me really are wonderful, and are so good for me and in me.
O Father, may others see the good things You are doing in me, that they hear that new song You have given me to sing, and be drawn to You to put their trust in You. May others see not me, but You in me, as a sweet savor, a healing perfume, and a joyous song of praise.
Even so, come, Lord Jesus!
He has given me a new song to sing, a hymn of praise to our God. Many will see what He has done and be amazed. They will put their trust in the Lord.
O my dear Father in Heaven, You are continually blessing me day by day with such great and wonderful things. Your plans for me really are wonderful, and are so good for me and in me.
O Father, may others see the good things You are doing in me, that they hear that new song You have given me to sing, and be drawn to You to put their trust in You. May others see not me, but You in me, as a sweet savor, a healing perfume, and a joyous song of praise.
Even so, come, Lord Jesus!
Wednesday, October 18, 2017
Soft And Beautiful Cover
Ephesians 2: 1-4 says that we were all dead in our transgressions and sins, gratifying the cravings of our flesh, born by nature objects of God's wrath. Then His great love for us in the richness of His mercy made us alive with Christ.
The song says, "All my soul needs all Your love to cover me so all the world will see that I am nothing without You."
As the snow covers the junkyard and garbage heap with a thick blanket, soft and beautiful, over all the stench and sharp points and rough edges; so I need God's love to cover all my sharp points and rough edges in my relationships, especially within my own family, to soften my barbed tongue (and keyboard) and my attitudes toward their lifestyles.
I need to love them with God's soft and beautiful love, tough only in maintaining my own boundaries, but gentle in all other areas regarding them and their views.
O my Father, since I wrote this in my journal, You have been working in my attitudes and my self-control to try to think before I express myself. It has been a long road, but You will never give up on me. Thank You, Father, for Your love, sweet and gentle, as it is strong and resilient. O Father, Your love goes beyond anything I could ever even imagine, it is so much more than any words I can use to describe it.
Please continue to teach me how to love with Your love, not my own. Only Your love will heal and mend all the tangles and misunderstandings in our faulty and unreliable relationships. Only You, God, are the answer to every question.
Even so, come, Lord Jesus!
The song says, "All my soul needs all Your love to cover me so all the world will see that I am nothing without You."
As the snow covers the junkyard and garbage heap with a thick blanket, soft and beautiful, over all the stench and sharp points and rough edges; so I need God's love to cover all my sharp points and rough edges in my relationships, especially within my own family, to soften my barbed tongue (and keyboard) and my attitudes toward their lifestyles.
I need to love them with God's soft and beautiful love, tough only in maintaining my own boundaries, but gentle in all other areas regarding them and their views.
O my Father, since I wrote this in my journal, You have been working in my attitudes and my self-control to try to think before I express myself. It has been a long road, but You will never give up on me. Thank You, Father, for Your love, sweet and gentle, as it is strong and resilient. O Father, Your love goes beyond anything I could ever even imagine, it is so much more than any words I can use to describe it.
Please continue to teach me how to love with Your love, not my own. Only Your love will heal and mend all the tangles and misunderstandings in our faulty and unreliable relationships. Only You, God, are the answer to every question.
Even so, come, Lord Jesus!
Tuesday, October 17, 2017
Dying To Self
Matthew 16: 24-26
Then Jesus said to His disciples, If any of you wants to be my follower, you must turn from your selfish ways, take up your cross, and follow me. If you try to hang on to your life, you will lose it. But if you give up your life for My sake, you will save it. And what do you benefit if you gain the whole World but lose your own soul? Is anything worth more than your soul?
A cross is an instrument of death. No one takes up a cross with the intention to live, but to die. So when we turn from our selfish ways and not let apathy continue in our hearts toward others, determine that we will not focus on ourselves but on others and decide to serve them as serving the Lord; then God will reward us with gifts that we would not even think of or imagine, right here in this World, and eternally in the next.
Nothing in this life will endure beyond this Earth; it had a beginning and it will have an end. But God gave us a soul, which is who we are, our person-hood and person-ality, and it will never die like our bodies, but will live on forever.
So will we die to this life and live with God forever, or will we cling to this worldly life of pleasure and end up suffering forever, paying our own debt?
Each one of us has been born through Adam, and inherit his sinful bent in wanting to make our own decisions, not listening to anyone else, being our own god. It's because of this sinful bent in our persons that we make foolish choices, to please ourselves. We become selfish and apathetic toward others, always considering "Number 1" first.
That's why Jesus came the first time. The Lord God of the Universe we got to know in the Old Testament has always been the One Who communicated and dealt with His creation, Mankind. He is the One Who decided before Creation was ever begun, that He would be the go-between between God the Father and Man. And He would be the One to rescue Man if/when he sinned.
And we sinned. So He gave His people His Law, including all the sacrifices, to show what the Lord God would do when He came to rescue us. He is called the Lamb of God because He fulfilled those animal sacrifices that were acted out then. He is the Final Sacrifice, shedding God's own Blood, with endless power to not just cover, but take away sin.
Now when we consider ourselves dead to sin, because Jesus died for us, and we deny our own longings to satisfy ourselves, focusing on others instead; that is dying to ourselves, giving up our lives for Him. And then we will find that God sees to it that we gain so much more than we ever gave up, maybe not in the same way we envisioned it, but so much better!
I trust my Maker to know me better than I know myself, and His love for me which is more than I can imagine, to give to me everything He knows I need, and more, and to do in me and to me and through me what I can never do myself. Then He will get all the credit for what He has done, all the glory.
Even so, come, Lord Jesus!
Then Jesus said to His disciples, If any of you wants to be my follower, you must turn from your selfish ways, take up your cross, and follow me. If you try to hang on to your life, you will lose it. But if you give up your life for My sake, you will save it. And what do you benefit if you gain the whole World but lose your own soul? Is anything worth more than your soul?
A cross is an instrument of death. No one takes up a cross with the intention to live, but to die. So when we turn from our selfish ways and not let apathy continue in our hearts toward others, determine that we will not focus on ourselves but on others and decide to serve them as serving the Lord; then God will reward us with gifts that we would not even think of or imagine, right here in this World, and eternally in the next.
Nothing in this life will endure beyond this Earth; it had a beginning and it will have an end. But God gave us a soul, which is who we are, our person-hood and person-ality, and it will never die like our bodies, but will live on forever.
So will we die to this life and live with God forever, or will we cling to this worldly life of pleasure and end up suffering forever, paying our own debt?
Each one of us has been born through Adam, and inherit his sinful bent in wanting to make our own decisions, not listening to anyone else, being our own god. It's because of this sinful bent in our persons that we make foolish choices, to please ourselves. We become selfish and apathetic toward others, always considering "Number 1" first.
That's why Jesus came the first time. The Lord God of the Universe we got to know in the Old Testament has always been the One Who communicated and dealt with His creation, Mankind. He is the One Who decided before Creation was ever begun, that He would be the go-between between God the Father and Man. And He would be the One to rescue Man if/when he sinned.
And we sinned. So He gave His people His Law, including all the sacrifices, to show what the Lord God would do when He came to rescue us. He is called the Lamb of God because He fulfilled those animal sacrifices that were acted out then. He is the Final Sacrifice, shedding God's own Blood, with endless power to not just cover, but take away sin.
Now when we consider ourselves dead to sin, because Jesus died for us, and we deny our own longings to satisfy ourselves, focusing on others instead; that is dying to ourselves, giving up our lives for Him. And then we will find that God sees to it that we gain so much more than we ever gave up, maybe not in the same way we envisioned it, but so much better!
I trust my Maker to know me better than I know myself, and His love for me which is more than I can imagine, to give to me everything He knows I need, and more, and to do in me and to me and through me what I can never do myself. Then He will get all the credit for what He has done, all the glory.
Even so, come, Lord Jesus!
Monday, October 16, 2017
Two Or Three
Matthew 18: 19-20
If two of you agree here on Earth concerning anything you ask, My Father in Heaven will do it for you. For where two or three gather together in My Name, I am there among them.
What a wonderful promise! I know from this that God has already answered my prayers, our prayers.
Thank You so much, my most gracious and precious Father, my Abba Daddy. Thank You for Your power and Your goodness and Your love and mercy, showered upon me and us.
You have lavished Your love upon us, dear Father, though we'll never deserve Your love. You have made us worth Your attention and care, You value us that much. But we don't deserve it or can never earn it. You give to us freely, from Your great, majestic abundance.
Even so, come, Lord Jesus!
If two of you agree here on Earth concerning anything you ask, My Father in Heaven will do it for you. For where two or three gather together in My Name, I am there among them.
What a wonderful promise! I know from this that God has already answered my prayers, our prayers.
Thank You so much, my most gracious and precious Father, my Abba Daddy. Thank You for Your power and Your goodness and Your love and mercy, showered upon me and us.
You have lavished Your love upon us, dear Father, though we'll never deserve Your love. You have made us worth Your attention and care, You value us that much. But we don't deserve it or can never earn it. You give to us freely, from Your great, majestic abundance.
Even so, come, Lord Jesus!
Sunday, October 15, 2017
Tamar's Pregnancy
I find a curious event recorded in Genesis 38 concerning Tamar's pregnancy. As a mother, I wonder how this pregnancy progressed, since it wasn't known there were twins until the birth.
It seems the boys were struggling and competing with each other to be born first, as Zerah put his hand out of the birth canal long enough for the midwife to tie a scarlet string around the wrist. Then it was pulled back into the womb and Perez was born first, then his brother with the scarlet string.
Is this another example of God choosing the second over the first? Perez is now in the direct line to David the King, so also in the line to Christ Jesus, too.
There is nothing else written about Zerah, he drops out of sight in Scripture, yet he actually had his hand out first. Such competition! For such a distant reward!
O my Father, You are great! You know who You have chosen: for salvation, for destruction, for their places in Your great Plan of the Ages; as well as Your plan for each one of us, our place in Your grand scheme.
Thank You, Father, for designing everything and making it all according to Your design, causing it all to function and work out to fulfill Your purposes for everything, and Your great, grand Purpose for us all!
Even so, come, Lord Jesus!
It seems the boys were struggling and competing with each other to be born first, as Zerah put his hand out of the birth canal long enough for the midwife to tie a scarlet string around the wrist. Then it was pulled back into the womb and Perez was born first, then his brother with the scarlet string.
Is this another example of God choosing the second over the first? Perez is now in the direct line to David the King, so also in the line to Christ Jesus, too.
There is nothing else written about Zerah, he drops out of sight in Scripture, yet he actually had his hand out first. Such competition! For such a distant reward!
O my Father, You are great! You know who You have chosen: for salvation, for destruction, for their places in Your great Plan of the Ages; as well as Your plan for each one of us, our place in Your grand scheme.
Thank You, Father, for designing everything and making it all according to Your design, causing it all to function and work out to fulfill Your purposes for everything, and Your great, grand Purpose for us all!
Even so, come, Lord Jesus!
Saturday, October 14, 2017
The Song Of Moses
Exodus 15: 1-18
This chapter records the Song of Moses:
I will sing to the Lord, for He has triumphed gloriously . . . The Lord is a warrior, Yahweh is His Name . . . Your right hand, O Lord, is glorious in power, Your right hand, O Lord, smashes the enemy . . . Who is like You among the gods, O Lord, glorious in holiness, awesome in splendor, performing great wonders? . . . With Your unfailing love You lead the people You have redeemed, in Your might, You guide them to Your sacred home. . . .
Our God is God. He always gets the victory. He always wins every time. No other being is equal to Him, as He is the Designer and the Maker and the Creator of everything that exists.
Just like my son made Lego castles and forests and villages, and he was able to move them around any way he liked, and took them down whenever he wanted; so our God is our Master Who moves us around in the ways He likes. He has given us a will that is free enough to make our own decisions, but limited to what is available to us to decide. Nothing we choose to do can alter His plan for His Creation; He will fulfill all He has determined.
And He is Love. He loves us with a greater love than we can imagine. So He fights for us: against our enemy, the angel of light who has become our adversary and accuser; against the forces of this World system that try to draw us away from His ways; and even against our own flesh, our hearts, that lure us into the lies we tell ourselves.
He gains the victory over everything that works against our good. God is a good Father Who cares for us His children with His strong and gentle hand, to lead us into His righteousness and into His sacred home.
Even so, come, Lord Jesus!
This chapter records the Song of Moses:
I will sing to the Lord, for He has triumphed gloriously . . . The Lord is a warrior, Yahweh is His Name . . . Your right hand, O Lord, is glorious in power, Your right hand, O Lord, smashes the enemy . . . Who is like You among the gods, O Lord, glorious in holiness, awesome in splendor, performing great wonders? . . . With Your unfailing love You lead the people You have redeemed, in Your might, You guide them to Your sacred home. . . .
Our God is God. He always gets the victory. He always wins every time. No other being is equal to Him, as He is the Designer and the Maker and the Creator of everything that exists.
Just like my son made Lego castles and forests and villages, and he was able to move them around any way he liked, and took them down whenever he wanted; so our God is our Master Who moves us around in the ways He likes. He has given us a will that is free enough to make our own decisions, but limited to what is available to us to decide. Nothing we choose to do can alter His plan for His Creation; He will fulfill all He has determined.
And He is Love. He loves us with a greater love than we can imagine. So He fights for us: against our enemy, the angel of light who has become our adversary and accuser; against the forces of this World system that try to draw us away from His ways; and even against our own flesh, our hearts, that lure us into the lies we tell ourselves.
He gains the victory over everything that works against our good. God is a good Father Who cares for us His children with His strong and gentle hand, to lead us into His righteousness and into His sacred home.
Even so, come, Lord Jesus!
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