April 14th, 2018

The Goodness of God

“Taste and see that the Lord is good.”  Ps. 34:8

Let the Lord speak to you today:

“I have chosen you and selected you.  You are My child, the apple of My eye.  You are hidden under My wing.  I delight in you.  All that I do for you is good.  It is for your good.  Come away with Me.  Come to the place where you can cast your cares upon Me.  Lean into Me, for I cover you with My goodness.  I know every hurt and pain and disappointment.  I am your Advocate.

You are special to Me because of all the thought and care I put into you.  I made you a very particular way.  I put into you an understanding of My justice.  You stand up for what is right in My eyes.  I put a deep desire for truth in you.  You have discovered, and are discovering still, that contained within My justice system is love and compassion.  You are in spiritual law school, learning the spirit of the law of love.

The cross is not in heaven.  The cross is an earthly station one must understand and experience in order to advance.  Each time you pass through the work of the cross, you access a new understanding and dimension of the Kingdom."

April 13th, 2018

Lost and Found

"For the Son of Man has come to save that which was lost.”  Mt. 18:11

Jesus is the Lord of the lost and found.  We can all recall our school days when we lost a hat or mitten.  We can all recall our school days when we lost a hat or mitten.  We would go to the office and locate the lost and found box.  There, we could hopefully find what was missing.

God sent His Son to retrieve all that was lost, all that is lost, and all that shall ever be lost.   He is our perfect match; the missing piece of our lives.  He will go anywhere to find us, reclaim us, and return us to where we belong.

Is there something inside our lives that has been lost?  Jesus has come for that.  He wants us – all of us.  He will not stop in His kind and gentle way until every part of our lives has been found, saved, rescued, repaired and restored.  He was with us when we lost it – it could be a spouse, a parent, a friend.    We may have lost the innocence of our youth.  He was there.  If we wept, Jesus wept.  If we suffered, Jesus suffered.  Though He was fully divine, He also was fully human.  Jesus specializes in relating to us in our “lost" condition and be our missing part.  Today, let’s give Him permission to reclaim all of us today.

April 12th, 2018

Water for My Soul

“The law of the Lord is perfect, reviving the soul.”  Ps. 19:7

The heavens speak: they say, "God is glorious!"

The sky shows off the artistry of God and His creation.

Day comes and talks to me.

Night arrives, carrying knowledge for my benefit.

Their silent language is heard, forming words of God's creation.

Those words extend throughout the earth, forming a canopy for the sun.

Each day the sun comes out of the canopy like a man on his wedding day;

Like an athlete, well-trained and ready for the race,

Both are filled with joy.

From sunrise to sunset, nothing is hidden from its penetrating light.

Its warmth soothes my bones.

In the creation of God I am pointed to the true law of the Lord.

The Lord's law of love is water for my soul.

The certainty of the sun gives testimony - even I gain wisdom!

His truths are accurate, filling my heart with joy.

His instructions for my life are true, opening my eyes to see in a whole new way.

All who revere the Lord last and live forever.

His game plan for my life guarantees victory.

His truths, testimonies and instructions are the most precious jewels to me, sweeter than honey.

They provide me warning and reward.

As I gaze from the heavens to stare at myself, how can I know for sure all my mistaken ways?

Glorious God, please find me innocent of hidden faults.

Restrain me from blatant sin and keep it from controlling my life.

I want to be found Not Guilty.

May my life, spoken and silent, be pleasing to You, for You have rescued me and have never left me.

April 11th, 2018

 Signs of Life

"He sends the springs into the valleys; they flow among the hills."  Ps. 104:10

What a beautiful picture we have here.  Springs flow down the valleys and among the hills.  We can picture the lush green valleys and the rocks glistening as these springs of water flow down generously.  There are living waters for those to partake and spring forth with newness of life.

This is the natural, created proof that the birds of the air and the animals are sustained by this intricate design of God's. God's daily provision. Verse 11 says "they give drink to every beast of the field."  

As we approach the spring season, we will see glorious leaves spring forth on trees.  We will see the trees with their branches reaching up towards the heavens and praising our Lord. We will see glorious colors, beautiful flowers and much more.   

Like the nucleus of the little baby blue robin's egg, God is about to spring forth newness and freshness into this new season in your life. His word and creation will come into your valleys and among your hills. Glory in His Holy Name.

April 10th, 2018

Bowls of Incense

“Now when He had taken the scroll, the four living creatures and twenty four elders fell down before the Lamb, each having a harp and golden bowls full of incense, which are the prayers of the saints.”  Rev. 5:8

The worshipers carried a harp and golden bowls of incense, or prayers.  This is commonly referred to as “harp and bowl” worship.  One of the Bible’s most famous harpists was King David, whose soothing melodies calmed Saul.  How wonderful to know harps are in heaven!  Harps are found throughout Scripture, especially as they were used as a vitally instrument of worship in the Tabernacle of David.  In 1 Chronicles 25:1, we read:  “Moreover David and the captains of the army separated for service some of the sons of Asaph, of Heman, and of Jeduthun, who should prophesy with harps, stringed instruments, and cymbals.”  This suggests to us not just worship, but prophetic worship!  As we move deeper into worship, the waters of revelation may be poured upon us.  This is truly a precious gift from our Lord! 

The other noteworthy aspect of this verse is that the worshipers brought forth the prayers of the saints.  This can be viewed as intercession {bringing forth the prayer needs of others}. We see here a divine pattern: worship and prayer; worship and prayer.  This is what has spawned the thousands of Houses of Prayer and Worship that have been established around the world. 

The result was wonderful: they sang a new song!  John would no longer need to weep, because he received revelation that the Lord had taken possession of the final dispensation of things to come.  It was time to join in and rejoice with the rest of the worshipers.

April 9th, 2018

His Word is Flawless

“As for God, His way is perfect; the word of the Lord is flawless.”  Ps. 18:30

Father, we thank You for your word, which is certain and true.  Your word is flawless (Ps. 18:30) and Your promises have been thoroughly tested and we love them (Ps. 119:140).  Your word is truth (John 17:17) and so today we remind You, God of Your word and Your promise to us.  We come to You weak, knowing that will give us strength and increase our power.  We are tired, weary and we admit that so many times we have stumbled and fallen.  Your word is an encouragement to us Lord, for we put our hope in You and You alone.  Renew our strength Father.  Let us soar.  Give us energy to run and stamina to endure.    We place our hope in You; place Your strength in us.  We come to humbly remind You of Your word to us, a word that is eternal and stands firm in the heavens (Ps. 119:89).  God, You have answered in the past and we ask that You answer us again.  We thank You for every time You have responded to our cries; for every rescue, deliverance, victory, and assurance.  Thank You for being the lifter of the yoke from our necks (Hos. 11:4) and the One who has rejoiced over us with singing (Zeph. 3:17).  You are strengthening us now, Father, even as speak forth these words to You in prayer.  Thank You Almighty One, our God of strength.  We praise You in the mighty name of Jesus, amen.

April 8th, 2018

Partakers of the His Inheritance

“…giving thanks to the Father who has qualified us to be partakers of the inheritance of the saints in the light.  He has delivered us from the power of darkness and conveyed us into the kingdom of the Son of His love, in whom we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of sins.” Col. 1:12-14

This is a list of important statements of truth that every believer is to receive, believe, accept, and let bloom in our lives!    We have been qualified by God to partake in the inheritance He has provided.  Among the treasures of our Father’s inheritance are:

•  He has qualified us;
• (Eph. 1:11)
• He has delivered us;
• (Eph 6:12)
• He has transferred us;
• (1 Peter 2:9)
• He has redeemed us; and,
• (Eph. 1:7)
• He has forgiven us. 
• (Rom. 3:24-26)
• (Hebrews 9:11-12)

 Col. 1:21-23 adds another important statement of truth, “And you, who once were alienated and enemies in your mind by wicked works, yet now He has reconciled in the body of His flesh through death, to present you holy, and blameless, and above reproach in His sight, if indeed you continue in the faith, grounded and steadfast, and are not moved away from the hope of the gospel which you heard, which was preached to every creature under heaven, of which I, Paul, became a minister.”

We have been reconciled, which means to restore what was broken or severed, by God through Jesus Christ.  Jesus is the agent of reconciliation through His death.  By the actions of Jesus Christ, we as His followers are presented as holy, blameless, and above reproach.  That is how God sees us and Jesus presents us.  We are truly blessed!