Making Today Better

In life we are given a fresh start by turning our lives over to God. This happens when we ask for forgiveness of our sin and ask Yeshua (Jesus) to be our Messiah, Lord over our life. That is an amazing day. But as we live our lives, we will continue to face challenges and there will be times when we miss the mark – we will sin. The path back to God is the same as the path to Him initially. We must repent of our sin, turning from it to God. He will help us to cleanse our hearts. This is what David did when he sinned against God.

Psalms 51:9 Hide thy face from my sins, and blot out all mine iniquities.
10 Create in me a clean heart, O God; and renew a right spirit within me.
11 Cast me not away from thy presence; and take not thy holy spirit from me.
12 Restore unto me the joy of thy salvation; and uphold me with thy free spirit.
13 Then will I teach transgressors thy ways; and sinners shall be converted unto thee.

God will renew us. In fact, He offers us renewal everyday.

Lamentations 3:22 It is of the Lord’s mercies that we are not consumed, because his compassions fail not.
23 They are new every morning: great is thy faithfulness.

Our Father loves us. With His help we can make today better than yesterday. He wants us to know His love and His mercy everyday. If we will call out and praise the name Yahuah (Lord), He will hear and answer, every time, every day.

Prayer
Father, we exalt You. You alone are our King. We need Your kingdom in our lives. We praise and lift on high the name of Yahuah (Lord). Give us Your abundant provision today. Forgive us for our sins against You. We want to follow You and Your ways, but we can mess that up. Forgive us and help us get back to Your path. Heal our hearts. Deliver us mightily from those that would take from us what You have given to us. Stop the evil that would steal from Your people. You alone are our help. In Yeshua’s (Jesus’) name. Amen.

What We Eat

We take in food to sustain our health. Our physical bodies need food and water to survive. Over time, humans have come to determine what they want to eat based on their personal situations. Sometimes it is based on what we can afford. Sometimes it is based on what we need. Most often it is based on what we like in flavor and texture. But we believers know that we are not just this physical body. We are spiritual as well. We have to feed our spiritual man as well to grow. This need has been known for a very long time.

Jerimiah 15:16 Thy words were found, and I did eat them; and thy word was unto me the joy and rejoicing of mine heart: for I am called by thy name, O Lord God of hosts.

Jeremiah here speaks to the need for us as servants of Yahuah (Lord) God of hosts to consume the words that God has given to us through scripture and when He speaks to us. We need His word.

Prayer
Father, we exalt You. You alone are our King. We praise the name of our God, Yahuah (Lord)! Send us today Your overwhelming provision. Forgive us for our sins. Heal our hearts and minds. Deliver us from the evil that would take from us what You have given to us. Destroy their works. Make them to know that it is You alone that has done these things for us. In Yeshua’s (Jesus’) name. Amen.

Brief Instruction In Edification

This morning early I was thinking of Yahuah (Lord) and how He is always with us. We can approach Him as if we have to do something to persuade Him to show up. But we do not have to strike a bargain to get God to be with us. He is our Father and loves us. In fact He never leaves us or forsakes us.

Hebrews 13:5 Let your conversation be without covetousness; and be content with such things as ye have: for he hath said, I will never leave thee, nor forsake thee.

Deuteronomy 31:6 Be strong and of a good courage, fear not, nor be afraid of them: for the Lord thy God, he it is that doth go with thee; he will not fail thee, nor forsake thee.

Since we know it is true that He is always with us, this can change our point of origin of our thinking. We can cahnge our point of view. There is a particular scripture that helps me to understand exactly how edification works.

Psalms 147:1 Praise ye the Lord: for it is good to sing praises unto our God; for it is pleasant; and praise is comely.
2 The Lord doth build up Jerusalem: he gathereth together the outcasts of Israel.
3 He healeth the broken in heart, and bindeth up their wounds.
4 He telleth the number of the stars; he calleth them all by their names.
5 Great is our Lord, and of great power: his understanding is infinite.
6 The Lord lifteth up the meek: he casteth the wicked down to the ground.
7 Sing unto the Lord with thanksgiving; sing praise upon the harp unto our God:
8 Who covereth the heaven with clouds, who prepareth rain for the earth, who maketh grass to grow upon the mountains.
9 He giveth to the beast his food, and to the young ravens which cry.
10 He delighteth not in the strength of the horse: he taketh not pleasure in the legs of a man.
11 The Lord taketh pleasure in them that fear him, in those that hope in his mercy.
12 Praise the Lord, O Jerusalem; praise thy God, O Zion.

Here we see that praise is intertwined with deliverance. Our God never fails us. He is about the business of building us up. When we praise Yahuah (Lord), it is pleasant. He builds us up.

Prayer
Father, we exalt You. You alone are worthy of our praises and we praise Your name Yahuah (Lord). Send us Your abundant provision. It is You alone that provides miraculously. Forgive us for our sin. Heal us and deliver us. Raise us up to know You more. In Yeshua’s (Jesus’) name. Amen.

Helping Those In Need

We have been given many opportunities as members of the body of believers. One of those opportunities is helping others. We are encouraged to do this in many ways in various parts of scripture. We can see that those that went before us practiced this very activity.

Acts 2:43 And fear came upon every soul: and many wonders and signs were done by the apostles.
44 And all that believed were together, and had all things common;
45 And sold their possessions and goods, and parted them to all men, as every man had need.
46 And they, continuing daily with one accord in the temple, and breaking bread from house to house, did eat their meat with gladness and singleness of heart,
47 Praising God, and having favour with all the people. And the Lord added to the church daily such as should be saved.

This is something that happened naturally as a result of the change in the hearts and lives of new believers. These new believers were Jews. There was a story in their past where this happened before.

Exodus 16:15 And when the children of Israel saw it, they said one to another, It is manna: for they wist not what it was. And Moses said unto them, This is the bread which the Lord hath given you to eat.
16 This is the thing which the Lord hath commanded, Gather of it every man according to his eating, an omer for every man, according to the number of your persons; take ye every man for them which are in his tents.
17 And the children of Israel did so, and gathered, some more, some less.
18 And when they did mete it with an omer, he that gathered much had nothing over, and he that gathered little had no lack; they gathered every man according to his eating.

We see here that the early church understood what their history was. When the Bread of Life appeared to them in the form of Messiah Yeshua (Jesus), their hearts overflowed one to the other. Let us pray that our Father can do that in us.

Prayer
Father, we exalt You. You alone are worthy to be our King. We are Your ambassadors for Your kingdom here on Earth. Send us today overwhelming provision. Forgive us of our transgressions of Your commands. Heal us and deliver us from the evil of this world. In Yeshua’s (Jesus’) name. Amen.

Growing Up

Our walk with God results in us changing over time. There was a time early on in my walk when I thought I had learned all I needed to know about God. I thought that everything that needed to be known had already been revealed. These days I think that is a process that never really ends. We continually grow.

Ephesians 4:11 And he gave some, apostles; and some, prophets; and some, evangelists; and some, pastors and teachers;
12 For the perfecting of the saints, for the work of the ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ:
13 Till we all come in the unity of the faith, and of the knowledge of the Son of God, unto a perfect man, unto the measure of the stature of the fulness of Christ:

We see here that there are positions in the church that are meant to serve the rest of the body of believers. These servants and these positions are in place until “we all come into the unity of the faith.” As I look around it is my estimate that we are not there yet. If that is true, then we all need to continue to learn. The exciting thing to me is that there is so much to learn! We could learn for a lifetime and never learn it all!

Prayer
Father, we exalt You. You are our King. We praise and lift up the name Yahuah! We need You and Your kingdom. Send us Your overwhelming provision now. Heal us and guide us. Let us serve You and each other. In Yeshua’s (Jesus’) name. Amen.

The Blocks For Building

Our heavenly Father is so wise. This morning as I gazed out the window into the barren forest, The thought of how he has balanced everything just hit me. For instance, I think of us, the body of believers. He created us to be together, to be a part of each others lives. When we do that, life just goes better.

Psalms 133:1 Behold, how good and how pleasant it is for brethren to dwell together in unity!
2 It is like the precious ointment upon the head, that ran down upon the beard, even Aaron’s beard: that went down to the skirts of his garments;
3 As the dew of Hermon, and as the dew that descended upon the mountains of Zion: for there the Lord commanded the blessing, even life for evermore.

In this psalm David makes somewhat of a connection between us being together in community and eternal life. No person is meant to stand alone. We are meant to be with the rest of our fellow believers.

Hebrews 10:24 And let us consider one another to provoke unto love and to good works:
25 Not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together, as the manner of some is; but exhorting one another: and so much the more, as ye see the day approaching.

Paul admonishes us to not separate ourselves but to gather together to encourage each other in the faith. He does this more on more than one occasion.

1 Thessalonians 5:8 But let us, who are of the day, be sober, putting on the breastplate of faith and love; and for an helmet, the hope of salvation.
9 For God hath not appointed us to wrath, but to obtain salvation by our Lord Jesus Christ,
10 Who died for us, that, whether we wake or sleep, we should live together with him.
11 Wherefore comfort yourselves together, and edify one another, even as also ye do.

Peter told us to do this with a good heart.

1 Peter 4:8 And above all things have fervent charity among yourselves: for charity shall cover the multitude of sins.
9 Use hospitality one to another without grudging.
10 As every man hath received the gift, even so minister the same one to another, as good stewards of the manifold grace of God.

So, we believers are called to be a family, to love one another. We are called to try to help each other make it day by day. If we will respond to that call, we have the chance to live much fuller lives, in a closer walk with our Father God, Yahuah (Lord). We do this with our words and our actions.

Prayer
Father, we exalt You. Thank You for Your wisdom in giving us each other. We long for Your kingdom here, which is made up of Your followers. Let us enjoy each others lives and be a blessing to each other. We exalt Your name, Yahuah (Lord). Send us today Your overwhelming provision. Forgive us for our sins. Help us to overcome in times of weakness and resist the enemy that we might not sin. Heal our hearts. Deliver us from the evil around us and from those that would take from us what You alone have given to us. We praise and exalt You. We love You. In Yeshua’s (Jesus’) name. Amen.

Being Well Fed

As followers of our Messiah Yeshua (Jesus) we are drawn to Him and His words. As humans we are drawn toward eating our food each day. In America the custom is to eat three times each day. This may or may not be healthy, or the “correct” timing for a diet, but it is the generally accepted practice. We get it engrained in us by our parents. I noticed this morning that I was running on autopilot as I mad breakfast for the family, started the coffee, and packed a lunch. There was this routine about food. Our physical bodies give us certain cues that we have come to associate with the need to consume food. But we also need to be filled each day with the things of God to feed the spiritual person within us.

Psalms 119:145 I cried with my whole heart; hear me, O Lord: I will keep thy statutes.
146 I cried unto thee; save me, and I shall keep thy testimonies.
147 I prevented the dawning of the morning, and cried: I hoped in thy word.
148 Mine eyes prevent the night watches, that I might meditate in thy word.

Here we see that the psalmist is crying out to God. He cries out in the morning (prevent the dawn) and in the evening (prevent the night watches). Morning and evening comes every day. Here we see that twice a day at least David cried out to God for His deliverance, provision, and judgements. And this is affirmed again elsewhere.

Psalms 55:16 As for me, I will call upon God; and the Lord shall save me.
17 Evening, and morning, and at noon, will I pray, and cry aloud: and he shall hear my voice.
18 He hath delivered my soul in peace from the battle that was against me: for there were many with me.
19 God shall hear, and afflict them, even he that abideth of old. Selah.

If we want to experience Yahuah (Lord) closely like David did, as our deliverer, let us follow the pattern that he set. Then we will be filled in our spiritual man as well.

Prayer
Father, we exalt You. You alone are worthy of all praise and honor and glory. We praise Your name, Yahuah (Lord). You made the heavens and the earth. You are our King. We long for Your kingdom to be here on the earth. Send us Your overwhelming abundant provision today, Father. Forgive us our sins. Deliver us from the evil here. Hold back our enemies that would steal from us what You have provided. Heal us, and heal our land. In Yeshua’s (Jesus’) name. Amen.

Build From The Beginning

I can remember a time some years ago when getting up in the morning was drudgery for me. There were times when life was a struggle that I would talk to myself when I was trying to get around and would say some very negative things to myself. In all, there were definitely some challenging days back then. These days life still has its challenges. But more times than not, the days seem better, and they really are better. But I start them differently.

Psalms 63:1 O God, thou art my God; early will I seek thee: my soul thirsteth for thee, my flesh longeth for thee in a dry and thirsty land, where no water is;
2 To see thy power and thy glory, so as I have seen thee in the sanctuary.
3 Because thy lovingkindness is better than life, my lips shall praise thee.
4 Thus will I bless thee while I live: I will lift up my hands in thy name.

In the morning, troubling thoughts can still come my way. But these days I am aware that they are not my God out to get me. My God is on my side. When I first wake up, even while still in my bed, I remember His name, Yahuah (Lord) and I begin to say it and thank Him for all His work in my life. In scripture many times this name appears as what is referred to as a “compound name” when it is combined with words like Healer, Provider, Peace, etc. Yahuah (Lord) is all these and more to us. We see from the scriptures that when we seek Him and praise His name, lifting up our hands to His name, He responds in His power and glory.

We can have better days if we can remember to start them seeking Him and praising His name, Yahuah (Lord), out loud.

Prayer
Father, we exalt You as the Most High God. You alone are our King. We love You, and long for Your kingdom to be with us here on earth. Give us today Your abundant provision. Forgive us our sin and forgetting to walk in Your ways. Heal us from the inside, and deliver us from the evil in this world. Release us from debt. Show us a sign for good, that all men might know that You alone have done this, that You alone are Yahuah (Lord) our God. In Yeshua’s (Jesus’) name. Amen.

Things That Help Us Stay The Course

There is still an almost solid white covering on the ground in the forest as I write this today. In places the architecture of nature pierces the snow, reminding us that it will be ready and waiting when warm weather returns. As I looked at it this morning it reminded me of our lives. We are ever seeking to please God. Mostly we do well, but there are those patches that stick out from time to time that show we are still human, that we still make mistakes, that we still sin. As I thought about this I wanted to think of something that could be helpful to keep us on track. It reminded me of a scripture from Paul.

Philippians 4:4 Rejoice in the Lord alway: and again I say, Rejoice.
5 Let your moderation be known unto all men. The Lord is at hand.
6 Be careful for nothing; but in every thing by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known unto God.
7 And the peace of God, which passeth all understanding, shall keep your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.
8 Finally, brethren, whatsoever things are true, whatsoever things are honest, whatsoever things are just, whatsoever things are pure, whatsoever things are lovely, whatsoever things are of good report; if there be any virtue, and if there be any praise, think on these things.
9 Those things, which ye have both learned, and received, and heard, and seen in me, do: and the God of peace shall be with you.

Here we see Paul telling us that we rejoicing and prayer will bring the peace of God into our hearts and minds. So, one thing that makes sense to do is to praise God and offer up thanksgiving, and don’t hold back. In this we are to use grateful or thankful language. Then Paul offers up a list of things to think about, which he states they have heard and seen, and God will be with us. It appears that hearing and seeing are also important. If we want to have the peace of God in us and God with us, we need to develop a pattern for ourselves that looks like Paul’s description. It could start with reading a scripture, thinking about the good God has done, and praising and thanking Him while making our requests known to him. Our God always responds, and will give us His peace.

Prayer
Father, we exalt You as the Most High King! We thank You and ask that You let Your kingdom reign here on this earth today, Yahuah (Lord). Send the latter reign now. Let Your overflowing provision come to us today, Yahuah (Lord), that it might overflow to others through us. Smite our enemies that they might not overrun us, and turn them back. Deliver us from that evil. Show us a sign for good that all men would know that You alone have done this, that You alone are God. In Yeshua’s (Jesus’) name. Amen.

Leading The Way

In all of life, there are lessons that can be learned. We see the seasons change and this reminds us of that renewing our God, Yahuah, does in us through His Son, Yeshua (Jesus) our Messiah, when we confess our sin, ask for forgiveness and for Him to be our Savior. There are the chickens that I raise that give forth their eggs for our food, and we can see that God cares for them and us. The snow covers the ground and we discover that it protects the life in the soil beneath, again God caring for this earth. There is a plan in place, and that plan was created by the One that is leading us through our lives.

Isaiah 41:4 Who hath wrought and done it, calling the generations from the beginning? I the Lord, the first, and with the last; I am he.

It is God that raises us up. He was from before the beginning. He goes first, He delivers us, and He will be there at the end of it all. He is with us always.

Deuteronomy 31:8 And the Lord, he it is that doth go before thee; he will be with thee, he will not fail thee, neither forsake thee: fear not, neither be dismayed.

Our God will lead us, if we let Him, into the promises He has for us. He alone is worthy of our praise and all honor and glory. Let’s reach out our hands to Him today, and praise His name. Let’s ask Him to lead us.

Prayer
Father, we exalt You. You alone are our Mighty Deliverer King. We need Your kingdom among us. We need Your love. Send us today Your overwhelming provision. It is You alone that sustains us. Forgive us our presumptuous sin, and deliver us from temptation. We need Your love to be healed and delivered. You are our King, and we love You. In Yeshua’s (Jesus’) name. Amen.