Happy Thanksgiving!

As I sit here with my coffee this morning and look out on the snow, I think about this day and giving thanks. There is so much to be thankful for it can be difficult to begin. Mostly I think I am thankful that God does not give up on me. It is difficult to understand His long-suffering towards people. I know that as I try to walk through life becoming a better person by walking in His ways, I continue to struggle. It is that heaviness that Peter spoke of when we are trying to get past something. But God never gives up on us. This is a good thing, a blessing, and something we can all be thankful for today.

Psalms 100:1 Make a joyful noise unto the Lord, all ye lands.
2 Serve the Lord with gladness: come before his presence with singing.
3 Know ye that the Lord he is God: it is he that hath made us, and not we ourselves; we are his people, and the sheep of his pasture.
4 Enter into his gates with thanksgiving, and into his courts with praise: be thankful unto him, and bless his name.
5 For the Lord is good; his mercy is everlasting; and his truth endureth to all generations.

Today, let’s enter into His courts praising Him for the day.

Prayer
Father, we exalt You as our King. Let Your kingdom be among us today on this day when we give thanks. We need You and Your kingdom today. Help us to know more of Your ways and to serve You better. Give us abundant provision today. Please guide us. Help us to be more like You every day, even if it is just a little more each day. We love You. Thank You for this day. Heal and deliver us. In Yeshua’s (Jesus’) name. Amen.

Thankful Living

This morning as I was praying about some upcoming events I found myself once again thinking of all God has done for my family and others I know. It is really amazing to consider that the One that created the 40 foot trees in my back yard cares about the little things in my life. And what does He ask of me, really, in comparison? He asks only that I follow His ways. Now if He created everything, it seems to me to be a good idea to follow His ways because, well, He knows what will work and what will not work. He knows where the good stuff is and the bad stuff is. Just seems smart to me. But the point that really blows me away is that He cares about and for each one of us. This morning as I was reading in the Psalms I cam across one that really expressed my feelings.

Psalms 100:1 Make a joyful noise unto the Lord, all ye lands.
2 Serve the Lord with gladness: come before his presence with singing.
3 Know ye that the Lord he is God: it is he that hath made us, and not we ourselves; we are his people, and the sheep of his pasture.
4 Enter into his gates with thanksgiving, and into his courts with praise: be thankful unto him, and bless his name.
5 For the Lord is good; his mercy is everlasting; and his truth endureth to all generations.

For me, it seems that one way to say thanks is to spend time with God every day, like a best friend. Try to follow what He wants me to do, and better yet, take the time to ask Him what I should be doing. Out of respect, asking Him and then following up like His opinion matters. In the end it is really not opinion, but real direction for life that leads to, well, life!

Today, let’s all try to live life like we are thankful, and spend time with our true Best Friend, our God.

Prayer
Father, we exalt You. You alone are worthy to be praised and exalted. You alone are the One True Source for our life. Let Your kingdom reign on the earth today. Send us today the overwhelming abundant provision that we need. Forgive us when we fall short of the life You want us to lead. Heal us, guide us, and deliver us, and we can change. Help us to change and be more like You. In Yeshua’s (Jesus’) name. Amen.

Where To Begin

When we stop to consider all that God has done, is doing, and promises to do for us and our families, it can be a little overwhelming emotionally. Let’s stop and think about it for a moment. Think of the wealthiest person in the world. Imagine that they were always there to make certain your physical needs for food, clothing, and shelter were met. Needs, not wants. But sometimes wants as well.

Philippians 4:19 But my God shall supply all your need according to his riches in glory by Christ Jesus.

Psalms 37:4 Delight thyself also in the Lord; and he shall give thee the desires of thine heart.
5Commit thy way unto the Lord; trust also in him; and he shall bring it to pass.

Then, a team of all of the greatest doctors that had never lost a patient were your 24/7/365 support for you and your family’s health.

Psalms 103:3 Who forgiveth all thine iniquities; who healeth all thy diseases;

Matthew 12:15 But when Jesus knew it, he withdrew himself from thence: and great multitudes followed him, and he healed them all;

Finally, the greatest generals in the world armed with all of the most powerful weapons were you and your family’s personal body guards.

2 Chronicles 20:17 Ye shall not need to fight in this battle: set yourselves, stand ye still, and see the salvation of the Lord with you, O Judah and Jerusalem: fear not, nor be dismayed; to morrow go out against them: for the Lord will be with you.

Deuteronomy 1:30 The Lord your God which goeth before you, he shall fight for you, according to all that he did for you in Egypt before your eyes;

As we look at these things, we see that our God overwhelms us with blessing and care for our every need. We can be overwhelmed with the desire to give Him thanks. Today, as you think on these things, lift up your voice in thanksgiving and praise to our God.

Prayer
Father, we exalt You as the Most High God. You alone are worthy to be praised. You have given unto us the greatest of gifts – Your unfailing love. Send Your kingdom to this earth today. Let it reign here. Give us today Your overwhelming provision. Forgive us when we fail You. Heal us and deliver us. In Jesus’ (Yeshua’s) name. Amen.

Keeping Our Focus

Over the last few days there have been events that have given me cause to consider where to place my attention. What I have found is how easy it is to give attention to things that just are not that important. Not that these things are of no concern. We have to decide what is a priority and should get our attention. The most important thing in life is our God and our relationship to Him, followed by the interaction we have with each other. These are the things of value in life, or so say the scriptures.

Dueteronomy 6:4 Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God is one Lord:
5 And thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thine heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy might.

Mark 12:28 And one of the scribes came, and having heard them reasoning together, and perceiving that he had answered them well, asked him, Which is the first commandment of all?
29 And Jesus answered him, The first of all the commandments is, Hear, O Israel; The Lord our God is one Lord:
30 And thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind, and with all thy strength: this is the first commandment.
31 And the second is like, namely this, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself. There is none other commandment greater than these.

Life gets busy. It can be distracting. But our God has given us clear commandments and directions for living life that is full and has joy. WE can be thankful today that our God has in fact remembered His promise to Abraham, grafted us in to that blessing, and will never leave or forsake us. Praise God!

Prayer
Father, we exalt You. You alone are worthy to be glorified and praised. We give You our thanks for the lives You have given us. We need You and we need Your kingdom here on the earth. Send us today Your abundant provision. Guide us and keep us in Your ways, and forgive us when we make mistakes. We love You. Heal us and deliver us, and we shall be made whole. In Yeshua’s (Jesus’) name. Amen.

It’s About Family

We are born into this world the sons and daughters of our mother and father, the source of our earthly creation. This is our family and our heritage at birth. It is good for us to have families. We know this because God tells us it is a blessing.

Psalms 127:1 Except the Lord build the house, they labour in vain that build it: except the Lord keep the city, the watchman waketh but in vain.
2 It is vain for you to rise up early, to sit up late, to eat the bread of sorrows: for so he giveth his beloved sleep.
3 Lo, children are an heritage of the Lord: and the fruit of the womb is his reward.
4 As arrows are in the hand of a mighty man; so are children of the youth.
5Happy is the man that hath his quiver full of them: they shall not be ashamed, but they shall speak with the enemies in the gate.

It is clear from this psalm that God sees children, sees family, as a blessing to man. We are born into the renewed spiritual world as sons and daughters of our Heavenly Father, the source of our spiritual recreation. We are of His family and His heritage at our rebirth. It is good for us to be a part of the new family. We know this because God tells us this is a blessing as well.

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.

We can and should be thankful that our God has given us new life. That new life provides provision in the forever, but it also provides for provision here. Our God never fails.

Today let us thank our God for this life.

Prayer
Father, we exalt You as our only King. Thank You for this life. We want Your kingdom, Your rule and reign, here on this earth today. Give us Your overwhelming provision for this life in this place today. Forgive us when we speak evil of others or do wrong things. Without Your mercy and forgiveness we are nothing. Let the peace of heaven, the justice and truth of heaven, Your very will done there be done here today. Heal us. Guide us. Deliver us. In Yeshua’s (Jesus’) name. Amen.

Thankful For The Hidden Word

Today I will keep this short. This morning while driving and watching the sun come up I was in awe of God. He reminded me of a scripture, and I am very thankful for what it said.

Psalms 119:11 Thy word have I hid in mine heart, that I might not sin against thee.

This word is what God reveals to us and also includes His scriptures. He helps us stay on the path.

Prayer
Father, we exalt You. We need You and Your kingdom here. Send us provision today. Forgive us when we forget to thank You. Heal us and deliver us. In Jesus’ (Yeshua’s) name. Amen.

How Do We Say Thanks?

Our God has given us a precious gift. He promised to make a new covenant with those that believe. When Jesus died on the cross, that new covenant was sealed in blood, and it is forever ours.

Hebrews 10:15 Whereof the Holy Ghost also is a witness to us: for after that he had said before,
16 This is the covenant that I will make with them after those days, saith the Lord, I will put my laws into their hearts, and in their minds will I write them;
17 And their sins and iniquities will I remember no more.

Paul was speaking of what was prophesied by the prophet Jeremiah.

Jeremiah 31:31 Behold, the days come, saith the Lord, that I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel, and with the house of Judah:
32 Not according to the covenant that I made with their fathers in the day that I took them by the hand to bring them out of the land of Egypt; which my covenant they brake, although I was an husband unto them, saith the Lord:
33 But this shall be the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel; After those days, saith the Lord, I will put my law in their inward parts, and write it in their hearts; and will be their God, and they shall be my people.

Paul spoke of this in his letter to the Hebrews. He said that there was evidence that the Gentiles also could have the new covenant.

Romans 2:12 For as many as have sinned without law shall also perish without law: and as many as have sinned in the law shall be judged by the law;
13 (For not the hearers of the law are just before God, but the doers of the law shall be justified.
14 For when the Gentiles, which have not the law, do by nature the things contained in the law, these, having not the law, are a law unto themselves:
15 Which shew the work of the law written in their hearts, their conscience also bearing witness, and their thoughts the mean while accusing or else excusing one another;)

So God has given this gift of a new covenant and life everlasting to all men through the work on the cross of His Son Jesus. We can see hear how we can say thanks to God. We live out what is written in our hearts and minds, now renewed.

Today, let us give thanks to God in word and deed.

Prayer
Father, we exalt You. You alone are worthy of our praise. We need Your kingdom here with us and we want to live as citizens of that kingdom. Give us Your overwhelming abundant provision today Father. Forgive us when we go against what you have written in our hearts and minds. Help us to follow You. Thank You for this amazing gift. Help us to use this gift to guide our lives in words and actions. We need Your Spirit in us to walk in Your ways. Guide and keep us in Your will. Heal us and deliver us. In Yeshua’s (Jesus’) name. Amen.

Thankful Love

We can all express to God our love for Him in many ways. The scriptures are filled with examples, the most notable is our Messiah dieing for our sin. That act of love, laying down one’s life for others, is indeed the model we are all called to. But is there a practical way we can do this? The scriptures speak of this in Paul’s letter to the Ephesians.

Ephesians 5:4 Neither filthiness, nor foolish talking, nor jesting, which are not convenient: but rather giving of thanks.

It may seem simple, yet it is clear that God has called us to a different sort of life from that we had in the past or what we can expect to see in the world. It is to give thanks instead of treating others like they do not matter. All men are God’s creation and are children of God. If we treat them as God treats us, then they will have opportunity to see and experience how God feels toward them.

Today’s message is simple. Let’s show the world who God really is. Let’s treat the world like God treat’s us. Let’s give thanks to God for His mercy and grace toward us.

Prayer
Father, we love You and exalt You. You are worthy to be praised. Send Your kingdom today Lord. Give us Your abundant provision today. Forgive us our mistakes and lead us to Your ways. Let the earth be like heaven. Send us healing and deliverance. Show Yourself powerful that all may know You alone are God. In Jesus’ (Yeshua’s) name. Amen.

The Perfect Law Of Liberty

For many years I have heard men speak of what James referred to as the perfect law of liberty. It was unclear to me what that was or what it meant, until recently.

James 1:22 But be ye doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving your own selves.
23 For if any be a hearer of the word, and not a doer, he is like unto a man beholding his natural face in a glass:
24 For he beholdeth himself, and goeth his way, and straightway forgetteth what manner of man he was.
25 But whoso looketh into the perfect law of liberty, and continueth therein, he being not a forgetful hearer, but a doer of the work, this man shall be blessed in his deed.

The struggle for me was that I knew no man is made perfect by the Law, but but by Jesus. It made me think that there must be another law other than the Law, the Torah. Trying to determine what that was lead me to what Jesus did for us.

Galatians 3:13 Christ hath redeemed us from the curse of the law, being made a curse for us: for it is written, Cursed is every one that hangeth on a tree:
14 That the blessing of Abraham might come on the Gentiles through Jesus Christ; that we might receive the promise of the Spirit through faith.

Here we see that the curse of the Law is taken away by Jesus on the cross. We also know that the new covenant is the Law written in our hearts and minds.

Jerimiah 31:31 Behold, the days come, saith the Lord, that I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel, and with the house of Judah:
32 Not according to the covenant that I made with their fathers in the day that I took them by the hand to bring them out of the land of Egypt; which my covenant they brake, although I was an husband unto them, saith the Lord:
33 But this shall be the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel; After those days, saith the Lord, I will put my law in their inward parts, and write it in their hearts; and will be their God, and they shall be my people.

Hebrews 8:8 For finding fault with them, he saith, Behold, the days come, saith the Lord, when I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel and with the house of Judah:
9 Not according to the covenant that I made with their fathers in the day when I took them by the hand to lead them out of the land of Egypt; because they continued not in my covenant, and I regarded them not, saith the Lord.
10 For this is the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel after those days, saith the Lord; I will put my laws into their mind, and write them in their hearts: and I will be to them a God, and they shall be to me a people:
11 And they shall not teach every man his neighbour, and every man his brother, saying, Know the Lord: for all shall know me, from the least to the greatest.
12 For I will be merciful to their unrighteousness, and their sins and their iniquities will I remember no more.

So then, the perfect law of liberty is the Law in our hearts and minds that leads us on to do the right things, and permanent forgiveness of transgression of the Law (which is sin according to 1 John 3:4), leaving us only with the blessing of the Law. The Law in our hearts and minds is made into perfect liberty by the work of Jesus on the cross. This is not so we can do whatever we want, but that we might receive forgiveness when we ask and live in the blessing of the Law. This is truly a blessing and something to be thankful for today!

Prayer
Father, we exalt You. You alone are worthy to be praised. Let Your perfect Law of liberty bring Your kingdom to the earth today. Give us Your overwhelming provision today. Forgive us when we transgress the Law as we are frail humans. See us through the blood of Your Son and the work He did on the cross for us. Send us Your healing and deliverance. In Yeshua’s (Jesus’) name. Amen.

Days Like These

In the past there have been many times that I would begin a sentence with “On days like these…” It was rarely when what followed was something positive. Over time I have come to realize that for me the reason I felt things were not positive was really something that I was either doing or not doing with regard to focusing on God. I was focused on everything around me instead. When I focus on God, I become thankful.

Psalms 95:1O come, let us sing unto the Lord: let us make a joyful noise to the rock of our salvation.
2 Let us come before his presence with thanksgiving, and make a joyful noise unto him with psalms.
3 For the Lord is a great God, and a great King above all gods.

When I can get myself to slow down and think of God, it makes me thankful and happy.

If you struggle today, take a moment and think about God first, and thank Him for what He has done. I think you will find this helps get back on track.

Prayer
Father, we praise and exalt You. You alone are the King of the kingdom we long to see. Please send Your kingdom today. Send Your overwhelming provision. Forgive us when we fall. Let Your healing and Your deliverance come to Your people today. In Jesus’ (Yeshua’s) name. Amen.