Loving Arms

Today as I think about the Father, I am reminded of how He watches over us. He protects and guides us. Literally, He holds us in His arms. I like that imagery for me. There is a scripture that reminds of this very much.

Romans 8:15 For ye have not received the spirit of bondage again to fear; but ye have received the Spirit of adoption, whereby we cry, Abba, Father.
16 The Spirit itself beareth witness with our spirit, that we are the children of God:

Here Paul states we can cry out to the Father like a little child, “Abba”, and know that He is with us. We are encouraged to be like little children by our Messiah.

Matthew 18:2 And Jesus called a little child unto him, and set him in the midst of them,
3 And said, Verily I say unto you, Except ye be converted, and become as little children, ye shall not enter into the kingdom of heaven.

Today, let us be as little children that call out to our Father in heaven.

Prayer
Father, we exalt You. You alone are our King! Praise and bless the name Yahuah! Let Your will be done in this earth, just as it is in the heavens. Give us Your provision. Forgive us our transgressions, and please help us all to forgive those that have transgressed against us. Deliver us from the evil around us. Refresh our hearts and minds by cleansing and healing them. Restore unto Your people all that has been taken or held back, and destroy the works of those that have caused the stealing and the holding back. We ask all these things in the name of our Messiah Yeshuah (Jesus). Amen.

Treasures In Heaven

On this Sabbath, I think of what we are to treasure. For some it may be that they have a house, a car, a job, or other things or methods of caring for their personal well being.

Matthew 6:19 Lay not up for yourselves treasures upon earth, where moth and rust doth corrupt, and where thieves break through and steal:
20 But lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust doth corrupt, and where thieves do not break through nor steal:
21 For where your treasure is, there will your heart be also.

While these can be good things, focusing on them is not what we are encouraged to do. We are encourage to focus on the things of our Father.

Matthew 6:33 But seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you.

On this Sabbath, let us focus on the tings of our Father.

Prayer
Father, we exalt You. You alone are our King! Praise the name Yahuah! Let Your will be done in this earth. Send us now Your overwhelming provision that it might overflow us to others. Forgive us our transgressions, and help us all forgive those that have transgressed against us. Cleanse our wounds and heal our heart and minds. Deliver us from the very present evil. Restore unto Your people all that has been taken or held back in any way from Your people, whether lands, possessions, prosperity, relationships, or any good thing that You have provided. Rise up, O King, and do so now. We ask all these things in the name of our Messiah Yeshuah (Jesus). Amen.

The Good News

Reflecting on life this morning, I cannot help but think about how very blessed we believers are and that we have such good news to wake up to everyday. What is that good news? Actually, in human terms, it is a long list. God is good. God is on our side. God never leaves us or forsakes us. His mercy endures forever. God is our defender. God is our provider. He never slumbers or sleeps. He never tires of caring for us. He has an army far beyond our ability to imagine. His army protects us every day. He has assigned angels to watch over us. And that is just a partial list.

As a child, I was taught that the Good News, the Gospel, was only that God sent His Son Jesus (Yeshuah) to die for our sins, and He rose from the dead. And if we confessed our sins to Him, asked for forgiveness, and asked Him to be Lord of our life, we would have eternal life. This is truly good news, and if you are reading this and have not done that, I very much encourage you to do so. However, that is only a part of the good news. Looking at the previous list, we can see that what we were taught as children does in fact fit into the list. For some reason there can be this tendency for believers to sometimes focus on one particular part of scripture, and leave out other parts. Our Father is not limited, and He is on our side; or perhaps better said, He wants us and allows us to be on His side.

Psalms 118:1 O give thanks unto the Lord; for he is good: because his mercy endureth for ever.
2 Let Israel now say, that his mercy endureth for ever.
3 Let the house of Aaron now say, that his mercy endureth for ever.
4 Let them now that fear the Lord say, that his mercy endureth for ever.
5 I called upon the Lord in distress: the Lord answered me, and set me in a large place.
6 The Lord is on my side; I will not fear: what can man do unto me?
7 The Lord taketh my part with them that help me: therefore shall I see my desire upon them that hate me.
8 It is better to trust in the Lord than to put confidence in man.
9 It is better to trust in the Lord than to put confidence in princes.

The Psalms are truly beautiful songs about the Good News that God is always there for His people. Those that attack a believer are deterred. Not because the believers are so righteous – only God is righteous. It is because our Father is merciful, and for His mercies He will rise and defend. Our Father loves us. He really does!

Prayer
Father, we exalt You. You alone are our King! Praise the name Yahuah! Let Your will shine in this earth, Father, and give men hope. Send us today Your overwhelming provision. Forgive us our transgressions, and help us all to forgive those that have transgressed against us. Heal the hearts and minds of Your people, Father. Deliver us from the evil around us that pulls and tears at us to destroy us and Your work. Restore unto Your people all that has been taken or held back in any way. Rise up, O King! The enemy is at the gates and stirs up strife. Destroy this work, grind it to powder, confuse, confound, and utterly eliminate these efforts, there substance and impact. Deliver Your people that all men might know that You alone have done this thing, and that Your people may rejoice over You with singing! Where there be sickness, bring healing; where there be strife, bring unity; where there be sorrow, bring joy; where there be a breaking apart, knit together again. You alone are God, Father, You alone are God. We ask all these things in the name of our Messiah Yeshuah (Jesus). Amen.

Joy Of The Lord

Today as I awoke I was praying and sensed people in sadness. As I began to pray for them, I prayed for strength for them and for me. I was reminded of a scripture.

Nehemiah 8:8 So they read in the book in the law of God distinctly, and gave the sense, and caused them to understand the reading.
9 And Nehemiah, which is the Tirshatha, and Ezra the priest the scribe, and the Levites that taught the people, said unto all the people, This day is holy unto the Lord your God; mourn not, nor weep. For all the people wept, when they heard the words of the law.
10 Then he said unto them, Go your way, eat the fat, and drink the sweet, and send portions unto them for whom nothing is prepared: for this day is holy unto our Lord: neither be ye sorry; for the joy of the Lord is your strength.

This scripture is often quoted. What I have overlooked n the past is how the reading of the Law caused the people to weep because they began to draw closer to God. Nehemiah told them it was a time of rejoicing. They now knew who they were, and who our Father was. When thinking of the joy of the Lord, there are two ways to consider it. One that I thought about only today is it is His joy. He is rejoicing.

Zephaniah 3:17 The Lord thy God in the midst of thee is mighty; he will save, he will rejoice over thee with joy; he will rest in his love, he will joy over thee with singing.

Our Father sings over us! He sings over us with joy! Is it any wonder that scriptures tell us to rejoice?

Philippians 4:4 Rejoice in the Lord alway: and again I say, Rejoice.

Today, let us all rejoice with singing praise to Yahuah (Lord), ouur God and King!

Prayer
Father, we exalt You. You alone are our King. Praise the name Yahuah! Send Your will among us. Let us be Your lights in this earth. Send us today Your overwhelming provision. Cleanse our wounds and heal our hearts and minds. Deliver us from the evil that surrounds to destroy Your work. Restore unto Your people all that has been taken or held back in any way. Rise up, O King, and strike down the evil coercion That holds any of Your people back from returning to their home, and to Your will for their lives. Confound, confuse, and grind to powder the works of those that are a part of the coercion. Let the whirlwind, dissension, and confusion be in their houses, greatly magnified, and not removed until they turn from such evil. Let them turn upon one another, as in the battles of old when You defeated those that rose up against any of Your people. We ask all these things in the name of Jesus (Yeshuah), our Messiah that died and rose again. Amen.

Prayer In The Spirit

One of our spiritual weapons is prayer. It is perhaps our greatest weapon against darkness. Here we have the prayers we understand which we pray from our heart in our known language. We also have prayer in the Spirit, which is a language we do not understand.

Romans 8:24 For we are saved by hope: but hope that is seen is not hope: for what a man seeth, why doth he yet hope for?
25 But if we hope for that we see not, then do we with patience wait for it.
26 Likewise the Spirit also helpeth our infirmities: for we know not what we should pray for as we ought: but the Spirit itself maketh intercession for us with groanings which cannot be uttered.
27 And he that searcheth the hearts knoweth what is the mind of the Spirit, because he maketh intercession for the saints according to the will of God.
28 And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to his purpose.

Often we quote Romans 8:28. But as we see here, that is preceded by scriptures talking about prayer in the Spirit. If we can learn to pray in this way for a person or situation, we can have the Spirit pray through us for things we do not even yet know about. This is powerful because we then are vessels of God for the “perfect” prayer.

Prayer
Father, we exalt You. You alone are our King! Praise the name Yahuah! Let Your will be done among us. Send us today Your overwhelming provision. Forgive us our trespasses, and help us all to forgive the trespasses against us. Heal our hearts and minds. Deliver us from the evil around us. Restore unto Your people all that has been taken or held back in any way from Your people. We ask all these things in the name of our Messiah, Jesus (Yeshuah). Amen.

We Can Have Peace

Often when the word peace is mentioned we think of no war, or perhaps a settled feeling. These things do represent peace. But in scriptures there seems to be an even deeper meaning to this word when it is the Hebrew word shalom. Here the word has the fuller meaning of being well, being happy, and being prosperous. All these things would likely be associated with a time of peace by us. We can have this peace with our Father, if we will just call out to Him. If we will seek His face and turn from our ways, He will give us His peace. If we will praise His name, the joy of the Lord will be our strength. We need Him to be with us in these troubling times in this earth.

Psalms 118:1 O give thanks unto the Lord; for he is good: because his mercy endureth for ever.
2 Let Israel now say, that his mercy endureth for ever.
3 Let the house of Aaron now say, that his mercy endureth for ever.
4 Let them now that fear the Lord say, that his mercy endureth for ever.
5 I called upon the Lord in distress: the Lord answered me, and set me in a large place.
6 The Lord is on my side; I will not fear: what can man do unto me?
7 The Lord taketh my part with them that help me: therefore shall I see my desire upon them that hate me.

If we look to the news around the world, it becomes more clear everyday that we need this peace.

Isaiah 54:10 For the mountains shall depart, and the hills be removed; but my kindness shall not depart from thee, neither shall the covenant of my peace be removed, saith the Lord that hath mercy on thee.

Prayer
Father, we exalt You. You alone are King! Praise the name Yahuah! Let Your will be done in this earth. Send us today Your provision. Forgive us our trespasses, and help us all to forgive those that have trespassed against us. Heal our hearts and minds. Deliver us from the evil that attempts to mount up against us. We need Your shalom among us. We need Your deliverance from those that plot against Your people. Only You can deliver. We ask You to rise up, O King, and deliver us. We ask all these things in the name of Jesus (Yeshuah), our Messiah. Amen.

When We Speak

Words are a powerful thing. God spoke the creation at the very beginning. Throughout scriptures we see people seek our those called seers or prophets because their speech seems to come to pass. And we have our Messiah tell us that our speaking has power, when tied to prayer.

Matthew 6:22 And Jesus answering saith unto them, Have faith in God.
23 For verily I say unto you, That whosoever shall say unto this mountain, Be thou removed, and be thou cast into the sea; and shall not doubt in his heart, but shall believe that those things which he saith shall come to pass; he shall have whatsoever he saith.
24 Therefore I say unto you, What things soever ye desire, when ye pray, believe that ye receive them, and ye shall have them.

It seems that faith in our speaking, or better said, mixed with our speaking, has good effect. Likely, doubt also has impact, in the reverse. Often people will say negative things, things that they clearly do not want to come to pass, and they say it with conviction. This, too likely has impact.

In the end, it comes down to believing that our Father loves us, which He does.

Prayer
Father, we exalt You. You are our King! Praise the name Yahuah! Let Your will be done here. Send us now Your provision. Forgive us our sins, and help us to forgive those that have sinned against us. Heal our hearts and minds, and deliver us from the evil here. Restore unto Your people all that has been taken or held back in any way. Be our defender, and confound our enemies. We ask all these things in the name of our Messiah Yeshuah (Jesus). Amen.

Only Believe

We will face many challenges in our lives as believers. They can be great or small. The challenge is to remember in these times that we serve the Living True God. He is the One that never fails. He is the One that Created all things. He is the one that is in control of everything. A man had a sick daughter that eventually died. In his sorrow, our Master, Yeshuah (Jesus) said these words to him:

Mark 5:35 While he yet spake, there came from the ruler of the synagogue’s house certain which said, Thy daughter is dead: why troublest thou the Master any further?
36 As soon as Jesus heard the word that was spoken, he saith unto the ruler of the synagogue, Be not afraid, only believe.

That had to be challenging, comforting, and encouraging to hear, all at the same time. We can choose to believe, or not. But choices to believe in the face of what appears to be hopeless is not easy. Yest in this case, his daughter lived.

Mark 5:39 And when he was come in, he saith unto them, Why make ye this ado, and weep? the damsel is not dead, but sleepeth.
40 And they laughed him to scorn. But when he had put them all out, he taketh the father and the mother of the damsel, and them that were with him, and entereth in where the damsel was lying.
41 And he took the damsel by the hand, and said unto her, Talitha cumi; which is, being interpreted, Damsel, I say unto thee, arise.
42 And straightway the damsel arose, and walked; for she was of the age of twelve years. And they were astonished with a great astonishment.

Miracles do happen. We can receive them from Jesus (Yeshuah), and it will amaze others. We all may experience loss. Perhaps not the death of a human, but perhaps death of a car, a relationship, or some other loss. We can receive life again in these situations, with complete restoration, if we will only believe.

Prayer
Fahter, we exalt You. You alone are our King! Praise the name Yahuah! Send Your will among us. Send us now Your provision. Forgive us our trespasses, and help us to forgive those that have trespassed against us. Restore our hearts and minds. Deliver us from the evil that surrounds us. Rise up, O King, and do a mighty work that only You can do. We ask all these things in the name of our Messiah Yeshuah (Jesus). Amen.

It’s About Forgiveness

Today as I was praying for many and for myself, I was reminded of how we all need forgiveness. We need forgiveness because no man can keep the Law, therefore we are all sinners.

2 Chronicles 6:35 Then hear thou from the heavens their prayer and their supplication, and maintain their cause.
36 If they sin against thee, (for there is no man which sinneth not,) and thou be angry with them, and deliver them over before their enemies, and they carry them away captives unto a land far off or near;

It is important therefore for us to be forgiven. But there is something our Messiah has said concerning this.

Matthew 6:25 And when ye stand praying, forgive, if ye have ought against any: that your Father also which is in heaven may forgive you your trespasses.
26 But if ye do not forgive, neither will your Father which is in heaven forgive your trespasses.

This is an important lesson. When we forgive, we can be forgiven.

Prayer
Father, we exalt You. You are our King! Praise the name Yahuah! Let Your will be done here among us. Send us now Your overwhelming provision. Forgive us our trespasses, and help us to forgive those that have trespassed against us. Heal our hearts and minds. Deliver us from the evil here. Strike down the efforts of those that would seek our destruction, and do a mighty work of restoration of all things, beginning with Your people. We ask all these things in the name of our Messiah Yeshuah (Jesus). Amen.

Our Father Is Wise

We are but humans. But our Father is wise beyond us. Only He is can provide us with all we need.

Matthew 6:27 Which of you by taking thought can add one cubit unto his stature?
28 And why take ye thought for raiment? Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow; they toil not, neither do they spin:
29 And yet I say unto you, That even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these.
30 Wherefore, if God so clothe the grass of the field, which to day is, and to morrow is cast into the oven, shall he not much more clothe you, O ye of little faith?
31 Therefore take no thought, saying, What shall we eat? or, What shall we drink? or, Wherewithal shall we be clothed?
32 (For after all these things do the Gentiles seek:) for your heavenly Father knoweth that ye have need of all these things.
33 But seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you.

We are only human. He alone has the power to change. If we are willing to always turn to Him, He always makes a way.

Prayer
Father, we exalt You. You alone are our King! Praise the name Yahuah! Send Your will here. Give us Your provision. Forgive us our trespasses, as we forgive those that trespass against us. Deliver us from evil. Heal our hearts and minds. Restore unto Your people all that has been taken or held back in any way. We ask all these things in the name of our Messiah Yeshuah (Jesus). Amen.