We Can Pass The Test

We never know what we will do in a given situation until we are in it. As believers, we hope and desire to serve our Messiah, Jesus, as He would have us serve Him. The question is, will we? When the test comes, will we face adversity head on, jumping in, or will we watch from the sidelines and just wait to see if everything turns out okay? Will we be watchers, or jumpers? This weekend I had an opportunity to find out in a very real way if Jesus was in me. Would I be a watcher, or a jumper? Paul says we are to be jumpers, especially husbands.

Ephesians 5:25 Husbands, love your wives, even as Christ also loved the church, and gave himself for it;
26 That he might sanctify and cleanse it with the washing of water by the word,
27 That he might present it to himself a glorious church, not having spot, or wrinkle, or any such thing; but that it should be holy and without blemish.
28 So ought men to love their wives as their own bodies. He that loveth his wife loveth himself.

My wife and daughter and I went camping at a local campground for an overnight stay on Sunday. I told them they could go swimming and I would set up camp. We got a late start, so I told them I needed their help to set up. This turned out to be a very good thing because it meant we all went swimming together. We finally got set up, and went to the pool. My daughter is just under five feet tall, so my wife and daughter stayed at the four foot area. I jumped in the deep end to get used to the water, then went to where they were. My daughter cannot swim, so I was trying to get her used to it. I got out and my wife continued to try to get her to remember that she had swam in the past. She is a special needs child, so she was afraid and did not remember. There was another family there with three older teenage boys. The were doing cannonballs and having fun. I watched them and my wife and daughter. Their parents left to go make dinner. My wife and daughter got out for a minute and we went to the shallow end of the pool. I told my wife they could stay and swim and I would run to the grocery a few blocks away to get the remainder of the items for dinner. They went back into the pool and I sat down to put on my shoes and shirt to go. I heard my daughter call out. Looking up, I saw her in the middle of the deep end and could see my wife under water, moving her along. It seemed strange and I noticed the three boys standing near the edge of the pool in the deep end on the same side as me. I remember thinking, “What is she [my wife] doing? Giving her a ride like a submarine?” Then my wife popped up with a strange look on her face. She was trying to do a dead man’s pull to pull my daughter on her back to the edge of the deep end nearest the boys. She went under, but my daughter was still above water. Something was not right.

I jumped up and went quickly to where the boys were standing. What was my wife doing? Then my daughter went under, and I knew they were going to drown. I whipped off my glasses and my shirt. I am not a great swimmer, overweight and out of shape, and no life guard, but time was short. There was only one thing I could do. I jumped in.

I went under but popped up they were both under water in a flurry of bubbles. I did not know if I could reach them, and could not really see them. I reached out and grabbed, and got them both. I pulled with all my might and they popped up as I went under, holding them up. I kicked back to the surface, still holding them. I had my wife by the waist, her back to me, and my daughter’s arm in my hand. She was looking at me with wonder in her eyes. I only had a moment and I turned my head to the boys, shouting, “Help us!” As I went under, holding them up. I heard a splash of the two older boys hitting the water.

I kicked my way to the surface, holding on to them to keep them up, and kicking with everything in me. I could feel the boys pushing us to the shallow end, which was not far away. Still kicking, I knew we were within feet of safety. I saw the four foot marker just ahead, and shoved my daughter to safety. I kept kicking and knew that if we could not touch soon, I could not hold my wife and I up. With one last desperate kick and the push of the boys, I put a foot down to see if I could touch. Just barely I was able to touch bottom and leaned that way, pulling my wife with the boys pushing. I could stand and she could stand, and I walked her to the edge of the pool in the three foot area.

It turns out my wife, three years earlier when my daughter was seven, was accustomed to giving her rides on her back. However, now that she was ten, she was 100+ pounds, almost 40 pounds more than three years ago. My wife had not counted on that extra weight, and it was more than she could do to give her a ride. In the hours that followed and again today I have had many thoughts. What if I had not had them help set up? What if I had not noticed what was going on, or had been quicker getting dressed, and left the pool area? I would have returned from the store to an ambulance scene, and my wife and daughter would be dead. I still do not know how I got them up, or even reached them. I am uncertain the outcome if the boys had left with their parents. What if the two older boys had been like the third boy, and not jumped in but only watched from the safety of the edge of the pool? These things I do not know. One thing I do know.

By the grace of God, I am a jumper. You can be too. Praise God!

Prayer
Father, we praise and exalt you as the Most High. You alone are worthy of our praise. Only You can teach us. Only You alone can spare lives. Today I give You praise for sparing the lives of my wife, my daughter, and me. Help us all learn to be jumpers, trusting in You alone. Please forgive us when we fail. Forgive us when we watch from the sidelines. Please send us today Your healing, Your deliverance, and Your abundant provision. In Jesus’ (Yeshua’s) name. Amen.

Remembering Those That Went All In

Today across America it is a holiday where we remember those that fought for our freedom. Some came home, some perished on the battlefield, and some struggle to come home even though they are here with us. One thing is true about them all. They went all in. They gave everything for us so that we might have a chance at Life, Liberty, and the Pursuit of Happiness, that we might have our freedom. Today we want to remember those people.

WE have a choice every day with God. We can choose to be all in, or not. We can choose to take a casual attitude towards our relationship with God, or we can choose to chase Him with out whole heart.

Psalms 42:1 As the hart panteth after the water brooks, so panteth my soul after thee, O God.

David chased after God like the water we drink. If we choose to casually consider drinking in the living water that God offers to us, then we will miss the fullness of the blessing. The same is true in all we do, whether it is relationship, work, or play. We do all unto God.

Colossians 3:16 Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly in all wisdom; teaching and admonishing one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing with grace in your hearts to the Lord.
17 And whatsoever ye do in word or deed, do all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God and the Father by him.

Today, in everything in your life, do all as unto God, just as those brave warriors gave their all for us.

Prayer
Father, we praise and exalt You. Thank You for this day. Please bless those that went to defend our freedoms, and their loved ones. Please forgive our iniquities. Please send us today healing, deliverance, and abundant provision. In Jesus’ (Yeshua’s) name.

The Chosen Ones

Perhaps there is nothing more comforting than knowing that we are chosen of God. If we understand what this is and what it means, we can have confidence that we will prevail, and our lives will have meaning and a good end. James spoke of this plainly.

James 2:5 Hearken, my beloved brethren, Hath not God chosen the poor of this world rich in faith, and heirs of the kingdom which he hath promised to them that love him?

James said God chose the poor of this world that are rich in faith. The poor of this world speaks of monetary and material wealth. If we do not have these, God chooses us because we trust in Him. One day He will give us His kingdom. It is hard to even imagine that day. There is yet another meaning I believe.

Before we became believers, we were also poor in spirit and in faith. But God chose us, and gave us His Spirit, and the gift of faith. That is how we became born again when we repented of sin and turned to Jesus. Those that feel they have it together and don’t need God are the rich of this world as well, in a different sense. But those of us that choose to surrender to God and become His followers become wealthy in Spirit and faith. And we will inherit the kingdom to come.

We can take comfort in knowing that God is with us, we only need to choose to follow Him.

Prayer
Father, we exalt You as the Most High. You alone are worthy of our praise. You alone are worthy of all glory and honor. Thank You for choosing us. Pleas forgive us when we fall, and please pick us back up. We ask today that You send Your healing, deliverance, and overwhelming provision. In Jesus’ (Yeshua’s) name. Amen.

Full Life, Full Living

In many ways we choose the life we live. The psalmists wrote often of how they interacted with God, and what God’s response was. This is also many places in scriptures. So how does this apply for us today, this day? I think most of us would want to live a full and happy life. We would want God to be there to protect us from our enemies. We would want to go into old age knowing that we will be provided for not because of who we are and what we have done but because of who God is. This we can do, and the pattern has been set.

Psalms 92:1 It is a good thing to give thanks unto the Lord, and to sing praises unto thy name, O most High:
2 To shew forth thy lovingkindness in the morning, and thy faithfulness every night,
3 Upon an instrument of ten strings, and upon the psaltery; upon the harp with a solemn sound.
4 For thou, Lord, hast made me glad through thy work: I will triumph in the works of thy hands.
5 O Lord, how great are thy works! and thy thoughts are very deep.
6 A brutish man knoweth not; neither doth a fool understand this.
7 When the wicked spring as the grass, and when all the workers of iniquity do flourish; it is that they shall be destroyed for ever:
8 But thou, Lord, art most high for evermore.
9 For, lo, thine enemies, O Lord, for, lo, thine enemies shall perish; all the workers of iniquity shall be scattered.
10 But my horn shalt thou exalt like the horn of an unicorn: I shall be anointed with fresh oil.
11 Mine eye also shall see my desire on mine enemies, and mine ears shall hear my desire of the wicked that rise up against me.
12 The righteous shall flourish like the palm tree: he shall grow like a cedar in Lebanon.
13 Those that be planted in the house of the Lord shall flourish in the courts of our God.
14 They shall still bring forth fruit in old age; they shall be fat and flourishing;
15 To shew that the Lord is upright: he is my rock, and there is no unrighteousness in him.

David wrote this song to reflect on who God is and what He does for us, to be sung on the Sabbath day. Perhaps this would be good for us to remember, and sing parts of this to God today, letting Him show Himself strong on our behalf.

Prayer
Father, we praise and exalt You the Most High. We ask today for Your mercy and truth in our lives. Please forgive us when we make mistakes. Please show Yourself strong on our behalf today Father. Please send today Your deliverance, healing, and abundant provision. In Jesus’ (Yeshua’s) name. Amen.

Morning Dawns

Just before dawn this morning I heard a familiar springtime sound. There were many birds chirping and singing in the forest as they woke up, calling to the dawn. There are many patterns in life, and this is one of them. Even the birds know that after the night comes the dawn. Scriptures speak about how being fixed upon God we experience this same thing.

Psalms 57:7 My heart is fixed, O God, my heart is fixed: I will sing and give praise.
8 Awake up, my glory; awake, psaltery and harp: I myself will awake early.
9 I will praise thee, O Lord, among the people: I will sing unto thee among the nations.
10 For thy mercy is great unto the heavens, and thy truth unto the clouds.
11 Be thou exalted, O God, above the heavens: let thy glory be above all the earth.

Psalms 143:8 Cause me to hear thy lovingkindness in the morning; for in thee do I trust: cause me to know the way wherein I should walk; for I lift up my soul unto thee.

There are many records of believers, and even Jesus, rising early in the morning to pray and seek God. I think God built this into us as a part of creation. We long for the light, the day, and we will seek that when we are seeking God.

Even the birds know that after the night comes the dawn.

Prayer
Father, we exalt You as the Most High, the Creator of all things. You bring us to the light, to the dawn after the morning. Please forgive us those areas that are still darkened within us. Deliver us into the light in every part of our being. Please send today You healing and abundant provision. In Jesus’ (Yeshua’s) name. Amen.

Thankfulness At Day’s End

Today I wrote at the end of the day. Looking back, I can see that God was with me every step of the way. I thought it would be good to share this from the perspective of reflection. I am in awe of how God weaves every moment we experience into our reality we call a day. Our responsibility is just to include Him from the moment we wake till the moment we fall asleep. We do that through prayer, praise, and just committing ourselves to be aware that God is with us. David spoke of this often.

Psalms 63:1O 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.
5 My soul shall be satisfied as with marrow and fatness; and my mouth shall praise thee with joyful lips:
6 When I remember thee upon my bed, and meditate on thee in the night watches.
7 Because thou hast been my help, therefore in the shadow of thy wings will I rejoice.

When we get together with God, from beginning to en of each day, we experience the shadow of His wing. We can be thankful that our God has cared for us one more day.

Prayer
Father, we exalt You, Most High King. Thank You for caring for us, for not giving up. You alone are worthy of our praise. Forgive us when we forget You. Please send us Your healing, deliverance, and abundant provision. In Jesus’ (Yeshua’s) Name. Amen.

When The Battle Rages

As believers there are times when spiritual warfare can seem more real to us. There can be tough times when we or someone we know and care about needs healing, deliverance, provision, heartache, and more. And we are thankful in those times that our God stands and delivers us. This morning as I was considering this it occurred to me that the battle is really raging everyday.

In the “good times” we may think that there is no battle. However, that is not what the scriptures seem to say. Jesus spoke about this at different times in different ways.

John 10:7Then said Jesus unto them again, Verily, verily, I say unto you, I am the door of the sheep.
8 All that ever came before me are thieves and robbers: but the sheep did not hear them.
9 I am the door: by me if any man enter in, he shall be saved, and shall go in and out, and find pasture.
10 The thief cometh not, but for to steal, and to kill, and to destroy: I am come that they might have life, and that they might have it more abundantly.
11 I am the good shepherd: the good shepherd giveth his life for the sheep.
12 But he that is an hireling, and not the shepherd, whose own the sheep are not, seeth the wolf coming, and leaveth the sheep, and fleeth: and the wolf catcheth them, and scattereth the sheep.
13 The hireling fleeth, because he is an hireling, and careth not for the sheep.

In this passage, amongst other things, Jesus was saying that He is the Shepherd. There is a thief that comes to kill, steal, and destroy. Our adversary is on a mission to do just that to us. Does it seem likely that he would ever take the day off? Jesus, being the Shepherd, fights him off many times without us even knowing it. And notice those that claim to help that are not the Shepherd run away, but He never does.

Matthew 6: 25 Therefore I say unto you, Take no thought for your life, what ye shall eat, or what ye shall drink; nor yet for your body, what ye shall put on. Is not the life more than meat, and the body than raiment?
26 Behold the fowls of the air: for they sow not, neither do they reap, nor gather into barns; yet your heavenly Father feedeth them. Are ye not much better than they?
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.
34 Take therefore no thought for the morrow: for the morrow shall take thought for the things of itself. Sufficient unto the day is the evil thereof.

Here Jesus is telling us that God cares for everything. He takes care of the birds, so certainly He would care for us. If God is taking care of all our needs, then certainly He would be there to fight our daily battles. Even when we are not aware that there is an enemy attacking, God fights him off for us.

One last point. Just because we may be experiencing the “good times”, it does not mean that all other believers are. In our good times we can pray for others. There are many around the world that need our prayers for their deliverance. There are many in our own cities and towns. Like God, we can be involved in the battle everyday for our fellow believers. Today, let’s pray for each other, and watch our God move!

Prayer
Father, we praise and exalt You. You are the Most High King. Forgive us our mistakes. We ask today that You reach out to those that in the tough times of raging battle. Touch the lives of those with cancer and other diseases today Father. Heal them in a way that You alone get the glory and the praise. Send today Your healing, deliverance, and abundant provision. In Jesus’ (Yeshua’s) name. Amen.

Peace With God

In life there is something for all believers, I believe, and perhaps all mankind, that is always present. It is like something gnawing at us on the inside. Not necessarily in a bad way. It is like something missing and something coming all mixed together. I believe at least a part of that is the inner drive of mankind to be at peace with God. This peace, this rest, is what we lost in the garden. It was this same drive for the search for peace with God that drove the children of Israel into the desert, but they did not obtain it.

Hebrews 3:6 But Christ as a son over his own house; whose house are we, if we hold fast the confidence and the rejoicing of the hope firm unto the end.
7 Wherefore (as the Holy Ghost saith, To day if ye will hear his voice,
8 Harden not your hearts, as in the provocation, in the day of temptation in the wilderness:
9 When your fathers tempted me, proved me, and saw my works forty years.
10 Wherefore I was grieved with that generation, and said, They do alway err in their heart; and they have not known my ways.
11 So I sware in my wrath, They shall not enter into my rest.)
12 Take heed, brethren, lest there be in any of you an evil heart of unbelief, in departing from the living God.

Paul was writing to the Hebrews and telling them that it was important not to be like the children of Israel in the wilderness. They did not make it. They did not enter into God’s rest. Why? Because they did not know God’s ways.

Psalms 103:6 The Lord executeth righteousness and judgment for all that are oppressed.
7 He made known his ways unto Moses, his acts unto the children of Israel.

Moses spent time with God. The children of Israel did not. In the end, Moses knew God’s ways because of this relationship. So how do we find this rest today? Paul also speaks about this in his follow up recommendations in his letter to the Hebrews.

Hebrews 3:13 But exhort one another daily, while it is called To day; lest any of you be hardened through the deceitfulness of sin.
14 For we are made partakers of Christ, if we hold the beginning of our confidence stedfast unto the end;
15 While it is said, To day if ye will hear his voice, harden not your hearts, as in the provocation.

Today, if is peace with God you seek, find someone to share a scripture with, a positive uplifting thought, or just let them know you care about them. When we do this, we are in God’s ways. When we spend time with Him, we are in His arms.

Prayer
Father, we praise and exalt You. Thank You for leading and guiding us. Thank You for Your never ending love. Please forgive us our wrongs against You and others. Please help us to better be like Your Son, our Messiah, Jesus. Send us today Your healing, deliverance, and overwhelming provision. In Jesus’ (Yeshua’s) name. Amen.

Love And Care

This morning as I was looking at my garden I noticed it needs some watering. The plants are a little droopy, as if they were calling to me. It reminded me of the love and care that God extends toward us. One of my favorite scriptures about this (there are so many it is hard to pick just one) is in Paul’s letter to the Ephesians.

Ephesians 5:25 Husbands, love your wives, even as Christ also loved the church, and gave himself for it;
26 That he might sanctify and cleanse it with the washing of water by the word,
27 That he might present it to himself a glorious church, not having spot, or wrinkle, or any such thing; but that it should be holy and without blemish.

When I think about what our Messiah did so selflessly giving His life, I am encouraged that He has a plan. We will be His bride. He would not pay such a price only to walk away from us. It is a blessing to remember this when times are challenging, and it gives us something to look forward to in the future. He is changing us into His perfect wife. He loves us enough to go through the challenges with us unto the end, knowing that He will not fail us. And all these thoughts from just seeing I need to water my garden.

Prayer
Father, we praise and exalt You. You alone are worthy to be praised. Thank You for not giving up on us. Thank You for staying by our side until the end when we will finally be like You. Please forgive us our shortcomings. Send us today Your healing, deliverance, and overwhelming provision. We love You. In Jesus’ (Yeshua’s) name. Amen.

When Comfort Seems Far Off

There are days when everything seems to go well. And there can be times that seem far more challenging. In all these times our God is still there for us. He always hears us, our praise and our prayers. When the comfort we seek from God seems distant, that is when we need our faith and our hope. We need to know that God is with us. We need that hope, that eager expectation, of His deliverance for us. Paul spoke of this.

Hebrews 11:1 Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen.
2 For by it the elders obtained a good report.
3 Through faith we understand that the worlds were framed by the word of God, so that things which are seen were not made of things which do appear.

Paul goes on to tell us how it was faith that carried people through. Even Abraham used faith to trust in God when he went to sacrifice his son. From Abraham and his response to God in his life we get the promise that we all now cling to, the promise that became life, our Messiah, Jesus. It does not matter who we are or what else is in our life. If we will but trust God and ask, God will move on our behalf. James spoke of this.

James 5:16 Confess your faults one to another, and pray one for another, that ye may be healed. The effectual fervent prayer of a righteous man availeth much.
17 Elias was a man subject to like passions as we are, and he prayed earnestly that it might not rain: and it rained not on the earth by the space of three years and six months.
18 And he prayed again, and the heaven gave rain, and the earth brought forth her fruit.

We need each other, and we need our God. When comfort seems far off, we can take comfort in knowing that it will come. God will deliver His people – us. We must stand strong in knowing it is not about us and who we our, but about our God and who He is. In that we can have comfort.

Prayer
Father, we exalt You today. Come to us, our King, and lift us up. Let not the evil in this world overtake us and consume us. Deliver us from this evil, even if it is within us. Forgive us our sins. Deliver us, Father, and we will be delivered. Help the poor and the needy and the fatherless today. Send us Your deliverance, Your healing, and Your abundant provision. In Jesus’ (Yeshua’s) name. Amen.