Blessed New Year!

Tomorrow starts a new year.  I think most of us go in with expectations or wishes for a better year, less sadness, less troubles.....But only God knows what will actually come to us.  We don't even know what will come in the next ten minutes let alone the  next year!  LOL

But we go in hopeful.  Hoping for change, hoping for better habits, hoping for smooth sailing.  We make resolutions.  Eat better, exercise we promise ourselves.  Maybe save more, spend less, be kinder, more patient, etc.  These things are all good.  And we should always strive to do better, (under the Lord's guidance and power), to take  are of ourselves and treat others better.  

My Pastor brought up a good point though about New Year's resolutions last Sunday.  What if we make spiritual resolutions.  Many people decide this is the year they will read through the Bible.  That's a great start.  But there are others we can do as well.  How about reading a Proverb a day at the beginning of the day each month?  How about praying each day for the fruit of the Spirit to be manifest in our lives that day?  Galatians 5:22-23 22 But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, forbearance, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, 23 gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law.   Read through the Psalms at bedtime.  Make the habit of a daily prayer time each day....start with 10 or 15 minutes each day.  Make a list so you have an idea and a focus for that time.  I don't know about others, by my mind tends to wander when I sit without a focus.  But don't forget to allow for the Holy Spirit to change it up if He decides to.  LOL   How about starting the morning with a worship song each day?  Maybe gratitude needs to increase.  Think of 3 (or more!) things you are thankful for each morning when you wake up and each night before you go to sleep.  Lamentations 3:22-24 The faithful love of the Lord never ends!  His mercies never cease.  23 Great is his faithfulness;   his mercies begin afresh each morning.  24 I say to myself, “The Lord is my inheritance; therefore, I will hope in him!”  That's a good start for the morning.  And for bedtime: Psalm 4:8 In peace I will lie down and sleep, for you alone, O Lord, will keep me safe.  

I'm sure you can think of many other "resolutions" to grow spiritually this year.  Here's one more.  If you don't belong to a church or meet with other believers that might be a really good place to start.  

I'm a kind of "pray as you go" girl.  So one of my resolutions will be to make that specific time of prayer each day.  I am going to get back into the habit of reading Proverbs in the morning.  I do the Psalms at night.  A long time ago I set the alarm on my phone during the day to have "gratitude breaks."  I think that is a good habit to start up again, especially since I find myself complaining too often.   I also want to do the exercise and eat right thing.  LOL

Growth and change for our bodies and minds is great.  And we don't want to neglect those.  But as the days get darker and darker here on earth, I believe we need to work with the Lord to make our light shine brighter and brighter.  We also will need strength, boldness, wisdom and discernment for the days ahead.   Spiritual discipline is needed to do that.  My prayer is that you will sit with the Lord and ask Him what He wants you to do.  Where He wants to lead you this year.  

Lord, we all need to grow.  We all can use a little change.  Show us what You want in our lives.  We may not know what the future holds, but we ask that You prepare us for whatever lies ahead.  Help us to be disciplined and be ready for whatever you have for us, both good and bad.  Let us go deeper with You this year than ever before.  We worship You, our all knowing, loving Father.  We are so thankful for the salvation You provide for us in Jesus and for the strength and leading of the Holy Spirit.  You alone know what we need.  We await Your instructions and leading.  In Jesus Name, amen. 

Take some time today and tomorrow to seek God and His will for you.  

I truly with you a happy and blessed new year filled with the Presence of our Lord.  

Merry Christmas

 

Merry Christmas to all of you!   We are so blessed in the gifts we give and receive

this time of year.  The greatest of these being the reason we 

celebrate, Jesus, Himself.

As much joy as we get from blessing one another, I can only imagine God

the Father's joy in giving us His Son.  God the Father

gave Jesus, wrapped as a present 

in human form, to save us all.  John 3:16 tells us, "For God so loved the

world, that He gave His one and only Son, that whoever

believes in Him shall not perish but have

eternal life."  Imagine that!  The Creator of everything wanted our 

fellowship so much, loved us so much, that Jesus willing

came to earth, loved perfectly, died 

and rose again to bring us to Himself.  So I pray for you, my dear ones, that during 

all the wonderful fun and bustle of this season, that God

warms your heart with His love for 

you, and that you remember the greatest gift of all.

Have a great holiday! 

Obedience

I've been doing a Bible study called "Seeking Him.  Experiencing the Joy of Personal Revival by Nancy DeMoss Wolgemuth and Tim Grissom.  It's a great study of examination and  growth.  My goal is to draw closer to our Lord, and shine brightly for Him with a fire that only comes through His Presence in my life.  

One of the questions today was based on Moses' building of the Tabernacle.  The Scripture references given were Exodus 25:1-9 and Exodus 39-40.  The whole story is in 25-31, and 37-40.  

Exodus 25:1-9 The Lord said to Moses, 2 “Tell the people of Israel to bring me their sacred offerings. Accept the contributions from all whose hearts are moved to offer them. 3 Here is a list of sacred offerings you may accept from them: gold, silver, and bronze; 4 blue, purple, and scarlet thread; fine linen and goat hair for cloth; 5 tanned ram skins and fine goatskin leather; acacia wood; 6 olive oil for the lamps; spices for the anointing oil and the fragrant incense; 7 onyx stones, and other gemstones to be set in the ephod and the priest’s chestpiece.  8 “Have the people of Israel build me a holy sanctuary so I can live among them. 9 You must build this Tabernacle and its furnishings exactly according to the pattern I will show you.

On through the following chapters we see the Lord give instruction, minutely detailed, in the building of the Tabernacle and everything in it.  

The question given in my study was "What lesson did you learn from the account of Moses building the tabernacle?  

I have to include a couple of more verses in order to fully answer this question.  One being, Exodus 31:1-11 Then the Lord said to Moses, 2 “Look, I have specifically chosen Bezalel son of Uri, grandson of Hur, of the tribe of Judah. 3 I have filled him with the Spirit of God, giving him great wisdom, ability, and expertise in all kinds of crafts. 4 He is a master craftsman, expert in working with gold, silver, and bronze. 5 He is skilled in engraving and mounting gemstones and in carving wood. He is a master at every craft!  6 “And I have personally appointed Oholiab son of Ahisamach, of the tribe of Dan, to be his assistant. Moreover, I have given special skill to all the gifted craftsmen so they can make all the things I have commanded you to make: 7 the Tabernacle; the Ark of the Covenant; the Ark’s cover—the place of atonement; all the furnishings of the Tabernacle; 8 the table and its utensils; the pure gold lampstand with all its accessories; the incense altar; 9 the altar of burnt offering with all its utensils; the washbasin with its stand; 10 the beautifully stitched garments—the sacred garments for Aaron the priest, and the garments for his sons to wear as they minister as priests; 11 the anointing oil; the fragrant incense for the Holy Place. The craftsmen must make everything as I have commanded you.”  The other I want to include is Exodus 40:1 Then the cloud covered the Tabernacle, and the glory of the Lord filled the Tabernacle.

So the answer I gave to the question was twofold.  1. God gave everything the people needed in order to be obedient to His design and plan.  2. When the people had been obedient, even down to the smallest detail, God's Presence filled the Tabernacle. 

And so it is with us.  Obedience brings the Lord's Presence in our lives.  And He gives us all we need to be obedient.  2 Peter 1:3 By his divine power, God has given us everything we need for living a godly life. We have received all of this by coming to know him, the one who called us to himself by means of his marvelous glory and excellence.  John 14:21  Those who accept my commandments and obey them are the ones who love me. And because they love me, my Father will love them. And I will love them and reveal myself to each of them.”  John 14:23  Jesus replied, “All who love me will do what I say. My Father will love them, and we will come and make our home with each of them.

Obedience brings blessing!  Obedience brings glory to God!  Obedience opens doors for us to be a light to others, bringing them to Christ.

Lord, give us hearts of obedience.  Let us not talk about how much we love You, but show it as well.  I know my greatest desire is to make Your heart happy.  Help me, and all of us to lay down our own ways and follow You. I know we all struggle with dying to our flesh.  We all fail sometimes, and thankfully You are a patient and forgiving Father.  The sanctification process is lifelong!  Help us to grow in obedience every day.   In Jesus' Name, Amen

Good Advice

 When God speaks, we need to listen and obey.  That's my advice.  Follow directions!

Last week I was sicker than I ever remember being in recent years, and years.  What an awful week.  Thankfully I am about 95% better now.  What a relief.

But here's the thing.  God had been warning me for weeks I was headed for a break down.  First it started in a couple of sermons by our pastor where he mentioned the need to slow down while driving.  Then another teacher said the same thing.  Well I kind of drive a little fast, so I thought that God was telling me to watch my driving speed.  Ok...I'm trying to do better on that.

Then there was the construction sign that I was seeing every few days.  "Please slow down" it said.  Yup, same thing...I thought God was talking about my driving.  

Well I was wrong.  It was my schedule God wanted me to slow down with.  It's been so crazy lately.  But I wasn't listening.  And so what happened?  God slowed me down...in fact, he stopped me completely!  And it was exactly what I needed but didn't really want to hear, let alone do. 

He is so good to us that even when we are living unbalanced, disobedient lives, He makes a way for our good.  What an awesome Father we have. 

Lord, help us to listen.  Help us to obey.  In the Name of our Savior, Jesus Christ.  Amen!