Is it your voice He’s hearing?

Ps. 5:1-3:  “Give ear to my words, O Lord, consider my meditation.  Give heed to the voice of my cry, my King and my God, for to You I will pray.  My voice You shall hear in the morning, O Lord.  In the morning I will direct it to You, and I will look up.”

Does God hear your voice in the morning?  Do you direct your words to Him?  Do you look up and seek His face?  Do you cry out to Him, pray to Him, meditate upon His Word?

Imagine what your day would be like if you started it in the presence of the King of Kings?  Think of the confidence you’d have, walking out the door when you’ve just been in the power and the presence of the Holy Spirit.

When we have allowed the Lord to hear our voice first thing in the morning, and chosen to look first to Him, we will have chosen what is most important to start our day.  The problems, obstacles, and duties of the day will look much less intimidating when the joy of the Lord has become our strength.

Ps. 1:2 says that the man whose delight is in the law of the Lord, and who meditates on it day and night is blessed.  “He shall be like a tree planted by the rivers of water, that brings forth its fruit in its season, whose leaf also does not wither; and whatever he does shall prosper.”  vs. 3

When we turn to God first thing in the morning, we will be strengthening ourselves, showing honor and respect to the Lord, and bringing blessings upon lives.  What more could we possibly want?

Give Him the praise!

jamie

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Month of Prayer, Day 19

Lord, truly, I would have perished in my affliction if it hadn’t been for You.  Your Word is what has given me life.  I praise You for this, Lord! You have saved me.  You have saved me in this life, and You have given me eternal salvation, as well.  Blessed be the name of the Lord!

Lord, help me to walk in integrity.  Keep foolishness and perversity far from me.  Let Your Word be what guides my steps.  Continue to grow in me the discretion that makes me slow to anger, overlooking transgressions and weaknesses.  Help me to see those around me through the lenses of  love and understanding.

Keep contentions and arguments far from me, so that I may be a prudent wife.  Help me not to allow laziness and idleness be my companions.  Let me give to those in need, chasten my children while they’re young, be careful of my ways, and continue in Your Word.

Let my ears be open to instruction and counsel, that I may be wise in my latter years.

Although the enemy waits to destroy, I trust You to keep evil far from me.  I know that You will not allow evil to overtake me.  I am Yours.  You love me like no other and You are the God who is in control.  Satan may have a loud roar, but Yours, O Lord, is louder!  You are the Alpha and Omega.  You are the King of Kings!  You are the Lord of Lords!  You are the Great I AM.  You are Lord of all.  And I praise You!

Thank You for choosing me, Lord.  I am happy to be called Yours.  Thank You for hearing my prayer.  You are a good, good God!

I love you,

jamie

You are as important as a spider

Pr. 30:28:  “The spider (one of the things that is little on the earth) skillfully grasps with its hands, and it is in king’s palaces.”

Strange verse to pick?  Let’s see.  In Acts 6 when there was a complaint that some widows were being neglected.  The twelve believed they were supposed to remain in prayer and in the Word, so they summoned the growing number of disciples and told them to, “seek out from among you some men of good reputation, full of the Holy Spirit and wisdom, whom we may appoint over this business; but we will give ourselves continually to prayer and to the ministry of the word.”

The whole multitude was pleased with this decision and seven disciples were chosen to take on the task.

How do I relate this to a spider?  Spiders, indeed, are little.  They can be scary to some, insignificant to others, and tolerated by others.  However, to those who appreciate their skills and their contribution to the balance of nature, they are amazing and extremely important.

The same goes for the “little” people in the kingdom of Christ.  Sometimes we feel too small, somewhat insignificant, and sometimes simply tolerated.  However, God gave us all specific skills and abilities we can use for His kingdom.  We are all part of the balance and each of us is important.

We must not; however, wait until we’re called upon to decide to use what we have for the Lord.  When the seven were chosen it was because they were already of good reputation, and full of the Holy Spirit and wisdom.  They may not have had a chance to put their specific skills to work prior to this; however, they had already made the choice that what they did have would be used for the Lord.  They were already of good reputation.  They were already full of the Holy Spirit.  They were already tapping into God’s wisdom.

We can do the same.  We can make sure that we are daily walking with the Lord, being fed His wisdom, being filled with His Holy Spirit, and ensuring that we are making wise choices that lead to a good reputation.  Like the spider, we were given certain skills for the work in our King’s palace.  When the time comes that our specific skills are needed to complete the task, we will be found ready.

So, see?  You are important, and your skills are just as good as those of the spider.  Keep learning with the Master.

Feeling sticky,

jamie

Need a time of refreshing?

Acts 3:19:  “Repent therefore and be converted, that your sins may be blotted out, so that times of refreshing may come from the presence of the Lord…”

You may be way ahead of me on this one, but I never noticed the second part of this verse, “So that times of refreshing may come from the presence of the Lord.”  That sure sounds like the Lord I know…Refreshing.

I knew we were to repent and be converted so that our sins would be blotted out; however, I never noticed that another promised reward of doing so would be so that times of refreshing would come upon us from God’s presence.  I love when I find something new in a verse I’ve read over and over before.

When we repent and call the Lord ours He not only blots out our sins, but refreshes us with His presence.  I can think of nothing more refreshing than the presence of the Lord.  When I am in His presence I can feel pure joy, peace, love, hope, safety, purity, and salvation.

Are you in need of refreshing?  Not only can God give you what you need, but He will.  Being saved by grace offers a refreshing that you cannot find anywhere else.  Having the Comforter as your King offers a peace that cannot be duplicated.

If you have repented and been converted and you are in need of a time of refreshing, call upon your Savior.  He will rain down all that you need.  Spend time in His presence and feel His power and His love envelope you now.

Enjoying the perks,

jamie

The King of mercy

Pr. 20:8:  “A king who sits on the throne of judgment scatters all evil with his eyes.”  

Obviously not all kings are or have been the same.  The character of the king would certainly determine his judgments.

This verse brings to mind my current situation.  From my seat on the couch, where I have positioned myself while my leg heals, I can see a lot of different things.

This morning, as the sun has been streaming so beautifully through the door, I can see every speck of dust on my floor.  I can see things outside that need to be taken care of.  I can see dvd’s out of place, things in the floor that don’t belong, and decorations positioned in ways I don’t prefer.

I certainly have the option to use my seat as a place of corrupt judgment, tyrannically demanding that every little thing be exactly to my specifications and liking.  However, I also have the option of using wise judgment and understanding, ruling out what is truly imperative and what is not.

When we make judgments based on self-interests alone, we are doing an injustice to those around us.  When we count everything as “evil,” then nothing truly is.  We must wisely discriminate which infringements require us to rule in a negative way and which do not.

It’s amazing that The Lord, our God, sits on a throne of grace where we are offered mercy time after time.  God sees into our hearts.  He may see things out of place, He may notice specks of dirt or brokenness, but He rightly judges.

God does not look on us through eyes of anger, but through eyes of love.  He does not rule in His own self-interest, but in ours.  He  sent His own Son to take our punishment, offering us reward through accepting that sacrifice.  He even offers help anytime we ask.

What a mighty a God we truly serve!  God cannot tolerate sin, but He can see into our hearts, and when we are truly broken before Him, grace through the blood of Jesus covers and frees us.

God isn’t sitting around looking for the debris or disorganization in our lives so that He can judge us harshly.  Our King, is gazing lovingly at those who choose to call Him Father, with arms outstretched, grace and mercy pouring from His throne.

Yes, those who do not turn from Him will be judged, as well, but it is not His desire.  His character is proven by His love.  His judgments are pure and we can trust in Him.

Considerately,

jamie

 

 

You will stand before the King

Pr. 22:29:  “Do you see a man who excels in his work?  He will stand before kings; he will not stand before unknown men.”

I read the perfect example of this in Mark 6 this morning:

Then an opportune day came when Herod on his birthday gave a fest for his nobles, the high officers, and the chief men of Galilee.  And when Herodias’ daughter herself came in and danced, and pleased Herod and those who sat with him, the king said to the girl, “Ask me whatever you want, and I will give it to you.”  He also swore to her, “Whatever you ask me, I will give you, up to half my kingdom.”

Up to half his kingdom!?  WOW!  That must have been some dance!

What is it that you do?  No matter what you do; whether you’re a manager, a business owner, a janitor, a missionary, a stay-at-home parent, a hairstylist, a truck driver, a CEO, or even a cashier, do what you can to excel at your work and you will stand before “kings.”

Oh, and if you doubt anyone will ever see your excellence and appreciate it, let me remind you of one important detail.  Col. 3:23 clearly tells us, “And whatever you do, do it heartily, as to the Lord, and not to men, knowing that from the Lord you will receive the reward of the inheritance; for you serve the Lord Christ.”

We actually serve the Lord Christ.  One day we will stand before the King of Kings, and we will then be given the reward of our inheritance.

Don’t give up, and don’t settle for mediocrity.  Excel at what you do for your true King.  Who knows, you may even see that you receive some reward while you’re waiting.  🙂

Like Lowe’s, let’s Never Stop Improving,

jamie

Jesus’ death = your life

Pr. 16:15:  “In the light of the king’s face is life, and his favor is like a cloud of the latter rain.”

Yesterday I heard a story about a soldier whose life was saved by the sacrifice of one of his fellow soldier’s own life.  He said that his days are now lived in light and in honor of that sacrifice.  The point brought up by the lady relaying this story was that it is a concept generally accepted that when someone lays down their life specifically for you, then it is logical for you to want to live your life in a way that honors that sacrifice.

Does that concept sound familiar to you?  Jesus laid down His life for each and everyone one of us.  Our lives have been saved because one man offered Himself up in exchange for us.  Are we living in a way that brings honor to His sacrifice?  Are we trampling on His sacrifice, living as though what He did was of no consequence?

Hearing that soldier say that his life is now lived in honor of the life of the other makes him sound very honorable.  He will be well-respected by almost everyone for making a statement like that, and more so by following through with what he said.  The other soldier’s parents, in particular, will receive much more comfort knowing that their son did not die in vain for someone who was ungrateful, uncaring, or unworthy.

That’s just it, though, isn’t it?  Was he really worthy of the life of their own son?  No.  No one will ever be as cherished in their eyes as their own son.  However, they understand their son’s sacrifice was out of love for his fellow soldier and out of his own desire that his fellow soldier would not die.

Certainly none of us are worthy of the sacrifice of Jesus; however, He counted us worthy out of His overwhelming love for us, and His desire that we live eternally with Him in heaven.  God does not desire than any should perish, so He willingly sacrificed His own Son for our salvation.  Are we living lives of gratitude in light of that sacrifice?  Are we honoring God with our actions, decisions, words, and goals?  Who are we trying to honor?

Isn’t Jesus worthy of our honor, respect, and gratitude?  He offered Himself up specifically for you…for me.  In the light of His face there truly is life…eternal life.  And the blessings that come from His latter rain shine His favor upon us, saving even in these last days.  His salvation is still freely offered to one and all.

If you believe Jesus died for you, live a life that proves it.  Show your gratitude to Him by honoring Him with your life.  Isn’t that the very least we can do for the One who gave His very own life for our own?

Praise Him now!

jamie