When I awoke…

 

When I awoke…

Since my late husband and I celebrated monthly anniversaries as well as yearly anniversaries, when I awoke this morning, I wished him “Happy anniversary “…his parent’s anniversary is coming up in two days as well. So did a “shout out” to them as well…June is a big wedding  month…

I read this devotional by Ray Stedman and couldn’t help but think of each of the above…

When various people found out my husband had terminal cancer, prayer was spread throughout the world…just because of various connections…it was so humbling to know that people we knew and didn’t know took time to pray for him and our family…

The opportunity has  existed and still does to pray for those we know and don’t know for a variety of reasons…those in conflict, those serving anywhere in the world, those far from us or close by…those who are strangers or close friends..anyone God puts in our path or minds…we may never know the answers, but that should stop us…God has a plan….

Jesus prayed for us so long ago and they are still at work…

Thank YOU…

20 “I do not ask for these only, but also for those who will believe in me through their word, 21 that they may all be one, just as you, Father, are in me, and I in you, that they also may be in us, so that the world may believe that you have sent me. 22 The glory that you have given me I have given to them, that they may be one even as we are one, 23 I in them and you in me, that they may become perfectly one, so that the world may know that you sent me and loved them even as you loved me. 24 Father, I desire that they also, whom you have given me, may be with me where I am, to see my glory that you have given me because you loved me before the foundation of the world. 25 O righteous Father, even though the world does not know you, I know you, and these know that you have sent me. 26 I made known to them your name, and I will continue to make it known, that the love with which you have loved me may be in them, and I in them.”

John 17:20-26 

But do not overlook this one fact, beloved, that with the Lord one day is as a thousand years, and a thousand years as one day. The Lord is not slow to fulfill his promise as some count slowness, but is patient toward you,  not wishing that any should perish, but that all should reach repentance.

2 Peter 3:8-9

Unceasing Prayer

A daily devotion for June 28th

From your friends at RayStedman.org

Read: Colossians 1:9-14

For this reason, since the day we heard about you, we have not stopped praying for you. Col. 1:9a

Paul knows that the Colossian Christians are living in a dangerous world. A seething volcano of false teaching has begun to erupt and engulf them, threatening to destroy the simplicity of the faith that is producing such beauty and liberty in their lives. Paul is in Rome, a prisoner in chains, and unable to travel to Colossae, a thousand miles east, to help them. There is nothing he can do physically for them. But spiritually, he is a powerful prayer warrior who can create in their midst a tremendous opportunity to know truth that will free them and enable them to withstand the assault of false teaching. That, then, is what he is doing: he is praying for them.

The striking thing about this prayer is the very first sentence of it: “For this reason, since the day we heard about you, we have not stopped praying for you...” This was a continuing prayer. As far as we know, Paul had never been to Colossae. Apart from one or two among them, he did not personally know these believers. And yet he prays continually for them. When we come to statements like this in Scripture it is quite fair to ask, when did he do this? Day and night he is chained to a Roman guard, he never has a moment to himself. Awake or asleep, he is bound to his jailer. Furthermore, when he is awake, his friends are dropping by to see him to seek his counsel and instruction. He even ministers to the Roman guards, many of whom came to Christ, as we learn in the letter to the Philippians. He is busy writing letters, too, so when did he find time to pray for the Colossians?

The answer lies in having an ongoing life of prayer. This refers to quiet, whispered prayers and praises that flow from our hearts all day long. We use interruptions, people or events that break in unexpectedly upon our day, as calls to specific prayer. Most of us use mealtime to think of God and to voice our thanks to him. But more than food can call us to prayer. We can even use the newspaper or the television set in the same way. As world decision-makers are pictured before our eyes we can breathe a quiet prayer for them by name. We can read a newspaper prayerfully, whispering back to God our intercessions for those in need, about whom we are reading. When we run across someone, even in an impolite way, tripping us on the bus, jabbing us with an umbrella, dodging in front of us in traffic, God may be calling that particular individual to our attention in order to inspire prayer for him.

Have you ever prayed for people who cut in front of you in traffic, asking God to bless them, not blast them? That is what this is suggesting: that continual prayer arises constantly as a reaction to what you are going through. I am sure this explains the apostle's words here. Through the day he would think of the Colossians; how they were doing and what was threatening them, and he would breathe a prayer for them. This is what he means when he says, “we have not stopped praying for you.” We can pray for each other in the same wonderful way.

Lord, teach me the secret of ongoing prayer. Help me to see every event and every person in my life as an invitation to pray.

          

Life Application

Is communication with our Father becoming a spontaneous response to all of life? Are we faithful prayer-responders to the plethora of need continually surrounding us

Verses to contemplate…

 

Verses to contemplate…

Let love be genuine. 

Abhor what is evil; 

hold fast to what is good. 

Love one another with brotherly affection. 

Outdo one another in showing honor. 

Do not be slothful in zeal, 

be fervent in spirit,  

serve the Lord. 

Rejoice in hope, 

be patient in tribulation, 

be constant in prayer. 

Contribute to the needs of the saints and 

seek to show hospitality. 

Bless those who persecute you; 

bless and do not curse them. 

Rejoice with those who rejoice, 

weep with those who weep. 

Live in harmony with one another. 

Do not be haughty, 

but associate with the lowly.  

Never be wise in your own sight. 

Repay no one evil for evil, 

but give thought to do what is honorable in the sight of all. 

If possible, so far as it depends on you, live peaceably with all. Beloved, never avenge yourselves, but leave it to the wrath of God, for it is written, “Vengeance is mine, I will repay, says the Lord.” 

To the contrary, “if your enemy is hungry, feed him; 

if he is thirsty, give him something to drink; …..

Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good.

Romans 12:9-20a, 21

Love is patient 

and kind; 

love does not envy 

or boast; 

it is not arrogant 

or rude. 

It does not insist on its own way; 

it is not irritable 

or resentful; 

it does not rejoice at wrongdoing, 

but rejoices with the truth. 

Love bears all things, 

believes all things, 

hopes all things, 

endures all things. 

Love never ends….

1 Corinthians 13:4-8a

A tall order…

Thank YOU….

Inward parts…

 Inward parts….

Colonoscopy….the dread word…the dread preparation…the dread procedure….

Because I have a variety of cancers in my family history, I have the opportunity to get screened for some every once in awhile…this week is was for colon cancer…my mom had colon cancer, was treated with success…my cousin had it for several years and finally succumbed to it, a young amazing man…

“They” keep saying the preparations for the procedure are the hard part…the exam the easy part…the nurse reiterates that over and over…and so it was…

 As I was going through the prep, I thought of the verses that actually talk about bowels in the Bible…there are 5…in Numbers, 2 Chronicles, and Acts…

The first one is about faithfulness…

May this water that brings the curse pass into your bowels and make your womb swell and your thigh fall away.’ And the woman shall say, ‘Amen, Amen.’ “Then the priest shall write these curses in a book and wash them off into the water of bitterness. And he shall make the woman drink the water of bitterness that brings the curse, and the water that brings the curse shall enter into her and cause bitter pain. And the priest shall take the grain offering of jealousy out of the woman's hand and shall wave the grain offering before the Lord and bring it to the altar.

Numbers 5:22-25

The second ones about unfaithfulness…

and you yourself will have a severe sickness with a disease of your bowels, until your bowels come out because of the disease, day by day.’” And the Lord stirred up against Jehoram the anger of the Philistines and of the Arabians who are near the Ethiopians. And they came up against Judah and invaded it and carried away all the possessions they found that belonged to the king's house, and also his sons and his wives, so that no son was left to him except Jehoahaz, his youngest son. And after all this the Lord struck him in his bowels with an incurable disease. In the course of time, at the end of two years, his bowels came out because of the disease, and he died in great agony. His people made no fire in his honor, like the fires made for his fathers. He was thirty-two years old when he began to reign, and he reigned eight years in Jerusalem. And he departed with no one's regret. They buried him in the city of David, but not in the tombs of the kings.

2 Chronicles 21:15-20 

The third one about guilt…

“Brothers, the Scripture had to be fulfilled, which the Holy Spirit spoke beforehand by the mouth of David concerning Judas, who became a guide to those who arrested Jesus. For he was numbered among us and was allotted his share in this ministry.” (Now this man acquired a field with the reward of his wickedness, and falling headlong he burst open in the middle and all his bowels gushed out. And it became known to all the inhabitants of Jerusalem, so that the field was called in their own language Akeldama, that is, Field of Blood.)

Acts 1:16-19

But my favorite ones are about God’s care and creation…

For you formed my inward parts; you knitted me together in my mother's womb. 

I praise you, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made. 

Wonderful are your works; my soul knows it very well. 

My frame was not hidden from you, when I was being made in secret, intricately woven in the depths of the earth. 

Your eyes saw my unformed substance; in your book were written, every one of them, the days that were formed for me, when as yet there was none of them.

Psalm 139:13-16

And yes, the preparation is worse than the actual procedure…but, those pictures of our inward being, the scope the doctor uses, give glimpses of what God made…so intricately are amazing…

Thank YOU….

Psalm 23…and politics….

 Psalm 23…and politics…

 I was reading this short devotional this morning…from “Don’t let politics steal your peace” by Joel Maln….

“We want:

1. Security (physical, financial, and emotional)

2. Connection (relationships, compassion, feeling valued and accepted)

3. Freedom (empowerment, options for ourselves and our family)

Political parties build their platforms around those things and make promises to meet those needs. But they can also use fear to persuade you that the "other side" wants to take those things from you.  

As citizens of God’s Kingdom, we need to regularly remind ourselves that no matter what a politician may promise (or threaten), our source for security, connection, and freedom is God’s love. He is the only one who can ultimately fulfill those needs. No matter who wins elections, God is the source for all we need. 

Take some time today to remind yourself that God is the source of your security, connection, and freedom. We don’t have to be afraid, because God’s Spirit of power and love lives inside of us. His Kingdom is where you will find the fulfillment for all you need.”

This devotional just brought me back to psalm 23…and care that the shepherd offers his beloved sheep….his provision through life…

The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want. 

He makes me lie down in green pastures. 

He leads me beside still waters. 

He restores my soul. 

He leads me in paths of righteousness for his name's sake. 

Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil, for you are with me; your rod and your staff, they comfort me. 

You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies; you anoint my head with oil; my cup overflows. 

Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life, and I shall dwell in the house of the Lord forever.

Psalm 23:1-6

Or Isaiah….

but they who wait for the Lord shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings like eagles; they shall run and not be weary; they shall walk and not faint.

Isaiah 40:31

Thank YOU….

James…

 James…

I didn’t know I had an anger issue until I married…then I found out I had an anger issue, a bitterness issue, a faith issue, a steadfast issue, a patience issue,  basically a sin issue….that needed to be dealt with…

one of my favorite books is/was James…he doesn’t mince words, add flowery descriptions…just lays it out there…kind of like the Proverbs…straightforward…

Thank YOU …

Count it all joy, my brothers, when you meet trials of various kinds, for you know that the testing of your faith produces steadfastness. 

And let steadfastness have its full effect, that you may be perfect and complete, lacking in nothing. 

If any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask God, who gives generously to all without reproach, and it will be given him. 

But let him ask in faith, with no doubting, for the one who doubts is like a wave of the sea that is driven and tossed by the wind. 

For that person must not suppose that he will receive anything from the Lord; he is a double-minded man, unstable in all his ways. 

Let the lowly brother boast in his exaltation, and the rich in his humiliation, because like a flower of the grass he will pass away. For the sun rises with its scorching heat and withers the grass; its flower falls, and its beauty perishes. 

So also will the rich man fade away in the midst of his pursuits. Blessed is the man who remains steadfast under trial, for when he has stood the test he will receive the crown of life, which God has promised to those who love him. 

Let no one say when he is tempted, “I am being tempted by God,” for God cannot be tempted with evil, and he himself tempts no one. 

But each person is tempted when he is lured and enticed by his own desire. 

Then desire when it has conceived gives birth to sin, and sin when it is fully grown brings forth death. 

Do not be deceived, my beloved brothers. Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of lights, with whom there is no variation or shadow due to change. Of his own will he brought us forth by the word of truth, that we should be a kind of firstfruits of his creatures. 

Know this, my beloved brothers: let every person be quick to hear, slow to speak, slow to anger; for the anger of man does not produce the righteousness of God. 

But be doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving yourselves.

James 1:2-20,22

The ground is moving…

 

The ground is moving…

The other day I was out in the country wandering around with family…

As we journeyed there, in spots, the highway looked to be moving…hiking around, the same went for various places-the ground was moving, alive with “Mormon” crickets…hopping, hopping, jostling one another, eating one another, moving, ever moving from one pace to another…

At the edge of the creek, they walked or fell in, climbing branches until the branches tipped them into the creek…with small “rafts” of them floating on to another spot…ugh, they are just gross…but interesting to watch…they are not devouring the vegetation as locusts do…

Remembering childhood books, “The Little House on the Prairie” series, how they watched as a “cloud” descended upon the crops to devastate the land…filling the air with the whirling, chomping sounds of the hungry crickets…

 

Or the plague of the locusts to the Egyptians during Mose’s time…devouring precious food…vegetation…

There are several descriptions of locusts in the Word…wars with multitudes….countless invaders…we have seen pictures of this in modern times…devouring….and will continue…

They are small things in the grand scheme of life…but 

God sometimes uses small things to teach us lessons…watchfulness…purpose…don’t follow the crowd…preparedness…authority….

Thank YOU….

“The Locust

•

“THE LOCUST.

The locust is called an insect, as well as the ant and the bee, but

instead of being harmless, as they usually are, it does a great deal of injury. It is also much larger than they; for it is generally three

inches long, and sometimes as much as four or five. The plague of the locusts was the eighth that God sent upon the Egyptians, because they would not let the children of Israel go, as he commanded; and it was a very terrible one indeed. The Bible says, "They covered the face of the whole earth, so that the land was darkened; and they did eat every herb of the land, and all the fruit of the trees which the hail had left; and there remained not any green thing in the trees, or in the herbs of the

field through all the land of Egypt." This is the way they often do in

those countries, though perhaps it is not common for so many to come at

once.

They fly in companies of thousands together, and so close that they look

like a great black cloud. When they alight on the ground they all come

down in a body, and immediately begin to devour the grass and grain;

they also eat the leaves of the trees, and every green thing they can

find. The people dread them more than they do the most terrible fire or

storm; because though they are so small, they destroy all the food, and

leave the people ready to starve. When the inhabitants see them coming

over their fields, they try to drive them away by making loud noises or

by kindling fires; but this does little good.

It is said that a great army of locusts came over the northern part of

Africa about a hundred years before the birth of Christ. They consumed

every blade of grass wherever they alighted; also the roots, and bark,

and even the hard wood of the trees. After they had thus eaten up every

thing, a strong wind arose, and after tossing them about awhile, it blew

them over the sea, and great numbers of them were drowned. Then the

waves threw them back upon the land, all along the sea-coast, and their

dead bodies made the air so unwholesome that a frightful pestilence

commenced, and great numbers of men and animals died.

Many travellers have seen these great clouds of locusts, and describe them in their books. One says that he saw a company consisting of so many that they were an hour in passing over the place where he was.

They seemed to extend a mile in length and half a mile in width. When he first noticed them, they looked like a black cloud rising in the east; and when they came over head, they shut out the light of the sun, and made a noise with their wings like the rushing of a water-fall.

Another swarm is mentioned which took four hours to pass over one spot; and they made the sky so dark that one person could not see another at twenty steps off.

You can now understand two or three passages from the Bible which I will mention. 

David says in the 23d verse of the 109th Psalm, "I am tossed up and down as the locust;" that is, as the clouds of locusts are tossed about by the wind. 

In the first chapters of Joel God threatens to send

the locust among the people, because of their wickedness; and he says of them, "Before their faces the people shall be much pained; all faces shall gather blackness. They (the locusts,) shall run like mighty men; they shall climb the wall like men of war. They shall run to and fro in the city; they shall run upon the wall; they shall climb up upon the houses; they shall enter in at the windows like a thief." An English clergyman who visited countries where the locusts are found, a few years ago, says that these verses describe them exactly as he has himself seen

them.

Locusts are sometimes used for food. The Arabs boil them with salt, and then add a little oil or butter; sometimes they toast them by the fire before eating them. A traveller speaks of seeing the Arab women employed in filling bags with locusts, which were to be used for food.

You know it is said in the New Testament that John the Baptist "did eat locusts and wild honey," but it is not quite certain that this insect

was meant; perhaps it was the fruit of the locust-tree that he ate.”

Bible study tools…

https://www.bbc.com/future/article/20200806-the-biblical-east-african-locust-plagues-of-2020

Faint…

 Faint…

The word “faint” appears 50 times in the Scriptures…14 times in 

Isaiah alone …the rest strewn throughout the Word…

Weariness, tired, weakness, let down…demoralized… lacking courage and spirit…faint…sometimes physical….sometimes emotional….

but they who wait for the Lord shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings like eagles; they shall run and not be weary; they shall walk and not faint.

Isaiah 40:31 

to grant to those who mourn in Zion— to give them a beautiful headdress instead of ashes, the oil of gladness instead of mourning, the garment of praise instead of a faint spirit; that they may be called oaks of righteousness, the planting of the Lord, that he may be glorified.

Isaiah 61:3

And we urge you, brothers, admonish the idle,  encourage the fainthearted, help the weak, be patient with them all.

1 Thessalonians 5:14

Consider him who endured from sinners such hostility against himself, so that you may not grow weary or fainthearted.

Hebrews 12:3 

My favorite…He gave it to me when the world seemed so black and I was so weary…I needed it then and have fallen back on this promise in even blacker times…

For I will satisfy the weary soul, and every languishing soul I will replenish.”

Jeremiah 31:25

Thank YOU….