Change Coming

 

    Isaiah 40:4

Ever valley shall be lifted up, and every mountain and hill made low; the uneven ground will become smooth, and the rugged land a plain.

    At first glance this appears to be merely discussing landscape rearrangements. But a deeper study shows this to be more than a topographical rearranging and more like a personal change. 

    With this in mind we read in Isaiah 42:16, "I will lead the blind by a way they did not know; I will guide them on unfamiliar paths. I will turn darkness into light before them and rough places into level ground. These things I will do for them, and I will not forsake them." Jesus is the Light in the darkness. When we follow Him faithfully (keep Him near to us), we are able to walk where He walks. 

    Who is more blind than the person who walks in darkness?And, yet, we who walk by faith in Christ Jesus, walk where we cannot see. But Jesus sees what is before us and leads us where He desires we go. 

    Where we see an impassable river, Jesus sees a stream. We climb mountains only to discover these were mere hills. We run through wide open valleys only to realize these were but paths. We trip on boulders that are actually pebbles; but we get back up and move on. 

    The status quo is about to change. 1 Samuel 2:8 "He raises up the poor out of the dust, and lifts up the beggar from the dunghill, to set them among princes, and to make them inherit the throne of glory: for the pillars of the earth are the LORD'S, and He has set the world upon them." 

    In Matthew 22:1-14 we read of a banquet that is being given. The invitations have gone out but the recipients chose, for one excuse or another, to not go. So the king invites everyone else. It is written that he sent his servants out into the streets to invite people in to the banquet. 

    These people were raised to the level of respected invitees. The people who had been invited and refused to attend were killed off. But, really, who are all of these people? 

    The second group is the believers, the born again through the blood of The Lamb and the baptism of The Spirit. The ones who refused to attend are the unbelievers. Which group do you want to be in? 

LION/LAMB - Josh Leventhal

There's Honey In The Rock For You

There's Honey In The Rock for You

Deuteronomy 32:13 "He (The LORD) made him (Jacob/Israel) ride on the high places of the earth, that he might eat the increase of the fields; and He made him to suck honey out of the rock, and oil out of the flinty rock." 

This chapter tells us not only Who the Rock is, but that God's chosen people wanted it not. See verse 15? It says "But". All the goodness which God wanted to give His people, He could not, because they turned their backs on Him and went after other gods. 

We learn they were a faithless generation (verse 20) and would be judged for the wickedness of their heart and the things they had done, before He could bless them again. 

Are we now seeing again a faithless generation, who chase after gods and are self-righteous in their own worth? It is not only vanity that repeats itself, but arrogance and forgetting. Forgetting the holiness of God, forgetting that God wreaks vengeance  and judgment on they (we) who have little regard and much disdain for the things of God. 

And what can we say on an individual basis? Only God sees our hearts, but we see each other's lifestyles. 

Yes, there's Honey (the blessings of God) in The Rock (The Word of God) for us (through our obedience to His Word and His Will plus our faith in His Promises). I have eaten that Honey in The Rock. And it is sweet to the taste.

Joyful Beginnings

(photo courtesy of  Public Domain)

In the beginning, before time began, God created the heavens and earth. Out of the void He called earth. Out of darkness He called light. As the earth took shape and filled with many wonderful plants, He spoke the animal kingdoms into being. Out of clay and dust, He shaped a man and called him Adam. And out of Adam, right below his heart, he removed a rib and created woman. The man named her Eve. 

The beginning of all life is in God's control. It's how we choose to live our lives that brings God glory and honor. How will you live your life this year? Is it really a New Year for you and I? Or just the same old everyday stuck in a rut tradition? 

Who is your heart focused on? What you want or what God wants for you? Whose desires will you choose to put first? Yours? Or God's. Making the decision to be God's servant will be easy; following through on that decision will be challenging. As soon as you throw down the gauntlet, the devil will be right there in your face to try and prevent you from being obedient and faithful.

"This is the day which the Lord has made: I will rejoice and be glad in it." says the Psalmist. But, what happens if the power goes out? Will you still be thankful? What will you do if someone hits your vehicle, while you are in it? Do you call him/her an idiot driver? Or do you thank God for it? It is hard to praise God when you are tempted to be unkind and mean-spirited. Do it anyway. Praising God in the midst of the trials and temptations of everyday living is the only way you will get through it with peace of mind; keeping not only your sanity intact, but your compassion and empathy. 

Let us begin today with joy. 

Higher Ground

photo courtesy of http://mmbenya.com/goats-mountain-climbers/mountain-goat/

You gotta go to this site and check out the other photographs and stories. It's awesome.

While I was contemplating being in extreme pain tonight, the old hymn classic "Higher Ground" came to mind and I had to look it up. (And of course, this site being what it is, I needed the appropriate picture to go with it. Isn't that one amazing?) I was thinking that a significant part of my body being under attack daily is also a spiritual attack on me daily. The more I testify of God's redeeming grace through Jesus Christ, the more my body suffers. That may seem silly to some, but to me it is real.

The pain and anguish Job endured was both physical and spiritual. God did not bring any of the horrific tragedies into His servant's life. Job's grief and illness and mental torture were brought on because God knew Job would remain faithful to God throughout the entire ordeal. Job's righteousness was Satan's target. If the devil could bring down God's faithful worshiper and friend, then God would be wrong. And we all know GOD IS NEVER WRONG. Job showed us that HOW we go THROUGH our trials is just as important as WHY we go THROUGH our trials.

Satan hurls darts at God's faithful servants, desiring to take us out of commission. The devil is prideful and self-righteous. He wants what belongs to God. He could not take out God and gain control of God's throne in heaven, so he is coming after what belongs to God here on Earth. And darts they are. Darts of grief: parents bury a child. Darts of sorrow: children bury their parents. Darts of misfortune: stocks fall and banks close. Darts of anxiety: worry and fret. Darts of disease: pandemic illnesses flood the globe. And those are just the obvious darts.

In the devil's arsenal are also darts of misconception. Disguised darts, if you will. What appears to be right isn't always the right thing to do. It is the "appearance" of goodness that will land a man or a woman in trouble with both mankind and God. But it is the knowledge AND understanding of what is righteous and holy that will lead both men and women in the direction of salvation and redemption.

You can know about God. Sunday School and catechism teach us about God. You can know of God. Every religion has a god. But to truly KNOW GOD, you and I need to seek GOD, listen to GOD's WORD, hear what GOD has to SAY and do what GOD wants us to do. How well do you know your best friend? Your spouse? Your sweetheart? Are you enjoying an intimate relationship with GOD, too? Or is He just a long-distance relative?

Verses 3 and 4 of "Higher Ground"

I want to live above the world

Tho' Satan's darts at me are hurled;

For faith has caught the joyful sound

The song of saints on higher ground.

I want to scale the utmost height

And catch a gleam of glory bright

But still I'll pray till Heav'n I've found

"Lord, lead me on to higher ground"

chorus

Lord, lift me up

and let me stand

by faith

on heaven's tableland,

A higher plane

than I have found;

Lord, plant my feet on higher ground.

{words by Johnson Oatman, Jr.)

Molehills

The molehills are those little mounds in front. You can see the edge of a bigger hill, possibly mountain yonder.

Molehills ARE mountains. Until they are behind you......and then they become molehills again. So, when we ask God to "Move That Mountain", He replies, "What mountain?".

Our troubles, our circumstances, our situations appear across our pathway like the molehills do in the above photograph. Our eyes see only what is in front of us and not what is ahead. Seldom do we look behind us and see the faded hills we have crossed. I, for one, have seen God move many molehills. The party scene (unlike some people: I inhaled). Single parenthood. Shunned from church and friends. Becoming a step-parent and then a divorcée with 3 kids. Surviving a bad divorce. Working to support us on a low income wage. Falling through the cracks when it came to health care and food stamps. Being abandoned by my oldest son, who was 14 at the time. Waiting on God to move miracles in my direction without fully realizing He was constantly working on my behalf.

Marrying for the second time. After not only learning to wait and see what God would do, but to accept God's will and not just asking Him what it was. I must've sounded like a two year old toddler: "Why?". Burying a son who fell asleep at the wheel when he was 23 years old. Having a 16 year old son run away from home because of how he viewed the world within our home. And God moved mountains. That son moved back in and let us know that compared to other homes he lived in, this one was heaven. We maintain peace and quiet within our walls. Here is sanctuary. Here is home.

Being stricken with a neuromuscular disease that has no known name because not enough people have it to qualify it for research. Losing my ability to walk has greatly hampered my independence. Gradually losing my ability to talk is now also affecting my ability to sing. I would ask God "Why?" but I already know the answer. "Because you let Me. You asked Me to make you a blessing and I am. You asked me to save your family and your friends by whatever means possible and I am. You asked Me to use you to advance My Kingdom. You asked Me and I answered. I am using you because you let Me."

And, so, I no longer ask God to move mountains on my behalf. Now, I get to move them with His authority and His blessing. I'm moving one now. I'm here.