Jesus, the Balm of Glilead

Good morning to all on this Sunday morning. Waine and I are in Thomaston, Georgia and are anxiously awaiting the arrival of the Big Mac and Brooks on Tuesday and then our trek to Orlando for the 3rd birthday of Kai!! Lots to look forward to this week!!! The heat wave continues in Georgia at times reaching triple digits; the Debt Ceiling debates also continue. You would think that the people elected and paid to make good decisions for the country could stop this childish behavior. Teenagers can balance their check books and their budgets. All these Federal folk cannot. Things that make you go --huh?!!!! Well I am going to pray for our country and pray that these leaders GROW UP, ask for forgiveness and then move on. Maybe they should read the book of Jeremiah!

I am continuing my journey in Jeremiah 8 verses 1-22, "At that time, declares the LORD, the bones of the kings and officials of Judah, the bones of the priests and prophets, and the bones of the people of Jerusalem will be removed from their graves. They will be exposed to the sun and the moon and all the stars of the heavens, which they have loved and served and which they have followed and consulted and worshiped. They will not be gathered up or buried, but will be like dung lying on the ground. Wherever I banish them, all the survivors of this evil nation will prefer death to life, declares the LORD Almighty. Say to them, ‘This is what the LORD says: When people fall down, do they not get up? When someone turns away, do they not return? Why then have these people turned away? Why does Jerusalem always turn away? They cling to deceit; they refuse to return. I have listened attentively, but they do not say what is right. None of them repent of their wickedness, saying, “What have I done?” Each pursues their own course like a horse charging into battle. Even the stork in the sky knows her appointed seasons, and the dove, the swift and the thrush observe the time of their migration. But my people do not know the requirements of the LORD. How can you say, “We are wise, for we have the law of the LORD,” when actually the lying pen of the scribes has handled it falsely? The wise will be put to shame; they will be dismayed and trapped. Since they have rejected the word of the LORD, what kind of wisdom do they have? Therefore I will give their wives to other men and their fields to new owners. From the least to the greatest, all are greedy for gain; prophets and priests alike, all practice deceit. They dress the wound of my people as though it were not serious. Peace, peace, they say, when there is no peace. Are they ashamed of their detestable conduct? No, they have no shame at all; they do not even know how to blush. So they will fall among the fallen; they will be brought down when they are punished, says the LORD.  I will take away their harvest, declares the LORD. There will be no grapes on the vine. There will be no figs on the tree, and their leaves will wither. What I have given them will be taken from them. Why are we sitting here? Gather together! Let us flee to the fortified cities and perish there! For the LORD our God has doomed us to perish and given us poisoned water to drink, because we have sinned against him. We hoped for peace but no good has come, for a time of healing but there is only terror. The snorting of the enemy’s horses is heard from Dan; at the neighing of their stallions the whole land trembles. They have come to devour the land and everything in it, the city and all who live there. See, I will send venomous snakes among you, vipers that cannot be charmed, and they will bite you, declares the LORD. You who are my Comforter in sorrow, my heart is faint within me. Listen to the cry of my people from a land far away: Is the LORD not in Zion? Is her King no longer there? Why have they aroused my anger with their images, with their worthless foreign idols? The harvest is past, the summer has ended, and we are not saved? Since my people are crushed, I am crushed; I mourn, and horror grips Me. Is there no balm in Gilead? Is there no physician there? Why then is there no healing or the wound of my people?" May the Lord add a rich blessing to the reading and hearing of his Word, amen and amen.

For nine (9) chapters now we have heard the Words of the Lord pleading with these dumb Israelites to turn away from their wicked ways of worshipping false gods and worship Him, the one and only true God. He is again admonishing these folk and letting them know that Death is a certainty and that these consequences extend beyond the grave. That these idols and false gods that they worship cannot protect them from death and the grave; they cannot protect them from the isolation that will be theirs in eternity because they will be separated from God dueto the choices they made while living. He pleads with them through Jeremiah to turn from their wickedness and be in communion with Him. He even tells them that their 'natural' instincts tell them to communion with Him much like birds know how to fly and gather to flee a storm and yet these chosen people continue to ignore their heritage and their obligation to worship the One, True and Living God.

Yes it is the obligation of the created to worship the Creator. That was why we were made. It is no accident that we are here. We were lovingly made to be in communion with God in the Garden. Sin has not only excluded us from the Garden but it has marred our vision of what our true purpose is. We would rather put our belief in people, morality, the moon and the stars as opposed to the Creator of all that is Good. How silly is that? People have a need to believe in something outside of themselves and yet cannot humble themselves to repent of their sins and then believe in the Greatest Something outside of themselves. That is the Balm of Gilead--Jesus the Christ who can heal the sin-sick soul, hallelujah!

This world is sick--it is all around us and yet Christians are not putting the soothing Balm of Gilead on the wounds of the sick around us. It is time for us to show a world desperate for solutions to their troubles and show them Jesus. Amy Weinhouse died yesterday. If she hadn't given her life to Christ before her death its too late for her to experience this peace in eternity. Her eternity started sometime yesterday. Everyone knew she was troubled; all the comments from celebrities wished her "peace" but truthfully there is still no peace for her if she died without repentence. Instead of glorifying drugs and wanton excess perhaps someone should have loved her enough to tell her the truth; that the worship of false idols neither gets you peace here on earth or peace in eternity.

It is not too late for others. Let us be the Balm of Gilead for this sin-sick world. Let us be the physicians to heal the wounds of the people so that God can be glorified and His purpose fulfilled. He wants more of us to be in the Garden with Him.  Now may the LORD bless you and keep you; may the LORD make His face shine on you and be gracious to you; may the LORD turn His face toward you and give you peace.

Stephanie

 



The House that Bears His Name

Good morning to all on this Tuesday morning. Yesterday was my beloved's birthday (Waine) and he said he had a GREAT day. Aleron came over to break bread with us and I prepared some Seafood Fettuccine which my beloved indicated was "just delice". We are preparing to host Mackenzie and Brooks next week and their Poppop and Nanna have a fun filled week planned for them which includes a trip to Orlando to celebrate Kai's 3rd birthday on July 31st. My cousin Sharon sends me daily messages from Joel and Victoria Olsteen and today's message was from 2 Samuel 22:50 "For this I will give you thanks and extol You, O Lord, among the nations; I will sing praises to Your name”. I was reminded that blessings should prompt us to praise God and give Him the GLORY as well as the THANKS! Since all of us woke up this morning, we should give God thanks. If you are reading this BLOG then He also woke you up with a reasonable portion of your RIGHT MIND; we should thank Him for that. Our daily success however is defined by the EVIDENCE of the LOVE of God for you and me. Hallelujah!!!!!!!!

I am continuing my journey in Jeremiah 7 verses 30-34 "The people of Judah have done evil in my eyes, declares the LORD. They have set up their detestable idols in the house that bears my Name and have defiled it. They have built the high places of Topheth in the Valley of Ben Hinnom to burn their sons and daughters in the fire—something I did not command, nor did it enter my mind. So beware, the days are coming, declares the LORD, when people will no longer call it Topheth or the Valley of Ben Hinnom, but the Valley of Slaughter, for they will bury the dead in Topheth until there is no more room.  Then the carcasses of this people will become food for the birds and the wild animals, and there will be no one to frighten them away.  I will bring an end to the sounds of joy and gladness and to the voices of bride and bridegroom in the towns of Judah and the streets of Jerusalem, for the land will become desolate." May the Lord add a blessing to the reading hearing of His Word.

What is the house that bears the Name of the Most High God. Sure Jews and Gentiles have had places of worship all through recorded time. Even when finding caves inhabited by humans there is evidence that they too had a need to worship a Higher Power. I think though, that God is also talking about US--we Christians are the House that Bears His Name--the very annotation "Christian" means to be Christ Like. So now Jeremiah is hitting home because as Christians we set up "idols" in this House that Bears His Name. I know Christians who harbor anger as an IDOL; who harbor GREED as an IDOL; who harbor WORRY as an IDOL; who harbor NEGATIVE THINKING as an idol; who harbor POWER as an idol; who harbor ENVY as an IDOL and the list just continues. As Christians there should be no idols in the House that bears His name. This House should reflect Love, Joy, Peace, Patience, Kindness, Goodness, Faithfulness, Gentleness, and Self-Control. If your house that Bears His Name is not reflecting these fruits from the Holy Spirit then evaluate what IDOL has to be removed. Can't be any other explanation. When our House that bears His Name reflects what it was intended for then what Samuel talked about will be on our lips from the minute we wake up to the minute we close our eyes again;  we will extol the power and glory of God even in our sleep! To God be the Glory for the Great Thing He has done today!!!!!!!

Now may the LORD bless you and keep you; may the LORD make His face shine on you and be gracious to you; may the LORD turn His face toward you and give you peace. Amen

Stephanie

Is Truth Alive and Well with Your Soul?

Good morning to all on this Tuesday  morning the 12th of July, 2011. It's my birthday today (yeah) and I thank God for another year with the man I love , the children I admire, and the grandchildren I adore. I also thank God for each and every one of you and pray that God's blessings continue to pour out on you and your family. Waine and I are in Thomaston for the week which allows him to go back and forth to Atlanta, which is only 75 mile North of here. I trust that your summer is going well and you and your family will be able to get some need vacation time. Continue to pray for our country and the fractiousness that seems to exist. Pray that God's plan for your life and  mine is fulfilled on this day and every day we draw breath.

I am continuing my journey in Jeremiah 7 verses 21-29, "Therefore this is what the Sovereign LORD says: My anger and My wrath will be poured out on this place—on man and beast, on the trees of the field and on the crops of your land—and it will burn and not be quenched. This is what the LORD Almighty, the God of Israel, says: Go ahead, add your burnt offerings to your other sacrifices and eat the meat yourselves! For when I brought your ancestors out of Egypt and spoke to them, I did not just give them commands about burnt offerings and sacrifices, but I gave them this command: Obey me, and I will be your God and you will be my people. Walk in obedience to all I command you, that it may go well with you. But they did not listen or pay attention; instead, they followed the stubborn inclinations of their evil hearts. They went backward and not forward. From the time your ancestors left Egypt until now, day after day, again and again I sent you my servants the prophets. But they did not listen to me or pay attention. They were stiff-necked and did more evil than their ancestors.When you tell them all this, they will not listen to you; when you call to them, they will not answer. Therefore say to them, ‘This is the nation that has not obeyed the LORD its God or responded to correction. Truth has perished; it has vanished from their lips. Cut off your hair and throw it away; take up a lament on the barren heights, for the LORD has rejected and abandoned this generation that is under His wrath. " May God add a blessing to the reading and hearing of His Word.

Walk in obedience to all I command so that all may go well with you.  I love commandments with a promise. God commands us to obey His commands so that all may go well with us. Likewise when all is not going well with me, I look within myself to ascertain how I may be disobedient to His commands, which are to love Him with all my heart, mind and soul and to love my neighbor as I love myself. On these two great commandments hang the whole universe! As I grow older I have change my definition of what it means to have things "going" well for me. These days I just enjoy hanging out with my husband and my grandchildren. I work to secure this. I no longer work at a career not that another career wouldn't be ok with me if that is a path I am to take. The happiness, health and security of my family is where my "wellness" meter starts and stops. To feel that I made a difference in the lives of the people I love is what turns me on in the morning and the rest just isn't that important to me any more. As I walk in obedience to His commandments, I also walk in the knowledge that He has my back, front, top, bottom and sides. He ensures that I am enveloped in the Love that He made possible with His sacrifice. When I dwell on the awesome, awesome, awesome Love of God through Christ, how could I not obey His commandments. I do love the Lord and He commands me to love His people. This blog is a manifestation of my obedience!

 Now may the LORD bless you and keep you; may the LORD make His face shine on you and be gracious to you; may the LORD turn His face toward you and give you peace.

Stephanie

The House That Bears My Name!

Good day to all on this 10th day of July. Waine and I are in Hawkinsville, Georgia as usual Waine is enjoying a round of golf at the Country Club with the friends her has made here. It is very hot and humid and I just in from a vigorous walk up to main street Hawkinsville and back to the hotel--all of 2 miles! Hailie Christine has started to walk most of the time and I am sure her Mom and Dad are looking at their two toddlers and wondering where all the time has gone! It does pass quickly and before you know it your little ones are big ones with their own lives and ambitions. Oh well!

I am continuing my journey in Jeremiah 7, verses 1-20, " This is the word that came to Jeremiah from the LORD: Stand at the gate of the LORD’s house and there proclaim this message: Hear the Word of the LORD, all you people of Judah who come through these gates to worship the LORD. This is what the LORD Almighty, the God of Israel, says: Reform your ways and your actions, and I will let you live in this place. Do not trust in deceptive words and say, “This is the temple of the LORD, the temple of the LORD, the temple of the LORD!” If you really change your ways and your actions and deal with each other justly, if you do not oppress the foreigner, the fatherless or the widow and do not shed innocent blood in this place, and if you do not follow other gods to your own harm, then I will let you live in this place, in the land I gave your ancestors for ever and ever. But look, you are trusting in deceptive words that are worthless. Will you steal and murder, commit adultery and perjury, burn incense to Baal and follow other gods you have not known, and then come and stand before Me in this house, which bears My Name, and say, “We are safe”—safe to do all these detestable things?  Has this house, which bears My Name, become a den of robbers to you? But I have been watching! declares the LORD. Go now to the place in Shiloh where I first made a dwelling for My Name, and see what I did to it because of the wickedness of My people Israel. While you were doing all these things, declares the LORD, I spoke to you again and again, but you did not listen; I called you, but you did not answer. Therefore, what I did to Shiloh I will now do to the house that bears My Name, the temple you trust in, the place I gave to you and your ancestors. I will thrust you from my presence, just as I did all your fellow Israelites, the people of Ephraim. So do not pray for this people nor offer any plea or petition for them; do not plead with Me, for I will not listen to you. Do you not see what they are doing in the towns of Judah and in the streets of Jerusalem? The children gather wood, the fathers light the fire, and the women knead the dough and make cakes to offer to the Queen of Heaven. They pour out drink offerings to other gods to arouse My anger. But am I the one they are provoking? declares the LORD. Are they not rather harming themselves, to their own shame? Therefore this is what the Sovereign LORD says: My anger and my wrath will be poured out on this place—on man and beast, on the trees of the field and on the crops of your land—and it will burn and not be quenched." Amen and amen.

Although Jeremiah has been hard for me to get through I have been blessed with the knowledge of how long suffering God was with the children of Abraham. God's promise to Abraham was a serious promise which God intended to keep, however instead of Abraham's descends being faithful like their forefather, they continued to put other gods before the One and Only True God. Despite their behavior God continued to send prophets to them to get them to change their behavior of putting other gods before Him. Sound familiar?  We, Christians, are the House that Bears the Name of our Lord and yet many of us continue to worship other gods instead of the One and Only; we worship power, money, prestige, knowledge, fairness, outward beauty--all those lessor gods that cannot sustain us in eternity. And yet God never stops trying to convince us to turn to Him so that we can be the Light to a very Dark World.

Over the past several weeks I have been practicing the behavior of not trusting in my own instincts and knowledge when confronted by challenges. I have been, instead, asking God to get into the middle of my circumstance and just leaving my problems at His feet. I have not been disappointed and find myself less burdened and more fulfilled and able to be happy. This freedom is soooooo refreshing; I want this freedom for all of us. The stress that we take on ourselves looking for fulfillment in all the wrong places will age us prematurely. The Love of God will keep us young and vibrant; His way will protect this House of God if only I turn my heart and attention to Him! From the smallest simplest issue to those that might be life limiting, turn your heart, head and hand to Him to be free to love Him first and then your neighbor as your self.

Now may the LORD bless you and keep you; may the LORD make His face shine on you and be gracious to you; may the LORD turn His face toward you and give you peace.

Stephanie



Victorious and Free from Sin!

Good morning to all on this the 4th of July 2011. Waine and I are in Thomaston, Georgia having some good bonding time. The NEWS of the week is that little Hailie Christine has started walking! Freddie and Tracy sent us a video of her walking and then girlfriend finds a stepping stool and proceeds to climb upon it. Too funny. Waine and I marvel; there is a lot of us in all of our grandchildren. A spiritual brother of mine sent me a beautiful gift yesterday from John 15:7 "If you abide in Me, and My words abide in you, you will ask what you desire and it shall be done for you." He sent me many more verses that proclaim the Promise of God through Christ that has already granted us our desires so then I wonder why so many of us Christians struggle. I think its because we don't claim the Victory. Its like winning a prize but you don't go and pick it up! Its not that we have to wait for our Victory it has already been granted because as it says in Colossians "God has made us worthy". The independence from sin is to free your mind and heart from the slavery that sins brings so that you can proclaim yourself victorious and claim your prize. Amen and thank you Sean!

I am continuing my journey in Jeremiah 6: 22 - 30, "This is what the LORD says: Look, an army is coming

from the land of the north; a great nation is being stirred up from the ends of the earth. They are armed with bow and spear; they are cruel and show no mercy. They sound like the roaring sea as they ride on their horses; they come like men in battle formation to attack you, Daughter Zion. We have heard reports about them, and our hands hang limp. Anguish has gripped us, pain like that of a woman in labor. Do not go out to the fields or walk on the roads, for the enemy has a sword, and there is terror on every side. Put on sackcloth, my people, and roll in ashes; mourn with bitter wailing as for an only son, for suddenly the destroyer will come upon us. I have made you a tester of metals and my people the ore, that you may observe and test their ways. They are all hardened rebels, going about to slander. They are bronze and iron;

they all act corruptly. The bellows blow fiercely to burn away the lead with fire, but the refining goes on in vain; the wicked are not purged out. They are called rejected silver, because the LORD has rejected them. " May the Lord add a blessing to the reading and hearing of His Word, Amen and amen!

These Jews were truly unrepentant; they were UNRENEWED even when rebuked by God. Their sin would then lead them into captivity. This concept of being UNRENEWED captured my attention. As Christians we are admonished to RENEW our minds daily through the "WASHING of the WORD". If we are walking around today with the same negative thinking we had yesterday then we have not renewed our mind and we need to STOP, DROP and ROLL. Reflecting on God's WORD does that; it renews our mind instantly and then, then, then Stan creeps in with the "WHAT IFs". You need to rebuke the devil because he is a liar. That is what Christ did when the devil tempted Him. In Luke 1-13 it says "Jesus, full of the Holy Spirit, left the Jordan and was led by the Spirit into the wilderness, where for forty days he was tempted by the devil. He ate nothing during those days, and at the end of them He was hungry. The devil said to Him, “If you are the Son of God, tell this stone to become bread.” Jesus answered, “It is written: ‘Man shall not live on bread alone.’The devil led Him up to a high place and showed Him in an instant all the kingdoms of the world. And he said to Him, “I will give you all their authority and splendor; it has been given to me, and I can give it to anyone I want to. If You worship me, it will all be Yours.” Jesus answered, “It is written: ‘Worship the Lord your God and serve Him only.’The devil led Him to Jerusalem and had Him stand on the highest point of the temple. “If you are the Son of God,” he said, “throw yourself down from here. 1For it is written: He will command His angels concerning you to guard you carefully; they will lift You up in their hands, so that you will not strike your foot against a stone.’Jesus answered, “It is said: ‘Do not put the Lord your God to the test.’When the devil had finished all this tempting, he left Him until an opportune time."

I confess, I have recounted this passage many times and this is the first time I have discerned that Christ was tempted for 40 days not after His 40 days of fasting. Christ was tempted by the devil for the entire 40 days and yet without sin. When the devil comes at us it is at an "opportune time". The devil is not going to come after you when you are in the Word of God, prayed up, and walking in Victory. The devil cannot be in the same space as the Word of God!  The devil will come at you when he senses you are doubting and therefore weak. Christ taught the devil this lesson over 2,000 years ago. And look at the progression of temptations. The devil will always try and buy us off with things that satisfy the flesh; he knows that we are most vulnerable to the fleshly desires of our hearts. If he can't defeat the Christ that lives in you with the fleshly desires of your hearts then he will tempt you with power and the pursuit of power. He told Christ that "all the authority and splendor" of this earth was given to him and he could give it to anyone he wanted. Well first the devil is a liar and all the authority and splendor of the earth has not been given to him but he will tempt us with it non-the-less. When tempted, remember that as Christians, we are already blessed with power and authority because we are the child of the King. And then, and then and then, the devil will tempt you with what brought him down. The desire to be God and not to worship God. That's what got satan; a desire to be the object of worship as opposed to be the vessel of worship. In all the temptations Christ DEFEATED satan with the WORD of God. The lesson here is that 1) we will be tempted; 2) we can defeat satan only with the Word of God; and 3) we will be victorious not because satan can give us anything but because with the RENEWING OF OUR MINDS we give our open hearts and hands to God who loves us undeniably and completely. With our hearts and hands open, we then can receive the BLESSINGS that are ours for the taking! Claim you independence from negative thinking and claim your victory that has been bought and paid for by the Lamb of God who has conquered the world. Hallelujah!

Now may the LORD bless you and keep you; may the LORD make His face to shine on you and be gracious to you; may the LORD turn His face toward you and give you peace. Amen.

Stephanie