Don't Limit Your Blessings

Good Sunday to all! Waine and I are in Thomaston this weekend and the weather if great so you know where my beloved is! I have been relatively busy this weekend with little cherubs that had to be admitted because of wheezing. All and all a fruitful time was spent in Thomaston. I was celebrating with my sister over all God's blessing for her and her family already in 2012! God is a good God. There is no One better. The message from both Joel Olstein and from Reverend Stanley this morning is that out blessings are only limited when we limit God. Their suggestion is that we open up our mouths very wide and except all the blessings that God has in store for us. My mouth is wide open and I am expecting great things.

I am continuing my journey in Jeremiah 19 verses 1-15, "This is what the LORD says: “Go and buy a clay jar from a potter. Take along some of the elders of the people and of the priests and go out to the Valley of Ben Hinnom, near the entrance of the Potsherd Gate. There proclaim the words I tell you,  and say, ‘Hear the Word of the LORD, you kings of Judah and people of Jerusalem. This is what the LORD Almighty, the God of Israel, says: Listen! I am going to bring a disaster on this place that will make the ears of everyone who hears of it tingle. For they have forsaken me and made this a place of foreign gods; they have burned incense in it to gods that neither they nor their ancestors nor the kings of Judah ever knew, and they have filled this place with the blood of the innocent. They have built the high places of Baal to burn their children in the fire as offerings to Baal—something I did not command or mention, nor did it enter my mind.  So beware, the days are coming, declares the LORD, when people will no longer call this place Topheth or the Valley of Ben Hinnom, but the Valley of Slaughter.  In this place I will ruin the plans of Judah and Jerusalem. I will make them fall by the sword before their enemies, at the hands of those who want to kill them, and I will give their carcasses as food to the birds and the wild animals. I will devastate this city and make it an object of horror and scorn; all who pass by will be appalled and will scoff because of all its wounds. I will make them eat the flesh of their sons and daughters, and they will eat one another’s flesh because their enemies will press the siege so hard against them to destroy them. Then break the jar while those who go with you are watching, and say to them, ‘This is what the LORD Almighty says: I will smash this nation and this city just as this potter’s jar is smashed and cannot be repaired. They will bury the dead in Topheth until there is no more room. This is what I will do to this place and to those who live here, declares the LORD. I will make this city like Topheth. The houses in Jerusalem and those of the kings of Judah will be defiled like this place, Topheth—all the houses where they burned incense on the roofs to all the starry hosts and poured out drink offerings to other gods. Jeremiah then returned from Topheth, where the LORD had sent him to prophesy, and stood in the court of the LORD’s temple and said to all the people, "This is what the LORD Almighty, the God of Israel, says: ‘Listen! I am going to bring on this city and all the villages around it every disaster I pronounced against them, because they were stiff-necked and would not listen to My Words."  May the Lord add a blessing to the reading and hearing of His Word.

The patience of God is truly amazing. We have gone 19 chapters hearing of God's disappointment in the sinfulness of Israel. God continues to admonish Israel through Jeremiah by giving them examples; pleading with them to turn from worshipping idols and give Him their hearts. They continue in their sins and yet He sends Jeremiah out to talk with them and reason with them. He loves us that much more; that even while we were yet sinners Christ died for us. THIS IS THE GOOD NEWS! God gave us the most precious gift ever, the life of Christ, and He did it even while we were in SIN. That's the message from both Joel Olstein and Reverend Stanley today. When we limit God's blessings in our lives because we pray only for "small things", we are then not acting like the child of the King! Now unlike the folk of the Old Testament, our success has been guaranteed by the Blood of the Lamb. We have God on "Speed Dial" because we have an Intercessor. What blocks our vision of our blessing is our sin, however God instructs us to repent of our sins constantly not so that we can gain blessings but we can see the blessing we already have and then be bold in our requests for more.

When we tentatively approach our lives, we are not reflecting the power of God. Just as the Israelites who were worshipping false Gods, we are not living in the Promise when we approach life meekly. Rebuke the evil one who would have you believe that God does not want you to have a life of abundance. Satan is the Great Deceiver. Look what happened in the Garden.

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. Expect your blessing today.

Stephanie

Just Because!

Happy Sunday to all! Waine and I are in Thomaston enjoying each other, enjoying the football games and celebrating that God continues to bless us and our family! Aleron is now a licensed physician! He passed his part III of the qualifying exams with distinction! Waine and I have finally launched our last little duckling! Hallelujah and praise God from whom all blessings flow. I can't stop thanking God for His Grace and Mercy; He clearly will workout the best plan for each of us even when we mess things up!

I am continuing my journey in Jeremiah 18 verses 19-23, "Listen to me, LORD; hear what my accusers are saying! Should good be repaid with evil? Yet they have dug a pit for me. Remember that I stood before you

and spoke in their behalf to turn your wrath away from them. So give their children over to famine; hand them over to the power of the sword. Let their wives be made childless and widows; let their men be put to death, their young men slain by the sword in battle. Let a cry be heard from their houses when you suddenly bring invaders against them, for they have dug a pit to capture me and have hid and den snares for my feet. But you, LORD, know all their plots to kill me. Do not forgive their crimes or blot out their sins from your sight. Let them be overthrown before you; deal with them in the time of your anger." May the Lord add a blessing to the reading and hearing of His Word.

Clearly Jeremiah is UPSET! Jeremiah is basically asking God to get rid of all these folk who he has been intervening for who now are plotting against him. Jeremiah wants calamity to befall these cut throat Israelites. It would appear that Jeremiah has been patting himself on the back; he has probably deluded himself into thinking that he is the reason God has not brought His wrath on the people of Israel. I think Jeremiah has forgotten, that all have sinned. There is no one whose hands are clean. God rains on both the just and unjust not that either group is deserving. God provides blessings to all JUST BECAUSE!

I can actually identify with Jeremiah's frustration. I have done good to and for a lot of people and have been repaid by viciousness. At those times I have to ask myself why did I help. Was it for self aggrandisement or was I obeying God. On the other hand, I ahve also been the recipient of much good will from strangers and friends. Was I deserving? Maybe not. I certainly have learned over time that I get more blessings from helping others than I get the negative results. As Christians we are to love one another just as Christ has loved us--unconditionally. When you put conditions on your love then you are no better than the folk that only do things when they are compensated. Our love for God; our true understanding of the sacrifice He made when He died for us will DRIVE US to love unconditionally. If this is not evident in your life, then ask God to reveal the junk in your trunk. You'll be happier.

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

Parting the Waters for You!

Happy Sunday to all! Waine and I are in Hawkinsville this weekend and the weather was perfect for playing golf and then snuggling to watch football in the evenings. Waine was in Jamaica for 10 days and was able to participate in the inauguration of Portia Simpson Miller, the Prime Minister of Jamaica. You can learn all about it by going to his blog, http://www.jamaicachapter.blogspot.com/. He is back home in Atlanta, safe and sound and thank you for your prayers. I wanted to share something that happened to me on Thursday of the past week. I was at a client site in Monroe, Louisiana Wednesday and Thursday. I was flying back to Atlanta on Thursday from Alexandria (90 miles from Monroe) on a 5:30 PM flight. I electronically checked in for my flight at the hotel but couldn't print my boarding pass because the printer was out of paper. I told myself that I would print it later but never got a chance to. I was pacing myself to leave at 2:30 PM but was delayed until 3:00 PM because there was an opportunity to assist a friend of mine to land a position with this client. I left at 3:08 PM and prayed that God would get me to Alexandria safe and on time to make the flight which was the last flight for the day. I needed to get back to Atlanta because Waine and I had to get up at 5 AM on Friday to come to Hawkinsville. I arrived at 4:50 PM, turned the car in and went to the ticket counter which did not have any agents. The kiosk indicated it was too late to check in and get my boarding pass. I went to security and asked one of the agents to ask the Delta ticket agent to print my boarding pass and then give it to me. There was a lot of discussion and at that moment I said out loud "Lord I need you to take care of this problem right now!" I got my boarding pass and the other passengers for other flights "'parted" and told me to go ahead. My luggage went through, I didn't set off the alarm with all my jewelry and I boarded the flight at 5:10 PM.  When I was seated I asked the Flight Attendant why there was such a hurry to leave before 5:30 PM. He said "Honey, this flight is scheduled to leave at 5:13 PM". Don't tell me I don't serve an on-time God! Hallelujah!

I am continuing my journey with Jeremiah 18: 13-18 "Therefore this is what the LORD says: Inquire among the nations: Who has ever heard anything like this? A most horrible thing has been done by Virgin Israel. Does the snow of Lebanon ever vanish from its rocky slopes? Do its cool waters from distant sources ever stop flowing? Yet my people have forgotten me; they burn incense to worthless idols, which made them stumble in their ways, in the ancient paths. They made them walk in byways, on roads not built up. Their land will be an object of horror and of lasting scorn; all who pass by will be appalled and will shake their heads. Like a wind from the east, I will scatter them before their enemies; I will show them My back and not My face in the day of their disaster. They said, “Come, let’s make plans against Jeremiah; for the teaching of the law by the priest will not cease, nor will counsel from the wise, nor the word from the prophets. So come, let’s attack him with our tongues and pay no attention to anything he says.” May the Lord add a blessing to the reading and hearing of His Word.

God cannot believe that this chosen race of people, Israel, would rather follow false gods than the God that provides their sustenance. He continues to tell Jeremiah to provide guidance but now they are even turning on Jeremiah! They don't want to hear the truth of their disobedience. They would rather rely on their own thinking and judgement than to be faithful to the promise made by Abraham to follow the one and true God. What Book of Jeremiah is teaching me is the length to which God continues to provide us opportunities to exercise our faith and follow Him. He is the God of the "everyday"; the God that cares that I  make a flight or that you are fulfilled in your job or relationships. When we let go and stop sweating the small stuff it allows God to work His Perfect Plan for our lives. I have found when I actively release my cares on Him, my peace is un-ending and the Plans that He has for me marches forward like a well oiled machine. Satan would have you believe that God doesn't want to be involved in the small things in your life. It is not true. God is interested in every aspect of your life. He provided water to these Israelites by melting the snows of Lebanon. When you let Him, He will melt what ever snows that prevent you from experiencing the abundance He has in store for you. Be blessed today and rejoice!

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

What a Beautiful Pot You Are!

Good morning to all on this 2nd Sunday of 2012. The weather in Atlanta is very mild (50-60's) which is unusual for this time of year when we usually get a dusting of snow. Waine and I had a blast with Kai and Hailie last weekend and miss them already. Freddie landed a big contract so has made his marketing sales number for 2012 already! Everything else is gravy for him in 2011 so thank you for your prayers for our children. Also not sure that you know that Portia Simpson Miller is now the new Prime Minister of Jamaica. She is the head of the People's National Party (PNP) the party of Norman Manley. They had been the minority party for the past four years and Waine has been laboring with them to put forward a platform that would benefit the majority of Jamaicans, not just the rich and middle class. My husband was able to attend the inauguration and had VIP seating. As you may imagine Waine was very thrilled! Good things do come to those that wait and are patient!

I am continuing my journey in Jeremiah 18 verses 1-12, " This is the Word that came to Jeremiah from the LORD: “Go down to the potter’s house, and there I will give you my message.” So I went down to the potter’s house, and I saw him working at the wheel. But the pot he was shaping from the clay was marred in his hands; so the potter formed it into another pot, shaping it as seemed best to him. Then the Word of the LORD came to me. He said, “Can I not do with you, Israel, as this potter does?” declares the LORD. “Like clay in the hand of the potter, so are you in My hand, Israel. If at any time I announce that a nation or kingdom is to be uprooted, torn down and destroyed, and if that nation I warned repents of its evil, then I will relent and not inflict on it the disaster I had planned. And if at another time I announce that a nation or kingdom is to be built up and planted, and if it does evil in my sight and does not obey me, then I will reconsider the good I had intended to do for it. “Now therefore say to the people of Judah and those living in Jerusalem, ‘This is what the LORD says: Look! I am preparing a disaster for you and devising a plan against you. So turn from your evil ways, each one of you, and reform your ways and your actions.’ But they will reply, ‘It’s no use. We will continue with our own plans; we will all follow the stubbornness of our evil hearts. May the Lord add a blessing to the reading and hearing of His Word!

In my travels as a Health Care administrator, I have come across so many staff members that "continue with their own plan and follow the stubbornness of their own hearts" much to their and the organization's detriment. I could never quite understand why you get some employees that just can't follow direction even when it is for their own good. When you hire them, they put on a good front of wanting to be a team player; eager to support the organization and my position in it and then the 1st day after their probation period instead of Mr. or Ms. Hyde coming to work, Dr. Jekyll show up! Sound familiar. Many of us when we are in trouble and need God are just like the employee I described. We are humble and seek the face of God; when the crisis passes we turn not to God but to our own way of thinking. I think God at time wonders why we think we know best when, He as the Creator of all things, not only knows best, Is the best. He knows every inch of our psyche, our emotions, our thoughts and He knows them even before we do! Yet we will follow the stubbornness of our own hearts and not obey His commandments; which are to love Him with all of our heart and mind and then to love one another as God loves us. When we asked for repentance and asked God, through Christ, to be Lord of our lives, God shaped the "marred" person we were and formed a new vessel. If you are wondering why things seemed out of sync, it may be because you are trying to be a vessel that no longer exists. That old vessel is gone and now you have a NEW FORM that can only take in new sustenance from the Word of God. You may try to do the old things of the old vessel but they will be very uncomfortable for you. You can remain and be both stubborn and uncomfortable but you only hurt and deprive yourself of the new life that God made for you. Christ taught us this with the parable of the Wineskins.

Resolve in 2012 to leave your stubborness behind and embrace the new YOU. Look at God and your relationship with Him with fresh eyes and be blessed. 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.

Stephanie

When You Obey God You Prosper!

Good morning to all on this new year of 2012. Waine and I were blessed to bring in the New Year with Freddie, Tracy, Kai and Hailie. Waine and I are already having "grandchildren withdrawal" as we didn't have little ones crawling into bed with us to wake us up in the morning. What a blessing to have grandchildren in your life to remind you that you indeed walked this earth! I am more convinced tan ever, that if you stay in "Christ faith" your day, your week, your month, and your year will be blessed and runny over.

I am continuing my journey in Jeremiah 17: verses 19-27, "This is what the LORD said to me: “Go and stand at the Gate of the People, through which the kings of Judah go in and out; stand also at all the other gates of Jerusalem.  Say to them, ‘Hear the Word of the LORD, you kings of Judah and all people of Judah and everyone living in Jerusalem who come through these gates. This is what the LORD says: Be careful not to carry a load on the Sabbath day or bring it through the gates of Jerusalem. Do not bring a load out of your houses or do any work on the Sabbath, but keep the Sabbath day holy, as I commanded your ancestors. Yet they did not listen or pay attention; they were stiff-necked and would not listen or respond to discipline.  But if you are careful to obey me, declares the LORD, and bring no load through the gates of this city on the Sabbath, but keep the Sabbath day holy by not doing any work on it, then kings who sit on David’s throne will come through the gates of this city with their officials. They and their officials will come riding in chariots and on horses, accompanied by the men of Judah and those living in Jerusalem, and this city will be inhabited forever. People will come from the towns of Judah and the villages around Jerusalem, from the territory of Benjamin and the western foothills, from the hill country and the Negev, bringing burnt offerings and sacrifices, grain offerings and incense, and bringing thank offerings to the house of the LORD. But if you do not obey me to keep the Sabbath day holy by not carrying any load as you come through the gates of Jerusalem on the Sabbath day, then I will kindle an unquenchable fire in the gates of Jerusalem that will consume her fortresses." Amen and may the Lord add a blessing to the reading and hearing of His Word.

I just love the Lord because He is good, righteous and generous! This is a commandment with a PROMISE! He is commanding the Israelites to keep the Sabbath Day HOLY by not "trading in commerce" on this one day. He specially told Jeremiah to tell them not to bring goods either in or out of the main gate of the city. To not concentrate on making a living on this one day but instead learning how to live by focusing their attention on God and their relationship with God. But it was not just a message to the Jews but to everyone living in Jerusalem. Jerusalem was the equivalent of New York city. Many people of many faiths lived there. It was the seat of commerce for that region. Goods and services were always being traded and when you are focused on making money, God knows this will consume you. God was not condemning commerce, He just wanted the inhabitants of Jerusalem to not have their focus on it for 1 day a week. When you think about these verses they also have a practical message; if the inhabitants of Jerusalem were not busy blocking the gate to the city on the Sabbath, there would be a clear path for folk living outside of the city to bring in their offerings and also give them an opportunity to trade with the folk inside of the city walls on the next day. By obeying God, the inhabitants of Jerusalem would prosper!

Now some folk will focus on what they have been instructed to do which was to "not trade" in commerce for 1 day. They will focus on the lack of the opportunity to make money or become economically enhanced. These folk's glass will always be half-empty. There are others that will thank God for the rest provided and the enhanced opportunities for their future. These folk's glass is always half-full. Which camp are you in? Do you see a faith in Christ as restricting; a religion of do's and don'ts or do you see your faith in Christ as liberating and energizing? You will only have a relationship with God through Christ as you read and learn of them through the Word. When you come to know God through Christ and are able to walk daily with God through the Holy Spirit then you will LOVE God! When you love God then you will be made whole! When you are WHOLE then you will be victorious in all things. Never second guess that path that Faith and Obedience takes you down. There is a "pot of gold" at the end of the trail and it is yours know and into eternity. To know God is to Love God. To love God is to Serve God. Be blessed 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!

Stephanie