I Know the Plans I have For YOU!!

Good morning to all on this glorious Sunday morning. Waine and I have already been up walking and exercising, enjoying each other's company and thanking God for all our blessings. There is so much to thank God for--our children who are all successful and healthy; our grandchildren who bring joy into our lives; and after 24 years the joy of waking up together. God is truly good!

I am continuing my journey in Jeremiah 29, verses 1-23, "This is the text of the letter that the prophet Jeremiah sent from Jerusalem to the surviving elders among the exiles and to the priests, the prophets and all the other people Nebuchadnezzar had carried into exile from Jerusalem to Babylon.  (This was after King Jehoiachin and the queen mother, the court officials and the leaders of Judah and Jerusalem, the skilled workers and the artisans had gone into exile from Jerusalem.)  He entrusted the letter to Elasah son of Shaphan and to Gemariah son of Hilkiah, whom Zedekiah king of Judah sent to King Nebuchadnezzar in Babylon. It said: This is what the Lord Almighty, the God of Israel, says to all those I carried into exile from Jerusalem to Babylon: Build houses and settle down; plant gardens and eat what they produce. Marry and have sons and daughters; find wives for your sons and give your daughters in marriage, so that they too may have sons and daughters. Increase in number there; do not decrease. Also, seek the peace and prosperity of the city to which I have carried you into exile. Pray to the Lord for it, because if it prospers, you too will prosper. Yes, this is what the Lord Almighty, the God of Israel, says: “Do not let the prophets and diviners among you deceive you. Do not listen to the dreams you encourage them to have. They are prophesying lies to you in my name. I have not sent them,” declares the Lord. This is what the Lord says: “When seventy years are completed for Babylon, I will come to you and fulfill my good promise to bring you back to this place.  For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the Lord, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.   Then you will call on me and come and pray to me, and I will listen to you. You will seek me and find me when you seek me with all your heart.   I will be found by you,” declares the Lord, “and will bring you back from captivity. I will gather you from all the nations and places where I have banished you,” declares the Lord, “and will bring you back to the place from which I carried you into exile.” You may say, “The Lord has raised up prophets for us in Babylon,” but this is what the Lord says about the king who sits on David’s throne and all the people who remain in this city, your fellow citizens who did not go with you into exile— yes, this is what the Lord Almighty says: “I will send the sword, famine and plague against them and I will make them like figs that are so bad they cannot be eaten. I will pursue them with the sword, famine and plague and will make them abhorrent to all the kingdoms of the earth, a curse and an object of horror, of scorn and reproach, among all the nations where I drive them. For they have not listened to my words,” declares the Lord, “words that I sent to them again and again by my servants the prophets. And you exiles have not listened either,” declares the Lord. Therefore, hear the word of the Lord, all you exiles whom I have sent away from Jerusalem to Babylon. This is what the Lord Almighty, the God of Israel, says about Ahab son of Kolaiah and Zedekiah son of Maaseiah, who are prophesying lies to you in my name: “I will deliver them into the hands of Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon, and he will put them to death before your very eyes. Because of them, all the exiles from Judah who are in Babylon will use this curse: ‘May the Lord treat you like Zedekiah and Ahab, whom the king of Babylon burned in the fire.’ For they have done outrageous things in Israel; they have committed adultery with their neighbors’ wives, and in my name they have uttered lies—which I did not authorize. I know it and am a witness to it,” declares the Lord.

We have traveled with Jeremiah for 28 chapters; chapters filled with stories of the disobedience by the children of Israel; their chastisement by God; their enslavement by King Nebuchandnezzar and still God did not turn His back on the promise made to Abraham. God NEVER turns His back on a Promise. It is not in His nature. He tells us that He knows the plan He has for each of us. The Plan is for PROSPERITY; God's Promise does not include any harm for you. So why do so many Christians find themselves in harm's way? Because we forget the Promise!! We begin to focus on the circumstances that surround us as Peter did when he walked out on the sea to meet Jesus. He took his eyes off God and got caught up in his circumstance and then became afraid. Fear is what Satan uses to distract us from the Promise. Actually when you get frightened with all the "what-ifs" of life that the time to STOP and FOCUS on the PROMISE. When I focus on the Promise of my prosperity, I get calm; I have clear thinking and confidence; I become bold in my pronouncements of God's promises for my prosperity. I count on God and not on man and what man can do for me. Even in the face of disappointment I maintain that God's promise for me is one of prosperity and that is what I trust. My faith is the evidence of God's Promise. My circumstances is the evidence of my faith. As my faith soars so does my circumstance of prosperity.

Claim your Circumstance of Prosperity and look to God to deliver what He says. He is not man that He should lie so look for your prosperity daily! Do not believe in the devil for he is a liar; proven over and over again. Have a blessed day and now may the Lord bless you and keep you; may the Lord make His face shine on you and be gracious to you;  aythe Lord turn His face toward you and give you peace!

Stephanie

Good morning to all from Kingston, Jamaica. Waine and I are here on a little holiday and much needed rest. The weather of course is gorgeous!! Waine and his brother Earl were able to lay their mother to rest on our little farm next to her mother and we were able to attend the wedding of Waine's cousin so it has been a fun, filled and packed couple of days. We went to the beach yesterday and it was very windy but we still had fun.

I am continuing my journey in Jeremiah 27 verses 1-17. I had actually read this passage a couple of weeks ago but then had to research it because it just seemed confusing to me. I had to re-read it several times but I think I have the gist now.  "Early in the reign of Zedekiah son of Josiah king of Judah, this word came to Jeremiah from the Lord: This is what the Lord said to me: “Make a yoke out of straps and crossbars and put it on your neck. Then send word to the kings of Edom, Moab, Ammon, Tyre and Sidon through the envoys who have come to Jerusalem to Zedekiah king of Judah. Give them a message for their masters and say, ‘This is what the Lord Almighty, the God of Israel, says: “Tell this to your masters: With my great power and outstretched arm I made the earth and its people and the animals that are on it, and I give it to anyone I please. Now I will give all your countries into the hands of my servant Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon; I will make even the wild animals subject to him.  All nations will serve him and his son and his grandson until the time for his land comes; then many nations and great kings will subjugate him. If, however, any nation or kingdom will not serve Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon or bow its neck under his yoke, I will punish that nation with the sword, famine and plague, declares the Lord, until I destroy it by his hand.  So do not listen to your prophets, your diviners, your interpreters of dreams, your mediums or your sorcerers who tell you, ‘You will not serve the king of Babylon.’  They prophesy lies to you that will only serve to remove you far from your lands; I will banish you and you will perish.  But if any nation will bow its neck under the yoke of the king of Babylon and serve him, I will let that nation remain in its own land to till it and to live there, declares the Lord. I gave the same message to Zedekiah king of Judah. I said, “Bow your neck under the yoke of the king of Babylon; serve him and his people, and you will live.   Why will you and your people die by the sword, famine and plague with which the Lord has threatened any nation that will not serve the king of Babylon? Do not listen to the words of the prophets who say to you, ‘You will not serve the king of Babylon,’ for they are prophesying lies to you. ‘I have not sent them,’ declares the Lord. ‘They are prophesying lies in my name. Therefore, I will banish you and you will perish, both you and the prophets who prophesy to you.  Then I said to the priests and all these people, “This is what the Lord says: Do not listen to the prophets who say, ‘Very soon now the articles from the Lord’s house will be brought back from Babylon.’ They are prophesying lies to you.  Do not listen to them. Serve the king of Babylon, and you will live. Why should this city become a ruin?  If they are prophets and have the word of the Lord, let them plead with the Lord Almighty that the articles remaining in the house of the Lord and in the palace of the king of Judah and in Jerusalem not be taken to Babylon.  For this is what the Lord Almighty says about the pillars, the bronze Sea, the movable stands and the other articles that are left in this city,  which Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon did not take away when he carried Jehoiachin  son of Jehoiakim king of Judah into exile from Jerusalem to Babylon, along with all the nobles of Judah and Jerusalem— yes, this is what the Lord Almighty, the God of Israel, says about the things that are left in the house of the Lord and in the palace of the king of Judah and in Jerusalem: They will be taken to Babylon and there they will remain until the day I come for them,’ declares the Lord. ‘Then I will bring them back and restore them to this place." Amen. May the Lord add a blessing to the reading and hearing of his Word.

I had to read this several times because I couldn't figure out why God was purposely telling Jeremiah to predict the subjugation of the people of Judah. When I read the concordances I figured out that God had to distinguish Himself and His prophet Jeremiah from all the false prophets that were out there preaching teachings that were not sanctioned by God. God also knew that only the faithful would obey His commandment to willingly subjugate themselves into the hands of a nation that did not believe in the true God Jehovah. You really had to have faith in God to trust that you would be protected! Just like the three (3) Hebrew boys,  Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, who had unwavering faith in the power of God to deliver on His promises to keep them safe, the people of God of Jeremiah's times also had to learn trust and obedience.

One of the lessons I am learning is obedience and trust. God's promises are true and can be trusted. What I think happens is that we think His promises must occur on our time table. God's promises always happen on His timetable which allows us to learn the lesson on TRUST. As we wait on the Lord, just like the three Hebrew boys, even when we see the flames of destruction around us instead of looking at eye level we should look UP from whence comes our help. When God lead the Israelites out of the land of Egypt, He could have taken them a shorter route but instead He used the time to test the faithfulness of these people who cried unto Him to be delivered. Even Moses, His most faithful, lost his patience and faith and instead of speaking to the Rock, Moses smote the Rock. This act of disobedience cost Moses the opportunity to cross into the Promised Land. It didn't cost Moses his reserved seat in Heaven but his act of disobedience cost Moses the blessing of seeing the promised land.

So to for us as Christians. Our salvation is secure however our acts of disobedience cost us our blessings and the timing of our blessings here on earth. Oh that we could learn to submit to the "still small voice" of the Holy Spirit that admonishes us to surrender our Will to Him. Remember the two great commandments to Love God with all your heart and soul and then to love your neighbor as God has loved you. If you need to forgive, then forgive yourself and then the one you thought offended you. If you have transgressed then ask for God's forgiveness. If you lack patience then be patient. What ever you lack then plan accordingly and as if you had it already. Don't limit God with your own limitations. Trust God and His abundant love for you.

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! Have a gret week.

Stephanie

Only One Path!

Good morning to all on this Father's Day and a shout out to all the father's in the house!! I woke up this morning with Praise on my lips and God on my mind. Joyce Meyer often talks about the battlefield of the mind in that Satan tries to incapacitate you with negative thinking. It is so true!! So when he is attacking me I just simply start thanking Jesus for everything. Yesterday my littlest grandson Kai caught a lizard. He loves to catch things like frogs, spiders and lizards and then he puts them in this little cage his Mom bought him. He took a picture of it and insisted that I be sent the picture. He named the lizard Stephanie. He thought enough about me to name a lizard after me! What a gift! A simple gift like that can uplift anyone. These moments are proof positive of the love of God for me. His eye is on the Sparrow and I know He watches me. A shout out to Little Mama and her baby in the Bun. God's blessings on you this day!!

I am continuing my journey in Jeremiah 28 verses 1-17, "In the fifth month of that same year, the fourth year, early in the reign of Zedekiah king of Judah, the prophet Hananiah son of Azzur, who was from Gibeon, said to me in the house of the Lord in the presence of the priests and all the people:  “This is what the Lord Almighty, the God of Israel, says: ‘I will break the yoke of the king of Babylon. Within two years I will bring back to this place all the articles of the Lord’s house that Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon removed from here and took to Babylon.  I will also bring back to this place Jehoiachin  son of Jehoiakim king of Judah and all the other exiles from Judah who went to Babylon,’ declares the Lord, ‘for I will break the yoke of the king of Babylon."  Then the prophet Jeremiah replied to the prophet Hananiah before the priests and all the people who were standing in the house of the Lord.  He (Jeremiah) said, “Amen! May the Lord do so! May the Lord fulfill the words you have prophesied by bringing the articles of the Lord’s house and all the exiles back to this place from Babylon.  Nevertheless, listen to what I have to say in your hearing and in the hearing of all the people: From early times the prophets who preceded you and me have prophesied war, disaster and plague against many countries and great kingdoms.  But the prophet who prophesies peace will be recognized as one truly sent by the Lord only if his prediction comes true. Then the prophet Hananiah took the yoke off the neck of the prophet Jeremiah and broke it,  and he said before all the people, “This is what the Lord says: ‘In the same way I will break the yoke of Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon off the neck of all the nations within two years.’” At this, the prophet Jeremiah went on his way. After the prophet Hananiah had broken the yoke off the neck of the prophet Jeremiah, the word of the Lord came to Jeremiah:  “Go and tell Hananiah, ‘This is what the Lord says: You have broken a wooden yoke, but in its place you will get a yoke of iron. This is what the Lord Almighty, the God of Israel, says: I will put an iron yoke on the necks of all these nations to make them serve Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon, and they will serve him. I will even give him control over the wild animals.  Then the prophet Jeremiah said to Hananiah the prophet, “Listen, Hananiah! The Lord has not sent you, yet you have persuaded this nation to trust in lies. Therefore this is what the Lord says: ‘I am about to remove you from the face of the earth. This very year you are going to die, because you have preached rebellion against the Lord.’”In the seventh month of that same year, Hananiah the prophet died." May God add a blessing to the reading and hearing of his Word.

Wow! Talk about subtle. In the previous chapters Jeremiah foretold the bondage of the Israelites to the king of Babylon. This bondage was necessary to test the obedience of the children of Israel to the Will of God. God did not foretell of a early release because He was using this time to weed out those Jews who were going to be obedient and those who would remain in their sin.  No one likes to be in bondage so Hananiah took it upon himself to predict the early release of the Israelites from the Babylonians. I am sure he became the most popular person in the congregation because he was preaching a message that everyone wanted to hear. He became the oracle of truth for a short time AND THERE-IN LIES THE LESSON!! The children of Israel were in their very predicament because of their disobedience and reliance on false gods and teachings. Instead of being obedient to God their Father, they wanted to believe in the morality of men. They began to preach that there are many paths to God and that you didn't have to be obedient to win favor with God. Sound familiar??? Satan said the same thing to Eve in the Garden when tempting her to eat of the forbidden fruit --in Genesis 3: 4-5 Satan very cunningly approaches Eve and says "You will not certainly die,” the serpent said to the woman. For God knows that when you eat from it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil.”

There are many false prophets today that will try and make you believe that a Benevolent God would create many "paths" to a relationship with Him. That being a morale person is enough or we will see Buddhists, Muslims, Jews and others in the Kingdom of Heaven. My response is always the same--yes we will see morale people in heaven as well as Buddhists, Muslims,  and Jews who have ACCEPTED THE FORGIVENESS OF SIN THAT COMES THROUGH THE ACCEPTANCE OF CHRIST AS LORD. I don't care who you are and how righteous people think you are, if you have not accepted Christ as Savior and Lord you will be in the lake of fire with Satan and will not spend eternity with God the Father, the Son and the Holy Ghost. YOUR MUST BE BORN AGAIN.

There will be a lot of good and moral people in hell wondering what went wrong. Our jobs as Christians is to be bold like Jeremiah and tell the people Not what they want to hear, but to preach the Good News that Christ was conceived, was born, lived, died and .....................ROSE AGAIN because He conquered the grave for all those that accept Him as Lord. It is our job to be like Jeremiah and spread the Good News as commanded by God. Don't be deceived in these last days that there are many paths to God. There is ONLY ONE and that is Jesus the Christ.

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