Good morning to all on this Tuesday morning! I woke up with God on my mind and my lips; whispering prayers of thanksgiving for He alone is worthy! My eyes are on "Sunday Morning" when He arose from the grave forever releasing me from a sentence of death from sin and not on "Friday Afternoon" when He willingly gave His life that I might live. Hallelujah, hallelujah and hosanna to the King! As you go through your day and are bombarded with challenges and opportunities, focus your eyes on "Sunday Morning" and praise God that He has a plan for you each minute of each day and don't allow Satan to focus your attention on "Friday Afternoon"! In fact no more TGIF (Thank God Its Friday)--instead PGSM (Praise God for Sunday Morning)! Continue to keep ET and his healing in your prayers and continue to keep JKS in your prayers.
We have finished the 2 letters from Paul to Timothy. I am led to explore Jeremiah and see where this takes me. I am beginning with Jeremiah 1 verses 1-12, "The words of Jeremiah son of Hilkiah, one of the priests at Anathoth in the territory of Benjamin. The Word of the LORD came to him in the thirteenth year of the reign of Josiah son of Amon king of Judah, and through the reign of Jehoiakim son of Josiah king of Judah, down to the fifth month of the eleventh year of Zedekiah son of Josiah king of Judah, when the people of Jerusalem went into exile. The Word of the LORD came to me, saying, “Before I formed you in the womb I knew you,
before you were born I set you apart; I appointed you as a prophet to the nations.” “Alas, Sovereign LORD,” I said, “I do not know how to speak; I am too young.” But the LORD said to me, “Do not say, ‘I am too young.’ You must go to everyone I send you to and say whatever I command you. Do not be afraid of them, for I am with you and will rescue you,” declares the LORD. Then the LORD reached out His hand and touched my mouth and said to me, “I have put my words in your mouth. See, today I appoint you over nations and kingdoms to uproot and tear down, to destroy and overthrow, to build and to plant.” The word of the LORD came to me: “What do you see, Jeremiah?” “I see the branch of an almond tree,” I replied. The LORD said to me, “You have seen correctly, for I am watching to see that My Word is fulfilled.” Amen and amen.
Jeremiah is traditionally credited with authoring the Books of Jeremiah, 1 Kings, 2 Kings and Lamentations. Jeremiah was called to prophetic ministry in c. 626 BC, a few years after Josiah king of Judah had turned the nation toward repentance from the widespread idolatrous practices of his father and grandfather. Jeremiah’s job was to reveal the sins of the people and explain the reason for the impending disaster (destruction by the Babylonian army and captivity), “And when your people say, 'Why has the Lord our God done all these things to us?' you shall say to them, 'As you have forsaken me and served foreign gods in your land, so you shall serve foreigners in a land that is not yours.'" Jeremiah was a great prophet and though he was not the bearer of good news all the time, he was an obedient bearer of the message that God wanted conveyed. His job was to be obedient and not question the instructions from God and as we will see, without Grace and Mercy, men bore the direct consequences for their sins under the old dispensation. Thank God for Grace and Mercy as a result of the payment and sacrifice made by Christ and that we live in a era which allows us to experience the grace and mercy of God without the need of intervention by prophets. But more about that later.
Jeremiah was called and the scriptures said, God called him even while Jeremiah was in the womb. In truth God calls all of us while we are in the womb. He has numbered the hairs on on head. He loves us even as we are conceived and hopes against hope that we will allow Him to use us. Most of us, like Jeremiah, don't feel qualified--I am too young--I don't have the gift of speech--I don't have leadership skills-- I, I, I which then blinds us to "It is not about you"! If God calls us then He knows better than all what we are capable of and as He told Jeremiah "Do not be afraid of them, I will rescue you." In other words, I (God) got your back and I (God) have that check covered! Hallelujah! When God has your back you are truly covered! I pity the fool that goes up against God!
I have learned long ago to trust God's calling because when I am in the God zone I need not worry about the consequences. That's God's job--my job is to obey and speak and live the truth. Many of us are what I call "convenient Christians". We have no problem praising God when we are in control of all the variables, or think we are anyway, and then when God tests our resolve we cannot stand on the affirmation of faith we had when we thought we were in control. When you give something over to God, then you have to trust the twists and turns that may come your way. These twists and turns may at times seem like dark alleys with no way out but just look up; just look up; just look up and you will see a different perspective. I am sure our brother ET through these many months of disappointing answers has had to wonder what God's plan is for his healing. ET knows God and knows that God has a plan for his life and he wants to know what God's plan is for his healing. ET has never given up on his faith for healing and I for one am holding fast to God's promises for our faithfulness of prayers for ET's healing. Et's salvation is secured. He will be with God in eternity and he wants God's healing so that he can live his days long with his grandchildren. So ET continues to ask for our prayers and you know what, God continues to allow ET to live on this earth regardless of his physical condition. Hallelujah I just had a break through of my own! At the end of the day, God is in control of everything EXCEPT our obedience and faithfulness. You are called today for kingdom building. Be a Jeremiah and step out on faith.
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
We have finished the 2 letters from Paul to Timothy. I am led to explore Jeremiah and see where this takes me. I am beginning with Jeremiah 1 verses 1-12, "The words of Jeremiah son of Hilkiah, one of the priests at Anathoth in the territory of Benjamin. The Word of the LORD came to him in the thirteenth year of the reign of Josiah son of Amon king of Judah, and through the reign of Jehoiakim son of Josiah king of Judah, down to the fifth month of the eleventh year of Zedekiah son of Josiah king of Judah, when the people of Jerusalem went into exile. The Word of the LORD came to me, saying, “Before I formed you in the womb I knew you,
before you were born I set you apart; I appointed you as a prophet to the nations.” “Alas, Sovereign LORD,” I said, “I do not know how to speak; I am too young.” But the LORD said to me, “Do not say, ‘I am too young.’ You must go to everyone I send you to and say whatever I command you. Do not be afraid of them, for I am with you and will rescue you,” declares the LORD. Then the LORD reached out His hand and touched my mouth and said to me, “I have put my words in your mouth. See, today I appoint you over nations and kingdoms to uproot and tear down, to destroy and overthrow, to build and to plant.” The word of the LORD came to me: “What do you see, Jeremiah?” “I see the branch of an almond tree,” I replied. The LORD said to me, “You have seen correctly, for I am watching to see that My Word is fulfilled.” Amen and amen.
Jeremiah is traditionally credited with authoring the Books of Jeremiah, 1 Kings, 2 Kings and Lamentations. Jeremiah was called to prophetic ministry in c. 626 BC, a few years after Josiah king of Judah had turned the nation toward repentance from the widespread idolatrous practices of his father and grandfather. Jeremiah’s job was to reveal the sins of the people and explain the reason for the impending disaster (destruction by the Babylonian army and captivity), “And when your people say, 'Why has the Lord our God done all these things to us?' you shall say to them, 'As you have forsaken me and served foreign gods in your land, so you shall serve foreigners in a land that is not yours.'" Jeremiah was a great prophet and though he was not the bearer of good news all the time, he was an obedient bearer of the message that God wanted conveyed. His job was to be obedient and not question the instructions from God and as we will see, without Grace and Mercy, men bore the direct consequences for their sins under the old dispensation. Thank God for Grace and Mercy as a result of the payment and sacrifice made by Christ and that we live in a era which allows us to experience the grace and mercy of God without the need of intervention by prophets. But more about that later.
I have learned long ago to trust God's calling because when I am in the God zone I need not worry about the consequences. That's God's job--my job is to obey and speak and live the truth. Many of us are what I call "convenient Christians". We have no problem praising God when we are in control of all the variables, or think we are anyway, and then when God tests our resolve we cannot stand on the affirmation of faith we had when we thought we were in control. When you give something over to God, then you have to trust the twists and turns that may come your way. These twists and turns may at times seem like dark alleys with no way out but just look up; just look up; just look up and you will see a different perspective. I am sure our brother ET through these many months of disappointing answers has had to wonder what God's plan is for his healing. ET knows God and knows that God has a plan for his life and he wants to know what God's plan is for his healing. ET has never given up on his faith for healing and I for one am holding fast to God's promises for our faithfulness of prayers for ET's healing. Et's salvation is secured. He will be with God in eternity and he wants God's healing so that he can live his days long with his grandchildren. So ET continues to ask for our prayers and you know what, God continues to allow ET to live on this earth regardless of his physical condition. Hallelujah I just had a break through of my own! At the end of the day, God is in control of everything EXCEPT our obedience and faithfulness. You are called today for kingdom building. Be a Jeremiah and step out on faith.
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
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