Restoration

Good morning to all on this 1st Sunday in August. It is my sister Velma's birthday and she will be celebrating it with her daughter and son-in-law. She will also be celebrating the birth of her second grandson next month and the entire Jenkins-Tamori-Kong clan is waiting with much anticipation. Waine and I were in Orlando last weekend to celebrate Kai's 4th birthday. I still can't believe that 4 years have passed already since this little bundle of joy joined us. Our lives have been enriched beyond measure because of him and each of our other 5 grandchildren.

I am continuing my journey with Jeremiah, this week in chapter 31 verses 15-29, " This is what the Lord says: A voice is heard in Ramah,  mourning and great weeping, Rachel weeping for her children and refusing to be comforted,  because they are no more. This is what the Lord says: Restrain your voice from weeping and your eyes from tears,  for your work will be rewarded, declares the Lord. They will return from the land of the enemy. So there is hope for your descendants,  declares the Lord. Your children will return to their own land. I have surely heard Ephraim’s moaning: You disciplined me like an unruly calf,  nd I have been disciplined. Restore me, and I will return, because you are the Lord my God. After I strayed,  I repented; after I came to understand, I beat my breast. I was ashamed and humiliated because I bore the disgrace of my youth.  Is not Ephraim my dear son, the child in whom I delight? Though I often speak against him, I still remember him. Therefore My heart yearns for him; I have great compassion for him, declares the Lord. Set up road signs; put up guideposts.  Take note of the highway,  the road that you take. Return, Virgin Israel, return to your towns. How long will you wander,  unfaithful Daughter Israel? The Lord will create a new thing on earth—the woman will return to the man. This is what the Lord Almighty, the God of Israel, says: “When I bring them back from captivity,  the people in the land of Judah and in its towns will once again use these words: ‘The Lord bless you, you prosperous city, you sacred mountain.’ People will live together in Judah and all its towns—farmers and those who move about with their flocks.   I will refresh the weary and satisfy the faint. At this I awoke and looked around. My sleep had been pleasant to me. The days are coming,” declares the Lord, “when I will plant the kingdoms of Israel and Judah with the offspring of people and of animals. Just as I watched over them to uproot and tear down, and to overthrow, destroy and bring disaster, so I will watch over them to build and to plant,” declares the Lord. In those days people will no longer say, The parents have eaten sour grapes, and the children’s teeth are set on edge." Amen and may the Lord add a blessing to the reading and hearing of his Word.

One of the constant themes in Jeremiah is that God will RESTORE--actually this is a biblical principle! Even when Adam sinned and destroyed his ability to live forever, God restored man to eternal life through Christ our Lord. The timetable for the restoration, is however, in our  hands. God I think restores us immediately to Himself, when we repent of our sins however the realization of the restoration is dependant on our faith and ability to accept the lesson and accept the grace. Just like the Israelites in Jeremiah's life, as Christians we waste a lot of time trying to fix the things that we have broken in our lives and in the relationship we have with God. God really just wants us to repent and then move on to experience our restoration.I know that this sounds easy but its not because true repentance and acceptance involves the submission of our WILL to His. Just take Jonah. God commanded that he preach to the people of Nineveh. Jonah didn't want to because he thought them to be unworthy. So Jonah decides to take a boat to a distant shore. As the story goes, Jonah is thrown off the ship when the crew of the ship realized that Jonah was the cause of the storm. Jonah was swallowed by the fish and lived in the belly of the fish until he submitted his will to that of the Father. When the fish spat him out, Jonah was on the shores on Nineveh completely restored.

Are you a Jonah Christian?? If you perceive your blessings to be blocked you may want to evaluate what is keeping you from realizing your restoration.

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

I love you with an Everlasting Love, declares the Lord!

Good  morning to all on this glorious Sunday morning. Much has happened since my last blog entry on July 8. Waine, our children and their children, my sister and her family and my brother and his family, threw me a birthday party in St. Petersburg Florida during the weekend of July 12th. To a little person, a good time was had by all and I was left feeling blessed with love of family and friends. Waine also celebrated a birthday on the 18th so we have had back to back celebrations. This weekend finds us mourning with those in Aurora Colorado and the savage, senseless shootings by a very deranged young man. I am reminded that this world, through Satan, makes people feel and believe that they are "owed" something and when their needs are not met they have a "right" to dispense their own idea of parity. I am reminded how sick this world is and how  more than ever, this world needs us as Christians to step up and proclaim the good news! When you have Christ in your life you are never left feeling helpless or hopeless.

I am continuing my journey in Jeremiah chapter 31 verses 1 - 14, “At that time,” declares the Lord, “I will be the God of all the families of Israel, and they will be My people. This is what the Lord says: The people who survive the sword will find favor in the wilderness; I will come to give rest to Israel.  The Lord appeared to us in the past, saying: I have loved you with an everlasting love; I have drawn you with unfailing kindness.  I will build you up again, and you, Virgin Israel, will be rebuilt.  Again you will take up your timbrels  and go out to dance with the joyful.  Again you will plant vineyards on the hills of Samaria;  the farmers will plant them and enjoy their fruit.  There will be a day when watchmen cry out on the hills of Ephraim, Come, let us go up to Zion, to the Lord our God. This is what the Lord says: Sing with joy for Jacob; shout for the foremost of the nations. Make your praises heard, and say, ‘Lord, save your people, the remnant of Israel.’See, I will bring them from the land of the north  and gather them from the ends of the earth. Among them will be the blind and the lame,  expectant mothers and women in labor; a great throng will return. They will come with weeping;  they will pray as I bring them back. I will lead them beside streams of water  on a level path where they will not stumble, because I am Israel’s father,  and Ephraim is my firstborn son. Hear the Word of the Lord, you nations; proclaim it in distant coastlands:  He who scattered Israel will gather them and will watch over His flock like a shepherd. For the Lord will deliver Jacob
and redeem them from the hand of those stronger than they. They will come and shout for joy on the heights of Zion; they will rejoice in the bounty of the Lord—the grain, the new wine and the olive oil,  the young of the flocks and herds. They will be like a well-watered garden,  and they will sorrow no more. Then young women will dance and be glad, young men and old as well. I will turn their mourning into gladness; I will give them comfort and joy instead of sorrow. I will satisfy the priests with abundance, and my people will be filled with my bounty, declares the Lord. Amen and Hallelujah! May the Lord add a blessing to the reading and hearing of His Word.

The LESSON here is that obedience leads to restoration and not just to the point you were blessed at before God chastised you but restored to double, and triple. Obedience is always filled with blessings here on earth. God is not a God that delays your gratification. He will allow you to grow your faith through trials; however He never withholds His Love, Grace or Mercy. He has PROMISED an EVERLASTING LOVE for us; that LOVE has been available since the beginning of time and is infinite and endless. When bad things happen it is JUST LIFE. When man allowed sin to enter our GARDEN, the natural result of sin is chaos and calamity. That has nothing to do with your individual disobedience. On the contrary if we could actually see how much calamity and chaos was old there to trap us we would all be very mindful that the love, grace and mercy of God protects both the sinner and the saint. Remember Christ died for us while we were yet in sin. You can't blame God for chaos anymore than you can blame trees from blooming or brooks from flowing. There is a natural order to both sin and grace! As Christians we are always recipients of God's love, mercy and grace and He wants us to share this to the chaotic world. We are instructed to do so with our lives and our testimonies. Take the opportunity to witness to someone today about the love of God which is everlasting; the love that saved a wretch like me to live and experience all the abundance that God has in store for me. God bless you today and may God bless your family and friends through 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. 

Stephanie

God will Fully Accomplish The Purposes of His Heart

Good morning to all on this Sunday morning, July 8th. It is also  my mother's birthday. Hisako Tamori Jenkins was born on July 8, 1923 and would have been 89 today. Happy birthday Mom. She has gone on to be with Christ where I will see her one day because she and my father made sure that their four (4) children professed their own faith in Christ and accepted His Grace and Mercy so that we would all be in paradise together. What a gift both my parents gave to each of their children. Hallelujah and thank you Jesus for the faith and commitment of my parents!

I am continuing my journey in Jeremiah 30, verses 1-24, "This is the Word that came to Jeremiah from the Lord: This is what the Lord, the God of Israel, says: ‘Write in a book all the words I have spoken to you. The days are coming,’ declares the Lord, ‘when I will bring My people Israel and Judah back from captivity and restore them to the land I gave their ancestors to possess,’ says the Lord.” These are the Words the Lord spoke concerning Israel and Judah: This is what the Lord says: Cries of fear are heard—terror, not peace. Ask and see: Can a man bear children? Then why do I see every strong man with his hands on his stomach like a woman in labor,  every face turned deathly pale?  How awful that day will be! No other will be like it. It will be a time of trouble for Jacob, but he will be saved out of it. In that day,’ declares the Lord Almighty, I will break the yoke off their necks and will tear off their bonds;  no longer will foreigners enslave them.  Instead, they will serve the Lord their God and David their king,  whom I will raise up for them. So do not be afraid, Jacob my servant;  do not be dismayed, Israel, declares the Lord. I will surely save you out of a distant place,  your descendants from the land of their exile. Jacob will again have peace and security,  and no one will make him afraid.  I am with you and will save you, declares the Lord. Though I completely destroy all the nations among which I scatter you, I will not completely destroy you. I will discipline you but only in due measure;  I will not let you go entirely unpunished. This is what the Lord says: Your wound is incurable, your injury beyond healing.  There is no one to plead your cause,  no remedy for your sore, no healing for you. All your allies have forgotten you; they care nothing for you. I have struck you as an enemy would and punished you as would the cruel,  because your guilt is so great  and your sins so many. Why do you cry out over your wound,  your pain that has no cure?  Because of your great guilt and many sins I have done these things to you. But all who devour you will be devoured;  all your enemies will go into exile.  Those who plunder you will be plundered; all who make spoil of you I will despoil. But I will restore you to health and heal your wounds, declares the Lord, because you are called an outcast,  Zion for whom no one cares. This is what the Lord says:‘I will restore the fortunes of Jacob’s tents  and have compassion on his dwellings; the city will be rebuilt on her ruins, and the palace will stand in its proper place. From them will come songs of thanksgiving  and the sound of rejoicing.  I will add to their numbers,  and they will not be decreased; I will bring them honor,  and they will not be disdained. Their children will be as in days of old,  and their community will be established before me; I will punish all who oppress them.  Their leader will be one of their own;  their ruler will arise from among them.  I will bring him near and he will come close to me—for who is he who will devote himself to be close to me?’ declares the Lord.  So you will be my people,  and I will be your God. See, the storm of the Lord will burst out in wrath, a driving wind swirling down on the heads of the wicked. The fierce anger of the Lord will not turn back  until He fully accomplishes the purposes of His heart. In days to come you will understand this. Amen and may God add a blessing to the reading and hearing of His Word.

What a wonderful message. God sees us Christians as His people. We are His people and He DECLARES that He is our God! With this statement He not only has your back, front, sides, head and feet, you are part of His Clan. He counts you among those that will share eternity with Him and in addition to that He will fight all your enemies right here on earth and ensure that you are made whole. You don't have to worry about what men and women may say about you. You don't have to worry about idle threats. God's GOT THIS--meaning He has You and will protect you from all harm and will restore unto you any loses you may incurred as a result of your obedience to Him. Our job then is to proclaim the Good News of the Gospel that Christ was conceived, was born, lived a life among us, died for our sins and was RESURRECTED so that we would be saved from the results of our sins and live with Him forever. Our job is to ensure that everyone has an opportunity to accept the mercy of God through Christ. Our job is to share Jesus with the world! That is the message Waine and I got in Sunday School today. Our job is to share Jesus with a dying world so that we don't have to feel bad in heaven that we didn't share the good news of the Gospel. God will perfect His work in you daily as you let Him. Our abundant life is there for the taking as we yield to Him. Praise God today and share this joy with someone that needs it. Amen and hallelujah!

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 Choice is Yours!

Good morning to all on this Sunday morning! God is in His heaven and all is right with the world. If you don't have this perspective then ask God to help focus your attention on your blessings! It is the first Sunday in July and July 1st. One-half of the year is already passed us and for Waine and I it has been an exciting 2012! There have been opportunities and challenges; the challenges continue to cement us as a unit and the opportunities just shower blessings on us. I know the plans that God has for me and my family; plans for propserity and hope and God is NOT man that He should lie. Hallelujah!

I am continuing my journey in Jeremiah 29, verses 24-32, "Tell Shemaiah the Nehelamite, "This is what the Lord Almighty, the God of Israel, says: You sent letters in your own name to all the people in Jerusalem, to the priest Zephaniah son of Maaseiah, and to all the other priests. You said to Zephaniah, ‘The Lord has appointed you priest in place of Jehoiada to be in charge of the house of the Lord; you should put any maniac who acts like a prophet into the stocks and neck-irons. So why have you not reprimanded Jeremiah from Anathoth, who poses as a prophet among you?  He has sent this message to us in Babylon: It will be a long time. Therefore build houses and settle down; plant gardens and eat what they produce.  Zephaniah the priest, however, read the letter to Jeremiah the prophet. Then the Word of the Lord came to Jeremiah:  “Send this message to all the exiles: ‘This is what the Lord says about Shemaiah the Nehelamite: Because Shemaiah has prophesied to you, even though I did not send him, and has persuaded you to trust in lies, this is what the Lord says: I will surely punish Shemaiah the Nehelamite and his descendants. He will have no one left among this people, nor will he see the good things I will do for my people, declares the Lord, because he has preached rebellion against me.’” Amen and may the Lord add a blessing to the reading and hearing of His Word.

In Jeremiah 29:11, the Lord says to all of us , "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." Satan and his minions will have us believe otherwise, just has Shemaiah tried to do. There are many among us that will try and tell you what the will of God is for your life. They will preach from the Word but then put their own spins to it. The Word of God is clear to those that believe. It needs no interpretation. God means what He saids in His Word and tells us to hide His Words in our Heart so that we will not be led a stray by the Great Deceiver, satan. God told Adam and Eve not to eat from the Tree of Knowledge or they would surley die. Satan comes along and then interprets this commandment to Eve who buys it hook, line and SINKER. God meant what He said to Adam and Eve and His Words are still true today. He commands us to love Him with all of our hearts and be obedient to His other Commandment to love our brothers as God has loved us. On these two GREAT Commandments hang ALL the laws of heaven and earth. When we love God we have a true desire to serve Him and to tell everyone about Him. It is not enough to be a good person; we have to be a Spirit filled, born again good person to fight the good fight against the evil one. Satan wants the world to believe that a Benevolent God would not allow so many people to perish. Well what Jeremiah has taught me is that God is not only benevolent, He is long-suffering and gives the world many chances to repent. But when the time is up it is up. God cannot exist in the same space as sin and so when your number gets punched and you die in sin, never having confessed Christ as Lord, the consequence of that decision is an eternity without God. The choice was yours and your chose unwisely.

Don't believe the Shemaiahs of this world. Believe that God is not man that He should lie. He has told us that we must confessour sins and then accept Christ as Lord. A grieving world needs this message. God has a plan of prosperity for all you acccept it. Our jobs as Christians is to get the Word out!

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

Stephanie

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