God's Alternative Scenario

The Holy One calls to me this morning.  One of the main reasons I journal is to "possess" the lessons and wisdom I am given in different situations and for application to the circumstances I face in life.

Journalling has been an important activity for so long as I can remember.  Journalling for me began like "letters to home" telling my Heavenly Father what I was experiencing and feeling along my earthly journey. 

I spent quite a few years complaining and longing for answers and making requisitions for needed resources.  Little by little I noticed I was writing down thoughts not my own and began to recognize and acknowledge that these thoughts came from another "Someone" who was not part of my thinking process; so close yet clearly from One who brought another perspective.

I began to say, "Let's get God's perspective" on each matter and I discovered the more I declared that thought as my desire, the more my thoughts and opinions would change.

Growing up, I was not taught about the role of the Holy Spirit as my internal Counselor so it took a while to identify His voice as that of my Shepherd Jesus.  Thankfully the Lord continues over our lifetime to teach, instruct and gently lead us into all Truth.  The Presence and guidance of the Holy Spirit within is the greatest Truth after Salvation through Jesus the Christ, that we can trust and build our life of faith upon. 

In this broken world, we are living with continuous threats of evil and I notice that fear motivates us to take ungodly action or paralyzes us from grasping or taking hold of the good will of Heaven that Jesus modeled when He walked among us.

Today the Holy One speaks into that place of vulnerability and weakness in my thoughts:

"Share with Me your fears ad I will give you my "alternative scenario".

I am no stranger to the Lord's miraculous intervention in my life.  Each event stands as a testimony of His love and protection over me and those I love. Today He reminds me of His "alternative scenario" when I gave birth to my youngest son.

I had my last two blessings in mid-life.  The wisdom of Dr.'s back in that day was a doom scenario of birth defects in children born to women in my age bracket.  I had given birth to my daughter two years before we were given the news that we had another baby on the way. 

My daughters conception and birth was one of those miraculous interventions and a beautiful answer to a prayer for the desire of my heart since together we had 4 boys to contend with.

As with many of the Lord's miracles, discouraging attacks come with the turf.  During that pregnancy with my daughter, my body was in a state of revolt, not uncommon during pregnancy but distressing to me as in high blood pressure that required immobility and family demands that added stress.   Birth was induced and labor a bit more difficult since having decided to go "natural" and with the risk assessment being higher than in my younger years.

The news of this unexpected pregnancy brought a fear to my heart and all the horrible "what-ifs" began to flood my mind.  Knowing my fears the Holy Spirit engaged me one day and asked me to talk with Him about all I was feeling.

I unloaded and told Him flat out, "I cannot do this".   I have learned over time that the best policy with my Lord is brutal honesty.  No faux bravery, nor phony faith, nor pride that "I am woman hear me roar".  Just the truth in my hard emotional places.

Fear was over-whelming my joy and I was thankful to share the burden without pretense.  Ever so gently He walked me back through to the Garden of Eden, original sin,  the penalty on Eve for her original sin and then He walked me to the Cross with a question:

"Did not Jesus nullify every curse and pay the penalty for sin? Like pain in childbirth?"

But then He went even further with a mind blowing promise:

"If you ask and then trust Me, I will give you a pain-free childbirth experience!"

This was an alternative scenario that never crossed my mind as a possibility.  Evil seems to have a corner on the "What-if" market and as always, threatened a doom scenario just as I tried to wrap my brain and life experience of 3 "normal" physical births around God's alternative scenario as a possibility.

I even laughed about how my Lord would humor me with this thought just to get me to be wiling to face what I couldn't back out of.  But true to His promise and despite my incredulous attitude, that miraculous alternative scenario to the one the Devil painted in fear and dread actually did happen and I was the delighted recipient of a promise fulfilled via a miraculous intervention. 

Interestingly, the Holy One took me again to His Word and this promise for the months of preparation for the birth:

Isaiah 66:7-8, "Before she was in labor she gave birth.  Before her pain came, she delivered a male child.  Who has seen such things?"

Many would rightly point out that this verse was not written by Isaiah personally foreseeing the birth of my precious last born son, but there is no doubt that God had us in mind and delivered His promise as I delivered my son.  ***note to self: not taking the Lord seriously is a dangerous proposition and it almost caused me to give birth on the way to the hospital as I was waiting for pain to signal the time and yet pain never came. 

Today the fear scenario that evil has been suggesting regarding circumstances in our lives has brought me to petition for our Lord's alternative scenario; the one that brings hope and peace for the days to come.

In this fallen turf with enemy oppression, we have been tempted to believe that the doom and gloom scenario are the only reality for us here on earth.  However, in God's eternal picture, His good will is not an alternative scenario but rather part of His glorious plan.

I look forward to seeing the Lord's alternative scenario unfold in the days to come and delight to bring Him praise in the process.

The Spirit is calling.  Can you hear Him? 

     

   

    

   

For the Glory of God

Heading into Memorial Day, my thoughts are of the country we once were and the sacrifice so many have made to secure it for all the future genertions.  The foundation upon which we are (or were once)  established is one of Biblical values and Divine guidance. 

These are the days that try men's souls and days that challenge our commitment to our Lord Jesus the Christ and to our Biblical values.  We have been warned through so many voices who have it on "good authority" that the boom hanging over the head of the USA is about to be lowered and the Hand of God's Divine judgement is about to be brought against this nation.

We certainly deserve what may be coming due to serious acts of corporate depravity especially with regard to with the horrific abomination of child sacrifice and the shedding of innocent blood.  This "sin" at the hands of some within our nation has garnered a Divine response since the very beginning of time, so is there any mercy left upon which we might make our requests known and for the Lord to send His answers for our deliverance?

Of course salvation through the sacrifice and blood shed by Jesus on the Cross is our ultimate deliverance but absent our sudden departure from planet earth, we have been left to impact the world/nation where we have been placed, with the righteous representation of Yahweh, our God.   

The Old Testament is a recorded history of man and how Yahweh dealt with a nation chosen to represent Him to the lost and dying world of the ancients.  Israel was and is that nation so looking back to the days of Moses gives me the clues as to how we might approach the Sovereign God of all creation in intercession for our One Nation under Him today. 

I know that Yahweh is one who instructs through repetition and repeat cycles of instruction and discipline, so I look for "precedents" (previous ways of acting in similar situations) set by Him to guide my prayers for His intervention in our circumstances today. 

The verses I am drawn to today are found in the book of Exodus 23:7-14.  The children of Israel were led out from their bondage in Egypt, in a very dramatic miraculous way.  Having just passed through the Red Sea, they were camped in the wilderness to meet the One Who arranged for their rescue.  The people vowed their loyalty and worship to the God of their fathers, but even as Moses was getting Divine directives for the people to live by fromYahweh Himself, insurrection leading to idolatry broke out in the camp.  ***Important to remember that the culture they had just left was one having many "gods" and they were therein exposed to all of them.  Notably one of the requirements in Baal worship was child sacrifice.

The children of Israel grew impatient and rallied to an "appeaser" (Aaron) who fashioned a golden calf and gave it the identity of a "god".  The One True God was so angry with these people that He told Moses of His plan to wipe them out and thereafter give Moses other people to lead. Yahweh was about to "lower the boom" on the nation He had just delivered.

Moses in his privileged relationship, talked to the Creator much as we have the privilege to speak to Him today. For his part, Moses pleaded with Yahweh for mercy and made the case to Holiness that His glory, honor, and powerful reputation among the other nations was at stake should this people that He led out of Egypt with signs and wonders come to their end in the wilderness. Moses spoke of Yahweh's reputation in the surrounding nations and reminded Him of His promise to Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. 

Moses's appeal to the Most High for His mercy was not a defense of the indefensible.  And not to save his own skin since the Lord told Moses that He would destroy this people group and raise up another for him to lead. This appeal from Moses was based on the threat of Yahweh's diminished Glory and Honor on earth, and His reputation among the nations looking on.  And then, in a gracious act of mercy, Yahweh relented.  Was all of this (warning of impending doom) just a way for the Lord to get Moses to intercede for the nation?   

I am beginning to understand the bigger question for me today: Is it "For the Glory of Yahweh" that is my basis for wanting the Lord to intervene with His mercy in our nation today?  For His Glory? We are called One Nation Under God.  Even though we are faithless at times, rebellious at others, I believe the Lord's gracious mercy is still available for us today.  

The very foundation of this Republic is based on Biblical values of faith, freedom, liberty and equal justice for all. Could it be that Yahweh's reputation (not just our peace) at the very foundation of our Republic is on the line as we face off (and cast our vote) against a progressive and god-less society? 

I pray Yahweh, God of our nation be glorified as we determine to live by our values according to His directives and then as He enables us to stand upon His principles of conduct even as others try to destroy us.  

May the Lord be glorified as we look to Him and somehow survive yet again the assault on our God-ordained way of life provided by the Constitution written by men seeking His wisdom and Divine guidance through prayer.

I pray the Lord will hear our cries for His merciful forgiveness over  past failures to stop the shedding of innocent blood and then provide a Divine pathway to future victory over these ungodly acts deserving His judgement. 

 I pray that as He answers our prayers and petitions, He will receive the Glory due His Name.  I pray that as He intervenes and upholds this unique nation as One under Him, the other nations of the world will come to honor and respect Him as He is worthy of all praise, worship and adoration we can give him.  He is Yahweh,  the One true God and we are to bring glory to His Name.

It's up to us, His people, to intercede and call out for the Glory of Yahweh and the truth of His Being to be revealed in our nation.  May we do our part and stand in awe and worship as He does His.

The Holy Spirit is calling.  Can you hear Him?

In His Name***

The Holy One calls to me this morning.  Out of the desperate needs that  can surface in each new day at the first light of my conscious awareness, His message this morning is compelling.  "Whatsoever you ask (of the Father) IN MY NAME, that I will do". 

That was a promise given and recorded for us by Jesus in John 14:13.

I  look for and find this definition of the NAME in my very important tool for understanding words and their meanings from out of the King James Version of our Bible and back to the Greek origin.

http://www.eliyah.com/lexicon.html

"The name is used for everything which the name covers, everything the thought or feeling of which is aroused in the mind by mentioning, hearing, remembering, the name, i.e. for one's rank, authority, interests, pleasure, command, excellency, deeds etc.”

Taking all my petitions back to the One in whose Name I ask, gives me the challenge and confidence to rely on what is WRITTEN as the baseline of my requests. God's Word is His Will.   He will fulfill His Word and His promises to us, as we ask in the mighty Name of His Son, Jesus.

The next thing to remember is the Credentials we must bring into the Holy Place. We come by faith in and through the crucified body of Jesus. We offer as our Credentials:

THE BROKEN BODY CRUCIFIED AND THE HOLY BLOOD SHED OF GOD’S ONLY APPROVED SACRIFICE FOR MY SIN:    JESUS

THE ONLY RIGHTEOUSNESS THAT GOD RECOGNIZES:   JESUS

IN THE ONLY NAME THAT HAS BEEN GIVEN TO ACCESS HEAVEN’S ANSWERS:    JESUS

These are the ONLY credentials we can give to justify the answers we are asking for and also we can ask with confidence that we are following Divine “Protocol” in our petitions.  Protocol dictates that all petitions go directly to our Father in Heaven. We do not pray to anyone else if we truly desire to have our petitions answered.

Reverence and respect for our Heavenly Father must come from our heart (the temple of the Holy Spirit) and in loving obedience to His requirements for access. THEN He provides the much more of what we can ask or even imagine.

The study of God’s Word enables us to understand all that is available to us as God’s beloved and to gain a better grasp of the Father Heart of God for His creation: humanity. As we come to recognize our place of privileged access and appropriate (take and use) what Jesus died to provide, (ask and it will be given) the world we inhabit will flow with the miraculous evidence of Heaven’s Good Will.
  
Remembering all is to and for the Glory of Jesus (whose sacrifice provided the privilege of relationship) and to and for the Glory of the Father (who honors the Name of the Son Jesus) through Divine answers to our earthy petitions and to and for the Glory of the Holy Spirit within whose role it is to bring their Glory through us.    

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The link provided is a tool I use as I have found different translations of the Word of God use similar words but in some cases provide a different interpretation in my mind. I have found it very interesting to use this tool to enlarge my understanding of original language and expand my grasp of Truth. Many of the different translations of scripture are provided in this link but only the KJV has the specific word translated from Greek origin.

I pray this ignites your passion to discover or to go deeper into your place and privilege in the relationship with Our Father in Heaven that Jesus died to provide through the indwelling of His Holy Spirit.

It is to the Glory of the Son that we appropriate what His sacrifice and death and resurrection made possible: “Ask The Father for anything IN MY NAME and that He will give you”.

Have a blessed day in His Presence! I intent to!

The Spirit is calling.  Can you hear Him?

God Whispers: "Remember My Precedents".

So much of our fear today seems to baseline as a fear of the "unknown".  So much chaos and lawlessness has rocked our world lately and we wonder what's coming next or how will this end?

Suspicion abounds when we cannot openly talk about where we stand or what we think or find others who sees things the way that we do in a shared value sense?

 

It's days and times like these when our relationship with our Lord is so critical in figuring out God's perspective over our lives and circumstances.  Our peace depends on it.  Our decisions and next move depends on it, yet this is where so many of us falter in our trust because we don't really take the time to truly KNOW God apart from the weekly sermons we get off our satellite connections.

A little information regarding the character of our God is better than none but the mystery of His Majesty awaits our determined seeking for the hidden treasure of His being.

This morning I wake up with thoughts about the protests, the violence on the streets and the enemy off our ordered society on the move robbing, destroying property and killing innocent people.  But then.........

The Holy Spirit whispers into my troubled thoughts:

"Remember My precedents!"

The history of man's days upon the earth are recorded for us to read in God's Word and are for the teaching and training of those who seek Him.  The Bible is God's love letter to us and it contains therein His will and His ways over all of human history.   First comes His relationship with individuals as Adam and Eve, the first of creation made in His image.  Then comes His relationship with a nation called Israel. And then comes His relationship with redeemed human individuals, who have put their trust in Jesus, the One God  sent to earth to save humanity from the judgment of His Holiness for the rebellion of our flesh through free will choices.

In God's Word we get truth and glimpses of how our Sovereign God acts and enacts His great power over all He created.  We have the privilege and by the Holy Spirit the wisdom to understand the character of our God and in relationship we can experience His love.

In His love, I come to realize that God acts in repetition. Cycles of repeated lessons until we get His point and change what is out of His Divine order in our lives.  These cycles reveal details about His character that He wants us to learn so that according to His Divine purpose, we can model and represent Him to others in our world.   

When I read His word, I want to grasp modern day applications from ancient truth, since there is nothing new under the sun that has not been done or faced by humanity since the very beginning of time. 

The way God acted in the past is the way He will act in every today and the way He will act tomorrow if we live another day on earth.

Th study of His Word is more than mere lessons in history, it is the study of the Majesty and mystery of our Creator God.  Seeing how He intervened in the past gives us a firm baseline in our prayers and petitions for Him to intervene in our life and circumstances today.

Not only are His promises trustworthy for those who believe on His Name but so are His ways of directing our lives reliable and always in our temporal and eternal best interests.

Today I look back to His ways of dealing with troubling times for Israel to see what precedent He set in mighty acts of Divine intervention that we can draw from today.  My peace is restored as I look for and find reminders of His Sovereign control, seek for His perspective and pray for His perfect Will.

The Spirit is calling.  Can you hear Him?