Category: Isaiah

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The Gift of Words

Remember a week or so back I asked you to join me in a fast, a fast of criticism? So how are you doing? I have to admit that there have been a few times that I’ve had to stop and repent and get back on track. Our words are so important.

You might not think that a teaching on words has much to do with the Christmas season but it really does. God started everything with His words. He said, “Light be” and it was. He spoke the plan of Christ’s birth was spoken out in words hundreds of years before the event took place. God had the prophets repeated that message again and again until it came to pass.

“Therefore the Lord himself shall give you a sign; Behold, a virgin shall conceive, and bear a son, and shall call his name Immanuel.” Isaiah 7:14 KJV

Then the angel came to Mary and told her that she had been chosen to give birth to the Messiah. Listen to her response.

“26 And in the sixth month the angel Gabriel was sent from God unto a city of Galilee, named Nazareth…
30 And the angel said unto her, Fear not, Mary: for thou hast found favour with God.
31 And, behold, thou shalt conceive in thy womb, and bring forth a son, and shalt call his name JESUS.
32 He shall be great, and shall be called the Son of the Highest: and the Lord God shall give unto him the throne of his father David:
33 And he shall reign over the house of Jacob for ever; and of his kingdom there shall be no end.
34 Then said Mary unto the angel, How shall this be, seeing I know not a man?
35 And the angel answered and said unto her, The Holy Ghost shall come upon thee, and the power of the Highest shall overshadow thee: therefore also that holy thing which shall be born of thee shall be called the Son of God.
36 And, behold, thy cousin Elisabeth, she hath also conceived a son in her old age: and this is the sixth month with her, who was called barren.
37 For with God nothing shall be impossible.
38 And Mary said, Behold the handmaid of the Lord; be it unto me according to thy word. And the angel departed from her.” Luke 1:26-38 KJV

According to your word. Mary knew that it was only necessary for God to speak a word for things to happen.

Words are filled with power – power to create or power to destroy. The writer of Proverbs penned it this way

“ A man’s belly shall be satisfied with the fruit of his mouth; and with the increase of his lips shall he be filled. 21 Death and life are in the power of the tongue: and they that love it shall eat the fruit thereof.” Proverbs 18:20-21 KJV

This is why it’s so important that we “fast” those words that are critical and condemning. We don’t want to end up eating our unkind words, we need to feast on words that life giving.

Our casual approach to the spoken or written word can undermine our faith. My favorite Bible verse, Numbers 23:19 focuses on the importance and power of God’s word.

“God is not a man; he will not lie. God is not a human being; his decisions will not change. If he says he will do something, then he will do it. If he makes a promise, then he will do what he promised.” Numbers 23:19 ERV

When God speaks His word – it comes to pass. He has faith in what He has said and that’s why Mary could have such life-changing faith in the message that Gabriel brought her from God. We can have that same conviction and faith in God’s words.

At Christmas, and throughout the year, make your words a gift. A gift that brings life and encouragement. A gift of forgiveness and peace. A gift of kindness and love!

“Don’t let me do wrong on purpose, Lord, or let sin have control over my life. Then I will be innocent, and not guilty of some terrible fault.14 Let my words and my thoughts be pleasing to you, Lord, because you are my mighty rock and my protector.” Psalms 19:13-14 CEV

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The Gift of a Humble Heart

The last few mornings I have been reminding you of some of the wonderful gifts that our gracious, loving Father has given to us but now I’d like to ask you to consider giving a gift to Him.

I’m sure you have already started making your Christmas gift list. It’s something we all do…this for Mom, that for Dad, and the kids want the latest and the greatest.

But really the reason we give gifts at Christmas is because of the Father’s great gift to us that first Christmas. The gift of His love, wrapped in human form, bringing life and relationship to us all.

Look at your Christmas list again and see if you find the Father’s name on your list. That’s what I did this morning. I asked “Father, what would you like this Christmas season?” The answer came quickly.

“You don’t really want sacrifices, or I would give them to you. 17 The sacrifice that God wants is a humble spirit. God, you will not turn away someone who comes with a humble heart and is willing to obey you.” Psalm 51:16-17 ERV

The Father wants humble hearts. Hearts that are open to His leading. Hearts that have more room for Him and less room for self. We become selfish with our hearts when we’ve been hurt. We block out a part of our lives and leave it to harden – hardened against the memories and the pain.

But when we do that, we also block it off to the Father’s healing touch. Let me ask that we take time to ponder, meditate, think on strongly this. How many times have we hurt or ignored the Father? Has He closed off His heart to us? Has He refused to forgive even though we haven’t apologized?

No, never!

So the gift the Father desires from us is a heart willing to obey His word. He has told us we need to forgive 70×7. He has told us “to take no account of the evil done to us”. He has told us, if we come to Him he will heal our broken hearts – that means we let go of bitterness. We can love as He loves.

This morning, I see the Father urging us to bring Him our gifts of broken hearts, broken lives, broken dreams and letting Him, not just fix what’s broken, but give us new hearts, new lives, new dreams. Beauty for ashes. Joy to replace our mourning. A garment of praise for our heaviness.

“Pray to the Lord, and he will hear you. He will save you from all your troubles. 18 The Lord is close to those who have suffered disappointment. He saves those who are discouraged.” Psalm 34:17-18 ERV

So start your Christmas Season. Start by giving what you have been holding back and then receive what He came to give. These verses tell us why Jesus came to earth:

“The Spirit of the Lord God is on me. The Lord has chosen me to tell good news to the poor and to comfort those who are sad. He sent me to tell the captives and prisoners that they have been set free. (2) He sent me to announce that the time has come for the Lord to show his kindness, when our God will also punish evil people. He has sent me to comfort those who are sad, (3) those in Zion who mourn. I will take away the ashes on their head, and I will give them a crown. I will take away their sadness, and I will give them the oil of happiness. I will take away their sorrow, and I will give them celebration clothes. He sent me to name them ‘Good Trees’ and ‘The Lord’s Wonderful Plant.’” Isaiah 61:1-3 ERV

Give the Father your gift of a humble heart. It will put a big smile on His face!

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The Gift of Strength

Don’t you love looking at the presents under the Christmas tree? There are all shapes and sizes, some in plain paper and others with big fancy bows. As a kid it was torture to have them out too early and yes I admit there was one year in particular that my sister and I opened some to see what was inside and then carefully wrapped them again.

The gift I’m giving you this morning also comes in all shapes and sizes and so I’ve included several boxes for you to open. I have for you this morning the gift of strength. Yes, strength. Lots of different examples in the Bible for you to see on this one.

Most notably we have Samson who destroyed God’s enemies with his great strength. But we must also be reminded of Noah who took on a huge construction project with just his 3 sons to help; David, a young shepherd who killed a lion, bear and a giant; Elijah, the prophet, who called down fire from heaven, defeated 400 prophets of Baal and outran Ahab’s chariot all in the same day. Then there was the woman who had bleeding condition for over 17 years and she faced a hostile crowd to get to Jesus; Paul was shipwrecked numerous times and was also beaten for his preaching but he kept going. Peter needed moral strength and failed when he denied Christ but went on to be a powerful preacher after the Lord forgave him.

The Bible is full of examples for people needing and finding strength; some was physical strength, while other strength came in the form of courage and mental fortitude. Some challenges were common and others were life threatening; sickness, emotional distress, financial ruin, failed relationships, fractured families, perilous circumstances.

Any of those sound familiar? God is so practical. He isn’t just concerned about the “religious” part of our lives, He desire is to fill every area of our life with His life changing relationship. I’m going to take a moment to run through a few Scripture verses on strength so bear with me.

“He giveth power to the faint; and to them that have no might he increaseth strength.” Isaiah 40:29 KJV

“The Lord is my strength. He saves me, and I sing songs of praise to him. He is my God, and I praise him. He is the God of my ancestors, and I honor him.” Exodus 15:2 ERV

“God is my strength and power: and he maketh my way perfect.” I Samuel 22:33 KJV

“Behold, thou hast instructed many, and thou hast strengthened the weak hands.” Job 4:3

” God is the one who gives me strength. He clears the path I need to take.” Psalm 18:32 ERV

“Wait on the Lord: be of good courage, and he shall strengthen thine heart: wait, I say, on the Lord.” Psalm 27:14 KJV

“God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble.” Psalm 46:1

“The Lord is my strength and song, and is become my salvation.” Psalm 118:14

“But he replied, “My kindness is all you need. My power is strongest when you are weak.” So if Christ keeps giving me his power, I will gladly brag about how weak I am.” II Corinthians 12:9 CEV

“Christ is the one who gives me the strength I need to do whatever I must do.” Philippians 4:13 ERV

“But they that wait upon the Lord shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings as eagles; they shall run, and not be weary; and they shall walk, and not faint.” Isaiah 40:31 KJV

Each verse is like opening another package – more treasures inside each one – more strength when it’s needed.

I don’t know what situations are working to deplete your strength today but I do know the one who steps in and takes over when we feel we have come to the end of what we can do. Instead of coming to the point of exhaustion start out by saying this little prayer.

“Father, today I don’t want to operate in my power. I’m prone to fail. I want to have Your strength in all that I do, in every situation I want to depend on You and Your abilities.”

Enjoy the gift of His strength!

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God’s Presence – Our Gift

I’ve really been reflecting on God’s presence in my life. How many times have I known that He was there when I was facing trouble? How many times has He kept me safe and rescued me while traveling on the freeway and the highways of our land? It is impossible for me to number or even remember all the times that He has protected me during my life.

Yes, His presence has truly been my gift.

I do remember one time that I would like to share. Dave and I were working 900 acres of alfalfa for an absentee owner. We did it all; the swathing, raking, baling and the roadsiding. Dave did the mechanical upkeep on the equipment while I kept house and raised two young children. We did have an irrigator and Dave did teach a lady to drive the roadside after we had been there for a while but between the two of us we did most all the work. The ranch we lived on was in the Arizona desert south of Phoenix about 60 miles in a little town called Arlington.

We started cutting hay when it was tall enough in March and didn’t quit until we got frost in December or January. During the hottest part of the summer we were cutting every 21 days and our average was 10 cuttings a year. We didn’t have the equipment that put out the big round bales. Our balers popped out little loaves of 110 pound bales. We ran night and day. Have you ever heard the expression you can’t make hay while the sun shines, well in Arizona that’s very true. You have to bale at night when you have enough dew to make the alfalfa soft and moist so the leaves don’t fall off in the baling process.

Dave and I spent hours on equipment and we used that time to listen to cassette tapes of good Bible teaching. It kept us alert and we were feeding our souls at the same time. We had heard this one Bible verse and were definitely ready to put it to practice:

“I have given you the power to trample on snakes and scorpions and to defeat the power of your enemy Satan. Nothing can harm you.” Luke 10:19 CEV

If you’re familiar with desert life this is a tremendous verse. At this ranch we had scorpions but we had an abundance of rattlesnakes in our fields. One night Dave needed to change the irrigation water. I went with him and as he was walking down the ditch bank with his flashlight he stepped right on the back of a rattler. That snake didn’t strike but instead crawled away. Yes, God’s presence was our gift!

There are many more examples that I could share but in a small way it was there that we realized the God who delivered a young David from the giant Goliath, a Daniel in the lion’s den, 3 Hebrew teenagers in a fiery furnace, a young Esther in the palace of a king, a baby Moses in the Nile River, an unnamed demonic on the hillside, a harlot, a prostitute, a ship full of sailors, etc. is the same God and Father who kept us safe from harm.

“Your Spirit is everywhere I go. I cannot escape your presence. 8 If I go up to heaven, you will be there. If I go down to the place of death, you will be there.” Psalm 139:7-8 ERV

There’s no where that we go that God’s presence isn’t there with us.

“God is our mighty fortress, always ready (present) to help in times of trouble. 2 And so, we won’t be afraid! Let the earth tremble and the mountains tumble into the deepest sea. 3 Let the ocean roar and foam, and its raging waves shake the mountains.” Psalm 46:1-3 CEV

“Don’t be afraid. I am with you. Don’t tremble with fear. I am your God. I will make you strong, as I protect you with my arm and give you victories.” Isaiah 41:10 CEV

“Jacob, the Lord created you. Israel, he made you, and now he says, “Don’t be afraid. I saved you. I named you. You are mine. 2 When you have troubles, I am with you. When you cross rivers, you will not be hurt. When you walk through fire, you will not be burned; the flames will not hurt you. 3 That’s because I, the Lord, am your God. I, the Holy One of Israel, am your Savior…”Isaiah 43:1-3 ERV

Flood, fire, freeways – scorpions, snakes, shipwreck, whatever it is God is there and His promises are as real for us as they were when they were written.

Open the gift of God’s presence! It’s a place of great joy.

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A Thankful Heart

Just about to wrap up the 7 weeks of thankfulness but I can only hope that by now it has created a desire in you to live a life filled with thankfulness and of commitment to the Lord.

In the book of Daniel there are several incidences where the King stopped all that he was doing to give thanks to Daniel’s God, the true God. It leads to me ask if my relationship with the Lord causes those around me to praise God – do they see God working in my life in such a tangible way they are thankful?

“Then Nebuchadnezzar said, “Praise the God of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego. Their God has sent his angel and saved his servants from the fire! These three men trusted their God and refused to obey my command. They were willing to die instead of serving or worshiping any other god. 29 So I now make this law: Anyone from any nation or language group who says anything against the God of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego will be cut into pieces, and their house will be destroyed until it is a pile of dirt and ashes. No other god can save his people like this.” 30 Then the king gave Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego more important jobs in the province of Babylon.” Daniel 3:28-30

The 3 Hebrew young men had refused to worship an idol made of gold and were thrown into a firery furnace. God saved them and the verses above are the king’s reaction to what he saw God do. The king made a law that said no one would be able to speak against their God. He saw the power of God at work in their lives and he gave praise to God. What he didn’t realize is that you can’t legislate a lifestyle of righteousness & morality. It comes from relationship.

I have to tell you that I was ready to get up this morning and share a thought on “unplugging”. Not unplugging from our relationship with the Lord but just unplugging from things that drain us. And then I was going to tell you that I would be unplugging from the morning devotional and blog for the next week. I wanted the opportunity to sleep in and get some good rest. Yep, I was going to take time off but as I was trying to word my thoughts correctly, I kept hearing verses like “don’t get weary in doing well” and the “joy of the Lord is your strength”. Then there was “those who wait on the Lord have their strength renewed” and finally

“Don’t worry—I am with you. Don’t be afraid—I am your God. I will make you strong and help you. I will support you with my right hand that brings victory.” Isaiah 41:10 ERV

Once again I found my strength renewed because my strength doesn’t come from the amount of sleep I receive each night it comes from the Lord God who empowers me for each day and from the joy I find in Him and doing what He has called me to do. Being a Christ following person is a full time service and not just a recreational use.

As we come to the end of the daily teachings on Thanksgiving, I ask you this – does your lifestyle lead others to praise your heavenly Father? Do the people around you want to have a relationship with God because they can see how wonderful He is?

We’re here to be a light to the world so let others see Jesus in you.

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Thankful That God Plans Ahead

As I was reading in Isaiah this morning I was reminded of a time many, many years ago when Dave and I and Kim and Koy attended a Cowboy Campmeeting in Prescott, AZ. It was a wonderful gathering of ranch type folks at a campgrounds in the Prescott area. We had arena games for the kids, great food like only ranch wives know how to cook, music and poetry and good old fashioned Bible teaching. Well, Sunday morning we all gathered up under some sycamore trees and different ones began to give praise to the Lord for what He had done in their lives – some pretty dramatic, some more common but I’ll never forget one old preacher who put everything in perspective for me that morning.

He was a preacher, maybe 80 years old, Bill Owen Sr. His son, Bill Owen Jr, was a well-known cowboy artist. Pastor Bill started out, “I would just like to thank the Lord for good planning. You see about 75-80 years ago He saw fit to have this stand of sycamore trees planted from a little seed. He watched over them and watered them down through the years because He knew that we would all be out here on this Sunday morning in August and that we would be giving Him praise. He also knew it was going to be a warm day so He made sure we had these trees for shade. Yep, God is a good God.”

That type of simplicity impacted my life. I decided right then and there that I was going to look at things from an eternal perspective – one where God had always been involved in what was going on around and where He would always be working things out to provide for my smallest need, even my need for shade.

This is what Isaiah wrote about in chapter 25 of his book:

“You, Lord, are my God! I will praise you for doing the wonderful things you had planned and promised since ancient times.
2 You have destroyed the fortress of our enemies, leaving their city in ruins. Nothing in that foreign city will ever be rebuilt.
3 Now strong and cruel nations will fear and honor you.

4 You have been a place of safety for the poor and needy in times of trouble. Brutal enemies pounded us like a heavy rain or the heat of the sun at noon,
but you were our shelter.” Isaiah 25:1-4 CEV

Take a look around today. What do you see that makes you realize God’s been planning this for your benefit? The Lord’s been thinking about you since eternity past and He has made plans just for you.

“I say this because I know the plans that I have for you.” This message is from the Lord. “I have good plans for you. I don’t plan to hurt you. I plan to give you hope and a good future. 12 Then you will call my name. You will come to me and pray to me, and I will listen to you.” Jeremiah 29:11-12 ERV

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Thankful for Invitations

Not long ago we returned from a vacation to Texas. Dave and I went last year and made plans to return again this year. We had been invited by my brother and his wife to come for a visit. So we loaded up the truck and headed to Texas.

We made a few stops along the way but our main objective was to get to their home. Several times before our trip my brother and I would talk and he would ask me what we wanted to do while we were there. My answer was the same – we just want to spend time with you and Monte. It was so enjoyable to sit on their patio and talk. We didn’t need anything any more special than that.

Spending time with people you love! What could be better?

As people we really have nothing more valuable to give than our time. It’s the only commodity we possess that we can’t gain more of. When we invite folks to our home we are honored that they give us their time. It’s a true sign of love! And when we are invited to spend time with our family and friends, we recognize it to be the same.

So, do you think the Lord is any less honored when we spend time with Him? He asks us to come – come for a visit. He has a universe to run but when we come He drops everything to spend time with us.

“If you are tired from carrying heavy burdens, come to me and I will give you rest. 29 Take the yoke[ I give you. Put it on your shoulders and learn from me. I am gentle and humble, and you will find rest. 30 This yoke is easy to bear, and this burden is light.” Matthew 11:28-30 CEV

The Lord issues the invitation freely and He isn’t going to withdraw it because of other commitments or obligations.

“Everything and everyone that the Father has given me will come to me, and I won’t turn any of them away.

38 I didn’t come from heaven to do what I want! I came to do what the Father wants me to do. He sent me, 39 and he wants to make certain that none of the ones he has given me will be lost.” John 6:37-39 CEV

The invitation isn’t for a select few but the invitation from the Lord is for everyone – everyone!

“All you people who are thirsty, come! Here is water for you to drink.
Don’t worry if you have no money. Come, eat and drink until you are full!
You don’t need money. The milk and wine are free.
2 Why waste your money on something that is not real food? Why should you work for something that does not really satisfy you? Listen closely to me and you will eat what is good.
You will enjoy the food that satisfies your soul.
3 Listen closely to what I say. Listen to me so that you will live. I will make an agreement with you that will last forever. It will be an agreement you can trust, like the one I made with David—
a promise to love him and be loyal to him forever.” Isaiah 55:1-3 ERV

The invitation the Lord sends out to us is for everyone and it’s a promise that His love will last forever! Here the Lord is saying, Come to Me, return to Me and I will forgive all. My ways are differ than your ways. I don’t hold grudges. My love is unconditional. My word has power; it is precise. It is like a seed planted My word brings forth fruit.

Yes, I’m truly grateful for heaven sent invitations!

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Don’t Worry – Be Happy!

Time to start a new week. What’s on your calendar today? Bring strength to your life today. Bring health to your body. Don’t let stress or “dis – ease” rob from you today!

Be thankful – focus on God and what is has done and is able to do and live in peace, joy, health and strength.

” Nehemiah said, “Go and enjoy the good food and sweet drinks. Give some food and drinks to those who didn’t prepare any food. Today is a special day to our Lord. Don’t be sad, because the joy of the Lord will make you strong.” Nehemiah 8:10

” A merry heart doeth good like a medicine: but a broken spirit dries the bones.” Proverbs 17:22

“The Lord gives perfect peace to those whose faith is firm. 4 So always trust the Lord
because he is forever our mighty rock.” Isaiah 26:3-4

So many times we end up thinking that if we live a godly life we’ll be missing out on all the fun. However, just the opposite it true. God will show us the answer to our problems and fill our lives with joy and pleasure! If you are anxious, worried, stressed out and don’t know which way to turn – hang out with God today – there’s joy, pleasure and peace in His presence.

“You will show me the path of life, in Your presence is fullness of joy; at Your right hand are pleasures forevermore.” Psalm 16:11

Let the Lord fill your life with joy and bring you pleasure today!

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He Knows My Name

From time to time I like to watch movies I’ve seen before on television. One that I particularly like is “Ever After” with Drew Barrimore. Cute movie – close to the end Henry, the prince, realizes he can’t live without Danielle, Cinderella, so he rides out to save her from her indentured life to Jacque LePew.

As he comes up the hill to the fortress walls, she is walking out, having gained her own freedom. He apologizes, tells her he loves her and can’t live without her. She stops him in his conversation and says, “Say that again.” He starts to apologize again for failing to trust her and then she says “No, not that. Say the part where you call me by name again.” And then he says her name, Danielle, and declares his love. AWWWW!

There is nothing so sweet than to hear the one you love say your name. It stirs the heart and words can’t explain fully explain the feeling it gives you. WOW! It is completely over-the-top.

I’ve been reading about Samuel and how God called him to service.
“The boy Samuel was Eli’s helper and served the LORD with him. At that time the LORD did not speak directly to people very often. There were very few visions…. 4 The LORD called Samuel, and Samuel answered, “Here I am.” 5 Samuel thought Eli was calling him, so he ran to Eli and said, “Here I am. You called me.”
But Eli said, “I didn’t call you. Go back to bed.”
…Finally, Eli understood that the LORD was calling the boy. 9 Eli told Samuel, “Go to bed. If he calls you again, say, ‘Speak, LORD. I am your servant, and I am listening.’”
So Samuel went back to bed. 10 The LORD came and stood there. He called as he did before, saying, “Samuel, Samuel!”
Samuel said, “Speak. I am your servant, and I am listening.”I Samuel 3:1-10

Can you imagine? The voice of God calling your name, what a joy! God who created the universe knows my name.

Then I remembered that God called others by name as well. It started with Adam & Eve; Noah, David, Daniel, Jeremiah, Zacchaeus, the disciples, Mary at the garden tomb, Saul on the road to Damascus and John on the Isle of Patmos; all of these and more had that same wonderful experience of hearing God call them by name.

See what Isaiah says to the children of Israel.
“Descendants of Jacob, I, the LORD, created you and formed your nation. Israel, don’t be afraid. I have rescued you. I have called you by name; now you belong to me.
2 When you cross deep rivers, I will be with you, and you won’t drown.
When you walk through fire, you won’t be burned or scorched by the flames.
3 I am the LORD, your God, the Holy One of Israel, the God who saves you. I gave up Egypt, Ethiopia, and the region of Seba in exchange for you.
4 To me, you are very dear, and I love you. That’s why I gave up nations and people to rescue you.
5 Don’t be afraid! I am with you.” Isaiah 43:1-5

God the Father has called us by name as well. Yes, He has! In His love He called our name telling us that He has a plan for our lives; a plan to be in fellowship and relationship with Him; a plan of adoption so that we can call Him “Abba Father.”

Hearing God speak your name shouldn’t be a one time experience, limited only to the day you accepted Him as Savior. How sad it would be if I only heard David say my name the one time when he made me his wife. No, daily he says my name and tells me he loves me and it never gets old.

Daily God is calling our name and telling us He loves us. Do you hear it or are you too busy and distracted?

Take time to listen…and take time to respond. Can you imagine how it thrills His heart to hear you say, “Abba Father, I love you. I want to spend time with you today.”?

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We’re Protected – Under His Wings

Remember when you were little a thought there might be monsters under the bed? As a child, I was plagued with nightmares. Until one night I made friends with the biggest monster in my dreams. After that whenever I would have a nightmare I would just call on my monster friend and he would come scare off all the other monsters that were there to hurt me. When I saw the movie Monsters Inc, I was reminded of my friend because he looked a lot like Sulley.

But now I don’t make friends with monsters, instead I can rely on the Father and His Word.

“3 For [then] He will deliver you from the snare of the fowler and from the deadly pestilence.

4 [Then] He will cover you with His pinions, and under His wings shall you trust and find refuge; His truth and His faithfulness are a shield and a buckler.

5 You shall not be afraid of the terror of the night, nor of the arrow (the evil plots and slanders of the wicked) that flies by day,

6 Nor of the pestilence that stalks in darkness, nor of the destruction and sudden death that surprise and lay waste at noonday.” Psalm 91:3-6 AMP

In this day of terror plots, road rage, random shootings and all the mayhem that is loose in our world, not to mention the daily dangers we are exposed to, living in the power of God’s Word is such a comfort.

These are the verses above from the Complete Jewish Bible.

“he will rescue you from the trap of the hunter and from the plague of calamities;
4 he will cover you with his pinions, and under his wings you will find refuge;
his truth is a shield and protection.

5 You will not fear the terrors of night or the arrow that flies by day,
6 or the plague that roams in the dark, or the scourge that wreaks havoc at noon.” Vs 3-6

The way I see it, the Lord promises to protect us from hidden peril – from the things we can’t see. A bird doesn’t see the trap until it’s caught and plagues come without advance warning.

Then He also protects from disasters that can be seen. The picture in verse 4 is that of a mother hen or bird that sets herself down over the top of her chicks to protect them from danger. She risks her own life and cuddles her young under her wings. Isn’t that what Jesus did for us? He gave His own life to protect us from the ravages of sin and its effects.

“What shall we then say to these things? If God be for us, who can be against us?

32 He that spared not his own Son, but delivered him up for us all, how shall he not with him also freely give us all things?

33 Who shall lay any thing to the charge of God’s elect? It is God that justifieth.

34 Who is he that condemneth? It is Christ that died, yea rather, that is risen again, who is even at the right hand of God, who also maketh intercession for us.

35 Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or sword?” Romans 8:31-35 KJV

No matter what time of day – night, daylight, or noon day, the Lord promises to be there and be our protection. When my children were little, Dave and I would pray with them and over them each morning before they headed out to school. We would pray these verses over them then and we still do now. But now we’ve added their spouses and our grandchildren. Just the other day our daughter was protected from being hit by a car as she was out jogging and I have no idea how many times our son has been protected as he has been at work, he’s a firefighter in a very busy city.

We have traveled hundreds of thousands of miles, literally, in our vehicle without ever having an accident. We’ve been in the presence of danger many times and not even known it until later and then we saw how God’s hand protected.

We can take these verses as our own and use them to bring a covering of protection for our families as well. God’s word is true; He does not lie! But it doesn’t just come automatically we have to appropriate it – we have to believe it. Just like the electricity that comes into our homes; it’s there but we will sit in the dark and the cold unless we turn on the switch and put the power to work.

Turn on the switch in prayer and watch the power of God work in your life! Let me end with this. God’s thoughts and ways are higher than ours – His plan of protection is better than ours. As the rain is higher than the earth and comes down to cover the earth; God’s ways are higher than our thinking and He rains down His protection to cover us.

“For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways, saith the Lord.

9 For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways, and my thoughts than your thoughts.

10 For as the rain cometh down, and the snow from heaven, and returneth not thither, but watereth the earth, and maketh it bring forth and bud, that it may give seed to the sower, and bread to the eater:

11 So shall my word be that goeth forth out of my mouth: it shall not return unto me void, but it shall accomplish that which I please, and it shall prosper in the thing whereto I sent it.

12 For ye shall go out with joy, and be led forth with peace: the mountains and the hills shall break forth before you into singing, and all the trees of the field shall clap their hands.” Isaiah 55: 8-12 KJV

God’s word will cause our lives to bring in a crop of good fruit – it will cause us to prosper and our lives to be filled with joy and peace.

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