“No Weapon!”

January 4, 2020February 6, 20205 Comments

No weapon! It’s not hard to see,
Every one that’s formed, propelled against me.
It’s vanished, thrown into the dust.
It won’t prosper, in the Lord I trust.

I am fortified in the Holy Ghost.
Your condemning tongues falsify your boast.
Darts aimed, ready to take flight.
Target unreached, by His might.

Shielded in the heritage, I belong to the Lord.
Bought with a price I could not afford.
Redeemed and covered, renewed to excel.
All arrows and swords, He did dispel.

“No weapon formed against thee shall prosper; and every tongue that shall rise against thee in judgment thou shalt condemn. This is the heritage of the servants of the LORD, and their righteousness is of me, saith the LORD,” Isaiah 54:17

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“Joy to the World – He Came!”

December 25, 2019December 20, 2021Leave a comment

Image by Pixabay

“Joy to the world, the Lord is come!
Let earth receive her King;
let ev’ry heart prepare him room
and heav’n and nature sing,
and heav’n and nature sing,
and heav’n, and heav’n and nature sing.” (Isaac Watts)

Christmastime, as they say, is the most wonderful time of the year. Christmastime often brings with it sweet thoughts and times of reminiscing with loved ones over the years past. There’s a celebration of joy in the atmosphere that isn’t felt as prominently during other times of the year.

But, I’m here to tell you that Christmastime is so much more than an emotional response to a holiday and family. It’s more than the gathering of sweet fellowship and food.

Christmastime is a declaration of all God has wanted to do for mankind since the time He created him. It’s the time we celebrate God’s love on display in holy determination to have that relationship with man that He so desired.

Christmastime is a celebration of the healing. There was a rift that was torn by sin between God and man – now it comes together in an era of reconciliation and peace.

Isaiah prophesies of the means by which God ushers this in. He said, “For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given: and the government shall be upon his shoulder: and his name shall be called Wonderful, Counseller, The mighty God, The everlasting Father, The Prince of Peace,” (Isaiah 9:6). This is the very foundation of the Christmas story. Matthew picks it up and tells us in the New Testament,” And she shall bring forth a son, and thou shalt call his name JESUS: for he shall save his people from their sins,” (1:21). Mankind had fallen short of the glory of God, but this little baby had an assignment on His life to save people from their sins!

The Christmas story tells us that He is the fulfilled prophesy that states, “Behold, a virgin shall conceive, and bear a son, and shall call his name Immanuel,” (Isaiah 7:14). We see that come to pass in Matthew 1:23 which states He shall be called “Emmanuel, which being interpreted is, God with us.”

Down forty-two generations He traveled (Matthew 1:1-17) to be with us. That’s why the carols ring out, “Veiled in flesh the Godhead see; hail th’incarnate Deity, pleased with us in flesh to dwell, Jesus, our Immanuel,” (Hark! The Harold Angels Sing – Charles Wesley). He was that “Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us, (and we beheld his glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father,) full of grace and truth,” (John 1:14).

That’s why Luke lets us know, “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: And he shall reign over the house of Jacob for ever; and of his kingdom there shall be no end,” (Luke 1:32-33).

This is what the Christmas story is all about. Joy to the world – He came!

The Bible declares, “And she brought forth her firstborn son, and wrapped him in swaddling clothes, and laid him in a manger; because there was no room for them in the inn,” (Luke 2:7). He was shunned by the world with no one to care for Him other than Mary and Joseph. Nonetheless, He came!

The angels proclaimed that night, “For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Saviour, which is Christ the Lord,” (Luke 2:11). The deliverance of all mankind made His way into the world. God’s plan of salvation broke through the flesh of humanity to rescue in the Spirit.

Joy to the world – He came!

God incarnate manifested Himself in the humility of man. He stepped off His throne in glory to dwell with a sinner like me. He pulled off His royal attire to associate with the filthy dregs of this life.

Joy to the world – He came!

Christmastime we celebrate His birth; we rejoice in His coming. But, that’s not the end of the Christmas story.

He came once so that He could come back again. The first time He came He was encapsulated in His mother’s womb, riding on a donkey toward Bethlehem to be born. But, the true end of the Christmas story is the next time you see Him, He won’t be that same baby from the womb riding with His mama on a donkey. He’ll be standing in the air riding the clouds of heaven.

The first time He came He was wrapped in swaddling clothes. The next time you see Him, He will stand before you as the King who broke free from the grave clothes that tried to bind Him, gaining the victory over the grave; gaining the victory over sin and death.

The first time He came only a few lowly shepherds and a few little wise men came to honor Him and pay tribute to the miracle that occurred on that night. The next time you see Him, “Every knee should bow, of things in heaven, and things in earth, and things under the earth; And that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father,” (Philippians 2:10-11). That same baby they ignored. That same baby they refused to find room for, their mouths are going to open and declare that HE IS LORD!

We celebrate the Christmas story as the ultimate gift of God’s love toward humanity. “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life,” (John 3:16).

But, the Christmas story is more than the celebration that He came. It stands as a reminder every year that if He came once as He said He would, then He’s coming back – just like He said He would!

We love this time of year. There’s no greater feeling than the fellowship and gifts of love shared. But, once the gifts are unwrapped and once the food is eaten and people return to their homes; let the Christmas story remind you, the King came once, and the King will return once again.

In preparation for His return, I must ask, “Have you received His Gift?”

Joy to the World – He came. And, He’s coming back again. That’s the true end of the Christmas story.

Have a Merry Christmas Everyone!!!!

“Be A Teacher”

May 28, 2019Leave a comment

Image by Brian Propst from Pixabay

“We will not hide them from their children, shewing to the generation to come the praises of the Lord, and His strength, and His wonderful works that He has done,” Psalm 78:4

As a parent, I value what my children are being taught, not only in school but in life. I care about what they see and hear, and what information is being processed in their minds. Our age of technology has a lot to offer. A lot of ways to take things in but, as with food, everything that goes in is not good for you or your children.

Over and over again in the Bible, we see the importance of passing the wonderful truths on that we have learned. I don’t care who you are. I don’t care what your socioeconomic status is or what is your educational background, there are valuable experiences in you that come from living this life, things worthy to be passed on, to enrich another’s life with what you have learned.

The cool thing about it is there are others who may not be in your family but can still reap the rewards of what you have lived through. They can glean off of what you have personally gone through to gain a better understanding of the world we live in and the God we serve. You have something valuable to teach those all around you. Your life becomes the classroom.

“Shewing to the generation to come.” What can you show them? Are there pitfalls that one can avoid if they follow your advice? Are there mountains another can summit by walking in your example? You, yourself, have learned some stuff along the way. Why not leave something along the pathway of this journey (Hansel and Gretel), for another to follow? Don’t hide it, show it! Don’t keep it all for yourself, mentor another. Give them a good foundation to start off on.

Don’t think within yourself, “I have nothing to offer.” You have lessons learned from your whole life. God saw value in you, to bring you through this far. Let your life lead those who are coming behind you. Breadcrumbs, if you will, on the road to help another find their direction. Each of us has within us the ability to be a teacher. To live a life others will want to follow. To teach others the lessons learned. You have a voice, literal or not, let it be heard. Don’t shake your head at the generation coming after you. Show them there is something better.

Let them know why you praise God the way you do. Let them know of “His strength, and His wonderful works that He has done!” Let them know! “Ye that make mention of the Lord, keep not silence,” (Isaiah 62:6). We are losing a generation of believers – NOW IS NOT THE TIME TO BE QUIET! Let the truth of your faith ring loud. If you don’t do it, then who will? Who will you leave the job to? Isn’t that the problem now? The responsibility of who should do this is being shuffled around leaving no clear pathway. I say we all need to stop the shuffling because this is not a game of cards. This is about life! We all need to be more active in our individual roles as teachers, models, tutors, mentors – no matter what you call it, actively seek to be a participator and not a spectator. Roll up your sleeves and get your hands dirty. There’s a lot of potential in those coming after us. Potential that none will ever see unless someone is willing to teach them the way.

“FLY!”

August 29, 2018May 22, 2020Leave a comment

REST! Is it really a lost commodity among our culture? In our hurried, never-sitting-still-society-for-fear-of-being-run-over-by-society, you would think it is. That speaks of physical rest, but what of the rest of one’s soul? A time where one can enjoy some peace and quiet on the inside instead of always feeling like their world is in turmoil.

I think many of us can really relate to that need of rest. Sometimes, we wish we could do like Jesus and stand before the storm and say, “Peace, be still,” and literally make every wave of adversity shut its mouth! I know you want to. I do, too! It just becomes too much to deal with at times and the need for space, to breathe, to come out from under all this mess becomes an overwhelming factor.

God bless you if you can’t relate to what I am saying here. For most of us the challenge of dealing with daily schedules, mess, and problems leave us feeling totally surrounded. As if, no matter what direction we turn there is something there to prevent one from really enjoying that rest.

“And I said, Oh that I had wings like a dove! for then would I fly away, and be at rest,” Psalm 55:6

Oh, but if I had two wings! I would fly! The idea of rising above every problem and adverse circumstance is very tantalizing. Right there I begin to form a mental picture in my mind of me soaring. Below me is everything that tries to come against me. All those problems and schedules are trying to reach up and grab hold of me, but it can’t! I have risen too high for them. I have learned how to fly above it all!

The problem with that is it is fantasy. Oh, that it was real. While we are living on this side of glory we are always going to have something to deal with, but that still doesn’t mean we can’t fly. Isaiah 40:31 emphatically declares, “They that wait upon the Lord shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings as eagles . . .” God never promised to remove every problem from our lives but, what He did say, is that He will renew the strength of those who turn to Him in the midst of it all.

God is strong in power and there is none like Him, Isaiah 40:25-26. We recognize today, that though I may not have suddenly sprouted two wings coming out of my back when I rely on His power, it is as if I am already soaring! And, that my friends, is real rest! It is a confidence that fills the heart and lets me know that I don’t have to feel beaten down and worn out. God’s got this! He sees what I am going through. Psalms 5:11-12 says, “Let all those that put their trust in thee rejoice: let them ever shout for joy, because thou defendest them: let them also that love thy name be joyful in thee. For thou, Lord, wilt bless the righteous; with favour wilt thou compass him as with a shield.” I may not have two physical wings on the outside, but on the inside, I’m flying higher than it all. Why? Because though it may seem at times that I am totally surrounded, I serve the Lord God Almighty who is able to “compass” me “as with a shield.” Therefore, today, I can fly!

“Be A Teacher”

May 30, 2017May 30, 20177 Comments

“We will not hide them from their children, shewing to the generation to come the praises of the Lord, and His strength, and His wonderful works that He has done,” Psalm 78:4

As a parent, I value what my children are being taught, not only in school, but in life. I care about what they see and hear, and what information is being processed in their minds. Our age of technology has a lot to offer. A lot of ways to take things in but, as with food, everything that goes in is not good for you or your children.

Over and over again in the Bible we see the importance of passing the wonderful truths on that we have learned. I don’t care who you are. I don’t care what your socioeconomic status is or what is your educational background, there are valuable experiences in you that come from living this life. Things worthy to be passed on, to enrich another’s life with what you have learned.

The cool thing about it is there are others who may not be in your family, but can still reap the rewards of what you have lived through. They can glean off of what you have personally gone through to gain a better understanding of the world we live in and the God we serve. You have something valuable to teach those all around you. Your life becomes the classroom.

Let them know why you praise God the way you do. Let them know of “His strength, and His wonderful works that He has done!” Let them know! “Ye that make mention of the Lord, keep not silence,” (Isaiah 62:6). We are losing a generation of believers – NOW IS NOT THE TIME TO BE QUIET! Let the truth of your faith ring loud. If you don’t do it, then who will? Who will you leave the job to? Isn’t that the problem now? The responsibility of who should do this is being shuffled around leaving no clear pathway. I say, we all need to stop the shuffling because this is not a game of cards. This is about life! We all need to be more active in our individual roles as teachers, models, tutors, mentors – no matter what you call it, actively seek to be a participator and not a spectator. Roll up your sleeves and get your hands dirty. There’s a lot of potential in those coming after us. Potential that none will ever see unless someone is willing to teach them the way.

“Shaped by God”

January 2, 2017January 1, 2017Leave a comment

We are now two days into our New Year. This is a time when people feel a release of the old year falling away and with that, newness springs to the foreground declaring better for the year to come. Here in America there are two prominent items on almost everyone’s list that receive the most attention for declaration of newness in the year to come: bodily exercise and organization. Throughout all the holiday festivities and the preparing of the celebrations those things have been packed away in a small corner of the mind and forgotten about.

Think about it. We have all of these holiday celebrations back to back that have strong emphasis on food (as if we needed a reason to put emphasis on it). Then, think about all the hustle and hubbub of making sure every detail falls into place. As a matter of fact, let’s roll the clock back a little further to the time of school going back into session. From then on it seems one rushes through the whole fall season and winter celebrations – eating, and because of all the rushing, becoming all the more disorganized.

So, the New Year has arrived and we’ve made it through, but left in its wake is all the clutter, chaos, and extras that we have either packed on or let go of. It is at this very point one resolves that it has to be better than this. “I can’t take this anymore! I have to do something about it.”

Unfortunately, for any positive change to take place there has to be a yielding first. Uh oh, that’s where those resolutions and declarations begin to crumble. Soon they will be packed away and not thought of again until we are in the hustle and bustle of the next holiday season. Why? Because many want the results that those resolutions can produce without the giving up of stuff that causes those resolutions to crumble.

The same is true with our walk with God. God wants to take us into His loving hands and fit us for His kingdom. What that means is that God has a great victory for us but for us to reap the rewards of it we have to let Him have His way in our lives.

I was watching one of the food channels on TV one day. They went behind the scenes to see how various foods and snacks are made. One of the snacks they reviewed was taffy. Have you ever seen taffy being made? After mixing the sugar and ingredients together there is this big blob of sweet goodness left. This blob is then fed into this funky looking machine with weird arms that turn this way and that. Then, those arms pull and pull and pull some more until the blob has thinned out to be used as something else. From this state it can take on various sizes, shapes and molds, but not without being pulled first. The taffy blob had to yield to those mechanical arms so that the arms could design it to be what it needed to be.

That’s what God wants us to do. As uncomfortable as it may seem some of the time, He wants us to yield to the work He is trying to do in our lives. He’s pulling and stretching, but also shaping us into the man and woman of God that He wants us to be. Why would He do that? So, we would be of good use to His kingdom and His kingdom purposes here on earth. Instead of mechanical arms He uses His loving hands to make us over.

Unlike those resolutions we make that work on the outside of man – to make it look better and more organized – we need to resolve to let God have His way and fit us on the inside. To allow Him improve the structure of the inner man. When God created you and me, He knew already where He wanted us to be in life. He knows our beginning from the end. He has a plan to get us from point A to point B. Our job is to let Him perfect the process in us. Resolve to yield and let Him shape you from the inside out.

I do not speak against getting fit and in shape. Oh, boy, is it necessary “but godliness is profitable unto all things, having promise of the life that now is, and of that which is to come,” (1 Tim. 4:8). When we let God make us over, we are not only in shape physically for this world, but also spiritually for “that which is to come.” I, for one, don’t mind being blessed on both sides. What about you? Do you mind being blessed on both sides? Then, as the clay in the potter’s hands let God shape you today.

“No Weapon!”

September 17, 2015January 4, 2020Leave a comment

No weapon! It’s not hard to see,
Every one that’s formed, propelled against me.
It’s vanished, thrown into the dust.
It won’t prosper, in the Lord I trust.

I am fortified in the Holy Ghost.
Your condemning tongues falsify your boast.
Darts aimed, ready to take flight.
Target unreached, by His might.

Shielded in the heritage, I belong to the Lord.
Bought with a price I could not afford.
Redeemed and covered, renewed to excel.
All arrows and swords, He did dispel.

Word For Life Says…

God's Word for Your Life Today!

Tag: Isaiah

“No Weapon!”

“Joy to the World – He Came!”

“Be A Teacher”

“FLY!”

“Be A Teacher”

“Shaped by God”

“No Weapon!”

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