Even Before You’re Settled

Today’s message comes to us from Psalm 105. It is another one recounting God’s presence with, and for His people. The psalm is a long one, but I’m focusing on verses 12-15; reading from the ESV.

“When they were few in number, of little account, and sojourners in it, wandering from nation to nation, from one kingdom to another people, he allowed no one to oppress them; he rebuked kings on their account,
saying, “Touch not my anointed ones, do my prophets no harm!”

There’s a powerful revelation in this scripture. Even before we are settled into the kingdom of Heaven, while we’re still wandering from one thing to another, one person to another, one belief to another, etc., God is still watching over us. When you read, “touch not my anointed ones, do my prophets no harm,” keep in mind that you were destined to be an anointed one, a preacher, a pastor, a prophet, a choir leader, etc., from the beginning. Another interesting, and powerful revelation here is this: God will rebuke a KING, a leader, an authority, etc., on your account. And, He did that before you came home and got settled in. See? When Jesus said, “Fear not, it’s the Father’s good pleasure to give you the kingdom,” He meant it. It was a done deal when Jesus said, “It’s finished.”

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Happy Father’s Day

When my youngest was born, this show was the rage! My baby girl took her time getting to know Daddy, and until she did, this was pretty much her attitude: “You are NOT THE MAMA!” Yes, she did become Daddy’s Girl. LOL! When I found this pic, I couldn’t resist! God bless you, Daddies!

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Saturday Silly – June 19, 2021

I just realized that I haven’t been camping since 2007. That’s waaaaay too long! I was reminded of a couple of times when we thought we were beating the crowds at the popular camping spots. They turned out like this…

Yes, I know I’m homeless…that is NOT camping! That’s a crying shame; especially, considering the circumstances behind it!

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Write Them Down

Today’s message comes to us from Psalm 103.. King David wrote it, and it is so awesome! The first five verses, alone, just get your spirit stirred up. Beginning with verse 2-5: “Bless the LORD, O my soul,
and forget not all his benefits, who forgives all your iniquity, who heals all your diseases, who redeems your life from the pit, who crowns you with steadfast love and mercy, who satisfies you with good so that your youth is renewed like the eagle’s.” Forget not His benefits. Make a list, just like the one in this psalm. There’s more all throughout the psalm. Those verses just kind of sum it all up for us.

The rest of the psalm lists more of those benefits, and tells us how much God loves us, and how compassionate and tender He is toward us. (V8-14) “The LORD is merciful and gracious, slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love. He will not always chide, nor will he keep his anger forever. He does not deal with us according to our sins, nor repay us according to our iniquities. For as high as the heavens are above the earth, so great is his steadfast love toward those who fear him; as far as the east is from the west, so far does he remove our transgressions from us. As a father shows compassion to his children, so the LORD shows compassion to those who fear him. For he knows our frame; he remembers that we are dust.”

I had an incredible experience in the spirit, over this very psalm. My father-in-law was in a nursing home, and dying. He was afraid to die, because He didn’t believe that God could really forgive Him for the things he’d done. My sister also happened to be his daughter-in-law, and she visited him regularly. I never went to the nursing home, myself. I referred her to the 103rd psalm, when she expressed concern about his being afraid to die. She visited him twice more, but each time, he was asleep, and didn’t wake up. I copied the psalm down on a piece of paper, and put it under a prayer candle. I would light the candle and pray that psalm for him. One night, approximately 1: 30 a.m., my baby girl woke up for her bottle, and since I was awake, I decided to pray for him again. Laying beside her, I began to pray. I almost always say the Lord’s prayer before I pray other prayers; so I began to pray the Lord’s prayer. Suddenly, I was standing in my father-in-law’s room at the nursing home. I called out His name, and He said, “Who’s there?” I called out His name again, and then I said, “In the Name of Jesus Christ, our Lord, your sins are forgiven; accept your peace.” Right then I woke up, and it was about 7 a.m. My father-in-law passed away at approximately 1:30 a.m. the next morning. Verse 19 of the psalm says, “The LORD has established his throne in the heavens,
and his kingdom rules over all.” That includes time and space.

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How Great Thou Art

Today’s message comes to us from Psalm 104; another one extolling God’s great love and power.

I hope you’ll read the psalm, and check each and every thing listed in it out. This psalm reminds me of a day when I stood in the ocean’s tide. Let me tell you how to get a clear picture of how immense God is: Stand in the ocean for a few minutes. I was absolutely overwhelmed with awe; awestruck, I was! I can also recall more than a few nights spent looking up at the moon and stars in the sky. In Montana, you can see them quite clearly. They blew me away every time I looked at them.

As you begin to think about all the things God does, and how much He loves His creation, you can suddenly find yourself snuggled up really close to Him. LOL Oh, my goodness, what an awesome God, and what an awesome love. And, oh, LORD/Lord, thank you so much for everything you are, and everything you do! If this psalm doesn’t stir your spirit up to absolute awe and sheer joy in being God’s child, I don’t know what will. Read it from the ESV; that’s the most up to date translation.

I can only think of one song to go with this message. Thank you, Lauren Daigle, for this beautiful rendition.

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Blamelessness Brings Power

Today’s message comes from Psalm 101. It’s an awesome reminder of God’s love for us, and of His standard and boundaries for us.

The very first and second verses are our focus. ” I will sing of steadfast love and justice; to you, O LORD, I will make music. I will ponder the way that is blameless. Oh when will you come to me? I will walk with integrity of heart within my house;” Singing of God’s steadfast love and justice keeps our spirit stirred up, and our faith strong. Pondering the way that is blameless means that we do not impute, or assume wickedness or ill intent to anyone or anything, until we’ve checked things out thoroughly. When we impute wickedness or ill intent, we automatically create a negative environment. Blamelessness, or neutrality, not forming a negative opinion about the person or the situation, brings us the power to diffuse the devil’s “darts,” and to learn (truth) from the person or situation. It also brings us the power and the opportunity to minister to that person (s) in that situation, empowering them, and bringing victory over the situation.

An example would be that spilled drink. Imputing ill intent would have us saying something negative like, “You’re so clumsy!” That’s a judgment and an accusation of carelessness. “What happened?” (seeking truth) “You spilled your drink.” (truth) Truth can empower responsibility. “Let’s get it cleaned up.” (empowerment) Victory! If you haven’t found out how it happened, especially when we’re dealing with a child, now would be the time to help him/her figure that out. (Put the cup too close to the edge of the table, not paying enough attention and forgot the cup was there, etc.) This empowers them with the knowledge that there is a way to avoid that happening, and helps them to be more mindful, which brings more confidence.

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Believe Him; Not Them

Today’s message comes to us from Psalm 100. It’s a short one, but a good one. I’m reading from the ESV.

“Make a joyful noise to the LORD, all the earth! Serve the LORD with gladness! Come into his presence with singing! Know that the LORD, he is God! It is he who made us, and we are his; we are his people, and the sheep of his pasture.4Enter his gates with thanksgiving, and his courts with praise! Give thanks to him; bless his name! For the LORD is good; his steadfast love endures forever, and his faithfulness to all generations.”

Verse three is the one I want to focus on. We hear so much negative stuff from people. We can have a lot of negative self talk going on. We’re dealing with the same thing Satan hit Jesus with when he came to tempt Him. “if you are the son of God…” Hmmm. Verse three tells us that we are God’s. God made us, and we are His people, and the sheep of His pasture.

If God made us, created us in His image, then we have all the attributes of God within us. We have all the power within us, we have all the possibility within us-because God is limitless. His glory is over all the earth. This is such a powerful weapon when fears, doubts, guilt, shames, etc., start to assail us. !Corinthians 13 gives us an idea of what God is. It’s the love chapter, and God is love. When you put that together with all the other things God is-you can find them in the Bible too, you can refute those negative darts of the devil every time. I have to tell you, though, you have to make a conscious choice to believe God, and not them. That’s where lists come in handy. Wherever you read “God is,” or “Love is,” or anything that describes God’s heart, power, thoughts toward man, etc., Say, “I am,” and then whatever the scripture says God is. You will be amazed at how much strength, peace, and joy you can gain.

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Love Like That…Cont’d

Today’s message comes to us from Psalm 99. It’s another praise, extolling God’s might, His works, and His heart for us. I hope you’ve gotten a little stronger assurance of God’s love over the last few posts. I posted this song some time ago, with one of my messages. The Holy Spirit moved me to post it again, for you to start your week out with. This is God’s heart for us, Let Him wrap His arms around you, and just bask in His love for you. Thank you, Joe Cocker, for your beautiful voice and style.

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Saturday Silly – June 12, 2021

As some of you may know, I come from a state where there is no sales tax. I say this because I recently purchased underwear for a friend of mine (I was running an errand for him). Boy, oh boy! First, I could not believe the purchase price for men’s underwear at some stores. They’re much more expensive than ours, ladies. What really got me, though, is that there is a sales tax on underwear. At first, I thought it was just a Las Vegas thing. You know, “Sin City,” so, if you want to wear underwear in this town, you’re gonna pay for it”, kind of thinking. But, when I researched this, I found out that only three states fully exempt clothing from sales tax. Some of the rest exempt some clothing, but tax other clothing. But, really, underwear?! C’mon now. That needs to be exempt. I mean, granted, one can choose to go “commando,” but there are times and places when that just doesn’t work. For instance, what if I’m standing over a subway grate in NYC? What if I’m wearing a dress that day?! OMG! Can you just see that?! Yeah…hmmmmmmm. Marilyn Monroe did that, and that’s how her dress got blown up around her hips, and it became an iconic photo! Thank goodness she was wearing undies. LOL Bit of trivia for you, in case you didn’t know. I love Marilyn Monroe!

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Love Like That

Today’s message comes to us from Psalm 98, and is a party in itself! Oh, what a wonderful example of joyous praise; and of a deep, deep love for the LORD/Lord! I’m reading from the ESV.

“Oh sing to the LORD a new song, for he has done marvelous things! His right hand and his holy arm have worked salvation for him. The LORD has made known his salvation; he has revealed his righteousness in the sight of the nations. He has remembered his steadfast love and faithfulness to the house of Israel. All the ends of the earth have seen the salvation of our God. Make a joyful noise to the LORD, all the earth; break forth into joyous song and sing praises! Sing praises to the LORD with the lyre, with the lyre and the sound of melody! With trumpets and the sound of the horn make a joyful noise before the King, the LORD! Let the sea roar, and all that fills it; the world and those who dwell in it! Let the rivers clap their hands; let the hills sing for joy together before the LORD, for he comes to judge the earth. He will judge the world with righteousness, and the peoples with equity.”

Sometimes it’s hard to understand just how deeply God does love us. We have a hard time allowing ourselves to be as intimate with Him as we are with our spouse, our children, all our loved ones. But, that’s exactly what God wants from us; that intimacy, that boldness when we approach Him, that confidence when we need Him, that trust. Of course, that intimacy isn’t possible unless and until we allow God into that deepest part of our hearts.

One thing I love about this psalm is that it beckons even to the rivers to clap their hands, the hills to sing for joy. The sea is bid to roar and make a joyful noise to the King, the LORD. It makes me think about waking up in the mountains, just before sunrise. You can hear everything waking up, and it all comes together in a symphony of praise to God. The water begins to gurgle and run a little faster, the wind begins to whisper through the branches of the trees, and sometimes you even hear a bird whistle out there. It’s one of the most beautiful experiences I’ve ever had. Each time we get a glimpse of God’s working in the world around us, we can see a little more of His deep, deep love for His creation. Even the colors of the sunrise and sunset are rich with His love for us; His desire to share His own beauty with us.

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