Generations Behind You

Today’s message comes to us from Psalm 112. It gives us a picture of just how much our faithfulness and obedience to God means to our children and grandchildren…and even theirs. Generations behind us can be blessed by our faithfulness and obedience. The psalm is a short one, so I posted the whole thing.

“Praise the LORD! Blessed is the man who fears the LORD, who greatly delights in his commandments!
His offspring will be mighty in the land; the generation of the upright will be blessed. Wealth and riches are in his house, and his righteousness endures forever. Light dawns in the darkness for the upright; he is gracious, merciful, and righteous. It is well with the man who deals generously and lends; who conducts his affairs with justice. For the righteous will never be moved; he will be remembered forever. He is not afraid of bad news; his heart is firm, trusting in the LORD. His heart is steady; he will not be afraid, until he looks in triumph on his adversaries. He has distributed freely; he has given to the poor; his righteousness endures forever; his horn is exalted in honor. The wicked man sees it and is angry; he gnashes his teeth and melts away; the desire of the wicked will perish!”

Boy, am I humbled reading this! And, boy, am I grateful when I read this; for those in the generations ahead of me, who were faithful and obedient. Thank you, LORD/Lord, for my grandmother! Thank you, Oma, for teaching me about God’s love, and for showing me His love in you!

Love you from Cafe du Mondieu

Sowing & Reaping

Today’s message comes to us from Psalm 85. It’s very encouraging, and hopefully, it will strengthen your faith and your commitment to God.

“LORD, you were favorable to your land; you restored the fortunes of Jacob. You forgave the iniquity of your people; you covered all their sin. Selah You withdrew all your wrath; you turned from your hot anger.” These are verses 1-3 of the psalm. (ESV) This is a reminder of our salvation; of God’s love for, and toward us. Look closely. God covered ALL of our sin, and withdrew ALL of His wrath, turning from His anger. That means when you do mess up, you can go boldly to the throne of grace, confess to Him, and be, not only forgiven, but be instructed and helped to make it right. (Heb. 4:16) Is that awesome?! Yes!

Verse 5 asks the questions: “Will you be angry with us forever? Will you prolong your anger to all generations?” That was answered in part, in the first three verses. God does not punish the generations behind us for our sins, or for the sins of our fathers, and so on. (Deut. 26:24) There’s a promise regarding generational curses in (Jeremiah 31:29). “In those days they shall no longer say: “‘The fathers have eaten sour grapes, and the children’s teeth are set on edge.’” That’s a promise that we can, and will overcome those generational curses, and all the dysfunction that comes with them, in our own generation, if we’re willing. Yay, for me and my kids, and so on, and so on!

Verses 8 & 9 are the key to making that happen. “Let me hear what God the LORD will speak, for he will speak peace to his people, to his saints; but let them not turn back to folly. Surely his salvation is near to those who fear him, that glory may dwell in our land.”

The last four verses of the psalm show us the sowing and reaping part. “Steadfast love and faithfulness meet;
righteousness and peace kiss each other.” When we show steadfast love, we reap faithfulness, because we’re empowering trust. “Faithfulness springs up from the ground, and righteousness looks down from the sky.” The world around us (from inner circle to community) reaps the benefits, as well. “Yes, the LORD will give what is good, and our land will yield its increase. Righteousness will go before him and make his footsteps a way. When we follow in God’s footsteps, which Jesus gave us a picture of, we’re leaving footprints for others to follow.

Love you from Cafe du Mondieu

Advice For The Royals

Today’s message comes to us from Proverbs 29; and since you are a king or queen in the earth, it’s for you.

Proverbs 29: 2 tells us “when the righteous flourish, people rejoice, but when the wicked rule people groan.” Proverbs 29:14 “If a king faithfully judges the poor, his throne will be established forever.” That tells me that there is joy in the admonition, encouragement, instruction, and discipline of the Lord. It also tells me that my children will benefit much more if I raise them under the admonition of the Lord. Just as people groan under wicked rulers (parents, boss, supervisor, mate, leader), all of creation is apt to suffer because of wicked rulers. The reason for that is found in Proverbs 29:7-“A righteous man knows the rights of the poor; a wicked man does not understand such knowledge.” This why we have things like pollution, affecting air, water, earth, and the ozone layer that protects us from the sun. Proverbs 29:4 tells us that a king builds up his land by justice, but one who exacts gifts, or *taxes heavily, tears it down. Justice is not only the aim in a court of law; it includes weighing all things out correctly, looking at a thing from all sides, in order to achieve what’s best for all. Exacting a gift is forcing someone to give something to you. This is the cause of most rebellion; even in our children. Force, or duress, is not conducive of peace, which is necessary for learning. Proverbs 29:15 tells us that the rod and reproof give wisdom. The rod, in this case, is used to measure growth, progress, correctness of action. Reproof is instruction meant to correct thinking and action. Isn’t it much easier to learn something when you are made aware of your error(s) and helped to understand the correct way? Proverbs 29: 19 addresses that. “By mere words a servant is not disciplined, for though he understands, he will not respond.” But, by instruction, and with help, correction can come about. The spilt milk example fits well here. We help the child to clean up the mess, and then figure out how to avoid spilling the milk again. Punishment needs to fit the crime. {You broke the window, and must pay to replace it.} Proverbs 29:12 is an admonition to be careful who you surround yourself with; and to check facts. “If a ruler listens to falsehood, all his officials will be wicked.” Proverbs 29:22 shows us the value of peace. “A man of wrath stirs up strife, and one given to anger causes much transgression. Ever wonder why your children seem to go from being in trouble to being in more trouble, to being in even more trouble? There’s a difference between loving discipline and harsh punishment. Proverbs 29:23 tells us that “One’s pride will bring him low, but he who is lowly in spirit will obtain honor.” I think of (Matt. 20:28) when I read this one. Jesus came to serve; not to be served. He gave His life to ransom all who believe and receive Him. Proverbs 29:25-26 “The fear of man lays a snare, but whoever trusts in the LORD is safe. Many seek the face of a ruler, but it is from the LORD that a man gets justice.” This is a warning against falling into “people pleasing,” or even expecting people to be pleased with you, actually. Trust in the LORD because He teaches us justice. (Right understanding, correctly weighing things out).

Love you from Cafe du Mondieu

Bold As A Lion

Today’s message comes to us from Proverbs 28. Proverbs 28:1 tells me that I am bold as a lion. As a child of God, I should be. Jesus is called the Lion of the tribe of Judah. I’m being conformed to His image. My God says I have nothing to fear because He is my refuge and my strong tower, my help in times of trouble. Jesus also promised He will never leave me or forsake me; but He’s with me always. There’s also that first verse in Psalm 27, where King David asks, “Whom shall I fear? Of whom shall I be afraid?” God is our light and our salvation.

Keeping that in mind, Proverb 28:2 gives us a clear picture of whom should be our leader; or what kind of leadership we should have: “When a land transgresses, it has many rulers, but with a man of understanding and knowledge, its stability will long continue.” Turn a couple of things around here: “When a land has many rulers, it transgresses.” This speaks, not only of idolatry. “Blessed is the nation whose God is the LORD.” (Psalm 33:12). When you think about opposing views (Mom says no, Dad says yes), too many things on the agenda (Distraction), and everyone trying to run the show (everybody’s job gets done except his/her own-and you have constant friction as a result of personal agendas), what you have is a big mess waiting to happen. All that stuff inspires confusion, anger, bitterness, envy, and malice. (2 Cor. 13:11) – “Finally, brothers and sisters, rejoice! Strive for full restoration, encourage one another, be of one mind, live in peace. And the God of love and peace will be with you.” As parents, you cannot create a stable and peaceful environment if you’re not of one accord, and constantly oppose each other. Stability, knowledge, and wisdom go hand in hand; each one empowers the others.

Proverbs 28:4, 5, and 10 remind us that our duty, and especially as parents, is to fight wickedness; to strive against it. The knowledge of the LORD brings us the understanding of justice, we’re told in verse 5. Verse ten is a revelation about sowing and reaping. “Whoever misleads the upright into an evil way will fall into his own pit, but the blameless will have a goodly inheritance.” Parents will suffer the consequences of misleading their children into sin. (teen pregnancies, drugs and alcohol, sloth, disrespect, idolatry, etc.) Proverbs 28:13 is a powerful revelation about what might be hindering your progress; especially in terms of overcoming. Proverbs 28:18-19 remind us that integrity (truth,honesty), which requires boldness, by the way, delivers us from sin. This is also a two-fold thing. Integrity should also help you recognize your sin, and help you overcome it. Proverbs 28:23 tells us that correction is better than flattery. We prosper as our soul prospers. You are your land. Be bold as a lion in maintaining its standards and boundaries!

Love you from Cafe du Mondieu

Saturday Silly – January 16, 2021

My goodness, what a week it’s been! I had my cardiology appointment; hit the floor running to make it on time. I don’t know why, but it seems as if the buses are crawling along at fifteen miles an hour whenever you need them to hurry. Then, some of them go at breakneck speed, only to jump on the brakes with both feet and all their body weight behind them. Passengers and baggage come up out of the seats. LOL I think they need to serve cocktails on some of those buses, just like they do on airplanes. Speaking of airplanes, I was on a bus the other day, and there was a car wash just short of the stoplight. This guy was out front waving a white rag like crazy. I couldn’t figure out if he was trying to flag us down, or land a plane…we are right by the Air Base.

There are some characters on the buses, too. We passed a construction site, and someone asked what they were building there. A lady on the bus said, “Its an Amazon Warehouse.” “Oh,” replied the guy, “what’s if for?” “It’s where they’re going to lock up all the strong and angry women,” replied the lady. LOL

I got my ID renewed recently. I couldn’t believe it when I got the new card. My goodness; I need to get some good facial serum and face cream. My grandbabies will be calling me Grandma Sharpei. Sure enough, I sent a friend a selfie – of myself, and he texted me back: “Can she sit up and beg?” Hmm, maybe I could get one of the kids to take me to the dog shows; I could use the money. Ah, never mind…I can’t wag my tail like that anymore. Besides that, I’m not going to sit up and beg for anybody!

Love you from Cafe du Mondieu

Rule Them, Indeed

First, back to Psalm 2:9 -“Ask of me, and I will make the nations your heritage, and the ends of the earth your possession. You shall break them with a rod of iron, and dash them into pieces like a potter’s vessel.” If you look at all the nations of the world, all the different cultures, beliefs, religions, standards and boundaries (moral, social, familial, etc.), you’ll see why it’s important that you be able to break them and dash them into pieces.

This verse tells us a couple of things. First, the nations and the ends of the earth are our heritage. That means they can be of benefit to us. We can learn from other cultures, beliefs, and religions. We can also be led astray by them, as the nation of Israel was through intermarriage with people of foreign cultures. (The lands they journeyed through and were supposed to dispossess) Some cultures have very different standards and boundaries, social and familial practices, and some religions are idolatrous, and may even involve witchcraft and sorcery. Some of the ancient religions involved human sacrifice, especially the sacrifice of children. We know that this is not Godly. We also know that some things considered the norm for others, are not going to work for us. Just because a bunch of folks do it, doesn’t make it right; or even beneficial. This is where the rod of iron (Word of God) and dashing things into pieces comes in. The things that are of no use to us, those that will harm us, those that go against God and Godly wisdom, etc., are the things we need to throw out. This works the same way in generational curses. Those things that are/were harmful need to be thrown out and replaced with God’s ways, according to God’s standards and boundaries.

That brings us to Psalm 3:1-7 “Oh, Lord, how many are my foes! Many are rising against me; many are saying of my soul, “There is no salvation for him in God.” Have you ever been laughed at by peers because of your faith, or because you wouldn’t do something they thought was o.k. to do? Many will try to tell us that God’s ways are old fashioned, outdated, actually even oppressive and hateful. But God is a shield around us, and the lifter of our heads. It almost always turns out in the end, that obedience to His Word, and sticking to His ways, was the right thing to dos. I say, “almost,” only because some of those results we won’t know until we get to Heaven. Verse 7 of Psalm 3 tells us that God will silence and disarm the enemy. It never fails, when the enemy causes you to doubt or fear, God’s Word will show you the truth, and empower you to stand on the truth; dispelling the fear and the doubt.

Finally, Proverbs 3 gives us a lists of all the benefits we gain from allowing God to teach us, and keeping to His teaching, and keeping His commandments in our hearts. Whenever I read about God’s commandments, I think of Jesus’ words: “So in everything, do to others what you would have them do to you, for this sums up the Law and the Prophets.”

Thank you, Casting Crowns, for this inspirational song!

Love you from Cafe du Mondieu

Learning To Wait

Today’s message from God Calling – A.J. Russell, reminds us that the waiting is the hardest part. I just had that little talk with Jesus this morning. I was praying and surveying some situations, and I said, “Lord, I need an acre of land. Jesus, please!” I could almost hear His laughter. That’s when He reminded me that He’s the boss; and that he knows better and has better timing than I do. Now, He’s hearing my laughter as I’m loving Him for confirming that little reminder of this lesson this morning.

Getting into the habit of just reminding myself of God’s sovereignty, wisdom, will, and power, helped me so much in this waiting area. It’s something I used to have to do quite often. After awhile, it gets you to the point where you can just say, “Never the less, Lord, not my will, but thine be done.” (Luke 22:42)

This message ties in with yesterday’s message about true success, and with my post from Oct. 28th, about looking for, or at, the glad surprises (the candy bar) in God’s pocket. Together, all three give us a clearer picture of God’s love for us, and empower us to learn the value of waiting on Him.

Love you from Cafe du Mondieu