Take Delight In It

Today’s message comes from Psalm 119, as we are ascending to a stronger walk with God. Reading from the ESV.

Beth (Verses 9-16)

How can a young man keep his way pure? By guarding it according to your word.
With my whole heart I seek you; let me not wander from your commandments!
I have stored up your word in my heart, that I might not sin against you.
Blessed are you, O LORD; teach me your statutes!
With my lips I declare all the rules of your mouth.
In the way of your testimonies I delight as much as in all riches.
I will meditate on your precepts and fix my eyes on your ways.
I will delight in your statutes; I will not forget your word.

Here’s a reminder of the power of hearing the Word spoken. (Romans 10:17) Speaking that word sends it out, or into your heart. It’s also a little like a mantra that affirms our relationship and faith in God and His Word. When we meditate on God’s Word, His ways, and statutes, God can open up the scriptures to us, and empower our lives in various different ways. My example of this would be when I realized that I am Zion, spiritually. The Bible makes reference to a man being like a city, and when that revelation hit me, it changed my life. It is the revelation of God, more and more, in His Word and through His Word, that brings us delight. We are to serve the LORD/Lord with joy, and oh, what a joy it is to see more and more of God’s face through His Word.

Love you from Cafe du Mondieu

Copyright by Marina Morrison (aka) Eden Stillwater, July 5, 2021, 1:58 p.m.

You Cannot Serve Both

Today’s message from God Calling – A.J. Russell, bids us to ask ourselves whether we are serving God, or serving money/riches. Mammon, it is called in the Bible.

As I read the message, I recalled a conversation I had recently, about someone being refused a meal because they wouldn’t give up their personal information and register. They were told the reason was that if they didn’t register, the church couldn’t get paid for the meal by the government. Jesus tells us, in Matt. 6:24, that we cannot serve both God and money. Either we will hate one and love the other, or be devoted to one and despise the other. This is very true. We prove it. I don’t think there’s a Christian that hasn’t experienced this conflict in one way or another. And, the love of money will definitely cause conflict in your life. With it comes debt, deceit, stress, all kinds of stumbling blocks.

Some of us who have held down two, and sometimes three jobs, just to make ends meet, know what a cruel Lord money can be. Work, work, work; and there’s still nothing left over, and still no chance of getting ahead. Some of us have fallen into the prestige and power trap. We sold ourselves to the “up and coming crowd;” the “Haves.” Some of us got caught up in the money trap because we tried to replace our self respect and/or dignity with stuff, stuff, and more stuff. We have to be very careful with our attitudes about money/mammon, because mammon is a very sneaky adversary. I say that, because the spirit behind it and the world’s ideas of wealth, are at work for the powers, principalities, and hosts of spiritual wickedness in the heavens. In reality, it is only sidewalk. It’s what the streets in Heaven are paved with.

Solomon said that money answers everything. It does. It pays the rent, puts food on the table, fills the car with gas, etc. But, money is to serve us; not vice versa. Keeping our attitudes about it in line with God’s Word, and practicing good stewardship/management, are the keys to staying free of bondage to it. There’s also that checklist of things like pride, fear, greed, and the like, to reckon with. We can easily fall into the money trap by way of these.

Love you from Cafe du Mondieu

Copyright by Marina Morrison (aka) Eden Stillwater, September 8, 2020, 12:19 p.m.