This Present Darkness…

Has been with us for such a long time already. Today’s message comes to us from Psalms 12. Psalm 12 gives us a picture of what happens when, as is told us in verse 8, what is vile is honored among the children of man. When I read about the lies and flattering lips, I think about some of the ways we’re lured into sin. In terms of generational curses, and dysfunction, I think about having learned all the wrong ways. I think about denial, living behind facades, etc. We live this way when we fear, doubt, or feel dejected. Those things are meant to put us beneath the devil’s feet. He is to be beneath our feet. I spoke about poverty of spirit in a previous message. Generational curses and dysfunction and denial plunder our spirit. We are robbed of dignity, sense of worth, or value, our confidence, self-respect, the power to choose, and power to BE ourselves. The word power here, denotes strength and capability. Pure words are true, they show the way, and they infuse us and empower us with life.

The powers, principalities, and hosts of spiritual wickedness , if you can picture it, kind of circle humankind, like a shark circles its prey. They’re always ready to snatch their next victim. When what is vile is exalted among the children of man, we open doors to bondage and destruction of life/lives. Some of these things are demon worship, witchcraft, adultery, illicit sex, hedonism, pornography, hatred and violence, racism, sexism, etc. These things make everyone involved vulnerable to the bondage and destruction, or the fallout from them.

Check back tomorrow for the second part of the message on this Psalm. I found an interesting connection between verse 6 and proverbs 6, that brings an awesome revelation and lesson.

In this present darkness, and in honor of Martin Luther King Jr. who fought to bring light into it, I offer this song. Thank you, Jason Upton. This is so beautiful; and remember, we’re not alone either.

Love you from Cafe du Mondieu

The Poverty Of The Poor

Today’s message comes from Psalms and Proverbs 10. Psalm 10 is another list of the devices of wickedness and evil. We are warned about how evil lurks and slinks into our paths.

Proverbs 10 is a list of the blessings of wisdom; with some wise admonitions thrown in. Verse 15 of this proverb catches my eye. “The wealth of the rich man is his fortified city, but poverty is the ruin of the poor.” What?! Didn’t Jesus say, “Blessed are the poor in spirit.” Yes, He did. But, (3John 1:2) tells us: “Beloved, I pray that you may prosper in all things and be in health, just as your soul prospers.” You cannot give what you do not have. That’s why everything begins with receiving, and within. ” (Matthew 3:4-23) – Verse 19 “When anyone hears the message of the kingdom but does not understand it, the evil one comes and snatches away what was sown in his heart. This is the poverty of the poor. Being poor in spirit actually describes humility meekness; or willingness to learn and take guidance. Some things included in the list of poverty of spirit, or lack of and in spirit, include: courage, truth, instruction, discipline, knowledge, wisdom, diligence, perseverance, patience. Yes, lack of the desire to learn, to grow also fits in here. The wealth of that rich man, by the way, is a fortified city that evil cannot prevail against. He gets the knowledge, instruction, and guidance he needs regarding whatever he has his heart set on, so he achieves his goals, etc. He knows his God, and seeks God early; in other words, before the boat’s sinking.

Thank you, Hillsong, for this beautiful song!

Love you from Cafe du Mondieu

He Gave Us The Power

Today’s message comes to us from Psalms and Proverbs 8. Psalm 8 is a psalm King David wrote, glorifying the LORD. King David recognized, not only who God really is (our Heavenly Father), but also, he knew who he was, in the LORD. Verse 1 tells us God’s glory is set above the heavens – over the powers, principalities, and hosts of spiritual wickedness. There’s only so far they can go. Verse 2 tells us that God has ordained praise to silence the enemy and avenger. “Out of the mouths of children and infants” -that’s us when we’re reborn. Right then, the devil is rendered powerless to accuse and exact payment. Verses 5 & 6 tell us that we’re made a little lower than the angels, and crowned with glory and honor. He has made us ruler over the works of His hands! That means, in Jesus’ Name, the powers, principalities and hosts of spiritual wickedness (the spirits) are subject to us; they must obey. Jesus gave us the power to master good and evil, and gave us the same authority He has over the spirits.

The only thing I’m going to tell you about Proverbs 8, in this message, is that Jesus is the wisdom of God personified. You’ll see that in verses 22-31. The whole proverb is a list that shows us the benefits of seeking and embracing wisdom. I encourage you to delve into it. Verses 15 & 16 tell us that it is by wisdom that kings rule. We are kings and queens in the earth. Whether we rule/govern our homes, or our communities, wisdom is what empowers us to do so justly. *Our treasuries are spirit, heart, mind, and soul.

Thank you, Paul Wilbur, for such beautiful praises for me to sing to the LORD/Lord!

Love you from Cafe du Mondieu

You Are Hotly Pursued

Today’s message comes to us from Psalms and Proverbs 7. The first part of Psalm 7, 7:1-9 is a prayerful song sung by King David regarding his enemies. Verses 1&2 give a very clear picture of how hotly you are pursued by the hosts of spiritual wickedness in the heavenly places. “Lord my God, I take refuge in you; save and deliver me from all who pursue me, or they will tear me apart like a lion and rip me to pieces with no one to rescue me.” (1Peter 5:8) tells us: “Be alert and of sober mind. Your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour.” When you watch lions hunting, you’ll see they go into hot pursuit of their prey; they don’t stroll after it. Never take your souls safety for granted. Satan wants to destroy it.

What’s really awesome in this psalm is verse 8: “The LORD judges the peoples; vindicate me, O LORD, according to my righteousness and integrity.” You know that saying, “and idle mind is the devil’s playground?” Yeah, ever find yourself battling with the same thoughts over and over? My battle with that when I quit smoking comes to mind. Even long after I’d given cigarettes up, Satan was lurking and waiting to lure me back there. I had an argument with my husband one day, and the first thing that came to my mind was: “I should just start smoking again; that will show them!” The next thing that came to mind was, “That’s the stupidest thing I’ve ever heard!” I knew that my smoking would hurt me; not anyone else. (See how the Truth rushed in there?) The Holy Spirit nipped that one in the bud! When I think of this vindication, I think about catching my children doing right. Praise is doubly as important as reproof. Here’s why: Verse 9-“Put an end to the evil of the wicked, but establish the righteous, O righteous God who searches hearts and mind.” The more we celebrate our doing right, the stronger the desire to do right becomes, and the less power the lure of evil, the wicked, and sin has over us. *This works on adults who are being renewed in the knowledge of God, as well.

Proverbs 7 Speaks of the adulteress, but when in spiritual context, it is the lure of sin and sinners. This includes false religion, idolatry, peer pressure, etc.) When we make our children strong against these in the LORD/Lord and His Word, they’re better able to resist and walk away. (2Cor. 10:5) tells us: “We demolish arguments and every pretension that sets itself up against the knowledge of God, and we take captive every thought to make it obedient to Christ.” The more truth you have within you, the stronger you are to stand against the wiles of the devil; and against deception.

Love you from Cafe du Mondieu

If He Doesn’t, We Don’t Either

Today’s message comes from Psalm 5, and from Proverbs 5. Psalm 5 begins with a prayer, actually. “In the morning, you hear my voice; I prepare a sacrifice for you, and watch,” the psalmist says. Beginning your day with God is absolutely revolutionizing to your life! I can tell you that from personal experience. Try it for one month, and make sure you note the changes you begin to experience, in your attitudes, your strength, patience, etc.

Psalm 5:4 -6 tells us: “For you are not a God who delights in wickedness; evil may not dwell with you. The boastful shall not stand before your eyes; you hate all evildoers. You destroy those who speak lies; the LORD abhors the bloodthirsty and deceitful man.” If God doesn’t delight in it, we shouldn’t either. And, if you think about it, and are honest with yourself, none of us does delight in wickedness when we’re on the receiving end; do we? Sin, as I’ve said before, comes in three ways: 1. Sin others commit against us. 2. Sin we commit. 3. Sin fallout-which is the way the sin in the world affects us and our lives. But, we have a hope in Christ Jesus. Psalm 5:7-8 say to us, “I, through the abundance of your steadfast love, will enter your house…” This is a powerful revelation about the power of love and faithfulness. When we exercise love faithfully in our dealings, and are faithful to the Word of God; to His ways, we surround ourselves, and those we deal with, with protection against the sin and wickedness. The last two verses of the psalm are awesome! “But let all who take refuge in you rejoice; let them ever sing for joy, and spread your protection over them, that those who love your name may exult in you. For you bless the righteous, O LORD; you cover him with favor as with a shield.” There is jubilation and rejoicing over being loved. When we walk out our new life with the LORD/Lord, as we walk it out, there is, truly, less and less struggle, and more and more joy and peace.

Proverbs 5 is, again, a father’s admonition to his sons. This warns about “the forbidden woman.” if you think in terms of standards and boundaries, this woman represents false teaching, cults, and ways and practices that are contrary to God’s Word and His Ways. This includes some of those peers who consider themselves “cool,” and those friends who really aren’t your friends in the end. Proverbs 5:5-6 tell us what’s actually going on with them: “Her feet go down to death; her steps follow the path to Sheol; she does not ponder the path of life; her ways wander, and she does not know it.” The rest of the proverb tells us there are consequences to sin and iniquity. Iniquity is your attitude toward sin-be it your own, or someone else’s. Verse 22 tells us: “The iniquities of the wicked ensnare him, and he is held fast in the cords of his sin.” Lack of discipline is actually a destroyer. It causes us to struggle needlessly, and sometimes even destroys dreams and goals. That’s a powerful revelation to parents about letting our children just run amok. Lack of discipline makes your child ignorant, foolish, powerless, and easy prey for evil. It makes us easy prey for the devil.

Love you from Cafe du Mondieu

Whatever You Ask In My Name

Psalm 4 and Proverbs 4 are the focus of today’s message. Psalm 4 is actually a prayer of King David. Verse three tells us to “know that the LORD has set apart the godly for Himself;” and He hears when we call to Him. I love verses 7 and 8: “You have filled my heart with more joy than when grain and new wine abound. I will lie down and sleep in peace, for You alone, O LORD, make me dwell in safety.” This is how we deal with doubt, fear, confusion, etc. We go to the Word of God, and we stir ourselves up and strengthen our spirit through His Word. Jesus said to Satan: “It is written!” God’s word is alive an active, and filled with power. (Hebrews 4:12)

Proverbs 4 is actually a father admonishing his sons regarding gaining Godly knowledge and wisdom. We’re enlightened about the wicked and evil-doers (this includes the powers and principalities, and hosts of spiritual wickedness in the heavenly places). We are encouraged to avoid being swayed by them and their ways, and to stay on the right paths. “Make level paths for your feet,” we’re admonished. (Proverbs 4:26) This all works for daughters, by the way. LOL Isn’t it almost as if the LORD, Himself is speaking to us. Actually, He is; because all scripture is God-breathed, or inspired by God, Himself. Once again, thank you, Casting Crowns. I’ll never get tired of this song, either.

Love you from Cafe du Mondieu

Happy New Year

Happy New Year, everyone! I hope you all had a wonderful break…I know I did. Sometimes, you don’t realize how much you need a break until you get one. At any rate, Inspirations is back for another year; God willing.

I’ve been studying Psalms and Proverbs during my generational curses study. I thought I’d share some of what I’ve learned from them. The Bible is filled with stories of good kings who were followed by bad ones, and vice versa. Generational curses can affect anyone of us at any time, because we’re all under the original curse brought by Adam and Eve. I’m actually studying, and learning about parenting according to the admonition of the LORD/Lord.

We don’t really think much about it, but God is the absolute best parent anybody can have. When I began to deal with my issues according to God’s Word, I became able to actually make the right changes. I’m going to start with Psalm 1 and Proverbs 1.

Psalms 1:1-3 tells us: “Blessed is the man who walks not in the counsel of the wicked,
nor stands in the way of sinners, nor sits in the seat of scoffers; but his delight is in the law of the LORD, and on his law he meditates day and night. He is like a tree planted by streams of water
that yields its fruit in its season, and its leaf does not wither. In all that he does, he prospers.”

Sometimes the counsel of the wicked is the things we learned and habits we adopted in our own families, growing up. If you had parents who were alcoholics, drug addicts, or perhaps suffered from depression or some other mental illness, you probably were exposed to “counsel of the wicked,” to sin and maybe even scoffing-if you’re parents were non-believers and maybe hostile to Christianity. The key phrase in this scripture is: “his delight is in the law of the LORD, and on his law he meditates day and night.” This is what keeps us on the right paths, what teaches us the right ways, and what shows us when we’re going wrong. The promise is that we will prosper, or have success, in everything we do.

In Proverbs 1:1-7, we get the reason why we want to study God’s Word, and learn from Him, how to raise our children. When you grow up wounded within, you need to be the parent to that wounded child, and allow God to raise you up. That means you deal with the child within, the way God does; in the admonition of the LORD/Lord. The first thing I did was to study 1 Corinthians 13 – Love is…because God is love. I think this fits the message perfectly. Thank you, Chris Tomlin, for this beautiful song.

Love you from Cafe du Mondieu

Heaven On Earth

Today’s message from God Calling – A.J. Russell, reminds us that Kingdom of Heaven is a spiritual one. We war not against flesh and blood, but against the powers, principalities, and hosts of spiritual wickedness in the heavens. “Jesus answered, “My kingdom is not of this world. If my kingdom were of this world, my servants would have been fighting, that I might not be delivered over to the Jews. But my kingdom is not from the world.” (John 18:36) Literally, to bring the truths of the Gospels, of Jesus’ teachings to the world, is to bring Heaven to earth, then. Again, I have to cite Luke 4:18 -“The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he has anointed me to proclaim good news to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim liberty to the captives and recovering of sight to the blind, to set at liberty those who are oppressed..” This is what Jesus came to establish here; believers who would carry the message of truth and freedom to the lost and hurting. The message is a powerful one, and I hope you’ll read it for yourself at twolisteners.org

Love you from Cafe du Mondieu

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

Look Not To The Left Or The Right

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Today’s message from God Calling – A.J. Russell, bids us to walk by faith in Jesus’ keeping power.

God’s power will never fail us; but we fail to keep our minds fixed on Him. Again, Peter walking on the water comes to mind: “But when he saw the wind, he was afraid and, beginning to sink, cried out, “Lord, save me!” (Matt.14:30 -NIV) Looking neither to the left nor right, but keeping our minds and hearts fixed securely on our Lord and our Heavenly Father, is the way to get through every day with so much less stress! What a burden is lifted off one’s shoulders when we get this right.

The next thing that comes to mind is putting on the whole armor of God. (Eph. 6:13) I think the helmet of salvation and the breastplate of righteousness are the most important. You see, this is where our head and heart is at. The shield of faith and the sword of the Spirit-which is the Word of God, do us no good whatsoever, if we do not believe and receive that Word; that truth. This is where building our spiritual strength comes in. We have to feed our spirit with the truth; which is, that we are children of God, the head and not the tail, nothing can separate us from the love of God, and nothing can stop God’s purpose for you! If you have to write this down somewhere and read it aloud every morning, do it until it’s the first thought you think when you wake up. It works. Keep it with you and remind yourself that whenever you’re feeling anxious or stressed. Before you know it, you’ll be sailing through most of your days joyfully. Read about God’s love in the Psalms and the Prophets, about His keeping power, and about His fierceness in dealing with our adversaries. (powers, principalities, hosts of spiritual wickedness) (Eph. 6:12)

Love you from Cafe du Mondieu