The Lord will never leave you - Deu. 31:6

"Never alone, never alone

I'll be in every beat of your heart when you face the unknown.

Wherever you fly,  this isn't goodbye

My love will follow you, stay with you, baby,

you're never alone"

Jim Brinkman with Lady Antebellum

 

One of the sweetest moments of my whole life was dancing with our oldest son this past March at his wedding to our sweet Caroline Bailey.  He chose the above song and happily I wept when I first heard it so I could just delight in the dance when the time came (see below picture with him singing to me!).

 

 

The real truth is that God is the one who will never leave us alone...His love goes with us wherever we go.  Our verse today is said by Moses as he spoke to the people of Israel, as he was about to give over the leadership to Joshua.  Later, in Joshua 1, the Lord spoke similar words to Joshua, giving him courage to lead the people into the Promised Land.

 

When we are followers of Christ, His Spirit indwells us giving us power to think and do all that is right and good.  In the storms, in the struggles, in the conflict,  in the discouragement...all of these places He goes with us.  Max Lucado in TRAVELING LIGHT talks about being lonely and the things we do to satisfy our lonliness...often dangerous and destructive things.  This is what he says:

 

Why do we do it?  Because we fear facing life alone.  For fear of

not fitting in, we take the drugs.  For fear of standing out, we wear

the clothes.  For fear of appearing small, we go into debt and

buy the house.  For fear of sleeping alone, we sleep with anyone.  For fear

of not being loved, we search for love in all the wrong places.  But

all that changes when we discover God's perfect love.  You are not alone!

 

How about you...will you call upon the One who goes with you wherever you go?  See if He isn't just the perfect companion for your day!

 

For further study:  Psalm 23:4, 48:14, 121:5-8, 139:1-10, 145:18, Isaiah 52:12, Isaiah 58:11, Jeremiah 31:3,  John 14:16, John 15:4, 1 Thes. 4:17, Hebrews 13:5.

 

Be blessed in your understanding of God's word.

 

Love,

Holly



Be STRONG and take HEART, WAIT for the Lord - Ps. 27:14

Do you know there are different kinds of "waiting"?  I remember waiting for the birth of our children - painful at times.  I remember waiting for the surgeon to come out after suspecting cancer in my husband - pure dread.  I remember waiting for the marriage of our boys - pure joy.  The waiting our psalmist, David, often talks about in his writings is a different kind of waiting.  The Hebrew word is qavah meaning to "wait expectantly and hopefully".  A clue for us is in Ps. 27:13 where he says:  "I remain confident of this: I will see the goodness of the Lord in the land of the living".  His waiting had no fear, anxiety or dread.  His was confidence in his Lord which inspired his hope.

Andrew Murray in WAITING ON GOD says:

"...when we set ourselves to wait on God

we ought beforehand to resolve that it shall

be with the most confident expectation of

God's meeting and blessing us.  We ought to make

 up our our minds to this, that nothing was ever so

sure, as that waiting on God will bring us untold

and unexpected blessing."

 

When we resolve to do that, our faith is strengthened and that's when the power of the Holy Spirit begins its work.  I was at the gym this week, and even when my body was tired, Toby Mac began singing in my Ipod which caused me to not even think about my tired body.  All of a sudden, an unknown force began to cause me to soar and to revel in my work knowing what I was doing was a good thing...and in fact it was pretty easy and fun when that force took over!

 

That's what the Spirit does in us...gives us power to think and to do all that He plans (2 Tim. 1:7).  Think about what you are waiting for today..."Be strong and take heart and WAIT for the Lord".  How can you have that confidence and hope?  Know God and know His word.  Delve in today...no time like the present to start!  I can remember as a new pastor's wife learning to do Bible study and being absolutely amazed at how the Holy Spirit led me to truth (John 16:13)...my brain had never done very well in learning until the Spirit began to teach me.   Oh, friend, let Him be your strength! 

 

For further study:  Ex. 15:2, Psalm 40:1, Psalm 130:5, Isaiah 8:17, Isaiah 30:18, Isaiah 40:30-31, Lamentations 3:24-26, Romans 8:23-25, 2 Cor. 3:4-5, Titus 2:11-14

 

Be blessed in your understanding of God's word.

 

Love,

Holly

WISDOM... - James 3:17

If you asked ten different people "what is wisdom?", you would get ten different answers.  Today, wisdom is a lot of different things.  Like most of the issues of the day, we must all use some form of standard for what we think and do.  The Bible is full of references to wisdom...in fact, just for starters read the book of Ecclesiastes...12 short chapters full of guidance of what wisdom is and what it is not. I love especially 2:26...one of my alltime favorite verses:

To the person who pleases him,

God gives wisdom, knowledge

and happiness...

 

Who could ask for more? So, if one chooses to make the Bible your standard (and I do!), let's look at James 3:17 to see what it says about wisdom .  Even then there seems to have been some controversy over what wisdom was and he is quick to tell us what it is not.  Listen to what The Message says about "earthly" wisdom (14-16):

 

Mean-spirited ambition isn't wisdom.

Boasting that you are wise isn't wisdom.

Twisting the truth to make yourselves

sound wise isn't wisdom. 

 

No, here is what James, the brother of Jesus, said wisdom is:

 

...heavenly - the world says we have the ability to discern or judge - oh heavens...thank you, Lord,

that wisdom comes from you!

...pure - unpolluted by worldly ambitions or selfishness

...peaceloving - if at all possible, we work at getting along with others

...kind - we are considerate of others and work at being positive in others' lives

...merciful - we recognize the mercies we have been given and therefore, we are merciful

...fruitful - Jesus tells us to bear fruit that lasts (John 15:16) - that means we allow the Holy Spirit to develop His attributes in us (Gal. 5:22-23)

...sincere - we genuinely care about others and are genuine in our relationships

 

How wise are you?

 

For further study:  Psalm 111:10, Proverbs 3:7,  Proverbs 31:26, Daniel 12:3, Matt. 11:19,  Romans 11:33-36, 1 Cor. 1:25, Ephesians 1:7-10,  Colossians 2:3, 2 Tim. 3:14-15, James 1:5

 

Be blessed in your understanding of God's will.

 

Love,

Holly

 

 

 

God's mercies are new every morning - Lam. 3:23

"Say Yes to VBS" is one of the songs we will sing this week at Vacation Bible School.  I love the "freight train" that hit our church today - I love the energy and enthusiasm of the children and I will do my best to keep up!  Watching them do the  motions to "Change My Heart" was inspiring to me.
Our theme this year is "Facing Fear, Trusting God" and we will have the privilege of guiding these children to:
                 *  Dare to Change
                 *  Dare to Speak Up
                 *  Dare to Believe
                 *  Dare to Stand Strong
                 *  Dare to Trust

We want to offer them life through Jesus Christ in a world that is increasingly threatening.  Jeremiah, in the book of Lamentations, felt the same way.  In Chapter 2, he was weeping for the wounded children whose "...lives ebb away" (v. 12).  We could easily get discouraged, but like Jeremiah, we need not lose hope.  In his verses in Chapter 3:22-23, he says:

Because of the Lord's great love we are not consumed,

for his compassions never fail.  They are new

every morning; great is your faithfulness.

 

Every morning the VBS workers will wake up and cling to the promise that His mercies are new every morning...we are trusting that as we offer them hope through God's word, little seeds will be planted that will grow into mighty trees of faith that will equip them for all they have to do in their lives.  Pray with us for their salvation.  He greets us every day with His "great love"...what a wonderful gift we have!

 

For further study:  Exodus 33:19, Deuteronomy 4:31, Psalm 25:4-10, Isaiah 40:31, Matthew 28:19-20, Romans 9:14-18, Ephesians 2:4-5, 1 Thess. 5:23-24, 1 John 5:12

 

Be blessed in your understanding of God's word.

 

Love,

Holly

Have faith in the Lord - 2 Chron. 20:20

Our pillow today represents the words of a wonderful king from the Old Testament - Jehoshaphat.  He was one of the "good guys" and served faithfully.  He was a man of personal godliness and I believe we can learn much from him on facing our enemies.

He was warned that an army was coming against him and, to be honest, he was alarmed.  It's not that he didn't have some fear or concern.  However, he resolved right away to "inquire of the Lord"...good choice!  These are some things we can learn from him as he prayed publicly in the temple:

1.  He knew God's abilities were endless to help him.  (v. 6)
2.  He reminded himself of God's past help and covenant with his people. (v. 7-10)
3.  He acknowledged his weakness and yielded himself to God's great power. (v. 12)

They then worshipped and praised the Lord for what He was about to do.  It was early the next morning that they set out and Jehoshaphat said these words to encourage the people:

                       "Have faith in the Lord your God and you will be upheld...."

Now the best part: as they went out he assigned men to "sing to the Lord and to praise him for the splendor of his holiness" and to give Him thanks.  They sang as they went!  I love that...they didn't go forward fearfully for they were confident in the Lord's goodness and power.  Listen to Streams in the Desert:

Don't let the song go out of your life;

Though the voice may have lost its trill,

Though the quivering note may die in your throat,

Let it sing in your spirit still!

 

God gave Jehoshaphat such a miraculous victory, all the nations around them lived in fear and they lived in peace (v. 29-30).

 

How about you?  Will you resolve to seek the Lord today, to pray to Him and to sing as if your life depended on it?  How can we not!!

 

For further study:  Psalm 30:4, 63:5, 77:6, 89:1, Habakkuk 2:4, Luke 18:8,  Romans 3:22-24, Galatians 5:22-23, Ephesians 5:19, Hebrews 11:6.

 

Be blessed in your understanding of God's word.

 

Love,

Holly

 



Proverbs 31:10-31

Hello, friends.  Let me begin by saying my heart and prayers are with all those in Oklahoma devastated by this awful storm.  We can do something by praying and giving and I hope you will join  many around the world who are doing that.

Our items today are encouraging us to look at this very notable woman in Proverbs 31.  Whether she was a real person or whether she was a composite, we can use her as a role model today and we need not be intimated by her or compare ourselves to her.  We are all in different seasons of life and we don't know at what season she was when this was written about her.  What is most notable about this passage - for me - is not what she did but what she was.

Women today are overwhelmed with choices for themselves and for their families.  Kathi Macias in MOTHERS OF THE BIBLE SPEAK TO MOTHERS OF TODAY says: "...a successful life is more about timely priorities and wise choices".  God has designed each of us differently to accomplish different things.  The Proverbs 31 women was designed to do different things than us, but we were all designed  to "...love the Lord your God with all your heart..." (Deu. 6:5) and that is what made this woman such an accomplished woman.  Her work was accomplished because her heart caused her to make wise choices.  God has given us - you and me - everything we need to have hearts that want to please Him.  This woman was trustworthy, strong, honorable, fearless, joyful, kind, wise, praiseworthy and feared the Lord.  Guess what?  These are all ways we can be successful through an indwelling Spirit.  Ask Him for help in any of these areas.  It might be a good start to your day for the next week to ask for help in each of these items.

Whatever season of life you are in, whatever the tasks of your day are, and whatever difficult circumstances you face, He will give you the strength and dignity to do them.  May your beauty come from an inner heart that is in awe of Him. Several years ago The Daily Bread said: "righteousness in the heart produces beauty in the character".  Praying for you as you become beautiful!

For further study:  Deuteronomy 6:13, Nehemiah 8:10, Psalm 139:23, Proverbs 9:10, Proverbs 10:8, Jeremiah 31:33, Ezekiel 36:26,  Matthew 5:6,  Mark 12:30, 1 Corinthians 14:25, Colossians 3:23

Be blessed in your understanding of God's word.

Love,
Holly

My help comes from the Lord - Psalm 121:2

Do you ever ask yourself a question?  To go even further, do you ever answer your own questions?  Usually when I ask myself a question - and, yes, occasionally I do - it is because I don't have an answer.  Sometimes, just verbalizing it - to myself or to someone else - helps me to understand what my dilemma is.  However, being in my mid-60s I often forget what the question ever was before I can even consider an answer.  One of my signs in our home says "SIMPLIFY"...questions often complicate things.

Our psalmist today looked to the hills  to wonder where his help was coming from - we're not sure why.  One of the possible answers is there were places of  worship in the mountains and particularly those Israelites who were seeking God knew no other place to look. They also knew He created the "heavens and the earth" so they looked up to find Him.  The important thing to note is the psalmist knew where his help came from.  Six times in this psalm he talks about the Lord as his "guard".  Maybe he asked himself the question in verse 1 just so he could remind himself of the many ways our God helps and guards.

Who are you looking to for help today?  Did they create the heavens and the earth?  Did they hang the sun, moon and stars keeping them there for thousands of years?  Do they have everlasting love for you?  Did they know you when you were made in the secret place?  I think you get the idea...we look for help from the most unlikely sources.  Oswald Chambers says:

There is only One Being who can satisfy the

last aching abyss of the human heart, and that

is the Lord Jesus Christ."

 

We must stop thinking our help will come from any other source.  If we will draw near to Him, He will draw near to us.  We need no other lover of our soul.

 

For further study:  Exodus 14:14, Deuteronomy 31:6, Joshua 1:9, Psalm 46:1, Psalm 139:10, Isaiah 41:10, Isaiah 58:11, Ephesians 3:20, Hebrews 13:6, James 4:8

 

Be blessed in your understanding of God's word.

 

Love,

Holly