Thursday, July 24, 2008

Daughters: Let A Zeal for the Lord Awaken In Us

Prayerfully I find myself preparing for Bible Study, and once again find myself turning to Joyce Meyers as well as a few other Christian Authors to prepare this devotion for the Bible Study. Isaiah 54:13 reminds us that:13 All your sons will be taught by the LORD, and great will be your children's peace.I believe this is saying that if we raise our children up in the fear of the Lord, their lives will be different than if we did not teach them to fear the Lord at a young age, they will have a better sense of right and wrong if they are raised up as believers, not just raised up in the church, because as Joyce Meyers points out, I can stand in a Garage, that doesn't make me a car, anymore than going to Church makes me a Christian, but I am talking about raising children up in the genuine fear of the Lord.Joyce Meyers points this out:"Every time you make a right choice it affects a lot of people, and every time you make a wrong choice it affects a lot of people." Joyce MeyersAnother words our choices have affects on those around us.Joyce Meyers also points this fact out, the statement is true in every sense of the word."Alot of people have a relationship with the Church, not with Jesus." Joyce MeyersToday it seems alot of people are spending alot of time in the church without really being filled with the Saving Grace of Christ, they have not opened their hearts up and let him be their personal Savior, and sadly more churches in order to be "politically correct" are not preaching Pentecost.Isaiah 59:21 (New International Version)"As for me, this is my covenant with them," says the LORD. "My Spirit, who is on you, and my words that I have put in your mouth will not depart from your mouth, or from the mouths of your children, or from the mouths of their descendants from this time on and forever," says the LORD.As Woman of God, as Daughters of Christ, we have our place in the body, and we need to lead the future generations to Christ by the examples we lead.We need to remind our children, that Jesus would have died for you alone, because the Lord does not delight in seeing his children suffering, Jesus came to save the souls of sinners, every sinner, but we are given the choice, we are born with free will, so we can choose to deny Christ. We want to show others the importance of giving their hearts to Jesus, yielding to Him."God awakensan inquisitve questioning in us when he wants us to Go Searching for Answers (Bevere 5, The True Measure of A Woman)Psalm 139:14I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made; your works are wonderful, I know that full well.As Daughters of God, The Lord is calling us to step out in Faith, and to set examples for the generations younger than we are."God is calling us to be more than we have ever been-more than we have ever envisoined that we would become." (Bevere 8)John 13:34-3534"A new command I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another. 35By this all men will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another."Let's stand up as Daughters of God, and let that fire for the Lord awaken in us.

Tuesday, July 22, 2008

Marked for Life

As they lay bullets flying around them under the table of the library of Columbine Highschool on April.20.1999, Crystal realized that she needed to get right with God, because she could very well be facing her own death. She came to realize the importance of getting right with God and therefore gave her heart to Christ.Crystal turned that tragedy into something greater, now she finds herself serving others, sharing her testimony around the world.As I read this book I find myself wondering what kind of difference I am making, what kind of mark I am making for the body of Christ.Joyce Meyers said something powerful that I have taken to heart..."If you lead one person to Christ, in all probablility you will lead a thousand people to Christ."Isaiah 59:21:21As for me, this is my covenant with them, saith the LORD; My spirit that is upon thee, and my words which I have put in thy mouth, shall not depart out of thy mouth, nor out of the mouth of thy seed, nor out of the mouth of thy seed's seed, saith the LORD, from henceforth and for ever.I am blessed to not have had to go through anything like Crystal, but the Lord has taught me important lessons as well, lessons that have left me Marked for Life...

We Dont Know What Tomorrow May Bring

We don't know what tomorrow may bring, so I try to cherish each day, I try to live life, like it could be my last day and it really could be, but I also look for the promises of tomorrow, I wonder what God has in store for my life, I find myself praying, my physical weakness, does not affect my spirtual strength, unless I let it, and sometimes being weak in the body can make you strong in the Spirit, having a condition that leaves you weak in the body, makes you grow closer to the Lord, makes you appreciate life more, cherish your loved ones, praise God for the blessings in your life, if you let it, and I choose not to dwell on the "I can't ir what if's" Instead I am going to focus on what I have...

Where Does Self Pity Get You

I've discovered in life, that spending to much time in self pity is just a waste of energy that can be used elsewhere, I was born with hip displacia, Jaundice, and a slight curvature of the spine, later on I would be diagnosed with Dyslexia, and more recently the doctors gave me a life changing possiblity, I likely have a Neuromuscular disorder, two of my cousins are in a wheelchair from a neuromuscular dystrophy, but by the Grace of God, I am able to walk, sometimes with the aid of AFO's, instead of focusing on the things in my life that are hard though, I have learned to look at the immense blessings, that are in my life, and it is through the grace of God, I am able to do that...

On Pause or On Fire

As I reflect on todays Bible Study, (we had to postpone a couple of days because Lisa could not come Thursday) I find myself thinking on how some believers feel they can put their faith on Pause, which is stepping into dangerous territory, it can lead to spirtual blindness and following the ways of the world, some of us tend to think we can have one foot in the world, and one foot in the life of faith, and if we continue to live like that we are truly going to fall.Spirtual blindness is a dangerous territory to step into, and as I read from one of Janet Perez Eckles blogs I realized that physical blindness can be overcome, but if we continue to live in Spirtual blindness we are doomed, we need to live our life, our faith, on fire, instead of living it on pause...Maybe the fact that we live in a society that puts the dollar in greater reverence, than the creator, has something to do with so many of us walking with those spirtual blind folds on. I'd rather live my faith on fire, than on pause...

Let's Not Tip Toe Around the Truth

What are we going to have to account for, what sins do we think we can hide?As I find myself getting ready for Bible Study, I once again catch myself reading one of my favorite Christian Authors Joyce Meyers, her book the Secrets to True Happiness is rich in the things of the Lord, and the importance of finding hapiness in him.As I was reading a quote caught my attention, and perhaps becomes the focus of this weeks bible study:"I have to stand before God and give an account of my life, and the gift God has put in me and so do you. God is not going to want to hear we disobeyed him because we did not want to make anyone angry." (Meyers, 200)Another words lets not tip toe around the truth because we think we are sparing someone's feelings, because feelings are fickle, and they are not as important as sharing the truth with others, sharing what we know the good Lord wants us to share.We are called to witness to those with a doubtful heart, and not to tip toe around the issue.Romans 14:23 says:23But the man who has doubts is condemned if he eats, because his eating is not from faith; and everything that does not come from faith is sin.As believers we are called to walk in faith, and in so doing we may find oruself in a situation that may not feel comfortable in the flesh, but is completely natural if we are walking in the Spirit.We are also called as Christians to wait on the Lord, the Lord has perfect timing, but sometimes we feel the need to rush things, when in reality everything comes about in God's perfect timing.Psalms 27:13-1413 I am still confident of this: I will see the goodness of the LORD in the land of the living. 14 Wait for the LORD; be strong and take heart and wait for the LORD."Faith is the postive view of God, and the ability to and willingness to help us, and faith always expects something good to happen."(210)Faith is not in any way shape or form waiting for the shoe to drop to borrow a cliche, it is not looking for the dark cloud in a clear sky, but it is the believe that things will get better, that the bad times are not permanent, it is not being pessimistic, but having an optimistic view of life.When we have faith we realize that God is in control of all the moments of our lives:"God does not only speak to us in the urgent or important matters in life. He also guides us in the most seemingly insignificant situations." (Meyers 220)Sometimes the Lord can use the smallest most insignifacnt gestures, to ignite a soul for Christ.It was the spark of a friendship with my friend Amy that led me to the Lord, that led me away from a path that would have no doubt led to destruction.Martin Luter King Junior summed up the path of faith well in a few words:"You don't have to see the whole staircase, just take the first step."Powerful truth right?Many have taken that first step, but how many have started on the journey and froze in the same place?Remember Christ will spit us out if we are lukewarm!Copyright Michelle R KidwellJuly.15.08

Get Over or Go Under

After church today I found myself flipping on TBN tuning into one of my favorite shows which is Everyday Life with Joyce Meyers, I love her no nonsense apporoach to subjects, the fact that she pulls to punches, she said a couple of things that got me to thinking, and I found myself feeling once again as if she had hit the nail on the head, to borrow a cliche:You need to get over it, or go under it.Sometimes we have the tendency to prolong the pain, to make something last longer than it nneds to last.Another quote from Joyce Meyers once again proved to be ture."You need to get better or get bitter."Then she read from the Deuteronomy 8Do Not Forget the LORD 1 Be careful to follow every command I am giving you today, so that you may live and increase and may enter and possess the land that the LORD promised on oath to your forefathers. 2 Remember how the LORD your God led you all the way in the desert these forty years, to humble you and to test you in order to know what was in your heart, whether or not you would keep his commands. 3 He humbled you, causing you to hunger and then feeding you with manna, which neither you nor your fathers had known, to teach you that man does not live on bread alone but on every word that comes from the mouth of the LORD. 4 Your clothes did not wear out and your feet did not swell during these forty years. 5 Know then in your heart that as a man disciplines his son, so the LORD your God disciplines you. 6 Observe the commands of the LORD your God, walking in his ways and revering him. 7 For the LORD your God is bringing you into a good land?a land with streams and pools of water, with springs flowing in the valleys and hills; 8 a land with wheat and barley, vines and fig trees, pomegranates, olive oil and honey; 9 a land where bread will not be scarce and you will lack nothing; a land where the rocks are iron and you can dig copper out of the hills. 10 When you have eaten and are satisfied, praise the LORD your God for the good land he has given you. 11 Be careful that you do not forget the LORD your God, failing to observe his commands, his laws and his decrees that I am giving you this day. 12 Otherwise, when you eat and are satisfied, when you build fine houses and settle down, 13 and when your herds and flocks grow large and your silver and gold increase and all you have is multiplied, 14 then your heart will become proud and you will forget the LORD your God, who brought you out of Egypt, out of the land of slavery. 15 He led you through the vast and dreadful desert, that thirsty and waterless land, with its venomous snakes and scorpions. He brought you water out of hard rock. 16 He gave you manna to eat in the desert, something your fathers had never known, to humble and to test you so that in the end it might go well with you. 17 You may say to yourself, "My power and the strength of my hands have produced this wealth for me." 18 But remember the LORD your God, for it is he who gives you the ability to produce wealth, and so confirms his covenant, which he swore to your forefathers, as it is today. 19 If you ever forget the LORD your God and follow other gods and worship and bow down to them, I testify against you today that you will surely be destroyed. 20 Like the nations the LORD destroyed before you, so you will be destroyed for not obeying the LORD your God.

The Courage of Esther

If our people were in danger would we have the courage of Esther? I read the Story to my niece today at Church, and was reminded once again of just how courageous this woman was, and just what was up at stake when she made the decision to help her people, King Xeres had no idea she was a Jew, and she knew that if he found out it would mean certain death for her, but yet she was brave enough to listen to Mordecai and in so doing save her people...Esther 4Mordecai Persuades Esther to Help 1 When Mordecai learned of all that had been done, he tore his clothes, put on sackcloth and ashes, and went out into the city, wailing loudly and bitterly. 2 But he went only as far as the king's gate, because no one clothed in sackcloth was allowed to enter it. 3 In every province to which the edict and order of the king came, there was great mourning among the Jews, with fasting, weeping and wailing. Many lay in sackcloth and ashes. 4 When Esther's maids and eunuchs came and told her about Mordecai, she was in great distress. She sent clothes for him to put on instead of his sackcloth, but he would not accept them. 5 Then Esther summoned Hathach, one of the king's eunuchs assigned to attend her, and ordered him to find out what was troubling Mordecai and why. 6 So Hathach went out to Mordecai in the open square of the city in front of the king's gate. 7 Mordecai told him everything that had happened to him, including the exact amount of money Haman had promised to pay into the royal treasury for the destruction of the Jews. 8 He also gave him a copy of the text of the edict for their annihilation, which had been published in Susa, to show to Esther and explain it to her, and he told him to urge her to go into the king's presence to beg for mercy and plead with him for her people. 9 Hathach went back and reported to Esther what Mordecai had said. 10 Then she instructed him to say to Mordecai, 11 "All the king's officials and the people of the royal provinces know that for any man or woman who approaches the king in the inner court without being summoned the king has but one law: that he be put to death. The only exception to this is for the king to extend the gold scepter to him and spare his life. But thirty days have passed since I was called to go to the king." 12 When Esther's words were reported to Mordecai, 13 he sent back this answer: "Do not think that because you are in the king's house you alone of all the Jews will escape. 14 For if you remain silent at this time, relief and deliverance for the Jews will arise from another place, but you and your father's family will perish. And who knows but that you have come to royal position for such a time as this?" 15 Then Esther sent this reply to Mordecai: 16 "Go, gather together all the Jews who are in Susa, and fast for me. Do not eat or drink for three days, night or day. I and my maids will fast as you do. When this is done, I will go to the king, even though it is against the law. And if I perish, I perish." 17 So Mordecai went away and carried out all of Esther's instructions.

Gasping With Grace

Gasping with Grace (Part One)
Wednesday, July 9, 2008 - 2:24 AM
As I prepare for Thursday Mornings Bible Study, I find myself reading Jill Briscoe's Little Book The New Normal, and finding out just how prevalent it is, this book was written in 2005, four years after 9'11 the day that will mark my generation in perhaps a deeper way than any generation before, but I digress, the book talks about the different 911's you might face, whether it be the death of a loved one, a brioken relationship or any number of things, but whether we believe it or not, the fact of the matterIn Herbrews 11:6 it says6And without faith it is impossible to please God, because anyone who comes to him must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who earnestly seek him. There is something in page ten of Jill Briscoes book I want to quote, because it so abtly states what I have experienced in my life:"I was to dicover the peace that wouldn't quit and thay flooded my heart and soul and left me gasping with grace."Gasping with Grace, I love that phrase, Grace is that most amazing ahh feeling when we realize that we have the living God directing our lives.I know those who have gotten so angry with God, that they claim they can no longer believe in him.I am left opened mouth wondering, how you can not believe in something, and yet be angry with someone, and I am wondering what can make someone who was once so strong in faith fall away, I have seen it time and time again and truthfully it is hard to watch, they are left searching, searching for something, that amazing Savior that had once been such a part of their lives.Another 9'll, having someone you love fall away from the faith that you once thought they were so firmly rooted in.Being angry with God or claiming not to believe in Him is not going to change who he is, another quote I found in Briscoes book again sums what is important up well:"It isn't in who is in any Great White House that matters in the end, it is who is on the Great White Throne." BriscoeWe have a tendency to get angry for God, when the reaction is a result of one of our actions, like a child putting a hand on a hot stove, we have a tendency to put our hands, in hot water, but as we grow in faith, we learn not to do that as much, just as a child learns not to touch what is hot.To Be Continued