Friday, May 21, 2010

Joy of the Lord

For the joy of the Lord is your strength. Nehemiah 8:10 (NIV)



When God looks upon us, His children, from above, He has joy when He sees us doing His Will. In fact, He receives joy from what we do for Him.

To continue that cycle, He rewards us with certain characteristics. We become stronger in our faith, receive a greater capacity to love, and have a calmer spirit. In essence, we grow spiritually as we work for Him, enlarging the Kingdom.

As we recognize God’s strengthening of our souls, we should give praise for what He has done for us. At the end of my prayer list is a section called “Praises”. In this section I try to list a praise of God’s working in my life. I strive for one praise a day, some days, I have more.

Wednesday, May 19, 2010

The Lord, High and Exalted


In the year King Uzziah died, I saw the Lord
seated on a throne, high and exalted, and
the train of His robe filled the temple. Isaiah 6:1 (NIV)



Isaiah visited the temple. He saw God, Himself, lifted above the scene, raised up by the prayers of His people. God’s majesty was so great the train of His robe lay everywhere, engulfing all things in it’s path, and protecting whoever was present in His house.

This was a holy moment for Isaiah. He saw God, the creator of the universe. We all know what happened next. Isaiah felt unworthy to witness the scene of seraphim expressing God’s holiness. He expressed his state. One of the seraphs placed a hot coal on Isaiah’s lips, taking away his unclean state, forgiving his sin, another holy time.

God needed someone to go for Him, to work for His cause. Isaiah heard the call. This was a third holy time in this story.

Today, Christians have similar times when God speaks to us, when He answers a prayer, when we see His hand leading us or a loved one through uncertain times or protects us from danger. As 21st Century believers, we have to learn to recognize the holy times God gives us.

Even today, we can still learn of Him by spending time in prayer, by reading and meditating on His Word, and applying His message to our hearts.

Monday, May 17, 2010

Through Him




I can do everything through Him who gives me strength. Philippians 4:13 (NIV)



We are able to function in the face of trauma, danger and uneasiness because God sustains us during those times.

When life pulls a mean surprise on us personally, we need to approach Him and ask for His guidance, and comfort. God chooses people to intercede for others who face difficult issues in their lives.

It is through God’s actions, that we are able to overcome problems in our lives. This conquering of issues comes from God’s grace and love for His children.

We gain His strength by spending time with Him through reading and studying our Bibles and through conversing with God through prayer. When we fellowship with like-minded believers.

God Alone

  Jesus and the children at our church's prayer walk.          I will both lie down in peace and sleep;  For You alone, O LORD make ...