Bless The LORD

 

I will bless the LORD at all times;

His praise shall continually be in

my mouth.

My soul shall make its boast in the

LORD;

The humble shall hear of it and be glad.

Psalm 34:1-2 (NKJV)

Words Penned by David

I will bless the LORD at all times;

David appears to be thankful for all the LORD has done for him.

Are we thankful for all He has done for us?

His praise shall continually be in

my mouth.

David states that he will always give praise to God.

Do we, as 21^st Century followers of Jesus, give God praise in every circumstance we face? Yes, I realize some of what we face is less than desirable. But, when we are faced with difficulties, we must praise Him for being there with us and guiding us through.

My soul shall make its boast in the

LORD;

David states that he will praise the LORD from his soul.

We sometimes have to give praise to God silently. Some people call this type of praise a heart praise.

The humble shall hear of it and be glad.

David believed that those burdened with issues would hear of his relationship with the LORD and how he is always praising Him.

On the day of my initial writing this, I had to go to the pharmacy to pick up a prescription for Jim. I also needed to get some vitamin supplements. They were out of the brand I prefer. The manager of that store helped me out by finding one that saved me some money. She and I talked; she was having a rough day. A condition with the status of that store has caused problems. I listened and asked her if I could pray for her right then. We stood there, held hands, and I prayed.

Show Humility to All Men

 

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Remind them to be subject to rulers and authorities, to obey, to be ready for every good work, to speak evil of no one, to be peaceable, gentle, showing all humility to all men. Titus 3:1-2 (NKJV)

Paul’s words to Titus whom he describes as a “true son in our common faith.”

Paul lays groundwork here for believers to follow.

* To submit to rulers and authorities.

* To not speak badly about anyone.

* To live peaceful lives.

* To show humility to all we know.

Paul makes some very strong points, getting to the core of human relationships. He writes these words to a pastor who is young. Titus faces a huge task, that of establishing churches.

As we go through our days, we must follow these words of guidance from Paul. We are tasked to helping enlarge the kingdom of God, however, we must learn to daily practice gentleness.

This is a very difficult thing to do. Recently, I received a phone call from a friend who lives in my neighborhood. She wanted my advise on something. She told me her feelings on an issue and I told her that if she felt uncomfortable doing what she was asked, then maybe she should not do it. She had some good reasons about why she felt the way she did. I could have been more gentle about certain related issues she spoke of. I intend to be more careful in the future.

Do we always find ways to show humility to those around us?

July Reflections

 

Writing

In one of my blog posts, I wrote on the passage Micah 6:8. One of my readers is possibly a Messianic Jew. She commented on my thoughts and gave me insight into the order of how some read the Torah. We never know what we will learn from one another. I was humbled by her thought and her comment.

Advocacy Efforts

On Wednesday, July 13^th, the Energy and Commerce committee in the House of Representatives unanimously passed by voice vote the bill to technically correct the Medicare law to include coverage of Lymphedema compression garments and sleeves. It now will go to the floor of the House for a vote. (Please note, there are 350 House co-sponsors of this bill.)

Review Book

My most recent review book is one by A.W. Tozer, Going Higher with God Through Prayer. I chose this particular book mainly because it is on prayer and because I am drawn to what the author has said in the others I have read.

Husband’s Surgery On Hold

Jim’s knee replacement surgery had been scheduled for August 10. His Pr e-Operative Tests has caused them to put everything on hold. His a1c, a blood sugar indicator, number was too high.

And Then the Rains Came

We had not had any rain for about seven weeks. On July 16^th, we got a gentle rain.

On July 17^th the sky opened up and we had a deluge. Water was standing everywhere. We had a power outage that started at 3:23 in the afternoon. Power was restored at 2:15 the next morning. The television weather people said we had NINE inches of rain.

Our side yard is an extra city lot. This lot is lower than where the house sits. When we have water standing in it we always say that we are going to stock it with fish. Our basement got flooded because of the power outage. We are waiting for the furnace to dry out. Hubby does not do well with stress. I am afraid that over the years his health has affected his level of tolerance.

My Austerity Efforts

Due to my having Lymphedema, I have some compression sleeves that I wear and a compression garment that I wear at night. Over a period of one year, at the price I see on the insurance information that I receive, this could be costly for those who rely on these tools to keep the condition from worsening. I prefer to not wait until I receive a statement from the hospital telling me I owe them a large amount of money. I have changed my word processing carrier to one that is free. I receive coupons from my pharmacy that help me save a little bit each time I shop. I cut back on extra mission giving at church.

August is here and, before we know it, it will be gone. Meanwhile, I hope to do better about writing and living for the LORD.

Everlasting Mercy

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For the LORD is good; his mercy is everlasting, and His truth endures to all generations.

Psalm 100:5 (NJKV)

 

These words come from a Psalm of Thanksgiving. I find comfort in them as I type them. I remember learning this Psalm in the fifth grade.

 

We sing choruses about God’s goodness to us. But do we really understand what we mean? God, Jesus, and the Holy Spirit are the only truly good persons we know of. They are without sin. God endows His children with His goodness so that they can display that goodness to those who need His love axpalnd kindness.

The goodness God showed to the Biblical heroes He can also show to us. What was truth in those times is still truth today. God never changes. We as a nation and a people need to get back to following God. 

We never realize how merciful God is until we know we have received mercy in a way that we cannot explain any other way. I experienced His mercy in this way several times lately.

God will see us through these difficult times.                             

       We must remember God's goodness to each of us. I trust you will enjoy this song.

Book Review: Kingdom Values by Tony Evans

 

Books a Million

 

Doctor Tony Evans has written a book that is needed for our time. He explores the words of Jesus He spoke in the Sermon on the mount. The Bible calls them the Beatitudes. Dr. Evans calls them Kingdom Values.

 

With each Kingdom value, God gives a blessing. As usual, Dr. Evans speaks to our hearts. He shows us that we can overcome the difficulties of life by modeling the Kingdom Values before those in our circle of friends, our neighbors, and those with whom we do business as well as to those with whom we worship.

 

I learned a lot from this book. One thing was that we can exhibit these values in our daily lives to those who may be trying to ‘try our patience.’

 

I would recommend this book to all those who are dealing with issues in their families, their neighborhoods, their work places, and their churches. I believe it would make a wonderful study for a group.

 

This book can be purchased at:

Books a Million: here

Christian book: here

 

I received a copy of this book for free from Bethany House, a division of Baker Books. All they asked of me was that I give an unbiased review.                      

 

 

 

 

 

                       

What Will It Take?

This is a departure from this month's theme. I felt so moved by hearing an answer to my thought. Because of this experience, I am also journaling this verse, one phrase as a time.

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quiet spirit 

Recently, as I read our local newspaper, I became sad about the violence occurring in our cities, our nation, and our world: People unable to peacefully resolve their differences, others, carrying weapons going into schools and taking out the lives of defenseless children and those called to educate them.

 

Memorial Day weekend saw multiple mass shootings across our nation. These followed the Uvalde, Texas and Buffalo, New York tragedies.

 

As I was working in my kitchen, I wondered, “What will it take for order to come back to our world?” I received an answer to my question. “If my people. . .will humble themselves and pray.”

 

 If My people who are called by My name,

            The Lord is speaking about those who say they belong to Him. 

            He knows our hearts.

 

will humble themselves”

            We must recognize our sin, confess it to Jesus and leave it with Him.

 

 and pray

            Go before the LORD and ask Him to guide us, to help us conquer these sinful                issues.

 and seek my face.

            Diligently look for the LORD. Spend quantity time with Him.

 

 and turn from their wicked ways,

            Renounce and forsake the evil thoughts, and actions. Move away from anything              that God dislikes in us. Repent from the questionable language and behaviors.

 

 then I will hear from heaven

            The LORD patiently waits to hear us calling out to Him. He listens whenever we call upon Him.

 

and will forgive their sin

            God, in return, will forgive His people of their sin. He will not remember them.

 

 and heal their land

            God will heal those things that continually vex His people.

 

Some things to think on:

 

1.         Do we need to humble ourselves?

2.         Have we harbored “Christian” sins in our hearts?

3.         Do we truly pray, seeking His will or do we dictate to God what we want?

4.         Do we spend quantity time in prayer as we  seek His guidance, or do we pray on the run?

5.         If we have any bad thoughts and habits, do we want to give them up?

 

 

 

 

 

  

Put On the New Man

 

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if indeed you have heard Him and have been taught by Him, as the truth is in Jesus: that you put off, concerning your former conduct, the old man which grows corrupt according to the deceitful lusts, and be renewed in the spirit of your mind, and that you put on the new man which was created according to God, in true righteousness and holiness. Ephesians 4:21-24 (NKJV)

 

Paul wrote these words to the believers at Ephesus.

 

He points out that believers should not dabble in the ways they pursued before they came to Christ. The decision to NOT partake in the ways of the ‘old man’ must be a daily decision. ⁽¹⁾

 

The decision to allow the ‘new man’ to be seen in our lives is ultimately up to God. ⁽²⁾

 

Certain times, our attitudes might not reflect God. When this happens, we must ask God to forgive us. It isn’t always easy for me to keep a reign on my attitude and even sometimes my mouth. But God is always there to hear my pleas.

 

God can help us put off the old man in our make ups. He desires us to put on the new man for us to reflect Him to those around us.

   (1,2 Jeremiah Study Bible, © 2013, Worthy, Hachette Book Group, New York, NY. Page 1645, Study Notes.

 

Called… Into His Wonderful Light

 

 

But you are a chosen people, a royal Priesthood, a holy nation, a people belonging to God, that you may declare     the praises of him who called you out of darkness into his wonderful light.2 Peter 2:9 (NIV)

This passage tells me a lot about how God sees each of us.

The apostle Peter reminds us of who those scattered believers and we, as God’s people, are. God chose each of us to belong to Him. He made us His children, children of the King. He did these things so that we would share our praise of Him with others. We do this sometimes. Mostly we keep those praises to ourselves. We find excuses for our behavior: “They wouldn’t understand.” “They don’t care about God.” “They don’t care about me.”

 

a chosen people,

God himself chose each of us to carry His word to those around us.

 

 a royal Priesthood,

God has made us joint heirs with Jesus. We belong to Him. God wants us to tell His Good News to those who are hurting in this fallen world.

 

 a people belonging to God,

God deemed us as His when He created us. He claimed us for His own.

 

that you may declare the praises,

Do we give praise to God every day? Do we reflect on our day and realize that we have things happen that we can praise Him for, even during troublesome times?

 

called you …into his wonderful light.

When God calls us, does He not take us from a dark sinful world and place us in His world, one where we have no fear?

Protected

 

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              He who dwells in the secret place of        

        the Most High shall abide under the               

        shadow of the almighty. Psalm 91:1 (NKJV)

 

The Psalmist headed this chapter as Safety in Abiding in the Presence of God. 

                This verse speaks to me. If I had any doubts about abiding with God, these words would take away all those fearful thoughts.

Most of the time of COVID, I have been house-bound for reasons of health beside Covid. But my various quarantines were for my benefit. I praise God for His watch care over me as I learned the lessons of abiding in him.

 

The phrase, “under the shadow of the Almighty” remind me that God has been ever-present with me. Yes, I have had frustrations and even anger during these months. God knows what I have faced, the heartache, the disappointments, the uncertainty one faces while being ill. Despite my momentary hard feelings, He has kept me close to Him. For these things, I am very thankful.

 

During this time of uncertainty, I have been able to maintain my reading of devotions from two devotional books and of journaling one scripture passage each day. I also read our local newspaper to keep up with what is happening here locally. I have cut back my television news viewing to try to discover the cause of my malaise.

A lack of sleep at night is still an issue, but I find myself sleeping in during the day and sometimes falling asleep for “cat-naps.” In spite of all these things going on with me, I still feel protected by God.

God Sees Me-Paul

 

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As he neared Damascus on his journey, suddenly a light from

heaven flashed around him. He fell to the ground and heard a voice say to him,

“Saul, Saul why do you persecute me?” Acts 9:3-4 (NIV)                

Saul was on his way to Damascus. His mission was to round up those who belonged to The Way, the sect of Christians, and carry them back to Jerusalem. They would be his prisoners.

 

Something happened that changed his life forever. He met the LORD. God asked him a very pertinent question, “Why are you persecuting me?” Jesus identifies himself. Paul is told to go into Damascus, and he will be told what to do.

 

            The LORD instructed Saul in a one-on-one conversation. Those traveling with Saul did not see anything. How often do we hear a message from God that no one else hears?

 

God watched as Saul wreaked havoc among those who belonged to The Way, those who believed in Christ. God knew all the evil and nastiness in Saul’s heart. Yet, God chose to forgive Saul and direct him to work for Him.

 

For God to know Saul’s attributes, He had to watch as Saul went through his murderous ways. He saw Saul, forgave him, and used him for His glory.

 

As God sees us go through our lives, He takes note of our attributes and our weaknesses. Personally, I know He has taught me so much about myself. I now understand why I react the way I do when I have issues with my computer. It is due to my frustration. I know God can take care of that shortcoming if I allow Him to.

God Sees Me-Thomas

 

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“Unless I see the nail marks in his hands and put my fingers where the nails were and put my hands into his side, I will not believe it.”

 “My Lord and my God!” John 20:25,28 (NIV)

 

The above verses are Thomas’ reactions to hearing of and then seeing the risen LORD. The context of the first quote tells us that Thomas was not present when Jesus first visited the disciples on the evening after his resurrection. On this first visit, Jesus’ first words were words of comfort, “Peace be with you.”

 

On Jesus’s second visit, a week later, Jesus repeats his greeting, and He addresses Thomas. He tells Thomas to do what he said were the conditions of his, Thomas’ believing that the others had seen the LORD. Thus, we read of Thomas’ affirmation, “My Lord and my God!”

 

God saw and heard Thomas voice his disbelief. We have scriptural proof that God saw Thomas. I do not believe we realize how important that was to both him and the others.

 

God does see us in our times of disbelief and doubt. He then chooses to meet that doubt and gives us what we need.

 

We had a relative who kept telling my husband that she would not come back to the LORD until after he brought a man into her life. I believe she came back to the LORD because He spoke to her heart and told her it was more important that He be a part of her life.

How often do we wish to have peace in our lives? How often do YOU want to have peace in YOUR life?

God Sees Me-Peter

 

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                ” You are not one of this man’s disciples, are you?” the girl at the door asked Peter. He replied, “I am not.” As Simon Peter stood warming himself, he was asked, “You are not one of his disciples, are you?”  He denied it saying, “I am not.” One of the high priest’s servants. . . challenged him, “Didn’t I see you with him in the olive grove?” Again, Peter denied it, and at that moment a rooster began to crow.  John 18:17-18, 25-27 (NIV)

 

               

Peter was scared. He had followed Jesus for three years. He had not understood what the Master had meant when He had told them of His suffering and death.

               

Earlier Peter has vowed that he would follow Jesus until the end. However, Jesus knew human nature and told Peter that Peter would deny Him three times.

               

In one version of that event, Luke’s telling of Peter’s denial, (Luke 22: 60-62, NIV) Jesus looked straight at Peter, and Peter wept. We have recorded here that Jesus did see Peter after he disowned Him. Have you ever wondered what was going through Jesus’ mind at that moment?

 

Did He think: “Peter, I thought you were my friend?” Or “Why would you do this to me?”

Or “Peter, in spite of what you have said I love you.”

 

What do you think would be the thought that Jesus would have in the event that we, his present-day followers, would deny Him.?

Newness of Life

 

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Praise be to the God and father of our Lord Jesus Christ! In his great mercy, he has given us new birth into a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, and into an inheritance that never perish oil or fade -- kept in heaven for you, who through faith are shielded by God's power until the coming of the Salvation that is readily revealed in the last time.

1 Peter 1: 3 - 5 (NIV)

 

The Apostle Peter tells us this too tells this 2 those scattered throughout the known world

 

Peter reminds us that God has mercifully given his children new birth. What does this mean to us?

 

Simply put, God gives us a new life because he wanted to. It was nothing we did that caused God to give us a new life. He did it because he loves us.

 

He gave us a living hope. God did this by sacrificing his son, resurrecting him, and taking him back to heaven to rule with himself

 

We received this new life through faith and believed that all things are under God's control because of God's power we have nothing to fear.

 

With all the upheaval going on around us, we can rely on God to be with us and give us strength to be stand what life throws in our way.

 

Father God, thank you for giving us our Salvation thank you for your son who took our sin upon himself so that we might live in his name, Amen

Look to God for Him to Sustain Us

 

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Psalm 123

 

I lift up my eyes to you,

To you whose throne is in

Heaven.

 

The psalmist looks to God who rules over heaven. We must do the same.

 

As the eyes of slaves look to the

Hand of their master,

As the eyes of a maid look to the

Hand of her mistress,

So our eyes look to the LORD, our

God,

Til he shows us his mercy.

 

The writer tells us we must look to God for instruction and guidance until He answers our pleas.

Have mercy on us, O LORD, have

Mercy on us,

For we have endured much

Contempt.

 

He begs God for His mercy. We will have times when we have to plead for His love and grace to cover us especially when we receive treatment that undermines us. 

 

                                                            We have endured much ridicule

                          From the proud,

              Much contempt from the arrogant.

As believers in Jesus Christ, we receive forms of persecution—sometimes mild, other times not. We learn to rely on the LORD to sustain us.

 

“Trust in Me”

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Do not let your hearts be troubled. Trust in God, trust also in me.

John 14:1 (NIV)

The place: The Upper Room

Jesus and his disciples are assembled in an upper room to celebrate the Passover Feast.

He has told of His betrayal. Peter reacts impulsively. The Master sets Peter straight about what he would do ­deny Him three times before the rooster would crow. Jesus then speaks the words of our focus verse.

Do not let your hearts be troubled.

He said these words to bring comfort to those still present. (He had already dismissed Judas Iscariot.) Could these men, the closest to Jesus, follow His direction?

As we read further the account of the Crucifixion, we realize that only one of those who heard these words stood with Jesus to the very end.

In our world today, do we sometimes let our hearts, and minds go to places of worry, fear, and anger? Jesus’ words at the time of that Passover feast do keep us from anxiety.

Trust in God

God makes it easy for us to follow these three words. He relieves us from heartache when we realize that He is in control. Worrying about something that has happened will make a person sick, likewise, worrying about something that has yet to happen is not good for our mental outlooks.

trust also in me.

Jesus, God’s Son and Emissary to us, tells us to trust Him as well. When we ask Him into our hears, we learn that Jesus will guide us through each day, each experience, and each trial we will ever have.

What ways do you keep yourselves from being troubled?

God loves His Children

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For I am sure that neither death nor life, nor angels nor rulers, nor things present, nor things to come, nor powers, nor heights nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord.  Romans 8:38-39 (ESV)

The Apostle Paul wrote these words to the believers at Rome. I find comfort in these thoughts.

I believe Paul is saying that God loves His children unconditionally. Conversely, we are the ones who put conditions on how we feel about someone.

When we walk with Jesus, we learn to request that God give us His eyes to see the circumstances in our world.  When He allows us to see things through His eyes, He allows us to view those issues differently than the world does.

As we grow in the LORD, seeing things as God sees them becomes easier. We learn to listen to what we hear in a different way. We learn to look t past the hurtful circumstances and see what God will do to heal the hearts of those involved.

 Questions to ponder:

What ways do you show God’s love to others?

Have we as children of God obeyed Him in showing His love to those around us?

Forgive as you have been forgiven.”

As children of God, we are to practice forgiveness. A friend of mine once extended

Forgiveness to me and I have never forgotten her graciousness. I remember her quite often because she forgave me.

Faith is Assurance

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Now faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen.

Hebrews 11:1 (ESV)

The writer of Hebrews teaches us a great lesson about faith. Have you ever been positive that something good was going to transpire and it did? You exercised your faith.

For several years, I would imagine a future activity that would not turn out as I had thought it would. I began to find times like that depressed me. One evening, I thought about all those times when things did not go as I wanted. I had a long talk with Jesus about this.

I told Him I would not ‘look forward’ to anything ever again. (This was wrong thinking.) Later, I realized my former way of looking at those upcoming events was my relying on my understanding and not trusting God (Proverbs 3:4-5)

When we trust God, we believe that He is in control of us, of our hearts, and any upcoming event we may have on our schedule.

The writer tells us what faith is. He doesn’t say, “Faith might be…” or “Faith was. …” Our focal verse is a positive description of this very basic ingredient in our Christian life.

Each of us must live out our faith daily. How do we do that in these times? We can do this through prayer and through working for Him in various ways. What are some ways you live out your faith?

Why? Why? Why?

Have you ever asked God," Why?" I certainly have. James Watkins, an author friend of mine has written this book about this aspect of our relationship with God.

about this aspect of our relationship with God.

A three-year-old’s favorite word is why

.

“Johnny, hold my hand while we cross the street.”

“Why?”

“Because I don’t want you to run out in front of a car.”

“Why?”

“Because if a car hits you, you’ll be hurt or killed.”

“Why?”

“Because if it’s a contest between a thirty-five-pound boy and an SUV, the three-ton vehicle is going to win every time.”

“Why?”

“Because the laws of physics state that mass plus momentum equals—Just take my hand, Johnnie!”

And on it goes—right into adulthood!

Why didn’t God heal my friend?

Why do bad things happen to good people?

Why do I still have acne at 60?

But like the popular game show, Jeopardy, the answers are often in the form of a question.

What can I know?

I can know the truth of Romans 8:28:

And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose (NIV).

For instance, our group health insurance had very few maternity benefits but had great “major medical” coverage. At the birth of our first child, my wife had complications and spent five days in Intensive Care. But, because the birth was now “major medical,” every penny of our daughter’s birth was covered. Sitting in ICU for five days waiting to know if my wife was going to live or die was not good, but it did work for good.

However, it took me nearly thirty years to realize that Romans 8:28’s “purpose” is revealed in the following—and usually ignored—verse:

. . . to be conformed to the likeness of his Son. . . .

I may never know the answer to why, but I can know what is the purpose to which God is working all for our good. To be like Jesus! If you look for it, you’ll find throughout the New Testament. For instance:

And the Lord—who is the Spirit—makes us more and more like him as we are changed into his glorious image (2 Corinthians 3:18b, author’s emphasis).

How can I grow?

Jesus promises . . .

“I am the true vine, and my Father is the gardener.
“Remain in me, as I also remain in you. No branch can bear fruit by itself; it must remain in the vine. Neither can you bear fruit unless you remain in me.
“I am the vine; you are the branches. If you remain in me and I in you, you will bear much fruit” (John 15:1, 4-5 NLT).

Our spiritual lives depend on this intimate connection with Christ. His life flows into and through us causing us to become organically one with his character. That connection is strengthened through prayer, Bible study, and fellowship with other believers. And suffering!

We are pressed on every side by troubles, but we are not crushed. We are perplexed, but not driven to despair. We are hunted down, but never abandoned by God. We get knocked down, but we are not destroyed. Through suffering, our bodies continue to share in the death of Jesus so that the life of Jesus may also be seen in our bodies (2 Corinthians 4:8-10 NLT, author’s emphasis).

When I think back to my “successful” years—award-winning author and editor, world-traveling conference speaker, denominational executive, and co-pastor of a growing church—I certainly didn’t resemble the Christ I was trying to follow. It has only been during my “failure” years—years between book contracts, estranged relationships, being voted out of a church, and having to borrow money to make a living writing and speaking—that I have come to derive my self-identity and self-worth from simply being a loved child of God.

Who can I show?

Finally, 2 Corinthians 1:3-6 has become one of my favorite passages in encouraging me while I’m going through terrible times:

Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of compassion and the God of all comfort, who comforts us in all our troubles so that we can comfort those in any trouble with the comfort we ourselves have received from God. For just as the sufferings of Christ flow over into our lives, so also through Christ our comfort overflows. If we are distressed, it is for your comfort and salvation; if we are comforted, it is for your comfort, which produces in you patient endurance of the same sufferings we suffer (NLT).

I now believe that God is more than willing to answer those questions and how they relate to living a life conformed to the image of His Son. Even why I still suffer from acne!

Jesus Prayed in Earnest

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And going a little farther he fell on His face and prayed, saying, “My Father, if it be possible, let this cup pass from me; nevertheless, not as I will but as you will.” . . . Again, for the second time, he went away and prayed,” My Father, if this cannot pass unless I drink it, your will be done. . .. So, leaving them again, he went away and prayed for a third time, saying the same words again. Matthew 26:39, 42, 44 (ESV)

The time Jesus spent in Gethsemane seems to be a turning point for Him. A close look at the times He spent in prayer that night tells us that He was not certain that He was ready to face the plan that the Father had for Him. (if it be possible, let this cup pass from me) We must remember that Jesus was both man and God.

He pleaded with God to change the path God had laid out for Him (Again, for the second time,),( leaving them again, he went away and prayed for the third time,) However, God didn’t change His plan. All three times, Jesus beseeched the Father to not take His life.

Here Jesus surrendered to the Father’s will. He gave up any claim he had to extend His life on earth to complete the plan God had for Him.

Have you ever prayed in earnest for a perceived need and not received the answer you sought?

Did the answer you wanted eventually come?