Value

Value is defined as "to regard the importance and worth and usefulness of something."  Usually when we value something we protect it dearly.
     I know of nothing more valuable than my relationship with the Father and my promised eternal life with Him.
     So, how do I protect it?  I strive to live a Christian walk.  I fellowship with Him daily and throughout the day.  In protecting this most valuable Asset, I also should share Him.  How?  I share Him through my speech, my words, and my actions.  I hold Him dearly to my heart for He is previous.  I am valuable to Him also.  He was oppressed, afflicted, a lamb led to the slaughter; all for me because of my rebellion and my iniquities.
     After His affliction, He not only left to prepare a home for me, but He sent the Holy Spirit to live within me and to guide me until I am prepared for His new haven.  I am valuable to Him and He is valuable to me.
     It is in protecting what is most valuable, my relationship with God, that I find:
V ictory in Jesus
A ll encompassing love
L ingering satisfaction
U ltimate peace
E ternal joy

The Here and Now

 Through life's battles, I have used the slogan, One Day At A Time, to get me through.  But as I was reading When I Relax I Feel Guilty, I developed a whole new understanding of the slogan and of life's expectations.  In the book it states, "God never gives strength for tomorrow or the next hour, but only for the strain of the minute."  I know that peace and happiness is found in the moment, not in tomorrow or in yesterday, and I do find that I am the happiest when I live in the moment; the here and now.

Pass It On!

     I have written about the many wonderful names of God from A to Z and posted about keeping His name holy and sacred, never using His name in vain.  Yet, there is something else that needs to be considered regarding His name.
     God wants us to use his name daily.  We are to call upon Him in times of thanksgiving, in times of need, and in times of praise.  His name is to be a "household name".  We are to pass His name around to our friends, our neighbors, and around the world.  We are not to keep His name a secret.  We need to "pass it on." 
     Let's consider some methods:

How:  Respectfully: Never in vain; Praiseworthy 
Exodus 20:7 (KJV) "Thou shalt not take the name of the Lord thy God in vain; for the Lord will not hold him guiltless that taketh his name in vain." 
When: Everyday 
Job 27:10 (NIV)  Will they find delight in the Almighty? Will they call on God at all times."

Where: Everywhere; Home, Neighborhoods, Workplace, Meetings, One on one
Psalms 76:1 (The Message) "God is well known in Judah, in Israel: He is a household name."
Why: To share the love of God; As Christians, We have a responsibility, We are told to do it.  So that whoever hears can be saved. 
Revelation 22:17 (ESV) "The Spirit and the Bride say, "Come."  And let the one who hears say, "Come."  And let the one who is thirsty come; let the one who desires take the water of life without price":




     

First Fruits

     I have discovered over the years that my husband is not fond of leftovers.  They are the crumbs from yesterday.  It is even more so with God.  He does not like our leftovers.  He does not want the crumbs from yesterday.  He wants the first fruits of  our labor. 
     Why, might you ask, do we need to first set aside our increase to God.  I believe most of us can easily answer that question.  If we don't set aside a portion first to God, we spend it on other things and then there is nothing left for God.  Amen!

Proverbs 3:9  "Honour the Lord with thy substance, and with the firstfruits of all thine increase."

The Christ

     For some, like myself, names are hard to remember, yet others remember the names of everyone they meet.   Remembering names is important.  It makes people feel special when they walk up to someone they casually know and hear themselves called by name. 
     As hard as it is for me remember names, there is one name which I can and always will remember.  And, that is the name of Jesus Christ.  Yet, this is not just anyone with a first and last name.  This is Jesus the Christ.  He is the One and only Christ.  He is the Christ who died for me.  He is the Son of God.  His name nor God's name should ever be used in vain.  These names are holy.     
     Jesus the Christ intercedes daily for my sin, and it is God who created and cares for me. 
     
   
   

Division of the Waters

     As I was studying Elijah and Elisha, about the waters separating, I decided I wanted to record for my own information how many times the water separated as a result of our God's almighty power.  This is what I found:

1.  It begins in Genesis when God created the heaven and the earth. 
Genesis 1:6-7  "And God said, Let there be a firmament in the midst of the waters, and let it divide the waters from the waters.  And God made the firmament, and divided the waters which were under the firmament from the waters which were above firmament and it was so.   Again in verse 9 we find, "And God said, Let the waters under the heavens be gathered together unto one place, and let the dry land appear: and it was so." 

2.  Next and the most described and illustrated is the parting of the Red Sea which occurs in Exodus when Moses leads the children of Israel out of Egypt.   Exodus 14:21-22, 26-27   "And Moses stretched out his hand over the sea; and the Lord caused the sea to go back by a strong east wind all that night, and made the sea dry land, and the waters were divided.  And the children of Israel went into the midst of the sea upon the dry ground:  and the waters were a wall unto them on their right hand, and on their left...And the Lord said unto Moses, Stretch out thine hand over the sea, that the waters may come upon the Egyptians, upon their chariots, and upon their horsemen.  And Moses stretched forth his hand over the sea, and the sea returned to his strength when the morning appeared; and the Egyptians fled against it; and the Lord overthrew the Egyptians in the midst of the sea."  

3.  The next time the waters divide is found in Joshua when the Israelites prepare to enter the promised land.  Joshua 3:13-17  "And it shall come to pass, as soon as the soles of the feet of the priests that bear the ark of the Lord, the Lord of all the earth, shall rest in waters of Jordan, that the waters of Jordan shall be cut off from the waters that come down from above; and they shall stand upon an heap.  And it came to pass, when the people removed from their tens, to pass over Jordan, and the priests bearing the ark of the covenant before the people; And as they that bare the ark were come unto Jordan, and the feet of the priests that bare the ark were dipped in the brim of the water, (for Jordan overfloweth all his banks all the time of harvest,) That the waters which came down from above stood and rose up upon an heap ver far from the city Adam, that is beside Zaretan: and those that came down toward the sea of the plain, even the salt sea, failed, and were cut off: and the peoplr passed over right against Jericho.  And the priests that bare the ark of the covenant of the Lord stood firm on dry ground in the midst of Jordan, and all the Israelites passed over on dry ground, until all the people were passed clean over Jordan."  We find in Chapter 4 verse 18, "And it came to pass, when the priests that bare the ark of the covenant of the Lord were come up out of the midst of Jordan and the soles of the priest's feet were lifted up unto the dry land, that the waters of Jordan returned unto their place, and flowed over all his banks, as they did before."

4.  The next two occurrences involves Elijah and Elisha which I studied today.  Elisha had left his previous farming life to follow Elijah and minister with him.  When God got ready to take Elijah, Elisha was committed to staying with him until that time occurred.  In 2 Kings 2:7 we find fifty men of the sons of prophets witnessing the event as Elijah and Elisha stood by the Jordan.  Verse 8, "And Elijah took his mantle, and wrapped it together, and smote the waters, and they were divided hither and thither, so that they two went over on dry ground. 

5.  Following Elijah's departure in a whirlwind into heaven, Elisha, in 2 Kings 2:13, "took up also the mantle of Elijah that fell from him, and went back, and stood by the bank of Jordan; And he took the mantle of Elijah that fell from him, and smote the waters, and said, Where is the Lord God of Elijah? and when he also had smitten the waters, they parted hither and thither: and Elisha went over."   

What an amazing God we have!  He is the Creator of all and is in control of it all.  

 

A New Life

     How many of us have often thought, "I wish I could go back and do it again," or simply wish we could change our lives?  Well, in fact, it is possible.  We have all been given a chance to develop a new life.   When Jesus died and was raised from the dead, we were given a brand new life.  All we have to do is accept the sacrifice Jesus made for us.
     In developing a new life, we often fail to accomplish our righteous desires.  However, if we fail in our choices, His forgiveness gives us another chance to do it right.  There is always a new day with our Lord!  Through our faith in God and through guidance from the Holy Spirit, we can rid our lives of grievances.  We can develop beauty from within.  We can learn to love others and treat them with respectful dignity even though they say bad things about us.  We can be forgiving without anyone asking us to forgive them.  In 1st Peter we are told to "be holy in all manner of conversation."   Let's face it, our life is a journey, and a journey is a process.  However, the ending to a good journey is one in which we traveled with God at the wheel.