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Meditation: October 22

“If it had not been the Lord who was on our side,” Psalm 124:1

The possibilities of failure and calamities would have been overwhelming if things had been different. God chose Israel, for no other reason than His love being bestowed upon her. She was protected from dangers and blessed to prosper. The Lord had favored her thus stood in opposition to her enemies. Yet her worshipful response to God’s favor was expected. God, who blesses deserves to be blessed. When He is acknowledged as the Source of every good and perfect gift, He reveals more of Himself and His purposes to us. Even though the tide may swell and the rivers may rise with their tumultuous currents, yet they will not overrun their borders. He regulates the degrees of testing allowed to cross our path, Instead of being used to destroy us, they are measured and their pressures can only prove what He has established within us. We have received from Him the grace to withstand all the fiery darts of the wicked. It is His strength within us that sustains us along the way. He is on our side. Not only that, He is with us and in us and will never leave us alone.

21 Oct 0Comments 0Likes

Meditation: October 21

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“Now the Lord is the Spirit; and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is liberty.” 2 Corinthians 3:17

The living Spirit of God frees us to give a fuller expression of His will. We are no longer bound to obey His Law as heavy restrictions levied against us, but rather freed inwardly to joyful give expression to what we have become. We are made alive to His righteousness while the Spirit reveals to our spirit a standard no longer alien to us. He gives us both the will and the ability to do for His good pleasure. What a life; to please God and at the same time be pleased ourselves! The old nature of sin of which we had grown accustomed, has now be exposed as a slave master. We have now been liberated from his controls and freely ruled over by a Beneficent and loving Lord. He rules by placing His will within us so that there is no struggle between us. We know that He loves us and we know that His will is perfect. As we progress in our knowledge of Him, we surrender even the most stubborn portions of our lives to His government. We want His Kingdom be fully established in our hearts that His will is done on earth as it is in heaven.

08 Oct 0Comments 0Likes

Meditation: October 8

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“My heart is overflowing with a good theme; I recite my composition concerning the King; My tongue is the pen of a ready writer.” Psalm 45:1

The tongue is engaged as a result of the overflow of the heart. As we meditate on the goodness of the Lord, our speech is not restricted to the thoughts that immediately come to mind. But there is a buildup of thoughts awaiting expression as Mary, the mother of Jesus, pondered in her heart all that the Angel of the Lord made known to her. When she finally spoke, the Magnification which was a bursting forth of praise and adoration began to flow from the deepest recesses of her soul. How many times have we had to strain in offering praise when we have not gathered in enough within for the rivers of living water to flow from the innermost portions of our heart? Yet when we silently wait before Him and allow our minds to slowly reflect upon all which He has done, then when we speak, we have more to say than time will allow. We must be swift to hear and slow to speak. In hearing what God has said, His Word must be applied to every part of us. Then our tongues will be employed to recite our composition concerning our King.

06 Oct 0Comments 0Likes

Meditation: October 6

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“This I recall to my mind, therefore I have hope.” Lamentations 3:21

The immediate challenges of our day oftentimes cloud our view from seeing the faithfulness of God throughout the years. Living in the immediate alone without any reference to the past will make us feel as if we must take matters into our own hands. God has given us the gift of memory to reflect upon His goodness directed towards us even when all hope seemed to be lost. We are then able to feast through reflection, on His faithfulness. Whatever may appear as an impassable mountain standing before us, God is there with His wisdom and His strength awaiting our request. He will first settle us in our difficulties to know that He has knowledge of our present state. Then He will provide for us the wisdom to see all things from His perspective. If this is one of those obstacles that should not be or is as a test of our faithfulness to Him alone, in time, we will have provided for us the right answer and resolve. He will keep us in perfect peace if our minds are steadily focused on Him knowing that our God is greater than our circumstances.

24 Sep 0Comments 0Likes

Meditation: September 24

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(2) Let each of us please his neighbor for his good, leading to edification. (3) For even Christ did not please Himself; but as it is written, “The reproaches of those who reproached You fell on Me.”(4) For whatever things were written before were written for our learning, that we through the patience and comfort of the Scriptures might have hope. Romans 15:2-4

A selfless heart cannot be prefabricated. The fallen nature of man hinders him from becoming altruistic. Yet God is able through one who has yielded himself to Him, do what is pleasing and for the good of his neighbor. Christ died for us. It was not a pleasant experience leading up to His death. But He had us in mind throughout all He had to suffer. The Scripture does not tell us to do whatever is pleasing to our neighbor. That would reduce us to becoming men-pleasers. We must consider what is good for him and do what is best even if it cost us in our efforts in assisting him. The love of God given expression through us will lift him to a level where Christ becomes visible to him. As we seek God for the good of others, expecting nothing in return from them, God’s grace flows freely through us.

19 Sep 0Comments 0Likes

Meditation: September 19

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“Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, and comes down from the Father of lights.” James 1:17

The words “good” and “perfect” are given deeper meanings when God is speaking. He does not restrict Himself to our definitions of these terms. There is a goodness that transcends all efforts on our part and remains good even when what man is able to produce turns sour and withers away. The reason that God’s goodness is so special is because it is perfect goodness. There is no separation between the good and the perfect gift of God. The gift is good because it is perfect and it is perfect because it is good. He then sends it to us from His holy habitation. It comes from the Throne of God where He rules and reigns without the slightest hint of sin and confusion. Heaven is a perfect place, therefore perfect gifts can come from there. The gift reaches us with His signature on it. Not only does He sign it, but He remains attached to His gift. Not that the gift has not been given to us but as a man’s gift makes room for him, God’s gifts cannot be received without Him being attached to it. If the gift is to remain good and perfect the One that is both good and perfect must be constantly engaged in its use. If we manage what He has given us without Him, we corrupt it and it is misdirected towards some evil means. He extends Himself to us and to the world through giving us what is of Him and in Him. As we receive the gifts of God, may our hearts be open to all that He is and has for us.

17 Sep 0Comments 0Likes

Meditation: September 17

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“My people will dwell in a peaceful habitation, in secure dwellings, and in quiet resting places” Isaiah 32:18

God provides security for His own people. Though competitive and threatening storms of life rise on occasion, but God’s peace quiets us in the midst of the storm. We dwell in the secret and secure place where the activities of discord and doubt dwell on the outside rather than within. He will keep us here in this place of perfect peace if we maintain our focus on Him and not on the storms. God knows how to navigate the ship in the most troubled of waters. When facing the greatest of difficulties, we do not desire a novice to be at the helm. Experience counts best when it is needed the most. Jesus has triumphantly passed through every barrier on earth including death. He, as our High Priest, has now even passed through the heavens. There is no experience on earth, or in heaven that the Man, Jesus Christ is not completely familiar. We can hold fast to the confidence and not waver because of some misfortune that may be strange to us. What He has already done He is able to do with us and in us as long as we remain where He has placed us. This is our resting place because of the assurance that we have in knowing that God is with us. He is working all things together that each part may contribute to a completed life for our good and for His glory.

29 Aug 0Comments 0Likes

Meditation: August 29

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“So he answered and said, “‘You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your strength, and with all your mind,’ and ‘your neighbor as yourself.'” Luke 10:27

God gives us the strength to love. The heart is guided in a direction and the soul agrees to give full expression to that particular emotion. To love is not a miracle. It is a part of man’s nature to love. Without guidance the heart gravitates by default away from God. Loving then is not deliberate, but the result of some forceful habit that captures the mind and heart in order to condemn the soul. The passions must be harnessed by an object that is capable of containing all that is offered and reciprocate by providing what is desperately needed in return. When love gives but does not provide the person with what is needed, he eventually becomes bankrupt and bitter having been taken advantage of. Then love is inverted and transforms into hatred that is primarily directed towards the true Lover of his soul. They feel shortchanged having not received from Him what they needed, but refused to give Him what He commanded. When God is loved with the whole heart, the heart is made whole. Then the heart guides the soul with every emotion towards what is good. One will engage in activities using his strength to glorify Him alone. Thought and action is unified when the Word and Spirit are experienced. They empower us to do what we will and will to please the One who provide both will and ability to do for His good pleasure. Then He will show us our neighbor in a different light. We see him through God’s eyes. He directs our affection towards them in ways far beyond the levels of selfishness and competition. We see ourselves in him, thus loving him as we love ourselves.

18 Aug 0Comments 0Likes

Meditation: August 18

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“And you will find rest for your souls.” Jeremiah 6:16

There is a place of soul rest established for those who wish to find it. Jeremiah speaks of “standing in the ways and seeing” then “asking for the old paths where the good way is and walking in it.” Trying to keep up with the new ways and expressions of faith produces frustrations even though many are attracted to these paths. They clamor for the latest song and cliché, thinking they have arrived, but as in the life of the prodigal son, they have distanced themselves from home. The “old paths” are tried, tested, and proven to be the route leading to soul rest. Jesus speaks of a yoke that must be borne. His yoke binds us to Him and not to other things or people. When we walk on the old paths, we walk with Jesus, bearing His yoke. They say “we will not walk in it.” Those who say this never find rest for their souls because their stubborn hearts make them too resistant to learn from Him. But when we walk in His paths that are old, the good way which is His way is made known and we will find rest for our souls. No longer are we left to ourselves to live with our decisions, but He is with us and we discover that His yoke is easy and His burden is light.

11 Aug 0Comments 0Likes

Meditation: August 11

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“He who has My commandments and keeps them, it is he who loves Me. And he who loves Me will be loved by My Father, and I will love him and manifest Myself to him.” John 14:21

The attachment to God’s Word is the same as being attached to all of His promises. The heart must be made ready to contain the infusion of life that comes as result of God speaking into it. It is not just the mind even though the message must pass through the mind. The heart must agree wholly with the Spirit who causes the Word to come alive within the Christian. The result is a quality of love that surpasses any effort on the part of the person to love Jesus. It is His love deposited within the heart and directed towards Him without reservation. It is His power that preserves the believer through making the Person of Jesus Christ known in every situation. He is not absent when things are tough. He does not conceal His identity in the midst of one’s greatest trial. He is there causing all things to work together for the good of all who have His love within them. He not only manifests His love, but His glory is revealed.