Mercy: A Boundless Sea

 

Tozer was a wise writer... and well used by The Lord...
How often do we just tire of those that we see around us that know they should do better... those that know the truth but want to live for thier own flesh a bit longer... how frustrated to we get with those people when we see them sin openly and don't have a care in the world...
Do we even sometimes think it's not fair...
God is fair... God is righteous... God is never wrong...

We each need to remember as the wise prophet Jeremiah wrote ages ago... 'but most righteous acts are but filthy wrags in His sight...'

God, who is rich in mercy... even when we were dead in sins. Ephesians 2:4-5

"A human being is never really aware of the great boundless sea of the mercy of God until by faith he comes across the threshold of the kingdom of God and recognizes it and identifies it!
My father was sixty years old when he bowed before Jesus Christ and was born again. That was a near lifetime in which he had sinned and lied and cursed. But to him, the mercy of God that took him to heaven was no greater than the mercy of God that had endured and kept him for sixty years.
I recall the story of an ancient rabbi who consented to take a weary old traveler into his house for a night of rest. In conversation, the rabbi discovered the visitor was almost 100 years old and a confirmed atheist. Infuriated, the rabbi arose, opened the door and ordered the man out into the night.
Then, sitting down by his candle and Old Testament, it seemed he heard a voice, God's voice: "I have endured that sinner for almost a century. Could you not endure him for a night?" The rabbi ran out and overtaking the old man, brought him back to the hospitality of his home for the night." Tozer

"Father, You are gloriously patient with mankind. I praise You for that, and I pray that You will prod Your believing children to go out and find those who are on the cusp of belief." Tozer

Until next time,
Jean

A Handy Prayer List

I was reading out of "Family Life" an Anabaptist publication and on the back cover of the current issue was something that struck my heart...
How often do we forget to pray for others... not our loved ones and friends, but 'other's' as well as the loved ones & friends? We are all guilty of it.. we get busy and 'forget' about friend Jane's heartbreak or brother John's sick wife and so on...

I thought I would share an excerpt of this wonderful reminder...

   "A grandmother had been telling a Bible story to her grandchildren.  She explained to them how Daniel had faithfully prayed to God three times a day.  'What do you think he prayed for?' she asked.
   Then she held up her left hand so all of the children could see, 'Look at my thumb and fingers, ' she said. 'They remind me of things I should pray for every day.  My thumb is nearest to me, so I start by praying for my family, the ones who are dearest and nearest to me.  I pray for my friends and neighbords too.  And I thank the Lord that He has blessed me with so many dear ones.  That is a good way to start my prayer.'
   Grandma paused, but she was still holding her hand in the air.  'Next to my thumb is my index finger,' she said.  'Years ago, my teacher used to point that finger at me in school.  Sometimes our preachers shake this finger in church when they are warning us about dangers. So when I think of that finger, I pray for the teachers and preachers and the parents who have a great responsibility to guide those in their care.'
   The grandchildren were listening with interest. 'My middle finger is the longest one,' Grandma continued.  'It stands above the others.  This reminds me to pray for the rulers of our country and for all those in authority.
   The next finger is the weakest one. It makes me think of the poor and the sick and helpless. I ask the Lord to supply their needs and to strengthen them in body and soul.  And I also pray that if there is any way I can be a help to these people. I want to do my part.'
   With that, the grandmother came at last to her little finger.  'This one stands for me,'
 she said.  'So I finish my prayer by praying for myself and all the things I need." 


... thought provoking,
Until next time,
Jean 

More Than a Name

 

It's amazing how the Lord will direct us in our life as we allow... or leave us to wander aimlessly as we try to direct our own...

Have you ever been just so distraught... not knowing what to expect... not knowing which direction to go...

He really does have all the answers... no He doesn't just speak right out loud to us like He did to Moses... today for Christians He talks to us through His Word... the Bible... through others like our ministers, family members, friends... and even through a stranger in the grocery store line...

 

This morning He spoke to me here in my faithful "Morning With Tozer"...

I love to share with all of you His wonderful works in my life... I pray that this will be a testimony to Him... to His ever faithful love for me... even when I stumble and fall... He is always there to pick me up and carry me through...

 

Enjoy His precious promises and love...

 

Let every one that nameth the name of Christ depart from iniquity. 2 Timothy 2:19

 

"There have always been professing Christians who argue and insist: "I am all right—I worship in the name of Jesus." They seem to believe that worship of God is based on a formula. They seem to think there is a kind of magic in saying the name of Jesus!

 

Study the Bible carefully with the help of the Holy Spirit and you will find that the name and the nature of Jesus are one. It is not enough to know how to spell Jesus' name!

 

If we have come to be like Him in nature, if we have come to the place of being able to ask in accordance with His will, He will give us the good things we desire and need. (emphasis minie)

 

We worship God as the result of a new birth from above in which God has been pleased to give us more than a name.

 

He has given us a nature transformed, and Peter expresses that truth in this way: "Whereby are given unto us exceeding great and precious promises: that by these ye might be partakers of the divine nature, having escaped the corruption that is in the world through lust" (2 Peter 1:4)." Tozer

 

Until next time,

Jean

Today's Idolarty

 

Thou shalt not bow down thyself to them, nor serve them: for I the Lord thy God am a jealous God. Exodus 20:5

"It has been proven often in history that whoever entertains an unworthy conception of God is throwing his or her being wide open to the sin of idolatry, which is in essence a defamation of the divine character.

It is vitally important that we think soundly about God. Because He is the foundation of all our religious belief, it follows that if we err in our ideas of God, we will go astray in everything else.

We would like to believe that there are no longer false gods in the world, but actually we recognize some of them in our own society. What about the glorified "Chairman of the Board" of the modern businessman? Or the storytelling, backslapping god of some of the service clubs? Think of the dreamy-eyed god of the unregenerate poet—cozy, aesthetic and willing to fellowship with anybody who thinks high thoughts and believes in moral equality. We often encounter the tricky, unscrupulous god of the superstitious; and the list goes on!

Thankfully, we have found that to know and follow Christ is to be saved from all forms of idolatry!" Tozer

"Lord, it is definitely a challenge not to be swept up by the latest media craze or the hot-selling electronic gadget or the most recent fitness or diet program. I pray, Lord, that none of these "things" will ever supplant You as the focus and purpose of my life."  Tozer

... The bold emphasis is my doing...
I thought about this and pondered on what forms of idolatry I may be entertaining...
What do I love more than the Lord... although I dare never truly admit it... maybe gardening...
Whatever pulls me away from my time with the Lord can become a form of idolatry.  In today's society we don't offer sacrifices or have burning alters in the parks... but lets truly look into our homes.

What about sports and Hollywood in todays world... I always tend to think of this as such blatant idolatry. The world even calls them teen 'idols'  and sports 'idols'. 

Wake up Christians and look around you with an honest eye of self inspection...
One day we will all stand before the judgement seat of God and we will give account for all the bowing down to the worlds idols that we have engaged in.

Until next time,
Jean 

Getting God in Focus

 

But he, being full of the Holy Ghost, looked up steadfastly into heaven, and saw the glory of God. Acts 7:55

Today is Thanksgiving and we do have so much to be thankful for...
This was one of my daily devotions today...
The highlighted verse below was what spoke out to me most.  I thought on it and yes we can get so distracted with the things of the world... with the daily cares that are just a part of each of our lives. We need to remember that our Lord Jesus never walks away from us, He never forgets about us and He most certainly never gets distracted away from taking care of me and you.
We are the ones that wander away and get distracted. We are the ones that put Him on the back burner and think we'll get back to 'that' once this job or that responsibility is over with... 
What really happens is we get lazy and lax in our Christian walk.
But Hallelujah He is faithful and is waiting for our return...

If you have wandered away... if you are lonely and weary from the fight...  If you are standing there looking around thinking, "How did I get to this point?", it's not too late, He is there with out stretched arms ready and waiting for you to return...

The Lord loves a broken and contrite heart... reach out... He loves you.

"While many are busy trying to set forth satisfactory definitions of the word faith, we do well to simply consider that believing is directing the heart's attention to Jesus!
It is lifting the mind to "behold the Lamb of God," and never ceasing that beholding for the rest of our lives. At first this may be difficult, but it becomes easier as we look steadily at His wondrous Person, quietly and without strain.
Distractions may hinder, but once the heart is committed to Him, the attention will return again and rest upon Him like a wandering bird coming back to its window.
I would emphasize this one great volitional act which establishes the heart intention to gaze forever upon Jesus. God takes this intention for our choice and makes what allowances He must for the thousand distractions which beset us in this evil world. So, faith is a redirecting of our sight, getting God in our focus, and when we lift our inward eyes upon God, we are sure to meet friendly eyes gazing back at us!" Tozer

"Lord, this morning I pray that the inward eyes of my soul will put You in clear focus throughout this day." Tozer

Today if you will hear His voice harden not your hearts...
Until next time,
Jean

Looking Beyond

"Still Moment", by Jean Smith

An elderly woman had two large pots, each hung on the ends of a pole which she carried across her neck.  One of the pots had a crack in it while the other pot was perfect and always delivered a full portion of water. At the end of the long walks from the stream to the house, the cracked pot arrived only half full.

For a full two years this went on daily, with the woman bringing home only one and a half pots of water.  Of course, the perfect pot was proud of its accomplishments. But the poor cracked pot was ashamed of its own imperfection, and miserable that it could only do half of what it had been made to do. . .
  After two years of what it perceived to be bitter failure, it spoke to the woman one day by the stream.


'I am ashamed of myself, because this crack in my side causes water to leak out all the way back to your house.'

The old woman smiled, 'Did you notice that there are flowers on your side of the path, but not on the other pot's side?
That's because I have always known about your flaw, so I planted flower seeds on your side of the path, and every day while we walk back, you water them.  For two years I have been able to pick these beautiful flowers to decorate the table.  Without you being just the way you are, there would not be this beauty to grace the house.'


Each of us has our own unique flaw. But it's the cracks and flaws we each have that make our lives together so very interesting and rewarding..   You've just got to take each person for what they are and look for the good in them.

Until next time,
Jean

Meekness

"Meekness is the ability to react wisely when provoked." John Coblentz

What a challenge wouldn't you say?  I know that when I heard him say this, I was marvelled to discouragement! Not in a bad way really, just humbly, I guess that would be the best way to describe how I felt.  I just had to think, "Wow, I fail at that!"  But I know we all fail and fall short, but this one hit home p-retty hard! 

We all know that Moses was considered to be the meekest man on to ever live... John Coblentz gave a suggestion to do a study of the life of Moses through the books of Exodus through Numbers. As I thought on what I know off the top of my head there were two particular instances that I could think of that Moses gave way to his temper.

The first was of course when he killed the Egyptian guard while still in Egypt and the second was when God told him to speak to the rock and he smote it.  Every other instance that I could think of he prayed for those ever complaining Isrealites. 

Do I pray for my enemies? Do I look at them with a heart of love and compassion even when they are being down right mean to me?

That was the example that Moses gave... He was provoked from every side, yet he trusted in God.
What a challenge for me...

Until next time,
Jean

Intercessory Prayer

This is one of my devotion's that I received several months ago, but I thought it was very fitting for life as I am living today... 

We need to be constantly in this state of mind for those that we love... for those in our family... for that homeless person as they stand on the street corner...

Where are our thoughts during the day... Let them be in this, for there can we do a small work for His glory... 

Until next time, 

Jean

 

Intercessory Prayer

I pray for them . . . which thou hast given me.
John 1 7:9

When our congregation meets for midweek prayer meeting, someone often requests prayer for ”each other." I am sure this request is given with noble intentions, but I often think this is a rather impersonal way to pray for the brotherhood. Granted, we might not pray for each person in our prayer group by name because there are certain rules of conduct we should follow, such as considering our allotted prayer time and allowing others in our group to have enough time for prayer, also. How then should we pray for "each other"? In John 17 we see Christ praying to the Father for his disciples (and for us). His prayer provides guidelines we do well to follow.

In John 17:15, Christ prayed that His followers would be kept from evil. Every Christian faces temptations to sin. We must intercede for others, so that they can also be kept from the results of those temptations. In verse 21, He prayed that we would have unity, as He had with the Father. Since disunity hinders our walk of faith and our witness to the unsaved, we must pray for unity among the brotherhood.

Other New Testament passages give us more guidelines for praying for each other. Ephesians 5:20 tells us to give thanks always for all things, and we certainly ought to thank God for each of our brothers and sisters in Christ. James 5:14 tells us to pray for each other’s healing: physical, spiritual, and emotional.

Finally, James 1:5 tells us to pray for wisdom, and this is a request we should make not only for ourselves, but for each member of the brotherhood.

Marcus Yoder


Bible Reference: John 17