Month: May 2013

Who or What Controls You?

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WHO OR WHAT CONTROLS YOU?

Direct my steps by Your word, and let no iniquity have dominion over me (Psalm 119:133 New King James Version).

In this day and age, we have sin, and the temptation to sin, shoved in our faces. The advertising industry itself is ripe with lies and seduction to increase product sales. There are commercials indicating STD’s are ok because there are drugs, which cannot cure, but will help stop the spread of them. We hear too many news reports of thievery, stealing, murders, beatings…crimes driven by the economy, or driven by the glorification of the offense within the media. Students go to school and are forbidden to mention the name of Jesus, but are inundated with false teachings, false gods, and false religions. Many students are allowed to carry their religious paraphernalia, but a Christian cannot without persecution. Workplaces have become ministry and recruiting areas for those practicing agnostic, atheistic, or pagan religions, but if a Christian stands up to pray it can be grounds for termination based on religious bias. So what do most Christians faced with situations like this do? Many retreat, many take off the protection of the armor of God, many hide in the background praying for someone to stand up and refuse to listen when God tells them to stand. Many give in and relinquish their beliefs to fit in with those they say they are witnessing to. Let me ask you something? Who or what is controlling you when you give in to the temptation instead of standing up for the kingdom of God?

Jesus walked this earth, yet committed no sin. He came to seek and save the lost, and so He was in the midst of sinners. He ate with tax collectors, adulterers, murderers, and thieves. He talked with, and touched, the outcasts of society. He enjoyed the company of children. He is coming soon; this is no time to be selective about whom we associate with. It is time to get selective about what we are doing. We must stop allowing the things of this world dominion in our lives. We must open our bibles, and study the word of God in order to hide it in our hearts.

We must rise up, Church, and gird ourselves with His armor, and stand. Stand up for Jesus. Stand up for His kingdom. Stand up for God’s statutes, His precepts, His Word and be an effective witness. If we find ourselves in a place ripe with sin, we can be a light for Jesus and not give in to the sin. If we find ourselves surrounded with pagan beliefs, we can proclaim His name. There is power and authority in the name of Jesus. We are children of the King of Kings and the Lord of Lords, and we have no reason to cower behind conformity to this world. If we don’t like what we see on TV or hear on the radio, let’s turn them off. Let us fill ourselves on the things of the Lord and He will give us strength to stand.

Let’s Pray: Dear Heavenly Father, thank You for this day. Thank You for being the loving, merciful and faithful Father that You are. We give You praise, we give You glory! We stand before You, Father, asking for Your forgiveness. We have been too long in this world, allowing it to mold us for the sake of making everyone happy. We have been too long letting the world have dominion over us. It is our prayer, now, that we discipline ourselves to hide Your word in our hearts so that when You direct our steps, we will follow. We desire to know You more intimately so that iniquity does not have dominion over us. We pray that we are covered in Your armor and that we dig our heels in to stand against the enemy of this world. We pray that when we are faced with tempting situations, sinful people, worldly behavior that we have discernment and Your endurance to be the salty light that You desire us to be. Teach us to be fruitful witnesses of Your Gospel, show us how to bring Jesus into every situation. May Your Holy Spirit convict hearts, fertilizing and cultivating within those that are lost the seeds that you have allowed us to plant. May be we an effective tool in Your hand. We love You, Father, You are holy, worthy, mighty and worthy to be praised! In Jesus’ name we pray. Amen.

Today’s Attitude of Worship: Hide God’s word in your heart. Worship, praise and pray. Examine your heart attitude and how you react to situations where you may not be shining the light of Christ or sharing His love, and ask for God to change your heart.

Additional Scriptures: Luke 22:40; 1 Corinthians 10:13; Ephesians 6:10-20

Shalom,

Prudence

Living In His Presence

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LIVING IN HIS PRESENCE

The one thing I ask of the Lord—
the thing I seek most—
is to live in the house of the Lord all the days of my life,
delighting in the Lord’s perfections
and meditating in his Temple (Psalm 27: 4 New Living Translation).

I have been stuck on this Psalm lately. I can’t get past it, and I don’t think I want to, at least not right now. I have made it my prayer, and have let it wash over me again and again and again. I’ve always read this psalm with the idea it is speaking about living in heaven, but recently I’ve begun to view it as heaven touching earth.

We recently had a guest ministry at our church who taught about the manifest presence of God. He imparted wisdom to us, encouraging us to seek and rest in the manifest presence. Healing, deliverance, making decisions – all things we expect from God is found, and is better, when we do it in His presence.  The presence of God was palpable within our sanctuary and I was lost in it, I felt electrified and capable of anything! As I took in every word and processed it, Psalm 27 began to resurface in my heart.

The Lord is all around us, He breathes on us, He sings over us, He leads and guides us; it is only fitting we desire to be in His presence all day long. The one thing I have been asking of the Lord, the one thing I pursue most, is to live in His house all the days of my life, delighting in His perfections and meditating in His temple. I want heaven to come and touch my world, I want to look up and see Him seated on the throne, I long to jump in His lap and stay there! I can have it; all I have to do is sit in His manifest presence.

Let’s Pray: Dear Heavenly Father, thank You for the blessing of this new day! Thank You for Your presence, may we rest in it, soak in it and rely on Your manifest presence to surround us day after day. Father, we long to live in Your house and delight in You, we strive to meet with You and meditate on Your word. You are loving and caring and You delight in us, draw us closer to You and let heaven touch our earth! Expand our territories, increase our faith, baptize us in Your love that we never step out of Your presence to get ahead of You. Father, we love You and we give You all our praise, all our worship and all of ourselves. In Jesus matchless name, Amen.

Today’s Attitude of Worship: Sit in silence today and capture the presence of God. Learn to listen for Him, and be still when you haven’t had direction. Pursue the Lord and desire to live in His house while on this earth, He will not disappoint!

Additional Scriptures: Psalm 27; Psalm 37:4; Matthew 6:33

Shalom,

Prudence

Father, You’re Beautiful!

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FATHER, YOU’RE BEAUTIFUL!

Psalm 27:4One thing I have desired of the LORD, that will I seek: that I may dwell in the house of the LORD all the days of my life, to behold the beauty of the LORD, and to inquire in His temple (Psalm 27:4 New King James Version).

Yes, one thing I have desired of the Lord and what I seek is to dwell in His house all my days to behold His beauty.  This includes in my daily living, if His presence does not go with me, I don’t want to go! There is none more beautiful than our Lord, and His house contains security, protection, peace, hope, love and comfort.  No matter what we face each day, when we truly seek the Lord, when we offer our sacrifices of praise, or when we gaze upon His beautiful face, we open doors for Him to move in our lives.  He draws us closer to Him, to rest in His lap, to cradle us in His arms, to shower us with His love and affection, to protect and shield us.

God is beautiful; His beauty is immeasurable but is revealed to us through His creation.  Seek His face; ask Him to reveal a part of Himself to you today.  Open your eyes, open your ears…it may be something small you’ve never noticed before but suddenly jumps out at you; it could be in a smile from someone; it could be a song that touches your heart.  God is beautiful, won’t you seek to dwell in His house and behold His beauty?

Let’s Pray:  Oh, Heavenly Father, Your beauty cannot be contained, Your face is glorious!  We want more and more and more of You, we desire to dwell in Your house.  You are mighty, caring, loving, yet You are sovereign, majestic and so, so Holy.  We offer You our praise, our worship, our selves.  Lord, we give You the glory due to Your name, and we worship You in the beauty of holiness.  We will extol You, O Lord, for You have lifted us up!  We cried out to You and You healed us, You brought our souls up from the grave, You have kept us alive that we should not go down to the pit!  We sing praise to You, and we give thanks to You!  We bless Your name, we shout of Your loving-kindness from the rooftops!  Thank You Father!  In Jesus’ name, we pray.  Amen.

Attitude of Worship: When seeking the Lord, give Him thanks and praise, even when you don’t feel like it. Put Him in the seat of priority.  This opens us up to what the Lord wants to do in our lives and allows us to grow spiritually.

Additional Scriptures: Psalm 27

“When you come to knowing God, the initiative lies on His side. If He does not show Himself, nothing you can do will enable you to find Him. And, in fact, He shows much more of Himself to some people than to others—not because He has favorites, but because it is impossible for Him to show Himself to a man whose whole mind and character are in the wrong condition. Just as sunlight, though it has no favorites, cannot be reflected in a dusty mirror as clearly as in a clean one.”  ~CS Lewis

In Christ’s Service,

Prudence

***Adapted from my book, Today’s Bible Treasure, Simple Christianity Volume 1***

Being Ministered To…

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This is currently one looping throughout my space – home, car, office. The Holy Spirit ministers each and every time I hear this song. I hope you can feel the presence of God as well!

[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tB2Q3EHPVDw]

Legacy

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CHILDREN

Behold, children are a heritage from the LORD, the fruit of the womb is a reward (Psalm 127:3 New King James Version).

I had the distinct pleasure to babysit my 3 ½ month old grandson the other day. We had so much fun and I discovered how much he loves to be sung and read to, played with and simply spoiled! I remember when my children were born, the awe and wonder which filled my heart at their tiny little personages; reliving it again in the arrival of grandchildren is amazing!  My heart is overflowing with love for him and when I see him next, it will be such a grand reunion!

As I process this emotional walk into grandparent-hood, I am drawn to see the parallels of the Father’s love for us.  How He must long and pine for us when we have strayed from Him and He has no fellowship with us.  How sad His heart must be when we turn our backs on Him.  But the joy which fills His heart when we return to Him must be overwhelming!  The prayers Jesus prayed for us while He was in the garden have similar undertones to the prayers I pray for my grandchildren – to be one with the Father.   It’s fascinating to see the hand of God throughout.

Heritage means something that comes or belongs to one by reason of birth; an inherited lot or portion.  If children are a heritage from the Lord, then we have a responsibility to teach them the ways of the Lord.  We have a responsibility to love them and nurture them just as He loves and nurtures us.  When they test our patience, these are the times when we need to examine ourselves and see how we can grow and mature.  Sometimes we may learn more from the children than they will learn from us in a situation.  Angelo and I are looking forward to leaving a legacy for our grandchildren; to teach them the love of Jesus Christ; to show them the power and fellowship that comes through prayer; to model for them Godly living and how to love one’s neighbor.  We want to instill in them a deep trust for the Lord that surpasses anything this world offers and we accept the challenges that we will face.

Let’s Pray: Dear Heavenly Father, You are incredible and the love that You have for us is unmatched!  The grace and mercy that You grant alongside Your love is wonderful and we can feel it envelope us.  Father, if we could but take a fraction of Your love and extend it to others, it would spread like wildfire. Show us how to love our children and grandchildren the way that You love us; guide us in instructing these younger generations so that they know You more intimately; strengthen us against the cares of this world and its oppressive grasp over these generations.  May we rise up as parents, grandparents, aunts, uncles and relatives to help bring our children back to Your sheepfold, but more importantly, may the children have ears to hear Your voice, eyes to see Your hand and hearts ready to receive Your word.  Father, we love You and we desire to bring You glory!  In Jesus’ name, Amen.

Today’s Attitude of Worship: I have been enveloped in a pocket of God’s love and I don’t ever want it to dissipate.  Take a look at what’s gone on around you and begin to notice the love of God as He touches and cradles you.  If you’ve grown distant, turn back, He is longing for you.  His hands are outstretched and His lap is welcoming.  If you have children or grandchildren, nieces or nephews, teach them the ways of the Lord.  Be the example that Christ was.  Let the children see you trust fully in God.

Additional Scriptures:  Jeremiah 31:3; Matthew 19:14

It is easier to build a boy than to mend a man. ~Author Unknown

Shalom,

Prudence