Monthly Archives: September 2016

The annual trek to Duck has begun.

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The LORD is my light and my salvation; whom shall I fear?The LORD is the stronghold of my life; of whom shall I be afraid? (Psalm 27:1 ESV)

God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble. (Psalm 46:1 ESV)

As a father shows compassion to his children, so the LORD shows compassion to those who fear him. [14] For he knows our frame; he remembers that we are dust. (Psalm 103:13-14 ESV)

but whoever listens to me will dwell secure and will be at ease, without dread of disaster.” (Proverbs 1:33 ESV)

Trust in the LORD with all your heart, and do not lean on your own understanding. (Proverbs 3:5 ESV)

fear not, for I am with you; be not dismayed, for I am your God; I will strengthen you, I will help you, I will uphold you with my righteous right hand. (Isaiah 41:10 ESV)

“Blessed is the man who trusts in the LORD, whose trust is the LORD. [8] He is like a tree planted by water, that sends out its roots by the stream, and does not fear when heat comes, for its leaves remain green, and is not anxious in the year of drought, for it does not cease to bear fruit.” (Jeremiah 17:7-8 ESV)

The steadfast love of the LORD never ceases; his mercies never come to an end; [23] they are new every morning; great is your faithfulness. (Lamentations 3:22-23 ESV)

Though the fig tree should not blossom, nor fruit be on the vines,  the produce of the olive fail and the fields yield no food, the flock be cut off from the fold and there be no herd in the stalls, 18] yet I will rejoice in the LORD; I will take joy in the God of my salvation. [19] GOD, the Lord, is my strength; he makes my feet like the deer’s; he makes me tread on my high places. (Habakkuk 3:17-19a ESV)

[34] “Therefore do not be anxious about tomorrow, for tomorrow will be anxious for itself. Sufficient for the day is its own trouble.” (Matthew 6:34 ESV) 

“Come to me, all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. [29] Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. [30] For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.” (Matthew 11:28-30 ESV)

“If you abide in me, and my words abide in you, ask whatever you wish, and it will be done for you.” (John 15:7 ESV)

“No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us. [38] For I am sure that neither death nor life, nor angels nor rulers, nor things present nor things to come, nor powers, [39] nor height 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 8:37-39 ESV)

So we do not lose heart. Though our outer self is wasting away, our inner self is being renewed day by day. [17] For this light momentary affliction is preparing for us an eternal weight of glory beyond all comparison, [18] as we look not to the things that are seen but to the things that are unseen. For the things that are seen are transient, but the things that are unseen are eternal. (2 Corinthians 4:16-18 ESV)

“Come to me, all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. [29] Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. [30] For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.” (Matthew 11:28-30 ESV)

NOW… Therefore take up the whole armor of God, that you may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand firm. [14] Stand therefore, having fastened on the belt of truth, and having put on the breastplate of righteousness, [15] and, as shoes for your feet, having put on the readiness given by the gospel of peace. [16] In all circumstances take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming darts of the evil one; [17] and take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God, [18] praying at all times in the Spirit, with all prayer and supplication. To that end keep alert with all perseverance, making supplication for all the saints,… (Ephesians 6:13-18 ESV)

Jesus said to abide in Him.

I heard a guy the other day say that modern Christians have lost the skill of meditation. 

He went on to suggest that a way to regain meditation as a valued skill: memorizing Scripture. It’s the only way we can sit on a text long enough to really dwell on it.

Another writer has emphasized using meditating on Scripture between our morning reading of the Bible and our prayer time. 

In thinking about this discipline, I realized that for me, the texts I want to dwell on repeatedly are ones that point me directly to the praise of the Father.

Here’s the one I’m abiding in now and thus abiding in Him. 

“Lord, you have been our dwelling place in all generations. Before the mountains were brought forth, or ever you had formed the earth and the world, from everlasting to everlasting you are God.”

‭‭Psalm‬ ‭90:1-2‬ ‭ESV‬‬

Give it a try, choose a text that directly points you to magnify God. Dwell there for a few readings, just read it slowly 5 or 6 times and really think about the words as you read them. By doing so you’ll slow your heart and mind down so that prayer may be deeper.

A couple of years ago a buddy gave me a book that touched my soul. This dude wrote it…

If you want to wisely invest 20 minutes, watch Greg Boyle talk about kinship and loving. It comes from…

CLICK HERE TO WATCH if you want your soul touched.

Every word which God hath spoken to his people by way of promise is as true today as when it was first uttered by the prophet… if this world should exist through tens of thousands of years, every promise will still have … it’s youth about it. No promise will grow stale; no word of God will cease to be of effect. It may have been fulfilled ten thousand times ten thousand times, but it will be fulfilled still. – Spurgeon 

“A voice says, “Cry!” And I said, “What shall I cry?” All flesh is grass, and all its beauty is like the flower of the field. The grass withers, the flower fades when the breath of the Lord blows on it; surely the people are grass. The grass withers, the flower fades, but the word of our God will stand forever.”

‭‭Isaiah‬ ‭40:6-8‬ ‭ESV‬‬

http://bible.com/59/isa.40.6-8.esv

I just got an email from a fellow disciple who talked about wanting a greater thirst for the word! A great prayer indeed.

I was stunned by the simplicity and yet complexity of this thought.

Simple because it is so easy to drink from the deep well of Scripture. The Bible, when “rightly   read” (Spurgeon) fills and empowers us, as long as we drink it deeply, rather than sipping it. 

But this is where the complexity comes in. Our time decisions get in the way. Our feelings get in the way. Our preference to read man’s words about God rather than God’s own words gives up sips. I’d guess Oswald Chambers would be horrified if you told him you choose his great work daily over sitting and soaking up the Bible.