Friday, April 28, 2006

Today's DB Colossians 3 w/Lena's Journalin'

Scripture selections are taken from the Rock Church Daily Bread Reading schedule for each month. “Lena’s Journalin’” are Lena’s comments on the specific passages from her Daily Journal.

If the e-mail text you receive is encrypted at all, just scroll down to the end of all of the text and click on Lena’s Journalin’ , which will take you directly to the web-page where you will be able to read the text quite clearly in it’s purposed form.

Colossians 3:1-25
Living the New Life
1Since you have been raised to new life with Christ, set your sights on the realities of heaven, where Christ sits at God's right hand in the place of honor and power. 2Let heaven fill your thoughts. Do not think only about things down here on earth. 3For you died when Christ died, and your real life is hidden with Christ in God. 4And when Christ, who is your F9 real life, is revealed to the whole world, you will share in all his glory.
5So put to death the sinful, earthly things lurking within you. Have nothing to do with sexual sin, impurity, lust, and shameful desires. Don't be greedy for the good things of this life, for that is idolatry. 6God's terrible anger will come upon those who do such things. 7You used to do them when your life was still part of this world. 8But now is the time to get rid of anger, rage, malicious behavior, slander, and dirty language. 9Don't lie to each other, for you have stripped off your old evil nature and all its wicked deeds. 10In its place you have clothed yourselves with a brand-new nature that is continually being renewed as you learn more and more about Christ, who created this new nature within you. 11In this new life, it doesn't matter if you are a Jew or a Gentile, F10 circumcised or uncircumcised, barbaric, uncivilized, F11 slave, or free. Christ is all that matters, and he lives in all of us.
12Since God chose you to be the holy people whom he loves, you must clothe yourselves with tenderhearted mercy, kindness, humility, gentleness, and patience. 13You must make allowance for each other's faults and forgive the person who offends you. Remember, the Lord forgave you, so you must forgive others. 14And the most important piece of clothing you must wear is love. Love is what binds us all together in perfect harmony. 15And let the peace that comes from Christ rule in your hearts. For as members of one body you are all called to live in peace. And always be thankful.
16Let the words of Christ, in all their richness, live in your hearts and make you wise. Use his words to teach and counsel each other. Sing psalms and hymns and spiritual songs to God with thankful hearts. 17And whatever you do or say, let it be as a representative of the Lord Jesus, all the while giving thanks through him to God the Father.
Instructions for Christian Households
18You wives must submit to your husbands, as is fitting for those who belong to the Lord. 19And you husbands must love your wives and never treat them harshly.
20You children must always obey your parents, for this is what pleases the Lord. 21Fathers, don't aggravate your children. If you do, they will become discouraged and quit trying.
22You slaves must obey your earthly masters in everything you do. Try to please them all the time, not just when they are watching you. Obey them willingly because of your reverent fear of the Lord. 23Work hard and cheerfully at whatever you do, as though you were working for the Lord rather than for people. 24Remember that the Lord will give you an inheritance as your reward, and the Master you are serving is Christ. 25But if you do what is wrong, you will be paid back for the wrong you have done. For God has no favorites who can get away with evil.
FOOTNOTES:F9: Some manuscripts read our. F10: Greek Greek. F11: Greek Barbarian, Scythian.
Copyright Statement: Holy Bible, The New Living TranslationCopyright © 1996 by Tyndale Charitable Trust. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers. All rights reserved.

~ Lena’s Journalin’ ~
Raised means, brought up out from a mortal’s death (sentence) into a brand new, unlike the old, life that is now fully dedicated to God.
Did you realize that when you got “saved”, when you said that “sinner’s prayer” with someone, you gave up your old life, the old way you used to live, the old things you used to do? That passed away, have a funeral and celebrate, because all that old man did was based in mortality and death. Did you realize that every part of your new life is given over to God?
In King James vs. 2 says set your affections on things above, not on things in the earth. That means change your old earthly-temporary desires to be one with God’s eternal desires. Seek out new bases for opinionated thinking, don’t base your opinions on old thoughts, habits, and patterns taught you by the world, who rages war against your Father! Come into His word and begin to think the same way He does, not by disputing to see who wins the arguments, but rather by simply believing as a child would, that what He says, is truth. Put value in what God puts value in. Change your value system, especially where self is concerned. See you as He sees you! A new creature inside of Christ, with Christ alive inside of you.
NOW is the time to be rid of all of the worldly junk that tries to take up God-space in our spiritual houses.
How is it one can renew their mind, make changes, and become as Christ, if they do not ever read how? The only way to be continually renewed is by learning how through studies on the Bible and intimate discipleship of a – quote - one on one tutor of faith.
You may read the word or hear a message, but left to yourself and old patterns of understanding, you may hear wrong. One way to hear right is to become filled with the Holy spirit. He is our Teacher and is set by God to teach us about God the Father and Jesus the Son. He bears witness with our spirits that we are children of God and sons of God by walking in truth, the truths we learn as we continue, pressing on in the discipleship of God’s word.
Love is THE clothing one must wear in the heavenly on earth kingdom of God, because God is love.
What if people are unlovely, can I take it off and put on vengeance? What if they are unfair, can I require of them fairness? What if they are mean, can’t I rail back and argue with them, proving their incorrectness? Can’t I help them see how unloving they are and show them the splinters in their eyes? Or do I have to do what is hard and love the unlovely? Do I have to serve those who don’t ever serve, those who always take and never give? Do I have to submit to the tyrant at work or at home or the one who requires my service even when I did not volunteer my services?
Why would I behave like that? That’s not natural, that’s quite weird, that’s crazy!
Yeah, it is. Love is driven by passion’s fire and burns down bridges of partician, where no other man would ever want to go.
How far would you go for love?
To the grave?
To the highest mountain?
Lowest valley?
Deepest sea?
Widest distance (on foot)?
For your enemy?
How far did He go?
Do we follow Him, or did we just say a prayer, cause we wanted the benefit of salvation with no commitment?
Would we follow Him, to the cross? (That’s what coming to an altar to say a salvation prayer is).
Would we follow Him to hell and back? (He went there to get the keys of death for me, to unlock grave doors of destiny for others).
Do we go into the Throne room and worship Him unabandondly?
Do we sit with Him high above all sources of darkness ruling over them, rather than being under their old rule?
Do we go into the earth, walking with Him and bringing truth from love to the world He loves?
Are we unashamed to be called His chosen ones, appointed ones?
Do we love who the Father loves?
Do we?
All for love?
He went all the way for me, for you, for us, for our enemies, for this world, Amen!


Daily Repetitive Verses:

John 3:17
You know these things – now do them! That is the path of blessing.

Thursday, April 27, 2006

DB Eph 5 w/ comments

Scripture selections are taken from the Rock Church Daily Bread Reading schedule for each month. “Lena’s Journalin’” are Lena’s comments on the specific passages from her Daily Journal.

If the e-mail text you receive is encrypted at all, just scroll down to the end of all of the text and click on Lena’s Journalin’ , which will take you directly to the web-page where you will be able to read the text quite clearly in it’s purposed form.


Ephesians 5:1-33
Living in the Light
1Follow God's example in everything you do, because you are his dear children. 2Live a life filled with love for others, following the example of Christ, who loved you and gave himself as a sacrifice to take away your sins. And God was pleased, because that sacrifice was like sweet perfume to him.
3Let there be no sexual immorality, impurity, or greed among you. Such sins have no place among God's people. 4Obscene stories, foolish talk, and coarse jokes—these are not for you. Instead, let there be thankfulness to God. 5You can be sure that no immoral, impure, or greedy person will inherit the Kingdom of Christ and of God.
For a greedy person is really an idolater who worships the things of this world. 6Don't be fooled by those who try to excuse these sins, for the terrible anger of God comes upon all those who disobey him. 7Don't participate in the things these people do. 8For though your hearts were once full of darkness, now you are full of light from the Lord, and your behavior should show it! 9For this light within you produces only what is good and right and true.
10Try to find out what is pleasing to the Lord. 11Take no part in the worthless deeds of evil and darkness; instead, rebuke and expose them. 12It is shameful even to talk about the things that ungodly people do in secret. 13But when the light shines on them, it becomes clear how evil these things are. 14And where your light shines, it will expose their evil deeds. This is why it is said,
"Awake, O sleeper, rise up from the dead, and Christ will give you light."
Living by the Spirit's Power
15So be careful how you live, not as fools but as those who are wise. 16Make the most of every opportunity for doing good in these evil days. 17Don't act thoughtlessly, but try to understand what the Lord wants you to do. 18Don't be drunk with wine, because that will ruin your life. Instead, let the Holy Spirit fill and control you. 19Then you will sing psalms and hymns and spiritual songs among yourselves, making music to the Lord in your hearts. 20And you will always give thanks for everything to God the Father in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ.
Spirit-Guided Relationships: Wives and Husbands
21And further, you will submit to one another out of reverence for Christ. 22You wives will submit to your husbands as you do to the Lord. 23For a husband is the head of his wife as Christ is the head of his body, the church; he gave his life to be her Savior. 24As the church submits to Christ, so you wives must submit to your husbands in everything.
25And you husbands must love your wives with the same love Christ showed the church. He gave up his life for her 26to make her holy and clean, washed by baptism and God's word. F10 27He did this to present her to himself as a glorious church without a spot or wrinkle or any other blemish. Instead, she will be holy and without fault. 28In the same way, husbands ought to love their wives as they love their own bodies. For a man is actually loving himself when he loves his wife. 29No one hates his own body but lovingly cares for it, just as Christ cares for his body, which is the church. 30And we are his body.
31As the Scriptures say, "A man leaves his father and mother and is joined to his wife, and the two are united into one." F11 32This is a great mystery, but it is an illustration of the way Christ and the church are one. 33So again I say, each man must love his wife as he loves himself, and the wife must respect her husband.
FOOTNOTES:F10: Greek having cleansed her by the washing of water with the word. F11: Gen 2:24.
Copyright Statement: Holy Bible, The New Living TranslationCopyright © 1996 by Tyndale Charitable Trust. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers. All rights reserved.

~ Lena’s Journalin’ ~
Let’s look at today’s scripture in another facet than we usually do. Let’s put ourselves as the children, and as the wife and then the Lord as the husband.. We must never disregard ourselves where the word of God is concerned, we must always apply ourselves to and in the word of God. We must place ourselves inside of the word of God in many forms and as many persons to apply it to our own lives every time we read it or heard it read.
Don’t you do that at work and at home and in life period? One moment I’m a wife, then a mother, then a friend , a teacher, etc…This is how we must read God’s words, and apply them never exempting them and saying, well that one doesn’t apply to me. They all apply to us all, always.
2Live a life filled with love for others, How does one live this way? By following the example of Christ, In His born again newly changed spirit man and through the replenishment of the word of God.
What are we living by in Christ anyway? Feelings? Situations? No, by faith!; and so we love that way, by faith. It begins by faith and continues by faith as we emanate Him, we also become as He is, by decisions based on the life of the word of God and faith in that word. If we believe we will act on what we truly believe.
The word believe is not a passive, but rather and active word.
If I say I’d like to see you at Panera Bread at 9 am tomorrow, and you say, “I believe I’d like that, never been there”, then I go at 9 am and you don’t show I can see you wished it, maybe thought it was somewhat of a good idea, but if you really believed it enough, you’d put action to the faith words and show up. Words are not real expensive or costly unless a life is applied to them.
What is living thoughtlessly? It’s just letting things happen as they may, they just happen and I’m somehow a part of all of the happenings around me, oh well.
No, not oh well. We are not subjects of the evil world, we are Divinely appointed Ambassadors of God’s earthly kingdom. We have an assignment and only so many years to accomplish it. We do not have the luxury to just let things fall as they may, that’s insane. God told us to rule and it starts with self discipline! Don’t discipline others, until you yourself have become disciplined in that same area.
We can encourage one another, we can share God’s word, but we cannot instruct and correct, until we have ruled ourselves in an area. Teaching by example surpasses any words anyone could speak ever. A life example is powerful. We can rule the earth by our life example, then for those who see that example and ask us how we got to this place, where there’s visible and eatable fruit on our trees, we can teach and share that life with them.
Telling others what they should do and how they should be, is counterproductive if no example is demonstrated. It’s a critical and a religious spirit, that will point out the faults and short comings of others, while never looking in on the inside and digging deeper with God, allowing Him to expose and change thought patterns. We must become examinable by the Holy Spirit, purposely opening our lives up to the “scrutiny” of God’s exam.
Our Christian walk must be deliberate, we have to decide to read God’s word, decide to come to church, decide to pray, decide to give time and money, decide to sing praise, etc. Etc – ON PURPOSE! We cannot just see if it will work out. It won’t. We have to work it out! Make it work. If we do not we are not - Christians.
I heard someone say every man in a house is a Priest, Prophet and King. He’s priest, because he willingly takes his family members before the throne of God in intercession, he actually stands in the gap for them between their enemies and them. He does not allow evil to come against them, through intercession and prayer between God and himself, casting down any earthly arguments, no need, he argues by prayer, not debate, but prayer. As he stands continually in this place, he receives words from His Father on how to implement change, how to love change into the home and because he is faithful before God to do this on behalf of his family, he is crowned by his wife, by his family , as King. He cannot insist on any of these positions, he has to do and be them.
How many of us stand this way for anyone? Why? Love gives for another.
Another truth I heard is that man came out from God, from His heart. Man was one being when God formed him out of dust, he was one being, but there was another being inside of Him, almost like he was invisibly pregnant or something. Then God put spiritual anesthesia over him and took part of His physical body out of him, used that part to make another man, a wombed-man. She was bone of bone flesh of flesh, she was the same as he was yet different in wonderful ways, not bad or wrong ways, but great ways. Then a miracle happened, they got put back together as one in marriage, they had an intimate communing of oneness expressed in physical love in action. In the expression of oneness one was put inside of the one who came out of the male-man, he put in her so she’d be like him who had one inside of him. Now they were really alike, really alike, they were both with man inside. He was, she is – pregnant. Then she brings forth a man-child, a smaller man, whom they are appointed by God to form and fashion. They three are one-flesh. She was in him, he was in her also, they were one. It is all a grand and living pictorial example of God and man.



Daily Repetitive Verses:

John 3:17
You know these things – now do them! That is the path of blessing.

Wednesday, April 26, 2006

Today's Daily Bread Reading John 2 w/ Lena's Journalin'

Scripture selections are taken from the Rock Church Daily Bread Reading schedule for each month. “Lena’s Journalin’” are Lena’s comments on the specific passages from her Daily Journal.

If the e-mail text you receive is encrypted at all, just scroll down to the end of all of the text and click on Lena’s Journalin’ , which will take you directly to the web-page where you will be able to read the text quite clearly in it’s purposed form.


John 2:1-25
The Wedding at Cana
1The next day F12 Jesus' mother was a guest at a wedding celebration in the village of Cana in Galilee. 2Jesus and his disciples were also invited to the celebration. 3The wine supply ran out during the festivities, so Jesus' mother spoke to him about the problem. "They have no more wine," she told him.
4"How does that concern you and me?" Jesus asked. "My time has not yet come."
5But his mother told the servants, "Do whatever he tells you."
6Six stone waterpots were standing there; they were used for Jewish ceremonial purposes and held twenty to thirty gallons F13 each. 7Jesus told the servants, "Fill the jars with water." When the jars had been filled to the brim, 8he said, "Dip some out and take it to the master of ceremonies." So they followed his instructions.
9When the master of ceremonies tasted the water that was now wine, not knowing where it had come from (though, of course, the servants knew), he called the bridegroom over. 10"Usually a host serves the best wine first," he said. "Then, when everyone is full and doesn't care, he brings out the less expensive wines. But you have kept the best until now!"
11This miraculous sign at Cana in Galilee was Jesus' first display of his glory. And his disciples believed in him.
12After the wedding he went to Capernaum for a few days with his mother, his brothers, and his disciples.
Jesus Clears the Temple
13It was time for the annual Passover celebration, and Jesus went to Jerusalem. 14In the Temple area he saw merchants selling cattle, sheep, and doves for sacrifices; and he saw money changers behind their counters. 15Jesus made a whip from some ropes and chased them all out of the Temple. He drove out the sheep and oxen, scattered the money changers' coins over the floor, and turned over their tables. 16Then, going over to the people who sold doves, he told them, "Get these things out of here. Don't turn my Father's house into a marketplace!"
17Then his disciples remembered this prophecy from the Scriptures: "Passion for God's house burns within me." F14
18"What right do you have to do these things?" the Jewish leaders demanded. "If you have this authority from God, show us a miraculous sign to prove it."
19"All right," Jesus replied. "Destroy this temple, and in three days I will raise it up."
20"What!" they exclaimed. "It took forty-six years to build this Temple, and you can do it in three days?" 21But by "this temple," Jesus meant his body. 22After he was raised from the dead, the disciples remembered that he had said this. And they believed both Jesus and the Scriptures.
23Because of the miraculous signs he did in Jerusalem at the Passover celebration, many people were convinced that he was indeed the Messiah. 24But Jesus didn't trust them, because he knew what people were really like. 25No one needed to tell him about human nature.
FOOTNOTES:F12: Greek On the third day; see 1:35, 43. F13: Greek 2 or 3 measures [75 to 113 liters]. F14: Or "Concern for God's house will be my undoing." Ps 69:9.
Copyright Statement: Holy Bible, The New Living TranslationCopyright © 1996 by Tyndale Charitable Trust. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers. All rights reserved.

~ Lena’s Journalin’ ~
Wine is of the processed fruit of the vine. The vine is connected to a branch which supplies all of the nourishment that the vine needs in order to fulfill its designed purpose, which is to bring forth fruit.
Wine is made from the picked fruit, and when combined with other picked, chosen fruits it is then combined together towards one purpose. That chosen fruit is taken through a changing process, where juice is extracted from the center or the core of the fruit, where the seeds are.
Seeds are separated from the fruit for further plantings and the fruit is crushed to bring forth a product that is palatable to the world. This product even brings a measure of joy to the world who have none.
In the crushing further elements are separated out that the juice may be clarified, though not independent, but completely dependant on the mixture of one with another fruit. The clarity is evidenced when all are brought together in one purpose, for one purpose, to become the same new substance together, with no resemblances of what was at all. No skin, no seeds, no flesh, just the blood of the inner core of the fruit!
After the “blood” is clarified, it is set apart to age, or mature, until it is ready to be served.
One miraculous working of the water to wine, was the process happened in an instant in Christ. It became palatable in a moment. That does not indicate that each one who comes to Christ and engages in Kingdom purpose, can skip through the process in an instant, but the power of God is evidenced in a moment of time, because it is a spiritual, not a natural work, thus the “blood” is the extract, rather than the skin or flesh.
A sign of a true miraculous work, the spirit man, the inner core, the “blood” is cleansed, clarified through the shed blood of Christ Jesus.
Isn’t it cool how Jesus heeded the words of his mother about timing? That amazes me.
Was it bad to sell animals? Was it wrong to make sacrifices available to the people who needed forgiveness of sin? So why was Jesus enraged? Those who sold were found inside of the house of God, providing sacrificial offerings for the people to purchase. By the written law of Moses, the inside of the temple was where the animals would have already have been sacrificed. By the time they’d gotten inside of the temple the sins would have already passed through the place of sacrifices and now the priests would have been approaching God Himself on behalf of the people with the already shed sacrificial blood. The atmosphere would be one of thanksgiving, praise, worship and prayer.
What is the temple? Or rather who is the temple?

1Co 3:16 – Don't you realize that all of you together are the temple of God and that the Spirit of God lives in you?
2Co 6:16 - And what union can there be between God's temple and idols? For we are the temple of the living God. As God said: "I will live in them and walk among them. I will be their God, and they will be my people.
Eph 2:21 - We who believe are carefully joined together, becoming a holy temple for the Lord.
1Pe 2:5 -And now God is building you, as living stones, into his spiritual temple. What's more, you are God's holy priests, who offer the spiritual sacrifices that please him because of Jesus Christ.

If we are the temple of God, of the Holy Spirit of God, is sacrifice being made in us? Are we approaching God in thanksgiving, praise, worship and prayer? Daily? Or do we just buy and sell, buy and sell, and buy and sell enough for others to make sacrifices? Taking the money to further buy and sell, while we ourselves have not entered in?
Does the fire and passion of God draw us closer to Him, to go inside, to be clean inside as well as out?
Are we convinced by reason of logical thought, that He is the Messiah? Or do we know that inside of the deepest part of our changed beings?
Do we know Him or just know of Him or about Him? There is a big difference.
He said to them, meaning every man who was ever alive on earth, in their end, “Did I ever know you? Did I ever see you approaching Me personally, coming inside of My house, being My house- of prayer? Did I ever come inside of your house? Did I ever stay there, or did I just visit a few times? If I lived there, did I stay forever? Or did you get “tired” of Me and boot Me out? Did we really know one another, as a bride and bridegroom do? Did we stay together until your end, still loving one another, till death do us part?”……Or was there some confusion about our lifelong commitment to one another?


Daily Repetitive Verses:

John 3:17
You know these things – now do them! That is the path of blessing.

Tuesday, April 25, 2006

Today's DB w/ Lena's Journalin' ~ Mark 10

Scripture selections are taken from the Rock Church Daily Bread Reading schedule for each month. “Lena’s Journalin’” are Lena’s comments on the specific passages from her Daily Journal.

If the e-mail text you receive is encrypted at all, just scroll down to the end of all of the text and click on Lena’s Journalin’ , which will take you directly to the web-page where you will be able to read the text quite clearly in it’s purposed form.


Mark 10:1-52
Discussion about Divorce and Marriage
1Then Jesus left Capernaum and went southward to the region of Judea and into the area east of the Jordan River. As always there were the crowds, and as usual he taught them.
2Some Pharisees came and tried to trap him with this question: "Should a man be allowed to divorce his wife?"
3"What did Moses say about divorce?" Jesus asked them.
4"Well, he permitted it," they replied. "He said a man merely has to write his wife an official letter of divorce and send her away." F47
5But Jesus responded, "He wrote those instructions only as a concession to your hard-hearted wickedness. 6But God's plan was seen from the beginning of creation, for 'He made them male and female.' F48 7'This explains why a man leaves his father and mother and is joined to his wife, F49 8and the two are united into one.' F50 Since they are no longer two but one, 9let no one separate them, for God has joined them together."
10Later, when he was alone with his disciples in the house, they brought up the subject again. 11He told them, "Whoever divorces his wife and marries someone else commits adultery against her. 12And if a woman divorces her husband and remarries, she commits adultery."
Jesus Blesses the Children
13One day some parents brought their children to Jesus so he could touch them and bless them, but the disciples told them not to bother him. 14But when Jesus saw what was happening, he was very displeased with his disciples. He said to them, "Let the children come to me. Don't stop them! For the Kingdom of God belongs to such as these. 15I assure you, anyone who doesn't have their kind of faith will never get into the Kingdom of God." 16Then he took the children into his arms and placed his hands on their heads and blessed them.
The Rich Man
17As he was starting out on a trip, a man came running up to Jesus, knelt down, and asked, "Good Teacher, what should I do to get eternal life?"
18"Why do you call me good?" Jesus asked. "Only God is truly good. 19But as for your question, you know the commandments: 'Do not murder. Do not commit adultery. Do not steal. Do not testify falsely. Do not cheat. Honor your father and mother.' F51 "
20"Teacher," the man replied, "I've obeyed all these commandments since I was a child."
21Jesus felt genuine love for this man as he looked at him. "You lack only one thing," he told him. "Go and sell all you have and give the money to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven. Then come, follow me." 22At this, the man's face fell, and he went sadly away because he had many possessions.
23Jesus looked around and said to his disciples, "How hard it is for rich people to get into the Kingdom of God!" 24This amazed them. But Jesus said again, "Dear children, it is very hard F52 to get into the Kingdom of God. 25It is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich person to enter the Kingdom of God!"
26The disciples were astounded. "Then who in the world can be saved?" they asked.
27Jesus looked at them intently and said, "Humanly speaking, it is impossible. But not with God. Everything is possible with God."
28Then Peter began to mention all that he and the other disciples had left behind. "We've given up everything to follow you," he said.
29And Jesus replied, "I assure you that everyone who has given up house or brothers or sisters or mother or father or children or property, for my sake and for the Good News, 30will receive now in return, a hundred times over, houses, brothers, sisters, mothers, children, and property—with persecutions. And in the world to come they will have eternal life. 31But many who seem to be important now will be the least important then, and those who are considered least here will be the greatest then. F53 "
Jesus Again Predicts His Death
32They were now on the way to Jerusalem, and Jesus was walking ahead of them. The disciples were filled with dread and the people following behind were overwhelmed with fear. Taking the twelve disciples aside, Jesus once more began to describe everything that was about to happen to him in Jerusalem. 33"When we get to Jerusalem," he told them, "the Son of Man will be betrayed to the leading priests and the teachers of religious law. They will sentence him to die and hand him over to the Romans. 34They will mock him, spit on him, beat him with their whips, and kill him, but after three days he will rise again."
Jesus Teaches about Serving Others
35Then James and John, the sons of Zebedee, came over and spoke to him. "Teacher," they said, "we want you to do us a favor."
36"What is it?" he asked.
37"In your glorious Kingdom, we want to sit in places of honor next to you," they said, "one at your right and the other at your left."
38But Jesus answered, "You don't know what you are asking! Are you able to drink from the bitter cup of sorrow I am about to drink? Are you able to be baptized with the baptism of suffering I must be baptized with?"
39"Oh yes," they said, "we are able!" And Jesus said, "You will indeed drink from my cup and be baptized with my baptism, 40but I have no right to say who will sit on the thrones next to mine. God has prepared those places for the ones he has chosen."
41When the ten other disciples discovered what James and John had asked, they were indignant. 42So Jesus called them together and said, "You know that in this world kings are tyrants, and officials lord it over the people beneath them. 43But among you it should be quite different. Whoever wants to be a leader among you must be your servant, 44and whoever wants to be first must be the slave of all. 45For even I, the Son of Man, came here not to be served but to serve others, and to give my life as a ransom for many."
Jesus Heals Blind Bartimaeus
46And so they reached Jericho. Later, as Jesus and his disciples left town, a great crowd was following. A blind beggar named Bartimaeus (son of Timaeus) was sitting beside the road as Jesus was going by. 47When Bartimaeus heard that Jesus from Nazareth was nearby, he began to shout out, "Jesus, Son of David, have mercy on me!"
48"Be quiet!" some of the people yelled at him. But he only shouted louder, "Son of David, have mercy on me!"
49When Jesus heard him, he stopped and said, "Tell him to come here." So they called the blind man. "Cheer up," they said. "Come on, he's calling you!" 50Bartimaeus threw aside his coat, jumped up, and came to Jesus.
51"What do you want me to do for you?" Jesus asked. "Teacher," the blind man said, "I want to see!"
52And Jesus said to him, "Go your way. Your faith has healed you." And instantly the blind man could see! Then he followed Jesus down the road. F54
FOOTNOTES:F47: Deut 24:1. F48: Gen 1:27; 5:2. F49: Some manuscripts do not include and is joined to his wife. F50: Gen 2:24. F51: Exod 20:12-16; Deut 5:16-20. F52: Some manuscripts add for those who trust in riches. F53: Greek But many who are first will be last; and the last, first. F54: Or on the way.
Copyright Statement: Holy Bible, The New Living TranslationCopyright © 1996 by Tyndale Charitable Trust. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers. All rights reserved.

~ Lena’s Journalin’ ~
I want to write today about a more mature way to think, look and behave.
We all come to the Lord as little children, young babes in the kingdom of God. We receive Jesus as our Savior and Lord, and then we grow up in Christ Jesus, and become as He is. If we are not growing and becoming as He is, we are handicapped and have not tapped into the potential God has laid out for us in His spiritual kingdom on earth.
The Lord wants a healthy body, the health of the body of Christ, (Christians, the church as a whole) is somewhat due to exercise. If one is inactive they can actually die. Activity is vital to the function of any body, whether our physical man or our soul man or our spirit man.
Jesus was speaking to the religious people in His day, who were asking about divorce. They compared their day with the day Moses lived in. Moses had lived about 3,000 years prior to them, had they progressed any in their growth in relationship and fellowship with their Father God? Should they have in some 3,000 years? Children are always out to please their fathers. Does religion please the Father or does it make itself look good? Does it exalt God or does it promote self?
Anyway, they said, Moses allowed us do such and such and so and so. They looked to a natural man, who was absolutely used by God, as their father. When they asked Jesus this question, what were they after? God’s heart? If after God’s heart, would the question arise as it did? Was it people centered, or plan of God centered?
What was the motive of the question, to prove me right, or to stay in deep unhindered fellowship with God as Father?
Jesus was all about the Father’s love, pleasing the Father. That which pleased His Father was found in His Father’s word, the Father’s word was written from the beginning and does not change. God does not compromise, we do. We allow compromise, so God “allows” compromise, because He loves us enough to go ahead and show us love no matter what we do or decide, but where He is concerned, His word has not changed!
The word of God says, what we forbid, speaking to us about our own personal lives, is forbidden by the support of heaven’s armies; and what we allow, will also be allowed in the spiritual realm (supported by the angelic realm, either God or ungodly angels).
Why is that? Why won’t God just step in, in spite of me and intervene on my will? Aha, that is key and the place for mature thinking, He won’t infringe on my will. He desires that my will becomes his will and that is the pathway of growth, to get to know His will through His word and adapt my life to it! He wants me to desire to do His will, not be forced to do His will. He gave me a free will so that when I love Him it is an expression of me loving because I choose to.
He gave me freewill power in the earth and does not override that power. The power is mine to do His will or not, the power is mine to allow or not allow. This allowing or not allowing has to do with me, allowing for myself or not. If I try to govern others before I govern myself, I’m way out of order. Self government begins to develop my authority in the earth first. These religious were governors of others and ignoring self government. That is where hypocrisy comes into play and one might want to hold off calling another a hypocrite before self examination. Do we ourselves do all we say?
So Jesus said to them, Moses allowed it……..But with God’s ideal plan and unchanging word, it is Not so. Why did Moses allow it? Because the people did, he had to live with and lead the people and love them through their disobediences! WOW, huh?
So, a godly friend of yours does not kill you with words, even when you choose an evil way, and they don’t seem to object a whole lot, they tell you the truth, but they don’t insist on it and aren’t angry with you and they seem to still love you. THAT DOES NOT mean they embrace your ungodly and unrighteous behavior. It does Not mean God’s word has changed at all. It means they are loving you through towards change. They are showing you acceptance no matter what, so that there is opportunity for change. They speak the truth to you, to bring light in your darkness, they pray and ask God to lead you out. They know the power of prayer and exercise it, and they do not have to physically or mentally insist on its execution on you.
The judgments they make over you are personal to them only, they learn from your wrong choices, personally. They won’t allow that same thing to happen in their own life, but they know they can’t force change on you. Don’t be confused into thinking your behavior is accepted. No, you are accepted, your ungodly behavior isn’t!
What have we given up for Jesus, in exchange for eternal life? Did we give up eternal death and separation from God forever? Yes. Did we give up depression, misery, aloneness, sin that harms us, or habits that will take us out of the earth before our time, before we are able to give back to the earth what is due it by being eternally responsible here?
What did we have to give up? Nothing, nothing at all. God did not make us give anything up, He laid down His life and gave us the opportunity to decide, to embrace the cross and its power to change lives. What will a man give in exchange for his own soul? Money, time, things? Or an old life for a new life? Wow, what a deal huh, giving God my old torn up life, to embrace a life that goes on forever. To lay down a few bad habits and things that would be killing me, for a life full of divine power!
He was betrayed, yet still went to the cross, spit on and kept going, sentenced, yet He stayed the purpose. They killed His body, but could not have His spirit.
What keeps you from going to the cross and laying your old life there everyday, coming alive to God again as Jesus did for us? What keeps you from being as He is, embracing His death and life eternal? Do people pull your hair out? Spit on you, or mock you? Or are you just waiting for a better time? Or for your term on sin’s service to expire? What prevents you from coming?
Wake up, it is past time, Now is the time, today is your day for salvation!
(If any of you want to ask me about salvation, e-mail me at
werhisimage@aol.com - put “salvation” in the subject line). Don’t hesitate before it is too late.
He gave His one life a ransom for many, just think what hundreds and thousands of lives turned back to God can effect. I’m talking about your life given, my life given to Him. God’s waiting for satisfaction from us, His children today! Grown children give back to their parents, they give into society, they take responsibility for use of the earth, by the giving of their life. That’s matured love.


Daily Repetitive Verses:
John 3:17
You know these things – now do them! That is the path of blessing.

Monday, April 24, 2006

Today's DB w/ Lena's Journalin' Matthew 19 *****

Scripture selections are taken from the Rock Church Daily Bread Reading schedule for each month. “Lena’s Journalin’” are Lena’s comments on the specific passages from her Daily Journal.

If the e-mail text you receive is encrypted at all, just scroll down to the end of all of the text and click on Lena’s Journalin’ , which will take you directly to the web-page where you will be able to read the text quite clearly in it’s purposed form.

Matthew 19:1-30 -
Discussion about Divorce and Marriage
1After Jesus had finished saying these things, he left Galilee and went southward to the region of Judea and into the area east of the Jordan River. 2Vast crowds followed him there, and he healed their sick.
3Some Pharisees came and tried to trap him with this question: "Should a man be allowed to divorce his wife for any reason?"
4"Haven't you read the Scriptures?" Jesus replied. "They record that from the beginning 'God made them male and female.' F100 5And he said, 'This explains why a man leaves his father and mother and is joined to his wife, and the two are united into one.' F101 6Since they are no longer two but one, let no one separate them, for God has joined them together."
7"Then why did Moses say a man could merely write an official letter of divorce and send her away?" F102 they asked.
8Jesus replied, "Moses permitted divorce as a concession to your hard-hearted wickedness, but it was not what God had originally intended. 9And I tell you this, a man who divorces his wife and marries another commits adultery—unless his wife has been unfaithful. F103 "
10Jesus' disciples then said to him, "Then it is better not to marry!"
11"Not everyone can accept this statement," Jesus said. "Only those whom God helps. 12Some are born as eunuchs, some have been made that way by others, and some choose not to marry for the sake of the Kingdom of Heaven. Let anyone who can, accept this statement."
Jesus Blesses the Children
13Some children were brought to Jesus so he could lay his hands on them and pray for them. The disciples told them not to bother him. 14But Jesus said, "Let the children come to me. Don't stop them! For the Kingdom of Heaven belongs to such as these." 15And he put his hands on their heads and blessed them before he left.
The Rich Young Man
16Someone came to Jesus with this question: "Teacher, F104 what good things must I do to have eternal life?"
17"Why ask me about what is good?" Jesus replied. "Only God is good. But to answer your question, you can receive eternal life if you keep the commandments."
18"Which ones?" the man asked. And Jesus replied: "'Do not murder. Do not commit adultery. Do not steal. Do not testify falsely. 19Honor your father and mother. Love your neighbor as yourself.' F105 "
20"I've obeyed all these commandments," the young man replied. "What else must I do?"
21Jesus told him, "If you want to be perfect, go and sell all you have and give the money to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven. Then come, follow me." 22But when the young man heard this, he went sadly away because he had many possessions.
23Then Jesus said to his disciples, "I tell you the truth, it is very hard for a rich person to get into the Kingdom of Heaven. 24I say it again—it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich person to enter the Kingdom of God!"
25The disciples were astounded. "Then who in the world can be saved?" they asked.
26Jesus looked at them intently and said, "Humanly speaking, it is impossible. But with God everything is possible."
27Then Peter said to him, "We've given up everything to follow you. What will we get out of it?"
28And Jesus replied, "I assure you that when I, the Son of Man, sit upon my glorious throne in the Kingdom, F106 you who have been my followers will also sit on twelve thrones, judging the twelve tribes of Israel. 29And everyone who has given up houses or brothers or sisters or father or mother or children or property, for my sake, will receive a hundred times as much in return and will have eternal life. 30But many who seem to be important now will be the least important then, and those who are considered least here will be the greatest then. F107
FOOTNOTES:F100: Gen 1:27; 5:2. F101: Gen 2:24. F102: Deut 24:1. F103: Some manuscripts add And the man who marries a divorced woman commits adultery. F104: Some manuscripts read Good Teacher. F105: Exod 20:12-16; Lev 19:18; Deut 5:16-20. F106: Greek in the regeneration. F107: Greek But many who are first will be last; and the last, first.
Copyright Statement: Holy Bible, The New Living TranslationCopyright © 1996 by Tyndale Charitable Trust. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers. All rights reserved.

~ Lena’s Journalin’ ~
Since this touches on marriage ending in divorce we’re gonna talk a bit about that today. I used to be confused by this scripture, and I believe one reason for the confusion was where I was at, and how I was looking at my experiences rather than at God’s design and plan.
Should a man be allowed? Whatever one on earth allows is allowed, whatever one disallows is disallowed. It is up to the man, not to God. God gave the instruction and gave the purpose to man, made him responsible to it. With man’s will he/she can decide anything at all, should they? Should they decide to drink, smoke and gamble? No, but “men” do decide this, and God wholeheartedly loves the persons who do decide non-beneficial things. He will even embrace them inside of the error of their ways, He will be there to restore them even when they turn from mistaken thinking and act as though nothing ever came between them, and this is the key word- between, separation, division. Those words oppose, agreement , joining and unity. This is a spiritual battle of union and disunion.
God is more than a family “man”, He is all for One and One for all.
The very offense that brought a great chasm was the spirit of two-ness, which can be labeled, division, disunity, disunion, separation, breach, etc.
So should a man do this with his wife also?
Marriage between man and woman in its ideal model is the picture of God joining Himself with us, His church. Reconciling with and to man again after a great disaster. He takes what was two and makes it into the spirit of One, on purpose. That which disagrees, learns to agree and work towards a godly example.
Man can or cannot be a part of that living example. It is up to each man and woman to decide. How far did God go to bring reconciliation of her to Him? What did He go through? How much did it mean to Him? Were there any bumps in that road to Calvary?
He laid down His life, He laid down His God-hood, became the lowliest state of mankind and put flesh on His spirit and walked on dirt, breathed dirt, then died, BUT He did not go back to dirt, He rose to His father to present a gift, the ability for reconciliation of God and man. If man wanted to he could be joined to God, but “should he”? How far did God go for a bride, for a wife? To the ends of the earth and back to heaven again.
How far should a man go for a woman? How far should a woman go for a man? Should they go at all? It depends, right? On what? How much love is in them, is taught them, is modeled them. How much of the love of God is in them. What if it is shallow, limited? Then it is time to grow it up, expand it, increase it, for the sake of the kingdom of God.
I was thinking recently about my own struggles to be a repairer. I felt the Lord whisper in my ear something so significant. He was increasing my love. He showed me that my kids were watching for my decisions to love or not, based on conditions, circumstances etc. They were watching, hoping God is really real, and that His love is great enough to be in their home accepting them as they are. He showed me that if I love their father as God does, no matter how I feel about it at any given time, if I would endure all things, including hurt, offense, pain, mental disagreements, etc, there would be hope for them in their imperfections also. He showed me a certain daughter’s eyes, how there was hope in those eyes, as though she were on the edge of a cliff looking down wondering if things about God were really real for her. Could she believe what we’ve preached for years? God loves me, God loves me no matter what. Could she believe that? The Lord showed me that to a child, their family IS their reality of Him, of His great love.At least their perception of God comes from the roots of their family life, their ability to receive Him easily, with effort or not at all, comes from that root system. If it is not demonstrated at home, children who are teenagers, do not believe it exists, unless they have their own personal revelation by the Divine intervention of God leading them apart from all of that past demonstration and towards Him.
I began to see that if my marriage fails to display Christ to her, she’ll have hope disappointed, not that I’m her source of hope, but we are what God has chosen to be a model of this hope. I began to see how I should love her father even when he exasperates me, or makes a mistake or isn’t perfect. I was basing my love on my own expectancies of what I felt marriage should be, it was all conditional. If he would get in his place as head and leader especially spiritually speaking, I’d of course get in line and be serving and submissive, right? Well if my love is shallow (which it was), and based on experiences and reciprocation of my husband, yes, but if my love is fed through the love of My Father God, not based on circumstances, but based on a decision of being a reflection of the love that the Father wants to give my family using me, I should.
I began to see that love gives, rather than takes. I wanted to take what was due me inside of the relationship. Wasn’t that what we said we’d do at the altar 23 + years ago? It didn’t seem to be working out according to plan A, B, C or any other plan. I saw that if my love is fed in Christ Jesus, my husband, or any other person for that matter, can take, take, take whatever they seem to need to take. I did not say it would be easy, but if they are not my source and I continually go back to my source, they can take, and I can give. That kind of love has to be in non-breached fellowship with the love of God or it will quickly run dry.
Jesus said no one takes My life, but I give it as a ransom for many. People ripped His beard hairs out of His face! They stripped Him of His clothes! They spit on Him and called Him names, they whipped His back and front with whips. He said they did not take His life. Now, isn’t that just an odd way to look at it all? Even now my human brain wants to say, “Jesus, did you see that, they were taking Your life? We saw it in a movie!” It was inside of His attitude. No matter what men decided to do to Him, though He loved them, anything they wanted to take from Him, He’d give. Everything except His love for the Father, and no matter what they did, they could not take that away. He didn’t turn to God and say, why are You allowing this to happen to Me?
When it says a man leaves his father and mother, it is saying he leaves that heritage, that history behind, and joins with one who he will make new history with. He clings and stays with the one he’ll make history with, rather than making history from His earthly father, he has a new start. If things of his father and mother can continue in a good and godly manner, he continues those blessings, but if cursings need to be removed, he and His wife, who agree together, who stay together, form a new line of heritage of blessing. Cleave means stick as though a permanent bonding. Leave means he dies to the old and joins to the new household and order of the responsibility given Him by a higher Father and mother than his own natural parents. His father is God, His mother, Christ’s body, the church. Marriage is a chance for each man to establish God’s kingdom rule and model again. It’s a clean slate so to speak, to erase whatever needs to be erased and to write what needs to be written for future generations. To cleave means to stay with that until it is accomplished, not to abort the purpose, to stay until perfected in purpose and model. That should and could take a lifetime.
When divorce happens this plan is interrupted greatly, if one re-marries, they go back to square one to start over again in this Divine process. Marriage, no matter how old we are when we join with someone is all about God’s kingdom model. It takes time to build it and bring it to a place for display. We only have so much time, time is of the essence. Failure is forgiven by God and covered by His merciful and cleansing spirit. Praise God we all learn by our shortcomings and mistakes. We use them as fuel for the ignited fire of passion he gives us when He restore us again to Himself to start a new process of Oneness in Christ.
Thank God we have all the time to do it right, but no time at all to do it wrong. That’s God’s grace on us, to learn, change and be a new model in the earth, while there’s still time.
Humanly speaking it is impossible to bring the kingdom of God to earth, into my own family, my marriage, but with God ALL things are possible.
The reason He said it is pretty much impossible for a rich man to enter in, is that man’s god is money and he has to change God’s first. Then if he is willing to change gods he has to keep Himself focused on who is Lord, who and what consumes his time and calls his life into purpose. Money or Jesus? It’s a very hard decision to make. Can you imagine having a few million dollars and being asked to set it on a back burner to serve God? Don’t think about it or serve it exclusively? It took a lot to get it and to keep it, what if god was calling for the time it took to build your own kingdom to build His? Would you be able to take the trade off? It could mean losing the money, if you really made the trade off….


Daily Repetitive Verses:

John 3:17
You know these things – now do them! That is the path of blessing.

TRC DB Matthew 19 ***** W/ Lena's Journalin'

Scripture selections are taken from the Rock Church Daily Bread Reading schedule for each month. “Lena’s Journalin’” are Lena’s comments on the specific passages from her Daily Journal.

If the e-mail text you receive is encrypted at all, just scroll down to the end of all of the text and click on Lena’s Journalin’ , which will take you directly to the web-page where you will be able to read the text quite clearly in it’s purposed form.


Matthew 19:1-30 -
Discussion about Divorce and Marriage
1After Jesus had finished saying these things, he left Galilee and went southward to the region of Judea and into the area east of the Jordan River. 2Vast crowds followed him there, and he healed their sick.
3Some Pharisees came and tried to trap him with this question: "Should a man be allowed to divorce his wife for any reason?"
4"Haven't you read the Scriptures?" Jesus replied. "They record that from the beginning 'God made them male and female.' F100 5And he said, 'This explains why a man leaves his father and mother and is joined to his wife, and the two are united into one.' F101 6Since they are no longer two but one, let no one separate them, for God has joined them together."
7"Then why did Moses say a man could merely write an official letter of divorce and send her away?" F102 they asked.
8Jesus replied, "Moses permitted divorce as a concession to your hard-hearted wickedness, but it was not what God had originally intended. 9And I tell you this, a man who divorces his wife and marries another commits adultery—unless his wife has been unfaithful. F103 "
10Jesus' disciples then said to him, "Then it is better not to marry!"
11"Not everyone can accept this statement," Jesus said. "Only those whom God helps. 12Some are born as eunuchs, some have been made that way by others, and some choose not to marry for the sake of the Kingdom of Heaven. Let anyone who can, accept this statement."
Jesus Blesses the Children
13Some children were brought to Jesus so he could lay his hands on them and pray for them. The disciples told them not to bother him. 14But Jesus said, "Let the children come to me. Don't stop them! For the Kingdom of Heaven belongs to such as these." 15And he put his hands on their heads and blessed them before he left.
The Rich Young Man
16Someone came to Jesus with this question: "Teacher, F104 what good things must I do to have eternal life?"
17"Why ask me about what is good?" Jesus replied. "Only God is good. But to answer your question, you can receive eternal life if you keep the commandments."
18"Which ones?" the man asked. And Jesus replied: "'Do not murder. Do not commit adultery. Do not steal. Do not testify falsely. 19Honor your father and mother. Love your neighbor as yourself.' F105 "
20"I've obeyed all these commandments," the young man replied. "What else must I do?"
21Jesus told him, "If you want to be perfect, go and sell all you have and give the money to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven. Then come, follow me." 22But when the young man heard this, he went sadly away because he had many possessions.
23Then Jesus said to his disciples, "I tell you the truth, it is very hard for a rich person to get into the Kingdom of Heaven. 24I say it again—it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich person to enter the Kingdom of God!"
25The disciples were astounded. "Then who in the world can be saved?" they asked.
26Jesus looked at them intently and said, "Humanly speaking, it is impossible. But with God everything is possible."
27Then Peter said to him, "We've given up everything to follow you. What will we get out of it?"
28And Jesus replied, "I assure you that when I, the Son of Man, sit upon my glorious throne in the Kingdom, F106 you who have been my followers will also sit on twelve thrones, judging the twelve tribes of Israel. 29And everyone who has given up houses or brothers or sisters or father or mother or children or property, for my sake, will receive a hundred times as much in return and will have eternal life. 30But many who seem to be important now will be the least important then, and those who are considered least here will be the greatest then. F107
FOOTNOTES:F100: Gen 1:27; 5:2. F101: Gen 2:24. F102: Deut 24:1. F103: Some manuscripts add And the man who marries a divorced woman commits adultery. F104: Some manuscripts read Good Teacher. F105: Exod 20:12-16; Lev 19:18; Deut 5:16-20. F106: Greek in the regeneration. F107: Greek But many who are first will be last; and the last, first.
Copyright Statement: Holy Bible, The New Living TranslationCopyright © 1996 by Tyndale Charitable Trust. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers. All rights reserved.

~ Lena’s Journalin’ ~
Since this touches on marriage ending in divorce we’re gonna talk a bit about that today. I used to be confused by this scripture, and I believe one reason for the confusion was where I was at, and how I was looking at my experiences rather than at God’s design and plan.
Should a man be allowed? Whatever one on earth allows is allowed, whatever one disallows is disallowed. It is up to the man, not to God. God gave the instruction and gave the purpose to man, made him responsible to it. With man’s will he/she can decide anything at all, should they? Should they decide to drink, smoke and gamble? No, but “men” do decide this, and God wholeheartedly loves the persons who do decide non-beneficial things. He will even embrace them inside of the error of their ways, He will be there to restore them even when they turn from mistaken thinking and act as though nothing ever came between them, and this is the key word- between, separation, division. Those words oppose, agreement , joining and unity. This is a spiritual battle of union and disunion.
God is more than a family “man”, He is all for One and One for all.
The very offense that brought a great chasm was the spirit of two-ness, which can be labeled, division, disunity, disunion, separation, breach, etc.
So should a man do this with his wife also?
Marriage between man and woman in its ideal model is the picture of God joining Himself with us, His church. Reconciling with and to man again after a great disaster. He takes what was two and makes it into the spirit of One, on purpose. That which disagrees, learns to agree and work towards a godly example.
Man can or cannot be a part of that living example. It is up to each man and woman to decide. How far did God go to bring reconciliation of her to Him? What did He go through? How much did it mean to Him? Were there any bumps in that road to Calvary?
He laid down His life, He laid down His God-hood, became the lowliest state of mankind and put flesh on His spirit and walked on dirt, breathed dirt, then died, BUT He did not go back to dirt, He rose to His father to present a gift, the ability for reconciliation of God and man. If man wanted to he could be joined to God, but “should he”? How far did God go for a bride, for a wife? To the ends of the earth and back to heaven again.
How far should a man go for a woman? How far should a woman go for a man? Should they go at all? It depends, right? On what? How much love is in them, is taught them, is modeled them. How much of the love of God is in them. What if it is shallow, limited? Then it is time to grow it up, expand it, increase it, for the sake of the kingdom of God.
I was thinking recently about my own struggles to be a repairer. I felt the Lord whisper in my ear something so significant. He was increasing my love. He showed me that my kids were watching for my decisions to love or not, based on conditions, circumstances etc. They were watching, hoping God is really real, and that His love is great enough to be in their home accepting them as they are. He showed me that if I love their father as God does, no matter how I feel about it at any given time, if I would endure all things, including hurt, offense, pain, mental disagreements, etc, there would be hope for them in their imperfections also. He showed me a certain daughter’s eyes, how there was hope in those eyes, as though she were on the edge of a cliff looking down wondering if things about God were really real for her. Could she believe what we’ve preached for years? God loves me, God loves me no matter what. Could she believe that? The Lord showed me that to a child, their family IS their reality of Him, of His great love.At least their perception of God comes from the roots of their family life, their ability to receive Him easily, with effort or not at all, comes from that root system. If it is not demonstrated at home, children who are teenagers, do not believe it exists, unless they have their own personal revelation by the Divine intervention of God leading them apart from all of that past demonstration and towards Him.
I began to see that if my marriage fails to display Christ to her, she’ll have hope disappointed, not that I’m her source of hope, but we are what God has chosen to be a model of this hope. I began to see how I should love her father even when he exasperates me, or makes a mistake or isn’t perfect. I was basing my love on my own expectancies of what I felt marriage should be, it was all conditional. If he would get in his place as head and leader especially spiritually speaking, I’d of course get in line and be serving and submissive, right? Well if my love is shallow (which it was), and based on experiences and reciprocation of my husband, yes, but if my love is fed through the love of My Father God, not based on circumstances, but based on a decision of being a reflection of the love that the Father wants to give my family using me, I should.
I began to see that love gives, rather than takes. I wanted to take what was due me inside of the relationship. Wasn’t that what we said we’d do at the altar 23 + years ago? It didn’t seem to be working out according to plan A, B, C or any other plan. I saw that if my love is fed in Christ Jesus, my husband, or any other person for that matter, can take, take, take whatever they seem to need to take. I did not say it would be easy, but if they are not my source and I continually go back to my source, they can take, and I can give. That kind of love has to be in non-breached fellowship with the love of God or it will quickly run dry.
Jesus said no one takes My life, but I give it as a ransom for many. People ripped His beard hairs out of His face! They stripped Him of His clothes! They spit on Him and called Him names, they whipped His back and front with whips. He said they did not take His life. Now, isn’t that just an odd way to look at it all? Even now my human brain wants to say, “Jesus, did you see that, they were taking Your life? We saw it in a movie!” It was inside of His attitude. No matter what men decided to do to Him, though He loved them, anything they wanted to take from Him, He’d give. Everything except His love for the Father, and no matter what they did, they could not take that away. He didn’t turn to God and say, why are You allowing this to happen to Me?
When it says a man leaves his father and mother, it is saying he leaves that heritage, that history behind, and joins with one who he will make new history with. He clings and stays with the one he’ll make history with, rather than making history from His earthly father, he has a new start. If things of his father and mother can continue in a good and godly manner, he continues those blessings, but if cursings need to be removed, he and His wife, who agree together, who stay together, form a new line of heritage of blessing. Cleave means stick as though a permanent bonding. Leave means he dies to the old and joins to the new household and order of the responsibility given Him by a higher Father and mother than his own natural parents. His father is God, His mother, Christ’s body, the church. Marriage is a chance for each man to establish God’s kingdom rule and model again. It’s a clean slate so to speak, to erase whatever needs to be erased and to write what needs to be written for future generations. To cleave means to stay with that until it is accomplished, not to abort the purpose, to stay until perfected in purpose and model. That should and could take a lifetime.
When divorce happens this plan is interrupted greatly, if one re-marries, they go back to square one to start over again in this Divine process. Marriage, no matter how old we are when we join with someone is all about God’s kingdom model. It takes time to build it and bring it to a place for display. We only have so much time, time is of the essence. Failure is forgiven by God and covered by His merciful and cleansing spirit. Praise God we all learn by our shortcomings and mistakes. We use them as fuel for the ignited fire of passion he gives us when He restore us again to Himself to start a new process of Oneness in Christ.
Thank God we have all the time to do it right, but no time at all to do it wrong. That’s God’s grace on us, to learn, change and be a new model in the earth, while there’s still time.
Humanly speaking it is impossible to bring the kingdom of God to earth, into my own family, my marriage, but with God ALL things are possible.
The reason He said it is pretty much impossible for a rich man to enter in, is that man’s god is money and he has to change God’s first. Then if he is willing to change gods he has to keep Himself focused on who is Lord, who and what consumes his time and calls his life into purpose. Money or Jesus? It’s a very hard decision to make. Can you imagine having a few million dollars and being asked to set it on a back burner to serve God? Don’t think about it or serve it exclusively? It took a lot to get it and to keep it, what if god was calling for the time it took to build your own kingdom to build His? Would you be able to take the trade off? It could mean losing the money, if you really made the trade off….


Daily Repetitive Verses:

John 3:17
You know these things – now do them! That is the path of blessing.

Sunday, April 23, 2006

Today's DB w/ Lena's Journalin to Amos 9

Scripture selections are taken from the Rock Church Daily Bread Reading schedule for each month. “Lena’s Journalin’” are Lena’s comments on the specific passages from her Daily Journal.

If the e-mail text you receive is encrypted at all, just scroll down to the end of all of the text and click on Lena’s Journalin’ , which will take you directly to the web-page where you will be able to read the text quite clearly in it’s purposed form.


Amos 9:1-15 -
A Vision of God at the Altar
1Then I saw a vision of the Lord standing beside the altar. He said, "Strike the tops of the Temple columns so hard that the foundation will shake. Smash the columns so the roof will crash down on the people below. Then those who survive will be slaughtered in battle. No one will escape!
2"Even if they dig down to the place of the dead, F20 I will reach down and pull them up. Even if they climb up into the heavens, I will bring them down. 3Even if they hide at the very top of Mount Carmel, I will search them out and capture them. Even if they hide at the bottom of the ocean, I will send the great sea serpent after them to bite and destroy them. 4Even if they are driven into exile, I will command the sword to kill them there. I am determined to bring disaster upon them and not to help them."
5The Lord, the LORD Almighty, touches the land and it melts, and all its people mourn. The ground rises like the Nile River at floodtime, and then it sinks again. 6The upper stories of the LORD's home are in the heavens, while its foundation is on the earth. He draws up water from the oceans and pours it down as rain on the land. The LORD is his name!
7"Do you Israelites think you are more important to me than the Ethiopians F21 ?" asks the LORD. "I brought you out of Egypt, but have I not done as much for other nations, too? I brought the Philistines from Crete F22 and led the Arameans out of Kir.
8"I, the Sovereign LORD, am watching this sinful nation of Israel, and I will uproot it and scatter its people across the earth. Yet I have promised that I will never completely destroy the family of Israel, F23 " says the LORD. 9"For I have commanded that Israel be persecuted by the other nations as grain is sifted in a sieve, yet not one true kernel will be lost. 10But all the sinners will die by the sword—all those who say, 'Nothing bad will happen to us.'
A Promise of Restoration
11"In that day I will restore the fallen kingdom of David. It is now like a house in ruins, but I will rebuild its walls and restore its former glory. 12And Israel will possess what is left of Edom and all the nations I have called to be mine. I, the LORD, have spoken, and I will do these things.
13"The time will come," says the LORD, "when the grain and grapes will grow faster than they can be harvested. Then the terraced vineyards on the hills of Israel will drip with sweet wine! 14I will bring my exiled people of Israel back from distant lands, and they will rebuild their ruined cities and live in them again. They will plant vineyards and gardens; they will eat their crops and drink their wine. 15I will firmly plant them there in the land I have given them," says the LORD your God. "Then they will never be uprooted again."
FOOTNOTES:F20: Hebrew to Sheol. F21: Hebrew the Cushites. F22: Hebrew Caphtor. F23: Hebrew the house of Jacob.
Copyright Statement: Holy Bible, The New Living TranslationCopyright © 1996 by Tyndale Charitable Trust. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers. All rights reserved.

~ Lena’s Journalin’ ~
This passage is not the easiest ever to read, it does not begin by just lifting your spirit up. In fact its words to us are quite serious in nature, and should rather shake us up a bit, wake us up a bit.
Who do we perceive this section of doom may be speaking to or about? I believe it is for those who’ve been called by God, who won’t heed His voice and follow Him, a rebellious sort. Not ones who just haven’t heard yet. Many read these things and feel they speak about those who haven’t yet heard and they begin to feel God is somehow unfair. It says Israel, that speaks of ones who hear continually, yet refuse to do what they’re told to do.
There are many, many reasons for not doing what one hears. No matter what excuse we may have the root reason is rebellion. Once a person comes of age, the age of accountability, there can be no blame for complacency put on any teacher or model. They stand accountable before God for everything.
I was thinking that I cannot say I don’t know something and that is the reason I disobey. What prevents me from knowing? Only my own lack of desire. In the day we live in knowledge is abundant and abundantly available to us in many forms. Our excuses to not know have pretty much been eliminated. There’s a lot we study in life and much information we pursue, how much of it has to do with eternity and knowing God? Really we have known a lot about God, but do we know Him? If we don’t, why not?
Everything boils down to having the will to know or do. It’s all a matter of the will. The will is the power of a human to know and be known. Our will either takes us into knowing God or away from knowing Him. It boils down to making a decision to know.
Everyone has the opportunity to see punishment or judgment as inflicted by God, yet one has to take responsibility for one’s own judgments. God is merciful enough to have provided the instruction necessary to thwart the judgments. It would take grown up responsibility to face this head on and repent to God for rebellion. Repentance is what begins the restorative process. So you did not heed God’s words, You did not seek His will, you lived your own life. Now noticing it, don’t turn away, don’t shrink back in shame and not do it now. Repent, change your way, your direction. He enables us to change, we’re not even alone in change. He’s there to restore us unto Himself, which has been His wish all along. What do you think the tragedies were meant to do? Change our direction; show us that we’re on the wrong side. Make lines of blessing and cursing clear.
Restoration is oh so sweet, being with God is sweeter. Re-store , bring back what was to be from the beginning. In the beginning, God wanted someone to love, God is love. Restoration is to love.
Restore means-
1. To bring back into existence or use; reestablish:
2. To bring back to an original condition: See Synonyms at
revive.
3. To put (someone) back in a former position:
4. To make restitution of; give back:
Let’s insist on it.
With God restoration does not mean let’s go back to wherever we left off and start over again, no He brings us to where we could’ve been today, had we not left Him. That’s restoration in God. Be restored, be reconciled to your Father. You are the love of His life.


Daily Repetitive Verses:

John 3:17
You know these things – now do them! That is the path of blessing.