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.