Today Our Daily Bread Malachi 3

---( By the way IF you go to the bottom of all of this text and click on the highlighted "Lena’s Journalin" you’ll get to the web site which is much, much easier to read than this e-mail- my suggestion is to skip the text when ya get the e-mail, scroll down to the end, click on the link and THEN read the "Daily Bread" from there. It’s bigger and more colorful, MUCH easier)

Romans 16:19-20-For the report of your obedience has reached to all; therefore I am rejoicing over you, but I want you to be wise in what is good and innocent in what is evil. The God of peace will soon crush Satan under your feet.
What is a report? A witness with an account given? So someone was a witness of a living testimony and spread this news to others? The report could have been something like gossip, but all that could be found to speak about was obedience. THAT will stop the enemy from speaking. THAT will stop the enemy’s mouth and accusations. The accusers are rendered silent, why? Because of obedience! Obedience is the demonstration of love.

Malachi 3
The Master You've Been Looking For
1 "Look! I'm sending my messenger on ahead to clear the way for me. Suddenly, out of the blue, the Leader you've been looking for will enter his Temple--yes, the Messenger of the Covenant, the one you've been waiting for. Look! He's on his way!" A Message from the mouth of GOD-of-the-Angel-Armies.
2 But who will be able to stand up to that coming? Who can survive his appearance? He'll be like white-hot fire from the smelter's furnace. He'll be like the strongest lye soap at the laundry. 3 He'll take his place as a refiner of silver, as a cleanser of dirty clothes. He'll scrub the Levite priests clean, refine them like gold and silver, until they're fit for GOD, fit to present offerings of righteousness. 4 Then, and only then, will Judah and Jerusalem be fit and pleasing to GOD, as they used to be in the years long ago.
5 "Yes, I'm on my way to visit you with Judgment. I'll present compelling evidence against sorcerers, adulterers, liars, those who exploit workers, those who take advantage of widows and orphans, those who are inhospitable to the homeless--anyone and everyone who doesn't honor me." A Message from GOD-of-the-Angel-Armies. 6"I am GOD-yes, I AM. I haven't changed. And because I haven't changed, you, the descendants of Jacob, haven't been destroyed. 7You have a long history of ignoring my commands. You haven't done a thing I've told you. Return to me so I can return to you," says GOD-of-the-Angel-Armies.
"You ask, "But how do we return?'
8"Begin by being honest. Do honest people rob God? But you rob me day after day.
"You ask, "How have we robbed you?'
"The tithe and the offering--that's how! 9And now you're under a curse--the whole lot of you--because you're robbing me. 10Bring your full tithe to the Temple treasury so there will be ample provisions in my Temple. Test me in this and see if I don't open up heaven itself to you and pour out blessings beyond your wildest dreams. 11For my part, I will defend you against marauders, protect your wheat fields and vegetable gardens against plunderers." The Message of GOD-of-the-Angel-Armies. 12"You'll be voted "Happiest Nation.' You'll experience what it's like to be a country of grace." GOD-of-the-Angel-Armies says so.
I was just thinking as I was writing (below) how God cares for us, is awesome in power etc. and I heard in the back of my mind the comments of some of God’s people, who feel God has disappointed them, and they feel He hasn’t "come through" etc. Then I read what is written below and felt saddened for God. Those kinds of words come from a heart that is hurt by God’s enemy, but does not understand the heart of our Father God. Do you realize God gets hurt too? It hurts His heart when we rudely accuse Him of wrong and evil, when we relate Him as an enemy and He’s not an enemy at all, He’s rather a friend. Hope does NOT disappoint at all. Hope expects good. God is Good.
The Difference Between Serving God and Not Serving Him
13 GOD says, "You have spoken hard, rude words to me.
"You ask, "When did we ever do that?' 14 "When you said, "It doesn't pay to serve God. What do we ever get out of it? When we did what he said and went around with long faces, serious about GOD-of-the-Angel-Armies, what difference did it make? 15 Those who take life into their own hands are the lucky ones. They break all the rules and get ahead anyway. They push God to the limit and get by with it.'"
16 Then those whose lives honored GOD got together and talked it over. GOD saw what they were doing and listened in. A book was opened in God's presence and minutes were taken of the meeting, with the names of the GOD-fearers written down, all the names of those who honored GOD's name.
17 GOD-of-the-Angel-Armies said, "They're mine, all mine. They'll get special treatment when I go into action. I treat them with the same consideration and kindness that parents give the child who honors them. 18 Once more you'll see the difference it makes between being a person who does the right thing and one who doesn't, between serving God and not serving him.
~Lena’s Journalin’~
Sending a messenger ahead of the Lord to prepare the place that the Lord wants to live in, preparing the House for the Lord, and who is that house? Anyone who will receive Him IS that house. The temple of God are the people of God, those in whom God’s Spirit dwells in as they receive Him. Who are the messengers, the Way-makers? We, the present believers of Him, in whom He already lives. We are the Way-makers, the messengers of the Most High God, the God of the Angelic Host’s armies! Can you see that, can you get that? What other job would you want? Working for God has great benefits being He owns the whole earth, and greater than that, the whole universe! So how does one prepare the Way? Through communication with the Boss. "Lord, where would You like for me to go today? With whom would you like for me to speak? Oh, I’m going to work again, and I’ll sit beside so and so and be working alongside of them today. You set that up didn’t you, Lord? You sent me, didn’t You Lord? I see it now, You establish my comings and my goings, You guide my path. My pathway is in the marketplace today, and all who come across my path are potential houses of God’s Holy Spirit, potential messengers, potential mentors of other messengers. I see, You set people up to come the way I walk. If I look for them, I’ll see them, they’ve been coming my way for years now. I just wasn’t looking, noticing, but today I’m your messenger, preparing the Way. Maybe today someone You lead to me will be prepared for you to live there someday, maybe I’ll paint their walls, or install plumbing, or put a roof on, etc. I’ll bring my tools to get the job done Lord, because whatever it is or whatever it takes, I’m Your worker, Your lover, Your investor, Your interested party. There is nothing like working for You, Lord!"
The Lord being as a refiner’s fire is so awesome, because I’ve tried to change and can’t, I’d be left as I am, but with His fire, I am changed, from one form to another and after that when I go in the water, dip in the water. I’m set in place to be conformed to the image he envisioned for me. The launderer’s soap takes any stain out. It removes what I could never get out by trying. His soap takes any stain out. It removes what I could not remove. It makes me truly clean. I’ve heard a few prophetic writings about hurricane Katrina, and her name’s meaning- purify. We’ve asked God to forgive our nation and cleanse us. What exactly did we mean by that? I’ve heard people pray, "Whatever it takes, Lord, do the work." I pray we are in place and ready as a church for the purification and to help those affected, being the messengers of God’s covenant love, of His saving grace, of His message of truth and not of opinion.
There is a whole large community of 100’s of thousands of people who have lost all, and He came to save all. What a day!
I read a small book this week. It mentioned how we who tithe should expect the blessing of souls, amen. We should expect the blessing of the harvest, the blessing on God’s storehouse. Tithing removes the curse of barrenness in every area. How can we be stingy with what we give the Lord, when He gave us everything we’ll ever need to have life, when He rescued us from Hell’s fire? Our stinginess tells that we do not really trust Him with our lives. That is absurd, when He created us, knows every part of us, and cares as no other person ever could. The enemy has lied big-time in our ears. We’ve got to shut off our ear gates to His words!