"Compassionate God"

"For he remembered that they were but flesh; a wind that passeth away, and cometh not again." (Psalms 78:39) I guess you could say that I am someone who enjoys a challenge; if you want to call staying the course a challenge, because some might think it madness. But let me tell you something you might not realize about me, I love being stretched, because when we are stretched we discover new limits. Those limits go but ways, I hope that you know; both to sadness and to gladness; both to victory and to defeat; from being strong and able, to weak and useless. On the one hand, we are strong like the wind; on the other, we are as weak as the dust the wind blows. Not that it is any news to anyone, but eternal life is really a very long time; and compared to this life here on this earth, this time here is but a flicker, a single snapshot in time; as if time would really matter anymore. Do you understand how this works? I want to think that I understand it, but I find myself sometimes so attached to living, that I forget that I am actually dying. Yesterday, as I was eating out, I observed an elderly couple eating their Mexican dinner and sipping on their margaritas. You could tell that they were tired, just by the way they moved and communicated with each other; they had to have been at least in their eighties, and were still glad to share each others company. But it must be difficult to live in that time of life together, not knowing who will go first, or when that might happen. I experience something like that myself, but not on the same level as they might. There are mornings when I wake, not sure if Marianne is still with us; she can get so relaxed and in such a deep sleep, I need to check her vital signs to make sure she is not dead. But, it's not up to me; I get that. Imagine how God sees us, being the one who created us in the first place. He has got to feel our pain, He has got to see the sadness in our loses and experience the moment of sorrow we experience. I know that He does. But He sees us also in our new glorified bodies; bodies that will never die, will never be sick, will never be sad, ever again! Imagine how God sees us...
"Look here, you who say, "Today or tomorrow we are going to a certain town and will stay there a year. We will do business there and make a profit." How do you know what your life will be like tomorrow? Your life is like the morning fog -it's here a little while, then it's gone. What you ought to say is, "If the Lord wants us to, we will live and do this or that." Otherwise you are boasting about your own plans, and all such boasting is evil. Remember, it is sin to know what you ought to do and the not do it." (James 4:13-17) NLT

"Compassionate Father" -2

"But he, being full of compassion, forgave their iniquity, and destroyed them not: yea, many a time turned he his anger away, and did not stir up all his wrath." (Psalms 78:38) I guess we will just have to wait and see, because from what I understand from the Bible, we have not seen anything yet. It's like this: for those of us that are His children, this is hell to us; as ugly as that might sound, it is true. But to those that refuse to accept Jesus as their Lord and Savior, this is as close as they will ever get to heaven, as ugly as this place can be. And the most wonderful thing of all, is that our heaven will be perfect! That's what God knows about us, that when we are with Him in heaven, we will be perfect; the battle of the flesh and Spirit will be over, and we will once and for all be totally pure and completely dedicated to our Glorious Father. Now, as to the post from yesterday, I had many things I wanted to share, but only a short time to get it all out there. Our God is nothing like us, because He is Love! When we want to experience what love, real love, looks like, we need to look no further than The Word of God; every single chapter and verse, even those that seem to spew out His wrath, they all show forth His love for His people, His children, the ones that He loves. We keep forgetting that there is a beautiful tapestry being painted which we are part in, but have no way to see; it is impossible for us to see the full picture, being that are part of what is being painted. But our loving Father sees each and every one of us; He highlights our surroundings and He brings out our beauty, with every stoke of His tender loving brush. To us, we might think something is out of sorts, as if this thing that is happening to us or to them cannot be God's will; God would never allow this, God would never let this happen. But we don't see what He sees! I think of Stephen and what he experienced when he was being stoned for his testimony of Jesus Christ; "he saw the glory of God, and Jesus standing on the right hand of God." (Acts 7:55) And you know what that did to him, it made him say, "Lord, lay not this sin to their charge." (Acts 7:60) Who do you think that was for? And don't you believe that God allowed it to happen? The apostle Paul was right there, "consenting unto his death." (Acts 7:61) It might sometimes be ugly, but it gets the job done...
"My thoughts are nothing like your thoughts," says the LORD. "And my ways are far beyond anything you could imagine. For just as the heavens are higher than the earth, so my ways are higher than your ways and my thoughts higher than your thoughts. The rain and snow come down from the heavens and stay on the ground to water the earth. They cause the grain to grow, producing seed for the farmer and bread for the hungry. It is the same with my word. I send it out, and it always produces fruit. It will accomplish all I want it to, and it will prosper everywhere I send it. You will live in joy and peace. The mountains and hills will burst into song, and the trees of the field will clap their hands! Where once there were thorns, cypress trees will grow. Where nettles grew, myrtles will sprout up. These events will bring great honor to the LORD'S name; they will be an everlasting sign of his power and love." (Isaiah 55:8-13) NLT

"Compassionate Father"

"But he, being full of compassion, forgave their iniquity, and destroyed them not: yea, many a time turned he his anger away, and did not stir up all his wrath." (Psalms 78:38) Understanding God's love and commitment requires that we look past what we know, or even think that we know; these are totally uncharted waters! When God says, "I will never leave you nor forsake you," you can pretty much count any adversity as nothing more than a learning phase. I know it's hard to do that in the midst of something beyond our control; but it's those kind of trials that God works best in; not that He does not work in the little trials, because He does; but in the trails that seem overwhelming, He shows up most powerfully. We tend to think God has a temperament that is a lot like ours, as if God could snap out at us with anger, as we are so capable of doing to each other. For the most part, the trials we experience are totally the result of our own doing; usually the result of not doing what we should, more than doing what we should not. A typical example of what I mean, is that of giving God the glory. It's actually very typical, because we love to make ourselves look better than we are; but when we fail to give God the glory, we miss out on getting the blessing. I know it might not sound like such a big deal, but it's a far bigger deal than you might think. When we fail to give God the glory, we fail Him! The servant slave turning to a son, has overstepped his rightful place, and has all of the sudden taken the role of master; he could not be satisfied with being blessed, he had to make it out to be his own doing. I really don't know why I made that statement, except to say that I am so guilty of doing that myself. Whether we are working for someone, or over many, we can never forget our rightful place! Man, I tell you what, it's like a monster comes out of the closet and is out of control. God is nothing like that! Now, I have got to get this right. We are not capable of loving as God loves, but we are able to have God love through us; and when He does, we must never take the glory, not even to ourselves...
"Pay attention, O Jacob, for you are my servant, O Israel. I, the LORD, made you, and I will not forget you. I have swept away your sins like a cloud. I have scattered your offenses like the morning mist. Oh, return to me, for I have paid the price to set you free." (Isaiah 44:21-22) NLT

"Uncommitted"

"For their heart was not right with him, neither were they steadfast in his covenant." (Psalms 78:37) I guess that the simple way to understand how this works, is to first examine our own hearts compared to God's. What a huge contrast between those two versions of commitment; talk about apples and oranges, they are more like comparing apples and rocks; the only those two things have in common is that they can both be thrown. Commitment is something that requires determination to make something work. In marriage, it does not let failure become an option, ever! That is a pretty good reason we have so many failed marriages in this new generation, because failure has become so acceptable; 'If at first you don't succeed, move on to something else,' has become our new pattern of living; so is it any wonder that so many couples don't try to work harder on keeping their marriage from failing? As I said before, understanding our relationships between one another is pretty easy, because we all are flawed in the area of love and commitment. But God, who is not like us, is always steadfast in His love and commitment towards us; so much so, that what we lack is made up for by His abundant love and commitment to us. That does not work very well within our marriages; it's really hard for one person in the relationship to have enough love and commitment for both; it's not impossible, but it sure is hard. In our relationship with God, our role is to be more like the life of a servant or a slave of a Master who is loving and caring and committed to do what is best for us. It is hard for us to relate to that, but it must be done. We cannot figure out everything there is to know about God; but we sure can except what He has shown us! Forget about commitment for the moment, and look at our ability to love God the way that we should; because we all lack the ability to love Him with 'all of our heart, mind, soul, and strength.' I mean, really! Can anyone say truthfully that they can? We can't even meet Him half way...
"Then I will sprinkle clean water on you, and you will be clean. Your filth will be washed away, and you will no longer worship idols. And I will give you a new heart, and I will put a new spirit in you. I will take out your stony, stubborn heart and give you a tender, responsive heart. And I will put my Spirit in you so that you will follow my decrees and be careful to obey my regulations." (Ezekiel 36:25-27) NLT

"Exposed"

"Nevertheless they did flatter him with their mouth, and they lied unto him with their tongues." (Psalms 78:36) Oh, we can fool each other easy enough, but God sees the heart; God can see our motives, even when we have not thought them up yet. That's a pretty scary thought. Think about that for a moment, because there are a lot of doors that never get opened, not because it's not God's will for us to step through them, but because our heart may not be right, and our motives for doing them are totally wrong. And the scary part of it is, we don't even know it sometimes. I am sure that sometimes we do; I mean, we know when we are doing something for our own personal gain, because usually we plan those things out in advance. But it's really not that simple, not when it comes to love and commitment. Oh, you thought I was going to say something else, didn't you? No, I think love and commitment are pretty much the two most misunderstood motives that we have; if you want to try to understand them at all! Do you want to know why that is? Really? Well, let me let you in on a little secret. We can love someone, and be committed to someone, and really really truly believe that we honestly are, but we love ourselves and are committed to our own self interest more, and don't even know it! Not until we meet that fork in the road, where my needs and wants no longer agree with your needs and wants; then love and commitment no longer matter. But, don't think for a moment that God does not see what is going to happen, because He can, and He does. To understand how this relates to our relationships with one another is pretty easy, because we all are so flawed and incapable of real love and commitment; but to understand how this works with our relationship with God, that is a totally different experience, altogether...
"Son of man, your people talk about you in their houses and whisper about you at the doors. They say to each other, 'Come on, let's go hear the prophet tell us what the LORD is saying!' So my people come pretending to be sincere and sit before you. They listen to your words, but have no intention of doing what you say. Their mouths are full of lustful words, and their hears seek only after money. You are very entertaining to them, like someone who sings love songs with a beautiful voice or plays on an instrument. They hear what you say, but they don't act on it! But when all these terrible things happen to them -as they certainly will -then they will know a prophet has been among them." (Ezekiel 33:30-33) NLT  

"Self- Absorbed"

"And they remembered that God was their rock, and the high God their redeemer." (Psalms 78:35) Are you the least bit curious? I mean, I think we know how this plays out; it's that age-old premise, 'I don't really need God, until I need Him.' There was an old Burt Reynolds movie, called "The End," where he was going to commit suicide, so he swims way out into the ocean; but then he changes his mind, and he realizes that he is way too far out to make it back. So he starts praying to God, for God to save him; making all sorts of promises, getting less and less extreme the closer he gets to shore. That's the general idea here in this verse; not that they remembered for the sake of honoring God, but for the sake of needing God because they were suffering through something. Yes, it's really not that uncommon; I mean, we all are guilty of this in one form or another; some more guilty than others. If you don't think it's you, then tell me this: Do you pray for your marriage always, or only when there seems to be a problem? That's just one example, because there are hundreds that could be used; it's just that our marriage is one that is so easy to relate to. I really do miss arguing with my wife; as strange as that might seem, it is something I was never really any good with, and I know I could be better. When I say better, I mean that I would not try so hard to win the argument, but try harder to please my wife, with humility and love! Self-absorbed is all about being preoccupied with one's self, whether we are talking about feelings, interests or situation; the general idea, is that of going into any type of relationship, commitment, or agreement, with one thing in mind, 'What's in this for me?' It is really a pretty touchy subject, because it touches on all aspects of our life, work, ministry, relationships; there is really nothing we can be involved in where it does not become a factor or a consideration. Just another layer of the onion; God continues to amaze me...  
"The next day the crowd that had stayed on the far shore saw that the disciples had taken the only boat, and they realized Jesus had not gone with them. Several boats from Tiberias landed near the place where the Lord had blessed the bread and the people had eaten. So when the crowd saw that neither Jesus nor his disciples were there, they got into the boats and went across to Capernaum to look for him. They found him on the other side of the lake and asked, "Rabbi, when did you get here?" Jesus replied, "I tell you the truth, you want to be with me because I fed you, not because you understood the miraculous signs. But don't be so concerned about perishable things like food. Spend your energy seeking the eternal life that the Son of Man can give you. For God the Father has given me the seal of his approval." They replied, "We want to perform God's works, too. What should we do?" Jesus told them, "This is the only work God wants from you: Believe in the one he has sent." They answered, "Show us a miraculous sign if you want us to believe in you. What can you do?" (John 6:22-30) NLT

"Redirected"

"When he slew them, then they sought him: and they returned and inquired early after God." (Psalms 78:34) As many of you might have experienced, God does have a way of gaining our attention; it might take some doing, but sooner or later, we eventually get the point. I think we all know deep down it's something that we need to happen; we don't want it to happen; we go on hoping it doesn't happen; but we know deep down inside that we really need it to happen because otherwise we will not listen. I think it's like Pastor Mike V. and his message about our Heavenly Father getting up off the couch. I shared it several months ago, because I thought it was important for us to understand that God is patient, but He's not unloving towards us; sooner or later He is going to stop us from destroying ourselves, because He gets tired of seeing us mess up our lives. Our major problem is that we actually think we can handle things on our own. Seriously, we actually do! In fact, more than we might like to admit, we pretty much think we have everything under control and handled rather smoothly. You know that feeling? Everything is good between me and God; He blesses me, I give Him the glory, it's all good. I know you know what I am talking about. I know I have a higher purpose than making money so I can give more money to the church; God does not need my money! God needs my devotion to Him! Anywho; the whole thing about "The Bread from Heaven" is more about complete surrender than anything else. On the one hand, we are changed one day at a time; but, on the other hand, we need to be set apart and devoted for service. That whole thing about "serving two masters" was not just a parable or a what if, it was Jesus saying, You have got to be all in to Me! Somehow it will all work out in the long run, but how badly do we want to get hurt before we actually get it...
"My child, don't reject the LORD'S discipline, and don't be upset when he corrects you. For the LORD corrects those he loves, just as a father corrects a child in whom he delights." (Proverbs 3:11-12) NLT

"Self-Consumed"

"Therefore their days did he consume in vanity, and their years in trouble." (Psalms 78:33) Have you ever had one of those days when you think you passed up some appointments to be used of God? I know it might sound strange, but it's pretty much impossible to overlook when there are like two or three encounters in a row, and you look back and say, 'What was I thinking? There was a missed moment to share God's love to someone who might need to hear about it.' Like, I know things can get crazy, especially in my line of work, going from appointment to appointment all day long, sometimes with no time to make it on time; but does it consume me so much that I loose sight of the most important things in life? Obviously it does, or the Lord would not have put it upon my heart. If you think about what vanity represents, it's more than just thinking life is all about you, it's forgetting your purpose for living. Okay, so maybe it's not that big of a deal to most people. We pretty much save doing things for the Lord for Sunday, as if going to church is the biggest act we perform, and it's good enough. Church is not where we minister, it's where we get ministered to! It's where we charge up our batteries to get out there and make a difference for Jesus! I want you to think about what this verse is saying, because it's pretty scary and hits pretty close to home for the majority of us that call ourselves Christians. How often do you hear someone say, "It seems like the days are just flying by; the older I get, the quicker they go by." What life are we keeping track of? What life are we consumed by? Lord, help me to pay attention and be available...
"Then the people began arguing with each other about what he meant. "How can this man give us his flesh to eat?" they asked. So Jesus said again, "I tell you the truth, unless you eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink his blood, you cannot have eternal life within you. But anyone who eats my flesh and drinks my blood has eternal life, and I will raise that person at the last day. For my flesh is true food, and my blood is true drink. Anyone who eats my flesh and drinks my blood remains in me, and I in him. I live because of the living Father who sent me; in the same way, anyone who feeds on me will live because of me. I am the true bread that came down from heaven. Anyone who eats this bread will not die as your ancestors did (even though they ate the manna) but will live forever."" (John 6:52-58) NLT

"Continuity" -2

"For all this they sinned still, and believed not for his wondrous works." (Psalms 78:32) It is really easy to loose track of what brought us here in the first place. Not that we don't have the means to remember, because not only do we have His word to keep us in balance, but He has provided His Spirit to reinforce all that we read. That is the most important part of this whole experience, having the Holy Spirit within us, who confirms the truth in us. He makes it real! It's like this blog, which at times seems like it might be some sort of obsession, and maybe it is; but there are mornings where nothing else could move me this way. When He meets with me here, it cleanses my soul, if you get my meaning. I don't know about you, but if there is anything that it's okay to be obsessed by, if it involves fellowship with the Creator of the universe, then I think it's a obsession worth holding on to. Getting back to this star mark in my Bible; it's not that we don't need to be reminded of what brought us here, because sin is still something we are very familiar with; and maybe that's not such a bad thing. I am not saying it's okay to sin, because it's not, but it keeps us in balance. I have to remember the title above this Psalm in my Bible, "God Loves His People." You think about that for a moment, and then you relate those four words with the context of this verse. All that God has done for us, and all that He demonstrates in our hearts, as He moves us by the power of His love, and yet we still somehow find it within us to sin. Don't think for a moment that God is surprised by that, because He's not! We need to be in our Bibles every single day, for the perfect balance! I heard, I believe it was Pastor David, saying something about meeting some of the authors of the Bible in heaven, someone like Amos; and if you were not into your Bible, then you might question his credibility, saying, 'There's no Amos in the Bible, is there?' My goodness, how do we expect to understand the truth if we are not able to know the truth; and how can we know the truth if we are not living the truth. God absolutely loves His people, and I am one...
 "But Jesus replied, "Stop complaining about what I said. For no one can come to me unless the Father who sent me draws them to me, and at the last day I will raise them up. As it is written in the Scriptures, 'They will all be taught by God.' Everyone who listens to the Father and learns from him comes to me. (Not that anyone has ever seen the Father; only I, who was sent from God, have seen him.) I tell you the truth, anyone who believes has eternal life. Yes, I am the bread of life! Your ancestors ate manna in the wilderness, but they all died. Anyone who eats the bread from heaven, however, will never die. I am the living bread that came down from heaven. Anyone who eats this bread will live forever; and this bread, which I offer so the world may live, is my flesh." (john 6:43-51) NLT

"Continuity"

"For all this they sinned still, and believed not for his wondrous works." (Psalms 78:32) Hopefully I did not lose any respect sharing some of my weakness; we all have them, some more than others; and just so you know, God's hates the sin of sowing discord, more than that one I mentioned the other day. I have a star next to this verse in my Bible; it's in black, so it is most likely from within the last 15 years; although I don't recall why I marked it. But, I do know that works and wonders are not what changes a man's heart; so maybe it has something to do with that. Do you know why Jesus was referred to as "The Word of God?" We know that He was the Word, because John uses that description in the opening of his gospel; but why was He called the Word? The actual word John uses is 'Logos.' In the Strong's, the definition that best suits John's meaning is "the Divine Expression" and is broken down in this manner: "In John, denotes the essential Word of God, Jesus Christ, the personal wisdom and power in union with God, his minister in creation and government of the universe, the cause of all the world's life both physical and ethical, which for the procurement of man's salvation put on human nature in the person of Jesus the Messiah, the second person in the Godhead, and shone forth conspicuously from His words and deeds." I know that is a lot to take in, but it's essential that we understand how that factors into John 6:32-58, where Jesus describes Himself as "The Bread of Life." Many of His disciple stopped following Him that day; mostly because they just could not get the connection. Even the twelve did not get it, but they still hung in there, saying, "Lord, to whom shall we go? thou hast the words of eternal life. And we believe and are sure that thou art that Christ, the Son of the Living God." You see, there is a difference between what you know to be true and what you think that you know. Signs and wonders are things that you think that you know; meaning, you know what you saw, but you really don't know how it was done. But the Word, now that is something entirely different; because you really don't need to know everything in order to know it to be true; nor could you ever know everything that there is to know, but you can still know all truth... "Jesus said, "I tell you the truth, Moses didn't give you bread from heaven. My Father did. And now he offers you the true bread from heaven. The true bread of God is the one who comes down from heaven and gives life to the world." "Sir," they said, "give us that bread every day." Jesus replied, "I am the bread of life. Whoever comes to me will never be hungry again. Whoever believes in me will never be thirsty. But you haven't believed in me even though you have seen me. However, those the Father has given me will come to me, and I will never reject them. For I have come down from heaven to do the will of God who sent me, not to do my own will. And this is the will of God, that I should not lose even one of all those that he has given me, but that I should raise them up at the last day. For it is my Father's will that all who see his Son and believe in him should have eternal life. I will raise them up at the last day. Then the people began to murmur in disagreement because he said, "I am the bread that came down from heaven." They said, "Isn't this Jesus, the son of Joseph? We know his father and mother. How can he say, 'I came down from heaven'?"" (John 6:32-42) NLT    

"Happenstance"

"So they did eat, and were well filled: for he gave them their own desire; they were not estranged from their lust: but while their meat was yet in their mouths, the wrath of God came upon them, and slew the fattest of them, and smote down the chosen men of Israel." (Psalms 78:29-31) It just so happens, this is the result of sinful desire; regardless of what you might think otherwise, the result of sin is always death. David is always the best to demonstrate this fact; as you must all know, his sin committed against God with Bathsheba was not just a fling or some casual encounter, it was down right murder. And not just any kind of murder, like killing someone who did you wrong or was his enemy, but David killed someone loyal to him, someone who was actually willing to die for him. Don't think for a moment that sin does not have some kind of affect, because it does; even though our sins might be forgiven, there are ripples caused in the wake of sin, ripples that are left for others to contend with. If you look at the word "estranged," it pretty much sums up what happened in the case of these "fattest of them." It happens to be a word that depicts their relationship with their sinful desires, in that they were more comfortable with their sin, then they were without it. In other words, they had no desire to turn away from their sinful lust, none whatsoever. You really want to know the sad part about all this, is the fact that they were "the chosen men of Israel," and yet they were strangers to their God! As I said previously, there is a very fine line between right and wrong, obedience and wickedness, trusting God and not trusting Him; having a relationship with God is based upon a desire to be close to God! Do you know why we need to desire to be close to God? Stuff happens, that's why! I don't ever want to be out of God's will. I don't ever want to be out on my own, doing whatever I want; because all though it says in His word, "All things work towards the good," I never want to assume for a moment that "All" includes my sinful desires and lustful passions...
"Well then, since God's grace has set us free from the law, does that mean we can go on sinning? Of course not! Don't you realize that you become the slave of whatever you choose to obey? You can be a slave to sin, which leads to death, or you can choose to obey God, which leads to righteous living. Thank God! Once you were slaves of sin, but now you wholeheartedly obey this teaching we have given you. Now you are free from your slavery to sin, and you have become slaves of righteous living." (Romans 6:15-18) NLT  

"Superfluous"

"He rained flesh also upon them as dust, and feathered fowls like as the sand of the sea: and he let it fall in the midst of their camp, round about their habitations." (Psalms 78:27-28) You have got to see the humor in what God did in this situation, because this was no ordinary migration of birds, this was superfluous! That means it was 'unnecessary, especially through being more than enough.' Have you ever gotten more of something you wanted than you could stand? I think a good example would be rain, because it is so easy to relate to, especially in my line of work. We ask God for rain, and then to rains constantly for several weeks; so much so, that you're begging Him to stop the rain so that you can go back to work. I am sure that is what happened, because there was no way those people could stand the abundance of dead birds all around their tents; they couldn't eat them fast enough, because there was no refrigerators for them to save them for later. I am pretty sure that they had a little fly problem soon to follow; probably a little odor problem also. But you know, I think God does that more often then we might realize. Say your into something that you're not really meant to be into, something like porn or drugs; I think that if we don't yield to the Holy Spirit's voice, and stop what we are doing, then God will allow us to become obsessed with whatever we are doing; to the point of being overwhelmed and destroyed by whatever it is. It like God is saying, "Okay, you want to play with that, then I will let it play with you!" It's pretty much a consequence of our actions, not so much God's doing; because in truth, God does not cause or tempt anyone to sin; if anything, He warns us not to do something, and even provides a way of escape, but He never puts us in a situation where we have to sin. The devil might do that, and there are tons of times I remember that he has. I remember one time (of many,) where I was determined to not look at any pornography, and wouldn't you know, the next vacant house that I inspected had a treasure chest full of porn. I'm sure that does not happen to anyone else; but it is rather hard to run away from, mostly because you wonder what you might be missing. Those are teachable moments in our ability to withstand temptation, to say the least. How would you do? Most of the time I did pretty good, considering; but then again, I almost always took a peak; and just a little peak is more than enough, to need "The Christian Bar of Soap"...
"Now the LORD sent a wind that brought quail from the sea and let them all fall all around the camp. For miles in every direction there were quail flying about three feet off the ground. So the people went out and caught quail all that day and throughout the night and all the next day, too. No one gathered less than fifty bushels! They spread the quail all around the camp to dry. But while they were gorging themselves on the meat -while it was still in their mouths -the anger of the LORD blazed against the people, and he struck them with a severe plague. So that place was called Kibrothhattaavah (which means "graves of gluttony") because there they buried the people who had craved meat from Egypt." (Numbers 11:31-34) NLT

"Conniption"

"He caused an east wind to blow in heaven: and by his power he brought in the south wind." (Psalms 78:26) Looks like I might need to clean up some; I would rather be below the normal than above; after all, we need to strive with all earnest to be the man or woman God has intended us to be. As I was praying about this morning's post, the usual title appearance did not happen, so I went ahead and typed out the verse first, hoping that it would inspire a message, and it did! God has a way of keeping us in suspense sometimes; but in all truthfulness, if we knew beforehand what He was going to do, we would probably run the other way. For those who like mysterious things, we have some pretty big mysteries to be solved when we get into heaven. For starters, I what to know how it is that things happen in Heaven before they happen here on earth. I mean, what is it that happens for God's will to be done on earth, as it is in Heaven? You know what I think; I think that God's anger produces a violent kind of love, the kind of love you might need in order to run into a fire to save a loved one, or the kind of love you have for others, to throw yourself onto a live grenade. We obviously don't know anything about what happens in Heaven; not even people that have been there can really explain what they saw or heard. But to understand the love of God; well that my friends, was demonstrated here on this earth! That said, can you imagine what was going on in Heaven before the Son of God appeared on this earth? I mean, we see from Luke 2:13-14, how the multitude of heavenly host appeared, singing, "Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, good will toward men." It's only obvious that there must have been some kind of excitement in Heaven; after all, that's where they all came from, including the Son of God...
 "And all of this is a gift from God, who brought us back to himself through Christ. And God was in Christ, reconciling the world to himself, no longer counting people's sins against them. And he gave us this wonderful message of reconciliation. So we are Christ's ambassadors; God is making his appeal through us. We speak for Christ when we plead, "Come back to God!" For God made Christ, who never sinned, to be the offering for our sin, so that we could be made right with God through Christ." (2 Corinthians 5:18-21) NLT  

"Can Do"

"Man did eat angels food: he sent them meat to the full." (Psalms 78:25) If you have any doubt in God's ability to provide for your needs, your biggest need is not food, it's a heart that truly believes in God. I think that might be the single most important factor in our lack of faith, the fact that we question God's word. I am not saying we question all of it; we have the natural ability to be selective, taking certain Scriptures to heart, and then discarding others as something questionable, or at the very least, unprovable. I know I say that I believe every word that is written in those 66 books; I tell myself that, as if I have tested every angle and every degree possible; but when it comes to application, I seriously lack what it takes to walk out what I say that I believe. Am I any different than anyone else? I really don't think so; at least not based upon what I have seen presented in the lives of many strong believers in the Bible. None of us are perfect, of that I am sure; but every single one of us have the ability to walk in the perfect will of God. Isn't that what matters the most? Am I doing what God wants me to do, or am I doing my will? It's pretty obvious to me which is which; and I can say without a doubt that I tend to do my will more than God's. I heard something the other day, that the average person sins at least three times a day; if that's the case, I think that I am a little above average. But then again, who's counting? I tell you who, me, that's who! When it comes to my inadequate abilities to obey God, there is nobody more critical than me on my performance; well almost nobody, because there's always the devil standing there confirming all my inadequate abilities. As far as God is concerned, I am a saint; as hard as that is for me to accept, it is true, because His word says so. Now, all that is up to me, is to walk in what I know to be true! Is it questionable or unprovable? That is the question... "This boasting will do no good, but I must go on. I will reluctantly tell about visions and revelations from the Lord. I was caught up to the third heaven fourteen years ago. Whether I was in my body or out of my body, I don't know -only God knows. Yes, only God knows whether I was in my body or outside my body. But I do know that I was caught up to paradise and heard things so astounding that they cannot be expressed in words, things no human is allowed to tell. That experience is worth boasting about, but I'm not going to do it. I will boast only about my weakness. If I wanted to boast, I would be no fool in doing so, because I would be telling the truth. But I won't do it, because I don't want anyone to give me credit beyond what they can see in my life or hear in my message, even though I have received such wonderful revelations from God. So to keep me from becoming proud, I was given a thorn in my flesh, a messenger from Satan to torment me and keep me from becoming proud. Three different times I begged the Lord to take it away. Each time he said, "My grace is all you need. My power works best in weakness." So now I am glad to boast about my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ can work through me. That's why I take pleasure in my weaknesses, and in the insults, hardships, persecutions, and troubles that I suffer for Christ. For when I am weak, then he is strong." (2 Corinthians 12:1-10) NLT  

"Unjustifiable"

"Therefore the LORD heard this, and was wroth: so a fire was kindled against Jacob, and anger also came up against Israel; because they believed not in God, and trusted not in his salvation: though he had commanded the clouds from above, and opened the doors of heaven, and had rained down manna upon them to eat, and had given them of the corn of heaven." (Psalms 78:21-24) Sometimes you feel like a nut, sometimes you don't! I don't know why I said that, except it just come into my head; kind of like what Paul was saying in yesterday's closing Scripture, as long as you're controlled by the love of Christ, it's all good! I just could not break up these verses, because they explain why God was angry and why Israel had no right not to believe God, nor trust in His salvation; neither do we! If we have any doubt whatsoever in God's intentions or His capabilities, it's our own fault, it's not God's fault for not showing us the truth. God has given us everything we need to believe in and trust in Him; if we lack what it takes, then it is because we have not put all of our trust in Him, and we have not completely committed our lives to believing in Him. I know that sounds pretty strong, but if you truly think about what motivates us to trust anything, it is based upon our ability to believe it will do as we expected it to do. We grow up believing in fairy tales and other such things, and then later get told they don't really exist; is it any wonder we can put real faith in anything? But when God demonstrates His power into our lives, it's pretty much a game changer, and any doubt that we might have is unjustifiable. Were you not changed? Did you not experience New Life? I see the "corn of heaven" as the word of God, which is pretty much what the manna represents, also. Here's the thing about the word of God, and how it is meant to be applied to our lives: it's a daily application! The "corn of heaven" is the truth of God's word that is planted in our hearts the moment we give our lives to the Lord; but the manna, it's the application of God's word upon our spiritual lives, which continues to feed and grow that truth which has been planted in our hearts. Our you daily giving nutrition to the truth within you? or are you daily putting in other garbage that is of the world? We need His word to keep us going; if you are not feeling as though you are going, then you have no one else to blame but yourself...
"Therefore, since God in his mercy has given us this new way, we never give up. We reject all shameful deeds and underhanded methods. We don't try to trick anyone or distort the word of God. We tell the truth before God, and all who are honest know this. If the Good News we preach is hidden behind a veil, it is hidden only from people who are perishing. Satan, who is the god of this world, has blinded the minds of those who don't believe. They are unable to see the glorious light of the Good News. They don't understand this message about the glory of Christ, who is the exact likeness of God. You see, we don't go around preaching about ourselves. We preach that Jesus Christ is Lord, and we ourselves are your servants for Jesus' sake. For God, who said, "Let there be light in the darkness," has made this light shine in our hearts so we could know the glory of God that is seen in the face of Jesus Christ. We now have this light shinning in our hearts, but we ourselves are like fragile clay jars containing this great treasure. This makes it clear that our great power is from God, not from ourselves." (2 Corinthians 4:1-7) NLT  

"Unbelief"

"Yea, they spake against God; they said, Can God furnish a table in the wilderness? Behold, he smote the rock, that the waters gushed out, and the steams overflowed; can he give bread also? can he provide flesh for his people?" (Psalms 78:19-20) Wouldn't you know, I heard Pastor Matt speaking about the same thing I spoke about yesterday morning, at around 3:15 yesterday afternoon. I don't know what is up with the CSN signal here, but apparently we don't have any "Tower Keepers" here in the Redding area. I know that Pastor Matt did that teaching at another time, but it must have been my time to hear it, because that's how the Holy Spirit seems to work; He puts something upon our hearts, then He brings someone else along to confirm His point. Looking at these verses, I am reminded about something we experience in our hearts when we do not fear God. When I say fear, I literally am talking about fear in the sense of being afraid to commit sin in His presence; and I am talking about trespass sin, the kind where you know what you are doing is bad, and you know in your heart that God's watching, yet you do it anyways. You know, we say that the difference between Christianity and other religions is that our faith is based upon relationship not religion, but there are times I think when we need to have a little religious motivation in our belief in God; at the very least, we need to have a little reverence in the relationship! Let me break it down for you. If you really believe that God can do all things, and if you really believe that God knows all things, sees all things, and is everywhere all at once; then why in the world would you blatantly sin? I mean, there has got to be something wrong with your relationship with God, if your not ashamed to do certain things right in front of Him; if, that is, you actually believe He is watching. The question is simple enough to understand. We know that God is capable of doing certain things with something, such as bringing water forth from rock; but can He make something from nothing? Really! "In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth" is there at the beginning of our Bible for a reason, to show us how powerful our God actually is! If you cannot get past the fact that God can create something from nothing, then you're most likely not going to understand how He can make all things new, as in making you into a New Creature... "Because we understand our fearful responsibility to the Lord, we work hard to persuade others. God knows we are sincere, and I hope you know this, too. Are we commending ourselves to you again? No, we are giving you a reason to be proud of us, so you can answer those who brag about having a spectacular ministry rather than having a sincere heart. If it seems we are crazy, it is to bring glory to God. And if we are in our right minds, it is for your benefit. Either way, Christ's love controls us. Since we believe that Christ died for all, we also believe that we all have died to our old life. He died for everyone so that those who receive his new life will no longer live for themselves. Instead, they will live for Christ, who died and was raised for them. So we have stopped evaluating others from a human point of view. At one time we thought of Christ merely from a human point of view. How differently we know him now! This means that anyone who belongs to Christ has become a new person. The old life is gone; a new life has begun!" (2 Corinthians 5:11-17) NLT  

"Unsatisfied"

"And they tempted God in their heart by asking meat for their lust." (Psalms 78:18) Just because we might have craving for more, does not mean that it's okay to have more; just the opposite is the case, in the material world. In the spiritual world, things are a little different, and depending what we ask for, it's okay to crave more of God's power, love, and spiritual gifts; unless we are asking for those things to make ourselves appear more spiritual just to puff ourselves up before others. Materially, it's all about not wanting for the sake of having; something I need to check myself on, time and time again. I am more like that character in the Marvel movies, the Collector, who is always wanting something that he does not have, just because I don't have it yet; not that I will ever even use it, but it's nice to display it as mine. I have been working on not being as bad as I once was, but it's not all that easy. As much as I would like to do what I think is right, it's really not me that needs to do anything, it's God working in me that makes the difference. The word "tempted" is not just to temp God in asking for something, as in to see if He will do it; in the context of the statement, it's more about tempting God's ability, as in, can He do it. Can and will are two totally different areas of thought, especially when they come from the heart. Jesus spent a great amount of time on this issue, because it really is about the desires of our hearts; are we satisfied in God's goodness by His grace, or are looking for Him to provide something else, something a little more tangible, something we can actually show off or be lifted up by. Maybe I am having a hard time making my point; then again, maybe I don't really want to see the point on this subject. Sometimes we are just like soiled kids, thinking that God is just there to give us whatever it is that we ask Him for; yet it's that kind of thinking which is being pushed into our churches, and it's not the Holy Spirit that is bringing it in. We need to be asking God for the ability to love others with a heart that wants to love to love, not to be shown to love for the sake of looking better. Although it's meant for us to show the world God's love in our lives, sometimes love involves sacrifice, and if we are loving for the wrong reasons, then it's not going to stand the test when something comes against us or makes us feel like we are getting the short end of the stick. I think it pretty much comes down to our desire to be enriched or our desire to lift up the Lord...
"What causes the quarrels and fights among you? Don't they come from the evil desires at war within you? You want what you don't have, so you scheme and kill to get it. You are jealous of what others have, but you can't get it, so you fight and wage war to take it from them. Yet you don't have what you want because you don't ask God for it. And even when you ask, you don't get it because your motives are all wrong -you want only what will give you pleasure." (James 4:1-3) NLT

"Ungrateful"

"And they sinned yet more against him by provoking the Most High in the wilderness." (Psalms 78:17) If there is one thing I know from experience, it's the fact that people are very short sighted when it comes to gratitude. They are grateful as long as your dishing out what they want, but as soon as you hesitate or don't meet there expectation, then nothing you did before matters anymore, you have just become heartless. As easy as it is for us to be like that, it is easier for us to forget God's blessings and how faithful He has been to help us in the past. Don't ask me why that is, because I really don't know; except to say, we sometimes don't think He is concerned with whatever it is we might be dealing with, as if our little problem matters in the midst of all the other really big issues going on in the world. You remember that song, "Count Your Blessings?" Well, it's pretty much the truth, because when we fail to count our blessing, we fail to realize just how much we count to God. We serve a Multitasking God, who can do all things, all at once! He is not confined by time or space; neither is He limited in strength or ability; there is absolutely nothing that is impossible with God! Yet, we continually doubt Him being there for us. Maybe it's sin that causes us to doubt His loyalty and faithfulness? After all, if we are not loyal and faithful to Him, why would we expect Him to be there for us? The word "provoking" is one that speaks to striking or to stroke, much as lashing out at someone for no reason whatsoever. You know what I am talking about? Have you ever had one of those moments when you're stuck in traffic, totally outraged for being delayed from whatever it is you think you're late for, and you forget how God is always watching out for you? You know, the times when you find out, had you been there or gone that way, you would have most likely been killed or involved in some sort of accident. I remember my wife telling me something that happened to her on the highway, as weird as it might sound; she said she was driving down the highway with our son beside her in the car, and there was a really old woman standing on the side of the road, with her hood up and jumper cables in her hands. My wife said she was going to fast to stop, so she went down to the next turnoff, which was about a quarter of a mile down the road; and when she got back to the spot where she saw the old woman, there was nobody there; no car, no nothing! She had our son standing right beside her as she told me the story, and he kept nodding his head in agreement. We thanked God, and agreed together that it must have been an angel, and that she needed to be diverted for some reason or another. You never really know, but you need to be grateful in all things, always...
"Brothers and sisters, we urge you to warn those who are lazy. Encourage those who are timid. Take tender care of those who are weak. Be patient with everyone. See that no one pays back evil for evil, but always try to do good to each other and to all people. Always be joyful. Never stop praying. Be thankful in all circumstances, for this is God's will for you who belong to Christ Jesus." (1 Thessalonians 5:14-18) NLT

"Unfathomable"

"He brought streams also out of the rock, and caused waters to run down like rivers." (Psalms 78:16) Do you think that God caused any of this mess? His cause was for the world to be saved; every since the beginning of time, God has had loved this world that He created, so much so, that He gave His only begotten Son to save it! When the Bible speaks about God "giving them up" or "abandoning them," giving man the choice to follow Him or the devil is pretty much the true meaning, as in He delivered man over to the devil, the devil being the ruler of this fallen world. That said, He never really abandoned man, as in forsaken. It was never God's intention to let man get filled with evil or become as sinful as they could possibly be. Do you remember that flood? I did a teaching on that flood once, and from what I remember, God's heart was broken for what He had to do, to not only mankind, but every other living creature that breathed through the nostrils! (Genesis 7:22) It was a really big deal to God that He had to do what He did; but the world was crazy wicked, even more wicked that it is today. At least today we have people on this world that have the Holy Spirit living in them; I would hate to see what this world will be like once we are all taken up to be with the Lord, because things are going to get really really bad. There is quite a bit of evil in this world, but nothing quite like it was in Noah's day, or what it will be during the Tribulation. When Jesus speaks about, "as in the day of Noah," I do not believe He is speaking about it being as evil as, but more to the fact that they did not pay attention to what was going to happen, nor did they care; at least not until the flood came and the boat was sealed up, then it was too late and they all drowned and died. Do you think God might be waiting for it to get really bad? I know that He is waiting for all those who will be saved to be saved; but do you think also that He is waiting for this world to reach a certain boiling point? I mean really, how much can He tolerate...
"However, no one knows the day or hour when these things will happen, not even the angels in heaven or the Son himself. Only the Father knows. When the Son of Man returns, it will be like it was in Noah's day. In those days before the flood, the people were enjoying banquets and parties and weddings right up to the time Noah entered the boat. People didn't realize what was going to happen until the flood came and swept them all away. That is the way it will be when the Son of Man comes. Two men will be working together in the field; one will be taken, the other left. Two women will be grinding flour at the mill; one will be taken, the other left. So you, too, must keep watch! For you don't know what day your Lord is coming." (Matthew 24:36-42)

"Unrelenting"

"He clave the rocks in the wilderness, and gave them drink as out of the great depths." (Psalms 78:15) By now you might be wondering about all the 'Un' this and 'Un' that, as if I am trying to be cute or something. Well let me tell you how this came about, because it was almost undeniable that God was speaking when I questioned it myself. It must have been about verse 9, as I was getting ready to begin using something totally different as my title; I can't even remember what that was, but it did not start with 'Un,' that much I can remember. It was my first day back from my trip, so I was actually sitting in my favorite place to commune with God. Anyhow, I could not commit to the title and I left the room to give my wife her five o'clock med; and as I was standing over her, thinking about the title, literally dozens of 'Un' words just keep running through my head. I actually felt as though they were never ending, as they just kept rolling out, over and over again. I took that as if God was saying something, because there is one thing I have learned over the last six or more years, God does have a sense of humor and He loves to use unusual ways to get His point across. It's kind of like this verse above, one of many verses about God using rocks to bring forth water; however, this verse speaks to God's ability to abundantly supply refreshing "drink" from the "rocks in the wilderness." I am constantly amazed by God's use of the simplest things to answer complex questions. To put it another way, God is not confined by the limits of our imaginations. In other words, just because we cannot imagine it happening, does not mean that God cannot do it. It's like that saying, "Can God make a rock so big that He Himself can't pick up?" The word "unrelenting" is simple enough to understand, it just mean "not yielding in strength, severity, or determination." It reminds my of Kirk Cameron's movie "Unstoppable" and how he illustrates through the movie how God's plan of Salvation cannot be thwarted by the evilness of this world. In the movie, Kirk begins with the question everyone always brings up, "If God is so powerful and loving, then why does He allow all these bad things to happen?" Well, it is a good question, and the answer is really not that simple to put forth; but it's not impossible to answer...
"But God shows his anger from heaven against all sinful, wicked people who suppress the truth by their wickedness. They know the truth about God because he has made it obvious to them. For every since the world was created, people have seen the earth and sky. Through everything God made, they can clearly see his invisible qualities -his eternal power and divine nature. So they have no excuse for not knowing God. Yes, they knew God, but they wouldn't worship him as God or give him thanks. And they began to think up foolish ideas of what God was like. As a result, their minds became dark and confused. Claiming to be wise, they instead became utter fools. And instead of worshiping the glorious, ever-living God, they worshiped idols made to look like mere people and birds and animals and reptiles. So God abandoned them to do whatever shameful things their hearts desired. As a result, they did vile and degrading things with each other's bodies. They traded the truth about God for a lie. So they worshiped and served the things God created instead of the Creator himself, who is worthy of eternal praise! Amen. That is why God abandoned them to their shameful desires. Even women turned against the natural way to have sex and instead indulged in sex with each other. And men, instead of having normal sexual relations with women, burned with lust for each other. Men did shameful things with other men, and as a result of this sin, they suffered within themselves the penalty they deserved. Since they thought it foolish to acknowledge God, he abandoned them to their foolish thinking and let them do things that should never be done. Their lives became full of every kind of wickedness, sin, greed, hate, envy, murder, quarreling, deception, malicious behavior, and gossip. They are backstabbers, haters of God, insolent, proud, and boastful. They invent new ways of sinning, and they disobey their parents. They refuse to understand, break their promises, are heartless, and have no mercy. They know God's justice requires that those who do these things deserve to die, yet they do them anyway. Worse yet, they encourage other to do them, too." (Romans 1:18-32)    

"Unquestionable"

"In the daytime also he led them with a cloud, and all the night with a light of fire." (Psalms 78:14) If only we had it so easy, to know exactly which way we should go, or when to go and when to stop. But you know, I think we do. If we are walking in the Spirit, we have the ability to know where God is asking us to go, or what God is asking us to do. On the other hand, if we are walking in the flesh, it is pretty hard for us to determine what we are doing or where we are going, let alone know anything about what God wants us to do. There really is a very fine line between walking in the Spirit or in the flesh; you can literally be in the Spirit one moment and in the flesh the next, it's just a matter of which way you choose to go; into the way of God, or into the way of the world, they are completely opposite directions, but they have the same dividing line. So, the thing I gather from Paul's warning in 1 Corinthians 10, is that we all need to understand how easily we can be pulled back into the world; after all, we are still just human, and we still have desires to satisfy our flesh, in one way or another. Where we continually mess up, is thinking desire has something to do with sin, as if we have somehow crossed the line into sin, so we might as well just fulfill the desire of the flesh. What a dirty trick our minds play on us! How is it possible to be tricked into sin? or to give into the desire of the flesh? Desire is nothing more than our opportunity to obey God and deny our flesh! It is our personal chance to win a battle going on inside, a battle between the flesh and the Spirit. The question that is created on the battlefield is one of choice: do I desire to please God, or do I desire to please myself? The desire to please myself is always going to be there, lurking in the shadows and stirring up thoughts in our minds; but the desire to please God is brought on by the Holy Spirit, which has far more power to overcome, if we would just turn to His side, and turn away from our fleshly desires. But nooooo! We like pleasing ourselves so much more than we like to please God! I heard a really good example of sin being fun. I forget who said it, but I thought it was pretty spot-on. They said, "It might be fun to jump off the Empire State Building, that is, until you hit that ground." That is pretty much the reason they put those safety nets and barricades to prevent people from jumping off; they might think it would be fun, but when they hit the ground it's going to leave a mark...
"These things happened as a warning to us, so that we would not crave evil things as they did, or worship idols as some of them did. As the Scriptures say, "The people celebrated with feasting and drinking, and they indulged in pagan revelry." And we must not engage in sexual immorality as some of them did, causing 23,000 of them to die in one day. Nor should we put Christ to the test, as some of them did and then died from snakebites. And don't grumble as some of hem did, and then were destroyed by the angel of death. These things happened to them as examples for us. They were written down to warn us who live at the end of the age. If you think you are standing strong, be careful not to fall. The temptations in your life are no different from what others experience. And God is faithful. He will not allow the temptation to be more than you can stand. When you are tempted, he will show you a way out so that you can endure." (1 Corinthians 10:6-13) NLT  

"Unwavering"

"He divided the sea, and caused them to pass through; and he made the waters to stand as a heap." (Psalms 78:13) Not that this title has anything to do with me, because it does not, it is 100% God; God is the one who is unwavering in His love you His people; don't you know? I can't imagine what it would have been like to walk through walls of water; but as a kid, I did get to experience a little bit how it looked. We were all just very small children, how small I can't remember, but there were at least three of us there, so it had to be at least 1966, because my younger brother would had to have been at least four; I was eight, my sister would have been six, but our youngest brother was still to small to be with us. We were all laying just below the screen in the movie theater, watching for the very first time The Ten Commandments, and I will never forget the screen when the children of Israel walked through the Red Sea. I imagine it would be hard to forget it if it actually happened to me, but apparently the children of Israel did not let it convince them that God had their back. No sooner than a day or two later, and they were complaining about God bringing them into the wilderness because there were not enough graves in Egypt. The proceeding verses, again and again show how ungrateful and unfaithful His people were to Him, even though He continually kept performing miracle after miracle, sign after sign, they still needed more proof, they still needed more convincing. That closing portion of Scripture from yesterday, is one of my favorite verses when it comes to defending the cross of Christ, because those who cannot accept it, don't accept it because that can't; they have no clue, nor can they have any clue what that cross represents, not until they have experienced the Salvation that the cross of Christ provides. It is just as Jesus was telling Nicodemus, or Nic at Night, as I prefer to call him. Jesus told Nicodemus in John 1:3, "Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God." We that have experienced the cross of Christ do not need to be convinced of it's life changing power and salvation; but, what we do need, and continually need, is God's Spirit within us to keep our faith alive. If we base the finished work that Christ did on that cross upon our performance and our ability to obey, then we have no need to carry on any further. It is really not about what I can do, but what He has done, don't you know... "I don't want you to forget, dear brothers and sisters, about our ancestors in the wilderness long ago. All of them were guided by a cloud that moved ahead of them, and all of them walked through the sea on dry ground. In the cloud and in the sea, all of them were baptized as followers of Moses. All of them ate the same spiritual food, and all them drank the same spiritual water. For they drank from the spiritual rock that traveled with them, and that rock was Christ. Yet God was not pleased with most of them, and their bodies were scattered in the wilderness." (1 Corinthians 1-5) NLT

"Unprecedented"

"Marvelous things did he in the sight of their fathers, in the land of Egypt, in the field of Zoan." (Psalms 78:12) As far as I can tell, God has been very patient with those of us that can't quite seem to obey as we should. He is very patient, for the most part; then again, I wouldn't want to experience His judgment or wrath; nor do I expect any other of His children would, at least not willingly. Or would we? I am 100% convinced that God loves me and has every good intention for my life; His plans for me far exceed my expectations and my own capabilities. How can I be so sure that this is so? Because He has said so in His word, that's why; and His word is the most important thing that we have been given; even more important than signs and wonders. You know, signs and wonders are here today and gone tomorrow, but His word we have with us always. If you want to know anything about who God is or how much He loves you, it's all right here within these 106 Books, which we have come to know as the Holy Bible. How do we know the Bible is absolutely true? That is simple. Because there are no mistakes and every prediction or prophecy has come to pass, just as He said that it would. Now, you show me any other piece of written work that can prove that, because I don't think that you can. We can't even get history right, let alone predict the future; more than that, we totally can't learn from our own mistakes. There is the difference between the way we do things and God does things: God is always doing something new, we just keep repeating the same stupid things over and over again, with the same stupid results...
"The message of the cross is foolish to those who are headed for destruction! But we who are being saved know it is the very power of God. As the Scriptures say, "I will destroy the wisdom of the wise and discard the intelligence of the intelligent." So where does this leave the philosophers, the scholars, and the world's brilliant debaters? God has made the wisdom of this world look foolish. Since God in his wisdom saw to it that the world would never know him through human wisdom, he has used our foolish preaching to save those who believe. It is foolish to the Jews, who ask for signs from heaven. And it is foolish to the Greeks, who seek human wisdom. So when we preach that Christ was crucified, the Jews are offended and the Gentiles say it's all nonsense. But to those called by God to salvation, both Jews and Gentiles, Christ is the power of God and the wisdom of God. This foolish plan of God is wiser than the wisest of human plans, and God's weakness is stronger than the greatest of human strength." (1 Corinthians 1:18-25)

"Unfit"

"They kept not the covenant of God, and refused to walk in his law; and forgat his works, and his wonders that he had shown them." (Psalms 78:10-11) That's pretty much the synopsis that I gather from this, because there is real power displayed in moving forward; there is no power displayed in turning back. That was the whole issue with Dan and the rest who wanted to settle their families on the other side, their families missed out on seeing God work in the battles. I think it can happen to the best of us, if we don't allow God to fight our battles for us. What I am saying, is that God needs to be put to the test in our lives, which is something that requires some battles to be won; and I'm not talking about battles that we win, but battles that God wins; battles that can only be explained as being won by God! Can we even experience those kind of battles? Sure we can! In regards to the children of Israel and all of their foes, just about every single enemy they faced or every single captivity the experienced was a type of sin or challenge to overcome the world. We face many battles in each of our daily lives; it's just that many of us don't look at them as battles, as much as we should, mostly because we are dwelling within the enemy camps, and loving it. I think if there was a key word in the verses above, that word would be "forgat." It seems to speak more than just forgetting, but speaks about not caring to remember, as in ignoring God's works and wonders, all together. Now why do you think someone would ignore God's works and wonders? My best guess, is that they do not want to be changed. The best way to avoid being changed is to ignore the power of God to change you! You know what I'm talking about, so don't act so surprised. Here is a popular Scripture, for those "earth dwellers" that like to hang out with the enemies of God: "Wherefore come out from among them, and be ye separate, saith the Lord, and touch not the unclean thing; and I will receive you, and will be a Father unto you, and ye shall be my sons and daughters, saith the Lord Almighty." (2 Corinthians 6:17-18) Don't think I do not include myself in this little chastisement, because I am no different than anyone else: I don't have any sin that I continue to hold onto that I do not like! I know what my issues are, so I can talk as someone who has experience. The question is, do you know what your issues are; because there are plenty of people who do not. There are plenty of people who try hard to obey the letter of the law, but ignore the intention of the law...
"If I could speak all the languages of earth and of angels, but didn't love others, I would only be a noisy gong or a clanging cymbal. If I had the gift of prophecy, and if I understood all of God's secret plans and possessed all knowledge, and if I had such faith that I could move mountains, but didn't love others, I would be nothing. If I gave everything I have to the poor and even sacrificed my body, I could boast about it; but if I didn't love others, I would have gained nothing. Love is patient and kind. Love is not jealous or boastful or proud or rude. It does not demand it's own way. It is not irritable, and it keeps no record of being wronged. It does not rejoice about injustice but rejoices whenever the truth wins out. Love never gives up, never loses faith, is always hopeful, and endures through every circumstance." (1 Corinthians 13:1-7) NLT  

"Undisposed"

"The children of Ephraim, being armed, and carrying bows, turned back in the day of battle." (Psalms 78:9)
To be perfectly honest, I can say without a doubt, that this verse is one of those verses that can make us stop and consider our motivation in serving the Lord. You know it's going to be tough, and that there will be days that make you feel as though God is not blessing what you are doing; but that is usually always an open door for God to perform something amazing through you; if you would let Him accomplish what He wants to do. You have all the tools, and you have even been given an audience to watch God perform something special; but something is not right in your heart and you let an open door become a barricade. The apostle Paul is perfect for giving us an example of what this looks like, because he was a champion of letting God use him in the battle; even when it looked like he was being blocked, Paul knew that opposition meant God was getting ready to do something special, even at his own expense and humiliation. Do you understand what I mean? If we are totally committed to the Lord's work, and if we are committed to being His servant, no mater what, then a little opposition or threat to our personal pride should not prevent us from moving forward and being used of God. To save you the time looking up the word "undisposed," let me give you the definition: it means not resolved or dealt with, or not prepared or inclined to do something. It pretty much comes down to the cost, as in, have you counted the cost in serving the Lord? Really counted the cost? That means, have you resolved in your heart to continue to serve Him at all cost? or are you not prepared for opposition that might come against you? Opposition will come, it's pretty much something you should count on happening. But when it does, it is more than likely something God is allowing to happen so that He gets to be glorified, as you display what it means to be a servant...
"A large crowd was following Jesus. He turned around and said to them, "If you want to be my disciple, you must hate everyone else by comparison -your father and mother, wife and children, brothers and sisters -yes, even your own life. Otherwise, you cannot be my disciple. And if you do not carry your own cross and follow me, you cannot be my disciple. But don't begin until you count the cost. For who would begin construction of a building without first calculating the cost to see if there is enough money to finish it? Otherwise, you might complete only the foundation before running out of money, and everyone would laugh at you. They would say, 'There's the person who started that building and could not afford to finish it.' Or what king would go to war against another king without first sitting down with his counselors to discuss whether his army of 10,000 could defeat the 20,000 soldiers marching against him? And if he can't, he will send a delegation to discuss terms of peace while the enemy is still far away. So you cannot become my disciple without giving up everything you own. Salt is good for seasoning. But if it loses its flavor, how do you make it salty again? Flavorless salt is good neither for the soil nor for the manure pile. It is thrown away. Anyone with ears to hear should listen and understand." (Luke 14:25-35) NLT  

"Unbreakable"

"For he established a testimony in Jacob, and appointed a law in Israel, which he commanded our fathers, that they should make them known to their children: that the generation to come might know them, even the children which should be born; who should arise and declare them to their children: that they might set their hope in God, and not forget the works of God, but keep his commandments: and might not be as their fathers, a stubborn and rebellious generation; a generation that set not their heart aright, and whose spirit was not steadfast with God." (Psalms 78:5-8) Yes I know, four verses at a time seems a little different; but the thing is, they could not be broken up! I know it's a lot to take in, but you have got to see the reason for the unity of the Scripture. First of which, the "testimony" "established" "in Jacob" was set by God, not Jacob; Jacob had no clue what God was going to do, nor did he have any part in the establishment of the testimony, except that he was Jacob! As far as the "law" "appointed" "in Israel," that law was manifested with the testimony, that Israel would be a people governed by God; be they willing, unwilling, obedient, or rebellious, none of that really mattered, because regardless of there actions, they were a people governed by God. How that plays out in real life, well that is totally dependent upon how well they listen and obey; because regardless of their actions, they are still being governed by God: they do what's right, things go good; they don't do what is right, things don't go so good. That's what "governed by God" looks like, don't you know?
I think the key portion of this Scripture is the part that says, "That they might set their hope in God, and not forget the works of God, but keep his commandments." Isn't that really what it's all about? I mean, really; we can make it harder or softer all we want, but when it comes right down to it, that's the bottom line...
""For the LORD will pass through the land to strike down the Egyptians. But when he sees the blood on the top and sides of the doorframe, the LORD will pass over your home. He will not permit his death angel to enter your house and strike you down. Remember, these instructions are a permanent law that you and your descendants must observe forever. When you enter the land the LORD has promised to give you, you will continue to observe this ceremony. Then your children will ask, 'What does the ceremony mean?' And you will reply, 'It is the Passover sacrifice to the LORD, for he passed over the houses of the Israelites in Egypt. And though he struck the Egyptians, he spared our families.'" When Moses had finished speaking, all the people bowed down to the ground and worshiped. So the people of Israel did just as the LORD commanded through Moses and Aaron." (Exodus 12:23-28) NLT  

"Unquestionable"

"We will not hide them from their children, shewing to the generation to come the praises of the LORD, and his strength, and his wonderful works that he hath done." (Psalms 78:4) Without a doubt, the most harm we can do to our children, (children includes those coming up behind us,) is to demonstrate unbelief in the sight of our own circumstances and trials. I know it's sometimes hard to monitor our own actions, but if you're really honest with yourself, you know you know when your acting as if you don't trust God as much as you should. I mean, we all can be in the situation, and no doubt, we all sometimes are; but you know the Holy Spirit will let you know when you're not acting like you believe everything written and promised us in the Bible. He is such a Gentleman about the way He does it, we just sometimes tend to ignore Him; that is until someone like our spouse or children remind us that we are acting like we don't believe God can handle our situation. It's sometimes not a question if God can handle it or not, it's more about whether or not we can handle it. Can we? Do we even try? As I look back to those times, I seem to remember that I don't even want to try; it's more like I just want to feel sorry for myself and want others to feel sorry for me also. God really does not mind when we cry out for help; as a matter of fact, He encourages us in His word to do so. But, what He does mind, is when we don't give Him the praise that He deserves, even in the midst of our trials. That's when He sees those behind us wondering if it's really real; wondering if our testimony is based on facts or fiction; and wondering if the God we have been telling them about is even real. I am sorry for the seriousness of this post, but these are serious times that we are living in. The public education of our children is having more of an influence on our children than our personal testimonies, and it should not be happening. If we had just an ounce of true unquestionable belief, then they would be questioning what they are being taught at school; instead, they come home from being indoctrinated into humanistic ideas, and don't see any power or proof in the things we tell them they need to believe from us. The only thing that we have to go by sometimes is trials and circumstances; those are our moments to shine; that is our time to let them see how real our God is, and how much we believe in the God that is written of in the Bible...
"So commit yourselves wholeheartedly to these words of mine. Tie them to your hands and wear them on your forehead as reminders. Teach them to your children. Talk about them when you are at home and when you are on the road, when you are going to bed and when you are getting up. Write them on the doorposts of your house and on your gates, so that as long as the sky remains above the earth, you and your children may flourish in the land the LORD swore to give your ancestors. Be careful to obey all these commands I am giving you. Show love to the LORD your God by walking in his ways and holding tightly to him. Then the LORD will drive out all the nations ahead of you, though they are much greater and stronger than you, and you will take over their land." (Deuteronomy 11:18-23) NLT    

"Undeniable"

"I will open my mouth in a parable: I will utter dark sayings of old: which we have heard and known, and our fathers have told us." (Psalms 78:2-3) Completely and without a doubt the most sure thing I know is that God has saved me. When it comes to the question, "Are we secure in our salvation?" it's really not a question we can ask someone else, it's pretty much something we know or don't know individually. No one can tell you whether or not you are eternally secure in Christ, except to say that if you are in Christ, then you are eternally secure. If that makes no sense, it's because it's a personal matter between you and the Lord. On the other hand, no one can judge your security in Christ, as in making the call whether you are saved or not saved. It's something we do anyways, judging others and making a prognosis of each other's spiritual condition. Truth be told, the heart is where God looks, not the exterior appearance. As much as I would like to think my righteousness counts for anything, it honestly does not; neither does my unrighteousness take away from anything the Jesus has done; what Jesus has done cannot be added to or taken away from, no way, no how! Does that then give us the right to do whatever we want? Well, let me ask you, What do you want? If what you want is to be like Jesus, then I would say you have every right to do what you want; but if you want is to be yourself, then you may want to check that eternal security question again. Make no mistake about it, if your heart yearns to be like Jesus, then it makes all the difference in the world, you're on the right track. But if your heart cares nothing about being conformed into the image of Christ, then you are still of the world and you need to be changed, from the inside out...  "Jesus always used stories and illustrations like these when speaking to crowds. In fact, he never spoke to them without using such parables. This fulfilled what God had spoken through the prophet: "I will speak in parables. I will explain things hidden since the creation of the world." Then, leaving the crowds outside, Jesus went into the house. His disciples said, "Please explain to us the story of the weeds in the field." Jesus replied, " The Son of Man is the farmer who plants the good seed. The field is the world, and the good seed represents the people of the Kingdom. The weeds are the people who belong to the evil one. The enemy who planted the weeds among the wheat is the devil. The harvest is the end of the world, and the harvesters are the angels. Just as the weeds are sorted out and burned in the fire, so it will be at the end of the world. The Son of Man will send his angels, and they will remove from his Kingdom everything that causes sin and all who do evil. And the angels will throw them into the fiery furnace, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth. Then the righteous will shine like the sun in their Father's Kingdom. Anyone with ears to hear should listen and understand!" (Matthew 13:34-43) NLT  

"Just Because"

"Give ear, O my people, to my law: incline your ears to the words of my mouth." (Psalms 78:1) There are certain things in life that cause us to stop and think about the big picture, as in, life outside of our little bubbles. I know there are times when we get so caught up in surviving that we don't think about anything else but ourselves, but it's the selfish and self-centered living that causes us to feel miserable and alone. Before we start this journey, I would like to get a few things off my chest. First of which, is the fact that we have become so independent in our lifestyles that we hardly think we need anyone else to survive; almost as if we could be left alone on a deserted island and be perfectly fine by ourselves. Well, I am here to tell you that if that is what you think, your nuts! We need each other far more than we could ever know; if for no other reason than sharing our thoughts, we need to be encouraged and to encourage others. That said, there are only really two laws to live by, to love God and love others; that's it! You get those two laws down, and you're going to do just fine. But there is one little problem with our ability to pull those two things off: self! We always seem to get in the way of loving God and others! Secondly, we can be so stubborn when it comes to judging ourselves; it's almost as if we have a magic mirror that only lets us see ourselves as the fairest in the land, or that removes all of the blemishes from our faces. God requires that we confess our weaknesses and come humbly before Him for strength; something that requires us to judge ourselves first; realizing that we are in need and lack what it takes to make it on our own. Not only is the Bible a instruction manual, it's also a love letter from our Creator; written from His heart to provide us understanding about what we are and how much He loves us, still, regardless of what we are! I am such a sinner, but God loves me! He knows me better than I know myself, and yet He is still right there holding out His arms to hold me and tell me how much He loves me! What an amazing God we serve! This is likely to end up being a pretty interesting ride, so I hope you stick around. "God Loves His People" is the title above this Psalm in my Bible, but I am sure you figured that out by now. If only His people loved Him back; that's the point to be made in all of this: If only His people would love Him back... "Then the Spirit of God came upon Azariah the son of Oded, and he went out to meet King Asa as he was returning from the battle. "Listen to me, Asa!" he shouted. "Listen, all you people of Judah and Benjamin! The LORD will stay with you as long as you stay with him! Whenever you seek him, you will find him. But if you abandon him, he will abandon you. For a long time Israel was without the true God, without a priest to teach them, and without the law to instruct them. But whenever they were in trouble and turned to the LORD, the God of Israel, and sought him out, they found him." (2 Chronicles 15:1-4) NLT

"God Loves His People"

PSALMS 78 [Maschil of Asaph.]
As abruptly as the last Psalm ended, this one picks right up where it left off, telling the wonderful story of why we need to be comforted, because God loves His people, no matter what! Do you get what that means? We can do nothing to cause God to love us more or less, because God's love is constant and never changes. We find that hard to understand because our love is so tangible and based upon our feelings; like, maybe I don't feel loved today, or maybe I don't feel like loving today, or maybe today I am all out of love. You know the time when God told Moses, "I will smite them with the pestilence, and disinherit them," (Numbers 14:12); I personally don't believe God said what He said for any other reason than to make Moses love His people, because God would never go back on His word to Abraham, Issac and Jacob. Besides that, it's not like God did not know already what Israel would do, because He most assuredly did. As a matter of fact, at one point when God had told Abraham that "out of him would come a mighty nation," God showed Abraham in a vision all the bad things that would happen to that nation, and how they would be held captive in Egypt for four hundred years (Genesis 15:13). It is my understanding that God did that to kindle a fire in Abraham's heart for his descendants, to not only allow Abraham to believe that they were for real, but to make his heart break for them. If we only knew in advance what people might be going through, it might change the way we treat them or care for them. (I feel sick!) Or love them! "Maschil" is a word that means 'instruction' or to give instruction. It is always in our best interest to not only pay attention to the instruction given in God's word, but to put His instruction to work in our lives. After all, the Bible is our instruction manual for eternal life; learn it well...
"He told many stories in the form of parables, such as this one: "Listen! A farmer went out to plant some seeds. As he scattered them across his field, some seeds fell on a footpath, and the birds came and ate them. Other seeds fell on swallow soil with underlying rock. The seeds sprouted quickly because the soil was shallow. But the plants soon wilted under the hot sun, and since they didn't have deep roots, they died. Other seeds fell among thorns that grew up and choked out the tender plants. Still other seeds fell on fertile soil, and they produced a crop that was thirty, sixty, and even a hundred times as much as had been planted! Anyone with ears to hear should listen and understand." (Matthew 13:3-9) NLT