Beyond Ourselves

In the last several years, there has been an increase in the number of people wanting to know about their ancestors. However, genealogy has always been important in the Bible. For instance, consider the first verse of the first chapter of the first book of the New Testament, Matthew 1:1.

The record of the genealogy of Jesus the Messiah, the son of David, the son of Abraham.”

Just in case someone might doubt Jesus’s rightful place as heir to King David’s throne, His lineage is recorded for the next twenty-five verses.  Yes, Jesus is the Son of God, but He is also the Son of David. Among the many important implications, it is important to recognize that Jesus knows what it is to live in human skin –  to need a nap, to feel tears roll down His cheek, and to thirst as He hung on the cross.  Jesus’s genealogy is well proved and we will one day see Him sitting on His throne.

Son of David, we praise You for willingly leaving Your heavenly home to put on flesh and live among us. We love and adore You.

Friends, I’d love to have you join me any week on Wednesdays or Thursdays for our weekly Bible Study of John. Click here for more info.

Live outside of the Texas Hill Country? No problem! My weekly teachings and Listening Guides will be added HERE each week so you can follow along or use it for a group study. 

Things aren’t always as they appear. Just wait and see. For instance, Jesus had no earthly possessions, wasn’t married, and when arrested, His friends abandoned Him. He was lied about, mocked, and beaten almost to death.  Mark 14:61 records the high priest questioning Him prior to crucifying Him,  “‘Are You the Christ, the Son of the Blessed One?’” How incongruous. Blessed? Yet Jesus was and is the Son of the Blessed One. So when we think about our lives or circumstances and they don’t appear as us being the “blessed child of God,” remember that is who we are. Things aren’t always as they seem. Just wait and see.

Heavenly Father, we praise You for Christ, SON of the BLESSED ONE, and for our being Your blessed children.

Friends, I’d love to have you join me any week on Wednesdays or Thursdays for our weekly Bible Study of John. Click here for more info.

Live outside of the Texas Hill Country? No problem! My weekly teachings and Listening Guides will be added HERE each week so you can follow along or use it for a group study. 

Our Heavenly Father has a goal: to cleanse us of sin.  Malachi 3:3 explains that He sits as a SMELTER, or a refiner, watching over us as the heat of daily life, trials, and sufferings cause impurities to rise to the surface.  What happens when sin glaringly rises in life? We have the opportunity to be appalled and confess the sin.  That is God’s goal. For us to be increasingly purified so we better reflect Christ. Are things heating up in your life? If so, be assured that your Heavenly Father is close to you and is watching over you. He hears your prayers and confessions. And, has anyone told you? You are reflecting Him more every day.

Lord, thank You, SMELTER of our mind, spirit, and soul. Purify us so we reflect Your image. 

“He will sit as a SMELTER and purifier of silver, and He will purify the sons of Levi and refine them like gold and silver, so that they may present to the LORD offerings in righteousness.”

Malachi 3:3

Friends, I’d love to have you join me any week on Wednesdays or Thursdays for our weekly Bible Study of John. Click here for more info.

Live outside of the Texas Hill Country? No problem! My weekly teachings and Listening Guides will be added HERE each week so you can follow along or use it for a group study. 

The Lord is gracious and merciful; SLOW TO ANGER and great in lovingkindness.

Have you been battling something and you’re tired?  If so, we do well to remember that as believers we don’t stand alone. We have each other as we battle our flesh, the world, and Satan. Exodus 17:8-15 records a great visual of how we can come alongside each other, and under the banner of the Lord, defeat the enemy.

Amalek came and fought against Israel at Rephidim. So Moses said to Joshua, Choose men for us and go out, fight against Amalek. Tomorrow I will station myself on the top of the hill with the staff of God in my hand. 

So it came about when Moses held his hand up, that Israel prevailed, and when he let his hand down, Amalek prevailed.

But Moses’ hands were heavy. Then they took a stone and put it under him, and he sat on it; and Aaron and Hur supported his hands, one on one side and one on the other. Thus his hands were steady until the sunset.

So Joshua overwhelmed Amalek and his people with the edge of the sword. 

Moses built an altar and named it The Lord Is My Banner; and he said, ‘The Lord has sworn; the Lord will have war against Amalek from generation to generation.’

In this passage, we learn that the Israelites won the battle as long as they could see Moses’s staff which represented God’s power.

What can we learn from this account?

• We must station ourselves with the sword of the Spirit, the Word of God.
• We must lift one another in prayer.
• We must keep our eyes on Christ, the Victor.  

God is our Banner. Lift Him high before the eyes of others. How? Share “365 Days of Praise” with family and friends each day. Each devotional focuses on a different aspect of God’s divinity, power, and sufficiency.  Or, take 30 seconds and click the FB or Twitter share link at the end of each post.

Will you join me in daily holding up God’s name and power?  Who in your family and which of your friends could use the daily reminder that God is in the battle with them?

Heavenly Father, we often feel there is little we can do to make a difference in our world. But there is something we can do. We can lift high Your name so others are reminded of Your presence and power. Thank You, Jehovah-Nissi, our banner.

Friends, I’d love to have you join me on Wednesdays or Thursdays for our weekly Bible Study of John. Click here for more info.

Live outside of the Texas Hill Country? No problem! My weekly teachings and Listening Guides will be added HERE each week so you can follow along or use it for a group study. 

Have you ever been separated from someone and you desperately wanted to be with them? Whether the separation is due to death, divorce, disease, or distance, the pain of not being able to be with or even get in touch with a loved one is indescribable. “Indescribable.” That’s the word people often use when attempting to explain their loss, suffering, and sadness. Jesus understands such depth of emotion. He loves us and created us to live in union with Him. Indescribable love drove Him from heaven’s glory to earth to seek and to save us. Jesus, separated from sinners, crossed the chasm between heaven’s glory and earth. He offers His outstretched hand to save us for eternity and to save us daily. How tightly are we holding to Him?

Sides. Children learn the concept of “sides” at a young age. They’re on this side or that side of the field depending on their team.  They learn about historical battles and what each side fought.  The Bible tells us that there are spiritual sides. God is on one side and the devil is on the other side. They are battling over our souls. Ephesians 6:16 tells us how to extinguish the devil’s flaming arrows. We’re reminded that we’re not in this battle alone. Our Heavenly Father is the Captain of our side and He wins the war against Satan because of Jesus who Isaiah 49:2 describes as a  Select Arrow sent straight from God’s quiver to destroy the works of the devil and save our soul.

He has also made Me a select arrow, He has hidden Me in His quiver.

Take courage. You may be in a skirmish but if you’re a follower of Christ you’re on the right side.

Lord Jesus, God’s SELECT ARROW, thank You for coming to earth to destroy the works of the devil and take us to Your side. We love and praise You!

Prayers of My Heart – where I daily record God’s character traits to focus on His reign in my life and in the world.

Friends, I’d love to have you join me on Wednesdays or Thursdays for our weekly Bible Study of John. Click here for more info.

Live outside of the Texas Hill Country? No problem! My weekly teachings and Listening Guides will be added HERE each week so you can follow along or use it for a group study. 

LISTEN

“The Son of Man has come to SEEK and to SAVE  that which was lost, ” Luke 19:10.

Friends, I’d love to have you join me on Wednesdays or Thursdays for our weekly Bible Study of John. Click here for more info.

Live outside of the Texas Hill Country? No problem! My weekly teachings and Listening Guides will be added HERE each week so you can follow along or use it for a group study. 

I spoke in New York shortly after September 11, 2001. Shortly after Al Qaeda terrorists hijacked three planes and flew them into the World Trade Center in New York City and the Pentagon in Washington D.C., killing everyone on board the planes and nearly 3,000 people on the ground. Shortly after a fourth plane crashed into a Pennsylvania field, killing all on board after passengers and crew heroically attempted to take control from the hijackers. Evil reigned in the hands of the terrorists that day but evil didn’t ultimately win then and evil will never ultimately win. Christ Jesus is the victor over evil! He overcame evil and sin and the sting of sin – death. All who place their faith in Christ will live eternally in His glorious presence. Today and continually we remember with gratefulness our loved ones, friends, and the many we will never know until heaven – those who sacrificed their lives for our nation. Today we also remember with utmost gratefulness the Lord Jesus who sacrificed His life for our souls. We must never forget either.

Lord Jesus, thank You for making PURIFICATION OF OUR SINS. We love and praise You for the ultimate sacrifice of Your life to make us pure as You are pure. 

“When He had made PURIFICATION of sins, He sat down at the right hand of the Majesty on high,”  Hebrews 1:3

Friends, I’d love to have you join me on Wednesdays or Thursdays for our weekly Bible Study of John. Click here for more info.

Live outside of the Texas Hill Country? No problem! My weekly teachings and Listening Guides will be added HERE each week so you can follow along or use it for a group study.