Sunday, September 30, 2012

THE LORD OUR COMFORT



"I, even I, am he that comforts you;
who are you, that you should be afraid of a man
that shall die, and of the son of man which
will be made as grass;
And forget the LORD your maker,
that has stretched out the heavens, and
laid the foundations of the earth;
and feared continually every day because
of the fury of the oppressor, as if he were ready to destroy?"
(Isaiah 51:12,13 AKJV)

Friday, September 28, 2012

MY DACHA




Russians have a fantastic tradition - the "dacha".

They are smart enough to want out of town.  To get out
into the country with it's fresh air and hopefully tranquility.
A place to slow down, get close to nature and relax.
Oh, and lots of fresh fruit and vegetables.

That has been my desire for a long time.  A retreat away from
the crowd.  A place with a slowed down pace.  I just did not 
know it was called a "dacha".




Being a poor man it was not possible just to go out and
buy one.   So, what do you do?  "PRAY".  Pray to the 
God who created the world and all that is in it to start with.
He does hear and answer prayer.  The pictures in this 
post are proof of that.


Yes, it needs lots and lots and lots of work.  But that has 
been a blessing in itself.  I am the kind of guy that can not
just set and watch the sun raise and set.  So every time
I break out into a sweat I thank God while listening to
the birds sing and the wind blow through the trees.




The vegetable garden.  No its not in yet.  But the spaces 
are picked out in several clearings.

One other thing.  The principle of the dacha seems to be a God
inspired thing.  God wants us to get out of the fast pace
of life and spend time with him.  And to feast on his 
word and presence.

Christ himself said to his disciples,
"Come away by yourselves to a lonely
place, and rest a while."
(Mark 6:31 RSV)





You don't have a dacha.  That is O.K.  Go hide in
the closet.  Sit behind a bush or lock yourself in
a car.  Then relax and talk with God for a while.
You will come away refreshed.   



Wednesday, September 26, 2012

TODAY'S PROMISE


"Help us against the enemy;
human help is worthless.
With God on our side
we will win;
he will defeat our enemies."
(Psalms 60:11,12 GNB)


"The promises of the Lord can be trusted;
they are as genuine as silver refined
seven times in the furnace."
(Psalms 12:6 GNB)

1. Meditate on God's Promises.
2. Plead the Promises at the throne of Grace.
3. Act in Faith that God Will Perform His Promises.
(William Gurnall)

Sunday, September 23, 2012

TRUE WORSHIP


"Make a joyful noise to the LORD, all the lands.
Serve the LORD with gladness:
come before his presence with singing.
Know that the LORD is God;
it is he that has made us,
and not we ourselves;
we are his people, and the sheep of his pasture.
Enter into his gates with thanksgiving,
and into his courts with praise:
be thankful to him and bless his name.
For the LORD is good;
his mercy is everlasting;
and his truth endures to all generations."
(Psalms 100 AKJV)


Image courtesy of: pixabay.com



Friday, September 21, 2012

THE COVENANT

Image courtesy:pixabay.com

King David was a man after God's own heart.
You know that as well as I.

And like a few other saints of old, God made a covenant
with David.  A contract that God would not break. A
covenant with an individual.

Yes, I know.  We "Christians" are under a new covenant.
A "blanket" covenant provided by Christ's death for us.

But how many of us has God made a special, individual
covenant with????

 This morning while reading David's writings in the Psalms
God impressed something on me.  The two things that made
David special to God.

1.  All David's life was spent seeking after God.
As sister Deb said, he had a passion for God.

2.  David had an absolute total dependance on God.
No trusting in himself or anyone else.
Only God.

What keeps us from being a man or woman after God's 
own heart?  Only our selves.  The Devil himself cannot
keep us from totally seeking and trusting God - unless
we let him.

"Seek the LORD and his strength,
seek his presence continually!"
(Psalms 105:4 RSV)

"I wait patiently for God to save me;
I depend on him alone.
He alone protects and saves me;
he is my defender, 
and I shall never be defeated.
(Psalms 62:1 GNB)






Wednesday, September 19, 2012

TODAY'S PROMISE

"Seek your happiness in the Lord,
and he will give you your heart's desire."
(Psalms 37:4 GNB)



"The promises of the Lord can be trusted;
they are as genuine as silver refined
seven times in the furnace."
(Psalms 12:6 GNB)

1. Meditate on God's Promises.
2. Plead the Promises at the throne of Grace.
3. Act in Faith that God Will Perform His Promises.
(William Gurnall)

Sunday, September 16, 2012

GOD'S FAVOR



"But now says the LORD that created you,
O Jacob, and he that formed you, O Israel,
Fear not: for I have redeemed you,
I have called you by your name; you are mine.
When you pass through the waters,
I will be with you;
and through the rivers, they shall not
overflow you; when you walk through the fire,
you shall not be burned;
neither shall the flame kindle upon you.
For I am the LORD your God,
the Holy One of Israel,
your Saviour:  I gave Egypt for your
ransom,  Ethiopia and Seba for you.
Since you were precious in my sight,
you have been honourable, and I have
loved you: therefore will I give men
for you, and people for your life.
Fear not: for I am with you: ..."
(Isaiah 43:1-5 AKJV)

God, the creator wants to love us with
the same love.   If we will come
into relationship with him.



Friday, September 14, 2012

ANOTHER PRAYER ANSWERED



God answered another prayer for me.
This tree was struck by lighting last year.
At that time all it did was knock our internet out.
It only took someone who knew what they were doing
and a new router.




When I discovered the tree that was hit, it was
just across the fence in the neighbors field.  If it fell,
it most likely would hit our place.

I have spent many years cutting fire wood.  If you 
look at that tree you can see the danger involved with it.
No matter where you cut it, something will break loose
and either drop it on you or knock you clear across the field.




I began to pray that the Lord would not let any one get hurt
with it when it either fell or was cut down.

The neighbor hooked a large tractor to it with a
long logging chain.  But it could not pull that stubborn old 
tree down.  It just pulled the tractor off the ground.

The other night a storm came through.  As usual I ask God
to protect our place.  He did.

The storm blew the top out of the tree.  It fell  right
between our chicken coop and a tree.  There was only
one small limb of the little tree broken.  And the 
chicken coop was not damaged in any way.
The chickens did not say if it scared them or not.

I could not have picked a better place for it to fall.

After I cut it up in little pieces all I had to do was
 straighten up the old rusty wire fence. 



PRAISE GOD FOR HIS PROTECTING HAND.





Wednesday, September 12, 2012

TODAY'S PROMISE

"The LORD will give strength to his people;
the LORD will bless his people with peace.
(Psalms 29:11 AKJV)


"The promises of the Lord can be trusted;
they are as genuine as silver refined
seven times in the furnace."
(Psalms 12:6 GNB)

1. Meditate on God's Promises.
2. Plead the Promises at the throne of Grace.
3. Act in Faith that God Will Perform His Promises.
(William Gurnall)


Sunday, September 9, 2012

TRUE PEACE


"The Lord is at hand.
Have no anxiety about anything,
but in everything by prayer and supplication
with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God.
And the peace of God, which passes all understanding,
will keep your hearts and your minds
in Christ Jesus."
(Philippians 4:5b - 7 RSV)

Friday, September 7, 2012

MY TREASURE




Photo courtesy of:www.freefoto.com


God said,

"Their greatest treasure is their
reverence for the LORD."
(Isaiah 33:6 GNB)


The fact is,
Our reverence for and our relationship to
the LORD is the only true treasure we have.

Every thing else is simply futility and frustration.






Wednesday, September 5, 2012

TODAY'S PROMISE

"Cast your burden on the LORD,
and he will sustain you;
he will never permit the righteous to be moved."
(Psalms 55:22 RSV)

"Cast all your anxieties on him,
for he cares about you."
(1 Peter 5:7 RSV)



"The promises of the Lord can be trusted;
they are as genuine as silver refined
seven times in the furnace."
(Psalms 12:6 GNB)

1. Meditate on God's Promises.
2. Plead the Promises at the throne of Grace.
3. Act in Faith that God Will Perform His Promises.
(William Gurnall)

Sunday, September 2, 2012

LONGING FOR GOD


"O GOD, you are my God;
early will I seek you:
my soul thirsts for you,
my flesh longs for you as in a dry and thirsty land,
where no water is; 
To see your power and your glory,
 as I have seen you in the sanctuary.
Because your lovingkindness is better than life,
my lips shall praise you.
Thus will I bless you while I live:
I will lift up my hands in your name.
My soul shall be satisfied as with marrow and fatness;
and my mouth shall praise you with joyful lips:
When I remember you upon my bed,
and meditate on you in the night watches.
Because you have been my help,
therefore in the shadow of your wings will I rejoice.
My soul follows hard after you:
your right hand up holds me."
(Psalms 63:1-8 AKJV)