Isaiah 40:18-31 - The Lord Lends His Strength to those that Ask!

To whom then will you liken God? Or what likeness will you compare to Him? The workman molds an image, The goldsmith overspreads it with gold, And the silversmith casts silver chains.  Whoever is too impoverished for such a contribution Chooses a tree that will not rot; He seeks for himself a skillful workman To prepare a carved image that will not totter.
 Have you not known? Have you not heard? Has it not been told you from the beginning? Have you not understood from the foundations of the earth? It is He who sits above the circle of the earth, And its inhabitants are like grasshoppers, Who stretches out the heavens like a curtain, And spreads them out like a tent to dwell in. He brings the princes to nothing; He makes the judges of the earth useless.Scarcely shall they be planted, Scarcely shall they be sown, Scarcely shall their stock take root in the earth, When He will also blow on them, And they will wither, And the whirlwind will take them away like stubble. “To whom then will you liken Me, Or to whom shall I be equal?” says the Holy One. Lift up your eyes on high, And see who has created these things, Who brings out their host by number; He calls them all by name, By the greatness of His might And the strength of His power; Not one is missing. Why do you say, O Jacob, And speak, O Israel: “My way is hidden from the Lord, And my just claim is passed over by my God”? Have you not known? Have you not heard? The everlasting God, the Lord, The Creator of the ends of the earth, Neither faints nor is weary. His understanding is unsearchable.
 He gives power to the weak, And to those who have no might He increases strength. Even the youths shall faint and be weary, And the young men shall utterly fall, But those who wait on the Lord Shall renew their strength; They shall mount up with wings like eagles, They shall run and not be weary, They shall walk and not faint.

Keep Running; the Lord will give you strength!
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The Prophet begins be pointing out the folly of those would make idols and worship them.  A man will go through so much trouble and spend what he can in order to have an image shaped that he might call him 'god.' Yet, the Lord looks around- He who created all and deposes princes at will- and asks, "Who is like Me?" and the answer, of course, is no one. The Lord who created and maintains His creation marvels that people would think that their way is hidden from the everlasting God for the Lord does not weary so you can not do an act while He is sleeping in hopes of Him not noticing it. The Lord is mighty and He gives that power to those who wait upon Him. Yes, even the young and the strong must at one point falter yet the one who waits upon the Lord shall have their strength renewed.

How wise it would be for me to remember that the Lord of creation sees all. How wise it would be to remember that He does not grow tired as I grow tired but, instead, gives strength to those who wait for Him.  In my journey on this earth, may I ask the Lord to renew my strength for I am bound to grow more weary than the next.  I want to hold on till the end. I want the Lord to help me to run and not be weary.

O Lord, who never tires and lends His strengths to those who ask, I pray Thee, grant me to run the course till the end.  May I know your strength as it  enlivens me to run with great enthusiasm for surely I run with the Lord of all creation. Grant me, who is weak, Your strenght. Amen.

Mark 9:17-31- Don't Believe? Believe anyway!

At that time, a man came to Jesus kneeling and saying: "Teacher, I brought my son to you, for he has a dumb spirit; and wherever it seizes him it dashes him down; and he foams and grinds his teeth and becomes rigid; and I asked your disciples to cast it out, and they were not able." And he answered them, "O faithless generation, how long am I to be with you? How long am I to bear with you? Bring him to me." And they brought the boy to him; and when the spirit saw him, immediately it convulsed the boy, and he fell on the ground and rolled about, foaming at the mouth. And Jesus asked his father, "How long has he had this?" And he said, "From childhood. And it has often cast him into the fire and into the water, to destroy him; but if you can do anything, have pity on us and help us." And Jesus said to him, "If you can! All things are possible to him who believes." Immediately the father of the child cried out and said, "I believe; help my unbelief!" And when Jesus saw that a crowd came running together, he rebuked the unclean spirit, saying to it, "You dumb and deaf spirit, I command you, come out of him, and never enter him again." And after crying out and convulsing him terribly, it came out, and the boy was like a corpse; so that most of them said, "He is dead." But Jesus took him by the hand and lifted him up, and he arose. And when he had entered the house, his disciples asked him privately, "Why could we not cast it out?" And he said to them, "This kind cannot be driven out by anything but prayer and fasting." They went on from there and passed through Galilee. And he would not have any one know it; for he was teaching his disciples, saying to them, "The Son of man will be delivered into the hands of men, and they will kill him; and when he is killed, after three days he will rise."

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 The man was in a terrible state. His son had been possessed by a demon since childhood and this demon has tried to destroy the child ever since by throwing him into the fire or the water.  The man asked Jesus' disciples to cast out the demon. They tried and failed so the man brought him to Jesus who, frankly, seemed to be a bit tired of dealing with the faithlessness of people He encountered. The man, upon hearing Jesus say, "All things are possible to those that believe," wisely replied, "I believe; help my unbelief." Jesus commanded the demon to leave and never return and that is exactly what happened.  The disciples asked Jesus later, 'How come we couldn't do that?" The answer:  prayer and fasting are needed.

I marvel at the wisdom of the desperate man.  When Jesus said, "all things are possible to those who believe," the man acknowledged that he did believe but also struggled with doubt and asked the Lord to help him in his doubt.  Jesus truly was tired of the "faithless generation" He had to put up with but no doubt He was pleased with the answer of this man.

What about me? Do I struggle with faith and doubt? When I do I would be wise to tell the Lord about it! Ever since I have been following Christ, I have seen His Hand in my life and have always been happy to see Him provide for us when we called out in our desperation.  May I always be a man who trusts in Christ and when that faith falters, may I ask for His help to believe. Jesus delivered the man's son; He will deliver me as well. Amen.

Hebrews 6:9-12 - Keep doing good works till the end!

But, beloved, we are confident of better things concerning you, yes, things that accompany salvation, though we speak in this manner. For God is not unjust to forget your work and labor of love which you have shown toward His name, in that you have ministered to the saints, and do minister. And we desire that each one of you show the same diligence to the full assurance of hope until the end, that you do not become sluggish, but imitate those who through faith and patience inherit the promises.

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 The writer of Hebrews had great confidence in his hearers. He believed that things that accompany salvation would be there lot.  In doing good works, God would not forget them because the works they do are in love and in the Name of Jesus.  He only hopes that they continue in in diligence to the very end and not become sluggish but keep the faith. The result? They will inherit the promises of God!

The Lord want me to be diligent in following Him and in showing love for my fellow Image bearers.  I must not get weary in good works and must constantly continue in my labor of love.  And, if discouraged, I must imitate those who do good works and model my behavior after them.

O Lord, keep me working on my salvation with fear and trembling as I serve those whom You put in my life and let me not grow weary in these good works. Amen.

Isaiah 29:13-23 - Don't talk about God?

Therefore the Lord said: “Inasmuch as these people draw near with their mouths And honor Me with their lips, But have removed their hearts far from Me, And their fear toward Me is taught by the commandment of men,Therefore, behold, I will again do a marvelous work Among this people, A marvelous work and a wonder; For the wisdom of their wise men shall perish, And the understanding of their prudent men shall be hidden.”Woe to those who seek deep to hide their counsel far from the Lord, And their works are in the dark; They say, “Who sees us?” and, “Who knows us?”Surely you have things turned around! Shall the potter be esteemed as the clay; For shall the thing made say of him who made it, “He did not make me”? Or shall the thing formed say of him who formed it, “He has no understanding”?Is it not yet a very little while Till Lebanon shall be turned into a fruitful field, And the fruitful field be esteemed as a forest?In that day the deaf shall hear the words of the book, And the eyes of the blind shall see out of obscurity and out of darkness.The humble also shall increase their joy in the Lord, And the poor among men shall rejoice In the Holy One of Israel.For the terrible one is brought to nothing, The scornful one is consumed, And all who watch for iniquity are cut off –Who make a man an offender by a word, And lay a snare for him who reproves in the gate, And turn aside the just by empty words.Therefore thus says the Lord, who redeemed Abraham, concerning the house of Jacob: “Jacob shall not now be ashamed, Nor shall his face now grow pale; But when he sees his children, The work of My hands, in his midst, They will hallow My name, And hallow the Holy One of Jacob, And fear the God of Israel.

I should shut my mouth, if my heart doesn't Love God

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  The people of Israel talked the talk, as the saying goes. They spoke of the Lord and their words made it seem that they were true followers of the God of Israel.  Yet, God knew their hearts. He knew that, in reality, they were far from Him. He knew that His people, instead, liked to listen to the commandments of men.  But God promises a new thing! The teaching of men that led astray shall be taken away.  For these men think that God cannot see them and that their deeds are in secret yet God promises that the deaf will hear and the blind see - which is to say, He will bring understanding to His people and to those who are humble of heart.

I must examine my heart and make sure that I do not honor the Lord with my lips only. Indeed, it may be better to say nothing at all and, simply follow Him.  My heart must be affixed on the Lord and then my actions will show this affinity

May my actions this day reveal my love for the Lord and may I always hallow His Name for it is holy. Amen.

Isaiah 28:14-22 - The Lord is a Rock!

Thus says the LORD, you scoffers, who rule this people in Jerusalem! Because you have said, "We have made a covenant with death, and with Sheol we have an agreement; when the overwhelming scourge passes through it will not come to us; for we have made lies our refuge, and in falsehood we have taken shelter"; therefore thus says the Lord GOD, "Behold, I am laying in Zion for a foundation a stone, a tested stone, a precious cornerstone, of a sure foundation: 'He who believes will not be in haste.' And I will make justice the line, and righteousness the plummet; and hail will sweep away the refuge of lies, and waters will overwhelm the shelter." Then your covenant with death will be annulled, and your agreement with Sheol will not stand; when the overwhelming scourge passes through you will be beaten down by it. As often as it passes through it will take you; for morning by morning it will pass through, by day and by night; and it will be sheer terror to understand the message. For the bed is too short to stretch oneself on it, and the covering too narrow to wrap oneself in it. For the LORD will rise up as on Mount Perazim, he will be wroth as in the valley of Gibeon; to do his deed - strange is his deed! and to work his work - alien is his work! Now therefore do not scoff, lest your bonds be made strong; for I have heard a decree of destruction from the Lord GOD of hosts upon the whole land.

THE LORD IS MY ROCK

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People will lie to themselves and think that they can live in disobedience to the ways of the Lord and still not have to deal with the consequences of their bad decisions. They think death can be cheated and believe the lies of Satan, the lies of this present age.  Yet, The Lord has laid a cornerstone as a strong foundation. It is a sure foundation, when that can be trusted. It is He Himself!

Do I trust in this Rock or do I fall to the deceits of the world? If I follow the lies, I will inherit death; If I follow and cling to the Rock, I will be upheld in all trials. Surely, the man who trusts in the Rock will not be overwhelmed by the storms and will escape the false hope of the refuge of lies.

Trust in the Lord, O my soul and ignore the world. The world tells me to deny the ways of the Lord and to treat His precepts as old fashioned and not worth following. Yet, I cling to this Rock, who is my salvation. Amen.

Isaiah 26:21-27:9 - The Lord protects and waters His Garden

For behold, the LORD is coming forth out of his place to punish the inhabitants of the earth for their iniquity, and the earth will disclose the blood shed upon her, and will no more cover her slain. In that day the LORD with his hard and great and strong sword will punish Leviathan the fleeing serpent, Leviathan the twisting serpent, and he will slay the dragon that is in the sea.
In that day: "A pleasant vineyard, sing of it! I, the LORD, am its keeper; every moment I water it. Lest any one harm it, I guard it night and day; I have no wrath. Would that I had thorns and briers to battle! I would set out against them, I would burn them up together. Or let them lay hold of my protection, let them make peace with me, let them make peace with me."
In days to come Jacob shall take root, Israel shall blossom and put forth shoots, and fill the whole world with fruit.
Has he smitten them as he smote those who smote them? Or have they been slain as their slayers were slain? Measure by measure, by exile thou didst contend with them; he removed them with his fierce blast in the day of the east wind. Therefore by this the guilt of Jacob will be expiated, and this will be the full fruit of the removal of his sin: when he makes all the stones of the altars like chalkstones crushed to pieces, no Asherim or incense altars will remain standing.

A Garden, watered and protected!
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The Lord will come to judge. But He also comes to protect His garden.  He shall guard it day and night. That garden will prosper and produce fruit that can be seen by the whole world. All the world will see God's protection of His people.  He punished His people by exile yet their guilt will be removed and their sins shall be far away from them. No longer will they worship foreign gods, but only the Lord of Hosts shall they worship.

God protects His own. Those who call upon Him and turn away from their sins will find that He is mighty to save.  He sets a wall around His garden. Actually, He Himself is that wall. He keeps the garden well watered and provides for its growth.  Does not the Lord protect me and satisfy my soul's thirst with His water? Let me always seek His protection. Let me always be immersed in His Energies, knowing that my soul can only be satisfied by Him.

O Lord, my God, this day I turn to You who is my protection and the One who drenches my soul with Your Spirit. Amen.

Isaiah 25:1-9 - The Veil of Death is Removed!

O Lord, You are my God. I will exalt You, I will praise Your name, For You have done wonderful things; Your counsels of old are faithfulness and truth.Therefore the strong people will glorify You; The city of the terrible nations will fear You.For You have been a strength to the poor, A strength to the needy in his distress, A refuge from the storm, A shade from the heat; For the blast of the terrible ones is as a storm against the wall.You will reduce the noise of aliens, As heat in a dry place; As heat in the shadow of a cloud, The song of the terrible ones will be diminished.And in this mountain The Lord of hosts will make for all people A feast of choice pieces, A feast of wines on the lees, Of fat things full of marrow, Of well-refined wines on the lees.And He will destroy on this mountain The surface of the covering cast over all people, And the veil that is spread over all nations.He will swallow up death forever, And the Lord God will wipe away tears from all faces; The rebuke of His people He will take away from all the earth; For the Lord has spoken.And it will be said in that day: “Behold, this is our God; We have waited for Him, and He will save us. This is the Lord; We have waited for Him; We will be glad and rejoice in His salvation.”For You have made a city a ruin, A fortified city a ruin, A palace of foreigners to be a city no more; It will never be rebuilt.

Death is Conquered!
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The Lord is worth of Praise! The poor man finds strength in Him, the needy man can forsake his distress for the Lord is a refuge in the storm and a shade from the oppressive heat. The Lord provides a feast of the choices foods and best wines. All this is done because the Lord has destroyed the veil of death that destroys all peoples. Christ has conquered death by His death and as a result the Lord wipes away tears from all the faces. No longer will His people suffer.

How gracious is the Lord. How worthy of Praise. In the midst of the troubles that the people have inflicted upon themselves, He promises deliverance. In Christ, He has destroyed Death. For truly over ever action in a man's life their is a veil that threatens him. Even if a person lives over a hundred years and accomplishes great things and lives a full life, still death comes as a robber, taking that which we know we should have: Life! All men most die but, once that divide is crossed, thanks to Christ, we embrace Life.

O Lord, Fifty years I have lived on this earth which means more than half of my time is gone. I do not fear that great veil that Satan has convinced mankind to embrace in their disobedience to God. Rather, I trust in the Lord for He is my God, I wait for Him and He will save me and I will rejoice in His Salvation! Amen.

Isaiah 14:24-32 - Enemies may rejoice...but not for long!

The LORD of hosts has sworn: "As I have planned, so shall it be, and as I have purposed, so shall it stand, that I will break the Assyrian in my land, and upon my mountains trample him under foot; and his yoke shall depart from them, and his burden from their shoulder." This is the purpose that is purposed concerning the whole earth; and this is the hand that is stretched out over all the nations. For the LORD of hosts has purposed, and who will annul it? His hand is stretched out, and who will turn it back? In the year that King Ahaz died came this oracle: "Rejoice not, O Philistia, all of you, that the rod which smote you is broken, for from the serpent's root will come forth an adder, and its fruit will be a flying serpent. And the first-born of the poor will feed, and the needy lie down in safety; but I will kill your root with famine, and your remnant I will slay. Wail, O gate; cry, O city; melt in fear, O Philistia, all of you! For smoke comes out of the north, and there is no straggler in his ranks." What will one answer the messengers of the nation? "The LORD has founded Zion, and in her the afflicted of his people find refuge.

You won't hear the evil laughing forever...
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The Lord may punish His people and the enemies of His people may rejoice at their misfortune but The Lord sees His people and remembers them, even in their misery  Yes,  Israel was carried away captive and, yes, her temple was destroyed and, yes, the people thinking that they were safe, only because of the Temple and, thus, didn't have to forsake their sin-all of this is true. It is true, too, that her enemies rejoiced in Israel's suffering.  But the Lord remembers His people.

"The Lord has founded Zion and in her the afflicted of his people find refuge." O, what a great promise to His people. For surely the discipline of the Lord has made His people very afflicted in soul. Yes, their whole life seems to have crumbled. Yet, it is the discipline of the Lord that brings His people back to Himself.  The Lord knows that a merry soul may sometimes forget Him but an afflicted soul turns to God for solace.
Happy is the man whom the Lord inflicts!

O Lord, this day, if I experience your chastening and I feel that my world is out from under my control and if it seems those who oppose me rejoice, then, O Lord, help me to find refuge in You! Amen.

I didn't make the time....

...to look at the Scriptures today. I know it's Sunday and I did get to church but still....

Mark 2:14-17 - The Doctor is here! Throw a Party!

As He passed by, He saw Levi the son of Alphaeus sitting at the tax office. And He said to him, “Follow Me.” So he arose and followed Him. Now it happened, as He was dining in Levi’s house, that many tax collectors and sinners also sat together with Jesus and His disciples; for there were many, and they followed Him.  And when the scribes and Pharisees saw Him eating with the tax collectors and sinners, they said to His disciples, “How is it that He eats and drinks with tax collectors and sinners?” When Jesus heard it, He said to them, “Those who are well have no need of a physician, but those who are sick. I did not come to call the righteous, but sinners, to repentance.

Ready for A Party!
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Levi was just doing his job, collecting taxes on behalf of the Roman Government (and hated for it by his fellow countrymen) when Jesus said, "Follow Me." He got up and followed Him. Suddenly,  Levi had a new job. He was so happy to now be following Jesus that he threw a party in Christ's honor. All of Levi's tax collector friends were there and Jesus was not scandalized by associating with "these sinners. But the Pharisees despised Jesus for eating with such low society.  Jesus remarked that doctors are for sick people, not well people.  It is for the sinner that Jesus came, not those who don't realize their need of God.

I am among those whose soul needs a doctor.  I know that I am not righteous like the Pharisees are righteous  I will not spend my time worry about the hypocritical hearts of the Pharisees (for truly they are in need of a doctor just as much as the tax collector) but I have enough on my plate with my own sinfulness and it is enough for me to rejoice that Christ would call me to follow Him, sinful though I am.

O Lord, I rejoice in Your Grace and thank You for calling me. Help me to celebrate like Levi did and may all my friends see the celebration I feel in my soul for having You as my Physician. Heal me this day, I pray, Amen.

Proverbs 10:31-11:12 - Words of Wisdom

The mouth of the righteous brings forth wisdom, But the perverse tongue will be cut out.

 

The lips of the righteous know what is acceptable, But the mouth of the wicked what is perverse.

 

Dishonest scales are an abomination to the Lord, But a just weight is His delight.

 

When pride comes, then comes shame; But with the humble is wisdom.

 

The integrity of the upright will guide them, But the perversity of the unfaithful will destroy them.

 

Riches do not profit in the day of wrath, But righteousness delivers from death.

 

The righteousness of the blameless will direct his way aright, But the wicked will fall by his own wickedness.

 

The righteousness of the upright will deliver them, But the unfaithful will be caught by their lust.

 

When a wicked man dies, his expectation will perish, And the hope of the unjust perishes.

 

The righteous is delivered from trouble, And it comes to the wicked instead.

 

The hypocrite with his mouth destroys his neighbor, But through knowledge the righteous will be delivered.

 

When it goes well with the righteous, the city rejoices; And when the wicked perish, there is jubilation.

 

By the blessing of the upright the city is exalted, But it is overthrown by the mouth of the wicked.
He who is devoid of wisdom despises his neighbor, But a man of understanding holds his peace.

 

The Book of Proverbs
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O Lord, there is such wisdom in Your words. Each sentence in the passage above can be meditated upon in its own right.  Each phrase offers its own wisdom.  May I be like the mouth of the righteous who speaks only wisdom and may my tongue not utter perverse things.  May I always be like the humble man who knows wisdom in his humility. May I eschew dishonest scales but always be forthright with my neighbor.

O Lord, my money will do nothing for me in the day of judgement. Therefore, let me seek the  riches of eternal life. May integrity guide me all my days.  so that I am not destroyed as the unfaithful are destroyed. Lord, it is in Righteousness that I am delivered; let me not be caught up in the lust of the unfaithful.

Grant this all to me, I pray, in Your great mercy. Amen.