2 Timothy: 20-21: In a well-furnished kitchen there are not only crystal goblets and silver platters, but waste cans and compost buckets - some containers used to serve fine meals, others to take out the garbage. Become the kind of container God can use to present any and every kind of gift to his guests for their blessing. (The Message)
Last October, while attending my church's Women's Retreat, I picked out from a tub of rolled up Scriptures 2 Timothy. It was an actual torn page out of a Bible so it was front and back which covered chapters 1-3. I knew instantly why I had chosen this one; why God designed for me only to read this Book. What I love about it is every time I re-read it, a different verse jumps out at me. Whatever I am going through, there are words in these few chapters that always seem to be exactly what I need to hear. And this morning was no exception.
I pulled out my Message Bible to compare the verses and somehow I just understood verses 20 and 21 better in The Message version. It's simple and to the point which totally describes me in a nut shell!
A lot of people struggle with knowing what God has called them to do. Is it a ministry? Do I lead a Bible Study in my church? Do I volunteer with a local ministry? Sometimes the thinking overwhelms us and then we just end up doing nothing because we don't want to get ahead of God. Excuses, excuses! I think this Scripture explains plainly what we ALL are supposed to be doing. And that is being a blessing to others. However that comes about, in our everyday lives, at work, with our family and friends, we are to be a blessing to others.
The more I read this, the more I kept asking, "How do I become the kind of container God can use?" First, I have to open my mind. I have to get out of my own way and realize that maybe this time, I don't need to be refined and proper to reach someone. Maybe the way to be a blessing to someone is get down and dirty. Maybe I have to go into the dark alleys where the trash is kept. Maybe I have to get out of my comfort zone and go where I usually don't. God is looking for containers He can use to present gifts to hurting people. But I bet most people expect it to come in a special golden box and not a cardboard box. It reminds me of the movie Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade. They finally find the Knight who guards the cup that Jesus drank out of at the Last Supper. All these beautiful and ornate goblets were displayed yet it was the small wooden cup that was the winner. God doesn't need the bright and fancy things of this world to bring people to Him. He Himself is bright and fancy...all that other stuff just gets in the way of His awesome Glory!
2 Timothy 3:17 I think goes great with the above referenced Scripture. It's a great ending to this message. I believe it gives us the perfect equation to accomplish becoming the container God wants us to become. "Through the Word we are put together and shaped up for the tasks God has for us." How do you know what God has for you to do? You get in His Word. He will put together and shape you. We are called to reach those who are hurting and lost. They may be in the dirty streets where light no longer shines. You may not speak as a refined and educated pastor but if you go and present yourself as something God has put together, it won't matter what you sound or look like, your container will be a blessing!
Who is God asking you to bless this week?
Showing posts with label blessings. Show all posts
Showing posts with label blessings. Show all posts
Tuesday, July 19, 2011
Monday, March 8, 2010
Isaiah 44:3
Good afternoon!
Isaiah 44:3: For I will pour water on the thirsty land, and streams on the dry ground; I will pour out my Spirit on your offspring, and my blessing on your descendants.
I am so ready for Spring! Everything around me is dry and barren. Colorless and dead. Trees that were once full and tall are now sparse and brittle. But now, as the rain is coming and temperatures are creeping back up, grass is beginning to turn green. New life is forming on the trees. The land is absorbing life and drinking til it's full. The birds are chirping with delight as the sun is warming them once again. Soon, the trees will be full again and will be swaying and dancing in the wind.
I feel like this has been my life for the last few months. I'm dried up inside, gray and sparse. There isn't much too me Spiritually right now. I need God to pour out His Spirit onto me! We sang this song at church last Sunday and I didn't realize how old it was. It was written in the 1700's but it still is so powerful today. My favorite verse says:
"O to grace how great a debtor daily I'm constrained to be!
Let Thy goodness like a fetter, bind my wandering heart to Thee
Prone to wander Lord I feel it, prone to leave the God I love
Here's my heart Lord, take and seal it, seal it for Thy courts above."
I hope you enjoy David Crowder's version of this song and if you are in "winter" mode like me, I pray you give your heart back to the Lord and let Him water it with His Living water. I pray His Spirit will pour over you and your children and the blessings will be so much that you won't even be able to contain it! Amen!
Isaiah 44:3: For I will pour water on the thirsty land, and streams on the dry ground; I will pour out my Spirit on your offspring, and my blessing on your descendants.
I am so ready for Spring! Everything around me is dry and barren. Colorless and dead. Trees that were once full and tall are now sparse and brittle. But now, as the rain is coming and temperatures are creeping back up, grass is beginning to turn green. New life is forming on the trees. The land is absorbing life and drinking til it's full. The birds are chirping with delight as the sun is warming them once again. Soon, the trees will be full again and will be swaying and dancing in the wind.
I feel like this has been my life for the last few months. I'm dried up inside, gray and sparse. There isn't much too me Spiritually right now. I need God to pour out His Spirit onto me! We sang this song at church last Sunday and I didn't realize how old it was. It was written in the 1700's but it still is so powerful today. My favorite verse says:
"O to grace how great a debtor daily I'm constrained to be!
Let Thy goodness like a fetter, bind my wandering heart to Thee
Prone to wander Lord I feel it, prone to leave the God I love
Here's my heart Lord, take and seal it, seal it for Thy courts above."
I hope you enjoy David Crowder's version of this song and if you are in "winter" mode like me, I pray you give your heart back to the Lord and let Him water it with His Living water. I pray His Spirit will pour over you and your children and the blessings will be so much that you won't even be able to contain it! Amen!
Thursday, October 8, 2009
John 20:27-29
Good evening! This was meant to go out yesterday for Winning Souls Wednesday but of course I am late. I blame everything on my kids! ;)
John 20:27-29: Then He said to Thomas, "Put your finger here and observe My hands. Reach out your hand and put it into My side. Don't be an unbeliever, but a believer." Thomas responded to him, "My Lord and my God!" Jesus said, "Because you have seen Me, you have believed. Those who believe without seeing are blessed."
It took me a long time to believe and I feel like I went through many times where God was trying to show me His hands and asking me to put my hands in His side. But I just kept walking away and I kept ignoring Him. I was an unbeliever. In order to get my attention, He had to take over my mind one morning in the shower and gave me a vision that blew my socks off. Finally, I had seen His hands...I had felt those nail holes...I touched His pierced side. I knew beyond a shadow of a doubt that He was real. I saw Him and I believed.
But it makes me so excited when I think about my children and their opportunity to believe without seeing. They will grow up very different than I did and hopefully, they will know in their hearts way before I did that He is their Lord and their God. They will be blessed in more abundance than I will ever be and have unspeakably awesome favor for their entire lives. Because they will believe without seeing. This is my prayer for them.
He will show you His hands and you can touch His side that was pierced for you. Don't be an unbeliever...be a believer!
John 20:27-29: Then He said to Thomas, "Put your finger here and observe My hands. Reach out your hand and put it into My side. Don't be an unbeliever, but a believer." Thomas responded to him, "My Lord and my God!" Jesus said, "Because you have seen Me, you have believed. Those who believe without seeing are blessed."
It took me a long time to believe and I feel like I went through many times where God was trying to show me His hands and asking me to put my hands in His side. But I just kept walking away and I kept ignoring Him. I was an unbeliever. In order to get my attention, He had to take over my mind one morning in the shower and gave me a vision that blew my socks off. Finally, I had seen His hands...I had felt those nail holes...I touched His pierced side. I knew beyond a shadow of a doubt that He was real. I saw Him and I believed.
But it makes me so excited when I think about my children and their opportunity to believe without seeing. They will grow up very different than I did and hopefully, they will know in their hearts way before I did that He is their Lord and their God. They will be blessed in more abundance than I will ever be and have unspeakably awesome favor for their entire lives. Because they will believe without seeing. This is my prayer for them.
He will show you His hands and you can touch His side that was pierced for you. Don't be an unbeliever...be a believer!
Thursday, July 9, 2009
Matthew 5:6
Good evening!
Matthew 5:6: Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they are filled.
It's only been four days since I am no longer a stay at home mom, with time in the morning to spend in my Bible and pray and study. How quickly I feel empty! How quickly I have become hungry! This week has been so full of changes but the one change I don't want to happen is for my quest for righteousness and to be close to God to wain or cease all together. It's only been four days and I need to be filled!
I promise going back to work will not interrupt my relationship with the Lord and what He has called me to do. The Quick Word will go on...I may not be on time every morning but I will do my best to keep sharing with you what God is sharing with me. And if I do that, I will be blessed. And that is what is most important to me!
Check out The Message version...I LOVE IT!
You're blessed when you've worked up a good appetite for God. He's food and drink in the best meal you'll ever eat.
I couldn't have said it better myself!
Matthew 5:6: Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they are filled.
It's only been four days since I am no longer a stay at home mom, with time in the morning to spend in my Bible and pray and study. How quickly I feel empty! How quickly I have become hungry! This week has been so full of changes but the one change I don't want to happen is for my quest for righteousness and to be close to God to wain or cease all together. It's only been four days and I need to be filled!
I promise going back to work will not interrupt my relationship with the Lord and what He has called me to do. The Quick Word will go on...I may not be on time every morning but I will do my best to keep sharing with you what God is sharing with me. And if I do that, I will be blessed. And that is what is most important to me!
Check out The Message version...I LOVE IT!
You're blessed when you've worked up a good appetite for God. He's food and drink in the best meal you'll ever eat.
I couldn't have said it better myself!
Friday, June 26, 2009
Galatians 3:14
Good morning!
Galatians 3:14: He redeemed us in order that the blessing given to Abraham might come to the Gentiles through Christ Jesus, so that by faith we might receive the promise of the Spirit.
I think we need to be reminded this morning of the blessings that are ours because of what Jesus did for us.
"You will be blessed in the city and blessed in the country. The fruit of your womb will be blessed, and the crops of your land and the young of your livestock—the calves of your herds and the lambs of your flocks. Your basket and your kneading trough will be blessed. You will be blessed when you come in and blessed when you go out. The LORD will grant that the enemies who rise up against you will be defeated before you. They will come at you from one direction but flee from you in seven. The LORD will send a blessing on your barns and on everything you put your hand to. The LORD your God will bless you in the land he is giving you. The LORD will establish you as his holy people, as he promised you on oath, if you keep the commands of the LORD your God and walk in his ways. Then all the peoples on earth will see that you are called by the name of the LORD, and they will fear you. The LORD will grant you abundant prosperity—in the fruit of your womb, the young of your livestock and the crops of your ground—in the land he swore to your forefathers to give you. The LORD will open the heavens, the storehouse of his bounty, to send rain on your land in season and to bless all the work of your hands. You will lend to many nations but will borrow from none. The LORD will make you the head, not the tail. If you pay attention to the commands of the LORD your God that I give you this day and carefully follow them, you will always be at the top, never at the bottom. Do not turn aside from any of the commands I give you today, to the right or to the left, following other gods and serving them." (Deuteronomy 28:3-14)
Doesn't that sound good?! All of this can be yours and there is no law that you have to follow. No restrictions, no guidelines, no hindrances. Jesus came and died so that we could be set free...all we have to do is believe! By faith we can receive these blessings. By faith we know in Jesus, we are one with Abraham and his relationship with God Almighty. By faith we receive the promise of the One Jesus said would stay here with us to help us and comfort us...the Holy Spirit.
We don't have do act a certain way or be good enough or go to the right church. Knowing Jesus as your Savior, believing He died for you, is all you'll ever need. Take hold of these blessings today...they are yours by the redeeming power of the blood of the Lamb!
Have a great weekend everyone!
Galatians 3:14: He redeemed us in order that the blessing given to Abraham might come to the Gentiles through Christ Jesus, so that by faith we might receive the promise of the Spirit.
I think we need to be reminded this morning of the blessings that are ours because of what Jesus did for us.
"You will be blessed in the city and blessed in the country. The fruit of your womb will be blessed, and the crops of your land and the young of your livestock—the calves of your herds and the lambs of your flocks. Your basket and your kneading trough will be blessed. You will be blessed when you come in and blessed when you go out. The LORD will grant that the enemies who rise up against you will be defeated before you. They will come at you from one direction but flee from you in seven. The LORD will send a blessing on your barns and on everything you put your hand to. The LORD your God will bless you in the land he is giving you. The LORD will establish you as his holy people, as he promised you on oath, if you keep the commands of the LORD your God and walk in his ways. Then all the peoples on earth will see that you are called by the name of the LORD, and they will fear you. The LORD will grant you abundant prosperity—in the fruit of your womb, the young of your livestock and the crops of your ground—in the land he swore to your forefathers to give you. The LORD will open the heavens, the storehouse of his bounty, to send rain on your land in season and to bless all the work of your hands. You will lend to many nations but will borrow from none. The LORD will make you the head, not the tail. If you pay attention to the commands of the LORD your God that I give you this day and carefully follow them, you will always be at the top, never at the bottom. Do not turn aside from any of the commands I give you today, to the right or to the left, following other gods and serving them." (Deuteronomy 28:3-14)
Doesn't that sound good?! All of this can be yours and there is no law that you have to follow. No restrictions, no guidelines, no hindrances. Jesus came and died so that we could be set free...all we have to do is believe! By faith we can receive these blessings. By faith we know in Jesus, we are one with Abraham and his relationship with God Almighty. By faith we receive the promise of the One Jesus said would stay here with us to help us and comfort us...the Holy Spirit.
We don't have do act a certain way or be good enough or go to the right church. Knowing Jesus as your Savior, believing He died for you, is all you'll ever need. Take hold of these blessings today...they are yours by the redeeming power of the blood of the Lamb!
Have a great weekend everyone!
Thursday, June 18, 2009
Leviticus 26:9-13
Good morning!
Leviticus 26:9-13: " 'I will look on you with favor and make you fruitful and increase your numbers, and I will keep my covenant with you. You will still be eating last year's harvest when you will have to move it out to make room for the new. I will put my dwelling place among you, and I will not abhor you. I will walk among you and be your God, and you will be my people. I am the LORD your God, who brought you out of Egypt so that you would no longer be slaves to the Egyptians; I broke the bars of your yoke and enabled you to walk with heads held high.' "
I went to church last night which I usually don't do on Wednesdays. We are usually busy with the kids and since they go to bed before church ends, we can't go as a family. But I really knew I needed to go last night. So I went by myself and our guest speaker was Pastor Jackson from Uganda and he was amazing! I'm telling you God smacked me over the head with truth I've never heard before and I will never be the same after last night! Please visit his website and learn about his ministry in Africa. They are experiencing revival over there and it is so exciting to see Jesus at work!
The Scripture he used last night was so powerful and I wanted to share it with you today. I pray it speaks to your heart like it did mine last night. I believe God has so much more for us all than we can ever dream or conceive. I believe we can have favor, an uncommon advantage over anyone else in our jobs and in our world. I believe blessings will be poured out so much that we won't be able to contain it and we'll have to make room for more! I believe God wants the absolute best for His people. He loves us and is not out to get us. And I believe He has given us His only Son so that the bars that surround us can be broken...we can live free, with our heads held high.
But the most important thing I want to point out is that yes, He does all of this for us...IF we follow His decrees and are careful to obey His commands (v. 3). Get the idols out of the way...stop bowing down to them! Follow after Him and obey what He says and these promises are yours, in Jesus name!
Have a blessed day everyone!
Leviticus 26:9-13: " 'I will look on you with favor and make you fruitful and increase your numbers, and I will keep my covenant with you. You will still be eating last year's harvest when you will have to move it out to make room for the new. I will put my dwelling place among you, and I will not abhor you. I will walk among you and be your God, and you will be my people. I am the LORD your God, who brought you out of Egypt so that you would no longer be slaves to the Egyptians; I broke the bars of your yoke and enabled you to walk with heads held high.' "
I went to church last night which I usually don't do on Wednesdays. We are usually busy with the kids and since they go to bed before church ends, we can't go as a family. But I really knew I needed to go last night. So I went by myself and our guest speaker was Pastor Jackson from Uganda and he was amazing! I'm telling you God smacked me over the head with truth I've never heard before and I will never be the same after last night! Please visit his website and learn about his ministry in Africa. They are experiencing revival over there and it is so exciting to see Jesus at work!
The Scripture he used last night was so powerful and I wanted to share it with you today. I pray it speaks to your heart like it did mine last night. I believe God has so much more for us all than we can ever dream or conceive. I believe we can have favor, an uncommon advantage over anyone else in our jobs and in our world. I believe blessings will be poured out so much that we won't be able to contain it and we'll have to make room for more! I believe God wants the absolute best for His people. He loves us and is not out to get us. And I believe He has given us His only Son so that the bars that surround us can be broken...we can live free, with our heads held high.
But the most important thing I want to point out is that yes, He does all of this for us...IF we follow His decrees and are careful to obey His commands (v. 3). Get the idols out of the way...stop bowing down to them! Follow after Him and obey what He says and these promises are yours, in Jesus name!
Have a blessed day everyone!
Tuesday, May 5, 2009
Psalm 146:3-9
Good morning!
Psalm 146:3-9: Don't put your life in the hands of experts who know nothing of life, of salvation life. Mere humans don't have what it takes; when they die, their projects die with them. Instead, get help from the God of Jacob, put your hope in God and know real blessing! God made sky and soil, sea and all the fish in it. He always does what he says— he defends the wronged, he feeds the hungry. God frees prisoners— he gives sight to the blind, he lifts up the fallen. God loves good people, protects strangers, takes the side of orphans and widows, but makes short work of the wicked. (The Message)
I remember the first time I realized I had made the wrong choice. I had put all my faith, all my trust, given all of my heart to a man and just like that he was gone. No real explanation. I was alone and all that I had dreamed was gone. I knew right then for the first time in my life who wouldn't have done that to me. You think that big of a letdown would have made me fall on my knees right then and there and accept God's salvation and love and walk His path. But no...I was hard-headed and liked abuse I guess! Two years I spent with that knowledge in my head but instead kept living like I was living.
God made everything above you and everything below you and still stops and thinks of you.
He will defend you when you are wronged.
He feeds the hungry, physically and spiritually.
His Son died on a cross to free the sinner from his prison of sin.
He gives sight to those who cannot see.
He lifts up those who are bowed down.
He loves those who seek to live a good life, protects strangers who are in a foreign land, sustains the fatherless and widowed.
But He frustrates the ways of the wicked.
Those two years I spent knowing the truth but never accepting it were the most frustrating years of my life! So many things went wrong...even when something good happened, I found a way to screw it up! Please don't wait as long as I did to put your hope in God and know real blessing!
Psalm 146:3-9: Don't put your life in the hands of experts who know nothing of life, of salvation life. Mere humans don't have what it takes; when they die, their projects die with them. Instead, get help from the God of Jacob, put your hope in God and know real blessing! God made sky and soil, sea and all the fish in it. He always does what he says— he defends the wronged, he feeds the hungry. God frees prisoners— he gives sight to the blind, he lifts up the fallen. God loves good people, protects strangers, takes the side of orphans and widows, but makes short work of the wicked. (The Message)
I remember the first time I realized I had made the wrong choice. I had put all my faith, all my trust, given all of my heart to a man and just like that he was gone. No real explanation. I was alone and all that I had dreamed was gone. I knew right then for the first time in my life who wouldn't have done that to me. You think that big of a letdown would have made me fall on my knees right then and there and accept God's salvation and love and walk His path. But no...I was hard-headed and liked abuse I guess! Two years I spent with that knowledge in my head but instead kept living like I was living.
God made everything above you and everything below you and still stops and thinks of you.
He will defend you when you are wronged.
He feeds the hungry, physically and spiritually.
His Son died on a cross to free the sinner from his prison of sin.
He gives sight to those who cannot see.
He lifts up those who are bowed down.
He loves those who seek to live a good life, protects strangers who are in a foreign land, sustains the fatherless and widowed.
But He frustrates the ways of the wicked.
Those two years I spent knowing the truth but never accepting it were the most frustrating years of my life! So many things went wrong...even when something good happened, I found a way to screw it up! Please don't wait as long as I did to put your hope in God and know real blessing!
Monday, May 4, 2009
James 1:17-18
Good morning!
James 1:17-18: Every good and perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of the heavenly lights, who does not change like shifting shadows. He chose to give us birth through the word of truth, that we might be a kind of firstfruits of all he created.
I bet we've all heard of this Scripture but I always seem to read passed verse 18. I can look all around me at every single good and perfect gift He has given me and can now see that it was given with a purpose. He created us to be examples of Him. We are His firstfruits for all mankind to look upon and see His truth! Gifts are given not just for you to be blessed, but for you to bless others with.
For example, I love taking pictures and I know the gift I have is from God. I've never taken photography classes or been classically trained. But He has given me the natural ability and I take it from there! Hearing people's comments about their pictures and seeing them so filled with joy is reward enough for me. Making money becomes secondary to seeing people blessed by my gift!
Another example is my African children I support every month. We don't have lots of money lying around but what we do have, I give back to help two families who are much more needy than I could ever think of being. Getting their letters in the mail and seeing the pictures they draw me warms my heart and I am blessed over and over again!
And lastly, you wouldn't think my children would be a gift for anyone else but I found out this weekend, that is not entirely so. We took the kids out to eat at Red Lobster Friday night and of course we attract a lot of attention. As we were leaving, an older lady who was sitting near us and was watching us the entire time, came up to me and asked if they were triplets. I said, "Yes Ma'am!" She told me how beautiful they were and thanked me for the dinner entertainment! She wasn't being rude or funny, she was serious! Watching my babies play and laugh and throw stuff on the ground was a joy to her and she was grateful to me for sharing them with her. That certainly wasn't my intention but I was glad that we made her night.
The more I live, the more I realize all the meaning and purpose God has behind everything He does. So don't hide your gifts and keep them to yourself. God created you for a reason...to be an example of His truth...a vessel that gives back to His creation.
Have a wonderful week everyone!
James 1:17-18: Every good and perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of the heavenly lights, who does not change like shifting shadows. He chose to give us birth through the word of truth, that we might be a kind of firstfruits of all he created.
I bet we've all heard of this Scripture but I always seem to read passed verse 18. I can look all around me at every single good and perfect gift He has given me and can now see that it was given with a purpose. He created us to be examples of Him. We are His firstfruits for all mankind to look upon and see His truth! Gifts are given not just for you to be blessed, but for you to bless others with.
For example, I love taking pictures and I know the gift I have is from God. I've never taken photography classes or been classically trained. But He has given me the natural ability and I take it from there! Hearing people's comments about their pictures and seeing them so filled with joy is reward enough for me. Making money becomes secondary to seeing people blessed by my gift!
Another example is my African children I support every month. We don't have lots of money lying around but what we do have, I give back to help two families who are much more needy than I could ever think of being. Getting their letters in the mail and seeing the pictures they draw me warms my heart and I am blessed over and over again!
And lastly, you wouldn't think my children would be a gift for anyone else but I found out this weekend, that is not entirely so. We took the kids out to eat at Red Lobster Friday night and of course we attract a lot of attention. As we were leaving, an older lady who was sitting near us and was watching us the entire time, came up to me and asked if they were triplets. I said, "Yes Ma'am!" She told me how beautiful they were and thanked me for the dinner entertainment! She wasn't being rude or funny, she was serious! Watching my babies play and laugh and throw stuff on the ground was a joy to her and she was grateful to me for sharing them with her. That certainly wasn't my intention but I was glad that we made her night.
The more I live, the more I realize all the meaning and purpose God has behind everything He does. So don't hide your gifts and keep them to yourself. God created you for a reason...to be an example of His truth...a vessel that gives back to His creation.
Have a wonderful week everyone!
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