MORNING MANNA - JULY 1-15, 2006

Prayer. It is wonderful communion between the created and the Creator. How's your prayer life? Did you know that it is the desire of our friend, our Savior, that we be in constant communion with Him (1 Thessalonians 5:17) . He has called us friend. In reality, He is our best friend. Remember when you were young and how you just loved being with your best friend, chattering unendingly about anything and everything? Fun, wasn't it?

The One who graciously calls us friend (John 15:15) loves to commune with us! In the passage from John 15:15, Jesus says He no longer calls us servants because servants don't know what their master does. He calls us friends because He says "all things that I heard from my Father, I have made known unto you." He has made His plan known to us through the Word of God by the revelation of the Holy Spirit.

Now, when you're friends with someone, you usually have things in common and those things become the center of your conversations for the most part. Without that commonality, how could you have a conversation that was fulfilling to both of you?

How do you talk to your Friend, Your Savior, Your Father? How would you even begin a conversation? Hint...... just like you would with your earthly friend. Talk about something that interests Him. His Word is of great interest to Him and it contains life for us. So, when you begin talking (praying), speak His Word. He loves to hear it coming from Your lips and His promise is that it will not come back to you empty.

Whatever your situation, or the situation of that dear one you are praying for, search God's Word. Find a scripture that applies and speak it to your Friend. Find scriptures that tell of His greatness and let Him know you agree with that. Worship Him, praise Him, pray to Him using His Word. When you come away, He will be blessed and you will be blessed. With God, nothing is impossible and nothing can separate you from His love. That's His Word.

It is reported that the newspaper counselor, Ann Landers, receives an avenge of 10,000 letters each month, and nearly all of them from people burdened with problems. She was asked if there was any one of them which predominates throughout the letters she receives, and her reply was the one problem above all others seems to be fear.

People are afraid of losing their health, their wealth, their loved ones. People are afraid of life itself.

What is it that you fear? From the above illustration, it looks like we all fear something. The Bible says that the very thing that Job feared came upon him. It also says that, as a man thinks, so is he. Fear is of the enemy. If he can get us to think something, there is a good possibility it will happen.

When the Lord confronts people in His Word, either personally or through an angel, He usually says, "fear not". The Hebrew word translated, "fear" has within its root the idea of standing in awe of something. When God is telling us not to fear, He is actually telling us not to stand in awe of something that is troubling us. We are not to stand in awe of our troubles and worries. We're to stand in awe of God alone.

His Word says that perfect love casts out all fear. God is love. When we have faith in this fact we can put an end to our fears. When faith enters the picture, fear has to flee. Fear is of the enemy and faith is of God. Now, what is it that causes you to fear today? Unlock the door to your fear and by faith let God and His perfect love come in and drive away the enemy.

Don't bother writing to Ann Landers. Go to your loving Heavenly Father and His Word. Ann might not have time to answer you and, even if she does, she does not have the answer. God always has time for you and He will give you an answer. Just look - He's already begun!

July 3, 2006 - Does It Hurt?

Have you ever wanted anything so badly that it hurts? Interesting question. Someone very close to me was telling me that she felt that way about wanting to do more things together with her family. It seems that, in their "busyness", they had begun to do things together less and less. Nothing was wrong in each of their individual lives but their "communion" with one another had begun to diminish.

Family times are important because families are a picture of the church. Unity and communion are important to God. He gave us the example of family so we could see how to operate in His family. Without unity and communion there can be no true and lasting relationship. Hearing the question posed above, I thought of how our Father must feel when he looks around at us. We are busy "serving" Him, doing His "work". Each of us is doing whatever it is we feel called to do. But, are we really doing things together, working together? Is there a close and loving relationship?

It is relationship that causes us to want to do things together, to want to commune with one another and with God. God must hurt when He looks at us and sees us scurrying about to "get things done" but neglecting our relationship with Him and with each other. What can be done to correct this?

1. We can develop a closer relationship with our Father. We can take time to read His Word and pray that He will reveal Himself to us so we can know Him better. We can do things "with" Him such as spreading His Word, encouraging others, giving, etc. We can spend time praising Him and worshipping Him for who He is, not just for what He does for us.

2. We can develop a closer relationship with those around us, especially our immediate families. We can take time to talk with one another and especially "listen" to one another. We can do things together that edify the whole family, teaching and encouraging the younger ones to build their own relationship with the Father and with each other. We can show our love for one another by spending time together. I recently heard someone give this illustration - love is spelled t-i-m-e.

Maybe you have had a vague pain but can't figure out exactly what is causing it or where it is coming from. Why not ask the Great Physician for a check-up. Ask Him to show you how your relationship with the Father is? If it it is lacking, the prescription for your pain can be found in His Word. How about your relationships with those around you? Lacking?? Use the picture given to us in the Word of God to re-build relationsihps with time, communication and love.

Relief is just a relationship away!

Happy Birthday America - home of the brave and the free! How wonderful to live in a country where we can enjoy freedom! How blessed we are that God has seen fit to give us prosperity and free choice!

What a price was paid so we could have that free choice. Young lives were and are even today being sacrificed to protect our freedom. Freedom is costly. Lives are lost so that others can live. It's always been that way. As wonderful as our country is, there is another Kingdom that is even more wonderful. America will not last forever. The Kingdom of God will last for eternity. We live in America and are thankful that God has provided safety and protection under her flag but, if we are followers of Christ, our citizenship is in Heaven. (Philippians 3:20)

The Heavenly Kingdom is ours because of a Life given. As much as we love our sons, daughters, wives and husbands, their lives are not perfect. God gave His only Son to set us free. God gave perfection so that imperfection could gain eternal life. His Word says that if His Son makes us free, we will be free indeed! (John 8:36) We enjoy freedom today because we live in America. However, we live in perilous times and that freedom could vanish in an instant. As believers in Christ, we have a freedom that will never vanish.

His Word also says that we should not turn our freedom into an excuse to be corrupt. (Galatians 5:13). It goes on to say that we should rather serve each other in love. We are to continue in His Word, becoming His disciples. Then we will know the Truth and the Truth will set us free. Free indeed!

"I will walk about in freedom, for I have sought out your precepts." (Psalm 119:45) Now it is the day after the 4th of July. We have celebrated the acquisition of our freedom as a nation but where to do we go from here? Can we sit back and take it easy, forgetting the great price that has been paid for our leisure? I think not. Freedom is not only a privilege and a blessing. It is an enormous responsibility.

We are free as individuals if we have believed in Jesus and He has set us free. We are free as a nation because men and women have gone to war to set us free. In both cases, that leaves us with something to do. We must seek out God's ways and follow them. Notice in the verse above, the Psalmist says he will walk about in freedom because he has sought out God's precepts. This is so for us as individuals and as a nation. It's so easy to stray, little by little, away from goodness and truth. All of a sudden we find ourselves far from where we meant to be. All is not lost though. We can return to God's precepts and start again precept on precept. (Isaiah 28:10) In returning to the precepts set before us by the Lord, we will be blessed both individually and nationally.

I want to walk in freedom. And you? I want to be blessed of God. You? Well, my friend, let's get back to God's Word and learn precept on precept, little by little. Let's bless God by doing that. Don't you know that our loving Father will return the blessing so much so that we will have trouble containing it!! Besides that, our feet will be on a steady path with His Word providing the light. Now that's walking in freedom!! I think I see Heavenly fireworks.......................

What a day! Can I share something with you? I hope it will encourage you to keep on asking God for the things you need and for help when you are troubled.

My husband just started a new job this year (and we are no spring chickens!). He had a very tedious task to do and it was required that someone witness and assess him. Much was hinging on the approval of this task. He's been doing this sort of thing for about 40 years so he's got lots of experience. However, things did not go well and the auditor picked out some things he felt were wrong. My husband, of course, did not agree. He was also disturbed by the fact that this would not be good for his company.

This time (as opposed to many other times when we were troubled) we gave it to the Lord. We called upon Him in private and asked Him to please let the auditor change his mind. The incident happened last Friday and today, the auditor wrote, said he had reconsidered. The whole thing turned 180 degrees for the good! God is real my friends! God hears our prayers! God answers! He cannot lie. His Word says, "ask and you will receive" (John 16:24).

Now I don't want you to think that we get answers that fast every day. God is not a Heavenly bell-boy that comes running at our every whim. We still have things hanging that He has not seen fit to answer...... yet. Many times the Lord has us wait. He uses those times to test and grow our faith. But, God will answer. Yes He will. His answer will come just in time to encourage you, uplift you, even rescue you.

Do you have a need today? Just ask and keep on asking. Thank God that your faith is growing and look up - your answer is on its way!

Good morning and be encouraged. God has said, "I Am!" Yesterday we talked a lot about old age from a verse in Isaiah. I could not get the verse out of my mind all night. I was impressed with just how much it said in very few words. Yes, it's true that God cares for us even in our old age (and all the ages in between) but there's something so important in this verse. It's the fact that God names Himself. In that Name, we find everything we need for this life and for eternity.

He says, "I Am." What exactly is so important about that? Well, the first time He identified Himself as, "I Am" was way back in Genesis 15:1. It was to Abram (who later became Abraham). It was to the father of our faith (Galatians 3:7). At that time He said to Abram, "Fear not, Abram: I am thy shield, and thy exceeding great reward." Wow! What a great way to begin a relationship. God identified Himself as our shield and our exceeding great reward. God also identified Himself to Moses as, "I Am" (Exodus 3:14). God doesn't stop with the Old Testament. Jesus, Himself, identifies with His Father giving us several "I Am" declarations. He says, "I am the light of the world" (John 8:12). He also says, "I am the way, the truth and the life" (John 14:6). There's lots more.

"I Am" is a "now" word for somebody. I know it is for me. God didn't say, "I was what you needed." He didn't say, "I will be what you need." Both of those things are true but he knows we live in the present. He said, "I Am." He was what Abraham needed. He was what Moses needed. He is what you and I need - now. What are you struggling with - now? What is it you need today? The God who created you presents Himself to you right this minute as "I Am". He is everything we need. Listen closely. You may only hear a whisper but it is just for you, just now. It is the voice of the great, "I Am." Whatever you need right now is not really a "what". He is a "who". Can you hear Him?

Does it seem at times that peace eludes you? What is peace anyway? I have found that peace is not a thing. He is a person. Remember when we chatted about God identifying Himself as "I Am". Later in scripture He provides Names for Himself to follow the "I Am" statement. One of those Names is "Shalom", meaning peace. If it is chaotic around you (or in you), just can call upon the God who is Peace! That doesn't mean that the circumstances around you will change (at least immediately) but you will change - on the inside. The God of peace longs to dwell within you and me. He has promised to abide there and be that stabilizing force in us when things are going crazy around us.

God not only identifies Himself as Peace. His Son bears the same name. Jesus is our "Prince of Peace" (Isaiah 9:6). He has given us the opportunity to trust Him and receive a very special kind of peace. Just look at this!

Philippians 4:6-7 (New Living Translation)
^{6 (NLT)}Don't worry about anything; instead, pray about everything. Tell God what you need, and thank him for all he has done.
⁷If you do this, you will experience God's peace, which is far more wonderful than the human mind can understand. His peace will guard your hearts and minds as you live in Christ Jesus.

Sounds too simple doesn't it? But it is true. Give all your worries to the Lord. Don't let anything enter your mind that You don't pray about (I know this is a discipline but we can do it!) Tell Him what you need (of course, be willing to agree with what He says you really need). Then begin to thank Him for all He's done (when you start to think about it, you might have to stay awhile!) What is His promise? If you do this you will experience His peace! Don't try to figure it out. Just do it. You won't be able to understand it. Why? Because it isn't an "it". It is Him. It is God's very presence within you. He will guard your heart. He will guard your mind.

Want some peace? Then get to it! Stop worrying. Pray about everything instead. Ask God for what you need. Thank Him for what He's already done. Voila! Peace feels at home in your heart. He is a welcome guest and He will stand as a Soldier over your heart and your mind (boy, am I thankful for this part)!

I have a very special prayer for all of you reading this morning. It is that the Lord of peace would give you His peace always and in all ways. That was Paul's blessing to the Church at Thessalonica.

The world we live in is many times cold and uncaring. Not only that, people can be downright brutal to one another. Even though we have made many medical advances, sickness and disease is rampant. War is always looming, whether in your home, your neighborhood or between countries. This is the world's kingdom. But there is another Kingdom - a better Kingdom. May the Lord of peace grant you the peace of His Kingdom.

In 2 Thessalonians 3:16 Paul prays that the Lord of peace would grant the church at Thessalonica His peace at all times and in all ways. The Amplified Bible says, "under all circumstances and conditions, whatever comes."

Stuff happens. Don't let it steal your peace. Jesus said, "my peace I give you, not as the world gives." (John 14:27) There is an enemy who would try to steal that peace but, as Paul writes, "The Lord be with you all." Remember, peace is not a thing, He is a person. His Name is Jesus! May Jesus be with you all today and always in all ways!

How do you feel this morning? Anything troubling you in your body, soul or spirit? Here's some more good news. One of the "I Am" characteristics of God is this: "I Am your Healer". If you are a believer in Jesus (and oh, I do pray that you are), you have the greatest Physician in the world. He is a specialist in ALL disciplines - body, soul, spirit. There is nothing that He can't or won't cure! Top that off by the fact that you don't have to wait a month to get an appointment! He's always waiting for your call. You don't even have to go through a receptionist.

Early on in scripture, God told His people this: "I am the LORD that healeth thee." (Exodus 15:26) The Hebrew word used here means, in part, to cure. It means to make thoroughly whole. I don't know about you but, so far, I have not found a doctor who could do that for me. Do you want to be made thoroughly whole? Do you want your body, soul and spirit to agree and function properly? There is One who is waiting for your call.

Later in scripture, the Lord Jesus went about doing His Father's business and healed many, many people. In fact, I have never read about one who asked for healing and didn't receive it. Like His Father, He has great compassion on the multitudes who are sick. (Matthew 14:14). He is our Great Physician today. He has also passed this power and authority down to all believers. In fact, His Word declares that we should go to the elders (those who are mature in the faith) for prayer when we are sick. That prayer will be heard by God! The sick one will be raised up AND if he has committed any sins, they will be forgiven. See how our spirit and body need to agree!! The gospel of Mark (16:18) says a believer can lay hands on someone who is sick and they will recover. Jesus said it Himself just before He was taken up into Heaven.

No matter what your need this morning or where you are in your faith, you can be healed. Just call on the God who said, "I Am the God who healeth thee." Healing flows from the Father to the Son and through the Holy Spirit through and into us. I think that's about the best news I have ever heard aside from salvation for my soul! Be healed today in Jesus Name!!

Yesterday, we chatted about God and His being our healer. Sometimes we think that healing is not important to God. But it is. In Jeremiah 17:14, healing is mentioned before salvation. It says, "heal me, O LORD, and I shall be healed." Then it says, "save me and I shall be saved." Have you ever noticed that sometimes pain (whether its physical, mental or emotional) calls to you so loudly that you can't seem to hear anything spiritually? Sometimes the roaring voice of pain all but drowns out the still small voice of God.

You know, I think Jesus probably noticed that too. Many times, He healed people and then preached the good news of the Kingdom of God to them. After all, if your ears are diseased and you can't hear, how will you be able to hear the gospel? God is interested in your sickness and in your pain. He wants to deliver you so that you can focus on Him instead of your dis-ease. He does not heal just to make you comfortable. He heals so that you will be able to receive His Word. The rest of the verse in Jeremiah 17:14 says "for thou art my praise". When you are healed, He expects you to be full of praise for Him. It's not all about you. It's about God getting the glory. It's about you running with what He has done for you and telling others.

Jesus was once criticized for telling a lame man who had been brought to Him for healing that His sins were forgiven. (See Mark 2:1-12) This is one time that He did not heal before giving salvation. Instead, He told the man His sins were forgiven. However, the teachers of religious law were offended by His statement, "my son, your sins are forgiven." To prove to them that He was God and that God has both the power to save and to heal, he healed the man. In whatever way God chooses to work in us today and regardless of His timing, He is still in the healing business. He is still in the saving business. Give Him glory! He is your Healer!! He is your Savior!!!

When God says He is, "I Am", one of the things He adds along with this name is, "your Provider". Whatever it is that we need, He is our provider. It is not our job, our parents, our intellect, our money, etc., etc. He is Jehovah Jireh! Jehovah Jireh means, the God that sees and provides. God first showed Himself to mankind as Jehovah Jireh in Genesis 22:14. It is in the story of Abraham and his son Isaac. Abraham declared "The Lord will provide". It was his faith in God gave him the desire to be obedient. You see, God had asked Abraham to sacrifice his only son. Abraham was willing even though it meant giving up the one that was most important to him in this life. At the last moment, an angel called to Abraham indicating that God had provided another sacrifice. It was a ram which was caught in the thicket. (Genesis 22:12). God had seen what Abraham needed and provided it. He just wanted to know that Abraham was willing.

You and I need faith. We need to trust God. When He sees that we are willing, He becomes our provider. Is there something or someone in your life that God has asked you to give up? It may not even be anything that is considered "bad". He asked Abraham to give his beloved son! God wants our complete devotion. Nothing should stand between our heart and God. Sometimes God will ask us to give up something (especially if it is not good for us) and He will take it when we place it in His hands. Other times, God is wanting to test our heart to be sure there is nothing between it and Himself. When we willingly give up, he either gives it back to us or gives it back in an even better way.

Who is your provider today? To whom or where do you go first when you have a need? Has God spoken to you to give up something and are you willing? He has promised to be your provider. He only wants you to trust Him. He sees the need in your life before you even realize you have one. He makes provision for your needs before they become real to you. Will you receive His provision? There is an old hymn that says, "Trust and obey for there's no other way." Those are inspired words and true. Will you trust and obey today? He will provide!

Do you have someone you greatly admire and would like to be like? There have been a few people that have come into my life that I really wanted to imitate. The trouble is, I didn't set my sites high enough. There is One that wants me to be like Himself. If I am in right relationship with Him, I will want to be like Him. He calls Himself the "holy One". He is the holy One of Israel as well as the holy One of you and me.

Holy actually means, "to be separate" or "set apart". In the case of God, He is higher than any other beings. He is set apart. In Isaiah 40:25, God asks, "To whom will you compare me? Who is my equal?" Of course, we know that God is not really requiring an answer. He knows as well as we do that there is no one equal to Him.

He describes Himself as being set apart and then asks the same of us. In 1 Peter 1:15-16, we are told that if we are called by a holy God, we should be holy in the way we behave. In other words. We should be set apart by our behavior. God said "Be ye holy; for I am holy." Boy, that's a challenge! But there is hope. God sent His Son to die for us when we were alienated in our minds by wicked works (alienated is a lot different than set apart). Jesus did this so He could present us to His Father (and ours) as holy or set apart (Colossians 1:21-22). It is by submitting to Him that we can receive the grace to be holy.

Remember choosing teams for games in school? I was always the last one chosen since I was sports-challenged. God chooses whom He will. Chosen means He has set you apart. He has made you holy. Now all you have to do is live in it. Here is a good start in understanding how we live as His set apart and holy people.

Who needs strength today? Before you answer, I want to be the first to say, "I do". Don't you wish there was a little pill you could take when you are tired and weak that would give you instant strength and energy? Even if there was one, it would be temporary and you would probably "crash" when it wore off. So many times, I have just run out of strength. Where can I look to find more? Here's what David said at one point: "I will love thee, O LORD, my strength." - Psalm 18:1. Yes, the Lord is my strength! Among all the other things the "I Am" is, He is our strength. Nehemiah 8:10 says...."the joy of the Lord is your strength." Without His joy, we are totally without strength.

The Psalmist says in Psalm 73:26, that God remains the strength of his heart even though his health may fail and his spirit may grow weak. Yes, even in poor health, we can be strong in the Lord! In fact there is nothing that shall be impossible for us if we have put our trust in Him. When we are weak, Isaiah 40:31 says if we wait on the Lord, we will find new strength. Where we once were down for the count, we will find ourselves flying high on wings like eagles. We will run and not grow weary. We will walk and not faint. That is the Word of the Lord!

Did you know that our extreme weakness can bring glory to God? Sometimes it happens that way. The Lord told the apostle Paul in 2 Corinthians 12:9, "My gracious favor is all you need. My power works best in your weakness." God told Paul this three times. I would say that when God says something three times in a row, He pretty much means it. Paul trusted God and so can we. When we are totally weak and devoid of strength, we can say like Paul, "for when I am weak, then I am strong". Sounds pretty much upside down doesn't it? But that is the way God's Kingdom is. You know... I'm feeling stronger already!! I wish you His strength for your day and always. Now aren't you glad you ate your manna this morning? Yummy - and oh, so nourishing!