Tens

Alzheimer's disease intruded into my world in 2007.  My father's official diagnosis came later but the evidence was presented earlier.  Without going into detail about this disease, the progression often steals the ability to understand and express language and words can get jumbled, if spoken at all.  Awhile back, I was stitting with Dad, holding hands.  He looked at my hands and said, "those are your tens."  In my opinion, well said.  Sometimes the words that we expressed may not be the "right" word but the meaning is communicated.  I knew exactly what Dad was saying.  

Here are our Tens...God used these Words, both spoken and written...to insure that His people understood what they should do...in view of the lack of direction in this world today...a look at our Tens is a good place to start...then put our "tens" to work in His kingdom...start by lifting them up in praise, folding them together in prayer, wrapping them around the tens of another to comfort or reach out to grab the tens of a person in need...Tens for Him....

"And God spoke all these words, saying: “I am the LORD your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of bondage.

 “You shall have no other gods before Me.

 “You shall not make for yourself a carved image—any likeness of anything that is in heaven above, or that is in the earth beneath, or that is in the water under the earth; you shall not bow down to them nor serve them. For I, the LORD your God, am a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children to the third and fourth generations of those who hate Me, but showing mercy to thousands, to those who love Me and keep My commandments. “

"You shall not take the name of the LORD your God in vain, for the LORD will not hold him guiltless who takes His name in vain.

“Remember the Sabbath day, to keep it holy. Six days you shall labor and do all your work, but the seventh day is the Sabbath of the LORD your God. In it you shall do no work: you, nor your son, nor your daughter, nor your male servant, nor your female servant, nor your cattle, nor your stranger who is within your gates. For in six days the LORD made the heavens and the earth, the sea, and all that is in them, and rested the seventh day. Therefore the LORD blessed the Sabbath day and hallowed it. 

"Honor your father and your mother, that your days may be long upon the land which the LORD your God is giving you. “You shall not murder.

 “You shall not commit adultery. 

“You shall not steal.

 “You shall not bear false witness against your neighbor.

“You shall not covet your neighbor’s house; you shall not covet your neighbor’s wife, nor his male servant, nor his female servant, nor his ox, nor his donkey, nor anything that is your neighbor’s.” (Exodus 20:1-17 NKJV)

Do not lose heart...

On this Labor Day holiday, I celebrated by sleeping in, getting up at 5:00am, and spending the first part of the morning looking up to a crystal clear sky and a heavenly array of stars.  A breathtaking reminder of my Creator God, who spoke this all into existence, just so I could see His signature in the sky, this morning!  

"The heavens declare the Glory if God; and the firmament shows His handiwork. Day unto day utters speech, and night unto night reveals knowledge. There is no speech or language where their voice is not heard." Psalm 19:1-3

While enjoying this fanstastic view of the western sky, unsettling events and issues that are taking place in our local news invade my thoughts.   With this canopy of stars overhead, I wonder if I can see the North Star from my vantage point.  The North Star, among the brightest of the stars and set in place very close to the Earth's North pole, and is the point of navigation, has been for centuries and still is.  The North Star has been the guide to keep many travelers heading in the right and it has been hope to those who have lost their way.  When the lost find the North Star, they can once again get back on track!  

The society we live in today is lost, with no clear sense of direction. The moral truths grounded in Word of God are no longer seen as the true north. All sense of direction is lost because the compass is broken, no longer pointed to the Truth.  The solution is a simple one, get back on track...get the compass set on what is TRUE...and the Source of all Truth... 

John 14:6 (NET)

Jesus replied, "I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.

What are you using as your compass on this journey?  Are you heading in the right direction? Are you focused on a point that seems to keeps moving and changing?  Don't lose heart...look up!!

2 Corinthians 4:16-18 (NKJV) Therefore we do not lose heart. Even though our outward man is perishing, yet the inward man is being renewed day by day.  For our light affliction, which is but for a moment, is working for us a far more exceeding and eternal weight of glory,while we do not look at the things which are seen, but at the things which are not seen. For the things which are seen are temporary, but the things which are not seen are eternal.

Get Moving!

The "couch 2 5k" app on my phone is very handy! Any tool to help this exercise challenged individual transition from inactivity to activity is welcomed! Of course, having this app on my phone did little to improve my stamina and strength until I put on the shoes and started running.

Early this spring I had to face the fact that although my winter of "rest" had a great positive impact on my spiritual walk...early morning hours in the prayer closet brought supernatural strength and a renewed closeness with my Heavenly Father... my physical temple was in a downward spiral. 

The quest to get physically stronger began.  Building up spiritual strength  started with making the commitment and setting aside the first part of my day to spend time with God in a dedicated place and time.  Likewise, Building physical strength demands discipline!

So, here we go.  Shoes on and start walking!  Yes, that's right...walking...and then a little short running...then some more walking! After several weeks of effort, the slow walk became a steady "granny shuffle" and the goal to finish a 5k became a revised goal, to finish strong!  The first 5k was tough but I finished!!! This summer had been on of 5ks...5 under my belt! Blazing fast?  No, but finishing strong, yes indeed! 

Build up your spiritual strength in the same way... start now...set aside a time and place to meet with your Creator, He made you and wants to spend time with you...there is no app needed for this!  Just find a place, closet, chair, room...and start praying..talking to God...He is listening and will answer!  You may only start out spending a few minutes, but soon those few minutes won't be enough and you'll find that the more time you spend working on your spiritual muscles will bring supernatural strength for your run!!! 

Just like running a 5k requires preparation and finding strength to finish strong takes commitment...gaining spiritual strength for this race of life will be found in preparation and discipline...get moving!!!  

2 Timothy 4:7 (NET)

I have competed well; I have finished the race; I have kept the faith!

Hebrews 12:1 (NET)

Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, we must get rid of every weight and the sin that clings so closely, and run with endurance the race set out for us...

Busy

Good Monday morning on the last day of August!  Are you ready for this day? Reviewed your to-do list and calendar? Seems like my lists keep growing!  I take pleasure in checking things off the list only to quickly replace the done with more to do...you too?  Do you end the day reflecting on accomplishments or on what is yet to be accomplished? We do stay busy, don't we. 

Today, as you make plans, spend a few minutes getting a heavenly perspective, talk to your heavenly Father about the list and see how it matches up with His plan for your day.  Let's not be busy in vain, rather let's keep the things that have eternal consequences in first place!  

Let everything you do today, bring Glory to God!

Surely every man walks about like a shadow; Surely they busy themselves in vain; He heaps up riches, And does not know who will gather them. (Psalms 39:6 NKJV)

When you are asked....

I am sitting in a quiet place this morning, having enjoyed watching the sun burn away the morning fog, observed the neighborhood deer herd playing in the yard, found peace in the midst of turmoil. Found wisdom in the Word of God and a challenge...

Deuteronomy 6:20 (NKJV) 20 "When your son asks you in time to come, saying, 'What is the meaning of the testimonies, the statutes, and the judgments which the LORD our God has commanded you?'

Before you read the response in the next verses...stop for a minute and reflect on your own answer.  

This verse has stopped me "in my tracks" this morning...as I think about the legacy of faith that was passed on to me and changes that have taken place in this country today, I reflect on my own life and ask myself if I have shared the testimonies, statutes and judgments of God with this generation...have I shared  what God says...and lived it before them.  Would one from this generation look at me and see a difference that would cause them to even ask the question?  

We should all wrestle with this question today and strive to take every opportunity to let the love of God shine through us, to bring His peace into turmoil, to live and play in the freedom His love and His ways provides and to be ready to share with the world our own testimony of freedom, salvation, healing, deliverance, and love...

When you are asked in times to come...what will your answer be?

Deuteronomy 6:21 (NKJV) 21 "then you shall say to your son: 'We were slaves of Pharaoh in Egypt, and the LORD brought us out of Egypt with a mighty hand;

Deuteronomy 6:23 (NKJV) 23 'Then He brought us out from there, that He might bring us in, to give us the land of which He swore to our fathers.

Deuteronomy 6:24 (NKJV) 24 'And the LORD commanded us to observe all these statutes, to fear the LORD our God, for our good always, that He might preserve us alive, as it is this day.

Deuteronomy 6:25 (NKJV) 25 'Then it will be righteousness for us, if we are careful to observe all these commandments before the LORD our God, as He has commanded us.'

New Thing

A young man stood in the pulpit of our church last night and boldly proclaimed the Word of God, directing us to rebuild the temple by returning to the altar of prayer!  A powerful truth spoken that requires action on our part. In order to cleanse the temple of defilement, neglecting to seek God daily in a place of prayer, we must seek forgiveness and return to "our first love."  Return to the altar...seek God every day in a place of private devotion to Him.  

Revelation 2:4 (NKJV) 4 "Nevertheless I have this against you, that you have left your first love.

God desires to do a new thing!  That is exciting, isn't it!!! This "new thing" may come from life spoken into an old thing...a place we need to return to, like the prayer closet, or to revive a dream that God planted that is ready to be birthed...or an infant dream that is ready for a growth spurt...or it may be a time of stepping out in a whole new direction standing on the faith...return to the place of prayer

...listen to His voice...and be ready to spring forth!! 

Isaiah 43:19 (NKJV) 19 Behold, I will do a new thing, Now it shall spring forth; Shall you not know it? I will even make a road in the wilderness And rivers in the desert.

With All

Love is a powerful word! Just "fall in love" with something and you are overtaken! 

Love is freely poured out on stuff and things, people and places, and the primary focus of all that love, is self. 

Frequently the love meter is measuring not what we love, but what loving does for us...love ice cream to satisfy the sweet tooth!! You see where this is going.

We seem to have this love thing figured out, don't we...at least in terms of love that meets a need in ourselves.  

Jesus turns our focus in a different direction when He responds to question meant to trip him up...after all, aren't all the commandments most important? 

Jesus gave the perfect answer and I wonder what the one who received the answer did with it.  Loving to meet our own needs  is easy...but to set aside self and focus love on God, now that is a radical command.  

How will you apply these words in your life today? 

Jesus said to him, “ ‘You shall love the LORD your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind.’ This is the first and great commandment. (Matthew 22:37-38 NKJV)