Teach me to do thy will; for thou art my God: thy spirit is good; lead me into the land of uprightness.   (Psalm 143:10  KJV)

When going through the process of that which is called “Life” –we always want the Holy Spirit to guide us. If we ask, He will lead us in the right direction at all times. He is our “true Compass” in all paths of our lives.

Acts shows in great detail how the Holy Spirit worked mightily for the Apostles, in and of all they encountered, and essentially were lead by the Spirit to do His will. Perhaps one of the passages that comes to mind is that of the eunuch in Ethiopia, who had authoritiy under Candance queen of the Ethiopians.

The angel of the Lord spoke to Philip giving explicit instructions of what he should do. (Acts 8:26).  The Lord gave Philip a direct command, and when God guides you, it would behoove us to “follow” His direction and orders.  The eunuch–a gentile–was reading a passage from the prophet Isaiah (Esaias) and didn’t grasp the meaning of the words. The Holy Spirit guided Philip to accomplish the will of God through this eunuch, by giving him the ability to teach accordingly. The unction of the Spirit guides Philip and allowed the eunuch to absorb the meaning of the scripture.

The eunuch was reading Isaiah 53:7-8- which is the prophecy and witness of Jesus Christ. Wtih God guiding, and us following, the truth is a blessing to everyone. The eunuch needed someone to guide him ( he was thirsty and desiring to learn… the Lord placed it in his heart) and help him to understand. So through the Spirit, and with Philip allowing the Spirit to fully engage, the eunuch understood completely.  The eunuch latched onto the teaching of Philip very quickly. And, by the Holy Spirit’s guidance, the eunuch wanted to be baptized, and so he was.

We can do all things through Christ…and the Spirit will guide us giving us wisdom to do so. “He that hath my commandments, and keepeth the, he it is that loveth Me: and he that loveth Me shall be loved of My Father, and I will love him, and will manifest myself to him.” (John 14:21 KJV)

Manifest in this particular verse, means to “cause to be shown plainly and clearly, causing to be seen, which wouldn’t have been recognizable or easily understood, without the prompting and guidance of the Spirit.  If we love Jesus and keep His commandments as best we can, He will help us see, hear and understand.

When we let the Spirit have full access to our lives, and keep the commandments, and ask for His help…He will give us the unction to intuitively know when God is opening or shutting doors in our life. That same unction will allow us to spiritually discern right from wrong.We will have spiritual eyes and ears to complete our walk of faith.

But the comforter, which is the Holy Ghost, Whom the Father will send in My name, He shall teach you all things, and bring all things to your remembrance, whatsoever I have said unto you.  (John 14:26 KJV)

God’s children, who are following Him, have peace in a chaotic world. When serving God, there is nothing to worry about, or fear. When we place our trust in God and keep our faith, we are protected under His wings irrespective of conditions that plague society overall. He will always protect His children.

Today there is a lot of corruption that is not only abundant in the news, but the decaying effects have begun to seep in thereby cluttering our path.  Much like the leavened bread…a little leaven will corrupt the whole piece of bread.  (Galatians 5:9 ) Leaven represents sin in this passage, and sin is plenty in this world…look around, you won’t have to look too far.

The counsel of the Lord is with those who revere Him, He will deliver us out of the net of the iniquity.  “The secret of the LORD is with them that fear Him; and He will shew them His covenant. Mine eyes are ever toward the LORD; for He shall pluck my feet out of the net.” (Psalm 25:14 KJV)  —  Fear which means to revere Him.

The enemies of the LORD are many. They desire to remove God from our vocabulary, they want Him out of our schools, and they mock and dislike those who love and follow Him. Put your trust in God, and God’s word.

When we put our trust in God, and His mighty Spirit that dwells within to guide us in all transactions of our life, He not only will lift, exalt, and protect us, He will bless us abundantly. What a mighty God we serve…Amen~

Blessings & Peace in His precious name~

As the hart panteth after the water brooks, so panteth my soul after thee, O God. (Psalm 42:1 KJV)

For thus saith the LORD of hosts; After the glory hath he sent me unto the nations which spoiled you: for he that toucheth you toucheth the apple of his eye. ( Zechariah 2:8 KJV)

Ask someone what he/she thinks is precious. Some might say, an heirloom handed down for generations.  Or, others may say their brand new house.  The majority of individuals probably will answer, “My children.”  All except the latter is of little significance. It’s entirely materialistic gain…nothing more.

As children of God…we’re precious in His sight. We’re special, and He loves us as evidenced by His promises in His Word. To this day, God continues to love and guide us, as He has throughout the ages.

His presence is felt by those of faith. His voice can be heard above a crowd, and His Spirit corroborates with our spirit in every aspect of our lives. He’s there in a business meeting and in the living room while we’re watching TV.  He’s at our dinner table, and He’s watching over us at bedtime.

God never leaves us, nor would we want Him to. As stipulated in Zechariah 2:8…”apple of His eye” refers to the pupil, a valuable and vulnerable part of the body. This metaphor functions to express God’s deepest feelings for His children.  God, King of the Universe, is our biggest treasure, and the most precious part of our lives and heart. Return His love unconditionally, and then be still and watch God work.

“Lord thank You for everything in our lives, past, present, and to come. We are Yours, and place our trust in You, in Jesus name, Amen.”

My soul thirsteth for God, for the living God: when shall I come and appear before God? (Psalm 42:2 KJV)

He is Risen—Hallelujah!

“In the end of the sabbath, as it began to dawn toward the first day of the week, came Mary Magdalene and the other Mary to see the sepulchre. And, behold, there was a great earthquake: for the angel of the Lord descended from heaven, and came and rolled back the stone from the door, and sat upon it. His countenance was like lightning, and his raiment white as snow: And for fear of him the keepers did shake, and became as dead men. And the angel answered and said unto the women, Fear not ye: for I know that ye seek Jesus, which was crucified. He is not here: for he is risen,… ” (Matthew 28:1-6 KJV)

Can there be more of a day of rejoicing than the day of our Lord’s resurrection?  The eyewitness testimony about the ministry of Jesus, our King of God’s people. Jesus, Immanuel, the virgin-born Son of God who fulfilled the promises of the OT.

He is risen!  Hallelujah!

Our souls dance and rejoice with glee, He saved us from eternal damnation. He took the sin away from the world, so that we should live forever. How glorious!

A celebration to be enjoyed with family (including our brother and sisters in Christ) and friends, while meditating the deep meaning of this day. The day in which Christ defeated death. The Savior who is the Author of Salvation, this loving God who took away our sin, and gives to us daily bread, and living waters. That all who drink from Him, shall never thirst again. Amen.

To my family, friends, and readers…Happy Resurrection day!  Happy Paschal!

Enjoy your the day and live in His word and His love.
Eat, drink and Praise the Lord!  Amen.

Trust  in the Lord with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding. In all thy ways acknowledge Him, and He shall direct thy paths. (Proverbs 3:5-6 KJV)

There will be times in life when we  might forget  that God knows better than “our minds” or our “hearts.” There may be an issue that careens across our road during our travels that just doesn’t coincide with “our plans.”  We might say, “Nope I don’t want to do that.” But the problem with this kind of thinking is that “God is out of the equation.” There can be no good in going off the road of “His will” — it might be a temporary fix, but it’s just a bandaid.  God is the actual Creator of “bandaids” and so we should go directly to the source.  He is the one that will be able to bring us to our full potential in all things that matter.

A wedding took place recently and the mother of the Bride was infinitely worried about her daughter.  She wrestled with a myriad of emotions that fielded through her vision as to where she wanted her daughter to be. There were many valid reasons for her uneasiness, but still after praying and asking “why” –she realized she had to give her to God.  He knows the plans He has for this young lady.  Things don’t make sense from where the mother is standing, nor does it make sense for other family members and close friends…but for some reason—that only God knows—it’s happened.

The mother is distraught that the daughter moved to the middle of the USA, and so far from where her roots are. And, now the young lady is pregnant, and although the mother is thirlled about the news…she became even more distraught that she’ll hardly ever see the grandchild.  But, God will find a way for all of them in this.

She is bending and surrendering to God, and trusting He knows what’s best for this child that was “promised and dedicated to the Lord” as an infant, even more so…while in her womb.  We will have to sit back and pray, and know He is in control. This is one of those times where the “heart” is saying something else…but God knows best.  And, so time will tell if this is God’s plans or not. For now…she must simply trust God.

There will be times when we will face things that just don’t make sense. But, while in our flesh bodies, our comprehension is far below that of God’s.  We can’t see what He sees, nor do we know what He knows…but we can ask for the wisdom to realize that it is His will and not ours that counts.  We must correlate to His time schedule, and not ours.  We must recognize that He has only the best things in mind for us….nothing will give Him more joy than pleasing us.

We must trust in God even when everything else is screaming, “No this can’t be!” But, He formed us, and knew  us before we were in our mother’s wombs. He— our marvelous Creator— knows our thoughts, our minds, our hearts. He knows our very composition in terms of DNA, and the amount of hairs on our head.  So, why shouldn’t we give it all to Him, and bow to the King of kings that knows what’s best for us, at all times. There will be times when He will allow things to happen, to bring us closer to Him while forming roots of faith in the process.

It might take awhile for us to figure it out, or see His plans come into fruition for our benefit. Or, we might not ever figure it out. But one thing for sure…He knows what’s best, so trust Him and only Him. Remember that the next time you question, “Why?”– 

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¹³ For thou hast possessed my reins: thou hast covered me in my mother’s womb.

¹⁴ I will praise thee; for I am fearfully and wonderfully made: marvellous are thy works; and that my soul knoweth right well.

¹⁵ My substance was not hid from thee, when I was made in secret, and curiously wrought in the lowest parts of the earth.

¹⁶ Thine eyes did see my substance, yet being unperfect; and in thy book all my members were written, which in continuance were fashioned, when as yet there was none of them.

¹⁷ How precious also are thy thoughts unto me, O God! how great is the sum of them!

¹⁸ If I should count them, they are more in number than the sand: when I awake, I am still with thee.   (Psalms 139:13-17 KJV)

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Before I formed thee in the belly I knew thee; and before thou camest forth out of the womb I sanctified thee, and I ordained thee a prophet unto the nations.  (Jeremiah 1:5 KJV)

Magnificent landscape and breathtaking view made by the Master’s Hands.  The picture was captured by Scott Birge–whom God smiles upon.

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Dear God I Love Your Word~                                                                                                  by C D Swanson

As the hart panteth after the water brooks, so panteth my soul after thee, O
God. (Psalm 46:1 KJV)

“Thy Words were found, and I did eat them; and thy word was unto me the joy and rejoicing of mine heart.” (Jeremiah 15:16 KJV)

Jeremiah was a priest and prophet, who spoke the words of the Lord.  His job was to bring the word to the “unresponsive” people of Judah, and show them the err of their ways.  The words were “joy” for Jeremiah, but there were times he became frustrated with bringing a message to stubborn stiff necked people. But he continued on, following the Lords’ instructions thereby being the vessel in which the message God would bring forth His message and judgment.

Jeremiah’s frustration is not unlike ours in this world of today. There are times many of us feel the same pressure as we watch mounting decay of souls overtake sensibility and morals in diverse places of this world.  But, as Jeremiah, and so many others in the Bible before and after Him, we need to press on and bring the message.  We need to speak on God’s behalf, and signify that which is right.

When we obey God’s word there is an indescribable peace that is supplanted deep within our soul, and no amount of ill repute can penetrate that which is ingrained in us. It’s placed there by our Creator, who is merciful and kind…and loves us unconditionally.

He wants us to succeed, He wants us to be protected in the shadow of His wings. He wants to lift us high to soar way above and in so doing draw closer to Him.  He loves our companionship and our love. “…Obey my voice, and do them, according to all which I command you: so shall ye be my people, and I will be your God: that I may perform the oath which I have sworn unto your fathers, to give them a land flowing with milk and honey, as it is this day…” (Jeremiah 11:4-5 KJV) 

There is an abundance of hope that springs forth from His word, and from His love.  As we go forward in speaking about His magnificence, and supplying the message…LIFE becomes apparent.  The living God supplies the wisdom and the energy and every aspect pertaining to our needs. Our message should be of LIFE because our God is a God of the living, not of the dead.  He is a fountain of pure living waters, that quenches our thirst in the dryest of times. He is the sustenance which nourishes our souls and marrow in our bones.  We need to trust Him and look to Him and interact with Him while bringing a message and shining His light. “Blessed is the man that trusteth in the Lord, and whose hope the Lord is. “ (Jeremiah 17:7 KJV) 

God sees our heart, He is a cardio-knower.  Our hearts are hidden elements of the human personality, but God sees them perfectly. “I the Lord search the heart, I try the reins, even to give every man according to his ways, and according to the fruit of his doings.” (Jeremiah 17:10 KJV)

The Word can be a comforting blanket to one whose soul is “cold and lonely.”  It will provide warmth while His hands of love provide the peace.  God speaks to us to this day…He is still there. His Bible, the best selling book of all times, is there.  It is His written love letter to us, His children. It is a salve for wounds, and a lifeboat for those drowing in misery.  It’s up to us, to continue bringing the word forward, as so many before us have done…and so many after us will do.

Go forth and make your Father happy. Reach out to others when you can. Ask for His wisdom and guidance to do so.  Bring that peace to someone in need of rescue from the chaos, and turmoil that is in their path…and know joy, and peace through Him and in Him forever and always.  Amen.

“Behold, I send you forth as sheep in the midst of wolves: ‘be ye therefore wise as serpents, and harmless as doves.” (Matthew 10:16 KJV)