ARE YOU STILL SPOON FEEDING? No. 192

Hebrews 5:12-14, “You are become such as have need of milk, and not of strong meat, for every one that uses milk is unskillful in the word of righteousness: for he is a babe. But strong meat belongs to them that are of full age, even those who by reason of use have their sense exercised to discern both good and evil.”

When a baby starts to eat solid food around nine months, it is a joy to feed them. As they continue to grow, and yet do not want their food, we play all kinds of games to make them want to eat it. The spoonful of food becomes an airplane, or the poor little kitchen out in the cold waiting to come into the warm home and so on.

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PASS ON THE BLESSING, PT 2, No. 191

Matthew 10: 8, “Freely ye have received, freely give.”

Last week we discussed how God pours His grace upon us and wants us to respond by pouring it out on others.

Let’s read Ephesians 2:8-9 as we think more about this, “For by grace are ye saved though faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God: not of works, lest any man should boast.” God’s grace of salvation is free. It is a gift. No matter how many good works we do, we can never earn it. God gave His only Son freely. Jesus gave His life freely. He endured pain, persecution, suffering and death to pay for our sins.

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PASS ON THE BLESSING, No. 190

1 Peter 4:10, “As every man hath received the gift, even so minister the same one to another, as good stewards of the manifold grace of God.”

God pours out His gifts upon us and He wants us to pour them out upon others. The word ‘gift’ is the Greek word charisma which means a gift of grace. Each one of us has received grace from God, but God’s grace is manifold. It is revealed in numberless ways as we need it. As God pours out His grace upon us in a certain way, He does not want us to keep it to ourselves, but to pour it out on others.

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A HIGH CALLING, No. 189

Daniel 7:27, “And the kingdom and dominion, and the greatness of the kingdom under the whole heaven, shall be given to the people of the saints of the most High, whose kingdom is an everlasting kingdom, and all dominions shall serve and obey him.”

Each year I keep a journal to write the Scripture that speaks to me the most as I read the Word each day. I write the Scripture and then write what I feel God is saying to me. This practice is one of the greatest blessings of my life. When I read the above Scripture in my daily reading, I was arrested by the phrase, “saints of the most High”. The word ‘saints’ in the Hebrew is qaddish and means ‘set apart, separate, holy’. The Knox version translates it correctly, “the people set apart for the most High.”

I responded in my journal by writing the following:

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LOVE'S WAYS, PT 5 of 5, No. 188

Matthew 5:44, “But I say unto you, Love your enemies, bless them that curse you, do good to them that hate you, and pray for them which despitefully use you, and persecute you.””

We love and enjoy our friends and family with phileo love. But agape love goes beyond this. With God’s love we can love our enemies. With God’s love we can love those who make us mad. With God’s love with love those who hurt us to the very core of our being. Agape love is…

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LOVE'S WAYS, PT 4 of 5, No. 187

ACCORDING TO THE WORD, Part 4

Colossians 3:16, “Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly in all wisdom; teaching and admonishing one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing with grace in your hearts to the Lord.”

6. UNDERSTANDING ACCORDING TO THE WORD

Psalm 119:169, “Let my cry come before you, O Lord; give me understanding according to your word.”

“Give me understanding, Lord.” Is this the cry of your heart, dear mother? Oh how we need understanding each moment of the day. Proverbs 24:3 tells us that it is by wisdom and understanding that we build and establish our homes. That means that we can’t accomplish our great task of mothering without the anointing of understanding.

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LOVE"S WAYS, PT 3 of 5, No. 186

1 Thessalonians 4:9, “You yourselves are taught of God to love one another.”

We don’t learn to love on our own. It is God, the source of love, who teaches us. Let’s keep learning more…

Leaping Love

2 Corinthians 8:7 says, “Therefore, as ye abound in every thing… and in your love to us, see that ye abound in this grace also.” I love the Way’s translation of this Scripture, “Full you are to overflowing… of the love that leaps from you hearts to mine…” What an exciting description of love. I think of a frog jumping from one rock to another. Can you get the picture of love leaping from one heart to another within your family? This is not stagnant love. Leaping love is vibrant, pulsating, overflowing.

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LOVE"S WAYS, PT 2 of 5, No. 185

2 Peter 1:7 “Add to godliness brotherly kindness; and to brotherly kindness love.”

Peter urges the saints to add agape love to their human affectionate love (philadelphia). This kind of love is precious, but if we are going to continue to grow in the Lord we must add agape love. We will walk in this love as we mature in Christ and allow Him more and more to live His life through us. There are other Scriptures that also urge us to move on from phileo to agape love...

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LOVE'S WAYS, PT 1 of 5, No.184

1 Timothy 1:14, “The love that is in Christ Jesus.”

It is easy to love when someone loves you, isn’t it? Reciprocal love is sweet and special. But how do you love when someone does not like you? How about when they throw abuse in your face? Hate you? Disrespect you? Misuse you? What do you do then? Maybe you can cope with it when it is someone outside the home. It is not so personal. But how do you cope when they are members of your own family? Help!

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A GARDEN HOME, No. 183

Jeremiah 29:5, “Build ye houses, and dwell in them; and plant gardens, and eat the fruit of them.”

The first home was built by God. The predominant thing about this home is that it was a garden. It was called the garden of Eden. (Genesis 2:7, 15) The word Eden means delight. The first home was a prototype of all homes to come. Consequently, God wants our homes today to also be places of delight. We should seek to make our homes lovely, whether small or big. Of course we know that there is more to a home than the beautiful architecture and the décor. A beautiful looking home can have a cold and hateful atmosphere. A little hut can be filled with the atmosphere of heaven.

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GET UP AGAIN, No. 182

Jeremiah 8:4, “Thus saith the Lord, Shall they fall, and not arise? Shall he turn away and not return?”

Have you failed recently? Or have you fallen into a hole right now? You feel stuck and don’t know how to get out. We have all been in this place. But I want to remind you that you don’t have to stay down, you don’t have to stay in your hole and you don’t have to continue feeling like a failure! God has promised that when you fall, you will rise again.

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TWO BLESSINGS FOR THE HOME, PT. 2, NO. 181

Jeremiah 6:16; “Thus saith the Lord, Stand ye in the ways and see, and ask for the old paths, where is the good way, and walk therein, and ye shall find rest for your souls, But they said, we will not walk therein.”

The second thing God wants shepherdesses to provide for their little flock is to lead them into REST.

What about rest? Does this mean the children can loaf around and do what they like? No, this is not talking about laziness. It is a rest of peacefulness. It is rest from tension and strife. The shepherdess leads her family into a restful atmosphere. Ezekiel 34:14 Knox says, “I will lead them into fair pastures, the high mountains of Israel shall be their feeding ground, the mountains of Israel, with soft grass for them to rest on.”

It is delightful to lie down in soft grass, isn’t it? Who can lie down in prickly grass? No one. The shepherdess/mother seeks to eradicate all prickliness from the atmosphere of her home. She works as a peacemaker against all contention. She leads her family to soft grass. It’s beckoning. It’s comfortable.

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TWO BLESSINGS FOR THE HOME, PT 1

Ezekiel 34:15, “I will feed my flock, and I will cause them to lie down, saith the Lord God. “

God is the true Shepherd of his flock. As we parent in His likeness, He shows us how to shepherd the little flock that He has graciously given to us. When Nehemiah went back to Jerusalem to restore and build the gates of Jerusalem he started with the Shepherds’ Gate and ended with the Shepherds’ Gate. There are many things we do as a shepherdess in watching over our flock, but there are two main things.

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Friends Shape Friends No. 179

Proverbs 13:20, "He that walks with wise men will be wise, but the companion of fools will be destroyed."

Isn't amazing how our children grow up so quickly? It seems like one blink of my eye that our eldest son (who is nearing 44 years old) was born. I don't know where the years have flown.

I remember when my children were babies, and as I experienced beautiful moments with them, I thought I would remember the moments forever. But now they are fading from my memory. My little babies grew up to be teenagers. Then they married, and now they are raising their own children. My oldest grand-daughter will soon be 21 years so maybe it won't be too many years before she is married and starts raising her children.

When my children were teens, I raised them on the above Scripture. I like the Knox translation of Proverbs 13:20 which says, "Wise company brings wisdom; fool he ends that fool befriends." How true this is. Peer pressure is a big pull upon children in their teen years. You can be the godliest parents in the world, but if your children get into the wrong company, your influence as a parent is weakened.

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PARENTS HAVE HONOR! No. 178

Leviticus 19:3, "Ye shall fear every man his mother, and his father… I am the Lord your God."

God has given honor to the status of parenthood. God is a Father and He wants His children fathered in the anointing of His fatherhood. God also has a maternal heart and He has ordained that mothers should mother with the anointing of His mother heart.

God gives many Scriptures to remind us of the honor He has placed upon parents.

Exodus 20:12, "Honor thy father and thy mother; that thy days may be long upon the land…"

Deuteronomy 5:16, "Honor thy father and thy mother, as the Lord thy God hath commanded thee; that thy days may be prolonged, and that it may go well with thee…"

So that we do not forget, this command is repeated in the New Testament in Matthew 15:4; 19:19; Mark 7:10; 10:19; Luke 18:20 and Ephesians 6:2-3.

I am always astounded by the Scripture mentioned at the beginning. Not only are children commanded to honor their parents, but to fear them. The word 'fear' that is used here is the same word that is used to 'fear' God. Do you also notice that the mother is mentioned first? Children often have a healthy respect for their father's authority but fail to honor their mother's authority. This is not God's intention. He wants children to have an awe and reverence for their mother too.

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A Constant Reminder, No. 177

Exodus 28:29, "And Aaron shall bear the names of the children of Israel in the breastplate of judgment upon his heart, when he goes in unto the holy place, for a memorial before the Lord continually."

I am always amazed at the incredible specifications God gave for the High
Priest's clothing. They were to be holy garments, made for "glory and for
beauty." A whole chapter of the Bible, Exodus chapter 28, is given to
these instructions. One of the instructions was to take two onyx stones
and grave on them the names of the children of Israel, six names on one
stone and six on the other. They were then to be set in gold and placed
in the shoulder-pieces of the ephod so that Aaron could carry these names
before the Lord as a constant reminder.

God knew the names of the tribes of Israel which represented every adult
and child in each tribe, but He wanted the names before Him continually.
In the Word of God the shoulders speak of responsibility and government.
It was the High Priest's responsibility to do this. I believe that it is
also the responsibility of parents to bring their children's names into
the presence of the Lord. We are to carry them before the Lord
continually. We often feel the weight and burden of raising children. It
can bear down upon us. But the greatest way to bear the weight is to bear
it upon our shoulders in prayer and to bring our children's names
constantly before the Lord.

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FAMILY TOGETHERNESS, NO. 176

Proverbs 18:19 Knox, "When brother helps brother, theirs the strength of a fortress, their cause is like a city gate barred, unassailable.”

God created the family unit. It was His idea. It is how He planned for mankind to live—in a family! God wants families to be strong. Strong families make a strong nation.

Satan wants families to be weak. We must beware of allowing Satan to destroy our families. Let’s face it. No family is perfect. We are trying to get along with a whole lot of sinners. Because of this, every one of us face hurts and grievances in our immediate family and in our extended family. Family members will do something that hurts. Or they will say words that pierce like a sword. Unless we walk in the spirit, it is easy to allow unforgiveness and hurt to fester in family relationships.

We cannot allow this to happen. We must be big enough to lay down our own agenda. We must say No to the flesh and allow the Holy Spirit to work in our lives. We must show grace. We must forgive. We may have to forgive again and again and again. Seventy times seven! This is God’s way and the only way that works.

Seek to strengthen your family—and your extended family of aunts, uncles and cousins. A strong extended family is a powerful force in the nation. Here is a little acrostic about Family Togetherness.

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God's Power In Your Home, No. 175

Colossians 1:11-12, "Strengthened with all might, according to his glorious power, unto all patience and longsuffering with joyfulness; giving thanks unto the Father…”

Do you need more of God’s power in your life? Do you need more of His power to help you mother each day? I have wonderful news for you. As you allow Him, God’s power is working in you mightily. Not ordinary power, but the dunamis power of God, the power of God in action which releases miracles. It is the dunamis power of God which was poured out upon the disciples when they received the Holy Spirit to take the Gospel to the uttermost part of the earth. (Acts 1:8) This is where we get the word dynamite—explosive power!

How easily we become deadened to the knowledge of the truth, the truth of God’s power that works in us. Let’s read some other Scriptures…

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