In Times Like These

Have we thought of our Father’s talk with Satan about Job?

Job 1:1-12
There was a man in the land of Uz, whose name was Job;
and that man was perfect and upright,
and one that feared God, and eschewed evil.
And there were born unto him seven sons and three daughters.
His substance also was seven thousand sheep,
and three thousand camels, and five hundred yoke of oxen,
and five hundred she asses, and a very great household;
so that this man was the greatest of all the men of the east.
And his sons went and feasted in their houses, every one his day;
and sent and called for their three sisters to eat and to drink with them.
And it was so, when the days of their feasting were gone about,
that Job sent and sanctified them, and rose up early in the morning,
and offered burnt offerings according to the number of them all:
for Job said, It may be that my sons have sinned,
and cursed God in their hearts.
Thus did Job continually.

(more…)

Published in: on March 20, 2020 at 1:44 pm  Comments (1)  
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July 19, Today’s thought — Think on These Things


Which Came First?

Good Morning

Finally, brethren, whatsoever things are true, whatsoever things are honest, whatsoever things are just, whatsoever things are pure, whatsoever things are lovely, whatsoever things are of good report; if there be any virtue, and if there be any praise, think on these things. Philippians 4:8

It is not what one does,
nor is it what one says,
but it is what one thinks that makes the man.

What one thinks determines what he will say and do. A person may try to make his words and actions to be much different than he actually thinks, but it will be all in vain. For it is still the thoughts that manage to break through the actions and the words regardless how closely they are guarded. Others can always see the soul when it is off guard.
Paul knew the human mind and character very well. He suggests that we are to think on all things that are true, honorable, just, pure, lovely, and well esteemed, all virtue, all things praiseworthy, and as these are allowed to dwell in our thoughts, they cannot help but transform us into their likeness.
from Streams in the Desert 2, Cowman

Trust God for your day . . .Today
with my prayers, desiring yours, Leslie

Published in: on July 19, 2012 at 6:04 am  Leave a Comment  
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July 17, Today’s thought — The Name of Jesus

This fig tree is from a cutting from the tree
we had on Lincoln Avenue.

We have eaten the first crop of the year.
This second crop is the heaviest for this young tree.
One of my favorite ways of eating figs
is to get really ripe figs
and mash them on a toasted everything bagel.
Yummy!

“There is salvation in no other, for there is none other name under heaven given among men whereby we must be saved” (Acts 4:12).

There is only one name that opens heaven’s doors and God’s heart—
the name of Jesus.
There is only one name that breaks the power of sin
and sets the captive free—
the name of Jesus.
There is only one name worthy of all praise,
and deserving of your allegiance—
the name of Jesus.

Early on in His public ministry the name and fame of Jesus spread like a prairie fire on a windy day. People all throughout the region—rich and poor, king and commoner, Jew and Gentile—all heard of Him; for His fame was ever-increasing.

His death on the Cross did not have the effect the rulers of the day had hoped. He rose from the dead and His followers became invincible in their faith—so much in fact that in ever-widening circles the number of disciples increased vastly in Jerusalem; and many of the Jewish priests were themselves converted as well.

Paul the Apostle, a few years later wrote, “Finally, dear brothers, as I come to the end of this letter, I ask you to pray for us. Pray first that the Lord’s message will spread rapidly and triumph wherever it goes, winning converts everywhere as it did when it came to you” (2 Thessalonians 3:1, Living Bible).

Jesus Christ!
He is peerless in His exaltation,
unrivaled in His Lordship,
incomparable in His grace,
invincible in His power,
unassisted in His work as Redeemer,
matchless in His mercy,
adored in His glory
and worshiped in the beauty of His holiness.
In His birth is our significance.
In His life is our example.
In His death is our forgiveness.
In His resurrection is our hope.
In His Second Coming is our consummate glory!

Isaiah spoke for us all when he said, “Lord, Your name and renown are the desire of our hearts” (Isaiah 28:8, NIV).  Rylie

Trust God for your day. . .Today
With my prayers, desiring yours, Leslie

Published in: on July 17, 2012 at 10:58 am  Leave a Comment  
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July 12, Today’s thought — Let Go

I love the water circles in this picture…
the cat is pretty special, too.

Good Morning

Lord, increase our faith. Luke 17:5

Faith is not clinging–it is letting go.

Somewhere we have read a story that goes like this:

“A traveler upon a lonely road was set upon by bandits who robbed him of all he dad. they then led him into the depths of the forest. There is the darkness they tied a rope to the limb of a great tree, and bade him catch hold of the end of it. Swinging him out into the blackness of surrounding space, they told him he was hanging over the brink of a giddy precipice. The moment he let go he would be dashed to pieces on the ricks below. And then they left him. His soul was filled with horror at the awful doom impending. He clutched despairingly the end of the swaying rope. But each dreadful moment only make his fate more sure. His strength steadily failed. At last he could hold on no longer. The end had come. His clenched fingers relaxed their convulsive grip. He fell—six inches, to the solid earth at his feet! It was only a ruse of the robbers to gain time in escaping. And when he let go it was not to death, but to the safety which had been waiting him through all his time of terror.”

Clutching will not save anyone from his hopelessness.
It is only Satan’s trick to keep you from being afforded
security and peace in the solid promises of God.
And all the while you are swinging over
the supposed precipice of fear and mistrust.
Let Go!
It is God’s plan that you fall–not to defeat,
but into His arms, the solid Rock.
As soon as you recognize your sheer helplessness
and your failing strength,
you let go;
and falling upon Him,
your fear goes,
your mistrust goes,
and the blessed assurance come forever.
For He–not your clinging but–
“He shall save his people from their sins.”
from ‘Streams in the Desert 2’

Trust God for your day. . .Today
With my prayers, desiring yours, Leslie

Published in: on July 12, 2012 at 1:23 pm  Leave a Comment  
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July 11, Today’s thought — Never Yet

These ‘hens and chickens’ stay where they belong,
are very quiet and don’t make a mess. . .
and they are so pretty.

Good Morning

For I am the LORD, I change not;  Malachi 3:6

God’s eye has never yet become dimmed with age;
His ear has never yet become dulled with the years;
His arms have never yet been wanting in strength,
nor have His footsteps ever faltered.
He is not changed;
He is still the same immortal,
immutable,
invincible God,
from all the ages.
He makes a commitment of Himself to me.
What a gift,
what an offering,
what a mearsureless,
boundless condescension
of the infinite God to give Himself.

Trust this God for your day . . .Today
With my prayers, desiring yours, Leslie

Published in: on July 11, 2012 at 5:54 am  Comments (2)  
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July 10, Today’s thought – God’s Love and Wisdom

Did you ever see a preying mantis ‘ghost’?
This little guy was so light green; he turned white in the flash.

Good Morning

The LORD is slow to anger, and great in power, . . .
the LORD hath his way in the whirlwind and in the storm,
and the clouds are the dust of his feet.
The LORD is good,
a strong hold in the day of trouble;
and he knoweth them that trust in him.
Nahum 1:3, 7

The fiercest wind that may blow in me
is held in the hollow of His hand.
Behind what seems cruel chance,
there is the love so wise
and wisdom so loving of our God
.

If God can send a storm through space;
And dot with trees the mountain’s face.
If He the sparrow’s course can trace,
What can He do for you?

If God can hang the stars on high,
Can paint the clouds that drift on by,
Can send the sun across the sky,
What can He do for you?

If God can send us sunny days,
And nature from her slumber raise
Till song birds lift their notes of praise.
What can He do for you?

If God can do these many things,
Can count each little bird that sings,
Control the universe that swings.
What can He do for you?

If God can bring sweet peace to be
And to my soul bring liberty,
By Christ who hung upon the tree,
This He can do for you.
G. E. Wagoner

Trust God for your day . . .Today
With my prayers, desiring yours, Leslie

Published in: on July 10, 2012 at 10:53 am  Leave a Comment  
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July 9, Today’s thought — Mourning into Joy

Looking through the fir tree at the Crepe Myrtle

Good Morning

And when she (Martha) had so said, she went her way, and called Mary her sister secretly, saying, The Master is come, and calleth for thee.
As soon as she heard that, she arose quickly, and came unto him. Now Jesus was not yet come into the town, but was in that place where Martha met him. The Jews then which were with her in the house, and comforted her, when they saw Mary, that she rose up hastily and went out, followed her, saying, She goeth unto the grave to weep there. Then when Mary was come where Jesus was, and saw him, she fell down at his feet, saying unto him, Lord, if thou hadst been here, my brother had not died. When Jesus therefore saw her weeping, and the Jews also weeping which came with her, he groaned in the spirit, and was troubled, And said, Where have ye laid him? They said unto him, Lord, come and see. John 11:28-34

“The Jews thought Mary was going to weep at the sepulchre,
and she did;
but she heard that the Master had come,
and she went first to Him
and He went with her to the grave.
He went with her first to weep
and then to turn her mourning into joy with life from the dead.
Ah! my friend, whatever we mean to do,
let us got to Jesus first.
Mary wept for her brother
and she had the sympathy of Him
whom it is our blessed privilege to claim as our Elder Brother; . . .
So, heart stricken mourner,
He knows the grief and anguish you feel;
He knows the desolations of your spirit
and its yearnings after a solace the world cannot give!
Go to the grave of your beloved one;
but as you go let not your tears so blind you,
neither so hang down your head
that you may not see that Jesus has come to sustain you.
Hear His gracious voice from beside the tomb,
“I am the Resurrection and the life.”
from Streams in the Desert 2.

We suffer grief from the loss of many different things during our lives, not just the death of a loved one. May we, too, go to Jesus early; so He will go with us every step of the way of grief.

Trust God for your day. . .Today
With my prayers, desiring yours, Leslie

Published in: on July 9, 2012 at 11:51 am  Leave a Comment  
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July 8, Sunday Bible Reading Hebrews 6:13-20

Sunflower backs.

Good Morning

Heb 6:13-20 Amplified Bible

“For when God made [His] promise to Abraham,
He swore by Himself,
since He had no one greater by whom to swear,
Saying, Blessing I certainly will bless you
and multiplying I will multiply you.
And so it was that he [Abraham],
having waited long and endured patiently,
realized and obtained
[in the birth of Isaac as a pledge of what was to come]
what God had promised him.
Men indeed swear by a greater [than themselves],
and with them in all disputes
the oath taken for confirmation is final [ending strife].
Accordingly God also,
in His desire to show more convincingly and beyond doubt
to those who were to inherit the promise
the unchangeableness of His purpose and plan,
intervened (mediated) with an oath.
This was so that,
by two unchangeable things [His promise and His oath]
in which it is impossible for God ever
to prove false or deceive us,
we who have fled [to Him] for refuge
might have mighty indwelling strength and strong encouragement
to grasp and hold fast the hope
appointed for us and set before [us].
[Now] we have this [hope]
as a sure and steadfast anchor of the soul
[it cannot slip and
it cannot break down under whoever steps out upon it–a hope]
that reaches farther
and enters into [the very certainty of the Presence]
within the veil,
Where Jesus has entered in for us [in advance],
a Forerunner having become a High Priest forever
after the order (with the rank) of Melchizedek.”

Trust God for your day. . . Today
With my prayers, desiring yours, Leslie

Published in: on July 8, 2012 at 6:00 am  Leave a Comment  
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July 7, Today’s thought — Devotion

I asked Emily to take a picture of me knitting – Margaret caught us in the act. This Picture makes me smile.

Good Morning

I know that, whatsoever God doeth,
it shall be for ever:
nothing can be put to it,
nor any thing taken from it:
and God doeth it,
that men should fear before him. Ecclesiastes 3:14

Devotion

The heart can think of no devotion
Greater than being shore to ocean –
Holding the curve of one position,
Counting an endless repetition.
Robert Frost

God endures – holds one position; so we can have hope of enduring until the end.

Matthew 10:22 . . .but he that endureth to the end shall be saved.

Trust God for your day. . . Today
With my prayers, desiring yours, Leslie

Published in: on July 7, 2012 at 6:00 am  Leave a Comment  
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July 5, Today’s thought — Leave the Edge

Have you seen the Farmer’s hat, yet?
He calls it his umbrella. Thanks, Dan.

Good Morning

So let us go on to grown-up teaching.
Let us not go back over the beginning lessons
we learned about Christ. Hebrews 6:1

I like the story of the little boy who fell out of bed.
When his Mom asked him what happened,
he answered,
“I don’t know. I guess I stayed too close to where I got in.”

Easy to do the same with our faith.
It’s tempting just to stay where we got in and never move.
Pick a time in the not-too-distant past.
A year or two ago.
Now ask yourself a few questions.
How does your prayer life today compare with then?
How about your giving?
Have the amount and the joy increased?
What about your church loyalty?
Can you tell you’ve grown?
And Bible study?
Are you learning to learn?. . .
Don’t make the mistake of the little boy.
Don’t stay too close to where you got in.
It’s risky resting on the edge.
When God Whispers Your Name – Max Lucado

Therefore leaving the principles of the doctrine of Christ,
let us go on unto perfection;
not laying again the foundation of repentance from dead works,
and of faith toward God,   Hebrews 6:1

Trust God for your day. . .Today
With my prayers, desiring yours, Leslie

Published in: on July 5, 2012 at 10:26 am  Leave a Comment  
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