Tag Archives: peace

Aug23

Random ( hopefully inspired ) Thought

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I have hidden Thy word in my heart.
(Picture by Lisa R)

Joshua 4. “Then you shall let your children know, saying, ‘Israel crossed over this Jordan on dry land’; for the Lord your God dried up the waters of the Jordan before you until you had crossed over, as the Lord your God did to the Red Sea, which He dried up before us until we had crossed over, that all the peoples of the earth may know the hand of the Lord , that it is  mighty, that you may fear the Lord your God forever” (Verses 22-24). Remember.  Remember what God has done. Teach the next generation so that they may fear and love Him too. Many times we forget how we achieved our goals. We forget that it was God who brought us out of darkness and placed us in the light. We begin to believe the praise and pretty words of others. We begin to believe that we did it on our own. Joshua wanted the people to remember ALL the blessings came from God. It is the same for us… ALL the things we have been blessed with came from God. There is no such thing as a self-made person everyone has had help and that help was God’s hand reaching out to us. So today remember what God has done. Then thank Him.

Aug17

Random ( hopefully inspired ) Thought

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I have hidden Thy word in my heart.
(Picture by Lisa R)

Deuteronomy 32. “Then the Lord spoke to Moses that very same day, saying: ‘Go up this mountain of the Abarim, Mount Nebo, which is in the land of Moab, across from Jericho; view the land of Canaan, which I give to the children of Israel as a possession; and die on the mountain which you ascend, and be gathered to your people, just as Aaron your brother died on Mount Hor and was gathered to his people; because you trespassed against Me among the children of Israel at the waters of Meribah Kadesh, in the Wilderness of Zin, because you did not hallow Me in the midst of the children of Israel. Yet you shall see the land before you, though you shall not go there, into the land which I am giving to the children of Israel’” (Verses 48-52). Ahhh, the graciousness of God. Moses disobeyed and paid the penalty, he does not get to enter the promise land. Could you imagine! God calls you, sets you apart and tells you He’s going to use you to save His people, to bring them into the promise land. You wonder for forty years (because of the disobedience of others). Then just near entering you learn that your own disobedience has disqualified you! I would be heart broken, as I am sure Moses was. But God was not unaware of that, so He blessed Moses with the opportunity to at least see the land. Here’s what I realized: I don’t want to be disqualified. I don’t want to miss what God has for me. I am realizing that I have missed so much already because of pride, disobedience, and fear. As I embark on this new journey with God I am encouraged because the same GRACIOUS God that allowed Moses to at least see the promise land, is the same God who goes before me. However, unlike Moses I want to possess my promise land not just look at it. I pray that not just for me, but for all who read this today. Blessings.

Aug16

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Deuteronomy 31. “And the Lord said to Moses: ‘Behold, you will rest with your fathers; and this people will rise and play the harlot with the gods of the foreigners of the land, where they go to  be among them, and they will forsake Me and break My covenant which I have made with them. Then My anger shall be aroused against them in that day, and I will forsake them, and I will hide My face from them, and they shall be devoured. And many evils and troubles shall befall them, so that they will say in that day, Have not these evils come upon us because our God is  not among us? And I will surely hide My face in that day because of all the evil which they have done, in that they have turned to other gods'” (Verses 16-18). These verses stood out. Why? God knew Israel was going to be disobedient, He knew they were going to serve other gods and break His heart. But despite knowing all this He still called them His chosen people. He still freed them from slavery. And every single time they repented, He forgave. His mercy and grace is as active now as it was then. He gave His only son to prove that point. In return we should do our best to not break His heart.

Aug8

Random ( hopefully inspired ) Thought

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I have hidden Thy word in my heart. (Picture by Lisa R)

I have hidden Thy word in my heart.
(Picture by Lisa R)

Deuteronomy 27. ” And the Levites shall speak with a loud voice and say to all the men of Israel: ‘Cursed is the one who makes a carved or molded image, an abomination to the Lord , the work of the hands of the craftsman, and sets it up in secret.’ And all the people shall answer and say, ‘Amen!’ ‘Cursed is the one who treats his father or his mother with contempt.’ And all the people shall say, ‘Amen!’ ‘Cursed is the one who moves his neighbor’s landmark.’ And all the people shall say, ‘Amen!’ ‘Cursed is the one who makes the blind to wander off the road.’ And all the people shall say, ‘Amen!’ ‘Cursed is the one who perverts the justice due the stranger, the fatherless, and widow.’ And all the people shall say, ‘Amen!’ ‘Cursed is the one who lies with his father’s wife, because he has uncovered his father’s bed.’ And all the people shall say, ‘Amen!’ ‘Cursed is the one who lies with any kind of animal.’ And all the people shall say, ‘Amen!’ ‘Cursed is the one who lies with his sister, the daughter of his father or the daughter of his mother.’ And all the people shall say, ‘Amen!’ ‘Cursed is the one who lies with his mother-in-law.’ And all the people shall say, ‘Amen!’ ‘Cursed is the one who attacks his neighbor secretly.’ And all the people shall say, ‘Amen!’ ‘Cursed is the one who takes a bribe to slay an innocent person.’ And all the people shall say, ‘Amen!’ ‘Cursed is the one who does not confirm all the words of this law by observing them.’ And all the people shall say, ‘Amen!’” (Verses 14-26). Today’s reading is long, however, I encourage you to read it. Then after you read ask yourself this question: “What does this resemble?” If your answer is the present age, then you’d be correct. We have made it our business, our number one goal to live life opposite of how God has commanded us to live. The motto of the word…”If t feels good. Do it.” We do what we want then have the audacity to ask God why He won’t bless us or why bad things happen. He said obedience leads to peace and disobedience leads to destruction. Why is the world in disarray? Disobedience. If we want peace we need to listen and do what He says, PERIOD.

Aug4

Random ( hopefully inspired ) Thought

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I have hidden Thy word in my heart. (Picture by Lisa R)

Deuteronomy 23. “When you make a vow to the Lord your God, you shall not delay to pay it; for the Lord your God will surely require it of you, and it would be sin to you. But if you abstain from vowing, it shall not be sin to you. That which has gone from your lips you shall keep and perform, for you voluntarily vowed to the Lord your God what you have promised with your mouth” (Verses 21-23). Don’t say it if you don’t mean it. If you do say it, own it. We are to be people of our word. We should have integrity. That word is almost extinct in our “sweet talk” culture. We say what people want to hear to get what we want, then find loop holes to renege on promises we have made. That’s not what we are called to do. Our word should be our bond. Live a life that allows another to trust you and take you at your word.

Jul29

Random ( hopefully inspired ) Thought

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I have hidden Thy word in my heart.
(Picture by Lisa R)

Deuteronomy 18. “But the prophet who presumes to speak a word in My name, which I have not commanded him to speak, or who speaks in the name of other gods, that prophet shall die. And if you say in your heart, ‘How shall we know the word which the Lord has not spoken?’— when a prophet speaks in the name of the Lord , if the thing does not happen or come to pass, that is the thing which the Lord has not spoken; the prophet has spoken it presumptuously; you shall not be afraid of him” (Verses 20-22). How can you tell the truth from a lie? If someone says God says this,  or God says that. But it doesn’t happen,  then it wasn’t God. Because if God said He is going to do it,  He DOES… EVERYTIME.

Jul28

Random ( hopefully inspired ) Thought

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I have hidden Thy word in my heart.
(Picture by Lisa R)

Deuteronomy 17. “When you come to the land which the Lord your God is giving you, and possess it and dwell in it, and say, ‘I will set a king over me like all the nations that are around me,’ you shall surely set a king over you whom the Lord your God chooses; one  from among your brethren you shall set as king over you; you may not set a foreigner over you, who is not your brother. But he shall not multiply horses for himself, nor cause the people to return to Egypt to multiply horses, for the Lord has said to you, ‘You shall not return that way again.’ Neither shall he multiply wives for himself, lest his heart turn away; nor shall he greatly multiply silver and gold for himself. Also it shall be, when he sits on the throne of his kingdom, that he shall write for himself a copy of this law in a book, from the  one  before the priests, the Levites. And it shall be with him, and he shall read it all the days of his life, that he may learn to fear the Lord his God and be careful to observe all the words of this law and these statutes, that his heart may not be lifted above his brethren, that he may not turn aside from the commandment to the right hand or to the left, and that he may prolong his days in his kingdom, he and his children in the midst of Israel” (Verses 14-20). If I were to give these six verses a title it would be, “The Guide to True Leadership”. I preference by stating that no (earthly) king, including David has been obedient to the words written in these verses. Only Christ, the One TRUE King. Oddly God didn’t ask for anything extravagant. He asked them live as the people (be humble), don’t lord power over the people. Then God said, “one wife”, lest your heart be torn (yeah no one followed this law). Finally He told them write the law down and keep it ever before their eyes. So they wouldn’t depart from it.  Uhmmm… just in case you believe these standards of leadership to be just for then, you’re wrong. Leaders should be humble. They should be people whom their spouses and loved ones can trust. Whose character their followers can rely on. They should obey the laws they are called to uphold. Why? God said so.

Jul27

Random ( hopefully inspired ) Thought

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I have hidden Thy word in my heart. (Picture by Lisa R)

Deuteronomy 16. “You shall not pervert justice; you shall not show partiality, nor take a bribe, for a bribe blinds the eyes of the wise and twists the words of the righteous. You shall follow what is altogether just, that you may live and inherit the land which the Lord your God is giving you” (Verses 19-20). Ever been tempted to compromise? To turn a blind eye in exchange for something you may want or need? We all at some point have (don’t pretend, you know it’s true). Here’s the problem with compromise, it’s like potato chips, you can’t stop at just one. Once you give in you keep doing it. Take a stand! Right is right… NO MATTER WHAT. Let your justice be JUST.