Have You Polished Your Armor Lately?

I know that I am taking a departure from the "Love Letters" that I have been writing, but this week, as I have been reading the Word, I was reminded that God has given us every tool we need to fight against the "powers of darkness in the heavenly places (Ephesians 6)." 

Take Gideon (Judges 6-7), God called him a mighty man of valor and told him that he would defeat the Midianites and the other nations round about them that had been besieging them for years. Gideon called for men fron the tribes of Manasseh, Asher, Zebulon, and Naphtali to come stand with him to fight their invaders. Thirty-two thousand men came.  But God said there were too many for them to know that He had given them the victory. So Gideon told all who were fearful, or anxious to go home. Twenty-two thousand left, but God Still said there were too many. So He had them all go to the stream that they were camped near and told Gideon to watch how they drank from the stream. If they brought their hands to their mouths, being watchful of their surroundings,  they were His chosen warriors.

 There were 300 who drank as God had chosen, so He told Gideon to send the rest home; and he did. But then he thought maybe God had it wrong ... that he didn't have enough men, or experience,  or the right tools. Whatever his doubts were, he had them in spades.

But God had instilled fear in the hearts of the Midianite army and He wanted Gideon to know it. So He sent Gideon down to the edge of the opposing army to listen as they spoke of their dreams.  God showed Gideon their fear and told him how his army of 300 men would win the battle in His power and might. Now Israel knows that God had fought for them. 

Let's take look at Moses (Exodus 4), he doubted that he was the man God needed to send to lead Israel out of Egypt. But God told him to look at what he held in his hand. God transformed the staff of an ordinary shepherd into a tool of wonderous, heavenly signs. 

God gave each of these men, and every other man of God throughout the Bible, exactly the tools and encouragement they needed to accomplish what He had called them to do ... and He does the same for us, too.

For us, God has gifted us His armor as our protective, offensive and defensive,  weapons (Ephesians 6:10-20).  Let's read this passage in the Complete Jewish Bible;

"Finally, grow powerful in union with the Lord, in union with His mighty strength! Use all the armor and weaponry that God provides, so that you will be able to stand against the deceptive tactics of the Adversary.  For we are not struggling against human beings, but against the rulers, authorities, and cosmic powers governing this darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realm. So take up every piece of war equipment God provides; so that when the evil day comes, you will be able to resist; and when the battle is won, you will still be standing.

"Therefore, stand! Having the belt of truth buckled around your waist, put righteousness for a breastplate, and wear on your feet the readiness that comes from The Good News of shalom. Always carry the shield of trust, with which you will be able to extinguish all the flaming arrows of the Evil One. And take the helmet of deliverance; along with the sword given by the Spirit, that is the (spoken) Word of God; as you pray at all times, with all kinds of prayers and requests, in the Spirit, vigilantly and persistently,  for all of God's people.

"And pray for me, too, that whenever I open my mouth, the words will be given to me to be bold in making known the secret of the God's News, for which I am an ambassador in chains. Pray that I may speak boldly, the way I should.

The apostle Paul told us that God has given us every weapon that we would need to stand against the devil and take from him what he has stolen from us ... our Heavenly Armor. When we are instructed to do so, we put our armor on. And we are never told to take it off. But have you polished your armor lately???

When we look at armies down through the ages, we see that every soldier keeps his weapons and protective gear in good repair. And yet, I don't think I have ever thought, even once, that I should be keeping my Heavenly Armor clean, polished and in good working order. God showed me this when He asked me this morning, "Have you polished your armor lately?" I had to truthfully answer, "no."

So, how do we polish our Heavenly Armor ... how do we keep it in good repair? 

What came to my mind are the following ways to "polish" our armor:

    Belt of truth -Look at the picture of the belt that Roman soldiers wore. See how they added the protective covering to their private parts? In most ancient cultures children were not just the outcome of a marital union, they were a sign that their gods had blessed them, so they protected that which was important to their survival. God wants us to surround ourselves with His truth, like a belt around our waist. He desires that there be no deception in or around us. When we practice being truthful in all things and avoiding deception in all we do and say, we are polishing our Belt of Truth. Not only that, but we, as His children, are His most important heritage, just as children were in ancient times.

    Breastplate of Righteousness - Righteousness is being in right standing or relationship with God. Having His righteousness as our breastplate, covering and protecting our heart, means that we are totally focused on living our lives sold out for Jesus and dwelling under the shadow of His wings, as Psalm 91 states;

"When you abide under the shadow of El Shaddai, you are hidden in the strength of God Most High. He's the hope that holds me and the stronghold to shelter me, the only God for me, and my great confidence. He will rescue you from every hidden trap of the enemy, and He will protect you from every false accusation and deadly curse. His massive arms are wrapped around you,, protecting you. You can run under His covering of majesty and hide. His arms of faithfulness are a shield keeping you from harm. Psalm 91:1-4. So living IS keeping His righteousness clean and polished.

    Readiness of the Gospel of His Shalom - although the KJV says peace, but the Hebrew word Shalom has more depth to it than what we give to the word peace.  Shalom means nothing missing, to that is added the authority that abolishes all chaos ... all destruction. So having our feet covered in His perfect Shalom prepares us to walk out prepared for the work He has called us to do. That said, keeping our shoes of His Shalom polished and in good repair is to keep His instruction and walk in His ways. Leviticus 26:3-6 Amplified Bible, says, 

"If you walk in My statutes and keep My commandments and (obediently) do them, then I will give you rain in its season, and the land will yield her produce and the trees of the field will bear their fruit. And your threshing season will last until the grape gathering and the grape gathering (time) will last until planting, and you will eat your bread and be filled and live securely in your land. I will also grant peace (Shalom) in the land, and no sword will pass through your land."

    Shield of trust (faith) - Ultimately, faith in God is Trusting Him with our lives. If we trusted Jesus enough to ask for His salvation,  shouldn't we trust Him to shield us from all of the enemy's attacks? To keep us safe and alive? So how do we keep our trust in Him "bullet proof?" Romans 10:17, Amplified Bible, says;

"So faith (trust) comes by hearing [what is told], and what is heard comes by the [preaching of the] message concerning Christ."

The more we hear spoken of Jesus, the more our faith - our trust in Him - grows. So keeping our trust strong requires that we sit at the feet of a teacher who speaks God's Word  ... who preaches accurately of Jesus our Savior and all that He did and said.

Helmet of Salvation - I love this imagery, our salvation covers our head - our ears, minds,  eyes, etc.- this tells me that God wants to guard our thoughts, what we see and what we hear with His loving care for us, sealed with the blood of His salvation. So how do we shine up our helmets? How do we knock out the dents from Satan's attacks We? We give Him thanks and praise for what He accomplished on the cross with His shed blood ... continuously. Our praise, adoration and thanksgiving let the Lord know what we think of Him and strengthens our helmets.

    The Sword of the Spirit - This is the Rehma, the spoken Word of God. Remember when we looked at the Shield of Trust (Faith)? We learned that trust is built by hearing God's Word.  So of we speak His Word into situations, then we are also hearing His Word. Thus building up our trust and also shining up and sharpening our swords. 

    All Prayer for God's people  - Prayer is the tie that binds all of our armor in place and together. Praying constantly covers us with His grace and protection, giving us Holy Boldness. Continuously praying is how we keep this weapon sharp and in good repair. 

So, now that we have looked at proper care for our God given armor, if we do these things we will be better prepared to stand our ground - and take back ground from - the forces of evil who are working to destroy this world.

Did you notice that there is no piece of armor that covers your back? This is because He has designed it so that another brother or sister stands back to back with you in the fight.  Literally having your back!

Did you also notice that most of our armor is defensive in nature? Only His spoken Word and Prayer are offensive weapons. And prayer works both offensively and defensively.  

So polish up your armor and stand strong ... fighting in the power of His Might!

Until next time, 

Leigh

Love Letters - Letter 5

Dear Lord, 

I give You praise and thanks for all that You teach me. Just this morning You showed me new things, things I had never seen and known before, in Your Word.

In 2 Corinthians 12 Paul is telling them that their (our) boasting is fruitless, it accomplishes nothing. 

On this same subject, the prophet Jeremiah said, 

  "... instead,  let the boaster boast about this: that he understands and knows Me - that I am Adonai,   practicing grace, justice and righteousness in the land; for in these things I take pleasure, " says   Adonai. " Jeremiah 9:24 CJB.

I like the way the Message Bible puts it, but let's start at verse 23. "God's message: 'Don't let the wise brag of their wisdom. Don't let heroes brag of their exploits. Don't let the rich brag of their riches. If you brag, brag of this and this only: That you know Me. I'm God, and I act in loyal love. I do what's right and set things right and fair, and I delight in those who do the same things. 

These are My trademarks.' God's Decree."

This was an eye-opener,  Lord. But another eye opening thing of note is that too many of us are trying to walk out in Your strength using someone else's giftings ... wearing someone else's armor. But You have made us each uniquely and given us equally unique gifts all of our own. Why would we want to try using what You have clearly given to someone else? Maybe it is because we are weak in the area that You would choose to use and gift us in. 

David understood that he could not fight Your battle wearing Saul's armor. It didn't fit him as it wasn't made for him. Not only didn't it fit, but he wasn't used to wearing armor ... he was used to walking out to fight his enemies with You to protect him.  He knew You were a better covering than any man made armor. David also understood what Paul taught the Corinthians,

 " ... but He told me, 'My grace is enough for you, for My power is brought to perfection in weakness.' Therefore, I am very happy to boast about my weaknesses, in order that Messiah's power will rest upon me." 2 Corinthians 12:9 CJB

HOW AWESOME, to know that we can trust that Your power will rest upon us when we acknowledge our weaknesses and trust in You for our protection.

I love that You do this for us!

Your Loving Daughter, 

Leigh

Love Letters to the Lord - Letter 4

 

Dear Lord,

I love it when You teach me new thing in scripture passages that are familiar to me. This morning, You took me to Matthew chapter 5, the Sermon on the Mount. 

I always thought that when You spoke about the many different "blessed areas" that they were many different types of people and the things that made them blessed in Your sight. But, this morning, I saw a different way - probably the very way - that You intended us to view these blessed people. This passage is Your portrait of how You view ALL of your children ... how You want us to view ourselves. They aren't many different people, but different aspects - different facets - You intend each of us to exhibit. So Lord, I want to quote back to You showed me that I could and should be.

Matthew 5:1-13 - as I read it;

 When Y'shua saw that His teachings were drawing large crowds, He and His disciples climbed up a hillside. When He reached a natural amphitheater dotted with trees, He sat down and taught all that had followed Him there. This is what He taught:

 When you have reached a spiritual drought, remember that you can be joyful, filled with the Joy of the Lord; because when you have run out of options, God will show you His Kingdom plan for that moment.

 When you are mourning the loss of a loved one, remember that, even now, you can be full of My Joy; because you will always have The One you love most there to wrap His arms around you and your arms around HIm in your sorrow.

 When you have found your contentment in Me, you are filled with My Joy; for you have found your balance point for a Spirit-filled life ... a life filled with My plans, My purposes and the Fruit of My Spirit flowing out from your daily walk.

 When you are continuously hungry for more of My Righteousness ... more of Me, when you thirst for deeper wells of My peace - for the New Wine of My Spirit, you are filled with My joy; for only I can satisfy your desires for more. And satisfy you, I will!

 When you express My tender mercy and loving kindness, you are filled with My Joy; for you know that I have showered My loving kindness and mercy on you, and I will continue to do so and you do likewise.

 When you teach others to walk in My perfect Shalom (a life without chaos, that lacks nothing), you are filled with My Joy; for those around you will see that you are truly a child of The King - My child.

 When you are persecuted for doing what is Right, remember that you can be filled with My Joy; for you are living in My Kingdom here and now on this earth. Your commitment to My Ways through the hard times drives you long for more closeness to Me and My Kingdom.

 Be filled with My Joy whenever you are put down, when others - who are outside the Family - throw you out, slander your character speaking all kinds of evil about you because of your love for Me. Jump for Joy, because I will reward you greatly for all of your faithfulness. Remember that al of the prophets were also treated like this, so you are in fine company.

 You, My children, are the salt that seasons the lives around you, that bring them robust flavor. When you lose sight of all the ways that you can find My Joy, you actually become tasteless; how can that flavor be returned to your life? Life without the flavor you can bring to it is worthless; it will cause you be thrown out into the street for those around you to trampled upon. So find your TRUE Joy in Me and keep your focus - keep your eyes centered on ME!

Lord, thank You for showing me how I should be looking at life to find Your Joy. Help me to live in it as I walk through my daily life ... today, tomorrow and Always.

Your loving daughter,

Leigh

Love Letters to the Lord - Letter 3

Dear Lord,

In the Garden of Eden, when You created mankind, You made us keepers of the Garden. That word keeper is the same Hebrew word translated as protector and watchman. This position of "keeper" was to cover the whole of Your creation, as You gave us dominion over them when You asked Adam to name them. This dominion was Your Kingdom authority to watch over the earth and all of it's inhabitants. It must have grieved You greatly when he gave it all away in that moment that he sinned their in that Garden of Your creation.

I am so glad that You made a Way for us to regain that position of authority when You gave us Jesus. When He died upon the cross and rose from the dead, He took back from Satan the keys of authority that You had given to Adam in the Garden. 

Jesus, when He taught His disciples to pray in what we call the Lord's Prayer, taught them to call forth Your Kingdom to be here on earth. Then on the day of Pentecost, You gave them the power they needed to wield Your authority once more here on earth. But we, the church in this day, are so lacking in Your authority.  We need to learn these lessons that the first disciples learned.

Lord, teach us to pray with Your authority.  Fill us to overflowing with Your Holy Spirit, so that we can take our place of dominion over Your creation.

I thank You that I have recently learned that the word translated in th Bible as "church" is the Greek word ekklesia. It does not mean what so long I have thought it meant ... it really means a seat- or place - of government. You meant for us - Your body -  to govern, or take dominion over, Your creation. And this we do with our prayers. We are the watchmen on the wall that the prophet Ezekiel called for in Isreal so long ago. A modern day prophet like Ezekiel, Dutch Sheets, has lifted up this "call to arms" to the church in this hour. And we are here, as Esther of old, "for such a time as this." Let us pray with her, "if I perish, I perish." But let us stand in the gap for this nation, America, and ALL of Your creation.

Lord, You gave a word in service last Sunday that I know You meant for a wider audience than just our congregation,  so I will share it here,

As we were singing I could hear the Lord saying, you want to see my kingdom come. You want to see the walls break down. But you are my kingdom. You are my presence here on Earth, and you're holding on to the walls you stay within them like they protect you, but I protect you. You have to break out of this place, you have to walk forth, and share my kingdom in this world. You are my presence and my kingdom cannot go out unless you go out, you go out, take my glory with you everywhere you go, present my word to others. Everywhere you go and heaven will come down, but it will not come unless you break out and walk out in faith.

Lord, thank You for this calling You have placed on Your body. May we be faithful to walk out in it!

Your daughter,

Leigh

Love Lerrers to the Lord - Letter 2

Dear Lord, 

As You know, this morning,  as a part of my time spent with You, I was reading Psalms 23. This is among my favorites, as it teaches us our position in You and where Satan sits ... just beyond and below us, but still within sight of Your bountiful table. It is beautiful and I love the imagery.  

But I felt that there was something more You wanted me to see within its lines. So I reread it in a different translation  - the Passion Translation  [TPT]. I found it so rich that I wanted to quote it back to You here.

1. The Lord is my Best Friend and Shepherd.  I always have more than enough.

2. He offers a resting place for me in His luxurious love.

His tracks take me to an oasis of peace, the quiet brook of bliss.

3. That's where He restores and revives my life. He opens before me pathways to God's pleasure and leads me along in His footsteps of righteousness so that I can bring honor to His name.

4. Lord, even when Your path takes me through the valley of deepest darkness,  fear will never conquer me, for You lead me through it all the way.

Your authority is my strength and my peace (shalom). The comfort of Your love takes away my fear. I'll never be lonely, for You are near.

5. You become my delicious feast even when my enemies dare to fight. You anoint me with the fragrance of Your Holy Spirit; You give me all I can drink of You until my heart overflows. 

6. So why should I fear the future? For Your goodness and love pursue me all the days of my life. 

Then afterward,  when my life is through, I'll return to Your glorious presence to be forever with You.

How awesome is this picture, Lord. I found it really bringing depth to my understanding of this Psalm I have always loved.

In verse 4, I  added shalom in parentheses as it means so much more than we think of when we say peace. It means total order and absence of chaos. So often I have forgotten that You remove chaos from our lives that I just wallow in it. But You are my peace which passes ALL understanding. 

Thank You, Lord!

Your daughter, 

Leigh 

Love Letters to The Lord * Love Letter No. 1

 

Dear Lord,

I thank you for your amazing love and grace.

As I read in Matthew 14:22 - 23 and in Luke 5: 12 - 16, I see where you went away by yourself - even leaving your disciples behind  - to spend time with the Father. So Lord, as I long to be as close to You as You were to Your Father, I choose to spend time alone with You as often as I can. Continue to hide me under the shadow of Your wings ... in Your most secret of hiding places, yet never afraid to venture forth to bring others alongside as I journey to the High Places of Your Kingdom.

Let us be ever vigilant to bring Your Kingdom to this earth so that others may see what we have and long to join us.

I  sing of Your wonderous love and mercy as I read through Psalms 91, longing to dwell in Your secret places.

From under the shelter of Your wings,

Your daughter,

Leigh

New for this Season ... this New Year we have barely begun

 OK if you are on of my Facebook friends, then you may have read that I feel lead of the Lord to share with you some of the Love Letters to the Lord that I write during my daily devotions. This Sharing starts today. Will this go through the whole year? Will there be a new "Letter" everyday? I don't know, only our Father knows the plans He has for this. So I will follow His leading and we will learn together just where all of this will go.

For the remainder of February I am participating with a group of Christian women in a study on Discernment. Today's reading was from 1 Kings 3:3-14, where God comes to Solomon in a dream and asks what he wants from God's hand. I loved the answer he gave God as it is written in The Message Bible in verse 9 of this passage. It reads,

“Here’s what I want: Give me a God-listening heart so I can lead your people well, discerning the difference between good and evil. For who on their own is capable of leading your glorious people?”

This is my prayer for myself and for each of my followers. Let us all seek a "God-listening heart."

Walk with me and read the letters that I write to the Lord, seeking to learn more of Him as we journey together.

Journey to the Cross and Beyond

*All Scripture herein is quoted from the One New Mine Bible.

On Friday, May 3, 2019, as I was having my appointed time with the Lord, He opened my eyes to a new view of our walk in Christ. He has shown me that Salvation is a journey and not a destination. So walk with me as I share with you this Journey to the Cross and Beyond.

All of mankind has been in bondage in a spiritual Egypt of the soul since the fall of Adam and Eve in God’s Garden. Each of us is shackled by those things which keep us from knowing, serving, and loving Our God. Yet, deep in our heart of hearts, there is a small remembrance of God, even if we have never heard of Him or His boundless Love and Grace.

One day, as we are going about our normal lives, we may find we are in need of someone to rescue us, so we begin seeking as we hope for release from our sorrow and despair. We hear of God’s mighty acts and matchless love. This brings us to a crossroads, a choice to make a change in our lives, and we begin to trust. He has taken us from Egypt and started us down the pathway to Calvary.

But our faith in Him is weak and we may wander from His path into the Desert of Sin. This is a barren land, lifeless and dry. It contains many pitfalls and fills our hearts with dread and fear. Thus wandering therein we drag around the chains of our past, even though God has broken the locks asunder in order to release us from them. But there is a mountain on the horizon … it is Sinai.

Gradually we come to the foot of that mount and learn of our sin as God’s law opens our eyes. Having found some rest and relief in this new knowledge, we long to continue our Journey to The Promised Land, that Eternal Garden of God. So off we trod once more.

On this journey there are many hills and valleys and a few places which seem barren and lifeless. As we travel we find that time spent in the valleys are times of spiritual growth, for the watering of God’s Holy Spirit floods through our souls. As we leave the valley, we ascend to the mountain heights. Once above the trees, beyond the rivers of life, we find hardships on the way to the summit; rocks and downed trees which block the path and pits that we must find a way across or around, each with their lessons to learn. The tallest of these mounts we all must climb; for it is Golgotha, the place of Jesus’ cross. It is here that we make the most important choice of our lives. That choice is to leave behind the sins of our past and all of the burdens that we carry, everything that hinders our walk with Jesus, at the foot of His cross and continue on in His life everlasting.

Once we have laid down those sins and burdens, we pick up Jesus’ cross. We never walk alone, nor do we carry His cross by ourselves; for He walks beside us, carrying the biggest share of the load. We can read this in Matthew 11:28-30, “Come to me, all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take yoke upon you, and learn of Me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.”

Though we are not physically in God’s Eternal Promised Land, we are allowed entrance to it within our spirit. We can experience its reality therein whenever we choose. This is done when we lift our voices in praise and worship the Lord, as the Psalmist noted in Psalm 100:4, “Enter His gates with thanksgiving and His courts with praise! Give thanks to Him; and bless His name!” For when we are saved, He begins within us and we in Him. There He will remain in residence unless we choose to walk away from Him and in the wilderness; leaving Him outside our hearts and lives. For He has promised in Hebrews 13:5 b, “I will never leave you nor forsake you.”

Since I allowed Jesus into my life, I have wandered from Him many times. Yet after each season of wandering, I have once again climbed Calvary, repented of my sin, laid my burdens at Jesus' feet and taken again my place beside Him, carrying is cross, yes sharing His yoke, once more. Allowing Him to share all of my thoughts and fears. He once again gave me His rest and renewed His Spirit within me.

Today I long to stay on His Heavenly Highway, though I often make time along the way to climb Mount Zion, entering into His Heavenly Temple/Throne Room to give Him praise. This is the place in which King David danced in worship before the Lord in his complete praise and adoration of Him as the Ark of the Covenant was brought into Jerusalem and into its new tabernacle on Mount Zion (2 Samuel chapter 6).

To recap, we each start out in bondage to our sin. We learn of our sin at the foot of Mount Sinai where we learn of God, His law and our sin. After we climb Mount Calvary lay down our sin at the foot of His cross and enter into His rest, His spiritual Promised Land, also called Heaven. ON our journey we experience trials and tribulations which produces growth within our Spirit. And Jesus is our victory in each and every one. We are allowed entrance into His Throne Room at any time by our songs of praise and thanksgiving. While there we are refreshed in body, soul, and spirit by His living water … the Wine of His Holy Spirit.

So, it isn’t a choice between Sinai or Calvary. No, both mountains are necessary in our Christian Walk. It is a choice for Love and Life, of Worshiping and Service or Death/Eternal separation from God. By to love God, we are also choosing to keep His law as is written in John 14:15, “If you love me, you will keep My commandments.” And again in verse 21, “Whoever has my commandments and keeps them, he it is who loves Me. And he who loves Me will be loved by My Father, and I will love Him and manifest Myself to him.”

His commandments, which are deeper than the Torah that Moses brought down from Mount Sinai, are these:

And one of the scribes came up and heard them disputing with one another, and seeing that He has answered them well, asked Him, “Which commandment is the most important of all? Jesus answered, “The most important is, “Hear, Oh Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is One. And you shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your mind and with all your strength.” The second is this: “You shall love your neighbor as yourself.” There is no commandment greater than these. Mark 12:28-31

This conversation also appears in Matthew 22:34-40, verse 40 reads, “On these two commandments depend all the Law and the Prophets.” So by keeping these two commandments that Jesus declared were the greatest, we are keeping the spirit of the entire Law of Moses.

I have chosen to love Him, to keep His commandments, and to serve Him all of my days and in everything that I do …

Have you?

Thank You, Lord for sharing this insight with me. Thank You for allowing me to share it with others. And Thank You for saving my soul!

Amen!

All The Way With Jesus

Though life's storms may batter me

And their flood water's deluge

I have a firm foundation

I am founded, my Lord, in You

You are the solid Rock

The High Place upon which I stand

I seek no other refuge

For I'm holding onto Your hand

We walk together in the daylight

And in the darkness, too

For You are the Light of Life

I draw my strength from You

When the times are difficult

And I seem in dread defeat

I will press in a little closer

Ever sitting at Your feet

You are always here to guide me

To teach me all Your Truth

No, You never will forsake me

While I dwell in You

When this day has ended

And time is no more

We will ever be Best Friended

As we walk along Heaven's shore

He has shown you, O man, what is good;
And what does the Lord require of you
But to do justly,
To love mercy,
And to walk humbly with your God?

Micah 6:8, NKJV

Leigh

3-26-2019

Finding Joy In Light of Events Soon to Come

“...Hear, O Lord, and have mercy on me; Lord, be my helper! You have turned for me my mourning into dancing; You have put off my sackcloth and clothed me with gladness, To the end that my glory may sing praise to You and not be silent. O Lord my God, I will give thanks to You forever.

Psalms 30:10-12, NKJV”

As many of you know, I traveled east with my oldest brother, Dave, last summer and fall so that I could visit with my mom and youngest brother, Kenn in Tennessee and then attend my grandson’s wedding in Kentucky in late September. I arrived back in Carson City, Nevada October 4^th.

In early November the Lord started telling me that I needed to go back to Tennessee because my little brother was dying of liver cancer. I knew that God was right, I needed to go, but I had no funds to pay the way and my RV van conversion was in need of some major repairs to make it roadworthy once more. So I began praying and preparing for this new chapter of my life. He didn’t give me a “leave by” date, so I planned for a spring departure in early April so that I could be there by my birthday on the 21^st. This would give me time to save some money to have the repairs done on the van and stock it with all the necessities of life for the trip.

Well, April came and went without bringing the funds needed for the trip east, so I continued to wait, pray and prepare. God had supplied the money needed to fix the van in early December, so I kept busy going through my things, deciding what I needed to take and what could be given away and stored for later.

December also lent itself to my seeking help from our local U.S. Senator to get my long-awaited Disability back pay released to me to finance my trip. With the help of Catherine Cortez Masto's office, I received this payment in mid-May … nearly two years after having been awarded my Social Security Disability. So I started making plans in earnest to leave Nevada for Tennessee. I set the date for Sunday afternoon, May 20^th, after church and our fellowship lunch.

I was able to travel through places I had never been and spend time with a friend in Branson, MO, too. I loved the time spent with Tina and the kids. I was blessed with a home cooked meal, shower and a comfortable bed in their home Friday, May 25th. The trip took me a week, I arrived at mom and Kenn’s home on Sunday afternoon, May 27^th.

I have been here helping mom with the house and meeting Kenn’s needs for nearly two months now. I am working on finding my place in the community and the local body of believers. But God is very, VERY good. He gives me songs in the night and eases my mind.

This morning, July 17, 2018, my mother shared with me her prayers for Kenn. She said that she has been praying that if God was going to heal him, to do it soon. But if not, to let him begin his rest and be at peace. Listening to her, I thought of my recent prayers. Mine centered on her. I have been asking the Lord to give my mom peace and comfort.

This afternoon, as I was running some errands in town, I prayed again for my mother. I prayed that the Lord hear and answer her prayers and give her peace and rest.

This evening, as I was doing my daily Bible reading in [Isaiah 51:1-Isaiah 54:3, I couldn’t read these verses without singing the choruses contained therein.

As music is a part of my very being, I couldn’t help myself … I sang what I heard echoed deep in my soul and my heart filled with Great Joy in Jesus my Lord. The songs in this portion of the book of Isaiah [Therefore the Redeemed of the Lord, Put on the Garment of Praise, and Our God Reigns] and one not found in these chapters, but is a theme that runs throughout the Bible [Arise and Sing, you Children of Zion] are still ringing in my ears, especially the last one. Let me share those words with you:

                                    Arise and sing, you Children of Zion

                                    For the Lord has delivered thee.

                                    Arise and sing, you Children of Zion

                                    For the Lord has delivered thee.

                                    Open up your hearts and rejoice before Him

                                    Open up your hearts and rejoice before Him

                                    Open up your hearts and rejoice before Him

                                    For the King is our God!

 

It was in the singing of these scriptures that I felt God impress upon me that it was time. Time to let Him turn my mourning into His precious joy.

After reading the words and letting them flow through my mind, through my soul, way down deep into my very heart of hearts – into the very throne room where Jesus reigns; how could I allow sorrow and mourning back in?

The passage in Psalms that I quoted above states that He, Jesus, turns our mourning into dancing. He has ripped off our “sackcloth” and clothed us in His joy and gladness. But, He can’t do these things if we tie His hands up in our grief. We have to “let Him in.” We have to allow Him to access to our grief, pain, and suffering so that He can share the burden and give us His peace (Ephesians 2:14) and rest (Deuteronomy 5:14, Matthew 11:28-30).

Have you ever thought about the words Matthew used in the passage I referenced above? I have. Let me share a few things I have learned from this setting of scripture:

Come unto me, all ye that labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn of me; for I am meek and lowly in heart: and ye shall find rest unto your souls. For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light. Matthew 11:28-30, KJV.

Jesus is calling all those who labor under a heavy load or burden to ‘take up His yoke.’ So what is a yoke and how do you take it up? In agricultural cultures, before mechanized farm equipment was invented, farmers used teams of cattle, horses, or mules to pull their plow and other equipment used to prepare their fields for growing crops. They would place them in pairs, hooked together with a yoke. Jesus is asking us to share OUR load … OUR burden with Him.

When farming was so primitive, and a farmer bought a new ox, etc. to pull his plow, he would yoke an older animal to the new one so that it would learn how to read the farmer’s signals from the older animal’s experience. Thus, Jesus, our Head Shepherd, has requested that we take up our position in His yoke so that we can learn from Him our position in the team and how to ‘hear’ the Father’s signals and commands.

When we walk with Jesus as our teacher and yoke mate, we have opened our hearts to hear from the Father all that He wants us to know. We also allow His joy to lift our burden and lighten our hearts and minds … thus our mourning can now be turned into dancing and He is able to clothe us in His Great Joy. Yoked together with Jesus we can …

            Break forth into joy, oh my soul

            Break forth into joy, oh my soul

            In the presence of the Lord, there is joy forevermore

            Break forth, break forth into joy, oh my soul!

AND

            God has turned my mourning into dancing for me

            God has taken my sackcloth

            God has turned my mourning into dancing for me

            I will ever praise His name.

Yes, as Solomon once said,

“To every thing, there is a season and a time to every purpose under the heaven: A time to be born, and a time to die; a time to plant, and a time to pluck up that which is planted; A time to kill, and a time to heal; a time to break down, and a time to build up; A time to weep, and a time to laugh; a time to mourn, and a time to dance …” Ecclesiastes 3:1-4, KJV

As David said in Psalm 30:12, NKJV, “To the end that my glory may sing praise to You and not be silent. O Lord my God, I will give thanks to You forever. “

So when your burden is heavy, take the time to mourn. But remember Jesus is waiting for you to take up His yoke and allow Him to help you to shoulder your load. He will lighten the burden and turn your mourning into dancing, filling your heart with His great Joy in the process!

This Week's Lesson From Our Pulpit:

Bro  John J Wiltse teaches on Matthew 11:28-30.

  Letting Jesus share your burdens. 

This Week's Message from Bro. John J. Wiltse

Bro. John Wiltse teaches from Galatians 1:8-9

A Christian's Priorities

This Poem was taken from Titus 1:6-9. I know that the passage is directing Titus on how to choose Elders and Deacons for his local congregation, but I believe like my Pastor, Bro.  John Wiltse, that ALL Christians are called to be ministers of God's Word to the world. The word minister is another word for servant. As followers of Christ, we are His servants ... His ministers. So I have written this poem to remind us of this important part of our calling to follow Jesus. I hope you enjoy it and take its words to heart.

Sister Leigh

A Christian's Priorities

Unquestioned integrity, we must possess

As Believers in the image of Christ’s Righteousness

Faithful and true to our spouse

No polygamy or adultery does He want in HIS House.

Our Children must be raised in the Christian faith

And not given to lawlessness or fits of disgrace.

Our character must impeachable be

And our household affairs kept orderly

For we are agents of God and His love

And must manage His home as He would above

We must not be aggressive, easily angered or given to drink

These things cloud our minds, we can’t clearly think

We must not be violent, greedy or seek financial gain

Instead should be hospitable, and desire only godly things

Discreet and fair-minded, self-controlled, holy in our living

Defending the Faith, no matter what we’re given

So learn from the past your Christian priority

FOT THIS IS HOW JESUS WOULD HAVE US TO BE!

Leigh

February 17, 2017