Hello All,
Beauty of a day. Spring may yet arrive.
This week we are in Ezra five and as with people and God, everyone is doing his or her job.
Message Title: But the Eye of Their God Was on Them!
Message Text: Ezra 5:1-17
Hello All!
I know the calendar says March but the weather still seems February. If you are like me, you have had to make an effort to not whine and complain. But I can’t wait for Spring. Maybe more snow tonight. Hopefully that doesn’t stop services tomorrow. Gerald and the guys will let us know if that would be necessary.
Interesting, powerful thoughts this week. God calls us to build alone with him, but when we do “stuff” hits the fan from those who would oppose. The attack mainly comes through our powerful adversary the devil who is like a lion seeking whom he may devour. But the really hard part to swallow is when fellow professing Christians fall for Satan’s schemes and become part of his onslaught of fear, intimidation, threats and accusations.
Time to be afraid? No. Time to trust God. There is a reason we are called to love God first when we prioritize our lives. We need that strong bond to weather the storm as we seek his refuge and strength in our times of need. And he will be there.
(Psalm 27:1, 7, 11, 14 ESV)
The LORD is my light and my salvation; whom shall I fear?The LORD is the stronghold of my life; of whom shall I be afraid?
Hear, O LORD, when I cry aloud; be gracious to me and answer me!
Teach me your way, O LORD, and lead me on a level path because of my enemies.
Wait for the LORD; be strong, and let your heart take courage; wait for the LORD!
So when God desired to show more convincingly to the heirs of the promise the unchangeable character of his purpose, he guaranteed it with an oath, [18] so that by two unchangeable things, in which it is impossible for God to lie, we who have fled for refuge might have strong encouragement to hold fast to the hope set before us.
[19] We have this as a sure and steadfast anchor of the soul, a hope that enters into the inner place behind the curtain, [20] where Jesus has gone as a forerunner on our behalf, having become a high priest forever after the order of Melchizedek.
The earth is the Lord’s, and all it contains, The world, and those who dwell in it. For He has founded it upon the seas And established it upon the rivers.
Who may ascend into the hill of the Lord? And who may stand in His holy place? He who has clean hands and a pure heart, Who has not lifted up his soul to falsehood And has not sworn deceitfully.
He shall receive a blessing from the Lord And righteousness from the God of his salvation.
God, God, God …
First, God. God is the subject of life. God is foundational for living. If we don’t have a sense of the primacy of God, we will never get it right, get life right, get our lives right.
Not God at the margins; not God as an option; not God on the weekends. God at center and circumference; God first and last; God, God, God.
(The Message, Introduction to Genesis, Eugene Peterson, p19.)
Good Friday Afternoon to All!
Here is something that I hope to never get over: Being amazed at the wisdom and the reach of our God in his Holy Book the Bible!
Wow and Wow! Right in front of our noses … that is if our noses are bowed before the throne of God! If your nose is elsewhere (and you know who I’m talking to), then not so much. 🙂
I thought I was choosing our Ezra study, but I have a sneaking suspicion that God was leading me on, but, then again, I guess he is supposed to do that so I am okay.
Enough rambling. But the church has always been the church, hasn’t it. Except when it was Israel but you know what I mean. They finally had the foundation to the new temple finished and were praising God … except the ones who were crying so loud that you could hardly hear the praise band.
With their attention dominated by the physical dimensions of the building, they could not see the glory of their God.
But those who were able to trust God were in for an amazing ride. This week we have guest appearances by Haggai and Zechariah who give us more of God’s perspective of this rebuilding project than what we see from Zerubbabel and Jeshua’s ground level view.
Message Title: It’s Not the Building, It’s the God!
Message Text: Ezra 3:1-13
See you Sunday!
Dave
Now when you reap the harvest of your land, you shall not reap to the very corners of your field, nor shall you gather the gleanings of your harvest. Nor shall you glean your vineyard, nor shall you gather the fallen fruit of your vineyard; you shall leave them for the needy and for the stranger. I am the L ord your God.
“God, help me to believe.”
It seems I pray that often. Not … help me to believe in God for salvation (been there, done that), or help me to believe that the Bible is the word of God (ditto). But help me to live by a faith that grows, that continues to believe God is God and is not limited by my knowledge or experience or by our culture or politics or point in history on this planet.
I believe, help me to believe.
Help me to actually live by faith.
I don’t go KJV too often, but this is a verse that comes to mind attached to the above thoughts.
The New Century Version gives us another “angle” on this truth. More. Believe more. Trust you for more, Lord. Never be satisfied for the meager scraps that my vision of life would yield.
A faithful group meets in our church basement every Wednesday, and we pray for more. We keep pushing against the door, keep knocking, keep asking. We do not puff ourselves up, or name and claim and all that silliness. We bow before God trying to believe that he will actually break down the walls of darkness in our community and allow us to effectively shine the light of the gospel.
That we can effectively carry the light of the gospel and break the bonds of alcoholism and materialism and the stranglehold of anxiety that so many face.
We believe, but we want to believe more.
We want to be an effective light set upon a hill. Effective as in we are passionate about seeing prisoners of darkness brought to the light, people saved from their sins, breathing the fresh air of forgiveness, finding their rightful place before their Creator and Redeemer.
But it is God who does these things. And we have to believe that he can and will. We ask God that we can be part of his grace and mercy and truth, vessels of honor through which the piercing light of the gospel shines and saves.
We pray. We huddle together as servants/slaves of God Most High and ask him to do things that only God can do. Bring sinners to repentance and salvation.
We believe, Lord. Help us to believe more.
Not more as in adding to the story, but more as in fully believing in and living by what is written and has been handed down from generation to generation. The eternal words of God which have made their way into our lives for a time by ink and paper but will continue long after this Earth goes up in flames.
There is no need to add or embellish, just believe what is written. Believe what is written which the Holy Spirit of God will teach us if we listen.
We believe, Lord. Help us to believe what we believe. Amen!
Hello to All,
Does God build now the way he built in Old Testament times? Whether ancient temples then or evangelizing our community now, I believe in Ezra we see essential principles for being part of God’s construction process.
Message Title: Principles of Building 101
Message Text: Ezra 1:5-2:70
