"All We Like Sheep"

“All We Like Sheep”                         

{Community Bible Study Devotion given 10.11.2016} 

     Don’t you love a good story.  Well, I’m going to tell you a special story God orchestrated for me & my family last Christmas (2015).  I have always enjoyed the Christmas Season, but the entire month of Dec was unusually special for me. 

It all began during the Fall months with me baby sitting my three grand daughters on Fridays.  Part of the schedule was picking up two of them from school.  Audrey was 1 1/2 yrs old at the time, Haven 3 1/2 & Lauren 5 1/2.  On the way to pick up Haven from school, all of a sudden I saw something I had never seen before.  It was a beautiful flock of cream colored sheep right on the corner of where I had to turn.  I went crazy!!!  Where was my phone camera when I needed it?!  I really knew I missed my awesome opportunity of taking a picture, because when I returned, they were gone:(  Oh well!!  I was still so excited, I told everyone.  We did keep seeing the sheep from time to time during the Fall months, & I did finally get my pictures:).

I’m very organized, & part of my planning two weeks before Christmas was shopping for the Christmas turkey meal which I had done for 41 yrs.  As I was in the grocery store all of a sudden I got in my head to buy a leg of lamb instead of the turkey.  I was actually excited about this, which was very unlike me.    What was I thinking!!!?  I had never cooked a lamb in my life!  I asked the butcher for help with my new endeavor, & we finally found the only leg of lamb in the store.  I was so excited!!

It was now Friday, 8 days before Christmas.  I was on my way to pick up Haven as usual, & I couldn’t stand it any more.  All of a sudden I found myself turning into the driveway of the beautiful home where these sheep live.  My heart was pounding & I felt like a giddy little girl.  Audrey was asleep in the back of the car.  I left her there & made my way up to the beautifully decorated door.  I knocked several times & finally a darling college age girl, who I woke up, came to the door.  After I gave a “sheepish” explanation of “You don’t know me but, does your family ever let strangers see your sheep?”  She sweetly explained that her family did all the time.  Well, I jumped on that with all fours!!!  I was so excited, I could hardly stand it.  I was planning to wait to surprise everyone at the end of the day to let them all know what we might be doing, but! as soon as Haven got in the car, I was babbling away.  When Jenny, my awesome daughter-in-law, came home from work, I told her the entire detailed story.  Jenny then told me that just recently Haven PRAYED that God would let her hold a lamb!!

Tuesday, 4 days before Christmas, finally arrived; and we were going to visit the sheep.  It was a beautiful day!!!  The weather was perfect, & everyone was well.  But, before I left my house, I had to check my Christmas-to-do list.  I couldn’t believe what I had written down 3 days earlier-thaw out the lamb :o!  I felt like I was killing the Passover Lamb.

 Anyway, the first thing the girls got to do on the sheep farm was hold Eugene the lamb, who was wearing his Christmas sweater, & feed him his bottle.  Noel, the pregnant sheep followed us everywhere.  We were there for a few hours & I took 100’s of pictures.  God gave us a day beyond our wildest imaginations, & most of all, answered YES to a 3 1/2 yr old child’s prayer.

 This year on (2016) March 27 was Easter.  Yes, as time got closer I began planning the big meal.  I wanted to talk to Lauren, who was turning 6, to see what she would like to add to the menu since we were celebrating her birthday at the same time.  So, I started rattling off the menu & said, “Lauren, Nanna is planning to have that special ham that you like, and lamb, and..”  Before I could say another word, without missing a beat—Lauren looked at me so intently with eyes as big as saucers and said, “Are we going to eat Noel!?”   ALL OF A SUDDEN IT BECAME PERSONAL!!!

It is the same way with God!  It was personal to Him when He sent Jesus to be our sacrificial Lamb.  From the beginning of Genesis to the end of Revelation, from the manger to the cross: God showed us His grace & redemption through Jesus our Great Shepherd.

God’s people were shepherds & understood the ways of sheep very clearly.  These people not only treated these animals as a business, but many times it was more than that.  Many of these sheep were personal to them.  They named their sheep, the sheep knew their master’s voice, gentle touch, were loved, & that their masters would take care of their needs.  No wonder God spoke to His people many times using this illustration.  God says we are like sheep.  In Is 53:6-All we like sheep have gone astray, each of us has turned to our own way, and the Lord has laid on Him the sin of us all.  Sheep love to do their own thing, and so do we.  We clearly see the beginning of this in the Garden of Eden with Adam & Eve.  Personally, I have not thought about this until writing this devotion.  I would not be surprised, if God killed a sheep to cover Adam & Eve’s sin which was a foretaste of Christ shedding His blood for us.  Don’t forget Adam’s first job was to name the animals/sheep which he knew them very well.

  God’s people learned how to worship God by sacrificing rams, sheep, lambs, & other animals on altars.  As they would bring their sacrificial offering for the forgiveness of their sins, or peace offering, or even thanksgiving & praise offering; their animals had to spotless, without blemish. 

I find it interesting that many times God had the person who was giving the sacrificial offering, had to put their hand on the head of the animal while the animal was being killed, & by this they would feel the life leaving the animal.  WHY???  BECAUSE  IT’S PERSONAL!!!  Jesus is our only spotless, w/o blemish sacrifice for our sins.

  God shows us a part of Himself through His Names: Jehovah-jireh: The Lord will provide which He provided for Abraham a ram as a sacrifice instead of Isaac.  Jehovah-raah: The Lord My Shepherd in Ps. 23.

  We had the privilege to visit this sheep farm two times.  We held a lamb that was 4 days old, & feed Noel corn tortillas.  These visits made Scripture jump off the page in 3D living color.  We saw how the sheep ran from a stranger, but ran to their Shepherd just like we need run to Jesus, keeping our eyes on Him & in His word.  Sheep need to be lead & not left to wander.  God never intended for us to wander. That is why Jesus calls us His friends.  We are His adopted daughters & sons; we are not orphans.  God keeps His promises & covenant: He is our God, we are His people, & He will dwell in each of our hearts if, & only if we ask Jesus to be our Savior.  We saw how sheep really do leap for joy, as we should do in our hearts in praise to our King.  It was so clear to see how the shepherdess loved taking care of her sheep; as God our Father loves taking care of us.   Finally, we learned all about the staff that really does comfort, guide & keep the sheep out of trouble; just as God’s Word does for us.

From the Garden of Eden, to the shepherds at the manger, to the finishing of the sacrifices once & for all at the cross—our story doesn’t end there!!!  BECAUSE IN REV 5 WE HAVE THE LAMB STANDING! THAT WAS SLAIN, & HE IS WORTHY TO OPEN THE SEVEN SEALS.  He is our Victor & will be called Faithful & True.  Yes, it was very much personal to Jesus, is He personal to you?

     

ann :)

My Anchor in Knowing Him

My Anchor in Knowing Him

{Community Bible Study Devotion given Nov 10, 2015}

As I have been reading through the Bible this year, God has also challenged me to do a word study on the word KNOW.  Not the word NO that my 18 mon old granddaughter says with great expression, 

but K-N-O-W. 

Here are some interesting facts about the word KNOW:

1. There are 1324 forms of the word know in the Bible,
2. In John’s 4 books alone, he uses know 145 times.  And In the book of Romans-Paul uses the word know 35 times.
3. The first time know (knows) is used in the Bible is found in Gen 3:5.  The Serpent was tempting Eve while her husband, Adam, was close by: “For God knows that in the day you eat from it your eyes will be opened, & you will be like God, knowing good & evil.”  Well, we know the rest of that story.  

     There are many definitions of the word know in Greek & Hebrew.  But, the meaning God brought to my attention was intimacy in marriage.  God wants intimacy, & relationship with us.  NOW! I understand more of why God wanted me to spend a year looking at this word. The meaning of this word KNOW is more than intellect.  It goes far past our thoughts & emotions.  KNOW goes to the core of our being.  What we firmly believe, trust in, rely upon is what we live out.  What is in our hearts correlates to our faith walk in life.

I have summed up this study in three categories.  I am sure there are many, more, but this is where the Lord has planted me.

1. God wants me to know His name.
2. God wants me to know His covenant.
3. God wants me to know His only Son-Jesus! 

A) KNOWING GOD’S NAME  

I love the study of God’s names.  By knowing His names, I can know & understand God’s character.  Many years ago I began praying, “God show me Your glory as You did for Moses.”  It wasn’t until very recently that God answered this prayer.  God revealed to me that when I have experienced one of His names, He has been revealing a part of His glory.

B) KNOWING GOD’S COVENANT

God made it very clear through out the Bible that He wanted His chosen people to know His covenant!  In Ex. 6:7 it says,”Then I will take you for My people, & I will be your God; & you shall know that I am the Lord your God, who brought you out from under the burdens of the Egyptians.”  Covenant is very simple.  Anywhere you see in the Bible one to three of these statements, God is talking about His covenant.  These statements are: 1) I am Your God, 2) You are my people, & 3) I will dwell among you.  By knowing God’s covenant, I will know Who God is, I will know my identity in Him, and I will know His deeds & promises.  

Jesus has many names.  One of them deals with covenant which was revealed at His birth: Immanuel—God With Us.

C) KNOWING GOD’S SON-JESUS

        I don’t know how to make it many more planner than that.  From Gen. to Rev. God wants us to know Jesus.  Not just intellectually, but relationally.  He is The Way, The Truth, & The Life.  Anyone who comes to the Father can only come by way of Jesus.

             

Here are a few examples of how God has made Himself known to me:

I believe that I am sinner totally saved by grace through faith in Jesus Christ alone, who gave His life for me on the cross.  Even though I came to this realization as a child, I was for many years an individual who tried to do all the right things.  I was a great Doer, but not a great Be-er!  This lead me down a dark road of great guilt & condemnation.  I was like a caged hamster on its wheel going round & round striving to be perfect, & if I wasn’t, then I would mentally beat myself up.  Most of the time I didn’t even know I was doing this.  This was all I knew.  For many years I prayed, & searched for God to free me from this internal turmoil.  It was not a sudden thing, but one day recently I realized I was not beating myself up anymore.  I had peace within concerning this issue.  The beating had stopped!  I was coming to know God as my Jehovah-shalom: the Lord of Peace.  Does this mean I still don’t put myself under condemnation?  Of course I do!  But, through God’s grace, mercy, & timing, God puts a cold splash of Rm. 8:1- healing my mind & heart-“Therefore, there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus.”

Another huge lie I believed was I didn’t hear Jesus’ voice even though Scripture said, “My sheep hear My voice, & I know them & they follow Me.”  This truly affected my identity, my worth.  As I compared      myself to others faith walk with the Lord; in my mind, I didn’t seem to measure up. 

In Oct 2007, I was attending a Women’s Bible Study.  I don’t remember what we were studying, but I do remember recognizing this & other lies.  I began to renounce them by faith through the blood of Jesus & His Word.  

This Feb 10th an amazing thing happened to me!  I had just finished visiting with this (CBS) Core Leadership Group on Tues, knowing I was going to be helping in the Children’s Ministry (in CBS) on Wed.  As I was crossing the 430 bridge on my way home, it hit my spirit like a ton of bricks, “You do hear from Me!  What about Our study on the Mothers of the Kings last Summer?”  I could hardly see the road through my tears.  This study is special to me, because it was only God Who taught me through my quiet time Bible reading.  Not only did God teach me many things, but He prepared me for last years CBS study-Journey to Jerusalem.  God is so faithful!!  In an instant I knew Jesus as my Shepherd, & Friend.  God had brought me full circle and that lie is put to dead!!!  

Finally, in Sept “1996” I took diet pills trying to be thin.  This act sent me into a psychotic mental breakdown that lead me into a horrible couple of years of depression.  Through this time I came to know God as my J. Rapha-The Lord Who Heals.  He was the great Healer of my mind, body & soul.  So many times God met me in this deepest hole and would bring me up in a split second through so many ways that only He could do.  He proved over & over His faithfulness, goodness, love & dwelling in my heart.  He truly gave me beauty instead of ashes, & the oil of joy instead of mourning, the garment of praise instead of a heavy, burdened & failing spirit.  I praise Him that I don’t suffer from that depression any longer!

A little twist to this story, is during the breakdown, I believe Satan put a seed of doubt into my mind causing me to question if I really believed I was God’s child, & would I be with Him in heaven when I died?  That thought terrified me!!!  When I came to my senses, I dismissed the thought quickly, knowing I was saved through faith in Jesus, but I didn’t put the thought to death.

All of a sudden during the last day of CBS Rev Bible Study during Core group, I knew I had been attacked by Satan with the thoughts from Sept “96”.  They came barreling on top of me &  I was terrified!  I was literally holding onto my chair with both hands.  No one in the room knew.  All I knew was I can’t fight this with my emotions or even my thoughts because they were going wild inside of me.  I knew I had to go back to my anchor knows of Scripture.  I was sobbing inside & out.  

As Sara began her lecture, I didn’t hear a thing on Rev. 22.  All I heard Sara teach was the washing of the grace of the GOSPEL. 

After our CBS luncheon I cornered my leader privately at our cars.  I am so grateful God used Beverly to splash a cup of His grace over my soul.  Very quickly she took me back to what I already knew-I am God’s child, because I know Jesus died for me, paying my price so I can be with Him in heaven.  God put to death that seed that Satan so desperately wanted for me to believe.

That year God showed me Jesus in a new & living way as I had never seen before.  And now as I am looking forward to the time that I will see Jesus face to face.  I can’t wait to see Him & be apart of His Kingdom as in Rev 19:11-16:

“…Behold, a white horse, and He who sat on it is called Faithful and True, and in righteousness He judges and wages war.  His eyes are a flame of fire, and on His head are many diadems; and He has a name written on Him which no one knows except Himself.  He is clothed with a robe dipped in blood, and His name is called The Word of God. …  And on His robe and on His thigh He has a name written, “KING OF KINGS, AND LORD OF LORDS.”  

ann :)