Legacies: Part 3-"Still Juicy"

        Now for the final & REST of the story!  I’m not going to give a big review.  It would be very helpful if you would read Legacies: Part 1 & 2 to fully appreciate Part 3.  This is the continuation of my Legacy of Tithing based on Mal 3:8-12, bringing the whole  tithe into the storehouse (God’s church).  God says to test Him in doing this.  Again, I believe that due to Dave’s & my tithing throughout our lives & especially during the hardest times of our lives when we didn’t have any money, God has been very true to His promises & blessing.

        Well, I left off around December of Dave’s fourth year in medical school.  In Legacy Part 2:”Juicy Part”, I wrote about the miraculous provisions that God provided for us by (1) me becoming the resident manger in our students housing complex, (2) & the extraordinary Conference Week, ending with us finding out that we were NOT deferred as we wished in Dave’s coming up residency program.

When February rolled around Amy was over 3 1/2 yrs old, & Ben was about 20 mons old.  Dave had doubled up his course load & had finished up early.  The negative aspect in doing this was no more money came in from the Air Force.  Dave was still working odd jobs at the hospital.  Through-out these medical school years we babysat children for a weekend or up to 10 days while their parents were on vacation or gone to conferences.  This was great money for us!

Looking back on it, this babysitting again was only from the Lord, because I didn’t have a clue to what I was doing when I signed up for this.  I had Amy at the time, so I guess I thought I could keep another child during the day, off & on, not for continual days at a time.  All this happened because I was a member of the Medical Wives Club which was a support group for the wives of medical students.  This Club had many functions you could sign-up for, so I signed-up for babysitting.  When I got my first weekend babysitting call, I must say I was a little shocked.  Again, this turned out to be an awesome blessing because, one family with three young boys fell in love with us, & especially with Amy.  We gave them a lot of attention, & because of this, the parents called on us a lot.  When Ben came along, it became a little much, so reluctantly we had to give it up.

Back to February, Dave finally had a little time off.  This sweet family who we sat often for, offered us their house in Sugar Mt so we could go snow skiing.  I hadn’t snow skied much, so I definitely wasn’t good at it.  It was fun having Dave’s middle brother & wife go along on the trip with us.  We always had fun with them, & many belly laugh stories.  One in particular came out of this trip.  I’ll have to write about that another day.  

         

             Anyway, about a little over 24 hrs after being there, we got a call to let us know that Ben had fractured his leg.  My parents were keeping the children while we were on the ski trip.  Mother & Daddy always did special things with the children like playing one on one with them, going to the park, etc....   Daddy was playing with Ben by throwing Ben up in the air & catching him around Ben's ankles/legs.  Ben loved this game.  Anyway, this is how Ben got his fracture, & Daddy dreaded making that call to us.  We left Dave’s brother & wife, & turned all the way around to get the kids.  That leg cast looked about as big as Ben was-poor thing!  All of February became a most difficult month due to this situation.  Lesson: even though you tithe, life is not always easy.

May finally got here with graduation.  Hallelujah!!!  Graduation was a lot of fun, and full of different emotions, like: telling all our close friends good-bye, and packing for the big move to Biloxi, MS.  Many of us student families had our own furniture, and the apartments came fully furnished.  It all worked out to pick & choose from our furniture & the Married Housing furniture, & put either one in storage.  When it came time to leave, we went & got out all the furniture.  To our horrors, we found out that someone had gone through the storage unit, & stole furniture.  They picked and chose a little here & there from every one's furniture.  This way, they knew they would get away with it, because we would all have to come together for small claims court.  Naturally, none of us did, & they did get away with it.  I was sick that we lost our antique legal table that we use to use as a kitchen table.  They also stole some of the Married Housing furniture which went into our apartment.  The Married Housing Office was strongly requesting for us to pay for their missing furniture.  I didn't blame them, but we didn't have the money!  PTL, again it was a God thing, when all was said & done, we didn't have to reimburse them.

             Biloxi or Bust!!!

             We made it to Biloxi in fine shape.  I couldn't believe the house the military put us in!  Since Dave was a Captain, we got a very large three bedroom home.  I was in love.

             Now, since we didn't have a kitchen table & chairs, we were eating on a card table.  I began praying for three things that were desires of my heart during the last couple of months of medical school.  They were:

1. Kitchen table & chairs, also matching China cabinet.

2. Microwave oven

3. Piano

            I felt the kitchen table & chairs was a need, but they also could be put in the category of desires.  I just didn't know how the Lord would see this one.  Anyway, I had met a sweet friend quickly after our Biloxi move who had one little boy at the time.  A friend of theirs asked if they would like to buy a dining room table & chairs for $200, & a matching China cabinet for $200.  She said that they were not interested, but she might have a friend who could be interested!  Duh!!!  Since it was us, their friends would have charged much higher.  Well, God supplied us with a very nice diningroom table (not kitchen table), chairs, & matching china cabinet for $400.  Mother was so ready to get all our wedding China, etc... out of their attic, & so was I!  It was like Christmas all over again as I unwrapped our fine belongings, and put them into the China cabinet.  PRAYER DESIRE REQUEST 1-ANSWERED

          As soon as we walked into the Biloxi house, PRAYER DESIRE REQUEST 2  was answered yes.  There was a microwave built into the kitchen.  Y'all might think that this is a no brainier, but microwaves were not super common in every home back then.  The first time I had ever heard of a microwave oven was when my Mother-in-law was all excited & brought one for their home.

          Finally, how God answered yes concerning PRAYER DESIRE REQUEST 3, about seven months down the road after moving in, Dave's Grandmother sent us some money out of the blue.  After tithing, Dave wanted me to use some of the money to buy a good used piano.  We were blown away, on how God had used his Grandmother to meet some of our needs & my desire.

Notice all these desires were answered in about seven months!!!

Pass it on!

           Through our testimony of tithing, God gave us the privilege to share with our new best friends in Biloxi, who I mentioned in DESIRE PRAYER REQUEST 1.  They were not tithing at the time.  After seeing how God met our needs & desires, through the passage Mal. 3:8-12, they began to tithe.  PTL!!

            I love this verse, because it has a condition and a promise.  
And, God is true to His promises.

Psalm 37:4 Take delight in the Lord, 

and he will give you the desires of your heart.

What legacies are you passing on?

ann :)

Legacies: Part 2-"Juicy Part"

Here is a quick review from my last blog entry-Legacies: Part 1 

I shared how I have been blessed with three legacies: 

1. Legacy of the faithfulness in marriage based on how God Almighty created marriage. (Gen. 2:24)
2. Legacy of corporate Sabbath/Sunday worship & rest.
3. Legacy of tithing based on Malachi 3:8-12.

I want to continue with the legacy of tithing.  Since my story is based on the verses in Malachi, I am going to restate this passage.

Malachi 3:8-12(NIV) 

8 “Will a mere mortal rob God? Yet you (God’s people) rob Me.  “But you ask, ‘How are we robbing You?’  “In tithes and offerings. 9 You are under a curse—your whole nation—because you are robbing Me. 10 (Command) Bring the whole tithe into the storehouse, (WHY-Provision) that there may be food in My house. Test Me in this,” says the Lord Almighty, (WHY-Blessing)“and see if I will not throw open the floodgates of heaven and pour out so much blessing that there will not be room enough to store it. 11 I will prevent pests from devouring your crops, and the vines in your fields will not drop their fruit before it is ripe,” says the Lord Almighty. 12 “Then all the nations will call you blessed, for yours will be a delightful land,” says the Lord Almighty.

Still reviewing, I stated that these core beliefs of tithing were ingrained by the Lord through my parents when I was a small child after being caught steeling from God by not giving my 5 cents tithe.  Yes, your read that correctly.

If you are new to reading my blog, it might be important for you to understand that I married my high school sweet heart.  We were only 19 (Dave) & 20 yr old.  We were married after Dave’s second year of college.  Before we knew it, I was pregnant with our first child.  In fact she came the day Dave graduated from college.  Praise the Lord (PTL) that Dave chose not to go through the graduation ceremony.  We were babies having babies.   

We had Amy the Summer before Dave began medical school.  PTL Dave went through medical school on a military scholarship.  I hate to call this a scholarship, because it wasn’t free.  Dave did pay a heavy price by giving his time for all those years, & it did change the course of our life.  One of the greatest benefits of going this route was so I could be at home taking care of Amy.  Then, less than two years later, we had Ben.  I must admit, I was scarred to look at the man for getting pregnant again. 

Now for the “juicy” part!!!  Sometimes, in looking at the beautiful Spring flowers or the colorful dancing Fall leaves, you can see GOD is just showing off.  In Legacies: Part 2 & 3, I hope you will see how GOD just showed off during one of the hardest seasons of our lives.  I firmly believe it was connected to our tithing.  We tithed no matter what.  

At the end of medical school, close friends gave monetary gifts to Dave as a graduation present.  I really admired Dave because he chose to tithe these gifts instead of just doing something fun with them.  If anyone deserved to just have some blow-off fun, it was him after working so hard in school, & working extra jobs to support us.  

I have never consciously thought about testing God in this command.  Tithing is something I did in loving Him.  Tithing doesn’t mean when you tithe, God will automatically bless you with wealth.  He does say that He will meet our needs, and bestow hidden blessings beyond our thinking.  

Hopefully, you will see through my examples in this blog & the next blog how God blessed us in the midst of hard-times as we tithed through-out these years.

1. Over half-way through Dave’s medical school we had two babies, and money was very tight.  We were living at the medical school’s married housing apartments.  It was perfect for us.   Dave could walk to school so I could have our one car when needed.  Many who lived there had children.  It was really great to just walk outside our front door, & friends of all ages were all around.  We did have a resident manger who lived on the property, but no one knew them.  They were an older couple that had nothing in common with the medical or dental students.

One day Dave walked in our door with a bright idea.  Out of the blue, he thought why don't I be the resident manger!!  Yes, ME!  After the shock, I thought, why not.  Dave went to the residence office the following day.  Would you believe, the day that Dave had the idea, the resident manger had just put in their notice.  On top of this, the staff were thinking about making one of the student residents the manger of the apartments.  If you think that this was all orchestrated by chance, well think again.  Because of this blessing, we didn’t have to pay for our housing & had very little utility bills.  God is good and very faithful to His promises!!!

2. During the last two years of medical school, all the students begin thinking about their special fields of residence they would like to go into.  Dave was very interested in surgery at that time.  Because of this, the surgery department asked one student to go to a National Surgical Conference, all expenses paid, in Atlanta, GA.  It  was held in early December.  Dave wanted me to go with him to the conference.  I definitely wanted to, but we didn’t have any extra money to pay for my expenses, since he was free.  Did that stop us?  No!  I don’t even remember who kept the kids.

It was one of those LORD SHOW-OFF WEEKS.  I saw clearly His hand on every aspect of each day:

a. The conference began with heavy hors d’oeuvres the first evening.  That was our dinner :)  FREE!!! :) 

b. The second day, Dave went & did his thing with the conference.  I made my way over to a near by building where I could buy meals, etc…  Well, I got my favorite meal at the time-coffee.  I can usually occupy myself very well.  I did so by doing my Bible Study, & I took along the booklets that had events listed for the spouses & their families.  Since I had all the time in the world, enjoying my coffee, I began playing a game.  First, I asked myself, “If I had all the money in the world, what would I do in this book?”  After that, I went to, “If I had some money, what would I do?”  Finally, my third category was, “If I could do two events, what would I do?”  I had a great time, but best yet, it took up most of my morning.  In fact, it was about lunch time, & I was tired of the game.  So I got up to leave.  What I didn’t know during all this time a dear, sweet, older, Christian lady had been watching me plan.  As I was leaving, she asked me, “What are you planning to do this week?”  All I could do was laugh!  I ‘fessed-up & told her I was just playing around and wasn’t going to do any of it.  Well, to make an already long story short, she & her husband took Dave & I under their wings.  They bought lunch for me that day & paid for two events that I did with her.  At these events I met other older, Christian couples who took us under their wings, & who took an interest in us.

Again, coincidence!?  I think not!!  The odds of me going to the same place where I met this lady, at the same time-interesting.  These people were generous, but there was something very different from within them as they gave.  Also, because of them, we met others who took a great & invested interest in us.   Interesting, interesting….

The second couple we met through the first couple, paid for us to attend a dinner theater.  The meal was delicious.  The play consisted of a one man act who played out the entire book of Matthew in the Bible.  I have never seen this before, & I haven’t since.  It was really incredible!  This couple also paid for other meals. 

A third physician we met took us to a famous restaurant in Atlanta called Pitty Pat’s Porch.  Delicious & so much fun! 

If that was not enough, to top off these blessings, The first couple took me Christmas shopping for our children who were toddlers at the time.  The Lord provided again before we even asked.  It was a real testimony to us all week long to see the joy this couple & these others had in giving to us.  Again, this was not just human generosity & joy, but it was supernatural that came from the Father above through them.

As a side note, like I said, we were wondering where Christmas was coming from that year.  Besides the Lord providing through these strangers, the Lord provided through our parents.  We didn’t have a clue, & I truly believe our parents had not talked to each other about our Christmas.  One set of parents provided tons of toys for the children, & the other set provided all their clothes.  Thank you LORD!!!   

I must say I was floating pretty high with all these things happening.  By sides having a chance to sleep late that week, enjoying my hotel free coffee all by myself, & no interruptions while doing my Bible Study.  That in itself was a great week!  I had been reading Hebrews throughout this week.  When I got to Heb. 11-the faith chapter, I was soaring, until I hit vs 35b-38.  Here I read some saints were tortured, mocked, scourged, chained, & imprisoned.  Some were stoned, wandered destitute, & not found worthy of the world because of their faith in God.  These verses burst my bubble a little.  But in vs. 39, I received some encouragement, and all these, having a good testimony through faith, did not receive the promise (at that time),  vs 40, God having provided something better for them (in the future)….  

Also at the end of that week, Dave came in & told me some unexpected news.  He (we) were NOT deferred by the Air Force.  They had pulled us for their residence program in surgery, & we were going to Biloxi, MS.  Nothing against MS, but we had fallen in love with Savannah, GA.  We had planned to go there.  Dave was devastated!  The supportive wife that I was and am, I said, “Well, praise the LORD!”  I was too high, & it went right under me.  See, we had put out a fleece before the Lord with all this residence “stuff.”  Dave had to send references to the Air Force residence program in Biloxi.  He didn’t have to send all the references he had.  Five of the references were glowing!  We really did pray about these five, if we should send them or not.  We finally did, knowing God is & was sovereign.  We knew that if we were meant to go to Savannah or Biloxi, these references didn’t matter.  

Dave called the Air Force several times to make sure we received the correct information.  It must have been a mistake!!!  After the Air Force personnel looked into our records, they couldn’t understand either why were not deferred.  Then they came back and said, “Oh, it is because of these awesome five references!!!”  What can you say!

Is this all a coincidence?!  Interesting!

to be continue….

ann :)

Legacies-Part 1

      I am one of the few blessed who have had parents that were married over 60 yrs, & took me to church all through my up-bringing.  I was raised with “good ole” fashion values, which I am so grateful.  I know that this is very rare these days in the midst of our world today which has lost foundational truths of how God created family: uniting of one man & one woman found in Genesis 2:24(NIV)-That is why a man leaves his father and mother and is united to his wife, and they become one flesh.

     I was very blessed by having a Christian extended family, a Christian family & Christian friends who guided me along a straight path.  In fact, my Paternal Grandparents were married over 60 yrs, & my Maternal Grandparents were married over 50 yrs.  I'm so blessed with the legacy of faithfulness in marriage.  I am seeing this legacy passed down not only in my marriage, but my children’s marriages as well.  Thank you, Lord!

   

     I never really gave my parents any trouble.  Yes, I was the very strong-willed child in my family but, I never went down any roads of alcohol or drugs.  Back in those days, the late 50s & 60s, we didn't go to the grocery store, or any store for that matter on Sundays. We didn't even go to movies or play cards on Sunday.  Sunday in my family was a day of worship, family & rest.

     When I got up Sunday morning, Mother was already in the kitchen making an extra special lunch that usually consisted of roast beef & gravy, a starchy vegetable, a couple of regular vegetables, with homemake biscuits & GA cane syrup, & don’t forget the lime jello salad!  And top it all off with some type of homemade desserts.  YUM!!  We would wear our best Sunday “duds”, on the way to church many times we would pick-up someone who needed a ride, then after church, come home to that awesome lunch.  Our special dishwasher was me!, most of the time.  Well, to me, it seemed that way.  We would then go to our special napping places which never changed!  Mother was in bed reading the newspaper/napping; while in the family room the TV had the ballgame on: my brother was lying on the couch, Daddy laying on the floor with his feet prompted up on the couch, & me curled up in a wooden rocker.  I don’t know how I slept there, but I did.  I loved to rock, & I still do.  After naps, back to church for worship again.  

I’m so grateful for the legacy of corporate Sabbath/Sunday worship & rest.  To this day, my Sundays are about the same.  I do go to stores, from time to time; but mainly Sunday is still worshipping the LORD in corporate worship, family coming together to reconnect, & rest.  My weeks still go much better when I can get my Sunday nap.  

A little side note: 

     I remember when my kids were babies, & Dave was gone to work on Sundays.  I desperately needed my Sunday nap more than ever.  I would make Amy, who never needed any sleep, go read books in her room.  Ben was an infant at the time.  I would make a palette on the floor for he & I.  I would put him between the furniture & me to help reign him in.  By God’s grace, I would sleep off & on.  You know how Mothers do, with one eye open & one eye closed.  It worked for that season in my life. 

     Also, Saturdays were important in my family.  Most of the time this day was used to get extra chores & errand accomplished.  In later years we would go to the fishing lake where my parents owned a piece of property on the lake.  Me & my friends had a great time swimming, while my Daddy, brother & friends fished.  Through the years, Mother fried up a mess of brim & bass from that lake.  

     Saturday evening was basically the same.  After bath & hair washing, I would stand in front of Mother’s dresser as she pinned curled my hair.  My hair sure did look pretty on Sunday mornings, but to this day, I don’t know how I slept in those things.  

Either Saturday night or Sunday morning Daddy would call me into their bedroom & give me my allowance.  I really don’t remember what I got, maybe a quarter or fifty cents.  That was rich in those days.  One thing I knew I had to do with the money was tithe a portion to the church.  For some reason, my allowance was broken down into nickels & dimes; because, I remember taking a nickel to church, & would put it into the offering plate in Sunday School.

     One Sunday I truly forgot to put in my tithe in the offering plate.  Well, this planted the idea in my head, “Why don’t I stop tithing & just keep it for myself.  No one will know, & look how much money I could save for something else.”  I was definitely old enough to know better.  What I didn’t know, was what the Bible says is true, “your sins will find you out. “  I’m not sure where that is located, but it came true in my young life.  It must be there, SOMEWHERE!

One Sunday morning Daddy called me into their bedroom to give me my allowance.  Daddy was 6’2”, which was pretty tall to a little girl.  He always stood beside his very big chest of drawers when he gave me my allowance.   That Sunday morning Daddy asked me had I been putting my tithe in the offering plate.  I didn’t think twice & said, “YES.”  Yep, I lied!  What I didn’t know was that the church kept a record of my tithe.  When the statement came in the mail, there was nothing down by my name.  I definitely had been found out.

I don’t remember what Daddy said.  All Daddy had to do was give me a certain look many times to correct me.  This was one of those times.  Daddy gave me mercy & showed me grace.  He didn’t spank me-that time, but he did take away my allowance away for a couple of weeks.

One of the most valuable lessons that I learned at that moment was to bring the whole tithe into the storehouse (church).  This simple but powerful lesson made a lifestyle imprint on my soul.  My heavenly Father says, (not Daddy says) in Malachi 3:8-12(NIV) 8 “Will a mere mortal rob God? Yet you (God’s people) rob Me.  “But you ask, ‘How are we robbing You?’  “In tithes and offerings. 9 You (God’s people) are under a curse—your whole nation—because you are robbing Me. 10 (Command) Bring the whole tithe into the storehouse, (WHY-blessing) that there may be food in My house. Test Me in this,” says the Lord Almighty, (Blessing)“and see if I will not throw open the floodgates of heaven and pour out so much blessing that there will not be room enough to store it. 11 I will prevent pests from devouring your crops, and the vines in your fields will not drop their fruit before it is ripe,” says the Lord Almighty. 12 “Then all the nations will call you blessed, for yours will be a delightful land,” says the Lord Almighty.

Interesting:

1. God mentions three times of His people robbing Him.  He also mentions how they robbed Him-with tithes & offerings. 

2. This is the only place in the Bible that God tells His people to test Him.  Bottom Line: He wanted to show them that He was trustworthy to take care of them, & He wanted to bless them like a good, good Father would do.  

This is still true for today.

I’m so glad that the legacy of tithing took root when I was a small child.  

In my next blog-Legacies: Part 2, I will be sharing how God has been faithful to this promise He made to me in Malachi 3:8-12.

As always, thanks for reading and letting me share my life’s journey with you.

ann :)

"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 :)