Psalm 5 #morning #prayer #refuge #Godhears #Godandthewicked #thewicked

Christ Is Risen #easter #resurrection #becausehelives #hope #death #life...

God Shows Up #PalmSunday #conviction #entry #triumphalentry #palms #jer...

Blessed is the King who comes in the Name of the Lord! Peace in heaven and glory in the highest (Luke 19:38)

Today, we join the eternal chorus of welcome as the Lord Jesus Christ enters into our consciousness as the King who comes in the Name of the Lord. He is the Prince of Peace and righteousness. His Kingdom comes with glory and praise, but also with a cross of pain and disgrace. Yet, He willing enters into the sphere of time, space, and judgment to face whatever stands between Him and His mission to bring all who welcome Him into eternal fellowship with the Father. Let us lift our voices in worship as we worship Him.

https://medium.com/@tomsims/he-showed-up-a6f9a2475a59

#PalmSunday #conviction #entry #triumphalentry #palms #jerusalem #luke #jesus #thepassion #courage #compassion #empathy #Conviction

Quiet My Soul - Psalm 131 - Affirmation of Simplicity

Psalm 131

O Lord, I am not proud; I have no haughty looks.

I do not occupy myself with great matters, or with things that are too hard for me.

But I still my soul and make it quiet,
like a child upon its mother’s breast;

my soul is quieted within me.

O Israel, wait upon the Lord, from this time forth for evermore.

It has always felt to me like this psalm would make a great country song.

Something like, "I'm just a simple man," might fit.

I heard "I'm Just a Simple Sponge" from SpongeBob SquarePants.

That worked.

Then, I thought of the old Shaker Hymn, "Simple Gifts," and even "I'm Proud to Be an Okie from Muskogee." Bert Jansch's "Just a Simple Soul" rang my bell.

"On Christmas Day I'd rather be out a-walking
Walking down some quiet country lane
And hear red robin sing his sweet song in the cold frosty morning"

The psalmist has one ambition here, to be quieted by and in the presence of God.

The problem with all my song nominations so far is that they are "all about me," the singer and seeker. But Psalm 131 is really about the one being sought and our quiet response to God's presence.

It is about the simple faith that does not overcomplicate things, but is content to wait on God and to let God show us God.

So, this day, I paraphrase the psalmist with the words and melody of a quiet hymn, "Be Still My Soul," by a lady with a very short and obscure biography, Kathrina von Schlegel. We know little about her life, but we have this legacy and it is enough

Be still, my soul! the Lord is on your side;
Bear patiently the cross of grief or pain;
Leave to your God to order and provide;
In ev'ry change he faithful will remain.
Be still, my soul! your best, your heav’nly friend
Thru' thorny ways leads to a joyful end.

Be still, my soul! your God does undertake
To guide the future as he has the past;
Your hope, your confidence, let nothing shake;
all now mysterious shall be bright at last.
Be still, my soul! the waves and winds still know
His voice who ruled them while he lived below.

Be still, my soul! when dearest friends depart
And all is darkened in the vale of tears,
Then shall you better know his love, his heart,
Who comes to soothe your sorrow and your fears.
Be still, my soul! your Jesus can repay
From his own fullness all he takes away.

Be still, my soul! the hour is hast'ning on
When we shall be forever with the Lord,
When disappointment, grief, and fear are gone,
Sorrow forgot, love's purest joys restored.
Be still my soul! when change and tears are past,
All safe and blessed we shall meet at last.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WHCOapQ85ys

A Way in the Desert- Isaiah 43 #newesxodus #oppression #babyloniancaptiv...

 

Photo by Tijs van Leur on Unsplash

There is a way through the desert.

There is an oasis. In fact, you are an oasis for others.

You are chosen to declare God’s praise.

God makes a way for you through any crisis.

It will be a way that you have not imagined.

Hear this sermon based on Isaiah 43:16–21.

Leadership Lessons from Jeremiah - It Might Be a Cult - #cult #pastors ...

Use What You Have & Start #loaves&fish #Jesus #resources #faith #fish&lo...

There Is No Cause for Delay.

What Do You Have? Start Using It.

As faith is exercised, so does our capacity to bring about positive change in  our lives and in the world. The stories of Elisha and the widow in 2 Kings 4:1-7 and of Jesus feeding the multitudes in Luke 9:10-17 both amplify this truth.

Faith involves taking what you have, giving it to God, and putting it to use with the confidence that it is enough to get started. In the process, not only does your faith grow, but also your capacity to do good with it.

There is a question followed by a directive.

The question is, "What do you already have."

The directive is, "Start using it."

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2 Kings 4:1-7

Now the wife of a member of the company of prophets cried to Elisha, “Your servant my husband is dead, and you know that your servant feared the Lord, but a creditor has come to take my two children as slaves.” Elisha said to her, “What shall I do for you? Tell me, what do you have in the house?” 

She answered, “Your servant has nothing in the house except a jar of oil.” 

He said, “Go outside, borrow vessels from all your neighbors, empty vessels—and not just a few. Then go in, shut the door behind you and your children, and start pouring into all these vessels; when each is full, set it aside.” 

So she left him and shut the door behind her and her children; they kept bringing vessels to her, and she kept pouring. 

When the vessels were full, she said to her son, “Bring me another vessel.” But he said to her, “There are no more.” 

Then the oil stopped flowing. She came and told the man of God, and he said, “Go sell the oil and pay your debts, and you and your children can live on the rest.”

Luke 9:10-17

On their return the apostles told Jesus all they had done. Then, taking them along, he slipped quietly into a city called Bethsaida. When the crowds found out about it, they followed him, and he welcomed them and spoke to them about the kingdom of God and healed those who needed to be cured.

The day was drawing to a close, and the twelve came to him and said, “Send the crowd away, so that they may go into the surrounding villages and countryside to lodge and get provisions, for we are here in a deserted place.” 

But he said to them, “You give them something to eat.” 

They said, “We have no more than five loaves and two fish—unless we are to go and buy food for all these people.” For there were about five thousand men. 

And he said to his disciples, “Have them sit down in groups of about fifty each.” 

They did so and had them all sit down. And taking the five loaves and the two fish, he looked up to heaven and blessed and broke them and gave them to the disciples to set before the crowd. And all ate and were filled, and what was left over was gathered up, twelve baskets of broken pieces.