cryout

A New Journey Brings a New Revelation! {Luke 8}

9:00 AM

Today's Passage: Luke 8

I’m sure most of us are very familiar with the parable of the sower and the seed found at the beginning of chapter eight, but I never made a connection between that parable and the next passage until today! You see when the Book of Luke was originally written, it was written without chapters, verses and passages with headings, and sometimes it’s better to read it as it was originally written, for especial in this instance I now see that Jesus is still talking about what we should do with His word in verses 16-18,


 “No one lights a lamp and hides it in a clay jar or puts it under a bed. Instead, they put it on a stand, so that those who come in can see the light. 17 For there is nothing hidden that will not be disclosed, and nothing concealed that will not be known or brought out into the open. 18 Therefore consider carefully how you listen. Whoever has will be given more; whoever does not have, even what they think they have will be taken from them.”

I honestly never fully understood this passage until I tied the two together. Jesus is first encouraging us to demonstrate, or put into practice what we've heard and learned in His Word; only He changes the description from fruit to light. John Piper explained it this way,

He declares that the "fruit" of verse 15 is the "light" of verse 16. And this light is meant to help people see their way to "come into" the kingdom of God. He changes images from fruit (verse 15) to light (verse 16). But that is not surprising because we know from other New Testament teachings (Col 1:10;Luke 3:8-9) that bearing fruit means doing good deeds of faith for the glory of God. And we know that, in Matthew 5:16, Jesus called these good deeds "light" which helps people enter the kingdom: "Let your light shine before men in such a way that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father who is in heaven." 

I'd often wondered what Jesus meant when He proclaims, "For whoever has, to him more will be given." BUT, now that I understand He is still referring to what we do with His word, I now can see that when we hear the word of God, and receive it with gladness, more will be given to us.

I take that to mean that our desire to study God's word will increase. While our understanding of what we hear will as well. For the first time ever, I understand that Jesus is teaching us that spiritual growth follows our enthusiasm; positive or negative. 

When we carefully work to create godly habits by not only receiving the word and living it out, more will be built onto that. However, He also warns us that when we lose those godly habits, they will be extremely difficult to get back.

As I thought further on this the verses in Proverbs 2:3-5 came to my mind and we'd all be blessed to follow it:
Yes, if you cry out for insight,And lift up your voice for understanding;4 
If you seek skillful and godly wisdom as you would silverAnd search for her as you would hidden treasures;5 
Then you will understand the [reverent] fear of the Lord [that is, worshiping Him and regarding Him as truly awesome]And discover the knowledge of God. (Proverbs 2:3-5)

In light of this new revelation I discovered here, I can't help to grow even more excited about our journey this year through the New Testament!!

May He bless your journey as well!

sue

Daily Seeking God

My Determined Purpose is to Know Him {Psalm 105}

12:04 PM

Scripture Reading: Psalm 105

What does it mean to "seek His face"?

Seeking God simply means seeking His presence. The word translated, “presence” can also be translated, “face.” Therefore, to be before His face is to be in His presence.
From reading Psalm 105 it seems the psalmist is encouraging his readers, who may be down and discouraged to seek the Lord - His presence, and it was that word presence that jumped out at me and sent me on a journey to find out why.  


Oh give thanks to the Lord, call upon His name;Make known His deeds among the peoples.Sing to Him, sing praises to Him;Speak of all His wonders.Glory in His holy name;Let the heart of those who seek the Lord be glad. Seek the Lord and His strength;Seek His face continually. Remember… (Psalm 105:1-5a) 

Why are we encouraged to seek God's presence? I found some really encouraging verses that give us a clue into the importance of seeking Him.

Exodus 33:14 “And he said, “My presence will go with you, and I will give you rest.”

 Moses discovered early on that we can find rest when in His presence; not so much physical rest, but I believe a heart felt rest, from worry or anxiety. Are you ever anxious or worried about impossible tasks, or things you can't control? Look to the Lord and His strength; seek His presence... (Ps 105:4)

 Genesis 28:15 “Behold, I am with you and will keep you wherever you go, and will bring you back to this land. For I will not leave you until I have done what I have promised you.”

 Jacob knew he would find comfort, protection and provision as long as he remain in God's presence. Did you notice that our God is faithful because He swears by His own name, there is no one higher, therefore His promises cannot be impacted by our will.

Psalm 16:11 “You make known to me the path of life; in your presence there is fullness of joy; at your right hand are pleasures forevermore.”

 David knew that in His presence he could experience the "fullness of joy"! BUT something much more important than being filled with joy is that God will “make know to me [us] the path of life” and that speaks of eternal life, because you’re going to be enjoying God’s presence for all eternity.

 Psalm 23:4 “Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil, for you are with me; your rod and your staff, they comfort me.”

 David also knew he didn't have to fear evil, difficult circumstances, or the 'unknown' because the Good Shepherd would be there to give him all the comfort, guidance, direction and protection he would need. Are you facing any uncertainties in your life right now?

Psalm 34:10 says, "The lions may grow weak and hungry, but those who seek the LORD lack no good thing." 

 We will lack no GOOD thing when we seek His face continually! So why aren't we?

 What hinders us and keeps us from seeking God's presence continually?
P.R.I.D.E. The greatest hindrance to seeking His presence is pride. “In the pride of his face the wicked does not seek him” (Psalm 10:4). God's Word states that "He resists the proud, but gives grace to the humble" (James 4:6)

Therefore, humility is essential to seeking the Lord.
Did you know that the greatest promise to those who seek the Lord is that He will be found?

  “If you seek him, he will be found by you” (1 Chronicles 28:9). 
"You will seek me and find me when you seek me with all your heart (Jeremiah 29:13)

 AND here's the clincher, when we do seek Him, there is great reward. “Whoever would draw near to God must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who seek him” (Hebrews 11:6). 

 God himself is our greatest reward, for when we have him, we truly have everything. 

 Therefore, “Seek the Lord and his strength; seek his presence continually!” (Psalm 105:4).

Daily Seeking God

SoulSearching Sunday~Seek and Patience

12:00 AM

Sunday, June 17, 2018


Week Twenty-four

Welcome!  We pray that you have all had a precious time worshipping the Lord this morning!  Below you will find some thought provoking questions that will provide you a starting point to your journal writing to complete this week.  We hope that you will find this time soul satisfying!

Our reading this week was Proverbs 10 - 20...

 1. When did you reap the benefits of discipline or correction? How could self-discipline improve your worship habits? What steps can you take to be more disciplined in your relationship with God?

 To learn, you must love discipline; it is stupid to hate correction. (Proverbs 12:1)

 2. What goals and dreams are you currently pursuing? How do they fit in with what you understand of God’s purposes for your life? Ask God to help you worship through a life of plans committed to Him.

 Commit your work to the LORD, and then your plans will succeed. (Proverbs 16:3)

 3. When, recently, did you act without taking enough time to think and to seek God? What happened? What would you have done differently if you had waited on the LORD? Ask God to show you how to offer Him your gifts, time, and energy as a sacrifice of praise.

 Zeal without knowledge is not good; a person who moves too quickly may go the wrong way. (Proverbs 19:2)



Becky Austin

One Day At A Time (Psalm 64-68)

1:53 AM




Ever feel like you are in survival mode where you simply try to get through just one day at a time?  Sometimes, that is a good place to be because it reminds us that each 24 hour period is a new challenge that we need to confront and conquer with the help of God.  From sunrise to sunset and through the dark nights, God is there to partner with us and sustain us.  God created us, breathed life into us and wants us to seek Him as we realize that we can’t really “live” this life without Him. 

 “The God who made the world and everything in it, being Lord of heaven and earth, does not live in temples made by man, nor is he served by human hands, as though he needed any thing, since he himself gives to all mankind life and breath and everything. And he made from one man every nation of mankind to live on all the face of the earth, having determined allotted periods and the boundaries of their dwelling place, that they should seek God, and perhaps feel their way toward him and find him. Yet he is actually not far from each one of us, for “‘In him we live and move and have our being’; as even some of your own poets have said, “‘For we are indeed his offspring.’”
Acts 17:24-28 

One of the most valuable lessons to be learned from the Psalms is to daily seek God.  David was a man who exemplified this. He turned to God for help and guidance during the “good” days and the “ bad” days. He knew the source of His strength and He had a heart full of reverence and praise for God in every season of his life. Most importantly, He realized that success in this life meant seeking God daily.
“Blessed be the Lord, who daily bears us up; God is our salvation. Selah”
Psalms 68:19 


Every day we have battles to face as we deal with evil in this world that works against us.  The enemy plots against us and tries to spiritually defeat us, but God knows those plans and He can protect us.  Daily, we should ask for His protection from evil and those who mean us harm. “Hear my voice, O God, in my complaint; preserve my life from dread of the enemy. Hide me from the secret plots of the wicked, from the throng of evildoers,”. Psalms 64:1-2 

It may seem at times that evil and the chaos created by evil is going to overcome us but God is ultimately in control.  Joseph, who also sought God daily, comforted himself by knowing that even what others meant for evil, God meant for good. God can, at any time, turn the tables on those who are against us: “But God shoots his arrow at them; they are wounded suddenly. They are brought to ruin, with their own tongues turned against them; all who see them will wag their heads.” Psalms 64:7-8

God purposes for us to spiritually grow through the trials and circumstances of life.  He wants us to daily trust Him to be with us even when life gets tough.  He wants to bless us as we depend on Him to see us through our struggles.  “For you, O God, have tested us; you have tried us as silver is tried. You brought us into the net; you laid a crushing burden on our backs; you let men ride over our heads; we went through fire and through water; yet you have brought us out to a place of abundance.” Psalms 66:10-12 

As we read through the Psalms, we are reading through songs of worship and praise to God.  Daily, we need to have a relationship with God. Prayer and praise should be two important pillars in our daily existence. How blessed we are that we have a God we can talk to and know that He hears.  “Blessed be God, because he has not rejected my prayer or removed his steadfast love from me!” Psalms 66:20 

May I challenge you to daily Pray and Praise. The Psalms are full of praises we can learn to exalt God with.  Praise keeps us mindful of just how majestic and wonderful our Savior is!
“Awesome is God from his sanctuary; the God of Israel—he is the one who gives power and strength to his people. Blessed be God!”
Psalms 68:35 

May you know the rich and abundant blessings of God all the days of your life!