He is our heritage!  

We praise the name of the Lord for our Lord's name is forever and He is known throughout all generations for what He has done and His promises that never fail. It is good and lovely to sing praises to our Lord.  We have much to praise Him for.  We have a safe, secure and rich heritage in Him.

When the Lord sent Moses out to the sons of Israel, He told him to tell them that I AM WHO I AM has sent me to you.  His name is forever. and this is My memorial-name to all generations. Ex. 3:15

The phrase translated “I am who I am” in Hebrew is ehyeh asher ehyeh. The word ehyeh is the first person common singular of the verb to be. It would be used in any number of normal situations: “I am watching the sheep,” “I am walking on the road,” or “I am his father.” However, when used as a stand-alone description, I AM is the ultimate statement of self-sufficiency, self-existence, and immediate presence. God’s existence is not contingent upon anyone else. His plans are not contingent upon any circumstances. He promises that He will be what He will be; that is, He will be the eternally constant God. He stands, ever-present and unchangeable, completely sufficient in Himself to do what He wills to do and to accomplish what He wills to accomplish. When God identified Himself as I AM WHO I AM, He stated that, no matter when or where, He is there. It is similar to the New Testament expression in Revelation 1:8, “‘I am the Alpha and the Omega,’ says the Lord God, ‘who is, and who was, and who is to come, the Almighty.’” This is true of Him for all time, but it would have been especially appropriate for a message in Moses’ day to a people in slavery and who could see no way out. I AM was promising to free them, and they could count on Him! [got questions]

Sometimes when we are going through hardships and it is hard to praise Him.  You may not feel like praising Him but it is where we have a change of heart and brings us into right alignment with Him.  Here are some reasons to praise Him!  

The Lord is good!  For the Lord is good; His lovingkindness is everlasting  and His faithfulness to all generations. Psalm 100:5

Praise the Lord!  For it is good to sing praises to our God; for it is pleasant and praise is becoming. Psalm 147:1

He is above all gods! For You are the Lord Most High over all the earth; You are exalted far above all gods. Psalm 97:9

He is our Judge! He summons the heavens above, and the earth, to judge His people: “Gather My godly ones to Me, those who have made a covenant with Me by sacrifice.” And the heavens declare His righteousness, for God Himself is judge. Selah. Psalm 50:4-6

He is a compassionate God! For the Lord will vindicate His people, and will have compassion on His servants. Deut. 32:36

For you have not received a spirit of slavery leading to fear again, but you have received a spirit of adoption as sons by which we cry out, “Abba! Father!” The Spirit Himself testifies with our spirit that we are children of God,   and if children, heirs also, heirs of God and fellow heirs with Christ, if indeed we suffer with Him so that we may also be glorified with Him. Rom. 8:15-17

Our God is great and above all gods. A few weeks ago I talked about idols in our lives. https://t2womenintheword.blogspot.com/2023/03/friday-march-17th-his-love-and.html and here again we are reminded not to trust in idols, with a warning that we will become like them.  It is always good to check ourselves and see if there is anything standing in the way of our praising Him.

He encourages us to bless Him in vs. 19-21 and what does that mean to bless the Lord?  It is to praise Him, exalt Him, and worship Him.

Abba Father, it is good to give You praise....let praises to You be continually in my mouth. That I would boast in You only. Whatever I am doing let me do it heartily for You and not to bring honor to myself.  That those around me will see You in me and it would encourage them. You are the One who gives me wisdom and power to know Your will for my life.  I thank You for the inheritance I have in You, solid, safe and secure.  I sing praises to You Lord all the days of my life.  You are my hope and You reign to all generations.  Praise You Lord!

Lyn

Friday March 10th

Jesus our King and High Priest forever!

I love how the old and new testament come together. When I first began reading the bible I did not see that but, as I have grown in my reading I can clearly see that Jesus is in it and it points to Him. 

We have so much uncertainty in this world and I am thankful for a God who does not change His mind.  The world is always changing their minds.  He is firm, steady and His promises and Words are true and proven.   Every word of God is tested; He is a shield to those who take refuge in Him. Proverbs 30:5

Jesus is the eternal mediator between God and man and the final authority as reigning king, soon to return and establish His physical kingdom in the same city where Melchizedek was from, Jerusalem. 

High Priest-mediator between God and man.  The first high priest mentioned in the bible is Melchizedek.  He was before the Levitical priests were anointed.  We do not know his beginning or end…there is no record of his mother or father.  Yet Abraham knew that he was the high priest and honored him by tithing ten percent to him.  The high priests made atonement for the people once a year.  Jesus’ atonement for our sins was done once, because it was His shed blood that takes away our sins.  He was born like us so that He experienced everything that we go through.  He gave totally of Himself, completing the atonement of our sins.  He now sits at the right hand of God vs. 1. 

King- A sovereign; a prince; a ruler

Jesus is truly our ultimate authority! 

Jesus has all authority in heaven and on earth-Matthew 28:18. His name is above every name-Phil. 2:9-11. He is the King of kings and Lord of lords Rev. 19:16. His kingdom will last forever-Is. 9:6  His enemies will be made His footstool-Ps. 110:1 He is a merciful and faithful high priest-Heb.217-18 He sympathizes with our weaknesses-Heb. 4:14-16

Have you surrendered your life to Christ? Is He your ultimate authority? Do you come boldly and confidently before His throne of grace? Are you eagerly waiting for His return?

Lord You are our High Priest forever.  You took upon Yourself all of our sins, griefs and sorrows.  You experienced life on this earth as we experience it.  We can run to You for help because You totally understand what we are going through.  Through You we find forgiveness, strength, mercy and grace.  We can boldly come before Your throne of grace to receive mercy and grace for help in time of our need.  Your are faithful!  You do not change Your mind and Your promises are true.  There is no one like You the God of Israel who rides on the heavens to help us and on the clouds in Your majesty, underneath us are Your everlasting arms,  You drive out the enemy saying destroy him.  Amen!

Lyn

This psalm is like taking a walk down memory lane.  We can look back on our past and see what the Lord had done for us and how He has used us to minister to others.  Just as there were events that took place for His people, we also have life changing events in our lives.  I believe that these first 5 verses are what we need to be victorious in our lives like the men in this psalm.  We will see how God used each one to accomplish His purpose and victory!

Joseph- He was hated by his brothers, sold into slavery and in prison twice.  It says his feet were afflicted with fetters [ anything that confines or restrains from motion.] I had not seen that before, Joseph was not free to move around as he pleased in jail, yet he was favored by the jail master.  After much time spent in prison, he was made ruler over all the king’s possessions.  He was used in a mighty way to save God’s people. 

Jacob, Joseph’s father, who thought that his son Joseph was dead.  The Lord used him to make His people fruitful and stronger than their enemies. 

Moses and Aaron- remember the plagues and how Pharaoh’s heart was hardened?  It took 10 plagues to get Pharaoh to let them go.  What a stubborn, obstinate [fixed firmly in resolution; not yielding to reason, arguments]  man.  In the end he ended up losing his son.  And even after the Israelites were out of Egypt, he still pursued them.

⁶ And without faith it is impossible to please Him, for he who comes to God must believe that He is and that He is a rewarder of those who seek Him. Hebrews 11:6

We see in each of these men that they were men who lived for the Lord.  They were obedient to Him and even though they went through tough times they were victorious.  God used these men to accomplish great things.  God remembered His covenant with Abraham and kept it.

God said to Abram, “Know for certain that your descendants will be strangers in a land that is not theirs, where they will be enslaved and oppressed four hundred years. ¹⁴ But I will also judge the nation whom they will serve, and afterward they will come out with many possessions. ¹ Genesis 15:13-15

Our God is faithful and keeps His word and His promises. He can be trusted.  As you read His word see how He kept His promises, even when they were not obedient and faithful to Him.  It is good to give Him thanks for all that He has done in our lives. He is who He says He is and He will do what He says He will do.  He rewards those who diligently seek Him.  He is the Lord our God and He remembers His covenant with His people to all generations.  We have so much to be praising Him for.

Father, we thank You for all that You have done in our lives.  May our days be filled with thanksgiving and praises to Your name.  You are the Holy One of Israel, Who has kept Your covenant to all generations.  May we live out our lives spending time each day in Your word, seeking You diligently!  May the words of our mouths and the meditations of our hearts be acceptable in Your sight, O Lord, our rock and redeemer!  We look forward to the day of Your return and that we get to spend eternity with You.  Help us to keep our focus on You, Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith. Amen!

Make a joyful noise!

Psalm 100, 2 Peter 3:13

I memorized this psalm in the past and when I came to it, I rejoiced for I had often gone to this psalm when I was down and wanted to focus on Him.  It is a short psalm but packed with joy and thanksgiving.  I love the sound of the ocean, esp. when the waves are high and roaring, a river clapping hands and the mountains signing with joy because of Him.  I now hear these sounds in a whole new way.  He made them and they are acknowledging Him.

​ Shout joyfully to the LORD, all the earth. Psalms 100:1

Someday we will enter into eternity with Him and I believe that we will be so overjoyed that we will be overflowing with thanksgiving and praises to Him as we enter into eternity with Him. 

Do you know that God makes a joyful noise over you? His is Almighty God, our Savior.  There is nowhere you can go that He is not with you.  When He forgives you, He does not bring it up again.  What a Mighty God we serve!

The Lord your God is in the midst of you, a Mighty One, a Savior [Who saves]! He will rejoice over you with joy; He will rest [in silent satisfaction] and in His love He will be silent and make no mention [of past sins, or even recall them]; He will exult over you with singing. Zephaniah 3:17

Have you ever just spent time with Him alone, just You and Him and His word.  I have a friend who does what she calls sweet selah days.   Sweet Selah Day is a day—or part of a day—set apart to meet with God. It’s an intentional setting aside of our normal agenda and all our activities and “making a date” to meet with Him. Just like we meet with an old friend, writing the plans on our calendars and setting aside time to catch up, it’s good to do the same with the One who loves us most of all. Here is the link- https://sweetselah.org/sweet-selah-days/.

One of our writers Sue gives a great recipe for spending time with the Lord.  I encourage you to try it during your sweet selah time with Him.

•  If there is anything you’ve failed to do and should have done, 
• Or if there is anything you did and shouldn’t have. 
• Confess any thoughts, attitudes, etc. that are not pleasing to Him.
• Confess anything you’ve been feeling guilty about lately.

8.) Finally, if you've done all the above, and still haven't received any answers, seek godly council from others. 

I can honestly say that God has never failed to answer when I've come to Him in this way. Never failed to answer!  However, the answers have come at different times and in different ways, but I have always known without a doubt it was the answer I was seeking. 

And most importantly, even though the circumstances haven't changed, only my perspective, I gain the peace I need at that moment to wait on Him to deliver me from the circumstances however He chooses. 

 When you see the beauty all around you, do you stop and know that it is all from Him?  Won’t you take a moment today and spend some time with Him, rejoicing and singing songs of praise?  In His presence is fullness of joy. Psalm 16:11

Lord, I want to live in Your presence, focused on You and not on my circumstances.  You are the creator of it all.  You made me.  You are the Good  Shepherd that guides and leads me.  May my life overflow with praise and thanksgiving for all that You have done and are still doing in my life.  On those days when I am struggling put a song of joy in my heart that I can sing to You, bring a verse to me so that I can meditate on Your Word.  Help me to keep focused on You and to keep looking forward to the day when I can enter Your gates with thanksgiving and praise.  Amen!

Friday Feb. 17th

Rock of our Salvation!

Read Psalm 95-Psalm 145

We have so much to praise the Lord for.  Have you ever just stopped and reflected on your life and what the Lord has done for you?  Right from the moment He knit you together in your mother’s womb, He has known you.  Even when you were a small child and did not know Him, He has known you.  When did you get to know Him?

In this psalm we have much to sing for joy over, but, it also comes with a warning!

He is our Rock of Salvation! 

There is no salvation in anyone or anything but Jesus and it is secure, nothing can take it away from you.

 Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who according to His great mercy has caused us to be born again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, ⁴ to obtain an inheritance which is imperishable and undefiled and will not fade away, reserved in heaven for you, ⁵ who are protected by the power of God through faith for a salvation ready to be revealed in the last time. 1 Peter 1:3-5

But we should always give thanks to God for you, brethren beloved by the Lord, because God has chosen you from the beginning for salvation  through sanctification by the Spirit and faith in the truth. 2 Thessalonians 2:13

And God’s peace [shall be yours, that tranquil state of a soul assured of its salvation through Christ, and so fearing nothing from God and being content with its earthly lot of whatever sort that is, that peace] which transcends all understanding shall garrison and mount guard over your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus.     Philippians 4:7-Amp.Bible

 He is above all gods!

As you go about your day I encourage you to stop and look around you.  See what He has made!  From the rising of the sun to its setting we can see His handiwork all around us.  We just had a snow storm here and when I look out I think of how my sins are washed as white as snow! Is.1:18

 We are the people of His pasture and the sheep of His hand!

I am the good shepherd, and I know My own and My own know Me, ¹⁵ even as the Father knows Me and I know the Father; and I lay down My life for the sheep. John 10:14-15

Warning: Do not harden your hearts! Vs.8

Meribah and Massah- He named the place  Massah and  Meribah because of the quarrel of the sons of Israel, and because they tested the LORD, saying, “Is the LORD among us, or not?” Exodus 17:7

Surely all the men who have seen My glory and My signs which I performed in Egypt and in the wilderness, yet have put Me to the test these ten times and have not listened to My voice, ²³  shall by no means see the land which I swore to their fathers, nor shall any of those who spurned Me see it. Numbers 14:22-23

How do we harden our hearts?  Unbelief!  Disobedience!  It can be so easy to get discouraged and start grumbling and complaining as the Israelites did.

I love this psalm because it starts out singing joyfully to the God of our salvation!  When we are focusing on Him it brings much joy to our hearts.  He is the One who created all things.  Let’s make sure our focus is in the right place and heed the warning not to harden our hearts and then we can encourage one another.  Take some time to just spend it with Him in His word. 

Father, there is no one like You, the God of Israel who rides on the heavens to help us and on the clouds in Your majesty.  You are our refuge and underneath us are Your everlasting arms, You drive out the enemy before us saying Destroy!  Deut. 33:26-27.  I ask You to put a song of joyful praise in our hearts and on our lips today!  May we always rejoice in You our creator.  May the words of our mouths and the meditation of our hearts be acceptable in Your sight, O Lord, our Rock and Redeemer.Ps. 9:14  May we take time in our day to be in Your presence where there is fullness of joy.  May we encourage one another with psalms and hymns, spiritual songs, singing and making melody with your hearts to You Lord; Ephesians 5:19  We ask in Jesus name, Amen

Friday Feb.10^th

Psalm 90

Heart of wisdom!

Read Psalm 90-Proverbs 2

There are two kinds of wisdom

1-Wisdom from above-heavenly pure, peaceable, gentle, reasonable, full of mercy and good fruits, unwavering, without hypocrisy James 3:17

For the LORD grants wisdom!
From his mouth come knowledge and understanding.
7 He grants a treasure of common sense to the honest.
He is a shield to those who walk with integrity.
8 He guards the paths of the just
and protects those who are faithful to him.
9 Then you will understand what is right, just, and fair,
and you will find the right way to go.
10 For wisdom will enter your heart,
and knowledge will fill you with joy.
11 Wise choices will watch over you.
Understanding will keep you safe.
12 Wisdom will save you from evil people,
from those whose words are twisted. Proverbs 2:6-12

2-Wisdom of the world-earthly natural, demonic, jealousy and selfish ambition, there is disorder and every evil thing James 3:15-16

These men turn from the right way
to walk down dark paths.
14 They take pleasure in doing wrong,
and they enjoy the twisted ways of evil.
15 Their actions are crooked,
and their ways are wrong. Proverbs 2:13-15

So follow the steps of the good,
and stay on the paths of the righteous.
21 For only the godly will live in the land,
and those with integrity will remain in it.
22 But the wicked will be removed from the land,
and the treacherous will be uprooted. Proverbs 2:20-22

Watch over your heart with all diligence, for from it flow the springs of life. Proverbs 4:23

“Be very careful, then, how you live—not as unwise but as wise, making the most of every opportunity, because the days are evil” (Ephesians 5:15–16).

But his delight is in the law of the LORD,
And in His law he meditates day and night.
3 He will be like a tree firmly planted by streams of water,
Which yields its fruit in its season
And its leaf does not wither;
And in whatever he does, he prospers. Psalms 1:2-3

Wisdom is knowing and having discernment. God calls us to use every moment of every day to honor Him. We need His help to apply His Word in our lives. Ask Him for the wisdom you need and then apply it by faith.

Are you spending time in His Word on a daily basis? What do you meditate on during your day and when you cannot sleep at night? Are you guarding your heart? Are you seeking His wisdom?

Father, teach me to number my days. To be diligent is spending time with You, seeking a heart of wisdom. I seek Your wisdom from above which is pure, peaceable, gentle, reasonable, full of mercy and good fruits, unwavering and without hypocrisy. When I cannot sleep in the night may that be precious time spent meditating on Your word. When I wake in the morning may my focus be on You. Let the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be acceptable in Your sight, O Lord, my rock and my redeemer. In Jesus name, Amen!

Lyn

 

 

Of all of the psalms in the bible, eleven are attributed to the sons of Korah. These beautiful psalms express a spirit of great gratitude and humility to an awesome, mighty God. They express a longing for God and deep devotion. And in His Word we see time and time again how the Lord revives and restores His people. 

Revives - chayah, meaning to live

Restore- shuwb, meaning to turn back, return, or to go back and do again. God’s call was persistently for His people to return to Him.

When the people repented, God showed favor to His land. He restored the captivity of Jacob and forgave the iniquity of His people. Because of His mercy, He covered all their sins, and withdrew all His fury and burning anger from them.

Can you see where in your life He has revived and restored you? I like to keep a journal of what He shows me, because all too often I forget. It is refreshing to see what He has been doing in my life, and encourages me to persevere.

"Restore us again, God our Savior, and put away your displeasure toward us. Will you be angry with us forever? Will you prolong your anger through all generations? Will you not revive us again, that your people may rejoice in you? Show us your unfailing love, Lord,
and grant us your salvation." (Ps. 85:4-7)

Are we not like that, wondering will He revive and restore us?  Do we not cry out to Him time and time again to come and rescue us? How easily we forget that He never leaves us nor forsakes us.  He works all things together for good to those who love Him and are called according to His purpose.

This year the Lord has given the word PEACE. Some scriptures to reflect on and meditate on.                                                     

John 14:27-He leaves Peace with us

John 16:33-In Him we have Peace

Num. 6:24-27-He gives us Peace

Psalm 34:14-Seek Peace

Is. 26:3-Keeps us in Peace

Phil. 4:7-Peace that passes all understanding

Do you have Peace?  Do you live in constant worry and fear?  Do you spend time each day with Him, just you and Him in His word?  Where is your Peace?

For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand so that we would walk in them. Ephesians 2:10

Abba Father, You who knit us together in our mother’s wombs are intimately acquainted with us.  There is no where that we can go that You are not there.  You promise never to leave us nor forsake us.  We live in a troubled world and yet Your word says that we can have peace.  Help us to keep our focus on You Jesus and not on what the world thinks or our difficult circumstances.  Remind us of what You have done and are doing in our lives. We want Your peace that passes all understanding that guards our hearts and mind in Christ Jesus!  Bless us and keep us, make Your face to shine upon us and be gracious to us.  Lift up Your countenance on us and give us Your peace.  In Jesus name, Amen!

Lyn