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Ruthless people are no threat to us

But you are a tower of refuge to the poor, O Lord, a tower of refuge to the needy in distress. You are a refuge from the storm and a shelter from the heat. For the oppressive acts of ruthless people are like a storm beating against a wall, or like the relentless heat of the desert. But you silence the roar of foreign nations. As the shade of a cloud cools relentless heat, so the boastful songs of ruthless people are stilled. (Isaiah 25:4-5) A tower of refuge to the needy in distress. The more we read of God's power to protect his creation, the more it should drive us into his arms. Why? We live in a world where 'oppressive acts of ruthless people' can get us down quicker than we know. We need the protection of God's presence, but we also need the protection of his Word. The Word is a powerful tool to combat the lies of the enemy and to expose all manner of deception - the deception 'ruthless people' seem to operate under. Ruthless people operate in a realm wh

Bad habits are hard to break, so...

And you must commit yourselves wholeheartedly to these commands that I am giving you today. Repeat them again and again to your children. Talk about them when you are at home and when you are on the road, when you are going to bed and when you are getting up. (Deuteronomy 6:6-7) Benjamin Franklin said, "It is easier to prevent bad habits than it is to break them." Maybe this is why God encouraged his people to commit themselves to getting into God's Word every day. Recalling his Word on occasion is okay, but 'rehearsing' it until it gets inside of you and begins to affect what you are doing is much closer to what he commanded! Bad habits form a whole lot easier than good ones - at least, that is what I have observed in my own life. The good ones seem to be more difficult because of how I view them - as hard, requiring a 'whole lot of change'. If we didn't form them in the first place, the struggle wouldn't be there! The more we commit to making Go

Pray because of who he is

"Never limit your prayers because you think you are sinful or undeserving. You're not praying because of who you are - you are praying because of who he is." (Missional Women  Facebook )  This is my command—be strong and courageous! Do not be afraid or discouraged. For the Lord your God is with you wherever you go. (Joshua 1:9) We cannot let the 'hugeness' of our sin, impending disaster, or difficulty stand in our way of coming to God with our need. If we waited until we were 'worthy' of his grace or goodness, we'd wait an eternity. God's grace makes a way of approach - his goodness makes provision for our biggest need - PERIOD. Be strong and courageous may seem like an odd verse to consider when thinking about approaching God with our need, but I think it fits the bill entirely. Why? God isn't after timidity - he is seeking to make us bold in his power, strong in his might, and ever certain of his presence with us. Our 'condition' mean

Nothing like grace

Seek the Lord while you can find him . Call on him now while he is near . Let the wicked change their ways and banish the very thought of doing wrong. Let them turn to the Lord that he may have mercy on them. Yes, turn to our God, for he will forgive generously . (Isaiah 55:6-7) Three thoughts for us to ponder this morning: 1) Seekers find God; 2) Those who seek also ask for what it is they have need of; and 3) Those who turn to God find he is generous beyond measure. How is it possible to receive what we did not have a means to find on our own, or have our prayers heard in the heavens? Maybe God answered that one for us in the next verse: "My thoughts are nothing like your thoughts,” says the Lord. “And my ways are far beyond anything you could imagine." Beyond anything you could imagine - seekers find, those with needs find them met, and forgiveness abounds where it is the least deserved. Seek the Lord  while you can find him . Does this mean we could miss the opportunit

Tried and True

But he knows where I am going. And when he tests me, I will come out as pure as gold. For I have stayed on God’s paths; I have followed his ways and not turned aside. I have not departed from his commands, but have treasured his words more than daily food. (Job 23:10-12) There are probably more times when you don't know exactly where your life is headed than there are the times you are 100% certain where everything will work out as planned. The good news is that God knows where we are headed, and he has prepared the path we walk upon. Stay on the path and you will come out the other side of this present journey tried and true. Following God's ways in the midst of 'not knowing' is harder than it sounds. We want certainty, but God isn't always going to show us the end from the beginning. We just need to stay the course and trust him even when it doesn't seem like 'all is well'. Job didn't have a great perspective from the top of a dung pile, but

Whom have I?

Whom have I in heaven but you? I desire you more than anything on earth. My health may fail, and my spirit may grow weak, but God remains the strength of my heart; he is mine forever. (Psalm 73:25-26) How's your health? If you are anything like me, you answer that one with 'fair to midland' - you aren't ailing really, but you have a few aches and pains that get you down from time to time. Physical health may fail, our bodies may grow weary, and our minds fatigue with age, but God's gift to us is that our 'spiritual heart' will never grow weak or weary. When the desire of our heart is God first and everything else after that, our hearts are going to be pretty 'healthy'. God's spiritual strength can abide with us even when our physical strength wanes. We might not be up to winning any hundred-yard dashes at our age, but one thing is for certain - we aren't going to succumb to the pressures of our enemy, either! We have God on our side and that

Nothing good comes from it...

God saved you by his grace when you believed. And you can’t take credit for this; it is a gift from God. Salvation is not a reward for the good things we have done, so none of us can boast about it. For we are God’s masterpiece. He has created us anew in Christ Jesus, so we can do the good things he planned for us long ago. (Ephesians 2:8-10) God has given us his favor, love, and ultimately, deliverance from judgment - all through Christ Jesus. Our part is belief. Take credit for much more than that and you have elevated the importance of what you have done over God's free gift of grace. Salvation is not a reward for the good things we have done - it isn't about the good works - it all about his embracing a sinful people made completely right through the work of the Cross of Christ. We are created anew - not by our good works, but because Christ dwells within us. We can do good works because he creates a new desire within us to no longer follow the deeds of the flesh or our si