Dominion Does Not Mean Subjugate

Psalm 8:1-9 KJV; Trinity Sunday; God did not intend for us to control his creation; to subjugate any of it; but, to care for it.

The Lord's Favor

Psalm 30:1-8 KJV; 6^th Sunday after Pentecost; The Lord forgives us.

The Lord Is Upon Many Waters

Psalm 29 KJV

Give unto the Lord, O ye mighty, give unto the Lord glory and strength.

Give unto the Lord the glory due unto his name; worship the Lord in the beauty of holiness.

The voice of the Lord is upon the waters: the God of glory thundereth: the Lord is upon many waters.

The voice of the Lord is powerful; the voice of the Lord is full of majesty.

The voice of the Lord breaketh the cedars; yea, the Lord breaketh the cedars of Lebanon.

He maketh them also to skip like a calf; Lebanon and Sirion like a young unicorn.

The voice of the Lord divideth the flames of fire.

The voice of the Lord shaketh the wilderness; the Lord shaketh the wilderness of Kadesh.

The voice of the Lord maketh the hinds to calve, and discovereth the forests: and in his temple doth every one speak of his glory.

The Lord sitteth upon the flood; yea, the Lord sitteth King for ever.

The Lord will give strength unto his people; the Lord will bless his people with peace.

I woke up this morning to a beautiful red sunrise. Here on the river every morning is beautiful as well as quiet. The perfect place for hearing God's voice. We sometimes consider selling the place as it can be a lot to take care of. But, then I remember how fortunate we are to have it. When we first found it, I remember thinking that it truly was a gift from God. It is our sanctuary. It is a place where God can be heard whether it is but a whisper in the stillness or in the sound of thunder over the waters. 

When we first looked at this place, my husband was not impressed. Not one bit! He did not want to own or take care of property in a cedar swamp so he quickly had a pond dug at our camp hoping that would satisfy my yearning to be near the water. That pond is beautiful, as well; but, it was not the same. The home in the cedar swamp was falling apart and was meant at first to be only a place for rest; for quick retreats, and not our home. Thanks to help from his brother, it has become a home and a real place of rest. Something we need as our years continue to increase. Thanks be to God he has learned to love this place about as much as I do. 

It is a joy to be able to witness the beauty of God's creation each and every day whether the sun is shining or the storms are raging. 

All glory belongs to God! Thanks be to God!

God's Peace Pr. J.

In Communion With Him

4:30 a.m. Bayfield, WI and it is dawn!

Cause me to hear thy lovingkindness in the morning; for in thee do I trust: cause me to know the way wherein I should walk; for I lift up my soul unto thee. (Psalm 143:7 KJV)

As I get older, I find it harder to sit still. I find it more difficult to be indoors. I long to be outdoors with no walls confining me. My husband and I decided to take a road trip yesterday. So this morning, at 4 am I found myself wandering around the grounds at a resort near Bayfield, Wisconsin in wonder of the beauty of God's creation. It was already dawn! Imagine that the light shines even at 4 am in northern Wisconsin! It was quiet! It was peaceful! 

In the early mornings when I rise, I am more able to be aware of God's presence in the world around me and with me. That is; after all, what the kingdom of God that we say we hope for is: living in His presence. In the quiet hours of the dawn, when no one is stirring and when most of the sound made by humankind is either shut off or muffled, I am able to realize a closer communion with Him. When it is quiet, I am much more able to hear the whisper of His voice and feel the comfort of His presence.

We do not have to wait until death to know God; to know our savior Jesus Christ. He is with us now and with us always. Live life! Live life in communion with Him today and know the peace that surpasses all understanding!

God's Peace - Pr. J

Do You Want To See Jesus?

In the morning, when I rise, give me Jesus!

And, behold, there was a man named Zacchaeus, which was the chief among the publicans, and he was rich. And he sought to see Jesus who he was; and could not for the press, because he was little of stature. And he ran before, and climbed up into a sycomore tree to see him: for he was to pass that way. And when Jesus came to the place, he looked up, and saw him, and said unto him, Zacchaeus, make haste, and come down; for to day I must abide at thy house. And he made haste, and came down, and received him joyfully.  (Luke 19:2-6 KJV)

In the morning, when I rise give me Jesus. The words to that song have been running through my head a lot lately. It may be because I have been rising early and sitting on the deck watching the sunrise. The beauty of the sunrise reminds how beautiful and glorious is our Lord. 

Zacchaeus "sought to see Jesus who he was; and could not for the press, because he was little of stature." Zacchaeus was of little stature not only in physical height; but, in social stature as well. He was a tax collector and had made himself wealthy by cheating his own people. Therefore, he was not a popular fellow. No one in the crowd that day was going to move out of his way so that he could see Jesus so he climbed a tree to get a look from a distance. Jesus knew of his desire to see him and so he arranged to make it up front and personal. He told Zacchaeus: "Zacchaeus, make haste, and come down; for to day I must abide at thy house." 

Do you want to see Jesus? If you want to see Jesus, just climb down from whatever perch that you've chosen to watch Jesus from afar and welcome Him into your life. Let him in! Today, (and every day) Jesus wants to be welcomed into your home, into your life. 

In the Revelation of John, we hear Jesus' invitation to us: "Behold, I stand at the door, and knock: if any man hear my voice, and open the door, I will come in to him, and will sup with him, and he with me." (Rev 3:20)

Open the door and let him in... He is there for you.

God's Peace - Pr. J

The Comprehension of Love

That Christ may dwell in your hearts by faith; that ye, being rooted and grounded in love, May be able to comprehend with all saints what is the breadth, and length, and depth, and height; And to know the love of Christ, which passeth knowledge, that ye might be filled with all the fulness of God. (Eph 3:17-19 KJV)

I woke up this morning with the realization that I did not just believe in God or as some would say a higher power. I woke up with the comprehension that I actually know him. There was no doubt in my mind that he exists. However, I also realized that I do not pay Him the honor or respect or the love that belongs to Him. 

It is one thing to say that I believe in the one true God. However, it is totally something else to worship Him in spirit and truth. We must be reminded often that God loves us so completely that He was willing to give His only begotten Son to die for people who so reluctantly or even refuse to worship Him. Without the comprehension of how much He truly loves us; of what He was willing to do to save us from ourselves, it is quite impossible to love and worship Him in return as we ought.

Today is also the anniversary of D-Day. A day that so many were willing to sacrifice their lives for the sake of others. Can there be anything greater than a love like this? 

Greater love hath no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends. John 15:13

God grant us the ability to comprehend the true value of the love of God in Christ Jesus that we might all learn to love God and one another even as He loves us.

God's Peace - Pr. J

God's; Not The World's Will

And be not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God. (Rom 12:1 KJV)

Do we really want to good or do we just want our neighbors to be good and acceptable and perfect so that we don't have any injustices inflicted upon us? 

Jesus tells us, "And as ye would that men should do to you, do ye also to them likewise." (Luke 6:31) Do we treat others as we would like them to treat us? Do we get upset if someone gets in our way a bit as they struggle with something or do we help them? Are we understanding when someone is ill and is not able to do what we'd expect of them? 

The world's way is to take care of ourselves first. Indeed, we have to take care of ourselves. But, do we include taking care of our frivolous desires as a necessary part of taking care of ourselves over and above helping our neighbor in genuine need?

Lot's of questions on my mind this morning. I pray that we would learn to be a little bit more understanding of others and begin proving what is the good, and acceptable, and perfect will of God with both word and deed. How fruitful the world would be!

God's Peace - Pr. J

How Great He Is!

   O Lord, our Lord, how excellent is thy name in all the earth! who hast set thy glory above the heavens.
   When I consider thy heavens, the work of thy fingers, the moon and the stars, which thou hast ordained;
   What is man, that thou art mindful of him? and the son of man, that thou visitest him?
   For thou hast made him a little lower than the angels, and hast crowned him with glory and honour.
   Thou madest him to have dominion over the works of thy hands; thou hast put all things under his feet:
   All sheep and oxen, yea, and the beasts of the field;
   The fowl of the air, and the fish of the sea, and whatsoever passeth through the paths of the seas.
   O Lord our Lord, how excellent is thy name in all the earth!

                                                                               (Psalm 8:1,3-9 KJV)

I am a little late on the blog this morning.  I was outside watering flowers and listening to the birds sing. The early mornings here in Florida are awesome. What a beautiful world our Lord created! It is such a privilege to be able to spend time observing His wondrous creation.

O Lord, our Lord, how great you are!

God's Peace - Pr. J

Red Skies

He answered and said unto them, When it is evening, ye say, It will be fair weather: for the sky is red.

And in the morning, It will be foul weather to day: for the sky is red and lowering. O ye hypocrites, ye can discern the face of the sky; but can ye not discern the signs of the times?

A wicked and adulterous generation seeketh after a sign; and there shall no sign be given unto it, but the sign of the prophet Jonas. And he left them, and departed.

                                                                        (Matt 16:2-4 KJV)

I was very young when my mother began teaching me some pretty cool things. She taught me how not to get lost in the woods when picking wildflowers by observing the position of the sun or the moon and what side the moss grows on a tree. She taught me how to track, at least well enough to follow my own trail back out of the woods. She also taught me how to forecast the weather by watching the leaves on the trees or the color of the skies. She taught me "red skies at night, sailors delight; red skies in the morning, sailors take warning." 

When the Pharisees and Sadducees asked Jesus to show them a sign from heaven he told them there would be only one sign for them. That sign would be the sign of Jonah. The prophet Jonah, you might recall, had spent three days floating around in a watery abyss in the belly of a big fish. He had thought at the time that this would be his grave; his final resting place. But, it was not. Jonah lived to serve the Lord.

The sign that Jesus was referring to was that he, himself, would repeat the sign of Jonah. But, this time it would be for the salvation of all people; for all who would believe him. Three days he spent in the grave. He descended into hell. (1 Pet 3:18-20) And... just as Jonah was spit from the mouth of the fish to go and proclaim God's message to those nasty Ninevites that they might be saved and live; on the third day Jesus rose from the grave so that all who believe him would be saved and inherit eternal life. 

God gave us many signs in creation to assist us in our daily lives. But, Jesus, is the only sign that we need for eternal life.

God's Peace - Pr. J