Matthew 4:16 – Psalm 23:4
No! For the Christian, light has come to the shadow of death. Zechariah, John the Baptist’s father, said so when he prophesied the soon-coming Messiah – Jesus.
Matthew 4:13 & 18-20 – John 1:44 – Luke 5:10
No! Peter and Andrew lived in Bethsaida. By then, Jesus had moved from Nazareth to Capernaum, a fishing town just a little way up the coast from Bethsaida. James and John (who were related to Jesus) were their fishing partners.
Genesis 18:1-19:1, 29; Genesis 22:11-12; Genesis 16:9-13; Genesis 32:24-30;
Numbers 12:8; Numbers 22:22,31; Joshua 5:13-15;
Judges 6:12-16; 21-22; Judges 13:3,6,12-22; I Kings 19:7-9;
Daniel 3:24-25; John 1:1 & 14.
OOPS: It is impossible and blasphemy to claim God ever materialized on earth in human form.
FACT: God materialized to Adam and Eve regularly. He appeared as a human often described as the Angel of God but called Lord or God by the people he appeared to. He appeared to Abraham twice, Hagar, Jacob, Moses, Balaam, Joshua, Gideon, Samson’s mother, Samson’s father, Elijah, Shadrach-Meshach-Abednego In the Old Testament. And one more time in the New Testament.
Genesis 1:3-5 – Genesis 1:14-19
OOPS: The Genesis account of the creation is wrong. God could not have created light on the first day since he did not create the sun until the 4th day.
FACT: This is assuming the earth is the center of the universe. But it is not. The earth is a tiny spec in the universe. The entire universe does not depend on earth’s sun – just one of the stars created the fourth day. Beginning the first day, God’s glory shined brightly.
Jehovah God, in your Word, you tell me how to think and act. You tell me what to stay away from, what to change, what to do. You tell me what attitudes I should have. I try, but sometimes Satan lures me away from you with his false promises of a better and happier life. He convinces me it’s okay to not do what you want because “God just doesn’t want me to be happy”. Then, when I give in, I realize he has lied to me again and I yearn to return to you. It is always astounding to me that you smile and welcome me back. You forgive even the sins I repeat over and over ~ always trying but always failing. Continuously, you forgive, wipe away my tears, and calm my soul. I do not understand such patience and love. All I know is that you are my God and I am yours.
Thank you for Calvary. Thank you for making it possible for them to arrest you, chain you, slap you, spit on you, beat you, scourge you, drive nails into your body. You let them do it to show the world how mean humanity had become when following Satan. You exposed Satan for what he was. Then you tricked him! Hallelujah, you tricked Satan! He thought he’d killed God. How egotistical. No one can kill God. You spent three days resting in Paradise, then came back to life. Was Satan ever mad. He had lost again. Oh, Wonder of wonders, my Lord. Nothing can conquer you. You are Lord of all lords, King of all kings, Conqueror of all conquerors. And I worship you.
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Ah, how can I praise you enough, Jehovah God? You are so good to me. You poured out your heart to the world in your Bible. How lucky I am to have a copy of it and live where anyone can have as many copies as they like. Lord God, I adore you. You are so high, I delight to follow you and try to reach up as high as you do. You’re never quite so far that I cannot sometimes touch you. To know you is to love you. You are my God and will be forever.
Thank you, God, for freedom to study your Book of all books. I have a copy of your very own words. How amazing. Every word is so fascinating. You pour out your heart and withhold nothing of your plans, emotions, and doings. And thank you for the exhilarating gift of mind that allows humans to know of your existence and to understand who you are. Thank you for making me so much in your image that I have your same emotions, instinctively long for wisdom, and delight in creating. Thank you for all that I am.
The scripture for today, July 7 (7/7), is Matthew 7:7 as found in the New Testament of the Bible:
“Ask, and it will be given to you, seek, and you will find; knock, and the door will be opened to you.”
How beautiful. The Creator of the universe pays attention to each and every one of us. How does he do it? How does he even sort us all out when thousands of us are praying to him at the same time?
But sometimes you may think he is not listening to your prayers. It takes time to answer some of them. If I am praying to meet my future husband or wife, God may have to move him or her from the other side of the country, get a new job for him or her and arrange for the two of you to “accidentally” bump into each other. This is just one example.
At other times you may ask for something like winning a ball game. When Jesus said whatever we seek will be given to you, he had already explained that you must “seek first his kingdom and his righteousness” (Matthew 6:33). So, within that context, God will give you your heart’s desire.
Maybe today, you can do a little bit of extra seeking and extra knocking.
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The stars join together in rapturous chords to sing your praises from galaxy to galaxy. The planets echo their song. It spirals down to the mountain tops. The mountains tremble and the song soars upward until it penetrates worlds and rests at last at your throne. Though there be hundreds of billions of galaxies, the worlds cannot praise you enough, nor can my heart.
You, God, are the only God. There was none before you and can never be another. None higher or lower. You are self-existent. The child was born ~ a Son ~ and he was called everlasting Father, mighty God. What a thought. What a concept. What a resounding declaration. You are the First Cause of all things that exist. You are the fountainhead of every movement. You are the Great Will that the world submits to save itself from being void. Without you there is no order, no cause, no truth, no good, no life. I will praise you alone. I will praise you to my friends. I will praise you to strangers around the world, great and small. To you belongs all honor, glory and majesty.
Ah, my Lord, I thank you for never changing. No matter how much people change, you stay the same. You never allow anyone to pressure you to give in to us or become like us to ease our consciences. If you changed, there would be no such thing as truth. If you changed there would be no such thing as love. If you changed, we could not be saved from Satan and his world. Your love is stubborn, immovable, persevering. You will stand in the universe and among the worlds tall and strong, exalted and majestic.
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The scripture for today, June 12 (6/12), is Luke 6:12 as found in the New Testament of the Bible:
“One of those days, Jesus went out to a mountainside to pray, and spent the night praying to God.”
How in the world did Jesus think of enough things to say that he could pray all night? Most of us, on a good day, only manage a 5-minute prayer. The next verse says that the next morning he selected his twelve apostles. Aha! He had a list. He had probably spent at least half an hour each praying about them by name, as well as about others he was considering. Jesus knew what his apostles would be facing someday. Which ones would be loyal enough, stubborn enough, strong-willed enough to someday in the future endure persecution, torture (skinned alive, beaten to death, burned), and martyrdom for him?
Who do you pray for by name? Do you have a prayer list? How about opening the newspaper and praying for all those people in the news ~ perpetrators, victims, causes, governments, situations? Or everyone you work with? Or everyone your children go to school with? Or all their teachers and administrators? Or the clerks in the stores you go to regularly? Or members of an organization you belong to? Or every member of your congregation? What about countries where people become Christians at risk of their freedom and even their lives?
There are always people in need of prayer. And one of the joys of such a prayer life is now and then telling people whom you know that they are in your prayers, or writing a note to someone who is a stranger to you telling them that you pray for them.
Some people have never heard their names in prayer. Some people have never even been told that someone prays for them.
God loves to answer prayer. Do you love prayer?
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TOUCHING GOD. SILVER-WINGED PRAYERS: YOUR SPIRIT TO GOD’S. I dare you to pray for 50 people, 100 people, 500 people. You do not need to explain each person’s needs. God knows them. If all you can do is bring their names before the throne of God, then do that. May these prayers help you along the way to connect with your Maker, your God, the Lover of your Soul. To BUY NOW, click a book cover or paste this: https://bit.ly/SilverWingedPrayers https://inspirationsbykatheryn.wordpress.com/365-silver-winged-prayers-your-spirit-to-gods/
Ah, my Lord God. People accuse you of using them as pawns in the game of beating out Satan. People accuse you of having a life of ease in heaven while we do all the struggling here on earth. Not so! You are always at work in the background keeping Satan’s emissaries away from us as much as we allow you to. You are always watching people follow Satan’s rebellious ways with artificial laughter as they destroy their lives and blame you for it. Do they not see? Do they not understand that you go through more pain and heartache than the world ever dreams of as you watch us fall into the pit because they wouldn’t pay any attention to you, afraid you would ruin their fun. Oh, how you suffer for us, how you suffer for me. It boggles my mind to understand the love and passion you have for me. I must wear you out as you rush ahead of me and around me, trying to get me to turn back to you. Your grace is as high as the stars at the pinnacle of the universe. I worship you.
Your love, Oh God, is like the ocean. When I need you the most, the tide moves in closer and refreshes my soul. When it is time for me to work on an assignment from you to help people blaming you for their problems, the tide ebbs and moves out to tend to someone else. Then, when I need refreshed by you, here comes the tide flowing in again. Just like clockwork. You are never far away. I can always depend on you. You never change. You are from eternity to eternity. How can I begin to thank you?
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SILVER-WINGED PRAYERS: YOUR SPIRIT TO GOD’S. This third book in the trilogy, Touching God, is suggested prayers to end your time of devotion. Each prayer encourages praise, confession of sins, and thanksgiving. The sins included in this book are from the many lists of sins scattered through the Bible, especially the New Testament. Set aside time every day for prayer. It may be all in the morning, all in the evening, or scattered throughout the day. May these prayers help you along the way to connect with your Maker, your God, the Lover of your Soul. To BUY NOW, click a book cover or paste this: https://bit.ly/SilverWingedPrayers https://inspirationsbykatheryn.wordpress.com/365-silver-winged-prayers-your-spirit-to-gods/
The scripture for today, May 26 (5/26), is 1st Thessalonians 5:26 as found in the New Testament of the Bible:
“Brothers, pray for us.”
Do you have a prayer list? How long is it? Five people? Twenty? Fifty? Five hundred? Often prayers get bogged down and short because the only person we “remember” in prayer is ourselves. Well, and maybe a relative or two
There are many people who need your prayers: Your family is obvious. How about your neighbors? If you don’t know their names, pray for them by house or apartment number. What about the newspaper? Every one of those bad-news stories is crying out for prayer. The school near you needs your prayers ~ students, teachers, administrators, janitors. It doesn’t matter whether you have a child in that school; pray for them anyway.
Who are your local government officials? Not liking them doesn’t make any difference, for Jesus said we are to pray for our enemies too. And that leads to the list of your enemies; do you have any at your workplace? Include them too. It’s pretty hard to resent someone you pray for.
One other thing you might try doing in addition to having a prayer list: Have an answered-prayer list. Write down when you pray for someone, then when it is answered. Keep it as a reminder when you are down and don’t think He’s ever going to answer your requests. God does care, after all.
And speaking of requests, by the time you’re done praying for all the other people on your prayer list, you won’t have a lot of time to pray for yourself. And that is okay too, for others are praying for you!
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365 SILVER-WINGED PRAYERS: YOUR SPIRIT TO GOD’S is volume III in the TOUCHING GOD SERIES. Each day is a prayer of praise and a prayer of thanksgiving. Prayers of confession are taken from lists of sins scattered throughout the Bible. The prayer requests are left to you. Combine this book with 365 Golden Bible Thoughts: God’s Heart to Yours, and 365 Pearls of Wisdom: God’s Soul to Yours to a period of daily devotion and meditation. To BUY NOW, click a book cover or paste this: https://bit.ly/SilverWingedPrayers https://inspirationsbykatheryn.wordpress.com/365-silver-winged-prayers-your-spirit-to-gods/
