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Judith

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DX UMND/PLS
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12/2006
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CA
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Yucca Valley
The Christian Thread is closed for reason unknown. I started a new thread and put our title as Christians Here To Support. I do not know if it will work. If it does, here is a wonderful reading.

Edges of His Ways
September 9 by Amy Carmichael

Hebrews 11.1 : Things not seen
Hebrews 11.2 : As seeing Him

There is more to see in this chapter every time one reads it. To-day the chief thought with me is the power that the Unseen had on the lives of those mentioned here. They heard the voice of their God, or in some way not told us, were caused to know what He wanted done. There was nothing visible to help them, and nearly always there was much to go through that must have been very hard for flesh to bear; but to each it was given to go on, to endure, as seeing Him Who is invisible.

They were caused to hear, and caused to know, and taught how to do the will of their God. Things not seen mattered more to them than things seen. So, in this chapter we have battle stories, pilgrim stories, martyr stories and stories of long walks with God; and each one who fought the fight, lived the pilgrim life, and walked the patient walk, began by looking, not at the seen, but at the Unseen. "For the things which are seen are temporal; but the things which are not seen are eternal" (2 Corinthians 4.eighteen), and does not the Eternal matter more than anything of time ever can?


Heb. 11:1-2: (NIV) Now faith is confidence in what we hope for and assurance about what we do not see. This is what the ancients were commended for.
By faith we understand that the universe was formed at God’s command, so that what is seen was not made out of what was visible.

2Cor. 4:18: So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen, since what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal.
 
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STREAMS IN THE DESERT by LB Cowman

Waiting is Hard

"When the cloud tarried... then the children of Israel... journeyed not" (Num. 9:19).

This was the supreme test of obedience. It was comparatively easy to strike tents, when the fleecy folds of the cloud were slowly gathering from off the Tabernacle, and it floated majestically before the host. Change is always delightful; and there was excitement and interest in the route, the scenery, and the locality of the next halting-place. But, ah, the tarrying.

Then, however uninviting and sultry the location, however trying to flesh and blood, however irksome to the impatient disposition, however perilously exposed to danger--there was no option but to remain encamped.

The Psalmist says, "I waited patiently for the Lord; and he inclined unto me, and heard my cry." And what He did for the Old Testament saints He will do for believers throughout all ages. Still God often keeps us waiting. Face to face with threatening foes, in the midst of alarms, encircled by perils, beneath the impending rock. May we not go? Is it not time to strike our tents? Have we not suffered to the point of utter collapse? May we not exchange the glare and heat for green pastures and still waters?

There is no answer. The cloud tarries, and we must remain, though sure of manna, rock-water, shelter, and defense. God never keeps us at post without assuring us of His presence, and sending us daily supplies.

Wait, young man, do not be in a hurry to make a change! Minister, remain at your post! Until the cloud clearly moves, you must tarry. Wait, then, thy Lord's good pleasure! He will be in plenty of time!--Daily Devotional Commentary

***

An hour of waiting!
Yet there seems such need
To reach that spot sublime!
I long to reach them--but I long far more to trust HIS time!

"Sit still, my daughter"--
Yet the heathen die,
They perish while I stay!
I long to reach them--but I long far more to trust HIS way!

'Tis good to get,
'Tis good indeed to give!
Yet is it better still--
O'er breadth, thro' length, down length, up height, to trust HIS will! --F. M. N.
 
Daily in Your Preaence

THANKFULNESS

Then Jesus looked up and said,
"Father, I thank you that you have heard me."
John 11:41


FROM THE FATHER'S HEART
My child, guard your heart against any spirit of pride or ingratitude. Remember that everything you own is a gift from Me on loan. In everything you must give thanks, even the things that tear at your heartstrings. I work all things out for My good, and your thankful spirit releases My power to do that. My Father deserves My gratitude because I could do nothing apart from Him. Thankfulness is a virtue I see in you. I'm thankful you are My child .

A GRATEFUL RESPONSE
Your attitude was one of gratitude, Lord. Like a clear reflection in a crystal lake, You mirrored the Father and stole no credit for Yourself. You even thanked Him before He answered. Your humble thankfulness is an example for me, Lord. Because of You, I see the Father .

SIMPLE TRUTH

Gratitude is giving God applause, for who He is and what He has done.
 
Weekly Verse
“Cast all your anxiety on him because he cares for you.” -1 Peter 5:7

Weekly Quote
“How often we look upon God as our last and feeblest resource! We go to Him because we have nowhere else to go. And then we learn that the storms of life have driven us, not upon the rocks, but into the desired haven.” -George MacDonald

Weekly Thought
No one likes trouble. It's messy and painful and ruins our plans.

But sometimes trouble is what drives us to our knees, crying out to God. And that is the best place we could possibly be.
 
Well, Judy and Shaon, I found the new thread. Thanks for starting it, Judy.

Daily Light on the Daily Path

September 9
MORNING

He hath filled the hungry with good things; and the rich he hath sent empty away.

Thou sayest, I am rich, and increased with goods and have need of nothing: and knowest not that thou art wretched, and miserable, and poor, and blind, and naked. I counsel thee to buy of me gold tried in the fire, that thou mayest be rich. As many as I love, I rebuke and chasten: be zealous therefore and repent.

Blessed are they which do hunger and thirst after righteousness: for they shall be filled. - When the poor and needy seek water, and there is none, and their tongue faileth for thirst, I the LORD will hear them, I the God of Israel will not forsake them. - I am the Lord thy God ... open thy mouth wide and I will fill it.

Wherefore do ye spend money for that which is not bread? and your labour for that which satisfieth not? hearken diligently unto me, and eat ye that which is good, and let your soul delight itself in fatness. - I am the bread of life: he that cometh to me shall never hunger; and he that believeth on me shall never thirst.

LUKE 1:53. Rev. 3:17-19. Matt. 5:6. Isa. 41:17. -Psa. 81:10. Isa. 55:2. -John 6:35.

EVENING

My feet were almost gone; my steps had well nigh slipped.

When I said, My foot slippeth; thy mercy, O LORD, held me up.

The Lord said, Simon, Simon, behold Satan hath desired to have you, that he may sift you as wheat: but I have prayed for thee, that thy faith fail not.

A just man falleth seven times, and riseth up again. - Although he fall, he shall not be utterly cast down: for the LORD upholdeth him with his hand.

Rejoice not against me, O my enemy: when I fall, I shall arise: when I sit in darkness, the Lord shall be a light unto me. - He shall deliver thee in six troubles: yea, in seven there shall no evil touch thee.

If any man sin, we have an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous. - Wherefore he is able also to save them to the uttermost that come unto God by him, seeing he ever liveth to make intercession for them.

PSA. 73:2. Psa. 94:18. Luke 22:31,32. Prov. 24:16. Psa. 37:24. Mic. 7:8. Job 5:19. I John 2:1. Heb. 7:25.
 
Daily Light on the Daily Path

September 10
MORNING

I will give them one heart, and one way, that they may fear me forever, for the good of them, and of their children after them.

A new heart ... will I give you and a new spirit will I put within you. - Good and upright is the LORD: therefore will he teach sinners in the way. The meek will he guide in judgment: and the meek will he teach his way. All the paths of the LORD are mercy and truth unto such as keep his covenant and his testimonies.

That they all may be one; as thou, Father, art in me, and I in thee, that they also may be one in us: that the world may believe that thou hast sent me.

I ... beseech you that ye walk worthy of the vocation wherewith ye are called, with all lowliness and meekness, ... endeavouring to keep the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace. There is one body, and one Spirit, even as ye are called in one hope of your calling; one Lord, one faith, one baptism, one God and Father of all, who is above all, and through all, and in you all.

JER. 32:39. Ezek. 36:26. Psa. 25:8 10. John 17:21. Eph. 4:1 6.

EVENING

They that wait upon the Lord shall renew their strength. (Or, change strength.)

When I am weak, then am I strong. - God shall be my strength. - He said unto me, My grace is sufficient for thee: for my strength is made perfect in weakness. Most gladly therefore will I rather glory in my infirmities, that the power of Christ may rest upon me. - Let him take hold of my strength.

Cast thy burden upon the LORD, and he shall sustain thee. - The arms of his hands were made strong by the hands of the mighty God of Jacob.

I will not let thee go, except thou bless me.

Thou comest to me with a sword, and with a spear, and with a shield: but I come to thee in the name of the LORD of hosts, the God of the armies of Israel, whom thou hast defied. - Plead my cause, O LORD, with them that strive with me: fight against them that fight against me. Take hold of shield and buckler, and stand up for mine help.

ISA. 40:31. II Cor. 12:10. Isa. 49:5. -II Cor. 12:9. -Isa. 27:5. Psa. 55:22. Gen. 49:24. Gen. 32:26. I Sam. 17:45. -Psa.
 
My Utmost for His Highest

When you were under the fig tree, I saw you —John 1:48

Worshiping in Everyday Occasions. We presume that we would be ready for battle if confronted with a great crisis, but it is not the crisis that builds something within us— it simply reveals what we are made of already. Do you find yourself saying, “If God calls me to battle, of course I will rise to the occasion”? Yet you won’t rise to the occasion unless you have done so on God’s training ground. If you are not doing the task that is closest to you now, which God has engineered into your life, when the crisis comes, instead of being fit for battle, you will be revealed as being unfit. Crises always reveal a person’s true character.

A private relationship of worshiping God is the greatest essential element of spiritual fitness. The time will come, as Nathanael experienced in this passage, that a private “fig-tree” life will no longer be possible. Everything will be out in the open, and you will find yourself to be of no value there if you have not been worshiping in everyday occasions in your own home. If your worship is right in your private relationship with God, then when He sets you free, you will be ready. It is in the unseen life, which only God saw, that you have become perfectly fit. And when the strain of the crisis comes, you can be relied upon by God.

Are you saying, “But I can’t be expected to live a sanctified life in my present circumstances; I have no time for prayer or Bible study right now; besides, my opportunity for battle hasn’t come yet, but when it does, of course I will be ready”? No, you will not. If you have not been worshiping in everyday occasions, when you get involved in God’s work, you will not only be useless yourself but also a hindrance to those around you.

God’s training ground, where the missionary weapons are found, is the hidden, personal, worshiping life of the saint.
 
HAPPY AND BLESSED MONDAY IN THE LORD!

Streams in the Desert by LB Cowman

Expectations Beyond Us

"But prayer" (Acts 12:5).

But prayer is the link that connects us with God. This is the bridge that spans every gulf and bears us over every abyss of danger or of need. How significant the picture of the Apostolic Church: Peter in prison, the Jews triumphant, Herod supreme, the arena of martyrdom awaiting the dawning of the morning to drink up the apostle's blood, and everything else against it. "But prayer was made unto God without ceasing." And what was the sequel? The prison open, the apostle free, the Jews baffled, the wicked king eaten of worms, a spectacle of hidden retribution, and the Word of God rolling on in greater victory.

Do we know the power of our supernatural weapon? Do we dare to use it with the authority of a faith that commands as well as asks? God baptize us with holy audacity and Divine confidence! He is not wanting great men, but He is wanting men who will dare to prove the greatness of their God. But God! But prayer! --A. B. Simpson

Beware in your prayer, above everything, of limiting God, not only by unbelief, but by fancying that you know what He can do. Expect unexpected things, above all that we ask or think. Each time you intercede, be quiet first and worship God in His glory. Think of what He can do, of how He delights to hear Christ, of your place in Christ; and expect great things. --Andrew Murray

***

Our prayers are God's opportunities.

Are you in sorrow? Prayer can make your affliction sweet and strengthening. Are you in gladness? Prayer can add to your joy a celestial perfume. Are you in extreme danger from outward or inward enemies? Prayer can set at your right hand an angel whose touch could shatter a millstone into smaller dust than the flour it grinds, and whose glance could lay an army low. What will prayer do for you? I answer: All that God can do for you. "Ask what I shall give thee." --Farrar

***

"Wrestling prayer can wonders do,
Bring relief in deepest straits;
Prayer can force a passage through
Iron bars and brazen gates."
 
Daily in Your Presence

DESIRED OF ALL NATIONS


"'I will shake all nations,
and the desired of all nations will come,
and I will fill this house with glory,'
says the Lord Almighty."
Haggai 2:7


FROM THE FATHER'S HEART
My child, may I share My dream with you? I have a dream that all nations will come to know Me and let Me fill their homes, hearts, and governments with My glory and grace. Another, My enemy, seeks the opposite: to tear as many away from Me as possible. But those who know Me are secure in the relationship we share. One day all will bow to My rule. Pray that other hearts will come to know Me as you do, Child.

A GRATEFUL RESPONSE
The world longs for the treasures of light, love, liberty, and life. You are the treasure God sent to earth. You, Lord, are the desired of all nations. You are the only One who satisfies every desire, every hope, and every dream that my heart can inspire. Lord, I desire You with my whole heart.

SIMPLE TRUTH

Love each nation as part of God's creation.
 
The Word Among Us

“Clear out the old yeast, so that you may become a fresh batch of dough.” (1 Corinthians 5:7)

Imagine that you’re preparing to bake a few loaves of pita bread for a dinner party. When you get to the batch of dough, you’re devastated because somehow a bit of yeast got into the mix and has corrupted the whole batch. Now instead of the hearty, flat bread you were intending, you are stuck with a fluffy, less flavorful and less nutritious result.

St. Paul used this image to com*pare the Corinthians’ old way of life to a lump of dough. He cautioned them against allowing a bit of yeast— sin—to remain in them and corrupt their new life in Christ.

This image of unleavened bread would have been very familiar to the members of the Corinthian church who were Jewish Christians. It would have reminded them of their Feast of Unleavened Bread, where all the leavened bread is completely removed from the house, and families eat only unleavened bread for the duration of the feast. It was meant as a reminder of the unleavened bread their ancestors ate during the exodus, when God delivered them from slavery in Egypt. Paul took this image and adapted it into an image of the Christian life: just as God rescued the Hebrews and brought them into the Promised Land, so Jesus has res*cued us from sin and given us a new life of purity.

Our lives are meant to include a daily clearing out of the “old yeast,” so that we can become a fresh batch of dough. Like yeast, just a little bit of sin has the power to infect the whole “batch” of our lives. That’s also why Paul later told the Corinthians to “take every thought captive” (2 Corinthians 10:5). The sooner we can screen what goes on in our minds, the better chance we have of staying pure and upright before the Lord.

Are there one or two areas in your life that have the potential of robbing you of your peace or ruining your whole day? Try to catch these areas before they get folded into your day. Whenever you see them rise up, try to take them captive. Ask Jesus to give you victory over them. With his help, you can stop the yeast before it is “activated”!

“Father, give me your grace so that I can live in your victory today.”

Psalm 5:5-7, 12; Luke 6:6-11
 
GOOD MORNING EVERYBODY! HAVE A WONDERFUL DAY IN THE LORD



CONTEMPLATIVE PRAYER


In order to understand contemplation and the contemplative mind, we need to talk about our true self in God. This is the only self that has ever existed, and the only self that contemplates reality in its first and final big frame. The small, false self can only “calculate”—with itself as the reference point. As if it were! The work of religion is to get you to know who you are and always have been: “hidden with Christ in God” (Colossians 3:3). From this vantage point of love and union alone is spiritual knowing possible.

You came from God and will return to God. Your deepest DNA is divine. You are already a spiritual being—the much more difficult question is how to be human! That is what we have yet to learn. I believe that's why Jesus came as a human being: he didn't come to teach us how to go to heaven but to teach us how to be simple, loving human beings here on this earth.
 
STREAMS IN THE DESERT BY LB COWMAN

He Has Overcome the World

"None of these things move me" (Acts 20:24).

We read in the book of Samuel that the moment that David was crowned at Hebron, "All the Philistines came up to seek David." And the moment we get anything from the Lord worth contending for, then the devil comes to seek us.

***

When the enemy meets us at the threshold of any great work for God, let us accept it as "a token of salvation," and claim double blessing, victory, and power. Power is developed by resistance. The cannon carries twice as far because the exploding power has to find its way through resistance. The way electricity is produced in the powerhouse yonder is by the sharp friction of the revolving wheels. And so we shall find some day that even Satan has been one of God's agencies of blessing. --Days of Heaven upon Earth

***

A hero is not fed on sweets,
Daily his own heart he eats;
Chambers of the great are jails,
And head winds right for royal sails.
--Emerson

***

Tribulation is the way to triumph. The valley-way opens into the highway. Tribulation's imprint is on all great things. Crowns are cast in crucibles. Chains of character that wind about the feet of God are forged in earthly flames. No man is greatest victor till he has trodden the winepress of woe. With seams of anguish deep in His brow, the "Man of Sorrows" said, "In the world ye shall have tribulation"--but after this sob comes the psalm of promise, "Be of good cheer, I have overcome the world." The footprints are traceable everywhere. Bloodmarks stain the steps that lead to thrones. Sears are the price of scepters. Our crowns will be wrested from the giants we conquer. Grief has always been the lot of greatness. It is an open secret.

"The mark of rank in nature.
Is capacity for pain;
And the anguish of the singer
Makes the sweetest of the strain."

***

Tribulation has always marked the trail of the true reformer. It is the story of Paul, Luther, Savonarola, Knox, Wesley, and all the rest of the mighty army. They came through great tribulation to their place of power.

Every great book has been written with the author's blood. "These are they that have come out of great tribulation." Who was the peerless poet of the Greeks? Homer. But that illustrious singer was blind. Who wrote the fadeless dream of "Pilgrim's Progress"? A prince in royal purple upon a couch of ease? Nay! The trailing splendor of that vision gilded the dingy walls of old Bedford jail while John Bunyan, a princely prisoner, a glorious genius, made a faithful transcript of the scene.

***

Great is the facile conqueror;
Yet haply, he, who, wounded sore,
Breathless, all covered o'er with blood and sweat,
Sinks fainting, but fighting evermore
Is greater yet.
--Selected
 
DAILY IN YOUR PRESENCE

JEHOVAH-SABAOTH,
THE LORD OF HOSTS

This hath been by your means:
will he regard your persons?
saith the Lord of hosts.
Malachi 1:9 kjv


FROM THE FATHER'S HEART
My child, in your strength nothing is possible. At My command, a thousand angels would rush to your defense if I so desired to send them. I am Jehovah-sabaoth, the Lord of hosts. Nations who trifle with My affections and refuse My plans will reap the consequences. But those who follow Me have a winning army on their side. I will protect you, My child. Never fear.

A GRATEFUL RESPONSE
Lord, You have shown me that falling is not always failing. You pick me up and rescue me when I am overwhelmed. You are Jehovah-sabaoth, the Lord of hosts, a tower of strength for me. I have no other place to run to, no other shelter in which to hide. I depend on You, Lord.

SIMPLE TRUTH

When God is beside us, we need no one besides Him.
 
A Time For Prayer

"In times of war and not before,
God and the soldier we adore.
But in times of peace and all things righted,
God is forgotten and the soldier slighted."

-Rudyard Kipling
Kipling's words, unfortunately, ring true today. The terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001, are a prime example. Immediately following the attacks, Americans embraced faith and prayer as they wept and pleaded with God for help. However, for many, life soon returned to "normal." Consider making prayer a "normal" part of your daily life and don't reserve it for desperate times.

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A simple way to establish the habit of daily prayer is to begin praying for people in positions of leadership over you. Think of leaders in Government, Military, Education, Business, Media, Church and Family. By praying for these seven areas, you are lifting your community and your nation to God every week. Loneliness and feelings of isolation are common among leaders today. Many of them only hear from people when there is a need or complaint. You can be a light in their life by offering prayer and encouragement!

Many times throughout the Bible we are reminded that God is looking for a small remnant of faithful prayer warriors, even one person to stand in the gap for the sins of the people (Psalm 106:23; Ezekiel 22:30). Join the remnant of Christians standing in the gap for our nation!
 
Daily Light on the Daily Path

September 11
MORNING

Be not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind.

Thou shalt not follow a multitude to do evil.

Know ye not that the friendship of the world is enmity with God? whosoever therefore will be a friend of the world is the enemy of God.

What fellowship hath righteousness with unrighteousness? and what com-munion hath light with darkness? And what concord hath Christ with Belial? or what part hath he that believeth with an infidel? And what agreement hath the temple of God with idols? - Love not the world, neither the things that are in the world. If any man love the world, the love of the Father is not in him. The world passeth away, and the lust thereof, but he that doeth the will of God abideth for ever.

In time past ye walked according to the course of this world, according to the prince of the power of the air, the spirit that now worketh in the children of disobedience. - Ye have not so learned Christ; if so be that ye have heard him, ... as the truth is in Jesus.

ROM. 12:2. Exo. 23:2. Jas. 4:4. II Cor. 6:14-16. I John 2:15,17. Eph. 2:2. Eph. 4:20,21.

EVENING
Man goeth forth unto his work and to his labour until the evening.

In the sweat of thy face shalt thou eat bread, till thou return unto the ground. - We commanded you, that if any would not work, neither should he eat. - Study to be quiet, and to do your own business, and to work with your own hands.

Whatsoever thy hand findeth to do, do it with thy might; for there is no work, nor device, nor knowledge, nor wisdom, in the grave, whither thou goest. - The night cometh when no man can work.

Let us not be weary in well doing: for in due season we shall reap, if we faint not. - Always abounding in the work of the Lord forasmuch as ye know that your labour is not in vain in the Lord.

There remaineth ... a rest to the people of God. - Unto us, which have borne the burden and heat of the day. - This is the rest wherewith ye may cause the weary to rest; and this is the refreshing.

PSA. 104:23. Gen. 3:19. II Thes. 3:10. I Thes. 4:11. Eccl. 9:10. John 9:4. Gal. 6:9. I Cor. 15:58. Heb. 4:9. -Matt. 20:12. Isa. 28:12.
 
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