THE LORD GOD IS MY STRENGTH; HE WILL MAKE MY FEET LIKE DEER'S FEET, AND HE WILL MAKE ME WALK ON HIGH HILLS. HABAKKUK 3:19



Friday, August 27, 2010

Unspeakable JOY!


Psalm 30:5
For His anger is but for a moment,
His favor is for life;
Weeping may endure for a night,
But joy comes in the morning.


JOY, Rinnah (ree-nah)
A shout of rejoicing; shouting; loud cheering in triumph; singing. Rinnah describes the jubilation of the righteous when the wicked are eliminated. Zeph. 3:17 literally says that God will dance over His beloved people with singing or a shout of joy. Rinnah may best be illustrated by the testimony of the redeemed, returning to Zion from captivity. Rinnah is a word for both singing and joy. (NSFL)

This morning I woke up to the words "Unspeakable Joy". What a way to wake up! It was not just "Joy", but "Unspeakable Joy". When God speaks, not only do you hear the word spoken, but it radiates through your body. It literally puts JOY into your whole being!

I just laid there, soaking up the "Unspeakable Joy" and began thanking Him for it. Then I prayed that my children would feel the "Unspeakable Joy" the Lord was giving to me and that they would know the good things the Lord gives His beloved.

Then I thought, I need to share this "Unspeakable Joy" with others. I pray that LORD, YHVH GOD, will give you all "Unspeakable Joy". Our GOD has enough JOY for everyone. Amen

Isaiah 12:3,4 (MSG)
3-4 Joyfully you'll pull up buckets of water
from the wells of salvation.
And as you do it, you'll say,
"Give thanks to God.
Call out his name.
Ask him anything!
Shout to the nations, tell them what he's done,
spread the news of his great reputation!

Praise here means to "Lift up You Hands" in adoration to the LORD. A beautiful expression suitable for JOYOUS Worship.

Monday, August 23, 2010

Bearing Others Burdens and Glorify God Together

Romans 15:1-13 (MSG)
1-2 Those of us who are strong and able in the faith need to step in and lend a hand to those who falter, and not just do what is most convenient for us. Strength is for service, not status. Each one of us needs to look after the good of the people around us, asking ourselves, "How can I help?"

3-6 That's exactly what Jesus did. He didn't make it easy for himself by avoiding people's troubles, but waded right in and helped out. "I took on the troubles of the troubled," is the way Scripture puts it. Even if it was written in Scripture long ago, you can be sure it's written for us. God wants the combination of his steady, constant calling and warm, personal counsel in Scripture to come to characterize us, keeping us alert for whatever he will do next. May our dependably steady and warmly personal God develop maturity in you so that you get along with each other as well as Jesus gets along with us all. Then we'll be a choir—not our voices only, but our very lives singing in harmony in a stunning anthem to the God and Father of our Master Jesus!

7-13 So reach out and welcome one another to God's glory. Jesus did it; now you do it! Jesus, staying true to God's purposes, reached out in a special way to the Jewish insiders so that the old ancestral promises would come true for them. As a result, the non-Jewish outsiders have been able to experience mercy and to show appreciation to God. Just think of all the Scriptures that will come true in what we do! For instance:

Then I'll join outsiders in a hymn-sing;
I'll sing to your name!

And this one:
Outsiders and insiders, rejoice together!

And again:
People of all nations, celebrate God!
All colors and races, give hearty praise!

And Isaiah's word:
There's the root of our ancestor Jesse,
breaking through the earth and growing tree tall,
Tall enough for everyone everywhere to see and take hope!

Oh! May the God of green hope fill you up with joy, fill you up with peace, so that your believing lives, filled with the life-giving energy of the Holy Spirit, will brim over with hope!

Christ is the model of conduct in relationships between weak and strong Christians. His example demands mutual forbearance and love, and if followed will result in a unity of harmonious praise to God.

God's kingdom isn't a matter of what you put in your stomach, for goodness' sake. It's what God does with your life as he sets it right, puts it together, and completes it with joy. Your task is to single-mindedly serve Christ. Do that and you'll kill two birds with one stone: pleasing the God above you and proving your worth to the people around you. Romans 14:17-18 (MSG)

Not only are the "strong" to adjust to the "weak", but the matter of acceptance is to be two-way. This was modeled by Christ, the Jewish Messiah who accepted Gentiles. This mutual acceptance of Jew and Gentile by Christ is then supported by a catena of OT scriptures.

The Holy Spirit imparts not only spiritual gifts to the believer, but also joy and peace and hope. (TSFB)