April 20, 2024

Truth We Can Depend On

October 12, 2015 by

SeekingHimLogo

Every word of God proves true.
    He is a shield to all who come to Him for protection.
Proverbs 30:5  NLT

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 And The Message version reads,

Every promise of God proves true;
He protects everyone who runs to Him for help.

Does it boggle your mind to try to understand that every (all possible) word of God proves (shows beyond doubt) that it is true (accurate, faithful)?  In our human experience, with ourselves and with those around us, we know that kind of perfection and faithfulness doesn’t exist 100% of the time.

Thankfully, it is true for God’s Word.  In the Amplified, it says His words are “…tested and refined like silver.”  And Psalm 12:6 states, “The Lord’s promises are pure, like silver refined in a furnace, purified seven times over.”  That leaves absolutely no imperfections.

Your promises have been thoroughly tested;
that is why I love them so much.
Psalm 119:140

Because of this purity, God’s Word is sure and we can trust it.  God is one with His Word.  God promises to protect all who come to Him, and we can be sure He will.

God is our Refuge and Strength [mighty and impenetrable],
A very present and well-proved help in trouble.
Psalm 46:1 AMP

In the midst of life’s conflicts and disappointments, God is our Shield. Shields come in many different shapes and sizes. Some are tall to cover the warrior from head to toe. Some other shapes are made to protect the most vital organs, and to deflect the enemy’s weapons from harming the warrior. Spiritually speaking, God does exactly that.  When we come (run) to Him, He is there to protect us from the “fiery darts” of the enemy.  In Ephesians 6:16, God says, “…in all circumstances take up the shield of faith.”  God is there for us, but in faith we must come to Him and accept (take up) His protection.

  • The more we know Jesus, the more we will know God’s Word:

In the beginning was the Word,
and the Word was with God,
and the Word was God.
And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us,
and we have seen His glory,
glory as of the only Son from the Father,
full of grace and truth.
John 1:1, 14

  •  The more we know Jesus, the more we know the Father:

I and the Father are one.
John 10:30

  • The more we know Jesus, the more we know the Father’s Truth:

Jesus told him, “I am the way, the truth, and the life.
No one can come to the Father except through Me.”
John 14:6

 

  • The more we know Jesus, the more we will be sanctified and protected by God’s Truth.

Sanctify them in the truth; Your Word is truth.
John 17:17

If we will study Jesus—His life, His words, His relationships with others, and His relationship with God the Father—we will know that God’s Word is truth and we can trust it.  We will have the assurance that we can run to God and find the protection we need.  We will walk in faith, and be shielded by Him.

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Dear God, we are so grateful that we have Your Word to turn to.  Life is not easy, and, we need Your protection even when we don’t realize it.  Help us, Lord, not to just “pick up” Your shield in times of imminent danger…but to live our lives getting to know Jesus, Your Word, so we can be in Your protection at all times.  Thank You for the promise that “Every word of God proves true.”  In Jesus’ Precious Name we pray, Amen.

Filed Under: Seeking Him Daily Devotional Tagged With: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Refiner’s Fire

August 8, 2015 by

psalmshymnsspiritualsongskjv

Purify my heart
Let me be as gold and precious silver
Purify my heart
Let me be as gold, pure gold

Refiner’s fire
My heart’s one desire
Is to be holy
Set apart for You, Lord
I choose to be holy
Set apart for You, my Master
Ready to do Your will

Purify my heart
Cleanse me from within
And make me holy

Purify my heart
Cleanse me from my sin
Deep within

Brian Doerksen
singer/songwriter

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There are numerous uses for fire.  Fire on a torch will light the way in a cavern.  A bonfire can provide warmth and a place to prepare food for campers.  A fire can also destroy property and lives, as we have seen this summer in the Western states.

There is a fire that I definitely want in my life.  This fire destroys the impurities in my life. It is the Refiner’s Fire.

“Behold, I send my messenger, and He will prepare the way before Me.
And the Lord whom you seek will suddenly come to His temple;
and the Messenger of the covenant in Whom you delight,
behold, He is coming, says the Lord of hosts.
But who can endure the day of His coming, and who can stand when He appears?
For He is like a refiner’s fire and like fullers’ soap.
He will sit as a refiner and purifier of silver,
and He will purify the sons of Levi and refine them like gold and silver,
and they will bring offerings in righteousness to the Lord.
Then the offering of Judah and Jerusalem will be pleasing to the Lord
as in the days of old and as in former years.
Malachi 3:1-4

Silver doesn’t come right out of the ground pure.  It is found in dirt, surrounded by other minerals such as copper, lead, and zinc.  To get the pure silver that has value, it must be refined.  There are several different refining methods, but the one that intrigues me most is the refining fire.  Silver melts at very high temperatures.  It is lightweight compared to other minerals, so it will float to the top; and the dross (the other minerals and impurities) will separate from the silver so it can be extracted in its pure form.  A similar process is done to purify gold, as well.

Do you see a comparison with our lives?  Each of us is precious in God’s sight since He created us in His image.  But each of us in our carnal nature comes to Jesus imperfect, impure.  We have sin (dirt) in our lives. We have bad habits (copper), bad attitudes (zinc), and even fears (lead) that cling to us and weigh us down. To stay in His presence we must become perfect, pure even as God is pure.

Every word of God is pure: He is a shield unto them that put their trust in Him.
Proverbs 30:5 KJV
[The Douay-Rheims Bible says, “Every word of God is fire tried:”]

The LORD’s promises are pure, like silver refined in a furnace, purified seven times over.
Psalm 12:6 NLT

As for God, His way is blameless (pure); the word of the LORD is tested;
2 Samuel 22:13NAS

I want to stay in the presence of my/our pure and holy God.  I can’t do that without allowing Him to refine me.  I sing this song with the sincere desire to be purified, cleansed of all impurities that cling to my life.  The refining fire may hurt because there are things in my carnal nature that I don’t want to let go.  But when I submit to God’s purifying, I find that I’m very glad to get rid of those impurities and their weight.

…let us also lay aside every weight, and sin which clings so closely,
and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us….
Hebrews 12:1 ESV

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So I pray today and I hope you will join me:
Lord, purify my heart.  Please cleanse me from deep within.  I choose to allow You to use Your refining fire to cleanse the dross of my life away.  Please forgive me, Lord, for holding onto those things which tarnish the precious creation that You made me to be.  My one desire, Lord, is to be set apart for You—pure and holy—so I am ready to do Your Will.  In Jesus’ pure and holy Name, I pray.  Amen.

Filed Under: Psalms Hymns and Spiritual Songs Tagged With: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Joy

April 16, 2014 by

SeekingHimLogo

We have now entered the season of Lent.  For many Christians, Lent is taken as a time of preparation for the celebration of Easter where God miraculously redeemed mankind by resurrecting His Son from the dead. It is also a time to consider what Jesus said and did; and how we should be living in light of His Words.  ✞ ♥

During this season, here on the Seeking Him devotional blog, we have chosen to focus our devotionals on Jesus’ instructions and admonition communicated in Matthew chapter 5—the Beatitudes.  Jesus said, “Blessed are…” and He went on to give instruction as to how to be “blessed.”  To be ‘blessed’ is to ‘be happy, or to be envied.’   Truly for the Christian, we ARE blessed—oh, how very blessed we are!  Those who observe our lives should clearly be able to tell that we ARE blessed—and that we KNOW it! ✞ ♥

Please consider Jesus’ instructions along with us.  We pray that our words will encourage you and spur you on to be prepare your hearts for the joyous celebration of His Resurrection!  ✞ ♥

Matthew 5:8 Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God.

One summer our family travelled by Greyhound bus from Walnut, MS to Fresno, CA to spend a few days with my mom’s newly-found family. It was a three day  (and night) trip there and back…while spending three or four days in California.

It was such an adventure. Mom who was allergic to anything that bites had a reaction to red ants;  my brother, Terry, got so blistered from the sun that he had ‘bubbles’ on his back…and Dad and I didn’t have anything go wrong.

There was this one thing that has stuck with me though—Aunt Ramona recanted a dream.  She says she was dreaming and in it she was weeping for joy because she was about to touch the feet of Jesus.  Her husband, being concerned, woke her up because she was crying out in her sleep.  She says she fussed at him because she was that close.

I can only imagine what that dream must have felt like—the joy, the excitement, the pure worship that was in her heart!  What a precious gift she received.  I want to have dreams like that so, one day, when I stand before my Savior, I can say, ‘I practiced this in my dreams.’  Although this still would not prepare me for the awesome experience of being among all that is Holy and Pure.

The Pure

The Greek word for “pure” is katharos (used 27 times in the New Testament).  Fundamentally, it signifies that which is clean, or free from contaminating substance (cf. Danker et al., Greek-English Lexicon of the New Testament, 489).  Or as William Barclay contended “that with a spiritual import, ‘pure’ may describe the heart that is free of unadulterated “motives” (Commentary on Matthew, I.101).   (https://www.christiancourier.com/articles/610-who-are-the-pure-in-heart)

I feel that this “being pure” should be the goal of every Christian. To clear our minds of what others may feel or perceive except from the Holy Spirit. When we listen to the ungodly and go to them for advice we are most usually led astray because they speak from a world view. But when we seek Godly counsel from those who dwell daily in God’s presence we should be able to quickly discern what is evil and different from what counsel we would have gotten from our worldly friends.

As we seek to have pure hearts, it would follow that our thoughts would have to follow as well. What does it look like to have pure thoughts? To me it would mean guarding what I read, what I watch, and what I participate in. I guess you would call me a God Nerd. Not a Bible Thumper, but a God Nerd. Now that does not mean that I do not have my weaknesses. I still do, but I do my best to not participate or indulge in them.

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Father, as we learn to trust You and know Your Word more, I say ‘Thank You’ for your love, acceptance, and encouragement that is present each day. Help me give away what you have given to me. I want to learn to serve you more and to serve your people with joy in my heart!  In Jesus’ name, Amen!

Filed Under: Seeking Him Daily Devotional Tagged With: , , , , , , ,

Crazy Love: Chapter 6 – When You’re in Love Weekly Review

February 15, 2013 by

It is so hard to believe that we only have 4 more weeks left of this study! Oh, what a journey it has been and this week really forced us to take a deep look at our relationship with Our Lord and Savior.

On Monday, we discussed two different types of love…reverence and intimate love. We asked ourselves a pretty tough question about our relationship with God and moved on to Tuesday where Martha urged us not to try to hard! On Wednesday, Jennifer boldly claimed with us that there is nothing better than giving up everything and stepping into a passionate love relationship with God. On Thursday, Donna pleaded with us to let go and show God the real YOU! That kind of complete disclosure will help break that barrier and give us the intimacy with the Lord we so desperately crave!

Please watch this video from Francis Chan with me now:

Chan tells us that our relationship with God is not like any other relationship in the world, but we spend our whole lives trying to figure it out. We don’t need to figure it out, we need to surrender and trust God with all of who we are!  THIS is the most fascinating relationship in your life….  I hope you believe that and crave it now more than ever!

Blessings,

Megan 🙂

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Let’s Pray:

God, we love You! We want to know You more intimately than we can even dream of! Help us to surrender everything today that might be hindering us to have this passionate closeness with You. We pray we are forever changed in how we have a relationship with You, Lord! Thank You for this provision! In Jesus’ name we pray, amen!

Your Assignment:

Does your relationship with God resemble an “in-love” relationship?  Please comment below <3

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If you would like to email a private message to Megan in regards to this blog, please email her at: megan@girlfriendscoffeehour.com

 

Filed Under: Women's Ministry Tagged With: , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

A Pure Heart

September 26, 2012 by

 

A Pure Heart

Psalm 51:10

Create in me a pure heart, O God, and renew a steadfast spirit within me.

I’m sure you’ve all heard this verse, and maybe you even know the song… But what does this really mean? And how do we achieve a pure heart?

In Proverbs 4 verse 23 it says, “Above all else, guard your heart, for it affects everything you do.” When it says “heart”, I think it means to be cautious of your thoughts, words, and the things you seek after. Notice in the verse in Psalms that GOD is the one who is creating the pure heart. Apart from the Lord, we are anything but pure. But because of JESUS, we have the privilege and the opportunity to walk in a way that is pleasing to the Lord. We can walk in righteousness and purity, because we have been made righteous and pure through Jesus’ sacrifice.

This also takes some work on our part. Hear me when I say this, you do NOT have to work for Jesus’ love. You have NOTHING to earn. But it is our responsibility, as believers who have been made new, to walk in freedom from the enemy. It is our responsibility to live a life that is holy, so that people will see Jesus in our actions and will want to know Him.

Here are some things you need to think about….

The movies & television shows you watch:

  • Do they portray things that are pleasing to the Lord?
  • Or do the story lines and actions that take place in the movie reveal things that are impure?

The music you listen to:

  • Do the songs exalt the name of Jesus?
  • Do they celebrate the things He has done?
  • Or do the words of the songs reflect the things God asks us to stay away from?

The words you use:

  • Are they encouraging?
  • Or are they sarcastic and intended to hurt people?

Girls… we HAVE to be realistic here. We must take practical steps in order to FEED our spirit and STARVE our flesh.

In order for the Lord to reveal to you what it means to have a pure heart, you have to spend time with Him. I know that life is busy, especially in junior high and high school. I promise you, it will NOT kill you to wake up an hour early to spend time with Jesus. Here are some other things you can do throughout the day to spend time with our Lord and Savior:

  • Whenever you have a free minute in class, pull out your devotional book.
  • Say little prayers throughout the day.
  • Be in communication with Jesus. He LOVES to hear from you, and He LOVES to speak to you, too.
  • Find some good worship music. I listen to worship music all the time. It helps you fix your gaze on Jesus, to fix your heart on Him.
  • Get in the habit of reading your Bible every day.
  • Put notecards inside your locker with lyrics to a worship song or a Bible verse so you can be encouraged throughout the day.

The more time you spend doing things that remind your spirit to worship, and the more that you do to fix your heart on Him, the more you will see your heart beginning to transform into a pure one.

Pray with me~

Jesus, thank You for Your sacrifice. Thank You for redemption, and thank You for allowing me to have a relationship with You. I ask, Lord, that You would begin to change my heart, and that You would reveal the things in my life that I need to lay down in order to be more like You. Give me wisdom and discernment to know what You say is best for my life. I love You, and I worship You. Amen

~Jordan

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Our secret fellowship group on Facebook  is OPEN, so join us to make some new friends who love the Lord!!!! :)

Please “like” our Facebook Community page here to stay up-to-date on all we are doing for teens over here at GCH: decaf: https://www.facebook.com/GCHdecaf.

Be sure to email our lead barista, Megan, if you would like to join a small group or if you have any questions about the study or this ministry. She would love to hear from you!  Teens@girlfriendscoffeehour.com .

Our first study will start October 1st! We will be studying A Daughter’s Worth by Ava Sturgeon.

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