November 21, 2024

Holy, Holy, Holy

July 22, 2015 by

psalmshymnsspiritualsongskjv

Holy, holy, holy
Holy, holy, holy
Holy is the Lord God Almighty
Worthy to receive glory
Worthy to receive honor
Worthy to receive all our praise today

Praise Him
Praise Him and lift Him up
Praise Him
Exalt His name forever 

 Alvin Slaughter (along with the Brooklyn Tabernacle Choir)
written by Joe Wood, John Dykes, Reginald Heber

 *   ~   ♥   ~   ✞   ~  ♥   ~   *

One day we will perfectly, completely, totally, truly exalt and praise and honor and glorify the Great I Am forever and ever…for all eternity!  Oh, isn’t it going to be so AWEsome?!!!?  Then we will be just like the heavenly host who now are around God’s throne.

…and day and night they never stop saying, HOLY, HOLY, HOLY
is the Lord God Almighty, Who was and Who is and Who is to come.
And whenever the living creatures offer glory and honor and thanksgiving to Him
Who sits on the throne, Who lives forever and ever,
The twenty-four elders fall prostrate before Him Who is sitting on the throne,
and they worship Him Who lives forever and ever;
and they throw down their crowns before the throne, crying out,
Worthy are You, our Lord and God,
to receive the glory and the honor and dominion,
for You created all things;
by Your will they were [brought into being] and were created.
Revelation 4:8-11

But even now we can exalt and praise and honor and glorify Him!!!  We have our Lord’s example…even He did not seek to bring glory to Himself!  Jesus lived His life on this earth to bring glory to His Father.

Jesus replied, “If I glorify myself, my glory means nothing.
My Father, whom you claim as your God, is the one who glorifies Me.
John 8:54

Jesus also taught His followers that they, too, could glorify God.

You are the salt of the earth.
But if the salt loses its saltiness, how can it be made salty again?  It is no longer good for anything, except to be thrown out and trampled underfoot.
You are the light of the world.
A town built on a hill cannot be hidden.
Neither do people light a lamp and put it under a bowl.
Instead they put it on its stand, and it gives light to everyone in the house.
In the same way, let your light shine before others,
that they may see your good deeds and glorify your Father in heaven.
Matthew 5:14-16

Just like you, I so yearn for my walk in this world to bring attention—to bring glory—to the Great I AM!  My prayer every day is that others will see Jesus in me, and that anything good or righteous I might do will glorify the God that I love.  As His child, everywhere I go He is with me.  But not always do my actions {or my words} prove that I am a child of God.

God will be glorified through our lives in the big, and the small, things as we live and breathe with His character within us.  By His grace we have been enabled to love with His love…to show mercy as He shows mercy…to forgive…to give grace.

These are things that bring Him honor and glorify Him:

  • when a wife chooses to speak words that respect her husband
  • when we sit with our children and grandchildren reading to them out of their little Bible story books teaching them about their heavenly Father
  • when we go on a missions trip to a far-away country (or a nearby town!) and share the Truth of the Gospel of Jesus with young women who have lived with no hope
  • when we take a meal to neighbors who have just added a new baby to their family
  • when we take part in our church’s community-wide VBS program and minister to a little girl who has never heard about Jesus until this week
  • when we are in a long line at the grocery store and ask the mom with a cart overflowing with food AND 3 children to get in line ahead of us
  • when we go sit on the porch to chat (and listen) with an elderly neighbor whose family rarely comes to visit

And so I ask…
today will Almighty God, the Great I AM,
be glorified with you or without you? (And me, too….)

Let’s practice what we will be doing forever…and ever…and ever!

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

I Am

March 9, 2015 by

psalmshymnsspiritualsongskjv

There’s no space that His love can’t reach
There’s no place where we can’t’ find peace
There’s no end to amazing grace

Take me in with Your arms spread wide
Take me in like an orphan child
Never let go
Never leave my side

I am
Holding on to You
I am
Holding on to You
In the middle of the storm
I am holding on
I am

Love like this
Oh, my God, to find
I am overwhelmed
With a joy divine
Love like this sets our hearts on fire

This is my resurrection song
This is my Hallelujah come
This is why it’s to You I run

Songwriters: David Crowder and Ed Cash
The Crowder Band

*   ~   ♥   ~   ✞   ~  ♥   ~   * 

The name of God when it’s revealed seems to be a very big moment in history.  He says “I AM.”  That evokes the idea of His presence, of being in His name.  For me that is one of the greatest hopes of the Christian faith.  No matter where you are in life, you live and breathe in the very presence of God and He has given access to Himself.  The Creator of the universe has given access to us and that’s gorgeous.  So many times I forget about that and I need to be realigned to that reality.

–  David Crowder
(click here for the story behind the song)

Life is full of storms…unplanned changes…unexpected detours.  Some storms are bigger than others.  But how we get through those storms depends on what we are holding onto and, more importantly, Who is holding onto us.

Listening to David Crowder talk about this song, I had a light bulb moment.  I Am is the ‘Great I AM’.  He is holding onto us!  He holds us more tightly than we could ever hold on to Him.  He never lets go of us.  Isaiah 40:13 (NLT) tells us “He will carry the lambs in His arms, holding them close to His heart.”  Isaiah 41:13 (HCSB) states “For I, Yahweh your God, hold your right hand and say to you: Do not fear, I will help you.”  I AM holds us close to His heart.  I AM takes our right hand like a Father and leads us through the storm.  He never leaves our side.

This is what I need to remember as I deal with the curves life is throwing me right now.  Just thinking about I AM holding onto me gives me chills and makes me smile at the same time.  He is my ‘resurrection song’.  He is my ‘hallelujah come’.  That’s why it’s to Him I run because

“There’s no space that His love can’t reach
There’s no place where we can’t find peace
There’s no end to amazing grace”
Filed Under: Psalms Hymns and Spiritual Songs Tagged With: , , , , , ,

Great I AM

February 23, 2015 by

psalmshymnsspiritualsongskjv

I want to be close, close to Your side
So Heaven is real and death is a lie
I want to hear voices of angels above
Singing as one

Hallelujah, holy, holy
God Almighty, the great I AM
Who is worthy, none beside Thee
God Almighty, the great I AM

I want to be near, near to Your heart
Loving the world and hating the dark
I want to see dry bones living again
Singing as one

The great I AM
The mountains shake before You the demons run and flee
At the mention of the name King of Majesty
There is no power in hell or any who can stand
Before the power and the presence of the great I AM
The great I AM the great I AM

Songwriter: Jared Anderson
Performed by Phillips, Craig & Dean

  *   ~   ♥   ~   ✞   ~  ♥   ~   * 

“I am El-Shaddai—‘God Almighty.”
Genesis 17:1b NLT

God said to Moses, “I AM WHO I AM”
Exodus 3:14 NASB

I AM 

Jehovah, our eternal and unchangeable God
Who is always the same—yesterday, today, and forever.

Nothing ever stays the same in this world or in our life.  Nothing except our God.  He is our Rock, solid and unchanging.  Such strength in just two little words—I AM.  Those three letters inspire such confidence and hope.  There is so much wrapped up in those two words…it could never be fully explained this side of Heaven.

Exodus 15:11 (NLT) asks the question:

Who is like You among the gods, O Lord—
glorious in holiness, awesome in splendor, performing great wonders?

Jeremiah 7:10 (AMP) answers that question:

For among all the wise [men or gods] of the nations
and in all their kingdoms, there is none like You.

There is NO one like our God.
He is the only One worthy of our praise.

‘There is no power in hell or any who can stand before the Power and the Presence of the Great I AM.’  Yet we have been chosen by Him.  We can be close to Him.  We can know His heart.  And one day we will stand before Him.  But we will never have to stand before Him in judgment.  Isaiah 38:17 tells us “You have cast all my sins behind Your back.”  Imagine that…standing before the Great I AM, clothed in righteousness, hearing the angels sing with one voice

Hallelujah, holy, holy
God Almighty, the great I AM
Who is worthy, none beside Thee
God Almighty, the great I AM

  *   ~   ♥   ~   ✞   ~  ♥   ~   * 

Father, I cannot even conceive the magnitude of Who You are—the Great I AM—much less of standing before You, pure and holy. Thank You for the confidence those two small words convey.  You are I AM and we have nothing to fear.  I desire to be close to You, near to Your heart.  Remind me I am always in the presence of I AM and that Your Spirit dwells within me.  ‘Hallelujah, Holy Holy’ You are worthy of my praise.  Amen – So be it!

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

You Are, I AM

October 4, 2014 by

psalmshymnsspiritualsongskjv

I’ve been the one to shake with fear
And wonder if You’re even here
I’ve been the one to doubt Your love
I’ve told myself You’re not enough

I’ve been the one to try and say
I’ll overcome by my own strength
I’ve been the one to fall apart
And start to question who You are

You’re the one who conquers giants
You’re the one who calls out kings
You shut the mouths of lions
You tell the dead to breathe
You’re the one who walks through fire
You take the orphan’s hand
You are the one Messiah
You are I AM
You are I AM

I’ve been the one held down in chains
Beneath the weight of all my shame
I’ve been the one to believe
That where I am You cannot reach

The veil is torn
And now I live with the Spirit inside
The same One, the very same One
Who brought the Son back to life

Hallelujah, He lives in me

~ Mercy Me ~
singer/songwriters: Daniel Muckala, Jason Ingram, Seth Mosley, Robby Shaffer, Barry Graul, Jim Bryson, Bart Millard, M ike Scheuchzer, Nathan Cochran
*   ~   ♥   ~   ✞   ~  ♥   ~   *
Do you ever feel like your life is just weighed down with many burdens?  Do you feel a great weight on your shoulders even though you have worked to take some of the pressure off?  Ever feel like you’re just walking around with imaginary chains wrapped around your body?  When sickness or other difficulties hit our lives, we can often feel this way.

Then Moses said to God, “Behold, I am going to the sons of Israel, and I will say to them,
‘The God of your fathers has sent me to you.’ Now they may say to me, ‘What is His name?’
What shall I say to them?” God said to Moses, “I AM WHO I AM”;
and He said, “Thus you shall say to the sons of Israel, ‘I AM has sent me to you.'”
God, furthermore, said to Moses, “Thus you shall say to the sons of Israel,
‘The LORD, the God of your fathers, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac,
and the God of Jacob, has sent me to you.’
This is My name forever, and this is My memorial-name to all generations.…”
Exodus 3:13-15

Moses had a lot on his shoulders when he became God’s deliverer for the Israelites enslaved in Egypt.  He had the job of delivering God’s message to Pharaoh and then leading Israel to the promised land.  He knew that he would be asked by the Israelites about who had sent him.  He needed a name.  So God said, “I AM WHO I AM” (verse 14).  Moses had a huge task ahead of him, but he had the greatest love and power aiding and shielding him in his mission—God, the great I AM.

Our God, the great I AM, loves us unconditionally.  He broke the chains of bondage of the Israelites by using Moses.  God broke the chains of sin and its consequence—death—by sacrificing His own blood through His son Jesus, so that we could be free from the tyranny of sin.  Instead of being chained to death, we, as Christians, can look forward to an eternal life in Heaven with our Father—the One who freed us from a life of slavery to sin and death.

*   ~   ♥   ~   ✞   ~  ♥   ~   *

Dear Heavenly Father: Thank You for breaking the chains of slavery to sin.  Without Your freeing love and sacrifice, we would certainly burn in the consequences of sin. Thank You for loving us and giving us the life breath of eternity.  In Jesus’ name, Amen.

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

“I AM” Chapter 7 – Day 5: I AM…with Christ in Eternity!

August 23, 2013 by

I would like to invite you to listen to this video before reading today’s blog.  Close your eyes, if you will;  allow the Holy Spirit to surround you and speak to your heart.  (You will definitely want to turn up the volume!)

 

I can only imagine what it will be like when I walk by His side…I can only imagine what my eyes will see when His Face is before me…I can only imagine!  How about you?!?  Does your heart not yearn for our Lord’s return?  Do you not have your heart set on life eternally spent in the Presence of the Great I AM?  Can you hardly wait?!?

King Solomon, a man graced by God with more wisdom than any other man, wrote the following.

He has made everything beautiful in its time.  He has also set eternity in the human heart;
yet no one can fathom what God has done from beginning to end.
Ecclesiastes 3:11

God did this!  He put a strong desire to dwell forever with the Great I AM in the human heart!  We understand this, don’t we?  I can only imagine….

In our final lesson today, Teresa shared with us that we have REASON, we have HOPE, and we have PROMISE to cling to.  (Please insert your name in the blanks.)

  • REASON:   (_______) needed a Savior—John 3:16 and 17
  • HOPE:         (_______) is awaiting the Lord’s return—Philippians 3:20
  • PROMISE: (_______) will have a new, perfect body—Philippians 3:21

Please personalize this, my friends!  When we recognize and believe that the Great I AM has made a way from the beginning for (______) to be saved and redeemed and bought back with a precious and costly price—the blood of Jesus—then, I can only imagine….

And check this out!  Here is another promise…we shall see Him; how AWESOME is this?

For now we see only a reflection as in a mirror; then we shall see face to face.
1 Corinthians 13:12

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

Hope remains for God’s children (us! you and me!) We have these beautiful promises from our Faithful God—we SHALL SEE Jesus face-to-face.  I can only imagine….

Beloved, we are God’s children now, and what we will be has not yet appeared;
but we know that when He appears we shall be like Him,
because we shall see Him as He is.
1 John 3:2

From this glorious verse we are assured of THREE things:
—we know that He will appear;
—we know that we shall be like Him;
—we know we shall see Him.

To KNOW and be assured of these things gives such comfort and joy to our hearts, doesn’t it? This is TRUTH to speak to ourselves every day!  To remind ourselves that I AM God’s child, I AM going to be like Him (like HIM!!!  amazing!), I AM going to see the Lord.  The truth contained in the Scriptures is our standard, upon which we can stake our very lives because God has spoken it.   I can only imagine….

Jesus’ followers have always believed that He will come again.  He promised the apostles: “And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come back and take you to be with me that you also may be where I am” John 14:3.

Paul related the same promise: “For the grace of God has appeared, bringing salvation for all people, training us to renounce ungodliness and worldly passions, and to live self-controlled, upright, and godly lives in the present age, waiting for our blessed hope, the appearing of the glory of our great God and Savior Jesus Christ, who gave himself for us to redeem us from all lawlessness…” Titus 2:11-14.

The Church today believe this, too.  We wait for His return!  When Jesus was finishing giving Revelation to John, at the very end He says,

He who testifies to these things says, “Yes, I AM coming soon.”
Amen. Come, Lord Jesus.
Revelation 22:20

————————

Friends, this concludes our study of ‘I AM, Discovering the Character of God through the Revelation of the Scripture.’  Has this study been EVEN MORE than you had hoped?  It certainly has for us!  We pray that Teresa’s book, the accompanying blogs written over the past 7 weeks, and our group study has been a great blessing in your life.  God has certainly knit our hearts together as we have studied the truth of His Word together.  God bless you! <3

And, Teresa, we just would like to communicate our love for you and our thanks!  At the opening of your book, you invited your readers to dig in and ‘find ourselves’ in the pages of God’s Word.  Oh! My!  How amazingly that has happened!  We remain so very thankful for your obedience to the leading of the Holy Spirit as He taught you…and you taught us!  We are so thankful to God for all that He has worked in your heart, Teresa.  May He continue to make Himself known as He leads you along this path He has placed you on!  We pray for you and your loved ones asking the Great I AM to continue to bless you, keep you and make His face to shine upon you…in Jesus’ name.  Amen.

_____________________

Ladies, may I pray for you?

The Lord bless you and keep you; the Lord make His face to shine upon you and be gracious to you; the Lord lift up His countenance upon you and give you peace.
Numbers 6:24-26

Lord, I thank You for each and every one of Your daughters who I have been privileged to journey with through this “I AM” study.   We have shared this journey—the growth, the challenges, the struggles, the peace, the joy—and grown closer together.  Thank You for that, Lord!  I pray for each of these dear hearts that You would continue to draw them close to Yourself.  I ask, Lord, that as You have worked in each of their hearts, they would continue to seek You and find You through the Scriptures.  Thank You, Lord, for their hearts, their lives, and their loved ones.  In Jesus our Lord’s name.

Amen.

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

Trust the Great I AM

August 15, 2013 by

SeekingHimLogo

But mine eyes are unto thee, O God the Lord:
in thee is my trust; leave not my soul destitute.
Keep me from the snares which they have laid for me,
and the gins of the workers of iniquity.
Let the wicked fall into their own nets, whilst that I withal escape.
Psalms 141:8-10

Putting my trust anywhere is one of the hardest things that I have trouble doing.  It all comes from experience.  As most of us know, it is Back-to-School time.  For my family, it is Start-to-School time.  Our son starts Kindergarten this fall.  I worry about my son as he begins Kindergarten and the journey through school—academics, sports, friends—i.e., that word friends is the worriesome part.  I was a victim of bullying in school; hence the trust issues that I have.  However, I do trust the Lord will protect him.  We are blessed to be zoned for a school where we know that most of the teachers and administrators for the three schools (elementary, middle, and high) are Christians. We go to church with some of them, and I have looked at the online bios of others.  The Lord is looking out for us and not leaving us.

The Lord is my strength and my shield;
My heart trusts Him, and I am helped.
My heart leaps for joy and I will give thanks to Him in song.
Psalm 28:7

For us as children of God, there are those out there who are jealous of us.  However He protects us from them.  He looks out for us when we walk into their traps.  We are rescued when the wicked fall and are punished.  We escape the fate that awaits the wicked when the final judgment comes because we have faith in the Lord.  The Lord has His ways of looking out for His children.

The Lord provides for His children in many ways.  He gave His only Son to the Cross, so we could be with Him.  He has protected us from the never-ending punishment that awaits the wicked in the final judgment if we accept Christ as The One and Only way to stand at His throne.  This is the escape of the righteous from the wicked in the final moments of what we know as time.  The Lord protects and answers the prayers of those who call on the Great I AM for deliverance.

God answered the calls of the Israelites when Egypt held them in bondage through Moses.  He delivered David from the hand of Saul when David worshipped the Lord in prayer and song and dance.  The Lord protects those who call on Him, no matter the day, time, or season.  He will deliver us from this world soon, and we should be ready for His joyous return.

* * * * *

Dear Heavenly Father, we ask for Your protection.  We trust that You are always with us no matter the time or season.  We praise You in Jesus’ name. Amen.

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

“I AM” Week 2 – Day 5: Glory of The LORD

July 19, 2013 by

One day we will perfectly, completely, totally, truly exalt and praise and honor and glorify the Great I Am forever and ever…for all eternity!  Oh, isn’t it going to be so AWEsome?!!!?  Then we will be just like the heavenly host who now are around God’s throne.

…and day and night they never stop saying, HOLY, HOLY, HOLY
is the Lord God Almighty, Who was and Who is and Who is to come.
And whenever the living creatures offer glory and honor and thanksgiving to Him
Who sits on the throne, Who lives forever and ever,
The twenty-four elders fall prostrate before Him Who is sitting on the throne,
and they worship Him Who lives forever and ever;
and they throw down their crowns before the throne, crying out,
Worthy are You, our Lord and God, to receive the glory and the honor and dominion,
for You created all things; by Your will they were [brought into being] and were created.
Revelation 4:8-11

But even now we can exalt and praise and honor and glorify Him!!!

Our author writes in the I AM study,

“As we seek God, He places the need to conform to His character within us.  As we walk out our life in the world, we take Him with us.  He is glorified or shamed, depending on how we carry ourselves.  It is our responsibility to make sure God is glorified through our life …God will be glorified with or without you….”

Jesus our Lord lived His life as He walked on this earth to bring glory to His Father.  Even He did not bring glory to Himself!

Jesus replied, “If I glorify myself, my glory means nothing.
My Father, whom you claim as your God, is the one who glorifies me.
John 8:54

Jesus also taught His followers that they, too, could glorify God.

“You are the salt of the earth.  But if the salt loses its saltiness, how can it be made salty again?  It is no longer good for anything, except to be thrown out and trampled underfoot.  You are the light of the world.  A town built on a hill cannot be hidden.  Neither do people light a lamp and put it under a bowl.  Instead they put it on its stand, and it gives light to everyone in the house.  In the same way, let your light shine before others, that they may see your good deeds and glorify your Father in heaven.”
Matthew 5:14-16

Just like you, I so yearn for my walk in this world to bring attention—to bring glory—to the Great I AM!  My prayer every day is that others will see Jesus in me, and that anything good or righteous I might do will glorify the God that I love.  As His child, everywhere I go…He is with me.  But not always do my actions {or my words} prove that I am a child of God.

God will be glorified through our lives in the big, as well as the small, things as we live and breathe with His character within us.  By His grace we have been enabled to love with His love…to show mercy just as He shows us mercy…to forgive…to give grace.

These are things that bring Him honor and glorify Him:

  • when a wife chooses to speak words that respect her husband
  • when we sit with our children and grandchildren reading to them out of their little Bible story books teaching them about their heavenly Father
  • when we go on a missions trip to a far-away country and share the Truth of the Gospel of Jesus with young women who have lived with no hope
  • when we take a meal to neighbors who have just added a new baby to their family
  • when we take part in our church’s community-wide VBS program and minister to a little girl who has never heard about Jesus until this week
  • when we are in a long line at the grocery store and ask the mom with a cart overflowing with food AND 3 children to get in line ahead of us
  • when we go sit on the porch to chat (and listen) with an elderly neighbor whose family rarely comes to visit

So I ask you…today will Almighty God, the Great I AM, be glorified with you or without you?

Let’s practice what we will be doing forever…and ever…and ever!

Praying for each of you!

♥  coleen

*****

Let’s Pray:

Almighty God, You deserve all the honor, all the glory, all the praises that our hearts could ever hold and our voices could ever speak!  There is NONE like You!  You WILL be glorified throughout all eternity!  We so desire to glorify You here and now, Father!  Today, Lord, may our words and our actions bring glory to You as we obey and love You with our whole hearts, souls, minds, and all our strength.  May the care that You give and the needs You provide for in our lives draw others to You!  May the world glorify You, Lord, as we live out our lives manifesting Your character.  May the light that You have placed in us shine into the darkness of the world bringing hope to the lost.  And may it be clear that it is never ‘us’ but always of You!  We love You…we praise You…we glorify and exalt You!

Amen.

 

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