Great Conflicts with the Tempter

Mrs. Charles Cowman writes these words in her classic devotional book, Streams in the Desert: If a man has much of the Spirit of God, he will have great conflicts with the tempter.

 

I once heard another saintly lady say, if you run into the enemy, you must be going in the right direction.

So, let us be encouraged in the spiritual battles we must endure, remembering always that "The battle belongs to the Lord."

Holiness Unto the LORD!
Grateful

In the Aftermath of the Mega-Storm? Pray!

Let us be in prayer today following the aftermath of the Mega-storm named "Sandy" that hit the east coast of the United States last evening. The storm surge in lower Manhattan, New York City, produced the highest tide there since the year 1821.

Our daughter and her husband who live in a 5th floor apartment in lower Manhattan just contacted us a few minutes ago to say the high water is beginning to recede and except for a loss of electricity they are fine. In her words, "It's less scary now."

Devastation will be assessed in many of the north eastern states as the day unfolds. Loss of life is already being reported. Also, the stubborn storm is still wreaking havoc as it continues to move inland. Especially, those in low-lying regions are experiencing hardship unique to their own experiences. Let us pray for those who await rescue and for those who will arrive to rescue.

This song link pasted below by Kathryn Scott is on my heart this morning. Maybe some in the wake of this severe weather will listen and be encouraged and know that they are loved and there is Hope..

Click here: I Belong - Kathryn Scott - YouTube

Please, Lord have mercy... and speak to us "Peace be still."
Grateful

Be Encouraged! God Cannot Lie!

(15) So Abraham received what God promised because he waited patiently for it. (16) When people take oaths, they base their oaths on someone greater than themselves. Their oaths guarantee what they say and end all arguments. (17) God wouldn’t change His plan. He wanted to make this perfectly clear to those who would receive His promise, so He took an oath. (18) God did this so that we would be encouraged. God cannot lie when He takes an oath or makes a promise. These two things can never be changed. Those of us who have taken refuge in Him hold on to the confidence we have been given. (19) We have this confidence as a sure and strong anchor for our lives. This confidence goes into the holy place behind the curtain (20) where Jesus went before us on our behalf. He has become the chief priest forever in the way Melchizedek was a priest.
-- Hebrews 6:15-20 (GWT)

Let's Be Encouraged... and... Be...
...Grateful

A God Who Saves

Recently, I went in our grown daughter's old bedroom in our family home to pray for her. (She's a young adult now and living in her own place.) I picked up one of her Bibles that she left behind on the nightstand. Opening it, her Daddy was encouraged as I began to pray verses she had previously high-lighted. This verse from the Psalms especially lifted my soul to a higher plane:

Our God is a God who saves...
-- Psalm 68:20a (NIV)

Click here: Our God Saves Paul Baloche Worship Video - YouTube

Jesus Saves!
Grateful

My Joy Knows No Bounds

I am greatly encouraged; in all our troubles my joy knows no bounds.
-- From 2 Corinthians 7:4 (NIV)

Lord, Your boundless Joy is my Strength!

Holiness Unto The LORD!
Grateful

No Good Thing Will He Withhold

A pastor friend of mine, Gene, proclaimed Psalm 84:11 from a very obvious sacred place in his heart. Yes, he spoke the verse aloud from memory to a group of pastors that I was blessed to be a part of. It encouraged us all in an undeniable way:

For the Lord is our light and protector. He gives us grace and glory. No good thing will the Lord withhold from those who do what is right. (NLT)

Lord, let us be in right relationship with You. That is what it means to truly do what is right.
Grateful

Vision from Brother Job (of all People)

Proverbs 29:18 (KJV) says : Where there is no vision, the people perish.

I've been reading lately from the Old Testament Book of Job and my heart is encouraged by what he could see with the eyes of his soul especially in the midst of his personal suffering that was too awful for words.

Yes, Job said this in Job 19, verses 25 and 27:

But as for me, I know my Redeemer lives and He will stand upon the earth at last... I will see Him for myself. Yes, I will see Him with my own eyes. I am overwhelmed at the thought.

Let's lift up our heads, my brother and sisters. Our Redeemer is Alive and Well! Yes, His Help is on the way. Our Deliverer is Coming! Are we overwhelmed at the thought?
Grateful

No Such Thing

Do we belong exclusively to God? If so, let us be encouraged, in that, "there is no such thing as prayer unanswered or prayer unnoticed by our God." -- H. Bonar

2 Corinthians 4:13-18 (NIV) -- (13) It is written: "I believed; therefore I have spoken."With that same spirit of faith we also believe and therefore speak, (14) because we know that the One who raised the Lord Jesus from the dead will also raise us with Jesus and present us with you in His presence. (15) All this is for your benefit, so that the grace that is reaching more and more people may cause thanksgiving to overflow to the glory of God. (16) Therefore we do not lose heart. Though outwardly we are wasting away, yet inwardly we are being renewed day by day. (17) For our light and momentary troubles are achieving for us an eternal glory that far outweighs them all. (18) So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen. For what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal.

IF MY PEOPLE... WILL? I WILL! God's Promise in 2 Chron. 7:14.
Grateful