WE TRUST IN THE NAME OF THE LORD OUR GOD: A,F,I,J,K,L,N,P,R,S,T,W

MEDITATION MONDAY

Please join me as I meditate on my Sunday in the Son. You may have been with me, you may have not...it does not matter...let me share with you the richness of what yesterday brings to today! Sharing it with you makes me doubly blessed! If you were where I was yesterday, I invite you to share a comment about what struck you that we can all meditate on this week. If you were in another location with christians, please share something with us that we can meditate on.

.

Of course, since I knew that this week's blog theme was WE TRUST IN THE NAME OF THE LORD OUR GOD, I listened for connections...and there were many. So, I'd like to share with you about A. our Bible class and B. the sermon. Time does not permit me to share the richness of the communion talk by Mike or the wonderful lunch I had with Mary Lea and Debbie.

.

Below, in each instance, I was able to see the NAMES OF JESUS come to the forefront. As I share below, I will put those names in bold italics.

.

A. TREASURED IN MY HEART class for moms taught by Melva:

.

.

Melva shared with us 5 scriptures that have been very close to her heart as she has walked her christian walk as a wife and mother. As she shared them, I was able to see the NAME(S) OF JESUS come to the forefront of each scripture. See if you can connect my train of thought at choosing the Names that I connected with Melva's verses and the embolden words within the verses.

.

.

AUTHOR OF LIFE

Psalms 139:13-16
"For Thou didst form my inward parts;

Thou didst weave me in my mother's womb.

14 I will give thanks to Thee,

for I am fearfully and wonderfully made;

Wonderful are Thy works,

And my soul knows it very well.

15 My frame was not hidden from Thee,

When I was made in secret,

And skillfully wrought in the depths of the earth.

16 Thine eyes have seen my unformed substance;

And in Thy book they were all written,

The days that were ordained for me,

When as yet there was not one of them."

.

.

WISDOM OF GOD

Proverbs 31:26-31

"She opens her mouth in wisdom,

And the teaching of kindness is on her tongue.

27 She looks well to the ways of her household,

And does not eat the bread of idleness.

28 Her children rise up and bless her;

Her husband also, and he praises her, saying:

29 "Many daughters have done nobly,

But you excel them all."

30 Charm is deceitful and beauty is vain,

But a woman who fears the LORD, she shall be praised.

31 Give her the product of her hands,

And let her works praise her in the gates."

.

.

FAITHFUL AND TRUE

2 Timothy 1:3-5
"I thank God, whom I serve with a clear conscience the way my forefathers did, as I constantly remember you in my prayers night and day, 4 longing to see you, even as I recall your tears, so that I may be filled with joy. 5 For I am mindful of the sincere faith within you, which first dwelt in your grandmother Lois, and your mother Eunice, and I am sure that it is in you as well."

.

.

WISDOM OF GOD

SAVIOR OF THE WORLD

FAITHFUL AND TRUE

TEACHER

RIGHTEOUS ONE

2 Timothy 3:14-17

"You, however, continue in the things you have learned and become convinced of, knowing from whom you have learned them; 15 and that from childhood you have known the sacred writings which are able to give you the wisdom that leads to salvation through faith which is in Christ Jesus. 16 All Scripture is inspired by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, for training in righteousness; 17 that the man of God may be adequate, equipped for every good work."

.

NAZARENE

PRINCE OF PEACE

INDESCRIBABLE GIFT

WISDOM OF GOD

Luke 2:51-52

And He went down with them, and came to Nazareth; and He continued in subjection to them; and His mother treasured all these things in her heart.
52 And Jesus kept increasing in wisdom and stature, and in favor with God and men."

.

.

Melva, if you are reading this...THANK YOU! Your transparency has given many of us HOPE!

Each of the things that you shared were an encouragement to someone:

• as a newlywed wife of a military man, you were without him for 16 months
• it wasn't too long after Tom returned from overseas duty that you became pregnant
• you could have "bought into" what a doctor had earlier said....that you would have trouble having children...you went on to have three sons...
• many of your quotes about motherhood were wonderful...I could not write fast enough...but one that touched my heart for the part I got..."Before you were conceived, I loved you...Before you were an hour old, I would die for you."
• another quote..."Motherhood never stops!"
  .
  

MELVA, WHAT HAPPENED ALONG THE WAY THAT COULD HAVE DISCOURAGED YOUR WALK WITH GOD?

• rough pregnancies
• having placenta previa and doctors only giving baby a 10% chance to live - but he did!
• a 7 week pre-mature baby who had to be taught to suck, get feedings every two hours round the clock...
• some strong willed little boys (like their Daddy)
• a Daddy who was taken overseas again...to Thailand
• moving to several different states in a short period of time
• housing being sub-par...one included mouse infestation
• moving to a place where there was no strong church (a mission field)
• husband a new christian
• husband's family not christians...strong personalities...led different types of lives
• you were heard saying "Are we pitching our tents toward Sodom and Gomorrah?"
• just when you found a church to settle in and grow with...you had to up and move to New Jersey because of Tom's business
• as the boys grew, public schools were often a hard place for them in their christian walk
• one son ran away from home for three days
• trying to move them to christian schools was difficult because of different belief systems of the schools
• one son was involved in playing poker during Spanish class
• one son was kicked out of a school
  

You shared, "Yes, there were problems all along the way! I can understand...

• frustration
• angst
• concern
• anger
• hurt
• pain..."
  

YET, YOU SHARED HOPE AS YOU TOLD ABOUT...

• God providing a christian mentor for your husband
• Showing up at the church building "every time the doors were open"
• Finding a place to serve at your local church
• Other christian mothers who were support and encouragement
• After you moved, you even traveled across state to find the best church home for your family and asked a realtor to find you a house within 5 minutes of that church building
• God blessed your faithfulness with such a house, a loving church family, and a tight knit community in which to raise your boys
• Today, you have three God-loving sons who have attended christian universities, married, and given you six grandchildren
• Today, your cup is running over with blessings!
• Today, we can look at your journey and see how you TRUSTED IN THE NAME OF THE LORD OUR GOD...Thank you, Melva!

We look forward to hearing from you again in two weeks...

One of your final quotes, in part, "Motherly love is not much use if it is an emotion...true mothers have to be made of steel!".

.

2. HOPE IN THE MIDST OF POLITICAL TURMOIL

Sermon by Dan Cooper

.

Through the end of the year our two preachers will be preaching sermons from the book of Isaiah. I am amazed at the connection that the scriptures at the beginning of the sermon have with today's post:

.

Isaiah 33:22

"For the LORD is our Judge,

The LORD is our Lawgiver,

The LORD is our King;

He will save us." (Savior of the World)

.

Jeremiah 17:5

"Thus says the LORD,

'Cursed is the man who trusts in mankind

And makes flesh his strength,

And whose heart turns away from the LORD."

.

Over and over again, Dan reminded us not to trust in man...but to TRUST IN THE LORD...for that is where our HOPE comes from! So, we looked at the political unrest in the Old Testament. We looked at the hard times of the people. We saw that the prophet Isaiah lived through at least 4 different Kings. The first half of Isaiah (chapters 1-39) are filled with scathing denunciations and pronouncements about how terrible the people were living. In fact, in Isaiah 6:8 God was looking for someone to be His representative to the people and Isaiah said, "Here am I! Send me!"

.

Then later, Isaiah 40-66 is filled with CONSOLATION and HOPE and FUTURE BLESSINGS.

.

So, Dan raised some questions: "So, what is our HOPE? Is God a Republican or a Democrat?" Of course...neither! Yet, both political parties highlight platform issues that scriptures do uphold:

• God cares about how we treat His earth.
• God cares about social justice
• God promotes equality among the races and genders
• God expects us to pay taxes
• God sanctioned marriage between one man and one woman
• God views (and is involved with) life inside a mothers womb
• God grants the governments authority to punish people who do wrong and reward those who do right

Fact check about who God endorses. God has used both pagan and righteous rulers to execute His will. Four examples in the Bible are:

• Pharoah of Egypt
• King Cyrus of Persia (Modern Day Iran)
• King David of Israel
• King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon (Modern Day Iraq)
  .

Don't put your trust in rulers! Put your TRUST IN GOD! He is in control!

Go back up and read the two scriptures at the beginning of Dan's sermon!

.

Thank you, Dan! You've given us alot to think about and pray for. You've given us more teaching on why it is so important to TRUST IN THE NAME OF THE LORD OUR GOD!

.

TWO MORE THINGS:

1. PRAYER REQUEST:
Please read our neice, Jauna's blog, who is a missionary in Ecuador. She has a prayer request that we can all honor. Thank you!
.
GOD, We pray for Jauna and Justin and their overwhelming responsibilities but more importantly we pray for these beautiful little children. Help them to stay together and have a christian home. You are the Deliverer, the Good Shepherd, the Great I AM...Thank You, Jesus!
.
http://reegersinecuador.blogspot.com/

.

2. Be sure and link to Andrea's blog here and read about the young man who got sent home from school for dressing up like JESUS: http://mom4boys.blogspot.com/2008_11_01_archive.html

.