A Little Deeper

One of my favorite songs by Andy Gibb (BeeGees) is How Deep is your love?
I heard it yesterday. Not going to lie - - I dig it.
I had no idea it would tie into the message I was inspired to write today..

God's love has no depth.
I'm coming to know the overwhelming love of God through Jesus.
There is no greater love than that of the Father through His Son.
There is NO OTHER WAY to know God.

God's love is a challenge for us. It's one like we can't experience with other people.
We can feel love and fellowship, friendship, and sense of family, but there is NO love like God's.
Totally a  challenge!

It's a challenge to BE DIFFERENT: be set apart from the rest (the world). Sets us up for ridicule and persecution amongst our environment. 

Psalm 4:3-5

New King James Version (NKJV)

³ But know that the Lord has set apart^[a] for Himself him who is godly;
The Lord will hear when I call to Him.

⁴ Be angry, and do not sin.
Meditate within your heart on your bed, and be still. Selah
⁵ Offer the sacrifices of righteousness,
And put your trust in the Lord.

It's a challenge to be STRONG: be steadfast in His goodness amongst a wicked world and various trials we endure while here.

Psalm 112

New King James Version (NKJV)

The Blessed State of the Righteous

112 Praise the Lord!

Blessed is the man who fears the Lord,
Who delights greatly in His commandments.

² His descendants will be mighty on earth;
The generation of the upright will be blessed.
³ Wealth and riches will be in his house,
And his righteousness endures forever.
⁴ Unto the upright there arises light in the darkness;
He is gracious, and full of compassion, and righteous.
⁵ A good man deals graciously and lends;
He will guide his affairs with discretion.
⁶ Surely he will never be shaken;
The righteous will be in everlasting remembrance.
⁷ He will not be afraid of evil tidings;
His heart is steadfast, trusting in the Lord.
⁸ His heart is established;
He will not be afraid,
Until he sees his desire upon his enemies.

⁹ He has dispersed abroad,
He has given to the poor;
His righteousness endures forever;
His horn will be exalted with honor.
¹⁰ The wicked will see it and be grieved;
He will gnash his teeth and melt away;
The desire of the wicked shall perish.

It's a challenge to be DEEPER: Challenges to love deeper, challenge ourselves to understand all the meanings of His word.

Proverbs 4

New King James Version (NKJV)

Security in Wisdom

4 Hear, my children, the instruction of a father,
And give attention to know understanding;
² For I give you good doctrine:
Do not forsake my law.
³ When I was my father’s son,
Tender and the only one in the sight of my mother,
⁴ He also taught me, and said to me:
“Let your heart retain my words;
Keep my commands, and live.
⁵ Get wisdom! Get understanding!
Do not forget, nor turn away from the words of my mouth.
⁶ Do not forsake her, and she will preserve you;
Love her, and she will keep you.
⁷ Wisdom is the principal thing;
Therefore get wisdom.
And in all your getting, get understanding.
⁸ Exalt her, and she will promote you;
She will bring you honor, when you embrace her.
⁹ She will place on your head an ornament of grace;
A crown of glory she will deliver to you.”

¹⁰ Hear, my son, and receive my sayings,
And the years of your life will be many.
¹¹ I have taught you in the way of wisdom;
I have led you in right paths.
¹² When you walk, your steps will not be hindered,
And when you run, you will not stumble.
¹³ Take firm hold of instruction, do not let go;
Keep her, for she is your life.

The latter challenge, being one I've accepted at a priority lately.
I was digging in His word: one verse at a time. Face value.
I was picking out verses to suit where I was in life, instead of seeking Him in all His word... I have come to realize there is a lot that I was missing. A lot of Him, His love, and His promises that I was missing.
God forgive me for being so blind!!!

I have found an example in Paul. I finished 1st and 2nd Timothy this week. I went through a rollercoaster of emotion: feeling stress to be an example, feeling disappointment knowing that I'd be persecuted even though my actions and intentions for His service were good, feeling bitter towards Paul's attitude towards women: even though he was correct (*you have to consider time frame and scripture that says about men and women submitting as to Christ: Ephesians 5 & Colossians 3*),
to feeling sadness for Paul - his urging for Timothy to greet him before his execution..
I've found a new found respect for Paul and his testimony of Christ and ministry. In the end, Paul literally had only his faith in Christ to lean on & comfort him.  W H O A!!! - meditate on that just a bit.


So, after the letters to Timothy, I felt led to 'backtrack' and start in Galatians. .
(*eventually I'm going to read most of the letters & want to start Revelation in July*)
**personal note** some of these things I'm reading "for the first time" because it has been TOO long since I really did a book/chapter/verse step by step study of His word.

I ended at Galatians 4:19-31.. Paul has brought attention to the enemy and it's attempts to persuade us away from FAITH (Christ). Calls the Galatians "little children" - basically saying they are spiritual weak or immature for allowing the elements around them cloud them of their inheritance.
He explains, once we're a believer we become sons (and daughters) of the SEED (Jesus) which is descendant of Abraham.. basically that we are of the chosen Seed. (*meaning we are of Christ, not flesh)
In verse 27 - Paul quotes OLD TESTAMENT (under the law) a passage from Isaiah. Let's expand on it just a bit..

Isaiah 54

New King James Version (NKJV)

A Perpetual Covenant of Peace

54 “Sing, O barren,(those w/out Christ)
You who have not borne!(those w/out knowing Him)
Break forth into singing, and cry aloud,(rejoice & testify)
You who have not labored with child!(even w/out seeing)
For more are the children of the desolate(there are more children w/out hearing)
Than the children of the married woman,” says the Lord.(than the children of God)
² “Enlarge the place of your tent,(think bigger. challenge to expand your area of knowledge)
And let them stretch out the curtains of your dwellings;
Do not spare;
Lengthen your cords,
And strengthen your stakes.(give Him all you've got. Every bit of room to His service)
³ For you shall expand to the right and to the left,
And your descendants will inherit the nations,(descendants-His seed *of Christ*)
And make the desolate cities inhabited.

⁴ “Do not fear, for you will not be ashamed;(literally - do not fear!)
Neither be disgraced, for you will not be put to shame;
For you will forget the shame of your youth,(shame of your youth = testimony of time not knowing God)
And will not remember the reproach of your widowhood anymore.(no longer w/out salvation)
⁵ For your Maker is your husband,(bride - Christ)
The Lord of hosts is His name;
And your Redeemer is the Holy One of Israel;(Israel, becoming ONE through CHRIST, literally meaning that we -- as believers become part of Israel - symbolic of the ONE Church / ONE Body )
He is called the God of the whole earth.(the whole earth. literally - wants - everyone!)
⁶ For the Lord has called you(a holy calling to share the TRUTH - the gospel)
Like a woman forsaken and grieved in spirit,(brings emotion to God. the grief He feels when we don't believe)
Like a youthful wife when you were refused,”
Says your God.
⁷ “For a mere moment I have forsaken you,(mere moment: the Spirit leaving Christ's body on the cross - which had to be done b/c in Deuteronomy 21:23*law* states anyone hangs from tree be accursed by God and He can't accurse Himself.)
But with great mercies I will gather you.(gathering us for His testimony of mercy & faith)-fulfillment of the law to be saved.)
⁸ With a little wrath I hid My face from you for a moment;
But with everlasting kindness I will have mercy on you,”
Says the Lord, your Redeemer.(EVERLASTING KINDNESS due to the mercy & goodness of our Savior - given to us by God, the Father. literally redeeming us from the sin)

It is no wonder why we sing "Amazing Grace"...

So.. I urge you - accept the challenge of God, the Father - to get to know the Son= the Seed.. the inheritance of father Abraham..

Dig a little deeper.. Find some depth to the love we should have for others and the ability we're granted to share a BIGGER, DEEPER love --the Love of Christ, The Father, and the love we find when The  Spirit takes over our lives. . .


It's a challenge... for sure!! But, the reward is a better payoff than anyone can fathom.

Peace be with you all..
<3

Bloom

Spring has sprung. Gardens are being planted & growing.
My workplace is h u m m i n g!!! If I can't find something to do during the day - then I'm not looking.
Life has been good because God is greater!
I've found a pleasant routine of work, Bible study, kids, Bible study, eat, Bible study, then more Bible study, prayer and then bed. I've been making a habit of submerging myself into the Word everyday for as much time as I can.  I'm striving to come to know God with deeper understanding and strengthen the personal relationship and bond. I pray for His wisdom, His guidance, His love, and that I may grow in His presence, find favor & blessing. - Amen.

God made an everlasting covenant.. covenant is bigger than a promise, better than a vow.. a covenant is a living, breathing and never failing 110% + infinity commitment: signed, sealed and delivered.
It is exactly as it says it is: always.

Isaiah 30:18 says:

¹⁸ Therefore the Lord will wait, that He may be gracious to you;
And therefore He will be exalted, that He may have mercy on you.
For the Lord is a God of justice;
Blessed are all those who wait for Him.
God, like a gardener, planted a seed (us). He provided the soil, the air, and the water.
Like a good gardener, He waits for us. HE WAITS FOR US! He will not leave us.
A w e s o m e !!!!

Imagine, laying in a dark dirt bed, just sitting there.. waiting.. allowing all those internal explosions to  happen to sprout. THAT IS US! We lay and wait, in the dark, devoid of God and His plan for us, we do nothing while He waits for us to come to Him, push towards the LIGHT, and be free. Once the roots have formed and we're aware of His promise & salvation: that's it. We're established.
Proverbs 12:3
A man is not established by wickedness,
But the root of the righteous cannot be moved.Jeremiah 29:1-13
¹¹ For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, says the Lord, thoughts of peace and not of evil, to give you a future and a hope. ¹² Then you will call upon Me and go and pray to Me, and I will listen to you. ¹³ And you will seek Me and find Me, when you search for Me with all your heart.

Once we've taken root in God, that covenant can NOT be broken. He will love us, nurture us, and be with us: no matter what. If we remain in Him, we can strive to be fruitful, show His example and find favor & blessing from Him.
Now comes the hard part.. busting from the soil & growing.
This takes a lot of dedication and energy. Surely God will not fail us and will water us (bring people and events into our life that will allow us to be of right heart and mind to cling to Him and learn His ways). When Jeremiah spoke of God's plan to prosper us (Jeremiah 29:11-13) he wasn't kidding. God is not a man, He can not lie. PERIOD.
Numbers  23:19

¹⁹ “God is not a man, that He should lie,
Nor a son of man, that He should repent.
Has He said, and will He not do?Or has He spoken, and will He not make it good?
God continues to garden us. We continue to grow. It is up to us, after accepting Him into our heart, mind, and life to keep our end of the covenant. We need to love & trust Him completely.
In turn, He will change us. He will mold us. He knew what seed He planted, He waited for it to break free of the soil, and provides life for us, to be fertilized to grow stronger in Him. He will provide & protect us. That is absolute.
Ephesians 6:10-20

¹⁰ Finally, my brethren, be strong in the Lord and in the power of His might. ¹¹ Put on the whole armor of God, that you may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil. ¹² For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this age,^[c] against spiritual hosts of wickedness in the heavenly places. ¹³ Therefore take up the whole armor of God, that you may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand.
¹⁴ Stand therefore, having girded your waist with truth, having put on the breastplate of righteousness, ¹⁵ and having shod your feet with the preparation of the gospel of peace; ¹⁶ above all, taking the shield of faith with which you will be able to quench all the fiery darts of the wicked one. ¹⁷ And take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God; ¹⁸ praying always with all prayer and supplication in the Spirit, being watchful to this end with all perseverance and supplication for all the saints— ¹⁹ and for me, that utterance may be given to me, that I may open my mouth boldly to make known the mystery of the gospel, ²⁰ for which I am an ambassador in chains; that in it I may speak boldly, as I ought to speak.

We still have to do our part. We have to LEARN, BELIEVE, TRUST, and OBEY.
He will grow us! He will mold us to His service. We can be pleasing in His sight.

Galatians 5:16-23

¹⁶ I say then: Walk in the Spirit, and you shall not fulfill the lust of the flesh. ¹⁷ For the flesh lusts against the Spirit, and the Spirit against the flesh; and these are contrary to one another, so that you do not do the things that you wish. ¹⁸ But if you are led by the Spirit, you are not under the law.
¹⁹ Now the works of the flesh are evident, which are: adultery,^[c] fornication, uncleanness, lewdness, ²⁰ idolatry, sorcery, hatred, contentions, jealousies, outbursts of wrath, selfish ambitions, dissensions, heresies, ²¹ envy, murders,^[d] drunkenness, revelries, and the like; of which I tell you beforehand, just as I also told you in time past, that those who practice such things will not inherit the kingdom of God.
²² But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, ²³ gentleness, self-control. Against such there is no law. ²⁴ And those who are Christ’s have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires. ²⁵ If we live in the Spirit, let us also walk in the Spirit. ²⁶ Let us not become conceited, provoking one another, envying one another.
If we continue to grow in Him, we'll have unfailing root in righteousness, be saved and protected through the blood of Jesus and have the forgiving mercy of God that waits for us.

We-as God's garden- all need to do our part. We grow and pollinate. Pollination comes from following His teachings, learning His word and telling of His Truth and Love.
If we're living in His service, He'll provide the opportunities for us to share His word with others - in ways we were intended.. (*here's where that spiritual gifts study comes in handy*)

Yes, plants can be transplanted. We can go about our lives, move to different places, do different things, and meet different people but if we're living in His service: we (the seed / plant) will remain the same.
You can't turn a zinnia into a cucumber. We have a specific job to do. A specific seed planted in us by Him, for Him. . God will grow it. He waits.. We learn.
That's a covenant. (*not a promise*)

Believe, Follow, Trust, Love, and Grow.