Be thou my strong habitation, Lord, please.

Please Heavenly Father-

Psa 71:3  Be thou my strong habitation, whereunto I may continually resort: thou hast given commandment to save me; for thou art my rock and my fortress.

Truly you are my strong habitation, help me to realize it's in You I must continually resort. You and You alone have given the commandment to save my life eternally, only You offer this to me and no other. You truly are my rock, my surety, my fortress, my sanctuary, my retreat, my everything.  This world will up-end me at every turn, twisting and turning me violently, if only in my mind. My sinful, selfish, awfulness that rears up its ugly evil head all the time can only be destroyed by You and Your power, I'm powerless against sins that truly- so incredibly easily beset me! Please, Lord, please, forgive me for so many, many sins! Save me, my only hope is in YOU and YOUR MERCY!

Change me, Father, change me into a vessel You can use for Your service in my everyday life. Satan's assaults have me doing things that I DON'T WANT TO DO, and not doing things THAT I WANT TO DO. Please, KEEP THE DOOR OF MY LIPS, because what comes out of my mouth really does defile me!

Rom 7:18  For I know that in me (that is, in my flesh,) dwelleth no good thing: for to will is present with me; but how to perform that which is good I find not.

Rom 7:19  For the good that I would I do not: but the evil which I would not, that I do.

Rom 7:20  Now if I do that I would not, it is no more I that do it, but sin that dwelleth in me.

Rom 7:21  I find then a law, that, when I would do good, evil is present with me.

Rom 7:22  For I delight in the law of God after the inward man:

Rom 7:23  But I see another law in my members, warring against the law of my mind, and bringing me into captivity to the law of sin which is in my members.

Rom 7:24  O wretched man that I am! who shall deliver me from the body of this death?

Rom 7:25  I thank God through Jesus Christ our Lord. So then with the mind I myself serve the law of God; but with the flesh the law of sin.

Psa_141:3  Set a watch, O LORD, before my mouth; keep the door of my lips.

Act 8:22  Repent therefore of this thy wickedness, and pray God, if perhaps the thought of thine heart may be forgiven thee.

Act 8:23  For I perceive that thou art in the gall of bitterness, and in the bond of iniquity.

Please, Father God, please forgive the thoughts of my heart, my selfish, selfish heart, please.

Please, Father take me as wholly Yours, use me in Your service, all my plans truly I must lay at Your feet… this prayer from another is mine! Help me to be all You need me to be especially right now, let me be for my mother all You would have me be, all You can through the power of the Holy Spirit change me to be. Give me all the strength spiritually, physically, mentally, emotionally that I will need to love my mother and care for her. Please live in me, please she deserves only love, the love that You alone can give us to give to others.  Bless her with Your mercy, please bless her in Your love! Let Your will be done in her in all ways! She always prayed for me, and for all her children, grandchildren, great-grandchildren, she's Yours Lord, she's Yours, wrap her in Your loving embrace and keep her in You as she enters this phase of her life leading to her long sleep, so that she may awake when Your last trump sounds and the dead in Christ rise to meet You in the air!

1Th 4:14  For if we believe that Jesus died and rose again, even so them also which sleep in Jesus will God bring with him.

1Th 4:15  For this we say unto you by the word of the Lord, that we which are alive and remain unto the coming of the Lord shall not prevent them which are asleep.

1Th 4:16  For the Lord himself shall descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trump of God: and the dead in Christ shall rise first:

1Th 4:17  Then we which are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds, to meet the Lord in the air: and so shall we ever be with the Lord.

1Th 4:18  Wherefore comfort one another with these words.

All in the name of our Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ, now and forever!

Amen.

God First

Mar 12:28  And one of the scribes came, and having heard them reasoning together, and perceiving that he had answered them well, asked him, Which is the first commandment of all?

Mar 12:29  And Jesus answered him, The first of all the commandments is, Hear, O Israel; The Lord our God is one Lord:

Mar 12:30  And thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind, and with all thy strength: this is the first commandment.

Mar 12:31  And the second is like, namely this, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself. There is none other commandment greater than these.

Mar 12:32  And the scribe said unto him, Well, Master, thou hast said the truth: for there is one God; and there is none other but he:

Mar 12:33  And to love him with all the heart, and with all the understanding, and with all the soul, and with all the strength, and to love his neighbour as himself, is more than all whole burnt offerings and sacrifices.

Mar 12:34  And when Jesus saw that he answered discreetly, he said unto him, Thou art not far from the kingdom of God. And no man after that durst ask him any question.

The Pursuit of God -  A.W. Tozer  'The whole course of the life is upset by failure to put God where He belongs. We exalt ourselves instead of God and the curse follows.'

Where does God belong?

The FIRST of ALL the commandments is-  LOVING GOD WITH ALL OUR HEART, SOUL, MIND STRENGTH. 

The second is loving our fellow man.

All the ten moral laws are encompassed in these two.

Loving God with ALL of ourselves!  Can we do this if we love our own selves more?  If at every turn we are considering ourselves before God?

Go a whole week without talking about yourself- your feelings, your wants, your needs, your likes, your dislikes, can you? Can we?  It'd be interesting to see how long we could go wouldn't it? But then again we are focusing on ourselves aren't we, even while hoping not to. We are so full of ourselves that even our serving others has become an extension of self-serving.

We are wretched, so very, very wretched. By choosing CONSTANTLY to serve God even in our extreme imperfection we place all our hope in CHRIST who served Him perfectly!

We choose, we constantly choose, over and over we choose.

The Pursuit of God -  A.W. Tozer  'The whole course of the life is upset by failure to put God where He belongs. We exalt ourselves instead of God and the curse follows.'

We need to exalt GOD, not ourselves. Please God, help us do this. We believe, help Thou our unbelief!

All through Jesus Christ our LORD and SAVIOR, now and forever!

Amen.

Honor from God

Joh 5:44  How can ye believe, which receive honour one of another, and seek not the honour that cometh from God only?

We do this, don't we? We seek honor from each other. We seek recognition from each other. We want admiration, we want approval, we want compliments, we even feel we deserve these things. We do something good, a job well done and we want the reward for that job even if the reward is a thank you. We tend to get upset if our efforts aren't appreciated. We want people to HONOR us and our efforts, and we call this human nature. And if by human nature we mean human sinful flesh nature we'd be right. On the other hand if we mean acceptable because it's our nature, we'd be wrong. We can't ACCEPT our sinful nature, excusing it as if the sins we are prone to are of no consequence. When we desire honor from others we are giving them a hold over us.  When we don't get that desired honor we allow it to affect us.  We may feel sadness, rejection, anger even.  When we seek honor from each other in whatever form that honor takes, we are giving them God's place. We need to seek honor from God and God alone.

We need to recognize where we are seeking honor from.  Please Father, help us!

Joh 12:42  Nevertheless among the chief rulers also many believed on him; but because of the Pharisees they did not confess him, lest they should be put out of the synagogue:

Joh 12:43  For they loved the praise of men more than the praise of God.

Do we LOVE the praise of men MORE than the praise of God?!

Php 2:3  Let nothing be done through strife or vainglory; but in lowliness of mind let each esteem other better than themselves.

Do we do this in a GOOD way, not a poor me everyone is better than I am, way? Do we truly have a lowliness of mind? Do we truly not embrace strife and seek vain glory from others?! 

Truly all is vanity and only our Savior can save us from ourselves!

1Sa 2:30  Wherefore the LORD God of Israel saith, I said indeed that thy house, and the house of thy father, should walk before me for ever: but now the LORD saith, Be it far from me; for them that honour me I will honour, and they that despise me shall be lightly esteemed.

Honoring God, do we? We need to!

Rom 2:7  To them who by patient continuance in well doing seek for glory and honour and immortality, eternal life

Is our honor in eternal life through our Savior, Jesus Christ our Lord? Do we find our honor IN HIM because He has all the honor?

1Pe 1:7  That the trial of your faith, being much more precious than of gold that perisheth, though it be tried with fire, might be found unto praise and honour and glory at the appearing of Jesus Christ

The TRIAL of our faith, the very thing we agonize over time and time again. We'd rather be in peace and safety, comfort and ease than in any trial. We hide from trials don't we? Our weaknesses are exposed and our failures apparent, yet we need this, we need to comprehend our need of a SAVIOR that we CANNOT save ourselves. Every trial and tribulation of our faith is truly MORE precious than gold.

2Co 10:18  For not he that commendeth himself is approved, but whom the Lord commendeth.

The LORD must commend us, not any other, and not OURSELVES!

1Co 4:5  Therefore judge nothing before the time, until the Lord come, who both will bring to light the hidden things of darkness, and will make manifest the counsels of the hearts: and then shall every man have praise of God.

Rom 2:29  But he is a Jew, which is one inwardly; and circumcision is that of the heart, in the spirit, and not in the letter; whose praise is not of men, but of God.

We need PRAISE of God and God alone!

Please FATHER help us! Teach us to seek YOUR honor and YOUR honor alone!

All by Jesus Christ our Lord and Savior, NOW and FOREVER!

Please!

Thank you, most glorious Lord Jesus Christ!

This, or That, There is No Other.

Joh 8:34  Jesus answered them, Verily, verily, I say unto you, Whosoever committeth sin is the servant of sin.

Joh 8:35  And the servant abideth not in the house for ever: but the Son abideth ever.

Joh 8:36  If the Son therefore shall make you free, ye shall be free indeed.

Joh 8:37  I know that ye are Abraham's seed; but ye seek to kill me, because my word hath no place in you.

Joh 8:38  I speak that which I have seen with my Father: and ye do that which ye have seen with your father.

Joh 8:39  They answered and said unto him, Abraham is our father. Jesus saith unto them, If ye were Abraham's children, ye would do the works of Abraham.

Joh 8:40  But now ye seek to kill me, a man that hath told you the truth, which I have heard of God: this did not Abraham.

Joh 8:41  Ye do the deeds of your father. Then said they to him, We be not born of fornication; we have one Father, even God.

Joh 8:42  Jesus said unto them, If God were your Father, ye would love me: for I proceeded forth and came from God; neither came I of myself, but he sent me.

Joh 8:43  Why do ye not understand my speech? even because ye cannot hear my word.

Joh 8:44  Ye are of your father the devil, and the lusts of your father ye will do. He was a murderer from the beginning, and abode not in the truth, because there is no truth in him. When he speaketh a lie, he speaketh of his own: for he is a liar, and the father of it.

Joh 8:45  And because I tell you the truth, ye believe me not.

Joh 8:46  Which of you convinceth me of sin? And if I say the truth, why do ye not believe me?

Joh 8:47  He that is of God heareth God's words: ye therefore hear them not, because ye are not of God.

The Pursuit of God- by A.W. Tozer-  'Anyone who might feel reluctant to surrender his will to the will of
another should remember Jesus' words, "Whosoever committeth sin is the servant of sin."

We must of necessity be servant to someone, either to God or to sin.

The sinner prides himself on his independence, completely overlooking the fact that he is the weak slave of the sins that rule his members. The man who surrenders to Christ exchanges a cruel slave driver for a kind and gentle Master whose yoke is easy and whose burden is light.'

Mat 11:28  Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.

Mat 11:29  Take my yoke upon you, and learn of me; for I am meek and lowly in heart: and ye shall find rest unto your souls.

Mat 11:30  For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.

Servants to sin, or servants to God- WE CHOOSE.

There is no other choice.  Satan has disguised the sense of independent thought as being truly independent, but there is no such thing.  We were CREATED- subject to being created, never creating ourselves. We can serve our Creator or the Father of Lies, these are the only two choices we have in life. Satan has made great strides in getting mankind to believe they have other choices, they don't. They are deceived. Even as the Jewish hierarchy in Christ's day could not see their own blindness, could not fathom their own deafness- it existed.  Today is NO different. Men love darkness- the darkness of being blind, the darkness of being deaf because to realize the light means realizing their servitude to their Creator, realizing their need of Salvation from sin, from self-serving.  Man loves serving self in so many, many ways.

Please Father, please help us to continuously realize our subservience to You as an amazing, wondrous thing, please. You alone are everything, Creator! The Redeemer is Your only begotten Son, God in flesh, God with us.  Please Father we would be Yours! May Your will be done in us now and forever!

Amen!

The Proof is in Our Choices

'For the world of fallen men does not honor God. Millions call themselves by His Name, it is true, and pay some token respect to Him, but a simple test will show how little He is really honored among them. Let the average man be put to the proof on the question of who is _above_, and his true position will be exposed. Let him be forced into making a choice between God and money, between God and men, between God and personal ambition, God and self, God and human love, and God will take second place every time. Those other things will be exalted above. However the man may protest, the proof is in the
choices he makes day after day throughout his life.'  --  The Pursuit of God    By A.W. Tozer

Jesus' words-

Mat 7:22  Many will say to me in that day, Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in thy name? and in thy name have cast out devils? and in thy name done many wonderful works?

Mat 7:23  And then will I profess unto them, I never knew you: depart from me, ye that work iniquity.

KNOWING CHRIST!

CHRIST KNOWING US!

LIVING CHRIST!

The proof is in the choices we make.

What choices do you make?

Have you EVER had to choose between God and another? Have you ever been placed in the positions mentioned above?  

' Let him be forced into making a choice between God and money, between God and men, between God and personal ambition, God and self, God and human love, and God will take second place every time.'

Have you ever had to choose?

I have to wonder how often we've been faced with the choice but don't even recognize it because we've conditioned ourselves to ignore it so we don't feel the guilt associated with not choosing God. 

How often have we told ourselves it's okay, God will understand?  I've done it, God forgive me, but I have. I'm prone to doing this because I think I'm unique for some idiotic reason.  I think I'm an exception and I go on to make all kinds of excuses, using Biblical figures to prove I'm just as infallible and messed up as they were, but I STILL WANT GOD!

The question is… do I want God more than I want my own selfish, self-serving ways?  Do I?

By the grace of my SAVIOR I will choose God over all! Only through His power will it be possible. I am so far from where I know I should be!

Please, Father, please teach me YOU.

All in Your love always!!!!!!

In the name of Jesus Christ my Savior, now and forever! Please!

AMEN.

Beholding is Believing

Joh 3:14  And as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, even so must the Son of man be lifted up:

Joh 3:15  That whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have eternal life.

The following is another excerpt from  'The Pursuit of God' - by A.W. Tozer

'Now, if faith is the gaze of the heart at God, and if this gaze is but the raising of the inward eyes to meet the all-seeing eyes of God, then it follows that it is one of the EASIEST THINGS POSSIBLE TO DO. It would be like God to make the most vital thing easy and place it within the range of POSSIBILITY for the WEAKEST  and POOREST of us.

Several conclusions may fairly be drawn from all this. The simplicity of it, for instance.

Since believing is looking, it can be done WITHOUT special equipment or religious paraphernalia.

God has seen to it that the one life-and-death essential can NEVER be subject to the caprice of accident.

Equipment can break down or get lost, water can leak away, records can be destroyed by fire, the minister can be delayed or the church burn down. All these are external to the soul and are subject to accident or mechanical failure: but _LOOKING_ is of the HEART and can be done successfully by ANY man standing up or kneeling down or lying in his last agony a thousand miles from any church.

Since believing is looking it can be done _ANY TIME_.

No season is superior to another season for this sweetest of all acts. God never made salvation depend upon new moons nor holy days or sabbaths. A man is not nearer to Christ on Easter Sunday than he is, say, on Saturday, August 3, or Monday, October 4. As long as Christ sits on the mediatorial throne every day is a good day and all days are days of salvation.

Neither does _place_ matter in this blessed work of believing God. Lift your heart and let it rest upon Jesus and you are instantly in a sanctuary though it be a Pullman berth or a factory or a kitchen. You can see God from ANYWHERE if your mind is set to love and obey Him.'

*******

Looking is Believing--

Joh 3:14  And as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, even so must the Son of man be lifted up:

Joh 3:15  That whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have eternal life.

Num 21:7  Therefore the people came to Moses, and said, We have sinned, for we have spoken against the LORD, and against thee; pray unto the LORD, that he take away the serpents from us. And Moses prayed for the people.

Num 21:8  And the LORD said unto Moses, Make thee a fiery serpent, and set it upon a pole: and it shall come to pass, that every one that is bitten, when he looketh upon it, shall live.

Num 21:9  And Moses made a serpent of brass, and put it upon a pole, and it came to pass, that if a serpent had bitten any man, when he beheld the serpent of brass, he lived.

All who LOOKED upon the fiery brass serpent upon this pole that Moses made, they were HEALED if a serpent bit them!

Symbolic, so incredibly symbolic for us as CHRIST Himself noted.  Christ said -  AS MOSES LIFTED UP THE SERPENT IN THE WILDERNESS- EVEN SO MUST THE SON OF MAN BE LIFTED UP THAT WHOSEOVER BELIEVETH IN HIM SHOULD NOT PERISH BUT HAVE ETERNAL LIFE.

Christ is the One we must LOOK to and NO we cannot behold Him physically, tangibly, but we can behold Him SPIRITUALLY!  Is it any wonder ALL Christ followers must be born again of the Spirit? It is through the Spirit we see, we behold Jesus Christ our Savior, the Lamb Slain lifted up upon a cross for ALL to see, for ALL to know Him and His wondrous mercy.

What A. W. Tozer speaks of above is truth. Does He have all the truth? Perhaps for His day, perhaps for His spiritual walk. I do know what He writes above is truth.

We are NEVER put in any position where we cannot look to Christ, not a single one. NOTHING, absolutely NOTHING can separate us from a Savior who we can behold at ANY TIME, ANY PLACE.

This is truth and this is BEHOLDING is BELIEVING.

May we comprehend and avail ourselves OFTEN of our amazing, incomprehensibly wonderful ability to behold- ALL made possible by our SAVIOR, our LORD, JESUS CHRIST!

Now and forever!

Amen!

'Faith Looks Out Instead of In'

Heb_12:2  Looking unto Jesus the author and finisher of our faith; who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is set down at the right hand of the throne of God.

The Pursuit of God -  A.W. Tozer

'Believing, then, is directing the heart's attention to Jesus. It is lifting the mind to "behold the Lamb of God," and never ceasing that beholding for the REST OF OUR LIVES. At first this may be difficult, but it becomes easier as we look steadily at His wondrous Person, quietly and without strain. Distractions may hinder, but once the heart is committed to Him, after each brief excursion away from Him the attention
will return again and rest upon Him like a wandering bird coming back to its window.

I would emphasize this one committal, this one great volitional act which establishes the heart's intention to gaze FOREVER upon Jesus. God takes this intention for our choice and makes what allowances He must
for the thousand distractions which beset us in this evil world. He knows that we have set the direction of our hearts toward Jesus, and we can know it too, and comfort ourselves with the knowledge that a habit
of soul is forming which will become after a while a sort of spiritual reflex requiring no more conscious effort on our part.

Faith is the least self-regarding of the virtues. It is by its very nature scarcely conscious of its own existence. Like the eye which sees everything in front of it and never sees itself, FAITH IS OCCUPIED WITH THE OBJECT UPON WHICH IT RESTS AND PAYS NO ATTENTION TO INSELF AT ALL. WHILE WE ARE LOOKING AT GOD WE DO NOT SEE OURSELVES--BLESSED RIDDANCE. The man who has struggled to purify himself and has had nothing but repeated failures will experience REAL RELIEF when he STOPS TINKERING WITH HIS SOUL AND LOOKS AWAY TO THE PERFECT ONE. While he looks at Christ the very things he has so long been trying to do will be getting done within him. It will be GOD working in him to will and to do.

Faith is not in itself a meritorious act; the merit is in the One toward Whom it is directed. Faith is a REDIRECTING of our sight, a getting out of the focus of our own vision and getting God into focus.

SIN HAS TWISTED OUR VISION INWARD AND MADE IT SELF-REGARDING. UNBELIEF HAS PUT SELF WHERE GOD SHOULD BE AND IS PERILOUSLY CLOSE TO THE SIN OF LUCIFER who said, "I will set my throne above the throne of God."

FAITH LOOKS_OUT_ INSTEAD OF _IN_ and the whole life falls into line.

All this may seem too simple. But we have no apology to make. To those who would seek to climb into heaven after help or descend into hell God says, "The word is nigh thee, even the word of faith." The word induces us to lift up our eyes unto the Lord and the blessed work of faith begins.'

Rom_10:8  But what saith it? The word is nigh thee, even in thy mouth, and in thy heart: that is, the word of faith, which we preach

*******

The above excerpt from 'The Pursuit of God' is a real eye opener for me. It may not be an eye opener to any other, but for me it touched a place within that needed touching. I am notoriously looking inward at myself and my failings. Satan continuously throws my past evil up into my face and dares to me believe one like me can ever have the hope of salvation.  And not only that, Satan uses my many weaknesses, preying upon them so I fail more often than not and then he rubs my face in those failures once again daring me to believe, to hope I can belong to Christ's. He lays thick the filthy robes of unrighteousness upon me and I tighten them about myself fearing of every being able to allow my SAVIOR to take them from me. Christ's ability to release the evil from around me is so much greater than I can imagine! I HAVE committed myself to HIM, and while I don't believe in once saved always saved, I do believe in once saved continuing in hope, hope that lies far beyond my ability to comprehend.  We commit to Christ, we make Christ our hope and He is our hope, our ONLY HOPE. He will save us from ourselves we only have to LOOK TO HIM ALWAYS! And when Satan does put up the evil distractions to get us to look away we must repent, seek forgiveness and look once more upon our ONLY HOPE, JESUS CHRIST OUR LORD and SAVIOR NOW and FOREVER!!!!!!!

Please, Lord, we would be YOURS always! ALWAYS! Even as we live in this world filled with a million distractions seeking to turn our gaze from You we will look past those distractions all by YOUR GRACE and to YOU!