Protect Us

I know some of my congregation must wonder a bit when I share a prayer that I pray daily. You see, I pray many prayers from scripture daily and they must wonder how I have time to do that much praying. I am able because I get up between 4:30 and 5:30 every morning so that I can spend alone time with God before I attempt to start the day. Rest comes not only from sleep; but, from being in communion with God.

Some of my prayers are for friends, and family. Some are for the congregation, the community, the world. Every morning and sometimes more often, I pray the Lord's prayer and the Shepherd's Psalm; not just for myself, but, for all whom I know. Every morning, I begin by thanking and praising God for all that He has done and is doing for us by recalling the various names that He is called by.

As I listened to the news this morning, another prayer that I pray daily for family and friends came to mind. Deliver us from our enemies, O my God; protect us from those who rise up against us. Deliver us from those who work evil; from the bloodthirsty save us. Psalm 59:1

The enemy prowls about and so I pray:
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. Num 6:24-26

God's Peace - Pr. J

Who Will Help?

"Behold, the Lord God helps me; who will declare me guilty?" Isaiah 50:9


The Lord helps you. Almighty God, creator of heaven and of earth is with you and for you. So who in the world would dare to attack you? The answer to that is a lot of people; a lot of people who live in the darkness; who do not know the Lord or to what length He will go and has gone to save those whom He loves.

The Lord vindicates all who walk in His light. There is no need to fear as the enemy closes in on you. Trust Him for He is stronger than any adversary. God is your helper. He will save you from your enemy.

God's Peace - Pr. J

Romans 12:9-21 Live In Peace and Harmony

Romans 12:9-21 NIV
Just, be nice and do what is right, already! That's it! Quit playing games! Quit doing what is unlawful! Do what is good for all people and think a whole lot less about what it is that you want.

Paul admonishes the Romans to love one and another and treat one another with respect so that we might live in harmony with one another and in peace. Stealing from your neighbor, selling drugs to their children kind of breaks the harmony. It pretty much upsets the balance of peace in any community.

We are to hate what is evil and cling to those things that are good. But, that does not mean that we are to hate and take personal vengeance on those whom we have deemed to have done evil. That only creates more disharmony; disunity. Leave the vengeance to God. Pray for your enemy, that they will repent and turn to the way of the LORD; then and only then will we live in peace and harmony.

May God open the eyes and hearts of those who would divide our communities by doing what is harmful evil. May all of our children and their children live in health, wholeness and prosperity. May we all live in peace and harmony.

God's Peace - Pr. J.

Romans 5:1-11 Suffering and Peace

Romans 5:1-11 NIV
We have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ. In spite of sufferings, we can know the peace that comes with being reconciled to God through faith.

There are days when I just shake my head and think "Wow! Again! I thought we had this all worked out. The enemy just doesn't give up." Then, I am reminded that we too were once God's enemy. Yet, He manages to open our eyes and hearts and minds to a greater understanding of the love He has for us; even as He poured out His love into our hearts through the Holy Spirit, who has been given to us. Yet, we are aware that there are those who have rejected the love of God. There are those who have rejected the Holy Spirit. We are aware because it is often through those who reject His love and His peace that the church endures suffering. But, we remember that God can work all things for the good; that our suffering produces perseverance; perseverance, character; and character, hope. We have hope that even those who cause suffering to others will receive the love of God through Christ Jesus and know His peace.

God's Peace - Pr. J.

Nahum 2 - Warning To Turn Back

God is against Nineveh. The people are warned to turn back. But, they will not.

I warn people all of the time to turn back to the LORD and worship only Him. Sadly, the warnings fall on ears that will not hear. I am often looked at like I am a silly old goose. I have been told that there is no God. Experience has taught me that there is, for sure. Experience has taught me what happens when one turns their back on the LORD and refuses to turn back to Him, again.

I know that I am not the only one whom the LORD has tried to teach these things to. I am not the only one who has been warned.  Let us all heed the warning that He will restore His children. Yes, the restoration of His people is a warning - it is a warning to those who would attack them. The LORD our God will deliver all who turn to Him from the enemy.

Which shall you be? A child of God or an enemy? Will you turn your back to Him or your face to Him that His light might shine upon you?

God's Peace - Pr. J

Ezekiel 38 - God Has The Victory

Gog and Magog will gather with their allies against God's people. This is the word of the LORD. It is apparently being done so that everyone will know that the LORD is God for in the end they will not prevail. God will help His people. He will deliver them from the hand of the enemy.

Just as trial and tribulations have come to the old covenant church, they come to those in the new covenant as well. We should not unduly worry or fear troubles that comes to us here. Jesus promised us this:  “I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world.” (John 16:33 NIV)

No matter what or who attacks you, know this: God is with you. Even at times when you might think that the enemy is prevailing, know this: God will always have the victory!

God's Peace - Pr. J.

Jeremiah 11 - Do Unto Others...

Jeremiah continues to declare the word of the LORD. He continues to do what the LORD requires of him. He reminds the people of the covenant that God made with their ancestors. Live by the terms of the covenant, live by the law, and you will be blessed or turn your backs on the covenant and you will suffer the consequences. Jeremiah, was trying to save their lives. And for this, what did he receive in return? He received threats of persecution and even death if he did not stop prophesying, if he did not stop relaying God's word to the people.

Jeremiah calls on the LORD to protect him and his family. Now, what does this mean? In order to be protected from his enemies, from God's enemies, God will have to stop the enemy. That may not be such a pleasant thing for the enemies of God and His prophet. It may well mean that the very same thing that the enemies plan for Jeremiah will return to them. It may mean that it will be they and their own children who will die, not Jeremiah or his children.

Be very careful about what you pray for and what evil schemes you devise against others. I think of it on the lines of Jesus sending out the twelve to proclaim the Good News and telling them, "Whatever town or village you enter, search there for some worthy person and stay at their house until you leave.  As you enter the home, give it your greeting.  If the home is deserving, let your peace rest on it; if it is not, let your peace return to you. If anyone will not welcome you or listen to your words, leave that home or town and shake the dust off your feet. Truly I tell you, it will be more bearable for Sodom and Gomorrah on the day of judgment than for that town" (Matt 10:11-15 NIV)

When my children were very young, as I tried to teach them to treat others fairly, this is one of the tactics I would use. I would tell them, "Do to others as you would have them do to you," (Luke 6:31; Matt 7:11) because what you do to others will be done to you. My mother use to put it to us this way when we were children and our plans against others or their plans against us backfired, "What goes around, comes around."

Taking all this into consideration, might it not be a better idea to welcome those who proclaim the good news rather than persecute them?  Just saying... :)

Have a blessed day... and may the peace of the LORD be with you all.  Pr. J

Jeremiah 11 - Pray For All People

“Do not pray for this people or offer any plea or petition for them, because I will not listen when they call to me in the time of their distress." (Jer 11:14 NIV)

Here is a hard saying for those of us who desire that no one should be lost. But, let us remember the context for this saying. God, Himself, is speaking to Jeremiah and giving this order. When was the last time you or I heard God tell us that we could or should not pray for someone? Although, there may be individual exceptions to this, the last Word we've heard on this was from Jesus:

“You have heard that it was said, ‘Love your neighbor and hate your enemy.’ But I tell you, love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, that you may be children of your Father in heaven." (Matt 5:43-45)

We do know the mind of God when it comes to individuals. We do not know whose hearts are so hard that they will never be softened. So, brothers and sisters, pray for all people, pray even for your enemy, that it might be well for them and for all people, including yourself. Pray that hearts might be softened toward the LORD and that we might live in peace - reconciled to God and one another.

God's Peace - Pr. J

Psalm 140 - Pray For Your Enemy

We find the author of Psalms a little more than upset this morning. That person wants vengeance in a big way.... "May burning coals fall on them; may they be thrown into the fire, into miry pits, never to rise." (Psalm 140:10 NIV)

I'm not saying that I've never thought this way. But, I'm thinking there is a more excellent way.  According to Jesus, we are to "...love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you." (Matt 5:43-45)

It is undeniable that there are many who persecute those who love the LORD. The arrogant lay out snares for the innocent seeking to damage or utterly destroy them. But, anger and vengeance only propagates the enmity. Pray for peace. Pray for protection, pray for mercy, pray that the LORD will be your strong deliverer, but pray for your enemy. as well. Pray that those who hate and persecute you will come to know the LORD and you will have lost an enemy and gained a brother or sister.

God's Peace - Pr. J

Footnotes:

1. Psalm 140:5 Or they have spread cords as a net
2. Psalm 140:8 Heb adds they are exalted
3. Psalm 140:9 Cn Compare Gk: Heb those who surround me are uplifted in head; Heb divides verses 8 and 9 differently

 

Psalm 70 - What Motivates Meanness?

The Psalmist makes another plea for help - to be saved from his enemy.  Up before 4 a.m. again, wondering exactly why it is humankind actually thinks it necessary to bring ruin to others in the first place.  I particularly have a hard time understanding, not so much the outright meanness, but the passive-aggressive verbal, mental, and emotional abuse that goes on. What motivates people to be so hateful? I am not even sure if they even have a clue how much they hurt others, by their self-centered life-styles. If they did, would it stop, would they stop?  Or, would the meanness just get worse as they revelled in their ability to persecute others?

The only thing that I can come up with is that they simply do not know the LORD. They may say they are Christians, but the fruit does not bear witness to that? They know a little about Jesus, but they do not know Him.  I cannot help, but feel empathy for them.  It must be a very lonely place that they are at. In the meantime, they continue to attack even those who love them.

So, for this morning, I think I shall pray: Hasten, O God to save our enemies, open ears, hearts, minds to a greater understanding of Your Word, Your good will for them and all people, that we all might be helped.  

'The LORD is great!" (vs 4) He is greater than great! He is my help and my salvation. He is your help and your salvation. 

God's Peace - Pr. J

Psalm 55 - Smooth as Butter

The Psalmist sounds pretty unhappy again this morning.  Sometimes, it seems just a bit much.  But, I think many of us have probably been there at one time or another.  Enemies attack and even those whom we thought were friends attacked and our only help was in the LORD.  We were surrounded and although we wished we could fly away and escape the assault, we could not.  We were stuck and only God could help.  Assaulting back would do no good.  It would only makes things worse.

When I was first married, my husband use to accuse me of being too trusting.  Then I got burned a few times, no, many times, by those who presented themselves as people who were friends and who cared.

Maybe, it's not a good thing to be so suspicious.  But, I learned to watch for signs in potential relationships that everything was not as it seemed.  I learned to listen for them.  One, of the things, the lessons, that life taught me was to listen for words that are as smooth as butter, more soothing than oil.    I learned over the years that the ones who would hurt me most were not those who presented themselves as an enemy, but those who presented themselves as friends. If someone smiles and is happy all the time when they are around us, if they always agree with everything we say, then maybe we should be prepared to duck and run for cover. It is a sad commentary, I suppose, that I learned in life to not trust everyone.  But, it is reality.  It is a very sorrowful thing to be assaulted or betrayed by a friend who turns out to be an enemy. It was for me and it is for those who find themselves in this situation today.  Sadly, the reality is that there are more than a few of you who are being persecuting by those you thought were your friends, even today. 

Eventually, I was able to trust, again.  However, I realize that now the trust that I place in people is only because I trust God and I trust God working in and through them. 

"Cast your cares on the Lord and he will sustain you; he will never let the righteous be shaken. But you, God, will bring down the wicked into the pit of decay; the bloodthirsty and deceitful will not live out half their days. But as for me, I trust in you." (Psalm 55:22-23 NIV)

God's Peace - Pr. J

Psalm 43 - Grief

"Why must I go about mourning, oppressed by the enemy?" (vs 2 NIV)

Have you ever felt totally depressed and can't really figure out why?  Grief comes in lots of forms and for many reasons.  The most common reason for grief is the death of someone we love.  But, there are lots of other reasons.  One, which we often fail to recognize, is the loss of a relationship.  Sometimes, that loss is through a divorce.  Thanks to that wonderful thing called denial, we don't often recognize the depression that we sink into as grief.  After all, are we not better off?  The marriage, the relationship, was broken.  It was totally dysfunctional.  Shouldn't we be relieved? 

Children are left grieving the loss of family when parents separate.  Divorces are not the only broken relationships that leave us grieving.  It could be that we've had a major disagreement with a close friend - a disagreement that leaves us not speaking to one another. And... there is a whole list of other things, besides family and friends, that, when gone, will leave us in grief.  The loss of a job, our home, safety, as well as any material object can leave us grieving and in many cases we won't even realize that we grieving for them  But, the loss will leave us feeling depressed, lost in the darkness, and alone.

We are coming into the season of Advent as we prepare for Christmas.  For those who are already experiencing grief, this season does not help.  While the world expects everyone to be happy, happy, happy; those grieving either retreat into a shell or put on a happy face for their family and friends, while they feel like they are dying inside.   

There are many reasons that one might be grieving. It is not something we should be ignoring. The first step is to recognize that, in fact, you are very sad over your loss or maybe it is someone whom you love that you need to recognize is grieving and allow them to share, to talk about their grief with you.  I have found it all too common, that after the funeral or divorce, nobody wants to hear, nobody will listen.  There is nobody to share your burden with.  Unfortunately, for some, in this world, that is a reality.  There is no place to turn except to Jesus.  He can be trusted with you burden.  He already has.  We may not always understand why or what we are grieving.  But, we can always trust in the LORD to help us through, one day at a time.

"Why, my soul, are you downcast? Why so disturbed within me? Put your hope in God, for I will yet praise him, my Savior and my God." (vs 5)

God's Peace - Pr. J

Psalm 35 - Prayer of Protection

When the little children come to the altar for a blessing, one of the prayers I find myself praying for them most often is for their protection.  Sometimes, we underestimate their fears.  Sometimes, we even underestimate the actuality of those fears. I pray that God would walk beside them protecting them all their days and I pray that He would grant them courage and peace.

Looking back to what I remember as a child, I remember a lot of fear.  Some of it was legitimate.  Most of it was not.  Most of it was just being afraid of the unknown.  There is a lot of "unknown" for little children.  They will learn to face many of their fears or simply outgrow them.  In the meantime, we pray for their protection, their courage, and for them to know God's peace.

I can't even begin to imagine what the fear of the enemy is like for children growing up in countries,  where they are dodging missiles.  But, they need our prayers.

Protect your children, O LORD.  Keep them safe from all evil, harm, and danger.

Lord, you have seen this; do not be silent. Do not be far from them, Lord. Awake, and rise to their defense! Contend for them, our Lord and our God.

God's Peace - Pr. J

Psalm 26 - Begging For Vindication

David seems to do a lot of begging for vindication.  I wonder if God gets as tired of hearing it as I do.  Chapter after chapter gets a little much.  But, I hope and trust that God never gets weary of hearing our pleas.  There have been times in my life (even now) that I  pray for vindication.  I just pray that the enemy would leave me alone already!

There are times when we try to work with people or help them and we find out in the end that they have no desire to be helped.  We find ourselves entangled as the Psalm says, with those whose hands have a sinister scheme, and whose right hand is full of bribes. (26:9-10 NIV) It is terribly saddening to find that one we would help has been planning all along to destroy us.  But, it happens.  It is an age old problem.  There really is nothing to do about it, but to stand firm in our faith. Trust the LORD.  As David prayed for relief, we might find ourselves praying:

Vindicate us, LORD.  Redeem us and be merciful to us. Keep our feet standing in on even ground; on a firm foundation. (vs 12)

God's Peace - Pr. J

Psalm 3 - Prayer of Protection

David prays for deliverance from his enemies.  He is confident that the LORD will deliver him.

A confession that I often hear is that someone feels guilty for praying that their enemies be stopped in their tracks, no matter what that entails.  They feel guilty about this kind of prayer.  As we read through Psalms, we're going to find that David, God's chosen, prays this type of prayer quite a bit.

There are a lot of foes that will try to put an end to the work of the LORD through His servants.  It is, I think, quite appropriate to pray for protection that His work be continued through us. 

One thing that I would remind us all of, though, is that even as we might be praying that our enemies might be stopped, they may well be praying that we be stopped in our tracks, as well.  And... God may answer.  None of us are without sin.  Ask yourself, who really is the enemy of the LORD here?  Is it I or those who oppose me?

May God deliver and continue to sustain us both night and day. May His blessing be upon His people.

God's Peace - Pr. J

2 Chronicles 19 - Peace With The LORD

"... You are to warn them not to sin against the LORD."  (19:10)  And... guess what?  Those who do warn others, will not be liked much!  Every now and then I will get asked to do something, that's not particularly in line with putting God first.  Actually, it's more like putting myself (and my personal desires for myself) before God and when my response is no, they look at me utterly astonished as though there is something wrong with me.  You see, there is this misperception that because I at least attempt to know what God desires and what He doesn't, I don't know how to have fun. 

I'm pretty sure that when they ask me to participate in something that I am pretty sure is not something I should be participating in, they not only hear my no, but, they also see my face and my non-verbal response to their question.  And, I feel bad for them because it appears to me that if that's what fun is for them; then, they don't know how to have fun! 

I simply do not know how one can relay that there is nothing more fun, more pleasurable, than having a relationship with God.  And... if you're in relationship with someone then you do what is pleasing to them.  You try to make them happy.  They come first. 

Jehoshaphat appointed judges over the people and told them to be careful how they judged, not according to any human partiality, not to favor one over the other, that their judgements should be equal and just according to God's law.   He told them:  "Now let the fear of the Lord be on you. Judge carefully, for with the Lord our God there is no injustice or partiality or bribery.”  We are all to be treated equal, because one is a friend or a brother or sister, does not mean we should not warn them because we don't want to lose them.  Because one is an enemy, that does not mean their sentence should be harsher than the one whom we know well.

How many times in our court systems do we see this happening?  The enemy (or those whom we don't know so well) are judged and sentenced much harsher than the one's whose father or mother are well known and liked in the town?  Equality... it really is suppose to be for everyone. 

And... everyone deserves to be warned so that they will have the opportunity to live in peace with the LORD.

1 Chronicles 18 - Administer Justice or Kill the Enemy?

Another whole chapter about defeating enemies!  Now, I have nothing against the military; afterall, my husband spent 21 years in the USMC, and yes I was married to him the whole time.  But reading about all this conquering people does weary me.  It's hard to keep track of all the people David conquered there were so many.

The main point of this chapter, I think, is found in verse 14, "So David reigned over all Israel, and he administered justice and equity to all his people."  And, it was not just his people he protected, but verse 9 also points out that in doing so he also administered just for and protected the pepole of Hamath.  As awful as war is, sometimes war is necessary to protect and to administer justice to the people.  It is about protecting our neighbors and helping them wherever they may be. 

We pray for protection of our troops who are spread out around the world to protect not just the people of this country, but of countries around the globe.  We pray for the Commander in Chief, that he would make wise and just decisions that will not send out troops just to destroy the enemy, but to administer justice.

Ok... so I guess I need to admit a recent frustration, get it off my chest...  I am just a little upset (ok... maybe more than a little) over the recent news reports that the U.S. has been sending out drones (or whatever) to "hit" men - to kill our enemy.  (I try not to watch the news too regularly, if I can help it.)  If we know who they are and exactly where they are so that we can "bomb" them with precision; why aren't we putting a little more effort into capturing them?  Makes me a little nervous that our government thinks it is ok to concoct a list of people to "hit."  Where is the line between those we will kill and those we won't?  Who is next?  If this is acceptable, will there be a time when we begin thinking it is acceptable to start "precision bombing" (with low collateral damage) people in our own country rather than arresting them so they can be brought to trial and justice for all people served?  I think that maybe way back in our minds we've probably always known that this was being done.  But, for some reason I just didn't realize it was done on the scale it's allegedly is being done today.  If we have the capabilities of capturing "the enemy" then I just really have a hard time with seeing the justice in killing them in lieu of capturing them and questioning them, brining them to trial.  This is; afterall, not David's time and we do have capabilities, other options, that were not at his disposal.