Mon, Mar 27th - 4:09PM

A life of waste?

17:13 The Lord solemnly warned Israel and Judah through all his prophets and all the seers, "Turn back from your evil ways; obey my commandments and rules that are recorded in the law. I ordered your ancestors to keep this law and sent my servants the prophets to remind you of its demands."¹⁹ 17:14 But they did not pay attention and were as stubborn as their ancestors,²⁰ who had not trusted the Lord their God. 17:15 They rejected his rules, the covenant he had made with their ancestors, and the laws he had commanded them to obey.²¹ They paid allegiance to²² worthless idols, and so became worthless to the Lord.²³ They copied the practices of the surrounding nations in blatant disregard of the Lord's command.²⁴ 17:16 They abandoned all the commandments of the Lord their God; they made two metal calves and an Asherah pole, bowed down to all the stars in the sky,²⁵ and worshiped²⁶ Baal. 17:17 They passed their sons and daughters through the fire,²⁷ and practiced divination and omen reading. They committed themselves to doing evil before the Lord and made him angry.²⁸

17:18 So the Lord was furious²⁹ with Israel and rejected them;³⁰ only the tribe of Judah was left.

Wed, Mar 15th - 10:59PM

How long?

How long do you desire me to wait?

You made your desire clear, that you wanted me in your life, yet still you turn away.

You speak to me often of the love you have, yet still you stand looking in from afar.

Matt. 7:7 Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened for you.

The doors are thrown open. Here I am with my arms spread wide, waiting, wanting for you to come, yet you don't come.

I hear you talking to one another, yet still you don't approach me. Am I as a viper, readied to strike, injecting venom?

No! I am Love. And I long to share my love with you, but you hold me back at arms length as though I am a leper.

I offer you living water, that you never need thirst. Yet still you hunger after your worldly desires. Striving after your empty unfulfilling dreams, chasing after your almighty dollar with every beat of your unfeeling heart, holding court like you are some kind of worldly king, but alas your kingdom shall crumble.

Yet still my beloved I long to show you love, to heal your sickness, to lift you up, to fulfill your desires, to quench your thirst, to make you whole.

I AM WHO I AM.

I am the only way.

I am your only hope.

So again my beloved I ask, how long do you desire me to wait?

John 14:6 Jesus answered, I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.

Tue, Mar 7th - 11:13PM

Judges

The pattern for defeat.

Joshua died and God's people asked who will lead us. God was there for them to give them what they needed, but they didn't listen. Does that sound like anyone you might know? God gave them instruction to not cohabitaye with those that lived in the land. they mingled, gave their women as wives and took the others for wives. Seems innocent enough, not really that big of a deal is it?The Israelites mingled with,intermarried and started worshipping the other gods and soon god found disfavor with them. He gave them judges and they would do all right for awhile, but when the judges would die they would be even worse than they had been before. So it is with us . Maybe we give our life to Christ, believe He is our salvation, but don't give up some little thing. Maybe we hold on to some sexual devience, or drugs or alcohol, maybe pornography is a weakness. Whatever it might be, it isn't as bad as some is it? God can overlook it can't He?If we in fact don't completly obey God we open the door to a life of decadence and disobedience. Maybe it's just a little thing,then again maybe that little thing is our form of idolitry.  The first step in falling away from God. The book of judges is a picture for us of what happens when we as Christians don't put the little things in the right place and give God the glory

1:19 because what can be known about God is plain to them,⁴² because God has made it plain to them. 1:20 For since the creation of the world his invisible attributes – his eternal power and divine nature – have been clearly seen, because they are understood through what has been made. So people⁴³ are without excuse. 1:21 For although they knew God, they did not glorify him as God or give him thanks, but they became futile in their thoughts and their senseless hearts⁴⁴ were darkened. 1:22 Although they claimed⁴⁵ to be wise, they became fools 1:23 and exchanged the glory of the immortal God for an image resembling mortal human beings⁴⁶ or birds or four-footed animals⁴⁷ or reptiles.

1:24 Therefore God gave them over⁴⁸ in the desires of their hearts to impurity, to dishonor⁴⁹ their bodies among themselves.⁵⁰ 1:25 They⁵¹ exchanged the truth of God for a lie⁵² and worshiped and served the creation⁵³ rather than the Creator, who is blessed forever! Amen.

1:26 For this reason God gave them over to dishonorable passions. For their women exchanged the natural sexual relations for unnatural ones,⁵⁴ 1:27 and likewise the men also abandoned natural relations with women⁵⁵ and were inflamed in their passions⁵⁶ for one another. Men⁵⁷ committed shameless acts with men and received in themselves the due penalty for their error.

1:28 And just as they did not see fit to acknowledge God,⁵⁸ God gave them over to a depraved mind, to do what should not be done.⁵⁹ 1:29 They are filled⁶⁰ with every kind of unrighteousness, wickedness, covetousness, malice. They are rife with⁶¹ envy, murder, strife, deceit, hostility. They are gossips, 1:30 slanderers, haters of God, insolent, arrogant, boastful, contrivers of all sorts of evil, disobedient to parents, 1:31 senseless, covenant-breakers,⁶² heartless, ruthless. 1:32 Although they fully know⁶³ God’s righteous decree that those who practice such things deserve to die,⁶⁴ they not only do them but also approve of those who practice them.⁶⁵ Romans 1:19-32 (NET)