3-2/3-2019 Take It Through The Week

Monday - Deuteronomy 33:25 My heavy-duty, super-special, digital-key-pad, back-
door lock has broken. For what it cost, it should have lasted a lifetime but alas,
something inside of it has broken. It must be replaced with something to keep the riff-
raff out of my house. May the bolts of your gate be iron and bronze… Most of us live in
a very safe land. So imagine a land full of thieves and robbers such as existed in
Deuteronomy’s times. Iron and bronze were the strongest and most valuable metals
available at the time. In terms of protection, that is. And we all want our families to be
protected. And here in this blessing from Moses to Asher, Moses favors Asher with
the best of blessings. Not only protection, but also strength. May…your strength last as
long as you live. Each of us who is aging has realized something that young people
may not know or even believe to be possible. At a given point, you will weaken for the
rest of your life. It can’t be stopped. It is a part of the curse of sin originating in the
disobedience of Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden. But how many of us would love
to claim this part of the blessing. Whoever has experienced the fading of strength and
ability with age, would love for your strength to last as long as you live. Take a
moment and claim this blessing for yourself. Pray with me. Lord we need your
protection and favor in this life. Daily, we are completely dependent on You. Protect us
from the evil one and strengthen us for the journey ahead. And all we do and
accomplish will glorify you. You are our God. In Jesus Name I pray, Amen.
Tuesday - Psalms 36:5–6 Clouds are incredible in their variety and appearance.
There are a few cloudless days, but by and large, when we gaze at the heavens we
can see clouds. The next time you look upward, consider this…Lord, Your faithful love
reaches to heaven, Your faithfulness to the clouds. Faithfulness is a term that, when
used in conjunction with men, can be short-lived. Men are sometimes not faithful very
long, or very well. But God has extended faithful love to us that reaches to heaven.
Visualize that. How much does God love those who have become His, through Jesus
Christ? Walk outside. Just look up and you will see.
Wednesday – Psalms 36:7-9 We used to sing a song that our young people loved. It
was not exactly the most theologically proficient song. It really wasn’t that good,
musically. But it was fun. So we did it. Regularly. Repeatedly. Over and over again. It
was called Big House. Even if it was not deep, it was true. It said about the same thing
that this scripture says. They are filled from the abundance of Your House… His
people are promised abundance. And that abundance comes directly from the
storehouses of heaven, and is directly related to the capabilities of our God. You may
have heard me say before how strongly I believe in tithing. I believe in it because of
the promises from God associated with it. I would tithe even if he hadn’t promised to
bless me, because He commanded it. But He has promised to multiply blessings to
those who tithe. Read Mal. 3:10-11. God has promised to open the floodgates of
heaven and pour out a blessing for you without measure. I have lived that promise. I
have tasted the miraculous goodness of the Lord, when He is taken at His Word. He
can and will increase the harvest of the produce of your land and…your field will not
fail to produce fruit… Pray with me. Lord fill us from the abundance of Your house.
Teach us to be faithful to You, even as You have been faithful to us. As You help us,
we will follow Your Word and we will trust You. Bless us because we need You, In
Jesus Name, Amen.
Thursday – Romans 8:28 How do we learn to love God? We come to know Him by
learning from His Word and His Presence in our lives. The more we know of Him, the
more we know His characteristics and His tendencies. The more we know His heart,
the more we love Him. When we learn to love Him more, and to know that we belong

to Him, He promises to do something unique and astounding. He promises to make
…all things work together for the good. We can live in the awareness that all we see
around us and anything that happens to us, can add character and strength to us. We
can know that all things work together for the good… Even what is not good, can work
for good. That is His promise to us. Our part? To love God and to know that we are
called according to His purpose. Does this cause us to look at the events in our life
differently? It should. And if we do, then we can live each day with eternity in our
hearts and on our minds.
Friday – 2 Cor. 12:10 That’s quite a list to take pleasure in… weaknesses, insults,
catastrophes, persecutions, and in pressures. Why would Paul say that he takes
pleasure in such things? Well obviously he is saying this, this way to teach others to do
the same. In our day, with people offended by virtually anything that has to do with
Jesus being the only way to God, it’s an eye opener. What a different way to approach
life. I know that in my lifetime, there have never been more people who believe they
have a right to interfere with the freedoms of others, simply based on their capacity to
get insulted. Freedom of Speech really only extends to those who will scream the
loudest, and the most shrilly at what is offensive to them. Mobs are capable of violence
based on what they perceive to be unjust and offensive. And yet Paul says to take
pleasure in these things, because of Christ. Then Paul makes another baffling
statement. For when I am weak, then I am strong. That is a thought that is foreign to
us. When someone pushes us, we want to push back. But, take a moment and read
the scripture again. Look at that list. We are to take pleasure in the very things that
make us want to push back, the most. Why? Because, in Christ,weakness makes us
stronger. Take a moment and think about this scripture, then voice a prayer to God
about this scripture. Thank Him for the things, you might have blamed Him for.
Saturday – James 1:12 Blessed? What did it say? A man who endures trials is
blessed… Why? …because when he passes the test he will receive the crown of life
that God has promised to those who love Him. That is what God has promised to
those who love Him. What is the crown of life? It is eternal life, but it is not just eternal
life. The crown of life is one of the crowns mentioned in the New Testament that is
literally, a crown. Yes, our good works are made into crowns in heaven, and those
crowns are laid at the feet of Jesus, to honor Him. This is a very specific act of worship
that every believer who enters heaven will do to recognize Jesus as the author and
finisher of our faith. We will acknowledge that every good thing we have done actually
came from Christ, in us. And those good works become crowns that are given to
Jesus. How big are the crowns? How much are they worth? That is directly related to
how many trials we endure and if we approach them as blessing, rather than bitterly
curse them. Pray with me. Jesus, Lord of Life, King of the World, help me to endure
trial and treat them as blessing. Help me to pass the test when the test comes my way.
I want to receive the crown of life, and I want to lay it at Your feet. I love You for what
You have done in me, and for me. In Jesus Name I pray, Amen.