Author: kezha1

If you have the chance, read the entire Oracle King Lemuel wrote (Proverbs 31:1-9)…a writing that his Mother actually taught him and he dedicated back to her. And if you read this Oracle in its entirety you will instantly see that the main points go far beyond how King Lemuel was to govern. This Oracle is something we can all take to heart and adhere to. The premise is clear, open up your mouth when you see oppression and abuse…defend and care about justice for the poor, orphan, and widow…be truthful, fair, and show no partiality towards the destitute, sick and dying. We have been placed on this earth to care for one another, not to judge harshly and condemn our fellow man.

The devil would love it if when asked you never turned down volunteering for any good or worthy project. He’d love to see you never say no to any admirable and/or deserving undertaking…regardless of how many things you’ve already committed to. You know why? The devil knows that if you keep saying yes, soon you’ll be spread so thin that everything in your life will suffer. For when we allow passion to rule rather than wisdom, our priories soon turn upside down…and suddenly God’s at the bottom of our list because we’re just too busy to fit Him into our schedule.

It tells us in I Thessalonians 5:23 that only God is able to sanctify or make holy since He alone is holy. And so it is by this sanctification process we are accepted into the family of God receiving the Spirit of Sonship or adoption. (Romans 8:17) Thus as newly adopted brothers and sisters into the family we become co-heirs with Jesus. And because we are now family, Jesus is not the least bit hesitant to call us His brothers and sisters.

Some plant, some water…but God makes those spiritual seeds planted in someone’s heart grow. (I Corinthians 3:6) And so every time we share the Good News of the Gospel, we’re sowing righteousness…and God rewards it. ( Psalm 24:5) And as we extent grace and mercy towards others, our Heavenly Father’s boundless grace and mercy is showered down on us. But this verse also warns us of becoming lazy and too comfortable in our Christianity…of losing that fire, that first love…like a field that was once productive but now lies fallow and inactive. Now is the time to examine yourself and ask…”Do I need to break up my unplowed ground?”

Or as we read in Galatians 6:7-8, “A man reaps what he sows. The one who sows to please his sinful nature will reap destruction.” If we choose to make our way through life without God, we are just making a difficult life here on earth even harder. Now, the decision is entirely ours…but remember this, we all have to live with the consequences of our decisions…and the misery is brought about by no one else but ourselves. Or as Job observed, “Hardship doesn’t spring from the soil, nor does trouble sprout from the ground. Yet man is born to trouble as surely as sparks fly upward.” (Job 5:6-7) Thanks to Adam and Eve, we come into this world equipped with the sin nature… but it’s our choice what we do about it.

Were the disciples taking on the role of bodyguards for Jesus here, trying to keep the curious crowds and paparazzi away…or were they overreacting and taking matters into their own hands? The meaning for the Greek word “rebuked” in this verse is anything but compassionate and/or caring towards the parents who just wanted their little ones blessed. It was biting remarks expressing disapproval in a harsh tone of voice. It’s not a surprise then how Jesus reacted to them in an indignant and angry way when He said, “Let the little children come to Me, and do not hinder them, for the Kingdom of God belongs to such as these.” (Mark 10:14) The disciples thought they knew more than Jesus…they reacted rather than acted in a loving way … and in doing so, allowed the situation to rule them and their emotions.

The translation for manna literally means “What is it?” and it had totally unique qualities… it could be ground, milled, baked, or boiled. And by providing it to the Israelites as they wandered in the desert, God’s desire was that they would trust Him to take care of all their needs…but Psalms 78 gives us an account of just how prideful, rebellious, and whiney the people were. Again and again they put God to the test, complaining while there was still food in their mouths…demanding more and more, rather than being grateful for what they had. In grumbling about real bread for their physical bodies they had completely lost sight and turned from God’s truth and divine revelation for their spiritual bodies.

Across time God has changed people’s names. We see in the Old Testament Him renaming Abram to Abraham, Sarai becoming Sarah, and Jacob’s name changing to Israel. So why, when Jesus first laid eyes on Simon, did He call him by a new name? The answer is in Matthew 16:18, when at the end of His Ministry, Jesus said to Simon, “And I tell you that you are Peter, and on this rock I will build My Church and the gates of Hades will not overcome it.” Over the course of those three years following Jesus, Simon had changed from a fickle loudmouth and impulsive at times fool…(even to the point of denying he even knew Jesus)… to being radically transformed at the Resurrection. For it was through this tremendous spiritual growth Simon became his namesake – Cephas or Peter which means Rock. It was then, that this Rock of a man took charge of the frightened and faltering group of Believers and started to fearlessly preach the Gospel Message.

It was her own father, the Pharaoh, who had ordered the Hebrew midwives to kill all male babies when they were born, and it also says Pharaoh’s daughter recognized immediately that the baby was a Hebrew…so what (or more importantly Who) made her take pity on this infant in a papyrus basket hidden among the bulrushes? God had big plans for baby Moses…plans to deliver the Israelites from bondage and set them free…and no decree from Pharaoh, and certainly no adverse decision of Pharaoh’s daughter could deter God’s plan. So instead, this tiny Hebrew baby was raised in the Pharaoh’s palace, right under his nose. Which helps us realize that God can use any thing, person, or place to achieve His ultimate plan and purpose.

This is the first Mother’s Day without my Mom… and I know there are many of you facing the same challenge today. The COVID Pandemic has been very cruel to the whole world the past 15 months. We’ve lost many loved ones…and due to strict quarantine rules, many of you were unable to even be there for you loved one’s final hours. My heart aches for you and the emptiness you feel from not being there. But you do have something to fill that void…it’s all the pleasant memories you have of that person. So take all those sweet, delightful, and good memories of your loved one and cling to them…for you may have not been able to hold their hand at the end, but you can hold on to those memories now.