A Little Spring Cleaning/New Feature

I've been so impressed with the increase I see of women, Christian bloggers.
So, since May has more or less been about falling back and regrouping a bit for me, as a new feature on my blog, I've added a blog list of some of my favorite women bloggers. Emphasis on some. The list is below the 'recent comments' list.

This is an incomplete and in process list. I'll be adding as I continue to discover and rediscover these wonderful women of faith. Women who are not satisfied with the status quo but are interested in really taking hold of God and Ministry and fighting against prejudice, injustice and oppression. They all have their own manner of dealing with these issues. But they all have a drive and passion for what they are doing. Their voices are honest and needed in these times.

Kinda Busy, But....

My words are appearing elsewhere and all my regulars are are welcome to go see them if they wish.
Christian woman bloggers are popping up everywhere and doing a better job at defending the freedom God has for His daughters better than anything I could come up with.

http://bwebaptistwomenforequality.wordpress.com/2010/05/24/it-is-not-preaching-if-you-are-sitting-down-part-2/

Our numbers are growing ladies.
It's a good thing too. The more hands the better. It makes it easier on the rest of us.

I had to do it. Sorry.

I always wanted to keep my blog open for unmoderated comments. And I still do.
But recently I've been invaded by more and more aggressive spammers in languages I don't even know. And I've had less and less time to spend here to remove those comments.
Anyone wishing to comment on actual posts on this blog, please do. I'll get in when I can to let your comment through.

But all spammers are forever and always banned from having their comments ever see the light of day here. Go sell your useless, and most likely perverted, wares elsewhere. My blog is not your free advertising channel. In other words, "Get lost!"

My regular commenters, again sorry. I love what you all have to say. I'm also sorry I've been more or less awol during this very busy month. I should return soon... "Lord willing and if the creek don't rise."

:)

Restitution

Exodus 22:1 If a man steals an ox or a sheep, and slaughters it or sells it, he shall pay five oxen for the ox and four sheep for the sheep.

vs 4 If what he stole is actually found alive in his possession, whether an ox of a donkey or a sheep, he shall pay double.



This above is the Old Testament Law concerning thieves.
I once heard a preacher say that since the devil is a thief (John 10:10), we can appeal to God when the devil steals something from us that God, as our Judge, can bring justice to us and make the thief pay us back.

Granted, this teaching is from my time spent in the Faith Movement. I will be the first to acknowledge that there is A LOT WRONG with the faith movement. There are many excesses that do not in any way represent the heart of God.

However, during a time when I seemed to be losing a lot, God gave me a dream. While I tried to understand the dream, that teaching came to my remembrance. And I felt the okay to go with it and to ask for restitution in prayer.

It is a story I will tell you in the next post.
It worked for me.
Even if you don't believe in the principle, it wouldn't hurt to take it into your prayer room and ask God what He thinks of it.

An Example of Restoration/Restitution

I'm not the type that cries easily.
Now as I'm getting older, the tears come more easily. But when I was younger... no way.

Anyway, one time, over ten years ago while my husband still pastored, I sat bawling in the car. There was a couple in our church that had turned on me. Before that, I had felt God specifically tell me to take them under my wing and love them. And I did, not knowing what was in store for me.

Making a long story short, the husband of this couple had a negligent, abusive mother. And the wife's mother wasn't as bad, but was a trouble maker. All the bottled up anger they had towards their mothers they took out on me after the honeymoon of the relationship was over. They turned on me like I had never been turned on before. And I hurt. I grieved for the relationship because I opened my heart toward them and loved them with a deep and real love. My heart was broken.

As I sat in the car and bawled, I asked God why.

First thing I felt that I heard from Him was something like, "Are you sorry that you ever had a relationship with them?"

When I really searched my heart, my answer was, no. I still loved them and appreciated the good times we had before things went south. I was just upset that things went south and I wanted it back the way it used to be. So I told God that I wasn't sorry for the relationship.

His next question took me off guard. "What can I give to you that will make it up to you."

It took me so off guard that I didn't even know what to ask. I fumbled around a bit then asked God, "What should I ask for?"

"Ask Me for a house."

I started laughing. We needed a bigger house. The one we were in was two sizes too small for our family. So I asked for a bigger house.

In a few years, I had one. A good one through an unexpected inheritance.

As far as that couple was concerned, they did come around eventually.

I'm not sure, but part of me thinks that God wanted a situation where this couple could get their anger towards their mothers to the surface. He asked me to step in knowing that these two were boiling pots that needed to blow. And He could trust me to not retaliate or return abuse upon them. All I did was grieve over them, like a bereaved mother, and pray for them. And that's all He wanted from me. He would handle the rest.

And it wasn't a bad situation for me when it was all over. I got a house and the couple came back as friends.

God asked a favor. I obeyed. It blew up in my face. And He made it up to me.

Restoring Double

Zechariah 9:11 As for you also, because of the blood of My covenant with you, I have set your prisoners free from the waterless pit.
vs 12 Return to the stronghold (or Stronghold), O prisoners who have the hope (or prisoners OF hope); This very day I am declaring that I will restore double to you.

In Joel we saw God's promise to restore all that was taken by every type of locust mentioned, whether stripping, gnawing, flying etc. God said He would give back to Israel all that was taken.

Here in Zechariah we see God talking, not just about restoring their freedom because of the blood of His covenant, but even beyond that. He's talking about restoring double.

Note in verse twelve the prophet calling the prisoners to the Stronghold, or place of safety. He calls them the prisoners who have a hope, or prisoners who, even though they have been/are captive, they are not without hope.

Not only do they have hope. But by the end of verse twelve they have a promise of double restoration. A promise from God will keep.

Where Have I Been This Time

I haven't been able to finish my short series on restoration because I've been busy. But in a good way.

My daughter was nominated to go to Washington to be part of the National Young Leaders Conference.

http://www.cylc.org/NYLC

It was hard work getting her ready and hard to watch an air plane whisk her away to Washington D.C. But she had an awesome time and learned a lot. But most important, she learned about being a leader, something I want for all my children.

So I apologize for being absent. But thanks for being understanding the needs of my family and my dedication to helping my children achieve success.

He Will Make It Up to Me

Joel 2:25 Then I will make up to you for the years that the swarming locust has eaten, the creeping locust, the stripping locust, and the gnawing locust, My great army with I sent among you.

This is the first promise of restoration we will look at because it is in direct response to Joel 1:4 which we looked at in our March 4th post.

And this is God's promise. How He will do it? When He will do it? His timing is above mine. He knows my heart and the hearts of all those who need to be restored. He knows when I will be ready and when others will be ready and He will move accordingly.

But the most important thing to remember is that HE PROMISED!

And if He promised, HE WILL KEEP IT.

Another thing to remember, which most who have been ravaged by the locust already know, we cannot work this up in ourselves. We can only make ourselves ready to receive the gift. We need to ask questions about where we need to be and what we need to do to get into position to receive. But we cannot receive it until God pours it out. We can only trust that if He said He will restore, then He will restore.

He is not a man that He can break His promises.

What the Locust Have Eaten

We aren't in February anymore. We are in March, you know, that month that comes in like a lion and leaves like a lamb, or comes in like a lamb and leaves like a lion. But we aren't talking about lions today. We are talking about locust. And in Joel one we see that the locust have come in a ravonous swarm, leaving nothing in their path.


Joel 1:4 What the gnawing locust has left, the swarming locust has eaten; And what the swarming locust has left, the creeping locust has eaten; And what the creeping locust has left, the stripping locust has eaten.


This verse jumped out at me once, when I stood in a desolate place in my life. I felt like the tree stump in my front yard, cut off and dead.


All these locust had come into my life in the form of rejections and other things and left me with nothing. Even as I prayed, I felt dead at His feet. As an exercise I named the locust that had come. Somethings that happened in my childhood I named the gnawing locust. The abandonment of my sister, I named the swarming locust. The recent deaths of my in-laws, especially my mother-in-law to whom I was very close, I named the creeping locust, etc.

I meditated on this verse for some time because of that desolate place. I couldn't shake for a while. Sometimes I reassigned the locust for whatever it was that made me feel desolate that day. But always it was the same. Many things had been stripped away from me. And there was nothing I could do but grieve over things old and new that worked together to destroy me.

And I needed to grieve over it rather than pretend it never happened.

New Testament References to Love

We are no where near done looking at all the places in the Old Testament that speak of God's love. But I thought we'd look at a few places in the New Testament before we move onto something else.



Ephesians 2:4 But God, being rich in mercy, because of His great love with which He loved us,

Vs 5 even when we were dead in our transgressions, made us alive together with Christ (by grace you have been saved),

Vs 6 and raised us up with Him, and seated us with Him in the heavenly places, in Christ,

Vs 7 in order that in the ages to come He might show the surpassing riches of His grace in kindness toward us in Christ Jesus.



I Corinthians 2:9 But just as it is written, Things which eye has not seen and ear has not heard and which have not entered the heart of man, all that God has prepared for those who love Him. (Isaiah 64:4 & 65:17)



This theme of love, referred to in the Old Testament, is carried over into the New Testament. Above are a few good ones. And I haven't even brought up the words of Jesus or the words of John in his letters.

(I post dated this so it would end up in Feb even though I didn't post it until March 1. I'm just too busy.)

Lovingkindness and Tender Mercies

All of these verses on lovingkindness in the six previous posts and I haven't even covered the ones the have both lovingkindness and tender mercies (compassions). Here they are, one right after the other in rainbow colors for your personal mediatiaon.

Psalm 25:5 Remember, O Lord, Thy compassions (tender mercies) and They lovingkindness, For they have been from of old.

Psalm 40:11 Thou, O LORD, wilt nto withhold Thy compassions (tender mercies) from me; Thy lovingkindness and Thy truth will continually preserve me.

Psalm 51:1 Be gracious to me, O God, according to Thy lovingkindness; According to the greatness of Thy compassion (tender mercies) blot out transgression.

Psalm 69:16 Answer me, O LORD, for Thy lovingkindness is good. According to the greatness of Thy compassion (tender mercies), turn to me.

Psalm 103:4 Who redeems your life from the pit; Who crowns you with lovingkindness and compassion (tender mercies).

Lovingkindness, 6

Psalm 107:8 Let them give thanks to the Lord for His lovingkindness, And for His wonders to the sons of men!
Vs 9 For He has satisfied the thirsty soul, and the hungry soul He has filled with what is good.
Vs 15Let them give thanks to the Lord for His lovingkindness, And for His wonderful acts to the children of men!
Vs 16 For He has shattered the gates of bronze, And cut bars of iron asunder.


Here in Psalm 107 the psalmist is calling on the people, including himself, to give thank to God for His lovingkindness and His miracles that He has lavished on His people.


The Psalmist also draws attention that God satisfies the hungry and the thirsty with good in verse 9.


In verse 16 the psalmist points out the overwhelming, delivering power that God has that he gives freely because of His lovingkindness.