Because Jacob swindled Esau out of his birthright and had also stolen the blessings that were to be given to Esau by his father, Isaac (Genesis 27), Jacob feared for his life while returning home to meet Esau, even though it was years later since these incidents. These two brothers were at odds with each other. Truthfully, I can’t say that I blame Esau for being so angry, yet… was earthly possessions worth committing murder and losing his brother, Jacob? Had Jacob been contented with what God had already given him, would he have connived to gain more from his brother Esau? To appease his brother’s wrath, Jacob sends before…
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Sin Withholds GOOD Things from You
“Your iniquities have turned away these things, and your sins have withholden good things from you.” ~ Jeremiah 5:25 kjv SIN is becoming so common place and accepted among Christians that we start to blend in with the rest of the world. They feel that these little sins aren’t that big of a deal if they’re not “murdering” or “stealing” from someone. Doesn’t it seem like we put our own label on what we think of as “bad” SIN…and then shrug our shoulders at other things that don’t seem quite so “bad?” The fact is, SIN is — and always will be — still SIN in God’s eyes. GOD doesn’t…
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Restore Your JOY and Reap So Much More
Restore unto me the joy of thy salvation; and uphold me with thy free spirit. – Psalm 51:12 kjv David’s song and prayer in Psalm 51 is a plea to restore his JOY. It’s obvious that if he’s asking to restore his JOY, then he once had it and sadly lost it. We can lose our JOY when we let sin come between us and God. In an earlier verse, Psalm 51:10, we see that David already addressed this situation when he humbly requests, “Create in me a clean heart, O God; and renew a right spirit within me.“ To restore the JOY of the Lord in our lives, we first…
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God is Thinking About Us
For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, saith the LORD, thoughts of peace, and not of evil, to give you an expected end. ~ Jeremiah 29:11 KJV When I was 19, before heading off to Bible college, a sweet lady made me an embroidery-stitched picture with the Bible verse, Jeremiah 29:11. I’m embarrassed to admit it, but at the time I had no clue what the Bible verse really meant. As I began to grow more spiritually in Bible college by continually reading and hearing God’s Word, my spiritual understanding deepened. I remember coming home for a visit from college and glancing at the Bible verse hanging…
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How to Get Past the Hurdles in Life’s Journey
If you’ve ever been on a really rough road trip (you know — one in which everything seemed to go wrong), then you also know how sweet and good it feels to have FINALLY arrived “safe and sound” to your destination… all in one piece. Don’t you appreciate the RELIEF you feel of finally getting a rest from your adverse traveling escapade? Our life’s journey can get a bit rugged sometimes… Life is full of hurdles and tough trials that seem to overwhelm us. It can be hard to endure. We long for relief from the adversity. Our Heavenly Father LOVES us so much that He wanted to encourage and…
