God's Word Illustrated

GOD'S WORD ILLLUSTRATED 

"The beast of the field will honor Me, the jackals and the ostriches, because I give waters in the wilderness and rivers in the desert, to give drink to My people, My chosen. This people I have formed for Myself; they shall declare My praise," Isaiah 43:20-21.

"But now ask the beasts, and they will teach you; and the birds of the air, and they will tell you...who among all these does not know that the hand of the Lord has done this, in whose hand is the life of every living thing, and the breath of all mankind," Job 12:7 & 9-10.

"In the beginning god created the heavens and the earth...And God created...every winged bird according to its kind. And God saw that it was good. And God blessed them, saying, 'Be fruitful and multiply, and fill the waters in the seas, and let birds multiply on the earth.' So the evening and the morning were the fifth day," Genesis 1, 21-23.

"Then the Lord opened the mouth of the donkey, and she said to Balaam, 'What have I done to you, that you have struck me these three times?'" Numbers 22:28 and God said to Balaam, "The donkey saw Me and turned aside from Me these three times. If she had not turned aside from Me, surely I would also have killed you by now, and let her life,'" Numbers 22;33.

During the wonderful 1000 year reign of Christ called, "The Millennium," the scene captured in this painting by Edward Hicks, will become a reality:  "The leopard shall lie down with the young goat, the calf and the young lion and the fatling together; and a little child shall lead them.  'They shall not hurt nor destroy in all My holy mountain,' says the Lord," Isaiah 11:6 & 65:25.

"And Jesus said to him, 'Foxes have holes and birds of the air have nests, but the Son of Man has nowhere to lay His head," Matthew 8:20 - and - "Catch us the foxes, the little foxes that spoil the vines, for our vines have tender grapes," Song of Solomon 2:15.

"But those who wait on the Lord shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings like eagles, they shall run and not be weary, they shall walk and not faint," Isaiah 40:31.

I praise God for the beauty of the earth that He has blessed us with and the ability to recognize His love and purpose in the writings of His Word and in all the things we see in His creation.  I hope you've enjoyed seeing God's Word illustrated with photos I've taken here and there and yon!

The Power of P Words

 THE POWER OF P WORDS

It struck me recently how many of the most Powerful words (starting with the word "Powerful") in the Christian life begin with the letter "P."  I wondered where I might find a picture of the letter P and then I remembered a strange painting I'd seen recently at the Crocker Museum in Sacramento, California.  The painting Moving Out, painted by Julie Heffernan in 2010, features all sorts of thought-provoking elements, and it just happens to have the letter P hanging by a rope, dangling in space.  I'm simply going to key in on the one letter for this post.  We shall Ponder the remainder of the painting at a later date.  Note:  I've capitalized each featured P word for emphasis.

Often when I Pray, I ask for Peace, Power to live for Christ and to fulfill His Purpose, and I Praise Him for all He is and all He does.  We might say that's Prayer in a nutshell.  Paul wrote to the Ephesians, saying, "With all Prayer and Petition Pray at all times in the Spirit, and with this in view, be on the alert with all Perseverance and Petition for all the saints, and Pray on my behalf...." 6:18-19.

Here are a few more admonitions from Paul in that chapter:  Put on the full armor of God / Our struggles are against the Powers of darkness /  We should cover our feet with the Preparation of the gospel of Peace / and above all else - Pray.

The most Powerful word in the Christian vocabulary is Pray.  Here's what Priscilla Shirer wrote in her latest Bible study, The Armor of God:  "Unless Prayer is a vital and thriving part of our life, you will never achieve spiritual victory... Prayer is the connective tissue between you and heavenly places.... Without Prayer - I say it again - your armor cannot, will not, be infused with the Power that only God's Spirit can give."

Who knew the letter P could be so Popular and Precious, so Poignant and Persuasive, so Productive in the Power-struggle for the Planet.  And Power-struggle it is -- between the Prince of darkness and the Prince of Peace.  As People of God, let us Persevere in that Powerful Privilege of Prayer. 

Praise God from whom all blessings flow!

   [This is a message I posted in May 2016 and thought it worth a repeat]