What Does the Lord Require Of You

 He has shown you, O mortal, what is good.

And what does the Lord require of you?

To act justly and to love mercy

and to walk humbly with your God. Micah 6:8

It doesn't get much clearer than that.

Christ lived this and I believe it is required of us as well.

 “Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You give a tenth of your spices—mint, dill and cumin. But you have neglected the more important matters of the law—justice, mercy and faithfulness. You should have practiced the latter, without neglecting the former. Matthew 23:23

For all those who exalt themselves will be humbled, and those who humble themselves will be exalted.” Luke 14:11

Humble yourselves before the Lord, and he will lift you up. James 4:10

Jesus reiterated scripture from the Old Testament,  Deuteronomy 6:5;

 love the Lord your God with all your heart and love your neighbor.

 Jesus replied: “‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.’ This is the first and greatest commandment. And the second is like it: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’   All the Law and the Prophets hang on these two commandments.” Matthew 22:37-40

If we act justly, love mercy and walk humbly with our God, won't that be accomplished as well!?

If we have mercy we will show love and compassion. 

If we act justly we will treat our neighbor/others as we should.

If we are humble and walking WITH God we will love as He does.

It isnt complicated, actually.

It isnt confusing.

It may not be easy all the time,

But it is required of us if we are a follower of Christ.

What does your Lord require of you today?

These Are the Precious Days

Everyone has been waiting for
"Things to return to normal"
"Things to go back to how they were"
One friend of mine said "she is missing out on her precious days" referring to the lack of social interaction due to the social distancing and isolation being required. 
My response was "we were given today as a gift"
📖 This is the day the Lord has made;
We will rejoice and be glad in it. Psalm 118:24 (NKJV)

And because we are here ...we woke this morning..God has purpose in it.
So isn't that precious?
I also thought....those days, before all this,  may have been "ordinary" days.... and they are in the past.
THESE days are precious! Precious in the fact that we have had to lean on Him, learn how to continue to show the world who He is even in the middle of the upheaval. 
📖 God is our refuge and strength,
    an ever-present help in trouble.
2 Therefore we will not fear, though the earth give way
    and the mountains fall into the heart of the sea,
3 though its waters roar and foam
    and the mountains quake with their surging. Psalm 46:1-3
Every day we are given has something in it for us to see, learn, we have another day to worship Him, to share His love with others. Even in the struggle. 

📖 He says, “Be still, and know that I am God.

I will be exalted among the nations.

I will be exalted in the earth.”

The Lord Almighty is with us;

the God of Jacob is our fortress. Psalm 46:10

In being given this pecious day, we are shown we are precious to Him.

📖 Since you are precious and honored in my sight, and because I love you, I will give people in exchange for you, nations in exchange for your life Isaiah 43:4

📖 As you come to him, the living Stone—rejected by humans but chosen by God and precious to him— 1 Peter 3:4

Given another day to worship Him, point others to Him, and IF we haven't...another day to commit ourselves to Him, to surrender to Him.

📖 The Lord is not slow in keeping his promise, as some understand slowness. Instead he is patient with you, not wanting anyone to perish, but everyone to come to repentance. 2 Peter 3:9

So no matter what is swirling around us, don't wish for "ordinary" days...thank God for the precious day He has given His precious child.❤

AWESOME

We all want to be awesome....but the world definitely has a different idea of awesome.

We should want to be awesome in the Lord!

A - answer with grace
        Let your conversation be always full of grace,          seasoned with salt, so that you  may know how.           to answer everyone. Colossians 4:6
W - wise in the ways of the Lord
        Be very careful, then, how you live—not as                   unwise but as wise, Ephesians 5:15

        “Therefore everyone who hears these words of.            mine and puts them into practice is like.        

         a wise man who built his house on the rock.    

          Matthew 7:24

E - ears to listen
       Apply your heart to instruction and     

       your ears to words of knowledge.

       Proverbs  23:12
        If anyone has ears to hear, let them hear.   

        Mark 4:9
S - slow to anger
       My dear brothers and sisters, take note of this:   

       Everyone should be quick to listen, slow          

       to speak and  slow to become angry.  

         James 1:19 

O - obey His commandments

        It is the Lord your God you must follow, and.                him you must revere.    

        Keep his commands and obey him; serve him            and hold fast to him. Deuteronomy 13:4
M - mustard seed faith
       He replied, “Because you have so little faith.                 ”Truly I tell you, if you have faith as small as a            mustard seed, you can say to this mountain,                ‘Move from here to there,’ and it will.         

       move. Nothing will be impossible for you.”            

        Matthew 17:20
E - encourager

        Therefore encourage one another and build.             each other up, just as in fact you are.      

        doing  1 Thessalonians 5:11

       Finally, brothers and sisters, rejoice! Strive for 

        full  restoration, encourage one another, be

       of one mind, live in peace. And the God.   

       of love and peace will be with you. 

        2 Corinthians 13:11

YOU are 
Awesome in the Lord!

We can be Awesome in the Lord because our God is an Awesome God!

For the Lord your God is God of gods and Lord of lords, the great God, mighty and awesome, who shows no partiality and accepts no bribes. Deuteronomy 10:17

🎵Our God Is An Awesome God

Death in the Pot

Not my title.....that is what it says in black and white in my version of  2 Kings 4:38-41 (NIV)

📖  Death in the Pot
38 Elisha returned to Gilgal and there was a famine in that region. While the company of the prophets was meeting with him, he said to his servant, “Put on the large pot and cook some stew for these prophets.”
39 One of them went out into the fields to gather herbs and found a wild vine and picked as many of its gourds as his garment could hold. When he returned, he cut them up into the pot of stew, though no one knew what they were. 40 The stew was poured out for the men, but as they began to eat it, they cried out, “Man of God, there is death in the pot!” And they could not eat it.
41 Elisha said, “Get some flour.” He put it into the pot and said, “Serve it to the people to eat.” And there was nothing harmful in the pot. 

These obscure verses were just brought to my attention.  Not something I recall seeing before.  Once I read it ....my brain started whirling...or "stirring"!😉
What do we bring to the pot?...what "death" do we add to the mix?
First of all do we bring denial?   Denial of who Christ is and what He has done for us....because that does lead to death...eternal separation from our God.
📖 He will punish those who do not know God and do not obey the gospel of our Lord Jesus. They will be punished with everlasting destruction and shut out from the presence of the Lord and from the glory of his might, 2 Thessalonians 1:8-9

But even if we have acknowledged and accepted Christ, 
📖 And everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved." Acts 2:21

do we still venture out on our own, seeking what we believe to be the "key ingredients" to our life pot?
Instead of following THE recipe.
Do we bring complacency,  bitterness,  hardness of heart, anger.
Do we bring apathy, pride, self-centeredness?
Even the smallest of these will cause a rank tasting pot of stew!
I can envision hard, bitter, unpalatable chunks bringing distastefulness to the whole thing.
Pluck them out!

📖 Get rid of all bitterness, rage and anger, brawling and slander, along with every form of malice. Ephesians 4:31


AND let God bring His ingredient, that is what makes the whole pot appealing, life sustaining.
If we think of flour added to a sauce or stew....once added and mixed in you can not sift or strain it out...it becomes one.
📖 For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord. Romans 8:38-39

Painting by Rachel

        And there was nothing harmful in the pot. 

📖  The Lord is your keeper;
The Lord is your shade at your right hand.

The sun shall not strike you by day,
Nor the moon by night.

The Lord shall preserve you from all evil;

He shall preserve your soul.

The Lord shall preserve your going out and your coming in
From this time forth, and even forevermore. Psalm 121:5-8