Saturday, January 1, 2011

Inheritance

Some time later there was an incident involving a vineyard belonging to Naboth the Jezreelite. The vineyard was in Jezreel, close to the palace of Ahab king of Samaria.  Ahab said to Naboth, “Let me have your vineyard to use for a vegetable garden, since it is close to my palace. In exchange I will give you a better vineyard or, if you prefer, I will pay you whatever it is worth.” But Naboth replied, “The LORD forbid that I should give you the inheritance of my fathers.” 1 Kings 21:1-3 (NIV)

Naboth was not willing to part with his inheritance.  Naboth was faithful even though it cost him his life.

The Lord of Life has paid the ultimate price to pay for the sins of men. He has snatched us out of darkness and brought us into the light. (Colossians 1:13) He has given us an inheritance, a place to dwell with him forever.  Jesus has called us to participate in the Kingdom of God with him.  He has filled us with gifts & talents and has told us to "work the field". (1 Corinthians 3:8-9) 

For the disciples it cost them their lives but the world heard the Good News.  We are God's ambassadors, his representatives to tell the world , to inform the lost of the this inheritance that can be theirs too.  It may cost us....their is always a price to pay.  Naboth was not willing to waiver on that which the Lord had given him, he was not going to compromise. We are God's inheritance and he is ours.   Help us to be faithful to the call. 

God bless you!~Liz
www.lizrod.com

Spontaneous Praise

Romans 1:20 (NIV)
 

For since the creation of the world God’s invisible qualities—his eternal power and divine nature—have been clearly seen, being understood from what has been made, so that men are without excuse.




As I drove home one day last week...I was in my car and as usual and I begin to talk with the Lord....you see I kept hearing this light noise...but could not figure out what it was.  So as I'm driving on Route 17M...I'm saying...Lord what is that....what's that noise....I'm looking around in my car thinking something maybe is rolling on the floor or can it be my tires..or something mechanical making noise....then my eyes began to focus on my windshield....the day was overcast..nothing extra-ordinary...then I begin asking the Lord....could it be hail....Lord I would love to see hail....I don't see anything Lord....let it be hail ( I'm marveled by hail)

It's not just your typical icstorm like we recently had...it was overcast...not cold...I did not see any precipitation....so as I kept looking...and tiny......tiny........ little pieces of ice begin to bounce off my windshield...call me crazy...laugh if you will (it's good medicine) ... but I began to worship the Lord...yes worship the Lord for the hail...for rain...for the wind..for the sunshine...it was what
I like to call...Spontaneous Praise....it made my heart glad...I think my Father in heaven also was moved....His daughter...driving home...amazed by something He created....yes...He created......... The "Awe" was focused back to the Awesome One!

Look today...for that moment of spontaneous praise that can move the Heart of the Father..as his children marvel at what he has made...making it evident that He is the Creator....of everything.....


Marvel at this: Wikipedia Unlike ice pellets hail stones are layered and can be irregular and clumped together. Hail is composed of transparent ice or alternating layers of transparent and translucent ice.....

God bless you!Liz
www.lizrod.com

Our Offering

Be careful, or you will be enticed to turn away and worship other gods and bow down to them. (Deuteronomy 11:16)

I pray you have been reading along with me, the Book of Malachi. I can't help but see the broken heart of our God as the sacrifices that were being offered lacked fear and reverence. To bring a blind animal, an animal with defect, when the Lord specifically gave instructions on what kind of sacrifice was acceptable to Him. That's like our children going out to the garbage and picking something up we discarded and wrapping it up and saying, "here mom, here dad, I want to express my love to you and thank you for being so good to me."

So today, when we enter the courts of the Lord, what do we bring? I'll make no suggestions because we have all been guilty of bringing something "less than" to the Lord. Father forgive us.  You have made it clear what is pleasing to you. You have been our Provision and from the very bounty that you have given us, we will bring a sacrifice, a gift acceptable to you. Father receive our lives afresh as an offering. May it be acceptable in your sight, our reasonable act of worship.

Let us come into His House with joy and a spirit of celebration as we come to worship our King! 


"When you offer blind animals for sacrifice, is that not wrong? When you sacrifice lame or diseased animals, is that not wrong? Try offering them to your governor! Would he be pleased with you? Would he accept you?” says the Lord Almighty.  “Now plead with God to be gracious to us. With such offerings from your hands, will he accept you?”—says the Lord Almighty.  “Oh, that one of you would shut the temple doors, so that you would not light useless fires on my altar! I am not pleased with you,” says the Lord Almighty, “and I will accept no offering from your hands. My name will be great among the nations, from where the sun rises to where it sets. In every place incense and pure offerings will be brought to me, because my name will be great among the nations,” says the Lord Almighty." (Malachi 1:8-11)

God bless you!~Liz
www.lizrod.com

My Testimony

Psalm 121

A song of ascents.

I lift up my eyes to the mountains—
    where does my help come from?
My help comes from the Lord,
    the Maker of heaven and earth.
He will not let your foot slip—
    he who watches over you will not slumber;
indeed, he who watches over Israel
    will neither slumber nor sleep.
The Lord watches over you—
    the Lord is your shade at your right hand;
the sun will not harm you by day,
    nor the moon by night.
The Lord will keep you from all harm
    he will watch over your life;
the Lord will watch over your coming and going
    both now and forevermore.
In the last week I have received 8 prayer request, which is my pleasure to forward out to you...who pray and intercede on behalf of others. We have received reports of the amazing things that God is doing in our midst. I am encouraged to receive the reports of praise as well;  I count it a privilege to share the needs of others with you.

God bless you! God does hear when we cry out to him!  Cry out! 

My Praise Report | Twelve days ago, on Jan.13, I had a biopsy done. I must testify, that God had given me such Peace from the moment I was told that I needed this procedure done till the moment of the results...it was tangible.  I did not know the report...I did not know what God would do in my life. The one thing that I did know was that God would receive praise & honor from my life, even before the report would be received, therefore I worshiped my God, as always, with all my heart...with all my strength.

You see, it's not only when the report comes back good, the way we want it, that God is worthy of Praise.....NO...it's in the waiting...its in the not knowing...its in the report that we might somewhat dread....God is worthy to be exalted & praised. I asked the ladies of OCF to pray
with and for me and then I presented my request to the congregation as well so they would join me....God is worthy of my Praise!

I am thankful and grateful for God's mercy on my life, as he has preserved my life, once again. The report came back benign the following day...and I am thankful that God has taught me....that in the good times and in what seems bad...God is worthy of Liz's praise! 

God bless you!~Liz
www.lizrod.com












The Storm

I have hidden your word in my heart that I might not sin  against you. Psalm 119:11 (NIV)




Yesterday as I was in the supermarket, I began to think about the urgency we feel prior to a snow storm. People, who don’t normally shop, are out stocking up, just in case they run out of food. Imaging missing a meal....NoI need to eat, I need to be fed, and I need nourishment.

How far would we go if we knew that tomorrow, the very Word of God, the Bible, would be no more? Imagine if we had to surrender every Bible we owned. Would there be enough in our reservoir, our hearts, to carry us through? Have we hid Gods Word in our heart? How about when a storm comes, do we have this precious resource to carry us through? The Spirit of the Lord is ready, are we? The Word of God, His guidance and instructions available to us for every circumstance. Is anyone among you in trouble? Let them pray. Is anyone happy? Let them sing songs of praise. Is anyone among you sick? Let them call the elders of the church to pray over them and anoint them with oil in the name of the Lord. James 5:13‐14

He is present with us, just like when Adam walked and talked with the Lord in the Garden. Even after the Fall of Man, even after we have sinned against the One who is without fault, the One who is perfect, He still desires that we commune, talk with him. The Father, the God of all Creation, sent his son to make a way. It is He who has loved us; He has made a way (Isaiah 53).

So, regardless of the storm, call it what whatever it is, sickness, sadness, financially deficit, the loss of those we love, our hearts have been hurt and deceived, our feelings are crushed, loneliness, whatever causes a “storm in our lives. Let’s go the Good Shepherd, his voice is distinguishable, lean and listen, he whispers, Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.” Matthew 11:28-30

Father, I rush to you in need, and I say, speak to me Lord, I am listening. I choose to stay close to you. Come Lord, carry me through the storm.

God bless you!~Liz
www.lizrod.com


The Gardiner

But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law. Galatians 5:22-23



As I walk with the Lord, there is a Teacher, the Spirit of God himself that walks and talks with me. Today I will also call him the Gardner.

When a garden is planted, sometimes the fruit or vegetables grow well. But even the best plants, that which seems like they are growing well, often can use improvement, the Gardner can recognize this quickly.

So the Gardner often has to re-cultivate the ground, perhaps remove some rocks that were deep in the dirt that did not allow the fruit to mature to its proper growth. Often what looks like good soil unless it’s tested may reveal to be deficient of nutrients, therefore proper daily feeding to the ground is necessary to ensure that healthy fruit is produced. Just because it looks good, does not mean it will taste good.

Perhaps there is too much heat, perhaps the plant cannot handle that heat, so the Gardner uproots the plant and chooses a different location, a place of proper balance between heat and shade. The Gardner will frequently check the growth of his plants. If he sees that the plant is leaning or bending the wrong way, he may turn it around to try and re-position it...but if the plant is stubborn, for the good of the plant, for the benefit of pure fruit, he sometimes has to gently restrict it, making sure that plant stays and grows in the place the Gardner planted it.

When the season ends, the Gardner gathers the harvest, he examines it, puts it to the test as he serves it out. The Gardner quickly see whether those that are eating of the fruit he grew are enjoying the benefits of his toil. If the fruit is bitter, rotten, un-matured, or just did not grow as the Gardner intended, then he tweaks the process or perhaps he checks the seed to make sure that the seed will produce what he intended to grow.

Love should not produce hate, Joy should not produce discontentment, Peace should not turn out as chaos, Kindness should be sweet, Goodness, genuine, Faithfulness should be authentic, Gentleness should not turn out harsh, and Self- control should be temperate.

Therefore I submit myself to the Gardner and allow him to continue to examine, tweak, and if necessary start all over again until the fruit produced is what he intended to reap out of this life.

I have grown to recognize when the fruit is rotten, I can recognize if the fruit is not genuine..the fruit of my life. The Gardner as he cultivates the ground, he speaks to me. His Mighty Word, the food source to all that will grow well, is what I cling too. It’s not only at the beginning of a new year that self examination is necessary, but a daily check has to be part of my life. There is no one good…except the Lord. I am not perfect, but I am being changed daily until I reach glory one day. There are spiritual truths that I know well but that does not mean I don’t need to be reminded. His Word does that for me. There is not just one verse that I cling too for the New Year, because every word is beneficial and instructive to me. In 2010 the Lord continued to teach me to trust him daily and I did. In 2011 I will do the same because I do not know what it holds. I thank the Good Lord for saving my life and bringing and allowing me to join the family of God.

I do have a continue hope, that I hold on too, and that is that he would save my family….my entire family until my whole lineage proclaims Christ is Lord!

Happy New Year! 2011

God bless you!~Liz
www.lizrod.com




CHANGE, WELCOME IT!

 Acts 9:32-34 As Peter traveled about the country, he went to visit the Lord’s people who lived in Lydda. There he found a man named Aeneas,...