Vengeance

 Happy Sunday!

"Wicked people are killed by their own evil deeds, and if you hate God's people you will be punished.  The Lord saves the lives of his servants. Run to him for protection, and you won't be punished."(Psalm 34:21-22 CEV).

Last week some of my daily readings were from the Book of Esther.  The Bible fascinates me.  I'm always seeing something new and exciting.  Don't get me wrong, the Bible hasn't changed.  But my revelation of the Word has expanded, or changed.  Long story short, the King in the Book of Esther had a wild drinking party with his boys, he was showing off all of his bling and things.  Then he decided that he'd show off his wife, Vashti too. Esther 1:11 says, "she was fair to look on".  But his wife refused to come.  Some Jewish and Bible Commentators that I read regarding this believe that the king wanted the queen to be brought before the party wearing her royal crown and nothing else. If this is true, then it sheds a whole new light on the incident.  And it might explain why the king sent 7 chamberlains to get the queen(Esther 1:10 KJV).  If she had been asked to come fully clothed would it have required 7 men to go get her? Definitely food for thought.

When she refused to come, his drunken friends encouraged him to get rid of his wife so that she wouldn't set a bad example for the other women by not obeying her husband.  He listened to these dummies, and later regretted what he'd done(Esther 2:1).  So some of his servants realized he was sad, and recommended having a beauty contest to find a new queen for the king.  Esther, a Jewish orphan, reared by her cousin Mordecai won the contest and became the queen. There was an evil man named Haman who hated Modecai, and all the Jewish exiles. The king listened to him and made a law that all the Jews would be killed on a certain day.  The king had no idea his beautiful new queen was also a Jew.  When Esther got word of all this, and realized she wouldn't escape either, she called a fast and risked her life by going in to see the king unannounced.  The king was happy to see her and asked what she wanted up to half of his kingdom. Sadly, the king couldn't change the law, but did add an addendum that allowed the Jews to protect themselves and kill their enemies. The hateful bad guy Haman, was killed on the very gallows he built in anticipation of killing Mordecai.

Romans 12:19 fits perfectly here, "Dear friends, never avenge yourselves. Leave that to God, for he has said that he will repay those who deserve it. Don’t take the law into your own hands."(Living Bible).  God will always protect us!  He's well aware that everyone won't like us, but He's more than able to bring us out on top!  1 Peter 3:13-16 says, "After all, who in the ordinary way is likely to injure you for being enthusiastic for good? And if it should happen that you suffer “for righteousness’ sake”, that is a privilege. You need neither fear their threats nor worry about them; simply concentrate on being completely devoted to Christ in your hearts. Be ready at any time to give a quiet and reverent answer to any man who wants a reason for the hope that you have within you. Make sure that your conscience is perfectly clear, so that if men should speak slanderously of you as rogues they may come to feel ashamed of themselves for libeling your good Christian behavior."(Phillips).

Love and prayers, Cynthia

Sons of God

Happy Sunday!

Happy Father's Day!  Happy Juneteenth!

"And so we should not be like cringing, fearful slaves, but we should behave like God’s very own children, adopted into the bosom of his family, and calling to him, “Father, Father.”  For his Holy Spirit speaks to us deep in our hearts and tells us that we really are God’s children."(Romans 8:15-16 Living Bible).

I didn't learn about Juneteenth until the 1990's when I met my biological uncle, Lee A. Green Sr.  Perhaps, I wasn't paying attention in my Black History Class at Inkster High School in Inkster, Michigan because I thought I knew Black History.  I sure knew "Lift Every Voice and Sing", the Negro National Anthem because as part of the class we had to memorize it.  My Uncle Lee explained that in Shreveport, Louisiana our family generally celebrated Juneteenth instead of Independence Day, July 4th.  He was a great host, loved family, and could cook just about anything on the grill.  We loved being a part of whatever he was doing.  He worked at the Ford Plant in the St. Louis area and would generally work the Holidays for the double time and a half.  So we would await his call to tell us what specific day to come over to celebrate our freedom.

The Apostle Paul wrote to the Romans to ensure they knew about freedom in Christ.  He wanted them to know that they were no longer slaves, they were now sons!  That's such Good News because a son will NEVER be treated like a slave in his father's house.  Don't miss this!  Think about the parable of the Prodigal Son.  Jesus said, "It wasn’t long before the younger son packed his bags and left for a distant country. There, UNDISCIPLINED and dissipated, he wasted everything he had. After he had gone through all his money, there was a bad famine all through that country and he began to feel it. He signed on with a citizen there who assigned him to his fields to slop the pigs. He was so hungry he would have eaten the corn-cobs in the pig slop, but no one would give him any."(Luke 15:12-16 Message).

“The son realized that he had been very FOOLISH. He thought, ‘All my father’s hired workers have plenty of food. But here I am, almost dead because I have nothing to eat.  I will leave and go to my father. I will say to him: Father, I have sinned against God and have done wrong to you.  I am no longer worthy to be called your son. But let me be like one of your hired workers.’  So he left and went to his father."(Luke 15:17-20 Easy-to-Read Version).  Of course you know what happened, don't you?  His father welcomed him home with a party, new clothes, jewelry and plenty of food!  He was not treated as a slave or hired servant, he was still a son!

Are you a son, or a slave?  Romans 8:14 says, "Only those people who are led by God's Spirit are his children."(CEV).

Love and prayers, Cynthia

My Enemies Flee!

 Happy Sunday!

"The VERY DAY I call for help, the tide of battle turns. My enemies flee! This one thing I know: God is for me!"(Psalm 56:9 Living Bible).

God is for me!  God is for you too!  That's Good News!  If you read this entire Psalm you can see that the Psalmist had been through some difficulties.  In verse 1 he says, "Be merciful unto me, O God: for man would swallow me up; he fighting daily oppresseth me."(KJV).  And in verses 5-6 he elaborates on what is happening. "My enemies are always twisting my words. They are always making plans against me. They hide together and watch every move I make,
hoping for some way to kill me."(Easy-to-Read Version).

Thankfully, he trusts God.  And he verifies it in verses 3-4, he says, "But when I am afraid, I will put my confidence in you. Yes, I will trust the promises of God. And since I am trusting him, what can mere man do to me?"(Living Bible).  The Apostle Paul echoes this in Romans 8:31(b), "If God be for us, who can be against us?"(KJV).  Don't miss this!  When God is for you absolutely no one can successfully be against you!

What's our job?  So glad you asked.  Hosea 4:6 says, "My people are ruined because they don’t know what’s right or true."(Message).  Jesus prayed, "Make them pure and holy through teaching them your words of truth."(John 17:17 Living Bible).  2 Timothy 3:16-17 says, "All of Scripture is God-breathed; in its inspired voice, we hear useful teaching, rebuke, correction, instruction, and training for a life that is right so that God’s people may be up to the task ahead and have all they need to accomplish every good work."(Voice)  Our job is to ingest the Word of God!  Get to know it intimately.  Dive in and find the precious promises.  Faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the Word of God so make sure you are hearing the Word!(Romans 10:17)

Love and prayers, Cynthia

Avoid These People - Remix

 Happy Sunday!

"We won't dare compare ourselves with those who think so much of themselves. But they are foolish to compare themselves with themselves. We won't brag about something we don't have a right to brag about. We will only brag about the work God has sent us to do, and you are part of that work."(2 Corinthians 10:12-13 CEV).

Praying that you have a wonderful week. This Happy Sunday is republished from 2011.  Pastor Kerwin Lee from Stone Mountain, Georgia, preached a message entitled, “The People You Should Avoid!”  He used Matthew 20:1-13.  Even after all these years we still need to avoid these types of people.

The people you should AVOID are;

Avoid people who are full of Conclusions- In verse 10, the workers hired at 6 am assumed that they would receive more than the penny they agreed to in verse 2.  Avoid people who make assumptions.  Research the issue for yourself!  Ask questions, be proactive, Google it if necessary.

Avoid people who are full of Complaints- In verse 11, the workers hired at 6 am complained.  Avoid people who always complain!  Complaining is contagious.  Do you remember what happened to the Children of Israel in the wilderness?  They complained.  Then they wandered in the wilderness until all the complainers died!

Avoid people who are full of Competition- In verse 12(a), the workers hired at 6 am complained that they should have been paid more because they endured the “scorching heat”.  Avoid people who thrive on negative competition.

Avoid people who are full of Conceit – In verse 12(b), the workers hired at 6 am were conceited.  They felt that they weren’t equal to the other workers.  They were incensed that they would be treated the same as the other workers.  Avoid conceited people.  The Word compares us to dust and tiny bubbles on the water.  We can be here today and gone today.  If we have anything to be proud of at all it's only because of the GRACE of God!

Avoid people who are full of Comparison – In verse 12(c), the workers hired at 6 am compared themselves to the other workers.  Never compare yourself to others!  There will always be someone who is different, smarter, shorter, taller, slimmer, fuller, younger, older, more educated, or less educated.  Don’t compare yourself to others, compare yourself to Jesus.  He was the ultimate example!  If you compare yourself to him you will always have a higher goal to reach.

Love and prayers, Cynthia