Morning Manna by Rufus Parker - 2018 June 23

“But when the fulness of the time was come, God sent forth his Son, made of a woman, made under the law, To redeem them that were under the law, that we might receive the adoption of sons” (Galatians 4:4-5).

Today’s Morsel:  Do you feel as though God is taking to long to come through for you?  Do you feel like giving up and quitting?  I’m sure there are times that some people feel this way.  But this feeling isn’t from God, it’s from the enemy of your soul.  He wants you to retreat and give up. We see this with Abraham and Sarah.  Abraham was 75 when God called him.  I’m sure Abraham felt that God was going to do what He said He would do because Abraham left home.  In some ways, I feel that Abraham delayed his blessing because he took Lot with him when God told him to leave his kindred and family.  So while God waited, he and Sarah tried to help God out because of the delay in the promise.  Every Prophet had prophesied to Israel that their Redeemer and Savior would come to deliver them.  But because of the delay, they took matters into their own hands; and when He came, they rejected Him.  He was not what they wanted to be their deliverer. Somewhat like the children of Belial said of Saul when he was anointed king, “But the children of Belial said, How shall this man save us? And they despised him, and brought him no presents. But he held his peace” (1 Samuel 10:27).  If we aren’t careful, we too can allow the delay to cause us to reject the Savior or the one whom God sends when He comes.  Remember, God isn't on our time, we are on His.

Sing: O’ my brother, are you ready for the call?  To crown your Savior King and Lord of all?  The kingdoms of this world shall soon before Him fall, we shall see the King when He comes.

 We shall see the king. We shall see the king. We shall see the king when he comes.  He’s coming in His power, we’ll hail the blessed hour, we shall see the king when He comes.

Thought For Today:  Don’t allow God’s seemingly delay to cause you to go against God’s word.

Morning Manna by Rufus Parker - 2018 June 22

“And they returned from searching of the land after forty days. And they went and came to Moses, and to Aaron, and to all the congregation of the children of Israel, unto the wilderness of Paran, to Kadesh; and brought back word unto them, and unto all the congregation, and shewed them the fruit of the land. And they told him, and said, We came unto the land whither thou sentest us, and surely it floweth with milk and honey; and this is the fruit of it. Nevertheless the people be strong that dwell in the land, and the cities are walled, and very great: and moreover we saw the children of Anak there. The Amalekites dwell in the land of the south: and the Hittites, and the Jebusites, and the Amorites, dwell in the mountains: and the Canaanites dwell by the sea, and by the coast of Jordan. And Caleb stilled the people before Moses, and said, Let us go up at once, and possess it; for we are well able to overcome it. But the men that went up with him said, We be not able to go up against the people; for they are stronger than we. And they brought up an evil report of the land which they had searched unto the children of Israel, saying, The land, through which we have gone to search it, is a land that eateth up the inhabitants thereof; and all the people that we saw in it are men of a great stature. And there we saw the giants, the sons of Anak, which come of the giants: and we were in our own sight as grasshoppers, and so we were in their sight. And all the congregation lifted up their voice, and cried; and the people wept that night. And all the children of Israel murmured against Moses and against Aaron: and the whole congregation said unto them, Would God that we had died in the land of Egypt! or would God we had died in this wilderness! And wherefore hath the LORD brought us unto this land, to fall by the sword, that our wives and our children should be a prey? were it not better for us to return into Egypt? And they said one to another, Let us make a captain, and let us return into Egypt. Then Moses and Aaron fell on their faces before all the assembly of the congregation of the children of Israel. And Joshua the son of Nun, and Caleb the son of Jephunneh, which were of them that searched the land, rent their clothes: And they spake unto all the company of the children of Israel, saying, The land, which we passed through to search it, is an exceeding good land. If the LORD delight in us, then he will bring us into this land, and give it us; a land which floweth with milk and honey. Only rebel not ye against the LORD, neither fear ye the people of the land; for they are bread for us: their defence is departed from them, and the LORD is with us: fear them not. But all the congregation bade stone them with stones. And the glory of the LORD appeared in the tabernacle of the congregation before all the children of Israel” (Numbers 13:25-14:10).

Today's Morsel:  I am sure that you have heard the following poem entitled "Don't Quit":    “When things go wrong, as they sometimes will, When the road you're trudging seems all uphill, When the funds are low, and the debts are high, and you want to smile, but you have to sigh, when care is pressing you down a bit- Rest if you must, but don't you quit. Life is queer with its twists and turns, as every one of us sometimes learns, and many a fellow turn about When he might have won had he stuck it out. Don't give up though the pace seems slow - You may succeed with another blow. Often the goal is nearer than It seems to a faint and faltering man; Often the struggler has given up When he might have captured the victor's cup; And he learned too late when the night came down, how close he was to the golden crown. Success is failure turned inside out - The silver tint in the clouds of doubt, and you never can tell how close you are, it might be near when it seems afar; So stick to the fight when you're hardest hit - It's when things seem worst that you must not quit.”

 In today’s passage, the children of Israel quit right at the finish line. They were so close and yet so far away because of their unbelief. You must always walk by faith and not by sight.  Don't quit.

Sing:  The mountain is high but it's not too steep; the battle is rough, but I not too weak, and I won't turn back Oh No! I won't turn back.  O the road is hard, but it's not too long, and the enemy is near, but he's not that strong, and I won't turn back; Oh No! I won't turn back.

Thought For Today:  Walk by faith and not by sight.

Morning Manna by Rufus Parker - 2018 June 21

“Give not sleep to thine eyes, nor slumber to thine eyelids. Deliver thyself as a roe from the hand of the hunter, and as a bird from the hand of the fowler” (Proverbs 6:4-5).

Today’s Morsel:  I am often asked if I like to hunt?  I used to when I was a younger, but now I haven’t hunted in over 40 years.  I often wonder if wildlife knows the season and time that man will hunt to kill them?  Then I also wonder how many of those who are hunting for wildlife realize that they have someone hunting to kill them?  Jesus said that Satan has come not but for to steal, kill, and destroy (John 10:10).  Solomon said that we need to deliver ourselves as a roe from the hand of the hunter, and as a bird from the hand of the fowler. On the Day of Pentecost, Peter told the people to save themselves from this untoward generation (Acts 2:40).  Hunters may be controlled by the times and seasons that they can hunt wildlife, but Satan and his demonic force see every day as open season on humans.  Maybe it’s time we declare daily an open season on hell and defeat our enemy in Jesus name.

Sing:  Satan he was angry, said he’d soon be back..  Just let the path get narrow and he will lose the track.  But I’m so full of glory, my Lord I always find, and I just say to Satan, “Old Man, get thee behind.”

I am determined to hold out to the end.  Jesus is with me, on Him I can depend.  I know I have salvation for I feel it in my soul.  I am determined to hold out to the end.

Thought For Today:  Remember that Satan has a bullseye on you (Parker).

Morning Manna by Rufus Parker - 2018 June 20

“Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, and cometh down from the Father of lights, with whom is no variableness, neither shadow of turning” 

(James 1:17).

Today’s Morsel:  My wife has the gift of giving.  Ever since we have been together she has always poured out her heart to give.  She just keeps on giving and giving.  I got a call a few weeks ago from one of my soldiers that was in my unit back in 1982-1984 atFort Campbell, Kentucky.  And one of his comments to me was, “Please tell your wife thanks for all that she did and gave to us when we were under your leadership and command.”  All these years later, someone still remembered and recognized the importance of her gifting.  She will tell you that it is not her but Christ in her.  James said, “Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, and cometh down from the Father of lights, with whom is no variableness, neither shadow of turning” (James 1:17). When you can truly give without wanting anything in return you are moving on to perfection.

Sing:  Give and it shall be given, good measure pressed down, shaken together and running over.  Give and it shall be given, when you give, you give to the Lord.

Thought For Today:  When you can truly give without wanting anything in return you are moving on to perfection. (Parker).

Morning Manna by Rufus Parker - 2018 June 19

“Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or sword? As it is written, For thy sake we are killed all the day long; we are accounted as sheep for the slaughter. Nay, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him that loved us. For I am persuaded, that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor powers, nor things present, nor things to come, Nor height, nor depth, nor any other creature, shall be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.

(Romans 8:35-39).

Today’s Morsel:  Are there things blocking or hindering your love?  I know that we say that we love God, but is there something hindering you from loving others.  John said, “If a man say, I love God, and hateth his brother, he is a liar: for he that loveth not his brother whom he hath seen, how can he love God whom he hath not seen?” (1 John 4:20)  Tough language isn’t it.  If this is the case, then something is hindering and blocking our love from flowing as it should.  Maybe there’s a stone of bitterness or envy.  Maybe there is a rock of offense.  Maybe there’s a log of hate or unforgiveness.  Or maybe there’s a mountain of hurt.  Whatever it is, Paul said, it should not be able to separate you from God’s love which is in Christ Jesus.  If you allow things to hinder your love to others, sooner or later it’s going to hinder your love with God.

Sing:  I want to live the way that He wants me to live, I want to give until there’s just no more to give.  I want to love, love till there’s just no more love, I could never, never out love the Lord.

Thought For Today:  Don’t allow anything to hinder your love (Parker).

Morning Manna by Rufus Parker - 2018 June 18

“The wilderness and the solitary place shall be glad for them; and the desert shall rejoice, and blossom as the rose. It shall blossom abundantly, and rejoice even with joy and singing: the glory of Lebanon shall be given unto it, the excellency of Carmel and Sharon, they shall see the glory of the LORD, and the excellency of our God. Strengthen ye the weak hands, and confirm the feeble knees. Say to them that are of a fearful heart, Be strong, fear not: behold, your God will come with vengeance, even God with a recompence; he will come and save you. Then the eyes of the blind shall be opened, and the ears of the deaf shall be unstopped. Then shall the lame man leap as an hart, and the tongue of the dumb sing: for in the wilderness shall waters break out, and streams in the desert. And the parched ground shall become a pool, and the thirsty land springs of water: in the habitation of dragons, where each lay, shall be grass with reeds and rushes. And an highway shall be there, and a way, and it shall be called The way of holiness; the unclean shall not pass over it; but it shall be for those: the wayfaring men, though fools, shall not err therein. No lion shall be there, nor any ravenous beast shall go up thereon, it shall not be found there; but the redeemed shall walk there: And the ransomed of the LORD shall return, and come to Zion with songs and everlasting joy upon their heads: they shall obtain joy and gladness, and sorrow and sighing shall flee away” (Isaiah 35:1-10).

Today’s Morsel:  Out of all the books in the Bible, none seem to reveal the Deity of Jesus Christ like the Prophet Isaiah and the Apostle John.  These two seem to always be on the same page with the revelation of truth.  I like how Isaiah unfolds Jesus through his metaphoric language.  Time and time again he inserts the beauty of holiness in his writing.  Notice the first two verses of this chapter.  “The wilderness and the solitary place shall be glad for them; and the desert shall rejoice, and blossom as the rose. It shall blossom abundantly, and rejoice even with joy and singing: the glory of Lebanon shall be given unto it, the excellency of Carmel and Sharon, they shall see the glory of the LORD, and the excellency of our God.”   The word rendered ‘solitary place’ denotes properly a dry place, a place without springs and streams of water; and as such places produce no greenery or vegetation, and nothing to sustain life, the word comes to mean a desert.  But then he inserts the cure for such a place when he says that it shall blossom as a rose, and they shall see the glory of the LORD, and the excellency of our God.  He’s saying it’s dry and barren now, but when the Messiah comes, it will be fruitful and flowing with abundance.  Maybe you feel like you are in a solitary or desert place.  The psalmist said, “There is a river, the streams whereof shall make glad the city of God, the holy place of the tabernacles of the most High. God is in the midst of her; she shall not be moved: God shall help her, and that right early” (Psalms 46:4-5).  Maybe you are feeling barren right now.  Hold on, keep praising and worshipping Him, and the glory of the Lord will be revealed, and your blessings and abundance will flow again, and you shall blossom.  Jesus is never a dry and barren land, He is a stream in the desert.  

Sing:  Therefore the redeemed of the Lord shall return, and come with singing unto Zion, and everlasting joy shall be upon their heads.  They shall obtain gladness and joy, and sorrow and mourning shall flee away.  Therefore the redeemed of the Lord shall return, and come with singing unto Zion, and everlasting joy shall be upon their heads.

Thought For Today: “You be the rose in the desert” (Parker).

Morning Manna by Rufus Parker - 2018 June 16

“Truly my soul waiteth upon God: from him cometh my salvation. He only is my rock and my salvation; he is my defence; I shall not be greatly moved. How long will ye imagine mischief against a man? ye shall be slain all of you: as a bowing wall shall ye be, and as a tottering fence. They only consult to cast him down from his excellency: they delight in lies: they bless with their mouth, but they curse inwardly. Selah. My soul, wait thou only upon God; for my expectation is from him” (Psalms 62:1-5).

Today’s Morsel:  The idea here is that all that the psalmist expected or hoped for must come from God.  He did not rely on his fellow man; he did not rely on himself. He stated that God alone could deliver him, and he confidently believed that God would do just that.  When all our strength fails; all our resources are exhausted; our fellow-man cannot or will not help us; our own efforts seem to be vain; our plans are frustrated, then we must conclude that God alone can help us.  No matter what we go through or face in this life, our expectations for a better outcome must be that we believe that God will come through for us.

Sing: I’m learning how to lean and depend on Jesus. He’s my friend, and He’s my guide.  I’m learning how to lean, and depend on Jesus, I found out if I would trust Him, He will provide.

Thought For Today:  Let your expectations be from the Lord (Parker).