Morning Manna by Rufus Parker - 8 November 2019

Honey in The Carcass

“Then went Samson down, and his father and his mother, to Timnath, and came to the vineyards of Timnath: and, behold, a young lion roared against him. And the Spirit of the LORD came mightily upon him, and he rent him as he would have rent a kid, and he had nothing in his hand: but he told not his father or his mother what he had done. And he went down, and talked with the woman; and she pleased Samson well. And after a time he returned to take her, and he turned aside to see the carcase of the lion: and, behold, there was a swarm of bees and honey in the carcase of the lion.” (Judges 14:5-8)

Today’s Morsel:  I have found that if I want a good night sleep, all I need to do it eat a teaspoon of honey before I go to bed at night.  Jesus is known as the Lion of the Tribe of Judah.  John said that Jesus was the word made flesh.  David said that the word was more to be desired than gold, much fine gold, sweeter also than honey and the honeycomb.  When we reach into the carcass of this Lion, and draw out from Him, we too will find something more precious than gold.  

Sing:  Tis so sweet to trust in Jesus, just to take Him at His word, just to rest upon His promise, just to know thus saith the Lord.

Thought For Today: There’s honey in the rock for me.

Morning Manna by Rufus Parker - 7 November 2019

Bones

“And Israel served the LORD all the days of Joshua, and all the days of the elders that overlived Joshua, and which had known all the works of the LORD, that he had done for Israel. And the bones of Joseph, which the children of Israel brought up out of Egypt, buried they in Shechem, in a parcel of ground which Jacob bought of the sons of Hamor the father of Shechem for an hundred pieces of silver: and it became the inheritance of the children of Joseph.” (Joshua 24:31-32)

Today’s Morsel:  One of the last things that Joseph told the children of Israel prior to his death in Egypt was, “I die: and God will surely visit you, and bring you out of this land unto the land which he sware to Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob. And Joseph took an oath of the children of Israel, saying, God will surely visit you, and ye shall carry up my bones from hence. So Joseph died, being an hundred and ten years old: and they embalmed him, and he was put in a coffin in Egypt.” (Genesis 50:24-26)  He said that  when God comes for you, you make sure that you carry my bones with you.   Joseph seems to know that God would deliver them.  And we see that God did deliver them and they carried Joseph’s bones up with them and buried him in Shechem, the place that years later Jesus would have a discussion with the woman at the well about living water.  “Then cometh he to a city of Samaria, which is called Sychar, near to the parcel of ground that Jacob gave to his son Joseph. Now Jacob's well was there. Jesus therefore, being wearied with his journey, sat thus on the well: and it was about the sixth hour. There cometh a woman of Samaria to draw water: Jesus saith unto her, Give me to drink. (For his disciples were gone away unto the city to buy meat.) Then saith the woman of Samaria unto him, How is it that thou, being a Jew, askest drink of me, which am a woman of Samaria? for the Jews have no dealings with the Samaritans. Jesus answered and said unto her, If thou knewest the gift of God, and who it is that saith to thee, Give me to drink; thou wouldest have asked of him, and he would have given thee living water.” (John 4:5-10)  Even Samson found water when he was athirst in the jaw bone of an ass. “And Samson said, With the jawbone of an ass, heaps upon heaps, with the jaw of an ass have I slain a thousand men. And it came to pass, when he had made an end of speaking, that he cast away the jawbone out of his hand, and called that place Ramathlehi. And he was sore athirst, and called on the LORD, and said, Thou hast given this great deliverance into the hand of thy servant: and now shall I die for thirst, and fall into the hand of the uncircumcised? But God clave an hollow place that was in the jaw, and there came water thereout; and when he had drunk, his spirit came again, and he revived: wherefore he called the name thereof Enhakkore, which is in Lehi unto this day. And he judged Israel in the days of the Philistines twenty years.” (Judges 15:16-20)  Don’t burn and discard them bones, the inheritance and life of the next generation may be in them.

Sing:  Them bones them bones them dry bones; Them bones them bones them dry bones; Them bones them bones them dry bones; oh hear the word of the Lord.

Thought For Today: The inheritance and life of the next generation may be in your bones.

Morning Manna by Rufus Parker - 6 November 2019

The Greatest of All

Hear, O Israel: The LORD our God is one LORD: And thou shalt love the LORD thy God with all thine heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy might. And these words, which I command thee this day, shall be in thine heart: And thou shalt teach them diligently unto thy children, and shalt talk of them when thou sittest in thine house, and when thou walkest by the way, and when thou liest down, and when thou risest up. And thou shalt bind them for a sign upon thine hand, and they shall be as frontlets between thine eyes. And thou shalt write them upon the posts of thy house, and on thy gates.” (Deuteronomy 6:4-9)

Today’s Morsel:  When Mohammed Ali was a boxer, before each fight he would chant that he was the greatest of all.  When Moses was recapping to the children of Israel how they got where they were, as this was now a new generation of people, he felt the need to refresh their minds as to who was with them.  And so he told them to pay attention to what he was about to tell them. “Hear, O Israel: The LORD our God is one LORD: And thou shalt love the LORD thy God with all thine heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy might. And these words, which I command thee this day, shall be in thine heart.”  He wanted them to understand the importance of keeping God at the forefront of their thoughts and mind.  And in order to do so, he told them that they should teach God’s ways diligently to their children, and talk of them when they sat in their house, and when they walked by the way, and when they lay down, and when they got back up.  They needed to bind them for a sign on their hands, and they should be as frontlets for their eyes. And they were to write them on the posts of their house, and on their gates.  I’m afraid that if we do not have daily devotions in our homes and talk about God and teach our children and loved ones, they are not going to know who is the greatest of all.  They will always see someone other than Jesus as being greater.  It is time we heeded Moses' instructions and become diligent about teaching the word of God to our families.

Sing:  Great is the Lord, and He’s greatly to be praised, in the city of our God, in the mountains of His holiness; beautiful for situations, the joy of the whole earth, is Mount Zion on the side of the north the city of the great king.

Thought For Today: There is no one greater than Jesus.

Morning Manna by Rufus Parker - 5 November 2019

The Blessing

“And the LORD spake unto Moses, saying, Speak unto Aaron and unto his sons, saying, On this wise ye shall bless the children of Israel, saying unto them, The LORD bless thee, and keep thee: The LORD make his face shine upon thee, and be gracious unto thee: The LORD lift up his countenance upon thee, and give thee peace. And they shall put my name upon the children of Israel; and I will bless them.” (Numbers 6:22-27)

Today’s Morsel:  I have a neighbor who has been suffering with a medical condition.  But he’s very upbeat and positive about his healing and recovery.  When he knows that he must go in for a procedure or checkup, he always tells me that he will be over for a blessing.  In other words, he wants me to pray for him.  Scripture says, “And the LORD spake unto Moses, saying, Speak unto Aaron and unto his sons, saying, On this wise ye shall bless the children of Israel, saying unto them, The LORD bless thee, and keep thee: The LORD make his face shine upon thee, and be gracious unto thee: The LORD lift up his countenance upon thee, and give thee peace. And they shall put my name upon the children of Israel; and I will bless them.”  From a Christian standpoint, Paul seems to always bless the people at the end of each letter.  He told the church at Corinth: “Finally, brethren, farewell. Be perfect, be of good comfort, be of one mind, live in peace; and the God of love and peace shall be with you. Greet one another with an holy kiss. All the saints salute you. The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ, and the love of God, and the communion of the Holy Ghost, be with you all. Amen (2 Corinthians 13:11-14)   To the church at Rome, “The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you all. Amen.” (Romans 16:24)  To the church at Galatia, “Brethren, the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with your spirit. Amen.” (Galatians 6:18)  To the church at Ephesus, “Peace be to the brethren, and love with faith, from God the Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. Grace be with all them that love our Lord Jesus Christ in sincerity. Amen.” (Ephesians 6:23-24)  And to the church at Philippi, “The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you all. Amen.” (Philippians 4:23)  Have you bestowed a blessing on anyone lately?  Try it and you will see how the blessing falls back on you.  

Sing: My blessing is coming my way, it’s only a matter of time, until His purpose comes to pass, it’s only a matter of time.  I’m waiting for a miracle, I’m waiting for a miracle, I’m waiting for a miracle, overtaken by a blessing.

Thought For Today:  If you want someone to be blessed, pray in Jesus name upon them.

Morning Manna by Rufus Parker - 4 November 2019

The Issue Fixer

“And if a woman have an issue of her blood many days out of the time of her separation, or if it run beyond the time of her separation; all the days of the issue of her uncleanness shall be as the days of her separation: she shall be unclean. Every bed whereon she lieth all the days of her issue shall be unto her as the bed of her separation: and whatsoever she sitteth upon shall be unclean, as the uncleanness of her separation. And whosoever toucheth those things shall be unclean, and shall wash his clothes, and bathe himself in water, and be unclean until the even.” (Leviticus 15:25-27)

Today’s Morsel:  When I was in the military, it was not uncommon to hear a leader tell a junior soldier, when the soldier would do wrong or disobey, “I can fix your issue.”   Under the law, God put many rules and protection in place to protect His people and keep things clean.  Rules are not a hindrance as some like to think.  They are for our protection.  God told Moses, “And if a woman have an issue of her blood many days out of the time of her separation, or if it run beyond the time of her separation; all the days of the issue of her uncleanness shall be as the days of her separation: she shall be unclean.”  When we view the story of the woman with the issue of blood, mentioned in Mark chapter five, through this lens, we can see that she was doing everything she could to find a cure.  While she was suffering with this issue with her blood, she was considered unclean.  And every place she sat and everything she wore would become unclean.  But when she heard about Jesus and touched the hem of His garment, her blood condition ceased, and Jesus pronounced her completely whole. Aren’t you glad that Jesus knows how to fix your issue?  Just reach out and touch Him.

Sing:  A woman tried many physicians, yet grew worse, so to Jesus she came; And when the crowd tried to restrain her, she whispered these words through her pain:

Touching Jesus is all that matters, then your life will never be the same; there is only one way to touch Him, just believe when you call on His name.

Thought For Today: Jesus can fix your issue.

Morning Manna by Rufus Parker - 2 November 2019

The Thing Is Known

“And it came to pass in those days, when Moses was grown, that he went out unto his brethren, and looked on their burdens: and he spied an Egyptian smiting an Hebrew, one of his brethren. And he looked this way and that way, and when he saw that there was no man, he slew the Egyptian, and hid him in the sand. And when he went out the second day, behold, two men of the Hebrews strove together: and he said to him that did the wrong, Wherefore smitest thou thy fellow? And he said, Who made thee a prince and a judge over us? intendest thou to kill me, as thou killedst the Egyptian? And Moses feared, and said, Surely this thing is known.” (Exodus 2:11-14)

Today’s Morsel:  During the Vietnam War, many men left the country or went into hiding because they did not want to go to war. Sad to say, many of them are still running and living in fear of being captured and having to face the consequences for their actions.  After Moses killed an Egyptian, and he found out that it was known, he feared and he ran.  He said that surely this thing is known.  Would you run and go into fear and hiding if others were to find out things that you have done wrong in your life?  Well, you don’t have to hide or fear.  Scripture says, “Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new.” (2 Corinthians 5:17)  Paul said, “And I thank Christ Jesus our Lord, who hath enabled me, for that he counted me faithful, putting me into the ministry; Who was before a blasphemer, and a persecutor, and injurious: but I obtained mercy, because I did it ignorantly in unbelief.”(1 Timothy 1:12-13) Moses, like Paul himself, found himself in the ministry.  God has a purpose for your life, do not fear because of mistakes and things you do in ignorance.  When you repent, God will get rid of the guilt and fulfill His purpose in your life.

Sing: He knew me, yet He loved me, He whose glory made the heavens shine.  I’m so unworthy, of such mercy, yet when He was on the cross, I was on His mind.

Thought For Today: Fear will torment if you are not made perfect in love.

Morning Manna by Rufus Parker - 1 November 2019

The Same

“And God said, Let the waters under the heaven be gathered together unto one place, and let the dry land appear: and it was so. And God called the dry land Earth; and the gathering together of the waters called he Seas: and God saw that it was good. And God said, Let the earth bring forth grass, the herb yielding seed, and the fruit tree yielding fruit after his kind, whose seed is in itself, upon the earth: and it was so. And the earth brought forth grass, and herb yielding seed after his kind, and the tree yielding fruit, whose seed was in itself, after his kind: and God saw that it was good. And the evening and the morning were the third day.”
 (Genesis 1:9-13)

Today’s Morsel:  When God created the heavens and the earth, everything that He created upon the earth was to reproduce after it’s kind.  Trees, flowers, fish, beasts, and humans were to reproduce after it’s kind.  Each possessed its own seed.  If you will notice, the fruit was in the seed and the seed was in the fruit.  It was to maintain their true identity and purity.  God is not the author of confusion.  Paul said, “But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, Meekness, temperance: against such there is no law.” (Galatians 5:22-23).  Therefore, if we say that we are in Christ, then we should be reproducing after Him, not after the fruit of the world.  If we are truly born-again, we should have His seed in us.  Are you reproducing the same fruit as His spirit?

Sing: To be like Jesus, to be like Jesus, on earth I long to be like Him.  All through life’s journey, from earth to glory, I only ask to be like Him.

Thought For Today: The fruit is in the seed and the seed is in the fruit.