Morning Manna by Rufus Parker: Morning Manna by Rufus Parker

Saturday, February 3, 2024

Morning Manna by Rufus Parker - 2024 February 3

Constraining Love

“For the love of Christ constraineth us; because we thus judge, that if one died for all, then were all dead: And that he died for all, that they which live should not henceforth live unto themselves, but unto him which died for them, and rose again. Wherefore henceforth know we no man after the flesh: yea, though we have known Christ after the flesh, yet now henceforth know we him no more. 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 5:14-17)

Today’s Morsel: What comes to your mind when you think of something constraining you? Paul said that Christ’s love constraineth us. That means that our love for God and His love for us ought to put some constraints on us. There ought to be some restrictions and limitations in our live as to where we go, what we do, and how we act, all because of our love for Christ. There ought to be some boundaries that you will not cross. We know through scripture that God is holy and that He calls for us to be holy. And holiness calls for some restraints in our lives. But sad to say, most folks don’t like restraints to be on them. But that was exactly what the law was. Restraints because of God’s love. You see, the Ten Commandments just addressed God restraints because of our love for God and our neighbor. Yeah, we may be grown and can do what we want. But as Paul said: “All things are lawful unto me, but all things are not expedient: all things are lawful for me, but I will not be brought under the power of any.” (1 Corinthians 6:12) The psalmist tells us, “Be ye not as the horse, or as the mule, which have no understanding: whose mouth must be held in with bit and bridle, lest they come near unto thee.” (Psalms 32:9) You should know that as a born-again believer there are some restrictions when it comes to being a Christian. God’s love ought to control our actions and conduct. And all because of love.

Sing: I love Him too much to fail Him now. Too much to break my vow. For I promised the Lord that I would make it some how, and now I love Him too much to fail Him now.

Thought For Today: God’s word does have boundaries!

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About Morning Manna

And it came to pass, as Aaron spake unto the whole congregation of the children of Israel, that they looked toward the wilderness, and, behold, the glory of the LORD appeared in the cloud. And the LORD spake unto Moses, saying, I have heard the murmurings of the children of Israel: speak unto them, saying, At even ye shall eat flesh, and in the morning ye shall be filled with bread; and ye shall know that I am the LORD your God. And it came to pass, that at even the quails came up, and covered the camp: and in the morning the dew lay round about the host. And when the dew that lay was gone up, behold, upon the face of the wilderness there lay a small round thing, as small as the hoar frost on the ground. And when the children of Israel saw it, they said one to another, It is manna: for they wist not what it was. And Moses said unto them, This is the bread which the LORD hath given you to eat (Exodus 16:10-15).

“Morning Manna” is a short daily devotion which began in 2002, with just a short note of encouragement to a friend who was facing difficulties at the time. Through their response, I was encouraged to begin a daily devotion via email and send it to people who asked to be put on the distribution list. It is now reaching around the globe. Its birth came about during Morning Prayer. The Lord revealed to me that I should forward my friend a word of encouragement, since it is through patience and comfort of the scripture that we find hope. Thus, I forwarded him the words the Lord had given to me for him, and he forwarded it on to someone else who was having difficulties in their life as well, and thus the original list began.

The goal of “Morning Manna” is to provide people with a quick, thought provoking Word from the Lord, as well as provide encouragement from His Word that can help them through the day and during unexpected trails and circumstances in their daily lives.

Several years ago, Jesus moved on my heart to start writing daily devotions; thus began “Morning Manna”. Today, many people are receiving these daily devotions and many of these people are forwarding it on to their family and friends. It is my hope to encourage even more through posting the devotions to this blog-page.

I pray that you, too, will enjoy reading the manna from this site.