2012 October 8 - Morning Manna

"Now before the feast of the passover, when Jesus knew that his hour was come that he should depart out of this world unto the Father, having loved his own which were in the world, he loved them unto the end. And supper being ended, the devil having now put into the heart of Judas Iscariot, Simon's son, to betray him; Jesus knowing that the Father had given all things into his hands, and that he was come from God, and went to God; He riseth from supper, and laid aside his garments; and took a towel, and girded himself. After that he poureth water into a bason, and began to wash the disciples' feet, and to wipe them with the towel wherewith he was girded. Then cometh he to Simon Peter: and Peter saith unto him, Lord, dost thou wash my feet? Jesus answered and said unto him, What I do thou knowest not now; but thou shalt know hereafter. Peter saith unto him, Thou shalt never wash my feet. Jesus answered him, If I wash thee not, thou hast no part with me. Simon Peter saith unto him, Lord, not my feet only, but also my hands and my head. Jesus saith to him, He that is washed needeth not save to wash his feet, but is clean every whit: and ye are clean, but not all. For he knew who should betray him; therefore said he, Ye are not all clean. So after he had washed their feet, and had taken his garments, and was set down again, he said unto them, Know ye what I have done to you? Ye call me Master and Lord: and ye say well; for so I am. If I then, your Lord and Master, have washed your feet; ye also ought to wash one another's feet. For I have given you an example, that ye should do as I have done to you" (John 13:1-15)

Today's Morsel: Have you ever gotten to the point where you have felt like just stopping giving and doing things for others because they never seem appreciative of what you are doing for them? I mean you bake them a meal and they never say thanks. You give them a ride to work and they give you a look as if to say this is what you're suppose to do as a Christian. They send their kids to your house without being cleaned and fed and you take care of them and not a word of thanks is given back to you. And so after a period of time you start feeling like you are being used. And so you say, that's it, I'm not going to do this again. And then you find yourself doing it all over again for them because you think this just might be the time that the light bulb goes on, and they give their lives to Christ. And it's the same old thing all over again. Nothing changes. Sound familiar? Well, welcome to Jesus' world. The Bible says, "Now before the feast of the passover, when Jesus knew that his hour was come that he should depart out of this world unto the Father, having loved his own which were in the world, he loved them unto the end." Jesus knew He was going to be crucified and yet He still loved people. He still gave us an example of servitude. Do you know that He washed Judas' feet as well as Peter's. Judas sold him for 30 pieces of silver, and Peter denied Him three times and yet He still loved them to the end. But after Peter's conversion, He wrote to encourage us, "Beloved, think it not strange concerning the fiery trial which is to try you, as though some strange thing happened unto you: But rejoice, inasmuch as ye are partakers of Christ's sufferings; that, when his glory shall be revealed, ye may be glad also with exceeding joy. If ye be reproached for the name of Christ, happy are ye; for the spirit of glory and of God resteth upon you: on their part he is evil spoken of, but on your part he is glorified. But let none of you suffer as a murderer, or as a thief, or as an evildoer, or as a busybody in other men's matters. Yet if any man suffer as a Christian, let him not be ashamed; but let him glorify God on this behalf" (1 Peter 4:12-16). God's love isn't about us, it's about Jesus.

Sing: There've been times when giving and loving brought pain, and I promised I would never let it happen again; but I found out that loving was well worth the risk, and that even in losing you win.

I'm going to live the way He wants me to live, I'm going to give until there's just no more to give; I'm going to love, love till there's just no more love, I could never, never out love the Lord.

2012 October 6 - Morning Manna

But, beloved, we are persuaded better things of you, and things that accompany salvation, though we thus speak. For God is not unrighteous to forget your work and labour of love, which ye have shewed toward his name, in that ye have ministered to the saints, and do minister. And we desire that every one of you do shew the same diligence to the full assurance of hope unto the end: That ye be not slothful, but followers of them who through faith and patience inherit the promises. For when God made promise to Abraham, because he could swear by no greater, he sware by himself, Saying, Surely blessing I will bless thee, and multiplying I will multiply thee. And so, after he had patiently endured, he obtained the promise. For men verily swear by the greater: and an oath for confirmation is to them an end of all strife. Wherein God, willing more abundantly to shew unto the heirs of promise the immutability of his counsel, confirmed it by an oath: That by two immutable things, in which it was impossible for God to lie, we might have a strong consolation, who have fled for refuge to lay hold upon the hope set before us: Which hope we have as an anchor of the soul, both sure and stedfast, and which entereth into that within the veil; Whither the forerunner is for us entered, even Jesus, made an high priest for ever after the order of Melchisedec. (Hebrews 6:9-20)

Today's Morsel: One of the things I always look for when I get on board a boat is its anchor. The anchor is designed to hold the boat in place and prevent it from moving. No matter how rough the storm, waves or the wind, the anchor, if correct, will hold the boat in place. The writer of Hebrews said that we have an anchor of the soul, both sure and stedfast, and which entereth into that within the veil. And he said that anchor is Jesus Christ. When our souls are anchored to Christ, we aren't going anywhere. This is why you shouldn't sweat the small stuff if your soul is anchored in Him. Hell can't uproot you. Sinners can't unloose you. And church divisions can't divide you. David said "For who is God, save the LORD? and who is a rock, save our God? " (2 Samuel 22:32). Jesus is solid and unmovable. He's the same yesterday, today, and forever. When you connect to Him, He holds you in the palm of His hand and no man can pluck you out. John said, that greater is he that is within you, than he that is in the world. And Paul said that nothing shall be able to separate you from the love of God, because God is love and love is of God. Are you connected to the Rock? Jesus is the only Rock that cannot be shaken or moved.

Sing: My hope is built on nothing less, Than Jesus' blood and righteousness; I dare not trust the sweetest frame, but wholly, lean on Jesus name.

On Christ the Solid Rock, I stand; all other ground is sinking sand, all other ground is sinking sand.

2012 October 5 - Morning Manna

So went Satan forth from the presence of the LORD, and smote Job with sore boils from the sole of his foot unto his crown. And he took him a potsherd to scrape himself withal; and he sat down among the ashes.(Job 2:7-8)

Today's Morsel: Someone said that pain is just weakness leaving the body. I can only imagine what Job must have felt like. Having just lost all of his material possessions, and now to have his health failing him, must have been a hard pill for him to swallow. I have seen people in pain, and have even been in pain myself. Just a few weeks ago, my wife was in so much pain, she couldn't even sit or stand. The only thing I could do was pray for her, and I felt the Holy Ghost saying to me, call her massage therapist. We did call and I took her in and the therapist was able to eleviate the pain. Praise God! Job was looking for some kind of relief from his pain and so he sat down in ashes and took a piece of pottery and scratched himself. Pain is usually the body telling the brain that something isn't right; that there is something not functioning properly. Like the church, when it is under an attack, it's painful. Whether from within or without, the painful attack is letting the brain, which is the pastor, know that something isn't right or something isn't functioning proper, and that care and action is needed. But one of the problem with the church, is we may think that God is going to fix the problem for us and so we say that it's the devil. It may be the devil, but God says, no, I gave you My word to show you how to fix the problem. And so you can either use it, or allow the attack to destroy the entire body. There just might be a need for a little bit of spiritual surgery to remove somethings. Job knew that suffering doesn't last always and so he said, 'all the days of my appointed time will I wait, till my change comes.' He further states,thatflesh upon a manshall have pain, and his soul within him shall mourn, but though God slay me, yet will I trust in him: but I will maintain mine own ways before him. He also shall be my salvation: for an hypocrite shall not come before him. Even in his pain, the focus was upon the Lord. Where do you put your focus when you are in pain? "Thou wilt keep him in perfect peace, whose mind is stayed on thee: because he trusteth in thee" (Isaiah 26:3). "There hath no temptation taken you but such as is common to man: but God is faithful, who will not suffer you to be tempted above that ye are able; but will with the temptation also make a way to escape, that ye may be able to bear it," Paul said (1 Corinthians 10:13). So the next time you are in pain, stay focused.

Sing: I am weak, but Thou art strong. Jesus keep me from all wrong; I'll be satisfied as long as I walk, let me walk, close to Thee.
Just a closer walk with Thee, grant it, Jesus, is my plea; daily walking close to Thee, let it be, dear Lord, let it be.

2012 October 4 - Morning Manna

And when they saw him, they were amazed: and his mother said unto him, Son, why hast thou thus dealt with us? behold, thy father and I have sought thee sorrowing. And he said unto them, How is it that ye sought me? wist ye not that I must be about my Father's business?
(Luke 2:48-49)

Today's Morsel: "On the street I saw a small girl cold and shivering in a thin dress, with little hope of a decent meal. I became angry and said to God; why did you permit this? Why don't you do something about it? For a while God said nothing. That night He replied quite suddenly: "I certainly did something about it. I made you." (This story was given to me by my Mother-in- law.)
Isn't it interesting that we can complain about the things that we see that are wrong in the world, and can even blame God for it when it's really our fault. I was reading a book that was suggested by our Church college cell group leader, and in that book it said that we have more than what we know what to do with; that we are really rich and don't realize it. Our homes are so big and we have so many clothes that we have to have walk in closets to store all of our clothes. We have so many cars that we have to build houses to store them. We have two and three bathrooms. And that we have so much food that we can decide what we want to eat and when we want to eat it. Amazing isn't it. And yet the book says that we say we aren't rich.

When Mary and Joseph found Jesus in the temple they were a little bit upset with Him. But Jesus told them, "Wist ye not that I must be about my Father's business?" In other words, I've got a job to do. He said, "The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he hath anointed me to preach the gospel to the poor; he hath sent me to heal the brokenhearted, to preach deliverance to the captives, and recovering of sight to the blind, to set at liberty them that are bruised, To preach the acceptable year of the Lord." (Luke 4:18-19). Friend there is work to get done, because the night is coming when no man can work, Jesus said. If evil seducers are going to wax worse and worse, then we better get the work done while we have the light. When Jesus saved us, He didn't tell us to sit back relax and enjoy our retirement. He said, "Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost: Teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you: and, lo, I am with you alway, even unto the end of the world. Amen" (Matthew 28:19-20). Are you about the Father's business.

Sing: Give me oil in my lamp keep me burning. Give me oil in my lamp I pray. Give me oil in my lamp, keep me burning, burning, burning, keep me burning till the break of day.

2012 October 3 - Morning Manna

And when they began to sing and to praise, the LORD set ambushments against the children of Ammon, Moab, and mount Seir, which were come against Judah; and they were smitten. For the children of Ammon and Moab stood up against the inhabitants of mount Seir, utterly to slay and destroy them: and when they had made an end of the inhabitants of Seir, every one helped to destroy another. And when Judah came toward the watch tower in the wilderness, they looked unto the multitude, and, behold, they were dead bodies fallen to the earth, and none escaped. And when Jehoshaphat and his people came to take away the spoil of them, they found among them in abundance both riches with the dead bodies, and precious jewels, which they stripped off for themselves, more than they could carry away: and they were three days in gathering of the spoil, it was so much. And on the fourth day they assembled themselves in the valley of Berachah; for there they blessed the LORD: therefore the name of the same place was called, The valley of Berachah, unto this day. (2 Chronicles 20:22-26)

Today's Morsel: When King Jehoshaphat and the children of Israel were outnumbered by the children of Ammon, Moab, and Mount Seir, they went to the Lord in prayer. King Jehoshaphat understood when the Lord spoke to King Solomon. "And the LORD appeared to Solomon by night, and said unto him, I have heard thy prayer, and have chosen this place to myself for an house of sacrifice. If I shut up heaven that there be no rain, or if I command the locusts to devour the land, or if I send pestilence among my people; If my people, which are called by my name, shall humble themselves, and pray, and seek my face, and turn from their wicked ways; then will I hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin, and will heal their land" (2 Chronicles 7:12-14). He was aware of what God had said. This is one of the reasons that a child of God should never fear nor fret when they are faced with things that are coming against them. When you know what God has said and you are living according to His word, you should be able to pray as Jehoshaphat and get results from God. The word Berachah by implication means prosperity and blessing. When we see what God provided for them after they prayed, they were standing in a valley full of blessings. Everything their enemy had was left for them to have at their pleasure. It took them three days to clear the battle field of the spoil. And on the fourth day they assembled themselves in the valley of Berachah; for there they blessed the LORD. What do you give back to God when He blesses you? The writer of Hebrews admonishes us, "By him therefore let us offer the sacrifice of praise to God continually, that is, the fruit of our lips giving thanks to his name. But to do good and to communicate forget not: for with such sacrifices God is well pleased" (Hebrews 13:15-16).

Sing: I will bless the Lord at all times, His praise shall continually be in my mouth. My soul shall make her boast in Thee Lord, the humble shall hear thereof and be glad. Oh' magnify the Lord with me, and let us exalt His name together, I sought the Lord and He heard me, and delivered me from all of my fears.

2012 October 2 - Morning Manna

And because the haven was not commodious to winter in, the more part advised to depart thence also, if by any means they might attain to Phenice, and there to winter; which is an haven of Crete, and lieth toward the south west and north west. And when the south wind blew softly, supposing that they had obtained their purpose, loosing thence, they sailed close by Crete. But not long after there arose against it a tempestuous wind, called Euroclydon. And when the ship was caught, and could not bear up into the wind, we let her drive. And running under a certain island which is called Clauda, we had much work to come by the boat: Which when they had taken up, they used helps, undergirding the ship; and, fearing lest they should fall into the quicksands, strake sail, and so were driven. And we being exceedingly tossed with a tempest, the next day they lightened the ship; And the third day we cast out with our own hands the tackling of the ship. And when neither sun nor stars in many days appeared, and no small tempest lay on us, all hope that we should be saved was then taken away. But after long abstinence Paul stood forth in the midst of them, and said, Sirs, ye should have hearkened unto me, and not have loosed from Crete, and to have gained this harm and loss. And now I exhort you to be of good cheer: for there shall be no loss of any man's life among you, but of the ship. (Acts 27:12-22)

Today's Morsel: Where do you find hope when your hope is all gone? When it seems as though everything and everyone you have depended upon has turned against you, where do you find hope? Where do you find hope when the spouse that is suppose to be leading you spiritually decides not to serve God anymore? Where do you find hope when you wake up and realize that you don't feel good today and all your joy has seemed to vacate the primaces? Where do you find hope when your doctor gives you a bad report? Where do you find hope when your right now hope is delayed in coming? Solomon said that hope deferred maketh the heart sick (Proverbs 13:12). Luke records in the book of Acts that when they were on their way to Rome they encountered a violate storm, and that when neither sun nor stars in many days appeared, and no small tempest lay on them, all hope that they should be saved was then taken away. According to Luke, there was no indication according that any hope of coming through this storm alive was anywhere in sight. Every last bit of hope was gone for them. From the captain of the ship to the lowly slave on board, hope was vanishing fast. But out of nowhere, the apostle Paul cried out, "Sirs, ye should have hearkened unto me, and not have loosed from Crete, and to have gained this harm and loss. And now I exhort you to be of good cheer: for there shall be no loss of any man's life among you, but of the ship." Isn't it amazing that the last person that most people look to for hope is the man of God. Even when death takes its hold on a family, people seem to turn to the man of God for hope and comfort as the last resort. Wouldn't it be better to seek him before the storm so that when the storm comes you are built up with hope? There should always be two places you can find and restore your hope. The man of God and the Word of God. The Bible tells us, "And he gave some, apostles; and some, prophets; and some, evangelists; and some, pastors and teachers; For the perfecting of the saints, for the work of the ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ" (Ephesians 4:11-12); and "For whatsoever things were written aforetime were written for our learning, that we through patience and comfort of the scriptures might have hope" (Romans 15:4). Friend, all hope isn't lost, so be of good cheer!

Sing: Souls in danger, look above, Jesus completely saves, He will lift you by His love, out of the angry waves. He's the Master of the sea, billows His will obey; He your saviour wants to be- be saved today.

Love lifted me! Love lifted me! When nothing else could help, love lifted me. Love lifted me! Love lifted me! When nothing else could help, love lifted me.

2012 October 1 - Morning Manna

And he said unto me, My grace is sufficient for thee: for my strength is made perfect in weakness. Most gladly therefore will I rather glory in my infirmities, that the power of Christ may rest upon me. Therefore I take pleasure in infirmities, in reproaches, in necessities, in persecutions, in distresses for Christ's sake: for when I am weak, then am I strong. (2 Corinthians 12:9-10)

Today's Morsel: I often wondered what the apostle Paul must have felt like after going through what seems to be such hardships for the Kingdom of God. Beaten, stoned, shipwrecked, left for dead, and falsely accused must have caused him to feel as though he was in the wrong profession. Paul said that he asked the Lord to take his thorn in the flesh away, and he was told that God's grace was sufficient for him. To his surpise, Paul to is basically told to buckle up and drive on. And so Paul, understanding the unmerited love of God, said if that's the way it's gonna have to be, then most gladly will I rather glory in my infirmities, that the power of Christ may rest upon me. Therefore I take pleasure in infirmities, in reproaches, in necessities, in persecutions, in distresses for Christ's sake: for when I am weak, then am I strong. I think we should possess the attitude of Paul when we are going through things in our lives, and be as he was. We need to understand that it is the trial of our faith that works patience, we need to count it all joy when we face divers temptations, and should realize that not all that we go through comes from Satan, but some of it may be being orchestrated by the Lord to better and develop us. At the end of each day, in Christopher Columbus' daily log, he wrote, "And today we sailed on." Always remember, "Cast not away therefore your confidence, which hath great recompence of reward. For ye have need of patience, that, after ye have done the will of God, ye might receive the promise. For yet a little while, and he that shall come will come, and will not tarry. Now the just shall live by faith: but if any man draw back, my soul shall have no pleasure in him. But we are not of them who draw back unto perdition; but of them that believe to the saving of the soul" (Hebrews 10:35-39).

Sing: No tears in heaven, no more crying, in glory; all of God children will be happy don't you see. No pain and sorrow, no more worrying about tomorrow, no tears in heaven for you and me.