Luke 13:18-30 ~ Strive to enter through the narrow door. For many, I tell you, will seek to enter

Luke 13:18-30

 He said therefore, “What is the kingdom of God like? And to what shall I compare it? 19 It is like a grain of mustard seed that a man took and sowed in his garden, and it grew and became a tree, and the birds of the air made nests in its branches.”

20 And again he said, “To what shall I compare the kingdom of God? 21 It is like leaven that a woman took and hid in three measures of flour, until it was all leavened.”

22 He went on his way through towns and villages, teaching and journeying toward Jerusalem. 23 And someone said to him, “Lord, will those who are saved be few?” 

And he said to them, 24 “Strive to enter through the narrow door. For many, I tell you, will seek to enter and will not be able. 25 When once the master of the house has risen and shut the door, and you begin to stand outside and to knock at the door, saying, ‘Lord, open to us,’ then he will answer you, ‘I do not know where you come from.’ 

26 Then you will begin to say, ‘We ate and drank in your presence, and you taught in our streets.’ 27 But he will say, ‘I tell you, I do not know where you come from. Depart from me, all you workers of evil!’ 28 In that place there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth, when you see Abraham and Isaac and Jacob and all the prophets in the kingdom of God but you yourselves cast out. 

29 And people will come from east and west, and from north and south, and recline at table in the kingdom of God. 30 And behold, some are last who will be first, and some are first who will be last.”


Today, I had a lovely day going to the house of a friend, who is an artist. Hospitality with the Holy Spirit is... a good thing! And a hearty, good laugh over an outreach, hopeful, project to the younger generation with a resilient recommendation of punch with cookies. Um, no. OKAY! Wine with cheese! Much better!!

My friend has sold her very expensive home in an exclusive golf community to live in a very small, around a thousand square feet,rural,almost barn-type setting. The funds were for her children. And our Church.

Her front door is like the photo above. And all had to enter oh-ing and aw-ing over the front door. The former owners found the antique door & built the warm, lovely cottage around the porch & the wonderfully wood-grained door. Every part of this home has unique flair, from her artistry and knack for warmth. My friend was never told her art was not so perfect and in fact, draws from her talent of valuing herself as she is rather wonderfully unique rather than Renaissance perfection.

Our next set of doors that were so beautiful, I had to ask about them and the story was worth the telling. This is a retirement home, the husband has a job in the healing industry. He calls this "The House Sandra Built." And they gleam saying this. The doors are very pretty and were found while house hunting. 

The builder bought beautiful doors that wouldn't fit. Our lovely friends bought the doors and the builder, in transporting them, broke them horribly. Now the smashed doors were a beautiful ruin and given to them, practically. Not people to give up on broken, when treasure is to be found in the project - they restored the doors so beautifully, they bought another door for their wine and incredibly detailed pantry. Ah. If only I had a photo of the pantry. The one that got away.

Our second home sat on the market for three months after we visited the house. It was delightfully done (by a rather well-known, locally) watercolor artist. The house was swathed in baby blue and baby pink Navaho blanket. Ew. I knew looking at the house, I surely did not want to live there. And was Completely Astonished, going around the corner of massive, amazing, wonderfully aromatic roses, to discover a shed (this photo is artistic license) with the original house front door on the front. I think this caused us, three months later, to bid and buy the cosmetic re-do. Never be afraid of the opportunity to put your own seal on a cosmetic re-do! We loved the shed, probably best. It had a wonderful book shelf we painted rust and still resides in my elder son's bedroom.

I grew up with two front doors, one was an antique salvage from Chicago. A cousin once told me I'd have a married, raise your children house, very similar to my childhood home - where my dad  had drawn our house plans. The first front door was a green, full shutter door. We frequently had comments asking why we had two front doors hiding the good one. My father was an interesting man, he bought salvage Chicago brick for the house, way before people thought to add the word 'antique.' The house was Williamsburg from their honeymoon trip where they were captivated. I grew up wanting French furniture to escape from 'colonial constipated.' Well, we all want to do something different somehow from our parents!

My brother lived in El Paso for five years and was horribly unhappy his first year there. Five years later, when they were called to move out, he wept. He said El Paso was the place he never knew he wanted to live, all his life. He found his stucco-house front gates/doors (to the courtyard garden) in Mexico. The beautiful, worn doors were on a house and John was captivated. He knocked on the door. offered a nice fee and was warmly accepted. He still misses those doors.

This was before you couldn't go to Mexico and no one didn't mention that much. (How can we live five hours from Mexico and not be appalled at the crime and fear of good people?) John worked in the El Paso City Attorney's Office, for a time. His opinion on the thousand a month people murdered in Juarez - that it's actually people hunting. Bonafide sick people hunting people. Do you realize Detroit was the USA murder capital and their total is 600 people murdered in a year. Not monthly numbers. Juarez had this many people dying in a month, way before the drug cartels drove so many innocent business owners and border towns into fear, isolation and bankruptcy. Where is our good neighbor policy? Prayers for the good people in Mexico, please, every time you think of them.

Light, like Love, is a symbol of the Lord. Love covers a multitude of sins. Frankly, I just really like this doorway. But. Isn't there always a but.

Proverbs 17:19 ~ Douay-Rheims, 1899
He that studieth discords, loveth quarrels: and he that exalteth his door, seeketh ruin.

Xander, our youngest son, has had an Amazing summer trip to Israel, an archaeology trip looking around the Sea of Galilee - where he found a 4th century coin. And a trip to Petra.  This photo is in front of the famous Al Khazneh, or The Treasury at Petra.

Job 12
Then Job answered and said:

2 “No doubt you are the people,
and wisdom will die with you.
3 But I have understanding as well as you;
I am not inferior to you.
Who does not know such things as these?


Petra has its own puzzles, there is a stele telling of arabic gods worshipped, but largely Petra was a city where water was controlled, elaborately in the desert. To get to Petra, even today, you risk your life walking the wadi's. A flash flood is deadly to tourists. The walls tell of many different raids and people argue over the capability of the buildings, left in ruins.

(Settlements began in the eighteenth dynasty of Egypt (1550–1292 BC). This part of the country was biblically assigned to the Horites, the predecessors of the Edomites. The second book of Kings 14:7 and the parallel passage Sela is understood to mean simply "the rock" in 2 Chronicles 25:12. Josephus (Antiquities of the Jews iv. 7, 1~ 4, 7) Bishop Eusebius and Jerome, state 'Rekem was the native name and this name appears in the Dead Sea Scrolls. The Rekem inscription was found carved in the walls before it was buried by the bridge abutments and buried beneath tons of concrete.

According to Arabic tradition and pilgrimage, Petra is where Moses struck a rock with his staff to bring forth water. Aaron (Harun), is buried, at Mount Hor. The Wadi Musa or "Wadi of Moses" is the Arab name for the narrow, narrow and can be deadly in flood valley at the head of Petra's site. A mountaintop shrine of Moses' sister, Miriam, was part of the pilgrimage at the time of Jerome, in the 4th century, but its location is lost today.)

My own door, is not so dramatic. We bought our house thinking we were reminded of my husband's very precious maternal grandmother. The front door and rear of the house resemble my childhood home. I painted the door green again, only to find it was too green. After I added black to the mix, it was declared by friends to be Charleston Green. And I noticed again, the beautiful carvings on the door and remembered Edward declared the house to be ours before we ever entered the house. He looked through the glass and said, "This is our house!" Before we even opened the door.

Psalm 107:29-32
29 He made the storm be still,
and the waves of the sea were hushed.
30 Then they were glad that the waters were quiet,
and he brought them to their desired haven.
31 Let them thank the Lord for his steadfast love,
for his wondrous works to the children of man!
32 Let them extol him in the congregation of the people,
and praise him in the assembly of the elders.


Father GOD, help us remember, in the events and predictability of life's slings and arrows of outrageous fortune - to be grateful. The door itself is not the focus, but the opportunities You bring us to draw out gratitude and patience. Weathering the storms, with faith in You, keep us in Your mercies. In the name of Jesus Christ the Lord. Amen.

Whatever your door looks like is not exactly the point. Narrow is the gate. We need, in our walk with the Lord Jesus Christ, to appreciate our lives, talents, and situations as we are the people of God. The Lord loves us as we are. Developing ourselves, appreciating the gifts He bestows so willingly upon us. How high, how wide, how deep is the unfathomable Love of our Father who knows us so transparently.  The gate is narrow because the vastness of a loving Creator, our Father, brings Himself to our door.  In HIM, we live and move and have our dwelling. The Universe He created at your door.

Romans 11:29
For the gifts and the calling of God are irrevocable.

Elisha heard that quiet voice. We must listen to Him.

Proverbs 8:34
Blessed is the one who listens to me, watching daily at my gates, waiting beside my doors.

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Exodus 2 ~ he sat down by a well.

Moses Drawn from the Water, painted by Vincent Van Gogh

Exodus 2

Now a man from the house of Levi went and took as his wife a Levite woman. 2 The woman conceived and bore a son, and when she saw that he was a fine child, she hid him three months. 3 When she could hide him no longer, she took for him a basket made of bulrushes and daubed it with bitumen and pitch. She put the child in it and placed it among the reeds by the river bank. 4 And his sister stood at a distance to know what would be done to him. 5 Now the daughter of Pharaoh came down to bathe at the river, while her young women walked beside the river. She saw the basket among the reeds and sent her servant woman, and she took it. 6 When she opened it, she saw the child, and behold, the baby was crying. She took pity on him and said, “This is one of the Hebrews' children.” 7 Then his sister said to Pharaoh's daughter, “Shall I go and call you a nurse from the Hebrew women to nurse the child for you?” 8 And Pharaoh's daughter said to her, “Go.” So the girl went and called the child's mother. 9 And Pharaoh's daughter said to her, “Take this child away and nurse him for me, and I will give you your wages.” So the woman took the child and nursed him. 10 When the child grew older, she brought him to Pharaoh's daughter, and he became her son. She named him Moses, “Because,” she said, “I drew him out of the water ^{[Moses sounds like the words for draw out]}


11 One day, when Moses had grown up, he went out to his people and looked on their burdens, and he saw an Egyptian beating a Hebrew, one of his people. 12 He looked this way and that, and seeing no one, he struck down the Egyptian and hid him in the sand. 13 When he went out the next day, behold, two Hebrews were struggling together. And he said to the man in the wrong, “Why do you strike your companion?” 14 He answered, “Who made you a prince and a judge over us? Do you mean to kill me as you killed the Egyptian?” Then Moses was afraid, and thought, “Surely the thing is known.” 15 When Pharaoh heard of it, he sought to kill Moses. But Moses fled from Pharaoh and stayed in the land of Midian. And he sat down by a well.

16 Now the priest of Midian had seven daughters, and they came and drew water and filled the troughs to water their father's flock. 17 The shepherds came and drove them away, but Moses stood up and saved them, and watered their flock. 18 When they came home to their father Reuel, he said, “How is it that you have come home so soon today?” 19 They said, “An Egyptian delivered us out of the hand of the shepherds and even drew water for us and watered the flock.” 20 He said to his daughters, “Then where is he? Why have you left the man? Call him, that he may eat bread.” 21 And Moses was content to dwell with the man, and he gave Moses his daughter Zipporah. 22 She gave birth to a son, and he called his name Gershom, for he said, “I have been a sojourner ^{[Gershom sounds like sojourner]} in a foreign land.”

23 During those many days the king of Egypt died, and the people of Israel groaned because of their slavery and cried out for help. Their cry for rescue from slavery came up to God. 24 And God heard their groaning, and God remembered his covenant with Abraham, with Isaac, and with Jacob. 25 God saw the people of Israel—and God knew.


You have to love Robert Duvall. He made a lot of movies, including "To Kill a Mockingbird." And a whole lot of movies which included John Wayne, where he played a lot of low down, shady characters. And after he'd done pretty well, he decided to only make movies holding a meaning for him. "Tender Mercies" is one of my favorite movies, but I went and bought the DVD for "A Family Thing".

A Family Thing (1996)
Earl Pilcher Jr., runs an equipment rental outfit in Arkansas, lives with his wife and kids and parents, and rarely takes off his gimme cap. His mother dies, leaving a letter explaining he's not her natural son, but the son of a black woman who died in childbirth. Plus, he has a half brother, Ray, in Chicago, she wants him to visit. Earl makes the trip, initially receiving a cold welcome from Ray and Ray's son, Virgil. His birth mother's sister, Aunt T., an aged and blind matriarch, takes Earl in tow and insists that the family open up to him.

Earl Pilcher, Sr.: I've never seen a damn Yankee yet that could operate more than a wheelbarrow.

Aunt T.: Nobody ever knows what it's like for somebody else. That's always the problem.

Raymond "Ray" Lee Murdock: I guess everyone is entitled to make a complete and utter fool of himself every now and then.

Aunt T.: If he looks white it's 'cause his daddy's white. I don't know how he look, I can't see him like you can, and don't need to. I don't have the blessing of being able to separate people by lookin' at 'em any more.

Aunt T. sits Earl and Ray down to tell them the dramatic tale of the night Earl was born and his mother, Willa Mae, died. According to Aunt T., Willa Mae knew she was likely to die and Earl's life was saved only by the quick action of his adoptive mother, Carrie, who brought a white doctor to the shack where Willa Mae and Ray lived to help with the delivery. Aunt T speculates that Carrie and Willa Mae agreed that Earl, who was born with white-appearing features, should be raised by Carrie and his biological father. Aunt T. gives Earl a picture of Willa Mae which he keeps near. Earl begins to accept his new family with pride, and he convinces Ray to return to their Arkansas hometown to find their mother's grave. As they share a drink on her tombstone, Earl decides to take Ray to meet his southern family and tell them the unlikely story, ending the movie by joking with Ray that when Earl's white nephew finds out he is part black, he will likely shoot the both of them.

Well, the people in Scripture always act with better sense, when they find out they are not Pharaoh's own son. Except Moses murdered one of the Hebrew oppressors.

Moses was a murderer. Unfit for God. Perhaps, perhaps, perhaps God did not know...

God saw the people of Israel—and God knew.

People generally do not care for crimes of cruelty.

“Who made you a prince and a judge over us?"

Jesus went to see the Temple after His Palm Sunday, one of the Gospels record His surveillance of the Temple. Jesus spoke a millennium later of King Solomon and the Queen of Sheba. Jesus loved to think and speak of what "was written". Jesus keeps in mind, His Father's Word.

Luke 12
But he said to him, "Friend, who set me to be a judge or arbitrator over you?" And he said to them, "Take care! Be on your guard against all kinds of greed; for one's life does not consist in the abundance of possessions."

Aunt T.: Nobody ever knows what it's like for somebody else. That's always the problem.

There is One who is Good, who knows. And sees us with compassion.

Psalm 121
I lift up my eyes to the hills.
From where does my help come?
2 My help comes from the Lord,
who made heaven and earth.

3 He will not let your foot be moved;
he who keeps you will not slumber.
4 Behold, he who keeps Israel
will neither slumber nor sleep.

5 The Lord is your keeper;
the Lord is your shade on your right hand.
6 The sun shall not strike you by day,
nor the moon by night.

7 The Lord will keep you from all evil;
he will keep your life.
8 The Lord will keep
your going out and your coming in
from this time forth and forevermore.


This is a Psalm of Ascents. We do well to look up to the Lord. It's the Lord who keeps our lives.

Father God, keep me from the nooks and crannies of flaws You are more aware of than I am. Give us the day, in Your mercy, we always see the good You keep in Your plan for us. In the name of Jesus Christ the Lord. Amen.

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Luke 12:13-21 ~ Someone in the crowd said to him, “Teacher, tell my brother to divide the inheritance with me.”

Luke 12:13-21


Someone in the crowd said to him, "Teacher, tell my brother to divide the family inheritance with me."

But he said to him, "Friend, who set me to be a judge or arbitrator over you?" And he said to them, "Take care! Be on your guard against all kinds of greed; for one's life does not consist in the abundance of possessions."

Then he told them a parable: "The land of a rich man produced abundantly. And he thought to himself, 'What should I do, for I have no place to store my crops?' Then he said, 'I will do this: I will pull down my barns and build larger ones, and there I will store all my grain and my goods. And I will say to my soul, 'Soul, you have ample goods laid up for many years; relax, eat, drink, be merry.'

But God said to him, 'You fool! This very night your life is being demanded of you. And the things you have prepared, whose will they be?' So it is with those who store up treasures for themselves but are not rich toward God."



Some one in the crowd, walking with Jesus, called to HIM for a solution on comfort. What fun to be GOD. Time is just a cage God invented for us in this life. What did this question look like to the SON of God? Yesterday, Today and Tomorrow with Jesus.

We will go with Tomorrow. And what is the family inheritance to Jesus - HIS LIFE. And Who set Jesus to be our Judge - God the Father, Almighty. Jesus knows the answer rests for us as veiled in eternity. But yet greatly rests on the larger picture. Our destination is really Jesus as Judge. We are bodies wrapping souls.

Yesterday. Jesus knows - look back on this as a question - the inheritance is Israel as a nation. Isaiah readers thought Jesus was going to be a Davidic King ruling Israel over Rome. The Centurion with so much faith, Jesus was amazed, stood outside. The Samaritan Woman - Jesus decided to declare His Kingship to is outside. The Syrian woman with the humility saying please, just a scrap from Your table, her humility would be discarded. Jesus saw past borders and saw life was demanded beyond comfort. Foolish just to want comfort only.

Today. We are a society trying to decide to stay home with children, to sell lifelong houses for retirement - not to give them to children, looking at high inheritance taxes, property taxes, income taxes. Ever increasing costs for gasoline. Several years back, we spoke of how today we don't see cars on the sides of the roads. Today - we all routinely drive cars ten years old or older. This summer I've seen more cars on the sides of the road stalled in the summer swelter. Now tell me our kindnesses for a casserole dish and for gracious favor are not more bestowed on the return-the-favor-in-abundance-crowd.

I can tell you this from personal experience. Young men from college don't think the corporate world will provide them a comfortable living. Men in corporate jobs feel they are a cog. We need solutions not pointing to the new castle is a sky scrapper and we are the serfs filling the castle.

We need colleges to be affordable and we need colleges to teach us to paint cars. Give me a break, you think fifty dollars worth of bondo and enamel should cost thousands? We need more solutions in life about real jobs. Colleges who look at real jobs and teach real skills with not just a get a serf job.

Today. Would Jesus tell you be uncomfortable and suffer - this is pie in the sky? Jesus is not for quick solutions. Don't you believe Jesus is not interested in every aspect of your life. God is interested in all aspects of your life. God led the Children out of Israel for them to have LIFE. Abundant Life does not mean - some day my prince will come. Jesus fought in this world, for you, in this life. I extrapolate and say GOD was concerned for so many children to be born. God wants us to clearly be able to provide for our children - not pledging them to $100,000 for college to say - oh it's going to be okay, some how.

Proverbs 13:11
Wealth gained hastily will dwindle, but whoever gathers little by little will increase it.

Jesus is for work. Jesus understands life passes on by, but JESUS chose to walk this life with us.

Ephesians 2:8-9
For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, not a result of works, so that no one may boast.

In the elbows-out-generation, Jesus expects us to financially plan our lives working to ensure we don't hoard blessings.

2 Corinthians 4:4
In their case the god of this world has blinded the minds of the unbelievers, to keep them from seeing the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God.

We have lived so long removed from piety and want, we have forgotten to think for ourselves. We accept platitudes of Scripture and don't look to see the depth of God and HIS concern for us in every aspect of our lives. 

Be Rich with God in your lives. Create events to share love. Step forward.

Be like the Centurion Jesus was so pleased with. Expect God to hear your prayers and answer. Monetary prayers. Even more the prayers making your life meaningful - learning talents to share, and not hoard, with others. Gifts of hand made items, items cooked and shared. There are plenty of unhappy, wealthy people not feeling like life has meaning. Get involved making life the adventure of abundance. I see very quiet streets - why do we stay home so much. Invite people to share meal. Make life more pleasing with deliberation.

Philippians 4:6-7
Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. 7 And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.

Colossians 3:14
And above all these put on love, which binds everything together in perfect harmony

Father God, I've complained about life. Which isn't a bad thing to hope for positive change. Today, in our excellent Sermon we spoke of cowboys versus shepherds. Help us to be the people who would smell of sheep, living among the people You walk with and not demanding our motives.

Father, help us to chose to put our anxieties on You. Cast our cares upon You. You care for us.  Choosing to believe You have not brought us this far to drop us on our heads. Expecting Your Word to speed along quickly. You are at work as our Father today.

Help us to be involved and helping. Giving friends counsel, care, and action in Your wisdom and grace.  Guiding as You, our Father, would Your children. Thank You for the provisions You have given. Help us to be the land blessed by You again. In Jesus Christ the Lord. Amen. 

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Matthew 6:9-13 ~ Pray then like this:

Matthew 6:9-13

Pray then like this:
“Our Father in heaven,
hallowed be your name.
10 Your kingdom come,
your will be done,
on earth as it is in heaven.
11 Give us this day our daily bread
12 and forgive us our debts,
as we also have forgiven our debtors.
13 And lead us not into temptation,
but deliver us from evil.

For Thine is the Kingdom, the Power and the Glory forever and ever. In the name of Jesus Christ the Lord. Amen.


On the vine, being fruitful for Him, we pray constantly. Why not a summer cleaning, here we go, please pray along and add your prayers for your home. Thanks!

Father God, We seek Your blessings upon this family and fill all areas with Your light, mercy, grace, truth and goodness. Not only provide the blessings we ask but seal us forever as Your own as only Your name can do this. Pardon our trepidation, our flaws, weaknesses, and sin. Cleanse us from the nooks, crannies and variations hidden and semi-hidden in our personalities. We pray to do Your Good Works and be worthy each day to have you move, live and dwell within us. In Your Glory, plant the seed that soars to a huge tree, that others may nest and find encouragement, truth, integrity and honor giving them the vision You have for their lives. This we pray, declaring ourselves to be the children of the Most High God in Jesus Christ the Lord. Amen.


For the home of Edward, Anne Laurel, Cal, Alexander and their pets. 

Yard and House

Romans 8:28
And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose

Micah 6:8
He has showed you, O man, what is good. And what does the Lord require of you? To act justly and to love mercy and to walk humbly with your God.

1 Chronicles 17:27
Now you have been pleased to bless the house of your servant that it may continue forever in your sight; for you, LORD, have blessed it and it will be blessed forever.”


For an open door to the people of God and the gathering of hearth and home

Front Door

Joshua 24:15
And if it is evil in your eyes to serve the Lord, choose this day whom you will serve, whether the gods your fathers served in the region beyond the River, or the gods of the Amorites in whose land you dwell. But as for me and my house, we will serve the Lord.

Psalm 4:8
In peace I will both lie down and sleep; for you alone, O Lord, make me dwell in safety.

Ephesians 1:7
In him we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of sins, in accordance with the riches of God's grace



That gracious Words of God and Love are found in encouragement in the Living Room.

Philippians 3:20-21
But our citizenship is in heaven, and from it we await a Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ, who will transform our lowly body to be like his glorious body, by the power that enables him even to subject all things to himself.

1 Samuel 16:7
Truly, God does not see what man sees, for man looks at the outward appearance, but the LORD sees the heart.

Jeremiah 29:11
For I know the plans I have for you, declares the Lord, plans for welfare and not for evil, to give you a future and a hope.

Kitchen

John 6:27
Do not labor for the food that perishes, but for the food that endures to eternal life, which the Son of Man will give to you. For on him God the Father has set his seal

Proverbs 16:3
Commit your work to the Lord, and your plans will be established.

Psalm 37:4
Delight yourself in the Lord, and he will give you the desires of your heart.

Philippians 4:13
I can do all things through him who strengthens me.

Romans 15:13
May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, so that by the power of the Holy Spirit you may abound in hope.

In our Dining Room where we gather with family and friends:

Psalm 19:14
May the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be pleasing to you, O LORD, my rock and my redeemer.

1 Corinthians 6:19
Do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit within you, whom you have from God? You are not your own

1 Thessalonians 5:11
Therefore encourage one another and build one another up, just as you are doing.

John 14:6
Jesus said to him, “I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me."

In the Den, where the television brings in the world, friends gather, rest is taken:

Psalm 119:105
Your word is a lamp to my feet and a light for my path.

Hebrews 10:25
Not neglecting to meet together, as is the habit of some, but encouraging one another, and all the more as you see the Day drawing near.

Philippians 2:15
that you may be blameless and innocent, children of God without blemish in the midst of a crooked and twisted generation, among whom you shine as lights in the world

Study

Ephesians 1:11-13
In him we have obtained an inheritance, having been predestined according to the purpose of him who works all things according to the counsel of his will, 12 so that we who were the first to hope in Christ might be to the praise of his glory. 13 In him you also, when you heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation, and believed in him, were sealed with the promised Holy Spirit

1 Corinthians 11:3
But I want you to understand that the head of every man is Christ, the head of a wife is her husband, and the head of Christ is God.

Psalm 19:14
Let the words of my mouth, and the meditation of my heart, be acceptable in thy sight, O LORD, my strength, and my redeemer.

For the Bedrooms and Blessing upon the Family ~ 

Psalm 23
The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want.
2 He makes me lie down in green pastures.
He leads me beside still waters.
3 He restores my soul.
He leads me in paths of righteousness
for his name's sake.

Hebrews 12:14
Strive for peace with everyone, and for the holiness without which no one will see the Lord.


Psalm 4:8
In peace I will both lie down and sleep; for you alone, O Lord, make me dwell in safety.


Cal

Psalm 81:10
I am the Lord your God, who brought you up out of the land of Egypt. Open your mouth wide, and I will fill it.

Deuteronomy 28:1-68
And if you faithfully obey the voice of the Lord your God, being careful to do all his commandments that I command you today, the Lord your God will set you high above all the nations of the earth. And all these blessings shall come upon you and overtake you, if you obey the voice of the Lord your God. Blessed shall you be in the city, and blessed shall you be in the field. Blessed shall be the fruit of your womb and the fruit of your ground and the fruit of your cattle, the increase of your herds and the young of your flock

Hosea 6:3
Let us know; let us press on to know the Lord; his going out is sure as the dawn; he will come to us as the showers, as the spring rains that water the earth.

Alexander

James 1:17
Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of lights with whom there is no variation or shadow due to change.

James 1:19-27
Know this, my beloved brothers: let every person be quick to hear, slow to speak, slow to anger; 20 for the anger of man does not produce the righteousness of God. 21 Therefore put away all filthiness and rampant wickedness and receive with meekness the implanted word, which is able to save your souls. 22 But be doers of the word, and not hearers only

Matthew 6:30-33
But if God so clothes the grass of the field, which today is alive and tomorrow is thrown into the oven, will he not much more clothe you, O you of little faith? Therefore do not be anxious, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’ For the Gentiles seek after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them all. But seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be added to you.

For Extended Family

Hebrews 13:2
Do not neglect to show hospitality to strangers, for thereby some have entertained angels unawares.

For Return Home and Safe Travel  ~ Xander just returned home from Israel and Germany.

Isaiah 41:10
Fear not, for I am with you; be not dismayed, for I am your God; I will strengthen you, I will help you, I will uphold you with my righteous right hand.

For our work and all areas of our lives we can entrust to a Faithful Father God.

Joshua 1:9
Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be frightened, and do not be dismayed, for the Lord your God is with you wherever you go.


Colossians 3:23
Whatever you do, work heartily, as for the Lord and not for men


Job 8
20 “Behold, God will not reject a blameless man,
nor take the hand of evildoers.
21 He will yet fill your mouth with laughter,
and your lips with shouting.


In the Highest Name, You Bestow Father God, in the name of Jesus Christ the Lord. May the peace of God rest upon this family, extended family and friends and be sealed as Jesus Christ's own people forever.  Amen. 

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John 1:29-34 ~ I myself did not know him, but he who sent me to baptize with water said to me, ‘He on whom you see the Spirit descend and remain, this is he who baptizes with the Holy Spirit.’

National Geographic 2012 Photo Contest Winner taken in Lake Mary, FL

John 1:29-34

The next day he saw Jesus coming toward him, and said, “Behold, the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world! 30 This is he of whom I said, ‘After me comes a man who ranks before me, because he was before me.’ 31 I myself did not know him, but for this purpose I came baptizing with water, that he might be revealed to Israel.”

32 And John bore witness: “I saw the Spirit descend from heaven like a dove, and it remained on him. 33 I myself did not know him, but he who sent me to baptize with water said to me, ‘He on whom you see the Spirit descend and remain, this is he who baptizes with the Holy Spirit.’ 34 And I have seen and have borne witness that this is the Son of God.”

Combined with this Scripture passage:


Psalm 8

O Lord, our Lord,
how majestic is your name in all the earth!
You have set your glory above the heavens.
2 Out of the mouth of babies and infants,
you have established strength because of your foes,
to still the enemy and the avenger.

3 When I look at your heavens, the work of your fingers,
the moon and the stars, which you have set in place,
4 what is man that you are mindful of him,
and the son of man that you care for him?

5 Yet you have made him a little lower than the heavenly beings^{[than God and the angels]}
and crowned him with glory and honor.
6 You have given him dominion over the works of your hands;
you have put all things under his feet,
7 all sheep and oxen,
and also the beasts of the field,
8 the birds of the heavens, and the fish of the sea,
whatever passes along the paths of the seas.

9 O Lord, our Lord,
how majestic is your name in all the earth!

This is the Son of God. Jesus sent His Holy Spirit to be upon the people who would ask in His name, with belief. So many, many times we are left with a photo image of a dove descending upon Him at His baptism. The important message - the Spirit remains.

Psalm 8 continues the message saying His name, Jesus, is majesty, glory and establishes strength. Many times in life we feel diminished, and this passage reassures us we are so important to HIM, the Spirit remains. The work of our hands, our life, will be established in Him. The journey, the path - His - He established for us.

Deuteronomy 2:7
For the Lord your God has blessed you in all the work of your hands. He knows your going through this great wilderness. These forty years the Lord your God has been with you. You have lacked nothing.”’

Psalm 34:10
The lions may grow weak and hungry, but those who seek the LORD lack no good thing.

Romans 11:29
For God's gifts and his call are irrevocable.

Asking us -

1 Peter 2:17
Show proper respect to everyone: Love the brotherhood of believers, fear God, honor the king.

John 15:17
These things I command you, so that you will love one another.

Walking with faith. We all have questions, not necessarily lack of faith, but questions. Jesus gives us an abiding Holy Spirit. John the Baptist knew he was serving God, he'd heard about his family, John had to have known about the Christmas story of Mary, Joseph and Jesus. John went along his faith journey and God showed him the path forward.

John 20:29
Jesus said to him, “Have you believed because you have seen me? Blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed.”


 

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