How Far You Will Go
LET ME CLIMB
“Who may ascend the hill of the LORD? Who may stand in His holy place? He who has clean hands and a pure heart, who does not lift up his soul to an idol or swear deceitfully. He shall receive blessing from the LORD, and vindication from the God of his salvation. Such is the generation of those who seek Him, who seek Your face, O God of Jacob.” -Psalm 24:3-6 (Berean Study Bible)
“O LORD, who may abide in Your tent? Who may dwell on Your holy hill? He who walks with integrity and practices righteousness, who speaks the truth from his heart, who has no slander on his tongue, who does no harm to his neighbor, who casts no scorn on his friend, who despises the vile but honors those who fear the LORD, who does not revise a costly oath, who lends his money without interest and refuses a bribe against the innocent. He who does these things will never be shaken.” -Psalm 15:1-5 (Berean Study Bible)
ABBA, let me climb Your holy hills because that is where You are, and help me to know right from wrong, to keep my hands clean and my heart pure before You. LORD, I need to hear Your voice, to receive Your instruction and counsel, to learn Your ways, to know Your Word and Your commands. LORD, Your will is all that matters and Your righteousness is what I seek. There is no other god before You, and nothing compares to You for You are glorious, arrayed with splendor and majesty. Let me climb Your holy hills, LORD, where you dwell, and make my feet like the deer so I am able to climb these mountain heights. In Jesus’ Name, Amen.
Linda A. Knowles
“I can do all things through Christ which strengtheneth me.” -Philippians 4:13 (KJV)
Love Is Truth
Isaiah 5:20 NLT
Miserable People
Learn to develop a thankful heart and let the fruit of your lips be praise to the Lord Most High. He is worthy of all praise, and we are told in the Word of God to give thanks at all times. Find something to thank God for because God is faithful and He is worthy of all glory.
“Give thanks in every circumstance, for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus.” -1 Thessalonians 5:18BSB
Linda A. Knowles
“Let everything that has breath praise the Lord.”
Let Nothing Come Between You and God
Heavenly Father, You are God and You are Lord of All. There is no one and there is nothing that compares to You for You alone are the Almighty Everlasting Father. Above You, there is no other. The new year, O Lord, is just around the corner. Help me to end this year strong and to remain steadfast in the new year 2019. Thank You for guiding me and leading me in Your way. Father, I ask You to continue to guide me in all my ways and to direct my steps as I put my trust in You and acknowledge You in all my ways. Apart from You, O Lord, I can do nothing. In You, I can do all things because You are the One who gives me strength. You are my Hope and You are my Refuge. I cling to You, O God, for You are my Deliverer and Your words sustain me. Father, I delight in You, and because I delight in You, I know You will grant me my heart’s desire. Father, draw close to me as I draw close to You. Help me to remember there is freedom in submitting to You and walking in obedience to Your will and to Your ways. Be the Light which illumines the path I am to walk. Show me the Ancient Path, the good way, that I may walk along the Ancient Path and find rest for my soul. In Jesus’ Name, Amen.
Your Healer Hears You
As children of God who are walking in obedience to His will and His ways, God does heal. We can be assured our God heals. God doesn’t go against His Word, and God is faithful to His promises.
The confidence that we have is this: If we ask anything according to the will of God, He hears us, and since we know He hears us, whatever we ask, we know we have the petitions we have asked of Him.
What are you believing God for today? Are you in need of healing? Are you in need of being saved from an impossible situation? God is able to deliver you. Do NOT give up because God has NOT given you the spirit of fear but of love and of power and of a sound mind.
PRAYER: Heavenly Father, You are the God who heals and delivers. You are the same yesterday, today, and forever. Thank You for always being there for me. You, O God, have never let me down, and You have never left me alone. You have been my Guide, and You have been my Light. Father, be my Deliverer, as You always have been, in my circumstances. Show Yourself faithful as You always have for You are my Deliverance and my Song. In Jesus’ Name, Amen.
Linda A. Knowles
Remember GOD is with you…
You are not alone.
The Lord Your God has not left you,
and He has not forsaken you.
Your God knows you by name,
And He hears you when you call.
PRAYER
Heavenly Father, You are the God who never leaves me,
and You are the God who never fails.
I know You are with me
and that You know my every tear, You know my every weakness;
But, Father, I put my hope and my trust in You
because You are faithful,
and Your promises are true.
Help me to remain steadfast,
and constantly remind me of Your promises.
In Jesus’ Name,
Amen.
Linda A. Knowles
“He heals the brokenhearted, binding up their wounds.
Rest In The God of Your Salvation
Have an awesomely blessed day, and remember to take time to sit still and know that He is GOD.
Just Stand Firm
“Do not be afraid of the nations there, for the Lord your God will fight for you.” -Deuteronomy 3:22(NLT)
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You do not need to be afraid of those who are against you for you have been made more than a conqueror. God is the One who is taking care of all your enemies in accordance with His promises. He is the One who has made you victorious, has made you and overcomer, and He protects His own.
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Those who are your enemies are the enemies of God because they do not love God, are of this world, and do not know God. Your enemies are not worth your time or effort. Remember your time and effort is best spent doing what God wants you to do and focusing on the tasks He has placed before you.
You need only to stand steadfast, be firm, and as you are keeping your hope and trust in God, placing your confidence in Him, He is the One fighting for you. You will see your enemies begin to fight one another. Remember your God has promised to fight with and for you.
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Heavenly Father, You are the God of victory, and You have made me victorious. Thank You for being my Shield and my Defense. My confidence is securely placed in You, and I know You help me stand against my enemies and that You are the One who fights for me. With You, O God, I can crush an army and scale a wall for You are the One who has strengthened me. Continue to help me to stand firm in Your ways as I continue to obey You and keep my eyes fixed on You. In Jesus’ Name, Amen.
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Linda A. Knowles
From the Quiet Place…
God wants to live among His people. He wants to protect them. That has always been His desire since the beginning of time. He desires to commune and have that fellowship with His children. However, His people have rejected Him as their Lord and their God. Those who have claimed God as their own have defiled their own bodies and have exchanged the Most High God for other gods, the creation created by God Himself and the things created by man.
The Church has exchanged what is holy for what is evil and exchanged the truth of God for lies. Rather than seeking the God Who Provides her with all her needs, she seeks after that which is temporal such as power, prestige, wealth, popularity, and the like.
God is not welcomed in most places of worship, and His Word has been dissected and chopped up to the point it is unrecognizable. The Word has been made to suit the lifestyles of the people instead of the people seeing themselves in light of the Word of God, repenting, turning from their evil ways, and humbling themselves before God.
God desires a relationship with His people, but they have kicked Him out of their lives and their hearts. They have kicked God out of their homes and places of worship.
The consequences of their sin are falling on their own heads, and they are blaming God for their suffering. Their choices have them on the broad road to destruction. They are headed to Hell. Their consciences are seared and their hearts calloused.
The anger of God is set against all sinful and wicked people who suppress the truth by their wickedness. They know the truth about God because He has made it obvious to them. The creation clearly shows the invisible qualities of God and so they have no excuse for not knowing God.
Everything is exposed before the eyes of God. He sees all and yet His children don’t believe He sees all they do and hears all they say. They are clever at doing wrong, but they are stupid when it comes to doing what is right. They have chosen death instead of life. They have chosen to be cursed rather than blessed.
To all those who have believed Him and accepted Him, to them, He gave the right to become children of God. Those who do His will and walk uprightly before Him, they belong to Him.
“Who may ascend into the hill of the LORD? Or who may stand in His holy place? He who has clean hands and a pure heart, who has not lifted up his soul to an idol, nor has sworn deceitfully. He shall receive blessing from the LORD, and righteousness from the God of his salvation. This is Jacob, the generation of those who seek Him, who see Your face.”
Peace With God
“Don’t worry about anything; instead, pray about everything. Tell God what you need, and thank him for all he has done. 7 Then you will experience God’s peace, which exceeds anything we can understand. His peace will guard your hearts and minds as you live in Christ Jesus.” -Philippians 4:6-7(NLT)
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Peace with God is so important that the ceremonial law for peace offerings is detailed in Leviticus 3. The peace offering was an expression of gratitude, and it was a way for the people to maintain fellowship with God. Part of the offering could be eaten by the one who was presenting the offering because it was symbolic of peace with God.
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Peace is a fruit produced in us through the work of the Holy Spirit. Peace with God comes by having faith in God and His promises. Peace with God is not cheap, but it comes through a sacrifice of praise and joying in the God of your salvation. Because of the peace of God, you are able to drink deeply from the well of salvation. Peace comes from knowing that your enemies cannot prevail against you and that God upholds you with His victorious right hand. Peace of God comes from waiting upon the Lord, fully trusting in Him. As you wait on Him, He will renew your strength, and you will mount up with wings like eagles. This is the kind of peace you can experience and should be experiencing as a child of God. Remember no matter what circumstances you find yourself in, no matter how many enemies you have surrounding you, you must know fully that God has established His relationship with you. Because God has fully established His relationship with you, you have peace with God.
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PRAYER: Heavenly Father, You are the God of All Peace and You are the Peace That Surpasses All Understanding. Father, thank You for establishing my relationship with You. You are the Peace-Giver. Let me always remember to cast all my cares on You because You care for me, and help me to always remember You, O God, are my Protector. In Jesus’ Name, Amen.
Linda A. Knowles
Are You Weak or Strong In Obedience?
“Finally, all the elders of Israel met at Ramah to discuss the matter with Samuel. ‘Look,’ they told him, ‘you are now old, and your sons are not like you. Give us a king to judge us like all the other nations have,'” (1 Samuel 8:4-5NLT).
Israel was never meant to be like the other nations. Israel had a set of laws from the hands of God and God had chosen them as His very own, specifically set aside to do the work had for them to do, set apart as a holy nation. Israel was not to be like the other nations, and we can see this throughout the entirety of the Old Testament.
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In this passage, Samuel is getting counsel from the Lord. The Lord God was to be their King, but they pushed God aside and wanted a mortal man as their king so they could be like all the other nations. So God had this to say (1 Samuel 8:7-9NLT), “‘Do everything they say to you,’ the Lord replied, ‘for they are rejecting me, not you. They don’t want me to be their king any longer. Ever since I brought them from Egypt they have continually abandoned me and followed other gods. And now they are giving you the same treatment. Do as they ask, but solemnly warn them about the way a king will reign over them.'”
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Israel’s sin can be put into one word: DISOBEDIENCE.
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Understand Saul had already been chosen by God to be their king. God knew what they were going to do, that they were going to insist on getting their way, and Samuel did tell them what having a human king would be like. Saul ended up being their king. However, their problems still continued just under a human king. What was Israel’s sin that the problems still continued only under another administration? DISOBEDIENCE. They were defiant towards God. They continually disobeyed, and they had no regard for God or His laws. Because of their disobedience, their problem worsened, and they ended up getting paid the wages of the sins they had committed.
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Who is your king? Are you serving God or yourself?
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If you are not obeying God and you are defiant towards God continually, you are weak because you are relying on self and dependent on your own will. God will not force Himself on you. If you love God, you will obey Him.
REFLECTION: “Jesus answered and said unto him, If a man loves me, he will keep my words: and my Father will love him, and we will come unto him, and make our abode with him,” (John 14:23KJV).
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As a child of God, you are made holy, set apart, and to live by the standards God has set. As a child of God, you do not live as the world does, and you are not to live as the world dictates. Remember there is hope for those who choose to repent and turn from their wicked ways. When you are obeying God and truly loving Him, blessings will follow as you enjoy a right relationship with the Father. If you want God to rule and reign in your life and you want God to guide your family and your personal life but are living by the world’s standards, then you are not truly obeying God nor are you honoring Him. Honoring and obeying God must be a part of every area of your life, not just in the areas you want. Are you truly obeying God, honoring Him in all you do? If you are not truly obeying God and honoring Him in all you do, what is holding you back?
PRAYER: Heavenly Father, You are the God of faithfulness, and You expect no less from those who are Your children. Father, help me not to be like Israel. I am sorry for disobeying You. Please forgive me, and renew a right spirit within me. I surrender myself into Your hands. I ask that You teach me how to honor You and ask You to instruct me in Your ways. Discipline me, O Lord, when I sin. Lead me on Your paths of righteousness that I may become more like You. Show me Your ways, and reveal Yourself to me that I might know You more and more. In Jesus’s Name, Amen.
Linda A. Knowles
“Delight yourself in the LORD, and he will give you the desires of your heart.”
Psalm 37:4(ESV)
Stained Glass Confessions 