Category Archives: Taste and See

Praying Isaiah 9:6-7

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For to us a child is born, to us a son is given;
and the government shall be upon his shoulder,
and his name shall be called
Wonderful Counselor,
Mighty God,
Everlasting Father,
Prince of Peace.
Of the increase of his government and of peace
there will be no end,
on the throne of David and over his kingdom,
to establish it and to uphold it with justice
and with righteousness from this time forth and forevermore.
The zeal of the Lord of hosts will do this.

 

The Nativity, Albrecht Dürer, 1511

Father in Heaven, you rule in Heaven and on earth. Your dominion knows no end; it doesn’t stop when our world seems to be going wild, or when it meets the brokenness of men. You are King over all, and as our Good King we trust in you.

Thank you because you sent Jesus, Immanuel, God with Us. Oh, He has come indeed! He came into this world, He broke the timeline to which we are bound; He did what no other god can do: He became one of us.  He came to save us, and did not wait for us to seek Him. Jesus came, He made himself nothing, He came in the form of a man, and humbled himself taking the form of a servant, and even there He humbled himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on the cross to save us from the curse, from the guilt, from the death penalty. He came to save me! Glorious Grace, scandalous grace, amazing grace!  The Glorious Impossible has come.  You gave us Jesus, Father,  and in Him all the treasures, all the mysteries of life are hidden. All that our soul longs for is found in Him. Thank you for Jesus!

Father, I pray that you will give us the faith, to each one of your children, to live like we have been truly redeemed by the blood of the Lamb, Jesus. Give us faith not to think and live like those who don’t know you. Give us a a bold faith to seek in You, in your Word, wise counsel. Oh, that we don’t seek advice in the latest trend, or in the stats, or in the government, or in those friends who don’t love your Word. Draw us to your Word, to Jesus.

Help us live as children of God, children of the Everlasting Father. Help us to love one another so that people will know, will recognize that we are truly your children. Help us do nothing from rivalry or conceit, but in humility counting others as more significant than ourselves. Help us not to look only to our own interests, but also to the interests of others. Help us, Everlasting Father, to eat and drink, and move and come and go, and speak and listen, and feast and sing and do all mundane things as your children. Help us be poor in spirit, help us mourn for our sins and with those who are mourning, help us be meek and merciful. Help us, Everlasting Father, to be pure in heart, to be peacemakers,  and to endure persecution as many of your children have done before us. Help us live in such a way that people will be drawn to you, our everlasting Father.

Jesus, the Prince of Peace, came to fight a battle and to win it. The Prince of Peace came and crushed the Dragon’s head; He came and death could not hold him back. The Prince of Peace came and destroyed with His outstretched arm the power of sin over us. The Prince of Peace came and Hell trembled. He came and brought peace between the Father and His own. Oh, what a wonderful truth! Father, help us be like Jesus, that we may make peace where peace needs to be made. Help us to leave our offerings before the altar and go and be reconciled with our brothers and sisters. Help us, at the same time, to fight the good battle of faith. Help us not to faint, help us endure. Help us stand strong in the day of battle. Help us not to shiver before your enemies. Help us, O Lord, to keep peace.

Thank you, Father, because we can rest assured that Jesus’ Kingdom shall have no end. Thank you because the world will be filled with the glory of the knowledge of God just as the many waters cover the seas. Thank you because you reign overall, you are Sovereign, All Mighty. Thank you, Father, because as we celebrate in this season the fulfillment of your Promise, as we light candles and lights, and sing of the immense joy that fills our hearts,  we are reminded of the glorious truth that changed the world, that changed our hearts, that changed eternity: Jesus has come indeed!

In Jesus’ Precious and Powerful name I pray,

Amen

Becky

Beauty for Beauty’s Sake

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“Beauty is God’s inspiration to delight in Him. Wonder and awe whisper to us that there is something beyond, something more.”    Steve DeWitt, Eyes Wide Open

 

Image credits: Photograph by Andrew Osokin at Peta Pixel (Amazing!)

 

It always amazes me
 that God creates beauty for beauty’s sake.
*****
So, I take my pencils and trace,
just for the sake of trying to make
something beautiful.
*****
I choose the right colors for my home,
and flowers for the table,
and arrange them beautifully in a vase.
*****
The Christmas ornaments,
all chosen carefully;
we want it to be beautiful.
*****
The food on the table,
the wine,
the candles,
the music.
“Beautiful,”
we sigh.
*****
The books on the shelves,
filled with beautiful words,
and beautiful art.
*****
The smiles,
the tears.
Family,
friends.
*****
All beautiful.
*****
I am always surrounded by beauty.
Art made in heaven.
Flawless.
All glorious.
*****
This is certainly a beautiful world.
And I give thanks
to
God
alone.
The Creator
of all things.

 

Becky

Make sure you go see the whole photography series of snowflakes by Andrew Osokin. It is breathtaking!

As For Me, I Will Meditate on Your Precepts.

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If you need encouragement to purposely meditate on God’s Word, please read Psalm 119 -today-.

I have been reading it and the more I read it and the more I consider it, I keep seeing that there really is no other way to meditate on God’s Word all day if we are not purposely doing something about it. It has to happen in real time. And how do we do it?

We could carry verses in our purses, inn our car, put them on the fridge, or hang them on our walls, and then we should not forget that they are there, but instead it would be good if we could make halts during the day to read and consider them, and pray them and then, live them while driving through the busy streets, or the moment we cook breakfast, or when we explain Math to our children or talk with them about their future, or when we are at Starbucks having coffee with our friends, or the times when we are with our husband in our room with the door closed.

Or we could also start (or continue) memorizing the Scriptures. This is a perfect way to meditate on the Scriptures all day; and yes, it is challenging, but so rewarding!

Consider what the Psalmist says, and after reading each verse ask yourself, “What am I purposely doing to -keep, seek, meditate, etc… ?”

 

“Blessed are those who keep his testimonies,
who seek him with his whole heart…” (v.2)
“I will praise you with an upright heart,
when I learn your righteous rules.” (v.7)
“With my whole heart I seek you,
let me not wander from your commandments!
I have stored up your word in my heart,
that I may not sin against you.”  (v.10-11)
“With my lips I declare
all the rules of your mouth.” (v.13)
“I will meditate on your precepts
and fix my eyes on your ways.
I will delight in your statutes;
I will not forget your Word” (v.15-16)
“Your testimonies are my delight;
they are my counselors.” (v.24)
” [I] find my delight in your commandments,
which I love.
I will lift up my hands toward your
commandments, which I love,
and I will meditate on your statutes.” (v.47-48)
“When I think of your rules from old,
I take comfort, O LORD.” (v.52)
“When I think on my ways,
I turn my feet to your testimonies.” (v.59)
“…as for me, I will meditate on your
precepts.” (v.78b)
“I will never forget your precepts,
for by them you have given me life.” (v.93)
“Oh how I love your law!
It is my meditation all the day.” (v.97)
“Your word is a lamp to my feet
and a light to my path.” (v.105)
“You are my hiding place and my shield;
I hope in your word.” (v.114)
“I open my mouyh and pant,
because I long for your commandments.” (v.131)
“I rise before dawn and cry for help;
I hope in your words.
My eyes are awake before the watches of the night,
that I may meditate on your promise.” (v.147-148)
“Great peace have those who love your law;
nothing can make them stumble.” (v.165)

Let us encourage one another to abide in the Word.

Under His sun and by His grace,

Becky

*Please, feel free to download the image on this post for your personal usage (including your blog). I just ask that you don’t modify it and link to this blog. Thanks.

The Sermon on the Mount -One Blessing After Another-

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“Memorizing entire books or passages will keep intact God’s succession of ideas, without interruption. Many individual verses, memorized out of context, can give a false meaning…”

“Memorizing entire books or passages will keep intact God’s succession of ideas, without interruption. Many individual verses, memorized out of context, can give a false meaning”

Janet Pope, His Word in my Heart


“When the Lord Jesus preached His famous sermon, the Sermon on the Mount, He began with the Beatitudes. Too many people read these as though they were a set of impossible hurdles. But Jesus was beginning His message as God loves to begin all His gospel work—with promises.

We are told in Scripture that the one who begins a good work in us will also be faithful to fulfill it. But we may also reason backwards—the one who will fulfill the good work is the one who began it. If He gives us the gift of seeing Himself, He also gives the gift of enabling us to be peacemakers. If He gives us the filling, He also gave us the hunger and thirst for righteousness to begin with.

This is the work that God gives us to do—that we believe in the one He has sent. The beginning, middle and end of all our duties is to trust in Him, to believe in Him, to rest in Him. Why? Because the just shall live by faith.”         Douglas Wilson

Becky

*Please feel free to download today’s image for your personal use.

More on this series:

A Project for the Busiest Months of the Year: Memorizing the Sermon on the Mount
Memorizing the Sermon on the Mount: A Printable Schedule

A Project for the Busiest Months of the Year: Memorizing the Sermon on the Mount

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This is crazy, I know. But I need it. I need to be drawn (and at times even dragged back) to the Word of God, especially when my mind and heart want to go wild. The busiest season of the year is coming; Thanksgiving, Christmas, New Year, family, friends, planning, traveling, food, feasting, all of that is right at the door (and I am pretty happy and excited about it, don’t take me wrong!), but in the midst of all that, I don’t want to be like Martha, caught up in the many distractions that surround this season and then forget what really matters, that one thing: taking time to sit at the feet of Jesus to listen to His Word.

So I contacted my friend Elizabeth Hankins (whom I met while memorizing Philippians in 2011, and with whom I have been memorizing several passages -and books- of the Scriptures since then), and we decided that it was time for us to work on The Sermon on the Mount. So here we are, two moms with kids, crazy schedules, books to read, meals to cook, brownies to bake, papers to grade,  tired feet, and Facebook accounts, ready to memorize, by God’s amazing grace, 111 verses by the end of January 2013, which means that we will have to cover about 8-9 verses per week.

The thing is that we would love for you (yes, you!) to join us in this crazy endeavor. It will take some extra effort and discipline, but I am sure we can do it if we ask the Lord to help us choose wisely how we spend our time during this coming season. We must learn to make wise and simple choices, for example, limit the time we spend on all social networks, don’t read all the many blogs out there (even this one, forget about it!) choose only two, maybe?  Avoid Pinterest (once you know what crafts you are making and what are you cooking, stop looking for more ideas to pin). We should ask ourselves, What if instead of checking my mobile every 10 mins.  I’d review my Bible verses with the same urgency? This is not an impossible thing to do, you can carry the Bible verses you are memorizing with you at all times (I always have them in a Moleskine that fits in my pockets), you can repeat them in the shower, while doing your hair, while driving. You can pray over them while cooking breakfast and cleaning after dinner. You can mutter them in the car, or on your bed at night. Be intentional. Don’t forget about it. Don’t set it aside. Don’t leave it for later. You will be so blessed after persevering day after day.

We are about to enter a season of feasting, why not make it a time for feasting on the Word of God. Let’s be filled with it, let Him fill our cups until they overflow!

I always encourage my friends who memorize a large passage of the Scriptures to study it in depth while doing so. It helps enormously to know what the passage means when you recite it. It also helps us not to memorize a book -or passage- for the sake of just memorizing it, it helps us meditate on it and be convicted and challenged by it.

I recommend these resources to help you study The Sermon on the Mount (read only the commentary on the verses you are working in a particular week. You don’t want to be overwhelmed).

An Exposition of the Sermon on the Mountain by Pink.

The Sermon on the Mount: The Character of a Disciple by Daniel M. Doriani

The Sermon on the Mount: Expositional Commentary by James Montgomery Boice

You can also read Thomas Watson’s exposition of The Beautitudes at Grace Gems.

Or if you prefer to listen 30 mins. sermons  (that is what I am doing this time), you can download and listen to John Piper’s series here or you can choose from many other sermons at Monergism.

I am excited for a season of feasting in the Word!

Becky

Sola Scriptura and Prayer

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Shiloh Photography



Sola Scriptura is one of the 5 pillars of the Reformed Faith, and it means that the Scriptures, God’s infallible Word, are the uttermost authority in our lives, in the Church. It means there is nothing above them, that the Scriptures are sufficient. The Scriptures were breathed by God, and therefore are the very speaking of God.

Now, we also know how important prayer is in the life of the believer. Prayer and a desire to learn the Scriptures are the natural responses from those who have been born again. Both draw us to the Throne of Grace.

Have you consider how Sola Scriptura applies in the life of prayer? Many times, we simply don’t know how to pray, we are short-sighted. We say we want God’s will to be done, but as we pray we pray hoping that ours may be done. We sometimes pray as if we were trying to persuade God to do what we think is the best for us, for our children, for our husband, or for our friend.

Bringing our theology to our mundane life is what we ought to do; we need it when trials come, we need it when life is good, we need it when we do dishes and bake a cake, and when serve our family and the needy among us. But we also need it in our prayer closet.

When we pray, let us pray the Scriptures. Let the Word of God guide us to the Throne of Grace. Let the Word of God be our most wonderful prayer companion. When we don’t know how to pray (and also when we think we know how to pray) let us turn to the Word of God, and let us make it our utmost prayer book.

M. Horton has said it well, “There can be no communication with God apart from the written and living Word. Everything in the Christian faith depends on the spoken and written Word delivered by God to us through the prophets and apostles.”

This is another reason why we (my friends from Doctrines in the Kitchen, Out of The Ordinary, and Desiring Virtue) are always trying to encourage women to love the Word, to study it, to memorize it, to make it our supreme rule of life. Sisters, if we want to be women of prayer, we need to be women of the Word; if we want to become “warriors” in the prayer closet, let us learn how to use The Sword. There are no shortcuts.

Under His sun and by His grace,

Becky