Singing to Honor God's name

Lately I have been playing a song from 2007 called "Signature of Divine (or "Yahweh")" by NeedtoBreathe. This is one of my favorite songs of all time and it reminds me of God's greatness, glory and the beautiful love Jesus had for us as He suffered on our behalf.

We are so blessed to be able to sing His name "Yahweh, Yahweh." Many years ago it was considered blasphemous to utter the name of God. Here is what I found when I researched Yahweh: "A name of the Hebrew God, represented in Hebrew by the tetragrammaton ("four letters") יהוה (Yod Heh Vav Heh), transliterated into Roman script Y H W H. Because it was considered blasphemous to utter the name of God it was only written and never spoken. This resulted in the original pronunciation being lost. The name may have originally been derived from the old Semitic root הוה (hawah) meaning "to be" or "to become"." (http://www.behindthename.com/name/yahweh)

"To be"- God exists and is a being. God is love and created all things. He is perfect and He is in control.  Worshiping God and singing His name "Yahweh", can be a way of saying "I believe you exist. I adore you as being love and being a Father. I want to live for you. You are King of all creation and worthy of praise." Singing out God's name is a privilege that followers of Christ do to praise and honor Him.

Yahweh, also known as Jehovah, means "LORD". In Exodus 3:14, the name Yahweh is first given to Moses when God says; "I Am who I Am." This name specifies a presence and accessibility, near to those who call for deliverance, (Psalm 107:13), forgiveness (Psalm 25:11) and guidance (Psalm 31:3).

We are also singing Yahweh to say "My LORD and my master, you are who I love and hope in for every good thing. I trust that you are faithful." We have direct access to the presence of God and that is something we do not deserve but have been given. Yahweh is our deliverer, the one who helps us in our time of need and protects us from harm. He forgives us for our inequities of impatiences, bad choices and short comings. Thankfully, Yahweh guides us on the right path towards the narrow gate as we choose to walk with Him. It is such a awesome privilege to be able to sing the name of Yahweh.

Lord, your ways are lovely and so high above ours. Thank you that you allow us access to yourself. Thank you for being Master of all and for being the great "I Am". I find great joy in singing your name to honor and praise you "Yahweh".


"Yahweh/Signature of Divine" by NeedtoBreathe

Keeping our Focus on God

I am imperfect, striving to please God. I know I can't please everybody. I know that this world changes its ideals constantly. God never changes and is always at work despite what we see. Because of what Christ did, I am free from condemnation and I now live for Him.

Satan seeks to destroy, distract, divide, isolate and lead us towards other agendas. God wants to hold our hand and say this is the way, walk in it. God gives! He gives us love, patience, mercy, kindness, conversation and a purpose. He also gives boundaries that help us stay out of harms way.

God is Whole, Loving, Faithful and Just. He will make all things right some day. When I mess up, He is there to make His plans succeed despite allowing me to be involved.

I will continue to keep my eyes on my Heavenly Father because He never abandons me or with-holds any good thing from me. All things happen according to His timing. I know that seeking His presence is the best place I can be and I will trust in the Lord's will.

Here is a song I want to share that really speaks to me and helps me draw near to God.   http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RqoIk-jj0uQ&feature=player_embedded

I Know This Guy...

I know this guy, he is always helpful. Anytime I mess up, he is there to help me get things right.

When I get mad or cop an attitude, he lets it go and moves forward. When I rebel, he doesn't give up on me. He loves me.

If I am sad, he gives me hugs and understanding. When I am exhausted, he gives me a break and takes over.

He accepts me for who I am and tries to help me head in the right direction. He gives me gifts and wants to hang out. He always has time for me.

If anyone treats me wrong, he takes care of it. He surprises me in the little things all the time. He told me that I could be in his family and made me a princess.

I know this guy, His name is Jesus and I love Him. Do you know Him?

(Psalm 103)

Trusting God Completely

Recently life has had a lot of change and pressures. On the surface everything looks the same but internally things are very different. Here are a few things that we currently are learning through;

1) Our kids are turning into teens. They are no longer children but not yet adults. This is new territory and there are lots of new situations to figure out. This summer we start teaching our son to drive.

2) Secondly, we have had many unexpected expenses (car problems and medical/dental), this puts pressure on us to live under our circumstances instead of trusting God with our future.

3) Lastly, we felt led to let our kids prayerfully decide whether to go to public school or continue home schooling during high school. They have both chosen to attend public high school. This will change our lifestyle and bring on new circumstances and challenges to work through.

The other day I was waiting for our son who was taking a SAT exam when I felt prompted by the Holy Spirit. In my heart  I thought "I need to either 'trust God completely' or 'doubt God completely'. That was a pretty cut and dry way to look at things. I can't doubt God completely because I know that He is good, so that only leaves one thing- to trust His goodness with all my heart. Otherwise, I will carry a load of burden that I was not meant to carry.

Another thing that God showed me today was that He is orchestrating my life and I don't have anything to fear except getting in His way and trying to work things out on my own. I have made that mistake one too many times. I just need to follow His plans in order to let Him do what He feels is  best for my life. 

As I think about how I am united with Christ (Eph 2:6), it makes me wonder why I allow worry to take hold of me and fear to determine my level of contentment. I am praying for Satan's lies to flee and for my heart to be filled with a confident peace. :)

The Keys to Success in God's Eyes

Has the World got you thinking of what success should look like? I know at times it fools me. God has a different economy than the Worlds. He has a mission for all of us according to His will and the way He has equipped each one in special ways to do it.

Moses didn't think he was of much use because he stuttered, but God chose him and appointed Aaron to help do great things. As Moses led the people to the promise land, God shared with them what He felt would make them successful. In a nut shell, Gods keys to "success" are to:

*Obey Him
*Read His Word Daily
*Be Strong and Courageous

He is with us wherever we go. Jesus did the rest. :)

Jos 1:6-9  "Be strong and courageous, for you are the one who will lead these people to possess all the land I swore to their ancestors I would give them. Be strong and very courageous. Be careful to obey all the instructions Moses gave you. Do not deviate from them, turning either to the right or to the left. Then you will be successful in everything you do. Study this Book of Instruction continually. Meditate on it day and night so you will be sure to obey everything written in it. Only then will you prosper and succeed in all you do. This is My command—be strong and courageous! Do not be afraid or discouraged. For the LORD your God is with you wherever you go."

God has planted us right where He wants us to be used by Him for His good purpose. He will let us know if and when He wants our life to change its course. We are successful when we obey Him, Read His Word and lean on Him for Strength to do His will.  :)

Lord I'm amazed by how much you love me.

Romans 8:31-32 "What shall we say about such wonderful things as these? If God is for us, who can ever be against us? Since He did not spare even His own Son but gave Him up for us all, won't He also give us everything else?"

Psalms 97:12  "May all who are godly rejoice in the LORD and praise His holy name!" 

God Wants Our Hearts

Matthew 7:21 "Not everyone who calls out to Me, 'Lord! Lord!' will enter the Kingdom of Heaven. Only those who actually do the will of My Father in heaven will enter."

As I read this verse I think different thoughts. First I feel sad for those that won't enter the gates of heaven. It makes me want to quickly run out in the street and yell out "people... please surrender your hearts to your Creator and Redeemer!" I want to say "God is good and loves you. He is waiting for you to willingly turn towards Him." I also want to say "God has a plan for you and is in control of everything, pick the winning team!" I am frustrated because of my love for others. I want them to live for eternity.

God's original intent was that we would live without the curse of sin in this world. Unfortunately we chose sin over obedience to God. Since Adam and Eve, all of mankind has lived with natural disasters, birth defects, guilt, discord and many other unpleasant things. Yet out of His great love & grace, God chose Jesus to pay the way for us to enter heaven. Some may think that when we die, we automatically all go to heaven, but this verse says different. There are really only 2 roads... Ours or the Way of our Father. We were bought at a price and that price was the life of Jesus. When we say to God that we believe He exists, we get to choose- accept or reject Him. There is no middle ground. God made His choice when He chose us first.

Some may say it is works that get us into heaven. While others may say that it is not what we do that gets us to heaven, it is faith. It is true that it is impossible to please God without faith and that it is by grace we have been saved through faith, not by works so no one can boast. But I believe it is a matter of our hearts. God is seeking those who have turned their hearts and wills over to Him and devoted their life to Him.

2 Corinthians 5:15 "He died for everyone so that those who receive His new life will no longer live for themselves. Instead, they will live for Christ, who died and was raised for them."

Romans 11:6-7 "And since it is through God's kindness, then it is not by their good works. For in that case, God's grace would not be what it really is—free and undeserved. So this is the situation: Most of the people ... have not found the favor of God they are looking for so earnestly. A few have—the ones God has chosen—but the hearts of the rest were hardened."

God can see the intent of our heart when we use words to uplift or to tear down. He can see if we are seeking Him and His plans or if we have selfish ambition. He knows if what we do is to glorify our self and to build our kingdom or to glorify Him and His kingdom. A heart that is hardened won't listen to God's prompting or have a desire to do that which pleases him. It is not a heart of devotion to Jesus as the Lord and Master of their life.

Matthew 7:14-21 "But the gateway to life is very narrow and the road is difficult, and only a few ever find it. Beware of false prophets who come disguised as harmless sheep but are really vicious wolves. You can identify them by their fruit, that is, by the way they act. Can you pick grapes from thornbushes, or figs from thistles? A good tree produces good fruit, and a bad tree produces bad fruit. A good tree can't produce bad fruit, and a bad tree can't produce good fruit. So every tree that does not produce good fruit is chopped down and thrown into the fire. Yes, just as you can identify a tree by its fruit, so you can identify people by their actions. "Not everyone who calls out to Me, 'Lord! Lord!' will enter the Kingdom of Heaven. Only those who actually do the will of My Father in heaven will enter."

Jesus came with a heart to do the will of the Father and with the motive of love to help save the lost. 2 Peter 3:9b “He does not want anyone to perish, but wants everyone to come to repentance.”

*If you have been lost, seek God and read His love letter & road map to guide you- the Bible.
*If you know someone that is on their own path and headed for destruction- Pray and Love them.
*If you have been rejected for your faith and turned away by others- Seek the comfort of Your heavenly Father who will never leave you or give up on you.

I pray right now for those that may not have surrendered their hearts to you God. Those who have not made Jesus Master of their life. I pray for a miracle and for hearts to be softened. Lord give us a heart for the ones you have chosen. Help them to listen to your voice.

God wants our hearts. Lets not give up or loose hope on those He loves. Afterall, He didn't give up on us... God is mighty to save.