Ebenezer

Posted on February 23, 2022 by Marie

Can you imagine naming a stone?

Samuel named the stone Ebenezer. It literally means ‘stone of help’.

It is a reminder of God’s protection and power. It is a symbol of the help God will provide when we trust Him.

It is a stone of remembrance reminding us that God is our help.

We can place our own Ebenezer when we remember the times God has helped us through the ‘tough stuff’ of our lives.

Abba, Father, You are all-powerful and the help we need in these trying and troubling times. Direct and protect us through this day!

Read 1 Samuel 7 for the rest of the story.

Come Thou Fount

For Such A Time As This

Posted on February 26, 2021 by Marie

Happy Purim! This Jewish holiday is special to me because I can really relate to being put in situations that I don’t understand why I’m there.

If you remember the story of Esther – she was an orphan, raised by her uncle, Mordecai.

King Xerxes had thrown a big party, got really drunk, and ordered his wife to appear naked. She refused and he, with the advice of his council, determined to depose her. After all, they advised him, if she doesn’t obey him, other wives will think it’s OK to do that.

The king determined to get a new wife. He sent a notice that all the most beautiful, young, women of the land were to become part of his harem. He would choose one from among them to replace Vashti. And so he did.

Sometime later, King Xerxes appointed Haman to be his next in command. With that came the ruling and expectation that everyone would bow to him. Mordecai was having none of that. He would bow to no one but God. That upset Haman a great deal and he convinced Xerxes to make an edict that if you refused to bow to the king you would be hanged. In fact, Haman even offered to give 10,000 pieces of silver to the king’s treasury.

There were many Jews at the time that were refusing to bow to the king so they also fell under this ruling. Well, Haman told the king and between them, they created a ruling that all Jews would be annihilated.

When Mordecai heard about this he told Esther that she needed to intervene. She was not sure how she would be able to do that so she told him she didn’t have the power to do so. He, basically, responded that perhaps she had been placed in her position ‘for such a time as this’. She said she would fast and pray and would then make a decision.

She came up with a plan but in the meantime, Haman had built a scaffold upon which to hang Mordecai because he refused to bow to him.

Her uncle was a scribe for the king and had saved his (the king) life at one point when he heard about a group that wanted to assassinate him. Well, one night King Xerxes couldn’t sleep so he got out the scroll that talked about his actions and what had happened in his country while he was king. He came across the notation that talked about how Mordecai had saved his life. The king quickly called Haman into his chambers and asked him what should be done for someone like this. Haman thought the king was talking about him and said he should have a king’s robe put on him and sit on a steed and go through the city while people bowed to him.

Well, it wasn’t about him. The king made him lead the horse that his enemy sat on. Then, the king found out what Haman was building the gallows for and had him hanged on it instead.

Esther went to Xerxes and told him about what was about to happen to her people. She was able to stop the slaughter. Now Jewish people celebrate Purim every year on the 14th and 15th days of Adar to remind them of the time they were rescued. The actual verses say this:

Mordecai recorded these events and sent letters to the Jews near and far, throughout all the provinces of King Xerxes, calling on them to celebrate an annual festival on these two days. He told them to celebrate these days with feasting and gladness and by giving gifts of food to each other and presents to the poor. This would commemorate a time when the Jews gained relief from their enemies when their sorrow was turned into gladness and their mourning into joy. Esther 9:20-22

I hope you are able to celebrate this special holiday in your own way. God is good!

Blessings to you and yours!

Marie

Thank you to Bible Gateway for providing scripture links.

Mirror, Mirror

Posted on April 30, 2019 by Marie

I am totally fascinated with the Tabernacle of the Exodus. From the structure to its furnishings, God was specific and exacting in His instructions. Moses was given the blueprint that would not only serve as the guidelines for the place of worship during the Israelites travels to the Promised Land but would influence places of worship for generations to come.

One of the pieces of furniture in the Most Holy Place, the area where the priests offered sacrifices and worshipped, was the copper laver. This particular piece was where hands and feet were washed (purified) before preparing and presenting the sacrifices.

So, one might ask, where did they get the copper? see Exodus 38:8 When Pharoah told the Israelites to leave Egypt He also told them to take all they could from the Egyptians. In fact, He caused the Egyptians to practically force their ‘stuff’ on the Hebrews. This included jewelry, clothing, and other pieces of a personal nature like copper mirrors.

When Moses asked the people to give the necessary materials for the Tabernacle, copper was part of the request. The Israelite women gave their mirrors to the cause. Sacrificially, I might add. I doubt they did it without a bit of complaint. After all, it’s difficult to give up those things we personally value.

The following is a bit of information about mirrors and the Hebrew slaves in a book by Hugh Taylor called 10 Questions – The Essentials for a Spiritually Healthy Life.

The mirrors also have a powerful backstory. During the period of enslavement, many Israelite men did not want to father children who would grow up in slavery. The women knew better. They knew that the future generation would be free, so they used the mirrors to beautify themselves, to encourage their husbands to be intimate with them and ensure an Israelite future. If we are afraid of the future, we should keep in mind these mirrors and the brave women who used them (pp. 57)

What is God asking you to sacrifice for the building up of His Church? Possessions? Time? Relationships? Addictions? Money? Think about it and pray about it. It matters!

Blessings to you and yours!

Marie

A Promise Kept

Posted on November 8, 2013 by Marie

Do you believe that God’s Promises are real? That He can do what He says He can do? It’s so easy, in a world of broken promises, to get a very jaded attitude about this subject. Promises are made and broken with such regularity it’s what we expect to happen. In the story of Abram and Sarai we are given a glimpse into a Promise Kept.

Wikipedia

I’m sure you know the story…God told Abram to pick up his family, flocks and possessions and move from Ur to where ever He told him to stop. God’s promise was that Abram’s offspring would number more than the stars in the sky and the sand on the beach. So Abram said sure, I can do that and he began walking. He got side-tracked a bit when they stopped in Haran to visit his father. During the lengthy visit his father died and he remembered what God had promised so off he went again.

Abram and Sarai seemed to like doing things themselves rather than waiting on God. (How much like us is that?) During their journey Abram passed off Sarai as his sister to protect themselves. (BTW she really was his half-sister. It was very common to marry within the family at that time because there weren’t a lot of options.) Sarai got tired of waiting for this promised heir, so she gave Abram Hagar to have a child with. The child was conceived, born and caused no end of envy in Sarai’s heart. Abraham got so tired of her constant nagging that he told her to do whatever she wanted with Hagar. That nearly cost Hagar and Ismael their lives, but God intervened and promised a great heritage to them, also. We are still seeing the impact of Sarai’s misguided decision today–Isaacs descendants are, of course, the Israelites and Ishmail’s are the Arabs…need I say more on that?

Abraham and the Three Angels by J.Tissot

There is another part to this story that tells us Sarai had pretty much given up on the Promise. When the three men came to visit Abram in Shechem (the fulfillment of the land part of the Promise) they told Abram they would visit again in a year and at that time he would have a son. Sarai, who was standing in the tent listening, thought to herself–Yeah! Right! Not gonna happen. I’m to old. Ha! Ha! When asked why she laughed she said I didn’t. The man said, yes, you did! Genesis 18 verses 1 and 2 tell us who these visitors were. Abram addresses Him as LORD (It’s capitalized in every translation I read which means a direct reference to Yahwah!) Sarai’s denial of laughter makes sense when we realize that God was the One who ‘heard’ her.

God followed through and Isaac was born. Not only Isaac but three more sons and two daughters. When Isaac was 37 years old Sarah went to her reward. In her lifetime she learned a very important concept…God keeps His promises.

Heavenly Father, Lord of all, help me realize and recognize Your Promises. I give You thanks for all You’ve given me! I ask that You make me constantly aware of You and Your blessings. I lift this prayer in the Precious Name of Jesus. Make it so!

The story of Abraham and Sarah can be found in the following scripture:

Genesis 11 – 21

Melchizedek

Posted on May 14, 2013 by Marie

While having a delightful conversation with one of my God-daughters, who called to wish me a happy Mother’s Day, the question came up — Who is Melchizedek? She was reading our current Spirit Sisters Book Study, (Knowing God By Name by Bruce Wilkerson) and had never heard of him. Although little is known about him, he is important in understanding Jesus’ role as the Great High Priest.

Seal of Melchizedek mosaic from a Christian church at Khirbet near Jerusalem

Melchizedek is mentioned only a few times in The Word. In each of these passages we can discover bits of who he was and why his life has meaning for us. In Genesis 14:18-20 he is introduced as ‘priest of God Most High’ who blesses Abram through God as Creator and Deliverer. What is impressive about this record is most people in this period of history worshiped many gods created by themselves, while Melchizedek worshiped only God Most High, leading to the conclusion that there were other Believers at the time of Abram. It also mentions in this passage that when Abram visited him he served bread and wine. An Old Testament way of saying he communed with Abram. When we come across these words in the New Testament it is with Jesus’ words on how to remember Him. There’s another phrase in these verses that point to Abram’s recognition of Melchizedek as God’s Priest. “…Abram gave him a tenth of everything”. It would be a few (many) years before Moses gave God’s commandment on tithing yet that’s surely what’s going on.

Lets look at Hebrews 7:11 If perfection could have been attained through the Levitical priesthood–and indeed the law given to the people established that priesthood–why was there still need for another priest to come, one in the order of Melchizedek, not in the order of Aaron? In order to understand this verse we need to move on to verses 15-17 And what we have said is even more clear if another priest like Melchizedek appears, one who has become a priest not on the basis of a regulation as to his ancestry but on the basis of the power of an indestructible life. For it is declared: “You are a priest forever, in the order of Melchizedek.” (NIV) Christ and Melchizedek are High Priests because of their appointment by God. Neither were of the Levites (or Kohen-the name of the Priests before the Levites) who were appointed by God to permanent priesthood.

Abram Being Presented with Bread and Wine by Melchizedek (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

I’m pretty sure some of you are saying that’s about as clear as mud. It’s necessary to dig in a bit deeper into a rather scholarly issue. Melchizedek is regarded as a theophany (manifestation of deity in physical form). This word is applied because he is regarded as holy and righteous, as priest, in how he served Abram (with bread and wine), that he is given a tithe, and that there is no genealogical record of his life. In other words because many of his life characteristics modeled that of Christ he is revered as a physical precursor of Jesus.

More interesting facts about him…Melchizedek means “King of Righteousness”. He was also the King of Salem. Salem, meaning peace, later became Jerusalem.

Melchizedek is not a mysterious, mythical character, although some have tried to make that argument. This quote says it all: “Melchizedek was a real, historical king-priest who served as a type for the greater King-Priest who was to come, Jesus Christ.” (Nelson’s Illustrated Bible Dictionary. Thomas Nelson Publishers, 1986. pg. 695.)

(Some information in this post is from an article on about.com/Melchizedek.)