His Glorious Power 7/29-31/19

29-31 2019 - Theme:  Strengthen with His Glorious Power

Manna by Dorothy and Tony Callies

“God will strengthen you with his own great power so that you will not give up when troubles come, but you will be patient. And you will joyfully give thanks to the Father who has made you able to have a share in all that he has prepared for his people in the kingdom of light” (Colossians 1:11-12 NCV).

Strengthened with all might, according to his glorious power, unto all patience and longsuffering with joyfulness; Giving thanks unto the Father which hath made us meet to be partakers of the inheritance of the saints in light” (Colossians 1:11-12 KJV).

1. God will strengthen you.
2. How? With His own great glorious power.
3. Why? So that you will not give up when troubles come.
4. With what? With patience, you will be patient.
5. Our attitude should be? Joyfully give thanks to the Father.
6. What’s in it for us? Father who made you able to have a
share of the inheritance with saints in heaven.

Song: In the Name of the Lord

There is strength in the name of the Lord;

There is power in the name of the Lord;

There is hope in the name of the Lord!

Blessed is He who comes in the name of the Lord.

(Phill McHugh, Gloria Father, Sandi Patti Helvering,

Sing His Praise)

Dorothy: I found the song that goes with this old Manna that really encourages me.  It is a wonderful promise and also I need to be constantly reminded that I am strengthened with His glorious power that is hidden within me. And also in Tony when I pray for God’s strengthen within Tony.

Prayer: Thank You Heavenly Father for the wonderful promise that You will strengthen us with Your glorious power unto all patience and endurance with a joyful heart, knowing that we have a home in heaven. We are looking forward to be with You and all the saints in Jesus’ name I pray. Amen!

God bless you today!

Dorothy

In Spirit & in Truth 7/28/19

23-28 July 2019 - In Spirit & In Truth – Manna by Dorothy and Tony Callies

John 4:24 “God is a Spirit; and they that worship Him must worship Him in spirit and in truth.”

Famous story about Jesus met with the Samaritan woman at the well and how she discovered that Jesus is the Messiah. Now I would like to focus on the question: Why did Jesus explained about “true worshippers shall worship the Father in spirit and in truth?” And what did Jesus meant “God is a Spirit … worship Him in spirit and in truth?”

But first, let us check: Why did the Samaritan woman asked Jesus exactly where we should worship God, “in this mountain (Samaria); or in Jerusalem?  Jesus answered in verse 21 that time will come that it won’t matter where you worship the Father.  And Jesus gave instruction on how to worship the Father correctly: in spirit and in truth.   

Jesus teaches several things in this verse: (Some from commentary and some I translate or add)

 (1) “In spirit” points to the level at which true worship happens. When you come to God, our atmosphere changes to a deep respect inside of our inner spirit.  It is when our inner spirit becomes connected to the Spirit of God.  You can feel Him in the spirit.  That’s when Holy Spirit comes in. God is a Spirit. Holy Spirit is a Spirit. We communicate with Him in our inner spirit.

 (2) “In truth” is God’s character that He never lies and that we can trust God.  God seeks the kind of worshippers whose heart is sincere and honest before Him.  God requires speaking the truth when we worship Him.  Our heart is the center of our worship to Him.

Also, Jesus emphasis to the Samaritan woman about what to worship God.  He said, “You Samaritans worship something you don’t understand.  We understand what we worship, because salvation comes from the Jews” (John 4:22, NCV).  So Jesus shows how important is to know what we are worshiping about.

Worship is a very broad subject. I just found the articles about “Worship” and it explain that the English word “worship” came from an old English word “worthship”; in other words, worship has those actions and attitudes that show respect and honor the worthiness of great God of heaven and earth. So worship is God centered, not man centered.  In Christian worship we draw near to God in gratitude for what He has done for us in Christ and through the Holy Spirit.  It requires a faith commitment to Him and an acknowledgement that He is our God and Lord. (Some from commentary).

What does our heavenly Father seeks? John 4:23 tells us “the true worshippers shall worship the Father in spirit and in truth: this is the kind of worship our heavenly Father seek or look for.  A heart that honor God inside of us and with an honest heart that loves to worship Him. Worshiping the Father in songs would come naturally in our heart to sing to Him which the Holy Spirit would lead us that He knows would pleases our Heavenly Father.  

Song: Deeper, Deeper

Deeper, deeper in the love Jesus,

Daily let me go;

Higher, higher in the school of wisdom,

More of grace to know.

Chorus:

Oh deep—er yet I pray,

And high—er every day,

And wis—er, blessed Lord,

In Thy precious, holy Word.

2. Deeper, deeper! Blessed Holy Spirit,

Take me deeper still,

Till my life is wholly lost in Jesus

And His perfect will.

(Then Chorus)

(Charles P. Jones, Sing His Praise)

God bless you!

Dorothy

PS. Perhaps, there might be further studies on “Worship” on how they worship God in the Old Testament times. 

Prepare a Place 7/22/19

July 22, 2019 Prepare a Place – Manna by Dorothy & Tony Callies

John 14:2-3 “I go prepare a place for you . . . . Where I am, there you may be also.”

It was almost time for the Jewish Passover Feast.  Jesus knew that it was time for Him to leave this world and go back to the Father. He had always loved those who were His own in the world, and He loved them all the way to the end.  Jesus and He followers were at the evening meal. (John 13:1-3 NCV).

After Jesus washed His disciples feet, Jesus gave a long speech from John 13 through 17^th.  From John 18^th Jesus had finished praying, and they went into the garden of Gethsemane. There Jesus was captured and then led to the cross and died.  After His death and resurrection, Jesus appeared to disciples and many other followers at different times.  There was so much joy that they wanted Jesus visits to be continued.

But on the 40^th day after His resurrection, Jesus gave His final instructions to the disciples and Jesus slowly went up until the cloud hid Him from the view.  The disciples stayed on looking for Him.  I imagined that the two angels tried to tell them that Jesus is gone, and that He is coming back again someday, but for them to go on to Jerusalem as Jesus instructed them to do.

Jesus could have vanished instantly, as He had done before (Luke 24:31).  But He chose to go up visibly and slowly to impress on His followers that this was the end of His visits.  His bodily presence would soon be replaced by “another Helper,” the Holy Spirit promised in John 14:16. Jesus said, “And I will pray the Father, and He shall give you another Comforter that He (Holy Spirit) may abide with you forever.”

This is the part that impressed me deeply about “Jesus’ end of His visits” with His disciples and His followers on the earth. I repeat: Jesus end His visits . . . so disciples must have felt lost for a moment until they obeyed to go to Jerusalem to the Upper Room and wait for the Power of Holy Spirit to come.

With the outpouring of the Holy Spirit, God and Jesus visited them in the Spirit, not in the flesh. His Presence was felt by 120 followers and 3,000 got saved. So Holy Spirit took Jesus’ place and the only different is no flesh . . . to see in person. The Holy Spirit is a Spirit and He can makes God and Jesus very real to us . . . This is what we called, “Faith.” So come, Holy Spirit, we need you!

Song: Come, Holy Spirit

Come, Holy Spirit, I need you,

Come, sweet Spirit, I pray;

Come in Your strength and Your power,

Come in Your own gentle way.

[Gloria and William J. Gaither, Sing His Praise]

God bless you!

Dorothy 
 PS. Jesus promised that He will be in person when He comes to get us into heaven. He is busy preparing us a place and there He will be a real live person for us to see, to touch, and to hug, and hug again!  It is worth waiting for! 

His Special Favor 7/19/19

July 19 2019 His Special Favor – Manna by Dorothy & Tony Callies

“God saved you by His special favor when you believed.” Ephesians 2:8, NLT.

[Picked verse for the day from the jar].

Part of the writing is summary from the Daily Bread devotion:

We are encouraged to pay the most careful attention, therefore, to what we have heard, so that we do not drift away. (Hebrews 2:1)  

We have a good reason to stay close.  The author of Hebrews says that while the Mosaic (Moses’) law was reliable and needed to be obeyed, the message of the Son of God is far superior.  Which means that Jesus came and satisfied the demands of the law, so now our Salvation is “so great” in Jesus that He should not be ignored. (Heb. 2:3).

Question: What will help us stay anchored in Jesus?

Answer:  Spending time talking with Him in prayer and reading His Word, confessing our wrongs to Him, and interacting with other followers of Jesus can help us stay anchored in Him—He will be faithful to support us.

The story of devotion was about a family who was at the beach resort for snacks, watching the boats at the seashore, were anchored to prevent them from drifting away, they noticed one boat drifting away.  No one pay attention to it and slowly making its way out to sea.  So Hebrews 2:1 was given to believers, “We must pay the most careful attention, therefore, to what we have heard so that we do not drift away.” 

May the Lord bless you today!

Dorothy

(Written from the Journal for today)

Generosity 27 - 7/9/19

09 July 2019 - Building Character 27 – by Dorothy Callies

Theme: Generosity Builds Character – Series 27

II Corinthians 9:7 “. . . let him give . . . for God loves a cheerful giver.”

Every time you give out of your heartfelt offering to those who teaches or preaches the Word of God, it strengthening your character.  So if you are looking for a way to improve the quality of your life, just be generous in giving to those who are in need. It will build your character. Simple as that.

A friend from East send a plant two years ago and the plant still survive. It was a generosity and kindness to let us know that they are praying for us. Especially cards, it is always a great encouragement to receive them.  You can know that the card you sent would always cheer them and encourage them that you care.  That is another example of being generosity.

At this time, I need to put the Manna “Under Construction” so I could increase time in prayer and intercession.  I sense “a halt” meaning I am not able to do more on “Building Character” series or do more of Manna.

Manna "under construction" probably last a month until August 9, 2019.  Until then, may God bless you!

Dorothy 
PS. Meanwhile, I use Joseph Prince Ministries, Daily Grace Inspiration for our devotion.  You might like to try this: grace.inspirations@josephprince.org 

You will need to add to the contact so they will automatically send you this devotion every morning at 3 a.m.  Joseph Prince Daily Devotion provides great encouragement to the readers.  

Christ's Chastisement 26 7/5-8/19

05-08 July 2019 - Research Topic on Chastisement 26 – by Dorothy Callies

Theme: Christ’s Chastisement for Our Peace – Series 26

Isaiah 53:5 NCV, “But He was wounded for the wrong we did; we were crushed for the evil we did. The punishment which made us well, was given to Him, and we are healed because of His wounds.”

Although KJV are difficult to read, however it is good to know the beginning of KJV from Isaiah 53:5: “But He was wounded for our transgression (broken law), He was bruised for our iniquities (sins): the chastisement (punishment) of our peace was upon Him; and with His stripes we are healed.”

The commentary stated: Christ was crucified because we have sinned and are guilty before God. (cf. Ps. 22:16; Zech. 12:10; John 19:37 See below). As our substitute, Jesus took the punishment due us and paid the penalty for our sins—penalty of death (Rom. 6:23 “For the wages of sins is death …”) Therefore, we can be forgiven and have peace with God (cf. Rom. 5:1 “Being justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ”).

The commentary stated: Isaiah 53:5 WITH HIS STRIPES WE ARE HEALED. This healing refers to salvation with all its benefits, spiritual and physical.  Sickness and disease are the result of the fall and Satan’s activity in the world. “For this purpose the Son of God was manifested that He might destroy the works of the devil” (1 John 3:8). Christ gave gifts of healing to His church and commanded His followers to heal the sick as part of their proclamation of the kingdom of God, the Gospel. 

In Psalm 22:16 was a prophecy of how the Messiah would face.

Ps. 22:16 “For dogs (Religious leaders) have compassed (surrounded) Me (the Messiah); the assembly (group) of wicked (at heart) have enclosed (came close on) Me: they pierced My hands and My feet.”

I interpret this: The religious leaders are like the dogs that surrounded Jesus, the Messiah with growls. The religious leaders as a group were very wicked in their heart and they came close to Messiah like a dog smell a person and growl at Him.  They cried out to Pilate to crucify Him. Messiah’s hands and His feet were pierced with nails driven through on the cross.

Zechariah 12:10 “And I will pour upon the house of David, and upon the inhabitants of Jerusalem, the spirit of grace and of supplications: and they shall look upon Me whom they have pierced, and they shall mourn for Him, as one mourned for his only son, and shall be in bitterness for Him, as one that is in bitterness for his firstborn. In that day shall there be a great mourning in Jerusalem …”

Zechariah 12:10 is the future prophecy that there will be a great revival of eye openings when the Israelites meet Jesus at the second coming as their Messiah and recognized that they have pierced Him and were ashamed of it.  But Jesus will comfort them just like the typical story of Joseph. It will be the most heart touching family reunion.

 John 19:37 “… another scripture saith, “They shall look on him whom they pierced” (This was quoted from Zechariah 12:10).  

Dorothy: This research deepen the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ and somehow it touched my heart to remind me that Christ’s Chastisement was for my peace and with His stripes we are healed. And excited time of future prophecy of Christ’s reunion with His family, the Israelites. And a crown awaits us for our patience looking forward to Jesus’ coming again.

I remember the song, He was wounded for our transgression. He was bruised for our iniquity. I hope I could find it in the song book . . .  I found it! It was listed as ‘He was wounded for our transgression’ and I turned the page, the title was ‘The Healer.’

Chorus: The Healer

He was wounded for our transgressions;

He was bruised for our iniquities;

Surely He bore our sorrows,

And by His stripes we are healed.

(Lois Irwin, Sing His Praise)

May the Lord bless your heart!

Dorothy

Research Chastisement 25 7/1-4/19

01-04 July 2019 – Research Topic on Chastisement 25 – by Dorothy Callies

Theme: Chastisement Builds Character – Series 25

Psalm 94:12 KJV: “Blessed is the man whom Thou chasten, O Lord, and teach him out of Thy law.”  NCV: “Lord, those You correct are happy; You teach them from Your law.”

To give better idea what exactly is chasten? Chasten (verb) = to correct by punishment or suffering. Chastise (verb) = 1. To punish severely (as by whipping) 2: to criticize harshly. Chastisement is a noun.

What chastise is difference from discipline? I mentioned the meaning of discipline from Series 5. Discipline means strict training that corrects or strengthens mental ability or moral character while chastisement is more of a punishment to correct.  To discipline is also more of control gained by enforcing obedience.  It would be good to know more about the chastisement so I used . . .

Holman Bible Dictionary quotes: Chasten or chastisement: Refers to an act of punishment intended to instruct and change behavior.  Two basic Hebrew words express the idea—yakach, “to settle a dispute, reprove”; yasar,” to instruct, a discipline.”  

King David prayed this prayer: Psalm 6:1 Lord, don’t correct me when you are angry; don’t punish me when you are very angry. [NCV]  Commentary from The Full Life Study Bible by Donald Stamps: Psalm 6:1-10 Rebuke Me Not in Thine Anger: This psalm is one of the seven penitential (repent) psalm (i.e., psalms of sorrow for sin; others are Psalm 32; 38; 51; 130; 143). The Holy Spirit inspired this prayer to give encouragement to all who have suffered for a long time under the chastisement of God and who need pardon and healing.

Commentary 6:2 O Lord, heal me: During a time of physical affliction and divine chastisement that King David knows he deserves, the psalmist has lost his sense of the presence of God (v.4) and spiritual peace (v.3). He has suffered for a long time and is in intense grief.  King David’s prayer is not so much that God will remove all rebuke from him as it is that God’s chastening might be mingled with mercy and not be so severe that he dies. (Psalm 6:2-4 “Lord, have mercy on me because I am weak. Heal me, Lord, because my bones aches.  I am very upset.  Lord, how long will it be?  Lord, return and save me; save me because of Your kindness” (NCV).   

Commentary 6:4 Deliver my soul: Though the penitent (person who repent and sorrow for one’s sins) one is concerned about the healing of his body (v.2), King David primary concern is for the healing of his soul and the restoration of the presence and favor of God.  King David longs for God to be near him and appeals to His mercy and love (v.2,4).  Since love and mercy are a part of God’s character, believers may appeal to Him to be true to His character. 

Dorothy:  What is the point of this research? I like to know what King David went through and how he prayed to His God for mercy.  How King David knew that He could trust God for pardon and deliverance from chastisement. Eventually David was thankful for chastisement that kept him close to God the Father who cares for King David.

We can trust God in time of chastisement and this should makes us glad to know that God intends that “Chastisement builds character.” So the verse that says, “Blessed is the man whom Thou chasten, O Lord, and teach him out of Thy law.” I interpret this to mean: Be glad that God continues to work (chasten) on our lives however painful it might be and His Word teaches us His way.  Like King David, we know that God will not abandon us. Amen!

May the Lord bless you!

Dorothy

PS. Deut. 8:5 Know in your heart that the Lord your God corrects you as a parent corrects a child.  [NCV]