Hope 17 Book of Hope 11/4-6/20

04-06 Nov 2020 - Hope Series 17 - Manna by Dot & Tony Callies
Theme: Revelation, A Book of Hope

"And he (Jesus) that sat upon the throne said, Behold, I make all things new. And he said to me (John), Write: for these words are true and faithful." Rev. 21:5

God opened the "Genesis" with His new creation, a paradise for Adam and Eve while "Revelation" closes human history. But there is one distinct (clearly seen) difference in Revelation--evil is gone forever. Genesis describes a garden with an evil serpent; Revelation describes a perfect city with no evil. The Garden of Eden was destroyed by sin; but paradise is re-created in the New Jerusalem.

Jesus said, "Behold, I make all things new." God is the creator. The Bible begins with the majestic story of His creation of the universe, and it concludes (end) with His creation of a new heaven and a new earth. This is a tremendous hope and encouragement for the believer.

The book of Revelation ends with an urgent plea; "Come, Lord Jesus!" In a world of problems, persecution, evil, and immorality, Lord Jesus Christ calls us to endure in our faith. Our goal is to hold on to the hope of His calling that God has given us to do, endure.

Revelation is, above all, a book of hope. It shows that no matter what happens on earth, God is in control. It promises that evil will not last forever. Like Scripture said, "The God of peace will soon crush Satan under your feet (Rom. 16:20a). And Revelation represents a picture of the wonderful reward that is waiting for all who believe in Jesus Christ as Savior and Lord.

May the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you all. Amen. (Rev. 22:21)
Dorothy

Hope 16 New City 11/1-3/2020

01-03 November 2020 – Hope Series 16 - Manna by Dot & Tony Callies

Song: New Jerusalem (Blessed Hope)

Revelation 21:21 "I saw the Holy City, the new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride beautifully dressed for her husband."

Song: In the New Jerusalem
1. When the toils of life are over
And we lay our armor down,
And we bid farewell to earth with all it's cares,
We shall meet and greet our loved ones,
And our Christ we then shall crown
In the new Jeru-sa-lem.
CHORUS: There'll be singing, there'll be shouting
When the saints come marching home,
In Jeru-sa-lem, In Jeru-sa-lem;
Waving palms with loud hosannas
As the King shall take His throne,
In the new Jeru-sa-lem . . . .

2. Tho' the way is sometimes lonely,
He will hold me with His hand,
Thro' the testings and the trials I must go;
But I'll trust and gladly follow,
For sometimes I'll understand,
In the new Jeru-sa-lem . . . .
CHORUS: There'll be singing, there'll be shouting
When the saints come marching home,
In Jeru-sa-lem, In Jeru-sa-lem;
Waving palms with loud hosannas
As the King shall take His throne,
In the new Jeru-sa-lem . . . .

3. When we join the ransomed army
In the summer-land above,
And the face of our dear Savior we behold,
We will sing and shout forever,
And we'll grow in perfect love,
In the new Jeru-sa-lem . . . .
CHORUS: There'll be singing, there'll be shouting
When the saints come marching home,
In Jeru-sa-lem, In Jeru-sa-lem;
Waving palms with loud hosannas
As the King shall take His throne,
In the new Jeru-sa-lem . . . .
LYRICS AND MUSIC: C. B. Widmeyer

Looking forward to meet Jesus in the sky!
Dorothy

Hope 15 One Taken 10/30-31/20

30-31 October 2020 - Hope Series 15 

Theme: One will be Taken (Blessed Hope) 

I put together the verses about the teaching of Jesus and us meeting Him in the air. Our church called it, "The Rapture." While the word, rapture is not in the Bible, but the meaning of the phrase is the same, "caught up in the air." So I pray this will touch our hearts about that "Blessed Hope" Part two.
 
Matthew 24:40b
" . . . One will be taken . . . "

Who said that? It was Jesus who said, "Two men will be in the field. One will be taken, and the other will be left. Two women will be grinding grain with a mill. One will be taken, and the other will be left" (Matt.24:40-41).

Again, what was Jesus talking about? Paul wrote what Jesus meant. It was find in I Thessalonians 4:16-18 “v.16 For the Lord himself will come down from heaven with a commanding shout, with the call of the archangel, and with the trumpet call of God. First, all the Christians who have died will rise from their graves. V.17 Then, together with them, we who are still alive and remain on the earth will be caught up in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air and remain with him forever. V.18 So comfort and encourage each other with these words”. (QuickVerse Life Application Bible)  

And 1 Cor. 15:51 “But let me tell you a wonderful secret God has revealed to us. Not all of us will die, but we will all be transformed. V.52 It will happen in a moment, in the blinking of an eye, when the last trumpet is blown. For when the trumpet sounds, the Christians who have died, will be raised with transformed bodies. And then we who are living will be transformed so that we will never die.”

Wow! When I put the those words together, I see the picture of what will happen when Jesus said, "One will be taken . . . " Know what? That is our "Blessed Hope," "One will be taken." We will be taken up to meet Jesus in the air. There's a song about this.

"In the Great Triumphant Morning"
We shall all rise to meet Him,
we shall all rise to greet Him,
In the morning when the dead in Christ shall rise.
We shall all rise to meet Him,
we shall all rise to greet Him,
And shall have the marriage supper in the skies.
(R. E. Winsett, Sing His Praise)

He’s coming soon!

Dorothy

 

Hope 14 Blessed Hope 10/27-29/20

27-29 October 2020 Hope Series 14  

Manna by Dorothy & Tony Callies
Theme: Blessed Hope!

Titus 2:13a "While we wait for the blessed hope . . ."

Acts 1:9-12 tells us about the time when the disciples had seen Jesus taken up into the sky while they were watching, and He disappeared into a cloud.  As they were straining their eyes to see Him, two white-robed men suddenly stood there among them. The angels said, "Men of Galilee, why are you standing here staring at the sky? Jesus has been taken away from you into heaven. And someday, just as you saw Him go, He will return!" The apostles were at the Mount of Olives when this happened so they walked the half mile or a day's journey back to Jerusalem. They began their ministry from Jerusalem.

So what is our blessed hope? "--the glorious appearing of our great God and Savior, Jesus Christ, who gave Himself for us to redeem us . . ." (Titus 3:13b; 3:14a). There are many songs about His coming and the purpose of  those songs is to encourage one another to stay faithful to Him.  

Jesus said, "When everything is ready, I will come and get you, so that you will always to be with Me where I am" (John 14:3). We can look forward to eternal life, that blessed hope, because Jesus has promised it to all who believe in Him.

The disciples at that time, didn't really fully understood what Jesus was talking about until after they saw Him go. They heard the angels saying that He will return. Then they realized that's the "Blessed Hope" that He is coming back to earth on the Mount of Olives.

Song: Looking for That Blessed Hope.
Looking for that blessed hope (that joyful hope),
Looking for that blessed hope (that glorious hope);
We know the hour is nearing,
The hour of His appearing;
We're looking for that blessed hope.
(Lyrics and Music: Thoro Harris, Sing His Praise)

He is coming back to earth to reign!  

Dorothy

Hope 13 - Give Answer 10/25-26/20

25-26 Oct 2020 - Hope 13 - Manna by Dot & Tony 

Theme: Be Ready to Give Answer

1 Peter 3:15b "My ASL Version"
" . . . Be ready ... to give an answer to why you have HOPE that is in you . . ."

You face a lot of problems and someone notice you and your faith in God. What is your secret that you don't give up so easily? What make you stand strong in all things? What kind of answer will you give to those who have been watching your life?

Let's read: 1 Peter 3:15a "But in your hearts set apart Christ as Lord" (NIV).  First thing you have is Jesus Christ in your heart as your personal Savior. Because you have Jesus in your heart, then you are "ready always to give an answer to every man that asketh (keep asking) you a reason of the HOPE that is in you . . ." (KJV).
 
What did you have? You quietly trust in God as the Lord of all. You believe that Christ is truly in control of all events. You have HOPE in Christ and you are prepared to tell them what Jesus has done in your life.  

We might say, "My hope in Christ is that He suffered when He died for our sins once for all time. He never sinned, but He died for sinners that He might bring us safely HOME TO GOD. He suffered physical death, but He was raised to life in the Spirit. Now Christ has gone to heaven and is seated in the place of honor next to God. He is waiting for us to come home and that is my "Blessed Hope."

Prayer Song: Make Me a Blessing

Tell the sweet story of Christ and His love;
Tell of His power to forgive;
Others will trust Him if only you prove
True every moment you live.
Chorus:
Make me a blessing, make me a blessing,
Out of my life ... may Jesus shine;
Make me a blessing, O Savior I pray ...
Make me a blessing to someone today.
(Lyrics: Ira Bishop Wilson, Sing His Praise)

 God bless you!

Dorothy

Hope 12 Lily of Valley 10/23-24/20

 23-24 October 2020 - Hope Series 12 - Manna from Dorothy & Tony Callies                   Theme: Lily of the Valley

Song of Solomon 2:1b "I am . . . the Lily of the Valley." 

            The flowers, the lilies are so small and they are found in the hidden valley. Jesus is our hidden "Lily of the Valley." You could only find Him in the hidden valley of our day to day activity. This is far more enriching experience than the mountaintop experience.

Song: The Lily of the Valley
*1. I have found a friend in Jesus, He's everything to me;
He's the fairest of ten thousand to my soul; 
The Lily of the Valley, in Him alone I see
All I need to cleanse and make me fully whole.
In sorrow He's my comfort, in trouble He's my stay
He tells me every care on Him to roll.
He's the Lily of the Valley, the bright and morning star; 
He's the fairest of ten thousand to my soul. 

*2. He all my grief has taken and all my sorrows borne;
In temptation He's my strong and mighty tower; 
I have all for Him forsaken and all my idols torn
From my heart, and He keeps me by His power.
Though all the world forsake me, and Satan tempts me sore, 
Through Jesus I shall safely reach the goal; 
He's the Lily of the Valley, the bright and morning star; 
He's the fairest of ten thousand to my soul. 

*3. He will never, never leave me, nor yet forsake me here,
While I live by faith and do His blessed will; 
A wall of fire about me, I've nothing now to fear; 
With His manna He's my hungry soul to fill.
Then sweeping up to glory, to see His blessed face,
Where rivers of delight shall ever roll! 
He's the Lily of the Valley, the bright and morning star; 
He's the fairest of ten thousand to my soul. 
(Lyrics: Charles W. Fry; Music: William S. Hays) 

May the song bless your heart as it has blessed me! 

Dorothy

Hope 11 Door of Hope 10/21-22/20

21-22 October 2020 - Hope Series Eleven (2012) Manna by Dorothy & Tony                   Theme: The Valley of Achor, the Door of Hope

Hosea 2:15b "I will give her (Israel) . . . the valley of Achor for a door of HOPE: and she shall sing there, as in the days of youth . . ." 

The man in the story of Joshua 7 who caused Israel's trouble is Achan. Achor (Valley of Trouble) is the name given to the place where it happened. Achan died because of his disobedience and he had sinned against the Lord. The battle of Ai was lost because of Achan. Trouble, a valley near Jericho was the results of Israel lost the battle because of the sin of Achan.

The "valley of Achor" was called a "door of hope," because immediately after the execution of Achan, The Lord said to Joshua, "Fear not .... I will help you defeat ..." (Joshua 8:1). Joshua and his fighting men won the battle against the city of Ai. From that time Joshua went forward in the successful conquest into the Promised Land. 

Hosea 2:15 uses the expression in the same sense: "The valley of Achor for a door of hope," which stands for trouble would be turned into joy, despair into hope. Isaiah 65:10 used the same expression "the valley of Achor," a place for herds to lie down in which was the same sense that had been a source of trouble would become a source of blessing.  Is. 65:10 "The Plain of Sharon will be a field for flocks, and the Valley of Achor will be a place for herds to rest. They will be for the people who want to follow Me."

The word, valley has a very important meaning for us. It represents our day to day activity. We can only stay a very short time on the mountaintop of a wonderful experience with God, carefree troubles, and that everything goes well. Eventually, we come down into the valley where we make our day to day living. This is the reality of our daily lives of troubles. This is where God becomes our daily God of our living hope. 

God is speaking to us, "Fear not ... I will help you ... I am the Door ... And the door is opened in heaven" John 10:9; Rev. 4:1.

I, Dorothy, saw a vision of a "door opened in heaven" between Jan-March 1973 after forty days of fasting. So to say, after "forty years of wandering and trouble times" should now become our source of blessings.  Like Joshua, God is speaking to us, "Fear not ... I will help you ..." Like Joshua, we are going forward into the successful conquest against our enemies and they must move out of our way and allow God's blessing to flow through us from "the door of heaven." Can you say, amen? I say, amen! 

There's a song called, "The Lily of the Valley" and it will be on the next Hope 12. It is important to remember that our Savior was found in the lily of the valley. The flowers, the lilies are so small and they are found in the hidden valley. Jesus is our hidden "Lily of the Valley." You could only find Him in the hidden valley of our day to day activity. This is far more enriching experience than the mountaintop experience. It is different. I would say, it is more blessing to be in the valley of Achor (trouble) because that is where Jesus becomes our source of blessing. 

Amazing grace that God loves you and me! 
Dorothy