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Still: Before we knew Him, He knew us, loved us, and made a way for us.

Word: The woman conceived and bore a son, and when she saw that he was a fine child, she hid him three months.  When she could hide him no longer, she took for him a basket made of bulrushes and daubed it with bitumen and pitch.  She put the child in it and placed it among the reeds by the river bank.

Overview: God is faithful.  Through a mother God displays His heart for us, Jesus.

Reflection: This woman is faithful to walk in the garden/kingdom way.  The woman gives her heart to save her son’s life at the risk of her own.  She actually gains her son back.  God is a deliverer of His people as this mother is a deliverer of her son.  He does it even though it costs Him His life.  The whole time Moses has no say in the matter.  He is completely dependant.  There is nothing Moses has done to deserve or contribute to his deliverance.  All he has to do is be a baby created by God.  Wherever I find myself in life God has already prepared my deliverance out of the valley of shadow of death.  I must become like this mother.  I shouldn’t give ribs to people and expect a reward.  I must hope the best for people even if they have no idea of how much I have prayed for them, planned for them, and loved them.  I must do it without a need for a response.  God loves us and has such beautiful plans for us.  He plans our deliverance from our own sin and oppression before we even know how to pronounce His name or are aware of His presence.  

“Daddy, make me just like you.  Cause me today to love and give to people before they even know who I am.  Whether or not they even recognize or are even able to contribute in anyway.  Shine Your glorious image God through me in fullness by the power of Your Spirit!  Amen, let it become!”

Still: Father, I pray that the things that haven’t to do with the Kingdom would become light in my heart and mind.  I pray for the weightiness of Your glory and peace to guard my heart and mind to be focused in seeking the Kingdom today.  May it invade. 

Word: Blessed is the man who walks not in the counsel of the wicked, nor stands in the way of sinners, nor sits in the seat of scoffers; but his delight is in the law of the LORD, and on his law he meditates day and night.  He is like a tree planted by streams of water that yields its fruit in its season, and its leaf does not wither.  In all that he does, he prospers.

Overview: How to monitor fruitless work on the bedrock of God’s word.

Reflection: A man/woman of God has the type of life that is anointed and blessed by God if he/she makes God’s word the obsessive thought in our day.  Everything else is measured to it.  The miracle in the garden happens because Adam walks in obedience to the word of God.  It births revelation and impartation.  God speaks words that not only create reality but it also holds it together.  It is easy to just slip into busyness or dustiness.  Meditation on the word day and night is the only way to walk in the anointing blessedness of God.  Not as a duty but as an opportunity.  The way was shut to us.  Now we can be eternal blessed fruit.  Grace isn’t there so that we can get away with sin in our life.  It is there so that we can walk in the Kingdom.  As I have been walking in meditation of the word, I realize I have so many dusty temptations throughout the day.  What grace!!  So that I can see and invade with the Kingdom in those moments!  That is God’s grace at work.  Without doing this it would be impossible to walk in faith.  We would be too busy letting our sin, fear, and insecurities take over.  We would be too busy wasting our time thinking about things that God has already provided us with. 

“Father, make me a man of your word.  I can only become faithful as I stand in your word that is continually faithful.  I can only be a man of faith if I stand in You.  It is not my ability to believe.  I can only believe in the fact that You believe in me.  I want to stand in that!  Amen.”

Evening:

Do:

Still: Dad there is a part of me that wants to avoid you.  Why?  That part of me is the birthplace of death and sin.  Drown me in the Spirit that gives me another word.  I come to you now, thank you for wrestling with me. 

Word: And the LORD God commanded the man, saying, “You may surely eat of every tree of the garden…So the LORD God caused a deep sleep to fall upon the man, and while he slept took one of his ribs and closed up its place with flesh. 

“I am the living bread that came down from heaven. If anyone eats of this bread, he will live forever. This bread is my flesh, which I will give for the life of the world.”-Jesus

Overview: Give it away.

Reflection: God is a provider.  He is an ample provider.  As we stand in His provision, He makes us a provision to others.  We are truly like trees.  The fruit from the tree multiplies through the fruit that Adam eats.  The fruit from Adam multiples through the rib that the woman receives.  Give us daily bread Jesus.  Make us into bread for the nations.  Walking with the Lord in obedience to His Word makes us fruitful.  He then multiplies.  When we want provision, God wants His son or daughter.  One who has the breath of God and walks in His way.  One who carries the realization of the Father in their heart through obedience in His garden.  God will continue to tear out that image and produce it in another.  As long as we are about this kingdom the fruit bearing trees will always be available when we ask. 

“Daddy, I will not worry about tomorrow or be anxious of what I will wear or eat.  It is a great evil to think these things.  I will seek the kingdom.  Fill me with the fullness of Yourself.  Help to give it away again and again.  Use me to multiply what I have received in fullness.  What amazing grace.  Amen.” 

Do: Binna and I are a little tight on finances right now.  We have more than enough as usual but we are barely more than enough.  I found that my mind wanders to many financial matters in accordance with our ministry and especially our mission trip this summer a little too much.  I’ve made the plans and the rest is up to prayer.  The Lord will provide!!  A couple people from the church got together and served.  We drove around and picked up items for the garage sale on Saturday.  At one house we picked up the items and the lady there offered us cool water.  She also extended a blessing towards the garage sale.  She also talked about visiting the church for our 10:15 AM service.  Praise the Lord!  I was thinking about doing more studying and not helping.  When you’re doing things as a team, things don’t always work out the way you plan.  It seems better to just go it solo, so that we can get things done faster.  However, you miss life in the people around you that way.  I felt a lot closer to the people I teamed up with yesterday.  As we are faithful to the Lord’s garden, He provides. 

Side: May 9, 2008 God truly provides we received money from the government today!  Over $500.  Thank you Jesus!

HEeheeHEE

Morning

Still: Dad, you have such mercy.  Even mercy on those that don’t want You.  Teach me mercy not tolerance or pity.  Both of which are selfish.  You give mercy that is selfless.  Make me Lord. 

Word: Cain spoke to Abel his brother.  And when they were in the field, Cain rose up against his brother Abel and killed him.  Then the LORD said to Cain, “Where is Abel your brother?”  He said, “I do not know; am I my brother’s keeper?”  And the LORD said, “What have you done?  The voice of your brother’s blood is crying to me from the ground.  And now you are cursed from the ground, which has opened its mouth to receive your brother’s blood from your hand.  When you work the ground, it shall no longer yield to you its strength.  You shall be a fugitive and a wanderer on the earth.”  Cain said to the LORD, “My punishment is greater than I can bear.  Behold, you have driven me today away from the ground, and from your face I shall be hidden.”

Overview: This is the mirror image of events in Genesis 1-3.  The serpent is equal to sin and Cain rejects the pathway of sweet obedience, revelation, and incarnation.  He symbolically eats of the tree by killing his brother. 

Reflection: God’s mercy is amazing.  Even after the fall, He makes a way for us.  Though they are in the world (dust-filled, cursed-ground) and no longer the garden, God makes a way from them to be not of the world.  The sacrifice becomes a dwelling place for God and man.  Instead of exploring knowledge (jealousy, murder, anger, plotting, execution), Cain could have simply brought the right sacrifice in obedience.  He could have received revelation, and something of life multiplied.  God was teaching Cain how to be a brother’s keeper.  You can’t be a brother’s keeper without His presence and without faith which is obedience, revelation, and transformation.  Faith is like breathing.  Cain forfeits the Presence of God but only regrets it for his self preservation.  He doesn’t care about the divorce papers that he served up to God.  He just cares about what still belongs to him after the divorce.  Father!!  You still extend mercy!  You provided him with protection because you don’t want murder to continue.  Love your enemies and pray for those that persecute you.  You don’t care if that action yields a result from him.  The action of love is not dependant on knowledge of whether or not it will yield a result.  It is done because You can’t stop being You.  You want us to share in Your goodness.  We shouldn’t be concerned with dusty thoughts when we come to worship you.  Fill us with unconditional character driven love from Your Spirit.  We aren’t to ignore what people think about us.  We are to ignore our jealous, angry, murdering, plotting, and executing fantasy towards others and bring a right sacrifice.  So that we can give our lives for others as You do.  

“Dad, today as I walk in obedience I ask that you would interrupt me in times where I think too much about useless things.  As I love people today, invade my life where I don’t second-guess people and seeing if it will result in anything.  Help me to just breathe. Turn those times where I have dusty thoughts not into complaining but into praise, prayer, and faith.  Turn those times into altar moments.”

Evening:

Do: I caught myself a few times today.  One time it was towards Binna.  She called in the morning and I was busy.  I was really mean to her.  She wrote me an e-mail about how she got hurt.  I immediately started a process of interrogation and I stopped myself and began to praise God.  When I saw her later that day I was real good to her.  Hahahaha!  When you bring the right sacrifice, a rib of worship, rather than trying to look too much into a situation, God makes you vessel for new life.  Binna looked happier yesterday.  I was also able to minister to a sister and brother in our community.  They both received.  I always battle when I minister with my dusty insecurities.  I turned it into worship and they were both blessed and God imparted something.  A restoration of child-like joy and worship in one and in the other a refreshing and something I’m not sure of yet.  Later on in the evening, I ministered to people at UCLA.  There was such a refreshing in that place.  God allowed me to impart a word from the Scripture.  I think that our church takes for granted the sweetness of God’s presence.  When the people at UCLA experienced it they were elated.  God is always with us but we have to ask Him to work in us.  We don’t like that sometimes.  I was a bit nervous in the beginning.  I looked around and it kind of seemed like people didn’t want to be there.  Our guys seemed liked they have enough of my crap anyway.  I broke that pattern of thought and just worshipped my heart out.  It allowed me the boldness for declaration.  I know that it blessed the hearers because it is God’s Word.