IDOK DEVOTION FOR TUESDAY, MAY 11, 2010

Praise Reports, Prayer Requests and Updates:

We’re on course!  I am fresh from listening (albeit late) to Beth Moore’s Mother’s Day message, speaking of the best gift mothers and grandmothers can give their children and grandchildren … to love the LORD our God with all our hearts and souls.    It gave me tear praises!   We are on course here at IDOK!   Click here to watch and listen.

I am most likely not the first to tell you that we cannot take the Words spoken in Scripture to Israel and make a doctrine out of it to suit us.  I say that to present to you Deuteronomy 30: 4 “if your outcasts are at the ends of the earth, from there the LORD your God will gather you, and from there He will bring you back. Yet obviously I am taking the 30th chapter of Deuteronomy and holding on to it.  Not that ABBA is OBLIGATED to do it but rather because He loves us and that’s just Who He is.   And even as Israel had to meet the obedience requirement to receive the Promises; I believe if we meet the same obedience requirement we will receive the Blessings of these verses. So Mommas and Daddies, Grandmas and Papaws if we have children and grandchildren who are out there who knows where doing who knows what, let us set our hearts, souls and minds to obediently loving GOD and watch Him go to the ends of the earth to reclaim our ‘babies’.

To review the list of names for prayer, please click here.

Beyond obligation.  I see that You are not obligated to me the same as You made Yourself obligated to Israel in this 30th chapter of Deuteronomy.  But I trust You to go to the ends of the earth to reclaim those we bring to You in obedient life altering prayer.  Thank You for the saving faith You have given us but I ask You for another level of faith here.  I ask You for life altering faith.  The kind of faith that alters me and them — all those ‘thems’ in our lives that we IDOKs and Readers bring to You again and again.  We trust You, ABBA, when we feel this and when we don’t; when we are soaring and when we are low to the ground; when we see light at the end of the tunnel and when it’s pitch black all around — You, Oh LORD are the same.  Thank You.

ABBA, represented in the list we read there are multiple needs and people.  In this moment Leslie’s list and concerns come to mind, they cover many miles and varied hurts, illnesses and potentials for harm, uncertainties, a relocation and all that entails — it’s a lot to us but as I was reminded yesterday You are able.   What is big to us is not to You,  not in the same way – these things loom large over us but You stand over it all in complete and perfect ability and authority.  And even as I say this to You it’s not even close to Who You are and what You are for us and are willing to do for us just because You are LOVE.  Thank You.   Again we pray for our IDOK Troops for their safety and well being and for their families we pray their needs will be met and each will conduct him or herself in manners worthy.

In all places and situations that our IDOKs and Readers are in this very moment, I pray they sense Your Presence.  I pray yielding to You is what each of us will do in the small and the large of life.   And this I pray in the Matchless Name of Jesus. Amen and amen.

Holy hugs till Wednesday, Ya’ll, Kat…

IDOK DEVOTION FOR MONDAY, MAY 10, 2010

Praise Reports, Prayer Requests and Updates:

As I sit to write it is way early for a Saturday morning, but today and tomorrow hold promises of much, activity; so here I am.  And I am back in Deuteronomy 30.

Verse 8.  It would be so grand to have really good words to express to you what this verse ‘feels’ like when I try it on.  “And you shall again obey the LORD, and observe all His commandments which I command you today.

It feels like ‘Ahhh’ to me.  A sigh of great relief. The sigh one gives out when after a long, long journey, you finally arrive at home.  Like the Prodigal Son in Luke 15 when he finally arrived home and discovered his father’s warm embrace.  Ahhh!   It is goooood to repent and arrive again at the place of obedience.  It’s just Ahhh!

And I have one more Ahhh before I scoot off for the weekend.

11. “For this commandment which I command you today is not too difficult for you, nor is it out of reach.

Which commandment is He speaking of?  Verse 10.   . . . if you turn to the LORD your God with all your heart and soul,

Turning to the LORD our God with all our heart and soul is NOT too difficult for us!  It is NOT out of reach for us!  That is truly Ahhh for me! To KNOW that in this mortal frame by obedience I CAN love the LORD my GOD will all that is within me — my whole heart and soul.   That my sisters and brothers is glorious!   We can love HIM with all our hearts and souls in the here and now!  Not just the sweet by and by.

How?  Verse 14. “But the word is very near you, in your mouth and in your heart, that you may observe it.

Verses 12 and 13 tell us we don’t have to run here and there for what will enable us to love Him, we only have to obey the Word we already know.  The Word we already have with in.   (And be sure when we have learned to consistently obey what we already know, He will give us more and more.)  What we need we already have!  Just embrace it.   Ahhh!

To review the list of names for prayer, please click here.

Ahhh and home again.  Thank You, ABBA.  Again, we have sat before You with our list of names and have called their names before You, asking for grace and help just where they need You.  Again, we pray for each IDOK Troop, for protection and a safe return home.  And tonight at the close of this weekend, I thank You for all the celebrating and I pray for each of our IDOKs and our Readers, asking You to give comfort and rest and peace in Jesus Name. Amen and amen.

IDOK DEVOTION FOR FRIDAY, MAY 7, 2010

Praise Reports, Prayer Requests and Updates:

In order to make our prayer list more effective and for me to more responsibly care for it I have begun a renewing and removing policy.  Your Prayer requests are welcome to remain on the list for years — some have been and that is good — however, as I daily review the list I will now be removing requests (IDOK Troops are exempt from this time frame) after one month unless you advise me the name needs to remain on the list longer.  I trust this is honoring to the LORD and will inspire me to be more attentive to our prayer needs.

For this season our my life Deuteronomy 30 has become one of my favorite passages of Scripture.  My love for it began growing in particular when I began to pray verse 6 for myself and my descendants (family).   Read along with me and you’ll see why.

6. “Moreover the LORD your God will circumcise your heart and the heart of your descendants, to love the LORD your God with all your heart and with all your soul, so that you may live.

I can think of nothing more wonderful and more desirable for my family and myself than for us to love JESUS with all our hearts and souls.   Oh my goodness!  I cannot tell you how ‘sickeningly’,  obnoxiously happy I would be to have all my descendants from here to eternity to be head over heals, out of their ‘natural’ minds in love with JESUS!  Oh my gosh! Make it so LORD! Make it So!  And not just them but me too!  Me too!  Okay, calm down here, Girl!  Before you think I am looking to be so heavenly minded that I am no earthly good — Certainly I want my family to be ‘successful’.  I want their needs to be abundantly fulfilled and even their wants!  And it can happen!  BUT.  And it’s a BIG But!   There’s one way for this ‘so that you may live’ to happen to them (and to me) and please don’t tell my ‘younguns’ what I am praying  for them!

Do you see the 7th word in the verse?  C- I-R-C-U-M-C-I-S-E.  Circumcise.  We  know what that means, don’t we?  PAIN! If our baby boys could talk they would tell us — oh but they do — when this procedure is going on they scream as loud as their little lungs will force air  out of them.  And who could blame them?!!  However, do we beseech the doctor to do this procedure on our sons because we hate them, because we delight in inflicting excruciating pain upon them? HEAVEN FORBID!  We do it because we covet health and life for them.   I am pleading for health and life for my sons, daughters, granddaughters, grandsons, me, my beloved and on and on from here to eternity.   The thing is I know there is  only one way for us to have this ‘so that we may live’.  And that is by the cutting away (circumcision) of everything within us  and around us that hinders us from loving the LORD our GOD with all our hearts and souls!

Sobering, isn’t it?  Like I said — please don’t tell my children I am praying this for them!  You know I’m just kidding — they read this too.  I love you, Babies.  I REALLY do!

Perhaps another day we will look at more of the chapter.  It is truly a chapter of comfort and blessing IF we are exercised by it!

To review the list of names for prayer, please click here.

Oh my goodness, ABBA, it has taken some time to get this on the screen and it is not as it began; it’s so much better.  Thank You. Thank You.  And I pray LORD, make it so.  Make it so!  Please, please take that holy scalpel of Yours and go to work on us … me first.  I know You have already.  Don’t let up, don’t let up.  I praise You so for loving us!!

Today in Baldwin Square for National Day of Prayer was so good.  I so enjoyed talking with You there.  It was so good to love on You and worship You.  And James, he sang so beautifully.  Thank You.   Thank You for my Pastor, for each Minister You have given me at Satsuma First.  You know my heart for this Body of Believers – circumcise our hearts, Holy Spirit,  and make us a church that honors You wherever we traverse this planet.

I’ve called again the requests on our list to You; thank You so much for this privilege and thank You for what You are doing in the lives of each of them.  Thank You for taking care of our IDOK Troops too and from time to time let us hear from them, how they are and ways they are experiencing You.   Again I pray for peace and protection for Israel – for them to KNOW You, JESUS.   And again today I pray for this Nation, forgive us LORD, grant to us more mercy, more grace and space to repent.  Bring revival to Your Church here in America.  And, ABBA, I pray too for my sisters and brothers in countries and lands far from me, especially those who are experiencing persecution.  I pray their faith and devotion will not fail and thank You that You are rewarding them in ways we cannot imagine and that every suffering they endure – You are making it worth it all.

And thank You that Gracin is doing so well.  Amen and Amen, LORD, in Your Holy Name I pray.