Press On (again)

IDOK DEVOTION FOR TUESDAY, JANUARY 19, 2010

Press On

I am scheduled to be awake and on my way in the morning at an obscene hour and today I played with grand-babies; so tonight I shall be very brief!

Philippians 3: 13 Brethren, I do not regard myself as having laid hold of it yet; but one thing I do:  forgetting what lies behind and reaching forward to what lies ahead,   14 I press on toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus. [source]

These two verses contain a worthy goal and the means to get there.  The goal is to fulfill the call of God upon us and the means to do it is Press On, leave yesterday in yesterday and tomorrow to tomorrow.  And, today, practice living in His Presence!  As our beloved Brother said I say, I’m not great at it yet, but I’m getting better.   And you are too if you have left your yesterday behind, you are trusting Him to take care of your tomorrow and in the present, you are enjoying in His Presence.

ABBA, of all the things I can think to ask for our IDOKs and our Readers in this moment is that we will enjoy and make it our business, our main and foremost business, to live in Your Presence.  Thank You that I am learning and I am believing that these are learning too.  Again I am asking You to reveal the cause of _________ pain and to give her a remedy and restore her to health.  And I am asking for You to pour out Your Presence upon  every woman and man that is seeking You .  I ask You Holy Spirit to show up and show out, to stir up and shake us up so we will no longer be complacent women and men but holy women and men who are compassionate servants and who carry Your anointing to every corner of our worlds.   I pray for every name that may be spoken here and I ask You to comfort them, give hope and courage and wisdom and meet every need according to what is best, Your Best, for each one.   I pray for our IDOK Troops for their safety in spirit, soul and body.  I pray for America that we will yet repent; that the voices of the godly will yet be heard and the voices and deeds of the ungodly will be repented of.    I pray for the preservation of Israel, for peace and for their enemies to be subdued.  And, ABBA, all the things on our minds, sort the stuff out for us, correct us, comfort us and set our feet to the path You have for each one of us.  And we ask it all in the name of Jesus. Amen and amen.

Kathie

Post Script on Friday, August 23, 2013: I read these and I often think who is this woman? I want to be like what she writes!

The Last Thing (again)

IDOK DEVOTION FOR WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 20, 2010

The Last Thing

I’m just going to put this one out here just like it came to me way early this morning. The Last Thing our children and grandchildren need is for them to see us being unfaithful to the Scriptures.

Hebrews 10: 23 Let us hold fast the confession of our hope without wavering, for He who promised is faithful. 24 And let us consider one another in order to stir up love and good works, 25 not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together, as is the manner of some, but exhorting one another, and so much the more as you see the Day approaching.  [source]

In a Kathie Whitestone Thompson paraphrase: we better be walking the talk at home and in a Bible Believing, preaching Local Assembly (Church)!  The LAST THING we should be doing in the days before THE DAY is failing to LIVE the Scriptures.  It’s not just the world at stake here, it’s our ‘babies’ and our ‘grandbabies’.  So we have to ask ourselves what Scripture passages am I not consistently living?  The key word is consistently – not perfectly, but diligently and faithfully refusing to compromise what we know He has commanded us to do and, yes, to not do too. 

My Dear Sisters and Brothers, it’s been a long day.  Let’s pray.  We love you all.

ABBA, You are so good to me!  Thank You for this Word to us today and I am asking You to gently or firmly confirm this Word to us individually and to do so in such a way that there is no room for doubt just what portion of Your Word we, individually, are not faithfully living.  I ask You to make it so uncomfortable for us that we will not rest until we confess and cease to transgress Your Commands.   Thank You, Holy Spirit, for watching over Your Word to confirm it and make it alive in us.  Thank You for the promises You have given us, both the conditional ones and the unconditional ones.  Thank You that we can ask anything of You and according to Your will, You will do it.    And so, ABBA, according to Your Will we ask that You minister and tend to every person whose name may be spoken here.   We pray too for our IDOK Troops, for their safety and protection in spirit, soul and body and for their safe returns home.    I pray Your People will find their voices and places to stand and serve You and this great nation called America.  I pray, You will bless the people of America with conviction.  Lord, I am asking You to be merciful and convince this people of sin, of righteousness and judgment to come if Your Gift of Salvation in Christ Jesus alone is refused or neglected. I ask for Peace for Israel and that You will subdue all their enemies in the Mighty and Holy Name of Yeshua.  Amen and amen.

Kathie

As a Post Script over three years later; this Word is fresh again and I need it!!

Seventeen and Prison Cells (again)

IDOK DEVOTION FOR THURSDAY, JANUARY 21, 2010

Seventeen and Prison Cells

Genesis 39:1 Now Joseph had been taken down to Egypt.  And Potiphar, an officer of Pharaoh, captain of the guard, an Egyptian, bought him from the Ishmaelites who had taken him down there. [source]

Can we by any stretch of our imaginations visualize how Joseph was feeling standing there on the slave block?  Let us recall that Joseph was about 17 when his brothers ‘gifted’ him with a ticket to Egypt.  Seventeen and previously rich.  Seventeen and the favored son. Seventeen and a former clothes horse, we might say; remember that coat of many colors that ONLY he had.  Seventeen and a dreamer of dreams that he did not keep to himself; which contributed to landing him on the slave block. What emotions do you imagine were coursing through his veins?  Do you think he ever asked God, why?  Do you think he would have understood if God had answered him immediately? Let us step into Joseph’s shoes when we are asking ‘Why, God, why’? As we read Joseph’s story, we can readily see the why God why for Joseph.  And I dare say one day when we look back over our lives, when this present circumstance (story) is told, we too will see why God why.  But for now, let us choose to take comfort and find strength the way Joseph did.Verse 2: The LORD was with Joseph . . .  .   Verse 5: . . . the LORD blessed . . . for Joseph’s sake; and the blessing of the LORD was on all that he had in the house and in the field. [source]

This GOD who loved/loves Joseph loves YOU (and me) no less than He loved (loves) Joseph.  Will HE do less for YOU (or me) than HE did for Joseph? Not if we will set our minds and our souls to obey Him.  Read more about Joseph.  Read how he obeyed.  Read how ABBA responded to Joseph’s obedience.  We might learn something and we just might garner some motivation to do likewise, even from our own ‘prison cells’.
Remember! Remember the Last Thing our children and grandchildren and we ourselves need is to compromise, neglect and fail to LIVE SCRIPTURE.
Romans 12:19 (New King James Version) 19 Beloved, do not avenge yourselves, but rather give place to wrath; for it is written, “Vengeance is Mine, I will repay,” says the Lord. [source]
And tomorrow maybe we will be blessed with another verse to ask ourselves are we obeying this consistently. 
ABBA, It’s been a fruitful day, I think and I am grateful.  Thank You.  I pray now that You will use the words on this page to minister to the minds and souls of our IDOKs and Readers.  I pray Your Word will empower us and change us for Your glory and our good.  I pray for a compelling will to love You and live Your Word.   And we pray for friends and family and the many needs of our people listed here; that each one will receive from You what they are hoping and praying for and if that is not Your Will, we expect for them better than they are praying.   We pray for our IDOK Troops, for their safety and protection; for peace of mind too and safe and sound returns home — please, LORD.    And as I put this edition to ‘bed’ I ask You to quiet and give rest to each one on this email list and to any that will stop by the webpage – You know who that will be even now and I pray for them that You will minister to them then and now.  That now, tonight, they will rest and be refreshed and that in the morning when they awaken You will be first on their minds and Your Holy Name, giving You praise will be the first words they utter.  Thank You, ABBA.  We love you too.

Kathie

1 John 4:19 (New King James Version) 19 We love Him because He first loved us.  [source]