If someone teaches that God does not keep score, they may have forgetten the Biblical outcome for the redeemed. The narrow way is called narrow for a reason- the difficulty of the journey is contrasted to the glory of the promise in the end. Those who are ransomed rejoice at their good fortune. – Teresa #everlastingjoy #wayofholiness

 Isaiah 35: 1-10 (ESV)

35 The wilderness and the dry land shall be glad;

    the desert shall rejoice and blossom like the crocus;

2 it shall blossom abundantly

    and rejoice with joy and singing.

The glory of Lebanon shall be given to it,

    the majesty of Carmel and Sharon.

They shall see the glory of the Lord,

    the majesty of our God.

3 Strengthen the weak hands,

    and make firm the feeble knees.

4 Say to those who have an anxious heart,

    “Be strong; fear not!

Behold, your God

    will come with vengeance,

with the recompense of God.

    He will come and save you.”

5 Then the eyes of the blind shall be opened,

    and the ears of the deaf unstopped;

6 then shall the lame man leap like a deer,

    and the tongue of the mute sing for joy.

For waters break forth in the wilderness,

    and streams in the desert;

7 the burning sand shall become a pool,

    and the thirsty ground springs of water;

in the haunt of jackals, where they lie down,

    the grass shall become reeds and rushes.

8 And a highway shall be there,

    and it shall be called the Way of Holiness;

the unclean shall not pass over it.

    It shall belong to those who walk on the way;

    even if they are fools, they shall not go astray.[g]

9 No lion shall be there,

    nor shall any ravenous beast come up on it;

they shall not be found there,

    but the redeemed shall walk there.

10 And the ransomed of the Lord shall return

    and come to Zion with singing;

everlasting joy shall be upon their heads;

    they shall obtain gladness and joy,

    and sorrow and sighing shall flee away.

Although the desolate woman has no husband she has more children than the one under the law. The law is the ruling husband of a woman in slavery. The promise frees desolate women to bear extreme fruit!- Teresa

Galatians 4;22-26 (ESV)

21 Tell me, you who desire to be under the law, do you not listen to the law? 22 For it is written that Abraham had two sons, one by a slave woman and one by a free woman. 23 But the son of the slave was born according to the flesh, while the son of the free woman was born through promise. 24 Now this may be interpreted allegorically: these women are two covenants. One is from Mount Sinai, bearing children for slavery; she is Hagar. 25 Now Hagar is Mount Sinai in Arabia;[f] she corresponds to the present Jerusalem, for she is in slavery with her children. 26 But the Jerusalem above is free, and she is our mother. 27 For it is written,

“Rejoice, O barren one who does not bear;
    break forth and cry aloud, you who are not in labor!

For the children of the desolate one will be more

    than those of the one who has a husband.”

In the day of distress, God’s steadfast love and awesome strength made David sing! As we let His love into our lives, others will be built up as well. They will hear our life’s song as we proclaim the truth of His character. Do we reflect Him to those around us? – Teresa #thisismywhy #lovemydaughter

Psalm 59: 16,17 (ESV)

16 But I will sing of your strength;

    I will sing aloud of your steadfast love in the morning.

For you have been to me a fortress

    and a refuge in the day of my distress.

17 O my Strength, I will sing praises to you,

    for you, O God, are my fortress,

    the God who shows me steadfast love.

If the fear of God is our delight, then righteousness and faithfulness encircles us with wisdom. Can we wrap our mind around His greatness?  Baby Savior grew up embracing Messiah’s mission, God’s “Word” not only created but redeemed mankind. He alone has the power and authority to reign righteously. – Teresa #shootingstar #heaventouchesearth

Isaiah 11:1-5 (ESV)

The Righteous Reign of the Branch

11 There shall come forth a shoot from the stump of Jesse,

    and a branch from his roots shall bear fruit.

2 And the Spirit of the Lord shall rest upon him,

    the Spirit of wisdom and understanding,

    the Spirit of counsel and might,

    the Spirit of knowledge and the fear of the Lord.

3 And his delight shall be in the fear of the Lord.

He shall not judge by what his eyes see,

    or decide disputes by what his ears hear,

4 but with righteousness he shall judge the poor,

    and decide with equity for the meek of the earth;

and he shall strike the earth with the rod of his mouth,

    and with the breath of his lips he shall kill the wicked.

5 Righteousness shall be the belt of his waist,

    and faithfulness the belt of his loins.

Solomon’s lover was well-versed in amorous poetry. She exclaimed the longing she felt for him with beautiful similes and metaphors. In describing how enduring true love is she says, “many waters cannot quench love neither can floods drown it”. As the bride of Christ, we also long for His presence trusting the eternal nature of His love.- Teresa #love’spreciousgift #priceless #ComeLordJesus #maranatha

Song of Solomon 8:6-10 (ESV)

6 Set me as a seal upon your heart,

    as a seal upon your arm,

for love is strong as death,

    jealousy[m] is fierce as the grave.[n]

Its flashes are flashes of fire,

    the very flame of the Lord.

7 Many waters cannot quench love,

    neither can floods drown it.

If a man offered for love

    all the wealth of his house,

    he[o] would be utterly despised.

Because of unity with Christ, we cannot break harmonious accord by also being in bed with Belial. Christ and Belial will never be melded together. Partersnip, fellowship, portion, agreement are all descriptive words indicative of  how we live with God in our midst (aka Christ). Paul warns the Corinthian church not to lose sight of these promises. Instead, we should rid ourselves of every worthless spirit that drives us from unity with Him. – Teresa #worthlessnessisBelial

2 Corinthians 6: 14-18, 7:1 (ESV)

14 Do not be unequally yoked with unbelievers. For what partnership has righteousness with lawlessness? Or what fellowship has light with darkness? 15 What accord has Christ with Belial?[a] Or what portion does a believer share with an unbeliever? 16 What agreement has the temple of God with idols? For we are the temple of the living God; as God said,
“I will make my dwelling among them and walk among them,
    and I will be their God,

    and they shall be my people.

17 Therefore go out from their midst,

    and be separate from them, says the Lord,

and touch no unclean thing;

    then I will welcome you,

18 and I will be a father to you,

    and you shall be sons and daughters to me,

says the Lord Almighty.”

7 Since we have these promises, beloved, let us cleanse ourselves from every defilement of body[b] and spirit, bringing holiness to completion in the fear of God.

 Even in a black and white photo you can see many nuances of shading or gray areas. So in the complexity of life, we can’t always discern what is or is not a “smoke screen”. God, however, keeps watch over knowledge, overthrowing a traitor’s words. In the midst of political rhetoric, those who love purity of heart and who use gracious words will find themselves trusted and in friendship with those in authority. Lastly, those who bring strife through their words, by inflicting quarreling and abuse, ask to be driven away. – Teresa #byyourfruityouareknown

Proverbs 22:10-12 (ESV)

10 Drive out a scoffer, and strife will go out,

and quarreling and abuse will cease.

11 He who loves purity of heart,

and whose speech is gracious, will have the king as his friend.

12 The eyes of the Lord keep watch over knowledge,

but he overthrows the words of the traitor.

 There are no second chances when it comes to getting too close to the edge of a slippery waterfall. Likewise, we have no second chance to obtain salvation of our spiritual body if on earth we have rejected the life giving spirit of the last Adam (Jesus Christ the Lord). The natural body is first and sown perishable, the spiritual body is second and raised to glory. It is easy to trust that Adam preceded us as a living being. Why then is it difficult to trust that Jesus Christ has made us in His image to be raised to glory? – Teresa #trustHim Romans10:9,10 #confesswithyourmouth  #believeinyourheart

1 Corinthians 15: 35-49 (ESV)

35 But someone will ask, “How are the dead raised? With what kind of body do they come?” 36 You foolish person! What you sow does not come to life unless it dies. 37 And what you sow is not the body that is to be, but a bare kernel, perhaps of wheat or of some other grain. 38 But God gives it a body as he has chosen, and to each kind of seed its own body. 39 For not all flesh is the same, but there is one kind for humans, another for animals, another for birds, and another for fish. 40 There are heavenly bodies and earthly bodies, but the glory of the heavenly is of one kind, and the glory of the earthly is of another. 41 There is one glory of the sun, and another glory of the moon, and another glory of the stars; for star differs from star in glory. 42 So is it with the resurrection of the dead. What is sown is perishable; what is raised is imperishable. 43 It is sown in dishonor; it is raised in glory. It is sown in weakness; it is raised in power. 44 It is sown a natural body; it is raised a spiritual body. If there is a natural body, there is also a spiritual body. 45 Thus it is written, “The first man Adam became a living being”;[b] the last Adam became a life-giving spirit. 46 But it is not the spiritual that is first but the natural, and then the spiritual. 47 The first man was from the earth, a man of dust; the second man is from heaven. 48 As was the man of dust, so also are those who are of the dust, and as is the man of heaven, so also are those who are of heaven. 49 Just as we have borne the image of the man of dust, we shall[c] also bear the image of the man of heaven.

Hearst castle is opulence at its finest. The indoor pool looks as beautiful as King Xerxe’s extravagant banquet was described in this passage. Although the banquet was fit for a queen, Xerxes’ party entertained only the men in his kingdom. His furious anger resulted in the fact that he was now without a queen, aroused at his own inability to impress those attending. – Teresa #angerleadstoisolation 

 Esther 1: 5-12 (NLT)

5 When it was all over, the king gave a banquet for all the people, from the greatest to the least, who were in the fortress of Susa. It lasted for seven days and was held in the courtyard of the palace garden. 6 The courtyard was beautifully decorated with white cotton curtains and blue hangings, which were fastened with white linen cords and purple ribbons to silver rings embedded in marble pillars. Gold and silver couches stood on a mosaic pavement of porphyry, marble, mother-of-pearl, and other costly stones.

7 Drinks were served in gold goblets of many designs, and there was an abundance of royal wine, reflecting the king’s generosity. 8 By edict of the king, no limits were placed on the drinking, for the king had instructed all his palace officials to serve each man as much as he wanted.
9 At the same time, Queen Vashti gave a banquet for the women in the royal palace of King Xerxes.

Queen Vashti Deposed

10 On the seventh day of the feast, when King Xerxes was in high spirits because of the wine, he told the seven eunuchs who attended him—Mehuman, Biztha, Harbona, Bigtha, Abagtha, Zethar, and Carcas— 11 to bring Queen Vashti to him with the royal crown on her head. He wanted the nobles and all the other men to gaze on her beauty, for she was a very beautiful woman. 12 But when they conveyed the king’s order to Queen Vashti, she refused to come. This made the king furious, and he burned with anger.

Ranger was like a “work horse” dog, strong and capable- he earned his keep!  This reminds me of a Biblical principle…those who preach the gospel have a right to share in the offerings of the church. Paul gave up that right so there would be no obstacle before the seeker’s heart to God. Being a tentmaker applies to many in full-time positions who not only earn their living but in addition minister the gospel as God leads. By giving up the right for monetary recompense, they trust God to love through them (beyond their natural human strength). – Teresa #nostringsattached

1 Corinthians 9: 8-14 (ESV)

8 Do I say these things on human authority? Does not the Law say the same? 9 For it is written in the Law of Moses, “You shall not muzzle an ox when it treads out the grain.” Is it for oxen that God is concerned? 10 Does he not certainly speak for our sake? It was written for our sake, because the plowman should plow in hope and the thresher thresh in hope of sharing in the crop. 11 If we have sown spiritual things among you, is it too much if we reap material things from you? 12 If others share this rightful claim on you, do not we even more?

Nevertheless, we have not made use of this right, but we endure anything rather than put an obstacle in the way of the gospel of Christ. 13 Do you not know that those who are employed in the temple service get their food from the temple, and those who serve at the altar share in the sacrificial offerings? 14 In the same way, the Lord commanded that those who proclaim the gospel should get their living by the gospel.