by Suellen | Project 2013: Read The Bible
II Kings 1-3
As we read through the history of Israel, every now and then we see times of great evil – almost too much to imagine coming from people who were supposed to know God. Yet during those times, we also see God move in unprecedented ways, demonstrating the reality of who He is.
Such times were those of Elijah and Elisha. They were men who walked in God’s power, and sometimes the outcomes seem strange.
I love the story about Elijah being taken up into heaven.
The kind of close walk these men had with God was not casual. They had to pursue that relationship with their whole hearts. Only someone who was fervent about the call would be able to withstand the alienation and persecution from those around them.
That’s why Elijah kept telling Elisha to stay where he was and not to follow him further. (2:2-6). It was a test to see if Elisha was intent enough on the call. Was he willing to pay the price? He proved himself worthy and he received the blessing he sought: a double portion of the anointing.
One more comment, however. Once he saw Elijah leave and once he saw the mantle being thrown to the ground, Elisha still had to pick it up. The mantle fell for him, but not on him.
That is significant for all of us. There are purposes of God on every believer’s life – some in pulpit ministry; some in marketplace ministry. But everyone has a call.
The call is there, and the mantle gets thrown to us. Yet we have to pick it up and walk with it. Our lives don’t just happen to us; we live them intentionally. We have free will.
Whatever your call, you have a choice. You may pick up the mantle and walk with it, or you may let it stay on the ground at your feet – and never fulfill what your Father has for you.
I want to pick up the mantle that is mine, don’t you? I want to live the life my Father has for me, and I want to fulfill my destiny in Him.
Luke 24:1-35
The Emmaus Road story is awesome. Jesus walks with two men on the road to Jerusalem. “Their eyes were prevented from recognizing Him,”(v. 16) but they begin sharing with Him about all that had happened concerning His death.
Then He talks: sharing with them how all of the scriptures from Moses onward had spoken of Jesus, the Messiah. He reveals to them the truth locked up in the Old Testament scriptures.
Later, after their eyes are opened and they recognize Jesus, He disappears. They say, “Were not our hearts burning within us while He was speaking to us on the road, while He was explaining the Scripture to us?”(32)
The Word was being revealed by God’s Spirit to their inner man – the hidden person of the heart. That’s why they felt it so deeply. I have had a similar experience when the Lord was speaking to me about the Word. There have been times when I would literally feel it within my being.
God’s Word is deeper than our natural minds. Our spirits – and not our minds – are equipped to communicate with our Father, and our understanding goes beyond the realm of reasoning.
That’s why, when people don’t have spirits to understand, they think that Christianity is foolishness. They are trying to understand with their minds, and that’s impossible.
When I turned my life to the Lord and became born again, the Bible came alive to me in a miraculous way. Up until that time, I had read the Bible, but had never understood it.
If you are reading the Bible and feel that you are not understanding, ask God to reveal it to you. Ask Him to reveal Himself to you through Jesus. Ask Him to take the blinders off of your spiritual eyes wo that you might see the truth.
He is ready and willing to do it, if we just ask.
![Read the Bible through, Day 15]()
by Suellen | Project 2013: Read The Bible
I hope you are enjoying your reading as much as I am. Every time we read the Bible we find something new, don’t we?
Genesis 36-38
The whole 36th chapter names the descendants of Esau. He took a turn from Jacob. Esau married wives from the inhabitants of the land and mixed with many foreign gods. (Lower case “g” intended). These aren’t “children of the promise,” but later as we see kings rise up against Israel, we will be able to trace some back to here.
I think it’s significant that three times in this chapter it says, “Esau was Edom.” (vs. 1,8,and 19). Later when we encounter the Edomites, we’ll remember where they came from.
I’m sure that all of us have Joseph on our favorites list. He is the epitome of someone who has a dream or prophecy from God, and has to wait a long time for its fulfillment.
There are lots of teachings which incorporate Joseph’s life. I think that one of the major ones is that God gave Joseph the dreams at the beginning – before he was to go through horrific trials.
I’m sure that there will be many times when those dreams keep Joseph hopeful – and on track, as his life takes such a down turn. When we leave him, he has been sold into slavery to Potiphar, the captain of Pharoah’s guard. That’s hardly what he saw in his dream, is it?
Matthew 12:1-21
Jesus has an interesting way of dealing with people. He is tough on the leaders, but very gentle on the others. We begin to see this in chapter 12.
The religious leadersof the day are arrogant and full of pride. They see their leadership roles as ones of prestige, and they expect people to hold them in high esteem because of their position.
At the same time, they are not deserving of that esteem, because they are hard task masters for the people. They hold rigidly to what they believe to be the “Law of Moses” and use that Law to intimidate and abuse their constituents.
Jesus, on the other hand, introduces them to the long-forgotten concept, “I desire mercy and not sacrifice.”
When the law is held higher than God’s people, skewed thinking always follows. When the disciples eat some grain from the field on Sunday, the Sabbath law, and not their need, is what the Pharisees think about. When Jesus heals on the Sabbath, the same happens.
Can you imagine that these leaders, instead of rejoicing over a precious man’s withered hand being healed are concerned about it being done on the Sabbath? I’m sure that in our time, such attitudes prevail from time to time.
To understand the dilemma Jesus faces here, we need to understand what the Law is all about. The Law was created for man, and not vice versa. What do I mean? When men have no standards at all, anything goes. “If it feels good, do it.”
Under that attitude, people are always hurt. When selfishness prevails, there is murder, rape, incest, abuse, stealing, you name it. It’s all there.
The Law of God was introduced to lead people to know that they needed to honor only the One true God, and that they needed to treat others well. Love God and love others.
When the spirit of the law is there, there’s clarity. When the letter of the law is there, there’s hardness and harm.
When people truly worship God, they know that He wants others healed and whole. These people rejoice with a man whose hand is healed – whenever it is.
That’s why Jesus continually says, “I desire mercy (or compassion) and not sacrifice.”(Hosea 6:6)
by Suellen | Prayer
The foundation for a successful prayer life is a relationship with Jesus, and a knowledge that He is involved in what you are doing. Only then can you believe that He hears your prayers and wants to answer them…In the words of Francis Schaeffer, He is “The God Who Is There” and “He Is Not Silent.”
In this audio, I share my story of how I came to know Him. I include some excerpts from my book, Forever Upward.
Now here’s to strong foundations for all of us.
The Foundation Of Successful Prayer
by Suellen | Project 2013: Read The Bible
On a cold winter night in 1981, I had a life changing experience with the Lord. I remember the year, because our country was going through a crisis at the time. A revolution in Iran had occurred, overthrowing the Shah, and putting the radical Islamic rulers (the same ones who threaten the world today) into power, and in the process, seizing the American Embassy. By the time of my encounter, all of the workers had been held hostage for more than a year, and there seemed to be no solution to getting them released.
That night, as I drifted off to sleep, a voice woke me suddenly. I knew that God was speaking to me, but the message seemed strange. “What if you could send a coded message to the hostages in Iran which would contain a perfect plan of escape?” I sat up in bed, pondering this unusual message. Of course, I thought that was a good idea, but the question seemed so strange. I knew it was God speaking, but I didn’t understand why he was saying that.
Then He clarified the statement. “That’s what I have done with My Word.” Suddenly what he was saying became crystal clear.
People all around the world are being held hostage by their circumstances. They may be victims of abuse, neglect, or poverty. They may have hurts, fears, and frustrations which run very deep. Anger, resentment, and bitterness may seem to rule their lives.
Yet they don’t have to stay that way, because we have been given a plan of escape. God’s Word is that plan of escape. It will point us in the direction of release from all of the negative influences which try to hold us, and it will give us the power to overcome those influences.
Some see the Bible as merely a history book; others see it as a rule book. Yet the Bible is so much more than either of those things. If we will begin to read it and ask Him to show us His plans and purposes, we will begin to see a God of unconditional love who is reaching out to us. We will begin to understand His power toward us and we will want to latch onto it.
Here’s the thing. We have to read it for it to make a difference, and we have to meditate on what we have read. It is a coded message which only God’s Holy Spirit can reveal in its entirety. As we read, pray, and listen, our eyes are opened to see realities we have never seen before.
Joshua 1:8 says it well. This book of the law shall not depart from your mouth, but you shall meditate on it day and night, so that you may be careful to do all that is written in it; for then you will make your way prosperous, and then you will have success.
There’s wisdom in God’s word and there is power. When you allow yourself to feed upon His word, something happens on the inside of you. You find your faith and confidence increasing. You also see your world view changing – coming closer to the way God sees things.
The best part is that you receive the liberating message which sets you free from the negative elements of the world around you. You are no longer a hostage to these evil forces, but you are set free – into the liberty of God’s plan.
Forever Upward!
P.S. Check out my daily Bible readings available on Amazon. As you allow the context of God’s Word to come into focus, your life will be changed. http://www.amazon.com/Soar-Bible-Through-First-Quarter/dp/150521503X/ref=sr_1_3?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1426682950&sr=1-3&keywords=suellen+estes
by Suellen | The Church Awakening
I often tell a story about my granddaughter, Lauren. When she was in second grade, as a school project, Lauren had to give an oral report on her favorite state. Since she lives in Atlanta, we were flattered that she chose Mississippi, where we live. Her accompanying prop was a white poster board with many symbols of our state. The symbols included a Magnolia blossom, items related to the zoo we visit, certain facts, and a tiny (and I do mean tiny) dot with the words “Blue Mountain,” our town. The dot and words were cut out of a map and placed right in the center of the poster.
We couldn’t help but chuckle. From the display, there was no context at all. Just a tiny dot and tiny words. There was no way of knowing where the town was located, or anything else about it – except that it was small.
I think that we are like that about the Bible sometimes. We pull verses out of the Bible and put them on the refrigerator. Without the proper context, there are times when we totally miss the meaning. The words would mean so much more if we would read them in the framework around them.
Thus my 2013 project. I want to read the Bible through with a group of people who want to discuss it. If we break it down into daily bites, it’s a doable project even for the busiest among us.
So starting January 1, we will have assignments of our daily reading. I will have a group going on Facebook and we will do it here also. I would love to have you join us. Just check in, read with us, and add your comments, if you like.
I think that 2013 is going to be a significant year for those who want to follow God. I believe that we will see many dreams come into fruition – many dreams that have seemed elusive for a long time.
Hope you can join the venture.
Many blessings, and forever upward!
Suellen
