The Sweetest Frame

2 Chronicles 31: 20 Thus Hezekiah did throughout all Judah, and he did what was good and right and faithful before the Lord his God. 21 And every work that he undertook in the service of the house of God and in accordance with the law and the commandments, seeking his God, he did with all his heart , and prospered. Lord, thank you for good examples. Help me to seek you with all of my heart.

I bet Pharaoh was one intimidating guy. Wealthy, wise and powerful. I'm sure he could probably end your life with a word if he so chose. All the more reason I'm impressed with the Hebrew midwives... Exodus 1:15 Then the king of Egypt said to the Hebrew midwives, one of whom was named Shiphrah and the other Puah, 16 “When you serve as midwife to the Hebrew women and see them on the birthstool, if it is a son, you shall kill him, but if it is a daughter, she shall live.” 17 But the midwives feared God and did not do as the king of Egypt commanded them , but let the male children live. It's natural to be afraid of Pharaoh - but it's wise to be more afraid of God. Lord, give us the boldness of the Hebrew midwives. Help us stand up for the life of the unborn.

I think we've found some insider jargon for our morning study group. The next time we hear anyone complaining or arguing we' re going to holler at them "214." I wonder what kind of reaction we'll get? Philippians 2:14 Do everything without complaining or arguing, Wanna join the fun? Start using 214 whenever you hear complaining and arguing and see what happens. This may be the beginnings of a movement. :)

Passing along this thought provoking post from Jared at the Gospel Driven Church... We want to go to a place with ample parking that hands us a latte for free as we enter the doors. We want to sit in a comfortable chair that vibrates. We want a poppin' band. We want to see fog. And a laser light that draws the shape of a cross in the fog. We want a good singer to sing comforting things to us as we listen admiringly. Then we want an energetic speaker to alleviate our fear of the bad economy and inspire us in no more than 20 to 22 minutes. Then we want to leave without being bothered, have our retinas scanned to pick up our kids, and watch them slide down the slide out of the Kidz Playz having heard a lesson from no less than SpongeBob SquarePants himself on obeying parents and not lying. And if we feel like it, we want all that all over again in a week. That's evangelicalism. Read the rest here ...

It's been a rough couple of weeks for some of my friends and family. I've been down, because they have been down. But today's reading brings a sense of hope... Psalm 55: 22 Cast your burden on the Lord , and he will sustain you; he will never permit the righteous to be moved. Lord, I'm so thankful for your invitation to throw our little burdens into your huge hands. Thank you for sustaining us in the midst of any circumstance. You truly are our Rock.

Most of us are familiar with the phrasing from Isaiah 6 that says... 1 In the year that King Uzziah died, I saw the Lord seated on a throne, high and exalted, and the train of his robe filled the temple. The Lord is high and exalted in Isaiah's vision. But something that I never paid attention to before showed up in 2 Chronicles 26 where Uzziah is in the temple to burn incense: 16 But when he (Uzziah) was strong, he grew proud, to his destruction. For he was unfaithful to the Lord his God and entered the temple of the Lord to burn incense on the altar of incense... 19 Then Uzziah was angry. Now he had a censer in his hand to burn incense, and when he became angry with the priests, leprosy broke out on his forehead in the presence of the priests in the house of the Lord , by the altar of incense. 20 And Azariah the chief priest and all the priests looked at him, and behold, he was leprous in his forehead! And they rushed him out quickly, and he himself hurried to go out, becaus...

Who in their right mind would ever abandon eternal life? Well it appears some of the Jews did (obviously not with a godly mind, but a blind, carnal one) Acts 13: 44 The next Sabbath almost the whole city gathered to hear the word of the Lord. 45 But when the Jews saw the crowds, they were filled with jealousy and began to contradict what was spoken by Paul, reviling him. 46 And Paul and Barnabas spoke out boldly, saying, “It was necessary that the word of God be spoken first to you. Since you thrust it aside and judge yourselves unworthy of eternal life , behold, we are turning to the Gentiles. Lord, give us wisdom as we witness.

How should we credit God when bad things happen? Hit a homerun? Score a Touchdown? Escape a bad wreck? Just miss being involved in an accident? God seems to often get praise for these things. Make an error at second base? Fumble? Break your leg in an accident? Lose a loved one? Where's God in these events? This CNN article had quotes from two passengers who were supposed to be on the flight 3407. Here's one of the quotes... "I'm still in shock, really," said the 49-year-old Becony, a Catholic. "God was looking over me." Sometimes I'm too cynical, but my first thought was - what about the other 49 people? Was God not looking over them? How can we thank God when he is gracious to us, and still recognize His sovereignty when terrible things come our way? We don't want to come across as blaming God, but in some ways, if he gets the credit, shouldn't he get the blame? If you had one of the victim's families in your church as well ...

Sometimes we just have to remind ourselves of what we already know to be true. Psalm 43:5 Why are you cast down, O my soul, and why are you in turmoil within me? Hope in God ; for I shall again praise him, my salvation and my God. Hey. Self. Trust in God. What do you find yourself telling yourself about God?

If you are a worship leader, you might like this week's Church Laugh from CT...

Ok Men, here's some good advice from Johnny and Chachi. I can't believe the words "good advice" and Johnny and Chachi are in the same sentence. Anyway - I hope you enjoy this.

I've received some important documents from some important people, but I don't think I've ever received anything from angels... Luke 7:51 “You stiff-necked people, uncircumcised in heart and ears, you always resist the Holy Spirit. As your fathers did, so do you. 52 Which of the prophets did your fathers not persecute? And they killed those who announced beforehand the coming of the Righteous One, whom you have now betrayed and murdered, 53 you who received the law as delivered by angels and did not keep it. ” These wicked men refused the gift of God as delivered in the law. The unfortunate thing is that we have received the Word of God in Christ and we neglect it. Think about it. We live looking back at the cross. We have all of the evidence that Christ is the Messiah. Yet we still lack faith. Lord, we believe. Help our unbelief.

Love this... Acts 2:22 “Men of Israel, hear these words: Jesus of Nazareth, a man attested to you by God with mighty works and wonders and signs that God did through him in your midst, as you yourselves know— 23 this Jesus, delivered up according to the definite plan and foreknowledge of God, you crucified and killed by the hands of lawless men. 24 God raised him up, loosing the pangs of death, because it was not possible for him to be held by it . Death had no chance of holding down Christ. It has no chance of holding down the believer, either. Thank you Lord for the resurrection.

Really enjoying the Desiring God Pastors' Conference . If you have some time, check out Matt Chandlers message on the Unregenerate Sheep.