From the Kitchen Table

The Kitchen Table            Day 37

Today’s Reading:    Ps 78:17-20, 52-55; 1 Kings 19:1-18; Rom 11:1-6

So too at the present time there is a remnant, chosen by grace. Romans 11:5

Sometimes the better question is “What are you doing here?”  It’s tempting to run and hide when things get hard and ugly, but remember, you have been chosen by grace.  Adversity precedes advancement.  Don’t let the hard, the hateful or even the humiliating cause you to hide.  You’ve been chosen by grace.  And we serve a God who calls forth rivers from a rock.  Don’t be consumed by what you see but rather convicted by what you hear.  Elijah heard the still small voice of God.  He has saved us by grace to live in grace.  We serve the God who brings rivers from a rock.

The Kitchen Table            Day 26

Today’s Reading:  Ps 78:17-20, 52-55; Ex 33:7-23; Acts 7:30-34

He struck the rock so that water gushed out  Ps 78:20

Don’t be afraid of adversity, it’s the first step to advancement.  God is advancing His cause in us and through us, adversity prepares us for the journey.  In the story of Moses, the adversity grew before the advancement gained ground.  Our enemy doesn’t want us living in God’s promises and sometimes we become content with the promise rather than in the promise.  Adversity is the opportunity for us to see our need and for us to see God meet our needs.  Moses’ parents were in the midst of adversity when they saved Moses’ life.  Moses and the nation were in desperate times when God brought water from the rock that made streams in the desert.  But adversity, if you let it, will adjust our self-reliant attitude and cause us to look for God’s saving ability in the face of our enemy.  Don’t be afraid of adversity, look to Him with the ability to advance us into His promises.

The Kitchen Table            Day 35

Today’s Reading:    Ps 2; Exodus 19:9-25; Heb 11:23-28

Serve the Lord with fear and rejoice with trembling  Ps 2:11

Sometimes God asks us to do things that are strange to us, like serving with fear and rejoicing with trembling.  Usually, fear and trembling take our minds off God rather than put our minds on Him.  But this life is lived by faith, faith in who God is and what He can do.  Faith is God serves Him as Almighty and rejoicing that we are on His side.  Moses, the Bible says, lived for God and left the Pharaoh believing in His invisible presence and power more than the Pharaoh’s visible presence and pressure.  See, man operates in terms of pressure, but God operates in terms of power.  Man intimidates but God inspires us with His mighty passion, power and presence.  Live in God’s inspiration, not man’s intimidation, and rejoice!

The Kitchen Table            Day 34

Today’s Reading:    Ps 2; Exodus 6:2-9; Hebrews 8:1-7

Blessed are all who take refuge in Him.  Ps 2:12

His promises, not our problems, shape our success.  Faith operates in terms of words.  Words are the currency of the spiritual world.  The life of Jesus is more excellent than the life of this world because the promises are more excellent than the promises of this world.  And the promises of God are more excellent because the power of God is more excellent, perfect, than the power of this world.  God operates in and through our lives with promises that we either believe or doubt.  Blessed are those who believe, who take refuge in Him.  This life operates within promises that we believe.  We make promises in marriage, family, work, banking, borrowing, bowling, and to our baseball team but so many neglect the promises of God and to God.  Don’t be afraid of promises, just be aware of the promises you believe in.  Even the enemy operates with promises that we call lies.

The Kitchen Table            Day 33

Today’s Reading:    Ps 119:9-16; Prov 2:1-15; Mt 19:1-12

For the Lord gives wisdom; and from His mouth come knowledge and understanding.          Proverbs 2:6

Understand something, the heart was created to believe.  The head is a different story, but the heart was made to live by faith.  The key to success in this life is to bring the head and the heart into agreement about life.  Where there is agreement there is authority.  Because the heart was meant to live by faith and faith operates in terms of words, we are susceptible to bad words.  Listen to the word, let them travel through the head before you treasure them in your heart.  The Lord gives wisdom and from His mouth come knowledge and understanding.  The Psalmist writes I” will delight in your statutes; I will not forget your word.”  Choose good words today!

The Kitchen Table            Day 32

Today’s Reading:    Psalm 119:9-16; Duet 23:21-24:4; 10-15;

James 2:1-13

With my whole heart I seek you; let me not wander from your commandments!  Ps 119:10

Living from your whole heart means living with your whole life.  This isn’t just a feeling, it’s a doing.  If we want to live for God with everything we have, we must give everything we have to live for God.  This life we find in Jesus isn’t just about saying the right things, it’s about doing the right things and if we say we are believers in God then there’s a need to serve as believers in God.  We protect what is precious but practicing what was promised.  Let your walk reflect your words.  God works in our lives according to our words.  This will make us think about what we say.  The words of Deuteronomy and James today remind us that our words must be reflected in our walk if we are to live in the power of God.  Speak highly and live heavenly.  Our words release God’s work in and through our lives, so must think about what we say, but not be afraid to speak.

The Kitchen Table            Day 31

Today’s Reading:  Ps 119:9-16; Exodus 20:1-21; James 1:2-8

How can a young man keep his way pure?

By guarding it according to His word.  Ps 119:9

You’re going to have to figure out what is precious and what’s not in this life and then protect what is.  It’s one of the most important duties you’ll ever have in this life.  Purity is the prize for the person of promise.  Where there is purity there will be promise, power, purpose and possibilities.  That’s what the 10 commandments guarded in Exodus 20 and what God’s word of wisdom is for in James 1.  God’s word will reveal to us what’s precious and what we can do to protect it.  Promiscuity poisons but purity protects all that is precious.  And God pardons us so that we can participate in what’s precious.

The Kitchen Table            Friday, February 14, 2020

Today’s Reading:  Ps 119:1-8; Leviticus 26:34-46; 1 John 2:7-17

Blessed are those whose way is blameless, who walk in the law of the Lord.  Ps 119:1

We must understand something, that judgment is woven into the creation of this world.  We can’t escape it.  It’s part of God’s creation.  That’s why the Bible says that we will reap what we sow.  And we can either live in the judgment of this world or we can live in judgment of this world.  We live in judgment of this world by living loving the Creator, not the creation, by living in His way not the way of this world.  Leviticus 26 says that even the sound of a rustling leaf will send the disbelieving and disobedient running, but God will not forsake nor forget those who repent of their disbelief and disobedience.  We live in what we love.  John writes, “And the world with its lust is passing away, but the one who does God’s will remains forever.” 1 John 2:17.  Remember that judgment is woven into creation.  We can run from God, but we can’t get away.  Today we can live in the judgment or in judgment.  Love God!

The Kitchen Table                      February 13, 2020

Today’s Reading:  Ps 119:1-8; Gen 26:1-5; James 1:12-16

​You’re blessed when you stay on course, walking steadily on the road revealed by God.  You’re blessed when you follow his directions, doing your best to find him.  That’s right—you don’t go off on your own; you walk straight along the road he set.  Ps 119:1-3 msg

To live in the blessings of God we must live in the blessing of God.  God’s blessing (promise) is in His word.  Again, we have a choice to make, to live in the blessings of God of the burdens of man, to live in the blessings of God or elsewhere.  There’s a famine in the land and Isaac searches for God’s wisdom on what to do.  God told Isaac that the blessing was in staying and trusting God.  Isaac did and prospered beyond his neighbors and nemesis.  The blessings are in the blessing.  Trust God by obeying Him and believing in His word,  James writes that the man who endures trials is blessed.

The Kitchen Table  Day 28                                             February 12, 2020

Today’s Reading:  Ps 119:105-112; Prov 6:6-23; Jn 8:12-30

For the commandment is a lamp and the teaching a light, and the reproofs of discipline are the way of life… Prov 6:23

Everybody needs a light for life.  We all do.  No one really knows how to live this life on their own.  We learn a lot by just living but we might spend our whole life looking before we get the chance. To live.  We need a light, someone to teach us about life and the sooner we find that light the better we can live this life.  That’s why kids need dads, churches need pastors, people need leaders and the world needs truth.  This world can be dark and damaging.  Out of love for us God sent His Son to be our light in life.  He broke the darkness of this world by letting His life be broken for our darkness.  Jesus is the light on life for everyone who believes.  He shows us how to live this life in a way that works.  You have to believe something, believe the Someone who knows how it works.