Carla had today off, guess where she was in this good weather?

She has her tomato seeds in her little ‘green houses’ germinating in the light coming in via the living room window.  She has some peas already planted as well as some lettuce.

She is once again playing in the dirt!

Jeremiah 29:11-13  For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, saith the Lord, thoughts of peace, and not of evil, to give you an expected end.

¹² Then shall ye call upon me, and ye shall go and pray unto me, and I will hearken unto you.

¹³ And ye shall seek me, and find me, when ye shall search for me with all your heart.

When we go through the Old Testaments we find many promises to individuals that apply to Jew. 

But those promises are only to His people.  Others think that because God is a forgiving God that He will ignore their beliefs about Him and His Word and answer their prayers.

Now, I don’t doubt their passion when they are praying for a sick loved one or some other calamity.  We often see someone driven to their knees out of fear, but that doesn’t mean God is going to listen or heed their prayers, and it doesn’t mean that He will honor their desires.

Then shall ye call upon me, and ye shall go and pray unto me, and I will hearken unto you.

They take these verses out of context and believe that the promise is to all that pray – they forget there is more to it than that.

And ye shall seek me, and find me, when ye shall search for me with all your heart.

As Christians we are fortunate because we are joint heirs with Jesus.  The faith of our Jewish brethren, the promises made to them is also ours because of our relationship with God through Jesus Christ.

But it comes with a price, not only the sacrifice of Christ, but the dedication God wants from us; the sincere desire to serve Him with all of our heart.

Throughout both the Old and New Testament, God has given us the terms of our relationship with Him.

It doesn’t change, it doesn’t matter what nationality we are, what color of our skin, what our age is, where we live, what we do for a living it just doesn’t matter – what matters, AFTER the acceptance of the New Covenant in Christ, is that we give Him all of our heart, all of our service that His Glory and Love will be seen by others.

When a non-believer is forced to his knees, we can pray with them, we can grieve with them, but we should also (with kindness and love) share the need to come to God, not just on their knees but with a heart that wants to serve Him.

Not as a promise of ‘god, if you do this, then I will do that’ but an understanding that sins must be confessed and forgiven and the sincerity of the heart towards God, not towards the concerns we have, is the primary force in our life.

Mathew 15:8 This people draweth nigh unto me with their mouth, and honoureth me with their lips; but their heart is far from me.

May that never be said of us.

Instead, may our cry be  

Mathew 22:37 Jesus said unto him, Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind.

Later, Art :-)