Author: Iris Godfrey

I am reproducing here my weekly prayer letter. I send this out weekly to all who wish to receive it. It will bring you up to date as well as share some Word. Thank you so for reading.

I am now able to type with both hands! That is really good progress in my ability to communicate. Now if I can just get some of those thoughts to co-operate and get in order – I will be able to blog something that will encourage others.

Thank you all who read here and are praying for me. I am beginning physical therapy this afternoon, so all that says is progress. I still have a way to go before I can inter-act with others much, but the meds will be lessened soon and that will enable my life cycle to adjust to itself again and not just to the timing the body needs with the medication. I appreciate your journeying with me here.

My first great grand baby is being born today. Mom is in labor as I type. Lord bring them all through this in health and safety. Baby’s name is Mackenzie – a sweet little girl.

Thank you so much for you prayers and love extended to me!

I went to see my specialist this afternoon, and all is progressing – healing – with the emphasis of “far from healed.” I am to stay on my meds according to the current dosage for three more weeks, rest and in another week begin some gently (emphasis “gentle”) therapy.

So I am making good progress. However driving while on these narcotics is not on my agenda, and I need to remain quiet and still most of the time. So basically three more weeks ahead before much change can happen in what I am doing. However as quickly as I am able to get my arm adjusted in a good typing posture, I can get back to writing and blogging.

Right now this “pecking” is all I have. I must say- it really does slow this typist down – not an altogether bad thing. I am enjoying my Lord Jesus in His word and He is showing me much I have never seen. He is so awesome!

Tomorrow morning at 11 is my sister-in-law’s memorial service. Please pray for her three grown children and their families, and especially for my brother, John. I am not be able to be at the service, but my family and many from Psalm 19 will be there.

Hi, I am Patty, Iris’ Administrative Assistant. She has asked me to bring you up to date and list three immediate prayer requests:

1) Iris’ brother, John, his dear wife went home to Jesus yesterday morning. Iris and family request your prayers for his comfort and encouragement as he walks through this time of sorrow.

2) While Iris was in John’s home yesterday, she fell breaking her upper left arm into several pieces. She is to see an Orthopedic Surgeon today. She requests prayer for a good decision as to what to do with the arm and a release from such intense pain.

3) Prayer for Lauren, Iris’ daughter, who will be doing a lot of her teachings that have been scheduled for April.

Iris so appreciates your reading here and being a part of her blog family. Either myself or Lauren will be posting to keep you up to date until Iris can type once again. Bless you for praying.

You can find the slide show for Psalm 19 Ministries’ Good Friday Service at: http://www.psalm19ministries.org >videos

Enjoy.

I do not think any of us are “naturally” the faithful type. We are fickle and flighty in our emotional make-up. Yet we are capable of being faithful, but I think that is so only in Jesus. He gives us His faithfulness and we learn to lean into that gift and allow it expression in our lives. The bountiful gift of grace that has been given to us, enfolds our person and even though we remain in-flesh, that grace gives us all that Jesus is.

What a wonderful miracle! All my inability’s enveloped into all His supernatural ones. All my failings completely overshadowed by the glory of His grace that surrounds and enfolds. Words fail me in trying to express the reality of what is occurring on a continual basis in our lives as we live in the Lord Jesus!

This lovely violet of mine is telling us all that it is “almost Spring.” My heart loves this season (body loves the warmth that is coming also). It is such a time of renewal and looking forward to green and flowers and trees and warmth and and and. It also feels like that in the Spirit. I know He is not limited to our earthly cycles, yet when we begin to feel the “up” of spring right around the corner, I think we are more open to what He is doing in us. We become expectant people – those anticipating good. So we become much more open to hearing things from the Lord. At least it seems that way.

Easter helps us. It just does. We know all about the resurrection during the winter months. It is not new to those of us with Biblical backgrounds and ministry in our blood. Yet, when Easter comes, there is an excitement that just overflows in us. This is healthy and good.

I teach that the Father thinks cyclically (based on Isaiah 55:6-11 – I may need to do a series of posts on that), so the seasons are a part of what He does. I am teaching “The Feasts of the Lord” in our Bible Institute right now, so am very aware of how the seasons of the year played a big role in ancient Israel’s life and God appointed celebrations. Even though today we are not bound by the same agriculture state of mind and limitation, yet the seasons are very good for us. And since I live in Central New York where we have all four very distinct seasons, I love them and the expression of life and rest we find in them.

So it is almost Spring! I know calendar-wise, it is already so. Yet here, it is just beginning. I will enjoy each day of it as it unfolds into summer.

We are so very privileged to be able to know the Lord Jesus, to be drawn into His heart moment by moment and then enfolded and accepted as we are. We are privileged to have our sins washed completely away by the blood of the Lamb and be graced with belonging to Almighty God through our Lord Jesus!

Those facts are just awesome in every way. I am a blessed woman! I know the above is true – all the time, but for me this morning is just is so delightful to enjoy.

Last evening I was gifted with a ticket (and the company of a friend) to see Riverdance (live) at a local theater. It was so very, very good. If you want to watch some of it, you can google the name and several items available on YouTube will come up. I have chosen not to post one here, but did enjoy watching them again. However, on camera can never do them justice. They are so very good and precise and their live music was beyond good.

Today I do have some items on my plate to get finished and I will be using the time to listen to what He will speak to me, so I will know how to order my presentations coming next month. He is so very, very faithful! Join me in praising Him and delighting in His company today.

I am studying for an hour of the Old Testament Survey Course in our Institute. I am to teach Isaiah. Lauren asked me to do this when the course began because I have taught an Institute course on the book. So I am cramming review into me this afternoon. Saved Power Points really help. (And Mac’s Keynote opens them great!)

Our Friday Fellowship went very well and we enjoyed our time of worship. Then we took apart Romans 7 & the first few verses of chapter 8. What an awesome passage. We reveled in the love of our Lord for us to rescue us from sin and to release us from “this man of death.” Then, of course, we enjoyed our time of fellowship.

I had hoped to put the teaching on my web site via the DVD uploaded to YouTube. However, my computer programs are incompatible with the DVD’s format. My husband will have to work with it in his programs to save it over to one I can work with. I am still working with this possibility. It will just take a few more steps than I had thought. Oh well. I want to be able to put them on the web to make the teaching much more available. Those of you who read, please pray that we find an acceptable way to do this.

Back to Isaiah. Tomorrow is The Feast of Trumpets – Institute Course.

The teaching last night was #4 in “Building Community.” Its title was “Expectation.” The word used in the Bible is usually “hope.” But if you search for a definition, you will find something like “What we confidently expect as a result of the power of God.” Those are my words, for us in this study – “Expectation” – what we are expecting as we build a community of faith.

I did a brief review, and I am sorry that time will not allow me to write all that here. Let me just list the names of the studies we have done over the past few months and give the main points we covered under them.

#1 – Focus; 1) Relationships are intentional (we choose) and appointed (the Lord chooses); #2 Biblical fellowship follows the pattern set for us in Scripture. We enter into the unity already in existence in the God-Head. We do not generate it, but we become a part of the fellowship of the Trinity. (John 17:13-26); 3) Biblical Communities have a focus (Acts 2:42 – apostles teaching, fellowship, food and prayer).

#2 – Belonging; 1)Priority of the Trinitarian Pattern of Fellowship – The Lord is always first; 2)In this is a shared Godly loyalty, but not the loyalty so often expected which is of flesh and brings bondage; 3)No favoritism – no cliques – no partiality. We become as He is, loving and receiving all.

#3 – Sacrifice – Emphasis on not becoming anyone’s answer. We are the Lord’s hands and feet and the Lord’s heart revealed. We must not begin to “play God” in anyone’s life. Be careful to keep your boundaries in place – do not allow flesh intimacy to become a part. Do not fashion our relationship around answering needs. Dealt with Philippians 2:1-11 and with Paul’s approach to “need” (want in some version) in Philippians 4:10-14.

#4 – Expectation; 1)Acceptance – 1 Peter 1:22-23 with an emphasis of “no hypocrisy” in our actions – no agenda’s and no manipulation to get our way or to feel like we belong. Instead develop in our time with the Lord and inward acceptance and begin to live in and out of that. That way our acceptance in the body of Christ has to do with Him and not so much (if at all) with other; 2)Enfolded – The interior disposition of belonging – learning not to be up or down as a result of people. This is done in one-on-one relationship in Jesus.; 3) Sharing – Galatians 6:2-10 learning to bear one another’s deep hardship, while expecting us all to carry our own daily trials. Once again boundaries were talked about.

We are intentional in developing progressive, God centered friendships and inter-relationships. Do not keep looking back. “Oh, I remember when it was really a lot different here…..” All such statements leave others out (partiality at work) and keep us anchored in what God did once a while ago, instead of the continual upward call of Christ Jesus which will always move us progressively forward in Him – expecting from His hand.

Our negative Biblical examples were Euodia & Syntyche in Philippians 4:2-3.
Our positive Biblical examples were Timothy and Epaphroditus in Philippians 2:19-30.

Now that is a pretty good “taste” of some of the work we did. We have one more lesson that will be in a couple of weeks. Special meeting is this next Thurs. evening. Our last class on this topic will be “Release,” the first Thursday of April.
Blessings All.