Mannaword

Tonight is our regularly scheduled Psalm 19 Ministries Fellowship Meeting and I am speaking. So I thought I would just put a preview of what I have in my heart to present, and then follow up on it a bit in the next few days. So those of you who choose to read, can have some idea of what I have taught.

“Entering into Finished” is an unfolding from the Scriptures of three passages. First, let me explain what I mean by “unfolding.” When the Lord in His graciousness, allows me to see and understand something in Scripture that I have not studied, nor read, then it is an “unfolding.” It always just unfolds out of the Word. It is not gained by scholarship, however, if it is a true unfolding, then scholarship will support it and enhance the ability to explain the understanding. It is always out of the Word. It is not a product of a clever mind, or some mystical experience. It is the Word in dimension form. I will try to explain my understanding of that further in the coming days.

There are three passages that have caught my eyes and my heart. The first is Genesis 2: 1-2, “Thus the heavens and the earth were finished, and all the hosts of them. And on the seventh day God finished his work that he had done, and he rested on the seventh day from all his work that he had done “ Here God rested because He was finished. The creation was complete and nothing needed to be added, so He rested. One of my Bible College teachers said “God rested because He was finished, not because He was tired.”

The second passage is an obvious one. John 19:30 “When Jesus had received the sour wine, he said, ‘It is finished,’ and he bowed his head and gave up his spirit.” Once again we hear “finished” knowing our Lord had many dimensions in mind, but the immediate one is the salvation of our souls. He had done all. Fellowship would now be possible from the Father’s heart in my own — all because He did the work and finished all that needed to be done.

The third passage is Hebrews 3:16-4:13. I will not try to write that one out for you. But do take the time to read it for your own enrichment. Our time tonight will be spent is the discovery of the by-products of “entering into finished.” See what the Lord unfolds for you, and then check back for some of what we discovered.

Blessing your day in Him. Thanks for reading.

My oh my! It has been a couple of weeks since I have written on my blog! So sorry to those of you who diligently check. Busy, busy would describe the time for me. You too, I imagine. Easter is a very busy time, and then the next week-end I was the main speaker at our Psalm 19 Spring conference. So on and on it goes, and now it is two weeks later. Thanks for “tuning in.”

I want to talk about resting for a bit. It seems to me that those of us who speak and teach, have a tendency to teaching a lot about “doing” and “thinking.” We have a sincere desire to help those who listen with the how-to’s of obedience. However, the more I read our Lord’s word and the more I soak in His presence, the more I find an emphasis on “resting.” Just plain ole’ trust.

In the word, it seems to be more about what we trust, than it is about what we do. Our Lord Jesus said, “Come unto me all you who are weary and heavy laden, and I will give you rest, take my yoke upon you and learn of me for I am meek and lowly in heart and you shall find rest unto your souls.” That is in Matthew, then in Hebrews 4, we are told that there remains a Sabbath rest, for the people of God.

It is a vast subject, but very revealing in our lives. When we rest we trust and rely on His word, then we find there arises an empowering to be. In that “being” we do and that “doing” is always obedience. Obedience ends up as a by-product of the “being” at rest in Him. Stress to obey, somehow leaves grace behind, and places the emphasis on “us” instead of “Him.”

It seems to me to be an early revelation of Jesus Christ when the Father rested on the seventh day — because He was finished. Hebrews 4 carries the same concept about our being finish when we enter the rest of God.

We would probably all agree that happens when we become Christians. However, for some reason, we lose that emphasis when we begin to live in Him. I think we need to re-look, and re-think, and once again, enter into the finished work by coming to rest. It is after all, His work, and His Kingdom, and His life. Or did we forget that in our working?

Just some thoughts. What think ye?

It is a busy week for us, but a good week of remembrance in Jesus Christ. He is remembered throughout the week with various activities in the traditional church, and those of us not considered traditional, enjoy it as well. I say “enjoy,” and maybe that is not the best term, but I always enjoy an “on purpose sharing time” with our Lord. He is awesome and ready to allow us to remember and experience a time of concentration in His ways of sacrifice and servant.

I am the CEO of an interdenominational Bible teaching ministry, and as such, am exposed to the multi-dimensional expressions of the larger Body of Christ. On Good Friday, I am one of the presenters in a series (there are 6 of us) on the last 7 sayings of Christ. This will be in a Bible-believing, Spirit-filled, Anglican Church, and then later in the evening my own ministry will present a program involving our classical choir, worship ensemble, and me preaching. I appreciate your prayer for an effective time interdenominationally — loving the Lord together, and accepting one another in that love — all of this through the Word.

I love this time of the year. One of the ladies in my local church said to me yesterday, “Iris, Easter is much more exciting to me than Christmas.” I agreed with her. If we did not have a resurrection morning, then Christmas would not have the meaning it does for us. Our Lord came to die, to redeem, to give life through and beyond the grave. Our Good Friday times heighten our ability to receive the wonderful good news of Resurrection! How I praise Him!

I pray your week is one of enjoying Him and remembering how deeply and thoroughly He loves.

It has been way…..too long since I have posted some data on this blog. Well, since my Pastor asked me to teach the mid-week service at church tonight, as he is out of state, I will write a portion of what I will be teaching.

The main body of the teaching is to be the 23rd Psalm, with understandings pulled from the New Testament to see the consistent love our Father provides for us.

“YHWH is my Shepherd (or one who tends or takes care of me). Everything that follows is contained in that concept. The meaning of the Name, YHWH, is expanded into eight separate conceptual understandings as the Psalm progresses. Each of these are usually understood by the “Jehovah”(-“Roi” — The LORD is my Shepherd”) names throughout the Old Testament. Each of the eight revealed here unfold for us YHWH’s very nature. He acts out of His nature. (That is the true meaning of Hebrews 13:8 “Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever.” NASB He is always consistent — always doing and moving out of who He is, never contrary to Himself).

“I shall not want.” Some recent translations use “I lack nothing” which supplies the true meaning of the passage. With YHWH as my shepherd, I cannot possible lack anything. This is very foreign to our modern understanding. We might teach that we say this by faith, and that is true, we do, however, it is intended to be a way of thinking and a way of “being” for us.

The same thought is used by the Apostle Paul in Philippians 4:10-14. He is rejoicing that the Philippians have been able to send provisions for him in his ministry, then he makes this statement, “Not that I speak from want, for I have learned to be content in whatever circumstances I am.” We spend all kinds of effort trying to learn contentment, and in that process, we have missed the point of the passage. The point he was making was He did not lack anything! He knew how to be without any need, because as he states in 4:13 “I can do all … through Christ who strengthens me.” He understood that with Jesus (YHWH-Saves) He did not have any lack. Contentment is the by-product of not having any needs or want because of Christ.

It is an understanding of believing the Lord — in the face of circumstances. Everything boils down to who do I trust and who do I believe. With YHWH as my shepherd, that is all. Nothing else needs to be dealt with — He will do out His abundant nature. This does not mean, we don’t communicate with Him about perceived needs, it just means we do that then trust Him and live in the reality of His nature and therefore His provision, not in the reality of our senses. This is a life of faith.

What a marvelous journey this “faith-walk” continues to be to me. I realize there are many journeys of faith to enter into the above with life, not just words, but each time I have made that journey I have found Him more than enough!

Blessed be His wonderful Name!

Well it’s Sunday evening and I have had a wonderful week. Part of its goodness has been the discovery of several very good blogs. I am enjoying the people I am meeting. It is rich to be able to discuss issues that matter with new people. This is especially true when the discussions are by thoughtful, caring, Christian minds.

Our minds are a very great treasure. We are instructed in the Word that the Word will transform them into tools that can and do think with God. That is absolutely awesome! I have several friends whose minds are being transformed, and I am amazed at the quality of their insightful work and the Biblical lives they lead. Wouldn’t it be wonderful if the entire Body of Christ got just a little glimpse of what would happen if we really did what we talk about, and read the Word expecting our minds to not only understand, but actually begin to think differently?

Combine that habit with a valid “prayer closet� time with our Beloved Lord, and our behavior would begin to experience Romans 8 instead of Romans 7. Radical Christianity would become the norm as we learned to hear His voice clearly and became invested in the breath of the Spirit. The issues within the Body would evolve into actions that would really address the needs of our lost world while the good news of Jesus Christ would be our first thoughts to talk about with all.

Dreaming? Just a bit. But why not? It is what we teach and supposedly believe. There is really only one answer – might as well bend the knee to Him and begin to do what we talk about in church.

Thanks for reading. I will put some of those good blog addresses on my site, when I learn how. I am such a beginner that it’s a bit scary. But I will learn. At least I will try.

Have a good week. Would love for you to leave a comment.

“The earth and everything in it, the world and its inhabitants, belong to the Lord; for He laid its foundation on the seas and established it on the rivers.” Psalm 24:1-2 Holman Christian Standard Version.

I am always awe-struck with the overwhelming beauty of Niagara Falls, whenever I am there. I took this picture in the winter of ’03 from the Canadian side looking down the river. What awesome majesty is displayed in just the grandeur of the creation! How awesome He is to allow us to see just a portion of His wonderful beauty through the creation. Enjoy the picture, and most of all enjoy the Lord Jesus as creator and upholder. For indeed He is all that and much, much more.  

Obedience — a Gateway

As I walk my life out in the love of our Lord, I am noticing an interesting phenomenon. We are taught that “blessings follow obedience� and certainly in the Old Covenant that was a prominent part of the understanding. However, in the New Covenant, I find that we are blessed immeasurably just by being in Jesus Christ, and obedience is empowered in His Spirit. We obey out of blessing. Now, blessing upon blessing flows, but our purpose in obedience should never be to receive, but to enjoy His delight. That is “receiving� in its truest sense.

Now, that “interesting phenomenon� I mentioned above is seen when obedience occurs because of the delight in relationship with our Lord’s heart. Gates begin to open when they had seemed closed. As I choose to obey what is before me to obey, the gates about that open and release more and more empowerment in obedience. This is wonderful, and very interesting to me. It works almost like those computer games, which have “keys� that open to other types of games within the game.

This very morning I was encouraging one of my students on the phone to begin the task that was before them and then the “inspiration� would flow for the completion of the task. This is very true in writing. I may think I know what I am to write, but then just let me begin, and matters begin to unfold that I had no idea would been seen on paper. We think we must have it all mapped out (like our English teachers taught us to do – outline etc…), but really, if we will only sit at the computer and begin, it will flow into manifestation. It may need to be rearranged or rewritten many times, but if we will begin to write, pouring out our heart, it will take a shape of its own, and the Lord Himself oversees the matter.

So as we choose to walk in obedience let’s expect the Lord to empower our movement. It (whatever ‘It� is or needs to be) will begin to flow through open “gates� that lead us to joy in Him. So begin to obey that matter you know you should. Do not discount it as a “shoulda� and refuse to begin. Just begin. Even if there are several starts and stops. Just begin and watch the faithfulness of our Lord deliver for you on every hand. He loves to open gates. Let Him.

Light Be!


“Light be!â€� (Heb. Literal)  These are the first words spoken by our God in the beginning, according to the record in Genesis 1:3.  They are words of life, words of prophecy, words of comfort, words of hope and words of revelation.

They are words of life; for we know in the natural, there can be no life, if there is no light. We must have light, and in fact, the light of the sun, for all to be sustained. So the initial words of God are about light. Jesus is our light in the spirit realm. “Again Jesus spoke to them, saying ‘I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will not walk in darkness, but will have the light of life.’â€� (John 8:12) The very first words from our Heavenly Father were in fact, a manifestation of Himself through the person of Jesus Christ. “He was in the beginning with God. All things were made through him, and without him was not any thing made that was made. In Him was life, and the life was the light of men.â€�(John 1:2-4)  

So we see that every word of God is prophetic in its very nature. Whatever He says is and will be. It is always a continuum, forever rolling throughout the ages in truth and revelation about Him.

These are words of comfort and words of hope for they are first spoken against a background of darkness and formlessness. The Word, Jesus Christ our Lord, is the hope and comfort of all whose lives are full of emptiness and darkness. He is always the one who will come, fill and bring light to dark places, redeem the hopeless and fill with direction the chaos that constantly and consistently surrounds us.

They are words of revelation for without light there can be no “seeing� and no understanding. All through the Scriptures, our God is constantly opening hearts and minds to perceive Him. He sheds light, first on a formless dark physical world, then into each and every heart that will allow that light to come. His Word is a veiled book. Only with the illumination of His light can we ever begin to know what He is talking about, and how the various “pieces� in Scripture fit together. Even in the Tabernacle of the Old Testament, the lampstand in the Holy Place was to serve as light unto God, to show the glory of the various pieces of furniture in the room (called the Golden Room), and then to provide light for the priest to minister unto God. This was symbolic of the role the Holy Spirit plays in our lives to bring the light of God into our walk before Him.

So as we continue our journey of life in His heart, may we constantly lean into His light within our hearts through the Scriptures, to empower us to see the footsteps before us, and the holding of His hand.

Scripture quotations are from the Holy Bible, English Standard Version, copyright © 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a division of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

Have You Not Read?

Six separate times in the book of Matthew our Lord Jesus Christ asks those around Him, “Have you not read…,� expecting the people questioning Him to have “read� the Scriptures. Their questions to Him revealed their ignorance, while they thought their questions were displaying their knowledge. They were the theological scholars of the day and had, of course, “read� the Scriptures. However, there was something missing in their reading. “For good news came to us just as to them, but the message they heard did not benefit them, because they were not united by faith with those who listened.� (Hebrews 4:2) Just reading, just studying, just memorizing, Scripture does not in itself result in a true knowledge of Jesus Christ. It is only through faith that such knowledge is received. That faith is a gift from Him, when we purposely enter into relationship with Him. (Romans 12:3c)

With that in mind, we need to understand something wonderful about “reading� the Word within the context of a personal relationship. Many in “relationship� never read the Bible through. We read favorite passages, or passages for comfort, or for a Bible study. However, we have a tendency to excuse ourselves on the basis of grace, and never love the Lord deeply enough to really find out what He has said. Our relationship with our Lord is directly related to our relationship with His Word. If there is little involvement with Word, then there is little involvement with the person we worship.

There are three disciplines we are told to have in reference to the Scriptures. They are: read, study, meditate.  These disciplines are distinct and we often try to roll them into one time period. This will not be effective. We are to read. We are to study. We are to meditate. This will take separate time periods, and separate types of mind discipline. All three of these disciplines in the life will produce the fruit of a life in Jesus.

We see this demonstrated in Proverbs 2:1-5: “My son, if you receive my words and treasure up my commandments with you, making your ear attentive to wisdom and inclining your heart to understanding; yes, if you call out for insight and raise your voice for understanding, if you seek it like silver and search for it as for hidden treasures, then you will understand the fear of the Lord and find the knowledge of God.� The chapter continues to reveal what awaits those who are serious about the Word of their God.
You will notice in the passage above that understanding, the fear of the Lord and the knowledge of God are all linked to our reading, studying, and meditating on the Word.
He awaits our serious and disciplined encounter with Him, in and through His Word. If we seek Him, He will answer. The depth of our seeking is directly related to our depth of trust in His Word. Reading the Bible through in a year is a good way to develop such a seeking heart. In a brief 15 minutes a day, the Word can be completely read. Then the matters of study and meditation come much more easily and the blessings of wisdom, knowledge and insight flow in the life. Such is the treasure awaiting all who seek.
If you would like a reading schedule that will help you read the entire Bible through in 2006, please send your request to us at psalm19ministries@psalm19ministries.org and a reading schedule will be sent to you free of any charge. We want to help you begin a disciplined and serious reading of His Word in His love. Then when He asks our heart, “Have you not read…� our answer will be “yes, my Lord, I have read.�
Scripture quotations are from the Holy Bible, English Standard Version, copyright © 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a division of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

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