Behold, I go forward, but he is not there, and backward, but I do not perceive him; on the left hand when he is working, I do not behold him; he turns to the right hand, but I do not see him. Job 23:8-9

Job is expressing what we have all experienced—a season when God seems nowhere to be found. We sometimes express it as “my prayers seem to bounce off the ceiling.”

We look, but do not find Him. We read, but the Bible seems little more than words on a page. We pray, but don’t feel heard.  A dry season.  No matter what we do, we cannot see God in our life.

We need faith to remember with Job:

But he knows the way that I take; when he has tried me, I shall come out as gold. Job 23:10

Though we may not be able to feel or see God, He sees us.  Not a nanosecond passes that He ceases to see and care for us.  Everywhere we go, He is there even if we cannot see or sense His presence.

Where shall I go from your Spirit? Or where shall I flee from your presence?
If I ascend to heaven, you are there! If I make my bed in Sheol, you are there! If I take the wings of the morning and dwell in the uttermost parts of the sea, even there your hand shall lead me, and your right hand shall hold me. If I say, “Surely the darkness shall cover me, and the light about me be night,” even the darkness is not dark to you; the night is bright as the day,
for darkness is as light with you. Psalm 139:7-12

But you, O Lord, know me; you see me, and test my heart toward you. Jeremiah 12:3

So even though we may not see God He sees us and that is comforting to know. It is a far better and important thing that God sees us than we see God.

Be blessed today. He sees you and enjoys the view.  He delights to be your God today.

Blessings, Diane

Diane Hunt serves part-time on the staff of America’s Keswick, providing ministry support from her home in North Carolina. She is also a biblical counselor and women’s event speaker. For more information about having Diane speak at your next event please contact her at dhunt@americaskeswick.org.

Let him who stole steal no longer, but rather let him labor, working with his hands what is good, that he may have something to give him who has need.  Ephesians 4:28

This is pretty elementary — you took something and it’s not yours. You borrowed something and haven’t given it back. That’s called theft in any language. I remember when I first came to the Lord (almost 17 years ago) the thought of taking home a paper clip from work bothered me, not so much now. It’s true, yet it should bother me, and I guess considering I’m mentioning it, it does.

That’s a good thing. God’s working in me to be more like Him. Faithful in little, faithful in much. I’m paraphrasing but, yes, Luke 16:10 confirms this truth. I need to go buy some paper clips for the love of God. Yes, “for the love of God.” It’s not the cost of a paper clip that’s the issue, it’s the heart behind it.

God’s a giver, not a taker. Ephesians 4:28 talks about working what is good so that…so that…we/I might have something to give him who has need. I don’t often think that way, but I’d like to… because He does.

God so loved the world that He gave His only Son (John 3:16). No one ever has or ever will give more – He gave His only Son and took my sin.  He doesn’t use people to meet His needs. He meets our needs and sometimes He uses people to do that. What an honor to be used by God.

Thankful for HIM,

Dina

Dina Seaton has served on staff for 15 years, currently in Partner Care. She is a proud Air Force mom and loves spending time with her son wherever he is, near or far. He is truly her greatest joy.  Dina came to Christ in 2000. She loves God and wants to love Him more!

There’s a story in the Bible that really intrigues me, the story of David and Goliath. Whenever I have “giants” in my life, whenever things seem too big for me to handle, I think about how God used David against all odds.

Everybody told David that he couldn’t battle Goliath, that there was no way he could beat him. They didn’t fully believe in God’s power and capabilities… but David heard the blasphemy that Goliath was speaking against the Lord, and he was not accepting it. When Goliath told David to “Come here and he would feed [David’s] flesh to the birds and wild animals,” David said “You come against me with sword and spear and javelin, but I come against you in the name of the LORD Almighty, the God of the armies of Israel, whom you have defied” (1 Samuel 17:44-45).

All it would take is faith in what the Lord could do. David, the youngest son of Jesse, who seemingly had no special qualities about him, beat an almost-10-foot-tall giant… with one small, smooth stone. Really think about that and try to wrap your mind around it – it’s so amazing! Do we approach the “giants” in our life with the same faith that David did?

There’s another part of this story that I think is so cool, and that’s the fact that when David’s stone hit Goliath’s forehead, he didn’t fall backward. He fell face first to the ground. I’ve always wondered why that was. Didn’t that contradict the laws of physics? I think it’s because if Goliath had fallen backward, David would have gotten all the glory. People would assume that Goliath was killed by David’s strength. By Goliath falling forward, it proves that it was the LORD that conquered. The Lord got all the well-deserved praise and it was His people that won the war against the Philistines. Nothing is too hard for the Lord!

Erin Culleny serves as a Marketing Assistant and Staff Writer. She loves encouraging women through her Victory Calls and finds such joy in praying for her sisters in Christ. Her favorite activities include reading her Bible, encouraging others with scripture, buying new dresses, and eating at the Cheesecake Factory… In that order!

A cheerful heart is good medicine… Proverbs 17:22

Can you see Jesus laughing? We often think of Him smiling and giggling with children, but can we see Him laughing with the guys, or at the dinner table with friends? We all love to laugh and especially laugh with each other. It has been said that laughter is the glue in relationships. True or not, not many people want to hang around with those who have no sense of humor. Some of the most difficult relationships are the ones with people who have no joy, whose countenance is infrequently up, who are just plain dour. This just does not sound like my Jesus.

Conversely, who doesn’t gravitate to someone who can make them laugh and brighten the day? It’s as though we can actually feel the truth of the Proverb happening in our heart…that “good medicine” making life a little friendlier, a little easier to cope with. Now, that sounds like my Jesus. I have no trouble seeing Him kidding around with His friends. I enjoy the idea of Him sharing a good laugh. He was a man of the people and people love to be with people who are light of heart, people who can find delight in the day to day.

Life is hard. God knew it would be. And so, among so many other gifts He has imparted for us so that we may endure, He also gave us laughter. Warren Wiersbe said, “The ability to laugh at the right time and for the right reason is a gift from God that will do you more good than a pile of pills and tons of therapy.” There is healing in humor. Even the medical community attests to that.

Laughter joins our hearts and gives increase to friendship. Maybe it really is “relationship glue” on some level. I cherish the moments of hilarity I have shared with the people I know and love. I feel well when I laugh with them. The memories of those times make me smile…or giggle…even when I am alone.

Next time you’re laughing with a friend or family member…or just by yourself, take a second in the recesses of your mind to thank our heavenly Father for sharing that part of His character with us. It comes right from His hand. It is a treasure! Humor was birthed in heaven. We were created in His image. We love to laugh because He loves to laugh. And one day, we are going to laugh with our Jesus. We will share in His delight; share the things that bring Him amusement and joy. What grand fun that will be!

 Carol Tirondola

Carol is on staff with the Partner Care team at America’s Keswick. She and her best friend, Mario, have been married for 35 years. They have 2 sons and 2 daughters-in-law that they call their “BFFs”. They also have 7 precious gems called grandchildren. Her family has savored many memories of the heart made at Keswick over the last 35+ years and she is thrilled to now be serving on staff!

Therefore, putting away lying, ‘Let each one of you speak truth with his neighbor,’ for we are members of one another.   Ephesians 4:25

My pastor gave a message this week on Ephesians 4:25-32. He titled it “The New You.” I was greatly helped, encouraged, and convicted… all of which are good. I hope it will be good for you, too.

In reference to Ephesians 4:25, he encouraged us to be people of our word and strive for personal integrity. Repentance calls for us to put off, and in this case we’re putting off anything that makes us look deceptive. God is not deceptive, but Satan is, and of course we know he is the father of every lie, even the half-truths, and false excuses which are in fact, lies.

It gives us joy when we please God, and it gives Him joy that we do. Peace with God and God’s peace in us…bliss!

Thankful for HIM,

Dina

Dina Seaton has served on staff for 15 years, currently in Partner Care. She is a proud Air Force mom and loves spending time with her son wherever he is, near or far. He is truly her greatest joy.  Dina came to Christ in 2000. She loves God and wants to love Him more!

Be diligent to present yourself approved to God, a worker who does not need to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth. 2 Timothy 2:15

I have recently been using a number of essential oils in a diffuser and learning more about how to incorporate them in other uses in my home. Whenever we start learning something new, we need to know what tools we need and understand why and how we are to use them. I am learning a lot in this field, and I am reminded that as you and I study the Word of God, we need the right tools. We need to know why we need to use them and how to use them. In his book “Searching the Scriptures,” Chuck Swindoll shares some of the tools you may need to effectively study the Bible:

“Every home needs a dictionary. Let me add to this: you also need a Bible dictionary. This resource will identify places and names in the Bible and explain words that may be unfamiliar in our modern-day context. Words are important – they form the building blocks of spiritual thoughts. The meaning of a word has everything to do with the meaning of a sentence and the meaning of the sentence has everything to do with the paragraph. Keep a dictionary handy.

You need a concordance. A concordance is an alphabetical listing of all the words in the Bible. If you want to find the word ‘integrity’ in the Scriptures, you can look it up in a concordance and you’ll see a list of every time the word appears in the Bible. You will want to know what the Bible says on whatever topic or subject you’re studying.

You need a good set of maps. Look in the back of your Bible, and you may find several maps there. It is helpful to have a current map of the land of Israel so you can understand where the corresponding locations are today. In your study, you will often find that you need to familiarize yourself with the geography of a story so you can understand more of the context. A map will help you find the locations and a Bible dictionary will explain how the places differ.

Make an inventory of the resources that are available to you. What features does your Bible include (maps, index, concordance, etc.) that will be helpful for your personal study? Where can you go to find further information about the Bible (concordance, dictionary, online resources)? Gather your resources together and create a physical place for study with limited distractions. Make this the place where you can daily feast on the Word of God”.

Perhaps it is time for some new tools… or it may be time to use them and become skilled at using them once again.

Blessings,

Kathy

Kathy Withers is on staff at America’s Keswick and serves as Director of Partner Care. Kathy has been married to her husband Dave for 30 years. They have two adult children. Kathy is active in her local Church and teaches a Bible Study for women. Her passion is to encourage women to deepen their walk with Jesus Christ by finding and living out the truths of God’s Word.

 

I have mentioned recently that I am doing a slow read from Genesis to Revelation searching for the thread of promise to Abraham:

Now the Lord said to Abram, “Go from your country and your kindred and your father’s house to the land that I will show you. And I will make of you a great nation, and I will bless you and make your name great, so that you will be a blessing. I will bless those who bless you, and him who dishonors you I will curse, and in you all the families of the earth shall be blessed.” Genesis 12:1-3

By doing this, I am picking up on details that have eluded me the other numerous times I have read through the Bible in a year.  I am reading with focused attention so I don’t miss any of the references to the Promise.  In doing this I have, in some sense, felt like I have journeyed with the Israelites trying to imagine their fears and victories, ups and downs, mountain tops and valleys.  I can identify with this people in more ways than I care to admit.

The people of Israel knew God’s promise to Abraham, yet here they were in bondage, slaves in Egypt.  This guy Moses comes along and tells them that “I AM” sent him to lead them out of Egypt.[i] They get all excited, but their hopes are quickly dashed when Pharaoh not only denies their request but increases their burden by making them find their own straw without reducing their brick quota.[ii]  Soon, they want Moses to leave them alone, fearing he will only make things worse.[iii]

Moses is undeterred and after 10 plagues, including the death of all of Egypt’s firstborn, Pharaoh lets them go.  Realizing he has just let his workforce go, he takes his army and pursues them.

Soon after leaving Egypt, Israel is trapped between the Red Sea and the thundering hooves of Pharaoh’s horses and chariots.  God led them out of the bondage of Egypt, parted the Red Sea, and drowned the Egyptians.  His presence is evident in the pillar of cloud and the pillar of fire which stay with them for their entire journey.

They get thirsty – God sends water from a rock.[iv]

They get hungry – God sends manna and quail.[v]

God gives them instructions to build the Tabernacle and the Ark of the Covenant.[vi]

Throughout their journey, God tells Moses to remind the people of the promise He made to Abraham.

Go and gather the elders of Israel together and say to them, ‘The Lord, the God of your fathers, the God of Abraham, of Isaac, and of Jacob, has appeared to me, saying, “I have observed you and what has been done to you in Egypt,  and I promise that I will bring you up out of the affliction of Egypt to the land of the Canaanites, the Hittites, the Amorites, the Perizzites, the Hivites, and the Jebusites, a land flowing with milk and honey.” Ex 3:16-16. God told them, “I will bring you into the land that I swore to give to Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob. I will give it to you for a possession. I am the Lord.” Ex 6:8. They knew that the promise to Abraham many generations before was within their grasp.

By the end of Numbers 12, Israel “camped in the wilderness of Paran” 12:16.

Finally.

I turned the page of my Bible and there it was. Numbers 13.  The Lord spoke to Moses, saying, “Send men to spy out the land of Canaan, which I am giving to the people of Israel…” 13:1-2.

I personally felt exhilaration. I felt a sense of excitement, a mere whisper of what they must have felt. They were finally going to see the land of promise. I have read this record dozens of times but I have never felt what I felt this time.  I know how the story goes but I am trying to experience it the way they did.

If you have never tried this slow read journey through Scripture I highly recommend it.  Pick a topic – and read the entire Bible from Genesis to Revelation searching for every reference to that topic. Journal it. Don’t worry about how long it takes. It is a wonderful experience of the Word.

Blessings, Diane

Diane Hunt serves part-time on the staff of America’s Keswick providing ministry support from her home in North Carolina. She is also a biblical counselor and women’s event speaker. For more information about having Diane speak at your next event please contact her at dhunt@americaskeswick.org.

[i] Exodus 3:14-15

[ii] Exodus 5:7-8

[iii] Exodus 5:20-21

[iv] Exodus 17:1-6

[v] Exodus 16

[vi] Exodus 25-27

Be angry, and do not sin, do not let the sun go down on your wrath, nor give place to the devil. Eph. 4:26-27

God gets angry, but He never sins. His anger is righteous, and if it angers God, it should anger us. Unrighteous anger, the kind I, and perhaps you, may struggle with is, of course, not the same. It’s typically about me and my glory. Although I certainly do feel anger about many things that offend God, I’d be wise to remember I once participated in many of those very things. But by His grace and mercy my eyes were opened and I see!

You would think that would be that, but it’s not. I’m still here in the world and get angry at the traffic, the incompetent cable provider, and the lack of being able to get what I want when I want it. I won’t go on, but I could. Thank the good, oh so very good Lord that I’m not where I was, but I’m on the way to where I should be. That’s not an excuse I want to lean on, just a reminder to chill out and on keep going…

Thankful for HIM,

Dina

Dina Seaton has served on staff for 15 years, currently in Partner Care. She is a proud Air Force mom and loves spending time with her son wherever he is, near or far. He is truly her greatest joy.  Dina came to Christ in 2000. She loves God and wants to love Him more!

As a child growing up, I often heard my father tell me not to be an Alibi Ike when I tried to blame someone or something else for what I did.  Apparently the phrase was the name of a baseball movie in the 1930’s.

Our Scripture today is an example of men of Israel being Alibi Ike’s.

Several leaders of Israel gathered 250 chiefs of the congregation and came before Moses complaining that he was exalting himself above others when all of them were holy men (Numbers 16:3). Moses fell on his face before them and told them that God would reveal His chosen man (Vs 4-5).

When he summoned two more men, they refused to come. They were complaining that he took them from Egypt, and on top of that, he hadn’t taken them into the Promised Land (vs. 12-13). Moreover, you have not brought us into a land flowing with milk and honey, nor given us inheritance of fields and vineyards Numbers 16:14.

Seriously?  Talk about blame shifting!!

Here they were blaming Moses for failing on the promise. They must have short memories.  Three chapters earlier[i], Moses sent 12 spies to spy out the Promised Land and 10 of the spies returned and gave a report filled with obstacles and fear (see Numbers 13:28-29).

Despite Caleb and Joshua’s faith-filled counter-report the people refused to go in and take possession of the land.  Then all the congregation raised a loud cry, and the people wept that night. And all the people of Israel grumbled against Moses and Aaron. The whole congregation said to them, “Would that we had died in the land of Egypt! Or would that we had died in this wilderness! Why is the Lord bringing us into this land, to fall by the sword? Our wives and our little ones will become a prey. Would it not be better for us to go back to Egypt?” And they said to one another, “Let us choose a leader and go back to Egypt.” Numbers 14:1-4

As a consequence, God told them they would not enter the land because of their rebellion and disobedience.  “But truly, as I live, and as all the earth shall be filled with the glory of the Lord, none of the men who have seen my glory and my signs that I did in Egypt and in the wilderness, and yet have put me to the test these ten times and have not obeyed my voice, shall see the land that I swore to give to their fathers. And none of those who despised me shall see it.” Numbers 14:21-23

God clearly placed the “blame” on the people of Israel so their accusation of Moses falls short, because responsibility for not going “into a land flowing with milk and honey, or getting their “inheritance of fields and vineyards” lies squarely on their own shoulders.

If my Dad was there he would have told them “Don’t be an Alibi Ike.”

Are we prone to look for something or someone else to blame for our situation or actions?  Sometimes we need to take a step back to look with objective eyes in order to see things with greater clarity.

Let’s not be Alibi Ike’s.

Blessings, Diane

Diane Hunt serves part-time on the staff of America’s Keswick providing ministry support from her home in North Carolina. She is also a biblical counselor and women’s event speaker. For more information about having Diane speak at your next event please contact her at dhunt@americaskeswick.org.

[i] Numbers 13

I had a hard time coming up with a title that would not seem weird or scary, yet I really wanted to share part of what my husband and I are doing that is a blessing.

As I shared in an earlier devotional, when we decree a thing from the Word of God, write it down, and seal it in the blood of Jesus, it does not return void  (Job. 22:28; Matt. 7:11; Luke11:13; Is. 55:11). Recently Chuck Pierce, a leader in the body of Christ, shared with us a 10-day devotional.  The goal of the devotional is to confess any sin that may have left an opening for the enemy of God’s people to attack.  I won’t go into a long teaching but the Word is clear, there are consequences to sin.  There are things that defile a man, a woman, and/or the land on which we live.  An example of the importance of confessing those sins is in Neh. 1:6 & Neh. 9:2.  Nehemiah knew that the Israelites needed to confess their sins and the sins of those who came before them in order for God to be free to heal their nation.

We are dealing with some of those issues in this devotional.  We are looking to get clean and open the door to blessing on our lives, our families’ lives and on our nation.  He who promised is faithful (Heb. 10:23). We have asked Holy Spirit to guide our time of prayer and reveal anything we need to address each day.  He has and it has been a powerful time of cleansing.

Today I want to share with you just a few of the scriptures we have read and the decrees to go along with them.  You may wish to read them yourself and seek Holy Spirit to bless you as you consider anything in your own life that is blocking the blessings of God.  It would likely be best to do this when you can over a six-day period of time.

1. Read Philippians 1-4 and confess anxiety, fear, doubt, anger, frustration, guilt, jealousy and envy in our lives.  Ask the Lord to remove those past iniquities in our lives.
2. Read Ezekiel 16, 36, 37 and 1 Corinthians 10. Ask the Lord to break the power of idolatry in your life.  God hates idolatry.  You may be surprised to find idolatry is in your life.  He may remind you to confess those times you put yourself or things before God.  Then worship the Lord, which is always a blessing.
3. Read Genesis 4 and Acts 7. The shedding of innocent blood brings a curse on the land, as you will read in Gen. 4.  We confessed the sin of shedding of innocent blood in our nation, particularly for every precious little life that has been aborted.  Then, Holy Spirit revealed sin by reminding us of things in our lives, YUK!!  We had things to confess here that we had not considered in the past.  There are people we said we wanted to see dead.  Oh, we really didn’t mean it, but we still said it.  That had to be confessed.  It’s ugly when you see your own sin, but it is a blessing!!

4. Read 1 Corinthians 3-7. Confess any and all immorality in your life and the lives of those in your bloodline.  We must take this seriously.  In our world today too many think that we can do whatever we please.  If it feels good, go for it.  That is not truth.  The enemy loves this for every immoral act opens up a greater legal right for him to infiltrate our nation and our homes.  Confess whatever Holy Spirit reveals and ask the Lord to lead you into holiness.
5. Read 2 Samuel 21.  Saul broke a covenant he made with the Gibeonites.  As a result, famine came on the land.  Breaking a covenant is serious business.  Confess any time you have broken a covenant you made.  Consider your marriage covenant if you are married.  Have you broken that covenant in word, thought, or in action?
6. Read Isaiah 54, Ps. 16 & 23. BREAK FORTH INTO SINGING and WORSHIP.  Enlarge your expectation of what God can and will do in your life.

Blessings,

Pat

Portions of above taken from Ten Days of Decreeing by Chuck Pierce, Glory of Zion Ministries, Texas

Rev. Patricia Wenzel is the founder and director of a state wide prayer ministry, PRAY New Jersey Inc. since 2002.  The ministry is committed to praying for and blessing those serving in authority positions in our state, particularly in government.  The ministry is also committed to equipping the saints to pray for those serving in government.  The vision and ministry is guided by the Word of God, in particular 1 Tim. 2:1-4 and Is. 61:11.  Pat is thankful for the ministry of America’s Keswick.  She graduated from Women of Character in July 2008.