The Lord’s Prayer – Line by Line Part 3

On September 1, 2024August 6, 2024 By JCIn Miscellaneous, Wounded Butterflies BlogLeave a comment

In verses Matthew 6:9-13, Jesus provides a model for believers to follow as they pray. He is speaking to crowds that have gathered around Him as He sits and preaches. Jesus is sharing that believers are not to pray to draw attention to ourselves or to just say Christian phrases so we sound good. He exhorts us to pray differently. He then shares what is commonly called the Lord’s Prayer. Jesus says, “Pray then like this:

“Our Father in heaven,
hallowed be your name.
¹⁰Your kingdom come,
your will be done,
    on earth as it is in heaven.
¹¹Give us this day our daily bread,
¹²and forgive us our debts,
    as we also have forgiven our debtors.
¹³And lead us not into temptation,
    but deliver us from evil.”

The third line, “Your kingdom come . . ” means that we are asking for and desire the return of Jesus. This is the cry of every believer’s heart, for our Savior to return and right all of the wrongs, take care of wickedness once and for all and to permanently remove the devil from the earth. For people who believe Jesus is the Son of God, this will be an incredible time, we will worship Him all together, in person forever. “He will wipe away every tear from our eyes, and death shall be no more, neither shall there be mourning, nor crying, nor pain anymore, for the former things have passed away.” Revelation 21:4

There is a tension with this portion of the prayer that we must consider. Once a person has accepted Jesus as their Lord, they will spend eternity in heaven, regardless of what they may do after they have accepted Him. But for those people who have refused to believe that Jesus is the Son of God and died for our sins, once Jesus returns, it is too late. They will spend eternity in hell, the Bible does not show the ability to change your choice once you are forever dead. That is why when believers pray ‘Thy Kingdom come’, we are filled with joy and peace in the promise of heaven. But we must not forget that Jesus left us here to tell as many people as we can about His love for them. He does not want anyone to go to hell, but the choice lies with each and every person. While we pray for Jesus’ kingdom to come, we should be busy telling everyone we can about it.

Let’s pray. Father in heaven, thank You for showing us how to pray. May we share Your love with all people while we await Your return. In Jesus name we pray, amen.

The Lord’s Prayer – Line by Line Part 2

On August 25, 2024August 6, 2024 By JCIn Miscellaneous, Wounded Butterflies BlogLeave a comment

The second line, “. . .hallowed be your name” prompts our minds to focus on the fact that while God is our Dad, He is to be approached with respect and awe. This line is a reminder that as we pray, we stand in the presence of a Holy God, so we must not have unconfessed sin or be living in disobedience. We approach God through the righteousness and holiness of Jesus, standing on our belief that He died on the cross for our sins.

We are entering the holy presence of the same God Who causes all-consuming fire to fall on wickedness (Genesis 19:24) and the earth to swallow up those who are disobedient (Numbers 16:32). This is the same God Who flooded the earth due to man’s sin (Genesis 6:17) and yet cares about every single bird (Matthew 6:26). God is all-knowing and all-powerful as He reigns from His heavenly throne room. If ever we feel our hearts are too casual with approaching the Almighty God, let Revelation chapter 4 remind us.

Let’s pray. Father in heaven, thank You for showing us how to pray. May we always remember You are a Holy God sitting on Your throne with flashes of lightning, and rumblings of thunder. You shine like jasper and carnelian, and around Your throne is a rainbow and twenty-four elders, clothed in white garments, with golden crowns on their heads. Before Your throne are the seven torches of fire and a sea of glass, like crystal. Help us to approach You with awe as the Holy God You are. May we reflect Your holiness to a hurting world. In Jesus name we pray, amen.

The Lord’s Prayer – Line by Line Part 1

On August 18, 2024August 18, 2024 By JCIn Miscellaneous, Wounded Butterflies BlogLeave a comment

In verses Matthew 6:9-13, Jesus shares a model for believers to follow as they pray. He is speaking to crowds that have gathered around Him as He sits and preaches. His disciples are sitting there as well. Jesus is sharing that believers are not to pray to draw attention to ourselves or to just say Christian phrases so we look good. He exhorts us to pray differently. He then shares what is commonly called the Lord’s Prayer. Jesus says, “Pray then like this:

The first line, “Our Father in heaven” causes us to put God first, before anything we may request of Him. Jesus starts off the prayer in a way that reminds us we are to be focused on worshipping God as our Father, putting Him first in all that we do. Calling God our Father is an acknowledgement of the relationship between the Almighty Creator and His creation. Our belief in Jesus as the Son of God is the way we get to the Father. He is our Father, our Dad and loves us more than we can possibly understand. Yet, He is in heaven and we are on earth. God is all-knowing and all-powerful as He reigns from His heavenly throne room. Through this line in the prayer, we are reminded that we do not know everything. Our trust must be in our heavenly Father.

Let’s pray. Father in heaven, thank You for showing us how to pray, may we always put You first. In Jesus name we pray, amen.

Hope Deferred

On August 11, 2024July 25, 2024 By JCIn Miscellaneous, Wounded Butterflies BlogLeave a comment

There is a verse in the Bible that says, “Hope deferred makes the heart sick, but a longing fulfilled is a tree of life.” Proverbs 13:12. What does that mean to have hope deferred and how do we keep our hearts from being sick?

Hope deferred is another way of saying that there is an unmet longing; something that one hopes for has not occurred and may not. The unfulfilled desire weighs on the person causing disappointment or discouragement resulting in a heaviness or a sick feeling. Sometimes people refer to this feeling as a broken or aching heart.

What do we do when our heart is sick from hope that has been deferred? We can pray and seek whether the thing we hope for is God’s will for us. Perhaps the timing is wrong or it is not intended for us. We can read God’s Word and see what the Bible says about the thing we hope for. We could serve others while we wait and try to be a blessing. Another option is to discuss the deferred hope with our church family members who can then pray with us and for us. We can also fast and place a heavy emphasis on seeking God’s will in our fasting prayers.

There are many paths we can take to try to cease dwelling on the deferred hope and redirect our emotions and energy towards what God has for us now, in the moment. He may never deliver to us what we hope for, it may not be in His plan for our lives and we need to trust that He works all things together for our good. Even those things that we do not understand or those things that we ‘know’ are best for us.

No matter what we do while we wait, we must continue to praise God. Whether He chooses to fulfill whatever we hope for or not, He continues to fill our lungs with air and holds our hearts as they beat. Without His enduring love and care for us, we would no longer live to see another day. Another day that may just quench our deferred hope, heal our sick heart and bring us to a tree of life.

Let’s pray. Father in heaven, thank You for Your love for us. Thank You that each and every day, you cause our hearts to beat. Remind us that each breath we take is because You allow us to breathe in. Thank You that You care so deeply for us and whether you defer our hopes or fulfill them, help us to love and praise You no matter what. It is in Jesus’ precious name we pray, amen.

The Red Sea: On Dry Ground . . .

On August 4, 2024July 28, 2024 By JCIn Miscellaneous, Wounded Butterflies BlogLeave a comment

There is a familiar story in the Old Testament about the Israelites wandering in the desert for 40 years due to their lack of faith in God’s ability to deliver on His commitment to give them the Promised Land. Even though we may have read this story many times, there are lesser studied details in these cherished verses we will focus on.

In prior weeks, we looked at the cloud by day and the pillar of fire. In chapter 14 of Exodus, starting in verse 5, we read,“When the king of Egypt was told that the people had fled, Pharaoh and his officials changed their minds about them and said, “What have we done? We have let the Israelites go and have lost their services!” ⁶So he had his chariot made ready and took his army with him. . . . ⁹The Egyptians—all Pharaoh’s horses and chariots, horsemen and troops—pursued the Israelites and overtook them . . . ¹⁰As Pharaoh approached, the Israelites looked up, and there were the Egyptians, marching after them. They were terrified and cried out to the Lord. . . . ¹⁵Then the Lord said to Moses, “Why are you crying out to me? Tell the Israelites to move on. ¹⁶Raise your staff and stretch out your hand over the sea to divide the water so that the Israelites can go through the sea on dry ground. . . .²²and the Israelites went through the sea on dry ground, with a wall of water on their right and on their left.”

“²⁹But the Israelites went through the sea on dry ground, with a wall of water on their right and on their left. ³⁰That day the Lord saved Israel from the hands of the Egyptians, and Israel saw the Egyptians lying dead on the shore.”

Notice how many times the Scriptures say that the Israelites walked across the sea on ‘dry ground’. If you have ever had the pleasure of walking along the edge of a sea, you know that the ground is not dry. Even though the waves may not reach where you are walking, there is still moisture in the ground. Certainly within the sea itself, the bottom is muddy and you can easily sink in as you walk. Consider that the Israelites would have had wagons and livestock to get through the sea. The weight of some of these items would certainly have sunk in the wet ground that only a few hours earlier was covered by the sea. Our God is a God of details, not only does He protect His children but He also consistently shows us that He is here and with us every single step of the way.

Let’s pray. Father in heaven, thank You so much for loving us and for always protecting us. You are involved in our lives, down to the very last detail to include ensuring that Your children walked on dry ground. We praise You for Your love! In Jesus’ precious name we pray, amen.

The Red Sea: A Pillar of Fire…

On July 28, 2024July 25, 2024 By JCIn Miscellaneous, Wounded Butterflies BlogLeave a comment

Last week, we looked at the cloud by day. The second detail we will study is the pillar of fire that guided the Israelites by night as they wandered in the wilderness. In Exodus 13:21, the Bible says, ^“By day the Lord went ahead of them in a pillar of cloud to guide them on their way and by night in a pillar of fire to give them light, so that they could travel by day or night. ²²Neither the pillar of cloud by day nor the pillar of fire by night left its place in front of the people”.

At night in the wilderness, it could become rather cold. The pillar of fire was a source of warmth for the Israelites and their animals. The pillar of fire also provided light so they could see in the pitch black dark. There were dangerous animals and bands of criminals in the wilderness. The pillar of fire would serve as a deterrent to scare away any attacks either from beasts or thieves.

As the Israelites marched through the wilderness, the pillar of fire was also a constant reminder of the holiness of God and His love. God is an all-consuming fire demanding obedience from His people. The Israelites had seen God’s fire consume both land and people in their camp, see Leviticus 10:2 and Numbers 11:1.

The pillar of fire was the very presence of a holy, almighty God who was watching over and protecting His people. God looked down from the pillar of fire as the Israelites were pursued by the Egyptians in Exodus 13:23. “The Egyptians pursued them, and all Pharaoh’s horses and chariots and horsemen followed them into the sea. ²⁴During the last watch of the night the Lord looked down from the pillar of fire and cloud at the Egyptian army and threw it into confusion.” God was keeping watch over His people and protecting them, just as He does with His people today.

Let’s pray. Father in heaven, thank You for guiding us and being with us as we go through life, especially when we are walking through a time of fear or darkness. Help us to remember that You are the Light of the world and we will never walk in darkness when we follow You. In Jesus precious name we pray, amen.

The Red Sea: Cloudy By Day…

On July 21, 2024July 25, 2024 By JCIn Miscellaneous, Wounded Butterflies BlogLeave a comment

The first detail is the cloud that protected the Israelites by day as they wandered in the wilderness. In Exodus 13:21, the Bible says, ^“By day the Lord went ahead of them in a pillar of cloud to guide them on their way and by night in a pillar of fire to give them light, so that they could travel by day or night. ²²Neither the pillar of cloud by day nor the pillar of fire by night left its place in front of the people.”

In the Old Testament, the cloud signified the presence of the glory of the Lord. For example, when Moses went up the mountain to receive the Ten Commandments, the mountain was engulfed in a cloud that was the presence of the glory of the Lord. When the Lord’s presence descended to the Tabernacle, it was enveloped by a cloud.

The cloud would have been a visual reminder that the Israelites needed to revere their God, respect Him and His servant, Moses. The cloud would have also been a comfort as it represented protection to the Israelites as they wandered in the desert. The cloud would have served as an umbrella of sorts to protect them from the hot sun and it was a shield in times of confrontation. Exodus 14:19 says, “Then the angel of God, who had been traveling in front of Israel’s army, withdrew and went behind them. The pillar of cloud also moved from in front and stood behind them, ²⁰coming between the armies of Egypt and Israel. Throughout the night the cloud brought darkness to the one side and light to the other side; so neither went near the other all night long.”

The cloud caused a darkness to fall on the Egyptians so that they were unable to attack the Israelites during the night. The cloud even blocked the light from the pillar of fire so that the Israelites had light during that most scary night, yet their foes were engulfed in darkness.

The cloud that protected and guided the Israelites is now within us; as believers, we have the presence of the Holy Spirit in us. He is always there to shield us and lead us through life, just as He did for the Israelites.

Let’s pray. Father in heaven, thank You for the protection that You provide us. Thank You for the knowledge that Your presence is with us at all times through your Son, Jesus. Guide us each day as You did with the Israelites. In Jesus name we pray, amen.