FEBRUARY 2021

Twila Jones

ISAIAH 55:6-13

My Blessed Lord, how tender and pitiful Thou art to

me! What delight it is to tell of Thy Mercy and Grace

to one so unworthy. This is Thy Way towards all

who put their trust in Thee. When depression and

sadness come to me by reason of the sin within, or

the discouragements without; when the thorns and

briers of daily cares and vexations prick and tear the

weary pilgrim's hands and feet; then Thou does turn

my footsteps to where the pines and myrtles of Thy

Loving Mercies grow, and in their shelter and

fragrance my troubled spirit finds rest. Thy Power is

so great that Thou dost sometimes transform the very

things that hurt and grieve me into means of Grace

and Blessing to my heart and life.

Disappointments in my work, obstacles to its

performance, estrangement of friends, conscious

incompetence and weakness, an overpowering sense

of responsibility — these are like thorns and briers,

which irritate and worry by their persistent and close

contact. Yet, all these vanish when Thou, my

Gracious God, dost give the Word, and I find myself

walking peacefully among the fir trees, where the

pine needles spread the softest of carpets under my

tired feet.

Thy Ways, O Lord, are past finding out, but they are

very Gracious and Tender; and this turning of

seeming evil into good, of making Thy children's

trials grow into triumphs, and pains into pleasures, is

a wonderful proof of both Thy Pity and Thy Power.

If my pathway were always smooth and pleasant,

there would be no opportunity for the glorious

exercise of the Thy Love and Mercy in deliverance

from them.

SUSANNAH SPURGEON, A CARILLON OF BELLS,

CHAPTER 19

This excerpt from one of my favorite

writers was part of my daily reading

last month. Take the time to read the

passage in Isaiah. As I read, I was

reminded of God's Love, Mercy,

Grace, and Power. The next lesson in

our Bible Study is on the Power of

God's Forgiveness. I am in awe of

God's Goodness as He leads in this

study, and how

connected each

"subject" is to the

others. It is quite

similar to sitting

down at the supper

table, with each

course complementing and completing

the other.

SEE THE POWER OF GOD'S

FORGIVENESS — Forgiveness — to

be forgiven and to be forgiving.

Nancy Leigh DeMoss wrote,

"Forgiveness is not a method to be

learned as much as a Truth to be lived.

For most of us, the problem isn't that

we don't know about Forgiveness. The

problem is either that we haven't

recognized and acknowledged the

unforgiveness in our own hearts, or

that we simply haven't made the choice

to forgive." I would add, that another

problem is that those of us who have

been the undeserving recipients of

God's Mercy and Grace have little or

no understanding of what has been

bestowed upon us in God's

Forgiveness.

I trust that in some small

measure as we "Come to

the Master's Table” we

will Taste of the

Goodness of Mercy,

Drink from the Fountain

of Grace, and See the Power of God's

Forgiveness — Face to Face."

Forgiveness is about God and my

relationship with Him.

Opening the door to meet Him for

Fellowship and Communion provides

an opportunity to inspect, examine, and

recognize the Power of His

Forgiveness. As I continue in

Fellowship, I will realize how

necessary it is for my well-being —

spiritually, physically, and emotionally

— that I meet with Him Face to face.

Crystal Ratcliff

As I watched the course of our nation

over the last year, I have often

wondered what the Lord desires from

me right now. In this moment. In this

pandemic. In this social unrest. In this

election. In the aftermath of the

election. What does the Lord want me

to do right now with all that is going on

around me?

In my study of the book of Joshua, I

recently came across a passage that

answered that question for me and

encouraged me to be faithful in the

coming days. After years of fighting

and conquering The Promised Land,

we see Israel had finally taken

possession of the land in Joshua

21:43-45:

43 And the Lord gave unto Israel all

the land which he sware to give

unto their fathers; and they

possessed it, and dwelt therein.

44 And the Lord gave them rest

round about, according to all that he

sware unto their fathers: and there

stood not a man of all their enemies

before them; the Lord delivered all

their enemies into their hand.

45 There failed not ought of any

good thing which the Lord had

spoken unto the house of Israel; all

came to pass.

The LORD gave Israel everything they

needed to live a life pleasing to Him in

The Promised Land! In fact, I see four

things in these three verses that were

given to Israel—and are still given to

us today—that will help us trust in the

Lord and be faithful right now.

PROVISION (vs. 43) – “And the

LORD gave unto Israel all the

land…”

The LORD provided for them. He had

taken care of their every need during

their wandering in the wilderness, and

now He had provided a blessed land to

settle into that would meet their needs.

He had also set up systems of worship

and sacrifice that would meet their

spiritual needs.

The LORD still promises His provision

to us today (Matthew 6:25-33). He does not promise

everything will be easy or that we will live a life

free from troubles and trials, but He does promise to

provide sufficient grace for our time of need (2 Cor.

12:8-10). No matter what struggles we may face in

the coming days, the LORD will provide.

PEACE (vs. 44) – “And the LORD gave them

rest…”

The LORD gave them rest. Peace. They had been

fighting with the inhabitants of the land for years,

and even though they had not fully driven out those

enemies, the LORD gave them rest. He gave them

peace even while they lived among those that were

considered their enemies.

The LORD has given us His peace. We may feel

that we are living among enemies right now, but we

can be at peace. John 14:27 says, “Peace I leave

with you, my peace I give unto you: not as the

world giveth, give I unto you. Let not your heart

be troubled, neither let it be afraid.”

PROTECTION (vs. 44) – “…the LORD delivered

all their enemies into their hand.”

The LORD delivered their enemies into their hand.

The accounts of the battles they faced conquering

The Promised Land tell us that the LORD fought for

them. They were under his hand of protection when

they were faithful to obey His commandments and

His word.

The LORD also offers us his protection. This, of

course, does not mean that we won’t suffer

persecution. It does mean that we do not need to

concern ourselves with the evildoers (Psalm 37).

The Lord will take care of us. He has a plan and a

purpose for our lives. We do not need to worry

about what our enemies are doing because the Lord

will take care of that. Jesus tells us in John 16:33,

“These things I have spoken unto you, that in

me ye might have peace. In the world ye shall

have tribulation: but be of good cheer; I have

overcome the world.”

PROMISES KEPT (vs. 45) – “There failed not

ought of any good thing which the LORD had

spoken…all came to pass.”

The LORD kept His promises to Israel. They waited

for years. For generations. And now they were

seeing the fulfillment of those promises as they

finally possessed The Promised Land!

God keeps His promises to us as well. There are so

many promises for us in the Word of God. Perhaps

the most thrilling is the promise of our future. We

know that if we have accepted Christ as our Savior,

we have an eternal home waiting for us with Him in

Heaven. God’s Word SHALL come to pass. Until

then we “…hope and quietly wait for the

salvation of the LORD (Lamentations 3:25-26).”

WHAT NOW?

You may be thinking, “Well, that’s

wonderful. But what do I do right now?”

Just be faithful.

The truth is there are difficult days

ahead. Uncertainty. Confusion.

Divisions. Trials. Heartache.

Be faithful to do what you know to do.

In the next chapter, Joshua gives a charge

to the Eastern tribes as they return to

their land that is just as applicable to us

as we move forward in our Christian life.

But take diligent heed to do the

commandment and the law, which

Moses the servant of

the Lord charged you, to love

the Lord your God, and to walk in all

his ways, and to keep his

commandments, and to cleave unto

him, and to serve him with all your

heart and with all your soul.

Joshua 22:5

Read it again. Note the verbs (action

words) because that is what we can be

faithful to do right now.

Take diligent heed to do the

commandment.

Love the LORD your God.

Walk in all his ways.

Keep his commandments.

Cleave unto him.

Serve him with all your heart and with

all your soul.

Verses can be quoted to Crystal or

Jodi at any meeting or service.