And pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests. With this in mind, be alert and always keep on praying for all the saints. Ephesians 6:18.

“And I will give you rest.” Matthew 11:28.

The LORD rules over the floodwaters. The LORD reigns as king forever. The LORD gives His people strength. The LORD blesses them with peace. Psalm 29:10-11.

To set the mind on the flesh is death but to set the mind on the Spirit is life and peace. Romans 8:5.

And continuing our 351 Old Testament prophecies, promises of God, fulfilled in Jesus Christ, we come to number 118: To give gifts to men. Psalm 68:18: You have ascended on high, You have led captive Your captives; You have received gifts among men, even among the rebellious also, that the LORD God may dwell there. And, Ephesians 4:7-16: But to each one of us grace was given according to the measure of Christ’s gift. Therefore it says, “When He ascended on high, He led captive a host of captives, and He gave gifts to men.” (Now this expression, “He ascended,” what does it mean except that He also descended into the lower parts of the earth? He who descended is Himself also He who ascended far above all the heavens, so that He might fill all things). And he gave some as apostles, and some as prophets, and some as evangelists, and some as pastors and teachers, for the equipping of the saints for the work of service, to the building up of the body of Christ; until we all attain to the unity of the faith, and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to a mature man, to the measure of the stature which belongs to the fullness of Christ. As a result, we are no longer to be children, tossed here and there by waves and carried about by every wind of doctrine, by the trickery of men, by craftiness in deceitful scheming; but speaking the truth in love, we are to grow up in all aspects into Him who is the head, even Christ, from whom the whole body, being fitted and held together by what every joint supplies, according to the proper working of each individual part, causes the growth of the body for the building up of itself in love. So this I say, and affirm together with the LORD, that you walk no longer just as the Gentiles also walk, in the futility of their mind.

Last night on the news they showed the amount (and the numbers were still counting upwards) of the deficit for our country, over 40 trillion dollars; over 117,000 (and still counting upwards) for every person in our country. We can’t fathom numbers like that. Praying about the state of our world, it seemed like I was walking at the very edge of a deep precipice filled with shadows and darkness that was edging into the reality of life being lived. And He reminded me He doesn’t take me out of this world, He helps me live seeing Him walking with me. He gives me His peace and His Presence reminding me all I long for is with Him.

There was a scene in the first episode of The Chosen where Mary Magdalene was in an establishment where mostly men were gathered to gamble and drink. She had asked for alcohol and after the cup was placed in front of her, a hand came into view covering hers and we see Jesus for the first time. And He told Mary, “That is not for you.” Just a scene in a show showing what was possible as they flesh out what it was like when Jesus lived among us then. All Scripture says is that Mary Magdalene was healed of seven demons. The show shows the moment after Mary tries to run away that Jesus calls her by name. He called her by name again just outside the tomb that very early morning after He had risen.

Watching the news last night, listening to politicians do what politicians do as the debt rises and as problems go unresolved, I thought of that line. That is not for you. The mind set on the flesh is death. The mind set on the Spirit is life and peace. The debt is real. The problems in our world are real. The way of the flesh is real. So is eternally real the way of the Spirit. The way of life and peace that is the kingdom of God is not only real but eternal and we can live within His kingdom truth and love now as we choose life with Creator God – Father, Son, Spirit. But speaking the truth in love, we are to grow up in all aspects into Him who is the head, even Christ, from whom the whole body, being fitted and held together by what every joint supplies, according to the proper working of each individual part, causes the growth of the body for the building up of itself in love. Paul went on – So this I say, and affirm together with the LORD, that you walk no longer just as the Gentiles also walk, in the futility of their mind, being darkened in their understanding, excluded from the life of God because of the ignorance that is in them, because of the hardness of their heart; and they, having become callous, have given themselves over to sensuality for the practice of every kind of impurity with greediness. But you did not learn Christ in this way, if indeed you have heard Him and have been taught in Him, just as truth is in Jesus. Ephesians 4:17-21. It goes on as Paul has so much to say because so much to say is so needed by all of us. Truth is in Jesus. He loves us. He doesn’t exclude as we do. He taught Paul to love. He teaches us as we are willing to listen and learn from Him. He is the One who walks with us in the darkness of this world, the darkness He overcame for us. He is the Way and the Truth and the Life right now that lights the way out of the darkness as we walk with Him. He teaches us how to love as we trust Him and the amazing thing is, that we can love with His help. Let God’s love help you see all that is not for you.

***LORD, OPEN UNTO ME – Open unto me – light for my darkness. Open unto me – courage for my fear. Open unto me – hope for my despair. Open unto me – peace for my turmoil. Open unto me – joy for my sorrow. Open unto me – wisdom for my confusion. Open unto me – forgiveness for my sins. Open unto me – love for my hates. Open unto me – Thyself for myself. LORD – LORD, open unto me! Amen. Howard Thurman (1899-1981), Meditations of the Heart (Beacon Press, 1953), 145.***