As Memorial Day approaches I am reminded of how much our service men and their families have sacrificed to serve their country. My own dad served in World war two.

I remember the stories he would tell and how solemn his face would look. He spoke of one of his buddies that stopped at the bunker door during an air raid and said to him, get in here buddy. Dad ran in the door and when he looked back his friend’s body was missing his head. 

Every so often he would get sick from the malaria he caught while overseas. He would go to the doctor and be in bed for a few days.

Dad was a hardworking man that asked for no favors but gave many to others in need.

I just want to take this opportunity to thank my dad who has passed from this world for all he did to serve his country and family. Thank you, Daddy.

Your loving daughter,

Gloria

Covenant Of Grace

Covenant Of Grace

Eph. 2:4-9   ⁴ But God, who is rich in mercy, for his great love wherewith he loved us,

⁵ Even when we were dead in sins, hath quickened us together with Christ, (by grace ye are saved ;)

⁶ And hath raised us up together, and made us sit together in heavenly places in Christ Jesus:

⁷ That in the ages to come he might shew the exceeding riches of his grace in his kindness toward us through Christ Jesus.

⁸ For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God:

⁹ Not of works, lest any man should boast.

The fact that all people without exception commit sin proves that without Christ we have a sinful nature.

Before Christ Jesus and the cross, we were dead… forever doomed because of Sin…

We were just like the rest of the world, following the passions and desires of our evil nature.

But God is so rich in mercy and he loves us so much… even while we were dead because of our sin. Through his mercy, he gave us life when he raised Jesus from the dead.

It is only by Gods special favor that we have been saved… we became Christians through Gods unmerited favor in our lives. Not as a result of any effort or service on our part.

No actions or works we do can help us obtain salvation. We are not saved merely for our own benefit, but to serve Christ and build up the church.

We are Gods masterpiece, His divine work of art. Our salvation is something only God can give. It is His powerful creativity at work in us.

If God considers us His masterpieces, we dare not treat ourselves or others with disrespect or as His inferior work.

By Gods grace you are saved by faith and raised up together. He made us to sit together in Heavenly places in Christ Jesus.

This is Gods free gift to us. We could not do this ourselves. Gods grace, his unmerited favor delivered us from the judgment of sin, now we have hope and are partakers of Christ Jesus.

Eph 1:3-5   ³ Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who hath blessed us with all spiritual blessings in heavenly places in Christ:

⁴ According as he hath chosen us in him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and without blame before him in love:

⁵ Having predestinated us unto the adoption of children by Jesus Christ to himself, according to the good pleasure of his will,

Blessed us with all spiritual blessings in Heavenly places in Christ…

Or, spiritual blessings in the Heavenly Realms, because we belong to Christ Jesus.

Because of Christ in us, we are empowered by His divine power to receive all spiritual blessings…according as he hath chosen us in Him before the foundation of the world.

Having predestinated us unto the adoption of children by Christ Jesus to Himself.

We have redemption through His blood and forgiveness of sins, according to the riches of His grace.

Philemon vs 6   ⁶ That the communication of thy faith may become effectual by the acknowledging of every good thing which is in you in Christ Jesus.

That your faith will become effective by realizing or acknowledging the good things which is in you in Christ.

We must start acknowledging what God is trying to tell us. We do that by acknowledging every good thing that is in us.

Grace provides everything that is available… faith is the vehicle by which you get it.

Faith is nothing more than trusting God for what Jesus made available for us through his finished work on the cross.

Our wants, our needs all have already been paid for. They were nailed to the cross by the blood of Christ Jesus.

This is the covenant of grace, we are free in him to love, to serve and to sit with him in heavenly places.

Gods pan for our lives are to be obedient to His word, have faith in Him and to trust Him. We trust him with our salvation “which is the most important thing in life.” We trust him with the air we breathe, even though we can’t see it.

We trust him for the next heartbeat, yet why don’t we trust him for all the promises and provisions he has made for us in this world.

Jesus paid for every one of those promises, every provision. He paid with his stripes and His blood.

He said it himself on the cross, it is finished.

WALKING IN THE FULLNESS OF GOD

                     

1 Kings 3:3-5   ³ And Solomon loved the Lord, walking in the statutes of David his father: only he sacrificed and burnt incense in high places.

⁴ And the king went to Gibeon to sacrifice there; for that was the great high place: a thousand burnt offerings did Solomon offer upon that altar.

⁵ In Gibeon the Lord appeared to Solomon in a dream by night: and God said, ask what I shall give thee.

Most everyone knows that Solomon was the son of King David.

Solomon was a righteous man that loved God.

He walked in the fullness of God.

He walked in the presence of God at all times.

When he became King, he was not material minded.

He kept his focus on the things of God, not material things.

When God asked Solomon; what do you wish for. Solomon replied, a discerning heart.

1 Kings 3:12-14   ¹² Behold, I have done according to thy words: lo, I have given thee a wise and an understanding heart; so, that there was none like thee before thee, neither after thee shall any arise like unto thee.

¹³ And I have also given thee that which thou hast not asked, both riches, and honour: so, that there shall not be any among the kings like unto thee all thy days.

¹⁴ And if thou wilt walk in my ways, to keep my statutes and my commandments, as thy father David did walk, then I will lengthen thy days.

If we are walking in the presence of God, Satan cannot harm us… he can’t steal from us.

2 Samuel 22:3-4   ³ The God of my rock; in him will I trust: he is my shield, and the horn of my salvation, my high tower, and my refuge, my saviour; thou savest me from violence.

⁴ I will call on the Lord, who is worthy to be praised: so shall I be saved from mine enemies.

Walking in His presence, arms you with strength and makes your way perfect.

If you will keep the ways of the Lord, he will deal with you according to your righteousness.

You can have boldness in his presence

Walking in love is always in His presence.

If you want to prosper Love the anointed.

Deuteronomy 8:17-20   ¹⁷ And thou say in thine heart, My power and the might of mine hand hath gotten me this wealth.

¹⁸ But thou shalt remember the Lord thy God: for it is he that giveth thee power to get wealth, that he may establish his covenant which he sware unto thy fathers, as it is this day.

¹⁹ And it shall be, if thou do at all forget the Lord thy God, and walk after other gods, and serve them, and worship them, I testify against you this day that ye shall surely perish.

²⁰ As the nations which the Lord destroyeth before your face, so shall ye perish; because ye would not be obedient unto the voice of the Lord your God.

The ability to get wealth is born out of love.

Your obedience to love is the ability to get wealth.

The ability to have God’s fullness in your life,

The ability to have peace, nothing missing and nothing broken…that is born out of love.

It is love and obedience that gives you power.

Acts 1:8   ⁸ But ye shall receive power, after that the Holy Ghost is come upon you: and ye shall be witnesses unto me both in Jerusalem, and in all Judaea, and in Samaria, and unto the uttermost part of the earth.

This is the reason God blessed Solomon so much… he had love in his heart, he was not materially minded, or greedy about riches.  He just wanted to please God.

He only asked for wisdom so he could be a great king. God blessed him to be the smartest and the richest man that ever lived.

All because he was walking in the fullness of God. Walking in the fullness of God also depends on Wisdom. 

Proverbs 1:1-7   1 The proverbs of Solomon the son of David, king of Israel;

² To know wisdom and instruction; to perceive the words of understanding;

³ To receive the instruction of wisdom, justice, and judgment, and equity;

⁴ To give subtilty to the simple, to the young man knowledge and discretion.

⁵ A wise man will hear, and will increase learning; and a man of understanding shall attain unto wise counsels:

⁶ To understand a proverb, and the interpretation; the words of the wise, and their dark sayings.

⁷ The fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge: but fools despise wisdom and instruction.

Wisdom is made available to everyone.

No one needs to be a failure.

The wisdom of God is always at our disposal.

It is present in us and with us thru the Holy Spirit.

1 Chronicles 22:12   12 Only the Lord give thee wisdom and understanding, and give thee charge concerning Israel, that thou mayest keep the law of the Lord thy God.

Wisdom lies dormant, until we act on and confess the word of God.

Until we place our dependence on God, his ability remains dormant.

Not using knowledge is a lack of wisdom.

Wisdom grows out of love.

Success grows out of wisdom.

Wisdom never acts outside of love.

Because love is the basic law of God.

The realm of God’s love, makes its own love.

Its law is always above the law of our senses.

We can have Gods will incorporated into our will.

We can have Gods mind incorporated into our mind.

We can have the health and vigor of God incorporated into our bodies.

We can have strength, ability and wisdom of God.

We can have all of this thru Gods wisdom.

Proverbs 1:2   ² To know wisdom and instruction; to perceive the words of understanding;

Proverbs 1:5   ⁵ A wise man will hear, and will increase learning; and a man of understanding shall attain unto wise counsels:

This is what faith is built on.

Romans 10:17   ¹⁷ So then faith cometh by hearing, and hearing by the word of God.

Proverbs 1:17   ⁷ The fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge: but fools despise wisdom and instruction.

Wisdom is the ability to use knowledge and make it worthwhile.

Knowledge alone is not enough.

Only three percent of people in business for themselves succeed.

1 Corinthians 2:6-16   ⁶ Howbeit we speak wisdom among them that are perfect: yet not the wisdom of this world, nor of the princes of this world, that come to nought:

The wisdom we use to those who are mature in the Lord doesn’t belong to this world.

Or the rulers of this world… who are in power today and gone tomorrow.

⁷ But we speak the wisdom of God in a mystery, even the hidden wisdom, which God ordained before the world unto our glory:

⁸ Which none of the princes of this world knew: for had they known it, they would not have crucified the Lord of glory.

Not one of the rulers of this world has known it.

⁹ But as it is written, Eye hath not seen, nor ear heard, neither have entered into the heart of man, the things which God hath prepared for them that love him.

¹⁰ But God hath revealed them unto us by his Spirit: for the Spirit searcheth all things, yea, the deep things of God.

The spirit searches out everything and shows us even Gods deepest secrets.

¹¹ For what man knoweth the things of a man, save the spirit of man which is in him? even so the things of God knoweth no man, but the Spirit of God.

No one can know Gods thoughts, except Gods own spirit.

¹² Now we have received, not the spirit of the world, but the spirit which is of God; that we might know the things that are freely given to us of God.

God has actually given us His spirit, so we can know things of God.

¹³ Which things also we speak, not in the words which man's wisdom teacheth, but which the Holy Ghost teacheth; comparing spiritual things with spiritual.

We speak words given to us by the Holy Spirit… using the Holy Spirits words to explain spiritual truths.

¹⁴ But the natural man receiveth not the things of the Spirit of God: for they are foolishness unto him: neither can he know them, because they are spiritually discerned.

People who are not Christians can’t understand these truths from Gods spirit… it sounds foolish to them, because only those who have the spirit can understand what the spirit means.

¹⁵ But he that is spiritual judgeth all things, yet he himself is judged of no man.

We who have the spirit of God, understand these things.

But others cannot understand us at all. How could they?

¹⁶ For who hath known the mind of the Lord, that he may instruct him? but we have the mind of Christ.

Who can know what the Lord is thinking? Who can give Him counsel… or who can instruct God?

We can understand the wisdom of God only because he has given us the mind of God.

How to use Faith

Most people, even believers, are trying to use their faith to get it done. God says you’re not going to use your faith to get it done.

Your supposed to be using your faith to get what has already been done.

We keep responding in the most likely manner based on the natural situation. God wants to change your response.

I don’t know what God has prophesied over your life, and it may seem to you like it will never come to pass. I am here to assure you, if Jesus can, and He can, it will happen in your life.

Philemon 6   ⁶ That the communication of thy faith may become effectual by the acknowledging of every good thing which is in you in Christ Jesus.

Faith has to be involved, your faith is going to start working as soon as you start acknowledging and admitting that, I’ve already got it… I am already healed, delivered, prosperous.

You are even to say it in hard times, it’s about understanding how to give and unusual response in the midst of natural situations.

Hebrews 11:1    Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen.

You cannot get what grace has provided without faith. Everything “the substance” that has been provided by grace will need faith to receive it.

Ephesians 2: 8-9    ⁸ For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God:

⁹ Not of works, lest any man should boast.

Grace has made everything available, but, how do we get it? Even though grace has made everything available, you cannot take possession of it without faith.

Everything is in your spirit now. But it is going to take faith to take possession of it. Whatever you need, Jesus has already deposited it in you.

 If it’s going to take faith to take possession of it, we need to understand precisely what faith is.

It cannot be a religious understanding, it cannot be a church misunderstanding. You have to know with precision what faith is.

Most people you ask will say it’s believing, but, that’s just part of it.

You need to know what it is and how it operates, and our part in it; In order to take possession of what grace has already made available.

This is not a case of us trying to get God to do it. God has already done it. Now all we have to do is possess it.

I believe you are about to possess everything the devil stole from you. Today is your breakthrough day. I am speaking that into your life today.

Hebrews 11:1   Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen.

What are we hoping for?  I know what I just told you, but I feel now that we need proof of what was said. If faith is the substance of things hoped for, what are we hoping for?

                                                                                                                            

1 Peter 1:13   ¹³ Wherefore gird up the loins of your mind, be sober, and hope to the end for the grace that is to be brought unto you at the revelation of Jesus Christ;

Question? Has Jesus come? Has he been revealed for the hope to the end? For the grace that is to be brought to us?

So now, everything that grace has made available through Christ Jesus, is what we hope for.

Grace has made healing available, soundness of mind, freedom from condemnation, deliverance and prosperity, all available: everything for this life and godliness He has made available.

Faith and grace is the substance of all those things. Love is very important, but one of the most important things in live is faith in what Jesus has made available when he said, it is finished.

Because without faith, you cannot get the hope of what grace has made available. Faith works also by love, but while you’re on planet earth, you’re going to need faith working in your life.

Seven points as to what faith is and what faith is not, you must know what faith is in order to take possession of what grace has made available to us.

1.      If through grace He has made healing available to us, then our response needs to be in line with the healing that is already in us through grace.

So, when the doctor says, you’re sick, your response should be no, because of faith in this grace you are the healed.

2.      Faith is not something you do to get God to respond. Most people try to do something to get God to respond. Like, I’m going to fast and pray and do whatever else….

That’s doing things under the Law. Trying to get God to respond; that’s not faith. God has already responded to every need you have.

Faith is our response to what has already been done. So how do we respond when it’s already been done?

3.      Faith does not move God; our faith moves us into position to receive what God has already provided by grace.

Faith is not Gods response, faith is our response. Faith move us, God has already moved through His beloved Son, Christ Jesus.

      4.      Faith does not cause a positive response to move God, why? Because faith is a positive        response from us, not from God. God has already responded positively.

You say, I’m healed, I am prosperous, delivered. God says Amen. He has already responded. Faith is not God responding positively… it is us responding positively. 

5.      Faith is our positive response to what is already provided. The question is, how are we responding?

6.      Faith only takes possession of what grace has already made available. That is what faith does. It takes possession of what already been done. Grace makes… faith takes.

7.      If God had not already provided it independent of your effort and prior to your need then your faith can’t make it happen.

God has already done it. Your faith is about possessing what has already been done. Not about God manufacturing it when you have a need.

What most people are calling living by faith is doubting everything that God has already done.

We are asking God to do something by faith when God has already done it. It is pure evidence that most don’t believe that through Christ Jesus He has already done it.

The last words Jesus spoke on the cross was it is finished.  We keep thinking, I am going to use my faith to get it done.

God says you’re not going to use your faith to get it done. Our faith is to be used to get what has already been done.

Your response is your faith. Your response is your key; your response has to be an unlikely response, unlike someone who would respond in the natural.

To get every situation to every circumstance to every need, if you can respond based on what Jesus has already done, it will be an un-natural response.

Every time you respond un-natural (not in the worlds way), God is going to release a supernatural response.

You will turn on a supernatural response based on how you respond to a situation.

What if you lost your job, had care repairs. How would you respond? Would you say, Oh what ever will I do, you won’t receive a supernatural response from God with that natural worldly response to your problem.

You can’t receive from the supernatural by responding in the natural.

Mark 6: 45-50   ⁴⁵ And straightway he constrained his disciples to get into the ship, and to go to the other side before unto Bethsaida, while he sent away the people.

⁴⁶ And when he had sent them away, he departed into a mountain to pray.

⁴⁷ And when even was come, the ship was in the midst of the sea, and he alone on the land.

⁴⁸ And he saw them toiling in rowing; for the wind was contrary unto them: and about the fourth watch of the night he cometh unto them, walking upon the sea, and would have passed by them.

⁴⁹ But when they saw him walking upon the sea, they supposed it had been a spirit, and cried out:

⁵⁰ For they all saw him, and were troubled. And immediately he talked with them, and saith unto them, Be of good cheer: it is I; be not afraid.

Straightway means now or suddenly in this context. Constrained means forced.

You don’t want to be in trouble and have Jesus pass you by. Seems like even Christians stay in trouble and it seems like Jesus is passing them by.

If you don’t want Jesus to pass you by you had better cry out. Jesus told them to be of good cheer, not to be afraid. This was a natural response. However, in the supernatural all things are possible.

Getting Our Prayers Answered

Through Moses, God designed  the law for the Jews

Through Jesus the law was fulfilled with a new covenant

Jesus came to teach the Jewish people

God chose the Jewish people to teach the world the love and blessings of God.

Jesus was born a Jew, raised as a Jew under Jewish teachings and became a Jewish Rabbi… Priest

By exploring the word of God we will find out how to get our prayers answered by petition.

  Matthew 15:21-28     King James Version (KJV)²¹ Then Jesus went thence, and departed into the coasts of Tyre and Sidon.²² And, behold, a woman of Canaan came out of the same coasts, and cried unto him, saying, Have mercy on me, O Lord, thou son of David; my daughter is grievously vexed with a devil.²³ But he answered her not a word. And his disciples came and besought him, saying, Send her away; for she crieth after us.²⁴ But he answered and said, I am not sent but unto the lost sheep of the house of Israel.²⁵ Then came she and worshipped him, saying, Lord, help me.²⁶ But he answered and said, It is not meet to take the children's bread, and to cast it to dogs.²⁷ And she said, Truth, Lord: yet the dogs eat of the crumbs which fall from their masters' table.²⁸ Then Jesus answered and said unto her, O woman, great is thy faith: be it unto thee even as thou wilt. And her daughter was made whole from that very hour.
 

Because the woman kept pursuing Jesus for what she needed He had mercy on her and granted her wish. Sometimes we just need to continue to beseech God for our desires.

James 5:13-16King James Version (KJV)¹³ Is any among you afflicted? let him pray. Is any merry? let him sing psalms.¹⁴ Is any sick among you? let him call for the elders of the church; and let them pray over him, anointing him with oil in the name of the Lord:¹⁵ And the prayer of faith shall save the sick, and the Lord shall raise him up; and if he have committed sins, they shall be forgiven him.¹⁶ Confess your faults one to another, and pray one for another, that ye may be healed. The effectual fervent prayer of a righteous man availeth much.

It is important to have faith and a conviction in our heart that God will hear and answer our prayers. There are some steps in this verse we need to follow. Anointing with oil, confession of sins, come together in prayer and supplication to our Lord.

1 John 5:14-15King James Version (KJV)¹⁴ And this is the confidence that we have in him, that, if we ask any thing according to his will, he heareth us:¹⁵ And if we know that he hear us, whatsoever we ask, we know that we have the petitions that we desired of him.

Again here we are told to have confidence in God that what we ask, within His will he wants to grant to us.

Psalm 20:5     King James Version (KJV)

⁵ We will rejoice in thy salvation, and in the name of our God we will set up our banners: the LORD fulfil all thy petitions.

 2 Corinthians 1:19     
¹⁹ For the Son of God, Jesus Christ, who was preached among you by us, even by me and Silvanus and Timotheus, was not yea and nay, but in him was yea.

Philippians 4:6-7     King James Version (KJV)
⁶ Be careful for nothing; but in every thing by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known unto God.
⁷ And the peace of God, which passeth all understanding, shall keep your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.

2 Corinthians 1:19     King James Version (KJV)

We must humble ourselves and meditate on the word.

Use biblical Prayer. Do our prayers line up with the will of God?

Jesus died to fulfill the will of God. We must be persistent. We are Gods children. God wants to please us.

We must petition God with a list of Scripture pertaining to the prayer we want answered. Not forgetting to pray with thanksgiving, praising God. Jesus through the new covenant earned the right for our prayers to be answered.

God’s Word, how is it Important to Me?

God’s Word, how is it Important to Me?

by: Matthew Cortinas

The Bible was given to us by God and it IS Truth! God, the Creator and Ruler of this world and, has given us His Book, the Bible. The Bible is to serve as a guide for our lives. His LIVING VOICE speaking to mankind. To give one of many examples of the Power and Truth of God’s word please turn to:

Genesis 1:3 And God said, “Let there be light,” and there was light.

John 1:1 In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.

We are generally familiar with the word "truth," and know what it means today. This word is used in a number of ways in the New Testament. It means in the Greek translation as "genuine" or "real or reality". 

John 17:17 Sanctify them in the truth: thy word is truth.

As Jesus talked to his father, (in John 17) he acknowledged God’s Truth! If God said it, it's the Truth! Throughout the Bible, we can see that the Words uttered from the lips of God, created and put in motion absolutely everything that exists!! with this in itself, we must conclude that His Word is the Truth and represents absolute Truth​! 

 Numbers 23:19 God is not human, that he should lie, not a human being, that he should change his mind. Does he speak and then not act? Does he promise and not fulfill?

If trusting God involves obeying God’s Word, as it certainly does, then there can be no real discipleship without Bible study. Study of the Bible cannot be an occasional, lazy, or “in my free time” pursuit. It must be a passion of a believer’s life. This is because it is only by the studying of the Word of God that we learn what it is to obey God and follow Jesus. If you want to know God as He speaks to you through the Bible, you should do the following:

Study the Bible daily. Immerse yourself. We should study the Bible at least once each day, of course. With constant study, faith is built in his word. Faith in us, built by God's Truth!

2 Timothy 3 16-17 All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness, so that the servant of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work.

 What is important is that we discipline our lives to include regular Bible studies, just as we discipline ourselves to have regular periods for sleep, eating meals, etc. These things are necessary if the body is to be healthy and work is to be done. Sometimes we may miss a meal, but normally we don't. In the same way, we must feed regularly on God’s Word if we are to become and remain spiritually strong. What happens if we neglect regular Bible reading? We grow indifferent to God and lazy in spirit. We throw ourselves open to temptation and easily fall into sin! Therefore, if we keep the light of God's truth shining brightly ahead of us, then we have a greater chance of avoiding deception. 

This is easy to understand because, if we are going to use the Word of God in the right way, we have to believe it. We not only have to believe it, we must trust it. When Jesus says that God's Word is truth, and that we are sanctified by that Word, we need to understand it from the point of view, the perspective, of God: that His Word is pure, genuine, factual, and reality—and all these are contrasted to man's word. Despite having the best of intentions and sincerity, man cannot even begin to come close to ultimate truth of the Word of God.

Think about this!! There is a personal, living, almighty God whose ways and laws are intrinsically right—they are true. Therefore, a person who has God's Spirit and is honest, who is willing to speak the truth and acknowledge it when it is shown to him, and who will use it in everyday, practical situations must eventually become like He...who we model ourselves after. God is making us kings and priests, that is, leaders and teachers of a way of life based on revealed truth. He will not have anyone in His Family who does not embody truth as Jesus did. In other words, we, too, should be Truth in the flesh! However, for this to happen, we must live it to the best of our abilities now.

Apply His Truth in your life * In secular books, we study to become informed or entertained. In reading the Bible, we study to know God, hear His voice, and be changed by Him as we grow in Holiness. As Christians, we need to allow the Word of God to become a part of us. To have that happen we must attempt to memorize as much as possible!

We must study the passage, and when we find something that pertains to our lives, we must stop and acknowledge it prayerfully. Without regular, personal Bible study and prayer, we are not really walking with Christ as His followers, and we are certainly not obeying His requirement for us to KNOW him better! 

2 Peter 1:21 For prophecy never had its origin in the human will, but prophets, though human, spoke from God (and His Truth) as they were carried along by the Holy Spirit.

Don't forget Prayer! Study the Bible prayerfully. It is impossible to study the Bible devotionally without praying, since

we are coming to God in Scripture and must communicate with Him verbally if we do. But although prayer is part of a devotional study of Scripture, I mention prayer only because we so often neglect it. The best way to study the Bible is to begin the study in prayer.  Be in awe of God's Word!!

John 8:32 and ye shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free.

Father, I pray my eyes will be opened to see the vision that You have impressed upon my heart, so that the wondrous work of the Word will come alive in me. Open my ears Lord to hear the Truth Your Word is giving to us. Help us, in Christ Jesus, to be still and know that You alone are God. You know me inside out, so search me and take away anything that is not of You. As I strive to see Your grace at work in me. I pray this in the name of Jesus! Amen