Hi Brian!

Great win today! The word for this week is "transfigured/transformed. These are the same Greek word. We find transfigured in these two verses:

Matthew 17:2 And was transfigured before them: and his face did shine as the sun, and his raiment was white as the light. KJV

Mark 9:2  And after six days Jesus takes with him Peter, and James, and John, and leads them up into an high mountain apart by themselves: and he was transfigured before them. KJV

Transformed is found in this verse:

Romans 12:2 And be not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God. KJV

Both of these are from the Greek word "metamorphoo". Thayer's Greek Lexicon says: to change into another form. When Jesus was on the mountain with Peter, James and John, His physical appearance changed to take on the glow that comes from the Glory of God. WE will have bodies like that when we get to Heaven, OR when we meet Him in the air at the Rapture of the Church. Romans shows us that our souls (mind, emotions, will) NEED to be transformed by being renewed with the Word of God. The more we meditate on the Word (thinking about it, talking about it, allowing Holy Spirit to reveal it to us) the more knowledge and understanding we will have, not only of what it is saying, but also how to act on it. What we see and hear will determine what we think about. What we think about is what we will eventually say and then do. Changing our thinking to agree with God causes us to respond as He would to every situation! Transformation! Your home and family reflect that! You are looking more and more like JESUS! Here is another new song from the new album by Hillsong's called Transfiguration":

Love and Shalom from the Swoveys!

Hi Brian!

The word for this week is "shaken". We'll be looking at these verses: 

Luke 6:38 Give, and it shall be given unto you; good measure, pressed down, and shaken together, and running over, shall men give into your bosom. For with the same measure that ye mete withal it shall be measured to you again. KJV

Acts 4:31 And when they had prayed, the place was shaken where they were assembled together; and they were all filled with the Holy Ghost, and they spake the word of God with boldness. KJV

Acts 16:25 And at midnight Paul and Silas prayed, and sang praises unto God: and the prisoners heard them. 26 And suddenly there was a great earthquake, so that the foundations of the prison were shaken: and immediately all the doors were opened, and every one's bands were loosed. KJV

2 Thess 2:2 That ye be not soon shaken in mind, or be troubled, neither by spirit, nor by word, nor by letter as from us, as that the day of Christ is at hand. KJV

In all of the above verses, the Greek word is "saleuo". It can have a positive connotation as in the verse in Luke concerning the return on our giving, or negative as in 2 Thessalonians referring to our mindset. Strong's Concordance says this:  to waver; agitate; rock; topple; destroy; disturb; incite. Thayer's Greek Lexicon adds: the motion produced by winds, storms or waves; to shake down; overthrow; to cast down from one's secure and happy state. The good things in Luke are "shaken" so that everything will settle down, making room for more. A negative motion that produces a positive result! In Acts the entire place was shaken by the power, presence and glory of God the Holy Spirit as He moved among and upon the believers there. His power is ALWAYS a GOOD thing for HIS people! The prison being shaken also displayed the power and presence of the Spirit of God that resulted in the jailer being saved! In 2 Thessalonians Paul is warning born again, Spirit-filled believers not to be upset by things that they were hearing that were contrary to the Word and plan of God. WE can use THAT exhortation in these days! There IS that quiet place of calm confidence when we KNOW our God and His will for our lives and when we trust Him in all of those things. (As Vikings fans, we will NOT be shaken by yesterday's game! We fully expect our team to learn from their mistakes and come back better and stronger than ever!) The song for this week is another new song from Hillsong Worship called "In God We Trust":

Love and Shalom from the Swoveys!

Hi Brian! 

The word for this week is "forsake". We'll also be looking at the word "forsaken" as they both originate from the same Greek word. Here is Hebrews 13:5:

5 Let your conversation be without covetousness; and be content with such things as ye have: for he hath said, I will never leave thee, nor forsake thee. KJV

This is the Greek word "egkataleipo". Strong's Concordance says: to leave behind in some place. {In a  good sense: let remain over. In a bad sense: to desert.} Thayer's Greek Lexicon adds: to leave down, to abandon. Vine's Expository Dictionary also adds this: to leave in straits or helpless. Once we have been born again, Holy Spirit takes up residence IN us, and He will never leave! I really like the Amplified Bible for this:

5 Let your character or moral disposition be free from love of money [including greed, avarice, lust, and craving for earthly possessions] and be satisfied with your present [circumstances and with what you have]; for He [God] Himself has said, I will not in any way fail you nor give you up nor leave you without support. [I will] not, [I will] not, [I will] not in any degree leave you helpless nor forsake nor let [you] down (relax My hold on you)! [Assuredly not!] AMP

What a wonderful promise! We see this word translated "forsaken" in these two Scripture passages: Mark 15:34 and 2 Corinthians 4:7-9:

34 And at the ninth hour Jesus cried with a loud voice, saying, Eloi, Eloi, lama sabachthani? which is, being interpreted, My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me?
KJV

7 But we have this treasure in earthen vessels, that the excellency of the power may be of God, and not of us. 8 We are troubled on every side, yet not distressed; we are perplexed, but not in despair; 9 Persecuted, but not forsaken; cast down, but not destroyed; KJV

Jesus Himself WAS "forsaken" by the Father at that moment when He BECAME sin with OUR sin, taking that punishment of death (separation from God) for us, so that we will never have to! Neither He, nor we, will ever be forsaken by God again! No matter what happens, we will always have an answer in the Word that provides the way out (1 Corinthians 10:13)! Here is Hillsong Worship with another new song called "Never Forsaken":

Love and Shalom from the Swoveys!

Hi Brian!

It was great to see you both at the game today! I can't wait to see the new family picture! The word for this week is "sting". It's only found in one portion of Scripture. 1 Corinthians 15:55-56:

55 O death, where is thy sting? O grave, where is thy victory? 56 The sting of death is sin; and the strength of sin is the law. KJV

This is the Greek word "kentron". Strong's Concordance says this: from kenteo (to prick); a point, a sting (figuratively, poison). Thayer's Greek Lexicon adds: a sting as that of bees or scorpions. I really like this from the Theological Dictionary of the New Testament: When sin, on which its power rests, is vanquished by Christ, the sting is withdrawn and death becomes impotent. We know from Romans 6:23 that the ultimate price that must be paid for sin is death. This is not physical death, but eternal separation from the God of the Bible. Every human being is a spirit being, possessing a soul and living in a body (1 Thessalonians 5:23). The spirit and soul will live forever, SOMEWHERE. That choice is ours to make. So, for the born again believer, death is  no longer an enemy, but the "ticket" to an eternity in the presence of God! I refuse to leave here before I have "finished my course" (2 Timothy 4:7-8), but when I do, I'm ready! It is so wonderful to know that you and your family will (one day a LONG time from now) be there too! The Message Bible is really good, too! Here are verses 54-58:

54 Then the saying will come true: Death swallowed by triumphant Life! 55 Who got the last word, oh, Death? Oh, Death, who's afraid of you now? 56 It was sin that made death so frightening and law-code guilt that gave sin its leverage, its destructive power. 57 But now in a single victorious stroke of Life, all three — sin, guilt, death — are gone, the gift of our Master, Jesus Christ. Thank God! 58 With all this going for us, my dear, dear friends, stand your ground. And don't hold back. Throw yourselves into the work of the Master, confident that nothing you do for him is a waste of time or effort. 

I LOVE that! Here is a song from Hillsong Worship's new album called "O Praise The Name":

Love and Shalom from the Swoveys!

Hi Brian!

GREAT win, even if it WAS a bit ugly! Can't wait to see you all for the game next week! The word for this week is "wind". We'll be looking at three Greek words translated "wind" from three different verses. The first is found in John 3:8:

8 The wind blows (breathes) where it wills; and though you hear its sound, yet you neither know where it comes from nor where it is going. So it is with everyone who is born of the Spirit. AMP

This is the Greek word "pneuma". Thayer's Greek Lexicon says of this word: a movement of air (gentle) blast. Breaths of the nostril or mouth. The human spirit. When we receive Jesus as Lord and personal Savior, being born again, then the Spirit of God comes into our previously dead spirit and recreates our spirit man into the image of God. We become that new creature that never existed before in our lives (2 Corinthians 5:17). That is a GOOD wind! The next is found in Acts 2:2:

2 When suddenly there came a sound from heaven like the rushing of a violent tempest blast, and it filled the whole house in which they were sitting.  AMP

This is the Greek word "pnoe". Thayer's Greek Lexicon says: breath, breath of life. Vine's Expository Dictionary adds: a blowing blast. The "breath" of the Spirit of God came into that room on the Day of Pentecost as forcefully as a strong and mighty wind would! My personal belief is that Holy Spirit was as excited about living in these new believers (and filling them to overflowing) as Jesus was to give His life for our Salvation! Thank YOU, Jesus, and thank YOU Holy Spirit! These two examples were very positive, but the next one is not! The last example is found in Ephesians 4:14:

14 So then, we may no longer be children, tossed [like ships] to and fro between chance gusts of teaching and wavering with every changing wind of doctrine, [the prey of] the cunning and cleverness of unscrupulous men, [gamblers engaged] in every shifting form of trickery in inventing errors to mislead. AMP

This is the Greek word "anemos". Thayer's Greek Lexicon says: wind, a violent agitation and stream of air. Vine's Expository Dictionary adds: besides the literal meaning, is used metaphorically of variable teaching. This word is a caution to NOT be moved by every new doctrine or teaching that comes along UNLESS it lines up perfectly with the Word of God! People come up with ideas about what the Word says all the time. Sometimes they are right and other times they are wrong. When we meditate on these, Holy Spirit will reveal what is Truth (John 17:17) and what is not! You can trust Him! Here is another new song by Hillsong Worship called "Love On The Line":

Love and Shalom from the Swoveys!