Hi Brian!

This week I want to share the Charles Spurgeon devotional!

"If we walk in the light, as He is in the light."  — 1 John 1:7

As He is in the light! Can we ever attain to this? Shall we ever be able to walk as clearly in the light as He is whom we call "Our Father," of whom it is written, "God is light, and in Him is no darkness at all"? Certainly, this is the model which it set before us, for the Saviour Himself said, "Be ye perfect, even as your Father who is in heaven is perfect"; and although we may feel that we can never rival the perfection of God, yet we are to seek after it, and never to be satisfied until we attain to it. The youthful artist, as he grasps his early pencil, can hardly hope to equal Raphael or Michael Angelo, but still, if he did not have a noble beau ideal before his mind, he would only attain to something very mean and ordinary. But what is meant by the expression that the Christian is to walk in light as God is in the light? We conceive it to import likeness, but not degree. We are as truly in the light, we are as heartily in the light, we are as sincerely in the light, as honestly in the light, though we cannot be there in the same measure. I cannot dwell in the sun, it is too bright a place for my residence, but I can walk in the light of the sun; and so, though I cannot attain to that perfection of purity and truth which belongs to the Lord of hosts by nature as the infinitely good, yet I can set the Lord always before me, and strive, by the help of the indwelling Spirit, after conformity to His image. That famous old commentator, John Trapp, says, "We may be in the light as God is in the light for quality, but not for equality." We are to have the same light, and are as truly to have it and walk in it as God does, though, as for equality with God in His holiness and purity, that must be left until we cross the Jordan and enter into the perfection of the Most High. Mark that the blessings of sacred fellowship and perfect cleansing are bound up with walking in the light. 

I LOVE this! Our goal is to be LIKE out Father, which causes us to be the very BEST version of ourselves!  Though perfection is NOT possible, reaching for that goal not only puts us in great company, but also causes our desires to line up with HIS and makes us so valuable to all of the people in our lives. All of which is really the theme of this new song by Brandon Lake (and Hulvey) called "Right In The Middle", which is where HE is in all of this life! 

Love and Shalom from the Swoveys!

 Hi Brian!

This week I want to share a devotional from Joseph Prince's "Daily GraceInspirations". This made me think of you!

Supernatural Transformation

“You come to me with a sword, with a spear, and with a javelin. But I come to you in the name of the LORD of hosts, the God of the armies of Israel, whom you have defied.” 1 Samuel 17:45

Christ-occupation makes you bold but not superior, humble but not inferior. When our minds are occupied with Jesus, we don’t have to try to be humble. In the presence of the Servant-King, our hearts become supernaturally transformed, and we will carry His servant heart. In other words, when you hang out with Jesus, all that He is will rub off on you. Your thoughts and your words will be full of the fragrance of His sweet presence and grace. All your inferiority and insecurities will melt away in His marvelous love for you. It takes people who are truly secure in Christ to be able to bow down and serve others with genuine humility.

Similarly, when you are courageous and bold in Christ and in His love for you, it doesn’t manifest as fleshly pride and arrogance, but rather as complete dependence on Almighty God. Think of how young David charged down the Valley of Elah and challenged the giant Goliath, while the rest of the well-trained and full-grown men of the army of Israel cowered in fear. Was that simply a display of youthful bravado or a genuine dependence on God?

To the untrained eye, David could have appeared like an impudent little brat. But we know where this steely chutzpah comes from when these bold words of a mere teenager resonated throughout the valley: “You come to me with a sword, with a spear, and with a javelin. But I come to you in the name of the Lord of hosts, the God of the armies of Israel, whom you have defied” (1 Samuel 17:45). From his words, we can tell that young David was clearly occupied with the Lord of hosts and not with himself or his abilities.

When your thoughts are occupied with the Lord, you become a giant slayer! Are there giants in your life today that need to be slain? Like young David, occupy your mind with the Lord, and God will fill you with the courage and audacity to overcome all your adversities. Listen to the words of David in Psalm 18:29: “For by You I can run against a troop, by my God I can leap over a wall.” Let these words of faith and boldness be established in your heart. With God on your side, nothing is impossible!

This was my impression of you when we first met you, but all of these years serving Jesus has caused you to be even more like HIM! You handle situations with such grace and there is no doubt at all that you love and protect your family! Your love and care for us, even when we don't see you as often anymore, is such a blessing! We love you and Kristine and your beautiful daughters so very much! Seeing Avery and Ellyson has been a real blessing, too! You two have done so well training them in the way they should go!  Here is a fun song from Brandon Lake's new album called Ghost Stories:

Love and Shalom from the Swoveys!

Hi Brian!

The word for this week is "possible". We find it in this verse:

Luke 18:27 And he said, The things which are impossible with men are possible with God. KJV

This is the Greek word "adunatos". Strong's Concordance says: powerful or capable. Thayer's Greek Lexicon adds: able, mighty, strong. There is nothing that God has promised in His WORD that we cannot believe and receive from Him! In order to have our faith in Him operating at the highest level, we must continually meditate on every GOOD thing that He has done and promised! And the Brandon Lake song that covers this is again "Remember The Miracles"! 

Love and Shalom from the Swoveys!

Hi Brian!

One of the songs on Brandon Lake's newest album, King of Hearts, is called "Remember The Miracles" and that is the message I want to share with you this week! We'll be looking at these verses:

Mark 8:17 And when Jesus knew it, he saith unto them, Why reason ye, because ye have no bread? perceive ye not yet, neither understand? have ye your heart yet hardened? 18 Having eyes, see ye not? and having ears, hear ye not? and do ye not remember? 19 When I brake the five loaves among five thousand, how many baskets full of fragments took ye up? They say unto him, Twelve. 20 And when the seven among four thousand, how many baskets full of fragments took ye up? And they said, Seven. 21 And he said unto them, How is it that ye do not understand? KJV

Remember is the Greek word "mnemoneuo". Strong's Concordance says: to exercise memory, to recollect. Thayer's Greek Lexicon says: to be mindful of, to call to mind. The message that Jesus was getting across is that we should ALWAYS remember, or call to mind, His Word, the things that we have seen and heard of Him, the answers to prayer and GLORY reports that we have heard. Doing so helps to keep us in a constant state of expectation that HE will ALWAYS fulfill HIS promises to us! I am so looking forward to the day when my first thoughts are ALWAYS about His promises! No matter what things my look like in the coming months, always REMEMBER that God's Word is TRUTH and that He watches over it in order to continue to perform it! Here is Brandon Lake with that song mentioned above! 

Love and Shalom from the Swoveys!

Hi Brian!

The word for this week is "call". There are many words translated call in the New Testament, but we will be looking at the one found in Acts 2:21:

Acts 2:21 And it shall come to pass, that whosoever shall call on the name of the Lord shall be saved. KJV

This is the Greek word "epikaleomai". Strong's Concordance says: to entile, to envoke (for aid, worship, testimoy, decision). Thayer's Greek Lexicson says: to put a name upon. When we "call" on the Name of the Lord, we we are calling forth all the HE IS and all that HE has given to us! When we set our hearts and minds to do this, then there will be no end to the wisdom, knowledge and understanding that HE will pour into our lives! Brandon Lake's new album, King of Hearts, has the perfect song for this: I Know A Name!

Love and Shalom from the Swoveys!