Placed in His Hands…
John 10: 27 – 30 is a great comfort to me. To summarize this beautiful scripture–We are His sheep, we hear His voice, He knows us, and we follow Him. Just as lost sheep in need of a shepherd so are we to our Father in heaven, but even greater still He will not leave nor forsake us. Also taught in these scriptures–Jesus gives us eternal life, we shall never perish, no one can snatch us out of His hand. Wow!! What a promise! These few scriputres hold so much meaning and truth. We sometimes forget the “little” scriputures, don’t we? Let’s not miss what God is trying to help us understand (another reference would be over in HEB 13:5–look up these scriptures and allow God to speak to your heart). To HIM be the glory for being so great. When we are truly following Christ, and know we are His sheep, we have no fear. Christ has placed us in His caring hands of protection. He is always keeping watch and will not allow the wolves to snatch us away!!! I don’t know about you, but I thought this was just too good not to share–we really have something to be excited over!!….standing in His promises, “little lady”
Thanks to everyone for my warm welcome and also for welcoming Karl as a word of testimony…God blessings to you all!
thedailylily.com 
Thank you “Little Lady’ for reminding us of some of GOD’S most precious promises. I did turn to Hebrews 13:5 which spoke to my heart about being content with the post that the Lord has given us before the foundation of the earth. I saw that in the phrase, “be ye content with such things as ye have”. That is both comforting and reassuring that no matter what we have or what we have to do, He will never leave us…never forsake us. To quote a Twila Paris song that Needles taught us, “God is in control. We believe that His children will not be forsaken.God is in control. We will choose to remember and never be shaken.” That was one of our praise songs in church this morning and you have confirmed it with your lovely message.
Thank you.
I love the way you worded that Little Lady…Standing In His promises….it reminded me of Psalm 91..which speaks of abiding under the shadow of the Almighty….but its for those who dwell In the secret place of the Most High…and dwell acording to the American Century dictionary..means to live or reside….and abide means ..to remain and continue…So as we are His sheep and we remain continueally with Him all of psalm 91 belongs to us…but..as written Standing in His promises…is an verb..we just dont stand we have to be obedient to His will( Action)…do His will..speak, act, walk ,be and let the life and light of Christ shine through us..be all He wants us to be..thats dwelling and abiding…and being His sheep….My sheep hear My voice and another they will not follow John 10;5…and you are right Little Lady no one can snatch us out of Gods Hand because Isaiah 49;16 says..behold, I have engraved thee upon the plams of my hands; thy walls are contnually before me….Now who’s going to try and unengrave us off of Almighty Gods palm?…Wow..and all the promises of God are Yes and Amen…and they are ours…Just in Psalm 91 there are so many..He is our refuge, fortress..He will deliver, He shall cover, His truth shall be our shield and buckler..there will be no fear of terror by night or day or noon..we will see the reward of the wicked, No evil shall befall us or come near our dwelling…He shall give His angels charge over us , they shall bear us up in their hands..we shall tread upon the lion and cobra…and He will be wih us in trouble and deliver us and honor us and with long life satisfy us and show us His salvation….Now thats something really being in The Sheperds care…so glad we are His sheep….thanks for sharing Little Lady…dj
I love your coined phrase “who is going to un-engrave us off the palm of God’s Hand?”
That will give you something to think about and meditate on and ponder and wonder about forever. But, being the good teacher you are you informed us that we are capable of un-engraving ourselves off of God Hand. Un-graving would be like dusting our good furniture with bad furniture polish, Disobendience!
Galatians 5:19-21 will give you the name of the furniture polish to use to un-engrave the engraving and the furniture polish to use to protect and care for the engraving on God’s Hand in Galatians 5:22-23. Just think how we have a part of the fruit that God holds dear in His hand.
Galations5:22-25..Lovely polished eternal fruit of the Spirit!..and thinking (as your studies get me to do) about being a part of the fruit that God holds dear in His hand as you wrote..caused me to think about what I read in Revelation about fruit…which ties in to the question you wrote in your Bible Study? article asking what do we say to those who think God in unfair in His distribution….and my reply being us as the unfair ones….Here we have the fruit and we need to use it be it , protect it with the polish because it is dear in Gods hand…its dear fruit, precious fruit because …Revelation says…In 22:1-2…And he showed me a pure river of water of life, clear as crystal, proceeding from the throne of God and of the Lamb. In the middle of its street, and on either side of the river, was the tree of life, which bore twelve fruits, each tree yeilding its fruit every month. And the leaves of the tree were for the healing of the nations…the fruit is eternal…dj
These really are comforting scriptures, Little Lady. And as I read them I noticed that earlier in the chapter in John 10:10,11 that Jesus is not just any shepherd but He is the good shepherd and leads us that we may havelife and have it more abundantly as we follow.
Love the Bible Study! Thought Provoking!
Question: Hebrews 13:5 …Be content with such things as you have…for I will never leave you nor forsake you,.”
How would we answer those that believe that God is unfair in His distributions? This may apply to the ones of us that live in the US or other Nations?
Thought provoking is right!..God gave us everything when He gave us His only Son and then said all we had to do was accept Him and do His will…We were given the authority to use His name to change things Matthew 28: 18-20…if we had the faith the size of a grain of mustard seed we could move mountains Matthew 17:20..it is us ..that is unfair not God…He gave us the ways and means..so if we dont have ..it it us..so when He said be content with what you have to me He was saying You Have All I have..You have Me..and I will never leave you..but the things of this world they will pass away Matthew 24:35…I will never leave nor forsake you…so..it is those of us who are called by His name that are unfair if we are not doing like Sara, Little Lady, and Karl…etc..we have the power of Life and death in our tongues and we need to remember that God is indeed a loving God He already gave us what we need….Himself….and then He God Said in Luke 12:22-34..dont worry He knows what we need..(shorten but read it all)….We just need to be and do what Luke 11;33-36 says..shine….dj..shine is (action)
Your words of encouragement brings this scripture to mind. “A God of truth and without injustice; righteous and upright is He.” Deut. 32:4
I thank you for your comforting words from the scripture. It is so comforting to hear his promises stated in such a beautiful way. I can only conclude with Psalm 100 which from the Message says:
On your feet now – applaud God! Bring a gift of laughter, sing yourselves into his presence. Know this: God is God, and God, God. He made us; we didn’t make him. We’re his people, his well-tended sheep. Enter with the password: “Thank you!” Make yourselves at home, talking praise. Thank him. Worship him. For God is sheer beauty, all-generous in love, loyal always and ever.
“Little Lady”
What an encouraging blog! I love to hear about God’s wonderful promises to His children. We need this encouragement! When I read this blog I kept thinking of that hymn, “Standing on the Promises”! He wants us to STAND on those promises!!
hymn of mine. vs. 3 “Bound to Him eternally by love’s strong cord, OVERCOMNG daily with thy Spirit’s sword, Standing on the promises of God.”
vs. 4 “Standing on the promises I cannot fail. Listening every moment to the Spirit’s call, Resting in my Saviour as my all in all, Standing on the promises of God.” Visit the site below and sing along with me and many others as we Stand on The Promises of God.
http://www.cyberhymnal.org/htm/s/o/sotpogod.htm
Needles here is another promise..Wait for the promise of the Father, which ye have heard of me. For John truly baptized with water; but ye shall be baptized with the Holy Ghost not many days hence. Acts 1:4,5….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 Judea, and in Samaria, and unto the uttermost part of the earth. Acts 1:7,8…..WoW God even gives us the power to stand on His promises…..as we go forth being that light…dj
What does one do if their heart has grown cold? Whether it be toward evangelim, personal promises or just standing? Is there a way back to a passion for God and His promises?
I think sometimes people’s hearts grow cold gradually and they hardly notice it, themselves, at first. They’re still reading the BIBLE but get too busy to spend much time in the Word. Maybe they are still doing good works. But if an attitudinal problem of the heart creeps in; If there’s an offense being nutured in the heart and other
unhappy conditions of the heart, etc. then, without fanfare or flowery announcement or grandiose proclamation, “suddenly” (so it seems) God seems far away. Is there a way back, back to that sweet communion with the Lord? Sara asks that question.
I thought about the several Scriptures where the LORD Promises: “When you come looking for Me you’ll find Me. When you get serious about finding Me and want it more than anything else, I’ll make sure you won’t be disappointed. God’s decree. I’ll turn things around for you. I’ll bring you back….bring you home from the place where you were in exile. You Can Count on it!!” (Message Bible paraphrase)
In another place, in Isaiah, The Lord cautions us, “Seek God while He’s here to be found. Pray to Him while He’s close at hand. Abandon wrong ways of thinking and life of the flesh. Let them come back to GOD Who is merciful, Who is LAVISH with forgiveness.
In Chapter 2:2-7, Jesus sends a message for John to write in the Book of Revelation, “I know your industry and labors and toil and how you cannot tolerate evil men. I know you are enduring patiently and have not grown weary and have been bearing up for My name’s sake” (So far this sounds like a GREAT, GOD-LOVING CHURCH, doesn’t it?). “BUT I have this one charge against you, says the Lord. You have abandoned, left the love you had for ME at the first. You have deserted Me, YOUR FIRST LOVE!”. (Now He tells us what to do about getting back to that fire and zeal that we had in the beginning). Verse 5 says, ” Remember from what heights you have fallen. REPENT! Change the inner man to meet God’s will and do the works you did previously when you first knew Me. He who is able to hear let him listen to what the the HOLY SPIRIT says to the churches; he who overcomes and is victorious, I will grant to eat of the fruit of the tree of life which is in the paradise of God.” (AMP) WOW! That’s a glorious promise of Heavenly Eternity.
And in 1John 1:9, Jesus says, “If we freely admit that have sinned and confess our sins, (or our slip ups, momentary weaknesses) He is faithful and just, true to His Promises, and will forgive our sins and cleanse us from all unrighteousness…everything that’s not conforming to His will and purpose, thought and action.” (AMP) What a promise that is from a merciful, loving God.!! And, finally, the following:
Joseph Stowell, former president of Moody Bible Institute, writes in his book, WHY IT’S HARD TO LOVE JESUS, “It doesn’t matter if we THINK we love HIM. What matters is whether or NOT CHRIST FEELS LOVED BY US!”
Your teachings bring to mind the Parable of the Soils, found in Matthew 13, Mark 4, and Luke 8. But the thought that comes to my mind Mathew 13: 22 “but all to quickly the message is crowded out by the cares of this life and the lure of wealth, so no crop is produced.”
The thorny ground represents those who hear and accept the Good News, but all too quickly the message is crowded out by the cares of this life and the lure of wealth, so no crop is produced. 23The good soil represents the hearts of those who truly accept God’s message and produce a huge harvest–thirty, sixty, or even a hundred times as much as had been planted.”
I agree with Stowell “What matters is whether or NOT CHRIST FEELS LOVED BY US!” and to my understanding that is when we provide Him with fruitfulness.
So if I understand correctly to once again feel close to God do as the Word says “Draw close to Him and then He will draw close to you. Cleanse your hands, purify your hearts, you double-minded,” James 4:8 Maybe we are really seeing what it means “don’t sit down on the job.”
My prayer for all God’s children is that we will draw close to Him and not harden our hearts at times like this. We will encourage, love and support one another as we pray and believe and hope for all God’s children.
I thought of the Parable of the Lost Son, in Luke 15:11-32..when the son had come to his end he humbled himself and returned home…His father rejoiced and said …we should make merry and be glad, for your brother was dead and is alive again, and was lost and is found….(to me thats having a cold heart)…and like it is written in 2Chron 7:14..If My people who are called by My name will humble themselves, and pray and seek My face, and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin and heal their land…I know it doesnt say it but when the lost son was back home and the father was having a big party for him I know the son had to have gotten his passion back to be obediant to his father and to believe in his words(promises)….he knew what it was like to be cold hearted and dead..and he knew his father loved him,,,now how could he not love his father in return…and Is there a way back to a passion for God and His promises?…With man it is impossible but with God All things are possible..Matt.20:26….dj
These are great thoughts and scriptures! Your story of the prodigal reminded me of another Bible story in Hosea 2 where Hosea marries a woman named Gomer who seeks other lovers and deserts him. Hosea 2:13 says..”and went after her lovers and forgot me”. Despite her hard, cold heart, Hosea (which seems to represent God and His love for His people)allures her and says she shall sing in the Valley of Achor. Like in the prodigal it looks as if God’s great love and mercy warmed this heart again.