Tithe thyself, first off

Hello!

The best gift that we can give to God is ... ourselves!

If I want to have a productive day; I tithe myself, first and foremost! In praise, and worship. In reading, meditating on, and speaking the Word. In listening to Him, and journaling...

There is something poignant about seeking the Lord during the wee hours of the morning. It is a quiet, and peaceful time. "My voice shall thou hear in the morning, O Lord; in the morning will I direct my prayer unto thee, and will look up [Psalm 5:3 KJV]." "Awake, my soul! Awake, harp and lyre! I will awaken the dawn [Psalm 57:8 NIV]." Not only will we awaken ourselves, we will summon the Lord God Almighty to work on our behalves, and call forth the day that we desire! 

We may not always get to say or do everything that we want to with God early on in the mornings, but the Holy Spirit + our spirit will work together in tandem throughout the day. The words of our mouth will not only shape the day to come, but they will shape the weeks, months and even the years to come! "Death and life are in the power of the tongue: and they that love it shall eat the fruit thereof [Proverbs 18:21 KJV]." Speak the promises, day in and day out, written and revealed! They will come forth! As pure gold!   

Fast forward to the new covenant, or the New Testament. Upon close inspection, not only did the apostles get IT, they took IT to another level, and they were able to turn the world upside down for Christ! Read *The Fellowship of the Believers in Acts 2:42-47 [NIV]! The believers devoted themselves to the apostles' : 1) teaching, 2) to fellowship, 3) to the breaking of bread, and 4) to prayer! They did this! Every day! In the temple, and in homes! Wonders, and signs followed! Well, I reckon! They persisted, and they persisted, and they persisted! Individually, and corporately! Need I say more? I think not! I rest my case!  

"Happy Today!"

"Happy Weekend!"

Shalom!

Angela
#EvnGreaterThings2018
#EvenGreaterThings
#TitheThyself
#BibleGateway

*Translations and scriptures are taken from Bible Gateway!

NOTE:  I Adorned You [digital magazine] is coming your way, whenever!

ALV & Co., "The Gold Standard!"

"I am a king and a priest unto thee [Revelation 1:6 KJV]!"

Angela L Vann, Ms   |   Far Above Rubies   |   O My Dove

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More on faith

Hello!

I tell you the truth...

"Our measure of faith is for the sole purpose of tapping into the faith of God!"

We read the Scriptures; on one level, to have faith. We read the Scriptures; on another level, to persevere in faith. We read the scriptures; on yet another level, to receive revelation information! 

Faith; for all intent and purposes is, as the late Rev. Dr. Adrian Rogers stated on the Wednesday, August 8, 2018 radio broadcast (which is NOT showing up on the line up as I am writing), "the response of the heart to the character of God!"  

Jesus is the Word, and the Word is Jesus! 

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

*John 1:14 NIV states:  The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us. We have seen his glory, the glory of the one and only Son, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth...

Moreover, the Word is powerful! It is of the authority + power of Christ!

*Hebrews 4:12 NIV states:  For the word of God is alive and active. Sharper than any double-edged sword it penetrates even to dividing soul and spirit, joints and marrow; it judges the thoughts and attitudes of the heart...

IF Jesus is the Word et al, and he and it are dynamite, we respond to him/the Word [his authority + power] in the affirmative to have faith, to persevere in faith, and to receive revelation information! 

Are we there, yet? 

*Ephesians 3:16 NIV states:  I pray that out of his glorious riches he may strengthen you with power through his Spirit in your inner being...

We reach into Jesus/the Word, AKA, his Spirit for whatsoever we will or may! Isn't it marvelous how we can read Scripture on one thing, and receive an answer to that, and something else altogether different while at it? GOD IS! 

As the Apostle Paul prayed, *May the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the glorious Father, give y-o-u the Spirit of wisdom and revelation so that you may know him better [Ephesians 1:17 NIV]! Amen!

"Happy Today!"

"Happy Weekend!"

Shalom!

Angela
#EvnGreaterThings2018
#MoreOnFaith.
#BibleGateway

*Translations and scriptures are taken from Bible Gateway!

NOTE:  I Adorned You [digital magazine] is coming your way, whenever!

ALV & Co., "The Gold Standard!"

"I am a king and a priest unto thee [Revelation 1:6 KJV]!"

Angela L Vann, Ms   |   Far Above Rubies   |   O My Dove

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The love of Christ

Hello!

I was startled into a deeper awareness of the love of Christ last week...

While reading *Ephesians 3:19 KJV, the words love that surpasses knowledge leaped from the page! I had read it before. Many times, I'm reckoning. But, it never had this impact before...

When a scripture captures my imagination, I will read the scripture before it, and the scripture after it. I will also read the entire chapter. Sometimes I will read the entire book...

*Ephesians 3:19-20 NIV states:  And to know the love of Christ, which passeth knowledge, that ye might be filled with all the fullness of God. Now unto him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to His power that is at work within us...

*Ephesians 3:19-20 AMP states:  And [that you may come] to know [practically, through personal experience] the love of Christ which far surpasses [mere] knowledge [without experience], that you may be filled up [throughout your being] to all the fullness of God [so that you may have the richest experience of God's presence in your lives, completely filled and flooded with God Himself]. Now to Him who is able to [carry out His purpose and] do super abundantly more than all that we dare ask or think [infinitely beyond our greatest prayers, hopes or dreams], according to His power that is at work within us...  

*Ephesians 3:18-19 TLB reads:  And may you be able to feel and understand, as all God's children should, how long, how wide, how deep, and how high his love really is; and to experience this love for yourselves, though it is so great that you will never see the end of it or fully know or understand it. And so at last you will be filled up with God himself...  

*Ephesians 3:14-19 MSG states:  My response is to get down on my knees before the Father, this magnificent Father who parcels out all heaven and earth. I ask him to strengthen you by his Spirit - not a brute strength but a glorious inner strength - that Christ will live in you as you open the door and invite him in. And I ask him that with both feet planted firmly on love, you'll be able to take in with all followers of Jesus the extravagant dimensions of Christ's love. Reach out and experience the breadth! Test its length! Plumb the depths! Rise to the heights! Live full lives, full in the fullness of God...

What is most telling is not *Ephesians 3:18 in and of itself, but in the scripture that follows it in all of the translations. We can not comprehend the love of Christ, no matter what we say, do or ask of Him! It is so all encompassing! It is so vast! It is light years ahead of us! To know love is to know Christ! To know Christ is to know love! If you are not already, learn to walk in the freedom to receive, to give, and to live in the completeness that He has so graciously bestowed upon us!    

"Happy Today!"

"Happy Weekend!"

Shalom!

Angela
#EvnGreaterThings2018
#EvenGreaterThings2018
#TheLoveOfChrist
#BibleGateway

*Translations taken from Bible Gateway!

NOTE:  I Adorned You [digital magazine] is coming your way, whenever!

ALV & Co., "The Gold Standard!"

"I am a king and a priest unto thee [Revelation 1:6]!"

Angela L Vann, Ms   |   Far Above Rubies   |   O My Dove

*Like this? Gifts are accepted at Google Pay! Thaaaaank you!

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Faith

Hello!

The word faith is used 336 times in the King James Version of the bible, according to Biblegateway.com. It is used 56 times in the Old Testament, and 280 times in the New Testament... 

Faith seems to mean a lot of different things to a lot of different people. I was the most curious about  Jesus' words Oh ye of little faith [Matthew 6:30, Matthew 8:26, Matthew 16:8 and Luke 12:28 KJV]...

According to A Commentary on the New Testament From the Talmud and Hebraica by John Lightfoot as found at BibleStudyTools.com, Matthew 6:30 is referring to faith for daily needs, such as food and clothing...

Matthew 8:26 is not directly addressed in the above commentary; however, in verse 23 Jesus is getting into the ship when the storm at sea arose. He rebukes the storm. In verses 28 - 32, He comes across two men possessed with devils in Gergesenes. He casts the demons out of them and into the swine, before sending them on their way...   

Matthew 16:8 is not directly addressed in the above commentary, either ; however, in verse 7 Jesus admonishes the disciples to beware of the leaven in the bread (or the teachings of the Pharisees and the Sadducees). In verses 9 - 12, He reminds them of how the loaves of bread were multiplied. He also admonishes them once again to beware of the teachings of the religious leaders...

Luke 12:28 is not directly addressed in the above commentary, either. In verses 24 - 27; however, Jesus talks about how the ravens are fed and the lilies and the grass are arrayed and clothed... 

Jesus did not make a real distinction between types of, or levels of faith! People either believed, or they did not believe! If they believed, they believed wholeheartedly! If they did not believe wholeheartedly, they had not tapped into the faith of Jesus! Our measure of faith is for the sole purpose of tapping into the faith of God! Now go ye therefore and encourage your brethren to take the Lord at His word!

"Happy Today!"

"Happy Weekend!"

Shalom!

Angela

#EvnGreaterThings2018

#EvenGreaterThings2018

#Faith

#BibleGateway

NOTE:  I Adorned You [digital magazine] is coming your way, whenever!

ALV & Co., "The Gold Standard!"

"I am a king and a priest unto thee [Revelation 1:6]!"

Angela L Vann, Ms   |   Far Above Rubies   |   O My Dove      

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Whatever happened to Sunday evening services?

Hello!

I have to tell you:  I love church! I could go all day, every day! Mostly, I go Sundays. Sunday mornings...    

"Back in the day," the 7th day or Day of Rest began with Sunday School. Morning worship came next. Like clockwork, there was a singing engagement for the young adult choir at other churches after lunch. YPHA, in addition to an evening service, occurred once a month... 

Somewhere along the line, churches began to get out of Sunday morning services promptly at 12:00 P.M., or shortly thereafter. And, they began to drop evening services altogether...

I can't help but wonder. Did we become too busy to go to church twice a day on Sundays, or what? I didn't. As a matter of fact, I worked part-time in retail on Sundays in the Shenandoah Valley partly for that very reason. What I had become accustomed to no longer existed. At least not to the extent that it had before...

Does dwindling church attendance reflect a lack of a biblical worldview on our parts? I prefer to refer to it as a biblical worldview rather than a Christian worldview because Christian worldview can mean so many different things to different people. A biblical worldview is more conclusive...

George Barna found that only 10% of professing Christians have a biblical worldview! Would lack of church attendance have any bearing on the dismal results? Possibly. Probably. Let me put it another way. It does not help! So, what are we going to do about it?  

We must become aggressive, with a capital 'a,' in bringing the Kingdom of Heaven to earth! We must be discipled, and disciple!   

Alright; now, let's go!  

God bless 'ya!

Happy Father's Day! 

Angela

#EvenGreaterThings

#TheKingIsComing

NOTE:  I Adorned You [digital magazine] is coming your way, whenever!

ALV & Co., "The Gold Standard!"

"I am a king and a priest unto thee..." Revelation 1:6

Angela L Vann, Ms   |   Far Above Rubies   |   O My Dove   

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Live on purpose

Hello!

Since December 2017, my high school class has lost 4 members. One of which died 5 days ago. We celebrated our 40th reunion September 2017. One able to attend is among the other three no longer living. This and the death of fashion designer Kate Spade has me pondering the meaning of it all, life and death, purpose...

As I take in the things swirling on around me, I can't help but note, "Some  of us live as if we have nine lives!"  Oh to be able to worship as Jacob did, even as he was dying [Hebrews 11:21 NIV]!

Although Ecclesiastes 3:2a tells us that there is "A time to be born, and a time to die, living without a cause is worrisome. I am convinced that some do know 'the hour' of departing. Others not so much. None of us know 'the hour' that the Lord cometh [Matthew 24:36, 42 and 25:13 KJV]. How do we prepare for the inevitable, saved or unsaved?

*Above all, by living on purpose!!!

Rick Warren tackled it well in his book Purpose Driven Life. I still have my copy of the original which I received as a gift. We are not our own no matter which way we look at it. If we live for God, we are His. We also have family, employees or employers, neighbors and other community members, etc., to do life with. If we do not live for God, we are still living for someone or something else larger than ourselves whether it is acknowledged or not. How does one ascertain purpose? By going back to the bible, of course...

The Lord always has a purpose, beginning with His! "And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to his purpose [Romans 8:28 KJV]!" As I made my way into town this morning on foot, I acknowledged that I should have consulted the Lord more on various issues over the years. Just imagine some of the heartache and frustration that I may have saved myself had I ... about everything! He has purpose, clearly. If He has purpose, we have purpose too...

It is my heart's desire to do everything that He intends for me to do. As He has and keeps on revealing things to me, I marvel. I would not have thought of some of the things that He has thought of! I am glad that He made me, and that I have a relationship with Him that needs to deepen even more daily through prayer and reading the scripture. As I've often heard some say, we keep on doing what He last told us to do until He tells us to do something else! We are bound to be happier if we are falling in line with what he has created us to be and do...

Decide today that you too will live on purpose, that you too will live with a cause, that you too will worship even unto 'the hour!'

God bless 'ya!

"Happy Today!"

Shalom!

Angela
#EvenGreaterThings
#TheKingIsComing
#LiveOnPurpose

NOTE:  I Adorned You [digital magazine] is coming your way, whenever!

ALV & Co., "The Gold Standard!"
"I am a king and a priest unto thee..." Revelation 1:6

Angela L Vann, Ms   |   Far Above Rubies   |   O My Dove   

*Like this? Gifts are accepted at Google Wallet! Thaaaaank you!

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Persevere, persevere, persevere

Hello!

The times call for it!

October 10, 2017. My journal. "You have to have an ironclad will to follow me!"  If I didn't know it then, I know it now!

I was told by a pastor about a year ago that it is easy to serve God! I don't know what planet she came from, but some times it is and some times it isn't! That said, we have hope through Jesus! We have His authority, and His power! We must use them, con-sis-ent-ly!

We are admonished to!

"Watch your life and doctrine closely. Persevere in them, because if you do, you will save both yourself and your hearers [1 Timothy 4:16 NIV]..."

I want my relationship with Christ to grow, and I want others to come into relationship with Christ! I want to press in to Him, when it is easy and when it is not easy! I desire all that He has for me!

"Blessed is the one who perseveres under trial because, having stood the test, that person will receive the crown of life that the Lord has promised to those who love him [James 1:12 NIV]!"

"As you know, we count as blessed those who have persevered. You have heard of Job's perseverance and have seen what the Lord finally brought about. The Lord is full of compassion and mercy [James 5:11 NIV]..."

Be encouraged, and be an encourager! When all is said and done, He is worth it!

God bless 'ya!

"Happy Today!"

Shalom!

Angela
#EvenGreaterThings
#TheKingIsComing
#Persevere

NOTE:  I Adorned You [digital magazine] is coming your way, whenever!

ALV & Co., "The Gold Standard!"
"I am a king and a priest unto thee..." Revelation 1:6

Angela L Vann, Ms   |   Far Above Rubies 

* Like this? Gifts are accepted at Google Wallet! Thaaaaank you!

Privacy Regarded