Tag: glory

Wall of Fire

Published on by amylinneaLeave a comment

And I will be to her a wall of fire all around, declares the Lord, and I will be the glory in her midst. Zechariah 2:5

When walking through life, do you feel alone?

Do you feel often overwhelmed by the world’s rubbish thrown your way?

Tired of falling too often towards temptation?

Walk in your authority from God.

He’s with you. He covers you with His strength, protection, and peace.

Psalm 5:12 reminds us: Lord, you bless the righteous; you surround them with your favor as with a shield.

When feeling overwhelmed by life, picture God surrounding you with HIs favor like a shield.

But it gets even better.

Our verse from Zechariah shares God’s promise of a literal wall of fire.

This wall of fire surrounds you. Nothing can come through.

Picture this wall of fire burning up temptation. Burning up fear. Burning up anything coming your way that is not of God.

Can we still have problems with God as our wall of fire?

Sure. Jesus reminds us we will suffer.

But suffering under God’s plan is different from allowing the world’s rubbish to affect you.

Within God’s plan, suffering looks like glory. Suffering looks like peace. It’s the opposite of how the world defines it.

Paul mentions suffering as a time to boast in God’s strength.

May God surround us as a wall of fire.

May God’s wall of fire burn up anything that comes our way not of Him and Him alone.

May God’s wall of fire burn up our selfish tendencies, placing in us the desire for God alone.

May God’s wall of fire burn up fear when tempted to rely on human knowledge.

And may God’s glory be forever in the midst of us.

Photos by Paul Bulai, Cullan Smith, Olivia Snow, & Zac Durant on Unsplash

Raised Hands

Published on by amylinneaLeave a comment

But thou art holy, O thou that inhabitest the praises of Israel. Psalm 22:3

When worshiping the Lord, we often raise our hands.

Why? Absolute surrender. Acknowledging God is God and we are not.

Proclaiming His holiness. Bringing ourselves to Him as an offering.

As we lift our hands to heaven in worship, God comes down.

Psalm 22:3 reminds us God inhabits our praise. Chooses to manifest His glory and power amid our worship.

Picture your hands raised to heaven.

As your voice lifts your song in worship, God reaches down to you.

His hands clasp yours, filling you with Himself.

He receives your worship as His glory comes down to you.

A holy exchange.

That picture jumped into my head today as we worshipped at church.

If I could bring you into my head, you’d get the full picture I wish I could correctly share.

It was beautiful. Comforting. Full of strength.

God longs to fill us with more of Him.

He is so worthy to be praised.

The next time you sing in worship to Him, raise those hands.

Give Him all of you as He reaches down to give you more of Him.

Photos by Jake Hill, Steve Adams, Jametlene Reskp, & Guillaume de Germain on Unsplash

Your Glory

Published on by amylinneaLeave a comment

Good sense makes one slow to anger, and it is his glory to overlook an offense. Proverbs 19:11

This verse is not an easy one to read.

It’s way more fun to keep an offense, especially when you’re completely justified.

And we always are justified in our own mind, yes?

Looking at the first part, it’s easy to understand.

When we have good sense, meaning solid countenance or common sense, we don’t get angry often.

We don’t allow anger to grab us when we are in our right minds.

Trouble is, other people cause us to exit our good sense, trying to justify our offense at them.

After all, they wronged us! It’s not fair!

When we have good sense, we focus on Whose we are.

Our feet are solidly planted in our relationship with God first.

We know God is living through us, and we fully trust Him to provide us His strength, wisdom, and peace.

Could even be that we ask God how to react before we do. We train our brain to do just that. Putting God first.

So, back to the ouchy part of the verse: not taking offense.

Proverbs says it’s our glory to overlook an offense.

Means we could be offended, but we choose not to be.

Because we remain peaceful, the glory is still ours.

Our mood isn’t in the toilet.

Clouds are not hanging around.

Others can be down in the dumps, but we’re not.

It’s still sunny where we’re at, because we are choosing not to associate with the other person’s offensive behavior.

It’s their problem, not ours.

Is it more fun to take their offense and make them pay?

Sure.

But in the process, you are robbed of peace. You are robbed of minutes or hours, stewing in what they did to you. You are robbed of God’s glory shining through you.

Jesus could have put people verbally down so many times, but he regularly chose to overlook offenses.

And glory remained His.

You can pity others, if it helps.

You can feel badly they are stuck in the mud of getting back at life.

But don’t stay there or you’ll think of yourself as better than them.

And that’s almost as bad as keeping an offense.

So shrug them off.

Remain steadfast in God’s good sense.

And keep your glory as you overlook the other’s offense.

It’s hard, but it’s completely worth it.

Photos by Ingmar H, Gene Dizon, Patrick Fore, & name_ gravity on Unsplash

Reflecting

Published on by amylinneaLeave a comment

But we all, with open face beholding as in a glass the glory of the Lord, are changed into the same image from glory to glory, even as by the Spirit of the Lord. 2 Corinthians 3:18

inga-gezalian-Wnler_kasvc-unsplash

Reflecting.

We reflect what we honor.

We reflect what we love.

We reflect Whose we are.

Do you reflect God?

Or do you reflect things of the world?

Or yourself?

The Bible talks about us becoming so filled with God, that we reflect His glory.

When we continually seek His will,

When we consistently empty ourselves,

When we continuously purpose to be His alone,

Our mirror will reflect the glory of God more and more.

alex-lopez-JR1ChBgzJvQ-unsplash (1)

What does your mirror reflect?

If we’re honest, our mirrors mostly reflect ourselves.

Our wishes.

Our demands.

Our needs.

Keep your open conversation running with God.

Continually seek His wisdom and peace in every situation.

In every moment.

And slowly, your mirror, too, will begin to reflect the glory of God.

When your mirror reflects more of God than yourself, others take note, polishing their own mirrors for Him as well.

Photos by Alex Lopez, Noah Buscher, Inga Gezalian, & Kenzie Kraft on Unsplash