Genesis 7:24-8:1

Happy Monday, everyone! :)

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Genesis 7:24-8:1

And the waters prevailed on the earth 150 days.

But God remembered Noah and all the beasts and all the livestock that were with him in the ark. And God made a wind blow over the earth, and the waters subsided.

The water "prevailed" for a time; from the outside looking in, it looked as if the water was winning, was "in charge". But God was in control the whole time!!

I'm reminded of John 1:5--"The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it."

Sometimes, looking at this world, whether watching the news or just watching the lives of those around us, it can seem like the darkness is winning. But the truth is this: the darkness has not and CAN not overcome the Light--Jesus. 

Father, thank You for the reminder that You are sovereign, even when there is darkness all around. It may have a time, but in the end You always win!!!

May the Lord bless you as you walk in the confidence of His overcoming Light!

Dancing in the rain,

Haley "SunShine" Miller

"Exhort one another daily while it is called 'Today'" (Hebrews 3:13)

Mornin' SunShine Website

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Genesis 2:3, Hebrews 4:9-13

Good morning, everyone! :)
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Genesis 2:3
So God blessed the seventh day and made it holy, because on it God rested from all His work that He had done in creation.

God's rest is, evidently, holy; a sacred thing. It is not meant to be just thrown around, given indiscriminately to whoever. There are prerequisites to sharing in His rest. I'm reminded of Hebrews 4, the chapter that speaks of the rest God offers His people and how the Israelites (the first intended recipients of this promised rest) failed to enter it because of disobedience.

Hebrews 4:7, 9-13--"Today, if you hear His voice, do not harden your hearts...So then, there remains a Sabbath rest for the people of God, for whoever has entered God's rest has also rested from his works as God did from His. Let us therefore strive to enter that rest, so that no one may fall by the same sort of disobedience. For the word of God is living and active, sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing to the division of soul and of spirit, of joints and of marrow, and discerning the thoughts and intentions of the heart. And no creature is hidden from His sight, but all are naked and exposed to the eyes of Him to whom we must give account."

So then how do we enter this rest? It's simple, really: through obedience. We must be open to hearing and heeding His voice, and we must be willing to open ourselves up to the sword of His living, active Word. It is a predetermined "yes" to God--whatever He may ask of me, whatever He may reveal to me through His word that needs to change in my life, my answer to Him is "yes". That is where I live in the holy rest of God--in faithful, surrendered obedience to Him.

Father, I am only truly at rest when I am surrendered to You! I choose now that my answer to You will always be "yes"...wherever You lead, whatever You ask: yes! I love You!

May you find that sweet, holy rest of faithful obedience to the Lord!

Dancing in the rain,
Haley "SunShine" Miller
"Exhort one another daily while it is called 'Today'" (Hebrews 3:13)
Mornin' SunShine Website
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If this e-mail was forwarded to you and you would like to receive the Mornin' SunShine e-mails on a regular basis yourself, you can e-mail me at mornin_sunshine@psalm686.com with "subscribe" in the subject line. If you would like to unsubscribe, just e-mail me at the address above with "unsubscribe" in the subject line and I will take you off the list.

Genesis 1:1

Happy New Year, y'all!!

I know...it's been forever since I sent out a Mornin' SunShine e-mail. If you're no longer interested in getting these, you can simply reply to this e-mail with "unsubscribe" in the subject line and tell me that. I promise to not be offended. :) I do apologize for how long I've been MIA! I don't promise to suddenly have my life sufficiently figured out and straightened out to be back to doing this every day, but I am going to try. Thank you all for your patience!

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Genesis 1:1

In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth.

 

"In the beginning, God..." 

Because God always has been and always will be, He knows the end of the story from the beginning. Not only that, but He knows my story, specifically, from beginning to end. And He knows exactly how my story fits into the story He is weaving throughout the world! Somehow, that is so incredibly comforting. I can't see clearly 2 or 3 years down the road, but not only does God know what's coming next, He knows the whole thing and is working out every detail to create beauty and bring glory to His name.

 

Father, what trust this thought inspires! I can safely let go of my little life, placing it in Your hands, knowing that You see the whole thing and You are writing the story of my life to its end with grace. Thank You!

 

As the page turns and a new year starts, may you be encouraged by knowing that God knows the story of your life and He is at work in it!

 

Dancing in the rain,
Haley "SunShine" Miller
"Exhort one another daily while it is called 'Today'" (Hebrews 3:13)
Mornin' SunShine Website
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If this e-mail was forwarded to you and you would like to receive the Mornin' SunShine e-mails on a regular basis yourself, you can e-mail me at mornin_sunshine@psalm686.com with "subscribe" in the subject line. If you would like to unsubscribe, just e-mail me at the address above with "unsubscribe" in the subject line and I will take you off the list.

Genesis 5:21-24

Happy Wednesday, y'all!

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Genesis 5:21-24

When Enoch had lived 65 years, he fathered Methuselah. Enoch walked with God after he fathered Methuselah 300 years and had other sons and daughters. Thus all the days of Enoch were 365 years. Enoch walked with God, and he was not, for God took him.

 

Enoch has always been one of my favorite Bible characters; odd, perhaps, since these four verses and a brief mention in Hebrews 11 are all there is about him. But somehow, they tell the whole story. He walked with God! Here's what's a bit interesting: Enoch's father, Jared, lived 962 years. He is the second longest living person recorded in the Bible. Enoch's son, Methuselah, lived 969 years, making him the longest living person recorded in the Bible. Enoch, sandwiched between the two, lived a mere 365 years--it sounds really long to us, but he's got the shortest lifespan in several generations (until Genesis 11, four generations past Noah). So my point? Life does not have to be long to be full and complete. In America today we are a society that is obsessed with finding new methods and medicines for prolonging life (well, except for the lives of unborn children!). I want to seek after something better: a full life, a life centered on Jesus Christ, that it might one day be said of me "she walked with God."

 

"God, I pray Thee, light these idle sticks of my life and may I burn for Thee. Consume my life, my God, for it is Thine. I seek not a long life, but a full one, like you, Lord Jesus." (Jim Elliot)

 

May the Lord bless you richly as you seek after a life made full and complete by Him alone!

 

Dancing in the rain,
Haley "SunShine" Miller
"Exhort one another daily while it is called 'Today'" (Hebrews 3:13)
Mornin' SunShine Website
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If this e-mail was forwarded to you and you would like to receive the Mornin' SunShine e-mails on a regular basis yourself, you can e-mail me at mornin_sunshine@psalm686.com with "subscribe" in the subject line. If you would like to unsubscribe, just e-mail me at the address above with "unsubscribe" in the subject line and I will take you off the list.

Genesis 3:5-6

Morning, y'all!

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Genesis 3:5-6

For God knows that when you eat of it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil." So when the woman saw that the tree was good for food, and that it was a delight to the eyes, and that the tree was to be desired to make one wise, she took of its fruit and ate, and she also gave some to her husband who was with her, and he ate.

 

Before this event, all Adam and Eve had known was God Himself. But when they decided they were no longer content with just knowing God, and wanted to know what only God knew, they got into big trouble. Aren't we like that? We also have the opportunity to know God--not exactly face to face like Adam and Eve did, but in ways that are no less real we can know Him. Yet it's not enough for us; we want to know all that God knows. I'm not saying that searching for knowledge and wisdom is a bad thing, because it's not--Proverbs makes that clear! But there will come a point where we come up against something that we will never understand or fully grasp, or we come face to face with the uncertainities of life, and at that point we have to make the choice to be content in just knowing the One who knows it all and leaving the rest up to Him.

 

Father, help me to be content with knowing You, and knowing that You know everything else. I don't have to know what's down the road to follow You, and I don't have to know all the hows and whys in order to walk in obedience to Your will! You know all that, and I know You, and that's enough for me. 

 

May the Lord richly bless you as you seek to just know HIM more!

 

Dancing in the rain,
Haley "SunShine" Miller
"Exhort one another daily while it is called 'Today'" (Hebrews 3:13)
Mornin' SunShine Website
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If this e-mail was forwarded to you and you would like to receive the Mornin' SunShine e-mails on a regular basis yourself, you can e-mail me at mornin_sunshine@psalm686.com with "subscribe" in the subject line. If you would like to unsubscribe, just e-mail me at the address above with "unsubscribe" in the subject line and I will take you off the list.

Genesis 1:2-4

Happy Tuesday, y'all! :)
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Genesis 1:2-4
The earth was formless and void, and darkness was over the surface of the deep, and the Spirit of God was moving over the surface of the waters. Then God said, "Let there be light"; and there was light. God saw that the light was good; and God separated the light from the darkness.

There are times when my life seems "formless and void", without purpose or plan, yet the Spirit of God is moving and working there still. His first work is to bring light--His truth. His second is to separate the light from the darkness. Only in my life, unlike in creation, He then works to eradicate the darkness.
God also works in His own way and His own time, sometimes without "logical" sequence--ie, creating plants on the third day, but no sun (which is necessary for plants to live and grow) until the fourth day. And He is under no obligation to explain Himself! :)

Father, sometimes it's hard to see how You're working--yet I know that You are. Help me to trust in Your faithfulness to complete what You have begun in me, even when I seem to be standing still!

May the Lord richly bless you as you trust in His faithful working in your life!

Dancing in the rain,
Haley "SunShine" Miller
"Exhort one another daily while it is called 'Today'" (Hebrews 3:13)
Mornin' SunShine Website
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If this e-mail was forwarded to you and you would like to receive the Mornin' SunShine e-mails on a regular basis yourself, you can e-mail me at mornin_sunshine@psalm686.com with "subscribe" in the subject line. If you would like to unsubscribe, just e-mail me at the address above with "unsubscribe" in the subject line and I will take you off the list.

Genesis 15:8-11

Happy Monday, everyone! :)
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Genesis 15:8-11
And he said, "Lord GOD, how shall I know that I will inherit it?"
So He said to him, "Bring me a three-year-old heifer, a three-year-old female goat, a three-year-old ram, a turtle dove, and a young pigeon." Then he brought all these to Him and cut them in two, down the middle, and placed each piece opposite the other; but he did not cut the birds in two. And when the vultures came down on the carcasses, Abram drove them away.

That last sentence used to seem slightly obscure to me; like it was just sort of thrown in there. But recently I was hit with the impact of this little verse: Abram jealously guarded his covenant with the Lord. It would have been easier to just let the vultures munch on the dead animals; apparently God didn't immediately consume this offering. It would have been easier to reason that he could just prepare another sacrifice later. But Abram didn't choose the easy way. He fought for this covenant, recognizing the vital importance of it.
This made me think--am I willing to fight for my covenant with God? Am I willing to jealously defend and protect my time and relationship with Him? There are so many "vultures" in life that are all too eager to devour the offering of my life to Him--distractions, time-wasters, even good things that would replace or cut into the time or affection that should be His. Will I let them eat away at the precious relationship I have with the Lord, or will I drive them away?

Father, what can I say? I am Yours! And I will fight with everything that is in me to protect my relationship with You!

May the Lord richly bless you as you jealously guard your relationship and covenant with Him!

Dancing in the rain,
Haley "SunShine" Miller
"Exhort one another daily while it is called 'Today'" (Hebrews 3:13)
Mornin' SunShine Website
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If this e-mail was forwarded to you and you would like to receive the Mornin' SunShine e-mails on a regular basis yourself, you can e-mail me at mornin_sunshine@psalm686.com with "subscribe" in the subject line. If you would like to unsubscribe, just e-mail me at the address above with "unsubscribe" in the subject line and I will take you off the list.

Genesis 1:24-25

Hey, y'all!

Well, I noticed the other day that the e-mail I tried to send back in December explaining that we were in the middle of moving and it would be after the first of the year before I got back to Mornin' SunShine got cut off. I'm sorry about that! We had no internet so I was trying to do it from my phone, and apparently it didn't work too well. The good news, though, is that we are pretty much settled here in San Angelo, and I'm back! :)

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Genesis 1:24-25

Then God said, "Let the earth bring forth the living creature according to its kind: cattle and creeping thing and beast of the earth, each according to its kind"; and it was so. And God made the beast of the earth according to its kind, cattle according to its kind, and everything that creeps on the earth according to its kind. And God saw that it was good.

 

Everything on the earth "brings forth according to its kind". It started here in Genesis 1, and continues to this day. Dogs have dogs, cats have cats, apples produce apples and peaches produce peaches, etc., etc., you get the picture. So what's the point? Simply this: since everything reproduces after its own kind, shouldn't we strive to be the difference we want to "bring forth" in the world? If we want to go out into the world and make disciples (Matthew 28:19-20) who are passionate for God and who obey His word, wouldn't it follow that we must be passionate, and we must obey His word?! If we want to see Christ-like results in our lives and ministry to others, shouldn't we be pressing on toward being Christ-like??

 

Father, I want to make a difference, but first I must be willing to be that difference. Help me to press on toward being more like You, trusting that as I become more like You, the fruit of my life will be Godly fruit.

 

May the Lord richly bless you as you strive to be like Him and "bring forth" a Godly difference in our world!

 

Dancing in the rain,
Haley "SunShine" Miller
"Exhort one another daily while it is called 'Today'" (Hebrews 3:13)
Mornin' SunShine Website

Genesis 19:4-8

Good morning, y'all! :)
So, I was going through my "drafts" folder in my e-mail program, and discovered several Mornin' SunShine e-mails there that were started but, for some reason, never finished or sent! :P Therefore, I've decided to pull them out and use them for the next few days... :)

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Genesis 19:4-8
Now before they lay down, the men of the city, the men of Sodom, both old and young, all the people from every quarter, surrounded the house. And they called to Lot and said to him, "Where are the men who came to you tonight? Bring them out to us that we may know them carnally."
So Lot went out to them through the doorway, shut the door behind him, and said, "Please, my brethren, do not do so wickedly! See now, I have two daughters who have not known a man; please, let me bring them out to you, and you may do to them as you wish; only do nothing to these men, since this is the reason they have come under the shadow of my roof."

Lot has some big character problems that become glaringly obvious in these verses, but there was one that I hadn't ever noticed before reading this story recently. Lot, apparently, was quite aware of the state of wickedness in Sodom--he says that "this is the reason" he insisted the two strangers come and stay at his house. So why in the world was he still living there?? Why was he still living and working and investing in this place?? We know from Genesis 13 that Lot chose Sodom and the valley around it because it looked like a good place to live; a profitable place to live. And there's not necessarily anything wrong with that. But once Lot realized what kind of place he was living in, he should have pulled out of there. His lack of protection over those entrusted to his care is rather appalling. Because of his unwillingness to leave Sodom when he saw their sinfulness and unwillingness to repent, he ends up fleeing just ahead of God's judgment, with only his wife and two of his daughters, losing some of his family and all the earthly possessions he held so dear. And then he loses even his wife because her heart was so entwined in Sodom she looked back as they fled!
Obviously, to think we can live in a country, a state, or a city where there is no sin is foolish. However, we are not of the world, but have been chosen out of the world (John 15:19), commanded to "love not the world, neither the things of the world" (1 John 2:15), and called to be salt and light in the world (Matthew 5:13-16). When Jesus was on earth, He walked among the sinners; taught them, loved them, fed them, and ate with the repentant ones--but His real fellowship and relationships were not invested in sinners who refused to repent. There was a marked difference between Him and the sinners He was dying to save. Where do we invest most of our time, energy, and money--in things of the world, or in the things of God? Is there a marked difference, a separation, between us and the dark world around us?

Father, help me to live separate from the world around me, set apart for You alone. Teach me to invest in Your kingdom, not in earthly things!

May the Lord richly bless you as you seek to live a life set apart for Him!

Dancing in the rain,
Haley "SunShine" Miller
"Exhort one another daily while it is called 'Today'" (Hebrews 3:13)
Mornin' SunShine Website