Genesis 2:3, Hebrews 4:9-13

Good morning, everyone! :)
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
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
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
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.

Hebrews 12:26-29

Morning, everyone! :)

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
Hebrews 12:26-29

At that time His voice shook the earth, but now He has promised, "Yet once more I will shake not only the earth but also the heavens." This phrase, "Yet once more," indicates the removal of things that are shaken—that is, things that have been made—in order that the things that cannot be shaken may remain. Therefore let us be grateful for receiving a kingdom that cannot be shaken, and thus let us offer to God acceptable worship, with reverence and awe, for our God is a consuming fire.

The "at that time" phrase is referring to when God appeared to the Israelites at Mt. Sinai, and the earth shook and the people were so afraid they begged Moses to go up to God so they would not hear His voice thunder anymore. (Exodus 19-20:21)

Shaken is not usually a state we desire to be in, but God's promise here is somehow so sweet. He yearns to shake us, not for the sake of disrupting our lives, but so that the "shakeable" things in our lives might be removed to reveal the unshakeable things. I find it interesting that these verses are shortly followed by Hebrews 13:8--"Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever." Jesus is the one unshakeable reality in our lives. He is "the kingdom which cannot be shaken" that we have received. He is the reason we worship God from the overflow o a grateful heart. And He is Who we can cling to when our world is shaken!

Jesus, You can shake me to the core, until all I have left is You--it will be ok. You are the only constant in my life; no matter what, You never change! Thank You for this amazing faithfulness that is the foundation and theme of my life!


May the Lord richly bless you as you live a life built on the unshakeable foundation of His faithfulness!

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

Hebrews 12:27-29

Mornin', y'all!
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
Hebrews 12:27-29
Now this, “Yet once more,” indicates the removal of those things that are being shaken, as of things that are made, that the things which cannot be shaken may remain. Therefore, since we are receiving a kingdom which cannot be shaken, let us have grace, by which we may serve God acceptably with reverence and godly fear. For our God is a consuming fire.

Right now, a lot of "things that are made" are being shaken in our world. The economy is a mess, the government is growing (and heading toward socialism...), and the future looks a bit uncertain, to say the least. But as those things are shaken away, we are left with what can never be shaken--God is real, He is faithful, He is in control, and we are His. And armed with those unshakeable facts, we can continue to serve God and live for Him, whatever the culture or the circumstances may be. We can live a life consumed with passion for God and God alone!

Father, in the midst of all the things that keep changing and shifting in this world, You are always the same. Help me to cling to You, the one unshakeable element in my life, committed to serving and worshipping You!

May the Lord bless you richly as you live for Him!

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