Hosanna

Matthew 21:8-11
8 And a very great multitude spread their clothes on the road; others cut down branches from the trees and spread them on the road.
9 Then the multitudes who went before and those who followed cried out, saying:


“Hosanna to the Son of David!
‘Blessed is He who comes in the name of the Lord!’Hosanna in the highest!”

10 And when He had come into Jerusalem, all the city was moved, saying, “Who is this?”
11 So the multitudes said, “This is Jesus, the prophet from Nazareth of Galilee.”

Since tomorrow is Psalm Sunday and the beginning of Holy Week, I had been reading Matthew 21. I finished the passage regarding Jesus' entry into the city of Jerusalem and noticed a footnote in the text. I followed it and the footnote stated this, "In the original Greek text, Hosanna literally translates into phrase 'save me.' " 

I've always been under the assumption Hosanna was a praise but it's not - it's a prayer.

The Jews weren't just worshiping on the original Psalm Sunday - they were crying out to the One they believed could help them.  "Save us, oh Son of David! Blessed is He who comes in the Name of the Lord. Save us, One who is Highest!"

 If only they would have realized that was exactly what He was coming to do. He was coming to answer the prayers of past, present and future generations. He was coming to Save, to Redeem and to Free us.

"Behold! The Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world!" John 1:29 

Tomorrow morning, on Psalm Sunday, the prayer, "Hosanna - Save Me!" will be rising across the world and it will reach His ears again.  Even 2000 plus years from the cross and resurrection, He is still just a prayer away. He can still hear our cries. And He will still answer and save us.

Hosanna, Jesus. Hosanna.

I will wait - He is Faithful

All of us at one point in time have had to rely on God to provide the answer to out fervent prayers. We pray. We plead. We wait. Then we repeat the process.

God says in His word that the “effectual fervent prayers of the righteous availeth much.” He also said that like any good father, the heavenly Father wouldn’t withhold good things from His children.

Our answers are on the way but we must be willing to patiently wait on God. He promises good to us if we follow and depend upon Him.

The Jews were promised a Savior, a Messiah who would rescue them. They waited for years for the promise to come to pass. They prayed. They pleaded. They waited.

And then one day, a young girl was visited by an angel and was told that she had been chosen to bring the answer to so many prayers. “And she brought forth her firstborn son and laid him in a manager,… And his name was called Jesus.”  

He was faithful to the prayers of His people. He brought them the answer, the Messiah they sought. He brought peace, joy, strength, hope and salvation.  

He will answer our prayers perhaps not in the timing that we wish but the answer will come.  He will fulfill our prayers, our hopes, our dreams, and our promises. He is faithful.

The question is not His faithfulness but our ability to wait on the promises.  Will you still believe and wait on Him if He doesn’t answer your prayer tomorrow? Will you still follow Him if the dream doesn’t occur for years? Can you remain faithful while He creates His answer?

“And I will wait on the LORD,... And I will hope in Him.” Isaiah 8:17

“...Show me the way I should go,  for to You I entrust my life.”  Psalms 143:8 NIV

God, show me the way I should go. Show me the way I should speak, walk, listen, minister, encourage, witness,...show me the way to live.

Show me Your ways, Oh God.

When was the last time you asked Him to show you the way He has ordained for your life? When was the last time you looked at your life actions and measured them against His? And if you were to take your daily life actions from this week and hold them up against His word, would you be found lacking?

His word gives us a measuring stick by which to order our lives. This is why we MUST read, breathe and live His word. It shows us His way.

When we allow His ways to become our ways then we have full confidence in His promises. At that point we know the He will be our Light, our Rock, our Hiding Place and our Salvation.

Are you limiting the promises of God because you fail to allow Him to show you His ways?

“Show me the way I should go, for to You I entrust my life.”

Great and Mighty is our God

Great and Mighty is our God.

HE it is that goes before us.

HE makes a way where there was no way.

HE brings down barriers that block his people.

HE brings gives substance and strength.

HE is a haven in times of stress and pain.

HE is our great fortress, the Rock to which we run.

HE is celebrated and feared by the nations.

HE is great and awesome in power.

HE is our healer and deliverer.

HE is the holy sacrifice for our many sins.

HE is preparing a heavenly place for us.


This God, there is none like him.

HE is Great and Mighty.


"HE is the one you praise; HE is your God, who performed for you those great and awesome wonders you saw with your own eyes."   Deuteronomy 10:21


"... If God is for us, who can be against us?"   Romans 8:31

He is Faithful

"Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today, and forever." 

Hebrews 13:8

At all times HE is still the same.

In my times of darkness and pain.

In my times of joy and laughter.

In my times of need and shame

In my times of hope and faith.

At all times HE is still the same.

I take strength in knowing my ever-loving, sin-forgiving, miracle-working, star-breathing God will NEVER change.

We live in a world of constant change and motion.

The world changes. HE does not.

My family changes. HE does not.

My job changes. HE does not.

My friends change. HE does not.

Jesus is still the same.

HE will always be there.

HE is simply a whispered prayer, a brief thought,

a fervent hope away from me.

In a world of chaos, I can fully rely upon this knowledge.

Jesus is still the same, no matter my circumstances,

HE is still the same.



What's new,...

After a rather long hiatus I am back to blogger... I can't promise that I'll be a consistent blogger but I am going to try to get on here more often.

It's been a busy month or more for me. Why? Two words: New job.

I was blessed to have be given a new opportunity at the Bank. I truly enjoy it! Meeting new people constantly, never a dull moment & I'm surrounded by faith-driven people. This position really is a blessing.

But.

With opportunity also comes exhaustion, exhilaration, frustration,

growth, knowledge, responsibility and wisdom.

I have no doubt God placed me in this job for a purpose. I know I am learning much that will aid me in the future. Every time I begin to feel overwhelmed, I have to remind myself that this job is apart of the conditioning process. It's causing me to grow in areas I was "short." 

I keep praying for wisdom to properly use the knowledge I'm gaining.

There really is nothing more tragic than knowledge wasted.

Until next time,...

MOVEMENTS—you sure you want to be a part of one?

I follow the Catalyst Blog and today's post struck home with me. This topic has been on my mind and I wanted to share Dave Gibbons' recent post with you.
Movements are more than temporary hype; they are meant to be a deep-rooted hunger that drives and motivates change.
Enjoy!

MOVEMENTS—you sure you want to be a part of one?


August 27, 2011

Movements.

One thought emerged as I was running the streets of Soho and Mid-town this early morning sparked by a friend a couple days ago as we were discussing the book of Acts: radical, city-wide, transforming, supernatural movements are not about our innovative, nicely packaged strategies and slick nomenclature. Perhaps not even our publicly bold, loud proclamations or initiatives. They are quietly accomplished by loving people who plant, unseen seeds of revolution in the fertile soil of poverty, suffering, chaos. They regularly water this soil with their own blood.

Death always precedes the true resurrection of a city. Rarely, does one talk about the martyrdom of Stephen being part of a strategic move of God in the transformation of Ephesus. It's not as sexy.

God, how must I die today? Maybe it's apologizing to those I've hurt or seeking human intersection beyond a digital screen. Maybe it means dying to material desires or my culture's idea of success? Maybe it means cleaning that elderly person's house down the street or buying a week's worth of groceries for her? Perhaps I need to share our home with another family or a group of singles and really do "small groups" like it was meant to be done.

Maybe the boldness is not done as much in public today but in a quiet sanctum in the city, one-on-one, prostrate before our God, alone with Him, basking in His luminous grace, grateful for the abundance in our lives, yet pleading for more miracles in our cities.

Perhaps the movement starts to grow as those who love Jesus really live like they love each other without strings. Movements and miracles happen as a result of the Spirit's initiative and as a result of humble, loving activists responding to His moves not initiating it with audacious talk or loud fanfare. Otherwise, the movement becomes like a singular pop of a firecracker not the roar of a blazing firestorm.

Dave Gibbons, Creative and Cultural Advisor. Author of XEALOTS and award winning book, Monkey and the Fish.

Follow Dave at www.twitter.com/davegibbons and www.XELOT.NET