He Releases My Feet From The Snare.......
"Hosanna to the Son of David! Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord! Hosanna in the Highest!" Mt 21:9 ESV
Wow! Praise and glory be to our King in the Highest! Today is Palm Sunday, and upon entering the sanctuary we had the school children fanning us with palm leaves. The kids are so cute!
I just wanted to pause for a moment and recognize the magnitude of today, of this week, culminating in Sunday, a day that means eternal life for those who believe in Jesus Christ.
You see, I have had a busy holiday season. Some of you may know that my Dad was diagnosed with throat cancer. Praise the Lord we found out that after a grueling time of treatment, they told us that the cancer is gone in the current x-ray. They told us cautiously that we never know, it's cancer....but for now, we are going to claim it to be true in Jesus Name! and move on! :) He still has a lot of healing to do; no need to focus on what we cannot change.
At the first of the year, my brother unexpectedly died in a fire, two days before his 55th birthday. And me? Well you know how there is exhausted and then there is e-x-h-a-u-s-t-e-d? I've been fitting in the latter category. :) I got news that my heart isn't working so well. We are still in the beginning stages of understanding and God will work it all out ;), but at least it helps me understand why I am so tired.
All of this is reason to reflect on why today is so important. In 1 Ki 1:33 David tells his people to take his son Solomon, put him on a mule and take him to town to show that David is proclaiming his son, to be the new King. Sound familiar? Fast forward to today, Palm Sunday, we study in church, that Jesus, knowing that many knew this story of the Old Testament (1 Ki 1:33) comes into Jerusalem, on a donkey, just as David's son Solomon. Jesus continues King David's succession (as Jesus is in the lineage of King David) all those years before with King Solomon (David's son) entering Gihon on a mule. You can see that the crowd surrounding Jesus understood by their words in Mt 21:9 "Hosanna to the Son of David!" History also repeated itself with Jesus following in the footsteps of Solomon using a colt (a young donkey) for his entrance Mk 11:7. While Solomon used a mule and Jesus used a colt, in this case a colt that "no one had ever ridden," both are used in history to illustrate the transition of a king.
We all know what tornadoes are; and I tell the girls in my bible study group beware of the "tornadoes that gather above our head." Do you know what I mean? Like you get mad at someone, next thing you know, you are really angry, then you are at bitterness before you even knew how you got there. That happens to me: maybe I struggle with anger one day, money the next and pain the next. No matter the issue, a tornado can form and before you know it, I am focusing on earthly issues that can, well, suck the joy right out of me! Periodically I pick scripture that applies to what I am going through to recite every day (to help renew my joy) and one of them right now is Ps 25:15 "My eyes are ever on the LORD, for only he will release my feet from the snare." I try to remind myself daily that no earthly issue is worth taking my joy! And I have to check myself because James tells us in his fourth chapter that what causes quarrels among us comes from within us, so maybe I need a bit more God time. :)
But it caused me to think. Only the LORD can remove me from the snare that I am in. I have to focus my eyes on him. We have already discussed Mt 21:9, "Hosanna to the Son of David!", but looking at also Jn 12:13 "Blessed is the king of Israel!", we can asses that the crowd believed that Jesus was going to be their king. Some even believed in Jesus as the Messiah. Then there where others that had set up a caveat. They believed that if Jesus didn't set up an earthly kingdom, one just as they had pictured in their eyes: that Israel would reign, that Rome would fall, that the chosen people would once again thrive - unlike ever before. If that wasn't to come true, all of it, then well, Jesus, wasn't really a king. He wasn't really the Messiah.
I can't even bear to write those words!!!! But we do the same thing today, don't we? We may not say it out loud, but maybe in our thoughts. We pray, but if we don't check ourselves, there may be a prayer behind the prayer, just like these individuals. A prayer with expectations. Here are a couple that I have discovered through prayer that I had. "Lord, please heal me - but know that I am expecting to be healed fully, back to where I was before." Lord I want to do your will - but I am afraid of that, so maybe later, I think I heard that, but perhaps no, because that's not in my wheelhouse." Lord, I want so much to lose weight, "can't you help me do it in 2 weeks before I go on vacation, I know you can perform miracles - if you want." (Ok, the last one, not exactly, but something along those lines.)
We (and trust me I am pointing the finger right at myself - that is why I picked Ps 25:15 to recite) focus so much on earthly things and not on God. Scripture clearly tells us that if we focus on God, all else will fall in place.
Jesus Christ was set on that throne long before it happened, let's trust in that. And this Holy week, let's all take a great big breath and try to let God rule our life. Even if for just do (1) week. Allow ourselves to give into Him, to pray to our Savior, our King, lay our burdens at the foot of the cross and ask God to release our feet from any and all snares. May God bless you and keep you always.
Wow! Praise and glory be to our King in the Highest! Today is Palm Sunday, and upon entering the sanctuary we had the school children fanning us with palm leaves. The kids are so cute!
I just wanted to pause for a moment and recognize the magnitude of today, of this week, culminating in Sunday, a day that means eternal life for those who believe in Jesus Christ.
You see, I have had a busy holiday season. Some of you may know that my Dad was diagnosed with throat cancer. Praise the Lord we found out that after a grueling time of treatment, they told us that the cancer is gone in the current x-ray. They told us cautiously that we never know, it's cancer....but for now, we are going to claim it to be true in Jesus Name! and move on! :) He still has a lot of healing to do; no need to focus on what we cannot change.
At the first of the year, my brother unexpectedly died in a fire, two days before his 55th birthday. And me? Well you know how there is exhausted and then there is e-x-h-a-u-s-t-e-d? I've been fitting in the latter category. :) I got news that my heart isn't working so well. We are still in the beginning stages of understanding and God will work it all out ;), but at least it helps me understand why I am so tired.
All of this is reason to reflect on why today is so important. In 1 Ki 1:33 David tells his people to take his son Solomon, put him on a mule and take him to town to show that David is proclaiming his son, to be the new King. Sound familiar? Fast forward to today, Palm Sunday, we study in church, that Jesus, knowing that many knew this story of the Old Testament (1 Ki 1:33) comes into Jerusalem, on a donkey, just as David's son Solomon. Jesus continues King David's succession (as Jesus is in the lineage of King David) all those years before with King Solomon (David's son) entering Gihon on a mule. You can see that the crowd surrounding Jesus understood by their words in Mt 21:9 "Hosanna to the Son of David!" History also repeated itself with Jesus following in the footsteps of Solomon using a colt (a young donkey) for his entrance Mk 11:7. While Solomon used a mule and Jesus used a colt, in this case a colt that "no one had ever ridden," both are used in history to illustrate the transition of a king.
We all know what tornadoes are; and I tell the girls in my bible study group beware of the "tornadoes that gather above our head." Do you know what I mean? Like you get mad at someone, next thing you know, you are really angry, then you are at bitterness before you even knew how you got there. That happens to me: maybe I struggle with anger one day, money the next and pain the next. No matter the issue, a tornado can form and before you know it, I am focusing on earthly issues that can, well, suck the joy right out of me! Periodically I pick scripture that applies to what I am going through to recite every day (to help renew my joy) and one of them right now is Ps 25:15 "My eyes are ever on the LORD, for only he will release my feet from the snare." I try to remind myself daily that no earthly issue is worth taking my joy! And I have to check myself because James tells us in his fourth chapter that what causes quarrels among us comes from within us, so maybe I need a bit more God time. :)
But it caused me to think. Only the LORD can remove me from the snare that I am in. I have to focus my eyes on him. We have already discussed Mt 21:9, "Hosanna to the Son of David!", but looking at also Jn 12:13 "Blessed is the king of Israel!", we can asses that the crowd believed that Jesus was going to be their king. Some even believed in Jesus as the Messiah. Then there where others that had set up a caveat. They believed that if Jesus didn't set up an earthly kingdom, one just as they had pictured in their eyes: that Israel would reign, that Rome would fall, that the chosen people would once again thrive - unlike ever before. If that wasn't to come true, all of it, then well, Jesus, wasn't really a king. He wasn't really the Messiah.
I can't even bear to write those words!!!! But we do the same thing today, don't we? We may not say it out loud, but maybe in our thoughts. We pray, but if we don't check ourselves, there may be a prayer behind the prayer, just like these individuals. A prayer with expectations. Here are a couple that I have discovered through prayer that I had. "Lord, please heal me - but know that I am expecting to be healed fully, back to where I was before." Lord I want to do your will - but I am afraid of that, so maybe later, I think I heard that, but perhaps no, because that's not in my wheelhouse." Lord, I want so much to lose weight, "can't you help me do it in 2 weeks before I go on vacation, I know you can perform miracles - if you want." (Ok, the last one, not exactly, but something along those lines.)
We (and trust me I am pointing the finger right at myself - that is why I picked Ps 25:15 to recite) focus so much on earthly things and not on God. Scripture clearly tells us that if we focus on God, all else will fall in place.
Jesus Christ was set on that throne long before it happened, let's trust in that. And this Holy week, let's all take a great big breath and try to let God rule our life. Even if for just do (1) week. Allow ourselves to give into Him, to pray to our Savior, our King, lay our burdens at the foot of the cross and ask God to release our feet from any and all snares. May God bless you and keep you always.
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