Sprinkled and Washed

Lately, I have been reflecting on a few different verses and I  was returned to the following verses for today - Hebrews 10:19-25 NIV:

[19] “Therefore, brothers and sisters, since we have confidence to enter the Most Holy Place by the blood of Jesus, [20] by a new and living way opened for us through the curtain, that is, his body, [21] and since we have a great priest over the house of God, [22] let us draw near to God with a sincere heart and with the full assurance that faith brings, having our hearts sprinkled to cleanse us from a guilty conscience and having our bodies washed with pure water. [23] Let us hold unswervingly to the hope we profess, for he who promised is faithful. [24] And let us consider how we may spur one another on toward love and good deeds, [25] not giving up meeting together, as some are in the habit of doing, but encouraging one another—and all the more as you see the Day approaching.”

What a great encouraging passage!  The author reminds us of these great truths, and then encourages us to draw near to God and to press into the Body of Christ, encouraging our love and good deeds towards one another!

Personally, I do feel encouragement to engage in our fellowship group, in our church and into the friendships and family relations we have been graced with in our lives.  However, it is all on the foundation of our faith that this is most filled with life and meaning.  We are invited into eternal life, a life of knowing God, through the sacrifice of Jesus, making a way for us to be restored to relationship!  

I am fully aware of the cleansing grace the Lord releases to us, and how His sacrifice has been applied to our lives, and is available to empower and wash us clean!  Of late, I have definitely seen this grace in action, this empowerment to cleanse my life, my mind, my thoughts, my actions.  The language of verse 22 above is one of something (cleansing and washing) that has already been done, and does not need to be done again!

This is truly one of the mysteries of God’s grace that His actions have perfectly cleansed us, already, and that when confessed and repented of, that past payment and cleansing has already been applied. Our whole lives have essentially been painted with grace, mercy, compassion and love from the point of Christ’s Glorious payment forward through the end of our lives!  There is a fount of living cleansing water that erupted at the Cross that is available for the washing of  everything in the future, and in the past.  

Our lives should be filled with an overwhelming sense of gratitude for this clear gift,this unearned gifting and cleansing!  What a miraculous opportunity we have to live our lives in union with God, who has made the perfect way for us to step into a relationship with Him!  We do have the full assurance of our faith, that not only is this possible, it is true!

Thank You Lord for Your amazing, life-giving, cleansing, and loving gift!

Amen and Amen!

Resisting False Comfort

Recently the focus of my prayer and my daily walk has been on allowing the Lord to be my comforter. I shared a bit called “The God of All Comfort” and this morning I am adding a few practical thoughts, and helpful things the Lord has shown me. 

Here is a link to that Blog Entry: https://amomentwithgod-srh.blogspot.com/2025/08/the-god-of-all-comfort.html

This morning I am looking at ways I can resist turning to other things for comfort. In scripture, we are told there are three main things we battle - the world, the flesh and the evil one. (See 1 John 2:15-17, Eph 6:12 for scriptural basis).  In my life they all seem to swirl together, but are definitely something I am aware of in my life.  The way I experience them is in the form of unhealthy appetites, and by that I mean desires that take me out of the will of the Lord, and healthy appetites.  These are held up as comforts, but they are offering false comfort.  One could say that I see the need to resist these false comforts!

For example, we all need to eat, and hunger is part of God’s creation of our bodies, to help us know when we need to eat, to provide fuel for our bodies.  I have normal hunger, and I also have self-focused hunger, where I want specific things, even though I know they are unhealthy for me. I am trying to fill something other than my natural appetite.  In my case it is abundant carbohydrates, specifically sweets.  I have a terrible “sweet tooth”.  

Medically speaking, my body had a tendency towards very high cholesterol, and eating carbs increases my cholesterol in my body significantly. This was discovered about 30 years ago when I weighed 20lbs less, and had an overall Cholesterol count over 400 and a triglyceride count 10x higher than normal.  With numbers like those I was likely going to have some arterial blockage or heart attack, but from the outside I looked healthy.  (If you want to read more about the body chemistry stuff I suggest reading  “Protein Power” By Dr. Michael R Eades).

The solution to my internal body chemistry problems has proven to be limiting my carb intake, especially sweets.  

I don’t like this solution!  I want to eat sweets and other carbs, especially breads, pastry, cake, pie and candy!  

This is my flesh talking.

For a few years I did pretty well, but then started eating more carbs, even rewarding myself (Comforting) with sweets for certain goals.  As I ate more, I found I wanted more, and of course I ate more.  One day the Lord stopped me and said something like, “you know the enemy is trying to get you to take yourself out by eating things that will cause you to have a heart attack and die!”

That stopped me in my tracks!

It had never occurred to me that the enemy would use such sly tactics  in his attack on me.  As I started paying attention to my thoughts more, I noticed that indeed it seemed like thoughts of certain desires would just pop into my head.  Sometimes they would be triggered by ads on TV, but other times, I noticed they were more related to being bored, or one could say feeling an emptiness inside, and I was trying to ease that,or comfort myself. 

For years since, I have worked to resist those urges, those thoughts, and just telling myself no.  At times I do better than others, but it is a constant “battle”.  

Lately the Lord, specifically the Holy Spirit,  has provided me a better tool in resisting those thoughts and appetites. Lately He has had me speaking the truth of where those actions (eating what I shouldn’t) will lead.  

When I am hungry, when I realize that I am having thoughts or urges to eat sweets, I say to myself, “Eating that will result ultimately in my death.  It won’t be right away, but I will gain weight, I will get unhealthy and then I will have a heart attack!”

Amazingly, the appetite or urge goes away almost immediately!

I have found this technique works equally well with my other appetites.  Speaking the truth, in contrast to the false pleasure or filling my hollow place that these appetites hold up, has helped me immensely in resisting the urge to turn to other things for comfort

In his letter to all believers, James gives us some really good advice found in James 4:7-8a NIV:

[7] “Submit yourselves, then, to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you. [8] Come near to God and he will come near to you.”

I find that when I resist, the urge, the appetite and the thoughts all disappear quickly.  This leads me to believe that the enemy is indeed using these to attack me and try to get me to take myself out, however he can!

In summary, I have recently found great help in identifying those areas that are out of line with God’s plans and purposes, and healthy appetites, and started speaking truth to myself, rather than just trying to say no or resist.  Speaking the truth, seems to give me much more to hold onto, and strengthens my will and self-control.

My prayer is that this is helpful to you in your efforts to follow the Lord, and make Him the God of all comfort in your life!

Amen and Amen!

A Different Take on The Seed and Soil

This morning while walking my dog in our local park, I was praying and asking the Lord to forgive areas in my life that are not aligned with Him, specifically areas that have always been a bit of a struggle for me.  As I prayed that prayer, I saw a picture of someone digging up a whole area of their yard and bringing in new soil.  I was immediately reminded of the verses about the sower, the seed and the soil.  

Here are the verses and the explanation as found in the Gospel of Matthew 13:3-9,18-23 NIV:

[3] “Then he [Jesus] told them many things in parables, saying: “A farmer went out to sow his seed. [4] As he was scattering the seed, some fell along the path, and the birds came and ate it up. [5] Some fell on rocky places, where it did not have much soil. It sprang up quickly, because the soil was shallow. [6] But when the sun came up, the plants were scorched, and they withered because they had no root. [7] Other seed fell among thorns, which grew up and choked the plants. [8] Still other seed fell on good soil, where it produced a crop—a hundred, sixty or thirty times what was sown. [9] Whoever has ears, let them hear.” 

[18] “Listen then to what the parable of the sower means: [19] When anyone hears the message about the kingdom and does not understand it, the evil one comes and snatches away what was sown in their heart. This is the seed sown along the path. [20] The seed falling on rocky ground refers to someone who hears the word and at once receives it with joy. [21] But since they have no root, they last only a short time. When trouble or persecution comes because of the word, they quickly fall away. [22] The seed falling among the thorns refers to someone who hears the word, but the worries of this life and the deceitfulness of wealth choke the word, making it unfruitful. [23] But the seed falling on good soil refers to someone who hears the word and understands it. This is the one who produces a crop, yielding a hundred, sixty or thirty times what was sown.”

So often when I have read these verses before, I always understood that Jesus was talking about different people and their responses to the Gospel of the Kingdom, and I do believe that is true.  However, this morning I saw that it could also be applied to different areas of my life!  There are areas of my life where I bear good fruit, and then there are areas where I am less fruitful, areas where regularly my attention and focus gets distracted, areas where I have been trying to change for years and seen little progress, and probably areas where God’s Word has yet to penetrate.  That really changes my reading of this parable, as I always thought because I was bearing fruit in areas, I was good soil. 

Today, I felt the gentle encouragement of the Lord to take a closer look at my life, and take a real inventory of the type of soil I have in specific areas. I have never thought this way before, and while challenging, I think the encouragement is very helpful.  

In my yard, when I wanted to create a garden, I dug up that area of the yard, brought in new soil and fertilizer.  I can do similar things in my life.  I can choose to dig up sections, to turn them over, to reveal that which is under the surface.  I can find a trusted friend or two to reveal the depths of my soil, areas where I have been unfruitful, areas where I have let the worldly mindset trample and harden!  I can confess my findings to the Lord, (He knows them anyway) and ask for His help in turning over and cleaning my life. 

Sometimes He will use the refuse of my past, now turned to compost, to renew my present life, bearing fruit for others to see.  What was brokenness and sinful, when revealed and subjected to the Word, broken down into humility, can now help others and bear fruit for His Glory. 

This morning I am encouraged to pray for the Lord’s revelation to show me what areas in my life need to be renewed, weeded, roto-tilled, fertilized and watered.  I am confident that He is about a work in my life to enable me to bear more fruit!  Thank you Lord for Your active word, and Your direction and guidance!  I do want to bear good fruit in every area of my life!

Ameen and Amen!

The God of ALL Comfort

Tuesday night as I was praying the Lord dropped into my mind the theme of comfort, and how we (especially in the western world) turn to other things than Him for comfort.  I was reminded of a couple of verses.  First to set the foundation - He is the God of all Comfort!  Here is the scriptural reference from Paul’s second letter to Corinth - 2 Corinthians 1:3-4 NIV:

[3] Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of compassion and the God of all comfort, [4] who comforts us in all our troubles, so that we can comfort those in any trouble with the comfort we ourselves receive from God.” 

The word comfort here is the original Greek word paraklēsis  which has several meanings, all of which are helpful.  However today we are focusing on the following two uses and definitions: 

1) exhortation, admonition, encouragement

2) consolation, comfort, solace; that which affords comfort or refreshment

Clearly the translators are focused on the second use here.  We know that the Holy Spirit is called the Paraclete, our helper and encourager, and should also be understood that He is our comforter.

The other verses that were called to mind were verses that had to do with appetites - one in the old testament and one in the new.  Here are the reference scriptures: 

Numbers 11:4-6 NIV:

[4] “The rabble with them began to crave other food, and again the Israelites started wailing and said, “If only we had meat to eat! [5] We remember the fish we ate in Egypt at no cost—also the cucumbers, melons, leeks, onions and garlic. [6] But now we have lost our appetite; we never see anything but this manna!”

And - 

Philippians 3:18-19 NIV:

[18] “For, as I have often told you before and now tell you again even with tears, many live as enemies of the cross of Christ. [19] Their destiny is destruction, their god is their stomach, and their glory is in their shame. Their mind is set on earthly things.”

The Greek word translated stomach is the word Koilia and it means “hollow” and can be translated stomach, appetites, belly, even our inner-most being. The point appears to apply to those who are trying to fill an emptiness.  In the verses from numbers, their focus on food was such that they were forgetting they were slaves in Egypt, and living under a terrible burden.

The point of these two verses is not that food or hunger is bad, but rather there is a reality where we can place more importance on filling ourselves with other things (food is one example) rather than the Lord!.  Paul writes that there are those who are living this way are making this pursuit a god in their life.  If something is our god, it means we are in some ways worshipping that other thing.

In our modern world we are obsessed with our comfort!  We can exist in such a way that we could never have to leave our homes, nor expose ourselves to any hardship.  The ads and marketing speak of our comfort, of having things the way we want, of fulfilling our hunger and desires.  Our homes are built around comfort, our furniture, and appliances are focused on convenience and comfort!  We are surrounded by a cacophony of voices telling us we can sate our hunger and emptiness with things. 

In my quick thoughts on this subject, I came up with a list of things we turn to for comfort:

1. Food (Comfort food is an actual phrase)
2. Clothes and other personal items
3. Houses (settling into our comfy place)
4. TV Shows and media (do we call our favorites “my show” or find ourselves binge watching shows?)
5. Drugs and alcohol (mood altering is one way of finding or inducing comfort)
6. Sexual attraction (something that makes us feel enlivened or wanted)

The point here is that none of these things are bad on their own.  In fact, one could argue they are all part of God’s creation and our creative abilities which are gifts from the Lord.  However, if we find ourselves turning to them instead of the Lord when we need comfort or are feeling empty, then this might be something we need to look at in our lives!

God is the God of All Comfort.

One wonders if we really believe that?

Can He fill our emptiness?

Can He meet our needs?

I can think of several verses that provide God’s perspective on these questions, here are just a few:

Matthew 6:25-33 NIV: 

Jesus speaking here [25] “Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or drink; or about your body, what you will wear. Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothes? [26] Look at the birds of the air; they do not sow or reap or store away in barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much more valuable than they? [27] Can any one of you by worrying add a single hour to your life? 

[28] “And why do you worry about clothes? See how the flowers of the field grow. They do not labor or spin. [29] Yet I tell you that not even Solomon in all his splendor was dressed like one of these. [30] If that is how God clothes the grass of the field, which is here today and tomorrow is thrown into the fire, will he not much more clothe you—you of little faith? [31] So do not worry, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’ [32] For the pagans run after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them. [33] But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well.”

And - 

1 Timothy 6:17 NIV:

“Command those who are rich in this present world not to be arrogant nor to put their hope in wealth, which is so uncertain, but to put their hope in God, who richly provides us with everything for our enjoyment.”

And - 

Matthew 11:28-30 NIV:

[28] “Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. [29] Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. [30] For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.”

And - 

Philippians 4:19 NIV:

“And my God will meet all your needs according to the riches of his glory in Christ Jesus.”

In summary, God does provide, does care about our needs, our comfort, and our lives!  He is the God of All Comfort, and He will meet us in our need!  If we find ourselves constantly turning to other things, then we might need to change the way we are thinking and ask for His help to turn to Him, instead of these other “gods”!

Lord help us!

Amen!