Yesterday the LORD showed me that it's the fear of the LORD that unites
& joins our hearts to Him! That allows us to be the apple of His eye -- His
bride. This union -- this becoming one -- guess what it results in?!!!!!!
His praise forever!! :)

Psalm 86:11-12
Teach me Your way, O LORD; I will walk in Your truth;
*Unite my heart to fear Your name.
I will praise you, O Lord my God, with all my heart;
I will glorify {honor} your name forever.

*unite - yachad [03161]
From http://net.bible.org/verse.php?book=Ps&chapter=86&verse=11

Definition: 1) to join, unite, be joined, be united
1a) (Qal) to be united
1b) (Piel) to unite
a primitive root; to be (or become) one:-join, unite.

Psalm 111:10
The fear of the LORD is the beginning of wisdom; A good understanding have all those who do His commandments; His praise endures forever.

It's the fear of the LORD, abiding 'in' the vine that brings forth right fruit, fruit that remains. It's also no coincience that this union, joining of hearts to the fear of the LORD brings forth His praise. His praise endures forever!

Revelation 19:5-9
Then a voice came from the throne, saying: "Praise our God, all you His servants, you who fear Him, both small and great!"

Then I heard what sounded like a great multitude, like the roar of rushing waters and like loud peals of thunder, shouting: "Hallelujah! For our Lord God Almighty reigns. Let us rejoice and be glad and give him glory! For the wedding of the Lamb has come, and his bride has made herself ready. Fine linen, bright and clean, was given her to wear." (Fine linen stands for the righteous acts of the saints.)

Then the angel said to me, "Write:
'Blessed are those who are invited to the wedding supper of the Lamb!'

Proverbs 7:1-2
My son{child}, keep my words, and treasure my commands within you. Keep my commandments and live, and my teaching as the apple of your eye.

Oh, to be so united, joined to the LORD that not only are we held in His gaze as the apple of His eye but that He also is reflected and seen as the apple of our eye!

Unite My Heart

O LORD, unite my heart to fear Your name
To hear Your voice to trust and obey
That you might be seen as the apple of my eye
That I might walk in Your truth and way
To truly glorify You with all honor and praise.

Cleanse me with the washing of Your word -Eph 5:26
Purify my heart, make it holy, without blame
Give me a totally undivided heart, I pray
To serve, and dwell in the shelter of Your wings all of my days. -Ps 61:4

O LORD, unite my heart to fear Your name
With all my heart I give You praise;
Forever I will glorify and honor Your Holy name.

O LORD abide in me and show me how to abide in thee!
Keep me as the apple of your eye;
In the shadow of your wings, hide me.

Hebrews 13:20-21 (NKJV)     
May the God of peace ... the great Shepherd of the sheep ... make you
complete in every good work to do His will, working in you what is well
pleasing in His sight, through Jesus Christ, to whom be glory forever and
ever. Amen.

Ruth 2:12-13
May you be richly rewarded by the LORD, the God of Israel, under
whose wings you have come to take refuge. "May I continue to find favor
in your eyes, my lord," she{Ruth} said.

Lamentations 2:18 Their heart cried out to the Lord, "O wall of the daughter of Zion, Let tears run down like a river day and night; Give yourself no relief; Give your eyes no rest{let not the apple of your eye cease}.

Continue to cry out to the LORD for His people
Your cries are heard
Continue to stand in the gap
He sees you standing there
His eyes are on you
He sees every tear, bottles them and records them on His scroll --Ps 56:8

I AM with you as you cry out
I AM stands with you in the gap to strengthen you --2 Tim 4:17
Cry out
Let not the apple of your eye cease --
never let your passion for the lost to be returned to the LORD grow cold.

One who has the LORD's heart for His people is surely
Kept as the apple of His eye; hidden under His wings. --Ps 17:8

Psalm 126:5-6 Those who sow in tears shall reap in joy. He who continually goes forth weeping, bearing seed for sowing, shall doubtless come again with rejoicing, bringing his sheaves with him.

***
Literally the phrase 'the apple of the eye', is "the little man or daughter or the black{pupil} of the eye." It is that part of the eye which reflects what you are looking at; what you are focused on. The thing that is reflected in the pupil of your eye most frequently is what is most important to you. Think of it God Himself uses this phrase when speaking of His people! "...He kept him as the apple of His eye." (Deut. 32:10); "...for he that toucheth you toucheth the apple of His eye." (Zech. 2:8).

How wonderful would it be to be kept as the apple of God's eye? To be cherished and protected as a precious daughter, much like a mother bird would protect her young. Her children safe under her wings, covered with her feathers.

***
Paul knew of these tears ...

Acts 20
22"And now, compelled by the Spirit, I am going to Jerusalem, not knowing what will happen to me there. 23I only know that in every city the Holy Spirit warns me that prison and hardships are facing me.24However, I consider my life worth nothing to me, if only I may finish the race and complete the task the Lord Jesus has given me—the task of testifying to the gospel of God's grace.

25"Now I know that none of you among whom I have gone about preaching the kingdom will ever see me again. 26Therefore, I declare to you today that I am innocent of the blood of all men. 27For I have not hesitated to proclaim to you the whole will of God. 28Keep watch over yourselves and all the flock of which the Holy Spirit has made you overseers. Be shepherds of the church of God, which he bought with his own blood. 29I know that after I leave, savage wolves will come in among you and will not spare the flock. 30Even from your own number men will arise and distort the truth in order to draw away disciples after them. 31So be on your guard! Remember that for three years I never stopped warning each of you night and day with tears.

Amos 9:9
For surely I will command, And will sift the house of Israel among all
nations, As grain{a corn} is sifted in a sieve; Yet not the smallest grain
shall fall to the ground.

Do you feel like you are being tried, winnowed like a corn being sifted in a
sieve? Is the separation process becoming unbearable?

Take heart, surrender to this process -- for it's in this process that the
chaff and dust are removed -- and the grain, the corn is delivered!

In this process the LORD's great mercy is tasted -- for even the smallest
grain -- the smallest corn -- will not be lost!


Ruth 3:2
Now is not Boaz our kinsman, with whose maids you were? Behold, he
*winnows barley at the threshing floor tonight.

From http://net.bible.org/verse.php?book=Rut&chapter=3&verse=2


*Winnowing the threshed grain involved separating the kernels of grain
from the straw and chaff. The grain would be thrown into the air,
allowing the wind to separate the kernels. The threshing floor itself was
usually located outside town in a place where the prevailing west wind
could be used to advantage.

The crown of pride ...

Obadiah 1:3-4
The pride of your heart has deceived you,
... you who live in the clefts of the rocks
... and make your home on the heights,
... you who say to yourself,
... 'Who can bring me down to the ground?'
Though you soar like the eagle
... and make your nest among the stars,
... from there I will bring you down," declares the LORD.

There is one who has wisdom and appears true.
Though they make their homes on the heights,
... where they are able to see and soar like an eagle
... they are deceived.

They are deceived by the pride, presumption and arrogance of their
hearts. They wear the crown of pride.
Do not follow or listen to one such as this.

James 3:13-18
13 Who is wise and understanding among you? Let him show by good
conduct that his works are done in the meekness of wisdom. 14 But if
you have bitter envy and self-seeking in your hearts, do not boast and lie
against the truth. 15 This wisdom does not descend from above, but is
earthly, sensual, demonic. 16 For where envy and self-seeking exist,
confusion and every evil thing are there. 17 But the wisdom that is from
above is first pure, then peaceable, gentle, willing to yield, full of mercy
and good fruits, without partiality and without hypocrisy. 18 And the
seed whose fruit is righteousness is sown in peace by those who make
peace.

True Wisdom	Earthly Wisdom
Pure	Self Seeking
Peaceable	Bitter Envy
Gentle	Harsh
Willing to Yeild	Unteachable
Full of Mercy	Heartless
Impartial	Favoritism

Do not be found trusting in the ability to 'soar' to the heights --
Surrender all to our Lord Jesus Christ.

Search me, O God, and know my heart; test me and know my anxious
thoughts. See if there is any offensive way in me, and lead me in the way
everlasting. --Ps 139:23-24

Let us be found humbly trusting in Jesus Christ our LORD ALONE!

Jesus the Way, the Truth and the Life.
The One and Only Way -- full of grace and truth!


John 1:14
The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us. We have seen
his glory, the glory of the One and Only, who came from the Father, full
of grace and truth.

Romans 8:18-19
I consider that our present sufferings are not worth comparing with the glory that will be revealed in us. The creation waits in eager expectation for the sons of God to be revealed.

Who will be revealed as a 'true' son of God?

James 3:18
And the seed whose fruit is righteousness is sown in peace by those who make peace.

Matthew 5:9
Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called sons of God. Knowledge puffs up, but love builds up. ---**1 Cor 8:1

This scripture is often sited along with a statements like these: we need to rely only on the Spirit of God and His love ALONE! Using your mind is fleshly, this is a hinderance to moving in the Spirit. Your 'old' self is keeping your from experiencing the 'new' truth; your 'old' concepts are dragging you down! Don't you know that knowledge puffs up and causes conceit???

Looking at things from your human intellect is self-centered!

Are these statements really true??

It is true that knowledge can cause conceit or pride if we are not careful, but does that really mean we should never use our human intellect in spiritual matters?

Look at the above verse more closely -- click on ** to see online bible. Look at what it does not say, it does not say that knowledge puffs up but ignorance edifies! Ignorance is one of the most unedifying phenomena you will ever encounter. The problem with the Corinthians was not the presence of knowledge, but the absence of love.

This isn't saying to avoid knowledge or the use of your mind -- isn't it really saying to make sure it's used in love? Knowledge without love is not pretty -- love without knowledge is equally ugly(**Rom 10:2-3).

Here are some scriptures to consider along with **1 Cor 8:1. Knowledge, using your human intellect can be a life or death issue.

Hosea 4:5-6 You stumble day and night, and the prophets stumble with you. So I will destroy your mother-my people are destroyed from lack of knowledge. "Because you have rejected knowledge, I also reject you as my priests; because you have ignored the law of your God, I also will ignore your children".

2 Peter 1:2 Grace and peace be multiplied to you through the knowledge of God and of Jesus our Lord.

The knowledge we need is personal knowledge of God (**Hos 4:1). This is more than factual knowledge, but not less. If I claimed to know a friend well but couldn't tell you where he lived, what his favorite books were, his favorite foods, or what he did for a living, you would rightly conclude that my claim to personal knowledge of this person was a complete delusion. It is exactly the same with people who claim to know God but who do not have or feel a need for any knowledge of his Word, his ways, the history of his dealings with his people, etc.

It's thru the use of our minds, knowledge and the Spirit that we become mature -- as a result of this not only is grace and peace multiplied but we will be able to discern evil from good. (**Heb 5:13-14)

For all those needing to be carried this day.

Know that Jesus Christ is the Way!
The only Way.

And the LORD shall be king over all the earth: in that day shall there be
one LORD, and His name one {His name the only one}. --Zech 14:9

Surrender all to the Lord Jesus Christ

Present yourself, stand before the King and ask for the ancient Way,
... the Way He has prepared. --Jere 6:16

Humble Yourself in the sight of the King

All of you, clothe yourselves with humility toward one another, because,
"God opposes the proud
but gives grace to the humble." Humble yourselves, therefore, under
God's mighty hand, that he may lift you up in due time. --1 Pe 5:5-6

Wait on the King's timing
And He will raise you up
In His time
In His Way.

Jesus, the First and Last
... He is the Way
... the King the One and Only
... Name above all names.


John 14:6
Jesus answered, "I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to
the Father except through me".

____________________________________________________________ ___________

Lord Jesus, help all those needing to be carried this day to know and trust
You, You alone. Help each humble themselves before You and wait on
Your timing. Let each rest secure in the 'hollow of Your mighty hand'
KNOWING that You will lift them up in due time. Remind each that it's by
Your hand that the waters and dust are measured, the heavens marked
off, and the mountains weighed. For You are the Sovereign LORD and
NOTHING is too hard or impossible for You! Lord Jesus help each humble
themselves before You and 'be still'. Thank You that they will see You
fight for them and they will be lifted up!

____________________________________________________________ ___________

Jeremiah 29:11-13
"For I know the plans I have for you, declares the Lord.
Plans to prosper you and not to harm you,
plans to give you hope and a future.
Then you will call upon me and come and pray to me,
and I will listen to you.
You will seek me and find me
when you seek me with all your heart."

This is a wonderful promise to hang on to.

Today if you seem to be in a 'tough' place or your situation seems too
hard to handle and impossible to explain, remind yourself that God said, 'I
know the plans I have for you.'

He is always with you and will never leave or forsake you. {Mt 28:20; Heb
13:5}

If you only see one set of 'footprints' in the sand right now --
KNOW and TRUST that it is now that you are being carried in His arms.

Seek Him with your whole heart
It's in times of testing that you really discover His faithfulness
Trust Jesus and acknowledge Him in all your ways
He will carry you
He will make a way and you'll exit this season stronger
Stick to His plan!

Proverbs 3:5-6
Trust in the LORD with all your heart and lean not on your own
understanding; in all your ways acknowledge Him, and He will direct your
path.

1 Chronicles 16:9-11
Sing to Him, sing praises to Him; speak of all His wonders.
Glory in His holy name; let the heart of those who seek the LORD be glad.
Seek the LORD and His strength; seek His face continually.

"I AM the Light of the world; he who follows Me will not walk in the
darkness, but will have the Light of life."-- Jn 8:12

Follow 'the Word' closely
Seek the face of the LORD, not only His hand
Seek His face with all of your heart
Know His ways,
... that You may know Him and find favor in His sight --Ex 33:13
Walk in the Light of His face

Remember His promise to those who love Him and follow His Way

"Lo, I AM with you always, even to the end of the age." Amen. --Mt 28:20

I love those who love me;
... and those who diligently seek me will find me. --Prov 8:17

John 14:21-23
He who has My commandments and keeps them is the one who loves Me;
and he who loves Me will be loved by My Father, and I will love him and
will disclose Myself to him.

Judas (not Iscariot) said to Him, "Lord, what then has happened that You
are going to disclose Yourself to us and not to the world?"

Jesus answered and said to him, "If anyone loves Me, he will keep My
word; and My Father will love him, and We will come to him and make Our
abode with him".