Gen 27-28; Ps 4; Lk 11

Scripture - Luke 11:34 Your eye is a lamp of your body, When your eyes are good your whole body is good. But when your eyes are bad your whole body is full of darkness.

Observation - Jesus is teaching the disciples to control what they look at and what goes in. Garbage in garbage out (to quote an old computer cliche). The eyes are the gateway to the heart and we need to make sure that what we gaze upon will bring life to our whole body. The scripture says that when our eyes are bad our whole body is in darkness. Sometimes the dark cloud we feel around our lives has more to do with what we see than with where we are.

Application - Bouncing eyes is a term that I heard recently. It was in a seminar about sexual purity and maintaining a pure heart. Bouncing eyes means that when your eye gets to something you shouldn't be looking at, that you bounce your eyes to a good place. Guarding your vision and where you look is very important to our spiritual health. When we see dark things our life will resemble those things - but when we see life our life will resemble that. Keep looking at the good that God is doing.

Prayer - Father - help me always to see the good in everything. Let me see the good vision, the good in people and the good in life.

Gen 25-26; Ps 6; Luke 10

Scripture - Gen 25:6 But while he was still alive, he gave gifts to the sons of his concubines and sent them away from his son Isaac to the land of the east.

Observation - I am so impressed with Abraham to not only prepare inheritance for Isaac but while he was still living he was giving inheritance to his other sons. Abraham passed on to his sons more than just wealth. He passed on care and compassion and the Godly wisdom to take care of your family. Inheritance was an issue of Godly direction and value as a father. It was considered problematic if you had nothing to pass on to your children.

Application - What are we passing on to our children? What inheritance are we leaving them. Abraham left legacy with his children. Are we investing in our sons and daughters while we are still living? Are we giving them the knowledge of God and the wisdom of Godly principles? Or after we are gone are we leaving them to scramble and find them for themselves?

Prayer - Father help me to be the model for my children. Help me to pass on a rich inheritance of Godly wisdom and Godly living that will bless them for generations to come.

Gen 23-24; Luke 9

Scripture - Gen 24:18-21 18 So she said, "Drink, my lord." Then she quickly let her pitcher down to her hand, and gave him a drink. 19 And when she had finished giving him a drink, she said, "I will draw water for your camels also, until they have finished drinking." 20 Then she quickly emptied her pitcher into the trough, ran back to the well to draw water, and drew for all his camels.

Observation - Rebekah had not idea what blessing she was in for as she served the man at the well. Abraham's servant went looking for a bride for Isaac - one to whom he would give all the wealth and riches that had been gained. Rebekah was simply being faithful to serve the man. Her kindness and compassion to bring give the man a drink and then water his camels was the very character quality God was looking for. I don't think we take time to understand what she really did. The bible said that she gave water to the camels til they finished drinking. Camels don't drink water for large periods of time - when they drink they can drink up to 20 gallons of water each. There were 10 camels for a total of 200 gallons of water. Assuming the pot she was carrying was 5 gallons (unlikely) she would have had to go to the well 40 times. Not to mention filling each jar, pouring the water, carrying the water up the stairs - each 5 gallons weighing some 40 pounds.

Rebekah did all this for a stranger. What a quality. And she reaped a great reward for her efforts. Can you imagine the blessing we would reap if we would be half as compassionate and half as faithful.

Application - All too often we assess the amount of work that we will have to do to bless someone and weigh that against the reward. Rebekah simply served the stranger. She did all that work to bless the man, a man she didn't even know. I believe we need to start serving the strangers around us. Serving them and filling them with living water. Blessing them until they finish drinking. Stop evaluating how much work goes into the blessing and just give ourselves fully. Let God take care of the reward and recognition. How many pots of water can I carry today.

Prayer - Father help me carry pots of water to the strangers in my life. Help me to serve without regard to what is in it for us. Without measuring the results. Just SERVE!

Gen 20-22; Luke 8

Scripture - Luke 8:16-18 "No one lights a lamp and hides it in a jar or puts it under a bed. Instead, he puts it on a stand, so that those who come in can see the light. 17 For there is nothing hidden that will not be disclosed, and nothing concealed that will not be known or brought out into the open.

Observation - Jesus is trying to educate the disciples on the importance of the Word. He tells them that it is meant to be a light and to shine so that all can notice - not hidden under a bushel. When that word is in you it is meant to beam out of you like a beacon for All to be pointed to Jesus. Not kept as some secret that no one can understand. Gods wants us to take the word in us and set it on top of our life. The LIFEJournal allows an intimacy with the word and the sharing of the word allows that light to shine.

Application - We can't stop sharing what we are learning and hearing from God. He wants us to not only take the word we are studying and apply it to our lives but to share it with all that will listen. Not everyone will listen but some will hear and want more.

Prayer - Father make us ALL beacons of light!

Gen 18-19; Ps 3; Luke 7

Scripture - Luke 7:11-15 Now it happened, the day after, that He went into a city called Nain; and many of His disciples went with Him, and a large crowd. 12 And when He came near the gate of the city, behold, a dead man was being carried out, the only son of his mother; and she was a widow. And a large crowd from the city was with her. 13 When the Lord saw her, He had compassion on her and said to her, "Do not weep." 14 Then He came and touched the open coffin, and those who carried him stood still. And He said, "Young man, I say to you, arise." 15 So he who was dead sat up and began to speak. And He presented him to his mother.

Observation - It would be foolish to read this passage of scripture and not celebrate the major miracle that had taken place. The men were carrying this young boy in a coffin and Jesus speaks to him and he gets up and pops out of the coffin. Can you imagine what the crowd was saying. Inf act the scripture says "they were in awe and praised God" I was thinking however, as I read, how often we have things in our life that we put in coffins and are on the way to bury long before God has finished His purpose with those items. This young boy had a role to fulfill in life. He was the only child of his mother, he would be the only one to carry on the name of his father, she could not be provided for without him and the lives he would touch would not be touched. In short this young boy had purpose. He passes away too early and Jesus speaks to the coffin and the boy awakes. Amazing how all hope was lost in the sight of the people but not to Jesus. One word and he is back in business (so to speak).

Application - I think that too often there are things in our life that have great purpose and potential and because maybe it gets too difficult or it seems to not get legs and go, we pronounce it dead. We carry those things to the grave yard in the coffin and attempt to bury them long before they fulfilled their purpose. It seems like we do this with relationships, with jobs, with churches, with family, with many other areas and activities. We are burying them pronouncing their death before we can see the miracle bring them out. Jesus can speak to those things that are in coffins in my life. Those things that are dead that should be living. Those things I have tried to bury that should have life. Jesus can speak to them and when they live we should stand in awe and praise the Lord.

Prayer - Father help me not to write anything off too early. All things work together for the good of those who love You. Father, I love you - help me to pray life into the dead places and perform and coffin miracle in me.

Gen 15-17; Luke 6

Scripture - Gen 17:4-8 "As for Me, behold, My covenant is with you, and you shall be a father of many nations. 5 No longer shall your name be called Abram, but your name shall be Abraham; for I have made you a father of many nations. 6 I will make you exceedingly fruitful; and I will make nations of you, and kings shall come from you. 7 And I will establish My covenant between Me and you and your descendants after you in their generations, for an everlasting covenant, to be God to you and your descendants after you. 8 Also I give to you and your descendants after you the land in which you are a stranger, all the land of Canaan, as an everlasting possession; and I will be their God."

Observation - God is unfolding the plan for Abraham's life right here. He is telling Abraham what is going to happen to him and what his promise is for Abraham's life. God said "I am naming you Abraham because I have made you the father of many nations". Abraham was not currently the father of many nations and really didn't see any physical proof of that being possible. Sarah was old, he was old, really it didn't make sense. But God had the plan already in place even when the physical evidence speaks to the contrary.

Application - I am reminded everyday of the physical limitations that face my life. Financial limitations, time limitations, people limitations and the list goes on and on. There is a promise burning inside of me that God has placed there. This promise was not given based upon any human limitation but based upon God's ultimate design. When He makes a promise He already knows the end of the story. I love that He told Abraham - "I have made you" even before it was a reality to Abraham. God let me respond as Abraham responded "I believe!"

Prayer - Father help me to see the plan as you see it. Let me know that your plan and your promise is not dependent on anything I can or will do but upon your word only. This whole world was put in place by your spoken word - Father speak over my life.

Gen 12-14; Luke 5

Scripture - Luke 5:1-8 So it was, as the multitude pressed about Him to hear the word of God, that He stood by the Lake of Gennesaret, 2 and saw two boats standing by the lake; but the fishermen had gone from them and were washing their nets. 3 Then He got into one of the boats, which was Simon's, and asked him to put out a little from the land. And He sat down and taught the multitudes from the boat. 4 When He had stopped speaking, He said to Simon, "Launch out into the deep and let down your nets for a catch." 5 But Simon answered and said to Him, "Master, we have toiled all night and caught nothing; nevertheless at Your word I will let down the net." 6 And when they had done this, they caught a great number of fish, and their net was breaking. 7 So they signaled to their partners in the other boat to come and help them. And they came and filled both the boats, so that they began to sink. 8 When Simon Peter saw it, he fell down at Jesus' knees, saying,"Depart from me, for I am a sinful man, O Lord!"

Observation - Peter and the men had been working all night to catch fish. This was their profession. They were skilled, trained and professional. They knew the right fishing spots, the places that were profitable to catch fish. Yet they didn't catch anything. There they were frustrated and broke with nothing to show for their efforts. Jesus enters the boat (at the wrong time of the day for fishing) and tells them to push out and let down for a catch. It is amazing that the only change is Jesus in the boat and his word spoken in their direction. They catch so much that they have to call partners in to help them. The blessing of Jesus flowed over their boat into the boats around them.

Application - It is amazing how you can work and toil all night doing what you have been trained to do, what you are skilled to do, maybe even what you are an expert doing with very little results. The production and return can be so disheartening, but one word from Jesus and the whole situation changed. These men knew what they wee doing and Jesus gets in the boat and says push our and let down - now everything is different.

Push out - some of us aren't going deep enough. We need to push out into new depths - new areas that we haven't approached yet, maybe because of fear or whatever, we need to push out today. He also said let down, we need to let down our guard, let down our attitude, let down our control and let Jesus speak a word over our situation. Let him get in the boat and tell me where to put the nets in. Even if its the wrong time of the day. Jesus makes all the difference.

Prayer - Father - I am pushing out today. I am going deep. Letting down my guard and allowing you to speak over my situation. I need you to touch every area of my life and let the catch come in.