Dear Readers and Followers of The Peregrinnatti - YHVH'S Minstrels blog,
Several exciting changes are coming about for the ministry of The Peregrinnatti!
Steve and I will be sharing these changes with you as they unfold. For now we want to share with you our move from Blogger to Word Press. This will be our last posting on Blogger.com. You can keep up with our thoughts, activities and insights at: http://www.harpandstory.wordpress.com/ which leads to another change for us; we are changing our website from biblicalstoryteller.com to http://www.harpandstory.com/. It is still under construction, but we are excited about the changes and additions to this new website. Come visit, give us feedback, we appreciate your encouragement and support!
A new update was just posted today, May 26, at http://www.harpandstory.wordpress.com/ titled "Going 'Round the Mountain, Again?"
There are options on the blog page to become an email subscriber or to continue with RSS; lots of options for sharing and following. Come on and join us as we continue this great adventure together!
May YHVH bless you and keep you and cause His face to shine upon you and be gracious unto you!
Because of HIM,
Steve and Shirley
Thursday, May 26, 2011
Tuesday, April 19, 2011
Outside Clean! Inside, Clean Also?
More and more these days I find myself biting my tongue because of these words running through my mind. "Are you sure you want to say that?"
When I bust through that protective barrier and blurt out what I am thinking I often find that I would have been better off if I had heeded the warning and resisted speaking those words.
It is one thing to resist making comments that could end up causing another pain, words that you could come to regret, judgments made that you may wish you could rescind, opinions offered that may become invalid; it is another thing entirely to let the emotion go that is often associated with those thoughts. Maybe I heed the warning and keep those words to myself, but are my insides tensing, are my hands clenched, is my jaw tight, am I seething under the surface with unspoken resentment, anger, jealousy, bitterness, judgment, cursing, malice, vindictiveness?
My ouside demeanor may remain calm and poised, but what about my inside? Yashua said to the Pharisees, "woe to you scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for you make clean the outside of the cup and the platter, but within they are full of extortation and excess. Thou blind Pharisee, cleanse first that which is within the cup and platter, that the outside of them may be clean also."
Are we like the little boy who was told by his father to sit down and be quiet when he obviously had an opinion he wanted to share. His response to his father was, "okay, I'll sit down and be quiet, but I'm standing up on the inside!"
How do we get to the place where our inside and our outside match? Yahsua said the world would know that we are His disciples by the love we have for one another. This kind of love that is a witness to the world of the One we honor and obey is an "inside/outside clean cup love. Another way to say is that our words and our actions match our heart.
James 4:7 says, "Submit yourselves therefore to YHVH. Resist the devil and he will flee from you."
If we heed the warning, "are you sure you want to say that," and we hold our tongue we are submitting ourself to YHVH; the first part of the admonition of James is accomplished! But there is more, the resisting the devil part. To resist the devil is to let the emotion that is encircling the words running through our heads go with the warning, "are you sure you want to say that?" If we do then the promise of James 4:7 will be ours; and he, the devil, will flee from you.
I know I am not alone in this, as Steve and I travel from place to place visiting fellowships across the country there is a repeated pattern that is becoming all to familiar. We may hold our tongue from Lashon Hara, the outside of our cup may be sparkling clean, but the evidence points to the fact that the inside is under heavy attack. Not being able or not chosing to let our negative emotions come into submission allows the devil to have easy access into our marriage, our children our friends our fellowship. He is not fleeing because we are not resisting the need to nurse our emotions of anger or resentment or hate or jealousy or strife or contentions or rejection or...and the list goes on. If the Father in His love and mercy gives you a warning, "are you sure you want to say that?" and we refrain from verbally saying what is on our mind, but we carry on with the conversation in our inward parts indulging in anger or resentment or any other negative emotion, then we have not won the battle; the enemy has not been resisted and he has not fled from us.
I believe true submission is always to The Father. It is recorded of Yashua in John 5:19 that the Son can do nothing of himself, unless it is something He sees the Father doing; for whatever the Father does, these things the Son also does in like manner.
Have we beheld Yashua? If the answer to that question is yes then we will be doing the works of Yashua with the fruit of the Ruach haKodesh, love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control as evidence of our submitted, victorious life.
When I bust through that protective barrier and blurt out what I am thinking I often find that I would have been better off if I had heeded the warning and resisted speaking those words.
It is one thing to resist making comments that could end up causing another pain, words that you could come to regret, judgments made that you may wish you could rescind, opinions offered that may become invalid; it is another thing entirely to let the emotion go that is often associated with those thoughts. Maybe I heed the warning and keep those words to myself, but are my insides tensing, are my hands clenched, is my jaw tight, am I seething under the surface with unspoken resentment, anger, jealousy, bitterness, judgment, cursing, malice, vindictiveness?
My ouside demeanor may remain calm and poised, but what about my inside? Yashua said to the Pharisees, "woe to you scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for you make clean the outside of the cup and the platter, but within they are full of extortation and excess. Thou blind Pharisee, cleanse first that which is within the cup and platter, that the outside of them may be clean also."
Are we like the little boy who was told by his father to sit down and be quiet when he obviously had an opinion he wanted to share. His response to his father was, "okay, I'll sit down and be quiet, but I'm standing up on the inside!"
How do we get to the place where our inside and our outside match? Yahsua said the world would know that we are His disciples by the love we have for one another. This kind of love that is a witness to the world of the One we honor and obey is an "inside/outside clean cup love. Another way to say is that our words and our actions match our heart.
James 4:7 says, "Submit yourselves therefore to YHVH. Resist the devil and he will flee from you."
If we heed the warning, "are you sure you want to say that," and we hold our tongue we are submitting ourself to YHVH; the first part of the admonition of James is accomplished! But there is more, the resisting the devil part. To resist the devil is to let the emotion that is encircling the words running through our heads go with the warning, "are you sure you want to say that?" If we do then the promise of James 4:7 will be ours; and he, the devil, will flee from you.
I know I am not alone in this, as Steve and I travel from place to place visiting fellowships across the country there is a repeated pattern that is becoming all to familiar. We may hold our tongue from Lashon Hara, the outside of our cup may be sparkling clean, but the evidence points to the fact that the inside is under heavy attack. Not being able or not chosing to let our negative emotions come into submission allows the devil to have easy access into our marriage, our children our friends our fellowship. He is not fleeing because we are not resisting the need to nurse our emotions of anger or resentment or hate or jealousy or strife or contentions or rejection or...and the list goes on. If the Father in His love and mercy gives you a warning, "are you sure you want to say that?" and we refrain from verbally saying what is on our mind, but we carry on with the conversation in our inward parts indulging in anger or resentment or any other negative emotion, then we have not won the battle; the enemy has not been resisted and he has not fled from us.
I believe true submission is always to The Father. It is recorded of Yashua in John 5:19 that the Son can do nothing of himself, unless it is something He sees the Father doing; for whatever the Father does, these things the Son also does in like manner.
Have we beheld Yashua? If the answer to that question is yes then we will be doing the works of Yashua with the fruit of the Ruach haKodesh, love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control as evidence of our submitted, victorious life.
Wednesday, March 23, 2011
The Nations Rage
We are back in California for a few days, gas is almost $4.00 a gallon here and it is everywhere evident that prices are up and quantity is down. The temptation is to stay put and play it safe and secure, I even asked Steve if we should pray about going back on the road again at this time. Of course we should always pray seeking the Father’s direction, but it was guised as, “We want to be sure we are getting our direction from YHVH, right?” So what’s so bad about that? Nothing, on the surface, but underneath is the question being driven by fear of “what if?” Steve’s response to me was, “I don’t have a check in my spirit about going out again, and we do have an assignment from YHVH don’t we?”
So, what is my assignment? Am I carrying it out no matter what my physical eyes see? No matter what my physical ears hear?
Daniel 11:32 says: And by smooth words he will turn to godlessness those who act wickedly toward the covenant, but the people who know their Elohim will display strength and take action.
In reading this verse we often focus on the latter part, “display strength and take action,” or as The King James puts it, “be strong and do exploits.” Let’s read on to get a fuller picture of this people. Vs. 33-35:
Dan 11:33: And they that understand among the people shall instruct many: yet they shall fall by the sword, and by flame, by captivity, and by spoil, many days.
Dan 11:34: Now when they shall fall, they shall be surrounded with a little help: but many shall cleave to them with flatteries.
Dan 11:35: And some of them of understanding shall fall, to try them, and to purge, and to make them white, even to the time of the end: because it is yet for a time appointed.
And in John 15:20 Yashua says: Remember the word that I said unto you, the servant is not greater than his lord. If they have persecuted me, they will also persecute you; if they have kept my saying, they will keep yours also.
I am home, with my comforts around me and I had to answer the question YHVH posed to me, “Are you afraid?”
For a few months now Steve and I have been reading the Psalms and Proverbs through every month for our morning devotion. Almost every chapter is a headline of current events today. The nations are raging and in the midst of this calamitous cacophony of the multitudes YHVH says, if you are willing I will send you in MY strength with action, but know this, they have persecuted Me, they will persecute you!
In the story/talk YHVH has given me to share I pose this pondering; Islam is bent on taking over the world. They have a lot of momentum going on their side because a radical element of their belief is not afraid to die for their prophet. Do we, as believers in Yashua haMeshiach have the same kind of fire burning in our bones that says I am not afraid to die for the gospel of my Messiah? Are we that radical for Yashua? I am not talking about putting on explosive belts and blowing yourself up, but rather this kind of radical; “go to the lost sheep of the house of Israel, preach that the kingdom of heaven is at hand, heal the sick, raise the dead, cleanse the leper, cast out demons, freely you have received, freely give.”
I am convinced that those who take no thought for tomorrow, who keep their eyes focused on
Yashua haMeshiach, who count their life as nothing as Paul says in Acts 20:24:
But none of these things move me, neither count I my life dear unto myself, so that I might finish my course with joy, and the ministry, which I have received of the Lord Yashua, to testify the gospel of the grace of Elohim
will do exploits, but will also be persecuted and may be martyred.
The comfort of my home and it’s (seemingly) safety and security, or the promise of persecution with great strength and action? To answer this question we have to take into account what our eyes and ears are focused on – what we can see and hear in the temporal realm or what we can see and hear in the eternal realm. Not everyone is called to do what Steve and I are doing, but you are called, you do have an assignment, are you being faithful to BE all you were created to be so you can DO all that He wants you to do?!
Mat 16:27: For the Son of man shall come in the glory of His Father with His angels; and then He shall reward every man according to his works.
Let us remember that our rewards come from the place of abiding in Him out of which will flow
what He has for us to do, not that we do to earn a reward and be accepted by Him. Salvation is
freely given always and forever, there is nothing we can do to earn salvation. And because
of this awesome and priceless gift we then from an over-flowing heart of love and gratitude for
His abundant mercy and loving kindness toward us, we desire, want, need, long to do all that
He has for us to do! His grace is sufficient to take care of us in whatever trail and tribulation He
allows us to go through no matter the outcome; count it all joy!
Look up, for our redemption draws nigh!!!
So, what is my assignment? Am I carrying it out no matter what my physical eyes see? No matter what my physical ears hear?
Daniel 11:32 says: And by smooth words he will turn to godlessness those who act wickedly toward the covenant, but the people who know their Elohim will display strength and take action.
In reading this verse we often focus on the latter part, “display strength and take action,” or as The King James puts it, “be strong and do exploits.” Let’s read on to get a fuller picture of this people. Vs. 33-35:
Dan 11:33: And they that understand among the people shall instruct many: yet they shall fall by the sword, and by flame, by captivity, and by spoil, many days.
Dan 11:34: Now when they shall fall, they shall be surrounded with a little help: but many shall cleave to them with flatteries.
Dan 11:35: And some of them of understanding shall fall, to try them, and to purge, and to make them white, even to the time of the end: because it is yet for a time appointed.
And in John 15:20 Yashua says: Remember the word that I said unto you, the servant is not greater than his lord. If they have persecuted me, they will also persecute you; if they have kept my saying, they will keep yours also.
I am home, with my comforts around me and I had to answer the question YHVH posed to me, “Are you afraid?”
For a few months now Steve and I have been reading the Psalms and Proverbs through every month for our morning devotion. Almost every chapter is a headline of current events today. The nations are raging and in the midst of this calamitous cacophony of the multitudes YHVH says, if you are willing I will send you in MY strength with action, but know this, they have persecuted Me, they will persecute you!
In the story/talk YHVH has given me to share I pose this pondering; Islam is bent on taking over the world. They have a lot of momentum going on their side because a radical element of their belief is not afraid to die for their prophet. Do we, as believers in Yashua haMeshiach have the same kind of fire burning in our bones that says I am not afraid to die for the gospel of my Messiah? Are we that radical for Yashua? I am not talking about putting on explosive belts and blowing yourself up, but rather this kind of radical; “go to the lost sheep of the house of Israel, preach that the kingdom of heaven is at hand, heal the sick, raise the dead, cleanse the leper, cast out demons, freely you have received, freely give.”
I am convinced that those who take no thought for tomorrow, who keep their eyes focused on
Yashua haMeshiach, who count their life as nothing as Paul says in Acts 20:24:
But none of these things move me, neither count I my life dear unto myself, so that I might finish my course with joy, and the ministry, which I have received of the Lord Yashua, to testify the gospel of the grace of Elohim
will do exploits, but will also be persecuted and may be martyred.
The comfort of my home and it’s (seemingly) safety and security, or the promise of persecution with great strength and action? To answer this question we have to take into account what our eyes and ears are focused on – what we can see and hear in the temporal realm or what we can see and hear in the eternal realm. Not everyone is called to do what Steve and I are doing, but you are called, you do have an assignment, are you being faithful to BE all you were created to be so you can DO all that He wants you to do?!
Mat 16:27: For the Son of man shall come in the glory of His Father with His angels; and then He shall reward every man according to his works.
Let us remember that our rewards come from the place of abiding in Him out of which will flow
what He has for us to do, not that we do to earn a reward and be accepted by Him. Salvation is
freely given always and forever, there is nothing we can do to earn salvation. And because
of this awesome and priceless gift we then from an over-flowing heart of love and gratitude for
His abundant mercy and loving kindness toward us, we desire, want, need, long to do all that
He has for us to do! His grace is sufficient to take care of us in whatever trail and tribulation He
allows us to go through no matter the outcome; count it all joy!
Look up, for our redemption draws nigh!!!
Saturday, January 29, 2011
The Time is Not Yet
We have been home from Thailand for about three weeks and we are getting back into the routine of life here in the States – somewhat! There are some things that have caught our attention, one being that the news and views of world and national events from both the secular and religious medias are much like a soap opera – not much has changed from when we left to when we got back! So if you are living under the immediate danger, threat level red, induced and perpetuated by the reports you are hearing from the secular and religious media, we would encourage you to reassess your level of stress and reprioritize your priorities! Yashua left us with the message to work while there was day for soon the night is coming when no man can work. What is the work? to make disciples. How do we do that? Yashua told those he sent out to: “go to the lost sheep of the house of Israel, proclaim that the kingdom of heaven is near at hand, to heal the sick, cleanse the leper, raise the dead, cast out demons, freely you have received, freely give.” The night is coming when we will not be able to do this work anymore, but if we are alive then that time is not yet. The modern doomsday purveyors are reminiscent of the story of the little boy that cried wolf, but there was no wolf and when the wolf did finally come no one came to help because they thought the call was just another false alarm and as a result of their desensitization much loss of life resulted. The bond-slave of Yashua remains sensitized to the voice of His master, and as the song goes we, “Turn our eyes upon Yashua, look full in His wonderful face and the things of this world will grow strangely dim in the light of His glory and grace.” Prophecy is for us to know and recognize when recorded events happen, and be encouraged that the time of the fulfillment of all things is drawing close. Prophecy helps keep us from succumbing to the false flags and distractions that the enemy of the brethren would way-lay us with and by, hoping to distract our vision from the one who holds the world in His hands.
In the parable of the ten virgins they all fell asleep, but only five fell asleep with provision, the other five were left out of the wedding feast because they had not made adequate preparation. Let’s look at this “falling asleep” for a moment as a reference to death. Down through history many have fallen asleep in death who considered themselves a part of the “Bridal Company”. Their expectation was of Yashua returning in their lifetime; but the Bridegroom tarried. Can we see in the parable of the ten virgins five who died still holding fast to the promises, still sheltered under the wings of the Almighty, while the other five died having lost hope because they did not see that which they believed they would see. Yashua may have told this parable to help prepare those who have ears to hear; don’t lose hope, and though I tarry wait for me!
For those of us who consider ourselves a part of the Bridal Company today, we too need to heed the warning that there is going to be a time of waiting. The call has gone out, we have our light, but are we prepared to wait and wait some more until the Bridegroom does come even if He tarries beyond our life time? Friends let us work while we wait – the wait won’t seem so long if we are being about His business!
I would like to submit to you that we get back to the job that Yashua left us with. Prophecy is future history, it will unfold just as it is written and whether we understand the timelines or have the date down to the day or if we know who’s the anti-Messiah is frankly, in my opinion irrelevant, if Yashua does not find us being the people and doing the work that He left us to do. Could it be that we are so obsessed with end-time prophecy because we want to know the last possible moment to get out of Babylon and get Babylon out of us so we can have the proverbial cake and eat it too? If we are dwelling in the shelter of the Most High, abiding in the shadow of the Almighty day by day, what else really matters? Prophecies were given to us as signposts so we would be aware of the times as they unfold. As we see them fulfilled we rejoice because we realize the time of our soon-coming Savior is near. We rejoice because we know in whom we have believed and are persuaded that He is able to keep us against that day – the day of YHVH’s wrath.
It is easy to fall into the trap of self-preservation, we have been there and done that, bought that T-shirt (so to speak), but Yashua said that “those who would save their life will lose it and those that would lose their life for My sake and the gospels will save it, for what does it profit a man if he gain the whole world but lose his soul.” We believe the time to hunker down is not yet, the fields are white with the harvest. Go therefore into the fields and help bring it in! Will He find us faithful when He returns?
This posting is not about whether we believe the time of Yashua’s return is imminent or not. We pray and hope and believe that He will return in our life-time. What we are trying to convey is this - what are we doing with our time while we wait. Let us remain faithful no matter how long our Bridegroom tarries.
In the parable of the ten virgins they all fell asleep, but only five fell asleep with provision, the other five were left out of the wedding feast because they had not made adequate preparation. Let’s look at this “falling asleep” for a moment as a reference to death. Down through history many have fallen asleep in death who considered themselves a part of the “Bridal Company”. Their expectation was of Yashua returning in their lifetime; but the Bridegroom tarried. Can we see in the parable of the ten virgins five who died still holding fast to the promises, still sheltered under the wings of the Almighty, while the other five died having lost hope because they did not see that which they believed they would see. Yashua may have told this parable to help prepare those who have ears to hear; don’t lose hope, and though I tarry wait for me!
For those of us who consider ourselves a part of the Bridal Company today, we too need to heed the warning that there is going to be a time of waiting. The call has gone out, we have our light, but are we prepared to wait and wait some more until the Bridegroom does come even if He tarries beyond our life time? Friends let us work while we wait – the wait won’t seem so long if we are being about His business!
I would like to submit to you that we get back to the job that Yashua left us with. Prophecy is future history, it will unfold just as it is written and whether we understand the timelines or have the date down to the day or if we know who’s the anti-Messiah is frankly, in my opinion irrelevant, if Yashua does not find us being the people and doing the work that He left us to do. Could it be that we are so obsessed with end-time prophecy because we want to know the last possible moment to get out of Babylon and get Babylon out of us so we can have the proverbial cake and eat it too? If we are dwelling in the shelter of the Most High, abiding in the shadow of the Almighty day by day, what else really matters? Prophecies were given to us as signposts so we would be aware of the times as they unfold. As we see them fulfilled we rejoice because we realize the time of our soon-coming Savior is near. We rejoice because we know in whom we have believed and are persuaded that He is able to keep us against that day – the day of YHVH’s wrath.
It is easy to fall into the trap of self-preservation, we have been there and done that, bought that T-shirt (so to speak), but Yashua said that “those who would save their life will lose it and those that would lose their life for My sake and the gospels will save it, for what does it profit a man if he gain the whole world but lose his soul.” We believe the time to hunker down is not yet, the fields are white with the harvest. Go therefore into the fields and help bring it in! Will He find us faithful when He returns?
This posting is not about whether we believe the time of Yashua’s return is imminent or not. We pray and hope and believe that He will return in our life-time. What we are trying to convey is this - what are we doing with our time while we wait. Let us remain faithful no matter how long our Bridegroom tarries.
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