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Set a watch, Yahweh, before my mouth. Keep the door of my lips. Psalms 141:3 WEB.David prayed that the Lord would set a guard over his mouth to keep him from saying things that he should not. James said, "If we put bits into the mouths of horses so that they obey us, we guide their whole bodies as well" (James 3:3). If you can control your tongue, then you can control the rest of your body. Then James...

Now Yahweh's word came to Jonah the son of Amittai, saying, 'Arise, go to Nineveh, that great city, and preach against it, for their wickedness has come up before me.' But Jonah rose up to flee to Tarshish from the presence of Yahweh. He went down to Joppa, and found a ship going to Tarshish; so he paid its fare, and went down into it, to go with them to Tarshish from the presence of Yahweh. Jonah...

Sitting At Your Feet from Refreshing Hope Ministries on Vimeo. About a half hour's walk from Jerusalem there, is a small hamlet on the eastern side of the Mount of Olives called Bethany (click on image to enlarge).  When Jesus was passing through, He was invited to stay at the home of Lazarus, Mary, and Martha. Afterward, when visiting Jerusalem, Jesus always stopped by their house. Bethany...

They traveled from Mount Hor by the way to the Red Sea to go around the land of Edom. The soul of the people was very discouraged because of the journey. The people spoke against God and against Moses: "Why have you brought us up out of Egypt to die in the wilderness? For there is no bread, there is no water, and our soul loathes this disgusting food!" Numbers 21:4'5 WEB.The Israelites slowly marched...

The donkey saw Yahweh's angel, and she lay down under Balaam. Balaam's anger burned, and he struck the donkey with his staff. Yahweh opened the mouth of the donkey, and she said to Balaam, "What have I done to you, that you have struck me these three times?" Balaam said to the donkey, "Because you have mocked me, I wish there were a sword in my hand, for now I would have killed you." The donkey said...

The Weight from Refreshing Hope Ministries on Vimeo. The Apostle Paul wrote that the foolishness of God is wiser than men, and the weakness of God is stronger than men (1 Corinthians 1:25 NKJV). One day Jesus was preaching on the shore of the Sea of Galilee, and a large crowd of people pressed in to hear Him.  Jesus saw two boats on the shore, and the fishermen were washing their nets. So...

Grasshopper from Refreshing Hope Ministries on Vimeo. The Israelites who marched out of Egypt had witnessed major miracles. They had seen the plagues swarming over the Egyptians while the Israelite houses were unaffected. When they came to the Red Sea, the water parted before them, and they walked across on the dry ground. When they were hungry, manna, literally bread from heaven, appeared around...

The heavens are Yahweh's heavens, but he has given the earth to the children of men. Psalms 115:16 WEB.I watched my son wrestle with connecting the wiring harness to the motherboard of the computer he was building. I could have done it for him, but he was now six years old and needed to learn to do this himself and that the plug only fits one way. He wanted a gaming computer for Christmas. So being...

being confident of this very thing, that he who began a good work in you will complete it until the day of Jesus Christ. Philippians 1:6 WEBIt was late Saturday night, and we were both exhausted. We were working on a networked accounting system that was bloated and slow. A simple upgrade job that should have taken a couple of hours on Friday had now taken a couple of days. Still, we chose to honor...

The Philistines came up yet again and spread themselves in the valley of Rephaim. When David inquired of Yahweh, he said, 'You shall not go up. Circle around behind them, and attack them in front of the mulberry trees. 2 Samuel 5:22'23 WEB.The Philistine army invaded the Valley of Rephaim, and David asked the Lord what to do. The last time David had faced the Philistines, he met them straight on in...

Fall on Me from Refreshing Hope Ministries on Vimeo. Around 22 BC, Herod the Great built a major port city on the coast of the Mediterranean Sea. It was a grand city named for Caesar Augustus. They called it "Caesarea Maritima." This was over 2,000 years ago, yet forward-thinking Roman engineers built it. Caesarea had well-planned streets, an underground sewage system, an aqueduct that brought...

Yahweh spoke to Moses and to Aaron, saying, 'How long shall I bear with this evil congregation that complain against me? I have heard the complaints of the children of Israel, which they complain against me. Tell them, 'As I live, says Yahweh, surely as you have spoken in my ears, so I will do to you.' Numbers 14:26'28 WEB.The Israelites came out of Egypt and saw incredible miracles each day while...

It Takes Two from Refreshing Hope Ministries on Vimeo. It is a simple fact that if you never opened your mouth, you would never have an argument. I am including our text-based social media conversations as dialogue as well. In short, we are always part of the problem. None of our disagreements escalate without our help. I am talking about personal relationships and keeping the peace. People don't...

Simon Peter said to them, "I'm going fishing." They told him, "We are also coming with you." They immediately went out, and entered into the boat. That night, they caught nothing. But when day had already come, Jesus stood on the beach, yet the disciples didn't know that it was Jesus. John 21:3'4 WEB.Peter stood on the shore of the sea of Galilee and watched the waves roll in. He was so discouraged....

The Way Maker from Refreshing Hope Ministries on Vimeo. The Israelites had lived in Egypt for centuries when the Lord sent Moses to free them from slavery. A hundred years may seem like a long time to us, but to the Lord, it's merely a dramatic pause. The Lord had told Abram what was coming long before it happened, and it began with his great-grandson Joseph. (Genesis 15:13–14 NASB) ...

Because he has set his love on me, therefore I will deliver him. I will set him on high, because he has known my name. He will call on me, and I will answer him. I will be with him in trouble. I will deliver him, and honor him. I will satisfy him with long life, and show him my salvation.' Psalm 91:14'16 WEB.In high school gym class, we once had a "trust your teammates" session where you had to fall...

For I, Yahweh your God, will hold your right hand, saying to you, Don't be afraid; I will help you. Isaiah 41:13 WEB.We have a proverb we live by when performing live music: "If you hit a bad note, hit it good." Yes, it should be "hit it well," but that's the phrase I grew up hearing in South Carolina. In other words, don't let the fear of failure keep you from trying your very best in a song. If you...

I have put my trust in God. I will not be afraid. What can man do to me? Psalms 56:11 WEB.I walked down the aisle at Church to the offering basket and dropped in my tithes for the week. It had been a few awful weeks in a row now, and it was starting to show at home. My tithe was ten percent of almost nothing once again.Later, when I got home, I opened my Bible and found an envelope tucked inside it....

Shackled from Refreshing Hope Ministries on Vimeo. When given a task, we tend to look at ourselves, what we currently have, and our available tools. We mentally dig through our toolbox. Our solution is often confined to what we have already experienced, so we have limited vision and resources for attempting new things. Your mind can become shackled by your past.  The Lord sees more potential...

Now the king of Syria had commanded the captains of his chariots, saying, "Don't fight with small nor great, except only with the king of Israel." When the captains of the chariots saw Jehoshaphat, they said, "It is the king of Israel!" Therefore they turned around to fight against him. But Jehoshaphat cried out, and Yahweh helped him; and God moved them to depart from him. 2 Chronicles 18:31'32 WEB.Jehoshaphat...

But Naaman was angry, and went away and said, "Behold, I thought, 'He will surely come out to me, and stand, and call on the name of Yahweh his God, and wave his hand over the place, and heal the leper' " 2 Kings 5:11 WEB.Naaman stared at his new skin with amazement when he came up from the muddy water for the seventh time. His skin which had been covered in running sores, was now smooth as a baby....

A Coming Storm from Refreshing Hope Ministries on Vimeo. The Sermon on the Mount is the longest continuous teaching of the Lord Jesus Christ that we have a record of. It was very in-depth, and Jesus taught a lot about common things people deal with every day. He covered topics like anger, adultery, divorce, oaths, love, charitable deeds, prayer, fasting, giving, greed, wealth, judging others, the...

In Tune from Refreshing Hope Ministries on Vimeo. In Acts chapter 14, the Apostle Paul and Barnabas returned to Antioch after a long mission trip. The Holy Spirit had worked with them to confirm their words with signs, and they had led many Gentiles to the Lord Jesus Christ. To be clear, a Gentile is anyone who is not a Jew. When they returned, they gathered the church and told them about the trip. (Acts...

For our wrestling is not against flesh and blood, but against the principalities, against the powers, against the world's rulers of the darkness of this age, and against the spiritual forces of wickedness in the heavenly places. Therefore put on the whole armor of God, that you may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand. Ephesians 6:12-13 WEB.Paul wrote that we do not...

David therefore departed there, and escaped to the cave of Adullam: and when his brothers and all his father's house heard it, they went down there to him. Everyone who was in distress, and everyone who was in debt, and everyone who was discontented, gathered themselves to him; and he became captain over them: and there were with him about four hundred men. 1 Samuel 22:1'2 WEB.Saul, the king of Israel,...

Peter answered him and said, "Lord, if it is you, command me to come to you on the waters." He said, "Come!" Peter stepped down from the boat and walked on the waters to come to Jesus. But when he saw that the wind was strong, he was afraid, and beginning to sink, he cried out, saying, "Lord, save me!" Immediately Jesus stretched out his hand, took hold of him, and said to him, "You of little faith,...

Isaac was forty years old when he took Rebekah, the daughter of Bethuel the Syrian of Paddan Aram, the sister of Laban the Syrian, to be his wife. Isaac entreated Yahweh for his wife, because she was barren. Yahweh was entreated by him, and Rebekah his wife conceived. Genesis 25:20-21 WEB.Rebekah was barren. She could not have children. But after her husband Isaac prayed for her, she became pregnant...

Whitewash from Refreshing Hope Ministries on Vimeo. The Lord Jesus Christ had an astounding way of seeing right through lies and deception. This trait was both wonderful and alarming to those around Him. The religious elite of the day, the chief priests, scribes, and Pharisees, grew more and more envious of Jesus. God had raised Him up outside their circle and without their approval. Jesus bypassed...

No one puts new wine into old wine skins, or else the new wine will burst the skins, and it will be spilled, and the skins will be destroyed. But new wine must be put into fresh wine skins, and both are preserved. Luke 5:37-38 WEB (Paralleled in: Matthew 9:17, Mark 2:22).The most radical change recorded in the Bible was the change from the Old Covenant to the New Covenant. John the Baptist was the...

Will You Believe from Refreshing Hope Ministries on Vimeo. The word "Believe" occurs 309 times in the Bible (NKJV), and one-third of those are in the book of John. While writing his Gospel, John wrote "believe" 101 times. Apparently, he believed it to be a very important word. John was one of Christ's earliest Apostles and very close to Him. Peter, James, and John were often with Jesus when He...