Back Porch Meditations

Back Porch Meditations

By Sue Kessler

BACK PORCH MEDITATION
Prayerful meditation of God’s Word
By: Sue Kessler

THE RIVER OF LIFE

God’s presence is awesome. There is no need for words when God is here
for He fills my spirit with His peace. He restores a wasteland into an oasis.
His River of Life flows throughout my body and my spirit. He reaches the dry
parched areas and renews life that once existed but had withered into
nothing. The flow continues from place to place, seeking dry parched areas
that desire the waters from His river. I can feel the flow as it renews life within
me that had been left for dead. A gentle river at first, just touching upon the
dry places, but when allowed by my spirit, the flow becomes bolder and is as
a roaring tide that attacks, cleanses, and then washes back into the flow all
debris left behind due to lack of nourishment. From one area to another, His
flow continues until all my spirit has been adequately refreshed with the
healing qualities contained in this River and Life and then the tide begins to
slow and the river of His spirit is joined with my spirit and a peaceful flow is
created.

This is my new creation. He created me to commune with Him but the river
could not flow its course because of the walls I created and the walls I allowed
the world to create, and behind those walls a dry desert formed. But this new
creation that I have allowed Him to begin has removed the walls and His River
of Life is restoring what once was His and now is His again. How peaceful the
river is. It flows as God intended - through every cove and along every
channel until my spirit is full of this life-giving flow and what once was left for
dead in these wasted areas, now springs forth new life and begins to grow.
As I keep these coves open to His flow each day, He will continue to nourish
this new life that holds so much promise.

His desire is that this river will not just flow within me but that it will overflow to
others as He leads. This river holds all the mysteries of life and all the power
and love of God. As it flows unobstructed through my life and into the lives of
others, God’s power can flow and lives will be changed. These lives will be
changed as I let His River of Life flow freely from Him through me to all who
will accept His presence.

Bible Reference: Hebrews Chapter 4

THE REST OF GOD

As I rush from place to place and activity to activity, attempting to do all I can to
live a satisfying life - taking care of my family, establishing myself in my church, my
job and my community, I must stop and consider: How much am I doing for me
and how much am I doing for the Kingdom of God? I live in this world but I also
live in God’s Kingdom, which exists in this world but is not part of the world. How
much does the influence of the world drive me day and night? How often do I seek
the guidance of the Holy Spirit through prayer and meditation of God’s Word to
assist me with living in the world but staying within the boundaries of God’s
Kingdom? Yes, there are boundaries, and if we cross over these boundaries and
step back into the world’s arena, we are not in the place God wants us to be - in
His Kingdom and in His Resting Place. The more often we cross the boundary
lines, the harder it is to establish ourselves in His Kingdom and grow in spiritual
maturity, and the less likely it is we will enter the Rest of God!

The Rest of God is a place where we dwell in His presence, and the cares of the
world around us are but fleeting thoughts unable to take us captive. Our eyes are
fixed on Him and our feet are stepping in His footprints toward the Devine destiny
that He has planned and prepared just for us. When we allow the cares of the
world to tug on us and pull us from our place in His Kingdom, then we are in
disobedience, and with disobedience comes disturbance of spirit and no Rest of
God.

His Resting Place is our Promise Land while we are still in this world. We may
walk in and stay awhile, and although the peacefulness of this glorious place is
manna for our soul, the pull of the world is so strong that if we take our eyes off
Him, our feet will not stay on the path of His direction. His desire is for us to enter
into His peace through our trust and our faith in His plan for our life, and to stay in
His peace through our own efforts of seeking Him through every step. We are
each responsible for finding our Rest in God. It is readily available through His
grace, but we must be willing to cross over the river that separates the world from
His Kingdom - His Promise Land - and the complete Rest of God awaiting all who
desire His peace. He beckons us to step in and provides the anchor to hold us in
place. We must decide this is where we need to be - in the Rest of God - His
Promise Land for all who desire to enter and enjoy the peace!

We must fasten our eyes on Him. We must grip the anchor with all the strength
we have and the strength He provides. We must dig the heels of our feet in the
place He plants us and set our faces like flint, and move forward by seeking Him
and His guidance minute-by-minute and day-by-day. Don’t wait until your eyes
are out of focus and your grip is becoming weak - seek Him always and you will
always be moving forward and never falling from His full rest - The Rest of God -
the place where He desires your presence.

As the deer pants for
the water brooks, so
pants my soul for
You, O God. My soul
thirsts for God, for
the Living God.
Psalm 42:1-2

Blessed be the Lord,
because He has
heard the voice of
my supplications!
The Lord is my
strength and my
shield; My heart
trusted in Him, and I
am helped;
Therefore my heart
greatly rejoices, and
with my song I will
praise Him.
Psalm 28:6-7

Show me Your ways,
O Lord; Teach me
Your paths. Lead me
in Your truth and
teach me, for You are
the God of my
salvation; on You I
wait all the day.
Psalm 25: 4-5

My Praise is as Incense to God

My praise is as incense to God. He awaits my presence patiently and rejoices
with me as I lift my hands in praise to Him. I feel His presence as the words of
praise leave my lips and proceed to His throne. His glory meets my praise and
embraces it as He loves me – His child. It has been so long since I told Him how
much He means to me. The love that is in my heart overflows into tears of joy as
I remember where he found me. I rejoice even more as I remember He did not –
would not - leave my soul in hell! He used all His powers of persuasion
persistently until I stopped in my tracks and remembered….it was He who placed
me in my mother’s womb. It was He who made my eyes and gave them this
shade of blue. It was He who placed soft blond curls upon my head that would
make my mother smile the first time she saw me after hours of pain. He planned
a wonderful life for me and placed me in a loving home. When did this child
become so rebellious? When did I forget how much I was loved? How sad He
must have been all those many years I rejected Him; how many times I fell and
then called on Him, and it was as though I had never walked away. He was
always there ready to hear my cries and wipe my tears and embrace me as I
wept. He would lift me up, dry my eyes and tell me how much He loved me and
show me the right direction again – one that would keep the hurt and pain from
my heart. How I wish I had listened to Him and not shut Him out when things
were good. I would believe that I could do it all myself – after all He gave me a
strong personality – I would not break under the pressures of life. But how much
easier each burden would have been had I stayed in the shadow of His love.

He loved me more than I loved myself for He knew when I had gone too far and
may never have come back. The devil was winning the battle for my soul but
God had not played the final hand. His hand of love and mercy was too strong
and powerful and He reached down and picked me up out of the grasp of the
devil and the gates of hell. He turned my face toward His and recreated me and
restored my soul until I was so secure in His love that I would never leave Him
again.

How can you not praise someone so wonderful? The words I say, the words I
sing, the words I write can not even begin to express what is in my heart. I will
praise Him and worship Him until the last breath leaves my body, and then
continue to praise Him in my eternal home. He is my Creator, my Savior, and my
Redeemer. He is my Lord of lords and King of kings. He is my best friend!

God’s Mercy is My Compass

Bible Reference: Psalm 32

God has heard my cry and knows my heart. As a ruder on a boat guides its
occupants out of troubled waters, You, oh God, guide me. Your mercy is my
compass.

My steps grew weary and you heard my plea. My direction faltered and you
lifted me. You reset the compass of my spirit and You restored my soul. I have
been turned from the lost steps of my transgressions into the guided steps of
Your mercy. I sought You and You did not hide yourself from me. Your mercy
saved me from destruction. I lost my way and You found me. You placed Your
hand into my spirit and reset the compass of my direction. You gave me hope
and solace as I began to step where You step and go where You lead. You did
not take your spirit from me through my wanderings, but you gently turned me
by Your mercy and your grace to the light of Your love – the Lighthouse that will
lead me through the troubled waters to the shores of peace forever and ever.

You are a faithful God full of mercy and grace. Without you I am lost, but with
You I have found my way – Your way.

I will love You, O Lord, my
strength. The Lord is my
rock and my fortress and
my deliverer; My God, my
strength, in whom I will
trust; My shield and the
horn of my salvation, my
stronghold. I will call upon
the Lord, who is worthy to
be praised; so shall I be
saved from my enemies.
Psalm 18:1-3

But You, O Lord, are a
shield for me, My glory
and the One who lifts up
my head.
Psalm 3:3

GIFT OF SALVATION

Before God intervened in our lives – calling us out of the darkness into the light
of His love – we were hopeless!

We walked according to the direction of the prince of this world (satan), whose
only desire was to destroy our lives and lead us to hell, and we didn’t even
realize it.
(John 12:30-36)

God’s word says the thief (satan) came to kill, steal and destroy, but He came to
give us abundant life through Jesus, His beloved son. (John 10:10)

Only through God’s grace are we saved – transformed and recreated through
acceptance and confession of His son, Jesus. There is nothing we can do to
obtain this awesome gift of God, other than believing on the Lord Jesus Christ
and walking from darkness to light through the love of His sacrifice on the
cross. (Ephesians 2:8-9)

We can’t work hard enough!
We can’t give of our financial resources enough!
We can’t go through thoughtless, heartless daily rituals enough!

There has to be a recreation of our spirit, which is dead in God’s sight, and out
of communion with His Spirit. God is a Spirit and must be worshiped through
our spirit which requires the new birth – a recreated spirit. (John 4:24)

This can only be acquired through repentance of our sins and acceptance of
Jesus as our Lord and Savior. Jesus says, “…you must be born again...” (John
3:21)

God’s word says there is only one way to Him and that is through His son. We
cannot sneak in the side door or the back door. Salvation is obtained only
through the door He provided through His mercy and His grace, and that door is
Jesus, our redeemer. (John 10:1-9)

God has provided each of us with a “measure of faith” and with this faith and
the drawing of His Holy Spirit, we are brought unto salvation through repentance
of our sins, our declaration of faith, and acceptance of His Son, Jesus the
Messiah, the King of kings and the Lord of lords. (Romans 12:3) (Acts: 3:19 )
(Luke 5:32)

God then places within us His Holy Spirit who seals us for eternity. Without this
seal of the Spirit, we continue to be a “child of the darkness” and there is no life
in us. But with seal of the Holy Spirit and His presence in our lives, our spirits
are alive and in communion with our creator and the creator of the universe.
(Ephesians 1:13-14)

Accept this gift of grace today – God’s Holy Spirit and the Gift of Salvation –
through His Son, Jesus Christ. Believe on Him and be saved and redeemed for
eternity.
(Ephesians 2: 8-9)

Pray this prayer of salvation: (Romans 10: 8-11; Hebrews 9:22;
I Peter 1:19)

Dear God, I believe that you loved me enough to send your son, Jesus, to die
on the cross as a sacrifice for my sins. Your word says that without the
shedding of blood there can be no redemption of sins, and according to Your
word, the precious blood of Jesus was shed for me. I repent of my sins and
accept Jesus into my heart and ask Him to be the Lord of my life. I renounce
satan and believe in my heart that the blood of Jesus covers my sins and by this
act of faith, I have become a child of God and am accepted into Your Kingdom.

I thank you, God, for Jesus, and for salvation. I thank you for the Holy Spirit
who has sealed me for eternity and will help guide me to walk in the light of Your
love and Your holy word, until I see you face to face in heaven.

It is in the precious name of Jesus, I pray. Amen

If you prayed this prayer with sincerity from your heart, God’s word says you
have been given the gift of salvation. (Romans 10:13)

Commit yourself to study His word and commune with Him through prayer and
He will guide you daily as you live for Him.

You are His workmanship and His masterpiece – created in Christ Jesus unto
good works which God has before ordained that we should walk in them.
(Ephesians 2:10)

We are saved by grace through faith; it is a gift of God, not through works. But
if we truly are committed to God and His Kingdom, our good works become a
byproduct of our salvation.

My prayer is that God will richly bless you and keep you.

Crucify the Flesh

Bible Reference
Romans Chapter 8, Verses 5-13

We are all born mortal – one whose body will eventually die. Our flesh is sinful
and self-fulfilling. Only through the Spirit of God living within us, can we be
delivered from control of the flesh. Letting our flesh’s wants, needs and desires
that long to be satisfied rule us, is a death sentence for our souls. There is no
way we can overcome and defeat these deadly desires alone. It can only be
done through the power of the Holy Spirit dwelling within us. We must
constantly battle with our flesh, but we are not in the battle alone. If we practice
self denial in areas of greatest temptation, and ask God for help and grace to
sustain us – we can overcome the desires of the flesh.

We are delivered by accepting Jesus as our Savior, who makes us righteous in
the eyes of God, and by the indwelling of the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit will
prompt us and encourage us to follow God’s will and God will also supply the
grace to help us live in His will.

There will always be things that tempt our flesh, but we have been given an
escape route. We do not have to follow our sinful nature into death – we can
follow our recreated spirits into life. Jesus provided the way. We must accept
this gift of God which is salvation through His Son, and we must accept the gift
of His Holy Spirit. We must pick up our cross daily and crucify our flesh daily, so
that we will maintain a closer walk with God. Sin separates us from God. God
can keep us from sin. We must always ask His direction and always follow it.

His way is the right way – His way is Peace – His way is eternal life with Him

FREE AT LAST

Bible Reference
Romans Chapter 8, Verses 1-4

No condemnation to those who are in Jesus Christ – proclaimed not guilty!

We have been delivered from a life of trying to save ourselves. It is human
nature to defend ourselves, strive to stay alive and walk in victory. The bad
news is – it is not possible to do this alone. Since the sin of Adam, man has
struggled to feel clean and worthy in God’s eyes, but we were condemned to
death. We were like murderers on death row waiting for a pardon from our
imminent execution and death. We could do no more for our defense. All the
words had been spoken and all the appeals had been written and we were just
waiting to die! But then the Good News came – a stay of execution. We were
free at last! Our freedom came because someone else came forward to pay
our debt. Not someone who had committed the crime – just someone who loved
us and did not want us to die. The prison door opened and we walked through
– back to life. Death had been cheated. We were alive! This is how Barabbas
must have felt when he was set free and Jesus took his place on the cross. All
of a sudden the burden of sin is lifted and we leave the prison gates with a
shout – WE ARE FREE, FREE AT LAST!

This is not just a stay of execution. Someone must paid pay the price. The sin
is too great to ignore. Then the realization comes that someone did pay the
price – Jesus walked in and the sin was erased from our lives and there was no
more condemnation. We were declared NOT GUILTY! How could this be?
Through love that we cannot even understand; through shed blood with enough
power to wipe out all sin completely – never to be remembered. Though we
may not understand the whys and the hows – all we need to do is accept it as
truth. Believe it in our hearts. Accept the Not Guilty verdict – no more
condemnation for our sins, and let ourselves be free from the death penalty
forever. Just feel the weight of sin and the guilty and unfit feelings being lifted
by this Mighty Love and Redeeming Power of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ,
and rejoice in it. Praise Him for what He has done.
WE ARE FREE, FREE AT LAST!

The Lord is my light
and my salvation;
whom shall I fear?
The Lord is the
strength of my life; of
whom shall I be
afraid?
Psalm 27:1

O Lord my God, I
cried out to You, and
You healed me.
O Lord, You brought
my soul up from the
grave; You have kept
me alive, that I
should not go down
to the pit.
Psalm 30:2-3

The Mighty One, God
the Lord, has spoken
and called the earth
from the rising of the
sun to its going down.
Psalm 50:1

You are His
workmanship and His
masterpiece – created
in Christ Jesus unto
good works which God
has before ordained
that we should walk in
them.
(Ephesians 2:10)

For those who live according
to the flesh set their minds on
the things of the flesh, but
those who live according to the
Spirit, the things of the Spirit. 6
For to be carnally minded is
death, but to be spiritually
minded is life and peace.

7 Because the carnal mind is
enmity against God; for it is not
subject to the law of God, nor
indeed can be. 8 So then, those
who are in the flesh cannot
please God.

9 But you are not in the flesh
but in the Spirit, if indeed the
Spirit of God dwells in you.
Now if anyone does not have
the Spirit of Christ, he is not
His. 10 And if Christ is in you,
the body is dead because of
sin, but the Spirit is life
because of righteousness.

11 But if the Spirit of Him who
raised Jesus from the dead
dwells in you, He who raised
Christ from the dead will also
give life to your mortal bodies
through His Spirit who dwells
in you.

12 Therefore, brethren, we are
debtors—not to the flesh, to
live according to the flesh. 13
For if you live according to the
flesh you will die; but if by the
Spirit you put to death the
deeds of the body, you will
live. Romans 8:5-13

There is therefore now no
condemnation to those who are
in Christ Jesus, who do not
walk according to the flesh, but
according to the Spirit.

2 For the law of the Spirit of life
in Christ Jesus has made me
free from the law of sin and
death.

3 For what the law could not do
in that it was weak through the
flesh, God did by sending His
own Son in the likeness of
sinful flesh, on account of sin:
He condemned sin in the flesh,

4 that the righteous
requirement of the law might be
fulfilled in us who do not walk
according to the flesh but
according to the Spirit.