No more muzzles on our workers!

Hmmm.  I  have been thinking about this article for a long time and how to write it the right way.  Here goes.

The Bible says  'don't muzzle the ox that's treading out the grain' (Deut.25:4).  This was not a common practise in the days when people used oxen because the ox would always stop to eat.  So the driver would have to goad the ox to keep him treading out the grain.  Also,  the owners risked the animals health because the ox could get sick from eating so much grain at one time.

So any farmer would wonder what does this scripture mean?  I think we need to remember that Jesus was really concerned about people and often used analogies to convey a thought.

If this scripture is really talking about people then maybe we need to investigate what the oxen was doing. Really, the ox was doing the work that no one else wanted to do.  He was doing a very important, yet boring job of walking around in circles pulling a very heavy log or roller to crush the grain.

If I am correct,  then what this scripture means is that we are to treat 'well' the people who do the work no one else wants to do.  We are not to treat them with less respect or prevent them from enjoying all the rewards (the grain).  The rewards can mean the spiritual, physical and financial benefits of the church.

1Titus 5:18 says "Do not muzzle an ox while it is treading out the grain," and "The worker deserves his wages."  This cuts into the prevailing mentality of free volunteer work.  So where's the balance?  If you can't get anyone else to do the job then maybe there's a reason for that?  

Churches say they can't afford good help.... I say they can't afford not to pay for good, reliable help.  And who's to say that the Lord won't tell the person to give back their wages in the offering bucket?  

The bible has many examples of where the priests had to leave the temple work because they weren't getting paid. Have we learned nothing in all these years?  Enough said.

I've seen way too many people who were good volunteers leave churches because they got tired of feeling used and unappreciated.  I've got to ask,  how bad does it have to get?   The library where I work part time has volunteer and staff appreciation events every couple of months.  Funny, but they have had the same volunteers for years and some of the staff have been there over ten years.

Maybe they have caught onto something?   The volunteers put in a few hours a week doing the easiest jobs and yet they are so appreciated and affirmed!  Maybe we need to ask our volunteers how we can make them feel more appreciated?

I don't have all the answers.  I sure miss my friends who helped me on the video camera, sound board and projection screen.  So if the video isn't following the person... cut me some slack.  I'm probably trying to fix the sound board feed or trying to figure out how to get a video ready to play on the big screen.

Let's pray:  Thank You Lord for your help in our lives.  Thank You Lord for your constant encouragement.  Help us all to rely on you more for our daily provision, guidance and problem solving ability.  Thank You Lord for joy in our journey.  Thank You Lord that You said whoever wants to be great must be the servant of all.  Thank You Lord for helping us pass the tests along the way.  Thank You Lord for healthy boundaries and for helping us recognize control and manipulation in our relationships.  Thank you Lord for showing us how to stop it gently,  with the right attitude.
Thank You Lord for all your prophetic words over our lives! Thank you Lord that they are coming to pass! Thank You Lord that because we are 'willing and obedient', (with a good attitude) we eat the good(the best) of the land.  Hallelujah!   Amen!

You have a great day with Holy Spirit!  I just know He's working on your behalf, going ahead of you and preparing the way for you!

Big hugs,
Brenda Gale Thompson
(ps. Please share my blog with others if you like what you are reading!)

There's no Greater....

I got this song a few months ago and it keeps coming back to me,

"There's no greater,  no there's no greater,
Thing I could do, thing I could do....
Than to lay my life down for others
Than to lay my life down for You."

And it keeps repeating.  It's from the scripture verse in John 15:13, "Greater love has no one than this, that he lay down his life for his friends."

This was a theme in Jesus's life,"... just as the Father knows me and I know the Father--and I lay down my life for the sheep." (John 10:15)

Then we see the disciples picking up this theme of laying their lives down for others. "This is how we know what love is: Jesus Christ laid down his life for us. And we ought to lay down our lives for our brothers." (1John 3:16)

Today's modern soceity doesn't talk much about this theme.  We like it theoretically, but when it comes right down to it, we don't want to do it. 

I think parents know a bit about sacrifice, especially moms.  Babies can be very demanding and the needs don't disappear as the babies grows up, they just change.

So where is Jesus' leading us with this statement?  I think we need to ask the Lord for ourselves  because each of our circumstances is different.

Last winter it meant  that I was spending a whole lot of time promoting my church and getting them presence on the net using youtube clips instead of doing my own stuff.

It seems like such a loss but hang on-- why is Holy Spirit so happy with me?  Why is his joy filling my life in a new way?

There's a secret success that we will never realize as long as we have ourselves as the focus.  Holy Spirit is able to look after our 'stuff' if we will give it to him.

He knows the dreams he has put in your heart better than you do.

He is able to look after you far better than you ever could.

So, I have learned that when it looks like things are hopeless, start praising the Lord because it's always darkest just before the sun rises.  Hallelujah! I know the sun's giong to rise again!

Let's pray: "Lord Jesus, I ask that you would encourage every person reading this article.  May their hopes be reignited.  May they know that you have not forgotten them.  May they realize in a fresh way that it's not just about the goal--it's about the fellowship along the way.  May they sence your presence in a whole new way and may they remember and recite all the promises You've given them and all the testimonies you have given them. Bless them in a fresh way today I ask. Amen!"

Big hugs,
Brenda Gale Thompson
(on Youtube look up "Kinburn Revival" or "beloved4evr")

Forgiveness is...

A wise man said, "Forgiveness is not saying that what they did is okay or somehow tolerable."  You know how we somehow think that we are the weaker if we ask for forgiveness first.  This is a wrong assumption.  When you ask for forgiveness first or try to make the first move it means that you value the relationship more than the other person.

Somehow, we think that offering forgiveness is accepting what the person did. That's wrong too.

Forgiveness is deciding to turn it over to a higher court.  It's giving the hurt, the situation to the true judge.  "He said vengeance is mine, I will repay." (ref. Heb. 10:30)

This might seem powerless at first but trust me, I have seen the hurt that unforgiveness has caused people.  In Mathew 18 we read about the unjust servant who would not extend forgiveness to someone who owed him a little bit of money and yet he had been forgiven a lifetime's earnings.

“Then the master called the servant in. ‘You wicked servant,’ he said, ‘I canceled all that debt of yours because you begged me to.  Shouldn’t you have had mercy on your fellow servant just as I had on you?’ In anger his master handed him over to the jailers to be tortured, until he should pay back all he owed. “This is how my heavenly Father will treat each of you unless you forgive your brother or sister from your heart.”  (Mat. 18:32-35)


We can see how important it is for us to walk in forgiveness by Jesus' response to the servant.  He got handed over to the jailers to be tortured.  Hopefully, he woke up and remembered the power of the blood of Jesus and repented!  This is serious stuff!  As a ministry worker,  most of the time we have to deal with unforgiveness when we pray for people.  It's the number one reason why Christians don't receive healing.

That's something to think about.  How long do you want to have those headaches or arthritis for?  How long do you want to suffer with fibro mialgia?     Let the wake up bells ring loud and clear and let's make haste to forgive all the people we think we have a right to hold offense against.

That's the fastest way to walk in divine healing.   Let's say it together, "Father, please forgive them.  They know not what they do."

Thank You Lord that it's only by your grace and mercy that I am not doing ten times worse things than what they've done.
Thank You Lord that your love is poured out into our hearts by Holy Spirit.

Thank You Lord for the mercy and grace you have shown me in us in our lives.  Thank You Lord that your love never fails.  Thank you Lord that we choose to bless all the people that have hurt us.  Don't let the devil win in anybody's life!  Let us be your vessels of love and mercy to a hurting world, in Jesus' name we ask. Amen!

Now you're on the right track.  We walk by faith and not by feelings.  If you keep speaking the truth long enough eventually your feelings will change and line up with the Kingdom of God.  That's reason to shout!  Hallelujah!

Bless you real good!
Brenda Gale Thompson

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