blue yarn bracelets

Bookmarks with blue yarn bracelets from Believing God Bible Study

Sometimes it’s just the mention of a phrase from Scripture that brings the memories flooding back. Recently, it was the mention of “blue cord with tassels” from the book of Numbers that took me back to the first time I completed the online Beth Moore Bible Study, Believing God several years ago. I still have the bookmarks from Believing God, with blue yarn bracelets attached in my Bible. I wore the blue yarn bracelet during the Bible study as a reminder to be presently, actively, continually Believing God, focusing on Christ.

The Lord said to Moses, “Speak to the people of Israel. Say to them, ‘You must make tassels on the corners of your clothes. A blue cord must be on each tassel. You must do it for all time to come. You will have the tassels to look at. They will remind you to obey all of the Lord’s commands. Then you will be faithful to him. You will not go after what your own hearts and eyes long for. “‘You will remember to obey all of my commands. And you will be set apart for your God. I am the Lord your God. I brought you out of Egypt to be your God. I am the Lord your God.’” Numbers 15:37-41

The Believing God Bible study focus scripture is...

“You are My witnesses,” declares the Lord, “and My servant whom I have chosen, in order that you may know and believe Me, and understand that I am He. Before Me there was no God formed, and there will be none after Me.” Isaiah 43:10

Over these past several years, I have incorporated the Five Statement Pledge of Faith shown on the bookmark as a part of my daily prayer life...

1. God is who He says He is.
2. God can do what He says He can do.
3. I am who God says I am.
4. I can do all things through Christ
5. God's Word is alive and active in me.
   I'm Believing God.

 

God is Who He says He is.

You are Jehovah Ra’ah, You are my Shepherd, I lack nothing. You make me lie down in green pastures, You lead me beside the still waters. You restore my soul. You lead me in the path of righteousness for Your name’s sake. Even when I walk THROUGH the valley of the SHADOW of death, I will fear no evil, for You are with me. Your rod and Your Staff, your Holy Spirit and Your Word, they comfort me. You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies, You anoint my head with oil. My cup overflows with blessings. Surely goodness and mercy will follow me all the days of my life and I will dwell in the house of the Lord forever.  

SEVEN NAMES OF GOD	PAIRED WITH PSALM 23:1-6
JEHOVAH-RA’AH The Lord, my shepherd (Psalm 23:1)	The LORD is my shepherd;
JEHOVAH-JIREH The Lord, my provider (Genesis 22:14)	I shall not want.
JEHOVAH-SHALOM The Lord, our peace (Judges 6:24)	He makes me to lie down in green pastures: he leads me beside the still waters.
JEHOVAH-RAPHA The Lord, my healer (Exodus 15:26)	He restores my soul:
JEHOVAH-TSIDKENU The Lord, our righteousness (Jeremiah 23:6)	He leads me in the paths of righteousness for his name's sake.
JEHOVAH-SHAMAH The Lord, ever-present (Ezekiel 48:35)	Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil: for thou art with me; thy rod and thy staff they comfort me.
JEHOVAH-NISSI The Lord, our banner (Exodus 17:15)	Thou prepares a table before me in the presence of mine enemies:
JEHOVAH-RAPHA The Lord, my healer (Exodus 15:26)	Thou anoints my head with oil; my cup runs over.
JEHOVAH-JIREH The Lord, my provider (Genesis 22:14)	Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life: and I will dwell in the house of the LORD forever.

God can do what He says He can do. Nothing is impossible for You, Lord Jesus, Absolutely Nothing!  I am casting all my cares upon You because You care for me. Supply the needs I have today to know You and believe You, to glorify You, to find my satisfaction in You, to experience Your peace, and enjoy Your presence...

Five Key Benefits God Intends for His Children	Obstacles which stand in the way of the Five Key Benefits God Intends for His Children
To Know God and Believe Him	Unbelief—I pray to roll away the obstacle of unbelief which is revealed in my doubt, fear, worry, and discouragement.
To Glorify God	Pride—I pray to roll away the obstacle of pride which is self-absorption, whether I am absorbed with how wonderful I am or how miserable I am. Forgive my self-focus. Worship is focus, help me focus on Jesus Christ alone.
To Find Satisfaction in God	Idolatry—I pray to roll away the obstacle of idolatry which is putting anything ahead of or instead of Jesus Christ.
To Experience God’s Peace	Prayerlessness—I pray to roll away the obstacle of praylessness. Prayerless lives are powerless lives; prayerful lives are powerful lives. Peace is the fruit of authority—let the peace of Christ rule. Christ brings His peace where He is Prince—the Prince of Peace.
To Enjoy God’s Presence	Legalism—I pray to roll away the obstacle of legalism with a heart which desires an intimate, personal relationship with my Lord Jesus Christ, not rules, regulations, and religion.

I am who God says I am. In Christ, I am blessed with every spiritual blessing, accepted in the Beloved Son of God, adopted as a child of the King, chosen before the foundation of the world, redeemed by the blood of Christ, forgiven by His grace, loved with an everlasting love and underneath are the everlasting Arms.

I can do ALL things through Christ Who gives me strength. Lord Jesus, I cannot do this, but You can!

God’s Word is alive and active in me...I’m Believing God.

Take a moment to ponder these wonderful words of life from the old hymn, "Before The Throne of God Above," written in the 1800s by Charitie Less Bancroft...

Behold Him there! The risen Lamb
My perfect, spotless, Righteousness, The Great unchangeable I AM

The King of Glory and of Grace

One with Himself I cannot die

My soul is purchased by His blood

My life is hid with Christ on high

With Christ my Savior and my God

With Christ my Savior and my God

What is important is that you see Jesus. The main thing in the Bible is the coming of the Lord Jesus Christ on a mission of salvation, on a mission of redemption, that He would save His people from their sins. If you are coming to the awareness that “I have never believed upon Jesus Christ. I have never committed my life to Christ,” you are invited to believe upon Christ today. He entered this world born of a virgin. He lived a sinless and perfect life. He lived the life that you and I could never live, and His perfect righteousness is what is credited to our account when we believe upon Christ. He was qualified to go to the cross, and there He was lifted up to die upon Calvary’s cross. God transferred the sin of all the people who would ever believe upon Him and He transferred that sin to Christ. And Christ, who knew no sin, God made to be sin for us. He suffered, and bled, and died upon that cross. He gave His life that you and I might have life. He shed His blood to make the only atonement for our sin. He was the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world. They took Him down from that cross, having made the atonement for sinners. They buried Him in a borrowed tomb. And on the third day, He was raised from the dead, and He then entered into glory on the day of His ascension. He is now seated at the right hand of God the Father. And the Bible says, “Whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved.”

You must believe in this One who suffered upon Calvary’s cross. He suffered the wrath of God in the place of those for whom He bore their sin. And He has now entered into glory. And if you’ll commit your life to Jesus Christ, He will take you into glory one day, when He returns or when you die. There is salvation in no other name. “For there is no other name under heaven given among men whereby we must be saved.” There is one God and one Mediator between the Lord — One God and one Mediator which is the Lord Jesus Christ, who gave His life a ransom for many. If you will commit your life to Jesus Christ; if you will deny yourself, and take up a cross, and become a follower of Christ, if you will enter through the narrow gate that leads into the kingdom of God, if you will take that decisive step of faith, and surrender and submit your life to the lordship of Jesus Christ, He will receive you. And one day, when you die, He will take you home to be with Him in glory. He is preparing a place for all those who will commit their life to Him.

This is the message of the entire Bible — that our all-loving, gracious God has provided salvation in the Person of His Son Jesus Christ. Jesus, as He walked on the road to Emmaus with his disciples and looked into the Scriptures with them, He said, “They testify of me. And they speak of my suffering and my glory.” May you know what it is to enter into the kingdom of God and enter into His glory one day when He comes for you.

Heavenly Father, thank You for the preeminence of the Lord Jesus Christ in all of Scripture. We praise you that He steps out of the pages of even the Old Testament as the central message, as the object of our faith, as a Savior and Lord. Father, thank you that you have opened our eyes, that we might behold our need of Christ and see who Christ is. If there is anyone who has never come all the way to faith in Jesus Christ, oh God, we pray that they would surrender their life to Christ and enter in to the kingdom of God. Father, we are believing You, and we pray this in Jesus’ name. Amen.

Look up – Meditate on Isaiah 43:10. Pray to see what it reveals about the character of God.

Look in – Meditate on Isaiah 43:10. Pray to see how you might apply it to your life. Be propelled to ask galvanizing questions about your discoveries: “Because God is ______________, I will ______________.”

Look out – Meditate on Isaiah 43:10. Pray to see how you might apply it to your relationships with others. Let the nature of God impact on every relationship, for your good, and for His glory. 

* If you liked this post, you'll love this book – Name Above All Names Devotional: Focusing on 26 Alphabetical Names of Christ

The Lamb of God...Hallelujah, what a Savior!

singing "I love you, Lord, and I lift my voice..."

On March 16, 2000, I was in Jerusalem, Israel, for a ten-day tour with 850 other ladies for the filming of Beth Moore’s “Jesus, the One and Only” Bible study.



We visited the traditional site of the Upper Room where Jesus and his disciples celebrated the Passover meal as their Last Supper.



During our Bible study that day, we learned from Exodus 6:6-7 there were four cups of wine taken at the Passover meal representing the four “I-will” statements of God:

(1) I will bring you out from under the yoke,

(2) I will free you from being slaves, (these two cups were taken before leaving the Upper Room),

(3) I will redeem you with an out-stretched arm,

(4) I will take you as my own people.

As they walked out of the Upper Room, across the Kidron Valley to the Mount of Olives, they sang a hymn from Psalm 118:22-28, “The stone that the builders rejected has become the capstone, the Lord has done this, and it is marvelous in our eyes. This is the day the Lord has made; let us rejoice and be glad in it. O Lord, save us: O Lord grant us success. Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord. From the house of the Lord we bless you. The Lord is God and he has made his light shine upon us. With boughs in hand, join in the festal procession up to the horns of the altar.”

Jesus Christ, the Lamb of God, was walking across the Kidron Valley “up to the horns of the altar” to redeem us with his outstretched arms on the Cross. God’s Word is amazing. Christ’s walk through the valley of Kidron on his way to the Mount of Olives illustrates this fact: He had to walk through “the valley of the shadow of death," placing death and the grave beneath His Feet before He was able to return to the Mount of Olives as King of Kings and Lord of Lords, the reigning Prince of Peace.

We climbed upstairs to a room above King David’s tomb to the traditional site where Jesus shared his last supper with his disciples. We read Jesus' words in Luke 22:20, “This cup is the new covenant in my blood, which is poured out for you.”

left to right: Beth Miller, Beth Moore, Linda Thomas

When we finished reading the Word and praying, we all lifted our hands to heaven and sang, “I love you Lord, and I lift my voice, to worship You Oh my soul, rejoice. Take joy, my King, in what you hear. Let it be a sweet, sweet sound in your ear.” Hallelujah, what a Savior!

Bedouin Dinner with Beth Moore in Judean Desert

My dear friend, Linda Thomas (r), with Beth Moore (c) and me (l) in Israel

My journey to Israel really began in September, 1999, when I began the Beth Moore Bible Study, Breaking Free, and met my dear friend, Linda Thomas, in our small discussion group. During this Bible study, we both received a postcard in the mail from Living Proof ministries with the question, Would you like to join Beth Moore in Israel for the filming of her newest Bible Study, Jesus, the One and Only? Our immediate answer was, "Yes!" 

Our journey to Israel was March 14-22, 2000, but our spiritual journey had only just begun. Once we returned from the trip, it was the beginning of each of us spending daily quiet time in prayer and study of God's word, getting together weekly for lunch and accountability, sharing our joys and sorrows in this daily walk of life.

To prepare for our trip, a friend recommended the excellent book, Meeting God in Holy Places by F. LaGard Smith, and we bought three of them, one for each of us, and one we gave to Beth Moore when we saw her at a Living Proof Live event in Orlando in January 2000. On Friday, March 17, 2000, about 6 p.m. our group arrived at the Judean desert site of Kfar Nokdim for an authentic Bedouin "Hafla" dinner. We were served under large tents with oriental-type rugs and cushions on the ground. Large trays of food were set on short wooden stands, as we sat on the cushions to eat. There were camels to ride and entertainment.

The highlight of the night was our opportunity to have our picture taken with Beth Moore. I took my copy of Meeting God in Holy Places, which was the book we had given her in Orlando in January. She said, "I was hoping I would get to see you to tell you I love the book, and I brought it with me on this trip. Everyone who has come in my room has asked me where I got it." Then she added, "I love the part about the graves of Mary and Martha in Bethany. I wanted to go look to see if I could find them, and then I realized that their names would be written in Hebrew, it would not say, "Mary" and "Martha" in English." She laughed, signed our books, and hugged us, and said, "Whose line is longer, mine or the one for the camel rides?"  As she signed our books she wrote, "Dearest Beth, I have loved this book! He's Life! Beth Moore"...indeed, He IS!!!

Linking up with (in)courage on the theme of Friendship--On Purpose