CSN - LightWing Messages - Renewing Our Love for God - 1/7/2024
Righteousness
“Be careful not to practice your righteousness in front of others to be seen by them. If you do, you will have no reward from your Father in heaven.
“So when you give to the needy, do not announce it with trumpets, as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and on the streets, to be honored by others. Truly I tell you, they have received their reward in full. But when you give to the needy, do not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing, so that your giving may be in secret. Then your Father, who sees what is done in secret, will reward you.
Prayer
“And when you pray, do not be like the hypocrites, for they love to pray standing in the synagogues and on the street corners to be seen by others. Truly I tell you, they have received their reward in full. But when you pray, go into your room, close the door and pray to your Father, who is unseen. Then your Father, who sees what is done in secret, will reward you. And when you pray, do not keep on babbling like pagans, for they think they will be heard because of their many words. 8 Do not be like them, for your Father knows what you need before you ask him.
“This, then, is how you should pray:
“‘Our Father in heaven,
hallowed be your name,
your kingdom come,
your will be done,
on earth as it is in heaven.
Give us today our daily bread.
And forgive us our debts,
as we also have forgiven our debtors.
And lead us not into temptation,
but deliver us from the evil one.’
For if you forgive other people when they sin against you, your heavenly Father will also forgive you. But if you do not forgive others their sins, your Father will not forgive your sins.
Fasting
“When you fast, do not look somber as the hypocrites do, for they disfigure their faces to show others they are fasting. Truly I tell you, they have received their reward in full. But when you fast, put oil on your head and wash your face, so that it will not be obvious to others that you are fasting, but only to your Father, who is unseen; and your Father, who sees what is done in secret, will reward you. Matthew 6:1-18
FOUNDER’S MESSAGE:
As the world begins 2024, many turbulent physical phenomena have occurred which lead one to believe that the new year promises to be one in which great shaking will come, not only on the physical level, but also within the spiritual realms. And despite many peoples hopes and plans for this new year, there may be a real need for making contingency plans.
The LightWing Messages at the end of the year was looking beyond the wonder of Christmas and the question I brought up last week was: “Once We Encounter Christ, Do We Honor and Practice His Word?” It was not a rhetorical or philosophical question. It was intended to spark thought that would initiate change if one has only been a “Christmas Christian,” one who puts faith back on the shelf with the wrapping paper and decorations for the rest of the year.
In this Sunday edition, I attempt to share a message I have shared before, and that is how one can connect on a deeper level to our Father in Heaven. I originally wrote the message in 2020 at the beginning of COVID. It was based upon a revelation I received regarding this concern that I had asked previously. The message I wrote in March of 2020, but I have updated it recently. It can be set aside like Christmas decorations, or it can provoke one to test it out. Far be it from me to force anyone to go against their better inclinations.
As indicted last week, the new year does provide new opportunities for people to much more deeply explore the essence or substance of their relationship with Christ or with God in a direct way. It is up to each individual to arrange such action, or not. It is called Free Will.
It is hard to believe that our LightWing Zoom call project has been operating for over a year, but God has shown favor upon us!
On our Zoom call last Wednesday we had a provocative interview with Michael J. Lewinski and he shared about his two books and the third one he is working on. However on last week’s call,
it was agreed that we could switch the day we meet from Wednesdays to Mondays, which would follow more closely the Sunday on which the LightWing Messages are posted. So, tomorrow we will have the LightWing Messages oriented Zoom call. We invite our readers to check in with other like-minded readers for mutual support in such turbulent times.
For those readers who are able to join us this Monday evening, they can partake in this call and participate, or just listen in our discussion on today’s messages. Readers just need to reach out; those who are not already on our list to receive a link to the Zoom call, please send an email request to this address: d.jamzon@gmail.com We’ll add you to our mailing list.
CSN LightWing Mission – Zoom call Monday 1/8/24 at 5:00pm PST
These words are being freely offered to you – intended to shine light unto our paths, as written: “Where there is no vision, the people perish: but he that keepeth the law, happy is he.” Proverbs 29:18 - KJV
May God bless our readers and all of their loved ones. May God bless All His Children!
May we, who are called by His name, approach our Father in Heaven in humility and seek not only His face, but His heart and His mind as well; may we confront our misgivings as well as our shortcomings and repent, and may we all turn away from our wicked ways. It is His Kingdom we were told to seek and His righteousness. May we take this much more seriously, as our lives are short and life is absolutely precious.
“Thy Kingdom Come, Thy Will be Done, On Earth as well as in Heaven”
By Dennis Jamison March 15, 2020 (updated 1/4/24)
The times we are living in are quite turbulent, filled with personal trials and national as well as international tribulation. Certainly, the specter of a raging virus haunts people of the world. Americans, and people throughout the world are struggling to deal with the daily realities of what has been identified as a pandemic. Such times create fear and anxiety -- even panic. And, the uncertainty and life-threatening concerns in such times often cause people to fall to their knees in prayer. Such a time is this.
Especially in such a time, if a crisis of global proportions cannot inspire a need for unity and serious cooperation, very little else will. Yet, in essence, those with a strong relationship and bond of love to Heavenly Father will surely display a sense of camaraderie and compassion for one’s fellow human beings. However, there are those who will display very corrupt consciences. These are the ones who can do great harm to the public good by pursuing self-centeredness, or selfishness, or their own lack of concern for others. It manifests in overt behavior destructive to others and to the general welfare. With such displays of disrespect for others and a serious selfishness, one wonders how a civil society can hold together in times of intense distress as is evidenced today.
It is obvious that a civil society is more harmonious when people are in their right minds, or when each individual is in possession of a healthy conscience. It is obvious that when more people are more inclined to follow the dictates of one’s conscience, more people naturally promote the general well-being of the civil society because they do care about one another. At the core of such logic is the understanding that each individual, having a healthy conscience, is more readily able to discern the difference between right and wrong and to have the conviction or courage to act upon such wisdom. So, how does one strengthen their relationship with God in order to contribute in a positive manner to the promotion of a civil society that ensures the greatest good for the greater number of people? Wouldn’t that have been in God’s blueprints?
In struggling with such a question, and in praying earnestly about this, I received from Heavenly Father that there already was a blueprint for growing or developing deeper personal relations in humanity’s quest to know Him. And, that blueprint I discovered was already in a prayer I had offered on a daily basis for a good period of time since the time my wife had battled with cancer. Only over a long period of time did I realize that within the Lord’s Prayer, Jesus had provided a blueprint for strengthening one’s relationship with God. Regular and routine prayer can help to do the same thing (as in the case of young St. Patrick) because the more one converses with Heavenly Father, the more one comes to know Him in a more intimate manner.
The more natural and free the flow of one’s deeper concerns to Heavenly Father, the more natural and free the responses from the Father to His children. Heavenly Father never fails to teach us what we seek to know -- if we, in turn, listen to what He teaches us. Listening is a critical component of prayer -- it is after all, communication -- it is a two-way process. As it is with effective and good or healthy communication between people, so it is with prayer with our Father in Heaven. And, as I go forward, I begin each day with a genuine two way process of communication with Heavenly Father. My sense is that He is also helping me to grow and mature in my faith exponentially -- more than I ever thought possible.
Thus, as I prayed the Lord’s Prayer on a more regular basis and because the words are now written in my heart, I slowly began to realize that there are steps of specific levels in each of the verses of the prayer. Now, I am not claiming any special certified credentials as a minister may possess, but I know that I have come to more sincerely understand these steps. And, it is possible that at some point someone possessing credentials had such similar insight and expressed it previously. And that is fine -- it would only reinforce what I have come to realize in this time.
With the Lord’s Prayer, there is a basic foundation that is expressed in acknowledging God in Heaven and honoring His name. I do know that Jewish people often said that when one prays, the one praying needs to truly know to whom they are praying. In other words, it is not simply a casual conversation about something like the weather or about inconsequential things. One can picture an image in which Moses came into contact with the burning bush, and was told to take off his sandals. Genuine respect is important in coming before our Heavenly Father. Think, if one were going before some high government official. Would there be respect shown? Jesus was truly expressing this foundation of respect toward his Father in Heaven. Yet, Jesus stressed that there is a more intimate relationship existing between God and His children.
Once the formalities of addressing God are established, there are the various levels of growth in relation to our Father in Heaven. The request for God to give the faithful their daily bread is the first. This level is loaded with symbolic meaning. Jesus knew that the Hebrews were provided with manna in the wilderness during the Exodus, and this does refer to physical sustenance in that manner. However, when Jesus was tempted in the wilderness for 40 days, Jesus reminded Satan that “Man shall not live on bread alone, but on every word that comes from the mouth of God.” Matthew 4:4 But, the key point that I feel is that humans are in a dependent relationship upon God for his children’s continued sustenance - whether it is physical or spiritual sustenance. That spiritual sustenance is the word of God that is found in the Scriptures - most especially in the New Testament. But, human beings are in a position to purely receive from their Heavenly Father like children receive from their parents - even in the secular world.
The Bible provides a foundation for understanding God, not only in history, through witnesses to His providence, but understanding the different ways God has operated in and through His chosen champions throughout human history, as it was recorded. However, a different level of development is obvious, as Jesus explained that people needed to forgive others their debts, or trespasses, against prayer petitioners. Hebrew people in that time understood that forgiveness primarily came from God, and it was not an accepted practice that one could forgive another. An “eye for an eye and tooth for a tooth” is still an acceptable cliche - but even an acceptable practice in many developing parts of the world.
The heart of forgiveness originates from love and is a level that requests greater understanding, greater involvement, a greater ability to put into practice Jesus’ request that we love each other. At this level, one is no longer simply in a receptive position to one’s Father in Heaven. At this level, a greater degree of maturity of faith is requested of God’s children - manifesting love and forgiveness is not only being receptive. People can intellectually understand forgiveness as a concept, but Jesus was asking his followers to put faith into action. What a concept in itself!
Jesus definitely stated that “By this everyone will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another." John 13:35 Forgiveness just happens to be one of the greatest types of behavior that is requested of the Christian -- it is a genuine expression of love. Jesus offered forgiveness to those who sought it, yet he taught forgiveness as well. Peter’s question of how many times he needed to forgive anyone who had trespassed against him could be our question as well. But, the incident offered a moment for the Master to teach, and Jesus was emphatic when he expressed forgiving even as often as “seventy times seven” when one sinned against another. And after the Lord’s Prayer, Jesus was also emphatic: “For if you forgive other people when they sin against you, your Heavenly Father will also forgive you. But if you do not forgive others their sins, your Father will not forgive your sins.” Matthew 6:14-15
A simple question asked a week ago needs to be linked to these concepts: “Once We Encounter Christ, Do We Honor and Practice His Word?” This was not just the title of the message from last Sunday, but it can serve as an honest measurement for each of us in our individual lives of faith, but also in our efforts to raise our families to such a standard of heart. One way of measuring ourselves, because we do need to look into the mirrors of our souls, is to consider the manner in which the Magi encountered the toddler Jesus and the manner in which King Herod attempted to encounter the new “King of the Jews.” Would we attempt to follow the example of the Magi or follow the example of King Herod in coming to encounter Christ?
It is most likely that most Christians would not hesitate in their answers. However, the original question goes beyond simply worshiping Jesus as a child and retreating to familiar territory as the Magi did. One natural question that could be asked about their actions would be: With such great faith that Jesus was a new king, why did the Magi retreat? The simplest answer is in the biblical account, but a more likely understanding is in the message I offered about the Magi going behind enemy lines https://citizensvoice.substack.com/p/csn-lightwing-messages and then stirring King Herod’s jealousy towards anyone threatening his dominion.
Are we meant to only worship God’s son from afar, or are we to honor him and Heavenly Father by putting faith into action and by practicing His Word? Again, he gave us the answer: “Truly, truly, I tell you, whoever believes in Me will also do the works that I am doing. He will do even greater things than these because I am going to the Father. And I will do whatever you ask in My name, so that the Father may be glorified in the Son. If you ask Me for anything in My name, I will do it.…” John 14:12-14
Onward and Upward!
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