From the Heart by B.Demaere

Promises to Keep : Mary, the Blessed Woman (Luke 1:26-38) : Parts of verses pertinent to Mary: Verse 27:  God sent the angel Gabriel...to a virgin named Mary Verse 28: Gabriel appeared to her and said...

Parts of verses pertinent to Mary: Verse 27:  God sent the angel Gabriel...to a virgin named Mary Verse 28: Gabriel appeared to her and said, "Greetings, favored woman! The Lord is with you!" Verse 30-33: God has decided to bless you!  You will be pregnant and have a son and you are to name him Jesus.  He will be very great and will be called the Son of the Most High.  And the Lord God will give him the throne of his ancestor David.  And he will reign over Israel forever; his Kingdom will never end!" Verse 38: Mary responded, "I am the Lord's servant, I am willing to accept whatever he wants.  May everything you have said come true. Mary was just a blessed woman because she had made herself available to the Lord God.  Like you and me can make ourselves available to God and be used.  She was no more than a blessed servant of the Most High God ready to be made the woman of God that she was for that time and hour in history.  She also could have said "no"

Promises to Keep : Job 33:4; Acts 2:18 and verse 22 (The Spirit of G... : For Spirit of God has made me, and the breath of the Almighty gives me life. This was spoken by Elihu, one of Job's friend after Job had...

For Spirit of God has made me, and the breath of the Almighty gives me life. This was spoken by Elihu, one of Job's friend after Job had terribly suffered as the Lord had tested him through many trials. Elihu was saying this to Job to confirm that what he was saying was valid and true.  I want to share this verse to explain that all of us are created in God's image by God's Spirit whom we also call the Holy Spirit.  He is the same Spirit who was at creation for in Genesis 1:1 we read: "In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth was empty, a formless mass cloaked in darkness.  And the Spirit of God was hovering over its surface. That same Spirit is present in these last days as we read in Acts 2:18: "In those days I will pour out my Spirit upon all my servants, men and women alike, and they will prophesy" And further down in verse 22 of this chapter the Apostle Peter says to the people of Israel and to us that "...God publicly endorsed Jesus o

Promises to Keep : Your insignificance can turn to Abundance with God... : Jesus soon saw a great crowd of people climbing the hill, looking for him.  Turning to Philip, he asked, "Philip, where can we buy brea...

Jesus soon saw a great crowd of people climbing the hill, looking for him.  Turning to Philip, he asked, "Philip, where can we buy bread to feed all these people?' He was testing Philip, for he already knew what he was  going to do. Philip replied, "It would take a small fortune to feed them! Then, Andrew, Simon Peter's brother, spoke up. "There's a young boy here with five barley loaves and two fish.  But what good is that with this huge crowd?" "Tell everyone to sit down," Jesus ordered.  So all of them---the men alone numbered five thousand men-- sat down on the grassy slopes.  Then Jesus took the loaves, gave thanks to God, and passed them out to the people.  Afterward he did the same with the fish.  And all ate until they were full. " Now gather the leftovers," Jesus told his disciples, "so that nothing is wasted."  There were only five loaves to start with, but twelve baskets were filled with the pieces the people did

Promises to Keep : A History Changing Day (Luke 2:13-20) : Suddenly the angel was joined by a vast host of others---the armies of heaven---praising God:               "Glory to God in the highes...

Suddenly the angel was joined by a vast host of others---the armies of heaven---praising God:               "Glory to God in the highest heaven,                 and peace on earth to all whom God favors." When the angels had returned to heaven, the shepherds said to each others, "Come on, let's go to Bethlehem! Let's see this wonderful thing that has happened, which the Lord told us about." They ran to the village and found Mary and Joseph.  And there was the baby, Lying in the manger.  Then the shepherds told everyone what had happened and what the angel had sail to them about this child.  All who heard the shepherds' story were astonished, but Mary quietly treasured these things in her heart and thought about them often.  The shepherds went back to their fields and flocks, glorifying and praising God for what the angels had told them, and because the had seen the child, just as the angel had said. Amazing true story that changed the course of history a

Promises to Keep : Be on Guard! (Psalm 130:5-8) : I am counting on the Lord; yes, I am counting on him.  I have put my hope in his word. I long for the Lord more than sentries long for the d...

I am counting on the Lord; yes, I am counting on him.  I have put my hope in his word. I long for the Lord more than sentries long for the dawn, yes, more than sentries long for the dawn. O Israel, hope in the Lord; for with the Lord there is unfailing love and an overflowing supply of salvation. He himself will free Israel from every kind of sin.  We can be counting on a lot of things in our lives.  Count on our spouse!  Count on our bank account, but are we really counting on the Lord for everything?  Or is it counting on something else plus the Lord? It's a tough question for us all.  By counting only on the Lord we are a lot more vigilant.  Nothing worse than a soldier,(That's what sentries are by the way).  Nothing worse than a soldier who is distracted and who is not all there.  Total focus is the key here! I have put my hope in his word, he says.  Wow! Have you put your hope in his word or is it in the television? Radio? Newspaper?   I am not perfect either but I can see

Promises to Keep : Hope is not all gone! (Lamentations 3:22-27) : The unfailing love of the Lord never ends!  By his mercies we have been kept from complete destruction.  Great is his faithfulness; his merc...

The unfailing love of the Lord never ends!  By his mercies we have been kept from complete destruction.  Great is his faithfulness; his mercies begin afresh each day.  I say to myself, "The Lord is my inheritance, therefore, I will hope in him. The Lord is wonderfully good to those who wait for him and seek him.  So it is good to wait quietly for salvation from the Lord.  And it is good for the young to submit to the yoke of his discipline. Let them sit alone in silence beneath the Lord's demands.  Let them lie face down in the dust; then at last there is hope for them.  Let them accept the insults of their enemies. For the Lord does not abandon anyone forever.  Though he brings grief, he also shows compassion according to the greatness of his unfailing love.  For he does not enjoy hurting people or causing them sorrow . This was a long passage of Scriptures but I felt it necessary to put it down because we see the truth about God.  One thing strikes me is that for those who h