Tag: vows

Numbers 26:52–28:15; Luke 3:1-22; Psalm 61:1-8; Proverbs 11:16-17

Thou Hast Heard My Vows
For thou, O God, hast heard my vows: thou hast given me the heritage of those that fear thy name. – Psalm 61:5

So will I sing praise unto thy name for ever, that I may daily perform my vows. – Psalms 61:8

Vow – a solemn promise, pledge, or personal commitment; a solemn or earnest declaration.

The Lord knows the vows that I have made to Him. I made a vow when I received salvation to serve and worship  Jesus as my Lord and Savior and Him alone. There are other vows we take as we go deeper in this walk with Jesus. We pledge to the Lord things when we pray. God expects us to keep and live out our vows.

As a young Christian, for a season, I came under the teaching of Sister Gwen Shaw. Sister Gwen was a missionary and evangelist, but I knew her mostly as a woman of prayer and fasting. I learned much in my early years from her teachings on fasting and prayer. Those who sat under her leadership were called “End-time Handmaidens” and took vows before the Lord. I was so moved by the vows that I took them as well. My heart desires is to live out these vows all the days of my life. I was not vowing to Sister Gwen or her organization. I am in no way affiliated with them. I just came under her teaching. But these vows are holy to the Lord because I made them to Him and Him alone. I have not been perfect in fulfilling them. As I sit here and reread them, I am very aware that I must realign my heart even today.  I do desire to be faithful and true, and if I strive toward anything, it is to be counted faithful to my Lord, Jesus Christ and to those He has set me under at this time. Here are my vows:

Lord, I give myself to You;
I give my life to You.
I want to be your servant.
I feel Your call;
I believe I was sent
To do the will of my Father.

I will take orders from You.
I will submit to You.
I will let You break my will.
I will not seek for comfort
Nor for high position,
Nor to do what I want to do.

Mine is the humblest task,
Or the most dangerous task;
By the grace of God, I will do it.
I will go where You want me to go;
I will do what You give me to do.
If in this walk I seem to have nothing,
I will not complain.

At times when I find myself in a kind of prison,
I will rejoice, and I will praise You
Because You’ve been to prison for me.

I love You, Jesus!

I thank You for calling me,
And that You want me,
And that You can use me;
I thank You that You are there to guide every step
As I do my part to ready
Your bride for Your return.
And I say today with my whole heart,

“Send the Fire and burn up the sacrifice.
Fill me again and again with Thy Holy Spirit
And give me a double portion of Thine anointing.”

Moses Asks for God to Appoint a Leader
And Moses spake unto the LORD, saying, Let the LORD, the God of the spirits of all flesh, set a man over the congregation, which may go out before them, and which may go in before them, and which may lead them out, and which may bring them in; that the congregation of the LORD be not as sheep which have no shepherd. And the LORD said unto Moses, Take thee Joshua the son of Nun, a man in whom is the spirit, and lay thine hand upon him; and set him before Eleazar the priest, and before all the congregation; and give him a charge in their sight. -Numbers 27:15-19

God told Moses that he would be allowed to see the land which God was giving the children of Israel. He would see it from the top of a mountain, and then he would die. Because of his sin in the wilderness, he would not be allowed to go into the Promised Land.

Moses asked the Lord to set a man over the people to lead them, or they would be as sheep without a shepherd. I love that his concern was not for himself and what lay before him, but instead, it was for the people he was leading.

Another point that touched me was that the Lord appointed Joshua to lead, but He did so when Moses asked. Moses came before the Lord and asked. How important is it that we come before the Lord and ask? Sit before Him today and pray. Ask Him for the things in your heart and ask Him to fulfill them according to His will. There is no telling what God would do if His people would take their place before His throne, entering the place of prayer.

John Pointed the People to Jesus
And as the people were in expectation, and all men mused in their hearts of John, whether he were the Christ, or not; John answered, saying unto them all, I indeed baptize you with water; but one mightier than I cometh, the latchet of whose shoes I am not worthy to unloose: he shall baptize you with the Holy Ghost and with fire: – Luke 3:15-16

When the people looked to John, he pointed them to Jesus!

A Gracious Woman
A gracious woman retaineth honour: and strong men retain riches. – Proverbs 11:16

Oh, how I also want to be known as a gracious woman.

Gracious – pleasantly kind, benevolent, courteous; merciful or compassionate