Covenant Keeper

   Did you know that there are four key names for God in the Bible? Since I can't read the original languages, I certainly didn't! But it is from these four, that the rest of the names we are going to study, stem. They are:

• El
• Elohim
• Adonai
• Jehovah

   Today, we are going to focus on El and Elohim.

  Elohim, is a beautiful word, that represents God's power and might. It is also the very first name, God reveals to us in His Word. (Genesis 1:1 to be exact) The Bible then goes on to use it 2,570 more times!!! So, let's get a break-down of this very first name of God.

   El- "Strong One" [also used at the end of such names as: Dani-el; Isra-el; Samu-el, etc...]
   Ohim- " to swear or bind with an oath or covenant"
   Elohim- "the Strong One Who Keeps His Covenant"

   Wow! Right here, at the very beginning of Scripture, before we read of sin and it's consequences, before we get to meet Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, before we even learn of our own creation: God let's us know that He is faithful to keep His promises!!!

  So what is this covenant that He is keeping? Well there are actually a few that He is keeping:

1. Himself- the eternal covenant relationship between the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit. The word Elohim, is a plural word, but is always used with singular verbs and adjectives, making a perfect picture of the unity in the Trinity!
2. All of His Creation.
3. All of His Creatures
4. His Covenant People of Israel. (The one I'm sure that most of you instantly thought of!)

   Isn't this incredible? In this one word, (not to mention, at the very beginning of the Bible), we learn the incredible Truth, that God keeps His promises. It doesn't matter that we continually turn from God's ways, to seek our own, or that we deny Him with our lives, shunning His love- once He has made a promise, nothing, and no one has the power to turn Him from it!

   Oh dear sisters, if you have not accepted the sacrifice of Jesus on your behalf, if you have not given Him your heart and soul in salvation, I pray that you do so today, right now! He has promised that whoever believes in Him, will have eternal life! 

   Let us live securely in this promise, my dear sisters, knowing that God does not depend on us, to keep us; all that we are, is resting in His more than capable hands!!!

(You can read about why it is so important to study the names of God, here)

Why God's Names are Important

  I can't believe that it has been over a month since my last post!!! Well... maybe I can. (sheepish grin)

  However, I have a wonderful series coming up for you girls, that I am very excited about, and that will hopefully make up for my long absence... The Names of God!!! (Forgive me now?)

   I don't know about you, but a few months ago, this topic would not have excited me... at all. I mean sure, I would work up a smile, and an excited 'That sounds fun', but I wouldn't have really meant it. My change of heart has come about in the last few weeks, as I have been learning why God revealed to us these names, and what they say about His heart. (spoiler alert: it's pretty awesome!!!) So without further ado, let's get started!

   Before we really dig in, I want to give you a few reasons why it is so important to study the names of God. This will hopefully lay the ground-work, for the rest of this series, and get you excited about learning even more!
         1.) God chose to reveal them to us. And if you haven't noticed, He always has a great
          reason for everything that He does.
         2.) They each reveal a different aspect of His character. Too many times, I think we get  
          hung up on only one or two aspects of God's character, and forget that He is far beyond
          anything we can imagine!!!
         3.) They add richness to the 'common' Bible stories. I love, love, love, discovering the
          first place God revealed a name to someone. Not only is it like a treasure hunt, but it
          always adds such depth to the story, which in turn, gives us a wonderful backdrop for
          understanding that name and applying it to our own lives.
         4.) God says, that if we seek Him, we shall find Him, when we search for Him with 
              all of our heart. (Jeremiah 29:13)

  I hope that this post has whet your appetite to learn more about God, and that you will be seeking Him with all of your heart as we head into this series.

That's My King

   A week or so ago, I was throwing a great pity party for myself:  focusing on my 'hardships' and lamenting this and that 'struggle'. I was tired, I was frustrated, someone said something that I didn't like, you know the usual.

   But God, in His great faithfulness, pulled me out of that by the roots of my hair, and put my focus back where it belonged- on Him. I invite you all to watch the video below and bask in the glory, and majesty, and awesomeness of our God!

    I don't know what you are dealing with today, if it is a true trial, or if it is petty, like mine, but I do know Who can handle anything that is thrown our way, even if all we need is a good shake! He's my King. Do you know Him?