ALL MEANS ALL

All Means All

Psalm 34:19 (NKJV) Many are the afflictions of the righteous, but the LORD delivers him out of them ALL.

Philippians 4:19 (NKJV) And my God shall supply ALL your need according to His riches in glory by Christ Jesus.

2 Corinthians 9:8 (NKJV) And God is able to make ALL grace abound toward you, that you, always having ALL sufficiency in ALL things, may have an abundance for every good work.

Matthew 6:33 (NKJV) But seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and ALL these things shall be added to you.

To God be the glory.

Dee Richardson, Voice of the Dove †

MY LORD'S PRAYER

Ask the Father in Jesus' name, and He'll bless you.

Heavenly Father, I humble myself so that Your name may be glorified in all I do.

Father, manifest Your will here on earth, as it's manifested in heaven. Let Your sovereignty stand and reign supreme over our country… You be the guide for the direction of this country, and may Your sovereignty rule in every way.

I pray for the fulfillment of Your promise to meet ALL my needs with sufficient supply. Not to manipulate You, but to walk in Your promises and fulfill Your calling on my life.

Please forgive me for all I've done, said, and thought that was not pleasing in Your sight.

Let no temptation overtake me, such as is common to humanity; but with every temptation, make a sure way of escape, that I will not fall into it. Let the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be acceptable in Your sight, O LORD, my Redeemer. Don't let me conform to the patterns of this world, but transform me through the Holy Spirit by renewing of my mind. Let me hate evil and love what is good. Let me walk in the Spirit and newness of life, with holiness and righteousness as my dominant character.

Help me run the race that's set before me with resilience, looking unto Jesus, the author and finisher of my faith. I pray for rest when I become weary, discouraged, and heavy laden.

Father, the world is Yours, and all the fullness of it. You're the King who rules with power and glory forever. I commit my soul to You O Lord, my Strength, my Redeemer, and my Everlasting Father. These and all blessings we ask and pray in the name of Jesus. Amen.

To God be the glory.

Dee Richardson, Voice of the Dove †

BEAUTY FOR ASHES

My earthly father and I never had a close relationship. Even when he tried, I was not in lock-step with him to nurture a relationship. I had unforgiveness in my heart, that kept me at a distance until I received Christ in 1999.

The Lord began to turn back the hands of time in my heart, not just toward my dad, but quite a few others as well. God is able to go back in time and heal the pain of yesterday, that still has us gripped today. He is the One who was... and is... and is to come - in control of yesterday, today, and tomorrow.

Before he passed away, my dad and I reconciled, and I still have those precious mementos that he shared with me.

He gives beauty for ashes

Strength for fear

Gladness for mourning

Peace for despair

Album: Beauty for Ashes by Crystal Lewis

Today, my relationship with my heavenly Father has more than made up for what I didn't have with my earthly father.

I would like to recommend a blogpost I wrote a few months ago about how God helped me get delivered. Here's the link: I Forgave Them And Let It Go

To God be the glory.

Dee Richardson, Voice of the Dove †

IN HOT PURSUIT TO FINISH THE WORK

Yesterday I veered from my study of "worship" and went on a hot pursuit to create a Role Profile for my personal spiritual gift (kind of like a job description, but for spiritual giftings). 🙂

I spent most of the day working on it (studying Scripture, doing internet searches, organizing the format to type it up).

At the end of the day, I had done nothing on the "worship" study, so I gave that concern to Heavenly Father, "I'm sorry I got distracted from the worship study." This morning I received a Dale C. Bronner video where he said, "You can take a break and learn how to refresh yourself, but stay on course with what you're called to do."

John 4:34 (NKJV) Jesus said to them, "My food is to do the will of Him who sent Me, and to finish His work."

My genuine hunger to fulfill the call of God on my life, had me on a hot pursuit, and the Lord was okay with my taking that break to refresh myself. This Role Profile will be an inclusion of my monthly Consecration, to help keep me on track with my work. We'll surely finish the "worship" study, and hopefully a blogpost will come out of that too.

To God be the glory.

Dee Richardson, Voice of the Dove †

KEEP ASKING, SEEKING, AND KNOCKING

A Friend Comes At Midnight

I heard Karen Wheaton tell a story about a time she was praying for her prodigal daughter. She followed the parable Jesus told about the friend that came at midnight to his friend's house to borrow some bread, and knocked persistently till the friend finally opened up and gave him what he asked for. Ms. Karen said she persistently prayed for 3 loaves concerning her daughter... bread for her salvation, bread for her deliverance, and bread for her healing.

One night she was in worship service at a youth conference gathering of young people. She got lost in worship and had an open vision of a door standing in front of her. The door opened slightly and 2 hands reached from behind the door and handed her 3 loaves of bread. Ms. Karen cried out, "You're giving me the bread?"

Then the door opened wide and she was compelled to go in. She stepped into a storehouse of bread as far as the eye could see. Shelves and shelves to the left and right. Shelves up to the ceiling so high that she couldn't see that far. A voice spoke out to her and said, "You just want 3 loaves?" She cried out, "No Lord, I'll take it all, for a generation of young people that need to know You."

Ms. Karen's prodigal daughter came home, and Ms. Karen's ministry serving young people increased widespread, even to other countries.

Jesus' Parable About Persistent Prayer

Luke 11:5-10 (NLT) Then, teaching them more about prayer, he used this story: "Suppose you went to a friend's house at midnight, wanting to borrow three loaves of bread. You say to him, 'A friend of mine has just arrived for a visit, and I have nothing for him to eat.' And suppose he calls out from his bedroom, 'Don't bother me. The door is locked for the night, and my family and I are all in bed. I can't help you.' But I tell you this - though he won't do it for friendship's sake, if you keep knocking long enough, he will get up and give you whatever you need because of your shameless persistence. "And so I tell you, keep on asking, and you will receive what you ask for. Keep on seeking, and you will find. Keep on knocking, and the door will be opened to you. For everyone who asks, receives. Everyone who seeks, finds. And to everyone who knocks, the door will be opened.

To God be the glory.

Dee Richardson, Voice of the Dove †

POWER TO LIVE RIGHT

The power of the Holy Spirit is in me to help me walk right, and talk right, and live right. He compels me, urges me on, and fuels my passion, and has a tight hold on me. Thanks be to God, who gave me victory through my Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ.

Background Scriptures

The apostle Paul was trying to live right, but having some struggles.

Romans 7:24-25 (NKJV) O wretched man that I (Paul) am! Who will deliver me from this body of death? I thank God - through Jesus Christ our Lord!

2 Corinthians 5:14 (NKJV) For the love of Christ compels us

2 Corinthians 5:14 (NRSV) For the love of Christ urges us on

2 Corinthians 5:14 (TPT) For it is Christ’s love that fuels our passion and holds us tightly

2 Corinthians 12:9 (NKJV) And He (Jesus) said to me (Paul), "My grace is sufficient for you, for My strength is made perfect in weakness." Therefore, most gladly I will rather boast in my infirmities, that the power of Christ may rest upon me.

Romans 8:3-4 (NKJV) For what the law (10 Commandments) could not do in that it was weak through the flesh, God did by sending His own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh, on account of sin: He condemned sin in the flesh, that the righteous requirement of the law (10 Commandments) might be fulfilled in us who do not walk according to the flesh, but according to the Spirit.

To God be the glory.

Dee Richardson, Voice of the Dove †

THE UNIFIED BODY OF CHRIST

To accept someone on the surface, is simply to allow that person into our space, either physically or mentally. However, friendship is acceptance on a deeper, more emotional level, and a bond is formed between them. The essence of relationship is acceptance. In addition to what's enjoyable, we also accept our differences, weaknesses, limitations, and brokenness. The bond is not just based on our actions, but based on love.

Agape love is a powerful and selfless love. It is not only passionate, but it's also loyal and committed. It is not selfish, and by choice, agape love chooses to love without expecting anything in return. Agape love expresses the kind of love that led Christ to the cross to suffer in our place. As Christians, we are called to imitate Christ in this selfless kind of love... to love our neighbors as ourselves. Jesus also said for us to love one another as brothers and sisters in Christ, then all will know that we are His disciples, because they see that bond we have for one another. Love is of God because God is love. The apostle John said that anyone who does not love, is not acquainted with God, because the root of love is God. 

As true brothers and sisters in Christ, we may not have wholehearted approval of one another. We might disagree concerning Scripture, or political views, or how to serve and honor Christ. The body of Christ has evolved into many denominations because we don't all see eye-to-eye on everything.

The apostle Paul said to welcome one who is weak in the faith, and don't criticize his opinions or pass judgment on him, just pray for one another. Through prayer, God can help us see each other through His eyes. Don't judge according to appearance, but judge with righteous judgment. Judging others is better left to God, because He is omniscient, and we can easily misjudge, based on what we think we see.

In the upper room, Jesus prayed for us to become one unified body, and that we may become one in the Godhead (Christ in us, and the Father in Him). In our diversity, we are still part of one body - the unified body of our Lord Jesus Christ.

We're not going to agree on everything, but let us remain prayerful about our disagreements, and unified as Christ prayed about in the upper room, becoming a powerful witness of God before the world. Let's refuse to get sidetracked arguing over divisive matters. The thief does not come except to steal, kill, and destroy. Jesus came that we may have life, and that we may have it more abundantly.

I prayed and asked the Lord what I should do about a friend whose political views are the polar opposite of mine. His response to me was this blogpost.

Colossians 3:15 (KJV) Let the peace of God rule in your hearts, to the which also ye are called in one body; and be ye thankful.

To God be the glory. 

Dee Richardson, Voice of the Dove †

MY NEW RESPECT FOR WASPS

A week ago I was out for a walk... enjoying the beautiful Spring weather, only I kept getting wasps flying by and annoying me. I asked God if He could just get rid of all wasps once and for all. What good are they anyway? When I got home I googled, "Do wasps have any usefulness at all?"

Google said, wasps play a vital role in nature by acting as natural pest controllers, pollinators, and scavengers, contributing to a healthy and balanced ecosystem.

An ecosystem is a community of living organisms like plants and animals and their physical environment interacting together.

Wasps are probably best known for running me back in the house when I'm relaxing on the front porch, but they're actually very important in keeping the ecosystem balanced, providing us with natural pest control. That's what Google said. Without wasps, the world could be overrun with spiders and insects.

One of my favorite things in nature is the Monarch butterfly.🦋 They feed off the nectar in plants that's pollinated by wasps. I just found a new respect for wasps.

To God be the glory.

Dee Richardson, Voice of the Dove †

OWLS IN DESERT PLACES

Psalm 102:6 (NKJV)

I am like a pelican

of the wilderness;

I am like an owl

of the desert.

Owls are drawn to desolate places. They haunt ruins, and waste lands, and desert places. A long, long time ago, I used to collect owls. Figurines and pictures were in every room, and on every wall of my apartment.

The prayer of the psalmist that wrote Psalm 102 was a prayer of affliction. He said in verse 6 that he was like the owl of the desert. That was me back in the day, collecting so many owls that I didn't even have enough wall space to hang them all. I lived in my own desert place, with the soul of a true introvert.

Yesterday, I happened to come across Isaiah 51:3 that says, "He will make her wilderness like Eden, and her desert like the garden of the Lord; joy and gladness will be found in it."

Now that's what I'm talking about! God took my desolate soul and turned it into the garden of Eden. You want to know why I post so many florals to my Faithbook page? He turned my desert into the garden of the Lord (the place of His divine presence).

THE GARDEN OF THE LORD

So, there you have it. The link to my Faithbook page:

https://www.facebook.com/share/16Ki9c4N5q/

To God be the glory.

Dee Richardson, Voice of the Dove †