Thank You, Thank You, Thank You . . . And, What's Next?

Thank you, thank you, thank you, sweet friends, for coming along with me on the 365 Days of the Great Names of God journey! I am so grateful for your companionship, encouragement, and faithfulness along the long way. He is the Beginning and the Amen and so many riches in between, which we will explore and extol—but never exhaust—forever. 

That journey and the accompanying daily posts have reached an end with the Amen, but I am planning (at my mama's request order) to compile the names into a book. I'm hoping to figure out the complexities of self-publishing and have that available in April. And I'm not going anywhere with this blog! I'll still put up posts from time to time on "faith, family, food...and, ocassionally, some funny."

I also want to invite you to join me, if you're interested, for an Advent series starting December 1 on my Guilty Chocoholic Mama Facebook page. I'll be reprising 25 of the names of God from the 365-day series that are specific to Jesus. (And if you're not on Facebook but would like to receive the posts, feel free to email me at spencerejoy@gmail.com, and I'll send them to you each day.)

Advent is a Latin word that means "to keep coming closer." Advent as a season leading up to Christmas is a time of expectation, invitation, and preparation.

One of my favorite ways to come closer to God is through His names, and so for the days leading up to Christmas, I'm going to try to put a name of Jesus at the forefront of my easily distracted mind.

If you could use some expectation, invitation, and preparation yourself, I'd love to have you join me for "That Worthy Name." I'll post a name of Jesus, a Scripture, a song suggestion, and a few thoughts on my Facebook page every day around 7 a.m. EST. There's nothing to sign up for or commit to or download or buy. 

Just come. May His worthy name be praised forever.

365 Days of the Great Names of God, Day 365: The Amen

The Amen

“To the angel of the church in Laodicea write: These are the words of the Amen, the faithful and true witness, the ruler of God’s creation. Here I am! I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in and eat with that person, and they with me. To the one who is victorious, I will give the right to sit with me on my throne, just as I was victorious and sat down with my Father on his throne. Whoever has ears, let them hear what the Spirit says to the churches.” (Revelation 3:14, 20-22 NIV)

I never can start to write something without first knowing how I'm going to finish it. I never can begin without first figuring out how to end.

God the Author suffers no such constraint of creativity or knowledge, of course. When He began writing His story, He already knew its ending. It would be an ending that would really only be the best possible beginning to a story with no end. It would be His "Amen."

The word "amen" conveys confirmation, verification, certainty, and truth. As a response, it is a solemn nod of agreement: "so be it."

Jesus is the Amen to all of God's promises. He is the star Witness for the Ancient of Days. He is the Yes to every "I will" of the I AM.

Abba: "No one will be able to stand against you all the days of your life. As I was with Moses, so I will be with you; I will never leave you nor forsake you" (Joshua 1:5).

The Amen: "Surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age” (Matthew 28:20b).

Abba: "Then the LORD said to Moses, 'I will rain down bread from heaven for you. The people are to go out each day and gather enough for that day. In this way I will test them and see whether they will follow my instructions' " (Exodus 16:4).

The Amen: "Then Jesus declared, 'I am the bread of life. Whoever comes to me will never go hungry, and whoever believes in me will never be thirsty' " (John 6:35).

Abba: "I will make rivers flow on barren heights, and springs within the valleys. I will turn the desert into pools of water, and the parched ground into springs" (Isaiah 41:18).

The Amen: “It is done. I am the Alpha and the Omega, the Beginning and the End. To the thirsty I will give water without cost from the spring of the water of life" (Revelation 21:6).

Abba: "I will lead the blind by ways they have not known, along unfamiliar paths I will guide them; I will turn the darkness into light before them and make the rough places smooth. These are the things I will do; I will not forsake them: (Isaiah 42:16).

The Amen: "When Jesus spoke again to the people, he said, 'I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will never walk in darkness, but will have the light of life' " (John 8:12).

He is the Beginning. He is the Amen.

May His great name be praised forever.


* * * * * *
This name in a song: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jThYchneZvw.

365 Days of the Great Names of God, Day 364: He Who Is Coming

He Who Is Coming

"So do not throw away your confidence; it will be richly rewarded. You need to persevere so that when you have done the will of God, you will receive what he has promised. For, 'In just a little while, he who is coming will come and will not delay.' " (Hebrews 10:35-37 NIV)

1384.

That's the number of references that came up when I searched for the word "come" in the Bible using one of my favorite on-line Bible study resources.

1384.

Of course, not all of these are in invitation, but those that are especially woo us to the heart of our welcoming God.

" 'Come, follow me,' Jesus said, 'and I will send you out to fish for people' " (Matthew 4:19).

" 'Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest' " (Matthew 11:28).

" 'Come,' he said. Then Peter got down out of the boat, walked on the water and came toward Jesus" (Matthew 14:29).

"Jesus said, 'Let the little children come to me, and do not hinder them, for the kingdom of heaven belongs to such as these' " (Matthew 19:14).

God bids us come always, but in one particular season of the year, we specifically return the invitation to Him—although from us, it is more of a plea. 

Advent comes from the Latin word "advent," meaning "to keep coming closer."

"To keep coming closer."

Honestly, I think that has to be one of the most perfect things I've learned in a long time.

Jesus already came as close as it was possible for Him to come when He voluntarily left heaven, put on a full cloak of humanity without ever once compromising His divinity, and showed up on earth in a stable. To everyone who invites Him in, He remains "never-will-I-leave-you" close. He came, and He is coming again.

I believe the "coming" of Advent is for us.

"To keep coming closer" has a constancy, a perpetual movement to it. This is not only for one season of the year or for one season of our lives. We can always come closer to God. He is not moving away from us, of course; He is just so big, so grand that we never run out of new territory to explore.

"Come!" we cry out to Jesus, and He replies, "I did. I'm here. I'm with you. I'm not going anywhere. Come to me. Take an Advent journey.

"Come, with your hurts and your longings and your sins and your past and your questions and your messes and your burdens and your brokenness. Come with your joy, praise, worship, and adoration.

"Come. Keep coming closer. Don't give up. Your reward is waiting."