Posts by Dorci

Sunday Praise and a Prayer for Contentment

Posted on by Dorci

Dear Heavenly Father, we praise your holy name. You are the Creator of heaven and earth. You give life, physically and spiritually, and you are the Provider of all good things. 

Your word tells us that godliness with contentment is great gain. Lord, we confess we can get caught up in this world and all it says we need to have for happiness. But those are only traps to keep us from what this life is meant to be. 

We pray that as we walk in the Spirit we would be content with where you have us today. You’ve ordered our lives according to your purpose, and we know you’ll provide anything we need.

And we do pray for those in need right now. We know you see each of your children and you hear their prayers. We ask that you would meet all their needs according to the riches of your glory in Christ.

As we rest in your provision, help us take our eyes off ourselves, off the temporary trials we may find ourselves in, knowing that our present sufferings are not worth comparing with the glory that will be revealed in us. 

We ask for your vision to see our lives here as you see them – very short periods of time we have to know you, to cling to you so we can grow up in spiritual maturity, being transformed into the image of Christ with ever-increasing glory, that we may be fully ready for the eternal life you’re preparing for us now. 

Give us boldness, Father, as we look for the opportunities you give us to magnify and glorify the Name of Jesus, that many will come to know Him as Lord and Savior, and that we might fulfill Christ’s command to make disciples of all nations. 

Help us to not waste this time on things that don’t matter, but to use it according to your perfect will and plan for our lives. And as we do, we know we won’t miss out one bit on any fleeting moment of superficial happiness in the world, but instead we’ll be filled with the depth of joy and peace that only comes from knowing you. 

Thank you, Father. It’s in Jesus’ name we pray, amen. 

***

As always, if you have a prayer request, please feel free to leave a comment, email me, or message me on my Facebook or Twitter pages. I’d be honored to pray for you. 

For Him,
Dorci

 

Illustration 169860139 / Light Hope © Alexandra Barbu | Dreamstime.com

God Promises Our Suffering Will Produce Hope

Posted on by Dorci

“Not only so,
but we also glory
in our sufferings,
because we know that suffering 
produces perseverance;
perseverance, character;
and character, hope.”

Romans 5:3-4

Sunday Praise and a Prayer of Thanks

Posted on by Dorci

Dear Heavenly Father, we praise your holy name. Thank you for your word that cleanses us. 

In Jesus’ precious name we pray, amen. 

Knowing God’s Word and the New 2011 NIV

Posted on by Dorci

Hello Friends,

Because so many of us use the NIV, I wanted to make sure you were aware that a new NIV translation was published in 2011 and is now being used exclusively online and sold in stores and there are some noted changes between it and the previous 1973/1984 NIV translation.  

 

The version I’ve carried for 23 years is the first NIV, the New Testament having been originally published in 1973, and the Old Testament in 1978, although I do like to compare translations in various versions, and frequently look up the original Hebrew and Greek meanings to get a clearer understanding.

Not all the changes are bad, but I want to share just a few of them and how they alter the meaning of scripture. Words are important.

Psalm 51: 6 –

NKJV – “Behold, You desire truth in the inward parts, and in the hidden part You will make me to know wisdom.”

1978 NIV – “Surely you desire truth in the inner parts, you teach me wisdom in the inmost place.”

2011 NIV – “Yet you desired faithfulness even in the womb; you taught me wisdom in that secret place.”

The Hebrew word for “inmost parts” is ̣ṭûchâh, which means overlaying, the kidneys (as being covered), the inmost thoughts. (The word for womb is beṭen, meaning to be hollow, the belly, the womb.)

The original language tells us that God desires us to have truth, or trustworthiness, in our innermost beings, our hearts. Not just pretending, but being of truly trustworthy character. But the 2011 NIV translates it in a way that would cause us to think God desires us to be faithful in the womb, before we’re born. The meaning is completely different.

Matthew 21:7 –

NKJV – They brought the donkey and the colt, laid their clothes on them, and set Him on them.

1973 NIV – “They brought the donkey and the colt, placed their cloaks on them, and Jesus sat on them.”

2011 NIV –  “They brought the donkey and the colt and placed their cloaks on them for Jesus to sit on.”

The 2011 NIV is worded to imply Jesus is sitting on the cloaks rather on the donkey and colt.

The significance of emphasizing the fact that Jesus sat on the donkey and colt is that by doing so He is fulfilling prophecy given to them in Zechariah 9:9 “Rejoice greatly, O daughter of Zion! Shout, O daughter of Jerusalem! Behold, your King is coming to you; He is just and having salvation, lowly and riding on a donkey, a colt, the foal of a donkey.”

A humble king of peace rode donkeys; a man of war would have ridden a horse.

Rather than entering as a conqueror coming for war to overthrow the Roman government as they expected Him to, He is showing them He was entering Jerusalem as a humble King of peace, the coming Messiah, the Savior of their souls.

The 2011 NIV also changes gender references to gender neutral which is not always bad, but sometimes that nuance changes the interpretation. 

John 6:44 – 

NKJV – No one can come to Me unless the Father who sent Me draws him; and I will raise him up at the last day.

1973 NIV – “No one can come to me unless the Father who sent me draws him, and I will raise him up at the last day.”

2011 NIV – “No one can come to me unless the Father who sent me draws them, and I will raise them up at the last day.”

The 2011 change from singular to plural implies the Father will only draw a group of people rather than the fact that He sees, loves, and draws an individual.  

There are many other changes to this new translation as well.  They may seem small and insignificant, but as I’ve written about before, the enemy will use small, seemingly insignificant changes to confuse us, put doubt in our minds, and trip us up. He did that very thing with Eve in the garden, and it’s still a main tactic he uses today. 

This is why we all need to not just read God’s Word, but prayerfully and with discernment, study it to know it like the back of our own hand so the enemy can’t use our ignorance to keep us from understanding the truth and leading us to believe something God’s Word doesn’t mean.

“I have hidden your word in my heart 
that I might not sin
against You.”
Psalm 119:11


Heavenly Father, thank you for your enduring Word. Please give us a love for it as we read and study it daily that we might live according to your way that leads to life and joy. Please lead us by your Holy Spirit as we do to give us understanding and wisdom so we can abide in you and your truth always. In Jesus’ name, amen. 

God Promises A Feast

Posted on by Dorci

“You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies. You anoint my head with oil; my cup overflows.”
Psalm 23:5

In our suffering, our grief, our trials, our pains, no matter what form they take, and no matter what the enemy tries to whisper in our ear, we can yield to God’s will – the death of our flesh and the deepening of our faith, and feast on the power of the Holy Spirit within us giving us strength and courage and boldness and faith and peace.

And as He shapes us into the image of Christ, we will magnify and glorify Him, and we become witnesses to the world of the faithfulness, righteousness, holiness, and goodness of Jesus Christ.