Koffee's House

My Faith Journey

December 22nd, 2023
MY FAITH JOURNEY

By Kevin R. Schultz

Prayer Or The Power Of

11-23-2023

Two small notes. When I post these blogs you will see two dates and here is why.

The first date is when I start the blog and the second one is when I actually publish it.

You see when I start these blogs I research them first and I go by two rules and they are…

1. Proverbs 3:5-6

5 Trust in the LORD with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; 6 in all your ways submit to him, and he will make your paths straight.

2. 2 Timothy 3:16-17

16 All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness, 17 so that the servant of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work.

Now what does this mean? It means I always start with God, meaning that I start with prayer asking God to guide me, grant me the wisdom to understand the knowledge He has given us in His word (the bible). It means that I go through each verse of scripture to get to know it. This even before I start writing.

Matthew 6:5-8

5 “And when you pray, do not be like the hypocrites, for they love to pray standing in the synagogues and on the street corners to be seen by others. Truly I tell you, they have received their reward in full.

Here we are being told not to pray in a manner that draws attention to ourselves, but to keep our personal prayers private. Those who pray to bring attention to themselves will get their full reward here on earth.

Where as we will get our reward stored in heaven.

Mark 11:25; Luke 18:10-14; Matthew 23:5

Noah Webster’s 1828 Dictionary of American English

PHYLAC’TERY, n. [Gr. to defend or guard.]

1. In a general sense, any charm, spell or amulet worn as a preservative from danger or disease.

2. Among the Jews, a slip of parchment on which was written some text of Scripture, particularly of the decalogue, worn by devout persons on the forehead, breast or neck as a mark of their religion.

3. Among the primitive christians, a case in which they inclosed the relics of the dead.

6 But when you pray, go into your room, close the door and pray to your Father, who is unseen. Then your Father, who sees what is done in secret, will reward you.

Here we are given instructions where we should be praying, in private. This is not say you cannot have more than one person praying, you can. But you still have to do it in private. Like a group of friends getting together, or at a bible study.

There is one rule you should have and that is what is said in prayer stays there and not spread about like gossip.

If we do this God’s way all of our rewards will be stored in heaven, waiting for us when we get there.

2 Kings 4:33; Daniel 6:10; Matthew 6:4, 6:18; Luke 20:47

7 And when you pray, do not keep on babbling like pagans, for they think they will be heard because of their many words.

We are told to keep our prayers short and to the point, not to ramble on like the Pagans (Gentiles).

God will hear our prayers as long as they in His will.

Ecclesiates 5:2; 1Kings 18:26-29; Matthew 6:32; Mark 12:40

8 Do not be like them, for your Father knows what you need before you ask him.

Again we should not be praying like the Gentiles. If we pray long prayers God might not answer us. Since God already knows what we need we don’t need to be long worded in our prayers.

Matthew 6:32; Isaiah 65:24; Luke 12:30; Romans 8:26-27;Deuteronomy 2:7; Psalms 38:9, 69:17-19

The Lord’s Prayer

Matthew 6:9-13

9 “This, then, is how you should pray: “ ‘Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name,

We are told by God, that we should pray to God only, no one else. Only God can answer prayers. Not men or the dead saints.

God hears our prayers, He does not need help or hearing aides. As long as what we are praying for is in His will and not against it, He will answer it in His time not ours.

Luke 1:49; Malachi 2:10; 1 Peter 1:17; 2 Samuel 7:26; Isaiah 29:23; Matthew 23:9; Luke 11:1; John 16:24

10 your kingdom come, your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven.

We should always ask for the will of God in whatever we are praying for. God will always give us the correct responsee, the guidance from God’s will and us His children following His will can only lead to good things happening for us.

David Guzik says it this way in his commentaries.

We must remember that the purpose of prayer is not persuade a reluctant God to do our bidding.

The purpose of prayer is to align our will with His and in partnership with Him, to ask Him to accomplish His will on earth.

Matthew 26:39; Psalms 135:6; Matthew 12:50, 26:42; Luke 22:42; Acts 21:14

11 Give us today our daily bread.

Here we are asking God to feed us. In some cases we ask for food because we need it. It also covers spiritual food (God’s Word).

Proverbs 30:8; Job 23:12; Isaiah 33:16; Ruth 1:6; Luke 11:3, 4:3-4; Deutetronomy 8:3

12 And forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors.

God has already forgiven us with the death of Jesus on the cross, who has washed us clean with His blood. So if God is willing to give up His only begotten Son for us I am more than willing to forgive those who have sinned against me.

Matthew 18:21-35; Exodus 34:7; Psalm 32:1; Matthew 9:2, 26:28; Ephesians 1:7; 1 John 1:7-9; Matthew 6:14-15

13 And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from the evil one. ’

God does not lead us into temptation. We do a good enough job of leading ourselves into temptation, we don’t need any help with it.

James 1:13; Matthew 5:33-37; John 17:15; 2 Thessalonians 3:3; 1 John 5:18

We almost always are the ones getting ourselves into trouble. But God is always there for us. He promises us that there will never be more than we can handle and that He will guide us through it.

Matthew 26:41; 2 Peter 2:9; Revelation 3:10; 1 Corinthians 10:13

Now why go through the Lord’s Prayer? To show the importance of prayer and the proper way to do it.

We should never do it to make ourselves look good.

While the Lord’s Prayer is a prayer onto itself, it is also instructios on how to pray properly.
1. We are to pray to God only.
2. We are to seek God’s will in whatever we are praying for.
3. The daily bread mention here is refering to spiritual food (God’s Word)
4. To forgive those who have sinned against us. For if we cannot find it in our hearts to forgive someone why would God want to forgive us?
5. Know that God will deliver us from whatever problems we get involved in.
Now look up these scriptures,read them and see what they tell you.

Ephesians 6:18-20; Jude 1:20; Matthew 5:16
MY FAITH JOURNEY

October 26th, 2023
By Kevin R. Schultz

MEMORIES

9-22-2023

Genesis 2:18-24 (NKJV)

18 And the LORD God said, “It is not good that man should be alone; I will make him a helper comparable to him.” 19 Out of the ground the LORD God formed every beast of the field and every bird of the air, and brought them to Adam to see what he would call them. And whatever Adam called each living creature, that was its name. 20 So Adam gave names to all cattle, to the birds of the air, and to every beast of the field. But for Adam there was not found a helper comparable to him. 21 And the LORD God caused a deep sleep to fall on Adam, and he slept; and He took one of his ribs, and closed up the flesh in its place. 22 Then the rib which the LORD God had taken from man He made into a woman, and He brought her to the man. 23 And Adam said: “This is now bone of my bones And flesh of my flesh; She shall be called Woman, Because she was taken out of Man.” 24 Therefore a man shall leave his father and mother and be joined to his wife, and they shall become one flesh.

  I just listened to my brothers’ Celebration of Life service and two things struck a cord with me. What struck me were two songs that were mentioned, one was read and the other one was sung, they were Love the People God Gives You (read) and It Is Well (sung).

  The first song is talking about those people God puts in our lives. I remember the first time I saw Karen, well here comes Memory Lane.

  That night I went out to have a couple drinks, shoot some pool, and relax. When I was there shooting pool some girls (friends of Karen and her sister Marla) entered the bar bringing Karen with them, they talked Karen into coming out with them (telling her she needed to get out and relax).

  When our eyes met, both of us knew we would be spending the rest of our lives together. Now that night I couldn’t lose at pool, no matter what I did. I called some of the craziest combos that should not have worked, but did. All I wanted to do was sit down and get to know Karen better.

  In the meantime whenever I got up to take a shot Karen would move her chair closer to mine. I finally just gave up the table and sat down next to Karen and we talked. And as they say the rest is history.

  Now how does God enter into this? Well before I went out that night I had a conversation with God. Now how did I know it was God I was talking to? Simply, I was getting better answers than I could give myself.

  All that day I was at home feeling sorry for myself thinking about how lonely I was, sure I had my friends but they had their minds on where the next drink was coming from or where the next party was. Or talking about sports which I liked to play but not watching on TV. In short there was not that special person among them.

  Aah where was I? Oh yes I was sitting there having a pity party and I asked God if I was ever going to have that special person in my life. I thought I heard a voice saying Genesis 2:18. Well not hearing anything else and being an inpatient person I decided to go out and relax and my future wife walks in the door. As I said earlier our eyes locked and we knew. I know some people do not believe in love at first sight but there she was. If this was not love at first sight then it had to be Jesus talking to both of us at the same time.

  So let us take a look at

Genesis 2:18 (NKJV)

18 And the LORD God said, “It is not good that man should be alone; I will make him a helper comparable to him.” (some versions say suitable)

  You see God knew who to put in my life and who to put in Karen’s. God also knew when to put us together. I needed someone who was level headed, and who could keep me grounded. Karen needed someone who was going to stick by her side no matter what. You see, two years after we got married Karen had a stroke. God blessed us both with this marriage for you. He knew I would not leave Karen’s side no matter what and Karen would be able to keep me from doing anything foolish. Because of this I know God has blessed this marriage. Also I married a wonderful Christian woman from whom the light of Jesus Christ shines brightly She also knew how to use a cane when needed.

Genesis 2:19-20 (NKJV)

19 Out of the ground the LORD God formed every beast of the field and every bird of the air, and brought them to Adam to see what he would call them. And whatever Adam called each living creature, that was its name. 20 So Adam gave names to all cattle, to the birds of the air, and to every beast of the field. But for Adam there was not found a helper comparable to him.

  Now after Adam named all the animals he still had not found anyone suitable for a helpmate. So God created one. She would be a perfect mate because God created or picked her.

  In Genesis 2:21-22 we see that God creates both Eve and the institution of marriage.

Genesis 2:21-22 (NKJV)

21 And the LORD God caused a deep sleep to fall on Adam, and he slept; and He took one of his ribs, and closed up the flesh in its place. 22 Then the rib which the LORD God had taken from man He made into a woman, and He brought her to the

  Here we see where God took one of Adam’s ribs (please note that God took the rib from Adam’s side) and created Eve with it, and brought her to Adam. This is the first marriage in recorded history. The Father (God) gives away the bride.

  In Genesis 2:23 we see the helpmate gets her name.

23 And Adam said: “This is now bone of my bones And flesh of my flesh; She shall be called Woman, Because she was taken out of Man.”

  Here Adam calls his helpmate Woman because she was made with his bones and flesh. Adam also gives her the name of Eve. (because she was the mother of all the living)

Genesis 3:20 (NKJV)

Also here is what commentator Matthew Henry says what Eve’s name means…

Easton’s Illustrated Bible Dictionary

life; living, the name given by Adam to his wife (Gen. 3:20; 4:1). The account of her creation is given in Gen. 2:21, 22. The Creator, by declaring that it was not good for man to be alone, and by creating for him a suitable companion, gave sanction to monogamy. The commentator Matthew Henry says: “This companion was taken from his side to signify that she was to be dear unto him as his own flesh. Not from his head, lest she should rule over him; nor from his feet, lest he should tyrannize over her; but from his side, to denote that species of equality which is to subsist in the marriage state.” And again, “That wife that is of God’s making by special grace, and of God’s bringing by special providence, is likely to prove a helpmeet to her husband.” Through the subtle temptation of the serpent she violated the commandment of God by taking of the forbidden fruit, which she gave also unto her husband (1 Tim. 2:13-15; 2 Cor. 11:3). When she gave birth to her first son, she said, “I have gotten a man from the Lord” (R.V., “I have gotten a man with the help of the Lord,” Gen. 4:1). Thus she welcomed Cain, as some think, as if he had been the Promised One the “See d of the woman.”

  God has given different tasks to men and women in a marriage. The husband is supposed to be the leader of the household, this does not give him the right to act like a dictator and lord over his wife and kids if any. He should always treat his wife with loving kindness and put her second only to Jesus Christ. Now wives, you need to let your husbands lead even if you think you know better (which sometimes you do, but I will never admit it). You have to realize that sometimes men need to learn some things the hard way. Husbands, you need to trust your wives, after all God put them in your lives to be your helpmate.

Genesis 2:24

24 Therefore a man shall leave his father and mother and be joined to his wife, and they shall become one flesh.

  Here we see that God is saying that the husband and wife are to become as one within the marriage. Now the husband leaving his father and mother also holds true to the woman. The marriage consists of three…
1. Jesus Christ who is the head of the church.
Ephesians 5:23b; 5:25
1. The husband
Ephesians 5:23a; 5:25; 5:28-31
1. The wife
Ephesians 5:22; 5:24

Now I have two questions to ask…
1. Husbands are you willing to give everything up for your wife including your life as Christ did for the church?
2. Wives, are you willing to let your husbands lead?
  Now this to the in-laws (both sides), are you willing to let the husband lead in the marriage? God could be sending them down a different path than you want.

  You can give advice but it would be up to the husband and wife to decide on it.

  Now if you follow these principles in a marriage, God’s principles, you will have a blessed marriage. You see, today 10-26-2023 is my wife and I 43rd anniversary. And 41 of those years were after she had her stroke. Wonderful things happen when you trust in Jesus Christ.
September 22nd, 2023

MY FAITH JOURNEY

By Kevin R. Schultz

  Some people would call this their Grief Journey, but for me it is a journey of faith for I will only make it through this because of my faith in the Lord and the help from my families (both my church and my relatives) and friends (old and new).

9-10-2023

  Approximately three months ago after fighting one illness after another for at least five years straight my wife finally decided she had enough. All of this took its toll on her and she opted for hospice, she said “she was tired of fighting and she wanted to go home” (to be with the Lord).

  Now at first this was a little hard, okay a lot harder to take than I thought it would be. Here is how the Lord calmed my spirit on this.

  On my way to visit my wife the next day I bumped my cell phone and turned on my bible study app, I would say this was an accident but when the verses came up on the screen I knew better. The scripture that came up was Psalm 23 and I will explain why and what was so calming about these particular verses.

Psalm 23 (NASB)

1 A Psalm of David. The LORD is my shepherd, I shall not want.

  With God guiding me I know my needs will be taken care of, in this case the strength to make it through this journey. He will do this by putting the right scripture verses and or the right people in my life at the time they are needed. I do pray that people will see the light of Christ lighting my path during this journey.

Isaiah 40:11; Ezekiel 34:11-13; John 10:11; 1 Peter 2:25; Philippians 4:19; Psalms 34:9-10; Revelations 7:17

2 He makes me lie down in green pastures; He leads me beside quiet waters.

  God is telling me to rest in Him, let Him guide me in my journey.

Ezekiel 34:14; Revelation 7:17; Psalm 36:8

  For you see God already knows what I need and more importantly when I need it.

Psalm 139:10; Isaiah 49:10; Ezekiel 34:15

3 He restores my soul; He guides me in the paths of righteousness For His name’s sake.

  God will strengthen me when I falter, He will lead me in the right direction, He will show me how to give comfort to others so I can be a light to others, thus being comforted by doing God’s will.

Psalm 19:7; Proverbs 4:11; Psalm 143:11

  God will be there guiding down this path with the knowledge and wisdom I gain from His word.

Psalm 85:13;Proverbs 4:11; Psalm 73:24; Isaiah 42:16; Psalm 109:21

4 Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I fear no evil, for You are with me; Your rod and Your staff, they comfort me.

  The valley being referred to here is a very very dark as described in 10:21-22. Go walked us through this valley Psalm 107:14, which also describes what Christ did with our salvation. ( He broke the bonds of sin and death and now we can enter into the Kingdom of God through Christ Jesus.)

  When walking through this valley I cannot be afraid for God is with me.

Psalms 3:6, 27:1; Deuteronomy 31:6, 31:8; Joshua 1:5; 2 Kings 1:16; Hebrews 13:5

  God will always be the head of my life and my household. And I will always trust in God

Psalm 16:8; Isaiah 43:2; Daniel 3:19-30

  In Daniel we see where Jesus stood with Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-nego in the blazing furnace and not even their clothes were damaged. How can I be fearful when God is going to be with me and my wife Karen as we go through this.

5 You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies; You have anointed my head with oil; My cup overflows.

  How great of a God do I serve, who is always looking out for me. He can prepare a table for me (protect me) even when my enemies surround me. Even when they spoke against Him and challenged Him.

Psalm 78:19

Anointed (International Standard Bible Encyclopedia)

a-noint’, a-noint’-ed (aleipho, chrio): Refers to a very general practice in the East. It originated from the relief from the effect of the sun that was experienced in rubbing the body with oil or grease. Among rude people the common vegetable or animal fat was used. As society advanced and refinement became a part of civilization, delicately perfumed ointments were used for this purpose. Other reasons soon obtained for this practice than that stated above. Persons were anointed for health (Mr 6:13), because of the widespread belief in the healing power of oil. It was often employed as a mark of hospitality (Lu 7:46); as a mark of special honor (Joh 11:2); in preparation for social occasions (Ruth 3:3; 2Sam 14:2; Isa 61:3). The figurative use of this word (chrio) has reference strictly to the coming of the Holy Spirit upon the individual (Luke 4:18; Acts 4:27; Acts 10:38). In this sense it is God who anoints (Heb 1:9; 2Cor 1:21). The thought is to appoint, or qualify for a special dignity, function or privilege. It is in this sense that the word is applied to Christ (Joh 1:41 m; Acts 4:27; Acts 10:38; Heb 1:9; compare Ps 2:2; Dan 9:25).

See also ANOINTING.

a-noint’-ing: A distinction was made by the ancient Hebrews between anointing with oil in private use, as in making one’s toilet (cukh), and anointing as a religious rite (mashach).

1. Ordinary Use:

(1) As regards its secular or ordinary use, the native olive oil, alone or mixed with perfumes, was commonly used for toilet purposes, the very poor naturally reserving it for special occasions only (Ru 3:3). The fierce protracted heat and biting lime dust of Palestine made the oil very soothing to the skin, and it was applied freely to exposed parts of the body, especially to the face (Ps 104:15).

(2) The practice was in vogue before David’s time, and traces of it may be found throughout the Old Testament (see Deut 28:40; Ruth 3:3; 2Sam 12:20; 2Sam 14:2; 2Sam 14:2 Chron 28:15; Ezek 16:9; Mic 6:15; Dan 10:3) and in the New Testament (Mt 6:17, etc.). Indeed it seems to have been a part of the daily toilet throughout the East.

(3) To abstain from it was one token of mourning (2Sa 14:2; compare Mt 6:17), and to resume it a sign that the mourning was ended (2Sam 12:20; 2Sam 14:2; Dan 10:3; Judith 10:3). It often accompanied the bath (Ruth 3:3; 2Sam 12:20; Ezek 16:9; Susanna 17), and was a customary part of the preparation for a feast (Eccl 9:8; Ps 23:5). One way of showing honor to a guest was to anoint his head with oil (Ps 23:5; Luke 7:46); a rarer and more striking way was to anoint his feet (Lu 7:38). In Jas 5:14, we have an instance of anointing with oil for medicinal purposes, for which see OIL.

2. Religious Use:

Anointing as a religious rite was practiced throughout the ancient East in application both to persons and to things.

(1) It was observed in Canaan long before the Hebrew conquest, and, accordingly, Weinel (Stade’s Zeutschrift, XVIII, 50 ff) holds that, as the use of oil for general purposes in Israel was an agricultural custom borrowed from the Canaanites, so the anointing with sacred oil was an outgrowth from its regular use for toilet purposes. It seems more in accordance with the known facts of the case and the terms used in description to accept the view set forth by Robertson Smith (Religion of the Semites, 2nd ed., 233, 383 ff; compare Wellhausen, Reste des arabischen Heidenthums, 2nd ed., 125 ff) and to believe that the cukh or use of oil for toilet purposes, was of agricultural and secular origin, and that the use of oil for sacred purposes, mashach, was in origin nomadic and sacrificial. Robertson Smith finds the origin of the sacred anointing in the very ancient custom of smearing the sacred fat on the altar (matstsebhah), and claims, rightly it would seem, that from the first there was a distinct and consistent usage, distinguishing the two terms as above.

(2) The primary meaning of mashach in Hebrew, which is borne out by the Arabic, seems to have been “to daub” or “smear.” It is used of painting a ceiling in Jer 22:14, of anointing a shield in Isa 21:5, and is, accordingly, consistently applied to sacred furniture, like the altar, in Ex 29:36 and Da 9:24, and to the sacred pillar in Ge 31:13: “where thou anointedst a pillar.”

(3) The most significant uses of mashach, however, are found in its application, not to sacred things, but to certain sacred persons. The oldest and most sacred of these, it would seem, was the anointing of the king, by pouring oil upon his head at his coronation, a ceremony regarded as sacred from the earliest times, and observed religiously not in Israel only, but in Egypt and elsewhere (see Judg 9:8; Judg 9:15; 1Sam 9:16; 1Sam 10:1; 2Sam 19:10; 1Kgs 1:39; 1Kgs 1:45; 2Kgs 9:3; 2Kgs 9:6; 2Kgs 11:12). Indeed such anointing appears to have been reserved exclusively for the king in the earliest times, which accounts for the fact that “the Lord’s anointed” became a synonym for “king” (see 1Sam 12:3; 1Sam 12:5; 1Sam 26:11; 2Sam 1:14; Ps 20:6). It is thought by some that the practice originated in Egypt, and it is known to have been observed as a rite in Canaan at a very early day. Tell el-Amarna Letters 37 records the anointing of a king.

(4) Among the Hebrews it was believed not only that it effected a transference to the anointed one of something of the holiness and virtue of the deity in whose name and by whose representative the rite was performed, but also that it imparted a special endowment of the spirit of Yahweh (compare 1Sam 16:13; Isa 61:1). Hence the profound reverence for the king as a sacred personage, “the anointed” (Hebrew, meshiach YHWH), which passed over into our language through the Greek Christos, and appears as “Christ”.

(5) In what is known today as the Priestly Code, the high priest is spoken of as “anointed” (Exod 29:7; Lev 4:3; Lev 8:12), and, in passages regarded by some as later additions to the Priestly Code, other priests also are thus spoken of (Exod 30:30; Exod 40:13-15). Elijah was told to anoint Elisha as a prophet (1Ki 19:16), but seems never to have done so. 1Ki 19:16 gives us the only recorded instance of such a thing as the anointing of a prophet. Isa 61:1 is purely metaphorical (compare Dillmann on Le 8:12-14 with ICC on Nu 3:3; see also Nowack, Lehrbuch der hebraischen Archaologie, II, 124).

LITERATURE.

Jewish Encyclopedia, article “Anointing”; BJ, IV, ix, 10, DB, article “Anointing,” etc.

George B. Eager

Jacob W. Kapp

  In biblical times they would use oil to protect themselves from the sun. But think how much more protection we are going to have being anointed by God.

Psalm 92:10

  As we do God’s will in our lives, our blessings will always continue to increase.

Psalms 16:5, 31:19, 73:10, 141:5; Proverbs 27:9; Isaiah 6:13

6 Surely goodness and lovingkindness will follow me all the days of my life, And I will dwell in the house of the LORD forever.

  God is showing me with these verses that He will be here with both of us as we are going through all the different stages of Karen’s hospice.

Psalm 25:6; Proverbs 20:28; Daniel 9:4

  When I first started this project I started to feel the loss already. However, going through the scripture helped. Knowing that God is going to be there walking with me does wonders for the spirit.

  I know things are going to get tougher as Karen gets closer to God and farther away from me, the lonelier I will feel. This journey is only going to get harder and yet easier as I dive into scripture. And with the support from my family and friends.
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September 11th, 2023

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My Faith Journey

MY FAITH JOURNEY

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