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Healthy Blessing

Ivey Rorie On February 9, 2022 / Word of the Day / Leave a comment

Deuteronomy 28: 2,3, 5, 14 – 17, 61

2 And all these blessings shall come upon you and overtake you, if you will obey the Lord your God.
3 Blessed shall you be in the city, and blessed shall you be in the country.
5 Blessed shall be your basket and your kneading bowl.
14 And do not turn aside from any of the words which I command you today, to the right or to the left, to go after other gods to serve them.
15 But it shall come about, if you do not obey the Lord your God, to be careful to follow all His commandments and His statutes which I am commanding you today, that all these curses will come upon you and overtake you:
16 Cursed will you be in the city, and cursed will you be in the country.
17 Cursed will be your basket and your kneading bowl.
61 Also every sickness and every plague which, not written in the book of this law, the Lord will bring on you until you are destroyed.

Chapter 28 of Deuteronomy is where you find the blessing. It also shows what the curse holds. You would be well served to at least read verses 1 – 14 for yourself so that you understand what the blessing means in your life. I have chosen a few select verses to talk about sickness and health.

We already saw in yesterday’s verse that there were diseases in Egypt but that those are not for us. Today we will see that the blessing protects us from the diseases that are in the curse.

First, there is a condition which must be fulfilled, namely that we listen to the commandments of the Lord and obey them. When we do, our lives are ruled by the blessing. However, if we do not obey the words of the Lord, we subject ourselves to the curse. Obedience means we are blessed in the city and blessed in the country. Disobedience means the curse will impact us in the city and in the country, everywhere, in other words. Following God’s instructions brings blessing to our basket and kneading bowl while obstinance curses our food supply.

It is obvious that when we obey God and follow His guidance, we receive the exact opposite benefit of the impact of the curse. Do you agree? This is important when we get to verse 61 because it tells us the result rebellion has on health. The cost of rebellion is all the sickness and disease of Egypt. Therefore, I conclude the prize of obedience is avoidance of Egypt’s curse.

There is sickness in Egypt (the world) because the world does not listen to the counsel of the Lord. If we act like the world and follow the advice of the world, then we are going to reap the results of the world. We need to inquire of the Lord and listen to His wisdom. Then, importantly, we must do as He says. Sometimes what the Lord tells you to do will not make sense to you. Sometimes it may not even sound like faith. None the less, His wisdom will always lead to good results.

Here is one small example that you can relate to. We know that exercising is good for our health. Let’s suppose you have a goal to exercise every weekday and rest on the weekends. What if you get to Friday and there is a nagging thought about not working out? Perhaps your body feels tired. If you have faith, shouldn’t you be able to press on and meet your goals? Or maybe, that voice is God telling you that your body is ready for a rest day now. If you press on maybe you injure yourself. We need to be able to listen to Father’s daily guidance in our work, diet, exercise and even rest. You know, maybe He wants to make some changes in your schedule for better results. We’ve got to listen to Him and OBEY if we are going to live in the blessing. And, that is the Word of the Day for today – obey. So far that gives us an equation of inquire, listen and obey. Maybe it is, instead, a recipe, a recipe for the blessing.

Here is the point, God is your healer. That is what we shouldn’t lose sight of. He can, and does, heal supernaturally, but He also wants to help you avoid feeling bad in the first place. I am thinking of the 23rd Psalm and the picture it paints of the Great Shepherd’s care. Rest in His love and trust Him. There is the curse in the earth but, praise God, there is the blessing. Our beloved has provided blessing for every element of our lives including health. Let’s follow Him to the green pastures and fresh water of the blessing. Amen?

Promised Health

Ivey Rorie On February 8, 2022 / Word of the Day / Leave a comment

Deuteronomy 7:15

“And the Lord will remove from you all sickness; and He will not put on you any of the harmful diseases of Egypt which you have known, but He will lay them on all who hate you.”

We are on the third verse of the healing series and here is what I have learned so far. Both of the first two verses seem to suggest that a key ingredient of health is listening to the voice of God. Now, I suppose that should not come as a surprise but at the beginning of this series, would you have expected that to be the first point Father expressed? And, don’t be surprised that I said that this is what I am learning because I am right there with you. The first verse said, “give earnest heed to the voice of the Lord your God, and do what is right in His sight, and give ear to His commandments,” (Exodus 15: 26), so I am asking and listening along with you.

Today’s verse comes from a section in Chapter 7 subtitled, Promises of God. So, now you can say you have a promise from God regarding healing. He promises He will remove sickness. Here is the interesting bit though. You can tell that verse 15 is a continuation of previous verses. It even seems that it might express the result of what came before and, in fact, this is true. I don’t want to beat a dead horse, but maybe God does. You have to go back to verse 12 to find out the context of this passage. Verse 12 reads, “If you listen to these regulations and faithfully obey them, the LORD your God will keep his covenant of unfailing love with you.” How great is that!? Even more interesting is that the verses between 12 and 15 include blessing your food and drink. So, here we are again. If we will listen to the Lord our God and obey Him, He will remove sickness from our midst.

Do you remember that the Jews had specific dietary guidelines and that those differed from other populations? What is that about? Do you think those guidelines were exactly what these verses speak to? I am not suggesting that God is telling you to go kosher. I am saying that He speaks to His people, leading them to healthy choices. I want to be clear in this too, what He speaks to me may not be the same as what He speaks to you. Maybe one person is advised to give up dairy or wheat while others are not. What I am explicitly saying is that Yahweh wants to remove all sickness from you because of the love covenant He made with you. He leads us to good health because that is what love does. It is imperative that we learn to inquire of Him and then to listen and obey.

Now, here is the hard part, listening. Tell the truth, do you sometimes get a little nagging feeling down inside of you about what you are eating? Do you get thoughts that would lead in a particular direction if you heeded them? Or, perhaps you hear a thought go through your head about drinking more water or getting up and walking a bit. God is rarely a loud voice in your head. He is gentle, more often nudging than pushing. We all need to become experts at hearing God’s voice and that often begins by listening to some of the quiet thoughts which float across your mind.

God is removing sickness from among us, as He promised to do. Our part in the bargain seems to be listening to His commands and faithfully obeying them.

Kneading Bowl

Ivey Rorie On February 7, 2022 / Word of the Day / Leave a comment

Exodus 23: 25

But you shall serve the Lord your God and He will bless your bread and your water; and I will remove sickness from your midst.

How is your bread and water? God will bless your kneading bowl and your well so that you may enjoy good health.

This verse reminds me of Hippocrates who is considered the father of modern medicine. He is famously reputed to have said, “Let food be your medicine.” So, I hear, let your bread and water be your medicine per this verse, or let your food be your first health protocol.

Food quality and the quality of our food choices play a direct and proportional role in our health. When the quality of our food is compromised, then so becomes our health. It doesn’t take a physician of legendary importance to figure that one out. The fuel we feed our bodies is of primary significance and importance to our overall health. The human body was created with the ability to repair itself. However, it needs a full complement of nutrients in order to perform its vital functions. When we make poor dietary choices or the quality of our food is sub-par, then the body is robbed of the substances it needs to run the machinery, protect vital organs and repair itself.

In our first verse in this series, we saw God identifying Himself as our healer. The first way He fulfills this role is in blessing our food. The first thing today’s verse says is that if we will serve our Lord, He will bless our food and water. What I hear there is that we must learn inquire to of Him regarding food and to listen to Him as He coaches us. I have heard of people who have had God direct them in their diet. He can guide a person in specific ways. One person, I recall, heard God tell them not to drink coffee for a while. That is not a direction for everyone, it was specific to that person. Maybe there are specific foods your body does not tolerate well.

What is important here is to understand that the first way God fulfills the role of our healer is to coach us as to food and drink. We know that we cannot continue to put bad fuel in our bodies and reasonably expect it not to harm us. God created amazing physiology that cleans and restores the cells of our bodies but as we age, we find that years of pollution is getting the best of us slowly but surely. We don’t necessarily get sick because we age. It is simply a matter of time and that the body’s tolerances are being breached. So, not matter how old you are, health begins today by honoring God with our food choices. That not only means eliminating junk food. It also entails trying to buy foods which are not laden with toxic chemicals. The more organic choices you can make, the easier it is on your body and the better health you will enjoy.

Mostly, listen to God. Serve Him in your diet and allow Him to coach you. The Great Healer has advice which leads to blessing. He says plainly that He is removing sickness by blessing your food and drink. That does not mean He takes the damaging substance out of bad foods. It means He wants to lead you to where the blessing is. He will guide you in the way. Do you think it sounds silly to pray about food? I think it is crazy not to because our food is causing many problems physically. Bless the Lord, serve Him and receive health through the blessing of your kneading bowl.

Egypt and Goshen

Ivey Rorie On February 4, 2022 / Word of the Day / Leave a comment

Exodus 15:26

And He said, “If you will give earnest heed to the voice of the Lord your God, and do what is right in His sight, and give ear to His commandments, and keep His statutes, I will put none of the diseases on you which I have put on the Egyptians; for I, the Lord, am your healer.”

There is, in this passage, a presumption of sickness. Do you agree? Why do we need a healer if there is not disease in the world? However, God makes a distinction here between the Egyptians (the world) and the Hebrews (believers). He reveals that believers are not subject to the curse.

Think about what was going on here. The Israelites were in slavery to the world, if you will. The Egyptians were their slave masters. God had called Moses out of exile to lead God’s people out of slavery and into the land of promise. The land of Egypt is cursed. God has sent plague, boils, gnats, frogs, locust, turned the river into blood, and rained down hail in such a violent storm that it killed everything which was outside, even trees. The curse is wreaking havoc in Egypt. God was available to remove the curse, even from the Egyptians if they would only obey His word. If Pharoah would only “earnest(ly) heed to the voice of . . . God” Egypt would be spared. However, Pharoah’s heart was hard, and he would not hear the Word of the Lord. His land was devastated as a result.

The curse is still operating in the world, but God would have us understand that the curse is for the Egyptians, not the Hebrews, i.e., for the world, not believers. When Moses lifted his staff in obedience to God, the plague struck Egypt. Meanwhile, over his shoulder, the land of Goshen, the place where the Hebrews lived, was untouched. God made a clear distinction. The thing which is interesting in this is that the land of Egypt didn’t have to suffer all those plagues either. God was willing to save them from their plight anytime they said so. Pharoah begged Moses to remove the frogs from the land. Moses agreed and told Pharoah, “You set the time!” (Exodus 8: 9) meaning that he would pray for the removal of the frogs whenever Pharoah wanted him to. Pharoah could have said, “Do it now!”, but he didn’t. He told Moses to pray tomorrow. What???? You see, Pharoah, like all people, had the right to remain under the curse or to be free of it. Why didn’t he say, “Pray now?” Why does anyone choose to live under the curse? See, even the Egyptians, even Pharoah himself could have chosen for the curse to leave his home. Instead, he opted for another day of frogs.

I know this is long but let me share one more bit from Exodus with you that goes right to the substance of today’s verse. I mentioned the hailstorm. You will find the account of it in chapter 9 of Exodus. What is so amazing about it is that God actually tried to save the Egyptians and their stock. He told them that a hailstorm was coming at “this time tomorrow.” He advised the Egyptians thusly, “Quick! Order your livestock and servants to come in from the fields. Every person or animal left outside will die beneath the hail,” (Exodus 9: 19). Isn’t that amazing? God warned the fools. He didn’t want to kill the Egyptians. He wanted them to listen to Him. They needed only to do as today’s scripture teaches, “Give earnest heed to the voice of the Lord your God, and do what is right in His sight, and give ear to His commandments.” Many people could have survived that day and their livestock too.

So, what is the message from today? Well, I believe it is in several parts and we will see them revisited. However, let us record these three points as we begin our journey. First, heed the voice of God. He is forever trying to steer us away from sickness and harm of every kind. I will say this now though we are sure to hear this again. Sometimes healing is in the advice God gives you and sometimes that comes through another person. It may be advice about diet, exercise or emotional well-being. If we ignore it, we get hailed upon and it is no fault of God’s. Second, the curse was never meant for believers. The curse is in the world, but you are supposed to be living in the land of Goshen, not Egypt. My advice, don’t go to Egypt. Don’t live in that space. Lastly, number three, God is our healer. He knows there is dis-ease in the world and that we need a healer. He has volunteered to be that person for us. That is not to say that He won’t use physical therapists and doctors and acupuncturists, etc., but first and foremost, He is our healer. He is the attending physician who coordinates all the other modalities. We must begin with Him and constantly heed His advice.

This healing journey begins with these words, “Give earnest heed to the voice of the Lord your God, and do what is right in His sight, and give ear to His commandments, and keep His statutes.” The path of health starts here.

In the Beginning

Ivey Rorie On February 3, 2022 / Word of the Day / 1 Comment

John 1: 1

In the beginning was the Word.

As I journey through life, I find there are few people who don’t need healing in some part of their body. This Word of the Day devotional actually began because of this truth. In 2006 my father died of cancer. Within months of his passing, my brother was diagnosed with cancer. I knew immediately that he needed to hear what the Lord had to say about healing.

As you are undoubtedly aware, there is a great deal of misinformation and confusion out there about God’s will and thoughts on healing. When we, or a loved one becomes sick, we turn to prayer relying on God’s mercy to save us. At the same time, I frequently hear people accrediting their sickness to God. That is schizophrenic at best. Why should we pray to the one responsible for our sickness for relief from same? Yet, this incorrect theology plagues the church. When people die, some attribute their passing to God thinking it must be God’s will even though the Bible says differently. It is clear from these statements and ideas that we are confused about God’s position on healing, health, life and death.

In 2006 when my brother received his diagnosis, I thought to send him a list of verses on healing. My first thought was just to send the list of verse citations like Proverb 4: 22, Jeremiah 30: 17 etc. I had a Word document with the healing verses listed. No sooner had the thought formed in my mind, though, than I came to understand how overwhelming a long list of citations could be. So, I quickly revised my plan to sending one citation a day. Instantly I realized that to make the Word meaningful, I must make it accessible, so I decided to type out the verse itself rather than just sending the cite. Okay, I was on the right path. However, I couldn’t finish that thought before this other one occurred to me; my brother was not the only person who needed to have the healing scriptures. Then I realized that lots of folks had some ache or illness that needed the touch of God. So, the epiphany was in full bloom, finally. I would send a healing verse, one a day, typed out with the verse citation to anyone who wanted to receive them. Thus, the Word of the Day was born.

As I type this, I am both reminiscent of those early revelations and aware there are new ones coming to light even as I type. Clearly, this is about God’s desire to heal His children, but in that brief story, I, you, we, see how He speaks to us. That entire idea about sending the healing verses, even with all its revisions probably took less than one minute to come to me. Even as one iteration began to be revealed, the next one was awakening. God took me to His desired end in a matter of seconds even though my brain had to go through a sequence of ideas. Further, the ideas did not have to develop into full sentences like one would speak them. No, it was more like they flashed, fully formed, onto the screen of my mind. I saw them in an instant and then the Father moved on. I guess it might have been more like a very quick slide show. As soon as I grasped the idea or image, He moved to the next. It is a lesson in God communication. He can transfer tomes of revelation to us in a moment. Also, even though the ideas were “like” sentences to me, the message really was visual. I find that fascinating. Yahweh knows I am more of a linguist than artist, so He used words to paint the picture on my mind’s canvas. Amazing!

I hope you have enjoyed this story, but I have additional purpose for bringing it to you today. This introduces a new series we will begin. It is a series on healing combined with some attendant faith scriptures which are necessary for applying our faith for healing. I will be trusting the Lord each day for a fresh, anointed message on each scripture which is full of His revelation on healing. I expect Him to tell us things we haven’t known before. This is a personal series and not intended for your intellect. This series is meant for integration with your spirit. I pray these verses and the explanations Father provides will bless every hearer of the Word. This may be a good time to invite someone to the Word of the Day. Who do you know that could benefit from hearing God’s Word on healing?

Prayer Relief

Ivey Rorie On February 2, 2022 / Word of the Day / Leave a comment

Job 42: 10

When Job prayed for his friends, the Lord restored his fortunes.

When you are going through a tough time, the last thing you usually think about doing is praying for others. Challenges tend to turn us inward. We are not out looking for whom we can bless. However, that is the very message of this passage.

It is interesting that God told Job’s undisciplined and antagonistic friends they must take their offering to Job and ask him to pray for them. Wow! That is some humble pie. They spent chapter upon chapter haranguing him, telling him how wrong he was and what a great sinner he must be for God to punish him so severely, never knowing Job’s problems were not God’s workings. God told them they needed to repent for their criticism and false teaching. He made them humble themselves to Job in order to receive forgiveness.

I can imagine how little Job wanted to pray for them too. He must have thought some choice things when God told him to pray for those fools. Fortunately, though, Job obeyed. The result of obedience is always the same, blessing. God completely restored Job once Job prayed for his friends.

It is this way with our lives. I used to know someone who advocated, when in a time of need, find someone to pray for. I subscribe to that advice. Many times, the best medicine is to get our eyes off ourselves. You would be amazed at how you open up the flow in your own life when you get out of yourself. When we focus on ourselves and our own problems we tend to close off and that stifles the flow of the Spirit and blessing.

Do yourself a favor! Find someone to pray for. Better still, join the Ivey Ministries prayer team. It’s easy, it’s a blessing and it is the effective work of the gospel, to which we should all be a party. Every week, or so, you will receive an email with prayer requests. Pray over those people and those requests. It couldn’t be easier. Let me know you will join us in this important work, work which will benefit you as well, by replying to this Word of the Day. Just click reply and let me know you want to join the team. You will be a blessing and will be blessed.

Read and Review

Ivey Rorie On February 1, 2022 / Word of the Day / Leave a comment

Habakkuk 2: 2

Write down the vision and inscribe it clearly on tablets, so that one who reads it may run.

It is now a month since January 1st. Hopefully you wrote down some goals and have been pursuing them. It is time to go back and look at what you wrote down.

In this verse, God tells the listener to write down the vision. There is a second part, though. It is recorded so that it can be read. We have to go back and review the words God has given us and we need to do it frequently. Some of our goals develop into plans of action and then come forward into our daily activities. Perhaps you write them on your calendar in the daily to do items or track them on a monthly calendar. Regardless, we must have a way to track the pursuit of the goal. Are we taking the necessary steps, daily, which will lead to the attainment of our goals? Of course, if one of your goals was to read your Bible daily, then, obviously that is a daily activity and easily tracked. Other goals may not lend themselves to daily accounting as easily and this is where we must apply the second part of today’s verse. We need to make sure we are reviewing our goals daily so that we are in pursuit of our desired end result.

I wrote one down on January 5th that I fully intended to do. However, I was still in the process of setting and refining my goals and never got it transferred to a daily action item. Fourteen days later, I reviewed my written goals and realized I had let this one slip right through the cracks. Setting goals usually means we are initiating new patterns, things outside our normal habits. It is so easy to follow habitual patterns and not even see where a goal is being missed, even when we are sincere about that goal.

Big goals must be broken down into actionable items. The ones that happen daily are a bit easier to track than the ones that are only a weekly item. Here is what I am doing to help myself. I am writing my to do’s down on a monthly calendar and then I highlight that day when I have accomplished them. I also am journaling which gives me a place to write out my thoughts about why I might not have done all items for a day. The printed monthly calendar creates a picture. You can use multiple colors to indicate different items and also different indicators for completion or days you didn’t get it done. At the end of the week, you can see where you succeeded and which areas might need more attention. It is a very easy way to see, at a glance, if things are proceeding as planned.

I am sure you have some other good ideas of how to keep your goals and to do’s in front of you. Click the link below and share them with the group.

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