Psalms 103:5 Who satisfieth thy mouth with good things; so that thy youth is renewed like the eagle’s.
From the moment we were conceived we began aging, growing older by the day. We may slow down the physical aging process by exercising, eating right and other natural techniques – but we cannot ultimately stop it. This mortal flesh, our outer man, is “wasting away” and moving toward decay as we await the immortal bodies promised us in the Resurrection.
Yet this scripture offers us a renewal of our youth. And we see some remarkable examples of this, especially in the Old Testament. It is said of Moses at the age of a hundred and twenty that “his eyes were not weak nor his strength gone.” [Deuteronomy 34:7] Caleb had this testimony: “So here I am today, eighty-five years old! I am still as strong today as the day Moses sent me out; I’m just as vigorous to go out to battle now as I was then.” [Joshua 14:10-11]. Even after the flood of Noah’s day, it seems we have some access to longevity and vigor.
We have all heard of the “Fountain of Youth”. You can still drink from a spring in St. Augustine Florida, commemorating the Spanish explorer, Ponce De Leon’s legendary search for it. Ponce’s body is long gone. And however long he survived, I suggest he was looking for the wrong “Fountain”.
Our Spring of Living Water, our source of youth and vigor is our God, our Father in Heaven, His Son Yeshua (Jesus), and His Presence and His indwelling Holy Spirit. The Way, the Truth, and THE LIFE, lives within every born again believer. Dwelling in His Presence is the fountain of renewed youth for us.
Moses spent great amounts of time in and near the Presence of God. Check it out for yourself. Moses even glowed from it, once, and it clearly affected his physical constitution. Spending time with God, in His Presence, in His Word, will renew your youth; physically, emotionally, and spiritually.
Are you feeling old today? Get into His Presence; get into His Word, and be renewed once again!
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While most read the story of Jonah focusing on Jonah’s journey, I want to pause and examine the lives of the pagan sailors. What a journey they were on! We see the hand of God touching them providentially through Jonah’s disobedience. Talk about God bringing good from evil.
So the captain came to Jonah, and said to him, “What do you mean, sleeper? Arise, call on your God; perhaps your God will consider us, so that we may not perish.” At this point the captain (who probably worshiped Baal and Yamm, god of the sea) has more faith than Jonah.
It must have been a bad storm. These men were experienced, hardened sailors who had seen it all at sea. If they were scared, this could have been the first “perfect storm” since Noah’s flood. So they started the first interfaith prayer meeting in the Bible, each man crying out to his own god. As the ship groaned and creaked in howling wind and massive waves, and the men threw cargo overboard in a desperate attempt to save it, where was Jonah? On deck helping them? Confidently praying to His own God? Shaking with fear and paralyzed with deep conviction? No, he’s taking a nap down below…
For the next week or so we’ll be looking closely at the life of Jonah the prophet. Jonah was told to “preach against the city of Nineveh”, that was in the ancient kingdom of Assyria. Nineveh was a major city on the banks of the Tigris River about 500 miles north and east of where Jonah was; located on a contemporary map in modern Iraq, about 300 miles north of Baghdad. Archaeologists have found the ruins of ancient Nineveh right outside the Iraqi city of Mosul. Yes, the same Mosul that was taken last week by jihadists!
So Jonah goes and begins to preach in this pagan city. His message is very simple. “Forty more days and Nineveh will be overthrown”(v. 4). That’s it. That was his whole message. It’s eight words in English; only 4 words in Hebrew.
Abraham was sitting in front of his tent on the plains of Mamre, when the LORD (Yehovah — Yud Hay Vav Hay) came to him and declared the fulfillment of a promise He had made to him many years before, saying that through Abraham’s seed the world would be blessed! (Genesis 12:7; 13:15-16, 15:18, 17:7-9)
As we conclude the Feast of Sukkot tonight, I want to reflect on one of the profound mysteries of God—how He aligns the prophetic clock with the Hebrew calendar. Sukkot, also known as the Feast of Ingathering, is a harvest celebration. Notably, it remains one of the few biblical feasts yet to be fulfilled prophetically, pointing us to future events in God’s divine plan.