The Stickman's Understanding...

  5 Trust in the LORD with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding. 6 In all thy ways acknowledge him, and he shall direct thy paths. -Proverbs 3 Good morning and TGIF! The phrase cause and effect is often used without putting much thought to its meaning or for Christians its impact in this walk of faith.  Many within and without Christiandom view the effect (glory), but ignore the cause (story). The cause or effort is the catalyst or launching pad to the effect. The scripture above appropriately fits this thought as trust is an indication of faithfulness to an assigned process.  Further the importance of discipline to the directions of the Lord are emphasized as our understanding is limited but we serve a God of all understanding with unsearchable knowledge.  The if and thens of the process requires your faith be activated. Activated faith has prayers and actions that align themselves with the will of God.  Go fellowship this weekend, we all ...

  And Samuel said, "Has the LORD as great delight in burnt offerings and sacrifices, as in obeying the voice of the LORD? Behold, to obey is better than sacrifice, and to listen than the fat of rams. 1 Samuel 15:22 (ESV).  Good morning and terrific Thursday to you! Yes it is actually Thursday and the week goes on! While reading this scripture on yesterday I took note that the purpose of sacrifice is to atone for sin.  That said, obedience being the preference the requirement for sacrifice highlights that sin has occurred.  In fact Samuel said God is not enamored by sacrifice and prefers obedience. In order to obey we must first harken to His voice. I love the word harken here because it encompasses both hearing and obeying.  Beloved the Lord’s great desire is that we harken as to not bring the curse of sin that requires the sacrifice of punishment.  God bless you and command your day!!! Your comments and questions are welcome. Contact me at drschaefferinter...

  and fell down, and worshipped him: they presented unto him gifts; gold, and frankincense, and myrrh. -Matthew 2:11 Behold, to obey is better than sacrifice, and to hearken than the fat of rams. -1 Samuel 15:22 Good morning and happy hump day to you!  The two excerpts are agreeing and confirming one another. One found in the Old Testament and the other in the New.  One speaks of a disobedient King in the OT and an obedient one in the New. The coordinated message is worship is more important than material sacrifice. The wise men first worshipped, then presented their gifts, whilst Saul in a moment of pretense tried to state the gifts were for the sacrifice of worship but instead they were implements of disobedience.  Beloved it is all a matter of the heart. The heart prioritizes worship.  God bless you and command your day!!! Your comments and questions are welcome. Contact me at drschaefferinterceding@yahoo.com You can give to Interceding Christian Center (ICC)...

And when they were come into the house, they saw the young child with Mary his mother, and fell down, and worshipped him: and when they had opened their treasures, they presented unto him gifts; gold, and frankincense, and myrrh. -Matthew 2:11 Good morning and tremendous Tuesday to you! On yesterday an examination of this scripture I expressed the Lord had obtained the age of at least two by time the wisemen reached him.  In their visit, most likely not in Bethlehem…the wisemen, maybe two or more men presented “gifts”.  Consider an excerpt of scripture in Isaiah 60:6 “they shall bring gold and incense; and they shall shew forth the praises of the LORD.” The grace of the Lord allows prophecy as well as praise to be rendered to His Christ.  Each thing had a significant meaning.  Gold, identified the royalty of the most High given to and through His son. Frankincense    is a fragrance of high cost. It’s value is such that only the wealthy could afford it....

  And when they were come into the house, they saw the young child with Mary his mother, and fell down, and worshipped him: and when they had opened their treasures, they presented unto him gifts; gold, and frankincense, and myrrh. -Matthew 2:11 Good morning and happy Monday to you! The scripture above has such a significant meaning that is often missed. In the physical it denotes that the wise men came bringing physical gifts to the Lord. And after they presented their gifts, they worshipped.  Please don’t miss how the normal process of gratefulness changed. Normally the receiver of the gift shows gratitude to the giver, but in this exchange, the giver was so overwhelmed by the privilege of being allowed in the presence and allowed to give that they worshipped.  But what is often missed is the timing of the visit of the wisemen. A read of the evidence shows their journey may have begun when the Lord was born, but they didn’t have audience until Jesus was a toddler under ...

  Good morning and TGIF! I was listening to a major retailer advertising their low prices for Christmas decorations. In it they emphasized saying “You can decorate your house on a budget.”  It caused me to think as enjoyable as it is to do so, in a matter of a few days many of the things used to decorate will find it’s way to the trash can and the curve for a one way trip to the dump. The other “reusable” items will be stored until next Christmas season.  Discarded and or disregarded, the same way as many put their Christian character on the curve and Jesus in a large seasonally colored tub at the most only acknowledging the content marked “Xmas”.  Most Christians will say “heaven forbid” but the same is achieved when they join the politically correct cancel culture (pccc) and phrase up the season saying “Happy Holidays””.  The more “Happy Holidays” become the normal greeting of the season, the more people will tend to exclude in their mind the reason for the se...

  But while he thought on these things, behold, the angel of the Lord appeared unto him in a dream, saying, Joseph, thou son of David, fear not to take unto thee Mary thy wife: for that which is conceived in her is of the Holy Ghost. -Matthew 1:20  Good morning and terrific Thursday to you! In the scripture above we find a troubled man being given a message to not alter his plan to take Mary as his wife.  The Angel gave him the reassurance needed to become the “earthly father” of Christ our Lord.  How graciously reassuring our Lord is. He care for our troubles and when we are at crossroads, He will greet us with a directional sign. He provides that grace, it is in our best interest to adhere.  God bless you and command your day!!! Your comments and questions are welcome. Contact me at drschaefferinterceding@yahoo.com  You can give to Interceding Christian Center (ICC) using our cash app $intercedingcc 

  But when the fulness of the time was come, God sent forth his Son, made of a woman, made under the law, -Galatians 4:4 Good morning and happy hump day to you!  The scripture above ranks among my favorite in explaining the purpose of the birth of Christ. It expresses the spiritual Father (God) and the physical vessel as well as the manner of his birth being under the law.  Both Mary and her first born came under the law, Mary with the sin seed of Adam but Jesus the perfect seed of God.  Born fully man, the mandate required to reverse the curse of disobedience of Adam, but as Adam was born perfect and later corrupted, Jesus was born perfect and incorruptible.  Finally God waited a specific time allowing certain historical events to occur which all played a part of presenting His son and propelling Him into a place unmatched by anyone, ever.  What a mighty God we serve!  God bless you and command your day!!! Your comments and questions are welcome. Cont...

  I shall see him, but not now: I shall behold him, but not nigh: there shall come a Star out of Jacob, and a Sceptre shall rise out of Israel, and shall smite the corners of Moab, and destroy all the children of Sheth. -Numbers 24:17 Good morning and tremendous Tuesday to you! Another day closer to Christmas prompts a review of the prophecy of Christ from the errant prophet Balaam.  Balaam was from Midian and was a well known diviner who had a gift to have audience with the Lord. Coming out of what seemed to be no-where this story shows us God had people who were not of the linage of Jacob.  Balaam lost favor with the Lord when greed launched him on a journey to curse who God had blessed, Israel. After his third try once again resulted in the Lord speaking through him blessings, Balaam took not money but a threat from the Moabite King.  Balaam while departing on perhaps the same mule that warned him of death in his path, looked at the tents of Israel and pronounced ...

  Thus saith the LORD; A voice was heard in Ramah, lamentation, and bitter weeping; Rahel weeping for her children refused to be comforted for her children, because they were not. -Jeremiah 31:15 Good morning and happy Monday to you! In every book of the Bible (KJV), there is a reference to Christ. Either His birth, power, authority, death or resurrection are on display for the diligent eye to see.  The scripture above is a lesser known reference to his birth. In it the foretelling of a massacre of perhaps thousands of children.  King Herod supposed that his earthly throne was at risk and cast forth a net to kill all boys age two and below.  The sheer hate of such an act is unfathomable even in todays world but the act itself is well recorded in historical text and provides validity of the prophecy of the Lord’s birth.  Today as we march forth towards the celebration, consider how blessed we are to know these things and the action of the Lord to preserve the nat...

  And the angel said unto them, Fear not: for, behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy, which shall be to all people. -Luke 2:10 Good morning and TGIF! Of all the “why’s” pertaining to those the Lord activated to usher and herald forth the birth of Christ, one that stands out is “Why the Shepherds”? Shepherds often took care of those that couldn’t defend themselves, Sheep though they have plenty of natural predators, they have little defense.  Shepherds were trusted with the property of others and would fight for their charges. Shepherds spent hours alone which afforded them the opportunity to meditate, pray and therefore they were receptive to the ministrations of God.  Shepherds though somewhat trusted, were not considered as proper society and the job though important was considered a minute one. So to bring the high news to such a group indicated that God was connecting with the common man and not just Kings and Priest, but through the work of Christ the common ...

  And Mary said, Behold the handmaid of the Lord; be it unto me according to thy word. And the angel departed from her. -Luke 1:38 Good morning and terrific Thursday to you!  The more the celebration of our saviors birth approaches the more I am inclined to examine those directly involved. There is one key phrase uttered by Mary that the plan of God was hitched.  “Be it unto me”. A short simple phrase of not just submission, but total submission to a plan that Mary didn’t have all the details available to ponder, examine or weigh out.  The parts she knew had some impossible things such as a virgin giving birth or how Joseph would react to the pregnancy or worst yet how everybody in the community would react.  Yet despite what she knew would come, she seemed to have known that the plan was more important than her pain.  Beloved my one question this morning is how willing are you to repeat the heartfelt utterance of Mary and say “Be it unto me.” God bless you...

The LORD is my light and my salvation; whom shall I fear? the LORD is the strength of my life; of whom shall I be afraid? -Psalms 27:1 Good morning and happy hump day to you!  How befitting is this scripture of character of David and its locality being near the 23rd psalms.  And as reassuring as any other promise, my heart song sings louder in praise. The Lord is my light meaning no darkness remains in His presence.  As a child I was dreadfully afraid of the dark and relied upon this very small “nightlight”. It seemed the tiniest beam of light in a darkroom brought comfort. The same applies to this dark, dark world, the light of God and his salvation slices the dark.  That little light was like a rescuer from a dreaded situation. It’s comfort was like salvation. Beloved the Lord fills all the dark and perilous voids in our lives. Trust Him, call Him and experience Him.  God bless you and command your day!!! Your comments and questions are welcome. Contact me at ...

  I shall see him, but not now: I shall behold him, but not nigh: there shall come a Star out of Jacob, and a Sceptre shall rise out of Israel, and shall smite the corners of Moab, and destroy all the children of Sheth. -Numbers 24:17 Good morning and tremendous Tuesday to you! The scripture above comes from the Prophecy of the errant prophet Balaam.  After several attempts at the bequest of Balak (Moab’s King) he had failed to open his mouth and pronounce a curse against Israel.  Besides the obvious prophecy of the coming of Christ is that this “man of God”, tried in greed to supplant what God had planned.  This is something to warn you to have a direct relationship with God as among the sheep are half sheep bred with wolves.  So the more Balaam tried to curse, the more his mouth exalted Israel, even going as far to say that the savior would come forth out of Judah who was a tribe of Jacob (Israel). Isaiah caught the refrain saying no weapon that come against y...

  But thou, Bethlehem Ephratah, though thou be little among the thousands of Judah, yet out of thee shall he come forth unto me that is to be ruler in Israel; whose goings forth have been from of old, from everlasting. -Micah 5:2 Good morning and happy Monday to you! The ancient name of the city of David is Ephratah. It dates back to the habitation of the Promiseland by the Canaanite’s. It means a fruitful place or habitation/house of bread.  How fitting that the bread of life and of heaven would be born in the Promiseland at the fruitful place at the house of bread.  It wasn’t by chance that the place of His nativity would be known as a place of subsistence. And it being among the smallest of town, one who is too large to be contained would come forth.  Beloved though you may have come from a small town called hate, hunger, abandonment, rejection, or past sin, it seems the smaller the town, the more hopeless and even destitute, the more glory God gets when He raises...

  But thou, Bethlehem Ephratah, though thou be little among the thousands of Judah, yet out of thee shall he come forth unto me that is to be ruler in Israel; whose goings forth have been from of old, from everlasting. -Micah 5:2 Good morning and TGIF!    Admittedly the thing that makes me the most excited about the Christmas season are the celebrations of prophecies fulfilled. The prophecy above is such a gem as it expresses several other promises of God.  Let me tell you of one. The scripture tells us the place that Christ would be born, exact city. This city was the place of the throne of David, his capital. The king didn’t necessarily have to be born in the city of his fathers but it added validity to their claim of the throne.  In Psalms 89 David speaks of a conversation he had with the Lord and a promise was made that someone from his family would always be on the throne.  That was fulfilled in Christ, who is, was and is to be. This encourages me as i...

  4And I prayed unto the LORD my God, and made my confession, and said, O Lord, the great and dreadful God, keeping the covenant and mercy to them that love him, and to them that keep his commandments; 5We have sinned, and have committed iniquity, and have done wickedly, and have rebelled, even by departing from thy precepts and from thy judgments:  - Daniel 9 Good morning and terrific Thursday to you!  The scripture above comes from an individual prayer with a targeted corporate intended impact.  The prophet Daniel shows us the importance of how a single man can stand in the gap for a nation. That said please don’t discount the power of your being the only one praying and believing for a move of God.  Beloved, understand that prayer consists of several components. The two most important of which are repentance and worship. In the prayer above Daniel repented for himself and for Israel but in that he still ensured that pronunciations of God’s glory did not lack....

  But the prince of the kingdom of Persia withstood me one and twenty days: but, lo, Michael, one of the chief princes, came to help me; and I remained there with the kings of Persia. -Daniel 10:13 Good morning and happy hump day to you! Have you ever felt as if God wasn’t listening or was not answering as fast as we desired? The scriptures here indicate that perhaps Daniel felt the same as we, having prayed one of the most transparent heartfelt prayers and having waited but no response.  Yet the revelation of the archangel Michael gives much insight to the plight of Job as well as what we face-evil spiritual opposition.  Beloved knowing the structure and ways of the enemy is as important as trusting God. Paul said in 1 Corinthians 12, I would not have you ignorant. Our mandate to be as successful as God has purposed us to be means knowing what you are up against and the tactics thereof.  In the story line above Daniel got his answer but it didn’t come without a figh...

  Owe no man any thing, but to love one another: for he that loveth another hath fulfilled the law. -Romans 13:8 Good morning and tremendous Tuesday to you! As we enter the second month of pre-Christmas, the other day I was going into a store that had replaced its Halloween display aisle with a Santa Clausic theme.  On the store PA system carols played loudly. Some on the secular theme of greed whilst a few on the meaning of Christmas and the love of the season.  The greed component is so counter intuitive as the true nature of greed creates poverty.    But even the touted love of the season is flawed as we should love all year.  The Apostle Paul spoke to this above as the only constant debt should be love. Beloved consider that overall a child prefers family and time over gifts long forgotten or broken and thrown away.  There is not a commandment to provide gifts, but there is a law to love.  God bless you and command your day!!! Your comments an...

  I therefore, the prisoner of the Lord, beseech you that ye walk worthy of the vocation wherewith ye are called, -Ephesians 4:1 Good morning and happy Monday to you! As a Pastor I’ve been asked how do I keep it together. In the face of challenges to my faith in Christ, how am I able to continue especially given such a tendency towards carnality even among “the saved”.  My answer is shocking to some when I say I don’t. I often feel anger, disappointment and pain when I see people betray their vows. But it is not my own strength that I go in. So though of myself I could or would have thrown in the towel like a missile    if it had not been for Christ.  Like Paul I am a prisoner of Christ. And like Paul though I would do right the temptation is always before me. If the Lord wouldn’t restrain me where would I be?  I am sure I can get a witness or two of the challenges and certainly of the power of Christ to constrain, restrain, and retain in    salva...

  For God hath not given us the spirit of fear; but of power, and of love, and of a sound mind. -2 Timothy 1:7  Whoredom and wine and new wine take away the heart. -Hosea 4:11 Good morning and TGIF! The two biggest things used to sell a product are surprisingly used the same way to control others. Sexuality and fear are those twins. They are found in the Bible in most cases of sin destroying or delaying what God intends for us.  The two demonic strongmen that promote the twins are called the spirit of whoredoms and the spirit of fear. Whilst fear has one main area it operates in conjunction as whoredoms cover all areas of lusts.  Knowing who these two are and fighting against them will strengthen your relationship with the Lord and thus your walk will be greater.  Go fellowship this weekend, we all need it.  God bless you and command your day!!! Your comments and questions are welcome. Contact me at drschaefferinterceding@yahoo.com You can give to Intercedi...

  Only be thou strong and very courageous, that thou mayest observe to do according to all the law, which Moses my servant commanded thee: turn not from it to the right hand or to the left, that thou mayest prosper whithersoever thou goest. -Joshua 1:7 Good morning and terrific Thursday to you! Recently I was reading the Bible and the scripture above spoke to me on the power of being righteous.  The Lord gave Joshua several commandments here. Be courageous, be strong and keep the law. Strong and courageous can’t ever be separated.  Strong wraps itself around courageous as it takes strength to do courageous things and to defend that which you have done.  Joshua had gained strength watching and ministering to Moses and therefore able to be courageous enough to say along with Caleb the Promiseland was theirs for the taking.  Then his strength and courage was on display for the next forty years of wondering.  Now the scripture above finds Moses dead, so the Lor...