Numbered With Purpose

As a kid I remember doing color by number pictures and paintings. Each number represented a specific color with the purpose of making a picture the way it was designed to look. 

In the beginning of Numbers chapter 1 God is setting up the army of Israel. He told Moses to number them by the genealogy of each of the families of the 12 tribes of Israel except for the Levites. In verse 49 it says "Only the tribe of Levi you shall not number, nor take a census of them among the Children of Israel. It may seem they were being left out, hang on though, God had a plan for them. They were appointed as God's numbers so that the army of Israel functioned with purpose just as God designed. 

Just like the 12 Tribes of Israel, God has a purpose and plan for His church as the body of Christ. We are all called to share the Gospel of Jesus Christ to all who are in our path. However, we also have a personal calling. There is no calling too small or too large. If we go by God's numbers then our purpose is fulfilled the way it should. 

Isaiah 53 talks about Jesus sacrifice on the cross for us. Verse 12 states “Therefore I will divide Him a portion with the great, And He shall divide the spoil with the strong, Because He poured out His soul unto death, and He was numbered with the transgressors, And He bore the sin of many, And made intercession for the transgressors” Isaiah 53:12 NKJV   Jesus was numbered with purpose for our freedom and our redemption! He was numbered and falsely accused of being a blasphemer, criminal and a deceiver. He loved us enough to go by God's specific plan of Salvation despite the suffering He knew would take place. He knew His Father's design was colored with mercy, grace and compassion. So will you lean in to God's specific picture for your life and your calling to be “Numbered with Purpose” for His Glory?

Regina Dowker 2023

Press In

Somedays we are strolling along in our lives and suddenly situations arise and our plans change. We feel like we are just standing there dazed by what is in front of us because its not what we expected. We hold back and are almost frozen in our steps because we don't know which way to turn. It can be daunting to step into a new plan or make a turn in a different direction. Thankfully God doesn't have the narrow nearsighted vision that we do. He has a panoramic view into our lives. Jeremiah 29:11 For I know the thoughts that I think toward you says the Lord, thoughts of peace and not of evil, to give you a hope and a future. It sounds so simple to just say Trust God yet its the wisest thing we can do. Proverbs 3:5-6 Trust in the Lord with all your heart, lean not to your own understanding; in all your way acknowledge Him, And He shall direct your paths. When you press in on a door you are pressing forward to the inside. You are no longer on the outside of that door looking in. As God becomes our compass instead of our own thoughts and desires we are pressing into His plans. The force of our pressing into Him opens the door to His promises. Instead of staring in the window wishing for his blessings we find ourselves right in the middle of His faithfulness. Keep an eye out though for those revolving doors that keep twirling us round and round chasing after our own selfish ambitions. If we keep our focus on God He steers us away from trouble leading us on victory despite the unexpected changes Romans 8:37 Yet in all these things we are more than conquerors through Him who loved us. Press in to God's plan His promises await. 

 

(c) Regina Dowker Gems of Grace 



 

 

 

Gems Devotions

Stuffed Full of Love  

Ah.... Valentines Day! A day for Love!! For some it may be romantic gestures while others its sweetness towards a friend or family member. When my kids were younger I always enjoyed buying them Valentines treats and especially stuffed animals. They loved them! They also had several that other people had given them. My kids had this cool way of bringing them to life by giving them names and cute little voices to pretend they were talking. Crazy enough,  to this day I remember the some of those adorable stuffed animals. There was Dollar, Brownie, Tigger, Momo, and Buddy. I certainly can't leave out Judah and Big J but those two have a testimony all of their own for another post. I promise I'm not crazy there is a point to all this stuffed animal talk!

While in the store on the shelf those adorable little stuffed guys were lifeless and had no meaning. Then one day, placed in the hands of a child and given loving attention, they were no longer lifeless but had purpose. They opened up a whole world of imagination for my kids. Isn't it the same with us? When Love enters our life it opens up a whole new life. Taking it a step further when Jesus is placed in our Hearts He opens up a whole new Life of peace and Joy within us. He brings us to Life. I John 4:9 In this the Love of God was manifested towards us, that God has sent His only begotten son into the world, that we might live through Him. We are no longer sitting lifeless we are then filled with His Love. Stuffed Full of Love and ready to share with purpose. He brings us to life again with His name on our hearts and uses our voices to embrace others with His passion for them. One of our songs, Love Much, expresses this "Let Kindness be our anthem Grace our song live hope and compassion loud and strong"  You can find the song here on our website in the Music section. No matter what we do in this life we are called to be stuffed full of the love of God. To follow Christ is to "Love Much"

(c) 2021 Gems of Grace

Regina Dowker 

Let Go of the Ordinary 

The normal, mundane and ordinary is often the place we unconsciously choose to hang out. I'm guilty of that myself. Taking time though to stop and think on not just what God has done but WHO He is reminds us that our God is so powerful! He created the very world that we live in, Yet in the everyday its so easy to get caught up in issues and all the crazy in our world. Expecting and praying from a heart that believes changes our point of view and then we find God working in us. "And you will seek Me and find Me, when you search for Me with all your heart." Jeremiah 29:13 

There is no limit to what He can do but sometimes we don't allow him to because we are wandering around aimlessly in what we can see right in front of us. However, Praying with expectation brings hope and builds our faith because we know that impossible is God's Specialty "Now to Him who is able to do exceedingly abundantly above all that we can ask or think, according to the power that works in us, to Him be glory in the church by Christ Jesus to all generations, forever and ever. Amen." Then take a look at Matthew 19:26 "But Jesus looked at them and said to them With men this is impossible but with God all things are possible." Those times we spend in prayer and in the word strengthen our faith to believe for answers we need, that testimony we are looking for and those miracles. 

Time in His presence rearranges everything. When we let go of the ordinary God meets us with the extraordinary. . Do you need God's extraordinary in your life today? 

Regina Dowker 

Gems of Grace 

(c) January 2021

Stories Behind Our Songs 

 

As a songwriting ministry team we feel our faith and hope is vital to share. Much thought is given to the words of the songs we write. 

These blogs will contain the stories behind our songs and testimonies. These songs are our Gems. We hope and pray that our songs and 

our blogs encourage you in the Faith and Hope thru our Lord Jesus.

"Speaking to one another in Psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody in your heart to the Lord

Ephesians 5:19 

 

Blessings, 

 

Gems of Grace 

Hope Sings 

Hope.... something everybody needs!

 

Where there is no hope we are simply floundering around aimlessly and are void of vitality. Thankfully Hope is readily available thru Jesus.

His strength is perfect in our weakness. When we trust and lean on His strength Hope begins to rise within us. As hope rises our heart and souls

begin to sing. Psalms 42:11 says "Why are you cast down O my soul? And why are you disquited within me? Hope in God; For I shall 

yet praise Him. The help of my countenance and my God"  Praising Him in the middle of our weak times accesses that strength in God

"Here is Hope" In one of the songs we wrote "Here is Hope" it says "Faith to take a chance Hope to believe the wonders of your glorious promise

Here is Hope" Singing praise keeps hope alive inviting the presence of the Lord in our situation. his presence accomplishes so much more than 

we can. Our worrying doesn't fix our situation. In Exodus 15:2 it says "The Lord is my strength and song. And He has become my salvation: 

He is my God and I will praise Him. My father's God and I will exalt Him" In our down times remember.... Hope sings!!!

 

Gems of Grace Jan 2019 

 

 

Survivors/Overcomers 

We are all faced with battles in this life. No one is excluded. We are tossed about by many things. It's not how we fight our battles that's important. It is

WHO fights our battles. 1 John 5:4 says "For whatever is born of God overcomes the world. And this is the Victory that has overcome the world. And this is the Victory that has overcomes the world - our Faith" You see, when we hold on to Jesus who already won our victory when He died on Calvary, it is He who fights for us. In our song "Survivor Song" it states "I'm a survivor I'm a fighter an overcomer and a victor. Lord you know this battle was yours long before it begun" 

November 2016 I (Regina) was faced with a diagnosis of breast cancer. It's a scary thing but God had already began to show me that He knew what was coming before I even got the diagnosis. He was speaking peace to my heart that He was there. It was His strength and healing that brought me thru that. He fought that battle for me!

There are times when we all feeling like hanging up our shields, swords and stop fighting. Sometimes we'd rather sit in the corner and cry Lol. However, on the contrary, that is where we lean on HIM. My mom used to say "lean heavily on the Lord" He is our healer,  Isaiah 53:5 He was wounded for our transgressions, He was bruised for our iniquities; The chastisement of our peace was upon Him, and by His stripes we are healed. Psalms 147:3 He heals the brokenhearted and binds up their wounds. One of the verses of our song says " You're my strength.  Your'e my healer.  You're my strength You are my healer. When I'd rather give up the fight you are my hope my song in the night."

You maybe facing sickness right now. It might even be emotional distress, financial battles or situations hitting you straight in the face. No matter what..... You are a SURVIVOR, an OVERCOMER and a VICTOR because Jesus our King of Kings and Lord of Lords has already fought and won your battle!!!! Just keep hanging on to HIM and let Him fight that battle for you. 

Gems of Grace Jan 2019 

 

 

 

Be Still  

    .Psalms 46:10 Be still and know that I am God; I will be exalted among the nations, I will be exalted in the earth. What a beautiful verse! It brings to mind Images from Psalms 23:1-2 The Lord is my shepherd I shall not want. He makes me lie down in green pastures; he leads me beside still waters. It's that place where all the noisy clatter of stress and worry are muted by His still waters when we allow our souls to be still and wait before the Lord. He is our safe place, our refuge. Psalms 46:11 The Lord of hosts is with us; The God of Jacob is our refuge. When we are facing hard times and in the midst of trouble we can KNOW for sure that no matter where we are "The God of Jacob" , "The Lord of hosts" is with us. Regardless of life's troubled sea our souls are resting in still waters. Earlier in Psalms 46 it gives us an even stronger picture. Psalms 46:1-3 God is our refuge and strength. a very present help in trouble. Therefore we will not fear, even though the earth be removed, and though the mountains be carried into the midst of the sea; Though it's waters roar and be troubled though the mountains shake with it's swelling. The bridge to our song "Be Still"  says "Stand Fearless He will never leave you. Stand courageous He wont forsake you" Fear cant stay in the presence of God. Fear can't stay when we Praise. When are still and take time to recall His goodness and the things He has done we find His presence saturates us with peace and joy. Dwelling on who he is and things he has done brings that calm and stillness even when kaos is all around. recalling his grace, mercy and goodness we realize just how much we have to be Thankful for. Psalms 46 goes on to say in  verse 4 There is a river whose streams shall make glad the city of God, The Holy place of the tabernacle of the Most High. Just as the chorus to our song "Be Still" says "Exalted among the nations Exalted, the God of Jacob is our refuge. Exalted among the nations. Exalted, a very present help in time of trouble."

He is worthy to be exalted!! What are some situations in your life that you need to find that place of being still and knowing that He is God?

 

Prayer: Lord you are exalted among the nations. Be exalted in my heart please help me to wait before you in all of life's up and down's in every situation 

Let me Be Still so i can hear your voice loud and clear above life's noisy clatter when i am tired and wore out  remind me of your goodness and all the things 

you've done. That the God Of Jacob is my refuge and a very present help in time of trouble. 

I praise you Lord! I will exalt you and lift you high. In Jesus name Amen. 

Gems of Grace 2019