 A few people have asked why I chose such a strange name for my blog. After all, a plumb line is a carpenter's tool, a simple weight attached to a line for determining the exactness of a vertical line. But, isn't that what it's all about? Aren't we supposed to align our lives to a perfectly vertical line? Of course, His name is Yeshua, the Perfect Son of God, the Lamb slain before the foundation of the earth.
Yeshua lived a perfect, sinless life. He victoriously endured unbelievable persecution and temptation in order that His perfect, sinless life could be the Plumb Line for everyone. Yeshua ... our Plumb Line.
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Since Yeshua is now seated at the right hand of the Father, He made sure we weren't left without a written record of His life and character, His sufferings and victories, His rejection and triumph, all of which is recorded in one Book for us to use in His physical absence as an example for our lives.
In order to align our lives to the example of Yeshua, we must be willing to believe the Word of God is divinely inspired, infallible, and truth. No other book ever written or published can make those claims ... NO other book. The Bible is complete and needs no additional revelation by man or woman to enhance it or complete it.
The Plumb Line is my attempt to keep my heart and life aligned to the Word of God. I invite you to join me on this journey of transformation for His glory!
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By Jan Ross on
2/5/2010 1:30 PM
Friendship is a gift of God, it is precious, it is priceless, and it is to be cherished. A friend is one with whom you are intimately acquainted, one with whom you can associate at any time or under any circumstances, one with whom you trust your confidences. A friend will love you when you're unlovable, lift you up when you are down, encourage you, laugh with you, cry with you, and even challenge you to rise above life's circumstances.
According to Proverbs 17:17, a brother is even closer than a friend.
"A friend loveth at all times, and a brother is born for adversity."
As a member of the Family of God, we have a Friend and a Brother; He was not only born for adversity, He was born in adversity. He's our precious companion, our intimate acquaintance, our cherished associate, and our trustworthy confidant. He even loves us when we're unlovable. He's our Brother;...
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By Jan Ross on
2/4/2010 9:29 AM
Sometimes our emotions are far from being responsive to God in praise. But the Psalmist makes it very clear that we have control over our emotions...that we can deliberately turn our despair into praise and bless the Lord!
David asked himself a question, "Why art thou cast down, O my soul? and why art thou disquieted in me? hope thou in God: for I shall yet praise him for the help of his countenance." (Psalm 42:5) If we can inquire about our soul's disquieted state, what prevents us from changing it by an act of our will! For the most part, we are not victims of our emotions; our emotions are subject to us! They are a choice!
Emotions in and of themselves are not bad; however, they can be a tool in the hand of the enemy to hide the victory we have in Christ and to distract us from enjoying the benefits of being joint heirs with Him, accepted in the beloved.
The next...
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By Jan Ross on
2/3/2010 9:21 AM
"If God be for us, who can be against us?"
Is God really for us? How many times have we asked ourselves that question when things don't go our way or when we see things happen that we don't understand, especially after we've prayed about them?
The fact is, God is not only FOR us, He's reconciled TO us. He's not against us, He's in covenant WITH us, He's working FOR us on our behalf. All that He is and all that He has; all that He does and all that He plans to do is for us. Even when it seems that His acts are against us, you can be assured that they are for us, someway or somehow.
So, if all this is true, who can really be against us? Who can stand in the face of the Almighty God and dare to challenge Him in His dealing with us? Nothing—no one—can prevail against Him regardless of how great, strong, malicious, or evil they appear to be.
Who dares to fight against...
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By Jan Ross on
2/2/2010 9:17 AM
Moses, a man who knew the importance of the presence of God, who found safety and security in the presence of God, who realized there was a price to be paid for the presence of God, was determined not to go forward without the presence of the Lord!
"And he said unto him, If thy presence go not with me, carry us not up hence." (Exodus 33:15)
When was the last time we told the Lord, "If your presence doesn't go with me, I won't go"? That's exactly what Moses was saying . . . he was convinced that he didn't want to go anywhere that God wouldn't be with him. He understood just how important God's presence was in accomplishing anything he set his hand to.
The Old Testament word for "presence" means essentially, "the face". It speaks of intimacy, of closeness, of knowing. Moses wanted to see God face-to-face wherever He led him!
The presence of God is precious as...
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By Jan Ross on
2/1/2010 8:07 AM
Understanding the depth of love and the forgiveness of God leads us into fear of God. Not fear in the sense of being afraid of Him, but awe, reverence, and the deepest respect! However, coming to understand the depth of His love comes only by spending time with Him, thirsting after Him on a daily basis, never allowing our thirst to be quenched!
"If thou, LORD, shouldest mark iniquities, O Lord, who shall stand? But there is forgiveness with thee, that thou mayest be feared." (Psalm 130:3-4)
Who are we that we deserve such a love? We say we have a "fear" of God, yet we live in disobedience. How many of us have heard that "small still voice" gently guiding us in a particular situation yet we ignored it to do the very thing that our own logic dictated. This goes on in the life of most believers because we have not learned the "art" of fearing God for Who He is through our acts...
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By Jan Ross on
1/27/2010 7:03 AM
The news headlines continue to remind us of the desperation of mankind.
Earthquakes. Extreme weather. Unleashed wickedness. Unemployment. Rising prices. Government failures. Political battles. Poverty. Starvation. Homelessness. The list could go on to fill pages. However…
God is in control. We serve a God who is "governor among the nations." No matter how things look in the natural, God is in control. He and He alone.
There is no power in heaven or on earth that can match the power of God. No principality or power can usurp His might and His sovereignty over all. There is no reason to fear … our God is THE "governor among the nations." He and He alone.
"For the kingdom is the Lord's: and he is the governor among the nations." (Psalm 22:28)
Regardless what we face—natural disaster, disease, financial crises, family problems, loss of income, abandonment,...
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By Jan Ross on
1/26/2010 7:41 AM
The mercy of God is one attribute that everyone finds easy to live with. If we're honest with ourselves, we often think, "God is merciful, He'll understand" when trying to ease our conscience as we face difficult decisions. Even those that have not made Jesus Lord of their lives count on God's mercy thinking that He is too "good" to allow them to be eternally separated from Him even though they never made a commitment to Him.
The fear of God, however, is another story. Our relationship with the Lord is nothing to be taken lightly. It is a serious duty we are called to time and time again throughout scripture. To fear Him is to honor Him, to reverence Him, to count Him worthy of our undivided love and adoration. We must be filled with truth and sincerity, godly conversation, true worship, not in show only or in meaningless empty words, but in everything we are, everything we say, and...
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By Jan Ross on
1/25/2010 8:28 AM
[Note: Please check updates on Heart of God Haiti by clicking HERE.]
Godliness . . . what is it? Reverence, respect, piety toward God.
Contentment . . . what is it? Sufficiency of the necessities of life.
The Apostle Paul makes a statement that needs to be heard and heeded by all Christians. "But godliness with contentment is great gain." (1 Timothy 6:6)
Godliness in itself is great gain and is profitable in all things. And, wherever there is Godliness, there is contentment. This type of contentment is worth all the wealth of the world. To have the world's riches may bring temporary contentment, but that soon erodes away as there is no foundation for life in earthly riches. When the riches are gone, or when they begin to place too many demands on us, we soon lose our contentment only to seek it from other sources....
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By Jan Ross on
1/20/2010 7:32 AM
The thing we desire the most—to please our Heavenly Father, to live a life which stands out as being contrary to the ways of the world. Just as the moon has no light in and of itself, we cannot truly "shine" without reflecting the glory of the Lord in all we say and do. We have no ability to shine on our own; we only reflect the light of the Sun.
"Jesus answered, Neither hath this man sinned, nor his parents: but that the works of God should be made manifest in him." (John 9:3)
The blind man was not responsible for his situation because of any sin in his life. His parents were not held accountable, nor his grandparents, etc. He was blind so the Father could be glorified in his life.
Ask yourself a question: Why am I the way I am? The answer is simple: So the Lord might be glorified through our lives. God, the Creator, in His omniscience, knew exactly what you needed...
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By Jan Ross on
1/19/2010 8:04 AM
Please Check the Updates on HG-Haiti's Website – Read About Yesterday's Miracles and Praise God with Us!
Many people have the fear that if they ever revealed to someone what they were really like, that person would reject them. There are many people who go through life thinking there is no way anyone could ever know them intimately and still love them. However, God knows us, better than we know ourselves! And, He loves us more than we could ever imagine!
"O LORD, thou hast searched me, and known me." (Psalm 139:1)
God is omniscient. He is all knowing. He knows all things about everything, and He knows them perfectly. He knows what we need before we pray. He knows and understands our suffering. He never misunderstands us or anything. We stand naked and open before Him. There is nothing He doesn't know....
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