“Ho! Everyone who thirsts, come to the waters; and you who have no money, come, buy and eat. Yes, come, buy wine and milk without money and without  price.” (Isaiah 55:1)

October 2004

Dear Friend,

Trusting that all is well with you and your loved ones. We are fine, and this month we are praising God for blessing us with fifteen precious years of ministry! He has trusted us with tremendous expansion throughout the years, and we are truly grateful for all that He has done. Many of you have partnered with us throughout these years, so I would like to wish you a Happy Anniversary! God bless you! This is such a strategic time in history, as God is doing a work in our lives, in our cities, and in our nation. It will be interesting to see how His plans unfold and how this will affect our lives. God wants to visit us in a powerful way, in a way that can change the course of history.  How ready are we?

He calls everyone who thirsts for more of Him, to come; come, buy and eat without money and without price. Isn’t it so awesome that the “one thing” that changes our life so dramatically comes without price? His abundant life is free! We spend on restaurants thinking that fancy food will fill us and give us pleasure; we spend on clothes that we don’t need, thinking that they will make us look nicer, but God says we are beautiful already! “O my love, you are as beautiful as Tirzah, lovely as Jerusalem, awesome as an army with banners!” (Song of Solomon 6:4) When will we learn what really matters?

God says “Why do you spend money on what is not bread, and your wages for what does not satisfy?” All these things in life, that we feel we must have are nothing compared to the riches of glory in Christ Jesus! Whoa! God tells us, “Why do you spend money for what is not bread, and your wages for what does not satisfy?” (Isa. 55:2). Why do we? He says “Listen carefully to Me, and eat what is good, and let your soul delight itself in abundance, incline your ear to Me, and come to Me. Hear and your soul shall live.” (Vs. 2, 3a) What is He talking about here? God is giving us a lifeline! He is telling us that there is hope! He is saying that there is much more to our existence than we can possibly ever think of or imagine! Paul applies this Scripture to David in Acts 13:34. “And that He raised Him from the dead, no more to return to corruption, He has spoken thus;  ‘I will give you the sure mercies of David.’” Glory! He is a faithful God who was always faithful to David, and will always be faithful to us! His covenant, by the shed blood of our Lord Jesus Christ has washed us clean, and opened up heaven’s gates for us!

Verses 6 and 7 goes on to call us to repentance. He says “Let the wicked forsake his way, and the unrighteous his thoughts. Let him return to the Lord, and He will have mercy on him, and to our God, for He will abundantly pardon.” This is powerful! What a Loving, Merciful God we serve!

My friend, if you are in a place right now where you feel as if you have passed the point of no return, and that God does not care about you, read this Scripture again! When God makes a covenant, it is totally binding. The blood-letting seals the covenant. It is finished! The New Covenant made by Jesus Christ with His shed blood on the cross of Calvary brings believers into the Everlasting Covenant. This thereby  completes the cycle of Covenantal revelation, which fulfills the Old Testament and brings us to the New Testament. We are talking powerful and profound stuff here!

When God tells us in Isaiah to “buy and eat” He is talking about His Word. He says “come, buy wine and milk” meaning we are to draw nourishment from His Word. When His Word is in our Spirit, we become full, or satisfied. But as in the natural, we become hungry again. This is to cause us to eat His Word day by day to keep us nourished in His promises. This is what satisfies. This is what keeps us strong and spiritually healthy. When His Word is ingrained in us we don’t lose sight of His daily provision in our day to day life. We don’t become fearful when we listen to the news, or hear bad reports, because we know Who we belong to! We know that He who is in us, is greater than he who is in the world. (1 John 4:4). We also know that if we fail, and then come back to him in repentance He is faithful to forgive us and cleanse us from all unrighteousness. (1 John 1:9). Glory! There is NOTHING that can separate us from the love of God! “What then shall we say to these things? If God is for us, who can be against us?” (Rom. 8:31).

God goes on in Isaiah 55 to say “So shall My Word be that goes forth from MY mouth; it shall not return to Me void, but it shall accomplish what I please, and it shall prosper in the thing which I sent it.” What are you praying for? Is it for salvation for your children, or grandchildren? Isaiah 54:1 tells us: “All your children shall be taught by the Lord, and great shall be the peace of your children.” God said His Word will accomplish what He pleases, and we know that God wants your children saved, and if His Word will not return to Him void, we can expect that God’s will for your children will be accomplished! Keep those prayers going and watch what God does! Never give up on the things you are praying for! If you know something is God’s  will, by His Word, then go full speed ahead with heavy intercession, knowing that God will move in the thing you are praying for.

All increase of life within His love comes from His Word, and when we receive God’s Word of promise it will never be barren. The power in His Word will always fulfill the promise of His Word.  How do we develop faith for this? “Faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the Word of God.” (Romans 10:17). Eat God’s Word, digest it, memorize it, and never let it go! Hear God’s Word. If you are not in a good Bible believing church right now, find one, and go to Sunday Services and Bible studies. If you need help to find a good church, call our Hope connection Helpline: (718) 238-4600 and we will find one for you. Open your Bible now, and begin your life of overcoming victory! God bless you!

Rev. Barbara Anne Yovino, Ph.D.