SUFFERING / HOPE

Ro 5:3 Not only so, but we also rejoice in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance;

Ro 5:4 perseverance, character; and character, hope.

Ro 5:5 And hope does not disappoint us, because God has poured out his love into our hearts by the Holy Spirit, whom he has given us
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Some of the things that we perceive as bad are being used to help the common good of all, and in doing that, we feel better about ourselves. There is not a feeling in the world that is better, than one of helping someone feel a sense of hope through their trials. It provides a sense of unity with others, and an avenue to help them. Life Experiences that in our perception were bad, or felt really bad at that time, while it hurts us initially, we either grow the most during these times or are able to help someone else, council them, heal their hurts and give them hope. Because we have been there, our testimony allows them to trust that we have seen God come through for us, and it can be the same for them. We also learn a lot about ourselves when we teach others. It allows us to re-live those learned lessons and keep them fresh in our minds, to keep us from falling back into old destructive patterns. This is why we are urged to keep Christian Community.

CELEBRATING CHRISTMAS

Col 2:16 Therefore do not let anyone judge you by what you eat or drink, or with regard to a religious festival, a New Moon celebration or a Sabbath day.

Merry Christmas everyone! Thank you Jesus for coming into our world and making a way for us sinners to enter your paradise.

HALLELUJAH THE KING IS BORN !!

First Jesus-Era House Found in Nazareth, Israel

Check this out!

www.foxnews.com/scitech/2009/12/21/jesus-era-house-nazareth-israel/

VIGILANCE

But you must remember, my fellow-citizens, that eternal vigilance by the people is the price of liberty, and that you must pay the price if you wish to secure the blessing." Andrew Jackson
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Mk 13:32 “No one knows about that day or hour, not even the angels in heaven, nor the Son, but only the Father.
Mk 13:33 Be on guard! Be alert! You do not know when that time will come.
Mk 13:34 It’s like a man going away: He leaves his house and puts his servants in charge, each with his assigned task, and tells the one at the door to keep watch.
Mk 13:35 “Therefore keep watch because you do not know when the owner of the house will come back—whether in the evening, or at midnight, or when the rooster crows, or at dawn.
Mk 13:36 If he comes suddenly, do not let him find you sleeping.
Mk 13:37 What I say to you, I say to everyone: ‘Watch!”
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After reading the quote above from Andrew Jackson, I looked up eternal in the dictionary:
1 a : having infinite duration : everlasting b : of or relating to eternity c : characterized by abiding fellowship with God.

WOW!! What a profound statement Andrew made! ONE NATION UNDER GOD comes to mind. The USA experiences freedoms that other countries do not have. The difference is that we were established with God in control. At least that is what our forefathers intended. A day and age where saying God was acceptable and advised. There was no argument amongst the people as to who their lives and country belonged to, and doing so would have been unacceptable behavior. I feel that his statement is similar to a statement that Peter had made:

1Pe 5:8 Be self-controlled and alert. Your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour.
1Pe 5:9 Resist him, standing firm in the faith, because you know that your brothers throughout the world are undergoing the same kind of sufferings.
1Pe 5:10 And the God of all grace, who called you to his eternal glory in Christ, after you have suffered a little while, will himself restore you and make you strong, firm and steadfast.
1Pe 5:11 To him be the power for ever and ever. Amen.

Andrew speaks of Vigilance. Mark and Peter speak of being alert. The question is what do they want us to stay alert to? I feel we are to stay awake so that we do not fall into temptation. The devil roams around and waits for someone to whisper his lies to. Someone that is asleep in their walk/relationship with Christ. The only thing that can squelch the devil's lies, is the Truth that is found in the Word of God. This Truth needs to be in your heart and mind and meditated on daily. Our goal is to be one with Christ Who is one with the Father. Christ exemplifies this behavior when the devil is trying to tempt him in the desert (LUK 4:1). Every time the devil tries to trick Him into bondage, Christ has the Truth on the tip of His tongue and wins the battle of that time for it. Three different lies and Jesus had Truth for every one of them. He would not have been ready if He had not been keeping constant communion with the Father. In order to build a realtionship with anyone, you need to communicate with them. We communicate with God through His Word, prayer, and being still to hear His still small voice so that we may be obedient to it.

The devil's wants to keep as many of us in bondage/slavery as he is able to. God's Grace that you receive when you Believe the Word and accept the free gift that He has given us, (Christ on the Cross), will secure your blessings that He has promised.

The biggest promise/blessing we can hold onto is our salvation. Let us make sure we are awake in Christ for the return of the owner of our house (heart)!

YOU ARE NOT AN ACCIDENT

Has anyone ever told you that your birth was not planned? Your earthly parents may not have planned your birth, but nothing in this world can happen without God's seal of approval. When the Lord wants something to be done, it will be done one way or the other. I was not a planned pregnancy by my parents, but I know that God wanted me in this world. I know that He has a specific plan for me and a purpose. I do not know the details yet, or where I will be in five years. I do know that the God that created the Heavens and the Earth, knows every hair on my head. He knew everything about my life, start to finish and still accepted, created, and loved me. There is no waste in God's world. Everything and everyone has a purpose. He loves every single one of us unconditionally. We are His children. When we go shopping, do we focus on the form of transportation that we use to get us there? Besides making sure we have a way, we really do not put much thought into that do we? No, we are probably concentrating more on what we will do once we get there. What shops will we go into? How much will we spend? We focus on the bigger picture of getting the task done. If we sit around and ponder too much about every little detail, we may miss our ride. Perhaps this is how we should look at the form of transportation that God chose to get us to Earth. Now of course I am not trying to compare our parents to a car. I am quite sure that God hand selected our specific parents, and that they play a pivotal role, in who we are to become in Christ. What I am saying is that God did in fact get us here. WE ARE CREATED TO GOD. The only thing we need focus on is what to do while we are here. I love and respect my parents but they could have never planned ME, even if they had tried. Only God can do that. Furthermore, we can be anything we want to be in Christ. Our parents provide an "environment" for us to grow in. There are some learned behavorial patterns and thinking patterns that will come from this, but nothing that we cannot change with the help of Christ if we truly want to. Start asking God to put the right people on your path today, that will influence you and encourage you in a positive way (Christ centered fellowship). This and daily communion with your true Father, will transform you into the beautiful butterfly you are meant to become for His Kingdom.

THE WILL OF THE FATHER? BELIEVE IN JESUS

Mt 7:21 “Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord, will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only he who does the will of my Father who is in heaven.

Jn 6:40 For my Father’s will is that everyone who looks to the Son and believes in him shall have eternal life, and I will raise him up at the last day.”
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The Father's will is clear. Look to Jesus and Believe in the Salvation that is freely given, by His death on the Cross. He took our place on the Cross for all sin. This covers past sins and future sins committed by us. Once we Believe and open up to a relationship with Christ (through prayer, reading the Bible and being still to listen), the Spirit will speak to us and will transform us, as we walk in obedience to His Word. During this transformation, we will begin to speak and act differently. What was once acceptable behavior, will gradually become a thing of the past as we walk in the Spirit. The desire to sin will decrease little by little. We are a new creation with Christ living inside of us! The Love of Christ will begin to flow in us, until it pours over and affects everyone around us. Belief is what sends all of this into action and seals the deal. It is not enough to Believe the Biblical facts. We need to accept that His Word is true in our hearts. It is our choice whether to accept the Gift our Father is offering or deny it. The gift of Grace is Christ on the Cross, crucified for our sins. Grace is something given freely even though undeserved. Calvary is the answer the Father gave us for sin. The only action that is needed on our part is to BELIEVE and look to Christ. He will show us the rest of the way from there.

FAITH / SALVATION

I found this on AbideinChrist website. I encourage you to read:

Faith Defined:
Knowledge, Belief and Trust

http://www.abideinchrist.com/selah/dec4.html

Faith’s Results: Justification

http://www.abideinchrist.com/selah/dec3.html

Faith’s Object: Jesus Christ

http://www.abideinchrist.com/selah/dec2.html

IN ONENESS THERE IS TOGETHERNESS

I received this message this morning from the Lord. I believe the meaning of it is that if we focus on Christ and being one with Him, all of our other relationships will bear the countenance of Christ which is love. Love will keep us together. I think there is a song about that :-).

PSALM 51:10 A PRAYER FOR A PURE HEART

Ps 51:10 Create in me a pure heart, O God, and renew a steadfast spirit within me.
Ps 51:11 Do not cast me from your presence or take your Holy Spirit from me.
Ps 51:12 Restore to me the joy of your salvation and grant me a willing spirit, to sustain me.
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I prayed this prayer for myself tonight and for any person that is reading this. I have received many messages lately in regards to having a pure heart. I just think this prayer is perfect. In the name of Jesus I pray......

ECC 7:3 A SAD FACE IS GOOD FOR YOUR HEART

Ecc 7:3 Sorrow is better than laughter because a sad face is good for the heart.
Ecc 7:4 The heart of the wise is in the house of mourning, but the heart of fools is in the house of pleasure.
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I have often wondered what Solomon could have possibly meant when he said this. I am going to take a shot at it. It seems the times you grow the most in life are wrapped in a package of great sadness or distress. You become more aware of your shortcomings and are more willing to learn from them without distraction, because you do not have a choice. Our human nature when given a choice is to take the easy way out. When you are wrapped up in earthly pleasures, you are not thinking of anything besides how much fun you are having at that moment. Nothing in that pleasure really forces you to take a look at changes that need to be made or bettering yourself. It can stagnate your life. There is not much growth involved in just trying to maintain a fun easy life and in most cases, it can be the distraction that hinders you from moving forward into the better life that God has planned for you. It seems when you are sad, there is a cleansing that eventually takes place in your heart that leads to purification when you turn to God. With hard decisions can come much sadness however these hard decisions and choices will in most cases secure a better future for you. The other reason it is good to have a sad face is that a lot of people tend to hide their feelings and put on a smile even though they are in pain. Some may deny their pain all together so they will not have to feel it. There is a releasement and a freedom that comes from voicing and walking through your pain. Keeping emotions bottled up inside can lead to many sicknesses and illnesses. Isn't it funny that tears come from your eyes and they are the lamp of your body?

GOD IS LOVE 1JN 4:15 and 1 COR 13:3

1Jn 4:15 If anyone acknowledges that Jesus is the Son of God, God lives in him and he in God.
1Jn 4:16 And so we know and rely on the love God has for us. God is love. Whoever lives in love lives in God, and God in him.
1Jn 4:17 In this way, love is made complete among us so that we will have confidence on the day of judgment, because in this world we are like him.

1Co 13:3 If I give all I possess to the poor and surrender my body to the flames, but have not love, I gain nothing.
1Co 13:4 Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud.
1Co 13:5 It is not rude, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs.
1Co 13:6 Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth.
1Co 13:7 It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres.
1Co 13:8 Love never fails.
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Today 1 cor 13 has new meaning for me. I still look to it as a guideline of how I need to treat those around me (and still wish I could take back the times I did not behave this way in the past), but there is something else that I feel God is trying to tell us here. I have read this verse a couple of times over the last couple of months. It dawned on me today that God is love. I mean yes, I have heard this before and I knew it was in the Bible. But this hit me like WOW!!! If God is love, then God feels this way towards us! God is using these guidelines in His relationship with us! If you replace the word love or it with God in this verse, you see the true nature of God’s love for us. I decided to read the verse again where it states that God is love, and it added the other piece of the puzzle for me. If we acknowledge that Jesus is the Son of God, God lives in us and we live in him just like Jesus did. In this way, love is made complete among us. The more we focus on Jesus, who is the very nature of God, the more we will reflect His image of love that Paul speaks of in this verse. This entire time I have been reading this verse, and then trying to force myself to behave this way towards those that I love. I have been failing miserably. Our human nature is to act the exact opposite way. It makes sense that God continually urges us to focus on Him and His Kingdom and assures us the rest will fall into place. I truly feel I would have never had this revelation (for me anyway it was), if I had not been diligently studying His Scriptures, and praying and asking Jesus to transform me into His likeness. His Kingdom is like a grab bag of secrets that you get to stick your hand into and pull out a prize. Only you don’t need a ticket or cash to play, you need only seek Him with all your heart (no this is not a parable in the Bible, it just popped in my head). Thank you so much Father for Your Grace! You are truly an awesome God! XOXO

Isa 57:1 DEATH OF A LOVED ONE

The righteous perish, and no one ponders it in his heart; devout men are taken away, and no one understands that the righteous are taken away to be spared from evil. Isa 57:2 Those who walk uprightly enter into peace; they find rest as they lie in death
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I have often said that Earth is the closest thing we will get to hell. I mean the devil lives here right? One of the biggest stumbling blocks of a believer can be the death of a loved one too soon. We are so filled with pain and grief, we raise our hands to Heaven, WHY LORD WHY?! We wonder why such a great person that was obviously making a huge difference in the world is removed. Why did He allow that little girl to die? I believe God is giving us an answer in the verse above. They are taken away to be spared. This life is hard. Let us do everything that we can in order to spread the Good news of Christ so that fellow believers that pass on can rest in His peace. All one has to do in order to enter the gates of Heaven is to believe that Jesus Christ has died on the cross for his sins. I love the quote, "there are no atheists in foxholes". I believe that just as the sinners to His right and left on the cross had a chance to repent before death, that he offers this "last chance" to those that are about to pass on from this life. I sincerely believe that most of us having His words written on our hearts, will make the right choice.

ISA 61:1 PREACHING THE GOOD NEWS

Isa 61:1 The Spirit of the Sovereign Lord is on me, because the Lord has anointed me to preach good news to the poor. He has sent me to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim freedom for the captives And release from darkness for the prisoners,
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You will notice there is a comma at the end. This is because the statement goes further than what I have placed above. If you prefer, take out the Book of all Books and read the rest of what it has to say. I want to point out to you that this verse is speaking to us. Once we have given our hearts to Christ, it is our job to spread His love around as much as we possibly can, in order to pull others out of the darkness and into the light. There is a spirtual warfare going on in our world today that cannot be denied. The father of lies is holding so many in chains as he whispers his lies into their ears. Whether it is that they are not worthy of the love of another or they need to be perfect in order for God to accept them. It is up to us as brothers and sisters in Christ to encourage one another. When you hear someone make a negative statement about themselves, take the time to counter it with the Truth for them. Most people are not reading the Word so, they need a spokesperson to step in and tell them about how much God loves and accepts them exactly the way that they are. Read your Bible daily and spend time with our Father so that His promises will be fresh in your mind and heart. In doing this, you will be able to have the pefect verse come to mind to help you encourage them.

JAMES 1:2-6 DUAL-MINDED

Jas 1:2 Consider it pure joy, my brothers, whenever you face trials of many kinds,
Jas 1:3 because you know that the testing of your faith develops perseverance.
Jas 1:4 Perseverance must finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything.
Jas 1:5 If any of you lacks wisdom, he should ask God, who gives generously to all without finding fault, and it will be given to him.
Jas 1:6 But when he asks, he must believe and not doubt, because he who doubts is like a wave of the sea, blown and tossed by the wind.
Jas 1:7 That man should not think he will receive anything from the Lord;
Jas 1:8 he is a double-minded man, unstable in all he does.
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We should ask the Lord before we make our daily decisions in life. I have learned that it is much easier to ask God to direct my steps early in the morning and communicate with Him throughout the day, rather than asking him to bless my blunders later. OBEDIENCE PRECEDES FAITH. When we ask, we must BELIEVE that He will provide the guidance that we are seeking. The second step is to MOVE forward. In moving in the direction He has shown, it will give us the opportunity to witness the fulfillment of His promises. The lord will not do anything against our will. We must ask and we must BELIEVE. Perhaps you are in a waiting period and are tempted to give up hope. Do not believe the lies the devil will throw at you to try to steal your blessings. God will come through on His time. Our only job is to BELIEVE in the Lord rather than the lies.

IS IT FAILURE?

We always hear about the successes of people that have made their mark in history. I think it is important to remember that most successful people in life have had many failures along the way. We usually only hear of the successes because that is the only time that people in this world seem to care enough to notice someone (sad but true). While the second link is speaking of business success in most cases, it can also apply to relationships or anything in life that is worth having. I just wanted to send this as it was an encouragement for me to go after the things that I truly desire without letting fear cripple me. I hope this can be an encouragement for you as well to go after the things you want in life. To those of you that are experiencing failure now, congratulations your success is in the making:

http://www.school-for-champions.com/history/lincoln_failures.htm

http://www.nfib.com/object/1584096.html