Eph 1:13 And you also were included in Christ when you heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation. Having believed, you were marked in him with a seal, the promised Holy Spirit,
Eph 1:14 who is a deposit guaranteeing our inheritance until the redemption of those who are God’s possession—to the praise of his glory.
Est 8:8 Now write another decree in the king’s name in behalf of the Jews as seems best to you, and seal it with the king’s signet ring for no document written in the king’s name and sealed with his ring can be revoked.”
___________________
Come to Christ, confess your sins and BELIEVE that He has forgiven them, and put total trust in Him to transform your heart. This will place the seal of His Spirit on you, signifying that you are Christ's and a follower of The Way. A signet ring is a seal used by an authoritative figure to validate the acts, that are executed in the name the ring bears. Typically, they have a coat of arms on them. This is a design that signifies which body you belong to. In our case, it is the Body of Christ and it distinguishes us as being in The Army of God, rather than the army of the devil. You are now the legal property of God, transmitted from Father to Son and everything the Son has, is now yours including the power that comes in His Spirit. The devil is well aware of this and he is afraid.
Think of it as God placing His signet ring on your forehead, baptizing you into the family name of Jesus, which means that His Father is now your Father. This is your spiritual baptism. You are born again in the name of Christ, you will inherit the Kingdom of God and be recognized as a son/daughter of God, rather than a slave of this world whom the devil is the father of.
Gal 4:7 So you are no longer a slave, but a son; and since you are a son, God has made you also an heir.
In sharing in His glory, we will also partake in the same sufferings of Christ, when He walked in the flesh on this Earth. You will be persecuted, the same as He was persecuted. The world will see His Spirit in you, and despise you for it. You have just fled to the other side of the war and your old captain, and his team of hosts are not going to be happy with this. One thing we have to remember is that the humans in this world, may not realize that they are treating you poorly because it is not them, but the devil working through them. Eph 6:11 Put on the full armor of God so that you can take your stand against the devil’s schemes. Eph 6:12 For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, but against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms. Friends, this battle is real! It is not a figure of speech or some type of symbolism. The devil wants you back on his side. Make no mistake, your seal is irrevocable. It will not be taken away from you and there are no amount of works in the world, that can give you anymore of it than what you have. however; you can lose the power that is available to you, if you fail to continue to BELIEVE in the promises that come with His Seal. This is the area the enemy loves to hit us in the most, because he knows the power that comes from your Faith. Faith is believing in His promises regardless of what the devil is showing you in this world. It is looking ahead to the Kingdom that Jesus has promised you. That is the GOOD NEWS!! He has prepared us the way that any commander would by giving us access to the full Armor of God. 6:13 Therefore put on the full armor of God, so that when the day of evil comes, you may be able to stand your ground, and after you have done everything, to stand.
Eph 6:14 Stand firm then, with the belt of truth buckled around your waist, with the breastplate of righteousness in place,
Eph 6:15 and with your feet fitted with the readiness that comes from the gospel of peace.
Eph 6:16 In addition to all this, take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one.
Eph 6:17 Take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God.
Eph 6:18 And pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests. With this in mind, be alert and always keep on praying for all the saints.
As a solider in His Army, you will have angels standing around you, protecting you. The devil cannot physically hurt you. All he can do is wage war with your mind, if you allow him. Just keep on your helmet of salvation to protect you from his lies. Keep this promise in the forefront of your mind:
Jn 6:39 And this is the will of him who sent me, that I shall lose none of all that he has given me, but raise them up at the last day.
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.”
Father I pray that anyone reading this will receive your seal, by believing in your power to do all that you have promised. I pray for them, a restored, or new relationship with you in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen!
Sunday, February 28, 2010
Saturday, February 27, 2010
He is God's not yours!
Ro 14:4 Who are you to judge someone else’s servant? To his own master he stands or falls. And he will stand, for the Lord is able to make him stand.
__________________
It truly is tough to live up to the the standards that come along with following, "The Way". We live in this world which pulls us towards unhealthy desires and actions. On top of that, there are some who are just waiting for us to screw up. In some strange way, it makes some people feel better to judge others that are trying to improve themselves, rather than taking a look at the at the things that they may be doing, that is causing them to not live up to their full potential in life. This is the way that I look at sin. Sin is basically missing the mark for the better life God has planned for you. God commands us to encourage one another daily. He does not want us cutting each other down and ripping each other a part. The back-stabbing,gossip, and judging needs to stop! We are all trying to be the best we can be, and the ones who are not, they will soon enough. If we could come from a place of understanding and grace, we would all be a lot happier. I find it interesting it says that the Lord is able to make him stand. So, let us instead of judging, pray to God to make them stand!!!
Father I pray in the name of your Son, that you will make us all stand and love one another as you love us!!!!
__________________
It truly is tough to live up to the the standards that come along with following, "The Way". We live in this world which pulls us towards unhealthy desires and actions. On top of that, there are some who are just waiting for us to screw up. In some strange way, it makes some people feel better to judge others that are trying to improve themselves, rather than taking a look at the at the things that they may be doing, that is causing them to not live up to their full potential in life. This is the way that I look at sin. Sin is basically missing the mark for the better life God has planned for you. God commands us to encourage one another daily. He does not want us cutting each other down and ripping each other a part. The back-stabbing,gossip, and judging needs to stop! We are all trying to be the best we can be, and the ones who are not, they will soon enough. If we could come from a place of understanding and grace, we would all be a lot happier. I find it interesting it says that the Lord is able to make him stand. So, let us instead of judging, pray to God to make them stand!!!
Father I pray in the name of your Son, that you will make us all stand and love one another as you love us!!!!
Wednesday, February 24, 2010
LOVE IS THE LAW
Love, for the Day Is Near
Ro 13:8 Let no debt remain outstanding, except the continuing debt to love one another, for he who loves his fellowman has fulfilled the law.
Ro 13:9 The commandments, “Do not commit adultery,” “Do not murder,” “Do not steal,” “Do not covet,” and whatever other commandment there may be, are summed up in this one rule: “Love your neighbor as yourself.”
Ro 13:10 Love does no harm to its neighbor. Therefore love is the fulfillment of the law.
Ro 13:11 And do this, understanding the present time. The hour has come for you to wake up from your slumber, because our salvation is nearer now than when we first believed.
Ro 13:12 The night is nearly over; the day is almost here. So let us put aside the deeds of darkness and put on the armor of light.
Ro 13:13 Let us behave decently, as in the daytime, not in orgies and drunkenness, not in sexual immorality and debauchery, not in dissension and jealousy.
Ro 13:14 Rather, clothe yourselves with the Lord Jesus Christ, and do not think about how to gratify
the desires of the sinful nature.
______________________________
Wow is all I am able to say about the journey that He sends us on! I love knowing the feeling that I am smack dab in the center of my Father's will. I love the many confirmations that He will send to us, to let us know that we are on the right track and hearing Him clearly. You say that you never hear or don't understand how to? The absolute best way to hear from Him, is staying rooted and grounded in His Word, and keeping a CLOSE relationship to Jesus. When you have a best friend, they reveal their deepest secrets to you, they trust you. This is what Jesus will do for you once you decide to become His closest friend.
Anyway, The Lord has laid it on my heart how many people in our world are believing in lies that they have heard about God, or false images of a God that they have conjured up in their heads due to their lack of Belief in the promises of God, or simply because they don't know the promises because they do not read the Bible. These people that I speak of are people that are hurting very deeply inside. They are torn between what they are supposed to be doing to be righteous of their own works, rather than relying on the Grace that Christ gave to them by dying on the Cross. They are so hung up on the repentance part, they forget that God is the one that needs to do the work to transform their hearts. This is typically not an overnight process although it can be in some cases. When we feel as if we need to take action and control of our salvation, we can sometimes rush ahead of the work that only the Lord can do that is needed to uphold the law. We simply cannot uphold to the standards of law, without the love of God in our hearts. It is this love that will set your feet on the straight path. When we switch gears from love rather than obligation, we will fulfill the laws. When we allow His love to become one with us, we will begin to see through the eyes of Christ, and we will be the light of this world that many will follow into the Kingdom of God.
There is a movie that is coming out tomorrow, (it will only be in some areas) but you can buy the DVD in April on the website. It is called Lord Save us from your Followers. It is by Dan Merchant. I bought the book a couple of years ago and as with many of my books, it has been sitting around waiting for that perfect time for me to pick it up. After hearing that the movie was to be released this week, it reminded me that I have the book. There is also a DVD in the back of it. The DVD has clippings from the movie. After watching the DVD, I found myself in tears over the way that Christians are coming across, to people in our world. It only confirmed the words that God has been pressing on my heart. I desire MERCY, not judgement. That the only way to bring someone to Christ, is by loving them with a true Godly love first. When we love someone, we seek to understand them. We cannot understand them if we are busy judging them, or trying to stay away from them until they so call, clean up their act. Good thing God did not do that to us! I know I myself would never see Him that way!
Anyway, here is what this guy, Rick Santorum says in Dan's book:
Christ's message was always love, and we need to approach fallen human beings, which we all are, with that constancy of love instead of judgement. If the woman at the well didn't experience the love at the first part of that story, then the "go and sin no more" at the end of the story wouldn't have had the same meaning. Jesus never backed away from the Truth, but He always put it in the context of "here is someone who loves you."
WOW!! Finally words expressed true to exactly how I feel. Well done Rick! If you have never read the story about the woman at the well, it is John 4:1 and an interesting fact is that while this woman was still a sinner (either sleeping with someone else's husband, or living with a man out of wedlock), her testimony of Christ brought many other Samaritans to Christ. Can you imagine?! Jesus using a sinner to bring many to Christ? There is no doubt in my mind that the woman eventually ended up turning from her sin. It does not say in the Bible but I know that she truly BELIEVED in Christ, and once this happens, you have the seal of the Spirit and your life changes forever forward, which causes you to turn from your sin by His power, not your own and that is what truly saves you.
Father I pray that you will give us the radical Spirit of Christ to do what is right in your eyes, rather than what is typically done or acceptable in they eyes of this world.
Ro 13:8 Let no debt remain outstanding, except the continuing debt to love one another, for he who loves his fellowman has fulfilled the law.
Ro 13:9 The commandments, “Do not commit adultery,” “Do not murder,” “Do not steal,” “Do not covet,” and whatever other commandment there may be, are summed up in this one rule: “Love your neighbor as yourself.”
Ro 13:10 Love does no harm to its neighbor. Therefore love is the fulfillment of the law.
Ro 13:11 And do this, understanding the present time. The hour has come for you to wake up from your slumber, because our salvation is nearer now than when we first believed.
Ro 13:12 The night is nearly over; the day is almost here. So let us put aside the deeds of darkness and put on the armor of light.
Ro 13:13 Let us behave decently, as in the daytime, not in orgies and drunkenness, not in sexual immorality and debauchery, not in dissension and jealousy.
Ro 13:14 Rather, clothe yourselves with the Lord Jesus Christ, and do not think about how to gratify
the desires of the sinful nature.
______________________________
Wow is all I am able to say about the journey that He sends us on! I love knowing the feeling that I am smack dab in the center of my Father's will. I love the many confirmations that He will send to us, to let us know that we are on the right track and hearing Him clearly. You say that you never hear or don't understand how to? The absolute best way to hear from Him, is staying rooted and grounded in His Word, and keeping a CLOSE relationship to Jesus. When you have a best friend, they reveal their deepest secrets to you, they trust you. This is what Jesus will do for you once you decide to become His closest friend.
Anyway, The Lord has laid it on my heart how many people in our world are believing in lies that they have heard about God, or false images of a God that they have conjured up in their heads due to their lack of Belief in the promises of God, or simply because they don't know the promises because they do not read the Bible. These people that I speak of are people that are hurting very deeply inside. They are torn between what they are supposed to be doing to be righteous of their own works, rather than relying on the Grace that Christ gave to them by dying on the Cross. They are so hung up on the repentance part, they forget that God is the one that needs to do the work to transform their hearts. This is typically not an overnight process although it can be in some cases. When we feel as if we need to take action and control of our salvation, we can sometimes rush ahead of the work that only the Lord can do that is needed to uphold the law. We simply cannot uphold to the standards of law, without the love of God in our hearts. It is this love that will set your feet on the straight path. When we switch gears from love rather than obligation, we will fulfill the laws. When we allow His love to become one with us, we will begin to see through the eyes of Christ, and we will be the light of this world that many will follow into the Kingdom of God.
There is a movie that is coming out tomorrow, (it will only be in some areas) but you can buy the DVD in April on the website. It is called Lord Save us from your Followers. It is by Dan Merchant. I bought the book a couple of years ago and as with many of my books, it has been sitting around waiting for that perfect time for me to pick it up. After hearing that the movie was to be released this week, it reminded me that I have the book. There is also a DVD in the back of it. The DVD has clippings from the movie. After watching the DVD, I found myself in tears over the way that Christians are coming across, to people in our world. It only confirmed the words that God has been pressing on my heart. I desire MERCY, not judgement. That the only way to bring someone to Christ, is by loving them with a true Godly love first. When we love someone, we seek to understand them. We cannot understand them if we are busy judging them, or trying to stay away from them until they so call, clean up their act. Good thing God did not do that to us! I know I myself would never see Him that way!
Anyway, here is what this guy, Rick Santorum says in Dan's book:
Christ's message was always love, and we need to approach fallen human beings, which we all are, with that constancy of love instead of judgement. If the woman at the well didn't experience the love at the first part of that story, then the "go and sin no more" at the end of the story wouldn't have had the same meaning. Jesus never backed away from the Truth, but He always put it in the context of "here is someone who loves you."
WOW!! Finally words expressed true to exactly how I feel. Well done Rick! If you have never read the story about the woman at the well, it is John 4:1 and an interesting fact is that while this woman was still a sinner (either sleeping with someone else's husband, or living with a man out of wedlock), her testimony of Christ brought many other Samaritans to Christ. Can you imagine?! Jesus using a sinner to bring many to Christ? There is no doubt in my mind that the woman eventually ended up turning from her sin. It does not say in the Bible but I know that she truly BELIEVED in Christ, and once this happens, you have the seal of the Spirit and your life changes forever forward, which causes you to turn from your sin by His power, not your own and that is what truly saves you.
Father I pray that you will give us the radical Spirit of Christ to do what is right in your eyes, rather than what is typically done or acceptable in they eyes of this world.
Tuesday, February 23, 2010
AUTHORITY
Ro 13:1 Everyone must submit himself to the governing authorities, for there is no authority except that which God has established. The authorities that exist have been established by God.
Ro 13:2 Consequently, he who rebels against the authority is rebelling against what God has instituted, and those who do so will bring judgment on themselves.
__________________________
Wow, this one is a tough one for me! I have a really hard time following rules that make 0 sense to me. Or submitting to someone that I have 0 respect for. But the bottom line is that their position was signed off on by God. Nothing happens without the Father signing off on it. A friend of mine and I have started a new thing of praying every Thursday for leaders of all positions. Leaders have the ability to make the greatest influences. They need to be prayed for instead of bashed. God uses even the bad for the greater good of all of us (ROM 8:28). We need to trust that He put them in their positions for a reason.
Ro 13:2 Consequently, he who rebels against the authority is rebelling against what God has instituted, and those who do so will bring judgment on themselves.
__________________________
Wow, this one is a tough one for me! I have a really hard time following rules that make 0 sense to me. Or submitting to someone that I have 0 respect for. But the bottom line is that their position was signed off on by God. Nothing happens without the Father signing off on it. A friend of mine and I have started a new thing of praying every Thursday for leaders of all positions. Leaders have the ability to make the greatest influences. They need to be prayed for instead of bashed. God uses even the bad for the greater good of all of us (ROM 8:28). We need to trust that He put them in their positions for a reason.
Sunday, February 21, 2010
LOVE YOUR ENEMIES
“If your enemy is hungry, feed him; if he is thirsty, give him something to drink. In doing this, you will heap burning coals on his head.”
Ro 12:21 Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good.
___________________
If you have ever done this, you know that this is so true. When you repay evil with good, it takes away the fuel that evil needs to live on. Typically, a person wants a reaction out of you more than anything. When you take away the element of what they expected, it takes the control away from them in the situation. Sometimes, it can even soften their heart. A lot of times a person that is hard to deal with, is someone that is in a lot of pain. The people that are the hardest to love, are the ones that need it the most....(The Peaceful Warrior).
Ro 12:21 Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good.
___________________
If you have ever done this, you know that this is so true. When you repay evil with good, it takes away the fuel that evil needs to live on. Typically, a person wants a reaction out of you more than anything. When you take away the element of what they expected, it takes the control away from them in the situation. Sometimes, it can even soften their heart. A lot of times a person that is hard to deal with, is someone that is in a lot of pain. The people that are the hardest to love, are the ones that need it the most....(The Peaceful Warrior).
ABRAHAM LINCOLN QUOTE OF THE DAY
With malice toward none, with charity for all, with firmness in the right as God gives us to see the right, let us strive on to finish the work we are in, to bind up the nation's wounds...
Wednesday, February 17, 2010
SNOW ANGEL?
Ps 91:11 For he will command his angels concerning you to guard you in all your ways.
Heb 1:7 In speaking of the angels he says, “He makes his angels winds, his servants flames of fire."
Heb 1:14 Are not all angels ministering spirits sent to serve those who will inherit salvation?
On the same night last week that I was playing in the snow, I must have taken over 100 pictures of the snowflakes falling. If you want to see something really cool, take picture of the snow falling in the dark. When your flash goes off, it reflects off all the snowflakes and makes a mini strobe light, and it even makes a cool crackling noise when the flash fires off. It is like you can see the flash hit off of every one of them. For the last month or so, the Lord has been letting me know that He has surrounded me with angels. When I pulled my pictures up on the computer, there was this one. I don't recall seeing anything like this when I took any of these pictures. It seems there is a face in this image, and I can almost see wings and long hair. It could be a number of things that caused the image. I thought maybe even fog on the lens. I was firing the photos off so quickly one after the other, and the others do not have it. It takes a while for fog to get off of a lens once it is on there, and it would have been on at least a couple of the shots after this if it were. It is a neat thought that maybe it was something of the supernatural. I have seen angels in visions before. The picture reminds me of the verse above in how He makes His angels winds. The little white specks you see are snowflakes. Even if it is not an angel, it is still a really peaceful and neat shot to me.
I want to make it clear that I do not worship nor call on angels. It is up to the Lord to do that. I do however know that He has made it clear to me, that they are around me very strong at this time in my life. My eyes are on Christ and not His supernatural or signs, but I know they exist and He will show them to you if you slow down and pay attention to them. Small miracles every day.
Tuesday, February 16, 2010
SNOWFLAKES!
Ro 12:4 Just as each of us has one body with many members, and these members do not all have the same function,
Ro 12:5 so in Christ we who are many form one body, and each member belongs to all the others.
Ro 12:6 We have different gifts, according to the grace given us. If a man’s gift is prophesying, let him use it in proportion to his faith.
Ro 12:7 If it is serving, let him serve; if it is teaching, let him teach;
Ro 12:8 if it is encouraging, let him encourage; if it is contributing to the needs of others, let him give generously; if it is leadership, let him govern diligently; if it is showing mercy, let him do it cheerfully
____________________________
I love snowflakes! They are so beautiful! Last week, I danced around out in the snow, and caught snowflakes in my mouth. I had forgotten how much fun that was. The harder they would come down, the more they were making me laugh because they were pelting me in the eyes, and some of them were so erratic you could not catch them if you tried. Earlier That day, I made the comment to a co-worker, whatever happended to all of the awesome shaped snowflakes we used to get? He mentioned that he had not seen them either. Well, they were falling that night and he mentioned it the next day as well. It makes me wonder, are they always there and we are just not slowing down long enough to see them? They say that there are not two snowflakes that are alike. This reminds me of all of us. We have different talents,gifts,body shapes, etc. In all reality there are not one of us that are the same as another, but everyone is just as beautiful.
If you click on this picture and look to the left of my hat, you will notice a perfect shaped snowflake from that night.
Sunday, February 14, 2010
MY GUITAR HERO!
I wanted to take time today to share a story with you, as well offer many thanks to someone that answered my prayer (an angel).
I had been having feelings that God may have been speaking to my heart, about playing the guitar and singing songs for the Lord. I decided to post a request on the electronic corkboard of my church, to see if someone had a guitar they wanted to get rid of. I had informed a friend of mine that I had these thoughts on my heart about playing. A couple of weeks later he asked what I had decided about it all. I told him that because I tend to have a fickle personality at times, and guitars are not cheap, I was going to wait for a bigger message from God that this is from Him and not me. I had made a couple of bad decisions lately by rushing ahead on what I thought was from Him. Being recently burned in this area, I told him that God was going to have to drop a guitar in my lap if it is from Him. I hung up the phone and checked my e-mail filter, that I had not checked in awhile. I was not doing it to look for anything in particular, I just remembered at that time that I had not checked it. One of the e-mails in the filter said guitar. I opened it and this lady had a brand new guitar that was given to her as a gift. She wanted to give it to me for free! My mouth just dropped. I could not believe the timing of finding that e-mail. It had been in my filter for 3 days and of all times, I would see it right after I stated that He needed to drop it into my lap. We met at our church so that she could give it to me. When I opened up the case and looked at the guitar, it was as if the style of the guitar had been custom made for me! Now that night I knew that I would be getting this guitar,but I had no idea what else God had in store for me. There is a singles group that is meeting right now on Thursdays at my church, that a couple of my friends are in. I was talking to them before she arrived at the church. As we were speaking friends of theirs,and other people from that group sat down with us to talk while they were all waiting for the session to start. In the meantime, she came with my guitar. I brought it back over to our group, and one of the ladies asked me some questions about what I knew about guitars, etc. I let her know that I know nothing and need to take lessons. It turns out that the reason she asked, was because the man that is leading the singles group is putting together a guitar bootcamp type of program that he had not started yet. WOW! I could not believe that, what are the odds?!! I was able to give my information to him so that I can join the group! I was so overwhelmed and happy that I cried most of the way home, happy tears of joy. Everything just fell into line! I had always heard when you are in God's will, things just fall into place. While I experienced some of that in the past, it was never as it was this time. I could not be more sure that God is calling me to do this. I am really beginning to see the fruit of relationship and obedience. By this I do not mean free guitars but just an inner peace of knowing that you are on the right path of your purpose. When I went into work the following day, my co-worker had stated WOW, everything just kind of fell into your lap hauh? I smiled and said that is EXACTLY what happened!
Thank you so much Father for Your Grace,Spirit and your discipline, that allowed me to see my need to be obedient to Your Word, which enabled me to hear your voice more clearly. I look forward to all you have in store for me in this new chapter of my life!
I had been having feelings that God may have been speaking to my heart, about playing the guitar and singing songs for the Lord. I decided to post a request on the electronic corkboard of my church, to see if someone had a guitar they wanted to get rid of. I had informed a friend of mine that I had these thoughts on my heart about playing. A couple of weeks later he asked what I had decided about it all. I told him that because I tend to have a fickle personality at times, and guitars are not cheap, I was going to wait for a bigger message from God that this is from Him and not me. I had made a couple of bad decisions lately by rushing ahead on what I thought was from Him. Being recently burned in this area, I told him that God was going to have to drop a guitar in my lap if it is from Him. I hung up the phone and checked my e-mail filter, that I had not checked in awhile. I was not doing it to look for anything in particular, I just remembered at that time that I had not checked it. One of the e-mails in the filter said guitar. I opened it and this lady had a brand new guitar that was given to her as a gift. She wanted to give it to me for free! My mouth just dropped. I could not believe the timing of finding that e-mail. It had been in my filter for 3 days and of all times, I would see it right after I stated that He needed to drop it into my lap. We met at our church so that she could give it to me. When I opened up the case and looked at the guitar, it was as if the style of the guitar had been custom made for me! Now that night I knew that I would be getting this guitar,but I had no idea what else God had in store for me. There is a singles group that is meeting right now on Thursdays at my church, that a couple of my friends are in. I was talking to them before she arrived at the church. As we were speaking friends of theirs,and other people from that group sat down with us to talk while they were all waiting for the session to start. In the meantime, she came with my guitar. I brought it back over to our group, and one of the ladies asked me some questions about what I knew about guitars, etc. I let her know that I know nothing and need to take lessons. It turns out that the reason she asked, was because the man that is leading the singles group is putting together a guitar bootcamp type of program that he had not started yet. WOW! I could not believe that, what are the odds?!! I was able to give my information to him so that I can join the group! I was so overwhelmed and happy that I cried most of the way home, happy tears of joy. Everything just fell into line! I had always heard when you are in God's will, things just fall into place. While I experienced some of that in the past, it was never as it was this time. I could not be more sure that God is calling me to do this. I am really beginning to see the fruit of relationship and obedience. By this I do not mean free guitars but just an inner peace of knowing that you are on the right path of your purpose. When I went into work the following day, my co-worker had stated WOW, everything just kind of fell into your lap hauh? I smiled and said that is EXACTLY what happened!
Thank you so much Father for Your Grace,Spirit and your discipline, that allowed me to see my need to be obedient to Your Word, which enabled me to hear your voice more clearly. I look forward to all you have in store for me in this new chapter of my life!
Thursday, February 11, 2010
AM I SAVED
Ro 10:9 That if you confess with your mouth, “Jesus is Lord,” and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved.
Ro 10:10 For it is with your heart that you believe and are justified, and it is with your mouth that you confess and are saved.
I was watching The Way of The Master on Monday. It struck me that there are people in this world, that are not sure if they are saved. If you don't know if you are saved, then you are not in fact saved. This is why I want to take the time now to go over this with you.
If you BELIEVE and accept that Jesus Christ died on the Cross for your sins, and accept His forgiveness for your sins, you are saved. There is nothing else that you can do for salvation. It is a free gift given to you. You do however need to accept and BELIEVE.
Bottom line, if you put your life in the hands of Christ and depend on Him rather than yourself, you are saved. There are no, well maybe if I improve this, or I hope I am saved, I would like to think so. Friend, when you waiver in this way, you are acting as if the promise of God is a lie, and most importantly you can be sure you are not saved. He makes this point very clear throughout the Gospel. That is why it is called the Good News. That is why when we accepted His Truth are unable to stop talking about it. Don't be worried that you are unable to lead a wholesome life or stop your life of sin. Let Christ do the saving of your soul. All you need to do is BELIEVE He can and will. It is Christ in you that will transform your life, your thoughts and believe it or not, your sinful ways. If you are waiting for perfection before you approach the Savior, you will never be able to do it. He is there waiting for you to accept the Gift. He does not force this, He wants you to make the choice.
YOU ARE SAVED IF YOU BELIEVE CHRIST DIED ON THE CROSS FOR YOUR SINS AND TURN TO HIM. Now run to His open arms and never look back!!!!!!!!!!
Ro 10:10 For it is with your heart that you believe and are justified, and it is with your mouth that you confess and are saved.
I was watching The Way of The Master on Monday. It struck me that there are people in this world, that are not sure if they are saved. If you don't know if you are saved, then you are not in fact saved. This is why I want to take the time now to go over this with you.
If you BELIEVE and accept that Jesus Christ died on the Cross for your sins, and accept His forgiveness for your sins, you are saved. There is nothing else that you can do for salvation. It is a free gift given to you. You do however need to accept and BELIEVE.
Bottom line, if you put your life in the hands of Christ and depend on Him rather than yourself, you are saved. There are no, well maybe if I improve this, or I hope I am saved, I would like to think so. Friend, when you waiver in this way, you are acting as if the promise of God is a lie, and most importantly you can be sure you are not saved. He makes this point very clear throughout the Gospel. That is why it is called the Good News. That is why when we accepted His Truth are unable to stop talking about it. Don't be worried that you are unable to lead a wholesome life or stop your life of sin. Let Christ do the saving of your soul. All you need to do is BELIEVE He can and will. It is Christ in you that will transform your life, your thoughts and believe it or not, your sinful ways. If you are waiting for perfection before you approach the Savior, you will never be able to do it. He is there waiting for you to accept the Gift. He does not force this, He wants you to make the choice.
YOU ARE SAVED IF YOU BELIEVE CHRIST DIED ON THE CROSS FOR YOUR SINS AND TURN TO HIM. Now run to His open arms and never look back!!!!!!!!!!
Wednesday, February 10, 2010
WHAT MAKES US HOLY/ WHOLE?
Heb 10:9 Then he said, “Here I am, I have come to do your will.” He sets aside the first to establish the second.
Heb 10:10 And by that will, we have been made holy through the sacrifice of the body of Jesus Christ once for all.
Heb 10:14 because by one sacrifice he has made perfect forever those who are being made holy.
Heb 13:12 And so Jesus also suffered outside the city gate to make the people holy through his own blood.
1Pe 1:16 for it is written: “Be holy, because I am holy.
1Pe 1:22 Now that you have purified yourselves by obeying the truth so that you have sincere love for your brothers, love one another deeply, from the heart.
______________________
We are made Holy by the blood of Jesus. There is nothing we can do ourselves to attain holiness. We are Holy because He is Holy when we abide in Him. It is His presence in us making us Holy. Obeying His Truth will purify us. This purification is what allows us to love others the way that Christ loves us. Do you BELIEVE that?
Heb 10:10 And by that will, we have been made holy through the sacrifice of the body of Jesus Christ once for all.
Heb 10:14 because by one sacrifice he has made perfect forever those who are being made holy.
Heb 13:12 And so Jesus also suffered outside the city gate to make the people holy through his own blood.
1Pe 1:16 for it is written: “Be holy, because I am holy.
1Pe 1:22 Now that you have purified yourselves by obeying the truth so that you have sincere love for your brothers, love one another deeply, from the heart.
______________________
We are made Holy by the blood of Jesus. There is nothing we can do ourselves to attain holiness. We are Holy because He is Holy when we abide in Him. It is His presence in us making us Holy. Obeying His Truth will purify us. This purification is what allows us to love others the way that Christ loves us. Do you BELIEVE that?
Monday, February 8, 2010
GET ON MY LEVEL
1Co 9:20 To the Jews I became like a Jew, to win the Jews. To those under the law I became like one under the law (though I myself am not under the law), so as to win those under the law.
1Co 9:21 To those not having the law I became like one not having the law (though I am not free from God’s law but am under Christ’s law), so as to win those not having the law.
1Co 9:22 To the weak I became weak, to win the weak. I have become all things to all men so that by all possible means I might save some.
_______________________
Instead of judging others, let's try to understand one another by getting on each other's level. When you love someone, you try to see what makes them tick. You study them so that you know all about their likes and dislikes. You go out of your way to get to know them better. We are called as brothers and sisters in Christ, to love one another, and save the lost. This may mean you will have to leave your comfort zone and step into new and different realms.
I have been involved in New Age teachings in the past. While the majority of it I will not participate in any longer, there is a lot of it that is conducive to learning ways to better myself. I am firm enough in my Faith, that I know where the lines are and will not cross them. Even though I don't agree with the teachings that glorify anything but God, I know that God wanted me to learn them, so I can witness to another that has replaced God with an idol or God of some other sort. I know this because that is how God works. Everyone is walking down their path for a reason. It is best to mind our own business on our journeys with Christ, and stop using the Truth that we have been trusted with, to judge one another. This is not our place. It is God's. Our only job is to love one another, and bring as many people to Christ to share in the joy of salvation as possible. If we really want to do this, let's roll up our sleeves and get dirty the way Christ did. He did not come for the healthy but the sick. He came for the sinners. He came for us when we were sinners, and while He expected nothing in return but our BELIEF in Him, it glorifies Him when we reach our hands out to others. If you really want to show God that you are thankful for His Gift, tell someone else why your hope is set on the Lord, while respecting the path they are presently on.
1Co 9:21 To those not having the law I became like one not having the law (though I am not free from God’s law but am under Christ’s law), so as to win those not having the law.
1Co 9:22 To the weak I became weak, to win the weak. I have become all things to all men so that by all possible means I might save some.
_______________________
Instead of judging others, let's try to understand one another by getting on each other's level. When you love someone, you try to see what makes them tick. You study them so that you know all about their likes and dislikes. You go out of your way to get to know them better. We are called as brothers and sisters in Christ, to love one another, and save the lost. This may mean you will have to leave your comfort zone and step into new and different realms.
I have been involved in New Age teachings in the past. While the majority of it I will not participate in any longer, there is a lot of it that is conducive to learning ways to better myself. I am firm enough in my Faith, that I know where the lines are and will not cross them. Even though I don't agree with the teachings that glorify anything but God, I know that God wanted me to learn them, so I can witness to another that has replaced God with an idol or God of some other sort. I know this because that is how God works. Everyone is walking down their path for a reason. It is best to mind our own business on our journeys with Christ, and stop using the Truth that we have been trusted with, to judge one another. This is not our place. It is God's. Our only job is to love one another, and bring as many people to Christ to share in the joy of salvation as possible. If we really want to do this, let's roll up our sleeves and get dirty the way Christ did. He did not come for the healthy but the sick. He came for the sinners. He came for us when we were sinners, and while He expected nothing in return but our BELIEF in Him, it glorifies Him when we reach our hands out to others. If you really want to show God that you are thankful for His Gift, tell someone else why your hope is set on the Lord, while respecting the path they are presently on.
Sunday, February 7, 2010
I PRAISE YOU LORD FOR YOUR FAVOR
Lk 2:14 “Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace to men on whom his favor rests.”
______________________
Saturday morning at 2:00AM, my son had awakened me to tell me that he needed to move my car away from a retaining wall in our parking lot, that had fallen down on all of the cars parked by this wall. The wall crushed 10 cars and stopped right where my car had been parked. There was a huge rock that should have hit my car, but ended up in the other parking spot with the car that had been damaged already.
If you look in this picture on Channel 9's website, you will notice a sign on the wall. Directly under the sign is where my car was parked.
www.wcpo.com/news/local/story/Retaining-Wall-Crushes-10-Cars/YZK6C9dtg0GZLcw2uZWwXQ.cspx
I feel as if the Lord had shown favor on me, and delivered me from this crisis. It is funny that people standing around in the parking lot, were speaking of how lucky that I was. One man even stated that he had saved my car by contacting my son to come move the car. I was thankful that someone had thought of me enough to tell me to move my car however; I had to chuckle inside, because that wall did not fall past where my car was. It was God who spared my car. When my son showed me the situation out the window the next day, he said you were really blessed. It warmed my heart that my son knows where his blessings come from. It was not his first reaction to say you got lucky Mom. I pray and ask you to pray with me that the insurance company will make this as easy, and as fair as possible for everyone involved in this situation. It had also dawned on me that some of these people had both of their cars destroyed. I was able to call of them and see if they needed something. It is important to remember that sometimes God spares us to spare someone else. This is how he uses us to help each other. That is what community is all about. Reaching a helping hand out to someone in need. I encourage you the next time God blesses you in any way, to let your first thought be, is there a way I can use this to bless someone else? Maybe there are also certain talents and abilities that God has given you, that He wants you to offer to someone free of charge. freely you have received, freely give.
Friday, February 5, 2010
A REBELLIOUS NATURE
Ro 7:7 What shall we say, then? Is the law sin? Certainly not! Indeed I would not have known what sin was except through the law. For I would not have known what coveting really was if the law had not said, “Do not covet.”
Ro 7:8 But sin, seizing the opportunity afforded by the commandment, produced in me every kind of covetous desire. For apart from law, sin is dead.
_____________________________
The laws they speak of are the 10 commandments. It is true, when we are told to do something, it is our nature to want to do the opposite. It is because we live in this world. Our natural desires are typically geared towards selfishness and a me mentality. There is a way to live apart from the law. It is BELIEVING that Jesus is your savior sent to die in your place for your sinful nature. Once you do this, you are no longer under the law. You are covered under the blood of Christ, and receive mercy rather than the wrath of God (judgement). If God is to eventually establish His Kingdom, the only kind of people that can be there will be the people that come from a place of Spirit. Otherwise, it could not be Heaven. Once you BELIEVE, Christ will begin transforming your heart in order to sanctify you, and make you whole. The Holy Spirit will lead you towards the Kingdom and eventually, you will be bringing others along with you. Once you begin to do things out of love instead of obligation, sin will lose its power to draw you in. It will then become your nature to please others, even if that means doing things you really don't feel like doing. You will also avoid doing some things because you will stop to think of how it will affect others. You begin to put the needs of others above yours. I am not totally there yet. It is a work in progress. I have however seen a huge transformation in my thoughts and actions. I have also experienced God's favor in my life like never before. It is true that He protects those that are His. The way of the Lord is never easier, but He promises to walk with us through our lives. Once we are obedient to His words in the Bible, or the Words that He will speak in the silence to our hearts, our Faith will grow as we see His promises fulfilled. In order to hear the promises, we need to be in His Word and keeping communion with Him and other believers.
Ro 7:8 But sin, seizing the opportunity afforded by the commandment, produced in me every kind of covetous desire. For apart from law, sin is dead.
_____________________________
The laws they speak of are the 10 commandments. It is true, when we are told to do something, it is our nature to want to do the opposite. It is because we live in this world. Our natural desires are typically geared towards selfishness and a me mentality. There is a way to live apart from the law. It is BELIEVING that Jesus is your savior sent to die in your place for your sinful nature. Once you do this, you are no longer under the law. You are covered under the blood of Christ, and receive mercy rather than the wrath of God (judgement). If God is to eventually establish His Kingdom, the only kind of people that can be there will be the people that come from a place of Spirit. Otherwise, it could not be Heaven. Once you BELIEVE, Christ will begin transforming your heart in order to sanctify you, and make you whole. The Holy Spirit will lead you towards the Kingdom and eventually, you will be bringing others along with you. Once you begin to do things out of love instead of obligation, sin will lose its power to draw you in. It will then become your nature to please others, even if that means doing things you really don't feel like doing. You will also avoid doing some things because you will stop to think of how it will affect others. You begin to put the needs of others above yours. I am not totally there yet. It is a work in progress. I have however seen a huge transformation in my thoughts and actions. I have also experienced God's favor in my life like never before. It is true that He protects those that are His. The way of the Lord is never easier, but He promises to walk with us through our lives. Once we are obedient to His words in the Bible, or the Words that He will speak in the silence to our hearts, our Faith will grow as we see His promises fulfilled. In order to hear the promises, we need to be in His Word and keeping communion with Him and other believers.
Tuesday, February 2, 2010
FEAR OF THE LORD
Ps 34:11 Come, my children, listen to me; I will teach you the fear of the LORD.
Ps 34:12 Whoever of you loves life and desires to see many good days,
Ps 34:13 keep your tongue from evil and your lips from speaking lies.
Ps 34:14 Turn from evil and do good; seek peace and pursue it
Ps 33:16 No king is saved by the size of his army; no warrior escapes by his great strength.
Ps 33:17 A horse is a vain hope for deliverance; despite all its great strength it cannot save.
Ps 33:18 But the eyes of the LORD are on those who fear him, on those whose hope is in his unfailing love,
Ps 33:19 to deliver them from death and keep them alive in famine.
________________________
The GOOD NEWS is that if you keep your eyes fixed on Christ and BELIEVE He is who , He says, He will help you to turn from evil. The Spirit of Christ will live in you and keep your paths straight. Read His word, keep community with other Christians (the Church)and speak with Him through prayer, making sure to be still and listen to Him. We do not need to put our hope in ourselves. Without Him, we can do nothing. All we need do is rest in Him and His love.
Ps 34:12 Whoever of you loves life and desires to see many good days,
Ps 34:13 keep your tongue from evil and your lips from speaking lies.
Ps 34:14 Turn from evil and do good; seek peace and pursue it
Ps 33:16 No king is saved by the size of his army; no warrior escapes by his great strength.
Ps 33:17 A horse is a vain hope for deliverance; despite all its great strength it cannot save.
Ps 33:18 But the eyes of the LORD are on those who fear him, on those whose hope is in his unfailing love,
Ps 33:19 to deliver them from death and keep them alive in famine.
________________________
The GOOD NEWS is that if you keep your eyes fixed on Christ and BELIEVE He is who , He says, He will help you to turn from evil. The Spirit of Christ will live in you and keep your paths straight. Read His word, keep community with other Christians (the Church)and speak with Him through prayer, making sure to be still and listen to Him. We do not need to put our hope in ourselves. Without Him, we can do nothing. All we need do is rest in Him and His love.
Monday, February 1, 2010
A LICENSE TO SIN?
Ro 6:15 What then? Shall we sin because we are not under law but under grace? By no means!
Ro 6:16 Don’t you know that when you offer yourselves to someone to obey him as slaves, you are slaves to the one whom you obey whether you are slaves to sin, which leads to death, or to obedience, which leads to righteousness?
Ro 6:20 When you were slaves to sin,you were free from the control of righteousness.
Ro 6:21 What benefit did you reap at that time from the things you are now ashamed of? Those things result in death!
____________________________
This reminds me of all of the things I have done in my past, knowing that they were not God's best plan for me. I have read most of the Bible. There are certain rules He tells us to follow for our best, and the best of others around us. Even though this is the case, sin has the ability to entice us into things even when know it is not good for us. An example of this is sleeping with someone before you are married. You know God says not to do it. The devil makes it look attractive to you as with all of his lies, it looks good in the physical but tears a part your soul. There you are again realizing that you gave your heart, and your body away to a person that could care less if you are there tomorrow. Why would they? They got what they wanted and now they can move on, challenge is over. How about when you got really drunk one night, and woke up to find out that you ruined a friendship, because you said or did some things that you could not take back? Maybe you got a DUI and now you cannot drive to work, and have to come up with thousands of dollars in order to fix your mistake. In the midst of all of these things, our first thought may be to feel as if God is to blame. That sure makes a lot of sense, since He is the one that told you to stay away from those very things in the first place. Nothing good has ever come out of any of the things that God wants us to stay away from. The heavier you get involved with these things, the more you feel you need them. You become addicted to the very things that are ruining your life. Once we decide to BELIEVE in Jesus, He is able start working our problems from the inside out. All of the sins that we crave are reflections of brokenness found on the inside of us. It is never just the sin itself. Once we stop listening to the lies and follow the Truth (Jesus), He will begin a work of transformation in our hearts. We will come to a point of looking at these things and saying, you are something I want to live without, because you are not worth the Glory that my Father has in store for me if I would abide in Him and His Word. We cannot do it on our own, we need Christ living in us. I challenge you, look back on your life at your past and present sins that you are clinging onto. What form of happiness have they ever brought you? Why are you clinging to them? Being a slave to obedience will produce freedom. Being a slave to sins will only put you in chains.
Ro 6:16 Don’t you know that when you offer yourselves to someone to obey him as slaves, you are slaves to the one whom you obey whether you are slaves to sin, which leads to death, or to obedience, which leads to righteousness?
Ro 6:20 When you were slaves to sin,you were free from the control of righteousness.
Ro 6:21 What benefit did you reap at that time from the things you are now ashamed of? Those things result in death!
____________________________
This reminds me of all of the things I have done in my past, knowing that they were not God's best plan for me. I have read most of the Bible. There are certain rules He tells us to follow for our best, and the best of others around us. Even though this is the case, sin has the ability to entice us into things even when know it is not good for us. An example of this is sleeping with someone before you are married. You know God says not to do it. The devil makes it look attractive to you as with all of his lies, it looks good in the physical but tears a part your soul. There you are again realizing that you gave your heart, and your body away to a person that could care less if you are there tomorrow. Why would they? They got what they wanted and now they can move on, challenge is over. How about when you got really drunk one night, and woke up to find out that you ruined a friendship, because you said or did some things that you could not take back? Maybe you got a DUI and now you cannot drive to work, and have to come up with thousands of dollars in order to fix your mistake. In the midst of all of these things, our first thought may be to feel as if God is to blame. That sure makes a lot of sense, since He is the one that told you to stay away from those very things in the first place. Nothing good has ever come out of any of the things that God wants us to stay away from. The heavier you get involved with these things, the more you feel you need them. You become addicted to the very things that are ruining your life. Once we decide to BELIEVE in Jesus, He is able start working our problems from the inside out. All of the sins that we crave are reflections of brokenness found on the inside of us. It is never just the sin itself. Once we stop listening to the lies and follow the Truth (Jesus), He will begin a work of transformation in our hearts. We will come to a point of looking at these things and saying, you are something I want to live without, because you are not worth the Glory that my Father has in store for me if I would abide in Him and His Word. We cannot do it on our own, we need Christ living in us. I challenge you, look back on your life at your past and present sins that you are clinging onto. What form of happiness have they ever brought you? Why are you clinging to them? Being a slave to obedience will produce freedom. Being a slave to sins will only put you in chains.
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