Become Like a Child

Mt 18:2 He called a little child and had him stand among them.
Mt 18:3 And he said: “I tell you the truth, unless you change and become like little children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven.

Aren't Easter Egg hunts fun?!! You never know what you are going to find. Each egg contains it's own special treasure. It's exciting, thrilling even!! For that moment in time the only thing you are focused on is where the eggs are hiding. It's also a fun way to spend time with others.

I am a part of a women's ministry and we organized a Promise Egg Hunt. All of the eggs that were hidden, had promises in them from the Bible. The idea had come to me on my walk one day. When I received this information from Spirit, I saw in my head a bunch of women running around in an egg hunt behaving as children, and having a blast. A way to bring back some of the childhood wonderment into our lives. The thought had also come to my mind that the way that we would seek out these eggs in the hunt, is the very way that God wants us to seek Him. He wants us to be present in the moment with Him. Not thinking about 10000 other things. He also wants us to have fun with Him.

Some people, once they reach a certain age feel they can no longer do these types of things without looking stupid, or they are just too old to be bothered by that kind of "stuff". I simply refuse to grow up. I see the world as a playground. I truly feel we need these types of times to encourage our creative sides, and to bring a little more joy to our lives, and to the lives of others. Life is too short to be so serious. Lighten up, and go do something childish!!

I was unable to attend the hunt the day that we had it. I was super bummed that I would not be able to see if the child inside of the women would come out as I felt it would in my Spirit. I asked one of the ladies if everyone seemed to enjoy it or did it seem stupid to them.. I was thrilled when she sent me this picture:



Doesn't she look beautiful!? Look at that glowing smile!! It warms my heart every time I see this picture. Jesus knew what He was talking about "as usual". Approach His Kingdom as child, and your heart will glow as her smile is in this picture.

Thank you Shelli for making the vision a reality, when I was unable to do so. I am truly blessed to have all of you ladies in my life.

Happy Easter!!!

Praise to God for a Living Hope

1Pe 1:3 Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! In his great mercy he has given us new birth into a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead,
1Pe 1:4 and into an inheritance that can never perish, spoil or fade —kept in heaven for you,
1Pe 1:5 who through faith are shielded by God’s power until the coming of the salvation that is ready to be revealed in the last time.
1Pe 1:6 In this you greatly rejoice, though now for a little while you may have had to suffer grief in all kinds of trials.
1Pe 1:7 These have come so that your faith—of greater worth than gold, which perishes even though refined by fire —may be proved genuine and may result in praise, glory and honor when Jesus Christ is revealed.
1Pe 1:8 Though you have not seen him, you love him; and even though you do not see him now, you believe in him and are filled with an inexpressible and glorious joy

His Crown of Thorns

Mt 27:29 and then twisted together a crown of thorns and set it on his head. They put a staff in his right hand and knelt in front of him and mocked him. “Hail, king of the Jews!” they said.
Mt 27:30 They spit on him, and took the staff and struck him on the head again and again.
Mt 27:31 After they had mocked him, they took off the robe and put his own clothes on him. Then they led him away to crucify him.

There are bunch of what I was told are called Jesus trees in a local park that I like to visit. They line the path of what I like to refer to as my magical path. Many things seem to happen to me on this path, the butterfly blessing being one of them. After spending some time studying the thorns that are on these trees, the thought crossed my mind that these are most likely the type of thorns that were shoved down into my beautiful Saviors head. I reached my finger up and set it on the tip of the largest thorn in this picture. Just touching it with a little force was enough to make me draw me finger back. I closed my eyes and tried to imagine the feeling of a crown of these going into my head. The thought brought a tear to my eye. I imagined the pain He must have felt, every time they hit this crown with the staff forcing it deeper and deeper into His skull. I imagined the sun beating down and causing sweat and blood to drip into His eyes. The burning sensation He must have felt. The soldiers standing around mocking Him. He loved us so much, He let it continue. He loved them so much, He asked for forgiveness for their wicked actions. He knew that the crown of death given to Him in this world, would be His crown of gold in the Kingdom that He was to receive. Our crown of life.... of the righteousness that can only be found in the belief that He died for our sins once and for all. That as God let death pass over the homes that had the lambs blood on them, so too shall death pass over those that believe, and are sealed in the blood of the Lamb without blemish, Yeshua on their foreheads.

Father thank you for the Gift of life through your Son Jesus Christ. My heart races in joyful anticipation, of the reminder of the glorious Resurrection of our Savior this Easter Season!!!!

a posting from my friend todaysdelight@unexpecteddelights

The Pharisees and teachers of the law asked Jesus, "Why don't your disciples live according to the tradition of the elders instead of eating their food with defiled hands?" Mark 7:5

I have been contemplating this passage since the beginning of March. This mentality or rather disease as I have tagged it is still prevalent today. I wonder how many of us have either had it or have experienced the effects of someone who is carrying it. The symptoms of this disease begin to manifest when one falls into practicing the religious traditions/teachings of man and begin substituting man's standard in place of God's standard. These traditions and standards require simply going through the motions: mechanical and thoughtless conformity without a pure heart. Those caught up in this can become very calloused and judge mental. Like an infectious disease, it can spread and have deadly effects.

Jesus answered the question from the pharisees with a prophetic quote from the 29th chapter of the book of Isaiah. "These people come near to me with their mouth and honor me with their lips, but their hearts are far from me. Their worship of me is based merely on human rules they have been taught."
There is a verse in the book of Psalms that comes to mind regarding what our state of worship should be..."Worship the Lord in the beauty of holiness." 29:2b
What is holiness? A heart that is dedicated and devoted to serving God. "Serving God not man." If we are serving God first and foremost we will be adding to man through God's glory alone.

Lord God, guard us and alert us to falling prey to pharaseeitsit. Instill in us compassion, dedication and devotion that is pure towards you. Help us to be vigilant in the keeping of the art and beauty of worship that is holy unto you. Help us, Lord, to love your people and to see them through your eyes of loving kindness and tender mercies that we may extend your hand of grace to them. In Christ Jesus name I pray.

The Square of Common Good

A philsophy assignment that I had written that I want to share. It was for a Spirit, Mind, and body course I was taking:

I feel the best way to determine how to become the most effective with
our patients or within our personal relationships, is to think of
someone in our past, that has made a significant difference in our lives
in this manner.

This person for myself is my childhood doctor. He is a perfect example
for me because my mother was typically the person that had the majority
of interaction with him. I was able to sit back and observe them for
this reason. Looking back on our visits with him, I realize that the,
"Square of Common Good", is what was exercised between them.

Dr. Gregory would always step into the room, wearing a warm smile and
having a certain bounce in his step that exuded peace and happiness. He
would begin our session by asking my mother personal questions about her
life, using first names of the people in our family or inquiring about
something that she might have mentioned, the last time that we had been
together. Next, he would do something that is almost unheard of in
today's society. He would fully engage in listening to what she had to
say back to him. He expressed true compassion for her if something was
wrong, or true joy with her if something was going well, providing
feedback for her when it was appropriate in either situation. She always
appeared to be extremely comfortable, revealing her most personal
information to him because she trusted him. I was able to sense the
tension lifting from her as she confessed her problems, as if a huge
weight had lifted from her shoulders, or the joy that was magnified in
her, because another person was genuinely sharing in her joy, making her
feel as if he truly cared about her.

The relationship that he had created with my mother enabled him, to
learn more about my environment. This was extremely important
information for him because most illnesses and psychological problems
derive from our emotional state of mind, which is created by our
surroundings, especially when we are young impressionable children. This
was an ingenious way for him to be ahead of the game, in regards to my
health. The most beautiful thing about this is that he was not behaving
in this manner for that reason. It was merely a bi-product of the
integrity and respect that he had shown towards my mother, which led her
to trust him enough to let him into our world.

It seems that we have spent so much time advancing our world with
technology that we have forgotten the basics, of the way that we need to
interact with each other, in order to make the world a more peaceful,
happier and healthier place for everyone to live in. Our schools offer
computer classes daily, but spend very little time teaching us how to
treat others or discern our true needs from the needs of our ego self.
Our attention has been focused in all of the wrong areas for so long,
that we have created a hostile environment among us that is a breeding
ground for disease and mental deterioration.

If we can begin influencing others with the fundamentals of, "The Square
of Common Good", by the way that we treat them or with the education
that we provide for them in this area, it will allow them to pass it on
to others. It will then continue from there and spread like wildfire
into the lives of everyone. I feel it is only then, that we can begin to
become a healthier nation and claim to have made a great difference to
the world of medicine.

HEAL OUR UNBELIEF LORD

I have been getting a lot of messages lately about belief. I struggle with this sometimes. I know that God is real, I know that I am saved through Jesus, but there is a very human side to me that does not always behave as if I truly BELIEVE. Then I remembered a scripture today on my walk. I was not sure where it was, but I knew I was going to find it, as soon as I had the computer in front of me. So, I continued on with my Bible reading/walk. I had been led the last couple of weeks to read the book of Mark again. Today I was finishing up this book, and was delighted when I got to the last page, because it was the very verse I had just wanted to find:

Mk 16:15 He said to them, “Go into all the world and preach the good news to all creation.
Mk 16:16 Whoever believes and is baptized will be saved, but whoever does not believe will be condemned.
Mk 16:17 And these signs will accompany those who believe: In my name they will drive out demons; they will speak in new tongues;
Mk 16:18 they will pick up snakes with their hands; and when they drink deadly poison, it will not hurt them at all; they will place their hands on sick people, and they will get well.”
Mk 16:19 After the Lord Jesus had spoken to them, he was taken up into heaven and he sat at the right hand of God.
Mk 16:20 Then the disciples went out and preached everywhere, and the Lord worked with them and confirmed his word by the signs that accompanied it.

I have to admit that I must now pray again the prayer of Mark 9:24:

Mk 9:23 “ ‘If you can’?” said Jesus. “Everything is possible for him who believes.”
Mk 9:24 Immediately the boy’s father exclaimed, “I do believe; help me overcome my unbelief!”

I pray Lord that I will be able to BELIEVE to the point of driving out demons in your name, and all of the other signs of a true believer. I pray the same for the dear one reading this today, and all of my other brothers and sisters in Christ. AMEN!

ESTHER

Sent: Friday, December 12, 2008 1:09 PM

Wed night, I asked God to let me know if Esther is a real person based on something I read that had me questioning. She has come up for me so many times and is a book in the Bible. Today, I get on this site and I never click this button I saw today that says NEWS. Check this out. I mean just the fact that she hit the news yesterday!

Ancient Jewish Shrine is Registered on Iran’s National Works List

December 11, 2008

The head of the Iranian Cultural Heritage, Handicrafts and Tourism Office has announced that the tomb of Esther and Mordecai has been added to the country’s list of national monuments. Asadollah Bayat told the Iranian news service that the ancient tomb is an important Jewish shrine and one of the most historically important buildings in the Hamedan province of Iran. The monument bears Hebrew inscriptions, both on the plaster wall of the main hall as well as on the finely worked wooden tomb boxes. Bayat stressed the monument’s importance to the Jewish community, adding that “Jews gather here in the middle of March every year to pray, fast and have a ceremony called the ‘Yodim Ceremony’.”

Iranian news service Payvand reports on the tomb’s inclusion on the national works list.

There was other stuff that happened to, right after I prayed that and wrote it in my journal, before I turned out my light, I opened up my Biblical dictionary and the word I looked on was Hadassah, this was Esther’s Jewish name before she changed it to the Persian name of Esther so that the King would not hold being Jewish against her. I mean this stuff is not coincidence. There is no way.


This is how I know the Bible is real. This stuff happens to me all the time with the Bible and asking God and stuff!

sam the angel

2Ki 6:15 When the servant of the man of God got up and went out early the next morning, an army with horses and chariots had surrounded the city. “Oh, my lord, what shall we do?” the servant asked.
2Ki 6:16 “Don’t be afraid,” the prophet answered. “Those who are with us are more than those who are with them.”
2Ki 6:17 And Elisha prayed, “O LORD, open his eyes so he may see.” Then the LORD opened the servant’s eyes, and he looked and saw the hills full of horses and chariots of fire all around Elisha.

As I was walking,on August 23rd, 2010 and spending time with the Lord, the Bible verses above came to mind. I had been receiving many messages over the months preceding this about guardian angels that were watching out over me. Message after message, through friends, songs, Bible verses, etc. So, I asked God if He would allow me to see the angels. I looked around, but I did not see anything. So, then I had asked Him if I could just know the name of my guardian angel, and if He would describe him/her/it to me. Immediately the name sam was given to me. God began to also reveal to me that while sam is my main angel, I had thousands of angels encamped around me, to protect me daily. He told me that sam is a warrior, courageous, mighty and strong. I envisioned a golden suit of armor, a sword, and a shield. He also shared with me that sam takes care of animals in some way shape or form in the Kingdom of Heaven. It's not like an audible voice that I hear when God speaks. It is like my Spirit begins to speak to me with an inner knowing. His voice is loving, calm and peaceful. He does not talk like me, so I can tell the difference between His voice, and mine. It is like when someone is narrating the scene out loud in a movie that you are watching, even though you cannot see them. Only they are speaking out loud, and this is more of a inner knowing of the words. It is as if the words are coming not from my brain at the top of my head, but from within my heart. He revealed to me some of the times that sam was battling for me. One time, I was driving down the highway in the snow, and I heard a voice tell me to slow down. I was already driving very slow, but I listened. As I did, the car in the lane to the right of me started to skid out of control, and turned around into my lane. In the midst of seeing the spinning car, I had brought my vehicle to a dead stop. The car ended up being 2" if that from my front bumper, it's front bumper nearly touching mine. It would have been a head on collision. Another time, when I used to drink heavily I was kicked out of a bar for being belligerent with the waitress. As I was sitting out there, a man asked if I needed a ride home, I said sure. I had so much to drink, I could not remember where I lived. All I can remember is that one minute we were at the bar, and the next we were in the middle of the park in the woods in his convertible car. The man had said to me, do you realize that you just got into a car with a complete stranger, and now I have you in the middle of the woods and could kill you right now if I wanted to? I sobered up immediately after he had made this statement, but I still do not remember leaving the park, or the ride home with the guy. I just remember that I was home. I have no idea how he got that convertible in the middle of the woods like that?? I asked God if it was ok for me to thank sam for all he has done for me. The answer was NO! All Glory to God. The angels do not need, or want a thank you, for they are just doing the work of their Father, and could do nothing if not for Him. That is why you will notice I am not capitalizing his name to respect his wishes. It was funny because I had already been getting a message myself about being humble. I had been typing my initials art, rather than ART for that very reason. To remind myself to stay humble.

That night before I had gone to bed, I asked the Lord to confirm for me that what I had heard was not in my mind. That He was really speaking to me. I had woken up twice once in the middle of the night, the first time I looked at my clock and saw 91:11, and heard Psalms. Then my alarm went off and I hit snooze. It went off again, and I hit snooze, the third time I went to hit snooze, but this time I looked at the time 6:18 and heard Genesis. I went back to sleep and had a dream that my blanket on my bed was covering over me, over my face, and I could not pull it off. I began to praise the Lord Jesus Christ as my Lord and my Savior in my dream with the blanket over me. I remember that under the blanket I had this strange sensation all over my body. When I woke up I turned Benny Hinn on the TV like I do every morning, and he quoted the following verse:

Rev 19:10 At this I fell at his feet to worship him. But he said to me, “Do not do it! I am a fellow servant with you and with your brothers who hold to the testimony of Jesus. Worship God! For the testimony of Jesus is the spirit of prophecy.”

Then he went on to say that the Lord covers us with an anointing like a blanket. He is speaking of a mantle, and if you step into the mantle you will be used.

WOW!!! I could not believe my ears after the dream that I had just had! God had definitely confirmed that sam did not want to be worshipped. I wondered what the other two verses meant that were given to me. I looked them up when I got to work:

Ps 91:11 For he will command his angels concerning you to guard you in all your ways;
Ps 91:12 they will lift you up in their hands, so that you will not strike your foot against a stone.

Ge 6:18 But I will establish my covenant with you, and you will enter the ark you and your sons and your wife and your sons’ wives with you.
Ge 6:19 You are to bring into the ark two of all living creatures, male and female, to keep them alive with you.
Ge 6:20 Two of every kind of bird, of every kind of animal and of every kind of creature that moves along the ground will come to you to be kept alive.

The first is obvious, the second He is speaking of the animals, and I remembered that He said that sam takes care of animals. It was not in the first 6:18 that had been given, but in reading that my eyes had dropped to the part about the animals. Not to mention there is no way I could have seen 91:11 on my clock unless maybe it was backwards, or supernatural.

That's the way He always seems to work with me, first the Word, then the confirmation. Isn't He fun?

LOOK DAD A RAINBOW!

Today as I was walking I was reminded of a time a couple of years ago, when God decided to truly show off, as only He can do.

I remembered that a question had been stirring in my mind. What if at least some of the Bible, were in fact mere stories? I mean what if they were not actual events? Some say that most of the Old Testament should not be taken as literal. That they are just fictional stories with a lesson. Kind of like Aesops Fables. It was one of those questions that was tumbling around in my head that week, or maybe even a little longer. This is how it usually works for me. I put a question out there, or in my head even, and in due time, the Lord will find a way to answer me. The Lord speaks, if we are willing and BELIEVE that He will answer.

On a day during this time that I had thrown the questions out there, I was walking at my local park, and reading my Bible. I remember the sun in bright blue sky. It was about a couple of hours before dusk. I distinctly remember seeing a Father and a son in the middle of the half mile track. They were not close enough to hear anything they were saying, but it appeared they were enjoying flying a kite that they had with them. I do not remember how I ended up in the book of Genesis, but that is where my walk took me. As I came upon these verses:

Ge 9:13 I have set my rainbow in the clouds, and it will be the sign of the covenant between me and the earth.
Ge 9:14 Whenever I bring clouds over the earth and the rainbow appears in the clouds,
Ge 9:15 I will remember my covenant between me and you and all living creatures of every kind. Never again will the waters become a flood to destroy all life.
Ge 9:16 Whenever the rainbow appears in the clouds, I will see it and remember the everlasting covenant between God and all living creatures of every kind on the earth.”
Ge 9:17 So God said to Noah, “This is the sign of the covenant I have established between me and all life on the earth.”

No sooner than I had read this, I heard the boy (who was still far enough away from me, that I should not have been able to hear him), say, "LOOK DAD A RAINBOW"!! I remember thinking, as I lifted my eyes from the Book of all Books, Lord did you really...... WOW! I looked up and my eyes beheld one of the most beautiful rainbows that I have ever seen in all of my life! It was the kind that had every single color in it! It had the most brilliant bold colors! I was awe struck. I could not BELIEVE it! You see, I love rainbows. You could call me a rainbow chaser. I know the exact conditions outside that one can possibly catch a glimpse, of these beautiful gifts from God, and I make every effort that I can in order to see one. Typically the sun is shining on one end of the sky, and you need to look at the darker side, and that is where your rainbow will be. Usually, there is a storm that just started, or it is wrapping up, and the rainbow is taking the final bow. But this night the sun was shining, the sky was blue everywhere, it did not have the conditions that are needed for a rainbow.

Some would call this a coincidence, others would say this is just another story, but not I. I know that the Lord was answering the questions that He knew I had been pondering. Not only did He answer them, but He supernaturally provided a beautiful rainbow. While the rainbow is a sign of the covenant of Him not flooding the Earth, I feel He was also giving me a sign of the covenant that He made when His Son died on the Cross for me, and every other person that BELIEVES that He did this for them. Yes this was a sign from God the Bible is for real, and the stories are real, and salvation is real. I did not ask the Lord for a sign, that is why He gave me one.

THE DAUGHTER OF HERODIAS

The king said to the girl, “Ask me for anything you want, and I’ll give it to you.”
Mk 6:23 And he promised her with an oath, “Whatever you ask I will give you, up to half my kingdom.”
Mk 6:24 She went out and said to her mother, “What shall I ask for?” “The head of John the Baptist,” she answered.
Mk 6:25 At once the girl hurried in to the king with the request: “I want you to give me right now the head of John the Baptist on a platter.”

This is the story above of the daughter of Herodias. Herodias was the wife of King Herod. She was nursing a grudge against John, because he told King Herod that it was wrong for him to be with her, because she was the wife of his brother. Ouch the truth hurts. It hurt John for being willing to speak up and say when someone is doing something, that is not right in the eyes of the Lord. In this case, it cost him his life. It caused me to pause and ask myself, am I willing to speak God's Truth no matter what the cost, or what enemies I may make?

I feel there are more lessons in this story than this. One is the lesson of obedience, and selflessness. The daughter had a chance to get whatever she wanted from the King. Instead of thinking of her own desires, she ran to ask her Mother what shall I ask for? When her Mother gave her the command, it says AT ONCE the girl HURRIED in to the King with her request. Again I pondered, when God commands me, is my reaction the same as this daughters? Do I even think to ask God, God what shall I do with this decision before me?

Lastly I see a lesson of pride. King Herod offered this girl up to half of his kingdom. Obviously Herodias would have benefited greatly, if she had instructed the daughter to take him up on this offer, rather than putting an innocent man to death for speaking truth to her. She gave up half the kingdom because of a revengeful, pride filled heart. I wonder how many times I have given up access to the Kingdom, for not accepting Truth that is in front of no matter how hard it is to hear. God will send people that will speak His Truth in love to us. We have a choice as to whether we will choose to turn an open ear to this Truth, or allow it to harden our hearts further.

BE HEALED!

Mk 5:21 When Jesus had again crossed over by boat to the other side of the lake, a large crowd gathered around him while he was by the lake.
Mk 5:22 Then one of the synagogue rulers, named Jairus, came there. Seeing Jesus, he fell at his feet
Mk 5:23 and pleaded earnestly with him, “My little daughter is dying. Please come and put your hands on her so that she will be healed and live.”
Mk 5:24 So Jesus went with him. A large crowd followed and pressed around him.
Mk 5:25 And a woman was there who had been subject to bleeding for twelve years.
Mk 5:26 She had suffered a great deal under the care of many doctors and had spent all she had, yet instead of getting better she grew worse.
Mk 5:27 When she heard about Jesus, she came up behind him in the crowd and touched his cloak,
Mk 5:28 because she thought, “If I just touch his clothes, I will be healed.”
Mk 5:29 Immediately her bleeding stopped and she felt in her body that she was freed from her suffering.
Mk 5:30 At once Jesus realized that power had gone out from him. He turned around in the crowd and asked, “Who touched my clothes?”
Mk 5:31 “You see the people crowding against you,” his disciples answered, “and yet you can ask, ‘Who touched me?’ ”
Mk 5:32 But Jesus kept looking around to see who had done it.
Mk 5:33 Then the woman, knowing what had happened to her, came and fell at his feet and, trembling with fear, told him the whole truth.
Mk 5:34 He said to her, “Daughter, your faith has healed you. Go in peace and be freed from your suffering.”

It is interesting to me that this woman had spent all that she had on Dr's and her condition only worsened. Twelve years is a very long time to suffer from anything. Can you imagined how discouraged she must have felt? She had tried EVERYTHING there was to try to no avail. Yet she still sprinted out to try this. I have been sick many times. Some of the same issues over and over again. I have been to Dr's, and it is true that my condition only worsened. This coupled with the frustration of having to pay for a healing that was not happening was very dishearting. Because I have been there, I feel as if I know exactly what she felt when she grabbed onto His cloak. It is funny what desperate measures can do for a person. I feel as if sometimes some of us need to be pushed to a point of being sick and tired of where we are, that we will be willing to step out and do something drastic in order to be healed. All of the other people were crowded in close to Jesus. I imagine that many of them came to see him, as they had heard of His healing power as well. All of them were pressed against Jesus, yet only one was able to draw the power from Him, and receive the healing she so longed for. She had nothing to lose, because she had already lost it all, including her sanity.

Take note of the following verses:

Mk 5:29 Immediately her bleeding stopped and she felt in her body that she was freed from her suffering.
Mk 5:34 He said to her, “Daughter, your faith has healed you. Go in peace and be freed from your suffering

The first verse states that she felt the healing in her body. He is speaking of the physical nature of her healing. In the second verse, He is telling her now receive this healing (and me) in your heart, so that you can grow to become totally healed. Let go of pain that you felt for so long. Do not replay the suffering in your mind over and over. Forgive the others that have shunned you, or were not there for you when you needed them the most. Instead praise God and let Him move forward with the good work that He has begun in you. Think of the phrase, be good. Just as it is a choice for us to be good, He is telling her that being healed is a choice she can make. Don't look back, MOVE FORWARD AND BE HEALED!