by Gerry Bloemendaal
3/09/2016 / Christian Apologetics
Friends I wanted to have a closer look at our spirituality, often we forget that we are spiritual beings and that both Good and Bad bring spiritual realities alive within our lives.
Below I have listed some common wrong or evil spiritual manifestations which we can find within our spiritual space. Please understand that the names I gave the spirituality are pointers of recognition.
Selfishness.
Here we have a true example of that which is anti-Christ, selfishness is the 'father' of the lawless one. (Le. 19:9-10, Is 5:8-10, Jude :8-16.) A flaming spirit. A spirit of pride, arrogance, unfaithfulness, disobedience, rebellion and murder. (Jude :11) A spirit of this world. Selfishness is the 'door' and 'motivator' to take more wickedness into our hearts and minds. Selfishness is the Judas of our spiritual life. Selfishness at the bottom of it has to do with flaming realities called Fear and Greed. The Fear of missing out indeed the fear of death combined with the grab what I can get attitude of being. Selfishness is the very essence of force within the great deceiver.
Pride.
A flaming spirit. A spirit of arrogant haughtiness and disdain. An abominable spirit easily recognizable within our hearts. Pride is a high climber always reaching far above itself. Pride loves to praise itself. Like all unclean spirits Pride is stubborn for it contumaciously holds its perspective even when proven wrong. Pride and Weakness work in particular efficiently together within human hearts. Arrogant is the first-born 'son' of their unholy union. (Psalm 10:2-11, 73:6, Proverbs 13:10.)
Doubt.(Romans 14:23)
A spirit of unbelief, haughtiness, oppression and murder. Doubt ought to be a guardian angel. Doubt like so many other spirits of existence doesn't have to be wrong at the right time. To doubt a lie is wise for example or to pride in God. Yet Doubt as an unclean spirit doesn't carry any redeeming qualities. The shape of Doubt is the hesitation in accepting The Truth of God as final. To doubt the truth is lethal. Yet this spirit can attack and oppress Christians, in particular young or new Christians behind the scene of life for years. Doubt hates the truth, for this removes the need for doubt's rule over our existence. That something which makes Christians today so weak could be so strong taught me that the reign of doubt in God's Church is stronger than ever.
Dishonesty.(Pr 19:5, 1 Tim. 4:2)
A spirit of rape and distortion. A fleeting spirit. We all know this one this sense inside of us which is sly, evasive, suspicious, argumentative and secretive. Yet truly the spirit is mean, thief-like and uncaring. Its presence in us is easily recognised for Dishonesty makes us, the one(s) in us who know the truth, very selfish and self focused. Dishonesty cannot look the truth in the eye but can bluff if it can utilize inner insecurity in the observer. Furthermore Dishonesty despises and fears the truth. Truth is always its enemy. Dishonesty also brings us this sense (tells us) that we can get away with it - the lies and deceit we have committed in the darkness of its unholy presence. (Is.28:15) A very close 'blood relative' of Dishonesty is The Deceiver.
Dishonesty the lie opens our heart and mind to legions of unclean spirituality and creates spiritual 'children' which are not from God. (Inner realities that find birth in us because we have fornicated with wrong spirituality.)
Laziness.(Pr. 22:13)
A spirit of inactivity, plunder and spiritual genocide. A spirit of spiritual blindness and 'sleeping/dreaming'. A crushing spirit. Laziness is the force which debilitates the God given ability to do or be. Laziness does not store 'goodness/energy' for hard times but rather empties its occupant of their sense of purpose as well as well being. Laziness does nothing but make its occupant feel lazy. We must therefore be very careful who we call lazy, as far to often we call others lazy because they are doing an activity we don't approve of. Unwillingness, Speculator and Deceiver are always present in the lazy heart and Addiction usually gains a solid foothold. Spiritual laziness --lazy in serving our Father in Heaven is by far the most predominant way we ought to view our fight with this spirit of being.
The unfaithful one.
A spirit of betrayal, dishonesty and secret deeds. The lawless one in the ultimate analysis, a spirit of selfish greed in lovelessness of being. The Lord's sorrow and tears. The Father's wrath and righteous anger. The Holy Spirits grief of unutterable anguish.
Oh what has the snake not caused? Who can tell but God alone? Unfaithful is a sense of being in which humanity seems to delight! Unfaithful flirts evil and evil alone. Unfaithful is the 'winking eye' to make us long after..that which is in opposition to God's Truth as the King of Love tells it. (Even in our hearts at the times of decision.) Unfaithful rejects Jesus Christ to follow sinful ways instead. Unfaithful is the force behind the need to capitulate at times of resolve. The lawless one's heart is stamped with unfaithfulness.
False security.(Psalm 33:17, 1 Thes. 5:3)
A spirit of deceit, spiritual blindness and death. A spirit of false trust and hopes. A spirit of this world. False security allays our fears in such a way as to damage us most when such security fails. An inner sense of safety which relies on self effort and other forms of human strength to protect us from evil. False security pretends to be an inner 'vault' in which we may place our most sensitive materials. False security in believers hearts often takes hold of sins that are not confessed or unconquered sins - providing us with the 'sense' that God doesn't care or has forgiven us already anyway. The Deceiver through False security, the spirit of this world and Legalism weaves strong unholy cords of resistance to Jesus Christ and His spiritual Kingdom.
Grace abuser.
A spirit of selfishness and stubborn continuation of sin. An overwhelming tempting spirit. The shape of the Grace abuser is the cold hard need to continue in sinful wrong. The Grace abuser holds God's grace up as the excuse to stay under the dominion of unclean spirituality. The Grace abuser, I don't care, Weakness, the will to do wrong, love for evil and the Tempter, Deceiver and Accuser work in particular well together within the human heart burning our conscious as with a hot iron.
Rationality.(Is 9:18-20, 51:7-9)
A spirit of this world. A spirit of deception through reason. A spirit of folly. A spirit who resides in our knowledge base. A spirit of this world. The spirit of rationality when 'loosed' tears us apart with logic versa the illogical. Logic as taught by this world. Demanding constant recognition of the 'reasonable' this spirits challenges the infallible Word of God. The spirit of rationality must be one of the worst enemies of the Word of Christ within us.
The spirit of rationality always drags God's Word over our own experience of seeing and understanding things. While so much in us is shaped by the world and the Devil. Also the spirit of rationality believes that all things could be 'solved' if other people only understood what it makes you see or understand.
Addiction. (Pr 30:15-16, Is 5:11-12.)
A spirit of bondage/slavery, imprisonment, oppression, debasement, pestering or torturous demands/temptations and spiritual genocide. A spirit of this world. Addiction needs to be understood from a different perspective than our world has given it. Addiction is not physical, though the spirit of addiction does use our fleshly needs to magnify itself! Addiction is the sense of need within our own inner being. The 'voice' of demand, the inner need for well being through consumption.
However it is not the substance we crave after that is the sin or wrong, but much rather the demander - who makes us crave for such a substance and our lack of self-control which leads to the growth and control of Weakness over us as well. From a 'family tree' perspective, with Weakness as a mother, Craving is Addiction's first-born. Some spirits who help in deed. Greed, Selfishness, Unfaithfulness and Weakness.
(This is why we need Jesus, for as sinners we interact - fornicate - with wrong spiritualities - polluting our souls. Repent and forgiveness is assured for those who confess their times with wrong and seek right instead. (Ezekiel 18))
Prayer of Salvation
Lord,
I repent for trying to be master of my own life. I change my mind about who I want to be in charge of my life. I turn from my useless and unproductive thoughts that I am the center of my universe and choose to believe in the living God who created everything, including me (Acts 14:15). I have lived without a purpose but now I will live to hear and obey You, God (Jn. 5:19, 20,30).
I confess with my lips that Jesus is Lord and believe in my heart that God raised Him from the dead. I believe that God so loved the world He sent His only Son Jesus to shed His blood to wash away the barrier of sin (Jn. 3:16)
I receive You, Jesus as MY Lord and Savior (Jn. 1:11,12).
I welcome You, Holy Spirit, into my life to rescue and empower me and to restore me to intimacy with my heavenly Father (Acts 2:38).
If you just confessed this prayer, you are saved! I welcome you into the family my (brother/sister) I pray for peace, joy, and happiness in your life as you allow the Lord to love you and bless you and give you assurance of everlasting life with Him forever and ever......PRAISE GOD!
May the Lord keep you and Bless you this day....Amen
Hi my name is Gerry I like to write poetry or short articles, I've had some of my poems published but most of my work is unpublished.
Copyright 2007 Jeshu (UN: jeshu at Writing.Com). All rights reserved.
Article Source: http://www.faithwriters.com-CHRISTIAN WRITERS
Wednesday, August 31, 2016
Tuesday, August 30, 2016
Evil Spirituality part 1
by Gerry Bloemendaal
3/09/2016 / Christian Apologetics
Friends I wanted to have a closer look at our spirituality, often we forget that we are spiritual beings and that both Good and Bad bring spiritual realities alive within our lives.
Below I have listed some common wrong or evil spiritual manifestations which we can find within our spiritual space. Please understand that the names I gave the spirituality are pointers of recognition.
For example, feelings of shame, fear, guilt are human spiritual characteristics (which came into our life after we fell into sin) - and should not be understood to be evil spirituality in itself - yet unclean spirituality will use our human feelings and thoughts to captivate, hurt and even kill us - it is these forces I am looking at - and therefore I have named them according to the spiritual feeling they bring alive within - not because evil spirituality really carry such names.
The Deceiver. (Gen 3:1-5, Is 14:12-15) The Devil, Satan, the Snake, the liar, the Beast. Though Deceiver can only be brought into us through Dishonesty, His spiritual visitations are vastly different than Dishonesty. Deceiver has his essence of being shaped as the snake -- sneaks into any tiny hole and speaks in split tongue. His presence of inner recognition is therefore not as easy as it may seem. The Deceiver is a silent almost invisible predator of heart and mind. His personal characteristics give him away however. His focus is always seeking to put/talk/set the truth into such a perspective as to suit us the wilful sinner/his cause best. Also the Deceiver appears as a friend within when we either try to get out of the truth of our wrongful actions or when he tries to smooth talk us into doing/seeing something wrongful(ly). (Le. 19:36, Ps. 109:1-5) Rightfully the Deceiver forms a very large part of The Dragon/accuser and The False Prophet within our inner world of being.
The Tempter. (Mt 4:1-11,7:10, Rev 20) The Devil, the snake. Oh the tempter of human hearts shall soon burn forever more. Yet as of today beware. No one can withstand the Devil but Jesus Christ the Word. Everyone can get to know the Tempter but not many realise how sly, cunning and strong the Devil truly is. The surest way we can recognise that we have fallen for the Tempter is when our fleshly/worldly desires/needs rule our lives. The Tempter is the 'commander in chief' of our fallen reality. The more times the Tempter get his way in us the more miserable and empty of spirit we become. Truly in our human nature we are the puppets, unclean spirituality shape the strings and the devil in the shapes of the Tempter, Accuser and Deceiver the unholy puppet-master.
The spirit of this world.
Satan as 'prince'(dictator) of our 'worldly' lives. The spirit of idolatry, adulatory and deceit -- who takes our focus away from God and places us in a removed from God reality -- even this sinful world's. The spirit who is permeated through our fleshly desires our worldly and sinful existence. The spirit of this world 'conforms' or 'conditions' us according to the ways of this world. (Psalm 115:2-8) The spirit of this world is an entity which controls MANY legions of unclean spirituality. (Think about saturate.) For example the 'worldly spirits' of the self-absorbed, workaholic, watching sport, believing the news Media and having a beer, every night again, all shape more unclean spirituality under the banner of one spirit -- the spirit of this world -- with our human spirit in bondage to it all.(Romans 1:18-32, Rev 17:15)
Unbelief.(Psalm 14 & 53, He. 3:7-19.)
A spirit of lies and deceit through untrue visions/perspectives of 'truth'. A crushing spirit, a spirit full of murder Unbelief ought to be a guardian angel. The clearest shape of its appearance is that one perceives from nothingness (you can't see or understand) while He is. Unbelief is experienced as a stab, (deadly if believed,) to the heart of the believer, as easily noticeable as the sting of death, for those of little faith in us. Constantly on the prowl this spirit seeks moments of incomprehension and suggests to our minds that God or His loving help is impossible for you don't see, see wrongly or don't understand, as you look at its suggestion, which is always a lie or a perverted view of the truth.
Self will. (Romans 2:8)
A spirit of stubborn pride, rebellion, spiritual war, dictatorships, murder and genocide. Another general in Satan's web of spiritual intrigue. Self will does not take into account Father's will. Jesus teaches us that complete denial of self will was the purpose of His being. Not My will but the Will of My Father in heaven I have come to do.) Self will seeks only for self and those/that which are/is important to self and in this way is very closely related to selfishness. Their spiritual visitations however are quite different.
Speculator.
A spirit of false hopes and visions.(Is 47:13b-14) A spirit of self-achievement. A spirit of this world, an overwhelming 'addictive' spirit. That our current socio-economic system is run largely by speculation should not surprise us in the least. The spirit of speculation is strong in our modern day and age. Hardly ever warned about the Speculator also runs a muck within the children of our Church. "Just imagine" Speculation is a big and real danger in any Christian's life. Witchcraft and Speculation are not only 'related' they work like hand in glove together. Where you find the one, one will find the other. Speculator forms a big slice of the tongue all believers must hear, the false prophet promoting The Dragon as God and the world as the way to go.
Self Destruction.
A spirit of spiritual genocide and murder. A tool of the Destroyer/Accuser. The spirit of self destruction 'takes away' all personal respect form its victim. Lack of respect, for self or others, opens the way to more spiritual and/or physical abuse. self-destruction is a powerful attitude/mood spirit. By this I mean that Self Destruction constantly pollutes our thoughts and feelings, an true abomination that God's children should fornicate with such a wicked force. Addiction and I don't care always accompanies Self-destruction and Suicide is usually the 'last ruler' before physical death.
I don't care.
A spirit of isolation, imprisonment, extreme spiritual injustices and murder. A spirit of lovelessness, unwillingness and selfishness. Usually a fleeting spirit, though like all unclean spirits it leaves a lasting effect. A mood and attitude problem one can expect from this abomination within fallen existence. I don't care what the wicked say isn't even a pure spirit of being for God does care about wicked utterings. A loving heart always cares and in this way we can see even more clearly the wickedness shaping our spirit when we are in our I don't care 'moods'.
The need to be right.
A spirit of powerful delusions. A spirit of this world. A very stubborn spirit. The need to be right feeds on insecurity and fear. The shape of being is this stubborn hold around a personal perspective. (Think here about walls around a city.) The need to be right is 'fathered' by pride in the selfishness/self-focus of our own being. The need to be right is usually an unspoken reality of inner being. The times that the need to be right does speak out could be seen as the tip of the iceberg. I know better and the need to be right are 'blood related.' (To side with God is the best way to be freed from its clutches.)
Boredom.
A spirit of depletion, oblivion and destruction. A spirit of this world. Boredom in essence of being carries the void like nothingness of the uncreated. When one meditates on Boredom one can soon see its abominable character. As if, when Boredom strikes, all good is not present any longer while The Fountain of all Good is. Boredom is one of the most visible spirits of childhood. Still undisguised by the child's consciousness the spirit of Boredom openly empties the need of active living into a void of inner discomfort which seeks to feed without the will to act. In active and creative persons Boredom finds its most fertile field in a(n) restrictive/authoritarian environment and its best long release fertiliser is forced and/or meaningless work/jobs, or jails, be they bedroom or dungeons, physical or spiritual.
(This is why we need Jesus, for as sinners we interact - fornicate - with wrong spiritualities - polluting our souls. Repent and forgiveness is assured for those who confess their times with wrong and seek right instead. (Ezekiel 18))
Prayer of Salvation
Lord,
I repent for trying to be master of my own life. I change my mind about who I want to be in charge of my life. I turn from my useless and unproductive thoughts that I am the center of my universe and choose to believe in the living God who created everything, including me (Acts 14:15). I have lived without a purpose but now I will live to hear and obey You, God (Jn. 5:19, 20,30).
I confess with my lips that Jesus is Lord and believe in my heart that God raised Him from the dead. I believe that God so loved the world He sent His only Son Jesus to shed His blood to wash away the barrier of sin (Jn. 3:16)
I receive You, Jesus as MY Lord and Savior (Jn. 1:11,12).
I welcome You, Holy Spirit, into my life to rescue and empower me and to restore me to intimacy with my heavenly Father (Acts 2:38).
If you just confessed this prayer, you are saved! I welcome you into the family my (brother/sister) I pray for peace, joy, and happiness in your life as you allow the Lord to love you and bless you and give you assurance of everlasting life with Him forever and ever......PRAISE GOD!
May the Lord keep you and Bless you this day....Amen
Hi my name is Gerry I like to write poetry or short articles, I've had some of my poems published but most of my work is unpublished.
Copyright 2007 Jeshu (UN: jeshu at Writing.Com). All rights reserved.
Article Source: http://www.faithwriters.com-CHRISTIAN WRITERS
3/09/2016 / Christian Apologetics
Friends I wanted to have a closer look at our spirituality, often we forget that we are spiritual beings and that both Good and Bad bring spiritual realities alive within our lives.
Below I have listed some common wrong or evil spiritual manifestations which we can find within our spiritual space. Please understand that the names I gave the spirituality are pointers of recognition.
For example, feelings of shame, fear, guilt are human spiritual characteristics (which came into our life after we fell into sin) - and should not be understood to be evil spirituality in itself - yet unclean spirituality will use our human feelings and thoughts to captivate, hurt and even kill us - it is these forces I am looking at - and therefore I have named them according to the spiritual feeling they bring alive within - not because evil spirituality really carry such names.
The Deceiver. (Gen 3:1-5, Is 14:12-15) The Devil, Satan, the Snake, the liar, the Beast. Though Deceiver can only be brought into us through Dishonesty, His spiritual visitations are vastly different than Dishonesty. Deceiver has his essence of being shaped as the snake -- sneaks into any tiny hole and speaks in split tongue. His presence of inner recognition is therefore not as easy as it may seem. The Deceiver is a silent almost invisible predator of heart and mind. His personal characteristics give him away however. His focus is always seeking to put/talk/set the truth into such a perspective as to suit us the wilful sinner/his cause best. Also the Deceiver appears as a friend within when we either try to get out of the truth of our wrongful actions or when he tries to smooth talk us into doing/seeing something wrongful(ly). (Le. 19:36, Ps. 109:1-5) Rightfully the Deceiver forms a very large part of The Dragon/accuser and The False Prophet within our inner world of being.
The Tempter. (Mt 4:1-11,7:10, Rev 20) The Devil, the snake. Oh the tempter of human hearts shall soon burn forever more. Yet as of today beware. No one can withstand the Devil but Jesus Christ the Word. Everyone can get to know the Tempter but not many realise how sly, cunning and strong the Devil truly is. The surest way we can recognise that we have fallen for the Tempter is when our fleshly/worldly desires/needs rule our lives. The Tempter is the 'commander in chief' of our fallen reality. The more times the Tempter get his way in us the more miserable and empty of spirit we become. Truly in our human nature we are the puppets, unclean spirituality shape the strings and the devil in the shapes of the Tempter, Accuser and Deceiver the unholy puppet-master.
The spirit of this world.
Satan as 'prince'(dictator) of our 'worldly' lives. The spirit of idolatry, adulatory and deceit -- who takes our focus away from God and places us in a removed from God reality -- even this sinful world's. The spirit who is permeated through our fleshly desires our worldly and sinful existence. The spirit of this world 'conforms' or 'conditions' us according to the ways of this world. (Psalm 115:2-8) The spirit of this world is an entity which controls MANY legions of unclean spirituality. (Think about saturate.) For example the 'worldly spirits' of the self-absorbed, workaholic, watching sport, believing the news Media and having a beer, every night again, all shape more unclean spirituality under the banner of one spirit -- the spirit of this world -- with our human spirit in bondage to it all.(Romans 1:18-32, Rev 17:15)
Unbelief.(Psalm 14 & 53, He. 3:7-19.)
A spirit of lies and deceit through untrue visions/perspectives of 'truth'. A crushing spirit, a spirit full of murder Unbelief ought to be a guardian angel. The clearest shape of its appearance is that one perceives from nothingness (you can't see or understand) while He is. Unbelief is experienced as a stab, (deadly if believed,) to the heart of the believer, as easily noticeable as the sting of death, for those of little faith in us. Constantly on the prowl this spirit seeks moments of incomprehension and suggests to our minds that God or His loving help is impossible for you don't see, see wrongly or don't understand, as you look at its suggestion, which is always a lie or a perverted view of the truth.
Self will. (Romans 2:8)
A spirit of stubborn pride, rebellion, spiritual war, dictatorships, murder and genocide. Another general in Satan's web of spiritual intrigue. Self will does not take into account Father's will. Jesus teaches us that complete denial of self will was the purpose of His being. Not My will but the Will of My Father in heaven I have come to do.) Self will seeks only for self and those/that which are/is important to self and in this way is very closely related to selfishness. Their spiritual visitations however are quite different.
Speculator.
A spirit of false hopes and visions.(Is 47:13b-14) A spirit of self-achievement. A spirit of this world, an overwhelming 'addictive' spirit. That our current socio-economic system is run largely by speculation should not surprise us in the least. The spirit of speculation is strong in our modern day and age. Hardly ever warned about the Speculator also runs a muck within the children of our Church. "Just imagine" Speculation is a big and real danger in any Christian's life. Witchcraft and Speculation are not only 'related' they work like hand in glove together. Where you find the one, one will find the other. Speculator forms a big slice of the tongue all believers must hear, the false prophet promoting The Dragon as God and the world as the way to go.
Self Destruction.
A spirit of spiritual genocide and murder. A tool of the Destroyer/Accuser. The spirit of self destruction 'takes away' all personal respect form its victim. Lack of respect, for self or others, opens the way to more spiritual and/or physical abuse. self-destruction is a powerful attitude/mood spirit. By this I mean that Self Destruction constantly pollutes our thoughts and feelings, an true abomination that God's children should fornicate with such a wicked force. Addiction and I don't care always accompanies Self-destruction and Suicide is usually the 'last ruler' before physical death.
I don't care.
A spirit of isolation, imprisonment, extreme spiritual injustices and murder. A spirit of lovelessness, unwillingness and selfishness. Usually a fleeting spirit, though like all unclean spirits it leaves a lasting effect. A mood and attitude problem one can expect from this abomination within fallen existence. I don't care what the wicked say isn't even a pure spirit of being for God does care about wicked utterings. A loving heart always cares and in this way we can see even more clearly the wickedness shaping our spirit when we are in our I don't care 'moods'.
The need to be right.
A spirit of powerful delusions. A spirit of this world. A very stubborn spirit. The need to be right feeds on insecurity and fear. The shape of being is this stubborn hold around a personal perspective. (Think here about walls around a city.) The need to be right is 'fathered' by pride in the selfishness/self-focus of our own being. The need to be right is usually an unspoken reality of inner being. The times that the need to be right does speak out could be seen as the tip of the iceberg. I know better and the need to be right are 'blood related.' (To side with God is the best way to be freed from its clutches.)
Boredom.
A spirit of depletion, oblivion and destruction. A spirit of this world. Boredom in essence of being carries the void like nothingness of the uncreated. When one meditates on Boredom one can soon see its abominable character. As if, when Boredom strikes, all good is not present any longer while The Fountain of all Good is. Boredom is one of the most visible spirits of childhood. Still undisguised by the child's consciousness the spirit of Boredom openly empties the need of active living into a void of inner discomfort which seeks to feed without the will to act. In active and creative persons Boredom finds its most fertile field in a(n) restrictive/authoritarian environment and its best long release fertiliser is forced and/or meaningless work/jobs, or jails, be they bedroom or dungeons, physical or spiritual.
(This is why we need Jesus, for as sinners we interact - fornicate - with wrong spiritualities - polluting our souls. Repent and forgiveness is assured for those who confess their times with wrong and seek right instead. (Ezekiel 18))
Prayer of Salvation
Lord,
I repent for trying to be master of my own life. I change my mind about who I want to be in charge of my life. I turn from my useless and unproductive thoughts that I am the center of my universe and choose to believe in the living God who created everything, including me (Acts 14:15). I have lived without a purpose but now I will live to hear and obey You, God (Jn. 5:19, 20,30).
I confess with my lips that Jesus is Lord and believe in my heart that God raised Him from the dead. I believe that God so loved the world He sent His only Son Jesus to shed His blood to wash away the barrier of sin (Jn. 3:16)
I receive You, Jesus as MY Lord and Savior (Jn. 1:11,12).
I welcome You, Holy Spirit, into my life to rescue and empower me and to restore me to intimacy with my heavenly Father (Acts 2:38).
If you just confessed this prayer, you are saved! I welcome you into the family my (brother/sister) I pray for peace, joy, and happiness in your life as you allow the Lord to love you and bless you and give you assurance of everlasting life with Him forever and ever......PRAISE GOD!
May the Lord keep you and Bless you this day....Amen
Hi my name is Gerry I like to write poetry or short articles, I've had some of my poems published but most of my work is unpublished.
Copyright 2007 Jeshu (UN: jeshu at Writing.Com). All rights reserved.
Article Source: http://www.faithwriters.com-CHRISTIAN WRITERS
Monday, August 29, 2016
What will happen in the endtimes?
Matthew ch 24 1-14
As Jesus was sitting on the Mount of Olives, the disciples came to him privately.
“Tell us,” they said, “when will this happen, and what will be the sign of your coming
and of the end of the age?”
Jesus answered: “Watch out that no one deceives you. For many will come in my name,
claiming, ‘I am the Messiah,’ and will deceive many. You will hear of wars and rumors of wars,
but see to it that you are not alarmed. Such things must happen, but the end is still to come.
Nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom. There will be famines and earthquakes in various places. All these are the beginning of birth pains.
“Then you will be handed over to be persecuted and put to death,
and you will be hated by all nations because of me. At that time many will turn away
from the faith and will betray and hate each other, and many false prophets
will appear and deceive many people. Because of the increase of wickedness,
the love of most will grow cold, but the one who stands firm to the end will be saved.
And this gospel of the kingdom will be preached in the whole world as a testimony
to all nations, and then the end will come.
It is becoming clear more and more each day that there is a wind of change in the world. This change was predicted long ago by Jesus, who's mission to the world was to show mankind what God was like, and to save mankind by dying on the cross and taking our sin punishment upon himself; He who knew no sin became our substitute so that we may live in the presence of God forever.
He knew that many would accept his gift of salvation, but He also knew many would choose to go their own way; it was still important to God to save as many of His children as possible. So when His disciples asked Him about the end times, He didn't hold back on telling the truth about our times. In the times that He lived, there was a similar situation that is reoccurring today; that situation got better, but our situation will continue to get worse.
We are living in an atmosphere that is charged, with active wars, and rumors of wars, people are less and less tolerant of each other, and nobody has a clear solution. This is the end battle, between good and evil, and the enemy, the evil one, has created an atmosphere of hate and intolerance, and many people are not aware that they are affected; it is a spiritual warfare that is manifesting itself directly into our world.
Spiritual warfare is not a new concept to most christians, who know that this material world is affected by the spiritual world. We take our lead from the Holy Spirit, which helps us sense that spiritual influence in our world around us. If you are doing daily reading and meditating on the Word of God, with prayer and worship time, you will be led by the Spirit; when you look at the news you will see the obvious actions of the devil on the world.
The holy spirit guides you into a deeper understanding of the consequences of sin; without this guidance and presence in our hearts, everything that is going on the world would be baffling. People are determined to live the way the want, and they choose to ignore the wisdom of the Word of God; we are now reaping the consequences of those actions.
These changes don't hit home for most people until it affects them directly, and most of the consequences of sinful and selfish behavior has not been felt so dramatically until recently. At every level in our country, politically, locally, commercially, we are seeing the consequences of bad decisions, so that most people don't trust the government, big business, or the rich elite. This is not something that manifested overnight, but a slow boil, like a frog in a pot of boiling water that won't try to jump out to escape because he doesn't feel the pain until it is too late.
It is never too late to commit your life to God; He can help you to deal with the situations in your life, the ones that you created by your own decisions, or the ones that were the actions of other people who brought on a crisis in your life. He will take your burdens and give your peace and joy, and while the world as we knew is definitely coming to an end, that does not mean your end, if you only accept what He has to offer, His gift of salvation.
If you would like to know what is really going on in this world, read the bible and say this prayer:
Prayer of Salvation
Lord,
I repent for trying to be master of my own life. I change my mind about who I want to be in charge of my life. I turn from my useless and unproductive thoughts that I am the center of my universe and choose to believe in the living God who created everything, including me (Acts 14:15). I have lived without a purpose but now I will live to hear and obey You, God (Jn. 5:19, 20,30).
I confess with my lips that Jesus is Lord and believe in my heart that God raised Him from the dead. I believe that God so loved the world He sent His only Son Jesus to shed His blood to wash away the barrier of sin (Jn. 3:16)
I receive You, Jesus as MY Lord and Savior (Jn. 1:11,12).
I welcome You, Holy Spirit, into my life to rescue and empower me and to restore me to intimacy with my heavenly Father (Acts 2:38).
If you just confessed this prayer, you are saved! I welcome you into the family my (brother/sister) I pray for peace, joy, and happiness in your life as you allow the Lord to love you and bless you and give you assurance of everlasting life with Him forever and ever......PRAISE GOD!
May the Lord keep you and Bless you this day....Amen
As Jesus was sitting on the Mount of Olives, the disciples came to him privately.
“Tell us,” they said, “when will this happen, and what will be the sign of your coming
and of the end of the age?”
Jesus answered: “Watch out that no one deceives you. For many will come in my name,
claiming, ‘I am the Messiah,’ and will deceive many. You will hear of wars and rumors of wars,
but see to it that you are not alarmed. Such things must happen, but the end is still to come.
Nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom. There will be famines and earthquakes in various places. All these are the beginning of birth pains.
“Then you will be handed over to be persecuted and put to death,
and you will be hated by all nations because of me. At that time many will turn away
from the faith and will betray and hate each other, and many false prophets
will appear and deceive many people. Because of the increase of wickedness,
the love of most will grow cold, but the one who stands firm to the end will be saved.
And this gospel of the kingdom will be preached in the whole world as a testimony
to all nations, and then the end will come.
It is becoming clear more and more each day that there is a wind of change in the world. This change was predicted long ago by Jesus, who's mission to the world was to show mankind what God was like, and to save mankind by dying on the cross and taking our sin punishment upon himself; He who knew no sin became our substitute so that we may live in the presence of God forever.
He knew that many would accept his gift of salvation, but He also knew many would choose to go their own way; it was still important to God to save as many of His children as possible. So when His disciples asked Him about the end times, He didn't hold back on telling the truth about our times. In the times that He lived, there was a similar situation that is reoccurring today; that situation got better, but our situation will continue to get worse.
We are living in an atmosphere that is charged, with active wars, and rumors of wars, people are less and less tolerant of each other, and nobody has a clear solution. This is the end battle, between good and evil, and the enemy, the evil one, has created an atmosphere of hate and intolerance, and many people are not aware that they are affected; it is a spiritual warfare that is manifesting itself directly into our world.
Spiritual warfare is not a new concept to most christians, who know that this material world is affected by the spiritual world. We take our lead from the Holy Spirit, which helps us sense that spiritual influence in our world around us. If you are doing daily reading and meditating on the Word of God, with prayer and worship time, you will be led by the Spirit; when you look at the news you will see the obvious actions of the devil on the world.
The holy spirit guides you into a deeper understanding of the consequences of sin; without this guidance and presence in our hearts, everything that is going on the world would be baffling. People are determined to live the way the want, and they choose to ignore the wisdom of the Word of God; we are now reaping the consequences of those actions.
These changes don't hit home for most people until it affects them directly, and most of the consequences of sinful and selfish behavior has not been felt so dramatically until recently. At every level in our country, politically, locally, commercially, we are seeing the consequences of bad decisions, so that most people don't trust the government, big business, or the rich elite. This is not something that manifested overnight, but a slow boil, like a frog in a pot of boiling water that won't try to jump out to escape because he doesn't feel the pain until it is too late.
It is never too late to commit your life to God; He can help you to deal with the situations in your life, the ones that you created by your own decisions, or the ones that were the actions of other people who brought on a crisis in your life. He will take your burdens and give your peace and joy, and while the world as we knew is definitely coming to an end, that does not mean your end, if you only accept what He has to offer, His gift of salvation.
If you would like to know what is really going on in this world, read the bible and say this prayer:
Prayer of Salvation
Lord,
I repent for trying to be master of my own life. I change my mind about who I want to be in charge of my life. I turn from my useless and unproductive thoughts that I am the center of my universe and choose to believe in the living God who created everything, including me (Acts 14:15). I have lived without a purpose but now I will live to hear and obey You, God (Jn. 5:19, 20,30).
I confess with my lips that Jesus is Lord and believe in my heart that God raised Him from the dead. I believe that God so loved the world He sent His only Son Jesus to shed His blood to wash away the barrier of sin (Jn. 3:16)
I receive You, Jesus as MY Lord and Savior (Jn. 1:11,12).
I welcome You, Holy Spirit, into my life to rescue and empower me and to restore me to intimacy with my heavenly Father (Acts 2:38).
If you just confessed this prayer, you are saved! I welcome you into the family my (brother/sister) I pray for peace, joy, and happiness in your life as you allow the Lord to love you and bless you and give you assurance of everlasting life with Him forever and ever......PRAISE GOD!
May the Lord keep you and Bless you this day....Amen
Sunday, August 28, 2016
Saturday, August 27, 2016
The Problem of Natural Evil
by Robert Hawes
5/30/2016 / Christian Apologetics
On December 26, 2004, the third most powerful earthquake ever recorded struck in the Indian Ocean, near the Indonesian island of Sumatra. The quake was so intense that it shifted the North Pole about one inch to the east and slightly increased the rotation of the Earth, thereby shortening the length of a standard day by 2.68 microseconds. It also generated a tsunami that struck the surrounding coastlines, killing over 200,000 people and displacing nearly 2,000,000 more.
This unfortunate incident is a prominent example of what is sometimes referred to as 'natural evil': a reference to human suffering caused by processes in nature earthquakes, fires, floods, tornadoes, hurricanes, volcanoes, etc. Few things are as terrifying as when our very environment seems to turn against us, and this has often raised the question of why God would place us in a world with such hazards. Why does he allow natural disasters to claim so many lives, especially those of innocent children? What purpose can there be in it?
The Good Earth
In considering this question, it's necessary to understand that conditions on Earth are exceedingly mild compared to the conditions we observe on other planets. In fact, to our knowledge Earth is uniquely suited for life. Our planet is located in what is sometimes referred to as the Goldilocks Zone (so named because it's "just right") of a stable, mid-sequence star, in an ideal position relative to the other planets of an ideally-balanced solar system, and within an ideal location in an ideal type of galaxy. If we were much closer to or farther from our sun, weather conditions on Earth would make life much more difficult than it is today. If we orbited a star in a binary system, or we were closer to the giant planets of our solar system such as Jupiter and Saturn gravitational stresses on the Earth could produce earthquakes far more frequent and ferocious than we can presently imagine. If our atmosphere were thinner, cosmic radiation and surface temperatures could quickly and easily prove lethal to every living thing on the planet.
These and a host of additional factors we could list demonstrate that Earth is an exceedingly privileged little world. Harsh conditions are the norm throughout the universe; to our knowledge, Earth is the lone exception. For this reason, it's a mistake to think that God has placed us in a harsh environment. On the contrary, we have every reason to believe that he has placed us on the best real estate in the universe.
Why natural disasters then, if Earth is such a wonderful world?
Earth is an active planetit must be in order for life to exist here as comfortably as it doesand this continuous activity, while beneficial, occasionally builds to what we might call "pressure points," which must be alleviated. Tornadoes and hurricanes are spawned by shifting weather patterns that are part of the overall planetary balance. Earthquakes are caused by shifts in the plate tectonics that make up the crust of the Earth. This shifting of the crust quite literally recycles the surface of the planet, creating an ideal environment for life. Tsunamis are caused by massive, sudden upheavals that displace enormous amounts of seawater, such as happens when earthquakes occur at sea. The water flows outward and then back again as the ocean reacts to the disturbance and establishes a new equilibrium.
Disasters result when these events directly impact human communities, but forces and processes in nature do not "kill" in the sense that human beings kill. There is nothing deliberate or malevolent about them. They are not "evil."
Still, might we not wonder why God allows these things to impact human populations? Has he deliberately left us in harm's way?
There are a few things to keep in mind here.
To begin with, based on what scientists have learned about Earth's past, it is evident that we live in a comparatively stable and mild time in our planet's history (and in the history of the universe, for that matter). One can imagine how things might be different if human beings had to contend with major geological upheavals or populations of large predators, such as dinosaurs. Needless to say, under such conditions we would not have reached the level of civilization we have achieved.
Next, we should reflect that, according to the biblical record, humanity has departed from the purposes God originally ordained for it, and in losing direct access to its creator, has undoubtedly forfeited protections it might otherwise have enjoyed.
The book of Genesis illustrates this for us in detailing the care God took of Adam and Eve when they were created:
"And the Lord God planted a garden eastward in Eden; and there he put the man whom he had formed. And out of the ground made the Lord God to grow every tree that is pleasant to the sight, and good for food; the tree of life also in the midst of the garden, and the tree of knowledge of good and evil. And a river went out of Eden to water the garden; and from thence it was parted" Genesis 2:8-10a (KJV) While some believe and teach that the entire Earth was a paradise when Adam was first created, Genesis 2 actually suggests that paradise was restricted to the Garden of Eden, which God specially created to be a habitation for man. Eden was not the entire world, but only a particular region, and the garden was only a part of Eden. Note that Genesis 2:10 says that a river went "out of Eden, to water the garden." This necessitates that the garden did not comprise the whole of Eden.
God did pronounce a curse on the "ground" when Adam sinned, but the nature of the curse was very specific:
"Cursed is the ground because of you; in toil you will eat of it all the days of your life. Both thorns and thistles it shall grow for you; and you will eat the plants of the field; by the sweat of your face you will eat bread. Till you return to the ground, because from it you were taken; for you are dust, and to dust you shall return." Genesis 3:17b-19
This is often taken to mean that God cursed the Earth to the effect that it should produce thorns and thistles, and that it did not produce these things prior to Adam's fall, but this conclusion cannot be derived solely from the text. Note that, when God pronounced the curse, he followed it with: "in toil you will eat of it all the days of your life." The Septuagint the Greek translation of the Old Testament renders Genesis 3:17 this way: "cursed is the earth in your labors." (NETS)
Remember that, in Genesis 2:8-10, we're told that God caused "every tree that is pleasant to the sight and good for food" to grow in the garden. In other words, God prepared the ground of the garden to readily yield fruit-bearing plants and trees, although Adam still had a responsibility to tend it (Genesis 2:15). After the fall, however, God cursed the ground that he had formerly blessed. The ground would no longer produce its fruit easily. Instead, it would readily produce nuisance plants. Adam would be reduced to hard labor in order to survive, and in the meantime would be forced to eat whatever was growing wild around him.
Thus the curse placed upon the ground here was not a general curse on all of the Earth or the universe, both of which, according to the teachings of some, are "fallen." It was a specific curse on the ground, and was meant to render man's labor more difficult.
God also cursed man with death, as he originally warned he would do when he first instructed Adam and Eve not to eat of the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil (Genesis 2:16-17). Note how this curse was implemented, according to Genesis 3:22-24:
"Then the Lord God said, 'Behold the man has become like one of Us, knowing good and evil; and now, he might stretch out his hand, and take also from the tree of life, and eat, and live forever therefore, the Lord God sent him out from the garden of Eden, to cultivate the ground from which he was taken. So he drove the man out; and at the east of the garden of Eden he stationed the cherubim and the flaming sword which turned every direction to guard the way to the tree of life."
God implemented the curse of death upon Adam by depriving him of access to the Tree of Life. From this, it appears that Adam was not created to be naturally immortal. His life was dependent upon access to the Tree of Life, without which he ultimately died. It does not appear that God cursed Adam's body in some way in order to ensure his death; he simply deprived him of what was necessary to sustain him indefinitely. To argue otherwise, one must read assumptions into the Genesis account, which seems quite straightforward when taken literally here.
I make these points in order to demonstrate that we do not live on a "bad" Earth that God changed from its initial state in order to cause us grief, but rather that we as a race have lost the place of particular favor that was once intended for us. There is no biblical reason to believe that God changed the Earth from its original "good" creation state, creating thorns and thistles only after Adam sinned. Remember again here that the Garden of Eden was a special place, even before Adam's fall. Thorns and thistles were almost certainly a part of the environment outside of the garden, although the curse may have caused them to become even more virulent.
Some argue that plant and animal death are also due to the fall of man, citing Romans 5:12, where the apostle Paul writes, "for by one man sin entered into the world, and death by sin," but in this passage Paul specifically says that death "passed upon all men because all have sinned." Man is the subject here, not all of nature.
Furthermore, plant and animal death is actually beneficial to the planet as a whole, in spite of the emotional reaction people may have to it. The assumption that it cannot have been part of God's original plan for his "good" creation is just that: an assumption.
Forfeited Dominion For one last point here, consider that, not only did God initially place Adam and Eve in an especially ideal environment, he intended that they should have "dominion" over the Earth:
"And God blessed them [Adam and Eve], and God said unto them, 'Be fruitful, and multiply, and replenish the earth, and subdue it: and have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over every living thing that moveth upon the earth." Genesis 1:28 (KJV)
The Genesis account fully leads me to believe that this planet was to be our "project." God gave us a good world, but intended for us to make it even better, to learn how to use its resources and become its masters. Among other things, we might have learned better ways of anticipating violent storms and earthquakes, or better building techniques to withstand them, or possibly even ways of alleviating them. Adam's experience in Eden might have prepared mankind to cultivate vast portions of the Earth's surface, almost assuredly in ways that have not yet occurred to us, and in cooperation rather than competition. Mankind might now be dispersed across the Earth in an entirely different manner, one more conducive to living in harmony with our environment. Unquestionably, the plant and animal kingdoms would also have benefited from mankind's enhanced understanding and stewardship of the globe. Perhaps even favored pets might have been granted increased longevity as a benefit derived from a better understanding of the nature of life.
How much might God have taught us about mastering our world, and even curing diseases and repairing genetic abnormalities, had our first parents not rebelled, thereby cutting us off from intimate fellowship with the creator of all things? As it stands, the world sometimes seems like a harsh place to us because we do not enjoy the position of supremacy that we were meant to have in relation to it. Man is trying to get by as best he can in a world that he does not fully comprehend and which he cannot fully master.
The Suffering of Innocents
Invariably, the problem of evilin either its moral or natural formsgenerates discussion concerning the suffering of innocents, children in particular. Even if we're willing to concede that man has fallen from his intended place in relation to both God and the world, it seems unfair to us that children should also bear the burden. Why would God permit this?
This is a complex subject, but I will highlight a few areas that I believe are worthy of consideration:
First, as discussed previously, God has given human beings the freedom to make moral choices. In order for true love to exist, the choice to give it or withhold it must also exist. Thus, God has given us a framework within which both good and evil choices are possible, and children are as subject to this framework as adults. If it were not possible to act in an evil fashion toward children, it would also be impossible to truly love them and do good to them. The choice is ours, as is the responsibility for the choice in light of God's promise to judge all mankind.
Furthermore, this matter of choice not only applies to decisions that we deliberately makefor instance, the choice to show kindness or malice in a given situationbut also to what we might consider "incidental" choices, in which children are affected more in terms of the natural consequences of our actions.
For instance, if we make poor health, financial, or lifestyle choices, our children are affected as much as we are. When parents divorce, their children have to live with the fallout, including the emotional pain. If mom or dad commits a crime and is sent to jail, the children are not exempted from the negative consequences that may result to the rest of the family, such as loss of income or loss of a home. If a man decides to get drunk and then go out and drive with his family in the car, and ends up plowing into a tree at ninety-miles-an-hour, his children will suffer right along with him through no fault of their own.
Yes, God has provided the framework in which such choices are possible, but the responsibility is ours.
Second, we should evaluate our attitude toward God. Do we really seek him? Do we really care what he thinks or what his will for our lives might be? Are we willing to lay aside our own plans and submit to his will? Are we teaching our children to seek God? What sort of example are we setting for them?
The sad fact of the matter is that humanity is pretty well going about its business as if God doesn't exist, and God has allowed us to experience the natural consequences that result from this approach to life. "You will search for me and find me," he has said, "when you search for me with all of your heart." But for the most part, we have chosen to give our hearts to other things, such as the pursuit of material wealth and pleasure. What right do we have to live as if there is no God, and then immediately expect him to bail us out of whatever trouble we find ourselves in? What right do we have to expect him to show up and explain himself in times of crisis when we don't care to hear what he has to say in the meantime?
Even many of our religious practices are more about rituals, feelings, cults of personality, self-righteousness, and social obligations than about knowing God and giving him preeminence in our lives. We often honor him with our lips when our hearts are far from him, and God cares nothing for this empty form of acknowledgment. What he values is a heart that truly seeks him.
Our children have been given to us. They are our responsibility. And we have effectively immersed them in a godless world by the choice to pursue other things. The negative consequences of this are no different than in any other area of life and experience. In great part, we have chosen to live without God, and he has allowed us to do so. The result has been tragic.
On the other hand, God has often shown mercy to those who are truly seeking him, and per the biblical account, has delivered them from potential tragedy.
In the book of Genesis, God warned Pharaoh in a dream that years of famine were coming to Egypt, and he provided Joseph to interpret that dream and to devise a plan to bring Egypt safely through the crisis (Genesis, chapter 41). He delivered a prostitute named Rahab from the destruction of Jericho in return for the kindness she showed to two Israelite spies (Joshua, chapters 2 and 6). He delivered three Hebrew teenagers from death in a Babylonian furnace, and later the prophet Daniel from death by lions (see Daniel, chapters 3 and 6). He warned Mary and Joseph that King Herod would try to kill the infant Jesus, and told them to flee to Egypt (Matthew 2:13-15). He delivered the apostle Peter from prison and almost certain death in response to the prayers of believers (Acts, chapter 12).
Nor is that "all in the past." God continues to watch over his people today. He does not always intervene in their circumstances, just as he did not always intervene even in biblical times, but there are noted instances where he has done this.
I remember hearing the story of a missionary whose life was spared when villagers who had been sent to kill him in the night retreated without even confronting him. Later, after one of them was converted, he explained to the missionary that he and those with him had seen large men standing outside of the missionary's home with drawn weapons, and this is why they had left him alone that night. The missionary should have seen these men, but he saw no one.
A few years ago, I came across the testimony of a Christian who was cleaning out his garage one day, and was about to pick something up when he distinctly heard a voice telling him not to touch it. He went and got a broom to move the object and discovered Black Widow spiders nesting underneath of it.
And for one last example, I will provide a personal testimony.
My oldest son, Jamesnow seventeen years oldis severely autistic and non-verbal. A number of years ago, when he was perhaps nine or ten years old, my wife left to visit relatives while I stayed home to care for James. I became very ill one night while she was gone, and fell into a deep sleep. Unbeknownst to me, my son got up out of bed and got in the bathtub and started playing. Like many autistic children, he loves playing in water, and this is usually harmless as long as it's supervised. But at the time, I had no idea what was going on; I was dead asleep and had a loud box fan running.
How long he was in there, I don't know, but I was woken from sleep by a man's voice calling my name and telling me I needed to wake upthere was no one else in the house at the time, and no radio or TV playing. I woke immediately and heard my son in the bathtub of our master bathroom, jumping up and down with the shower turned on. He could easily have slipped and hit his head on the side of the tub or on one of the faucets, and as sick as I was at the time, I might not have been aware of his situation for hours. By the time I got up, it might have been too late.
I'm sure that skeptics could offer any number of alternative explanations for the examples I've provided here. It would be impossible to objectively prove that God did, or did not, intervene in these circumstances, and so I do not pretend to offer them as definitive proofs. I offer them merely as circumstances consistent with biblical examples of divine interventions, and I think even skeptics would have to agree that God, if he does exist, must surely be capable of such things. We may quibble over why God chose to intervene in these situations and not in others, but that takes us back to the issue of divine knowledge and motivations. Without knowing what God knows, how can we stand in judgment over him in regard to what he should, or should not, have done in given situation?
The point is this: as a race, we are seeking just about everything but God, when he has promised that it is those who seek him with all of their hearts who will find him.
If we live as though there is no God, is that his fault or ours?
Robert Hawes is the author of "In Search of God: A Look at Life's Most Essential Question," as well as many articles on various subjects ranging from politics to theology and Christian apologetics. His blog is: http://takeupyourcross73.blogspot.com.
Article Source: http://www.faithwriters.com-CHRISTIAN WRITERS
5/30/2016 / Christian Apologetics
On December 26, 2004, the third most powerful earthquake ever recorded struck in the Indian Ocean, near the Indonesian island of Sumatra. The quake was so intense that it shifted the North Pole about one inch to the east and slightly increased the rotation of the Earth, thereby shortening the length of a standard day by 2.68 microseconds. It also generated a tsunami that struck the surrounding coastlines, killing over 200,000 people and displacing nearly 2,000,000 more.
This unfortunate incident is a prominent example of what is sometimes referred to as 'natural evil': a reference to human suffering caused by processes in nature earthquakes, fires, floods, tornadoes, hurricanes, volcanoes, etc. Few things are as terrifying as when our very environment seems to turn against us, and this has often raised the question of why God would place us in a world with such hazards. Why does he allow natural disasters to claim so many lives, especially those of innocent children? What purpose can there be in it?
The Good Earth
In considering this question, it's necessary to understand that conditions on Earth are exceedingly mild compared to the conditions we observe on other planets. In fact, to our knowledge Earth is uniquely suited for life. Our planet is located in what is sometimes referred to as the Goldilocks Zone (so named because it's "just right") of a stable, mid-sequence star, in an ideal position relative to the other planets of an ideally-balanced solar system, and within an ideal location in an ideal type of galaxy. If we were much closer to or farther from our sun, weather conditions on Earth would make life much more difficult than it is today. If we orbited a star in a binary system, or we were closer to the giant planets of our solar system such as Jupiter and Saturn gravitational stresses on the Earth could produce earthquakes far more frequent and ferocious than we can presently imagine. If our atmosphere were thinner, cosmic radiation and surface temperatures could quickly and easily prove lethal to every living thing on the planet.
These and a host of additional factors we could list demonstrate that Earth is an exceedingly privileged little world. Harsh conditions are the norm throughout the universe; to our knowledge, Earth is the lone exception. For this reason, it's a mistake to think that God has placed us in a harsh environment. On the contrary, we have every reason to believe that he has placed us on the best real estate in the universe.
Why natural disasters then, if Earth is such a wonderful world?
Earth is an active planetit must be in order for life to exist here as comfortably as it doesand this continuous activity, while beneficial, occasionally builds to what we might call "pressure points," which must be alleviated. Tornadoes and hurricanes are spawned by shifting weather patterns that are part of the overall planetary balance. Earthquakes are caused by shifts in the plate tectonics that make up the crust of the Earth. This shifting of the crust quite literally recycles the surface of the planet, creating an ideal environment for life. Tsunamis are caused by massive, sudden upheavals that displace enormous amounts of seawater, such as happens when earthquakes occur at sea. The water flows outward and then back again as the ocean reacts to the disturbance and establishes a new equilibrium.
Disasters result when these events directly impact human communities, but forces and processes in nature do not "kill" in the sense that human beings kill. There is nothing deliberate or malevolent about them. They are not "evil."
Still, might we not wonder why God allows these things to impact human populations? Has he deliberately left us in harm's way?
There are a few things to keep in mind here.
To begin with, based on what scientists have learned about Earth's past, it is evident that we live in a comparatively stable and mild time in our planet's history (and in the history of the universe, for that matter). One can imagine how things might be different if human beings had to contend with major geological upheavals or populations of large predators, such as dinosaurs. Needless to say, under such conditions we would not have reached the level of civilization we have achieved.
Next, we should reflect that, according to the biblical record, humanity has departed from the purposes God originally ordained for it, and in losing direct access to its creator, has undoubtedly forfeited protections it might otherwise have enjoyed.
The book of Genesis illustrates this for us in detailing the care God took of Adam and Eve when they were created:
"And the Lord God planted a garden eastward in Eden; and there he put the man whom he had formed. And out of the ground made the Lord God to grow every tree that is pleasant to the sight, and good for food; the tree of life also in the midst of the garden, and the tree of knowledge of good and evil. And a river went out of Eden to water the garden; and from thence it was parted" Genesis 2:8-10a (KJV) While some believe and teach that the entire Earth was a paradise when Adam was first created, Genesis 2 actually suggests that paradise was restricted to the Garden of Eden, which God specially created to be a habitation for man. Eden was not the entire world, but only a particular region, and the garden was only a part of Eden. Note that Genesis 2:10 says that a river went "out of Eden, to water the garden." This necessitates that the garden did not comprise the whole of Eden.
God did pronounce a curse on the "ground" when Adam sinned, but the nature of the curse was very specific:
"Cursed is the ground because of you; in toil you will eat of it all the days of your life. Both thorns and thistles it shall grow for you; and you will eat the plants of the field; by the sweat of your face you will eat bread. Till you return to the ground, because from it you were taken; for you are dust, and to dust you shall return." Genesis 3:17b-19
This is often taken to mean that God cursed the Earth to the effect that it should produce thorns and thistles, and that it did not produce these things prior to Adam's fall, but this conclusion cannot be derived solely from the text. Note that, when God pronounced the curse, he followed it with: "in toil you will eat of it all the days of your life." The Septuagint the Greek translation of the Old Testament renders Genesis 3:17 this way: "cursed is the earth in your labors." (NETS)
Remember that, in Genesis 2:8-10, we're told that God caused "every tree that is pleasant to the sight and good for food" to grow in the garden. In other words, God prepared the ground of the garden to readily yield fruit-bearing plants and trees, although Adam still had a responsibility to tend it (Genesis 2:15). After the fall, however, God cursed the ground that he had formerly blessed. The ground would no longer produce its fruit easily. Instead, it would readily produce nuisance plants. Adam would be reduced to hard labor in order to survive, and in the meantime would be forced to eat whatever was growing wild around him.
Thus the curse placed upon the ground here was not a general curse on all of the Earth or the universe, both of which, according to the teachings of some, are "fallen." It was a specific curse on the ground, and was meant to render man's labor more difficult.
God also cursed man with death, as he originally warned he would do when he first instructed Adam and Eve not to eat of the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil (Genesis 2:16-17). Note how this curse was implemented, according to Genesis 3:22-24:
"Then the Lord God said, 'Behold the man has become like one of Us, knowing good and evil; and now, he might stretch out his hand, and take also from the tree of life, and eat, and live forever therefore, the Lord God sent him out from the garden of Eden, to cultivate the ground from which he was taken. So he drove the man out; and at the east of the garden of Eden he stationed the cherubim and the flaming sword which turned every direction to guard the way to the tree of life."
God implemented the curse of death upon Adam by depriving him of access to the Tree of Life. From this, it appears that Adam was not created to be naturally immortal. His life was dependent upon access to the Tree of Life, without which he ultimately died. It does not appear that God cursed Adam's body in some way in order to ensure his death; he simply deprived him of what was necessary to sustain him indefinitely. To argue otherwise, one must read assumptions into the Genesis account, which seems quite straightforward when taken literally here.
I make these points in order to demonstrate that we do not live on a "bad" Earth that God changed from its initial state in order to cause us grief, but rather that we as a race have lost the place of particular favor that was once intended for us. There is no biblical reason to believe that God changed the Earth from its original "good" creation state, creating thorns and thistles only after Adam sinned. Remember again here that the Garden of Eden was a special place, even before Adam's fall. Thorns and thistles were almost certainly a part of the environment outside of the garden, although the curse may have caused them to become even more virulent.
Some argue that plant and animal death are also due to the fall of man, citing Romans 5:12, where the apostle Paul writes, "for by one man sin entered into the world, and death by sin," but in this passage Paul specifically says that death "passed upon all men because all have sinned." Man is the subject here, not all of nature.
Furthermore, plant and animal death is actually beneficial to the planet as a whole, in spite of the emotional reaction people may have to it. The assumption that it cannot have been part of God's original plan for his "good" creation is just that: an assumption.
Forfeited Dominion For one last point here, consider that, not only did God initially place Adam and Eve in an especially ideal environment, he intended that they should have "dominion" over the Earth:
"And God blessed them [Adam and Eve], and God said unto them, 'Be fruitful, and multiply, and replenish the earth, and subdue it: and have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over every living thing that moveth upon the earth." Genesis 1:28 (KJV)
The Genesis account fully leads me to believe that this planet was to be our "project." God gave us a good world, but intended for us to make it even better, to learn how to use its resources and become its masters. Among other things, we might have learned better ways of anticipating violent storms and earthquakes, or better building techniques to withstand them, or possibly even ways of alleviating them. Adam's experience in Eden might have prepared mankind to cultivate vast portions of the Earth's surface, almost assuredly in ways that have not yet occurred to us, and in cooperation rather than competition. Mankind might now be dispersed across the Earth in an entirely different manner, one more conducive to living in harmony with our environment. Unquestionably, the plant and animal kingdoms would also have benefited from mankind's enhanced understanding and stewardship of the globe. Perhaps even favored pets might have been granted increased longevity as a benefit derived from a better understanding of the nature of life.
How much might God have taught us about mastering our world, and even curing diseases and repairing genetic abnormalities, had our first parents not rebelled, thereby cutting us off from intimate fellowship with the creator of all things? As it stands, the world sometimes seems like a harsh place to us because we do not enjoy the position of supremacy that we were meant to have in relation to it. Man is trying to get by as best he can in a world that he does not fully comprehend and which he cannot fully master.
The Suffering of Innocents
Invariably, the problem of evilin either its moral or natural formsgenerates discussion concerning the suffering of innocents, children in particular. Even if we're willing to concede that man has fallen from his intended place in relation to both God and the world, it seems unfair to us that children should also bear the burden. Why would God permit this?
This is a complex subject, but I will highlight a few areas that I believe are worthy of consideration:
First, as discussed previously, God has given human beings the freedom to make moral choices. In order for true love to exist, the choice to give it or withhold it must also exist. Thus, God has given us a framework within which both good and evil choices are possible, and children are as subject to this framework as adults. If it were not possible to act in an evil fashion toward children, it would also be impossible to truly love them and do good to them. The choice is ours, as is the responsibility for the choice in light of God's promise to judge all mankind.
Furthermore, this matter of choice not only applies to decisions that we deliberately makefor instance, the choice to show kindness or malice in a given situationbut also to what we might consider "incidental" choices, in which children are affected more in terms of the natural consequences of our actions.
For instance, if we make poor health, financial, or lifestyle choices, our children are affected as much as we are. When parents divorce, their children have to live with the fallout, including the emotional pain. If mom or dad commits a crime and is sent to jail, the children are not exempted from the negative consequences that may result to the rest of the family, such as loss of income or loss of a home. If a man decides to get drunk and then go out and drive with his family in the car, and ends up plowing into a tree at ninety-miles-an-hour, his children will suffer right along with him through no fault of their own.
Yes, God has provided the framework in which such choices are possible, but the responsibility is ours.
Second, we should evaluate our attitude toward God. Do we really seek him? Do we really care what he thinks or what his will for our lives might be? Are we willing to lay aside our own plans and submit to his will? Are we teaching our children to seek God? What sort of example are we setting for them?
The sad fact of the matter is that humanity is pretty well going about its business as if God doesn't exist, and God has allowed us to experience the natural consequences that result from this approach to life. "You will search for me and find me," he has said, "when you search for me with all of your heart." But for the most part, we have chosen to give our hearts to other things, such as the pursuit of material wealth and pleasure. What right do we have to live as if there is no God, and then immediately expect him to bail us out of whatever trouble we find ourselves in? What right do we have to expect him to show up and explain himself in times of crisis when we don't care to hear what he has to say in the meantime?
Even many of our religious practices are more about rituals, feelings, cults of personality, self-righteousness, and social obligations than about knowing God and giving him preeminence in our lives. We often honor him with our lips when our hearts are far from him, and God cares nothing for this empty form of acknowledgment. What he values is a heart that truly seeks him.
Our children have been given to us. They are our responsibility. And we have effectively immersed them in a godless world by the choice to pursue other things. The negative consequences of this are no different than in any other area of life and experience. In great part, we have chosen to live without God, and he has allowed us to do so. The result has been tragic.
On the other hand, God has often shown mercy to those who are truly seeking him, and per the biblical account, has delivered them from potential tragedy.
In the book of Genesis, God warned Pharaoh in a dream that years of famine were coming to Egypt, and he provided Joseph to interpret that dream and to devise a plan to bring Egypt safely through the crisis (Genesis, chapter 41). He delivered a prostitute named Rahab from the destruction of Jericho in return for the kindness she showed to two Israelite spies (Joshua, chapters 2 and 6). He delivered three Hebrew teenagers from death in a Babylonian furnace, and later the prophet Daniel from death by lions (see Daniel, chapters 3 and 6). He warned Mary and Joseph that King Herod would try to kill the infant Jesus, and told them to flee to Egypt (Matthew 2:13-15). He delivered the apostle Peter from prison and almost certain death in response to the prayers of believers (Acts, chapter 12).
Nor is that "all in the past." God continues to watch over his people today. He does not always intervene in their circumstances, just as he did not always intervene even in biblical times, but there are noted instances where he has done this.
I remember hearing the story of a missionary whose life was spared when villagers who had been sent to kill him in the night retreated without even confronting him. Later, after one of them was converted, he explained to the missionary that he and those with him had seen large men standing outside of the missionary's home with drawn weapons, and this is why they had left him alone that night. The missionary should have seen these men, but he saw no one.
A few years ago, I came across the testimony of a Christian who was cleaning out his garage one day, and was about to pick something up when he distinctly heard a voice telling him not to touch it. He went and got a broom to move the object and discovered Black Widow spiders nesting underneath of it.
And for one last example, I will provide a personal testimony.
My oldest son, Jamesnow seventeen years oldis severely autistic and non-verbal. A number of years ago, when he was perhaps nine or ten years old, my wife left to visit relatives while I stayed home to care for James. I became very ill one night while she was gone, and fell into a deep sleep. Unbeknownst to me, my son got up out of bed and got in the bathtub and started playing. Like many autistic children, he loves playing in water, and this is usually harmless as long as it's supervised. But at the time, I had no idea what was going on; I was dead asleep and had a loud box fan running.
How long he was in there, I don't know, but I was woken from sleep by a man's voice calling my name and telling me I needed to wake upthere was no one else in the house at the time, and no radio or TV playing. I woke immediately and heard my son in the bathtub of our master bathroom, jumping up and down with the shower turned on. He could easily have slipped and hit his head on the side of the tub or on one of the faucets, and as sick as I was at the time, I might not have been aware of his situation for hours. By the time I got up, it might have been too late.
I'm sure that skeptics could offer any number of alternative explanations for the examples I've provided here. It would be impossible to objectively prove that God did, or did not, intervene in these circumstances, and so I do not pretend to offer them as definitive proofs. I offer them merely as circumstances consistent with biblical examples of divine interventions, and I think even skeptics would have to agree that God, if he does exist, must surely be capable of such things. We may quibble over why God chose to intervene in these situations and not in others, but that takes us back to the issue of divine knowledge and motivations. Without knowing what God knows, how can we stand in judgment over him in regard to what he should, or should not, have done in given situation?
The point is this: as a race, we are seeking just about everything but God, when he has promised that it is those who seek him with all of their hearts who will find him.
If we live as though there is no God, is that his fault or ours?
Robert Hawes is the author of "In Search of God: A Look at Life's Most Essential Question," as well as many articles on various subjects ranging from politics to theology and Christian apologetics. His blog is: http://takeupyourcross73.blogspot.com.
Article Source: http://www.faithwriters.com-CHRISTIAN WRITERS
Friday, August 26, 2016
A Calling to the Prophets - "Come Out"! Concerning World Events
by Rochelle Arnold
8/04/2016 / Prophecy
Prophetic Word by the Field Prophet
"Speak Prophet...Speak! Come! Come! Come! Oh prophets of God! I call you down from the mountains, up from the valley's. From the rivers and fields have you resided.
Gather!... those of you who guard the coastlines, Hear Me!
Hidden among the beasts, I call you now!
Come! Speak my Word with boldness for it shall sustain you. Fret not for which your eyes behold in this age.
Look beyond. As you behold my Glory and continually draw nearer to me your faces' shall radiate. Truth and Glory shall accompany my Word as you speak it. Atmosphere's within your personal realms are changing continue to pray speak my word listen for my voice move when I say move.
Behold! Behold! Behold! Press! Press in with faith through prayer and my Word. Do not take your eye off my Glory, my Word and my Presence. It shall guide you through the thickets. Have I not provided for all of you through this season?
Come Oh' Prophets of God, Come. Your increase shall astound, for it shall but appear provided by my Word and for my Word. Your righteousness was purchased by atoning blood.
Rejoice! Go forth and allow my increase in you to flourish. Take your places oh' Prophets. Speak my Word Pray Listen Intercede."
Psalm 115 (NIV)
1 Not to us, Lord, not to us but to your name be the glory, because of your love and faithfulness.
2 Why do the nations say, "Where is their God?" 3 Our God is in heaven; he does whatever pleases him. 4 But their idols are silver and gold, made by human hands. 5 They have mouths, but cannot speak, eyes, but cannot see. 6 They have ears, but cannot hear, noses, but cannot smell. 7 They have hands, but cannot feel, feet, but cannot walk, nor can they utter a sound with their throats. 8 Those who make them will be like them, and so will all who trust in them.
9 All you Israelites, trust in the Lord he is their help and shield. 10 House of Aaron, trust in the Lord he is their help and shield. 11 You who fear him, trust in the Lord he is their help and shield.
12 The Lord remembers us and will bless us: He will bless his people Israel, he will bless the house of Aaron, 13 he will bless those who fear the Lord small and great alike.
14 May the Lord cause you to flourish, both you and your children. 15 May you be blessed by the Lord, the Maker of heaven and earth.
16 The highest heavens belong to the Lord, but the earth he has given to mankind. 17 It is not the dead who praise the Lord, those who go down to the place of silence; 18 it is we who extol the Lord, both now and forevermore. Praise the Lord.
Self published book: SOJOURNERS: In a Strange Land copyright 2007 Xulon Press.
Website: www.rochellearnold.com
Article Source: http://www.faithwriters.com-CHRISTIAN WRITERS
8/04/2016 / Prophecy
Prophetic Word by the Field Prophet
"Speak Prophet...Speak! Come! Come! Come! Oh prophets of God! I call you down from the mountains, up from the valley's. From the rivers and fields have you resided.
Gather!... those of you who guard the coastlines, Hear Me!
Hidden among the beasts, I call you now!
Come! Speak my Word with boldness for it shall sustain you. Fret not for which your eyes behold in this age.
Look beyond. As you behold my Glory and continually draw nearer to me your faces' shall radiate. Truth and Glory shall accompany my Word as you speak it. Atmosphere's within your personal realms are changing continue to pray speak my word listen for my voice move when I say move.
Behold! Behold! Behold! Press! Press in with faith through prayer and my Word. Do not take your eye off my Glory, my Word and my Presence. It shall guide you through the thickets. Have I not provided for all of you through this season?
Come Oh' Prophets of God, Come. Your increase shall astound, for it shall but appear provided by my Word and for my Word. Your righteousness was purchased by atoning blood.
Rejoice! Go forth and allow my increase in you to flourish. Take your places oh' Prophets. Speak my Word Pray Listen Intercede."
Psalm 115 (NIV)
1 Not to us, Lord, not to us but to your name be the glory, because of your love and faithfulness.
2 Why do the nations say, "Where is their God?" 3 Our God is in heaven; he does whatever pleases him. 4 But their idols are silver and gold, made by human hands. 5 They have mouths, but cannot speak, eyes, but cannot see. 6 They have ears, but cannot hear, noses, but cannot smell. 7 They have hands, but cannot feel, feet, but cannot walk, nor can they utter a sound with their throats. 8 Those who make them will be like them, and so will all who trust in them.
9 All you Israelites, trust in the Lord he is their help and shield. 10 House of Aaron, trust in the Lord he is their help and shield. 11 You who fear him, trust in the Lord he is their help and shield.
12 The Lord remembers us and will bless us: He will bless his people Israel, he will bless the house of Aaron, 13 he will bless those who fear the Lord small and great alike.
14 May the Lord cause you to flourish, both you and your children. 15 May you be blessed by the Lord, the Maker of heaven and earth.
16 The highest heavens belong to the Lord, but the earth he has given to mankind. 17 It is not the dead who praise the Lord, those who go down to the place of silence; 18 it is we who extol the Lord, both now and forevermore. Praise the Lord.
Self published book: SOJOURNERS: In a Strange Land copyright 2007 Xulon Press.
Website: www.rochellearnold.com
Article Source: http://www.faithwriters.com-CHRISTIAN WRITERS
Thursday, August 25, 2016
Why is forgiveness so essential for a healthy christian lifestyle?
Matthew 6:14-15
For if I forgive people their trespasses [their reckless and
willful sins, leaving them, letting them go, and giving up
resentment], my heavenly Father will also forgive me.
But if I do not forgive others their trespasses [their
reckless and willful sins, leaving them, letting them go,
and giving up resentment], neither will my Father forgive
me my trespasses. [Forgiveness is a requirement. It is not
an emotion or a feeling but a decision. It is not based
on their deserving forgiveness any more than I
deserved forgiveness. This does not mean I must trust
the person. They must earn my trust. I choose to live in
instant forgiveness!].
Forgiveness is an important aspect of christian life. We live on a fallen world, and that means human nature tends to be negative and selfish. Our behavior may at times hurt other people. When you know that you have hurt someone, it's best to apologize right away, because little hurts that are not taken care of grow into bigger hurts, and by then it will be much harder to fix the problem.
If someone has hurt you, and they never apologize, or are unaware they have done something wrong, the best response is to forgive them as soon as you can. Resolve the issure with the person and let them know what they did, and then just forgive them. If they do not apologize right away, or acknowledge that they hurt you, don't worry. You did your part by confronting the person and telling them that you forgive them and that you will not hold it against them; the Lord will do the rest.
Forgiveness is not easy; it is a decision you make in your heart and mind, it is not an emotion, at least not at first. You decide to forgive the person, and the Lord heals you of the pain, and allows you to see the person again in a positive light. You forgive them, God heals the pain, He gives you compassion and loving feelings towards them, His kind of love, agape love, that is greater than our own.
So, forgiveness is not really for the person who hurt you, it's for you; this is God's way of providing healing for your soul, and to give the other person a chance to see the Jesus in you. If they are not a christian, then this may be their only encounter with a christian that will matter for their life, this may be turning point in their life when they ask themselves, "I just did a horrible thing to her, why did they forgive me?" It could lead to their salvation.
If you have to forgive a fellow christian, it can be even better, for your forgiveness may strenghten their faith in God, and you should come out with a stronger and happier relationship with that person; for God said we cannot truly love Him if we do not love our sisters and brothers in Christ, we must bare each other burdens and show compassion for each other's problems.
If you have been the victim of someone's selfish and callous actions, ask the Lord to help you to forgive them, and He will lead you to a higher place in God. If you are not a christian, let me urge you to call on His name, ask Him to forgive you for your selfish and callous actions, and He will forgive you if you accept Jesus Christ as your personal Lord and Savior.
How do I do that?
Prayer of Salvation
Lord,
I repent for trying to be master of my own life. I change my mind about who I want to be in charge of my life. I turn from my useless and unproductive thoughts that I am the center of my universe and choose to believe in the living God who created everything, including me (Acts 14:15). I have lived without a purpose but now I will live to hear and obey You, God (Jn. 5:19, 20,30).
I confess with my lips that Jesus is Lord and believe in my heart that God raised Him from the dead. I believe that God so loved the world He sent His only Son Jesus to shed His blood to wash away the barrier of sin (Jn. 3:16)
I receive You, Jesus as MY Lord and Savior (Jn. 1:11,12).
I welcome You, Holy Spirit, into my life to rescue and empower me and to restore me to intimacy with my heavenly Father (Acts 2:38).
If you just confessed this prayer, you are saved! I welcome you into the family my (brother/sister) I pray for peace, joy, and happiness in your life as you allow the Lord to love you and bless you and give you assurance of everlasting life with Him forever and ever......PRAISE GOD!
May the Lord keep you and Bless you this day....Amen
For if I forgive people their trespasses [their reckless and
willful sins, leaving them, letting them go, and giving up
resentment], my heavenly Father will also forgive me.
But if I do not forgive others their trespasses [their
reckless and willful sins, leaving them, letting them go,
and giving up resentment], neither will my Father forgive
me my trespasses. [Forgiveness is a requirement. It is not
an emotion or a feeling but a decision. It is not based
on their deserving forgiveness any more than I
deserved forgiveness. This does not mean I must trust
the person. They must earn my trust. I choose to live in
instant forgiveness!].
Forgiveness is an important aspect of christian life. We live on a fallen world, and that means human nature tends to be negative and selfish. Our behavior may at times hurt other people. When you know that you have hurt someone, it's best to apologize right away, because little hurts that are not taken care of grow into bigger hurts, and by then it will be much harder to fix the problem.
If someone has hurt you, and they never apologize, or are unaware they have done something wrong, the best response is to forgive them as soon as you can. Resolve the issure with the person and let them know what they did, and then just forgive them. If they do not apologize right away, or acknowledge that they hurt you, don't worry. You did your part by confronting the person and telling them that you forgive them and that you will not hold it against them; the Lord will do the rest.
Forgiveness is not easy; it is a decision you make in your heart and mind, it is not an emotion, at least not at first. You decide to forgive the person, and the Lord heals you of the pain, and allows you to see the person again in a positive light. You forgive them, God heals the pain, He gives you compassion and loving feelings towards them, His kind of love, agape love, that is greater than our own.
So, forgiveness is not really for the person who hurt you, it's for you; this is God's way of providing healing for your soul, and to give the other person a chance to see the Jesus in you. If they are not a christian, then this may be their only encounter with a christian that will matter for their life, this may be turning point in their life when they ask themselves, "I just did a horrible thing to her, why did they forgive me?" It could lead to their salvation.
If you have to forgive a fellow christian, it can be even better, for your forgiveness may strenghten their faith in God, and you should come out with a stronger and happier relationship with that person; for God said we cannot truly love Him if we do not love our sisters and brothers in Christ, we must bare each other burdens and show compassion for each other's problems.
If you have been the victim of someone's selfish and callous actions, ask the Lord to help you to forgive them, and He will lead you to a higher place in God. If you are not a christian, let me urge you to call on His name, ask Him to forgive you for your selfish and callous actions, and He will forgive you if you accept Jesus Christ as your personal Lord and Savior.
How do I do that?
Prayer of Salvation
Lord,
I repent for trying to be master of my own life. I change my mind about who I want to be in charge of my life. I turn from my useless and unproductive thoughts that I am the center of my universe and choose to believe in the living God who created everything, including me (Acts 14:15). I have lived without a purpose but now I will live to hear and obey You, God (Jn. 5:19, 20,30).
I confess with my lips that Jesus is Lord and believe in my heart that God raised Him from the dead. I believe that God so loved the world He sent His only Son Jesus to shed His blood to wash away the barrier of sin (Jn. 3:16)
I receive You, Jesus as MY Lord and Savior (Jn. 1:11,12).
I welcome You, Holy Spirit, into my life to rescue and empower me and to restore me to intimacy with my heavenly Father (Acts 2:38).
If you just confessed this prayer, you are saved! I welcome you into the family my (brother/sister) I pray for peace, joy, and happiness in your life as you allow the Lord to love you and bless you and give you assurance of everlasting life with Him forever and ever......PRAISE GOD!
May the Lord keep you and Bless you this day....Amen
Wednesday, August 24, 2016
Why I Love The Lord
Everyday, something new is happening; terror attacks, earthquakes, famines, wars and rumor of wars, violence and hate crimes, people killing for no other reason that they feel they have a right to destroy someone's life. It is not hard to see that we are definitely living in the last of the last days:
Matthew Ch 24 3-8, 10-11
3 As Jesus was sitting on the Mount of Olives, the disciples came to him privately.
“Tell us,” they said, “when will this happen, and what will be the sign of your coming and of the end of the age?”
4 Jesus answered: “Watch out that no one deceives you. 5 For many will come in my name, claiming,
‘I am the Messiah,’ and will deceive many. 6 You will hear of wars and rumors of wars, but see to it that you are not alarmed. Such things must happen, but the end is still to come. 7 Nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom. There will be famines and earthquakes in various places. 8 All these are the beginning of birth pains........"
10 "At that time many will turn away from the faith and will betray and hate each other,
11 and many false prophets will appear and deceive many people. 12 Because of the increase of wickedness, the love of most will grow cold, 13 but the one who stands firm to the end will be saved........"
I began to realise that many of the events predicted in the bible have come true. It seems like everyday, there is a new crisis, and I am amazed that the world hasn't ended already. I know it will not end until the Lord comes back; it is still very shocking to see prophecy come true: The destruction of Damascus and Syria, earthquakes and famines, signs in the skies (blood moons, eclipses, meteor showers), countries posturing and getting themselves ready for war, and people who don't seem to remember what it means to love and to give love to others.
These are all signs that man's 'reign' on the world is coming to an end. I don't care how many scientific advancements are made, how many shiny new weapons are developed to 'preserve the peace', how many 'peace' agreements are signed or alliances made, how many ethic codes and laws are passed, it all means nothing without love.
The love I am speaking about is not our version of love, but God's version of love:
1 Corinthians 13:4-8
4 Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. 5 It does not dishonor others, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. 6 Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. 7 It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres.
8 Love never fails. But where there are prophecies, they will cease; where there are tongues, they will be stilled; where there is knowledge, it will pass away.
The reason why I love the Lord, is because His love is perfect and kind, He is patient with me when I do something wrong. He redirects me to the correct path. He does not condemn me when I stray from positive or righteous thoughts; He just reminds me of who I am. I am His child, and I don't need to be angry or vindictive, sad or fearful, hateful or proud. Everything I need He has supplied, and though I don't have everything I want right now, He will help me get those things in the future if it is beneficial to my life and with His purpose for my life.
It is so easy to love a God who will love you with all of His heart, soul, and mind. It is becoming harder to love anyone in a world of people looking to do their own thing, who are running from the truth and from God at a speed that is mind bogling. They want to believe that God doesn't exist, or at the very least that God is no longer useful in their lives. At the same time, the world is falling apart, and they feel an emptyness in their souls that can only be filled with the Lord. Only God's Love and Spirit will heal them and set them free.
If you are feeling that there is a lot going on the world that you don't understand, and if you feel an emptyness that can only be filled with light, love, and hope, there is an answer. Jesus came to this world to show humanity what God was like, to show us how to live righteous lives, and to pay the heavy debt of our sins. He doesn't care who you are, what you have done in the past, why you never thought to do good in the world until now, He wants you. He loves you because that is who He is, LOVE. He is the manifestation of true love, and He will not stop knocking at the door of your heart until you agree to let him in, or you decide to reject him forever.
Whatever you chose, know that it is your decision to enter the kingdom of heaven, it always has been, so make the right decision and ask Him into your heart.
How do I do that?
Prayer of Salvation
Lord,
I repent for trying to be master of my own life. I change my mind about who I want to be in charge of my life. I turn from my useless and unproductive thoughts that I am the center of my universe and choose to believe in the living God who created everything, including me (Acts 14:15). I have lived without a purpose but now I will live to hear and obey You, God (Jn. 5:19, 20,30).
I confess with my lips that Jesus is Lord and believe in my heart that God raised Him from the dead. I believe that God so loved the world He sent His only Son Jesus to shed His blood to wash away the barrier of sin (Jn. 3:16)
I receive You, Jesus as MY Lord and Savior (Jn. 1:11,12).
I welcome You, Holy Spirit, into my life to rescue and empower me and to restore me to intimacy with my heavenly Father (Acts 2:38).
If you just confessed this prayer, you are saved! I welcome you into the family my (brother/sister) I pray for peace, joy, and happiness in your life as you allow the Lord to love you and bless you and give you assurance of everlasting life with Him forever and ever......PRAISE GOD!
May the Lord keep you and Bless you this day....Amen
Matthew Ch 24 3-8, 10-11
3 As Jesus was sitting on the Mount of Olives, the disciples came to him privately.
“Tell us,” they said, “when will this happen, and what will be the sign of your coming and of the end of the age?”
4 Jesus answered: “Watch out that no one deceives you. 5 For many will come in my name, claiming,
‘I am the Messiah,’ and will deceive many. 6 You will hear of wars and rumors of wars, but see to it that you are not alarmed. Such things must happen, but the end is still to come. 7 Nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom. There will be famines and earthquakes in various places. 8 All these are the beginning of birth pains........"
10 "At that time many will turn away from the faith and will betray and hate each other,
11 and many false prophets will appear and deceive many people. 12 Because of the increase of wickedness, the love of most will grow cold, 13 but the one who stands firm to the end will be saved........"
I began to realise that many of the events predicted in the bible have come true. It seems like everyday, there is a new crisis, and I am amazed that the world hasn't ended already. I know it will not end until the Lord comes back; it is still very shocking to see prophecy come true: The destruction of Damascus and Syria, earthquakes and famines, signs in the skies (blood moons, eclipses, meteor showers), countries posturing and getting themselves ready for war, and people who don't seem to remember what it means to love and to give love to others.
These are all signs that man's 'reign' on the world is coming to an end. I don't care how many scientific advancements are made, how many shiny new weapons are developed to 'preserve the peace', how many 'peace' agreements are signed or alliances made, how many ethic codes and laws are passed, it all means nothing without love.
The love I am speaking about is not our version of love, but God's version of love:
1 Corinthians 13:4-8
4 Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. 5 It does not dishonor others, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. 6 Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. 7 It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres.
8 Love never fails. But where there are prophecies, they will cease; where there are tongues, they will be stilled; where there is knowledge, it will pass away.
The reason why I love the Lord, is because His love is perfect and kind, He is patient with me when I do something wrong. He redirects me to the correct path. He does not condemn me when I stray from positive or righteous thoughts; He just reminds me of who I am. I am His child, and I don't need to be angry or vindictive, sad or fearful, hateful or proud. Everything I need He has supplied, and though I don't have everything I want right now, He will help me get those things in the future if it is beneficial to my life and with His purpose for my life.
It is so easy to love a God who will love you with all of His heart, soul, and mind. It is becoming harder to love anyone in a world of people looking to do their own thing, who are running from the truth and from God at a speed that is mind bogling. They want to believe that God doesn't exist, or at the very least that God is no longer useful in their lives. At the same time, the world is falling apart, and they feel an emptyness in their souls that can only be filled with the Lord. Only God's Love and Spirit will heal them and set them free.
If you are feeling that there is a lot going on the world that you don't understand, and if you feel an emptyness that can only be filled with light, love, and hope, there is an answer. Jesus came to this world to show humanity what God was like, to show us how to live righteous lives, and to pay the heavy debt of our sins. He doesn't care who you are, what you have done in the past, why you never thought to do good in the world until now, He wants you. He loves you because that is who He is, LOVE. He is the manifestation of true love, and He will not stop knocking at the door of your heart until you agree to let him in, or you decide to reject him forever.
Whatever you chose, know that it is your decision to enter the kingdom of heaven, it always has been, so make the right decision and ask Him into your heart.
How do I do that?
Prayer of Salvation
Lord,
I repent for trying to be master of my own life. I change my mind about who I want to be in charge of my life. I turn from my useless and unproductive thoughts that I am the center of my universe and choose to believe in the living God who created everything, including me (Acts 14:15). I have lived without a purpose but now I will live to hear and obey You, God (Jn. 5:19, 20,30).
I confess with my lips that Jesus is Lord and believe in my heart that God raised Him from the dead. I believe that God so loved the world He sent His only Son Jesus to shed His blood to wash away the barrier of sin (Jn. 3:16)
I receive You, Jesus as MY Lord and Savior (Jn. 1:11,12).
I welcome You, Holy Spirit, into my life to rescue and empower me and to restore me to intimacy with my heavenly Father (Acts 2:38).
If you just confessed this prayer, you are saved! I welcome you into the family my (brother/sister) I pray for peace, joy, and happiness in your life as you allow the Lord to love you and bless you and give you assurance of everlasting life with Him forever and ever......PRAISE GOD!
May the Lord keep you and Bless you this day....Amen
Tuesday, August 23, 2016
I call My people righteous
Psalm 98
v1 Sing a new song to the *LORD.
Because he has done *wonderful things.
His right hand and his *holy arm
have made (his people) safe.
v2 The *LORD has made everybody to know
that he has made (his people) safe.
He has shown everybody (in the world)
that he is a *righteous (God).
What does the word 'righteous' mean? When applied to the Lord, it means He is very good, He does what is right, He is perfect, and has never done anything wrong. So then, what does it mean when the Lord calls his people righteous?
Isaiah Ch 42:6
"I, the LORD, have called you in righteousness; I will take hold of your hand. I will keep you and will make you to be a covenant for the people and a light for the Gentiles"
Luke Ch 5 30-32
But the Pharisees and the teachers of the law who belonged to their sect complained to his disciples, “Why do you eat and drink with tax collectors and sinners?” Jesus answered, “It is not the healthy who need a doctor, but the sick. I have not come to call the righteous, but sinners, to repentance.”
In the old testament and the new testament, the Lord refers to his people as righteous. In God's eyes, we are righteous, not because we are good or perfect, but because we believe in Him, we have confessed our sins, and we choose to live our lives as His disciples.
He knows that we can never live up to the title of righteous; His reason for accepting us the way we are is simple: He loves us and He wants us for ourselves. He sent Jesus to die on the cross for our sins; when we confess Jesus as our savior, we become righteous in His eyes. He forgets our past transgressions and when He sees us, He sees the Blood of Jesus. Spiritually, we are cleansed by the Blood of Jesus.
We are righteous in His eyes, but we are not perfect. Our spirits have been renewed, but our minds and hearts are still in a fallen state. That is why we can come to Him when we make a mistake; we will receive forgiveness, as long as we maintain an intimate relationship with Him. In His presence we will find peace and forgiveness.
Once you have been forgiven, put your past behind you and don't worry. He will never bring it back up again, because He wants to forgive and forget. Only the enemy brings up your past mistakes to intimidate you with fear and condemnation, so don't let him do that to you. Just say to the devil, the Lord forgave me and I am covered by the Blood of the Lamb and then don't think about it anymore.
If you don't have a relationship with the Lord Jesus Christ, I encourage to seek Him out, He will never leave you or forsake you, He will carry your burdens, and cleanse you from all unrighteousness.
Prayer of Salvation
Lord,
I repent for trying to be master of my own life. I change my mind about who I want to be in charge of my life. I turn from my useless and unproductive thoughts that I am the center of my universe and choose to believe in the living God who created everything, including me (Acts 14:15). I have lived without a purpose but now I will live to hear and obey You, God (Jn. 5:19, 20,30).
I confess with my lips that Jesus is Lord and believe in my heart that God raised Him from the dead. I believe that God so loved the world He sent His only Son Jesus to shed His blood to wash away the barrier of sin (Jn. 3:16)
I receive You, Jesus as MY Lord and Savior (Jn. 1:11,12).
I welcome You, Holy Spirit, into my life to rescue and empower me and to restore me to intimacy with my heavenly Father (Acts 2:38).
If you just confessed this prayer, you are saved! I welcome you into the family my (brother/sister) I pray for peace, joy, and happiness in your life as you allow the Lord to love you and bless you and give you assurance of everlasting life with Him forever and ever......PRAISE GOD!
May the Lord keep you and Bless you this day....Amen
v1 Sing a new song to the *LORD.
Because he has done *wonderful things.
His right hand and his *holy arm
have made (his people) safe.
v2 The *LORD has made everybody to know
that he has made (his people) safe.
He has shown everybody (in the world)
that he is a *righteous (God).
What does the word 'righteous' mean? When applied to the Lord, it means He is very good, He does what is right, He is perfect, and has never done anything wrong. So then, what does it mean when the Lord calls his people righteous?
Isaiah Ch 42:6
"I, the LORD, have called you in righteousness; I will take hold of your hand. I will keep you and will make you to be a covenant for the people and a light for the Gentiles"
Luke Ch 5 30-32
But the Pharisees and the teachers of the law who belonged to their sect complained to his disciples, “Why do you eat and drink with tax collectors and sinners?” Jesus answered, “It is not the healthy who need a doctor, but the sick. I have not come to call the righteous, but sinners, to repentance.”
In the old testament and the new testament, the Lord refers to his people as righteous. In God's eyes, we are righteous, not because we are good or perfect, but because we believe in Him, we have confessed our sins, and we choose to live our lives as His disciples.
He knows that we can never live up to the title of righteous; His reason for accepting us the way we are is simple: He loves us and He wants us for ourselves. He sent Jesus to die on the cross for our sins; when we confess Jesus as our savior, we become righteous in His eyes. He forgets our past transgressions and when He sees us, He sees the Blood of Jesus. Spiritually, we are cleansed by the Blood of Jesus.
We are righteous in His eyes, but we are not perfect. Our spirits have been renewed, but our minds and hearts are still in a fallen state. That is why we can come to Him when we make a mistake; we will receive forgiveness, as long as we maintain an intimate relationship with Him. In His presence we will find peace and forgiveness.
Once you have been forgiven, put your past behind you and don't worry. He will never bring it back up again, because He wants to forgive and forget. Only the enemy brings up your past mistakes to intimidate you with fear and condemnation, so don't let him do that to you. Just say to the devil, the Lord forgave me and I am covered by the Blood of the Lamb and then don't think about it anymore.
If you don't have a relationship with the Lord Jesus Christ, I encourage to seek Him out, He will never leave you or forsake you, He will carry your burdens, and cleanse you from all unrighteousness.
Prayer of Salvation
Lord,
I repent for trying to be master of my own life. I change my mind about who I want to be in charge of my life. I turn from my useless and unproductive thoughts that I am the center of my universe and choose to believe in the living God who created everything, including me (Acts 14:15). I have lived without a purpose but now I will live to hear and obey You, God (Jn. 5:19, 20,30).
I confess with my lips that Jesus is Lord and believe in my heart that God raised Him from the dead. I believe that God so loved the world He sent His only Son Jesus to shed His blood to wash away the barrier of sin (Jn. 3:16)
I receive You, Jesus as MY Lord and Savior (Jn. 1:11,12).
I welcome You, Holy Spirit, into my life to rescue and empower me and to restore me to intimacy with my heavenly Father (Acts 2:38).
If you just confessed this prayer, you are saved! I welcome you into the family my (brother/sister) I pray for peace, joy, and happiness in your life as you allow the Lord to love you and bless you and give you assurance of everlasting life with Him forever and ever......PRAISE GOD!
May the Lord keep you and Bless you this day....Amen
Monday, August 22, 2016
How to worship the lord
Psalm 96
v1 Sing a new song to the *LORD!
Sing to the *LORD, all the world!
v2 Sing to the *LORD and say good things about him!
Every day, say that he has made us safe!
v3 Tell every *nation that he is very great!
Tell everybody the *wonderful things that he has done!
v4 Because the *LORD is great, and everybody should say that he is great!
People should be more afraid of him than of all (other) gods.
v5 Because all the gods of every country are false.
But the *LORD made everything.
v6 (People that) are near him can see that he is a very great king.
(People that) are in his house can see that he is strong and beautiful.
v7 Say to the *LORD, you families of *nations,
say to the *LORD that he is *glorious and powerful.
v8 Say that the *LORD has a *glorious name.
Bring a gift and come near his house.
v9 Fall down in front of the *LORD who is beautiful and *holy.
Be afraid of him, everyone (that lives) on the earth.
v10 Tell all the *nations that the *LORD is King!
(He has) fixed the world so that nothing can move it.
He will be a fair *judge of the people.
v11 Earth and sky, be happy!
Sea and everything in it, *roar (because you are happy!)
v12 Fields, you be happy as well, and everything in you!
Then, all the trees in the forests will sing because they are so happy!
v13 (They will sing) to the *LORD when he comes.
He will come to be a *judge of the earth.
He will be a good *judge and he will be fair to the people.
Is there a correct and perfect way to worship the Lord? Everyone seems to worship Him in different ways. My personal way to express worship is when I take that time in the day to be alone with Him, reading the Word, and listening to music. I also feel His presence if I am listening to a christian radio program, or a christian show streamed online. The Word of God can activate a response from your spirit to His spirit; it can quicken The Holy Spirit inside your heart, and you may begin to feel joy and then you start to praise His name.
I often feel His presence when I go to church, and when the pastor says something that touches my heart, or when the choir sings a song with passion. These are the usual ways that christians worship, but they are not the only ways. Some people like to go outside in the woods, on the beach, walking down a street, jogging listening to christian music. Some people like to be alone in a quiet dark place and meditate. Others put on music and sing and dance and praise Him for hours.
When you do these things, you are worshiping the Lord if your heart is sincere. He just wants to spend time with His children everyday. He enjoys that time with us, and He is disappointed when we do not take the time to be with Him. If you are guilty of only communicating with Him when you need something from Him, let me encourage you to start speaking to Him just because He is your friend. Tell Him about your day, tell Him how much you love him, pour out your heart to Him so that He can comfort you.
It's hard for some people to believe that God really cares about everything we are going through, and that even the little things matter to Him as well. We focus so much on what is happening in this life, that we forget to include Jesus in our personal lives. As the world gets darker and crazier, we need to press closer into Jesus, into His love. He will guide us and protect us. If you ask Him for guidance in all the areas of your life, He will give the best answer, the perfect solution.
He loves it when His children press closer into Him, He is our Father, and great fathers always have time for their children; they will do what they can to guide them and help them, they will protect them and give up their life for them if necessary....
If you feel the Holy Spirit tugging at your heart, respond to His calling, tell Him "I'm here Lord, and I am listening", and you will be blessed with grace, love, and joy in your heart.
If the Lord is asking you to give your life to Him, then repeat this prayer:
Prayer of Salvation
Lord,
I repent for trying to be master of my own life. I change my mind about who I want to be in charge of my life. I turn from my useless and unproductive thoughts that I am the center of my universe and choose to believe in the living God who created everything, including me (Acts 14:15). I have lived without a purpose but now I will live to hear and obey You, God (Jn. 5:19, 20,30).
I confess with my lips that Jesus is Lord and believe in my heart that God raised Him from the dead. I believe that God so loved the world He sent His only Son Jesus to shed His blood to wash away the barrier of sin (Jn. 3:16)
I receive You, Jesus as MY Lord and Savior (Jn. 1:11,12).
I welcome You, Holy Spirit, into my life to rescue and empower me and to restore me to intimacy with my heavenly Father (Acts 2:38).
If you just confessed this prayer, you are saved! I welcome you into the family my (brother/sister) I pray for peace, joy, and happiness in your life as you allow the Lord to love you and bless you and give you assurance of everlasting life with Him forever and ever......PRAISE GOD!
May the Lord keep you and Bless you this day....Amen
v1 Sing a new song to the *LORD!
Sing to the *LORD, all the world!
v2 Sing to the *LORD and say good things about him!
Every day, say that he has made us safe!
v3 Tell every *nation that he is very great!
Tell everybody the *wonderful things that he has done!
v4 Because the *LORD is great, and everybody should say that he is great!
People should be more afraid of him than of all (other) gods.
v5 Because all the gods of every country are false.
But the *LORD made everything.
v6 (People that) are near him can see that he is a very great king.
(People that) are in his house can see that he is strong and beautiful.
v7 Say to the *LORD, you families of *nations,
say to the *LORD that he is *glorious and powerful.
v8 Say that the *LORD has a *glorious name.
Bring a gift and come near his house.
v9 Fall down in front of the *LORD who is beautiful and *holy.
Be afraid of him, everyone (that lives) on the earth.
v10 Tell all the *nations that the *LORD is King!
(He has) fixed the world so that nothing can move it.
He will be a fair *judge of the people.
v11 Earth and sky, be happy!
Sea and everything in it, *roar (because you are happy!)
v12 Fields, you be happy as well, and everything in you!
Then, all the trees in the forests will sing because they are so happy!
v13 (They will sing) to the *LORD when he comes.
He will come to be a *judge of the earth.
He will be a good *judge and he will be fair to the people.
Is there a correct and perfect way to worship the Lord? Everyone seems to worship Him in different ways. My personal way to express worship is when I take that time in the day to be alone with Him, reading the Word, and listening to music. I also feel His presence if I am listening to a christian radio program, or a christian show streamed online. The Word of God can activate a response from your spirit to His spirit; it can quicken The Holy Spirit inside your heart, and you may begin to feel joy and then you start to praise His name.
I often feel His presence when I go to church, and when the pastor says something that touches my heart, or when the choir sings a song with passion. These are the usual ways that christians worship, but they are not the only ways. Some people like to go outside in the woods, on the beach, walking down a street, jogging listening to christian music. Some people like to be alone in a quiet dark place and meditate. Others put on music and sing and dance and praise Him for hours.
When you do these things, you are worshiping the Lord if your heart is sincere. He just wants to spend time with His children everyday. He enjoys that time with us, and He is disappointed when we do not take the time to be with Him. If you are guilty of only communicating with Him when you need something from Him, let me encourage you to start speaking to Him just because He is your friend. Tell Him about your day, tell Him how much you love him, pour out your heart to Him so that He can comfort you.
It's hard for some people to believe that God really cares about everything we are going through, and that even the little things matter to Him as well. We focus so much on what is happening in this life, that we forget to include Jesus in our personal lives. As the world gets darker and crazier, we need to press closer into Jesus, into His love. He will guide us and protect us. If you ask Him for guidance in all the areas of your life, He will give the best answer, the perfect solution.
He loves it when His children press closer into Him, He is our Father, and great fathers always have time for their children; they will do what they can to guide them and help them, they will protect them and give up their life for them if necessary....
If you feel the Holy Spirit tugging at your heart, respond to His calling, tell Him "I'm here Lord, and I am listening", and you will be blessed with grace, love, and joy in your heart.
If the Lord is asking you to give your life to Him, then repeat this prayer:
Prayer of Salvation
Lord,
I repent for trying to be master of my own life. I change my mind about who I want to be in charge of my life. I turn from my useless and unproductive thoughts that I am the center of my universe and choose to believe in the living God who created everything, including me (Acts 14:15). I have lived without a purpose but now I will live to hear and obey You, God (Jn. 5:19, 20,30).
I confess with my lips that Jesus is Lord and believe in my heart that God raised Him from the dead. I believe that God so loved the world He sent His only Son Jesus to shed His blood to wash away the barrier of sin (Jn. 3:16)
I receive You, Jesus as MY Lord and Savior (Jn. 1:11,12).
I welcome You, Holy Spirit, into my life to rescue and empower me and to restore me to intimacy with my heavenly Father (Acts 2:38).
If you just confessed this prayer, you are saved! I welcome you into the family my (brother/sister) I pray for peace, joy, and happiness in your life as you allow the Lord to love you and bless you and give you assurance of everlasting life with Him forever and ever......PRAISE GOD!
May the Lord keep you and Bless you this day....Amen
Sunday, August 21, 2016
How to come into His rest
Psalm 95
v1 Come, we will sing together to the *LORD!
We will shout aloud to the *Rock that makes us safe!
v2 Come into (God’s) house and thank him!
Tell him that he is great!
(Do it) with music and with songs!
v3 (This is) because the *LORD is the great God.
He is the great king that is more important than every other god.
v4 The deep places of the earth are in his hand.
The tops of the mountains are his.
v5 The sea is his, because he made it.
Also, his hands made the dry land.
v6 Come, we will fall down on our knees in front of him.
We will stay on our knees in front of the *LORD that made us.
v7 (We will do this) because he is our God.
Also, we are the people that he feeds and keeps safe.
We are as animals and he is as the farmer (that feeds us)!
Today, if you hear his voice,
v8 do not refuse to listen (to him).
You did this at Meribah
and you did it one day at Massah, in the *desert.
v9 There, your fathers *tested me to discover what I could do.
But they had already seen my work!
v10 For 40 years I was angry with those people.
And I said, "They are people that refuse to obey me.
They (say that they) do not know what I want them to do".
v11 I was so angry that I said,
"They will never come into my rest".
There is a story in the book of Exodus that explains the general attitude of humanity when it comes to God. The Israelites were in the desert wilderness and they came to a place where there was no water. They complained to Moses and began to accuse Moses and God of leading them into the desert to die because they could not find water.
They would have had reason to be concerned if they were all alone in the desert by themselves; they seemed to forget they were being protected and nurtured by the Creator of the universe. Is there anything that the Lord Of Hosts can't do?
Exodus Ch 17 1-7
All the Israelites left the desert called Sin. They travelled from one place to another place. When the LORD ordered them, then they moved. One day they camped at the place called Rephidim. But there was no water for the people to drink at Rephidim. So they quarrelled with Moses.
‘Give to us water to drink!’ they demanded. You should not quarrel with me’, Moses said to them. ‘You are testing the LORD when you demand this!’ But the people needed water, so they continued to complain against Moses. They said, ‘You should not have brought us away from Egypt. You will make us, our children and our animals die because we are so thirsty!’
Then Moses cried out to the LORD. ‘What shall I do with these people?’ he said. ‘Soon they will be throwing stones at me. They want to kill me.’ The LORD answered Moses. ‘Walk on ahead of the people. Take some of their leaders with you. And take your stick in your hand. You used that stick to hit the River Nile. So go now. v6 Go to the rock at Horeb. I will stand there in front of you. Hit the rock with your stick. Then water will come out of it for the people to drink.’
So Moses hit the rock while Israel’s leaders were watching him. They were testing the LORD. They asked, ‘Is the LORD with us or is he not with us?’ So Moses called that place Massah (which means ‘to test’). And he called it Meribah (which means ‘to argue’). He did that because the Israelites quarrelled with him there.
The Israelites focused on their circumstances instead of focusing on their God. These are the same people who witnessed the the parting of the red Sea; they saw the destruction of pharoah's army, and left Egypt healthy, whole and with sound minds, but they dared to ask if God could give them water. What was wrong with their demands? They doubted His power and His sincerity. They did not choose to look at the situation with faith.
God ultimately gave them the water they needed through His servant Moses, and He gave them many things they wanted and needed, but He saw the hardness of their hearts and that is why he declared, "They will never come into my rest". So, when the time came for the His people to go into the promised land, only their children, and two others left from that generation actually set their feet in that rest, the promised land, after they crossed the river Jordan. All of the previous generation who had seen all His amazing miracles died in the desert.
Do you see this type of attitude today? Miracles are happening around us everyday, such as waking up in the morning to see a new day with the sun rising in your eyes, with food on your table and your loved ones around you. People are being healed everyday of illnesses, addictions, malformities: sight is restored and people are coming back from the dead. You won't hear about any of these miracles on your local news channel; it's not considered newsworthy.
With all the amazing things going on everyday, there are some who still demand evidence that there is a God; there is plenty of evidence of His existence, both scientific and spiritual proof, but hard hearts will only believe what they want to believe.
That is where some people fail, they imagine a God of their own making, or no God at all, instead of seeking out the real God of heaven.
The best thing that you can ever do in your life is to see seek rest and shelter in the arms of God. He is willing to comfort you in your time of need. Place your whole life, your mind your heart in His hands, and He will never deceive you or lead you astray.
What do i need to do first to find Him?
Prayer of Salvation
Lord,
I repent for trying to be master of my own life. I change my mind about who I want to be in charge of my life. I turn from my useless and unproductive thoughts that I am the center of my universe and choose to believe in the living God who created everything, including me (Acts 14:15). I have lived without a purpose but now I will live to hear and obey You, God (Jn. 5:19, 20,30).
I confess with my lips that Jesus is Lord and believe in my heart that God raised Him from the dead. I believe that God so loved the world He sent His only Son Jesus to shed His blood to wash away the barrier of sin (Jn. 3:16)
I receive You, Jesus as MY Lord and Savior (Jn. 1:11,12).
I welcome You, Holy Spirit, into my life to rescue and empower me and to restore me to intimacy with my heavenly Father (Acts 2:38).
If you just confessed this prayer, you are saved! I welcome you into the family my (brother/sister) I pray for peace, joy, and happiness in your life as you allow the Lord to love you and bless you and give you assurance of everlasting life with Him forever and ever......PRAISE GOD!
May the Lord keep you and Bless you this day....Amen
v1 Come, we will sing together to the *LORD!
We will shout aloud to the *Rock that makes us safe!
v2 Come into (God’s) house and thank him!
Tell him that he is great!
(Do it) with music and with songs!
v3 (This is) because the *LORD is the great God.
He is the great king that is more important than every other god.
v4 The deep places of the earth are in his hand.
The tops of the mountains are his.
v5 The sea is his, because he made it.
Also, his hands made the dry land.
v6 Come, we will fall down on our knees in front of him.
We will stay on our knees in front of the *LORD that made us.
v7 (We will do this) because he is our God.
Also, we are the people that he feeds and keeps safe.
We are as animals and he is as the farmer (that feeds us)!
Today, if you hear his voice,
v8 do not refuse to listen (to him).
You did this at Meribah
and you did it one day at Massah, in the *desert.
v9 There, your fathers *tested me to discover what I could do.
But they had already seen my work!
v10 For 40 years I was angry with those people.
And I said, "They are people that refuse to obey me.
They (say that they) do not know what I want them to do".
v11 I was so angry that I said,
"They will never come into my rest".
There is a story in the book of Exodus that explains the general attitude of humanity when it comes to God. The Israelites were in the desert wilderness and they came to a place where there was no water. They complained to Moses and began to accuse Moses and God of leading them into the desert to die because they could not find water.
They would have had reason to be concerned if they were all alone in the desert by themselves; they seemed to forget they were being protected and nurtured by the Creator of the universe. Is there anything that the Lord Of Hosts can't do?
Exodus Ch 17 1-7
All the Israelites left the desert called Sin. They travelled from one place to another place. When the LORD ordered them, then they moved. One day they camped at the place called Rephidim. But there was no water for the people to drink at Rephidim. So they quarrelled with Moses.
‘Give to us water to drink!’ they demanded. You should not quarrel with me’, Moses said to them. ‘You are testing the LORD when you demand this!’ But the people needed water, so they continued to complain against Moses. They said, ‘You should not have brought us away from Egypt. You will make us, our children and our animals die because we are so thirsty!’
Then Moses cried out to the LORD. ‘What shall I do with these people?’ he said. ‘Soon they will be throwing stones at me. They want to kill me.’ The LORD answered Moses. ‘Walk on ahead of the people. Take some of their leaders with you. And take your stick in your hand. You used that stick to hit the River Nile. So go now. v6 Go to the rock at Horeb. I will stand there in front of you. Hit the rock with your stick. Then water will come out of it for the people to drink.’
So Moses hit the rock while Israel’s leaders were watching him. They were testing the LORD. They asked, ‘Is the LORD with us or is he not with us?’ So Moses called that place Massah (which means ‘to test’). And he called it Meribah (which means ‘to argue’). He did that because the Israelites quarrelled with him there.
The Israelites focused on their circumstances instead of focusing on their God. These are the same people who witnessed the the parting of the red Sea; they saw the destruction of pharoah's army, and left Egypt healthy, whole and with sound minds, but they dared to ask if God could give them water. What was wrong with their demands? They doubted His power and His sincerity. They did not choose to look at the situation with faith.
God ultimately gave them the water they needed through His servant Moses, and He gave them many things they wanted and needed, but He saw the hardness of their hearts and that is why he declared, "They will never come into my rest". So, when the time came for the His people to go into the promised land, only their children, and two others left from that generation actually set their feet in that rest, the promised land, after they crossed the river Jordan. All of the previous generation who had seen all His amazing miracles died in the desert.
Do you see this type of attitude today? Miracles are happening around us everyday, such as waking up in the morning to see a new day with the sun rising in your eyes, with food on your table and your loved ones around you. People are being healed everyday of illnesses, addictions, malformities: sight is restored and people are coming back from the dead. You won't hear about any of these miracles on your local news channel; it's not considered newsworthy.
With all the amazing things going on everyday, there are some who still demand evidence that there is a God; there is plenty of evidence of His existence, both scientific and spiritual proof, but hard hearts will only believe what they want to believe.
That is where some people fail, they imagine a God of their own making, or no God at all, instead of seeking out the real God of heaven.
The best thing that you can ever do in your life is to see seek rest and shelter in the arms of God. He is willing to comfort you in your time of need. Place your whole life, your mind your heart in His hands, and He will never deceive you or lead you astray.
What do i need to do first to find Him?
Prayer of Salvation
Lord,
I repent for trying to be master of my own life. I change my mind about who I want to be in charge of my life. I turn from my useless and unproductive thoughts that I am the center of my universe and choose to believe in the living God who created everything, including me (Acts 14:15). I have lived without a purpose but now I will live to hear and obey You, God (Jn. 5:19, 20,30).
I confess with my lips that Jesus is Lord and believe in my heart that God raised Him from the dead. I believe that God so loved the world He sent His only Son Jesus to shed His blood to wash away the barrier of sin (Jn. 3:16)
I receive You, Jesus as MY Lord and Savior (Jn. 1:11,12).
I welcome You, Holy Spirit, into my life to rescue and empower me and to restore me to intimacy with my heavenly Father (Acts 2:38).
If you just confessed this prayer, you are saved! I welcome you into the family my (brother/sister) I pray for peace, joy, and happiness in your life as you allow the Lord to love you and bless you and give you assurance of everlasting life with Him forever and ever......PRAISE GOD!
May the Lord keep you and Bless you this day....Amen
Saturday, August 20, 2016
Why does God loves us so much?
The amazing love of Christ, who came to the earth to redeem His children, to express His passionate love for all mankind. I am so happy this is not a dream, a story or a myth. I know that I cannot truly answer this question. I am glad that He does and that He cares
about me, even the little things that go on in my life. I have read how other christians practice the presence of the Lord in their lives, and I can testify that I have had similar experiences in my own life as well.
The Lord loves us because He is Love, the very essence of love; perfect love not marred by sin or evil. We cannot love on the same level because we are not perfect, we are a fallen race of people living in a fallen world. We have the knowledge of good and evil written into our minds and hearts, the accident of a choice adam and eve made a long time ago.
I cannot explain why eating from the tree of good and evil changed adam and eve so profoundly, and how those changes were passed down to their children. It was a change mentally, emotionally, and physically. They began to age and they eventually died, and the tragic result of their mistake was always around them in the legacy of their children. It must have been hard to see their children repeat the same mistakes they made, their actions getting worse with each generation. They say it is very painful for a parent to lose their child suddenly, but I think it is also tragic when a parent watches their child die slowly from the disease of sin and evil.
That is what it's like for God when He watches His children wandering the earth, looking for all types of solutions for their pain and sorrow, when the answer has never been far from them. Acknowledging that there is a God is the first step to revelation, making a decision to seek His face is the second revelation, deciding to accept His gift of salvation and love is the third and ultimate revelation.
To know the Love of God is to be in His presence everyday and know that there is someone out there who loves you unconditionally. He is a caring and compassionate Lover of your soul who understands your weaknesses, who is aware that you will make mistakes from time to time and is willing to forgive you; there is no sin that can't be forgiven, except the sin of rejection. If you hear Him knocking at the door of your heart, don't ignore Him; seek Him out, open the door to your heart and find peace and love in the presence of His Glory.
If you are not a christian, then your contact with God is limited. If you want to have a close intimate relationship with Him, then repeat the prayer of salvation:
Prayer of Salvation
Lord,
I repent for trying to be master of my own life. I change my mind about who I want to be in charge of my life. I turn from my useless and unproductive thoughts that I am the center of my universe and choose to believe in the living God who created everything, including me (Acts 14:15). I have lived without a purpose but now I will live to hear and obey You, God (Jn. 5:19, 20,30).
I confess with my lips that Jesus is Lord and believe in my heart that God raised Him from the dead. I believe that God so loved the world He sent His only Son Jesus to shed His blood to wash away the barrier of sin (Jn. 3:16)
I receive You, Jesus as MY Lord and Savior (Jn. 1:11,12).
I welcome You, Holy Spirit, into my life to rescue and empower me and to restore me to intimacy with my heavenly Father (Acts 2:38).
If you just confessed this prayer, you are saved! I welcome you into the family my (brother/sister) I pray for peace, joy, and happiness in your life as you allow the Lord to love you and bless you and give you assurance of everlasting life with Him forever and ever......PRAISE GOD!
May the Lord keep you and Bless you this day....Amen
The Lord loves us because He is Love, the very essence of love; perfect love not marred by sin or evil. We cannot love on the same level because we are not perfect, we are a fallen race of people living in a fallen world. We have the knowledge of good and evil written into our minds and hearts, the accident of a choice adam and eve made a long time ago.
I cannot explain why eating from the tree of good and evil changed adam and eve so profoundly, and how those changes were passed down to their children. It was a change mentally, emotionally, and physically. They began to age and they eventually died, and the tragic result of their mistake was always around them in the legacy of their children. It must have been hard to see their children repeat the same mistakes they made, their actions getting worse with each generation. They say it is very painful for a parent to lose their child suddenly, but I think it is also tragic when a parent watches their child die slowly from the disease of sin and evil.
That is what it's like for God when He watches His children wandering the earth, looking for all types of solutions for their pain and sorrow, when the answer has never been far from them. Acknowledging that there is a God is the first step to revelation, making a decision to seek His face is the second revelation, deciding to accept His gift of salvation and love is the third and ultimate revelation.
To know the Love of God is to be in His presence everyday and know that there is someone out there who loves you unconditionally. He is a caring and compassionate Lover of your soul who understands your weaknesses, who is aware that you will make mistakes from time to time and is willing to forgive you; there is no sin that can't be forgiven, except the sin of rejection. If you hear Him knocking at the door of your heart, don't ignore Him; seek Him out, open the door to your heart and find peace and love in the presence of His Glory.
If you are not a christian, then your contact with God is limited. If you want to have a close intimate relationship with Him, then repeat the prayer of salvation:
Prayer of Salvation
Lord,
I repent for trying to be master of my own life. I change my mind about who I want to be in charge of my life. I turn from my useless and unproductive thoughts that I am the center of my universe and choose to believe in the living God who created everything, including me (Acts 14:15). I have lived without a purpose but now I will live to hear and obey You, God (Jn. 5:19, 20,30).
I confess with my lips that Jesus is Lord and believe in my heart that God raised Him from the dead. I believe that God so loved the world He sent His only Son Jesus to shed His blood to wash away the barrier of sin (Jn. 3:16)
I receive You, Jesus as MY Lord and Savior (Jn. 1:11,12).
I welcome You, Holy Spirit, into my life to rescue and empower me and to restore me to intimacy with my heavenly Father (Acts 2:38).
If you just confessed this prayer, you are saved! I welcome you into the family my (brother/sister) I pray for peace, joy, and happiness in your life as you allow the Lord to love you and bless you and give you assurance of everlasting life with Him forever and ever......PRAISE GOD!
May the Lord keep you and Bless you this day....Amen
Friday, August 19, 2016
Why did Jesus come to the earth?
Jesus came into the earth to identify with us, to redeem us, to show His love for us, because we are valuable to Him.
There has never been a more passionate, intimate redemption story than the life, crucifixion , and resurrection of Jesus Christ.
Because He loves me so much, it is easy for me to love Him and appreciate everything He has done for me in my life.
He gives me hope, because I can see the way the world is and it how is not getting better. I know that He is coming back to show the world how we should live, love and respect one another. He brings peace to my heart, because so many things have happened in my life that was stressful, painful, and confusing. Through the guidance of the Holy Spirit, I have come to terms with many of the things that have happened in my life; I made the decision to forgive the people who have hurt me, have learned to love myself and I also had to forgive myself for my own mistakes. He has healed my body, my heart, and my mind. I like to spend time alone with Him reading the word, in prayer,in meditation, singing and worship. The best part is when I feel His love and approval. He is a wonderful Father and Friend.
Jesus came to the earth to show us what God is like, so that we could talk with Him, touch Him, and fellowship with the Creator of the universe.He came first to His people Israel to fulfill His promise to them, and to redeem the rest of the world. He knew that many people would reject Him,but He also knew that He would find acceptance from those looking for a better life and a better world. He chose to sacrifice Himself to save all those who would accept His gift of eternal life; His death and resurrection was planned before the foundation of the world. His plan was genuine, unique and perfect for the situation, for his poor children who could not save themselves.
He taught His disciples what it would mean to become a citizen in the kingdom of God and the price they would have to pay to do things God's way.Not everybody is happy with the idea of doing the right thing, especially if it means self sacrifice; the example of His life showed them how to live peaceful Godly lives. We love Him because He didn't mind coming down to our level and showing us what we could accomplish if we chose to live and abide in Him. Anything is possible, if you can follow the Holy Spirit's lead, and serve the Lord, and show His love to the people in your life.
Matthew Ch 5:16 Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father which is in heaven.
Make Jesus the Lord of your life, give Him a chance to show His love for you, and He will comfort you, heal you, erase the hurt and confusion in your heart and you will receive everlasting peace, joy and life in His presence , forevermore............
If you are not a christian, and you want to have a close intimate relationship with Him, then repeat the prayer of salvation:
Prayer of Salvation
Lord,
I repent for trying to be master of my own life. I change my mind about who I want to be in charge of my life. I turn from my useless and unproductive thoughts that I am the center of my universe and choose to believe in the living God who created everything, including me (Acts 14:15). I have lived without a purpose but now I will live to hear and obey You, God (Jn. 5:19, 20,30).
I confess with my lips that Jesus is Lord and believe in my heart that God raised Him from the dead. I believe that God so loved the world He sent His only Son Jesus to shed His blood to wash away the barrier of sin (Jn. 3:16)
I receive You, Jesus as MY Lord and Savior (Jn. 1:11,12).
I welcome You, Holy Spirit, into my life to rescue and empower me and to restore me to intimacy with my heavenly Father (Acts 2:38).
If you just confessed this prayer, you are saved! I welcome you into the family my (brother/sister) I pray for peace, joy, and happiness in your life as you allow the Lord to love you and bless you and give you assurance of everlasting life with Him forever and ever......PRAISE GOD!
May the Lord keep you and Bless you this day....Amen
He gives me hope, because I can see the way the world is and it how is not getting better. I know that He is coming back to show the world how we should live, love and respect one another. He brings peace to my heart, because so many things have happened in my life that was stressful, painful, and confusing. Through the guidance of the Holy Spirit, I have come to terms with many of the things that have happened in my life; I made the decision to forgive the people who have hurt me, have learned to love myself and I also had to forgive myself for my own mistakes. He has healed my body, my heart, and my mind. I like to spend time alone with Him reading the word, in prayer,in meditation, singing and worship. The best part is when I feel His love and approval. He is a wonderful Father and Friend.
Jesus came to the earth to show us what God is like, so that we could talk with Him, touch Him, and fellowship with the Creator of the universe.He came first to His people Israel to fulfill His promise to them, and to redeem the rest of the world. He knew that many people would reject Him,but He also knew that He would find acceptance from those looking for a better life and a better world. He chose to sacrifice Himself to save all those who would accept His gift of eternal life; His death and resurrection was planned before the foundation of the world. His plan was genuine, unique and perfect for the situation, for his poor children who could not save themselves.
He taught His disciples what it would mean to become a citizen in the kingdom of God and the price they would have to pay to do things God's way.Not everybody is happy with the idea of doing the right thing, especially if it means self sacrifice; the example of His life showed them how to live peaceful Godly lives. We love Him because He didn't mind coming down to our level and showing us what we could accomplish if we chose to live and abide in Him. Anything is possible, if you can follow the Holy Spirit's lead, and serve the Lord, and show His love to the people in your life.
Matthew Ch 5:16 Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father which is in heaven.
Make Jesus the Lord of your life, give Him a chance to show His love for you, and He will comfort you, heal you, erase the hurt and confusion in your heart and you will receive everlasting peace, joy and life in His presence , forevermore............
If you are not a christian, and you want to have a close intimate relationship with Him, then repeat the prayer of salvation:
Prayer of Salvation
Lord,
I repent for trying to be master of my own life. I change my mind about who I want to be in charge of my life. I turn from my useless and unproductive thoughts that I am the center of my universe and choose to believe in the living God who created everything, including me (Acts 14:15). I have lived without a purpose but now I will live to hear and obey You, God (Jn. 5:19, 20,30).
I confess with my lips that Jesus is Lord and believe in my heart that God raised Him from the dead. I believe that God so loved the world He sent His only Son Jesus to shed His blood to wash away the barrier of sin (Jn. 3:16)
I receive You, Jesus as MY Lord and Savior (Jn. 1:11,12).
I welcome You, Holy Spirit, into my life to rescue and empower me and to restore me to intimacy with my heavenly Father (Acts 2:38).
If you just confessed this prayer, you are saved! I welcome you into the family my (brother/sister) I pray for peace, joy, and happiness in your life as you allow the Lord to love you and bless you and give you assurance of everlasting life with Him forever and ever......PRAISE GOD!
May the Lord keep you and Bless you this day....Amen
Thursday, August 18, 2016
What do I need from God?
The Lord is a wonderful Father; He is the type of Father that is warm and caring, that listens to my problems and my needs, and guides me when I feel lost or lonely. I cannot image being without Him in my life.
There was a time when I didn't know God all that well; I went to church and listened to sermons, and sang songs, and did all the things that churchgoers do, but that doesn't mean I really knew Him. I didn't come to have a relationship with Him until I became an adult. Before this, I did believe in Him, but I was also afraid of Him. I was afraid of dying, and I didn't feel worthy of His love, because I did not feel worthy as a person.
I lived everyday growing up in my home with a spirit of fear and rejection. My mother did the best she could, but she was a lady living and dealing with this life the best way she knew how, and I believe she had deep pain and hurt inside. I reminded her every day of one of those hurts, and she could not be close to me. I survived by withdrawing into my own world, and my conviction to just survive and make do with what I had.
So, the idea of a God that loves me the way the Jesus loves me, is a mind blowing concept. The way He comforts me and nurtures me is like the Good Shepard:
John Ch10 1-10
“Very truly I tell you Pharisees, anyone who does not enter the sheep pen by the gate, but climbs in by some other way, is a thief and a robber. The one who enters by the gate is the shepherd of the sheep. The gatekeeper opens the gate for him, and the sheep listen to his voice. He calls his own sheep by name and leads them out. When he has brought out all his own, he goes on ahead of them, and his sheep follow him because they know his voice. But they will never follow a stranger; in fact, they will run away from him because they do not recognize a stranger’s voice.” Jesus used this figure of speech, but the Pharisees did not understand what he was telling them.
Therefore Jesus said again, “Very truly I tell you, I am the gate for the sheep. All who have come before me are thieves and robbers, but the sheep have not listened to them. I am the gate; whoever enters through me will be saved. They will come in and go out, and find pasture. The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full.
The Good Shepard knows that we are weak and needy, He knows that we suffer from sin, from our past mistakes, from the things that others say and do to us, and He is a compassionate Lover of our souls. He knows that He is the only answer to our hurts and needs; we are the ones that need to come to terms with this and accept His help. I needed the Lord to comfort me when things didn't go my way. I needed Him to reveal His purpose for my life, especially when I often felt alone and of no value. I needed to erase the negative thoughts and feelings I kept inside; I walked around like the walking wounded, just like you do and everybody else that is walking the earth today.
The world is changing in awesome and frightening ways, people are killing each other for no good reason, Violence is erupting in the most unlikely places, and people are trying to cope by putting on brave faces and spouting proud words of courage and vain reasonings , because facing the truth is too painful and confusing.
Isaiah Ch 26:3
You will keep me in perfect peace (completeness), Because my mind is stayed on You...
My Brothers and Sisters, there is a real need to put your focus on Jesus Christ, Our Savior, Our deliverer, Our comforter. Whatever you need today, whatever painful situation you are going through, whatever people say about your circumstances pales in comparison to what God says about you. He loves you and will never leave you or forsake you; trust in Him and He will never fail you.
Thank you Jesus, for your loving care and mercy, because you cared so much that you sacrificed yourself for me, your little light that shines in the dark..........
Now, if you don't have a relationship with Jesus, let me offer this word of encouragement: seek him out ask him to come into your life and He will change your circumstances from sorrow to happiness, from indifference to joy, from pain to peace. Praise Him for His everlasting Mercy and Grace........Hallelujah!
If you are not a christian, then your contact with God is limited. If you want to have a close intimate relationship with Him, then repeat the prayer of salvation:
Prayer of Salvation
Lord,
I repent for trying to be master of my own life. I change my mind about who I want to be in charge of my life. I turn from my useless and unproductive thoughts that I am the center of my universe and choose to believe in the living God who created everything, including me (Acts 14:15). I have lived without a purpose but now I will live to hear and obey You, God (Jn. 5:19, 20,30).
I confess with my lips that Jesus is Lord and believe in my heart that God raised Him from the dead. I believe that God so loved the world He sent His only Son Jesus to shed His blood to wash away the barrier of sin (Jn. 3:16)
I receive You, Jesus as MY Lord and Savior (Jn. 1:11,12).
I welcome You, Holy Spirit, into my life to rescue and empower me and to restore me to intimacy with my heavenly Father (Acts 2:38).
If you just confessed this prayer, you are saved! I welcome you into the family my (brother/sister) I pray for peace, joy, and happiness in your life as you allow the Lord to love you and bless you and give you assurance of everlasting life with Him forever and ever......PRAISE GOD!
May the Lord keep you and Bless you this day....Amen
There was a time when I didn't know God all that well; I went to church and listened to sermons, and sang songs, and did all the things that churchgoers do, but that doesn't mean I really knew Him. I didn't come to have a relationship with Him until I became an adult. Before this, I did believe in Him, but I was also afraid of Him. I was afraid of dying, and I didn't feel worthy of His love, because I did not feel worthy as a person.
I lived everyday growing up in my home with a spirit of fear and rejection. My mother did the best she could, but she was a lady living and dealing with this life the best way she knew how, and I believe she had deep pain and hurt inside. I reminded her every day of one of those hurts, and she could not be close to me. I survived by withdrawing into my own world, and my conviction to just survive and make do with what I had.
So, the idea of a God that loves me the way the Jesus loves me, is a mind blowing concept. The way He comforts me and nurtures me is like the Good Shepard:
John Ch10 1-10
“Very truly I tell you Pharisees, anyone who does not enter the sheep pen by the gate, but climbs in by some other way, is a thief and a robber. The one who enters by the gate is the shepherd of the sheep. The gatekeeper opens the gate for him, and the sheep listen to his voice. He calls his own sheep by name and leads them out. When he has brought out all his own, he goes on ahead of them, and his sheep follow him because they know his voice. But they will never follow a stranger; in fact, they will run away from him because they do not recognize a stranger’s voice.” Jesus used this figure of speech, but the Pharisees did not understand what he was telling them.
Therefore Jesus said again, “Very truly I tell you, I am the gate for the sheep. All who have come before me are thieves and robbers, but the sheep have not listened to them. I am the gate; whoever enters through me will be saved. They will come in and go out, and find pasture. The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full.
The Good Shepard knows that we are weak and needy, He knows that we suffer from sin, from our past mistakes, from the things that others say and do to us, and He is a compassionate Lover of our souls. He knows that He is the only answer to our hurts and needs; we are the ones that need to come to terms with this and accept His help. I needed the Lord to comfort me when things didn't go my way. I needed Him to reveal His purpose for my life, especially when I often felt alone and of no value. I needed to erase the negative thoughts and feelings I kept inside; I walked around like the walking wounded, just like you do and everybody else that is walking the earth today.
The world is changing in awesome and frightening ways, people are killing each other for no good reason, Violence is erupting in the most unlikely places, and people are trying to cope by putting on brave faces and spouting proud words of courage and vain reasonings , because facing the truth is too painful and confusing.
Isaiah Ch 26:3
You will keep me in perfect peace (completeness), Because my mind is stayed on You...
My Brothers and Sisters, there is a real need to put your focus on Jesus Christ, Our Savior, Our deliverer, Our comforter. Whatever you need today, whatever painful situation you are going through, whatever people say about your circumstances pales in comparison to what God says about you. He loves you and will never leave you or forsake you; trust in Him and He will never fail you.
Thank you Jesus, for your loving care and mercy, because you cared so much that you sacrificed yourself for me, your little light that shines in the dark..........
Now, if you don't have a relationship with Jesus, let me offer this word of encouragement: seek him out ask him to come into your life and He will change your circumstances from sorrow to happiness, from indifference to joy, from pain to peace. Praise Him for His everlasting Mercy and Grace........Hallelujah!
If you are not a christian, then your contact with God is limited. If you want to have a close intimate relationship with Him, then repeat the prayer of salvation:
Prayer of Salvation
Lord,
I repent for trying to be master of my own life. I change my mind about who I want to be in charge of my life. I turn from my useless and unproductive thoughts that I am the center of my universe and choose to believe in the living God who created everything, including me (Acts 14:15). I have lived without a purpose but now I will live to hear and obey You, God (Jn. 5:19, 20,30).
I confess with my lips that Jesus is Lord and believe in my heart that God raised Him from the dead. I believe that God so loved the world He sent His only Son Jesus to shed His blood to wash away the barrier of sin (Jn. 3:16)
I receive You, Jesus as MY Lord and Savior (Jn. 1:11,12).
I welcome You, Holy Spirit, into my life to rescue and empower me and to restore me to intimacy with my heavenly Father (Acts 2:38).
If you just confessed this prayer, you are saved! I welcome you into the family my (brother/sister) I pray for peace, joy, and happiness in your life as you allow the Lord to love you and bless you and give you assurance of everlasting life with Him forever and ever......PRAISE GOD!
May the Lord keep you and Bless you this day....Amen
Wednesday, August 17, 2016
How does God communicate with His children?
I can only speak from my own experiences, and for me, it was a gradual process. When I first confessed Jesus as my savior, I did feel the presence of God. As a child, I did feel some kind of presence in church, even though I didn't really know what it was. I did not profess my belief and officially join a church until I was 21, that's when I can truly say my spiritual development began.
Learning to hear God's voice is a practice. Sometimes you just feel His presence and His love, other times you hear a small still voice in your spirit. Sometimes I will be thinking about something and He will answer my question. Now, it's important to know that God's voice is usually very positive, patient and unassuming. There are other voices that rise up in your thoughts that need to be ignored.
Generally, many negative thoughts are not your own; your mind is conditioned by your experiences and the things that people may have said to you or around you in your life. For instance, if you look in the mirror and your first thoughts are negative, you don't believe you are beautiful, you think you are unattractive, yet everyone else around says you are attractive, this probably means at some time and place in your life while you were growing up you got the message from someone that you not valuable or you are unworthy; you didn't meet up to someone's standard. If you are satisfied with what you see when you look in the mirror, then you accept and believe in yourself and you probably had outside validation.
Also, you must be aware that the enemy, satan and his demons, are always prowling around trying to discourage you and stop you from fulfilling your destiny. For instance, let's say that you feel the Lord is leading you to start your own business. You have been working for XYZ company for 10 years, but now the Lord wants you to open up a business in your community, but you have reservations. You would never have thought to start a business on your own and you are comfortable where you are working.
Whether we realize it our not, God's plans are always better than our own, He knows what is best for us, and He if asks you to do something that you have never done before, don't worry, because you already have all the necessary talents and resources to get the "job" done. You may feel anxious and fearful about leaving your comfort zone, that's when you make a mental decision to walk out on faith. Don't allow your fears and worries to stop you from doing what you are being called to do; that loud voice in your mind filled with fear and condemnation is nothing but the enemy trying to keep you from your purpose and plan in God. The devil cannot stop you unless you decide not go along with what God has in store for you.
Just keep in mind, that no matter what people say about you, what your circumstances are, how you look to yourself or what others think they see in you, whether you have that degree or you are a high school dropout, we are all accepted by God. He knows you, the real you, and He loves you just the way you are. He understands that you are not perfect; He ordered your existence and He wanted you from the very day you were born. He saw you in his spirit before the world was created and He wanted you. He sent His Only Son, Jesus Christ, to die for you; He watched His Son die a hard and painful death, and when His task was done, He raised Him from the dead.
Now, if He can do that because He loves you so much, just imagine what He can do for you in the situation that you are in now! So, make up in your mind, you are going to listen to His voice, you are going to follow His lead, and He will bless you beyond measure. Afterwards, when you look back on your life, you won't believe how much you accomplished all because you stepped out in faith and ignored your fears; you won't be sorry.
Yesterday, as I was finishing my second post for this blog, I was relating how much God loves us and what He really thinks about us and I heard Him say in my spirit: you are pouring out my heart here! He wants so much to be close to His children and to express His love for us, we need to willing to accept what He has to offer. To hear His voice clearly means to spend time with Him everyday through prayer and worship, reading His word and allowing the Holy Spirit to change our minds and our hearts.
Everybody has a different way of spending time with Him, and no way is the best, the point is to spend that time with Him and get to know Him. He is waiting for you........
John Ch3:16
For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes
in him shall not perish but have eternal life.
If you are not a christian, then your contact with God is limited. If you want to have a close intimate relationship with Him, then repeat the prayer of salvation:
Prayer of Salvation
Lord,
I repent for trying to be master of my own life. I change my mind about who I want to be in charge of my life. I turn from my useless and unproductive thoughts that I am the center of my universe and choose to believe in the living God who created everything, including me (Acts 14:15). I have lived without a purpose but now I will live to hear and obey You, God (Jn. 5:19, 20,30).
I confess with my lips that Jesus is Lord and believe in my heart that God raised Him from the dead. I believe that God so loved the world He sent His only Son Jesus to shed His blood to wash away the barrier of sin (Jn. 3:16)
I receive You, Jesus as MY Lord and Savior (Jn. 1:11,12).
I welcome You, Holy Spirit, into my life to rescue and empower me and to restore me to intimacy with my heavenly Father (Acts 2:38).
If you just confessed this prayer, you are saved! I welcome you into the family my (brother/sister) I pray for peace, joy, and happiness in your life as you allow the Lord to love you and bless you and give you assurance of everlasting life with Him forever and ever......PRAISE GOD!
May the Lord keep you and Bless you this day....Amen
Learning to hear God's voice is a practice. Sometimes you just feel His presence and His love, other times you hear a small still voice in your spirit. Sometimes I will be thinking about something and He will answer my question. Now, it's important to know that God's voice is usually very positive, patient and unassuming. There are other voices that rise up in your thoughts that need to be ignored.
Generally, many negative thoughts are not your own; your mind is conditioned by your experiences and the things that people may have said to you or around you in your life. For instance, if you look in the mirror and your first thoughts are negative, you don't believe you are beautiful, you think you are unattractive, yet everyone else around says you are attractive, this probably means at some time and place in your life while you were growing up you got the message from someone that you not valuable or you are unworthy; you didn't meet up to someone's standard. If you are satisfied with what you see when you look in the mirror, then you accept and believe in yourself and you probably had outside validation.
Also, you must be aware that the enemy, satan and his demons, are always prowling around trying to discourage you and stop you from fulfilling your destiny. For instance, let's say that you feel the Lord is leading you to start your own business. You have been working for XYZ company for 10 years, but now the Lord wants you to open up a business in your community, but you have reservations. You would never have thought to start a business on your own and you are comfortable where you are working.
Whether we realize it our not, God's plans are always better than our own, He knows what is best for us, and He if asks you to do something that you have never done before, don't worry, because you already have all the necessary talents and resources to get the "job" done. You may feel anxious and fearful about leaving your comfort zone, that's when you make a mental decision to walk out on faith. Don't allow your fears and worries to stop you from doing what you are being called to do; that loud voice in your mind filled with fear and condemnation is nothing but the enemy trying to keep you from your purpose and plan in God. The devil cannot stop you unless you decide not go along with what God has in store for you.
Just keep in mind, that no matter what people say about you, what your circumstances are, how you look to yourself or what others think they see in you, whether you have that degree or you are a high school dropout, we are all accepted by God. He knows you, the real you, and He loves you just the way you are. He understands that you are not perfect; He ordered your existence and He wanted you from the very day you were born. He saw you in his spirit before the world was created and He wanted you. He sent His Only Son, Jesus Christ, to die for you; He watched His Son die a hard and painful death, and when His task was done, He raised Him from the dead.
Now, if He can do that because He loves you so much, just imagine what He can do for you in the situation that you are in now! So, make up in your mind, you are going to listen to His voice, you are going to follow His lead, and He will bless you beyond measure. Afterwards, when you look back on your life, you won't believe how much you accomplished all because you stepped out in faith and ignored your fears; you won't be sorry.
Yesterday, as I was finishing my second post for this blog, I was relating how much God loves us and what He really thinks about us and I heard Him say in my spirit: you are pouring out my heart here! He wants so much to be close to His children and to express His love for us, we need to willing to accept what He has to offer. To hear His voice clearly means to spend time with Him everyday through prayer and worship, reading His word and allowing the Holy Spirit to change our minds and our hearts.
Everybody has a different way of spending time with Him, and no way is the best, the point is to spend that time with Him and get to know Him. He is waiting for you........
John Ch3:16
For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes
in him shall not perish but have eternal life.
If you are not a christian, then your contact with God is limited. If you want to have a close intimate relationship with Him, then repeat the prayer of salvation:
Prayer of Salvation
Lord,
I repent for trying to be master of my own life. I change my mind about who I want to be in charge of my life. I turn from my useless and unproductive thoughts that I am the center of my universe and choose to believe in the living God who created everything, including me (Acts 14:15). I have lived without a purpose but now I will live to hear and obey You, God (Jn. 5:19, 20,30).
I confess with my lips that Jesus is Lord and believe in my heart that God raised Him from the dead. I believe that God so loved the world He sent His only Son Jesus to shed His blood to wash away the barrier of sin (Jn. 3:16)
I receive You, Jesus as MY Lord and Savior (Jn. 1:11,12).
I welcome You, Holy Spirit, into my life to rescue and empower me and to restore me to intimacy with my heavenly Father (Acts 2:38).
If you just confessed this prayer, you are saved! I welcome you into the family my (brother/sister) I pray for peace, joy, and happiness in your life as you allow the Lord to love you and bless you and give you assurance of everlasting life with Him forever and ever......PRAISE GOD!
May the Lord keep you and Bless you this day....Amen
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