Thoughts of a Sinner

True Love

2011-01-25T06:55:00.000-05:00

True love is giving, it is selfless, it is being weak, It is self denial. Jesus became all these things for us. He became weak that man may crucify Him. He became a servant to teach us to lead. He gave everything He had, heaven itself, for you and I. DO you love this way?

Individuality

2010-11-19T00:25:00.003-05:00

In the trinity there are 3 but individuals who do not ever act independently of the others. They chose not to have individuality, but instead they exist inside the love they share. In John 17 Jesus prays that we may be one as He and the Father are one. This is a prime example of how we need to stop being so focused on me as an individual and come into the body of Christ so it can function as one instead of 50 million individuals.

In Genesis God calls the man and woman to become one flesh. They are no longer to be individuals but to become as one. Why is it that we constantly seek out our individuality in every aspect of our lives?

If we begin to forget our RIGHT to be an individual and start focusing on how we may best serve Christ and in so doing serve the His body of believers we will begin to become the bride He is seeking without spot or wrinkle.

Forgiven

2010-11-05T20:25:00.001-04:00

37 And behold, a woman of the city, who was a sinner, when she learned that he was reclining at table in the Pharisee’s house, brought an alabaster flask of ointment, 38 and standing behind him at his feet, weeping, she began to wet his feet with her tears and wiped them with the hair of her head and kissed his feet and anointed them with the ointment. The Holy Bible : English Standard Version. (Wheaton: Standard Bible Society, 2001). Lk 7:37–38.

This woman who was a sinner did not think her self good enough to be at His head but bowed at His feet where we should all be. She then by her tears shows her repentant heart and her hatred of the life she is living. With the wiping of His feet with her hair and the anointing of them with oil she shows how much she loves Him with the love He has poured out into her heart with the forgiving of her sins. This is the perfect showing of what true repentance is and how a religious legalist misses the truth of the situation. How often do we miss the truth of a situation because we are to buys looking at the surface?

How Can a Man Serve a Master He does not Know?

2010-10-12T20:03:00.001-04:00

There are many who say the serve God but have no clue who He is. They have no knowledge of His word and no idea of what He wants from them in life. If you do not take the time to get to know who God is how can you say you serve Him? If a son has never met his dad how would he know who his dad is and what his dad would want of him? In this same way how can a person, child of God, who has never spent time in prayer and never reads and studies His word for themselves know who God is and what He wants of them? This being true how can they, not knowing God, serve Him?

Who owns what?

2010-10-12T18:31:00.001-04:00

John 17:1“Father, the hour has come; glorify your Son that the Son may glorify you,

Jesus prays for "Father" to glorify Him so He may Glorify the "Father." I wonder what our world would look like if God's people started living this prayer. Jesus prayer it, yes, but we can pray and live it out. "Father" blesses us that we may be a blessing. Everything we "OWN" here on earth belongs to God and is His to do with as He sees fit. How many of us have truly dedicated all we have to Him and asked Him to do with it as He wishes? Is it not time we give back to God what is HIs already?

Becoming Adam and Eve

2010-09-24T21:37:00.001-04:00

God would have us know that He is just, indeed, and He will not condone sin. He has tried to make it overwhelmingly plain to us that through the blood of the everlasting covenant He is able to act toward us exactly as if we had never sinned.(A.W. Tozer, What Happened to Worship?: A Call to True Worship)

If this comment is true, and I sincerely believe it is since in Matt 5:48 You therefore must be perfect, as your heavenly Father is perfect. We are called to be perfect which is how Adam and Eve were first created.

This all being true, the question comes to HOW do we obtain this? The answer is by giving up your right of choice completely each and every minute of every day. As it is stated in what is commonly referred to as the Lord’s prayer:

Matt 6:9 Pray then like this:

      “Our Father in heaven,
      hallowed be your name.
10      Your kingdom come,
      your will be done,

Note the bold underlined part, Gods will not yours, so give up your will and your right to choose and you will obtain what is stated above.

Miracles

2010-09-24T18:26:00.001-04:00

It is truly amazing to give up your right of choice to your Heavenly Father and to watch as He unveils His truths with each passing day. There are so many hidden things that He has waiting for us to realize the truth of our sin lies within our constant exercising of our right of choice over HIs will. Adam and Eve’s sin was disobedient, yes, but the true sin came when they both chose to exercise their right of choice over His command. How many times a day do we do this? How many times each day do I say I want instead of Father what do you want? When the day comes that you stop saying I want and start, sincerely, saying your will be done is the day you begin to realize exactly what life is truly all about. That is the day that all the desires of your heart are truly given to you and the truths of His word are totally opened to you that you may understand completely what He has for you and for His people. I pray this day comes for you soon my brothers and sisters in Christ. Open your heart and let go of your rebellion and give into HIs will and know He IS your Lord. Make His will more important than yours and you will gain all the promises of the Bible instead of a couple here and there. May He richly bless you all the days of your walk with Him.

Sanctification

2010-09-15T00:31:00.001-04:00

The day Adam and Eve ate of the fruit of the tree of knowledge they exercised their right of choice and in so doing they sinned against God and everything He created. When we exercise our right of choice today we do the same thing.

When we come to the place we can honestly say to “Father” I give up my right of choice is the day we come to the place He has longed for us to return to. This is called sanctification or entire sanctification. Once we give up our right of choice we give up the right to choose to not do Gods will and the right to continue to live in sin. This is the perfection the word speaks of.

It took me 16 years to come to this place. Through much pain and heartache, both my own and others have I finally come to the place I can write this from a stand point of knowing from experience. Many will disagree with this, mostly because they are afraid to totally give up their right of choice because they enjoy their indulgences and that’s ok for them. It’s not for me. I cannot live in mediocrity any longer.

If you are up to it, come with me on a journey of pleasing God in all your ways instead of when it does not take you out of your comfort zone!

Who Loves God?

2010-09-10T12:25:00.001-04:00

John 13:35 (ESV)

35 By this all people will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another.”

Matthew 22:37–40 (ESV)

37 And he said to him, “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. 38 This is the great and first commandment. 39 And a second is like it: You shall love your neighbor as yourself. 40 On these two commandments depend all the Law and the Prophets.”

To say “I LOVE GOD” is meaningless without following what He say to do.

Matthew 10:24 (ESV)

24 “A disciple is not above his teacher, nor a servant above his master. (be humble)

Matthew 10:34–39 (ESV)

34 “Do not think that I have come to bring peace to the earth. I have not come to bring peace, but a sword. 35 For I have come to set a man against his father, and a daughter against her mother, and a daughter-in-law against her mother-in-law. 36 And a person’s enemies will be those of his own household. 37 Whoever loves father or mother more than me is not worthy of me, and whoever loves son or daughter more than me is not worthy of me. 38 And whoever does not take his cross and follow me is not worthy of me. 39 Whoever finds his life will lose it, and whoever loses his life for my sake will find it. (Give up your life, everything and everyone you love(Jesus first))

Matthew 13:10–11 (ESV)

The Purpose of the Parables

10 Then the disciples came and said to him, “Why do you speak to them in parables?” 11 And he answered them, “To you it has been given to know the secrets of the kingdom of heaven, but to them it has not been given.

(Know and understand God’s word)

Matthew 14:15–21 (ESV)

15 Now when it was evening, the disciples came to him and said, “This is a desolate place, and the day is now over; send the crowds away to go into the villages and buy food for themselves.” 16 But Jesus said, “They need not go away; you give them something to eat.” 17 They said to him, “We have only five loaves here and two fish.” 18 And he said, “Bring them here to me.” 19 Then he ordered the crowds to sit down on the grass, and taking the five loaves and the two fish, he looked up to heaven and said a blessing. Then he broke the loaves and gave them to the disciples, and the disciples gave them to the crowds. 20 And they all ate and were satisfied. And they took up twelve baskets full of the broken pieces left over. 21 And those who ate were about five thousand men, besides women and children.

(Trust in His provisions for you and your family)

Matthew 15:8–9 (ESV)

8 “ ‘This people honors me with their lips,

but their heart is far from me;

9 in vain do they worship me,

teaching as doctrines the commandments of men.’ ”

(Teach and worship in truth not for show)

Matthew 16:13–17 (ESV)

Peter Confesses Jesus as the Christ

13 Now when Jesus came into the district of Caesarea Philippi, he asked his disciples, “Who do people say that the Son of Man is?” 14 And they said, “Some say John the Baptist, others say Elijah, and others Jeremiah or one of the prophets.” 15 He said to them, “But who do you say that I am?” 16 Simon Peter replied, “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.” 17 And Jesus answered him, “Blessed are you, Simon Bar-Jonah! For flesh and blood has not revealed this to you, but my Father who is in heaven.

(listen for Gods voice and obey it)

Matthew 17:4–7 (ESV)

4 And Peter said to Jesus, “Lord, it is good that we are here. If you wish, I will make three tents here, one for you and one for Moses and one for Elijah.” 5 He was still speaking when, behold, a bright cloud overshadowed them, and a voice from the cloud said, “This is my beloved Son, with whom I am well pleased; listen to him.” 6 When the disciples heard this, they fell on their faces and were terrified. 7 But Jesus came and touched them, saying, “Rise, and have no fear.”

(fear God)

Matthew 17:14–20 (ESV)

Jesus Heals a Boy with a Demon

14 And when they came to the crowd, a man came up to him and, kneeling before him, 15 said, “Lord, have mercy on my son, for he is an epileptic and he suffers terribly. For often he falls into the fire, and often into the water. 16 And I brought him to your disciples, and they could not heal him.” 17 And Jesus answered, “O faithless and twisted generation, how long am I to be with you? How long am I to bear with you? Bring him here to me.” 18 And Jesus rebuked the demon, and it came out of him, and the boy was healed instantly. 19 Then the disciples came to Jesus privately and said, “Why could we not cast it out?” 20 He said to them, “Because of your little faith. For truly, I say to you, if you have faith like a grain of mustard seed, you will say to this mountain, ‘Move from here to there,’ and it will move, and nothing will be impossible for you.”

(have faith, pray and fast)

Matthew 18:1–4 (ESV)

Who Is the Greatest?

18 At that time the disciples came to Jesus, saying, “Who is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven?” 2 And calling to him a child, he put him in the midst of them 3 and said, “Truly, I say to you, unless you turn and become like children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven. 4 Whoever humbles himself like this child is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven.

(trust simply, obey simply, walk simply)

trust in God with all your heart and all your soul and obey His word.

The Flesh Dies Daily

2010-08-25T05:09:00.001-04:00

In an over simplification of the Pauli Exclusion Principle, it states that no 2 things can occupy the same space. This being true, when we give our lives over to Christ either our flesh or His spirit must die in us. They cannot survive together in the same place. The only question is which one will survive, if it’s you then your sinful flesh will rule your life. If Christ survives, all the promises of scripture come to pass in your life.

God’s Compassion

2010-08-16T19:55:00.001-04:00

Mark 8 ² “I have compassion on the crowd, because they have been with me now three days and have nothing to eat. ³ And if I send them away hungry to their homes, they will faint on the way. And some of them have come from far away.

There are 12 other places in the gospels that talks of Jesus compassion for people who are hurting and in each one is showing the compassion of the “Father” for all of us. IN Mark 8 He is feeding the 4000 because he is concerned of them passing out on the way home since they have been 3 days without food.

In Luke 10 ²⁹ But he, desiring to justify himself, said to Jesus, “And who is my neighbor?” ³⁰ Jesus replied, “A man was going down from Jerusalem to Jericho, and he fell among robbers, who stripped him and beat him and departed, leaving him half dead. ³¹ Now by chance a priest was going down that road, and when he saw him he passed by on the other side. ³² So likewise a Levite, when he came to the place and saw him, passed by on the other side. ³³ But a Samaritan, as he journeyed, came to where he was, and when he saw him, he had compassion. ³⁴ He went to him and bound up his wounds, pouring on oil and wine. Then he set him on his own animal and brought him to an inn and took care of him. ³⁵ And the next day he took out two denarii and gave them to the innkeeper, saying, ‘Take care of him, and whatever more you spend, I will repay you when I come back.’ ³⁶ Which of these three, do you think, proved to be a neighbor to the man who fell among the robbers?” ³⁷ He said, “The one who showed him mercy.” And Jesus said to him, “You go, and do likewise.”

Jesus is showing the compassion of the “Father’ for the poor and the broken.

Given these examples why do we worry about any type of provision for our lives? Just in the Gospels alone we are shown repeatedly how He will provide for any and all situations that arise in our lives because He has compassion on His creation (US, Humans, You, Me, all of US). There is so much that “Father” wants us to see but we are blinded by what we think is going around us and we worry over these things, instead of concerning ourselves with the things of God. It’s time we all stop worrying over the pettiness of this world and start worrying over the things “Father” wants for our lives. Take the time today to seek Gods throne and what He would have you do for HIM instead of worrying over what you will wear or eat or getting hurt. He has compassion on all of us. Lean on Him and all is possible.

Fear of the Lord

2010-08-08T15:52:00.001-04:00

To fear the Lord means to respect who He is, what He says, and what He does. It is not the cringing fear of a slave before a master but the loving reverence of a child before a father, a respect that leads to obedience. “The remarkable thing about fearing God,” said Oswald Chambers, “is that when you fear God you fear nothing else, whereas if you do not fear God you fear everything else.(Be Patient, Weirsbe)

This statement being true can it then be said that not fearing God is the root cause of anxiety and depression? I personally believe we can fear God in certain areas of our lives yet retain our pride in other areas and in so doing we cause ourselves great emotional distress. Even though we love God and seek to follow Him have we truly given all to Him in reverence and fear as the word tells us to?

Power Prayer

2010-08-05T08:52:00.001-04:00

When we pray who do we pray to?? Do we pray to a God who thinks we may or may not deserve what we are asking for?? Do we pray to a God who does not care about what we want or in many cases need?

Matthew 6:25–33 (ESV)

Do Not Be Anxious

²⁵ “Therefore I tell you, do not be anxious about your life, what you will eat or what you will drink, nor about your body, what you will put on. Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothing? ²⁶ Look at the birds of the air: they neither sow nor reap nor gather into barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not of more value than they? ²⁷ And which of you by being anxious can add a single hour to his span of life? ²⁸ And why are you anxious about clothing? Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow: they neither toil nor spin, ²⁹ yet I tell you, even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these. ³⁰ But if God so clothes the grass of the field, which today is alive and tomorrow is thrown into the oven, will he not much more clothe you, O you of little faith? ³¹ Therefore do not be anxious, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’ ³² For the Gentiles seek after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them all. ³³ But seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be added to you.

If God knows our needs and already agreed to meet them why do we pray with an attitude of God probably wont give me this cause I do not deserve it? IN the very next chapter Jesus says:

Matthew 7:7–11 (ESV)

Ask, and It Will Be Given

⁷ “Ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you. ⁸ For everyone who asks receives, and the one who seeks finds, and to the one who knocks it will be opened. ⁹ Or which one of you, if his son asks him for bread, will give him a stone? ¹⁰ Or if he asks for a fish, will give him a serpent? ¹¹ If you then, who are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father who is in heaven give good things to those who ask him!

Look at all the things God promises to give!! Now we all know this is contingent on our relationship being perfect with Christ right??? WRONG!! Please show me anywhere in this passage that Jesus said so long as you are in perfect relationship with me.. None of us have this type of relationship cause we would have to be perfect to have it. The ONLY requirement is in Mat 6:33 SEEK FIRST THE KINGDOM OF GOD……. Seek to do Gods will before you think of yourself and He will happily add all these things unto you. You seek His kingdom in prayer and in your heart attitude. NOT in words. Once we do this then we must learn to forgive our pasts..yes I said we must forgive our own pasts cause God did the moment you sincerely asked.

We hesitate to think we deserve things because WE know what we were and what we think and what our desires are that we think no one knows about. God knows all of it. And yet He still called you into salvation which means to HIM you are worthy to be given all the things you need and desire within His will. What is His will?? Seek first the kingdom! It truly is that simple. So stop complicating it and start seeking Gods face on those things you need and desire right after you set your heart on what HE wants more than what you want.

Be All You Can Be

2010-07-15T03:09:00.001-04:00

Ain’t it amazing how we allow those things we did, didn’t do and think we did to stop us from being ALL God called us to be. I know in my own life, I see what I was in days gone by and the mistakes I made and deep in my heart I often question why God would want me let alone to actually use me to be a blessing to others. Some things I have done were really bad, others were not so bad and some I think were bad others tell me where not bad at all. When I see all these negatives in me it restrains me from truly letting go so God can totally filly my heart so I can be all He called me to be.

I wonder how many others out there have the same problems?? How many people see what they were or the things they did and allow them to hold back from being all God called them to be. Are you one of them?? If so, please, ask “Father” to allow you to see yourself as He sees you. That you may see the wonderful blessing He has called you to be to those close to you.

God called us all to be a blessing to others. Its about time we all started living that life that He has set aside for us.

Take By Force

2010-07-03T20:49:00.001-04:00

Matthew 11:11–15 (ESV)

¹¹ Truly, I say to you, among those born of women there has arisen no one greater than John the Baptist. Yet the one who is least in the kingdom of heaven is greater than he. ¹² From the days of John the Baptist until now the kingdom of heaven has suffered violence, and the violent take it by force. ¹³ For all the Prophets and the Law prophesied until John, ¹⁴ and if you are willing to accept it, he is Elijah who is to come. ¹⁵ He who has ears to hear, let him hear.

What does it mean to take by force when you are dealing with the things of God? Surely he is not talking about taking a gun or a sword and going and taking as He could easily wipe out the entirety of mankind in a single thought. SO what is Jesus talking about here? Me I think we need to go all the way back to Genesis to find out.

Genesis 32:24–26 (ESV)

²⁴ And Jacob was left alone. And a man wrestled with him until the breaking of the day. ²⁵ When the man saw that he did not prevail against Jacob, he touched his hip socket, and Jacob’s hip was put out of joint as he wrestled with him. ²⁶ Then he said, “Let me go, for the day has broken.” But Jacob said, “I will not let you go unless you bless me.”

Jacob has the understand what it means to take by force. It is to desire God and to be blessed by God so much that you are not going to let God until He blesses you. To determine, in your heart, that you are going to be all God wants and you want all God has and no matter what happens, no matter how much pain you go through, you are not letting go till God blesses you with His presence and His touch.

In our society today of sitting down and letting the government do for me we do not understand this kind of desire cause we never have to fight for anything with this type of mentality. We think fighting is getting mad and shooting someone or punching them or whatever. “Father” wonders do you want what He has bad enough to truly fight for it? Are you willing to take His blessing regardless of the broken hip and the limp that you will have for the rest of your natural life cause of it? I can honestly say I am and I am seeking Him more and more each and every day. I pray you will come along with me on this wondrous journey of inspiration and blessing.

Sustained life and Godliness

2010-06-19T06:22:00.001-04:00

2 Peter 1:3 (ESV)

³ His divine power has granted to us all things that pertain to life and godliness, through the knowledge of him who called us to his own glory and excellence,

We are told that God supplies everything we need for life and for Godliness. Having read this, I asked what does that mean?? What does it take to sustain life?? How do you sustain Godliness?? So I set about studying this and this is what I came up with.

What do you need to sustain life?

air, water, food, a temperature that can be tolerated.

http://wiki.answers.com/Q/What_do_you_need_to_sustain_life

This is wiki answer for sustaining life. I wish to add we need other people as well for a couple of reasons. First, if we are alone then eventually the human race will die out so life will no longer exist. Secondly, because God made us into a community just as He lives in community with the Son and the Spirit. With these five things we can have life and some happiness as well.

John 15:1–11 (ESV)

I Am the True Vine

15 “I am the true vine, and my Father is the vinedresser. ² Every branch in me that does not bear fruit he takes away, and every branch that does bear fruit he prunes, that it may bear more fruit. ³ Already you are clean because of the word that I have spoken to you. ⁴ Abide in me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit by itself, unless it abides in the vine, neither can you, unless you abide in me. ⁵ I am the vine; you are the branches. Whoever abides in me and I in him, he it is that bears much fruit, for apart from me you can do nothing. ⁶ If anyone does not abide in me he is thrown away like a branch and withers; and the branches are gathered, thrown into the fire, and burned. ⁷ If you abide in me, and my words abide in you, ask whatever you wish, and it will be done for you. ⁸ By this my Father is glorified, that you bear much fruit and so prove to be my disciples. ⁹ As the Father has loved me, so have I loved you. Abide in my love. ¹⁰ If you keep my commandments, you will abide in my love, just as I have kept my Father’s commandments and abide in his love. ¹¹ These things I have spoken to you, that my joy may be in you, and that your joy may be full.

John 15 clearly defines a relationship between the believers and God and it’s through this relationship that we sustain Godliness. Understanding that a relationship requires time spent with a person, in this case God, and constant work on maintaining it. I am certain there are no people out there who have been married long term that would tell you they never have to work on their marriage as well as there are no friends who been friends for years who never have to work on it. This involves hanging out and talking to the other person and listening to the other person as well as helping to meet the needs of that person. Likewise we must spend time with God and see what He needs from us. Yes, God does NEED things from you because of how He set things up within the guidelines for life.

Listed below is a list of 2 different types of people and the things that come about in their lives. The first one does NOT have a relationship with God. Regardless how many times a week they go to church or read their bible they do not know God.

The second one is a list of things that will come to pass in a person’s life while they are maintaining a true relationship with God. You can know you are sustaining Godliness by these two lists. Whichever one is present in your life shows the state of your relationship!

Galatians 5:19 Now the works of the flesh are evident: sexual immorality, impurity, sensuality, ²⁰ idolatry, sorcery, enmity, strife, jealousy, fits of anger, rivalries, dissensions, divisions, ²¹ envy, drunkenness, orgies, and things like these. I warn you, as I warned you before, that those who do such things will not inherit the kingdom of God. ²² But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, ²³ gentleness, self-control; against such things there is no law. ²⁴ And those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires.

Which one of these best describes you?

Craving is Lust

2010-06-14T05:31:00.001-04:00

In Genesis the serpent created a craving in eve for the fruit of the tree of knowledge. This craving in ancient terms was lust.

In Romans 1:24 Therefore God gave them up in the lusts of their hearts to impurity, to the dishonoring of their bodies among themselves, 25 because they exchanged the truth about God for a lie and worshiped and served the creature rather than the Creator, who is blessed forever! Amen.

It tells us how God responds to this lust and this is exactly what He did to Adam and Eve. He gave them over to the lust of their hearts and removed them from the Garden. They chose to believe a lie instead of what God had told them. This is the same thing that is going on to this day. We, God's creation, chose to believe a lie instead of the creator. God's word tells us in no uncertain terms the result of this, yet we continue to do it anyway. How foolish we would think someone was whom we told if they let someone hit them with a 2x4 its going to hurt and possibly kill you and some one else came along and told them it was not true that the board would not hurt them and they let the person hit them with it. This is exactly what we do when we do not believe God and His word for our lives.

Wise as Serpents

2010-06-11T03:42:00.002-04:00

Matthew 10:16 (ESV)Persecution Will Come16 “Behold, I am sending you out as sheep in the midst of wolves, so be wise as serpents and innocent as doves.

Wise as serpents in this instant means be aware of the dangers that surround you. The spiritual attacks as well as the fleshly attacks that come from those around us and those we do not know as well. Do we see the dangers or do we see through rose colored glasses that do not permit us to see reality?

We are instructed to be aware of, or acknowledge the presence of the dangers around us. This being true, would it not be wrong or a sin to refuse to see those dangers and instead chose to only see the good without the negative in a person or a situation?

I think it is as wrong to see nothing but good as it is to see nothing but bad. Both are ways of only seeing part of the picture. Without the whole picture how can we know the right way to respond to someone or a particular situation?

Learn to see the entire picture without allowing the negative to prevent you from loving as Christ loved all of us. Be innocent as doves in this. Do this without judgement and without sin.

Why Do We Hurt Each Other

2010-05-21T15:55:00.001-04:00

Why do people intentionally try to hurt other people? I understand that those who are hurt tend to lash out at others, but would it not make more sense to try to get help instead of causing more pain? Why do we make fun of those who are hurting who don’t dress like we think they should or don’t act like we think they should? What gives us the right to laugh at someone we don’t even know?

It has occurred to me that many times we tend to judge people by their dress or their walk or some other thing that is so minor and meaningless that it’s not funny. How do we know the story behind the clothes, or the actions? What do I know about any particular persons circumstances that permits me to be their judge and to ridicule them to others?

Would it not be better to seek out a relationship with that person and find out the real reason for them to behave the way they are? And then try to help them? Is this not what Jesus did and are we not suppose to imitate Jesus?

I wish God’s people would stop being so shallow and start being what they are called to be. I pray God grant each and every one of us the broken and contrite spirit His word speaks of, that we may bring healing to the lost and hopeless instead of judgement.

What’s More Important to You?

2010-05-20T18:34:00.001-04:00

What’s more important to you? Your pleasure or someone else’s pain.

Is it more important for you to get that extra 10 minutes of sleep or do you use that 10 minutes to find some way to help someone who is hurting?

Is it more important to you to be able to have leisure time each day so you can do whatever you want or is it more important to you to use ur free time to seek out those who hurt and help?

These questions are questions that all Christians need to ask themselves every day. Sadly, most never ask it at all because we do not wish to see just how selfish we are when scripture calls us to be selfless! I wish I could say I spend as much time trying to help as I do on leisure.

Let’s look at it from another view point. Do I spend as much time getting to know God as I do watching TV? Do I spend my time seeking my pleasure or do I spend it in prayer and serious bible study. Look at the comparison, how much time a day do you spend watching TV?? 1 hr? 2 hrs?? Now, how much time do you devote to God?

Word Becomes Flesh

2010-05-13T06:39:00.006-04:00

John 14:10 Don't you believe that I am in the Father, and that the Father is in me? The words I say to you are not just my own. Rather, it is the Father, living in me, who is doing his work. 11Believe me when I say that I am in the Father and the Father is in me; or at least believe on the evidence of the miracles themselves. 12I tell you the truth, anyone who has faith in me will do what I have been doing. He will do even greater things than these, because I am going to the Father

“Father” granted us the authority and power to DO everything Christ did and greater so I ask why do we NOT experience this in our lives today? There are many people who love God with all their hearts but there are none of the signs Jesus said would follow His people. Why is this?

Mark 16:17 And these signs shall follow them that believe; In my name shall they cast out devils; they shall speak with new tongues;18They shall take up serpents; and if they drink any deadly thing, it shall not hurt them; they shall lay hands on the sick, and they shall recover.

The answer to this question lies within us. Jesus lives in our hearts and He is the author of our faith.

John 1:14And the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us, (and we beheld his glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father,) full of grace and truth

If Christ lives in us, the word lives in us as well. If the word lives in us then as we begin to understand that it applies to “ME” it will become flesh through us and then the power and authority of God’s word will come to pass in our lives and the signs and wonders will follow us. Don’t you think it is time that we, God’s People, allow the word to become flesh in us so we may truly be disciples of Christ and walk in the full power and authority that has been given us?

God’s word tells us:
Acts 1:8 But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you, and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth.”

What would the world look like if God’s people walked in the power and authority given them by the Holy Spirit that is spoken of in God’s word? How many people would RUN to Christ and the cross if one of Christ’s disciples prayed and called down fire from heaven and it actually showed up? Personally I think there would be an instant revival of God’s people as well as an enmasse salvation taking place. Now think about this in context of ALL of God’s people walking in that power. Man that would be so AWESOME!!
This power is literally the power of God that lives in us. It is an active growing functional part of our lives and its time we begin to grow in it. This is the power in which Christ was talking about when He said we would do everything He did and even greater. This is the power that He spoke of when He said we would cast out demons, heal the sick, drink poison and not die…….

The Greek word for power is δύναμις dúnamis; (pronounced dunamis, the u is long)

Strong’d 1411. δύναμις dúnamis; gen. dunámeōs, fem. noun from dúnamai (1410), to be able. Power, especially achieving power. All the words derived from the stem dúna- have the meaning of being able, capable. It may even mean to will. Contrast ischús (2479) which stresses the factuality of the ability, not necessarily the accomplishment.

This is talking about the current presence of power which means we are capable of doing SOMETHING cause of this power. Christ gave us a list of things we would be able to do in Mark 16:17-18

Power - an entity or being, whether human or transcendent, that functions in a remarkable manner, power

With the power comes the authority to use it as well.

Authority (2:10)
Authority means rightful power. It is the right of a ruler to do what he or she wishes and to command obedience of others. Although the English word is not used, the concept of rightful power in the Bible is given to God alone. He is the ultimate ruler over all the heavens and the earth, over all humanity.(Holman New Testament Commentary)
This is speaking of the power that lives in us!!

AUTHORITY. The NT word is exousia, meaning rightful, actual and unimpeded power to act, or to possess, control, use or dispose of, something or somebody. Whereas dynamis means physical power simply, exousia properly signifies power that is in some sense lawful. exousia may be used with the stress on either the rightfulness of power really held, or the reality of power rightfully possessed. In the latter case, EVV often translate it as ‘power’. exousia sometimes bears a general secular sense (e.g. in 1 Cor. 7:37, of self-control; Acts 5:4, of disposing of one’s income), but its significance is more commonly theological.(The New Bible Dictionary)

Can you imagine the unimpeded power of God through us acting on earth today?? Or better yet can you imagine it working in YOU personally?? Can you see yourself walking up to the lame and God healing them simply cause one of His children is present. He did this with Peter:

Acts 5:12 Now many signs and wonders were regularly done among the people by the hands of the apostles. And they were all together in Solomon’s Portico. 13 None of the rest dared join them, but the people held them in high esteem. 14 And more than ever believers were added to the Lord, multitudes of both men and women, 15 so that they even carried out the sick into the streets and laid them on cots and mats, that as Peter came by at least his shadow might fall on some of them. 16 The people also gathered from the towns around Jerusalem, bringing the sick and those afflicted with unclean spirits, and they were all healed.

So again I ask why is this power and anointing present today? The answer is in Timothy:

2Timothy 6 For this reason I remind you to fan into flame the gift of God, which is in you through the laying on of my hands, 7 for God gave us a spirit not of fear but of power and love and self-control.

How many have been given gifts they never use and in some cases don’t acknowledge they have? If we do not keep our gifts fanned into flames as Paul wrote then there is no way we can be used of God in His power and authority. If we do not believe God heals today and can heal through “ME” how can He use you to heal anyone? The power has been granted to us, it’s up to us to pick it up and to allow God to use us to perform His miracles as He sees fit. Want to see God’s power?? Then yield to His authority and acknowledge He has the power to do these things and you are willing to be the one used!

Acts 8:31 What then shall we say to these things? If God is for us, who can be against us? 32 He who did not spare his own Son but gave him up for us all, how will he not also with him graciously give us all things

Family

2010-05-10T04:23:00.001-04:00

I wonder what the body of Christ would look like if we all acted like the family we are suppose to be? Always looking out for each other and helping when and where we can. From the moment of salvation we are all brought into a oneness with Christ that brings us all into a community or family relationship with each other. Why is it we do not act like it? Why do we treat each other with indifference and suspicion?
Jesus prayed this for all saints:
John 17: 20 “I do not ask for these only, but also for those who will believe in me through their word, 21 that they may all be one, just as you, Father, are in me, and I in you, that they also may be in us, so that the world may believe that you have sent me.

When do we begin to live it out? When do we start to understand that our hurt is nothing compared to the hurt we are causing Christ through our selfish desires? When do we begin to learn that God knows our hearts better than we do and come to understand and trust He knows best?

Personally I think it’s time that we all come to realize the truths of scripture. That we all understand that we are family and family loves regardless of hurt. Family stands by one another regardless of faults. Family seeks what is best for son, or daughter, or mother, or father, not what is best for self. It’s time we return to this understanding and get away from our petty selfishness.

Are You Selfish?

2010-04-17T13:21:00.003-04:00

Phil2:3 Do nothing from selfishness or empty conceit, but with humility of mind cregard one another as more important than yourselves;
4 do not merely look out for your own personal interests, but also for the interests of others.

Can you imagine how the Church would look if we followed this simple command? Stop and think about the people you know in Church and how they act towards each other? How many gossip?? How many do things for others simply to make themselves feel good? How many truly selfish people are there in God’s church today?
I know I was one of them for a very long time. I was very deceived into thinking I was doing thing’s for others when in reality I wanted the praise and adoration and when I did not
get it I would get upset and usually leave or cause some sort of turmoil.
Look at your own heart and see what God would show you about yourself. Do you do things from a selfish self center motivation or do you do things simply cause God said to do it this way and you are trying to please Him? This is not a question that should be responded to quickly as it takes time to examine your heart and come up with the truth of your motivations. As you search allow God to open your eyes to the truth of your heart. Yes, it’s going to hurt cause we do not like to see where we fall short, but it’s worth it.
The result of your allowing God to do these things is true peace and joy and true love instead of the façade we have used to deceive ourselves up to this point. I promise that you will not be sorry if you will do these things.

Hurting People

2010-04-16T21:17:00.000-04:00

Why do we walk around putting on a façade? People are always acting like they have it all together when in reality none of us do. Those who are hurt lash out at those they love and in some cases those they don’t even know. All that happens is hurt leads to more hurt. The few minutes of pleasure from whatever your action leads to years of guilt and heartache for you and the one you hurt. Is it not time we all stop being fake and start being real? Are people capable of being real with one another instead of the façade that is their life? What makes us think we are so special that we can harm anyone we chose just because we hurt? Christ went through far more than any of us will ever endure and He did it so we could be real with Him and with each other.

Christians are the world’s worst about beating up those who fall into sin and in doing so they cause more pain than is already there and in most cases cause the person to sin even more. Will “Father” hold us accountable for that person’s sin because of our words or actions?

James 1:26 If anyone thinks he is religious qand does not bridle his tongue but deceives his heart, this person’s rreligion is worthless. 27 Religion that is pure and undefiled before God, the Father, is this: sto visit torphans and widows in their affliction, and uto keep oneself vunstained from the world.

This pretty clearly tells me that He will hold it against us! Can you stand up to those things you use to Judge others? I can’t! I can only pray that God allows me the grace to see my pride and arrogance so that I may repent and know that He is God.
Paul tells us all:

Phillipians 2:1 So if there is any encouragement in Christ, any comfort from flove, any gparticipation in the Spirit, any haffection and sympathy, 2 icomplete my joy by being jof the same mind, having the same love, being in full accord and of one mind. 3 Do nothing from krivalry or lconceit, but in mhumility count others more significant than yourselves. 4 Let each of you nlook not only to his own interests, but also to the interests of others

Please, take time to stop and see what you are doing to those you speak to. See if you are lifting them up with you speech.

New Wine

2010-04-16T14:37:00.006-04:00

Mark 2:18 Now John’s disciples and the Pharisees were fasting. And people came and said to him, “Why do John’s disciples and the disciples of the Pharisees fast, but your disciples do not fast?” 19 And Jesus said to them, “Can the wedding guests fast while the bridegroom is with them? As long as they have the bridegroom with them, they cannot fast. 20 The days will come when the bridegroom is taken away from them, and then they will fast in that day. 21 No one sews a piece of unshrunk cloth on an old garment. If he does, the patch tears away from it, the new from the old and a worse tear is made. 22 And no one puts new wine into old wineskins. If he does, the wine will burst the skins—and the wine is destroyed, and so are the skins. But new wine is for fresh wineskins.”

All wine connoisseurs know that the longer you let wine age the better it gets. And as it ferments, if it’s in an old wine skin, it will burst the skin from the gasses it produces. Where as a new wine skin is flexible and capable of expanding to contain the gasses. When you make new wine there is uncertainty as to how it will come out. Some times its bitter, sometimes its sweet, sometimes it does not ferment right. So it can be a strange experiment in making new wine.
This is symbolic of us as we get stuck in our comfort zones and refuse to let go of the old to follow God into the new things He wants to do with our lives and our churches. If God poured the new into your comfort zones then it would literally destroy you on the inside because your comfort zones cannot contain what is produced by what God pours into you. So God has to make us new as a new wine skin so we can expand to contain the blessings He is going to pour into us.
Eph 3:14 For this reason I bow my knees before the Father, 15 from whom wevery family3 in heaven and on earth is named, 16 that according to xthe riches of his glory yhe may grant you to be strengthened with power through his Spirit zin your inner being, 17 aso that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith—that you, being brooted and cgrounded in love, 18 may have strength to dcomprehend with all the saints what is the breadth and length and eheight and depth, 19 and to know the love of Christ fthat surpasses knowledge, that gyou may be filled with all hthe fullness of God.
The question is do we remain in our comfort zones because it’s easy or do we step out through the fear of the unknown and follow God? Do we remain inside our comfort zones and stay in the same old humdrumness that we been in for no telling how long or do we open our hearts up to God to be made new and receive the blessings God has ordained for our lives?
I petition all of you to open up and allow God to pour in the new wine and to bring you out of the comfort zones that is your life and let it become His life so that His true will may be done through you and those around you.
May God richly bless you and fill you with all His goodness and new things.

Forgetting the Past

2010-04-16T14:37:00.005-04:00

Phil 3:13 Brothers, I do not consider that I have made it my own. But one thing I do: nforgetting what lies behind and straining forward to what lies ahead, 14 I press on toward the goal for othe prize of the upward pcall of God in Christ Jesus.

One of the things that has held me back from accomplishing all the things God wanted for me was me beating myself up over the things I had done in the last hour or the last week or however long it happened to be. I was pouring guilt onto myself because I did not toe the line. This is legalism at its worse. So many of us hold ourselves to legalistic laws that we set based off something someone said or a scripture we took out of context. We need to remember Paul’s words in these verses and forget what’s behind because it’s forgiven and move on towards the goal that is the call of God in Christ Jesus. This has been the single hardest thing for me to grasp in the 15 years I have been a Christian and it was not until just recently that I finally realized what I was doing.

Does this describe you too? If so remember, Christ forgives as soon as you repent, no exceptions. If you continue in the legalism of beating yourself up for not getting it right then you are holding yourself accountable to the law and putting Christ’s death into a done for nothing category. It’s time to let it all go and to understand your forgiven and that God knows all about YOU and all you have done which is why He sent HIS Son to die on a cross for you. Again, forget the past and get back to running the race.

2009-07-07T20:16:00.002-04:00

Logos

2009-07-07T20:13:00.002-04:00

Logos is giving away 12 FREE Bibles a month, you have got to go check this out.

Logos Bible Software is celebrating the launch of their new online Bible by giving away 72 ultra-premium print Bibles at a rate of 12 per month for six months. The Bible giveaway is being held at Bible.Logos.com and you can get up to five different entries each month! After you enter, be sure to check out Logos and see how it can revolutionize your Bible study.

Out of the Heart

2008-12-21T10:46:00.006-05:00

Mat 12:34 Ye offspring of vipers, how can ye, being evil, speak good things? for out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaketh.

Jesus states to the Pharisees the mouth speaks what’s in the heart। So, my question is what would this look like? Is it simply curses and foul speech? Would it be someone who speaks angrily to everyone around them? Both of these would be an aspect of this, but what about more subtle things? An example would be the person who, unknowingly, puts themselves first in front of others? Scripture says for us to place others needs in front of our on and in doing this He would meet our needs. What about some one who looks at what others do on the outside instead of searching out why the person is doing what they do? Scripture tells us that God sees what’s inside a mans heart and judges him by it.

There are many such examples I could write here. Hopefully, these are enough to get you to thinking about what comes out of your mouth as well as what is in your mind about others and how you treat them. If my thoughts and actions place me and my needs ahead of others then my heart is speaking clearly about where God ranks in my life. If I spend my days seeking what makes me comfortable instead of what God wants, my heart, again, is stating clearly where God ranks in my life. I challenge you to examine your thoughts and speech to see where God ranks in your life. Seek out those things that would suggest to you that your life is not resembling that of Christ and once you see them, commit them to prayer and continuously watch for them to come up until such a time that you no longer do them.

Make Daddy Proud

2008-11-11T09:19:00.006-05:00

Through out our lives, we strive to make our parents proud of us. Even those of us who are raised by parents who abused us, still long to make them or the person we consider our parent, proud. As a child I always beemed when my dad would tell me I did good at something, and because of that feeling, I strove to do things to make him tell me that more often. "Father" only wishes for our good and for us to choose to love Him instead of ourselves. Shouldn't we want to make Him proud? In making Him proud, we achieve what we all long for in our lives. That is to have a parent who loves us and is proud of us. Why is it then that we call God, our "Father" yet do nothing to make Him proud of us? We seek to please ourselves instead of pleasing Him. I am most guilty of this in my life and how I wish I could say otherwise. Don't you think it is time we begin to try to make "Father" proud with our actions and our lives instead of making our flesh happy and satisfied? I do. I think its time we go back to the beginning and set our sites on the basics of our faith and learn anew how to trust in God for all we need and want and to strive to make a Daddy proud. Are you ready to have a proud Daddy?

2008-08-27T10:58:00.002-04:00

Logos is sending out a free commentary to all who get there before time runs out. Check it out at http://blog.logos.com/archives/2008/08/matthew_mark_cornerstone_biblical_commentary--free.html

Discipleship

2007-10-29T19:28:00.000-04:00

Luke 14:26 “If anyone comes to me and does not hate his own father and mother and wife and children and brothers and sisters, yes, and even his own life, he cannot be my disciple.

John 15:18 “If the world hates you, know that it has hated me before it hated you. 19 If you were of the world, the world would love you as its own; but because you are not of the world, but I chose you out of the world, therefore the world hates you.

If we fear death or redicule or even what others think of us because of our walk with Christ then we can not be disciples of Christ.
In order for us to truly walk with christ we must die to ourselves and what the world thinks of us. In doing this we obtain the freedom to speak what “Father” wants spoken. Many people miss what is said to them by the Holy Spirit because of the fear they carry of what others think of them. Some simply ignore what is being said while others openly and willingly disobey what they are told to do or speak. It is time we, as the body of Christ, begin to listen to what the Holy Spirit is speaking to us in this hour that we may obtain our freedom and become true disciples of Jesus Christ.

The Holy Bible : English standard version. 2001 (Jn 15:18-19). Wheaton: Standard Bible Society.

Fences to Freedom

2007-10-05T19:30:00.001-04:00

Many of us grew up in households where we were told how worthless we are or how we would never amount to anything. In response to this we would build fences to protect ourselves from those who hurt us. Later in life as we meet new people and they, not knowing of our fences, cross those boundaries and hurt us. Again we build fences to protect ourselves. We keep building fences till one day no one can reach in to us because of all the wire and hurt we have.

C.S. Lewis talks of giving all of yourself to Christ in his book “Mere Christianity”. My question is how can we give all to Christ if we are hiding behind our fences? The answer is, it is not possible to give it all or in some cases even part of it to Him. Christ wants all we are and all we ever hope to become that He may make us into what He wanted us to be in the first place. In doing this He grants us true joy and peace in all we do and through all of life’s good and bad times. The only way we can obtain this is to begin to climb those fences and take a chance on our hearts running free and beginning to care once again about ourselves and people in more than a what can you do for me fashion. Once we climb those fences and get from behind them we can give all there is of ourselves to Christ and He will give all there is of Himself to us.

Perfect love

2007-09-29T22:20:00.001-04:00

In Nathaniel Hawthorne’s “The Scarlet Letter” Hester Prynne gave birth to a child of an adulterous situation. The child, Pearl, was born and was very healthy and beautiful as most babies are. Her mother dressed her in the finest clothes she could make. Hester, being a seamstress, made the clothes very well. The author goes on to say that there was no way for the baby to be pretty because it was born into a sinful situation and that nothing good could come out of a situation like that. In my own life I can attest to how God can take a sin filled life and transform it into something of beauty and joyful. How He takes a past of sin and wreckage and turns it into His glory.
There are many in churches today, like the crowd in the book, who throw words of stone that kill the spirit instead of words of love that heal. Sin should never be condoned in our churches, but it is our job and responsibility as Christians to love the back slider back into a healthy relationship with Christ and with the body. Scripture says that Satan is the accuser of the brothers. I suggest to you that when we begin to throw words of stone at those who are weak and back slidden we are being used to do Satan’s bidding not God’s. Personally, I think it is time we stop allowing Satan to use us the way we do and become the strong right arm of Christ we are called to be and learn to love people where they are and how they are, instead of expecting perfect actions from them while excusing our own inadequacies. Today we should make a vow before God to love sinners, be they back sliders or totally lost, with the same compassion that Christ does.
I pray one day we can become without spot and wrinkle and be blameless before God so the Son will return. Until that day let Jesus’ words ring true. John 8:7 But when they persisted in asking Him, He straightened up, and said to them, "He who is without sin among you, let him be the first to throw a stone at her."

Living Transparent

2007-09-20T19:46:00.001-04:00

In C.S. Lewis's "The Great Divorce" there are two kinds of people in the book. The people in hell are ghostly and have no substance. They tend to be unhappy and make excuses for not being happy instead of facing reality. The people who are in heaven are solid and filled with joy and compassion. They work hard to convince the ghostly people to stay in heaven and find the joy they seek. The solid people are naked and are perfectly happy being this way. This is a great analogy for how we as Christians should be during each and every day of our lives here on earth. I do not mean we should go without clothes, but we should live our lives as though we had nothing to hide. This is actually shown in scripture as well in the fact that Adam and Eve did not know they were naked until sin entered the world. Gen. 3: 7 Then the eyes of both of them were opened, and they ?knew that they were naked; and they sewed fig leaves together and made themselves ??loin coverings[1]. Adam and Eve had nothing to hide from one another until they ate of the fruit of the tree of knowledge. Then they hid themselves from God and from each other. If we live our lives completely open and transparent we obtain freedom. The simple fact that there is nothing anyone can hold against us since everyone knows it all anyway shows one of the many ways our honesty and transparency allows our freedom from bondage. James 5:16 Therefore, ?confess your sins to one another, and pray for one another so that you may be ?healed. ?The effective ?prayer of a righteous man can accomplish much.[2] If we are not transparent there is no way we will ever be obedient to this passage and in not being obedient to God's word in any part we lose part of the blessing it is to walk with Christ. By being transparent with each other we will know how better to pray for each other and in so doing we can obtain the promise of healing from this passage. Through this healing we find our hearts filled with the joy and love of Christ. Do not allow your blessing of this promise to be withheld because of your own pride or because you are afraid of allowing others to see the real you. Without the real you there is no transparency and without transparency there is no healing.

Laying Down Your Life

2007-09-12T21:19:00.000-04:00

John 15:13 "Greater love has no one than this, that one lay down his life for his friends.

What does laying your life down really mean? Is it simply to physically die for someone? I think there is much more to it than that. I think it is more appropriate to say it means to lay down your pride and your reputation and everything you live for in order to help a friend. To me this is truly laying down your life. I wonder what this world would look like if all Gods children started living their lives from this perspective?

Guardians of Truth

2007-08-25T15:35:00.000-04:00

I wonder what the difference would be if we as Gods kids started seeing ourselves as guardians of Gods word? While guarding it finding out what it says for our lives, instead of trying to find out from a selfish stance what Gods word says for me? I think we should begin to look at Gods word as the true gift it is and begin to accept the fact that God has called His people to be guardians of truth, which is His word, instead of always asking what’s in it for me. We can guard the word by allowing the Spirit of God to write it on the tablets of our hearts as He explains it to us. And then repeating it as the Holy Spirit shows us not as our lmited minds can comprehend.

Too Many Minds

2007-08-17T14:37:00.001-04:00

In the movie “The Last Samurai” Tom Cruise is being taught how to fight with a sword and he is told he has too many minds. He is thinking of the sword and the people watching him and of the enemy. He is instructed to only have one mind.

I wonder how many Christians need to heed this same advice when it comes to Christ. We tend to try to pray and worry over money. We attend church thinking of what’s for lunch. We read our bibles and think about work or our spouse and any other number of things. God wants us to have but one mind. The mind of Christ that is stayed upon Him in all things Spiritual as well as material and emotional. Be one minded in your pursuit of God and find the peace and the tranquility that your heart desires.

1Co 2:16 For WHO HAS KNOWN THE MIND OF THE LORD, THAT HE WILL INSTRUCT HIM? But we have the mind of Christ.

Jesus The Lion

2007-08-16T06:05:00.001-04:00

Jesus The Lion

In this writing I am going to attempt to show the many faces of Jesus but mostly focus on the lion part as described above. To many people today try to portray Christ as a feminine man in many aspects but I am here to show how Jesus was very much a mans man and we need to quit trying to feminize Him.

Many times I hear Jesus portrayed as a meek and humble man, which He was. We know He was loving and caring to the sick and spoke profoundly about taking care of the widows and orphans. But, what about the rest of what scripture says about Jesus? Does it not call Him a lion? Does scripture tell us that he ran people our of the temple

Mat 21:12 And Jesus entered the temple and drove out all those who were buying and selling in the temple, and overturned the tables of the money changers and the seats of those who were selling doves.

I would dare say this is not the actions of a man who is purely meek and mild but is more like a lion with the fierceness it would take to run that many people out of the temple. Webster’s says this about lions,

Lion
LI'ON, n. [L. leo, leonis, Gr.]

1. A quadruped of the genus Felis, very strong, fierce and rapacious. The largest lions are eight or nine feet in length. The male has a thick head, beset with long bushy hair of a yellowish color. The lion is a native of Africa and the warm climates of Asia. His aspect is noble, his gait stately, and his roar tremendous.

Rev 5:5 and one of the elders *said to me, "Stop weeping; behold, the lion that is from the tribe of Judah, the Root of David, has overcome so as to open the book and its seven seals."

Hos 5:14 For I will be like a lion to Ephraim And like a young lion to the house of Judah. I, even I, will tear to pieces and go away, I will carry away, and there will be none to deliver.

I really like the last line of the description of a lion as, to me, it perfectly describes Christ in all He did here, “His aspect is noble, his gait stately, and his roar tremendous.” Jesus was not a man that just walked around and worried over hurting peoples feelings, he was a man that spoke truth at all times and let the Holy Spirit’s conviction deal with each person. This is shown very clearly in Matthew 19:16 – 22. This is the story of the man that came to Christ and ask how he could earn his way to eternal life and Jesus told him to sell everything he owned give it to the poor and come follow me, but the man could not do that because of his love of his possessions. I dare to say this man got his feelings hurt and was very disappointed in the fact he could not earn his way to heaven.

Or maybe a better example of someone getting their feelings hurt would be Peter in Mat 16:23 But He turned and said to Peter, "Get behind Me, Satan! You are a stumbling block to Me; for you are not setting your mind on God's interests, but man's." Now I dare to say that Peter did not enjoy this statement at all and was probably embarrassed as all the disciples where present and most probably heard Jesus tell him this. And it would be a safe bet that Peter’s feelings where hurt in a big way over this.

Now having shown where Jesus was very much a lion in His walk on earth I want to make it clear that Jesus did everything in love and was not out to make people stumble with the harsh words He did use time to time. His goal, as always, is to get people to open their eyes to the truth of what is and to follow Him in truth instead of in their own perceptions and knowledge. He came that all may know the “Father” and have eternal life as stated in John 3:16 – 17.

I pray through this writing we can return to the knowledge that Jesus was very much a man in all He did and said and was not in anyway feminized as many try to make him out to be today.

Happiness or Joy

2007-08-12T20:04:00.000-04:00

Happiness is based on circumstance and is very fleeting as it comes and goes with the tide. Most people seek happiness through trying to make their circumstances better instead of seeking God to obtain the Joy that He wants to give us all.

Happiness is the selfish pursuit of what I want.....

Joy is the selfless pursuit of what God wants!

In today's society people look to things to make them happy. Some look to a spouse or bf/gf. Some look to work, houses, cars, money and the list goes on. In doing this they are seeking what the world says will make them happy and in so doing are being very selfish in this pursuit. Scripture tells us to seek God first in all things.

Php 4:6 Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God.
Php 4:7 And the peace of God, which surpasses all comprehension, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.

Seeking Gods joy allows us to obtain that which our hearts seek which is the true joy of the King not the fleeting happiness of a circumstance.

Commitment

2007-07-29T23:04:00.001-04:00

Commitment is learning every negative thing there is to know about your spouse and loving them anyway.

In today's society people walk around mistaking infactuation with true love and when they get married and see all the faults they call an attorney. It is a sad thing that people today do not understand commitment because with this mentality they, also, turn to God only when it is convienent to them or they are in trouble. Honor your commitments no matter how bad it hurts to everyone and especially to God.

Num 30:2 "If a man makes a vow to the LORD, or takes an oath to bind himself with a binding obligation, he shall not violate his word; he shall do according to all that proceeds out of his mouth.
Num 30:3 "Also if a woman makes a vow to the LORD, and binds herself by an obligation in her father's house in her youth,
Num 30:4 and her father hears her vow and her obligation by which she has bound herself, and her father says nothing to her, then all her vows shall stand and every obligation by which she has bound herself shall stand.

Focus on God

2007-07-29T13:29:00.000-04:00

I wonder how many things we allow to take our focus off God and place it on the things around us? I know I have been very guilty of this in my life especially where women are concerned. For me they took Gods place on the throne of my heart and I focused on them instead of God and in so doing I lost the women as God is a jealous God. I long for nothing more than to keep my focus on God and stop looking at the things going on around me. Scripture tells us so long as we focus on Christ we will have peace and satan wants nothing more then to steal our peace, which means he will do anything and everything to get your focus off God. It is time we keep our focus on God and stop letting satan move it to other things.

Heart of a Man

2007-07-23T09:42:00.000-04:00

Why is it that we judge a man by his appearance instead of what is inside him? this morning I was watching the news and they are talking about how a presidential candidates appearance means so much to his campaigne. I find this is also true in every aspect of life such as when a person is looking for a mate the first thing they do is look for appearance and in many instances today the appearance and infatuation are mistaken for love and many problems ensue after the two are married. It saddens me that we have become so shallow that we gauge a mans worth by what he wears instead of by what he stands for.

Isn't it time that we start gauging our leaders and everyone else based on what they stand for instead of how they appear and what they say?

Depression

2007-07-17T15:02:00.001-04:00

1Ki 19:2 Then Jezebel sent a messenger to Elijah, saying, "So may the gods do to me and even more, if I do not make your life as the life of one of them by tomorrow about this time."
1Ki 19:3 And he was afraid and arose and ran for his life and came to Beersheba, which belongs to Judah, and left his servant there.
1Ki 19:4 But he himself went a day's journey into the wilderness, and came and sat down under a juniper tree; and he requested for himself that he might die, and said, "It is enough; now, O LORD, take my life, for I am not better than my fathers."
1Ki 19:5 He lay down and slept under a juniper tree; and behold, there was an angel touching him, and he said to him, "Arise, eat."
1Ki 19:6 Then he looked and behold, there was at his head a bread cake baked on hot stones, and a jar of water. So he ate and drank and lay down again.
1Ki 19:7 The angel of the LORD came again a second time and touched him and said, "Arise, eat, because the journey is too great for you."
1Ki 19:8 So he arose and ate and drank, and went in the strength of that food forty days and forty nights to Horeb, the mountain of God.
1Ki 19:9 Then he came there to a cave and lodged there; and behold, the word of the LORD came to him, and He said to him, "What are you doing here, Elijah?"
1Ki 19:10 He said, "I have been very zealous for the LORD, the God of hosts; for the sons of Israel have forsaken Your covenant, torn down Your altars and killed Your prophets with the sword. And I alone am left; and they seek my life, to take it away."
1Ki 19:11 So He said, "Go forth and stand on the mountain before the LORD." And behold, the LORD was passing by! And a great and strong wind was rending the mountains and breaking in pieces the rocks before the LORD; but the LORD was not in the wind. And after the wind an earthquake, but the LORD was not in the earthquake.
1Ki 19:12 After the earthquake a fire, but the LORD was not in the fire; and after the fire a sound of a gentle blowing.
1Ki 19:13 When Elijah heard it, he wrapped his face in his mantle and went out and stood in the entrance of the cave. And behold, a voice came to him and said, "What are you doing here, Elijah?"
1Ki 19:14 Then he said, "I have been very zealous for the LORD, the God of hosts; for the sons of Israel have forsaken Your covenant, torn down Your altars and killed Your prophets with the sword. And I alone am left; and they seek my life, to take it away."
1Ki 19:15 The LORD said to him, "Go, return on your way to the wilderness of Damascus, and when you have arrived, you shall anoint Hazael king over Aram;
1Ki 19:16 and Jehu the son of Nimshi you shall anoint king over Israel; and Elisha the son of Shaphat of Abel-meholah you shall anoint as prophet in your place.

Elijah was a fraid of dying! Why, he would be afraid of this after all the miracles God had performed through him is amazingly human. We all have our weaknesses and they will be exploited as often as possible.

Due to the fear Elijah became depressed and wanted to die. He begged God to kill him. Inspite of this depression God used Elijah to teach Elisha and to anoint two kings before he took him by a chariot of fire.

God can use you even in the midst of your depression!

Focus

2007-07-15T17:02:00.000-04:00

Mat 16:20 Then He warned the disciples that they should tell no one that He was the Christ.
Mat 16:21 From that time Jesus began to show His disciples that He must go to Jerusalem, and suffer many things from the elders and chief priests and scribes, and be killed, and be raised up on the third day.
Mat 16:22 Peter took Him aside and began to rebuke Him, saying, "God forbid it, Lord! This shall never happen to You."
Mat 16:23 But He turned and said to Peter, "Get behind Me, Satan! You are a stumbling block to Me; for you are not setting your mind on God's interests, but man's."

What we focus on determines our destination and our actions. If we focus on worldly things or the cares of this world then we will reap the rewards of the world. If we focus on Christ and on "Father" then we gain heaven's blessings and reap the rewards there of. What are you focused on today?

Prayer for Enemy

2007-07-11T08:53:00.000-04:00

Psa 61:6 You will prolong the king's life; His years will be as many generations.
Psa 61:7 He will abide before God forever; Appoint lovingkindness and truth that they may preserve him.

David prayers for the king to be spared and have a long life even though at this time the king is trying to kill him. In todays society of self before anyone or anything I wonder how many of Gods people actually love their enemies enough to ask God to spare their lives instead of wishing them harm in the depths of their hearts. I know I was guilty of this for a very long time and did not even realize it, but it is now time that Gods people begin to truly show the Love of Christ and the only way to do that is to love the unlovable and that especially means those who mean to do us harm.

Tablets of Your Heart

2007-07-10T11:05:00.000-04:00

Pro 3:3 Do not let kindness and truth leave you; Bind them around your neck, Write them on the tablet of your heart.

Truth is Gods word and we need to write His word on the tablets of our hearts that we may stand in the hour of wickedness. It is time we all begin to learn the truths of Gods words in such a way that we live them out in our daily lives. In order to do this we must know Gods word in our hearts and let it grow and mature us until such a time as God deems us ready to attain the calling to which He has called all of us too.

Burdens

2007-07-05T17:35:00.000-04:00

Mat 11:28 "Come to Me, all who are weary and heavy-laden, and I will give you rest.
Mat 11:29 "Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and YOU WILL FIND REST FOR YOUR SOULS.
Mat 11:30 "For My yoke is easy and My burden is light."

1Pe 5:7 casting all your anxiety on Him, because He cares for you.

If Jesus' burden is light and ours is heavy and scripture tells us to cast our anxieties on him then why do we walk around bound to our worldly cares? Let go of your burden today and take Jesus' that you may walk in peace and true harmony with Christ.

Why Me?

2007-06-30T13:35:00.000-04:00

Many times I have heard this question and even asked it once or twice myself and the answer is very simple.
2 Cor. 4:17 For our light and momentary troubles are achieving for us an eternal glory that far outweighs them all.
Many times we go through very huge problems and what seems like insurmountable trials but God promises that none of our pains will ever be wasted. ( This statement from Rick Warren ) Our problems are always used for Glory so long as we can admit we are weak in these areas and need His help in getting over them and then being able to tell others we went through it. People are encouraged by our over coming weakness not by our strengths. Your weakness is your humanity and today we need to start sharing our humanity with others.

True Worship

2007-06-30T13:34:00.002-04:00

John 4:23Yet a time is coming and has now come when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and truth, for they are the kind of worshipers the Father seeks.
I have always thought of worshipping in Spirit as just that spiritual worship but there is a verse in the Bible that tells us there is more to it than that. Romans 12.
Roman 12:1-2Therefore, I urge you brothers, in view of God's mercy, to offer your bodies as living sacrifices, holy and pleasing to God - this is your spiritual act of worship. Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God's will is - His good, pleasing and perfect will.
When we truly offer ourselves as sacrifices to God then we are truly worshiping God in spirit.
Truthful worship is just that. You have to be open and honest with God in order to worship Him and honor Him. People wonder why their prayer lives are not what they should be. 9 times out of 10 this is the reason. They are closed off so they do not get hurt any more thus they are not being honest with God. When we decide to open our hearts and allow God to SHARE our pain and not just tell Him about it then we begin to worship in truth.
How are you worshiping today?? Do you fulfill these two verses of scripture with your worship of God?

The Trap

2007-06-30T13:34:00.001-04:00

It has occurred to me that one of Satan’s biggest traps for Gods people is how others see us. I was seen as nothing but a drunk and drug addict for the majority of my life and in some circles to this day people still see me that way, they do not see what God has made me into. What about the flip side of this. People seeing us as great and special while in our hearts we know we aren’t or think we aren’t. I am certain there are many people out there that can relate to one or both of these. The question is are we strong enough to break free from how the world sees us or do we go on through life believing we are the useless person that others say that we are. Jesus calls us out of the world, which in part, means we are not to go by what the world says we are. That includes Christians who do not see what God sees. God sees us as His children and worthy of His Son dying on a cross for us. Satan does not have the power to undo that in reality, so he tries to undo it in our minds and in our self-esteem. Don’t allow Satan to undo the gift that has been given to me and you.

Principles

2007-06-30T13:31:00.000-04:00

I have been pondering a question these last days that has truly troubled me. The question is "What does it mean to utterly devote yourself to a moral set of Christian principles?" This question has some very deep implications and even more over tones to it.
The first thing you have to decide is what are Christian Principles. Understand I am talking bible principles not doctrinal principles. The simplest way I know to explain Christian principles is to quote 5 verses of scripture. Matthew 22: 36 - 40 states 36"Teacher, which is the greatest commandment in the Law?" 37Jesus replied: " 'Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.'[b] 38This is the first and greatest commandment. 39And the second is like it: 'Love your neighbor as yourself.'[c] 40All the Law and the Prophets hang on these two commandments." This states basically, Love God first, Everyone else second and yourself last. and notice what verse 40 states. Everything in bible from cover to cover hangs on these 2 things. That is a very powerful statement but it also says here are your Christian principals.
So what does it mean to devote yourself completely to these things? Devotion to God is be willing to do anything He tells you no matter what it makes you look like in other peoples eyes and no matter how much hurt you have to go through to achieve it.
Devotion to others?? Going out of your way to help those who need help even to the point of putting yourself out or doing without so someone else can have enough. This is a statement many will disagree with but if you read your bible especially Matthew 6: 26`Look at the birds that fly in the air. They do not plant or cut or keep any food. Yet your Father in heaven feeds them. Are you not worth more than birds? 28And why are you troubled about clothes? See how the flowers grow in the fields. They do not work or make cloth. This tells us we are not to worry about our own well being as "Father" will take care of us.
Do we live our lives this way?? Most don't. I know I have at times and have not at times. Mostly it depends on the situation and who is involved. Devote yourself to God and His principles today and live the life God called you to live. All the promises of the bible come true at this point in our walks with Christ.

Perfection

2007-06-30T13:30:00.000-04:00

One of the greatest fallacies of man today is not believing God can use them right where they are. God created man imperfectly on purpose, thus He knows we will fail at times. Our problem is we don't think God can use us unless we are perfect. God can and will use us right where and how we are if we let Him. He longs for us to trust Him and know that He knows we are not perfect in all we do. His heart is not for our perfection of actions, but perfection of love in Him. This perfection comes when we admit we are human and He is God.

Love: The One Way Street

2007-06-30T13:28:00.000-04:00

I have heard it said many times that love is a 2 way street. I am here to differ with this statement. My Bible tells me love is patient; love is kind, love believes all things, endures all things, ECT… of course this is paraphrased from 1st Corinthians 13. I can not find anywhere in there that love has to be returned. This says that love will last through anything no matter what.
Jesus came and died for you and I on a cross before we where capable of true love. He loved me before I loved Him. Is this the 2 way street of love?? Or is it the one-way street known to those of us who KNOW who Jesus is and what he did for us on that cross. Is your love a one way or two way street??

Men and Women

2007-06-30T13:27:00.000-04:00

Our society today has lost God’s view of people. Women today are raised with the mentality that men are the enemy and are taught how to manipulate men with their feminine ways. Men are raised with no respect for women what so ever. They view women as objects of desire who are here for the man’s enjoyment only.
I was raised by a man who, to my best recollection, never said one positive thing about women in general. When I was 8 or 9 I found his stash of playboys and was lead off into many years of pornography. Through this I developed the above mentioned attitude towards women and kept women around me in my life who would permit me to keep this attitude by their actions. Sadly it has taken me almost 40 years to realize the realities of what we are doing to our society through this kind of mentality.
We have become a self destructive society because we are constantly fighting each other through our selfish outlooks and lack of understanding of why God created us in the first place. God created man, in general, to rule over God’s creation. This means men and women both. When God created Adam and Eve He created them differently so they would compliment each other. They where never meant to do or achieve the same things. It is time we as a society begin to relearn why God created us and why He created us the way He did. Did God create man to use women for sex and sexual desires?? I don’t think so, but He did create man with a strong desire for sex that the human race would not die out. Did God create women to manipulate men through this desire?? I seriously doubt it. He did create them to make up for the areas of life where a man is weak, areas such as nurturing and caring for those who are hurt and dying. It is not that men are not capable of this, but we are not capable of it on the level women are. A man and a woman truly working together as God created them to shows the realities of the image of God. No man nor woman alone and show this image completely because God did not put His entire image in either sex. It is time we return to the realization that we are not whole without each other and that God created us to be like Him together.

True Marriage is of God

2007-06-30T13:26:00.000-04:00

How much hurt are you willing to take in order for "Father" to teach your spouse something?

How many Christian marriages end because one or both partners are unwilling to suffer so the other can learn some valuable life lesson? I know in looking at my current marriage and my past marriages I am very guilty of this. This question was asked of me recently and it really hit home. How much hurt am I willing to endure so Lori can learn something "Father" is trying to teach her? Before a few days ago my honest answer had to be none because of my selfish self-centered nature, but now I can honestly say she is worth what ever suffering I must go through. The reason for the change is I have been a very selfish person in my marriages until a few days ago. Now I know the realities of what I was and have to make those changes in order to have a happy marriage and a Godly marriage. The same is true for Lori and all spouses. We as the spouse must be willing to endure pain so our spouse may learn from "Father" and the Holy Spirit.

Lonely

2007-06-30T13:25:00.000-04:00

There are many times that I miss my wife or other loved ones throughout the course of each week of my life. I find myself getting very depressed and longing to be with them and to be able to hold my wife in my arms and love on her. It occurred to me this morning that “Father” goes through much the same thing waiting on us to come and spend time with Him in prayer and in His word. He misses us and gets lonely for the company of His child. It is time we stop neglecting “Father” and start blessing Him with our presence and love instead of only running to Him with requests of a selfish nature. The Bible clearly states God has feelings and thus He can very easily get lonely for your company. Go to Him today and just spend time loving Him. Ask Him today what you can do to love on Him or what you can do for Him today instead of what he can do for you. Is “Father” lonely for you today or have you been there to let Him know you love Him?

Laying Down Your Life

2007-06-30T13:24:00.000-04:00

John 15: 12My command is this: Love each other as I have loved you. 13Greater love has no one than this, that he lay down his life for his friends. 14You are my friends if you do what I command.
What exactly does it mean to lay your life down for someone? We all know the literal meaning of dying for a friend, but I think this goes a lot deeper than just the literal meaning. We lay our lives down by being willing to accept punishment for something that we did not do in order to show our love for our brothers and sisters. We lay our lives down by giving beyond our means to those who need help and not concerning ourselves with the fact that they may be using the help for selfish reasons.
True love shows up when the person knows we know they are not doing what is being said and we help anyway in love and not in judgment.
This is how Jesus has helped all of us. He met me where I was when I was at my worst. He met all of us at this place in our lives that we may grow in Him. He did not withhold His blessings from us because we abused or misused them, he blessed us anyway knowing we would not do what was suppose to be done.
My prayer is that “Father” would teach me to give of myself as He gave of Himself to me.

Life or Death

2007-06-30T13:22:00.000-04:00

Proverbs 18: 21 The tongue has the power of life and death, and those who love it will eat its fruit.
It occurred to me today on my way home from church that God the "Father" showed us this at creation. Gen. chapter 1 talks about the Creation of the earth and the plants and animals, but notice in the there all it says is "And God said" then it happened. Whatever God said it happened. God said let there be light and the sun came up. God said let us make man in our image and Adam came forth out of the dust. God said Let the water teem with living creatures, and let birds fly above the earth across the expanse of the sky and these things to happened. Here is life in the tongue. God spoke and life came into being.
You say where is death then?? Gen. chapter 3 shows us death in the tongue. Again this is all God said. God said let the serpent crawl on his belly and he does to this day. God said the woman would bring forth children in pain and I think they will all agree that this happens. God said the ground will bear thorns and thistles and Adam will have to work for his food from then on. Walk into any long standing woods and see all the briars and thorns everywhere.
Now a little closer to home again. When we talk down to people it kills their spirits but when we talk to people like we would to Christ it uplifts and encourages them. I am quite certain no one would tell Jesus he was a wimp cause he cried over Jerusalem. I am just as certain no one would tell Jesus his faith was lacking when He asked "Father" to remove this cup from me or better yet when He asked "Father" why have you forsaken me. It is time we begin to talk to each other as we would to Christ himself and learn to give each other the benefit of the doubt and give love and encouragement instead of kicking people when they are down.
Are you an encourager or a kicker?

Illusion of Control

2007-06-30T13:21:00.002-04:00

The illusion of control is one of the biggest hindrances to our ministries today. We spend our time seeking numbers to tell us what group of people to go after or to let us know exactly when we should do this or teach that.
It is the hope of all men to be in control of their destinies, but God says tomorrow is not promised to us. It is the desire of all men to be in control of their lives on a day-to-day basis, but God says to submit and He will bless you with the desires of your heart. The reality is control is but an illusion for mankind as there is but one who has control and His name is Yaweh.
The Sadducees and Pharisees suffered from this same delusion. They spent their lives trying to prove the teachings of Jesus wrong because it meant they had to let go of control and the things they had been teaching and accept the fact that there was no control. They held onto control so hard that it cost Jesus His life.
It has occurred to me that this is why people fear change so much. It is not that they never want anything to change, it is simply they do not want to let go of their illusion of control. In order to let go of control they have to admit the reality of their lives and face the fact that they are sinners. This scares people so bad that they are willing to put the Son of God on a cross and spit on Him so they will not have to admit what they already know deep in their hearts, they are not in control.
Control is nothing more than a defense we have set in place in order to stop people from seeing the pain we are in, because if we allow them to see our pain we may become vulnerable and in order to do that we must take a chance on getting hurt one more time. This is a chance most people are not willing to take because they are so focused on self that no one else truly matters. Thus they continue in the illusion that they have some power and control over their lives and over the people around them and in so doing continue to hurt themselves and everyone around them.
Control is but a wall for people to hide behind so they do not have to show the world just how scared they are and just how bad they truly feel about themselves. In achieving this they also hide these things from themselves. This allows them to begin to lie to themselves which in turns allows them to start to lie to God. This gets them into a state of turning from God and seeking relief in other ways such as work or drugs, or T.V. ect…
Control is but an illusion that allows a person to fool themselves and others into thinking they are more powerful than they actually are.

How Far is to Far

2007-06-30T13:20:00.000-04:00

I have been contemplating this for some time now and I wonder how far is too far to go to show Jesus to someone? Do we stop at a word? Or maybe at a ride to work? Or maybe we stop at going to their house once a week to give them a bible lesson and a meal. How far is too far?
I ask this because I wonder sometimes do we go far enough? Jesus left heaven for us and, that in and of it self, is a LONG way to go. Then he stayed with us for a little over 33 years and he taught those around him of the things of heaven and hell moving about the country depending solely on his heavenly father to provide for him and guide him in all he did and said. Then he took that one step that no one else would or could. He stepped onto a cross for us. So my question is, “If Jesus can go that far, how far is to far for us?”
Are we willing to put ourselves in harms way for the cause of furthering the message of Christ? What about giving up a child as Father did so we would know? How far are we willing to go and how far is to far?
The answer to this question will be different for everyone, but it is well worth asking in this time of year when we are celebrating the day he left heaven and took that long step for us. The day our salvation truly began. The birth of Jesus in a little manger many miles from where I sit at this moment writing this he began asking, “How far is too far?”

Grieving the Holy Spirit

2007-06-30T13:14:00.000-04:00

Ephesians 4:30 - 32
30And do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God, with whom you were sealed for the day of redemption. 31Get rid of all bitterness, rage and anger, brawling and slander, along with every form of malice. 32Be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving each other, just as in Christ God forgave you..

I have had many people ask what is grieving the Holy Spirit. Verse 31 tells us exactly what it is. If we ware full of bitterness, rage, anger, brawling, and slander and performing all sorts of malice then we are grieving the Holy Spirit.
Verse 32 shows us how to please the Holy Spirit. Be kind and compassionate to others and forgive them no matter what they do just as Christ forgave us when we was yet sinners. This is probably the single most hindering thing in the church today. Lack of forgiveness. This applies to our marriages and every part of our life. Once we learn to Forgive those who hurt us then we can stand in a right relationship with Christ and the Holy Spirit.

Greed

2007-06-30T13:12:00.000-04:00

Greed can come in many forms. The obvious ones are centered around money or material things. We have all heard sermons on these and how they affect our lives, but what about those other things we think we can not live without? Things such as computers and internet access? Many today spend hours and hours online playing video games or surfing the internet. I am guilty of this right now in my life. Try taking the internet and video games away from them. You can bet there would be a fight over it because these things have become like idols to that person. Do we not grab onto things we are greedy for and hold with everything we have? Become selfish and non tolerant of things that threaten to take these things away? Let's get it a little closer. What about people? What about a spouse who is so over bearing that he or she is jealous of anything the other person does other than spend every free moment with him/her? Who wants to control every move the other person makes because they are so afraid of losing what they have and even have suspicions of infidelity and other imagined things because of the jealousy? And in the end push their spouse or loved one away? Are these not forms of greed as well? Is it not the same spirit that causes us to look to money or material things with lust in our eyes that causes us to become so jealous of our loved ones that we try to trap them behind a wall and keep them there? I know for me this has been true for to many years. Is this true for you today?

Freedom II

2007-06-30T13:10:00.000-04:00

Luke 7:37When a woman who had lived a sinful life in that town learned that Jesus was eating at the Pharisee's house, she brought an alabaster jar of perfume, 38and as she stood behind him at his feet weeping, she began to wet his feet with her tears. Then she wiped them with her hair, kissed them and poured perfume on them.

David writes of his love of God yet he still sinned by committing adultery and then murder. Paul wrote 3/5's of the New Testament and talks about love of God and each other, yet he had a thorn in the flesh in the form of a messenger of Satan. True freedom comes from the knowledge of your humanity and faults while knowing Jesus loves you anyway and says you are worthy. Become free today by allowing Jesus to show you your humanity.

Freedom

2007-06-30T13:09:00.002-04:00

John 8:32 And ye shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free.
In stating this I am saying when we get to the point that we can look in ourselves at those things that we fear the most, such as past abuse or bad relationships and realize what we did wrong in them, then God gives us the ability to be free. Many people say well I am honest, but the truth is very few people are willing to be totally honest with them-selves and because of this they can not be honest with God. A for instance, a woman who has been raped that has never forgiven the rapist is in bondage to the rape and will never be free until she gets honest with herself about how bad it hurt her and then honest with God with her emotions and how she has responded to the rape. Once this happens she can then forgive the rapist and gain her freedom from the rape. Once the freedom is gained then you can know true happiness. Satan keeps people in bondage because we are so afraid to allow others to see who we really are and how much we hurt as well as how afraid we truly are. If you want your freedom from anything, the key is honesty with yourself and with God. Once you get honest freedom is right around the corner.
As per my story on this site I was raised in an abusive household and have lived a life full of pain and intolerance. One of the main reason for this kind of life is I cared so much about worldly things such as someone calling me a name or crossing lines that the world says should never be crossed by getting to close to me physically or asking to personal a question. I have recently learned that once we gain the knowledge and understanding that worldly things are meaningless, and yes this includes instances of personal attacks or abuse, then we can obtain true freedom and truly become the holy people God has called us to be.
It is not the ones who hurt us that holds us back but it is ourselves who live in bondage to the past hurts and fear of future hurts that prevent us from being holy today.
Allow God to open your eyes today and show you where your freedom lies.

Encouragement

2007-06-30T13:09:00.001-04:00

When we have someone who encourages us there is nothing we can not do.
When we have someone who tears us down there is nothing we can do.

Dreams

2007-06-30T13:07:00.002-04:00

How many of us have dreams that “Father” has given us or desires to serve God in certain ways?? I would be willing to bet most of us if not all. This being the case how many times do we settle for less than what God has shown us He wants. We see something that doesn’t look quite right but it is a way to get to where we are suppose to go so we do that instead of waiting on God. Abraham did it and got Ishmael instead of Isaac. I was thinking of how we settle for things in our lives that is not exactly what God wanted for us. Some of us, and yes I use us cause I am guilty here, settle for a spouse we think we want, but deep down we know it is not what God wants. Some of us settle for a little house in the forest when we should be in an apartment in the city telling people about Jesus. Others settle for jobs making hundred’s of thousands of dollars a year instead of getting into the pulpit where God called them too. I have decided I will not settle for less on my dreams any more. I will follow the visions the Lord has for my life and seek His face in all I do. Will you come and follow Jesus’ dreams for you

Children as Examples

2007-06-30T13:07:00.001-04:00

We all look for people to follow and look up to in our lives. In fact we spend so much time looking up that we miss one of the greatest examples of how we are to come to God. This example is our children. Matthew 18:2-3 says (2) then Jesus called a little child to Him, set him in the midst of them, (3) and said, “Assuredly, I say to you, unless you are converted and become as little children, you will by no means enter the kingdom of heaven. Jesus tells us to become as small children to enter heaven, so let's look at the example children give.
First the obvious, they come when called and follow the leading of their parents not knowing where the parents are going. These are sermons that I have heard taught many times. Is this all our children are and do?? I think not. Do they not have personalities? Don’t they wonder about things and get excited about things? When you tell your child your taking them to McDonalds do they say, “ho hum?” It’s a safe bet they do not. So why do we as adults say ho hum over the greatest thing that ever happened? Jesus is what I am talking about. Why do adults go ho hum when Jesus shows up? You say I do not do this!! I ask are you sure?? When there is work to be done do you show up enthusiastic or do you say ho hum? When there is a church board meeting do you show up excited or do you say ho hum? My bible tells me where 2 or 3 are gathered together in my name I will be there. Jesus shows up and you say Ho hum.
Children do not ALWAYS follow when told, nor come when called. So what does this tell us about ourselves in relation to God? Do we always follow His lead?? Do we always come when He calls?? I can’t speak for anyone but me and I know my answer to these is NO. Our children show us how we ourselves respond to God, and our reactions show us how our disobedience hurts God just like the disobedience of our children hurt us.
There is one major difference between adults and children... that difference is children are teachable and most adults are not. We as adults do not like to be wrong or show that we do not know it all because we may have to show a chink in our armor to those around us and even become vulnerable to them. Children do not care if they do not know they simply ask and search out the answers no matter what it takes or where they have to look. Can we be like children and become teachable again? Jesus said if we do not then we will not make it to heaven. Are you as a small child? Are you teachable?

Character or Comfort

2007-06-30T13:06:00.000-04:00

This is a choice we have to make each and every day of our lives. Do we chose to be comfortable in our lives and walk through each day as we are or do we chose to build our character by owning our weakness and working to become more Christ like in our everyday walks? If we chose comfort we will be mediocre Christians and never fulfill what God has planned for our lives. If we chose character then we will endure whatever is required for us to build our character into a Christ like character. Understanding endurance is what we do when we face the fact that in every problem in our lives there is one common denominator..... and of each of us that is me. You are the one thing that is always involved in every problem that has ever befallen your life. Does this mean no one else does anything wrong?? No, but it does mean there are things you could have done better or different and admitting this and facing this reality and being willing to see the truth of yourself is the beginning to building a Christ like character.

Eph. 4:13 This will continue until we are united by our faith and by our understanding of the Son of God. Then we will be mature, just as Christ is, and we will be completely like him. (CEV)

Walking To Calvary

2007-06-30T13:04:00.000-04:00

I wonder how we would have handled walking down the road to Calvary carrying a cross after we had been beaten so severely we no longer looked human. I know I have a tendency to want to complain when I hurt and have people, women, baby me when I am hurting. Jesus was alone on that road. Today, I hurt from ailments I have from medical conditions, but my little pain is nothing compared to the pain I caused Him the day He made that walk for me. We all know Jesus suffered severely. I wonder how much of that suffering I caused. I know He had to reach a long way to get me to His cross and on my knees and I know I have been the recipient of more forgiveness than any one person deserves. I, also, know I could never walk the walk He did, but He walked the walk I am walking now. His love is so strong that He endured all my sin that I have committed to this point in my life as well as all the sins I will commit till the day I die on Himself the day He died. For this I will be eternally grateful. Never forget the suffering Christ did for you on the cross so long ago that you may know peace and love beyond anything imaginable to those who have never experienced it

Bondservant

2007-06-30T13:03:00.000-04:00

In the movie Lord of the Rings: the Twin Towers, the character, Gollum, longs to have his precious ring back. He loves that ring so much that he enslaves himself to Frodo Baggins in order to be close to it.

James 1:1 James, a servant of God and of the Lord Jesus Christ, to the twelve tribes which are of the Dispersion, greeting.

James calls himself a servant here. The literal translation is a slave or bondservant.
Strong’s Greek and Hebrew Dictionary says it this way:

G1401
δοῦλος
doulos
doo'-los
a slave (literally or figuratively, involuntarily or voluntarily; frequently therefore in a qualified sense of subjection or subserviency): - bond (-man), servant.

I wonder how many of us have ever loved anything that much. Does our love for our lord, Jesus, allow us to be bondservants to Him or does our pride prevent us from submitting to His will in all things? Today God calls us into a relationship with Him that surpasses all that is known from the past. It is through this relationship and our willingness to be bondservants that we are empowered by God to fulfill the great commandment and the Great commission at the same time. It is time that we begin to love God more than ourselves that we may learn to be bondservants to Him and honor Him in all we do and say. Learn to depend on Him as a servant depends on his master for everything to survive.

All in All

2007-06-30T12:48:00.000-04:00

I
You took me from the depths of despair
You showed me love beyond compare.
You guided me through the anger and pain
You gave me grace and mercy with no disdain
You knew me when I was to weak to stand
You gave me strength and a helping hand
You know everything I have ever done
You forgave each and every one
You told me to walk in your ways
I said yes Lord because,
You are my all in all
II
You guide my every step
You comforted me as I wept
You come descending as a dove
You come looking for all my love
You freely give all you are
I said thank you Lord because,
You are my all in all!