Tag: god

Vengeance Is Mine Sayith The Lord

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Vengeance Is Mine Sayith The Lord

You just don’t understand what they did to me! You don’t know how badly they hurt me! It’s easy to ask for revenge, dream or desire that vengeance. Scripture is very clear that we are not to take vengeance into our own hands. We are not wise, and certainly not unbiased.

Psalm 116

I love the Lord, because He has heard

My voice and my supplications.

2 Because He has inclined His ear to me,

Therefore I will call upon Him as long as I live.

3 The pains of death surrounded me,

And the pangs of Sheol laid hold of me;

I found trouble and sorrow.

4 Then I called upon the name of the Lord:

“O Lord, I implore You, deliver my soul!”

5 Gracious is the Lord, and righteous;

Yes, our God is merciful.

6 The Lord preserves the simple;

I was brought low, and He saved me.

7 Return to your rest, O my soul,

For the Lord has dealt bountifully with you.

8 For You have delivered my soul from death,

My eyes from tears,

And my feet from falling.

9 I will walk before the Lord

In the land of the living.

10 I believed, therefore I spoke,

“I am greatly afflicted.”

11 I said in my haste,

“All men are liars.”

12 What shall I render to the Lord

For all His benefits toward me?

13 I will take up the cup of salvation,

And call upon the name of the Lord.

14 I will pay my vows to the Lord

Now in the presence of all His people.

15 Precious in the sight of the Lord

Is the death of His saints.

16 O Lord, truly I am Your servant;

I am Your servant, the son of Your maidservant;

You have loosed my bonds.

17 I will offer to You the sacrifice of thanksgiving,

And will call upon the name of the Lord.

18 I will pay my vows to the Lord

Now in the presence of all His people,

19 In the courts of the Lord’s house,

In the midst of you, O Jerusalem. Praise the Lord!

Pay your dews, your response to the Lord for we have so much to be thankful for. Even when we are wronged we shall not take matters into our own hands. We will always get our ‘pay back’ wrong. We will never be able to repay perfect punishment, and it’s the mercy, and grace of God we must put our trust in. God will always deal out the perfect punishment in the perfect timing for each individual, and always equal to each persons transgression. How do we teach a lesson? Who are we to think we know how to reach into someone’s heart to give conviction of a person’s soul? A message must point towards a heart of repentance in order to balance the sin.

Do not think you are God, as we are simpletons compared to the Lord. God will do what is needed to teach us the lessons we need. Are we one to call for vengeance when we are just as disobedient, just as sinful as the next? We ask for God’s blessings but we don’t show our own thanksgiving for the gifts we’ve been blessed with. We often serve ourselves but we don’t want to serve the Lord but we accept the gifts freely. We give so little in return, and in instead of spreading love and mercy, and kindness, we spread fear, anger, hatred and dissention. We spread darkness. Romans 12:19 (NKJV)19 Beloved, do not avenge yourselves, but rather give place to wrath; for it is written, “Vengeance is Mine, I will repay,” says the Lord. 

Instead of seeking vengeance when you are wronged, repay with kindness. Psalm 97:11 (NKJV)11 Light is sown for the righteous, And gladness for the upright in heart. Do not be so quick to cast stones, for as Jesus said John 8:7 (NKJV)7 “So when they continued asking Him, raised Himself up and said to them, “He who is without sin among you, let him throw a stone at her first.”  Go forth in kindness, and repay wrong with Love. Do not perpetuate hate and anger, but instead light up the darkness. 

The Cold Sets In

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The Cold Sets In

Its so wonderful that we are reminded of the perpetuation of life through the seasons on this planet. It’s such a beautiful reminder that life will be a natural cycle, that seasons of cold winters of death, and long periods of struggles will ensue.

As I woke up this morning and found the first frost on my window I am reminded of the scripture that shows us there are many seasons and we must live through them all. Nature is not just something we experience as far as weather, but it symbolizes our own lives. While where I live is entering winter, in my own life I am in spring, the birth of something wonderful, the growth, the warmth of new life, new buds, sunshine, and all the sensations that go with it.

I was in the winter so long I had forgotten what the warmth felt like. I wasn’t sure my path would ever lead me to feel this way again. I trusted in God to show me the way, but I didn’t know if His way would be to grant me love again. Have we ever asked ourselves what we did wrong, or why we were being punished? I often asked God what I was doing to continue being punished for my transgressions. I often asked God what I had to do to change the path and lead me out of the darkest winter. I don’t think I was asking the right questions over the last two years. While it seems my prayers were answered, I learned I need to be specific with my prayers because we don’t always get what we thought we wanted. While God’s blessings, and gifts to us are far better then anything we could have ever dreamt up on our own, and I am beyond happy with who God has put into my life. The catch, I needed to focus on me, I needed to focus on my walk with the Lord, before I could be something for anyone else. I needed to be okay on my own before I could stand with anyone else. I wasn’t asking what I could learn, or how I could grow, I was insistent that someone is what I needed in my life. I was certain that a person would fix me, and the truth is a person cannot fix you, only Jesus can do that. Sure a person can be a band-aid for you, but eventually that will fall off revealing the original wound, that’s not festered, and become so much worse. The cold in my heart was the season needed at the time, and I wasn’t granted the quick fix for it. I was forced to go through the entire healing process, and now, when the time was right, God granted my prayer, albeit complicated, the future is bright and warm.

We cannot rush God because the shortcuts we would take would only cause disaster. I think about the Wrath of Kahn and the Genesis planet. In the next film The Search For Spock David used an unstable compound, which was causing the planet to collapse. David used something as a shortcut because he couldn’t solve the problem. If we rush the process, and we don’t allow the time needed to get things right, our worlds will collapse and destroy themselves also. I don’t know why God sent me someone who lives so far away, but I trust in the Lord, and as I get to know her, I find how amazing she is, and how wonderful we will be together. No matter the distance God will give us what we need, and God will find a way. We must have faith in that process, and not rush it. I know that I am in a season of spring in my life, as I watch the natural world enter the season of winter. I ask you all what season are you in? How long have you been in those seasons? We must take time to ask God for guidance, and understand if we are in an extended season, a negative season, we need to ask what we are to learn, what are we being prepared for, but most importantly, ask how you can glorify the holy name of Jesus Christ in your season.

Trust in your God, and believe that He knows the perfect route for you to take, and do not lean on your own understand, nor should you follow your own path, because I can promise with all certainty your path is not better then that God would have you walk. Do not think you know more then God because you will find out the hard way you don’t. Trust that seasons are a part of life, and follow the teachings in Ecclesiastes 3:1-8

To everything there is a season,

A time for every purpose under heaven:

2 A time [a]to be born,

And a time to die;

A time to plant,

And a time to pluck what is planted;

3 A time to kill,

And a time to heal;

A time to break down,

And a time to build up;

4 A time to weep,

And a time to laugh;

A time to mourn,

And a time to dance;

5 A time to cast away stones,

And a time to gather stones;

A time to embrace,

And a time to refrain from embracing;

6 A time to gain,

And a time to lose;

A time to keep,

And a time to throw away;

7 A time to tear,

And a time to sew;

A time to keep silence,

And a time to speak;

8 A time to love,

And a time to hate;

A time of war,

And a time of peace.

Winter can be a beautiful time in your life if you allow yourself to take a step back to see it. While the trees look dead, and the grass is brown, and it’s often gloomy overhead, I have also seen some of the most beautiful snowfalls, the decorations for Thanksgiving, and most importantly the decorations for our savior’s birth. How wonderful the season of winter is and even if it feels cold, and lonely sometimes, you can turn to God and grow and trust that the cold will break, and tomorrow change will be in the air. 

It Takes Guts

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It Takes Guts

Have you ever had an argument with God? Have you ever won an argument with God? Very few in history have ever actually been able to stand up to God Almighty but there was one man who not only argued with God but was able to barter with Him.

Genesis 18:22-33(NKJV)

22 Then the men turned away from there and went toward Sodom, but Abraham still stood before the Lord. 23 And Abraham came near and said, “Would You also destroy the righteous with the wicked? 24 Suppose there were fifty righteous within the city; would You also destroy the place and not spare it for the fifty righteous that were in it? 25 Far be it from You to do such a thing as this, to slay the righteous with the wicked, so that the righteous should be as the wicked; far be it from You! Shall not the Judge of all the earth do right?”

26 So the Lord said, “If I find in Sodom fifty righteous within the city, then I will spare all the place for their sakes.”

27 Then Abraham answered and said, “Indeed now, I who am but dust and ashes have taken it upon myself to speak to the Lord: 28 Suppose there were five less than the fifty righteous; would You destroy all of the city for lack of five?”

So He said, “If I find there forty-five, I will not destroy it.”

29 And he spoke to Him yet again and said, “Suppose there should be forty found there?”

So He said, “I will not do it for the sake of forty.”

30 Then he said, “Let not the Lord be angry, and I will speak: Suppose thirty should be found there?”

So He said, “I will not do it if I find thirty there.”

31 And he said, “Indeed now, I have taken it upon myself to speak to the Lord: Suppose twenty should be found there?”

So He said, “I will not destroy it for the sake of twenty.”

32 Then he said, “Let not the Lord be angry, and I will speak but once more: Suppose ten should be found there?”

And He said, “I will not destroy it for the sake of ten.” 33 So the Lord went His way as soon as He had finished speaking with Abraham; and Abraham returned to his place.

Do we ever think we’re going to win over the perfection of God? While Abraham was indeed right, there was a righteous family left in Sodom, it came at great personal risk. Scripture is clear, Deuteronomy 6:16 (NKJV)16 “You shall not tempt the Lord your God as you tempted Him in Massah.” As it was written in the ancient world, the law was written do not tempt the Lord, do not try to bribe or barter with God. 7 Matthew 4:7“Jesus said to him, “It is written again, ‘You shall not [a]tempt the Lord your God.’” 

Are we so foolish to think we can bribe the Lord to bend to our will? I have often tried to make deals with God. Patience has never been a strong suit of mine, and especially when it comes to matters of the heart. God has a sense of humor. As I have been praying to God to bring me someone special into my life I guess I wasn’t specific enough. God thought it would be funny to have someone special come into my life who lives 8,683 miles away. While I’m sure God’s plan is perfect, His sense of humor is always a joy to see. Knowing how much I desired a companion in my life he saw it fit to make things complicated, and if I know that God’s plan is perfect, then so I know that there’s a reason sending the right lady into my life, no matter how far away she lives. I am grateful and thankful the Lord answered my prayers, and if I’ve learned anything it’s not to barter with God, and not to test God’s sense of humor. While I was lucky enough that God thought His answer was funny, I am thankful I did not tempt the Lord to wrath. God certainly thinks things are funny, and when I don’t think things will ever turn around for me, God always tells me “I’ve got this.” I’m not worthy of His grace and mercy, but I receive it in abundance every day. I have no idea where to go from where I am, but I trust in God’s plan. Now, I must learn to take my hands off the wheel and trust that God knows where I’m going. God’s got a plan, and it’s bigger then I could ever know or understand. God can lift up, or destroy. God can save, or doom. God can bless or curse, and I know which side of the fence I am on. I know where I’m meant to be, and I will continue to praise Jesus for everything I have seen and unseen. I will thank Christ for the amazing woman He’s placed in my path, and I will take each day as it comes.

Don’t Go To Sleep

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Don’t Go To Sleep

God comes to you in mysterious ways. We never know when the Holy Spirit will fall on you, and we certainly don’t know when the Lord will use you. I find myself perplexed as I have recently received validation that I am ‘wise’ and filled with the Holy Spirit. I never considered myself to be able to speak with authority on scripture, but twice in twenty four hours I have received such validation, and now the question has changed. I find it odd that God would use a man like me to do these works for Him. I wonder my strength to follow the will of God. I question my worth and value in this decision of God’s. I guess the closest person from scripture is Gideon. I know it’s not me that offers the change found, or the advice that comes from my mouth, I know it’s not me. I struggle taking any credit for helping, but at the same time, God gave me free will, and I could have very easily gone to bed. How often do we ignore the calling of the Holy Spirit and do what we want?

 

Judges 6:1515 “He said to Him, “O Lord, how shall I deliver Israel? Behold, my family is the least in Manasseh, and I am the youngest in my father’s house.”

 

Gideon tells the Lord ‘wait I think you have the wrong guy! I’m not strong, I come from the poorest tribe!’ The Hebrew translation for youngest is tsa`iyr or insignificant, and he means what he says. God however addresses Gideon as a mighty man of valor. What an honor for God to see such a wonderful quality in the youngest, and weakest of his brothers. God see’s the capability of a person, the truest potential that may not have been realized yet. God doesn’t make mistakes, and it’s in those times we are to humble ourselves before the Lord and trust and not question. When the Holy Spirit comes upon you, don’t ignore it.

 

We cannot fathom the impact we may have on a life if we just listen to that voice telling us the path to take. It would have been so easy for me to go to sleep, put off a conversation that it seems had major impact. The Holy Spirit guides and all we have to do is stop fighting for the steering wheel. What if Paul had decided he’d had enough after his first missionary journey? What if he decided he didn’t want to be beaten, or stoned anymore so he stayed home? What if he had decided he was going to allow fear to win over the instruction of God? Stand tall, and be full of valor of the Holy Spirit in your life. Don’t go back to bed when you are called to God’s work. Don’t allow laziness, or fear keep you from getting out of your comfort zone and going into the world we are called to be in to make real possible everlasting change.

 

Are You A God?

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Are You A God?

You walk through life saying you are in control. You believe your way is right, and you stand by your decisions. You constantly say that nothing can be done to change your situation and things are hopeless. You live in constant misery and pessimism. You live in constant fear of tomorrow, or worse, yesterday. We have become a society of placing Jesus on the shelf and much like a cosmic genie we ask for help when we need it, but otherwise it’s “I’ve got this.” How bold we have become to think we know better then God. How daring have we become to think we can make it through this life and not need our Savior Jesus Christ. Have we truly gotten to the point where we believe we know more then God, or worse that God cannot handle our problems? We have put God in a box, and we have become our own gods.

 

Exodus 20:3“You shall have no other gods before Me.” I have often ministered to those whom struggle with their faith. Not in the way of questioning God, but rather thinking their life will never improve. I have seen despair rule over people, and people who feel God is irrelevant and does not care about them, or cannot change anything for them. We have placed ourselves above God by putting ourselves on a pedestal and thinking we are more important than God. We believe we are in control and God is fine where He is, and so long as ‘I don’t bug God, he doesn’t bug me.’

 

We have become selfish, close-minded, one tracked minded people. We have become a judging people, where we judge God and believe God is so insignificant that we are truly here on our own, and we don’t need God, or God can’t change our path. We have a hard time fathoming how incorporated God is in our lives, and we believe that the Holy Bible is antiquated, and we believe we make gods that work best for us. We have gotten to a point where we no longer worship God, we worship many gods, we worship ourselves.

 

In Genesis 3:5“For God knows that in the day you eat from it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil.”  A lie is told, but not an entire lie, but a subterfuge leading Eve to believe it would be better to understand good and evil as the Lord God knows good and evil, thus moving mankind to place self ahead of God. We the children of God now believe we know more, we know better then God.

 

We are a foolish people thinking we are so big. Tim Challiessays this “The first way we can put God in a box is through our misunderstandings of Him and His nature. We have a responsibility to know and believe what He has revealed of Himself in the Scripture. Furthermore, we may also try to define God in a way that is simplistic or that is inconsistent with who He is.” https://www.challies.com/articles/putting-god-in-a-box-doctrine/

 

We call ourselves Children of God, but in reality we are rebels of the throne. We rebel against the rules laid down for us, and we ignore the teaching of our father. We deserve Hell, but we often believe we deserve Heaven simply because we are ‘good’ people, not because we love Christ. We believe now whatever we want our own truth to be, and we believe that truth is subjective to everyone, and we will face the mistakes we’ve made and unless we understand to Put God first again, we shall not find ourselves in perfection. If you decide to worship idols, worshiping things in your life and not God above, then we have become our very own god. God shall not stand and watch without judgment, and if we choose to try and be god’s then we should be ready for the war to come to us, the punishment for placing God of the Universe on the shelf as just another god will be heavy and swift.

 

We are children of God, and we shall not rebel, we shall not diminish God and grow ourselves. We are lost and we are weak, we are impressionable by the fallen Angel Lucifer. We are but faulted humans, with small minds, and with those minds we attempt to understand the mystery of God and when we cannot, instead of understanding the vastness of what we don’t know, we try to make God fit into our own understanding, thus minimizing God, and again, raising ourselves up to be our own god. Shame on us, shame on all of us for being so incredibly weak, incredibly gullible to Satan’s lies, and thinking we know better for our lives.

Invisible

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Invisible

Colossians 1:15He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn over all creation. Jesus Christ

Have you put thought in the true power of God? The creator of the universe in perfect harmony loves you. Jesus Christ walks with us every single day and is with us while we are on this journey of discovery. We often find ourselves feeling alone, and angry that we don’t feel God. We don’t always see God around us, and we don’t feel okay. See, when we look further in the letter by Paul we find more of the mystery of God. Colossians 1:16“For by Him all things were created, both in the heavens and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities—all things have been created through Him and for Him.” God is so big, and so powerful, we underestimate the awesome power that we have in our corner.

I have walked through this life questioning my faith on occasion. It wasn’t so much a question of whether or not God was real, it was more of ‘Does God Care?” I’ve struggled with the amount of pain I struggled through, but when I think back, and knowing what I know now, the invisible God who’s everywhere, was with me the whole time. God promises never to leave or abandon us. There’s a war going on in the shadows all around us, and we are the targets of the enemy. This war that takes place invisible is not to be understated. The spiritual warfare that Paul talks about is very much real. While the characters are invisible the affects are as real as they come. The fallen angels that followed Lucifer now called demons help him lay the lure to see what fish they can catch. We are easily drawn to the world, sin is a powerful, attractive force. It can be very difficult to see sin for what it is and walk away. While the enemy is always trying to draw you out away from your protection, Jesus Christ is with you reminding you of the right path.

When you commit a sin and you feel that sense of emptiness afterwards, or that sense of shame, that’s the Holy Spirit filling you with conviction, reminding you what you did was wrong, and that you need to repent of your sins. We cannot see the Holy Spirit but much like the air we breathe it’s there, surrounding us all the time, we just have to take a moment away from the world and truly focus on the force that surrounds us, and flows through us.

The Devil’s affects are very real even though we can’t see him and his demons skulking around us. He wants us to forget that he’s not the only one in this world. Jesus Christ and the army of Angels protect over us. It’s hard to remember how gracious God is to us when we feel the suffering of this life. “You’re gonna suffer, but you’re gonna be happy about it.” (Prizinor of Azkaban) Ron says this to Harry about his tea leaves. The connection to scripture is very real, we are told we will suffer, and in Colossians 1:11 “strengthened with all might, according to His glorious power, for all patience and longsuffering with joy;” This life takes time to get through. And as I was once told recently the process of gold refinement is a slow process. The gold is heated as the impurities rise to the top, scrapped away, and then put back into the fire. Each time a little more of the impurities are scrapped away till eventually the gold is so shiny in it’s molten state the gold smith can see his/her reflection in the liquid. We are the same, that in every trial, in every struggle a bit more of the impurity is burned and scrapped away. If we are to live in Christ then we must allow those impurities to be removed. If Jesus is the gold smith we must allow ourselves to be put back into the fire so one day when he looks at us he sees his reflection in us. We may not be able to physically see Christ but his presence is clear. This life is but a fleeting moment in the prospect of eternity and if we are to join the angels, and God in perfection then we must be willing to allow the forging process to make us strong, make us shiny and new. When the pain is gone and the worry and doubts fade away the purest gold will be all that’s left in our hearts, and as we face judgment at the foot of the cross the final impurities will be washed away in forgiveness of our sins and we will be allowed to enter heavens gates, if we trust in Jesus, love him with our whole hearts, and believe in the process we must endure to get there. Our savior suffered for us, and who are we to think we shouldn’t have to suffer? As for me, I brace for each of the storms in this invisible but very real war for the souls of man. On that day I reach the gates of Heaven, I pray for two words from my Lord, “well done.” I can live with the suffering now to one day walk with Jesus in perfection.

Don’t give up on yourselves and trust in the refining process. I can’t help but not think of the song Hard Love by NEEDTOBREATHE. I’ve used that song many times in my writings, but it is so true. “It’s gonna hurt but don’t you slow down.” “It takes some time to make your courage strong.” It’s true that as long as you breathe there’s hope, but we cannot place our hope in this world, we must place our hope in Heaven, and our Savior that’s there preparing a place for us. There’s no hope in this life for this world, except that salvation awaits us. We are never promised and easy life, we are never promised peace while we breathe this air, but in Heaven our hope resides. No the process getting to Heaven isn’t easy because we have to first live this life, but what a worthwhile venture. I can take the beating, and the ridicule, and the pain because I know that one day Satan will no longer have dominion over the place I live. While I am here on this world, I know that Satan is spreading pain and suffering all around, but in Heaven the throne has God almighty and he loves his Children.

We may not be able to see the Holy Spirit, but we can feel it all around us. All we can do is ask Jesus to take our suffering and use it to glorify Him. Have faith in Christ, and give thanks to being alive another day, and doing work that will glorify the King. Heaven is worth the suffering of this life, and since God waists nothing, we can always find good in the trials we go through, we just have to look for them. Change your perceptions and give thanks for the opportunities to praise Jesus, and draw closer to God in the fire. Never give up hope because our hope is not in this world,  but in the Heavenly home.

 

 

The Voice of a Child

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The Voice of a Child

The storm raged on, and the wind howled like a banshee crying an angry song. As the storm passes the clouds part, the skies clear, and the stars begin to shine, brightly as the buzz of electricity is gone. The sounds of the insects, and animals outside can be heard clear as day without the blowing air of the air conditioner, the song of the television, or even just the hum of the house.

I remember when I was in Kuwait, and I was in the desert for training, the view from horizon to horizon was unobstructed, and with no light as far as the eye could see, it truly was black, except for the millions upon millions of stars that twinkled in the dark night sky. Never before, and not since, have I seen a sky like that. Even with the cities power out after tropical storm Michael, there’s still more light, and not nearly the quantity of stars. Even though there’s still the occasional sound of car way off in the distance it leaves you with a nice quiet, peaceful, and almost tranquil opportunity to turn to God, and talk to Abba.

As a child I can remember crying to God to take me home. I believed so completely that God has made a mistake and I should never have been born. I loathed myself, and I despised the reflection in the mirror. I was a cosmic blunder, and I prayed that one day God would see that mistake and take me home. I didn’t understand as a child why so many things were happening to me. I didn’t understand the nature of sin, and free will. I didn’t understand the cruelty of the human spirit, and it wouldn’t be for many years till I saw the other side. See, that scared child didn’t understand what it was going to take for him to be prepared for the battles ahead. That little boy didn’t know how to make steel, and didn’t know how to forge a sword ready for a war. The little boy could only see the injustice, the pain, the cruelty that seemed like the dark lord Sauron was pouring into the one ring.

We need to look to our children as the future for tomorrow. We must stick by them, and train in up in the fear and love of the Lord. We must teach them to be courageous in the inevitable dangers that will come. We must teach our children the voice of truth, and show them to flea from the draw of the devil. We must teach them the nature of sin, the nature of the world, but never take away their joy, their creativity, and their imagination. Embrace the faith of a child, and show them what love should be, and what is. Children can be so irreparably damaged by the adults that are supposed to be there to love them and show them the way.

Having this quite night with God, I have asked for a great many things, and not for myself, but for those I care for. I have watched the news footage of the aftermath left behind by one of the most destructive hurricanes to ever hit the United States, and as I thought back to my own childhood, what would a child ask for. Peace for those broken hearted as they start to return to what was once their homes. It may not provide any comfort, but I would remind them that this isn’t home. This life we live isn’t where we are meant to be, and as hard as it may be to grasp that, I can promise you, that if you know your savior and Lord Jesus Christ, you will know that home is with our Abba father. This isn’t where you belong for eternity. This is just part of the journey, and when you feel lost in the raging sea, be assured that you are loved by the creator of the universe, and one day He will call you home. We can rebuild homes, businesses, towns, and cities, but the true nature of being human is the love and compassion we can show our neighbors who are in so much pain. Jesus knew the pain we would feel, and He’s given each of us a gift, and a voice to be heard. Never think your voice doesn’t matter, because when you speak with the Holy Spirit, even as the voice of a child, you have been given authority to spread the gospel, to spread the truth, and to spread the light of Christ over this darkened world.

As adults we get wrapped up in the world, the stress, the conflict, the conversation, but we forget how simple the message is. We forget the wondrous mystery that is our God, and we get enveloped by the world, and often don’t realize it. Remember how simple life was when you were a kid? How simple is it to know that God created the heavens and the Earth, Jesus Christ was Abba’s son, and He came to pay the ransom for our lives. That’s it, no more, that’s all you ever need to know. Jesus Christ loved us enough to lay down his life for his ‘friends’ and God loved us enough to give us His only son. The simple message of the Gospel, but we get caught up with what the world says is truth. We get caught up in theories, hypothesis, the controversies, and we loose sight of what’s important. Christ died for us to be free of an eternal death, and in the end, what else matters? To be an adult with the simplicity of a child.

As a child though I didn’t understand the more complicated issues. I looked at life a certain way, and didn’t understand the truth of the nature. Sadly some of those notions from childhood were carried along into adulthood. It’s not easy wondering in life why someone doesn’t care for you. It’s not easy growing up thinking people don’t want you around. That notion remained and it’s something I still am trying to drop as dead weight. I realize I don’t need it, I realize it’s not true, but convincing the brain of that is difficult. But as the stars at night are infinite, so are the possibilities with God on your side. We must trust in God and know that God doesn’t make mistakes. One should not question God’s motives, and as He, who created the universe also created you, you are here in this life for a reason. You’re special and made just the way you need to be. Things will happen to you and things may wound you, but that doesn’t mean you can’t grow and learn from it. Trust in the Lord, always.

Red Alert

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Red Alert

We sit and wait, bracing for impact. All we can do is prepare, plan, and pray. We cannot worry for the storm, but trust in God that we are given the opportunity to show Christ within us as we move forward. There’s a season for everything, and while I can admit with honesty that this last 7-8 days has been a challenge. Since the accident of my car things have been one after another. Recently I spoke to a pastor, and we talked about the frequency of Satan’s attacks, and the level of attacks. It seems as though it’s no longer just one event, but now a slew of targeted attacks. The old axiom now seems the rule rather than the exception, ‘when it rains, it pours’. Sadly this makes things very difficult for people and families all over. In these times of struggles all we can do is react in a Christ like way, pray that God will deliver us, and show us a way through.

Here’s a small roadmap to manage the storm, and the upcoming storm:

Stand on God’s promises. There’s encouragement in scripture for almost every situation you may face. Be sure to build your foundation of faith on solid ground.

Pray always. It’s important to continue your prayers to the one and only that can truly make any changes, our Lord, our Abba Father.

Continue to Praise God for everything you face. It’s in our trials we rise to the occasion and we grow, but also that we grow closest to God. We must trust the Lord, and have the faith of a warrior and that means to praise God for the storms, the rainbows, and the sunshine.

Be the warrior. No one knows what they can do till they are tested. You don’t win the battle with the first swing of the sword. It takes time, it takes one step, then another. With every step and swing maintain your faith and every day bring your A game.

Miracles can happen. We may not always see the things that come together to work out situations, but if we took a deeper look, it’s likely we’d see micro miracles along the way. Trust in God that God can work anything out, and even the worst situations, good can come.

 

When the battles come, be sure to raise the alert, put on the armor, grab your shield, and prepare for spiritual battles. Psalm 18:39 (ESV)“For you equipped me with strength for the battle; you made those who rise against me sink under me.” The one who speaks of the warrior mentality, David, Psalm 144:1 ESV“Of David. Blessed be the Lord, my rock, who trains my hands for war, and my fingers for battle;”

Hope Always

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Hope Always

The life we live can be full of never any changes. I heard in a sermon recently where it was said after something big happens “the world will never be the same.” While this is hitting the nail on the head it’s important to remember that at some point our season will change, and we will be faced with tough choices. We cannot go through life surprised that the seasons change without warning. We cannot let those changes put a wedge between our Father and us. There’s one thing we must always remember and that’s God is still on the throne, God’s still in control, and we must understand that our prayers are always heard, and answered, even if we don’t see or understand the answer.

Ecclesiastes 3 (NKJV)

Everything Has Its Time

3 To everything there is a season,

A time for every purpose under heaven:

2 A time [a]to be born,

And a time to die;

A time to plant,

And a time to pluck what is planted;

3 A time to kill,

And a time to heal;

A time to break down,

And a time to build up;

4 A time to weep,

And a time to laugh;

A time to mourn,

And a time to dance;

5 A time to cast away stones,

And a time to gather stones;

A time to embrace,

And a time to refrain from embracing;

6 A time to gain,

And a time to lose;

A time to keep,

And a time to throw away;

7 A time to tear,

And a time to sew;

A time to keep silence,

And a time to speak;

8 A time to love,

And a time to hate;

A time of war,

And a time of peace.

A Light in the Darkness

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A Light in the Darkness

The darkness has covered the whole of the Earth. The fear, and hate, anger all flows around us like the wind through the trees. In this world the negativity and fear have flooded our streets, our schools, our homes, and we face tough situations every day in this life. With the world telling us one thing, and the scripture telling us another, we are left in the darkness of our own minds, our own beds to consider what’s going on. “Live in this world, but do not be conformed to it.” What does it mean to be a Christian today? If a Christian gets angry and says some bad things, they are condemned and ridiculed for it. The hardships Christians face today in a world that’s forever growing more bitter and ‘progressive’, Christians are not the ones antiquated, out of date. See, Christians have been facing persecution since it’s founding after Christ rose from the dead. Today it seems the church is once again under attack in many ways. This growing persecution although it’s not new, it does seem like a failing environment which is allowing an epic proportion of sexual immorality, divorce, abuse, criminal activities, all on an biblical scale. People no longer prescribe to the law of the Holy Book.  We show similar behaviors of Sodom and Gomorrah, so it begs the question will we one-day face judgment as they did. While this is something heard quite often that if we (the USA) doesn’t change our ways if God doesn’t intervene soon, God would owe Sodom an apology. This isn’t the only city in the Bible that was full of debauchery, alcohol abuse, and all manner sinful behavior, you have probably heard of it, Corinth, as in 1stand 2ndCorinthians. An interesting point to mention is the city of Corinth was rebuilt by Julius Cesar and within the city a new temple to the Roman goddess of Aphrodite, the goddess of love. Corinth was a large commercial center and with as much traffic that it had ritualistic prostitution as a regular part of life. Corinth needed to see the light, and I suggest that we the USA also need to see the light.

I often wonder how my own life will affect those around me in this life. I fully admit that there are times my struggle with depression is evident and public. I am not a perfect man, but I try hard to be more then a debby downer, or a pessimist. I believe God has plans for me. I trust that I am where God wants me, the leading question is why? I recently watched God’s Not Dead (3) A Light in Darkness. In that movie I was flooded with feelings of faith that there is a solution to many of our negative outlooks. Love and grace is always the way we as Christians need to behave. So many people are pushed away from the faith because of someone’s actions, or someone’s words. There’s a reason the Apostle Paul remained in Corinth for so long, the darkest of places often require the most work. When we consider hope, we should be looking at Christ as our example. Christ was an amazing man of liberties. Christ not only healed the sick, raised a man from the dead, fed the masses with bread, fish and wine by using Divine power to multiply the food. Not only did he do all that he also spoke out for woman’s rights, and the rights for children. He spoke out for the poor, and the despair of people. If he can bring so much hope to the world, why can’t we live our lives being slow to anger, slow to wrath, and slow to negative actions? We must learn to be better in control of our actions. Yes we’re all human, and we all fall short to the glory of God, but we all need to be a little more like Christ, and a lot less like the world.

I can’t say I’ve always been the best at being the conduit for Christ’s love. When the world beats you down, especially for those in the military, police, emergency services it’s not always easy to stay bright for others. We have to remember that when we are down in our low places someone is there for us. Christ loves us so we are given what we need, when we need it. Christ has a plan for us, and those plans are to prosper not to live in despair. We need God’s grace and we must show why others need God’s grace. Ephesians 2:8-12  (NKJV)8 “For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God, 9 not of works, lest anyone should boast. 10 For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand that we should walk in them.” Grace is everything; because it’s through grace we are given the gift of eternal life with Jesus. Light up the dark, and remember always, God’s NOT Dead.