Wise or Wicked?

"Who then is the faithful and wise servant, whom the master has put in charge of the servants in his household to give them their food at the proper time? 46It will be good for that servant whose master finds him doing so when he returns. 47I tell you the truth, he will put him in charge of all his possessions. 48But suppose that servant is wicked and says to himself, 'My master is staying away a long time,' 49and he then begins to beat his fellow servants and to eat and drink with drunkards. 50The master of that servant will come on a day when he does not expect him and at an hour he is not aware of. 51He will cut him to pieces and assign him a place with the hypocrites, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth".
Matthew 24:45-51

It is so hard to sit down and read the Bible for me because there are so many passages I like - I even like the "BEGOT's". I like to know who their family is. I used to hate it, so many names you can't pronounce... do your best and learn as you go. I go from one book to another some days or I read until I have to get up and do something. I also like to have the audio going on my computer from the website www.biblegateway.com as I follow along in my Bible. Then I get to hear the words I don't know and it's triple learning - audio, visual, tactile!

I encourage you to reread Matthew 24 when you can. It's one of the times Jesus gets finished talking to a large crowd and the disciples take him to the side and question him in detail about what he said. In this passage he is explaining the "SIGNS" for the End of the Age. Knowing the signs are good but it's what you do with that knowledge that counts. Do you waste your time doing wicked things because you think you have time, do you "party like it's 1999" or do you do what you know is expected of you while waiting the return of your master? I want to make sure I am ready doing what I should be and looking to the heavens for the signs of my Saviour's return. It's amazing that the very next passage in the Bible, Matthew 25:1-13, is about being prepared and uses an example of the 10 virgins on watch for the Bridegroom. Another beautiful example especially once you know the customs of the culture. For some people things in the Bible are very hard to understand because we don't know the customs of the time or the culture. Don't let that stop you pray for understanding from the Holy Spirit and if you need to get a book or two to help you understand the culture, go ahead. It's called Bible Study and we all could use more time studying the Word.

It all goes back to either doing what you want for your life or what God wants for your life. He wants us to know of him and his ways and to have a relationship with him through his son, Jesus. The only way we can be ready and watching is to continue in the Word and prayer, doing what HE has asked us to do, spreading the message unto all nations and he will be with us even to the ends of the earth. If we are not ashamed of him he will not be ashamed of us. As we make decisions for our future and that of our families' remember to search God for his direction and his will and choose Wisdom over Wickedness, the ending is better not to mention the travels aren't as difficult with the help given.

God bless...

Difficulties In the Family

"Whoever does God's will is my brother and sister and mother"
Mark 3:35

I have heard more times this week that family has forsaken those I love. My brothers and sisters in Christ have been truly hurt by their own flesh and blood. When I hear this I immediately think of the saying "God knows my family that's why he gave me friends". How true this is. If you think your family is off try looking at someone else's family and yours usually doesn't look so off. Now let's take a look at Jesus' family... we know he had several brothers and some sisters along with Mary and Joseph. In Mark chapter 3 verse 20 Jesus goes to a house with his disciples, we aren't told why he goes there but that he does and it's so crowded he can't even eat. The very next sentence is that his mother and brothers go to take charge of him because "he is out of his mind". When was Jesus out of his mind? Never was he in such a state, he was always about his father's business. They had to know Jesus was "special" and that God had a huge plan for his life but they sure didn't see the path that was ahead of him. They were probably trying to keep him out of trouble as long as they could. They knew the teachers of the law were growing angered at him for all the words he spoke and the miracles he performed in the name of his Father in Heaven. Have you experience lately or ever for that matter where your family thinks you are out of your mind? It's not easy being on the receiving end of their negativity, it actually hurts. It's very easy to allow this to get in the way of the relationships we have. What is very difficult is to try to look at it from their point of view. What would you do if your family member were going to make the same choice you are about to make or maybe an even crazier decision... how would you respond to them? Would you respond? It's funny, sometimes friends can say something off the wall and not be crazy for the comment but a family member can say it and be chastised forever for it. We can't pick our family thank goodness we can pick our friends! As we reflect on Jesus and his family and then think of our own let's remember that only God knows what is ahead of each of us and that mainly we pray for our own future and that of our family and friends to stay in the center of God's will. And when we are on the receiving end of the hurtful words remember they only want to keep us from trouble or more hurt down the road. Sometimes we have to let them behave the way they do and move on. How did Jesus respond to their negativity? He went on with his plan before him. He didn't get ugly or end relationships, he loved them anyway even through the toughest of times. You needed the exact mom and dad you have to be who you are, instead of wishing for different parents be thankful you had them. Pray that God help them and you through this difficult time, no mater who it is in the opposing role. It's not the words you say it's the action behind the words that mean something! Have a wonderful Thanksgiving...

God bless...

One's Convictions

1Accept him whose faith is weak, without passing judgment on disputable matters. 2One man's faith allows him to eat everything, but another man, whose faith is weak, eats only vegetables. 3The man who eats everything must not look down on him who does not, and the man who does not eat everything must not condemn the man who does, for God has accepted him. 4Who are you to judge someone else's servant? To his own master he stands or falls. And he will stand, for the Lord is able to make him stand.
Romans 14:1-4

As soon as Jesus becomes our Saviour God begins to shape and mold us into the perfect work of art, a child ready for His Kingdom. We all have hangups and temptations. What makes me stumble may not be what makes you fall and the convictions God has chastened me with though many will be the same some are likely to be different. My convictions are my convictions and I cannot put those on you as a follower of Christ when we are all on different levels of spiritual maturity. Jesus brings things up when he deems us ready not when our fellow brother/sister in Christ say we are ready. It is very important to encourage at all times. If we've had a bad day the sour attitude we have may discourage a weaker brother/sister in Christ, which in turn could make them stumble. 1 Thessalonians 5:16-18 says, "Be joyful always; pray continually; give thanks in all circumstances, for this is God's will for you in Christ Jesus." We are not all on the same level concerning our relationship with God some have been running the race for many years and others may have just started, there are those that are weaker in their faith and those that have a faith that is unshakable. No matter where we are we are not to be a stumbling block to others. "So then, each of us will give an account of himself to God," Romans 14:12. Still further in the passage it says, "For the kingdom of God is not a matter of eating and drinking,but of righteousness, peace and joy in the Holy Spirit, because anyone who serves Christ in this way is pleasing to God and approved by men", Romans 14:17-18. Let us be pleasing to God and approved by men for the way we live according to HIS WORD and not our own ways. Remember the final destination we hope and press on for; Heaven... our wildest imaginations can't even begin to describe what it will be like, it will be better than anything we ever think up! Hope to see you there!

God bless...

A Time Will Come... Endure

In the presence of God and of Christ Jesus, who will judge the living and the dead, and in view of his appearing and his kingdom, I give you this charge: 2Preach the Word; be prepared in season and out of season; correct, rebuke and encourage—with great patience and careful instruction. 3For the time will come when men will not put up with sound doctrine. Instead, to suit their own desires, they will gather around them a great number of teachers to say what their itching ears want to hear. 4They will turn their ears away from the truth and turn aside to myths. 5But you, keep your head in all situations, endure hardship, do the work of an evangelist, discharge all the duties of your ministry.
2 Timothy 4:1-5

This charge was given Timothy, a great man of God whose faith and trust in God was passed down grandmother to mother to him, from Paul as he was in chains in prison. Many people believe the words of the bible were only for that particular time and really has no relevance for us today "it's so old-fashioned." It may be old-fashioned but no matter what era we are in the bible, nor God, doesn't change with the flippant thoughts and actions of mankind. The Bible's commands, principles and promises are timeless. We need to take the words of Paul to heart. He is telling us a time is coming that men, women and children will no longer adhere to the soundness of God and his Word that has been faithful and will remain faithful to the end of the ages. We must be prepared at all times and remain in the Lord not being quick to give up. Look at Paul's situation, he is in chains for Christ! That is tough but he isn't giving up he is praising God! Paul is also saying we need to give tough love and to give it in the name of the Lord. Is a sister/brother of Christ heading down the wrong road? Are you going to sit there and watch them fall or are you going to help them avoid the fall? This is also what he means with verse 2 to "correct, rebuke and encourage." It doesn't matter if they are our friend or not. What Paul warns in the scripture is already happening, there are many churches that don't preach the WHOLE bible. They preach of the Love that God has but never talk of the Wrath of God that will be unleashed for a time. They never hear of Hell only of the glorious Heaven that not everyone will be able to enter. Jesus is the key and the door is very small, you will have to squeeze through and can take nothing with you. Jesus' desire is that none should perish (2 Peter 3:9) but scripture states in Matthew 7:13 that many are on the broad road to the wide gate which leads to destruction. Are you on this road or someone you know? There is a way to change direction, switch roads and enter the small gate and that is 1)Admit you sinned - Repent of your sins and ask for forgiveness through prayer 2)Believe Jesus is Lord & God raised him from the dead - Ask Jesus to come into your heart 3)Confess - tell others what God has done for you. Life with God is much easier than going through life without him. Notice I didn't say there would be no troubles, there are troubles just like before you accepted Christ but it's now tolerable because we are never alone, God is always there either holding our hand or carrying us through. I personally like to think of life as a garden of roses, you have the beauty but there are also the thorns... they keep me humble. I go to God to praise him for both the delicate beauty and fragrance of the rose and the painful reminder I am human and need him for help and guidance every moment. I do hope we all take heed the words of Paul... Preach the Word; be prepared in season and out of season; correct, rebuke and encourage—with great patience and careful instruction.

God bless...

It Is What It Is...

So many people have taken scripture out of context and said you have to do this or that to be saved. Read Romans 10:9-10 and see what it has to say. "That if you confess with your mouth, 'Jesus is Lord', and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved." That is the way unto salvation, Jesus... believing and confessing him as your Lord and Saviour. The Bible doesn't speak of doing anything else, we don't have to jump off a skyscraper screaming the name of Jesus. It also doesn't say we need to run around the church wearing only a purple robe, it is very clear in what says, if you have not received the glorious gift of salvation and would like to, it really is this easy. God loved us so much he sent his only son to die on the cross for our sins, John 3:16. Someone had to pay for them and he sent his son to die one death to cover a multitude of sins and his blood covers them all. Your sins can be wiped away if you'd only believe and confess Jesus Is Lord, and God raised him from the grave. Praise God, Jesus Lives!!! If you are a follower of Christ, Praise the Lord, and keep up the great race to the finish line. If not you can be! Why don't you accept him today and let him help you with all of your tomorrows? You won't be sorry! When you do accept him tell someone, you are more than welcome to also leave a post here telling of your experience!

God bless...

Change

There is a subject we are all familiar with. This will NOT be a rundown or an attack on anyone especially our President-Elect; he has been elected and needs our prayers along with all those he appoints to his Cabinet. I challenge you, if you haven’t already, to begin praying for the decisions that will be made concerning us as Americans and the people of the entire world. The whole way through the 2008 Election we’ve heard many things, both sides of the ticket claimed they could bring change. Some of the things they talked of changing were disturbing and others not so much. It really got me thinking about change. In essence change in inevitable. When a baby is born it must change or it will die. The baby cannot just be, it must eat and it must grow. As the baby grows it learns things, which is all part of change. On the other end of life the same happens even though someone is in a comma and life as they know it stops but everything around them and their body still changes moment by moment. I am no longer the same as I was when I began this article. Life changes; it changes us and those around us.

As you accept Christ and his gift of salvation your life changes as well. Scripture says in 2 Corinthians 5:17 that “if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old is gone, the new has come!” When you accept him as your Savior you are no longer the same as you were before. The sin that stained your life is now gone and you are clean and you shine with the radiance of God. Each new moment or experience changes you into the person God has planned out just for you. Sometimes we have an idea that we think is best for our lives or family and we pray that God would help us to achieve this idea. Then we find ourselves with a different path before us and wonder was God even listening to the prayers we previously prayed? Sure he was, but he knows what our future holds and changes our direction accordingly if we are willing to trust and obey his decision for our life. Sometimes we come to decision making time knowing what God wants for us but we’d rather see what happens with the other option and he allows us to make that choice on our own. Not everyone likes or accepts change with an open heart, but change is everywhere. Your ideas change, your desires change, the leaves change, seasons change, our bodies change; we get lines and wrinkles, gray hair, shorter with age, constantly the universe changes, the solar system changes by God’s command. If you have lived a holy life totally sold out to Christ you will be changed. I Corinthians 15:50-52 says; “I declare to you brothers, that flesh and blood cannot inherit the kingdom of God, nor does the perishable inherit the imperishable. Listen, I tell you a mystery: we will not all sleep, but we will all be changed – in a flash, in a twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet. For the trumpet will sound, the dead will be raised imperishable and we will be changed.” One thing that doesn’t change is God. He is unchanging as James 1:17 states; “Every good and perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of the heavenly lights, who does not change like shifting shadows.”

There is a song by Patty Loveless titled, “How Can I Help You Say Goodbye” and when I think about change that song always comes to mind. I guess because the first verse I actually experienced as the song was on the radio. It talks of a girl moving and saying goodbye to her friend and the little girl moving asks again why they have to leave. I moved as an adult, married with children, to Georgia from Kentucky in 1994 and left behind my best friend, Becky. I remember the pain to this very day of having to say goodbye and still can feel it as deep and painful as it was just happening. Did I know what my life was going to be like here in Georgia? No, but it was a move that had to be made. Did I want to say goodbye? No, but it was something that was inevitable, we were military and one of us was going leave at one time or another, it just happened my families orders came first. I can honestly say that had we not come to Georgia I don’t believe I would be spiritually where I am today. God helps us to say goodbye and also deal with change.

In life we must accept change. Sometimes change is good and easy but other times it’s hard and it hurts, thank goodness we have God that is unchanging and loves us more than any other creation. We are welcome and encouraged to go to him for thanksgiving of the easier times or to go to when our load is too much for us to carry, either way he is there for us and totally unchanged!

God bless…

He's Still Working On Me!

"Be joyful in hope, patient in affliction, faithful in prayer."
Romans 12:12

HE'S STILL WORKING ON ME
By: Joel Hemphill

CHORUS:
He's still working on me to make me what I ought to be.
It took Him just a week to make the moon and stars,
The sun and the earth and Jupiter and Mars.
How loving and patient He must be, He's still working on me.

1. There really ought to be a sign upon the heart,
Don't judge her yet, there's an unfinished part.
But I'll be perfect just according to His plan
Fashioned by the Master's loving hands.

CHORUS:

2. In the mirror of His Word reflections that I see
Make me wonder why He never gave up on me.
He loves me as I am and helps me when I pray
Remember He's the Potter, I'm the clay.

CHORUS:
*********************************


I wish I could say I was perfect and had no trouble in any of these (or other) areas. It would be horrible if God said one day "well she's as far as she'll ever be" or "she's good enough" and quit shaping and molding me to his perfection. We all have to remember that none of us are perfect, but with God's help we strive to be. When stuff happens and it will... we need to remember that God is shaping and molding us to the person he sees (Isaiah 64:8) and that he will never let us go through more than we can handle and always gives us a door to escape (I Cor 10:13) and he is always with us no matter what (Joshua 1:5 & Hebrews 13:5) . That alone should help us be more joyful, give us hope, be patient, accept affliction a little better, be more faithful and pray more. I do pray daily (many times some days) that God help me to see things the way he does and to help me when I don't, to continue his work in my life and that I accept his ways for my life. And really that's what living a life for Christ is, Trust & Obey, NO MATTER WHAT! As in yesterday's post he does have the WHOLE WORLD in the palm of his hands. He created it (Gen 1 & 2) and has everything in his control. The rest is up to you, do you chose his way or your way? If you chose your way you won't like the ending. It might be fun & glitzy along the pathway but the gate will be wide and many will find what you find, a fiery finish. If you chose his way it won't be as glitzy and the road is sometimes steep but you always have help and guidance along the way and the gate you find will be more narrow not many will travel this way but the finish is a glorious one (Matthew 7;13-14). I hope you choose wisely.

God bless...

Feeling Despair or Discouraged?

There is nothing wrong with feeling these for a short time, God created us and gave us all our qualities and emotions. There is something wrong if you don't pull out of your despair or discouragment and become depressed. I can tell you I was and am not happy with the way the election turned out, to the point that the people announcing the election annoyed me terribly. I did feel despair, discouragement and disappointment, I was upset! I still am disappointed, but that doesn't mean I don't trust God... it means I am human. Every one brings up Job from time to time but I do believe he is a very good example. He lost everything; family, home, health & friends. I don't believe he was happy about all that happened I do believe he was upset maybe even angry, probably felt despair or disappointment but he didn't let it keep him from giving God his trust. He knew, just as many of us do, God is always in control. As I was reading my devotion & Bible this morning the children's song came to mind...

He's got the whole world in His hands,
He's got the whole world in His hands,
He's got the whole world in His hands,
He's got the whole world in His hands.

He's got my brothers and my sisters in His hands,
He's got my brothers and my sisters in His hands,
He's got my brothers and my sisters in His hands,
He's got the whole world in His hands.

He's got the sun and the rain in His hands,
He's got the moon and the stars in His hands,
He's got the wind and the clouds in His hands,
He's got the whole world in His hands.

He's got the rivers and the mountains in His hands,
He's got the oceans and the seas in His hands,
He's got you and he's got me in His hands,
He's got the whole world in His hands.

He's got everybody here in His hands,
He's got everybody there in His hands,
He's got everybody everywhere in His hands,
He's got the whole world in His hands.

Another scripture jumped out at me as I was reading... Hebrews 10:35-36;
"So do not throw away your confidence; it will be richly rewarded. You need to persevere so that when you have done the will of God, you will receive what he has promised."

So whether it's the election or something else in your life that has you down - don't let it keep you down! God is the same today as he was yesterday he doesn't change and we can hold fast to him and his Word - he never changes! Praise God!

Ok - the best plan of action is to pray for the President and President Elect that God cover their administration in the way it should go. Also pray for those that really and truly want to harm them.

God is good and worthy of all our praise!!! Be thankful he gave you another day to glorify his name!

God bless...

Why Isn't God Listening?

"Ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you. For everyone who asks receives, and the one who seeks finds, and to the one who knocks it will be opened."
~Matthew 7:7-8

Have you been praying and feel what you are praying is going unheard or feel as though your prayer is bouncing off the walls instead of reaching the ears of our Father in Heaven? Have you been having such a difficult time and think if one more thing happens you will lose it? Take heart, your prayer has reached the Father and he has already set in motion what is best for you in accordance with his will for your life. Have you prayed for patience, boldness, guidance or even more trust lately? Thinking that he will just lavish this virtue upon you? Well, he is but not the way you have been expecting it. When we pray for these, and other, wonderful virtues experiences come along that help us achieve what we have prayed for. Somehow we keep trying to keep God in the box when knowing all to well he has never been able to fit, just like the grave the box can't hold him. It's a human thing, the disciples thought all the way to the crucifixion that Jesus was going to set up his kingdom here on earth. Was it that God wasn't listening to their cries for help? No, he had a better plan! Just like in our lives we can only see the part we are experiencing at the time, not the whole picture. God's plan was to save everyone through the blood of Jesus Christ not just those calling out at that time. Some sacrifice had to paid and if it wasn't Jesus then who, we sure aren't worthy for the job. So next time you feel God hasn't answered your prayer try to remember you can't fit God into the box and the answer is always on the way... God is never late or early but ALWAYS right on time.

God bless...