HAPPY TUESDAY!
I pray all is well with everyone, and you're enjoying another terrific Tuesday. February is Black History month, and it’s set aside to recognize the lives of important and influential black men in woman in the United States. There are so many who've played major roles in allowing us to have the freedom we have today. I found an article with 20 famous quotes by some of those who pioneered the way, and I'll share some with you throughout the month. Here’s a nice one: "Bringing the gifts that my ancestors gave, I am the dream and the hope of the slave. I rise. I rise. I rise." (-Maya Angelou) We've come a long way, so be proud of who you are, and of your heritage, and be sure to do your best to live a life that would make your ancestors proud, after all, they put in a lot of blood sweat and tears to get you here (that goes for all races and creeds). Enjoy the rest of your day, and be blessed family!
Today's scriptures are about deliverance from evil and temptation. Did you know that it's not totally up to you to change your evil ways? You are not alone in your struggles with the flesh, because we all have weaknesses. Jesus said it best when He taught us the way to pray. Even He was surrounded and attacked by evil on a daily basis, but of course He always prevailed, and because of Him, so could we. I'm sure most of you know the King James Version of the Lord’s Prayer, but I’ll share it anyway. It's written: ...Our Father which art in heaven, Hallowed be thy name. Thy kingdom come, Thy will be done in earth, as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread. And forgive us our debts, as we forgive our debtors. And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil: For thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory, for ever. Amen. (Matt 6:9-13) When Jesus gave this "Sermon on the Mount", He’d experienced life, so He knew the ways of the Spirit, and the ways of the flesh. He gives us everything we need to live in righteousness in this one prayer. We learn that we're to always acknowledge God for who He is, as well as the fact that it's His will and not ours, to Him ask for His assistance daily, ask for forgiveness and forgive, and finally ask for deliverance from temptation and evil. These are the five most important keys to life, and evil and temptation are the biggest speed bumps we’ll encounter. The only way to overcome evil is to submit to God's will, and focus on Him and Him alone. God knows it's easier said than done, which is yet another reason for His saving grace. The part we play in our Faith walk is to acknowledge both sides. Know that greater is He who is in you, than he who's in the word, nonetheless, the “he” who's in the world is a very powerful being as well. We can't fight him alone, because he's crafty and smart, knows God and His Word, and the ways of the world. Jesus said: “Behold, I send you out as sheep in the midst of wolves. Therefore be wise as serpents and harmless as doves." (Matt. 10:16) We have to be aware of the world around us, but not allow it to harden our hearts. I notice as I grow in my Faith walk that I've become more sensitive to human life and suffering, yet cunningly aware of the evil that lurks. These skills are acquired from God, and His wisdom comes from above. Evil is a pandemic like the Swine flu it could spread like wildfires. We must be careful of our surroundings, our choice of entertainment, and the people we choose to associate with, because the devil will use anything and anyone to promote evil in our life. As we become familiar with our Holy Spirit, and strengthen our communication with Him [which includes attentively listening to His guidance], our decrement becomes sharper. Paul taught us in 1 Corinthians 6:12-20, that we must glorify God in body and Spirit. It’s written: Or do you not know that your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit who is in you, whom you have from God, and you are not your own? For you were bought at a price; therefore glorify God in your body and in your spirit, which are God’s. (vs. 19-20) Our minds work like computers, everything that we see and hear on a daily basis is data entered, and we can only put out, what’s been put in. The only way to obtain true righteousness is to seek the right knowledge and understanding through the Holy Bible, prayer, and fellowship with other Christians. Jesus taught us to be aware of the evil around us, and He stressed the fact that we should pray for deliverance, because no man is above it. Without Jesus you're out here alone, with no amour to protect you from the evils of the world, and once again the only way to be delivered is through the Blood of Jesus. If you don't know Him as Lord and Savior, please go to Him in prayer, and He's sure to answer. What's your other alternative? Take a few moments to think about that, and let me know if you need prayer partner. My favorite verse today is: Because thou hast kept the word of my patience, I also will keep thee from the hour of temptation, which shall come upon all the world, to try them that dwell upon the earth. (Revelations 3:10)
ENJOY! http://www.bible.com/scripture-detail.php?juli=2455230&dtype=Scripture
http://www.intouch.org/site/pp.aspx?c=cnKBIPNuEoG&b=4943197
http://www.intouch.org/site/apps/nl/newsletter.asp?c=cnKBIPNuEoG&b=4943547
I love you!
Showing posts with label Temptations. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Temptations. Show all posts
Tuesday, February 2, 2010
Wednesday, November 4, 2009
Daily Devotional Day & Night
HAPPY WEDNESDAY!
I pray all is well with everyone, and you're enjoying another beautiful "hump day". I'm doing great! I was feeling a little under the weather earlier today, but I think it's only allergies. With all the fuss about the Swine flu, and the differences between the flu and a cold, every time I get the sniffles or a headache, I always become a little concerned. I've had my Flu shot, but I don't think I'll get the Swine Flu vaccine this year. I wash my hands often, keep my Purell handy, take my vitamins, and pray without ceasing, so I think I have all points covered. Nothing is new under the sun, and similar "Plagues" or "Pandemics" are written about in the bible. It's just another sign to get your life right, to insure that you're under the eternal protection of God. I'm grateful we're halfway through the week, and it's the start of a new month, God is good. One more month to a new year, and new beginnings, this has been a wonderful year for me, and I see it only getting better. Have a wonderful day, and been blessed family!
Today's scriptures are about expecting temptations and trials. Walking with Jesus entails a lot more than blessings and sunshine, but requires us to live a certain type of lifestyle. Temptations and trails are to be expected, because we live in the mist of Spiritual warfare. It's written in a Revelation, revealed through a dream: And war broke out in heaven: Michael and his angels fought with the dragon; and the dragon and his angels fought, but they did not prevail, nor was a place found for them in heaven any longer. So the great dragon was cast out, that serpent of old, called the Devil and Satan, who deceives the whole world; he was cast to the earth, and his angels were cast out with him (Rev. 12:7-9). Satan's main objective is to get us out of the will of God. He has a legion of demons working for him, and they will stop at nothing to keep us bound by sin, heartache, pain, worry, anxiety, and fear. As children of God, and joint heirs to His Kingdom, our jobs are to stay strong. Have you ever heard the song "Soldier in the Army of the Lord"? That's exactly what we are, and we're given Victory by the blood of Jesus Christ. Here's what Jesus said: “I saw Satan fall like lightning from heaven. Behold, I give you the authority to trample on serpents and scorpions, and over all the power of the enemy, and nothing shall by any means hurt you. Nevertheless do not rejoice in this, that the spirits are subject to you, but rather rejoice because your names are written in heaven.” (Luke 10:18-20) By the blood of Jesus, we've already won, Hallelujah! The enemy will never be as powerful as God, and doesn't reign over His children. God allow us to be tempted to test our strength in certain areas, in most cases to prepare us for the road ahead. When we're going through trials, it's import to keep our focus on God, and not our current circumstance, because there's always a benefit at the end. When those seasons come we shouldn't be shocked and react irrationally, but get on our knees and pray and ask for the Strength to be endure. All the while, we should be rejoicing and thanking God for the blessing to come. Job is one of the most profound books in the bible in my opinion. I’ve studied parts of it, and I've also heard many sermons preached on his life. Job was a man who loved God, lived a righteous life, and did His best not to sin. He prayed, fasted, offered sacrifices, paid his tithes, gave offerings, raised God fearing children, etc. Anything you could do the magnify God, Job did. God allowed Job to be tempted by Satan, and Job lost every earthly possession and loved one he had, as well as his health. Through all of this pain and suffering, Job never stopped loving and praising God. He never stopped doing all of the things he was doing before. He came close to giving up, as any of us would, but he never did. You could only imagine how much God blessed Job when the suffering came to an end. We often think that life is supposed to be good all the time, and the minute we hit a "speed bump", instead of slowing down and acknowledging God and learning from our trials, we want to speed through them. This behavior could cause more harm than good. Marvin Gaye said it best in the song entitled "Trouble Man", There are only three things that's for certain, taxes, death, and trouble. That song has a lot of Faith in it, although he never mentions God. Marvin is saying no matter what type of life he's had or trails he’ll face, he's still going to make it. That's where God wants us to be. No matter what may fall in your path, hold on your Faith and allow God to get you through it. If you don't know Jesus as your Savior then you're on the wrong side of the war. Please take a moment and get your relationship right with God, by saying one simple prayer asking Jesus to be a part of your life. If you need a prayer partner please contact me, because I want to see you in Heaven. My favorite verses today are: Beloved, think it not strange concerning the fiery trial which is to try you, as though some strange thing happened unto you: but rejoice, inasmuch as ye are partakers of Christ's sufferings; that, when his glory shall be revealed, ye may be glad also with exceeding joy. (1 Peter 4:12,13)
ENJOY! http://www.bible.com/scripture-detail.php?juli=2455140&dtype=Scripture
http://www.intouch.org/site/pp.aspx?c=cnKBIPNuEoG&b=4943197
http://www.intouch.org/site/apps/nl/newsletter2.asp?c=cnKBIPNuEoG&b=5569835
I love you!
I pray all is well with everyone, and you're enjoying another beautiful "hump day". I'm doing great! I was feeling a little under the weather earlier today, but I think it's only allergies. With all the fuss about the Swine flu, and the differences between the flu and a cold, every time I get the sniffles or a headache, I always become a little concerned. I've had my Flu shot, but I don't think I'll get the Swine Flu vaccine this year. I wash my hands often, keep my Purell handy, take my vitamins, and pray without ceasing, so I think I have all points covered. Nothing is new under the sun, and similar "Plagues" or "Pandemics" are written about in the bible. It's just another sign to get your life right, to insure that you're under the eternal protection of God. I'm grateful we're halfway through the week, and it's the start of a new month, God is good. One more month to a new year, and new beginnings, this has been a wonderful year for me, and I see it only getting better. Have a wonderful day, and been blessed family!
Today's scriptures are about expecting temptations and trials. Walking with Jesus entails a lot more than blessings and sunshine, but requires us to live a certain type of lifestyle. Temptations and trails are to be expected, because we live in the mist of Spiritual warfare. It's written in a Revelation, revealed through a dream: And war broke out in heaven: Michael and his angels fought with the dragon; and the dragon and his angels fought, but they did not prevail, nor was a place found for them in heaven any longer. So the great dragon was cast out, that serpent of old, called the Devil and Satan, who deceives the whole world; he was cast to the earth, and his angels were cast out with him (Rev. 12:7-9). Satan's main objective is to get us out of the will of God. He has a legion of demons working for him, and they will stop at nothing to keep us bound by sin, heartache, pain, worry, anxiety, and fear. As children of God, and joint heirs to His Kingdom, our jobs are to stay strong. Have you ever heard the song "Soldier in the Army of the Lord"? That's exactly what we are, and we're given Victory by the blood of Jesus Christ. Here's what Jesus said: “I saw Satan fall like lightning from heaven. Behold, I give you the authority to trample on serpents and scorpions, and over all the power of the enemy, and nothing shall by any means hurt you. Nevertheless do not rejoice in this, that the spirits are subject to you, but rather rejoice because your names are written in heaven.” (Luke 10:18-20) By the blood of Jesus, we've already won, Hallelujah! The enemy will never be as powerful as God, and doesn't reign over His children. God allow us to be tempted to test our strength in certain areas, in most cases to prepare us for the road ahead. When we're going through trials, it's import to keep our focus on God, and not our current circumstance, because there's always a benefit at the end. When those seasons come we shouldn't be shocked and react irrationally, but get on our knees and pray and ask for the Strength to be endure. All the while, we should be rejoicing and thanking God for the blessing to come. Job is one of the most profound books in the bible in my opinion. I’ve studied parts of it, and I've also heard many sermons preached on his life. Job was a man who loved God, lived a righteous life, and did His best not to sin. He prayed, fasted, offered sacrifices, paid his tithes, gave offerings, raised God fearing children, etc. Anything you could do the magnify God, Job did. God allowed Job to be tempted by Satan, and Job lost every earthly possession and loved one he had, as well as his health. Through all of this pain and suffering, Job never stopped loving and praising God. He never stopped doing all of the things he was doing before. He came close to giving up, as any of us would, but he never did. You could only imagine how much God blessed Job when the suffering came to an end. We often think that life is supposed to be good all the time, and the minute we hit a "speed bump", instead of slowing down and acknowledging God and learning from our trials, we want to speed through them. This behavior could cause more harm than good. Marvin Gaye said it best in the song entitled "Trouble Man", There are only three things that's for certain, taxes, death, and trouble. That song has a lot of Faith in it, although he never mentions God. Marvin is saying no matter what type of life he's had or trails he’ll face, he's still going to make it. That's where God wants us to be. No matter what may fall in your path, hold on your Faith and allow God to get you through it. If you don't know Jesus as your Savior then you're on the wrong side of the war. Please take a moment and get your relationship right with God, by saying one simple prayer asking Jesus to be a part of your life. If you need a prayer partner please contact me, because I want to see you in Heaven. My favorite verses today are: Beloved, think it not strange concerning the fiery trial which is to try you, as though some strange thing happened unto you: but rejoice, inasmuch as ye are partakers of Christ's sufferings; that, when his glory shall be revealed, ye may be glad also with exceeding joy. (1 Peter 4:12,13)
ENJOY! http://www.bible.com/scripture-detail.php?juli=2455140&dtype=Scripture
http://www.intouch.org/site/pp.aspx?c=cnKBIPNuEoG&b=4943197
http://www.intouch.org/site/apps/nl/newsletter2.asp?c=cnKBIPNuEoG&b=5569835
I love you!
Tuesday, July 7, 2009
Daily Devotional Day & Night
HAPPY TUESDAY!
I pray all is well with everyone, and you're enjoying your day. I'm doing well; glad to be back to work (somewhat). I had an awesome holiday weekend, and yesterday's rest topped it off. The dinner at the National Pastimes Sports Bar was awesome, as well as the festivities at the National Harbor. The Harbor is setup like an entire little city all by itself, tucked in the corner of the world, very nice. Food, food, and more food, which will send me running to the gym tonight, and the rest of the week, it's time to get back in gear. I love the summertime, and I'm looking forward to a real vacation, please pray for me. My Grandmother is home and resting well, thanks for all of your continued prayers, keep them coming. Have a wonderful day!
Today's scriptures are about God's understanding of our Temptation. God came to earth to experience life as a human. Him, being all-powerful, knows our heart, but He wanted to walk in our shoes. He needed to better understand why we do some of the things we do. As Jesus, He experienced love, hate, fear, anger, pain, and grief while on this earth, just as we do on a daily basis. This in turn heightened His compassion for us, because He had a first hand understanding of our plight. Nevertheless, Jesus’ death gives us supernatural strength, as well as saves us from the penalties of sin, and allows us to overcome the wiles of the devil, just as He did. I believe I mentioned this quote before: "You never know how strong you are, until being strong is your only option". When I read this for the first time it stuck with me, because I live it everyday. Our testimonies come from temptations, failures, and triumph over adversity. Ordinary people like you and I wrote about these things in every book of the bible. The difference between Moses, and us is that we have the Power of Jesus, and the help of the Holy Spirit. God spoke to Moses personally, as He does us, but I think we have a bit more of an advantage. However, in my opinion, our society doesn't respect, nor fear God, and we loss sight of tradition and order. God is in control, and He allows certain things to happen in our lives to get our attention, teach us lessons, or touch someone close to us. He has dominion over all things in Heaven and on Earth. We can read about that in the story of Job, where God allowed Job to be tested by the devil, to prove his loyalty to Him, but He never put more on Job than he could handle. God allowed Jesus to be tempted by the devil several times, but He still kept Jesus in His protection. He handpicked the disciples, because He knew the hearts of these men. He understood their struggles, and knew that that they would forever stay loyal to Him. We're showing a huge amount of faith just by confessing our love for Him, and accepting Jesus as our Savior, that's why we will forever be His children, and have our rewards waiting for us in Heaven. However, while on earth we must take the bitter with the sweet. We must understand that "this too shall pass", and each hurdle we face are specifically designed for our greater good. We must continually praise God in the good and bad, because we know that, as long we believe He's bringing us through it much stronger and wiser. We blame God for a lot of things, while often taking little or no responsibility for our own decisions. We have a choice in life, just as Jesus and the other people we read about in the bible. The devil knows that, and he will never stop trying to get us out of the will of God, so it's up to us to be ye ready (Luke 12:40), and stay sober and wait on the Lord. It's written in 1 Peter 5:8-11: Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil walks about like a roaring lion, seeking whom he may devour. Resist him, steadfast in the faith, knowing that the same sufferings are experienced by your brotherhood in the world. But may the God of all grace, who called us to His eternal glory by Christ Jesus, after you have suffered a while, perfect, establish, strengthen, and settle you. To Him be the glory and the dominion forever and ever. Amen. Wow, this pretty much sums it up for me. I was speaking to a friend yesterday that is going through some trials, and she said that one of the things that comfort’s her is knowing that she's not the only one going through something. We all have our time of suffering, temptations, etc. but God has a reason for each of them. If we look around, no one's life is "perfect", even those people who seemingly have it all. As long as we're on earth, we're going to be refined, and temptation is inevitable. On the other hand, what we could control is choosing God. In everything we do, we should truly ask ourselves "What would Jesus Do?” and honestly answer and follow that. With our Holy Spirit, we're warned when temptation arises, and our relationship with God will determine if we'll heed those warnings. Our Faith walk is like one long marathon, and when we make a conscious decision to follow Jesus, we must take our time to train. We must build up strength and endurance, through the Word of God. In our Faith walk, we'll experience hurdles, and we must strengthen ourselves enough to be able to jump them, and keep moving through life. We have God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit, all working together to ensure each believer's victory. Or life starts when we're born again, by accepting the love of Jesus. He's only a prayer away, and He's the key to over coming adversity, because He had to do it Himself. My favorite verse today is: There hath no temptation taken you but such as is common to man: but God is faithful, who will not suffer you to be tempted above that ye are able; but will with the temptation also make a way to escape, that ye may be able to bear it. (1 Corinthians 10:13)
ENJOY! http://www.bible.com/scripture-detail.php?juli=2455020&dtype=Scripture
http://www.intouch.org/site/pp.aspx?c=cnKBIPNuEoG&b=4943197
http://www.intouch.org/site/apps/nlnet/content2.aspx?c=cnKBIPNuEoG&b=5283727&ct=7162445
I love you!
I pray all is well with everyone, and you're enjoying your day. I'm doing well; glad to be back to work (somewhat). I had an awesome holiday weekend, and yesterday's rest topped it off. The dinner at the National Pastimes Sports Bar was awesome, as well as the festivities at the National Harbor. The Harbor is setup like an entire little city all by itself, tucked in the corner of the world, very nice. Food, food, and more food, which will send me running to the gym tonight, and the rest of the week, it's time to get back in gear. I love the summertime, and I'm looking forward to a real vacation, please pray for me. My Grandmother is home and resting well, thanks for all of your continued prayers, keep them coming. Have a wonderful day!
Today's scriptures are about God's understanding of our Temptation. God came to earth to experience life as a human. Him, being all-powerful, knows our heart, but He wanted to walk in our shoes. He needed to better understand why we do some of the things we do. As Jesus, He experienced love, hate, fear, anger, pain, and grief while on this earth, just as we do on a daily basis. This in turn heightened His compassion for us, because He had a first hand understanding of our plight. Nevertheless, Jesus’ death gives us supernatural strength, as well as saves us from the penalties of sin, and allows us to overcome the wiles of the devil, just as He did. I believe I mentioned this quote before: "You never know how strong you are, until being strong is your only option". When I read this for the first time it stuck with me, because I live it everyday. Our testimonies come from temptations, failures, and triumph over adversity. Ordinary people like you and I wrote about these things in every book of the bible. The difference between Moses, and us is that we have the Power of Jesus, and the help of the Holy Spirit. God spoke to Moses personally, as He does us, but I think we have a bit more of an advantage. However, in my opinion, our society doesn't respect, nor fear God, and we loss sight of tradition and order. God is in control, and He allows certain things to happen in our lives to get our attention, teach us lessons, or touch someone close to us. He has dominion over all things in Heaven and on Earth. We can read about that in the story of Job, where God allowed Job to be tested by the devil, to prove his loyalty to Him, but He never put more on Job than he could handle. God allowed Jesus to be tempted by the devil several times, but He still kept Jesus in His protection. He handpicked the disciples, because He knew the hearts of these men. He understood their struggles, and knew that that they would forever stay loyal to Him. We're showing a huge amount of faith just by confessing our love for Him, and accepting Jesus as our Savior, that's why we will forever be His children, and have our rewards waiting for us in Heaven. However, while on earth we must take the bitter with the sweet. We must understand that "this too shall pass", and each hurdle we face are specifically designed for our greater good. We must continually praise God in the good and bad, because we know that, as long we believe He's bringing us through it much stronger and wiser. We blame God for a lot of things, while often taking little or no responsibility for our own decisions. We have a choice in life, just as Jesus and the other people we read about in the bible. The devil knows that, and he will never stop trying to get us out of the will of God, so it's up to us to be ye ready (Luke 12:40), and stay sober and wait on the Lord. It's written in 1 Peter 5:8-11: Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil walks about like a roaring lion, seeking whom he may devour. Resist him, steadfast in the faith, knowing that the same sufferings are experienced by your brotherhood in the world. But may the God of all grace, who called us to His eternal glory by Christ Jesus, after you have suffered a while, perfect, establish, strengthen, and settle you. To Him be the glory and the dominion forever and ever. Amen. Wow, this pretty much sums it up for me. I was speaking to a friend yesterday that is going through some trials, and she said that one of the things that comfort’s her is knowing that she's not the only one going through something. We all have our time of suffering, temptations, etc. but God has a reason for each of them. If we look around, no one's life is "perfect", even those people who seemingly have it all. As long as we're on earth, we're going to be refined, and temptation is inevitable. On the other hand, what we could control is choosing God. In everything we do, we should truly ask ourselves "What would Jesus Do?” and honestly answer and follow that. With our Holy Spirit, we're warned when temptation arises, and our relationship with God will determine if we'll heed those warnings. Our Faith walk is like one long marathon, and when we make a conscious decision to follow Jesus, we must take our time to train. We must build up strength and endurance, through the Word of God. In our Faith walk, we'll experience hurdles, and we must strengthen ourselves enough to be able to jump them, and keep moving through life. We have God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit, all working together to ensure each believer's victory. Or life starts when we're born again, by accepting the love of Jesus. He's only a prayer away, and He's the key to over coming adversity, because He had to do it Himself. My favorite verse today is: There hath no temptation taken you but such as is common to man: but God is faithful, who will not suffer you to be tempted above that ye are able; but will with the temptation also make a way to escape, that ye may be able to bear it. (1 Corinthians 10:13)
ENJOY! http://www.bible.com/scripture-detail.php?juli=2455020&dtype=Scripture
http://www.intouch.org/site/pp.aspx?c=cnKBIPNuEoG&b=4943197
http://www.intouch.org/site/apps/nlnet/content2.aspx?c=cnKBIPNuEoG&b=5283727&ct=7162445
I love you!
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