HAPPY MONDAY!
I pray all is well with everyone, and you're enjoying the beginning of another workweek (for most). I'm doing well, grateful for anther day. Fall is quickly approaching; it was really gray outside this morning, and a little cool with the temperature being about 65°F. It felt like the first day of school, and I believe that a lot of schools started today. School means the summer is coming to a close, and I haven't been in any water, or had any barbecue all summer, which means I have to barbecue this weekend. I'm looking forward to cooking for the family. My brother's game was good, although it was really, really hot on Saturday afternoon. I felt like I was sitting in a skillet while on those metal bleachers. I got about two shades darker, but on the bright side, they beat the game 55-20, and Demitrius played well. The next game is Friday night, and I'm looking forward to it. Have a wonderful day!
Today's scriptures are about the gifts salvation. What do you consider a gift? The word is defined: Something that is bestowed voluntarily and without compensation. We usually give wonderful gifts to the people we love, such as jewelry, clothing, household appliances, cash, or small trinkets or a greeting card. We do this to show how much we care about them, because after all, love is an action. Normally, when we give gifts they're warranted, such as a birthday big accomplishment, or just a thank you for a previous gift received. No matter what the gift is or what it's for, it's a wonderful gesture that we do out of the kindness of our hearts, and we do it unselfishly, with no expectations of reciprocation, just gratitude and thanks. God is the ultimate gift giver, and the most valuable, and important gift He's given us is Salvation, by the blood of Jesus Christ. He gave His only Son, as a spotless lamb, to be sacrificed for the sin of all mankind. This gift is free to anyone who asks, which is given by His grace. Along with salvation come freedom, light, and abundant life, for everyone who believes. It's written in Luke 11:10-13: For everyone who asks receives, and he who seeks finds, and to him who knocks it will be opened. If a son asks for bread from any father among you, will he give him a stone? Or if he asks for a fish, will he give him a serpent instead of a fish? Or if he asks for an egg, will he offer him a scorpion? If you then, being evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to those who ask Him!” Even knowing this, there are so many people who live in darkness. There are people who see the work of God first hand, and still choose to doubt Him. There people who are lost, meaning they've never confessed Jesus as Lord and Savior, and others who have, but don't trust Him to keep all of His promises. That lack of trust usually comes from the enemy, through from fear, anxiety, the past hurts and pains they've experienced, or saw someone close to them experienced. The devil plays on those weaknesses, and continually attempts to get you separated from God, by making you believe all of these lies. We then should study our bibles, and read our devotionals daily, to refresh and renew our relationship with God. His gifts are given freely to all who ask and receive them. Being open to receive His gifts is also sometimes hard, and some of us don't notice when God is trying to give us an awesome gift. Sometimes we sabotage our blessings simply because we think we're not worthy of them, or we don't realize what we had until it's gone. Nobody's perfect, not me, not your pastor at Church, and not even the Pope. We all have and will sin. We tend to judge and condemn ourselves the worst, when God forgives us when we initially ask for forgiveness. His grace is a gift that keeps on giving, and it's written in Isaiah 30:18: Therefore the LORD will wait, that He may be gracious to you; And therefore He will be exalted, that He may have mercy on you. For the LORD is a God of justice; blessed are all those who wait for Him. He has an enormous amount of love for us, so much so, that no matter how much we sin against Him, He'll always forgive us. No matter how much we stumble and fall, He'll be right there to pick us up. If you don't know Him, then accept the first and most important gift that He offers, which is to make you one of His children through Salvation in Jesus Christ. It's a simple prayer confessing the fact that you're a sinner, and you then make a covenant with Him by repenting. This let's Him know that you'll try your best to be righteous. Then He'll shower you with gifts of love, peace, joy, and happiness, and those priceless gifts are automatic bonuses that come with our Salvation. My favorite verse today is: For if through the offence of one many be dead, much more the grace of God, and the gift by grace, which is by one man, Jesus Christ, hath abounded unto many. (Romans 5:15)
ENJOY! http://www.bible.com/scripture-detail.php?juli=2455075&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=5336537&ct=7301725
I love you!
Monday, August 31, 2009
Friday, August 28, 2009
Daily devotional Day & Night
HAPPY FRIDAY!
Today's scriptures are about our victory over the devil, through Jesus Christ. One of my favorite verses in the bible is John 10:10 says: The thief does not come except to steal, and to kill, and to destroy. I have come that they may have life, and that they may have it more abundantly. The devil is a thief, that loves confusion and strife, and he’ll do whatever it takes to keep us in it, especially if we’re confessed children of God. It’s said that he’s a fallen Angel, who has a vendetta of sorts, against God. He though that he could be more powerful, so he was kicked out of heaven. Now, he has demons, just as God has Angels that wreaks havoc on the earth. It’s written in 1 John 4:4: You are of God, little children, and have overcome them, because He who is in you is greater than he who is in the world. We see evil all around us, just turn on the News, and it’s evident that Satan does exist, however, God is grater than anything he could attempt to do to those of us who are covered by the blood of Jesus. The bible always says something like, “God will bless those who believe in Christ, His children, or is followers, etc.” The key is to believe that He is the one true God, and believe in the life, death, and resurrection of His only begotten Son, Jesus Christ. Paul wrote in Ephesians 6:13: Therefore take up the whole armor of God, that you may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand. The armor consists of the breastplate of righteousness, shod of peace for your feet, the shield of faith, the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God. God is always waiting on us to call on His name, and Jesus is waiting to make intercession for our sins (Heb. 7:25). At the same time, it’s up to us to be righteous, stay peaceful, have faith, and study the Word of God. As baby Spirits, the devil hits us the hardest, by seemingly making everything crumble around us. He even uses the people closest to us to bring us down. He’s attempting to make us lose faith in God, and keep us in the darkness, because then He could use us to do his dirty work as well. How many times have you asked God, “why me?” or thought, “why does bad things happen to good people”? All of the answers lie in His word, and He’ll answer anytime we call on Him. This helps build our faith, and allows us to trust His protection. I remember when I first rededicated my life to God, I struggled with giving up my bad habits, and so I would always wonder why it’s so hard doing the right thing. There’s evil all around us, so when we’re starting out in our walk, it seems easier to just surrender to the temptations, and do what everyone else around us is doing with seemingly no consequences. When we hold on, put on our armor, and fight through the temptations with Jesus’ help, we’ll win every time. There are huge, even deadly consequences that come with giving in to the temptation, but by choosing God we have the victory. Jesus said in Matthew 7:13-14: Enter by the narrow gate; for wide is the gate and broad is the way that leads to destruction, and there are many who go in by it. Because narrow is the gate and difficult is the way which leads to life, and there are few who find it. Salvation is a free gift to everyone, but the truth is, not many people accept that gift. It’s up to us to do something about that, it’s why we’re here. If you haven’t accepted Jesus as your Lord and Savior, then you’re serving darkness, and you cannot serve both darkness and light, you have to make a choice. God doesn’t like a double-minded man. I urge you to say that prayer today, He’s waiting with deliverance, and bring you into His marvelous light. My favorite verses today are: That through death he might destroy him that had the power of death, that is, the devil; and deliver them who through fear of death were all their lifetime subject to bondage. (Hebrews 2:14-15)
ENJOY! http://www.bible.com/scripture-detail.php?juli=2455072&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=5336537&ct=7301717
I love you!
Today's scriptures are about our victory over the devil, through Jesus Christ. One of my favorite verses in the bible is John 10:10 says: The thief does not come except to steal, and to kill, and to destroy. I have come that they may have life, and that they may have it more abundantly. The devil is a thief, that loves confusion and strife, and he’ll do whatever it takes to keep us in it, especially if we’re confessed children of God. It’s said that he’s a fallen Angel, who has a vendetta of sorts, against God. He though that he could be more powerful, so he was kicked out of heaven. Now, he has demons, just as God has Angels that wreaks havoc on the earth. It’s written in 1 John 4:4: You are of God, little children, and have overcome them, because He who is in you is greater than he who is in the world. We see evil all around us, just turn on the News, and it’s evident that Satan does exist, however, God is grater than anything he could attempt to do to those of us who are covered by the blood of Jesus. The bible always says something like, “God will bless those who believe in Christ, His children, or is followers, etc.” The key is to believe that He is the one true God, and believe in the life, death, and resurrection of His only begotten Son, Jesus Christ. Paul wrote in Ephesians 6:13: Therefore take up the whole armor of God, that you may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand. The armor consists of the breastplate of righteousness, shod of peace for your feet, the shield of faith, the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God. God is always waiting on us to call on His name, and Jesus is waiting to make intercession for our sins (Heb. 7:25). At the same time, it’s up to us to be righteous, stay peaceful, have faith, and study the Word of God. As baby Spirits, the devil hits us the hardest, by seemingly making everything crumble around us. He even uses the people closest to us to bring us down. He’s attempting to make us lose faith in God, and keep us in the darkness, because then He could use us to do his dirty work as well. How many times have you asked God, “why me?” or thought, “why does bad things happen to good people”? All of the answers lie in His word, and He’ll answer anytime we call on Him. This helps build our faith, and allows us to trust His protection. I remember when I first rededicated my life to God, I struggled with giving up my bad habits, and so I would always wonder why it’s so hard doing the right thing. There’s evil all around us, so when we’re starting out in our walk, it seems easier to just surrender to the temptations, and do what everyone else around us is doing with seemingly no consequences. When we hold on, put on our armor, and fight through the temptations with Jesus’ help, we’ll win every time. There are huge, even deadly consequences that come with giving in to the temptation, but by choosing God we have the victory. Jesus said in Matthew 7:13-14: Enter by the narrow gate; for wide is the gate and broad is the way that leads to destruction, and there are many who go in by it. Because narrow is the gate and difficult is the way which leads to life, and there are few who find it. Salvation is a free gift to everyone, but the truth is, not many people accept that gift. It’s up to us to do something about that, it’s why we’re here. If you haven’t accepted Jesus as your Lord and Savior, then you’re serving darkness, and you cannot serve both darkness and light, you have to make a choice. God doesn’t like a double-minded man. I urge you to say that prayer today, He’s waiting with deliverance, and bring you into His marvelous light. My favorite verses today are: That through death he might destroy him that had the power of death, that is, the devil; and deliver them who through fear of death were all their lifetime subject to bondage. (Hebrews 2:14-15)
ENJOY! http://www.bible.com/scripture-detail.php?juli=2455072&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=5336537&ct=7301717
I love you!
Thursday, August 27, 2009
Daily Devotional Day & Night
HAPPY THURSDAY!
I pray all is well with everyone, and you're enjoying another beautiful Friday-eve. I'm doing well, looking forward to another weekend. This week flew by, and we're still working the kinks out for my brother's school schedule. It's hard for him to break out of the lax of the summer months, but he’ll get used to it. When I was in school, we almost always resumed the day after Labor Day, so this is an early start for school. At the same time, he was out of school the second or third week of May, a month before the other kids did in June, so it balances out. This new routine also causes a shift in my schedule, so we both have little adjustments to make. It's all worth it, and we get a three-day weekend next week. Please pray that he gets off on a good start. Have a wonderful day!
Today's scriptures are about the light that leads us on the right paths. When God was creating the earth, He already knew you and I, and what He had planned for us to do. It's written in Romans 8:28-30: And we know that all things work together for good to those who love God, to those who are the called according to His purpose. For whom He foreknew, He also predestined to be conformed to the image of His Son, that He might be the firstborn among many brethren. Moreover whom He predestined, these He also called; whom He called, these He also justified; and whom He justified, these He also glorified. Because we’re Children of God, we're given a certain path to follow, in order to complete our predestined will. If He has a job for us He'll make sure we’re able to do it, by providing everything we need. We live in a world ruled by darkness, so God's light is the only way we can get through our earthly life on the right path. We will hear clear instructions from Him, through the Holy Spirit, with all the details. How many times have you had impure thoughts and that voice in the back of your mind (the Holy Spirit) said, "Don't do it"? I can't tell you how many times I've avoided accidents, or received blessings, because I was at the right place at the right time. I used to always say, "something told me to come this way today". The something, or rather someone, was God guiding me all along. We live in such a fast world, where we could be juggling ten different things at one time, and it gets hard to slow down and focus on God. When I tell people my daily itinerary they're usually in awe, because I'm always busy, as are most of you. At the same time, I always find away to give God His time, some days more than others. Sometimes, if we don't stay focused on God, and give ourselves time to escape the darkness, we start to lose our way. Daily bible study, prayer and meditation time is the only way to keep God’s light shinning bright in our life. Jesus said in Matthew 6:22-23: “The lamp of the body is the eye. If therefore your eye is good, your whole body will be full of light. But if your eye is bad, your whole body will be full of darkness. If therefore the light that is in you is darkness, how great is that darkness!" He warns us to be careful of the worldly things we're focusing on, because the darkness can swallow us up, and we lose our way. When we lose our way, we stumble and fall. This is when we start to experience the most heartache and pain, so it's imperative to stay focused on God's light. He's instilled it inside of us, and gave us a handbook with full instructions, and examples of how we should live, as well as examples of how we shouldn't live. He's given us Salvation through Jesus Christ, all we have to do is slow down, accept His wonderful love, grace, and mercy, and use His light for guidance. I can promise you that if you follow the Will of God, everything else is will fall right into place. He's using you to be a blessing to others as well, so allow His light to shine through. If you don't know Christ as your Savior, then you're stuck in the darkness. Jesus said in John 8:23-24: “You are from beneath; I am from above. You are of this world; I am not of this world. Therefore I said to you that you will die in your sins; for if you do not believe that I am He, you will die in your sins.” All you need to do to receive the light is to believe in Him. Pray to God, asking Jesus to come into your heart as your Savior, and confess that you're a sinner, and watch the light shine as bright as the sunshine, to keep you on the path to complete God's will for your life. My favorite verse today is: I am the light of the world: he that followeth me shall not walk in darkness, but shall have the light of life. (John 8:12)
ENJOY! http://www.bible.com/scripture-detail.php?juli=2455071&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=5336537&ct=7301713
I love you!
I pray all is well with everyone, and you're enjoying another beautiful Friday-eve. I'm doing well, looking forward to another weekend. This week flew by, and we're still working the kinks out for my brother's school schedule. It's hard for him to break out of the lax of the summer months, but he’ll get used to it. When I was in school, we almost always resumed the day after Labor Day, so this is an early start for school. At the same time, he was out of school the second or third week of May, a month before the other kids did in June, so it balances out. This new routine also causes a shift in my schedule, so we both have little adjustments to make. It's all worth it, and we get a three-day weekend next week. Please pray that he gets off on a good start. Have a wonderful day!
Today's scriptures are about the light that leads us on the right paths. When God was creating the earth, He already knew you and I, and what He had planned for us to do. It's written in Romans 8:28-30: And we know that all things work together for good to those who love God, to those who are the called according to His purpose. For whom He foreknew, He also predestined to be conformed to the image of His Son, that He might be the firstborn among many brethren. Moreover whom He predestined, these He also called; whom He called, these He also justified; and whom He justified, these He also glorified. Because we’re Children of God, we're given a certain path to follow, in order to complete our predestined will. If He has a job for us He'll make sure we’re able to do it, by providing everything we need. We live in a world ruled by darkness, so God's light is the only way we can get through our earthly life on the right path. We will hear clear instructions from Him, through the Holy Spirit, with all the details. How many times have you had impure thoughts and that voice in the back of your mind (the Holy Spirit) said, "Don't do it"? I can't tell you how many times I've avoided accidents, or received blessings, because I was at the right place at the right time. I used to always say, "something told me to come this way today". The something, or rather someone, was God guiding me all along. We live in such a fast world, where we could be juggling ten different things at one time, and it gets hard to slow down and focus on God. When I tell people my daily itinerary they're usually in awe, because I'm always busy, as are most of you. At the same time, I always find away to give God His time, some days more than others. Sometimes, if we don't stay focused on God, and give ourselves time to escape the darkness, we start to lose our way. Daily bible study, prayer and meditation time is the only way to keep God’s light shinning bright in our life. Jesus said in Matthew 6:22-23: “The lamp of the body is the eye. If therefore your eye is good, your whole body will be full of light. But if your eye is bad, your whole body will be full of darkness. If therefore the light that is in you is darkness, how great is that darkness!" He warns us to be careful of the worldly things we're focusing on, because the darkness can swallow us up, and we lose our way. When we lose our way, we stumble and fall. This is when we start to experience the most heartache and pain, so it's imperative to stay focused on God's light. He's instilled it inside of us, and gave us a handbook with full instructions, and examples of how we should live, as well as examples of how we shouldn't live. He's given us Salvation through Jesus Christ, all we have to do is slow down, accept His wonderful love, grace, and mercy, and use His light for guidance. I can promise you that if you follow the Will of God, everything else is will fall right into place. He's using you to be a blessing to others as well, so allow His light to shine through. If you don't know Christ as your Savior, then you're stuck in the darkness. Jesus said in John 8:23-24: “You are from beneath; I am from above. You are of this world; I am not of this world. Therefore I said to you that you will die in your sins; for if you do not believe that I am He, you will die in your sins.” All you need to do to receive the light is to believe in Him. Pray to God, asking Jesus to come into your heart as your Savior, and confess that you're a sinner, and watch the light shine as bright as the sunshine, to keep you on the path to complete God's will for your life. My favorite verse today is: I am the light of the world: he that followeth me shall not walk in darkness, but shall have the light of life. (John 8:12)
ENJOY! http://www.bible.com/scripture-detail.php?juli=2455071&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=5336537&ct=7301713
I love you!
Wednesday, August 26, 2009
Daily Devotional Day & Night
HAPPY WEDNESDAY!
I pray all is well with everyone, and you're enjoying another warm hump day. I'm doing well, feeling much better than yesterday. I wanted to take a moment and thank my crazy co-workers, because no matter what's going on in my life, they always seem to make me laugh and smile all day long. The saying that “Laughter is the best medicine” is so true. God is always right on time, and He always places us in the right spot at that right time. It's so important to be grateful for everything and everyone in your life, because it all works together for you good, no matter what it seems like at the time. How many times have you given praise to God today? Have a blessed and wonderful day!
Today's scriptures are about achieving the required Holiness to communicate with God. We've learned that God is Holy, and we must been clean and righteous to fellowship with Him. When God approached Moses to have him free the slaves, God made it clear, that He was Holy, and certain measures had to be taken to be in His presence. The story is written in Exodus 3:2-5: And the Angel of the LORD appeared to him in a flame of fire from the midst of a bush. So he looked, and behold, the bush was burning with fire, but the bush was not consumed. Then Moses said, “I will now turn aside and see this great sight, why the bush does not burn.” So when the LORD saw that he turned aside to look, God called to him from the midst of the bush and said, “Moses, Moses!” And he said, “Here I am.” Then He said, “Do not draw near this place. Take your sandals off your feet, for the place where you stand is holy ground.” Moses was known as a righteous man, and he pleased God from birth. He wasn't perfect, or without sin, but overall he loved the Lord. Moses isn't at all that different from you and I. If anything we have an advantage because of our Savior Jesus Christ. The blood of Jesus cleanses our soul, and makes us Holy and acceptable in the sight of the Lord. He doesn't have to use burning bushes to speak to us anymore, because we have the Holy Spirit that constantly guides us everyday. He could speak directly too us, when our minds and hearts are stayed on Him. Jesus did His part by laying His life down, now it's up to us to accept the gift He came to give, and renew our mind and body, while God works on our Spirit. It's written in Romans 12:1-2: I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that you present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable to God, which is your reasonable service. And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, that you may prove what is that good and acceptable and perfect will of God. As children of God we are righteous, however, we still bear the burden of sin. We must be aware of our sinful ways. At the time of sin, we must confess, ask for forgiveness, and repent, to ensure that our fellowship with God is in no way interrupted. When we call on God, and He answers, we must remove our shoes and come into His presence. He will give us step-by-step instructions, but we must prepare ourselves to receive His word. When raising our children, we try our best to teach them morals, respect, and the proper way to conduct themselves in life. We teach them responsibility, and the basic skills they'll need to survive, as well as become successful, productive human beings. We lead by example, take them to church, and send them to good schools, to attempt to instill in them knowledge and the love of Jesus Christ. However, once they're at a certain age, we have little control over what they do, and all we can do is pray that they take everything we've taught them, and are decent human beings. God does the same for us, He's given us salvation through the death and resurrection of His Son, He's given us His Living Word, and He's given us the Holy Spirit to help us along the way. Most importantly He's given us free will, to allow us to chose the ways in which we want to live. When we are saved, we're given a light to lead us on the right paths, but that doesn't mean we have to take those paths. We learn today that we can only be in the presence of the Holy God, when we're in turn holy. Do you ever wonder why your prayers seem as though they aren't being answered, or why God seems so distant from you? Well, take some time out to pray, and ask the Holy Spirit to search your heart, and repent for your un-confessed sins. Ask for Jesus' help, and wait and listen for His reply. If you don't know Jesus as your Savior, you aren't Holy, and you cannot go to God for anything but Salvation. He's waiting patiently to hear that prayer from you. Allow Jesus to help you remove your shoes, and step into Righteousness. My favorite verse today is: God is a Spirit: and they that worship him must worship him in spirit and in truth. (John 4:24)
ENJOY! http://www.bible.com/scripture-detail.php?juli=2455070&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=5336537&ct=7301671
I love you!
I pray all is well with everyone, and you're enjoying another warm hump day. I'm doing well, feeling much better than yesterday. I wanted to take a moment and thank my crazy co-workers, because no matter what's going on in my life, they always seem to make me laugh and smile all day long. The saying that “Laughter is the best medicine” is so true. God is always right on time, and He always places us in the right spot at that right time. It's so important to be grateful for everything and everyone in your life, because it all works together for you good, no matter what it seems like at the time. How many times have you given praise to God today? Have a blessed and wonderful day!
Today's scriptures are about achieving the required Holiness to communicate with God. We've learned that God is Holy, and we must been clean and righteous to fellowship with Him. When God approached Moses to have him free the slaves, God made it clear, that He was Holy, and certain measures had to be taken to be in His presence. The story is written in Exodus 3:2-5: And the Angel of the LORD appeared to him in a flame of fire from the midst of a bush. So he looked, and behold, the bush was burning with fire, but the bush was not consumed. Then Moses said, “I will now turn aside and see this great sight, why the bush does not burn.” So when the LORD saw that he turned aside to look, God called to him from the midst of the bush and said, “Moses, Moses!” And he said, “Here I am.” Then He said, “Do not draw near this place. Take your sandals off your feet, for the place where you stand is holy ground.” Moses was known as a righteous man, and he pleased God from birth. He wasn't perfect, or without sin, but overall he loved the Lord. Moses isn't at all that different from you and I. If anything we have an advantage because of our Savior Jesus Christ. The blood of Jesus cleanses our soul, and makes us Holy and acceptable in the sight of the Lord. He doesn't have to use burning bushes to speak to us anymore, because we have the Holy Spirit that constantly guides us everyday. He could speak directly too us, when our minds and hearts are stayed on Him. Jesus did His part by laying His life down, now it's up to us to accept the gift He came to give, and renew our mind and body, while God works on our Spirit. It's written in Romans 12:1-2: I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that you present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable to God, which is your reasonable service. And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, that you may prove what is that good and acceptable and perfect will of God. As children of God we are righteous, however, we still bear the burden of sin. We must be aware of our sinful ways. At the time of sin, we must confess, ask for forgiveness, and repent, to ensure that our fellowship with God is in no way interrupted. When we call on God, and He answers, we must remove our shoes and come into His presence. He will give us step-by-step instructions, but we must prepare ourselves to receive His word. When raising our children, we try our best to teach them morals, respect, and the proper way to conduct themselves in life. We teach them responsibility, and the basic skills they'll need to survive, as well as become successful, productive human beings. We lead by example, take them to church, and send them to good schools, to attempt to instill in them knowledge and the love of Jesus Christ. However, once they're at a certain age, we have little control over what they do, and all we can do is pray that they take everything we've taught them, and are decent human beings. God does the same for us, He's given us salvation through the death and resurrection of His Son, He's given us His Living Word, and He's given us the Holy Spirit to help us along the way. Most importantly He's given us free will, to allow us to chose the ways in which we want to live. When we are saved, we're given a light to lead us on the right paths, but that doesn't mean we have to take those paths. We learn today that we can only be in the presence of the Holy God, when we're in turn holy. Do you ever wonder why your prayers seem as though they aren't being answered, or why God seems so distant from you? Well, take some time out to pray, and ask the Holy Spirit to search your heart, and repent for your un-confessed sins. Ask for Jesus' help, and wait and listen for His reply. If you don't know Jesus as your Savior, you aren't Holy, and you cannot go to God for anything but Salvation. He's waiting patiently to hear that prayer from you. Allow Jesus to help you remove your shoes, and step into Righteousness. My favorite verse today is: God is a Spirit: and they that worship him must worship him in spirit and in truth. (John 4:24)
ENJOY! http://www.bible.com/scripture-detail.php?juli=2455070&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=5336537&ct=7301671
I love you!
Tuesday, August 25, 2009
Daily Devotional Day & Night Post Number 100!
HAPPY TUESDAY!
I pray all is well with everyone, and you're enjoying your day. I'm doing well, just feeling a little bit under the weather. I decided to take the day to rest up, to ensure that I stay healthy. School has already started for my brother, and along with that comes football season. I was watching a movie the other night called The Express, and it was really good. It's the story of the first black man to win the Heisman Trophy, among other things, Mr. Ernie Davis. That movie was a inspiration to me because it helped me greater understand the value of life, and how we could each make a lasting impression on the world, just by being the best at what we do. It also taught me to cherish each day as if it's my last. Check out the movie, I think it'll be a wonderful inspiration to you as well. Be blessed family, and have a wonderful day!
Today's scriptures are about salvation. The overall reason for the crucifixion of Jesus was to offer Salvation to all who are lost. The main question about Salvation is what are we being saved from? The number one answer to that question is that we're being saved from the penalties of sin. As we know, we’re not delivered from the act of sin, but the penalties of those actions, which is death. Sin however, can be detrimental to the quality of our lives, hence one of the main reasons why we still experience heartache, pain, and sorrow. We needed to be saved from the evil which accompanies sin as well. We come from the dust (Gen. 2:7), and were made in the likeness of God, but yet and still we've fallen short of His glory, because of the act of sin. We're mere mortals, who make constant mistakes, and because of God's grace and mercy, we've been given a chance to be redeemed through the blood of Jesus. We were born in sin, and continue to sin every day of our lives, but Jesus allows us to overcome it, and transforms us into righteousness again and again. We should die to ourselves daily, as we learned from Paul in 1 Corinthians 15:31: I affirm, by the boasting in you which I have in Christ Jesus our Lord, I die daily. Personally, I die daily because I know my flesh is weak. When we're slaves to our flesh, we make costly mistakes, and we often lose our way. However, because of Salvation through Christ we not only gain Eternal life, but we gain resuscitation from those mistakes. We're renewed daily, when we have Christ in or hearts. We're saved from the fire, as well as from ourselves. We're given a new chance to become the righteous Saints we were created to be. When God blew breath into Adam's nostrils, He gave us awesome strength and life through His love. When we're going through sorrow and pain, we can and will be delivered from it, by the blood of Jesus. When we’re in times of despair and hopelessness, all we need to do is call His Name, and He will bring us through them. There will be days when we feel like the world is coming to an end, nevertheless God promised to let us out of those times of misery, and place us on higher Ground. King David often felt like things were crashing down around him, but God delivered him, because of the promises He had made to him. David wrote several songs of praise (Psalms) to God, and we should take David’s lead, and always offer our thanks and praise, because He’s always there right on time. David wrote in 2 Samuel 22:2-3: “The LORD is my rock and my fortress and my deliverer; The God of my strength, in whom I will trust; My shield and the horn of my salvation, My stronghold and my refuge; My Savior, You save me from violence.” God made a covenant with David personally, but through Jesus we're saved from All things evil, all we have to do is ask to be delivered. We're heirs to the throne of Christ, and because God promised to make His enemies His footstool, that’s also true for us. Hard times will come and go, but we have someone that lives inside of us, that is much greater than anything we could face on this earth. He offers us salvation, from all things, and most importantly, we're saved from Eternal death. But, until we enter our final resting place, we'll need help on our everyday journey, so the blood of Jesus will wash us new. Yes we'll fall into pits in our lifetime, but God will always lift us out of them, stronger than when we went in. If you don't know Jesus as your Savior, then you have a permanent pit that awaits you. Salvation is free to all, so take a moment to pray and ask God to save you, through Jesus Christ, and watch and learn as all types of doors are opened to you. The choice is yours. My favorite verses today are: He brought me up ... out of a horrible pit, out of the miry clay, and set my feet upon a rock, and established my goings. And he hath put a new song in my mouth, even praise unto our God. (Psalms 40:2-3)
ENJOY! http://www.bible.com/scripture-detail.php?juli=2455069&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=5336537&ct=7301679
I love you!
I pray all is well with everyone, and you're enjoying your day. I'm doing well, just feeling a little bit under the weather. I decided to take the day to rest up, to ensure that I stay healthy. School has already started for my brother, and along with that comes football season. I was watching a movie the other night called The Express, and it was really good. It's the story of the first black man to win the Heisman Trophy, among other things, Mr. Ernie Davis. That movie was a inspiration to me because it helped me greater understand the value of life, and how we could each make a lasting impression on the world, just by being the best at what we do. It also taught me to cherish each day as if it's my last. Check out the movie, I think it'll be a wonderful inspiration to you as well. Be blessed family, and have a wonderful day!
Today's scriptures are about salvation. The overall reason for the crucifixion of Jesus was to offer Salvation to all who are lost. The main question about Salvation is what are we being saved from? The number one answer to that question is that we're being saved from the penalties of sin. As we know, we’re not delivered from the act of sin, but the penalties of those actions, which is death. Sin however, can be detrimental to the quality of our lives, hence one of the main reasons why we still experience heartache, pain, and sorrow. We needed to be saved from the evil which accompanies sin as well. We come from the dust (Gen. 2:7), and were made in the likeness of God, but yet and still we've fallen short of His glory, because of the act of sin. We're mere mortals, who make constant mistakes, and because of God's grace and mercy, we've been given a chance to be redeemed through the blood of Jesus. We were born in sin, and continue to sin every day of our lives, but Jesus allows us to overcome it, and transforms us into righteousness again and again. We should die to ourselves daily, as we learned from Paul in 1 Corinthians 15:31: I affirm, by the boasting in you which I have in Christ Jesus our Lord, I die daily. Personally, I die daily because I know my flesh is weak. When we're slaves to our flesh, we make costly mistakes, and we often lose our way. However, because of Salvation through Christ we not only gain Eternal life, but we gain resuscitation from those mistakes. We're renewed daily, when we have Christ in or hearts. We're saved from the fire, as well as from ourselves. We're given a new chance to become the righteous Saints we were created to be. When God blew breath into Adam's nostrils, He gave us awesome strength and life through His love. When we're going through sorrow and pain, we can and will be delivered from it, by the blood of Jesus. When we’re in times of despair and hopelessness, all we need to do is call His Name, and He will bring us through them. There will be days when we feel like the world is coming to an end, nevertheless God promised to let us out of those times of misery, and place us on higher Ground. King David often felt like things were crashing down around him, but God delivered him, because of the promises He had made to him. David wrote several songs of praise (Psalms) to God, and we should take David’s lead, and always offer our thanks and praise, because He’s always there right on time. David wrote in 2 Samuel 22:2-3: “The LORD is my rock and my fortress and my deliverer; The God of my strength, in whom I will trust; My shield and the horn of my salvation, My stronghold and my refuge; My Savior, You save me from violence.” God made a covenant with David personally, but through Jesus we're saved from All things evil, all we have to do is ask to be delivered. We're heirs to the throne of Christ, and because God promised to make His enemies His footstool, that’s also true for us. Hard times will come and go, but we have someone that lives inside of us, that is much greater than anything we could face on this earth. He offers us salvation, from all things, and most importantly, we're saved from Eternal death. But, until we enter our final resting place, we'll need help on our everyday journey, so the blood of Jesus will wash us new. Yes we'll fall into pits in our lifetime, but God will always lift us out of them, stronger than when we went in. If you don't know Jesus as your Savior, then you have a permanent pit that awaits you. Salvation is free to all, so take a moment to pray and ask God to save you, through Jesus Christ, and watch and learn as all types of doors are opened to you. The choice is yours. My favorite verses today are: He brought me up ... out of a horrible pit, out of the miry clay, and set my feet upon a rock, and established my goings. And he hath put a new song in my mouth, even praise unto our God. (Psalms 40:2-3)
ENJOY! http://www.bible.com/scripture-detail.php?juli=2455069&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=5336537&ct=7301679
I love you!
Monday, August 24, 2009
Daily Devotional Day & Night
HAPPY MONDAY!
I pray all is well with everyone, and you're enjoying the beginning of another workweek. I'm doing well, a little sleepy, but blessed and highly favored. I had a wonderful weekend, spent some much needed quality time with my mom, and it was good to hang out with her. I noticed I inherited a lot of her good traits, which is very refreshing. She's celebrating her birthday today, when I look at her I'm truly amazed, because she makes me believe that 50 is the new 30. She's 52 years old today, but doesn't look a day over 32, and it's amazing; I hope I inherited those particular genes from her as well. Today is also my Uncle Keith's birthday, as well as my Step-Uncle Donald, we're in the special time of the Virgos, so I start celebrating my birthday from here, all the way up to 21st of September, it's truly a special time for special people. Have an amazing day!
Today's scriptures are about the Lord's comfort and understanding of our sorrows. God is love, subsequently Jesus was so loving and caring, that He gave His all to save mankind. Not only by the simple act of laying down His life, but He came as our teacher as well. He did this because He empathized with us. He experienced sorrow on a number of occasions, because He had to witness suffering and pain to the people He loved dearly. He had to go through it, to teach us how to endure it, and that He did. When we look at His life, He never stopped for sorrow. The only time He did stop, was to take time out to pray and meditate in the presence of God. The most valuable lesson we are to learn is to take all of our sorrows, hurts, and pains to God. He's the only one who could give us rest, and help ease some of what ails us. The word Sorrow is defined: Mental suffering or pain caused by injury, loss, or despair. It's mentioned in about 105 different verses in the New King James Version of the bible, and the very first account is when God punished Eve for her deceit in Genesis 3:16: To the woman He said: “I will greatly multiply your sorrow and your conception; In pain you shall bring forth children; Your desire shall be for your husband, And he shall rule over you.” The very last account of the word is Revelations 21:4: "And God will wipe away every tear from their eyes; there shall be no more death, nor sorrow, nor crying. There shall be no more pain, for the former things have passed away.” How ironic is that? Sorrow started with Adam and Eve, and it ends with the ultimate redemption of mankind; our reintroduction to the new Garden of Eden, Heaven. Hallelujah! This great transition is possible because of the tremendous sorrow God had for us, and He didn't want us to suffer anymore. We paid for thousands of years with death, and now He has reintroduced life to all who believe in Him. We experience so much sorrow in this life, but it's always met with redemption when we trust in Him. He's always promised a rainbow at the end of a storm, and I could personally attest to that. The love of God has been very prevalent in my life, yet so has numerous years of Sorrow. Sorrow is something that each of us, who sin, could pretty much expect, because with sin comes death. All sorrow isn't meant as direct consequence for our actions, but it's also allowed to make us stronger, by forcing us to die to our self, and be reborn to the ways of Jesus Christ. Jesus had great sorrow for us because He knew the truth, and what we're capable of, but He had to sit back and allow us to make our own mistakes, in hopes that we would learn from the pain we endure. This reminds me of the story written about the rich man, who wanted to be saved. He was told that he had to sell all of his belongings, and give everything away and follow Jesus to be saved. He went away very sad, because he wasn't willing to part with His material belongings. Luke 18-24 says: And when Jesus saw that he became very sorrowful, He said, “How hard it is for those who have riches to enter the kingdom of God!” It seems as though our greatest sorrows come when we're attempting to hold on to some earthy possession or relationship that God is clearly trying to deliver us from. We experience the most pain in our lives when we're living in disobedience. Nothing can make us stay on that narrow path to righteousness, because it’s our free choice. We'll continue to go through sorrow until we succumb to the lessons, which are necessary to learn. Sorrow is a very much human and spiritual feat, which each of us will experience several times over in our earthly life, until we reach the Kingdom of Heaven. It's a very natural emotion to have, and shouldn't be ignored. God is trying to tell you something, and that's one of the best times to go to Him for the answers. One of the things He promises us is that Joy comes in the morning (Psalms 30:5), Always give yourself time to go through it, but know that as a child of God, you're naturally filled with joy, happiness and peace, so when you notice that you're in periods of sorrow, seek peace from the one true Peacemaker, our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. He's a simple prayer away, so if you don't know Him, now's the chance to get to know Him, because He's the only way out. He's standing willing and able to deliver you, because He knows first hand what you're going through. My favorite verse today is: When my spirit was overwhelmed within me, then thou knewest my path. (Psalms 142:3)
ENJOY! http://www.bible.com/scripture-detail.php?juli=2455068&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=5336537&ct=7301673
I love you!
I pray all is well with everyone, and you're enjoying the beginning of another workweek. I'm doing well, a little sleepy, but blessed and highly favored. I had a wonderful weekend, spent some much needed quality time with my mom, and it was good to hang out with her. I noticed I inherited a lot of her good traits, which is very refreshing. She's celebrating her birthday today, when I look at her I'm truly amazed, because she makes me believe that 50 is the new 30. She's 52 years old today, but doesn't look a day over 32, and it's amazing; I hope I inherited those particular genes from her as well. Today is also my Uncle Keith's birthday, as well as my Step-Uncle Donald, we're in the special time of the Virgos, so I start celebrating my birthday from here, all the way up to 21st of September, it's truly a special time for special people. Have an amazing day!
Today's scriptures are about the Lord's comfort and understanding of our sorrows. God is love, subsequently Jesus was so loving and caring, that He gave His all to save mankind. Not only by the simple act of laying down His life, but He came as our teacher as well. He did this because He empathized with us. He experienced sorrow on a number of occasions, because He had to witness suffering and pain to the people He loved dearly. He had to go through it, to teach us how to endure it, and that He did. When we look at His life, He never stopped for sorrow. The only time He did stop, was to take time out to pray and meditate in the presence of God. The most valuable lesson we are to learn is to take all of our sorrows, hurts, and pains to God. He's the only one who could give us rest, and help ease some of what ails us. The word Sorrow is defined: Mental suffering or pain caused by injury, loss, or despair. It's mentioned in about 105 different verses in the New King James Version of the bible, and the very first account is when God punished Eve for her deceit in Genesis 3:16: To the woman He said: “I will greatly multiply your sorrow and your conception; In pain you shall bring forth children; Your desire shall be for your husband, And he shall rule over you.” The very last account of the word is Revelations 21:4: "And God will wipe away every tear from their eyes; there shall be no more death, nor sorrow, nor crying. There shall be no more pain, for the former things have passed away.” How ironic is that? Sorrow started with Adam and Eve, and it ends with the ultimate redemption of mankind; our reintroduction to the new Garden of Eden, Heaven. Hallelujah! This great transition is possible because of the tremendous sorrow God had for us, and He didn't want us to suffer anymore. We paid for thousands of years with death, and now He has reintroduced life to all who believe in Him. We experience so much sorrow in this life, but it's always met with redemption when we trust in Him. He's always promised a rainbow at the end of a storm, and I could personally attest to that. The love of God has been very prevalent in my life, yet so has numerous years of Sorrow. Sorrow is something that each of us, who sin, could pretty much expect, because with sin comes death. All sorrow isn't meant as direct consequence for our actions, but it's also allowed to make us stronger, by forcing us to die to our self, and be reborn to the ways of Jesus Christ. Jesus had great sorrow for us because He knew the truth, and what we're capable of, but He had to sit back and allow us to make our own mistakes, in hopes that we would learn from the pain we endure. This reminds me of the story written about the rich man, who wanted to be saved. He was told that he had to sell all of his belongings, and give everything away and follow Jesus to be saved. He went away very sad, because he wasn't willing to part with His material belongings. Luke 18-24 says: And when Jesus saw that he became very sorrowful, He said, “How hard it is for those who have riches to enter the kingdom of God!” It seems as though our greatest sorrows come when we're attempting to hold on to some earthy possession or relationship that God is clearly trying to deliver us from. We experience the most pain in our lives when we're living in disobedience. Nothing can make us stay on that narrow path to righteousness, because it’s our free choice. We'll continue to go through sorrow until we succumb to the lessons, which are necessary to learn. Sorrow is a very much human and spiritual feat, which each of us will experience several times over in our earthly life, until we reach the Kingdom of Heaven. It's a very natural emotion to have, and shouldn't be ignored. God is trying to tell you something, and that's one of the best times to go to Him for the answers. One of the things He promises us is that Joy comes in the morning (Psalms 30:5), Always give yourself time to go through it, but know that as a child of God, you're naturally filled with joy, happiness and peace, so when you notice that you're in periods of sorrow, seek peace from the one true Peacemaker, our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. He's a simple prayer away, so if you don't know Him, now's the chance to get to know Him, because He's the only way out. He's standing willing and able to deliver you, because He knows first hand what you're going through. My favorite verse today is: When my spirit was overwhelmed within me, then thou knewest my path. (Psalms 142:3)
ENJOY! http://www.bible.com/scripture-detail.php?juli=2455068&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=5336537&ct=7301673
I love you!
Thursday, August 20, 2009
Daily Devotional Day & Night
HAPPY THURSDAY!
I pray all is well with everyone and you're enjoying another hot Friday eve. I'm doing well, looking forward to the weekend. My Mom's birthday is Monday, so we're going to celebrate this weekend. I was hoping to make it out to the beach, because I haven't been in any water this entire summer, but I'm not sure if we'll make it. Either way, I'm grateful to have my mom here another year, and am fortunate to be able to celebrate her, along with family. Please pray for her, my sisters, and myself, that we're able to come together and have a good time. Have a wonderful day, and wonderful weekend.
Today's scriptures are about the fact that God cannot tell a lie. The Holy Bible is filled with many of God's promises, and stories of how Faithful He's been to all of mankind, yet we still doubt His word. God isn't man, and is 100% righteous, therefore He doesn't have the capability to lie. In any regard, what reason does He have to lie? We learned this week that He's the Alpha and the Omega; the Creator of All things, and has all power and authority over everything and everyone on earth and in Heaven. Why would He lie about anything? A lack of Faith in Him is for the most part, not believing in His promises to us. He promised that "we can do all things through Christ who strengthens us" (Phil. 4:13), yet we go through life with fear and doubt in our abilities and ourselves. He tells us that He is our ever-present help in our time of need (Heb. 4:16), yet we go on and try to face our problems alone, and end up doing more harm to ourselves than good. We all know that God so loved the WORLD that He gave His only son so that we could have life (John 3:16), but we still walk around in the shadow of death (Ps. 23:4). When we pick up the bible, it opens our eyes to so many wonderful truths about the God we serve. When we fellowship with one another, we learn about all of the wonderful miracles He's performed in the lives us others, through the sharing of our testimonies. At the same time we still don't believe that it could happen to us. I don't know how many times I've been afraid or reluctant to ask God for something that I wanted because of my own insecurities. For example, I've always loved to cook, and I would look at the food network, or even visit a nice restaurant, and study the Chef's work. I would be thinking to myself "I would love to do this, but its very hard work and I could never do it", and would push it out of my mind. All the while my Spirit is heightening my passion to create and cook, and I accepted it, but never pursued it. As those urges got stronger, God finally put me in an tough enough situation where I was forced to find out what one of my true callings were, and I finally prayed on it. As soon as I prayed and asked for His guidance and strength, He lead me to go to culinary school and I graduated with honors. I tell you all of this to say that the enemy gets us so wrapped up in F.E.A.R. (False Evidence Appearing Real), that we start to doubt the power of God, when in all actuality, God didn't lie to us, we just never asked for His help. I always drill the three major principles in growing in your Faith Walk, Ask, Seek, and Knock; I cannot stress that enough. The proof is in His words, His actions, and His wonderful love through His blessings. We are children of God, and He loves us as much as He loved His Son Jesus Christ. When Jesus walked this earth, the major thing that set Him apart from every other person around Him, was His tremendous Faith in God. He had tremendous Faith because He remained close to God at all times. He constantly prayed and asked for guidance, strength, as well as prayed for the people around Him and all mankind. Just as most of the major people written about in the bible, who most often kept their relationships with God their number one priority, and He never lied to any of them. He's the same yesterday, today, and forever, which means all the promises He made to them thousands of years ago, still stands for us today. The only thing you need to do is to clarify your relationship with Him. Take some time to reflect on the way some of God's promises has worked in your life, and thank Him for them. Continue to strengthen your wisdom and faith by studying His word daily, even if it's reading one verse or 5 chapters of the bible. Pray and meditate daily, even if it's for 5 minutes or 1 hour. The first step is establishing a relationship with Jesus Christ, because it is written that no man can come to the Father, unless by the son. A relationship with Jesus can be established right now, by saying one simple prayer. If you need help with that prayer feel free to let me know, I'm hear to serve God, and He promised to take care the rest. My favorite verse today is: God is not a man, that he should lie; neither the son of man, that he should repent. (Numbers 23:19)
ENJOY! http://www.bible.com/scripture-detail.php?juli=2455064&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=5336537&ct=7301683
I Love you!
I pray all is well with everyone and you're enjoying another hot Friday eve. I'm doing well, looking forward to the weekend. My Mom's birthday is Monday, so we're going to celebrate this weekend. I was hoping to make it out to the beach, because I haven't been in any water this entire summer, but I'm not sure if we'll make it. Either way, I'm grateful to have my mom here another year, and am fortunate to be able to celebrate her, along with family. Please pray for her, my sisters, and myself, that we're able to come together and have a good time. Have a wonderful day, and wonderful weekend.
Today's scriptures are about the fact that God cannot tell a lie. The Holy Bible is filled with many of God's promises, and stories of how Faithful He's been to all of mankind, yet we still doubt His word. God isn't man, and is 100% righteous, therefore He doesn't have the capability to lie. In any regard, what reason does He have to lie? We learned this week that He's the Alpha and the Omega; the Creator of All things, and has all power and authority over everything and everyone on earth and in Heaven. Why would He lie about anything? A lack of Faith in Him is for the most part, not believing in His promises to us. He promised that "we can do all things through Christ who strengthens us" (Phil. 4:13), yet we go through life with fear and doubt in our abilities and ourselves. He tells us that He is our ever-present help in our time of need (Heb. 4:16), yet we go on and try to face our problems alone, and end up doing more harm to ourselves than good. We all know that God so loved the WORLD that He gave His only son so that we could have life (John 3:16), but we still walk around in the shadow of death (Ps. 23:4). When we pick up the bible, it opens our eyes to so many wonderful truths about the God we serve. When we fellowship with one another, we learn about all of the wonderful miracles He's performed in the lives us others, through the sharing of our testimonies. At the same time we still don't believe that it could happen to us. I don't know how many times I've been afraid or reluctant to ask God for something that I wanted because of my own insecurities. For example, I've always loved to cook, and I would look at the food network, or even visit a nice restaurant, and study the Chef's work. I would be thinking to myself "I would love to do this, but its very hard work and I could never do it", and would push it out of my mind. All the while my Spirit is heightening my passion to create and cook, and I accepted it, but never pursued it. As those urges got stronger, God finally put me in an tough enough situation where I was forced to find out what one of my true callings were, and I finally prayed on it. As soon as I prayed and asked for His guidance and strength, He lead me to go to culinary school and I graduated with honors. I tell you all of this to say that the enemy gets us so wrapped up in F.E.A.R. (False Evidence Appearing Real), that we start to doubt the power of God, when in all actuality, God didn't lie to us, we just never asked for His help. I always drill the three major principles in growing in your Faith Walk, Ask, Seek, and Knock; I cannot stress that enough. The proof is in His words, His actions, and His wonderful love through His blessings. We are children of God, and He loves us as much as He loved His Son Jesus Christ. When Jesus walked this earth, the major thing that set Him apart from every other person around Him, was His tremendous Faith in God. He had tremendous Faith because He remained close to God at all times. He constantly prayed and asked for guidance, strength, as well as prayed for the people around Him and all mankind. Just as most of the major people written about in the bible, who most often kept their relationships with God their number one priority, and He never lied to any of them. He's the same yesterday, today, and forever, which means all the promises He made to them thousands of years ago, still stands for us today. The only thing you need to do is to clarify your relationship with Him. Take some time to reflect on the way some of God's promises has worked in your life, and thank Him for them. Continue to strengthen your wisdom and faith by studying His word daily, even if it's reading one verse or 5 chapters of the bible. Pray and meditate daily, even if it's for 5 minutes or 1 hour. The first step is establishing a relationship with Jesus Christ, because it is written that no man can come to the Father, unless by the son. A relationship with Jesus can be established right now, by saying one simple prayer. If you need help with that prayer feel free to let me know, I'm hear to serve God, and He promised to take care the rest. My favorite verse today is: God is not a man, that he should lie; neither the son of man, that he should repent. (Numbers 23:19)
ENJOY! http://www.bible.com/scripture-detail.php?juli=2455064&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=5336537&ct=7301683
I Love you!
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