The Eternal Love.

The Eternal Love it is!! We need to remember that the Love that we desire, that we yern for, can come from only one place. That place is from the Lord of Lords, the Alpha & the Omega, the Beginning and the End, the Godhead Three, the King of Kings, and most importantly the Daddy of All Daddys!!! We can only get the love we desire by embracing the Word of the Lord and developing a relationship with our Papa! So as you read this Psalm, think of His arms wrapped around us and His loving embrace!! Praise Him daily for this relationship that we can have with Him because of His love and the Love His Son had for us, by taking upon our sins and our iniquities as He was slain upon the Cross!! Thank You Jesus, Thank You Oh God for this Eternal Love!! Amen!

Psalms 118:1-29 (GNB)
(1)  Give thanks to the LORD, because he is good, and his love is eternal.
(2)  Let the people of Israel say, "His love is eternal."
(3)  Let the priests of God say, "His love is eternal."
(4)  Let all who worship him say, "His love is eternal."
(5)  In my distress I called to the LORD; he answered me and set me free.
(6)  The LORD is with me, I will not be afraid; what can anyone do to me?
(7)  It is the LORD who helps me, and I will see my enemies defeated.
(8)  It is better to trust in the LORD than to depend on people.
(9)  It is better to trust in the LORD than to depend on human leaders.
(10)  Many enemies were around me; but I destroyed them by the power of the LORD!
(11)  They were around me on every side; but I destroyed them by the power of the LORD!
(12)  They swarmed around me like bees, but they burned out as quickly as a brush fire; by the power of the LORD I destroyed them.
(13)  I was fiercely attacked and was being defeated, but the LORD helped me.
(14)  The LORD makes me powerful and strong; he has saved me.
(15)  Listen to the glad shouts of victory in the tents of God's people: "The LORD's mighty power has done it!
(16)  His power has brought us victory--- his mighty power in battle!"
(17)  I will not die; instead, I will live and proclaim what the LORD has done.
(18)  He has punished me severely, but he has not let me die.
(19)  Open to me the gates of the Temple; I will go in and give thanks to the LORD!
(20)  This is the gate of the LORD; only the righteous can come in.
(21)  I praise you, LORD, because you heard me, because you have given me victory.
(22)  The stone which the builders rejected as worthless turned out to be the most important of all.
(23)  This was done by the LORD; what a wonderful sight it is!
(24)  This is the day that the LORD has made; let us rejoice and be glad in it!
(25)  Save us, LORD, save us! Give us success, O LORD!
(26)  May God bless the one who comes in the name of the LORD! From the Temple of the LORD we bless you.
(27)  The LORD is God; he has been good to us. With branches in your hands, start the festival and march around the altar.
(28)  You are my God, and I give you thanks; I will proclaim your greatness.
(29)  Give thanks to the LORD, because he is good, and his love is eternal.

Let's Please the World in a Godly Way.

We as believers need to spread the Good word. In fact we are commanded to by Our Lord and Savior, Jesus, to do the works that He has and even greater works. So what are we waiting for? We need to go out of our box, the four walls of the church and take that Good word that we have faith in and spread it to the those who are being held captive by the darkness and by the wrath of the unrighteous ruler. So take the below scriptures and believe in them and have faith that Our Lord is with you always, no matter what!! Amen!

Romans 15:1-21 (GNB)
(1)  We who are strong in the faith ought to help the weak to carry their burdens. We should not please ourselves.
(2)  Instead, we should all please other believers for their own good, in order to build them up in the faith.
(3)  For Christ did not please himself. Instead, as the scripture says, "The insults which are hurled at you have fallen on me."
(4)  Everything written in the Scriptures was written to teach us, in order that we might have hope through the patience and encouragement which the Scriptures give us.
(5)  And may God, the source of patience and encouragement, enable you to have the same point of view among yourselves by following the example of Christ Jesus,
(6)  so that all of you together may praise with one voice the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ.
(7)  Accept one another, then, for the glory of God, as Christ has accepted you.
(8)  For I tell you that Christ's life of service was on behalf of the Jews, to show that God is faithful, to make his promises to their ancestors come true,
(9)  and to enable even the Gentiles to praise God for his mercy. As the scripture says, "And so I will praise you among the Gentiles; I will sing praises to you."
(10)  Again it says, "Rejoice, Gentiles, with God's people!"
(11)  And again, "Praise the Lord, all Gentiles; praise him, all peoples!"
(12)  And again, Isaiah says, "A descendant of Jesse will appear; he will come to rule the Gentiles, and they will put their hope in him."
(13)  May God, the source of hope, fill you with all joy and peace by means of your faith in him, so that your hope will continue to grow by the power of the Holy Spirit.
(14)  My friends: I myself feel sure that you are full of goodness, that you have all knowledge, and that you are able to teach one another.
(15)  But in this letter I have been quite bold about certain subjects of which I have reminded you. I have been bold because of the privilege God has given me
(16)  of being a servant of Christ Jesus to work for the Gentiles. I serve like a priest in preaching the Good News from God, in order that the Gentiles may be an offering acceptable to God, dedicated to him by the Holy Spirit.
(17)  In union with Christ Jesus, then, I can be proud of my service for God.
(18)  I will be bold and speak only about what Christ has done through me to lead the Gentiles to obey God. He has done this by means of words and deeds,
(19)  by the power of miracles and wonders, and by the power of the Spirit of God. And so, in traveling all the way from Jerusalem to Illyricum, I have proclaimed fully the Good News about Christ.
(20)  My ambition has always been to proclaim the Good News in places where Christ has not been heard of, so as not to build on a foundation laid by someone else.
(21)  As the scripture says, "Those who were not told about him will see, and those who have not heard will understand."

Plant the seed.

So we should plant the seed that God has blessed us with. We as Christians have been given an opportunity to have a huge ministry for our Lord! How, your a not preacher or a minister, you say. Easy, as you go out in your daily endeavors, take the seed God has planted in you, and plant it every where you go! All you have to do is act as God wants you to. As people who see you day in and day out at work, the stores, the park, etc. you can be planting a seed in them by just being a good example of Christ. Show love, mercy, and joy. Let those blessings that God has given unto you be used to spread the gift of knowledge to everlasting life. Let the people see through you the eyes of Christ and the relationship that you have with him. By doing this you have started to sow that seed into their hearts and have showed them what they are longing for, a relationship that they need!! Thank You Lord God for these wonderful and awesome blessings and gifts you have blessed us with, and bless us more to be able to use them! Amen!!

2 Corinthians 9:5-15 (GNB)
(5)  So I thought it was necessary to urge these believers to go to you ahead of me and get ready in advance the gift you promised to make. Then it will be ready when I arrive, and it will show that you give because you want to, not because you have to.
(6)  Remember that the person who plants few seeds will have a small crop; the one who plants many seeds will have a large crop.
(7)  You should each give, then, as you have decided, not with regret or out of a sense of duty; for God loves the one who gives gladly.
(8)  And God is able to give you more than you need, so that you will always have all you need for yourselves and more than enough for every good cause.
(9)  As the scripture says, "He gives generously to the needy; his kindness lasts forever."
(10)  And God, who supplies seed for the sower and bread to eat, will also supply you with all the seed you need and will make it grow and produce a rich harvest from your generosity.
(11)  He will always make you rich enough to be generous at all times, so that many will thank God for your gifts which they receive from us.
(12)  For this service you perform not only meets the needs of God's people, but also produces an outpouring of gratitude to God.
(13)  And because of the proof which this service of yours brings, many will give glory to God for your loyalty to the gospel of Christ, which you profess, and for your generosity in sharing with them and everyone else.
(14)  And so with deep affection they will pray for you because of the extraordinary grace God has shown you.
(15)  Let us thank God for his priceless gift!

Wow and wow.

I am taking advantage of my devotional again today. I have been extremely busy at work, thus the reasoning for not having much posted lately. So bare with me again please.

I say Wow and wow for the title, because, I am a man who has and would have responded to this differently before I read it. Now I can see that God has an ever forgiving heart and while somethings are not good for our bodies He will take care of us till that conviction of the Spirit to quit things, like smoking, comes upon us and He will always love us without judgment or ridicule!! Thank You Lord for that unending Love and Mercy!! Amen!!

Rylisms (James Ryle)
Holy Smokes!
"Happy is the man that condemneth not himself in that which he alloweth." (Romans 14:22)

There may be a few raised eyebrows among our more impassioned brethren when I tell you that each Wednesday morning, from 8:30 to 10:00am, I gather with a small group of Christian men for hearty Bible study and a fine cigar. We call our group Holy Smokes. I can tell you that over the past couple of years we have witnessed the Lord do many wonderful things in our gatherings.

Now, before one is too quick to pronounce their disapproval, perhaps a fair reading of G. K. Chesterson's thoughts would be helpful.

"It is true that tobacco," he writes, "though not an intoxicant, is in some sense a drug: but so is tea. It is true that tobacco, taken out of season and reason, spoils your appetite: but so do sweets. It is true that it is a luxury, a mere keen and passing titillation or pungency: but so are peppers and salt and mustard and a hundred other blameless gifts. It is true that it ends in smoke: but so do all the worldly powers and pleasures. It is true that it falls into ashes: but so do we. There is nothing immoral about smoking a cigar. To regard smoking as immoral shows not merely a lack of clear thinking but a lack of clear standards. Lumping the wrong things together as evils blurs the real lines between right and wrong and leads to chaos. It also leads to legal and practical confusion." (The Power of the Expert, June 22, 1914).

In the fourteenth chapter of Romans, which I encourage you to read for yourself, the apostle Paul presents a compelling case for keeping a clear conscience in matters of faith and conduct; showing how easy it is for us to condemn one another for things which are in fact indifferent — things like eating meat, or not; drinking wine, or not; worshiping on one day, rather than another, and so on.

Paul concludes with this wise and liberating counsel, "If your conscience is clear in the matters of choice that you decide, then be at peace as you do what you have decided to do; but don't impose your opinions upon others. And always act in love toward another, especially if they are of a different mind about these things."
While there are certainly clear guidelines in Scripture about some things — such as adultery, stealing, lying, killing; to name but a few — there yet are many things left in somewhat of a gray zone. It is a matter of personal conscience acting with faith toward God, and love toward others, that we are to make our choices regarding such things.

For this band of brothers, a puff on a fine cigar as we turn the pages of scripture is time well spent. Holy Smokes!

Taken from the Devotional authored by James Ryle, titled Rylisms.

We are all like this.

Below is 1st John, chapter 2. You may wonder how are we all like this? Well in one sense or another we all have looked at something of this world and envied it or longed for. Putting it before our Savior and Christ! I know I have, I also know at times I still do! I covet the opportunity to have a bigger home and a nicer car, or just more money. I sure we all do this, however, all of these things are of this world and as the scripture below states, is not of the Lord and not worthy in His eyes. So let us as Christians, even in this time of need, not covet the things of this world. Yet let's covet together the eternal life we have been promised by the Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. Let His blood wash us of the things we long for from this world and look toward, and walk toward the eternal things of His blessings!! So as you read this scripture weed out the things of this world that you covet and hand them over to God and lean on His promise of eternal and everlasting life!!! Amen!

1 John 2:1-29 (GNB)
(1)  I am writing this to you, my children, so that you will not sin; but if anyone does sin, we have someone who pleads with the Father on our behalf---Jesus Christ, the righteous one.
(2)  And Christ himself is the means by which our sins are forgiven, and not our sins only, but also the sins of everyone.
(3)  If we obey God's commands, then we are sure that we know him.
(4)  If we say that we know him, but do not obey his commands, we are liars and there is no truth in us.
(5)  But if we obey his word, we are the ones whose love for God has really been made perfect. This is how we can be sure that we are in union with God:
(6)  if we say that we remain in union with God, we should live just as Jesus Christ did.
(7)  My dear friends, this command I am writing you is not new; it is the old command, the one you have had from the very beginning. The old command is the message you have already heard.
(8)  However, the command I now write you is new, because its truth is seen in Christ and also in you. For the darkness is passing away, and the real light is already shining.
(9)  If we say that we are in the light, yet hate others, we are in the darkness to this very hour.
(10)  If we love others, we live in the light, and so there is nothing in us that will cause someone else to sin.
(11)  But if we hate others, we are in the darkness; we walk in it and do not know where we are going, because the darkness has made us blind.
(12)  I write to you, my children, because your sins are forgiven for the sake of Christ.
(13)  I write to you, fathers, because you know him who has existed from the beginning. I write to you, young people, because you have defeated the Evil One.
(14)  I write to you, my children, because you know the Father. I write to you, fathers, because you know him who has existed from the beginning. I write to you, young people, because you are strong; the word of God lives in you, and you have defeated the Evil One.
(15)  Do not love the world or anything that belongs to the world. If you love the world, you do not love the Father.
(16)  Everything that belongs to the world---what the sinful self desires, what people see and want, and everything in this world that people are so proud of---none of this comes from the Father; it all comes from the world.
(17)  The world and everything in it that people desire is passing away; but those who do the will of God live forever.
(18)  My children, the end is near! You were told that the Enemy of Christ would come; and now many enemies of Christ have already appeared, and so we know that the end is near.
(19)  These people really did not belong to our fellowship, and that is why they left us; if they had belonged to our fellowship, they would have stayed with us. But they left so that it might be clear that none of them really belonged to us.
(20)  But you have had the Holy Spirit poured out on you by Christ, and so all of you know the truth.
(21)  I write you, then, not because you do not know the truth; instead, it is because you do know it, and you also know that no lie ever comes from the truth.
(22)  Who, then, is the liar? It is those who say that Jesus is not the Messiah. Such people are the Enemy of Christ---they reject both the Father and the Son.
(23)  For those who reject the Son reject also the Father; those who accept the Son have the Father also.
(24)  Be sure, then, to keep in your hearts the message you heard from the beginning. If you keep that message, then you will always live in union with the Son and the Father.
(25)  And this is what Christ himself promised to give us---eternal life.
(26)  I am writing this to you about those who are trying to deceive you.
(27)  But as for you, Christ has poured out his Spirit on you. As long as his Spirit remains in you, you do not need anyone to teach you. For his Spirit teaches you about everything, and what he teaches is true, not false. Obey the Spirit's teaching, then, and remain in union with Christ.
(28)  Yes, my children, remain in union with him, so that when he appears we may be full of courage and need not hide in shame from him on the Day he comes.
(29)  You know that Christ is righteous; you should know, then, that everyone who does what is right is God's child.

We brought nothing, we'll take nothing.

You may be asking yourselves what this means. It means simply this, "What did we bring into this world? Nothing! What will we take out of this world? Nothing! This is the 7 verse from 1 Timothy, Chapter 6. Below is part of this chapter and it talks about wealth. We always think that the wealthy must have it nice. Did you ever think that the wealthy might think that the poor have it nice? I know how it is to be in hard times with little money, however I know that my wealth doesn't come from the money of this world. It comes from the relationship that I have with our Lord! So as you read these scriptures ask yourself, am I grateful for the wealth that I have in the Lord, or do I dwell on not having the wealth of this world? I hope and pray we can say the first, but I know that I have thought both myself. I just need to remember these scriptures and say to myself, if I was wealthy from this world would I be a lost sheep and destined for darkness? Thankfully not all wealthy are like this and spread their monetary wealth to those in need, we need to be like this and spread our Godly wealth to those in desperate need of such wealth!! Thank you God and Jesus for the wealth that I have in you!! Amen!

1 Timothy 6:6-19 (GNB)
(6)  Well, religion does make us very rich, if we are satisfied with what we have.
(7)  What did we bring into the world? Nothing! What can we take out of the world? Nothing!
(8)  So then, if we have food and clothes, that should be enough for us.
(9)  But those who want to get rich fall into temptation and are caught in the trap of many foolish and harmful desires, which pull them down to ruin and destruction.
(10)  For the love of money is a source of all kinds of evil. Some have been so eager to have it that they have wandered away from the faith and have broken their hearts with many sorrows.
(11)  But you, man of God, avoid all these things. Strive for righteousness, godliness, faith, love, endurance, and gentleness.
(12)  Run your best in the race of faith, and win eternal life for yourself; for it was to this life that God called you when you firmly professed your faith before many witnesses.
(13)  Before God, who gives life to all things, and before Christ Jesus, who firmly professed his faith before Pontius Pilate, I command you
(14)  to obey your orders and keep them faithfully until the Day when our Lord Jesus Christ will appear.
(15)  His appearing will be brought about at the right time by God, the blessed and only Ruler, the King of kings and the Lord of lords.
(16)  He alone is immortal; he lives in the light that no one can approach. No one has ever seen him; no one can ever see him. To him be honor and eternal power! Amen.
(17)  Command those who are rich in the things of this life not to be proud, but to place their hope, not in such an uncertain thing as riches, but in God, who generously gives us everything for our enjoyment.
(18)  Command them to do good, to be rich in good works, to be generous and ready to share with others.
(19)  In this way they will store up for themselves a treasure which will be a solid foundation for the future. And then they will be able to win the life which is true life.

Married or unmarried, woman or man, this should always apply!

So married or unmarried, we all should treat others in the manners expressed in this scripture. Peter, here, is talking to the wife and the husband, however if you apply this to your life and treat all in these same ways how much better society would be. Just think if those who have harmed others in any way were treated with the love and respect that we should show our spouses, according to our Lord, how many lives would have been saved or people who wouldn't have been injured or harmed!! God wants us to treat others to show His love for the world! If we love like He loves, then we could have Heaven on Earth. Just imagine the great things we would see if we could all treat each other in these manners! I will strive not only to love and cherish my wife in these ways but also any, who is a part of my life, no matter what. I pray that we all can! So as you read this think about applying it to your everyday life!

1 Peter 3:1-22 (GNB)
(1)  In the same way you wives must submit yourselves to your husbands, so that if any of them do not believe God's word, your conduct will win them over to believe. It will not be necessary for you to say a word,
(2)  because they will see how pure and reverent your conduct is.
(3)  You should not use outward aids to make yourselves beautiful, such as the way you fix your hair, or the jewelry you put on, or the dresses you wear.
(4)  Instead, your beauty should consist of your true inner self, the ageless beauty of a gentle and quiet spirit, which is of the greatest value in God's sight.
(5)  For the devout women of the past who placed their hope in God used to make themselves beautiful by submitting themselves to their husbands.
(6)  Sarah was like that; she obeyed Abraham and called him her master. You are now her daughters if you do good and are not afraid of anything.
(7)  In the same way you husbands must live with your wives with the proper understanding that they are more delicate than you. Treat them with respect, because they also will receive, together with you, God's gift of life. Do this so that nothing will interfere with your prayers.
(8)  To conclude: you must all have the same attitude and the same feelings; love one another, and be kind and humble with one another.
(9)  Do not pay back evil with evil or cursing with cursing; instead, pay back with a blessing, because a blessing is what God promised to give you when he called you.
(10)  As the scripture says, "If you want to enjoy life and wish to see good times, you must keep from speaking evil and stop telling lies.
(11)  You must turn away from evil and do good; you must strive for peace with all your heart.
(12)  For the Lord watches over the righteous and listens to their prayers; but he opposes those who do evil."
(13)  Who will harm you if you are eager to do what is good?
(14)  But even if you should suffer for doing what is right, how happy you are! Do not be afraid of anyone, and do not worry.
(15)  But have reverence for Christ in your hearts, and honor him as Lord. Be ready at all times to answer anyone who asks you to explain the hope you have in you,
(16)  but do it with gentleness and respect. Keep your conscience clear, so that when you are insulted, those who speak evil of your good conduct as followers of Christ will become ashamed of what they say.
(17)  For it is better to suffer for doing good, if this should be God's will, than for doing evil.
(18)  For Christ died for sins once and for all, a good man on behalf of sinners, in order to lead you to God. He was put to death physically, but made alive spiritually,
(19)  and in his spiritual existence he went and preached to the imprisoned spirits.
(20)  These were the spirits of those who had not obeyed God when he waited patiently during the days that Noah was building his boat. The few people in the boat---eight in all---were saved by the water,
(21)  which was a symbol pointing to baptism, which now saves you. It is not the washing off of bodily dirt, but the promise made to God from a good conscience. It saves you through the resurrection of Jesus Christ,
(22)  who has gone to heaven and is at the right side of God, ruling over all angels and heavenly authorities and powers.

Be awake, be the Light of God.

We need to be awake to the word of the Lord and take in what it has for us every day. Then as we gain the wisdom God provides for us, then we have to be the Light of God and help to set the captives free! We know of that Day that the Lord will come, but there are others in darkness that need someone with the hope of Light to lead them to the Light! Let us take up the hands of the lost and lead them to the foot of the Cross were the all forgiving blood of the Lamb was spilt. So as you read this scripture keep in mind what we have to look forward to because of our salvation and pray that peace upon those who are stuck or held by the chains of bondage from this world! Keep them in your Light and show them to It!! Amen!

1 Thessalonians 5:1-28 (GNB)
(1)  There is no need to write you, friends, about the times and occasions when these things will happen.
(2)  For you yourselves know very well that the Day of the Lord will come as a thief comes at night.
(3)  When people say, "Everything is quiet and safe," then suddenly destruction will hit them! It will come as suddenly as the pains that come upon a woman in labor, and people will not escape.
(4)  But you, friends, are not in the darkness, and the Day should not take you by surprise like a thief.
(5)  All of you are people who belong to the light, who belong to the day. We do not belong to the night or to the darkness.
(6)  So then, we should not be sleeping like the others; we should be awake and sober.
(7)  It is at night when people sleep; it is at night when they get drunk.
(8)  But we belong to the day, and we should be sober. We must wear faith and love as a breastplate, and our hope of salvation as a helmet.
(9)  God did not choose us to suffer his anger, but to possess salvation through our Lord Jesus Christ,
(10)  who died for us in order that we might live together with him, whether we are alive or dead when he comes.
(11)  And so encourage one another and help one another, just as you are now doing.
(12)  We beg you, our friends, to pay proper respect to those who work among you, who guide and instruct you in the Christian life.
(13)  Treat them with the greatest respect and love because of the work they do. Be at peace among yourselves.
(14)  We urge you, our friends, to warn the idle, encourage the timid, help the weak, be patient with everyone.
(15)  See that no one pays back wrong for wrong, but at all times make it your aim to do good to one another and to all people.
(16)  Be joyful always,
(17)  pray at all times,
(18)  be thankful in all circumstances. This is what God wants from you in your life in union with Christ Jesus.
(19)  Do not restrain the Holy Spirit;
(20)  do not despise inspired messages.
(21)  Put all things to the test: keep what is good
(22)  and avoid every kind of evil.
(23)  May the God who gives us peace make you holy in every way and keep your whole being---spirit, soul, and body---free from every fault at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ.
(24)  He who calls you will do it, because he is faithful.
(25)  Pray also for us, friends.
(26)  Greet all the believers with the kiss of peace.
(27)  I urge you by the authority of the Lord to read this letter to all the believers.
(28)  The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you.

A letter to the Body of the Church.

Here is an absolutely wonderful Letter to the Church in Colossae, by Paul. It's just an awesome letter of encouragement to the newly saved, and the all ready saved children of God! In our times now I believe that as you read this letter you will find more of a powerful encouragement to you to follow in the footsteps of Christ, for God gave us Christ, and God gave Christ His right hand!!! So if we follow in the loving footsteps of Christ we will in turn be favored by Our Lord and Savior!! For dying on the Cross Christ has given us this unending love and a knowing that we will be risen as He was into the eternal promises of Our God!! Amen!!

Colossians 1:1-29 (GNB)
(1)  From Paul, who by God's will is an apostle of Christ Jesus, and from our brother Timothy---
(2)  To God's people in Colossae, who are our faithful friends in union with Christ: May God our Father give you grace and peace.
(3)  We always give thanks to God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, when we pray for you.
(4)  For we have heard of your faith in Christ Jesus and of your love for all God's people.
(5)  When the true message, the Good News, first came to you, you heard about the hope it offers. So your faith and love are based on what you hope for, which is kept safe for you in heaven.
(6)  The gospel keeps bringing blessings and is spreading throughout the world, just as it has among you ever since the day you first heard about the grace of God and came to know it as it really is.
(7)  You learned of God's grace from Epaphras, our dear fellow servant, who is Christ's faithful worker on our behalf.
(8)  He has told us of the love that the Spirit has given you.
(9)  For this reason we have always prayed for you, ever since we heard about you. We ask God to fill you with the knowledge of his will, with all the wisdom and understanding that his Spirit gives.
(10)  Then you will be able to live as the Lord wants and will always do what pleases him. Your lives will produce all kinds of good deeds, and you will grow in your knowledge of God.
(11)  May you be made strong with all the strength which comes from his glorious power, so that you may be able to endure everything with patience. And with joy give thanks to the Father, who has made you fit to have your share of what God has reserved for his people in the kingdom of light.
(12)  (SEE 1:11)
(13)  He rescued us from the power of darkness and brought us safe into the kingdom of his dear Son,
(14)  by whom we are set free, that is, our sins are forgiven.
(15)  Christ is the visible likeness of the invisible God. He is the first-born Son, superior to all created things.
(16)  For through him God created everything in heaven and on earth, the seen and the unseen things, including spiritual powers, lords, rulers, and authorities. God created the whole universe through him and for him.
(17)  Christ existed before all things, and in union with him all things have their proper place.
(18)  He is the head of his body, the church; he is the source of the body's life. He is the first-born Son, who was raised from death, in order that he alone might have the first place in all things.
(19)  For it was by God's own decision that the Son has in himself the full nature of God.
(20)  Through the Son, then, God decided to bring the whole universe back to himself. God made peace through his Son's blood on the cross and so brought back to himself all things, both on earth and in heaven.
(21)  At one time you were far away from God and were his enemies because of the evil things you did and thought.
(22)  But now, by means of the physical death of his Son, God has made you his friends, in order to bring you, holy, pure, and faultless, into his presence.
(23)  You must, of course, continue faithful on a firm and sure foundation, and must not allow yourselves to be shaken from the hope you gained when you heard the gospel. It is of this gospel that I, Paul, became a servant---this gospel which has been preached to everybody in the world.
(24)  And now I am happy about my sufferings for you, for by means of my physical sufferings I am helping to complete what still remains of Christ's sufferings on behalf of his body, the church.
(25)  And I have been made a servant of the church by God, who gave me this task to perform for your good. It is the task of fully proclaiming his message,
(26)  which is the secret he hid through all past ages from all human beings but has now revealed to his people.
(27)  God's plan is to make known his secret to his people, this rich and glorious secret which he has for all peoples. And the secret is that Christ is in you, which means that you will share in the glory of God.
(28)  So we preach Christ to everyone. With all possible wisdom we warn and teach them in order to bring each one into God's presence as a mature individual in union with Christ.
(29)  To get this done I toil and struggle, using the mighty strength which Christ supplies and which is at work in me.

Take your thoughts captive!

We need to do just that, take our thoughts captive, and crush them under the Word of Our Lord and the salvation that He has provided to us through the shed blood of Christ Jesus!! Just as the following scripture states we do not want to let our worldly thoughts take control of our actions and become a member of the dead. For we are saved by that shed blood and have eternal life, something we can't take for granted and need to respect mostly through our thoughts and actions, so that others will be witnesses of the Good News through what they see the "Christians" doing in their lives!! Be  of the Good News and and take to heart what these scriptures say and don't succumb to what those of Mose's day did. Thank Lord for that Blood!! Amen!

1 Corinthians 10:1-33 (GNB)
(1)  I want you to remember, my friends, what happened to our ancestors who followed Moses. They were all under the protection of the cloud, and all passed safely through the Red Sea.
(2)  In the cloud and in the sea they were all baptized as followers of Moses.
(3)  All ate the same spiritual bread
(4)  and drank the same spiritual drink. They drank from the spiritual rock that went with them; and that rock was Christ himself.
(5)  But even then God was not pleased with most of them, and so their dead bodies were scattered over the desert.
(6)  Now, all of this is an example for us, to warn us not to desire evil things, as they did.
(7)  Then do not go after false gods, as some of them did; as it is said in the holy Writings, After resting and feasting, the people got up to take their pleasure.
(8)   Again, let us not give way to the desires of the flesh, as some of them did, of whom twenty-three thousand came to their end in one day.
(9)  We must not put the Lord to the test, as some of them did---and they were killed by snakes.
(10)  We must not complain, as some of them did---and they were destroyed by the Angel of Death.
(11)  All these things happened to them as examples for others, and they were written down as a warning for us. For we live at a time when the end is about to come.
(12)  If you think you are standing firm you had better be careful that you do not fall.
(13)  Every test that you have experienced is the kind that normally comes to people. But God keeps his promise, and he will not allow you to be tested beyond your power to remain firm; at the time you are put to the test, he will give you the strength to endure it, and so provide you with a way out.
(14)  So then, my dear friends, keep away from the worship of idols.
(15)  I speak to you as sensible people; judge for yourselves what I say.
(16)  The cup we use in the Lord's Supper and for which we give thanks to God: when we drink from it, we are sharing in the blood of Christ. And the bread we break: when we eat it, we are sharing in the body of Christ.
(17)  Because there is the one loaf of bread, all of us, though many, are one body, for we all share the same loaf.
(18)  Consider the people of Israel; those who eat what is offered in sacrifice share in the altar's service to God.
(19)  Do I imply, then, that an idol or the food offered to it really amounts to anything?
(20)  No! What I am saying is that what is sacrificed on pagan altars is offered to demons, not to God. And I do not want you to be partners with demons.
(21)  You cannot drink from the Lord's cup and also from the cup of demons; you cannot eat at the Lord's table and also at the table of demons.
(22)  Or do we want to make the Lord jealous? Do we think that we are stronger than he?
(23)  "We are allowed to do anything," so they say. That is true, but not everything is good. "We are allowed to do anything"---but not everything is helpful.
(24)  None of you should be looking out for your own interests, but for the interests of others.
(25)  You are free to eat anything sold in the meat market, without asking any questions because of your conscience.
(26)  For, as the scripture says, "The earth and everything in it belong to the Lord."
(27)  If an unbeliever invites you to a meal and you decide to go, eat what is set before you, without asking any questions because of your conscience.
(28)  But if someone tells you, "This food was offered to idols," then do not eat that food, for the sake of the one who told you and for conscience' sake---
(29)  that is, not your own conscience, but the other person's conscience. "Well, then," someone asks, "why should my freedom to act be limited by another person's conscience?
(30)  If I thank God for my food, why should anyone criticize me about food for which I give thanks?"
(31)  Well, whatever you do, whether you eat or drink, do it all for God's glory.
(32)  Live in such a way as to cause no trouble either to Jews or Gentiles or to the church of God.
(33)  Just do as I do; I try to please everyone in all that I do, not thinking of my own good, but of the good of all, so that they might be saved.

Let's keep the Faith!

Yes hard times come, look at this weekend and what it represents, no one had a harder time in the history of this world than Christ Jesus!! He shed His blood and took up our sins, yet even through the hardest of times kept His faith in the will of God being done!! So as you read this 1st chapter of 1st Peter, remember what a Christ like faith can produce and be blessed in the faith God has given you through Christ!!

1 Peter 1:1-25 (GNB)
(1) From Peter, apostle of Jesus Christ--- To God's chosen people who live as refugees scattered throughout the provinces of Pontus, Galatia, Cappadocia, Asia, and Bithynia.
(2) You were chosen according to the purpose of God the Father and were made a holy people by his Spirit, to obey Jesus Christ and be purified by his blood. May grace and peace be yours in full measure.
(3) Let us give thanks to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! Because of his great mercy he gave us new life by raising Jesus Christ from death. This fills us with a living hope,
(4) and so we look forward to possessing the rich blessings that God keeps for his people. He keeps them for you in heaven, where they cannot decay or spoil or fade away.
(5) They are for you, who through faith are kept safe by God's power for the salvation which is ready to be revealed at the end of time.
(6) Be glad about this, even though it may now be necessary for you to be sad for a while because of the many kinds of trials you suffer.
(7) Their purpose is to prove that your faith is genuine. Even gold, which can be destroyed, is tested by fire; and so your faith, which is much more precious than gold, must also be tested, so that it may endure. Then you will receive praise and glory and honor on the Day when Jesus Christ is revealed.
(8) You love him, although you have not seen him, and you believe in him, although you do not now see him. So you rejoice with a great and glorious joy which words cannot express,
(9) because you are receiving the salvation of your souls, which is the purpose of your faith in him.
(10) It was concerning this salvation that the prophets made careful search and investigation, and they prophesied about this gift which God would give you.
(11) They tried to find out when the time would be and how it would come. This was the time to which Christ's Spirit in them was pointing, in predicting the sufferings that Christ would have to endure and the glory that would follow.
(12) God revealed to these prophets that their work was not for their own benefit, but for yours, as they spoke about those things which you have now heard from the messengers who announced the Good News by the power of the Holy Spirit sent from heaven. These are things which even the angels would like to understand.
(13) So then, have your minds ready for action. Keep alert and set your hope completely on the blessing which will be given you when Jesus Christ is revealed.
(14) Be obedient to God, and do not allow your lives to be shaped by those desires you had when you were still ignorant.
(15) Instead, be holy in all that you do, just as God who called you is holy.
(16) The scripture says, "Be holy because I am holy."
(17) You call him Father, when you pray to God, who judges all people by the same standard, according to what each one has done; so then, spend the rest of your lives here on earth in reverence for him.
(18) For you know what was paid to set you free from the worthless manner of life handed down by your ancestors. It was not something that can be destroyed, such as silver or gold;
(19) it was the costly sacrifice of Christ, who was like a lamb without defect or flaw.
(20) He had been chosen by God before the creation of the world and was revealed in these last days for your sake.
(21) Through him you believe in God, who raised him from death and gave him glory; and so your faith and hope are fixed on God.
(22) Now that by your obedience to the truth you have purified yourselves and have come to have a sincere love for other believers, love one another earnestly with all your heart.
(23) For through the living and eternal word of God you have been born again as the children of a parent who is immortal, not mortal.
(24) As the scripture says, "All human beings are like grass, and all their glory is like wild flowers. The grass withers, and the flowers fall,
(25) but the word of the Lord remains forever." This word is the Good News that was proclaimed to you.

Does obeying the Law mean we are free?

Absolutely...Not!!! As you read the following scriptures you will find out that by just obeying the Law you have taken yourself out of God's grace given through the Lord and Savior, Christ. Does this, however, mean sin at your hearts content? No, it doesn't, we need to obey God's commandments, yet be lead in our decisions by Christ. Most have heard the saying "What would Jesus do?", well as good as that is how about "What wouldn't Jesus do?"!! When it comes to the commandments I think we should look at them like this and ask ourselves, "What wouldn't Jesus do?" So don't let the Law lead your life but let the Holy Spirit dwell in you and lead you to a righteous path towards our Lord!! Amen!!

Galatians 5:1-26 (GNB)
(1) Freedom is what we have---Christ has set us free! Stand, then, as free people, and do not allow yourselves to become slaves again.
(2) Listen! I, Paul, tell you that if you allow yourselves to be circumcised, it means that Christ is of no use to you at all.
(3) Once more I warn any man who allows himself to be circumcised that he is obliged to obey the whole Law.
(4) Those of you who try to be put right with God by obeying the Law have cut yourselves off from Christ. You are outside God's grace.
(5) As for us, our hope is that God will put us right with him; and this is what we wait for by the power of God's Spirit working through our faith.
(6) For when we are in union with Christ Jesus, neither circumcision nor the lack of it makes any difference at all; what matters is faith that works through love.
(7) You were doing so well! Who made you stop obeying the truth? How did he persuade you?
(8) It was not done by God, who calls you.
(9) "It takes only a little yeast to make the whole batch of dough rise," as they say.
(10) But I still feel confident about you. Our life in union with the Lord makes me confident that you will not take a different view and that whoever is upsetting you will be punished by God.
(11) But as for me, my friends, if I continue to preach that circumcision is necessary, why am I still being persecuted? If that were true, then my preaching about the cross of Christ would cause no trouble.
(12) I wish that the people who are upsetting you would go all the way; let them go on and castrate themselves!
(13) As for you, my friends, you were called to be free. But do not let this freedom become an excuse for letting your physical desires control you. Instead, let love make you serve one another.
(14) For the whole Law is summed up in one commandment: "Love your neighbor as you love yourself."
(15) But if you act like wild animals, hurting and harming each other, then watch out, or you will completely destroy one another.
(16) What I say is this: let the Spirit direct your lives, and you will not satisfy the desires of the human nature.
(17) For what our human nature wants is opposed to what the Spirit wants, and what the Spirit wants is opposed to what our human nature wants. These two are enemies, and this means that you cannot do what you want to do.
(18) If the Spirit leads you, then you are not subject to the Law.
(19) What human nature does is quite plain. It shows itself in immoral, filthy, and indecent actions;
(20) in worship of idols and witchcraft. People become enemies and they fight; they become jealous, angry, and ambitious. They separate into parties and groups;
(21) they are envious, get drunk, have orgies, and do other things like these. I warn you now as I have before: those who do these things will not possess the Kingdom of God.
(22) But the Spirit produces love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness,
(23) humility, and self-control. There is no law against such things as these.
(24) And those who belong to Christ Jesus have put to death their human nature with all its passions and desires.
(25) The Spirit has given us life; he must also control our lives.
(26) We must not be proud or irritate one another or be jealous of one another.

Of Earth or of Heaven?

So what is your answer to the question, Earth or Heaven? I pray that you are of Heaven and as you read chapter 15 from 1st Corinthians that you will see why you need to be of Heaven. I at first was only going to put a few verses of this chapter in the blog today and have you read the rest. But since God wants us all to read it I felt I should leave the chapter in it's entirety, so I know you will read it all! The author describes in many ways how and why we should be of Heaven and not of earth. So as you read this chapter continue to ask yourself earth or Heaven?

1 Corinthians 15:1-58 (GNB)
(1) And now I want to remind you, my friends, of the Good News which I preached to you, which you received, and on which your faith stands firm.
(2) That is the gospel, the message that I preached to you. You are saved by the gospel if you hold firmly to it---unless it was for nothing that you believed.
(3) I passed on to you what I received, which is of the greatest importance: that Christ died for our sins, as written in the Scriptures;
(4) that he was buried and that he was raised to life three days later, as written in the Scriptures;
(5) that he appeared to Peter and then to all twelve apostles.
(6) Then he appeared to more than five hundred of his followers at once, most of whom are still alive, although some have died.
(7) Then he appeared to James, and afterward to all the apostles.
(8) Last of all he appeared also to me---even though I am like someone whose birth was abnormal.
(9) For I am the least of all the apostles---I do not even deserve to be called an apostle, because I persecuted God's church.
(10) But by God's grace I am what I am, and the grace that he gave me was not without effect. On the contrary, I have worked harder than any of the other apostles, although it was not really my own doing, but God's grace working with me.
(11) So then, whether it came from me or from them, this is what we all preach, and this is what you believe.
(12) Now, since our message is that Christ has been raised from death, how can some of you say that the dead will not be raised to life?
(13) If that is true, it means that Christ was not raised;
(14) and if Christ has not been raised from death, then we have nothing to preach and you have nothing to believe.
(15) More than that, we are shown to be lying about God, because we said that he raised Christ from death---but if it is true that the dead are not raised to life, then he did not raise Christ.
(16) For if the dead are not raised, neither has Christ been raised.
(17) And if Christ has not been raised, then your faith is a delusion and you are still lost in your sins.
(18) It would also mean that the believers in Christ who have died are lost.
(19) If our hope in Christ is good for this life only and no more, then we deserve more pity than anyone else in all the world.
(20) But the truth is that Christ has been raised from death, as the guarantee that those who sleep in death will also be raised.
(21) For just as death came by means of a man, in the same way the rising from death comes by means of a man.
(22) For just as all people die because of their union with Adam, in the same way all will be raised to life because of their union with Christ.
(23) But each one will be raised in proper order: Christ, first of all; then, at the time of his coming, those who belong to him.
(24) Then the end will come; Christ will overcome all spiritual rulers, authorities, and powers, and will hand over the Kingdom to God the Father.
(25) For Christ must rule until God defeats all enemies and puts them under his feet.
(26) The last enemy to be defeated will be death.
(27) For the scripture says, "God put all things under his feet." It is clear, of course, that the words "all things" do not include God himself, who puts all things under Christ.
(28) But when all things have been placed under Christ's rule, then he himself, the Son, will place himself under God, who placed all things under him; and God will rule completely over all.
(29) Now, what about those people who are baptized for the dead? What do they hope to accomplish? If it is true, as some claim, that the dead are not raised to life, why are those people being baptized for the dead?
(30) And as for us---why would we run the risk of danger every hour?
(31) My friends, I face death every day! The pride I have in you, in our life in union with Christ Jesus our Lord, makes me declare this.
(32) If I have, as it were, fought "wild beasts" here in Ephesus simply from human motives, what have I gained? But if the dead are not raised to life, then, as the saying goes, "Let us eat and drink, for tomorrow we will die."
(33) Do not be fooled. "Bad companions ruin good character."
(34) Come back to your right senses and stop your sinful ways. I declare to your shame that some of you do not know God.
(35) Someone will ask, "How can the dead be raised to life? What kind of body will they have?"
(36) You fool! When you plant a seed in the ground, it does not sprout to life unless it dies.
(37) And what you plant is a bare seed, perhaps a grain of wheat or some other grain, not the full-bodied plant that will later grow up.
(38) God provides that seed with the body he wishes; he gives each seed its own proper body.
(39) And the flesh of living beings is not all the same kind of flesh; human beings have one kind of flesh, animals another, birds another, and fish another.
(40) And there are heavenly bodies and earthly bodies; the beauty that belongs to heavenly bodies is different from the beauty that belongs to earthly bodies.
(41) The sun has its own beauty, the moon another beauty, and the stars a different beauty; and even among stars there are different kinds of beauty.
(42) This is how it will be when the dead are raised to life. When the body is buried, it is mortal; when raised, it will be immortal.
(43) When buried, it is ugly and weak; when raised, it will be beautiful and strong.
(44) When buried, it is a physical body; when raised, it will be a spiritual body. There is, of course, a physical body, so there has to be a spiritual body.
(45) For the scripture says, "The first man, Adam, was created a living being"; but the last Adam is the life-giving Spirit.
(46) It is not the spiritual that comes first, but the physical, and then the spiritual.
(47) The first Adam, made of earth, came from the earth; the second Adam came from heaven.
(48) Those who belong to the earth are like the one who was made of earth; those who are of heaven are like the one who came from heaven.
(49) Just as we wear the likeness of the man made of earth, so we will wear the likeness of the Man from heaven.
(50) What I mean, friends, is that what is made of flesh and blood cannot share in God's Kingdom, and what is mortal cannot possess immortality.
(51) Listen to this secret truth: we shall not all die, but when the last trumpet sounds, we shall all be changed in an instant, as quickly as the blinking of an eye. For when the trumpet sounds, the dead will be raised, never to die again, and we shall all be changed.
(52) (SEE 15:51)
(53) For what is mortal must be changed into what is immortal; what will die must be changed into what cannot die.
(54) So when this takes place, and the mortal has been changed into the immortal, then the scripture will come true: "Death is destroyed; victory is complete!"
(55) "Where, Death, is your victory? Where, Death, is your power to hurt?"
(56) Death gets its power to hurt from sin, and sin gets its power from the Law.
(57) But thanks be to God who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ!
(58) So then, my dear friends, stand firm and steady. Keep busy always in your work for the Lord, since you know that nothing you do in the Lord's service is ever useless.

Something to consider.

So do you worry about bad times? Don't, why, because God tells us not to, for He is with us always! And the scripture or should I say chapter from James below show us this. So as you read this chapter, pray as he suggests for a supernatural Faith in all that you do and desire, for our God is a Good God and answers prayers and brings everlasting faith, however only if we ask Him for it and believe Him for it!! Thank You Jesus for taking such good care of us and Loving us so very much!!

James 1:1-27 (GNB)
(1) From James, a servant of God and of the Lord Jesus Christ: Greetings to all God's people scattered over the whole world.
(2) My friends, consider yourselves fortunate when all kinds of trials come your way,
(3) for you know that when your faith succeeds in facing such trials, the result is the ability to endure.
(4) Make sure that your endurance carries you all the way without failing, so that you may be perfect and complete, lacking nothing.
(5) But if any of you lack wisdom, you should pray to God, who will give it to you; because God gives generously and graciously to all.
(6) But when you pray, you must believe and not doubt at all. Whoever doubts is like a wave in the sea that is driven and blown about by the wind.
(7) If you are like that, unable to make up your mind and undecided in all you do, you must not think that you will receive anything from the Lord.
(8) (SEE 1:7)
(9) Those Christians who are poor must be glad when God lifts them up,
(10) and the rich Christians must be glad when God brings them down. For the rich will pass away like the flower of a wild plant.
(11) The sun rises with its blazing heat and burns the plant; its flower falls off, and its beauty is destroyed. In the same way the rich will be destroyed while they go about their business.
(12) Happy are those who remain faithful under trials, because when they succeed in passing such a test, they will receive as their reward the life which God has promised to those who love him.
(13) If we are tempted by such trials, we must not say, "This temptation comes from God." For God cannot be tempted by evil, and he himself tempts no one.
(14) But we are tempted when we are drawn away and trapped by our own evil desires.
(15) Then our evil desires conceive and give birth to sin; and sin, when it is full-grown, gives birth to death.
(16) Do not be deceived, my dear friends!
(17) Every good gift and every perfect present comes from heaven; it comes down from God, the Creator of the heavenly lights, who does not change or cause darkness by turning.
(18) By his own will he brought us into being through the word of truth, so that we should have first place among all his creatures.
(19) Remember this, my dear friends! Everyone must be quick to listen, but slow to speak and slow to become angry.
(20) Human anger does not achieve God's righteous purpose.
(21) So get rid of every filthy habit and all wicked conduct. Submit to God and accept the word that he plants in your hearts, which is able to save you.
(22) Do not deceive yourselves by just listening to his word; instead, put it into practice.
(23) If you listen to the word, but do not put it into practice you are like people who look in a mirror and see themselves as they are.
(24) They take a good look at themselves and then go away and at once forget what they look like.
(25) But if you look closely into the perfect law that sets people free, and keep on paying attention to it and do not simply listen and then forget it, but put it into practice---you will be blessed by God in what you do.
(26) Do any of you think you are religious? If you do not control your tongue, your religion is worthless and you deceive yourself.
(27) What God the Father considers to be pure and genuine religion is this: to take care of orphans and widows in their suffering and to keep oneself from being corrupted by the world.

We are Jesus' sheep!

What an awesome description of the children of God and the role Jesus wants to play in our lives as the Shepard!! Let this be a comforting word to your eyes and ears, and believe and have faith in what the Lord says, for if you know Jesus Christ as your Savior, then He is also your Shepard! And in this scripture He is telling us how He will take care of us and protect us!! Hallelujah!!

John 10:1-30 (GNB)
(1) Jesus said, "I am telling you the truth: the man who does not enter the sheep pen by the gate, but climbs in some other way, is a thief and a robber.
(2) The man who goes in through the gate is the shepherd of the sheep.
(3) The gatekeeper opens the gate for him; the sheep hear his voice as he calls his own sheep by name, and he leads them out.
(4) When he has brought them out, he goes ahead of them, and the sheep follow him, because they know his voice.
(5) They will not follow someone else; instead, they will run away from such a person, because they do not know his voice."
(6) Jesus told them this parable, but they did not understand what he meant.
(7) So Jesus said again, "I am telling you the truth: I am the gate for the sheep.
(8) All others who came before me are thieves and robbers, but the sheep did not listen to them.
(9) I am the gate. Those who come in by me will be saved; they will come in and go out and find pasture.
(10) The thief comes only in order to steal, kill, and destroy. I have come in order that you might have life---life in all its fullness.
(11) "I am the good shepherd, who is willing to die for the sheep.
(12) When the hired man, who is not a shepherd and does not own the sheep, sees a wolf coming, he leaves the sheep and runs away; so the wolf snatches the sheep and scatters them.
(13) The hired man runs away because he is only a hired man and does not care about the sheep.
(14) I am the good shepherd. As the Father knows me and I know the Father, in the same way I know my sheep and they know me. And I am willing to die for them.
(15) (SEE 10:14)
(16) There are other sheep which belong to me that are not in this sheep pen. I must bring them, too; they will listen to my voice, and they will become one flock with one shepherd.
(17) "The Father loves me because I am willing to give up my life, in order that I may receive it back again.
(18) No one takes my life away from me. I give it up of my own free will. I have the right to give it up, and I have the right to take it back. This is what my Father has commanded me to do."
(19) Again there was a division among the people because of these words.
(20) Many of them were saying, "He has a demon! He is crazy! Why do you listen to him?"
(21) But others were saying, "A man with a demon could not talk like this! How could a demon give sight to blind people?"
(22) It was winter, and the Festival of the Dedication of the Temple was being celebrated in Jerusalem.
(23) Jesus was walking in Solomon's Porch in the Temple,
(24) when the people gathered around him and asked, "How long are you going to keep us in suspense? Tell us the plain truth: are you the Messiah?"
(25) Jesus answered, "I have already told you, but you would not believe me. The deeds I do by my Father's authority speak on my behalf;
(26) but you will not believe, for you are not my sheep.
(27) My sheep listen to my voice; I know them, and they follow me.
(28) I give them eternal life, and they shall never die. No one can snatch them away from me.
(29) What my Father has given me is greater than everything, and no one can snatch them away from the Father's care.
(30) The Father and I are one."

God's Plans!

We, in the U.S., are in hard times. Some may blame the President, but we must remember that God's Plan is in action! He is in control not the man! So, God will reassure us as we read Isaiah, not to worry! He shows us how He is in control by making roads in the wilderness and streams of water, and by setting His people free, so don't fret for He is in control and He will have our backs and make a new out of what we are burdened by now!! Thanks be to God for His enduring and unfailing Love!! AMEN!!Isaiah

43:1-28 (GNB)
(1) Israel, the LORD who created you says, "Do not be afraid---I will save you. I have called you by name---you are mine.
(2) When you pass through deep waters, I will be with you; your troubles will not overwhelm you. When you pass through fire, you will not be burned; the hard trials that come will not hurt you.
(3) For I am the LORD your God, the holy God of Israel, who saves you. I will give up Egypt to set you free; I will give up Ethiopia and Seba.
(4) I will give up whole nations to save your life, because you are precious to me and because I love you and give you honor.
(5) Do not be afraid---I am with you! "From the distant east and the farthest west I will bring your people home.
(6) I will tell the north to let them go and the south not to hold them back. Let my people return from distant lands, from every part of the world.
(7) They are my own people, and I created them to bring me glory."
(8) God says, "Summon my people to court. They have eyes, but they are blind; they have ears, but they are deaf !
(9) Summon the nations to come to the trial. Which of their gods can predict the future? Which of them foretold what is happening now? Let these gods bring in their witnesses to prove that they are right, to testify to the truth of their words.
(10) "People of Israel, you are my witnesses; I chose you to be my servant, so that you would know me and believe in me and understand that I am the only God. Besides me there is no other god; there never was and never will be.
(11) "I alone am the LORD, the only one who can save you.
(12) I predicted what would happen, and then I came to your aid. No foreign god has ever done this; you are my witnesses.
(13) I am God and always will be. No one can escape from my power; no one can change what I do."
(14) Israel's holy God, the LORD who saves you, says, "To save you, I will send an army against Babylon; I will break down the city gates, and the shouts of her people will turn into crying.
(15) I am the LORD, your holy God. I created you, Israel, and I am your king."
(16) Long ago the LORD made a road through the sea, a path through the swirling waters.
(17) He led a mighty army to destruction, an army of chariots and horses. Down they fell, never to rise, snuffed out like the flame of a lamp!
(18) But the LORD says, "Do not cling to events of the past or dwell on what happened long ago.
(19) Watch for the new thing I am going to do. It is happening already---you can see it now! I will make a road through the wilderness and give you streams of water there.
(20) Even the wild animals will honor me; jackals and ostriches will praise me when I make rivers flow in the desert to give water to my chosen people.
(21) They are the people I made for myself, and they will sing my praises!"
(22) The LORD says, "But you were tired of me, Israel; you did not worship me.
(23) You did not bring me your burnt offerings of sheep; you did not honor me with your sacrifices. I did not burden you by demanding offerings or wear you out by asking for incense.
(24) You didn't buy incense for me or satisfy me with the fat of your animals. Instead you burdened me with your sins; you wore me out with the wrongs you have committed.
(25) And yet, I am the God who forgives your sins, and I do this because of who I am. I will not hold your sins against you.
(26) "Let us go to court; bring your accusation! Present your case to prove you are in the right!
(27) Your earliest ancestor sinned; your leaders sinned against me,
(28) and your rulers profaned my sanctuary. So I brought destruction on Israel; I let my own people be insulted."

More of our obligation.

Now that we are servants of the Lord, let us keep this letter to Timothy, from Paul, in out hearts to lead us to do the right thing for Our Lord! Keep showing those who need Jesus, what He is all about and the good things that come from being and becoming His servant!

2 Timothy 1:1-14 (GNB)
(1) From Paul, an apostle of Christ Jesus by God's will, sent to proclaim the promised life which we have in union with Christ Jesus---
(2) To Timothy, my dear son: May God the Father and Christ Jesus our Lord give you grace, mercy, and peace.
(3) I give thanks to God, whom I serve with a clear conscience, as my ancestors did. I thank him as I remember you always in my prayers night and day.
(4) I remember your tears, and I want to see you very much, so that I may be filled with joy.
(5) I remember the sincere faith you have, the kind of faith that your grandmother Lois and your mother Eunice also had. I am sure that you have it also.
(6) For this reason I remind you to keep alive the gift that God gave you when I laid my hands on you.
(7) For the Spirit that God has given us does not make us timid; instead, his Spirit fills us with power, love, and self-control.
(8) Do not be ashamed, then, of witnessing for our Lord; neither be ashamed of me, a prisoner for Christ's sake. Instead, take your part in suffering for the Good News, as God gives you the strength for it.
(9) He saved us and called us to be his own people, not because of what we have done, but because of his own purpose and grace. He gave us this grace by means of Christ Jesus before the beginning of time,
(10) but now it has been revealed to us through the coming of our Savior, Christ Jesus. He has ended the power of death and through the gospel has revealed immortal life.
(11) God has appointed me as an apostle and teacher to proclaim the Good News,
(12) and it is for this reason that I suffer these things. But I am still full of confidence, because I know whom I have trusted, and I am sure that he is able to keep safe until that Day what he has entrusted to me.
(13) Hold firmly to the true words that I taught you, as the example for you to follow, and remain in the faith and love that are ours in union with Christ Jesus.
(14) Through the power of the Holy Spirit, who lives in us, keep the good things that have been entrusted to you.

Repentance

I've been busy at work so I will let the devotional Rylisms, talk to your heart about repentance. God Bless all and bare with me and my busy work stuff!!

Rylisms (James Ryle)

The Headlines in Heaven
"Repent, for the Kingdom of God is at hand!" (Matthew 3:2)

After 400 years of silence from Heaven, a man is sent from God with a message. His name was John, and they called him the Baptizer. His message was singular — "Repent, for the Kingdom of God is at hand!" Thus does the New Testament begin.

These words were not spoken with a snarl, like we see on many tired and angry pulpit faces these days. No! John's message was filled with hope and wonder. When he said the word repent, it was not a rebuke — but an invitation. An invitation extended from God Himself, offering His fallen and captive sons and daughters a way out of the darkness.
The word means "to change." It signifies the turning from one thing, and unto another. In this case, it is the turning away from the bondage of sin unto the liberty of Christ's kingdom. Thus John says, "for the Kingdom of God is at hand!"

In other words — you can turn from sin to God because His ruling authority has now over-ruled all other claims to your soul. There is no title, nor deed, nor any papers of authorization clutched in greedy hands, that surpass the unyielding power of the Lord's decree that you be free. And free you are, despite all lies to the contrary. Now, you may indeed not be walking in your freedom ; but that does not mean it is not yours. It just means you need to repent — you need to change. You can now because the power of God is present to help you.

As Light is immeasurably greater than darkness, so is Jesus far greater than the prince of darkness. And His Kingdom is superior in every way to the kingdom of darkness. There is no law from that dark world that can now do anything but wither like a weed in the blaze of Christ's royal ruling power. All satanic decrees have now been overruled, and all tried cases have been overturned. The captives have been released from the dungeons of doom, and restored to their better estates.

And this made the Headlines in Heaven.

Now then, what will you do today on Earth? What good turn can you make that demonstrates the present power of Christ's rule in your heart. What stand can you take that shows openly the defeat of the devil, and the withering weakness of his wicked kingdom. Oh, prove it to a watching world that the Kingdom of God is at hand!

And that will also make the Headlines in Heaven!

Taken from the Devotional authored by James Ryle, titled Rylisms.

Speechless

You may ask why "Speechless"? Because this scripture was referenced in a devotional today and so I read the whole chapter of Isaiah 40. All I can say is that we serve an awesome God, who in this chapter is described so beautifully and what He will do for us is so awe inspiring!! I am just so glad that I can lay my head on my pillow at night and know that I have a Daddy who will always be for me and love me more than unconditionally!! AMEN!! And THANK YOU JESUS!! So just get into God's word and talk to Him for He is always there!

Isaiah 40:1-31 (GNB)
(1) "Comfort my people," says our God. "Comfort them!
(2) Encourage the people of Jerusalem. Tell them they have suffered long enough and their sins are now forgiven. I have punished them in full for all their sins."
(3) A voice cries out, "Prepare in the wilderness a road for the LORD! Clear the way in the desert for our God!
(4) Fill every valley; level every mountain. The hills will become a plain, and the rough country will be made smooth.
(5) Then the glory of the LORD will be revealed, and all people will see it. The LORD himself has promised this."
(6) A voice cries out, "Proclaim a message!" "What message shall I proclaim?" I ask. "Proclaim that all human beings are like grass; they last no longer than wild flowers.
(7) Grass withers and flowers fade when the LORD sends the wind blowing over them. People are no more enduring than grass.
(8) Yes, grass withers and flowers fade, but the word of our God endures forever."
(9) Jerusalem, go up on a high mountain and proclaim the good news! Call out with a loud voice, Zion; announce the good news! Speak out and do not be afraid. Tell the towns of Judah that their God is coming!
(10) The Sovereign LORD is coming to rule with power, bringing with him the people he has rescued.
(11) He will take care of his flock like a shepherd; he will gather the lambs together and carry them in his arms; he will gently lead their mothers.
(12) Can anyone measure the ocean by handfuls or measure the sky with his hands? Can anyone hold the soil of the earth in a cup or weigh the mountains and hills on scales?
(13) Can anyone tell the LORD what to do? Who can teach him or give him advice?
(14) With whom does God consult in order to know and understand and to learn how things should be done?
(15) To the LORD the nations are nothing, no more than a drop of water; the distant islands are as light as dust.
(16) All the animals in the forests of Lebanon are not enough for a sacrifice to our God, and its trees are too few to kindle the fire.
(17) The nations are nothing at all to him.
(18) To whom can God be compared? How can you describe what he is like?
(19) He is not like an idol that workers make, that metalworkers cover with gold and set in a base of silver.
(20) Anyone who cannot afford silver or gold chooses wood that will not rot. He finds a skillful worker to make an image that won't fall down.
(21) Do you not know? Were you not told long ago? Have you not heard how the world began?
(22) It was made by the one who sits on his throne above the earth and beyond the sky; the people below look as tiny as ants. He stretched out the sky like a curtain, like a tent in which to live.
(23) He brings down powerful rulers and reduces them to nothing.
(24) They are like young plants, just set out and barely rooted. When the LORD sends a wind, they dry up and blow away like straw.
(25) To whom can the holy God be compared? Is there anyone else like him?
(26) Look up at the sky! Who created the stars you see? The one who leads them out like an army, he knows how many there are and calls each one by name! His power is so great--- not one of them is ever missing!
(27) Israel, why then do you complain that the LORD doesn't know your troubles or care if you suffer injustice?
(28) Don't you know? Haven't you heard? The LORD is the everlasting God; he created all the world. He never grows tired or weary. No one understands his thoughts.
(29) He strengthens those who are weak and tired.
(30) Even those who are young grow weak; young people can fall exhausted.
(31) But those who trust in the LORD for help will find their strength renewed. They will rise on wings like eagles; they will run and not get weary; they will walk and not grow weak.

Paul's Wisdom

In Philippians chapter Three, Paul writes some very intelligent words to the church. If we can apply his wisdom to our lives and strive to be more like Christ as Paul did, we will prosper in this fleshly life and become closer to God for our eternal life! S0 as Paul suggests, let's run toward the goal to win the prize, the prize of God's call through Jesus, to the promised land of Paradise!!

Philippians 3:1-21 (GNB)
(1) In conclusion, my friends, be joyful in your union with the Lord. I don't mind repeating what I have written before, and you will be safer if I do so.
(2) Watch out for those who do evil things, those dogs, those who insist on cutting the body.
(3) It is we, not they, who have received the true circumcision, for we worship God by means of his Spirit and rejoice in our life in union with Christ Jesus. We do not put any trust in external ceremonies.
(4) I could, of course, put my trust in such things. If any of you think you can trust in external ceremonies, I have even more reason to feel that way.
(5) I was circumcised when I was a week old. I am an Israelite by birth, of the tribe of Benjamin, a pure-blooded Hebrew. As far as keeping the Jewish Law is concerned, I was a Pharisee,
(6) and I was so zealous that I persecuted the church. As far as a person can be righteous by obeying the commands of the Law, I was without fault.
(7) But all those things that I might count as profit I now reckon as loss for Christ's sake.
(8) Not only those things; I reckon everything as complete loss for the sake of what is so much more valuable, the knowledge of Christ Jesus my Lord. For his sake I have thrown everything away; I consider it all as mere garbage, so that I may gain Christ
(9) and be completely united with him. I no longer have a righteousness of my own, the kind that is gained by obeying the Law. I now have the righteousness that is given through faith in Christ, the righteousness that comes from God and is based on faith.
(10) All I want is to know Christ and to experience the power of his resurrection, to share in his sufferings and become like him in his death,
(11) in the hope that I myself will be raised from death to life.
(12) I do not claim that I have already succeeded or have already become perfect. I keep striving to win the prize for which Christ Jesus has already won me to himself.
(13) Of course, my friends, I really do not think that I have already won it; the one thing I do, however, is to forget what is behind me and do my best to reach what is ahead.
(14) So I run straight toward the goal in order to win the prize, which is God's call through Christ Jesus to the life above.
(15) All of us who are spiritually mature should have this same attitude. But if some of you have a different attitude, God will make this clear to you.
(16) However that may be, let us go forward according to the same rules we have followed until now.
(17) Keep on imitating me, my friends. Pay attention to those who follow the right example that we have set for you.
(18) I have told you this many times before, and now I repeat it with tears: there are many whose lives make them enemies of Christ's death on the cross.
(19) They are going to end up in hell, because their god is their bodily desires. They are proud of what they should be ashamed of, and they think only of things that belong to this world.
(20) We, however, are citizens of heaven, and we eagerly wait for our Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ, to come from heaven.
(21) He will change our weak mortal bodies and make them like his own glorious body, using that power by which he is able to bring all things under his rule.

No difference

My title comes from the beginning few verses of this scripture. I just want anyone of any "denomination" to realize that by this scripture God is telling us that everyone of every "denomination" is the same!! He tells us that no one is superior than the other and that, as you read to the end, everything belongs to you the Church, the body of believers!! So instead of confronting each other of our beliefs lets all believe in one common thing, JESUS!! Because without Him as it states in this chapter, we have NO foundation!!

1 Corinthians 3:1-23 (GNB)
(1) As a matter of fact, my friends, I could not talk to you as I talk to people who have the Spirit; I had to talk to you as though you belonged to this world, as children in the Christian faith.
(2) I had to feed you milk, not solid food, because you were not ready for it. And even now you are not ready for it,
(3) because you still live as the people of this world live. When there is jealousy among you and you quarrel with one another, doesn't this prove that you belong to this world, living by its standards?
(4) When one of you says, "I follow Paul," and another, "I follow Apollos"---aren't you acting like worldly people?
(5) After all, who is Apollos? And who is Paul? We are simply God's servants, by whom you were led to believe. Each one of us does the work which the Lord gave him to do:
(6) I planted the seed, Apollos watered the plant, but it was God who made the plant grow.
(7) The one who plants and the one who waters really do not matter. It is God who matters, because he makes the plant grow.
(8) There is no difference between the one who plants and the one who waters; God will reward each one according to the work each has done.
(9) For we are partners working together for God, and you are God's field. You are also God's building.
(10) Using the gift that God gave me, I did the work of an expert builder and laid the foundation, and someone else is building on it. But each of you must be careful how you build.
(11) For God has already placed Jesus Christ as the one and only foundation, and no other foundation can be laid.
(12) Some will use gold or silver or precious stones in building on the foundation; others will use wood or grass or straw.
(13) And the quality of each person's work will be seen when the Day of Christ exposes it. For on that Day fire will reveal everyone's work; the fire will test it and show its real quality.
(14) If what was built on the foundation survives the fire, the builder will receive a reward.
(15) But if your work is burnt up, then you will lose it; but you yourself will be saved, as if you had escaped through the fire.
(16) Surely you know that you are God's temple and that God's Spirit lives in you!
(17) God will destroy anyone who destroys God's temple. For God's temple is holy, and you yourselves are his temple.
(18) You should not fool yourself. If any of you think that you are wise by this world's standards, you should become a fool, in order to be really wise.
(19) For what this world considers to be wisdom is nonsense in God's sight. As the scripture says, "God traps the wise in their cleverness";
(20) and another scripture says, "The Lord knows that the thoughts of the wise are worthless."
(21) No one, then, should boast about what human beings can do. Actually everything belongs to you:
(22) Paul, Apollos, and Peter; this world, life and death, the present and the future---all these are yours,
(23) and you belong to Christ, and Christ belongs to God.

The Best Place Ever!!!

I am taking a stab a Revelations today with God at my side! What an awesome account that John portrays for us, of the best place ever!! What is this place that I know is the best place ever? It's Heaven of course!! He describes, with a precise precision, what we will come to see when we arrive to Heaven!! I could go without verses 12-21, which are a bit to wordy for me, but I know they are of importance so I will leave you with Revelation, chapter 21 in it's entirety. Just try to picture such a loving Man coming to us and giving us this new beautiful home for us to live in for eternity!!!! It is so much better than where we are now!! Thank You Jesus for Your promises!! AMEN!!!

Revelation 21:1-27 (GNB)
(1) Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth. The first heaven and the first earth disappeared, and the sea vanished.
(2) And I saw the Holy City, the new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared and ready, like a bride dressed to meet her husband.
(3) I heard a loud voice speaking from the throne: "Now God's home is with people! He will live with them, and they shall be his people. God himself will be with them, and he will be their God.
(4) He will wipe away all tears from their eyes. There will be no more death, no more grief or crying or pain. The old things have disappeared."
(5) Then the one who sits on the throne said, "And now I make all things new!" He also said to me, "Write this, because these words are true and can be trusted."
(6) And he said, "It is done! I am the first and the last, the beginning and the end. To anyone who is thirsty I will give the right to drink from the spring of the water of life without paying for it.
(7) Those who win the victory will receive this from me: I will be their God, and they will be my children.
(8) But cowards, traitors, perverts, murderers, the immoral, those who practice magic, those who worship idols, and all liars---the place for them is the lake burning with fire and sulfur, which is the second death."
(9) One of the seven angels who had the seven bowls full of the seven last plagues came to me and said, "Come, and I will show you the Bride, the wife of the Lamb."
(10) The Spirit took control of me, and the angel carried me to the top of a very high mountain. He showed me Jerusalem, the Holy City, coming down out of heaven from God
(11) and shining with the glory of God. The city shone like a precious stone, like a jasper, clear as crystal.
(12) It had a great, high wall with twelve gates and with twelve angels in charge of the gates. On the gates were written the names of the twelve tribes of the people of Israel.
(13) There were three gates on each side: three on the east, three on the south, three on the north, and three on the west.
(14) The city's wall was built on twelve foundation stones, on which were written the names of the twelve apostles of the Lamb.
(15) The angel who spoke to me had a gold measuring stick to measure the city, its gates, and its wall.
(16) The city was perfectly square, as wide as it was long. The angel measured the city with his measuring stick: it was fifteen hundred miles long and was as wide and as high as it was long.
(17) The angel also measured the wall, and it was 216 feet high, according to the standard unit of measure which he was using.
(18) The wall was made of jasper, and the city itself was made of pure gold, as clear as glass.
(19) The foundation stones of the city wall were adorned with all kinds of precious stones. The first foundation stone was jasper, the second sapphire, the third agate, the fourth emerald,
(20) the fifth onyx, the sixth carnelian, the seventh yellow quartz, the eighth beryl, the ninth topaz, the tenth chalcedony, the eleventh turquoise, the twelfth amethyst.
(21) The twelve gates were twelve pearls; each gate was made from a single pearl. The street of the city was of pure gold, transparent as glass.
(22) I did not see a temple in the city, because its temple is the Lord God Almighty and the Lamb.
(23) The city has no need of the sun or the moon to shine on it, because the glory of God shines on it, and the Lamb is its lamp.
(24) The peoples of the world will walk by its light, and the kings of the earth will bring their wealth into it.
(25) The gates of the city will stand open all day; they will never be closed, because there will be no night there.
(26) The greatness and the wealth of the nations will be brought into the city.
(27) But nothing that is impure will enter the city, nor anyone who does shameful things or tells lies. Only those whose names are written in the Lamb's book of the living will enter the city.

What to do when we come to know Jesus.

If ever you wondered what we should be doing after we have come to know the Lord Jesus as our Savior, just read Colossians chapter 3. In this chapter we distinctly see what pure repentance is about and what the role of the our lives in the church should be! I don't mean the church as a building, but the church as a body of believers. As you read this chapter apply what should be done, to your life. As you do this, think of what, in your walk, needs work on. Then come to Jesus and pray for His guidance in this journey, so that you may be pleasing to Him!

Colossians 3:1-25 (GNB)
(1) You have been raised to life with Christ, so set your hearts on the things that are in heaven, where Christ sits on his throne at the right side of God.
(2) Keep your minds fixed on things there, not on things here on earth.
(3) For you have died, and your life is hidden with Christ in God.
(4) Your real life is Christ and when he appears, then you too will appear with him and share his glory!
(5) You must put to death, then, the earthly desires at work in you, such as sexual immorality, indecency, lust, evil passions, and greed (for greed is a form of idolatry).
(6) Because of such things God's anger will come upon those who do not obey him.
(7) At one time you yourselves used to live according to such desires, when your life was dominated by them.
(8) But now you must get rid of all these things: anger, passion, and hateful feelings. No insults or obscene talk must ever come from your lips.
(9) Do not lie to one another, for you have put off the old self with its habits
(10) and have put on the new self. This is the new being which God, its Creator, is constantly renewing in his own image, in order to bring you to a full knowledge of himself.
(11) As a result, there is no longer any distinction between Gentiles and Jews, circumcised and uncircumcised, barbarians, savages, slaves, and free, but Christ is all, Christ is in all.
(12) You are the people of God; he loved you and chose you for his own. So then, you must clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness, and patience.
(13) Be tolerant with one another and forgive one another whenever any of you has a complaint against someone else. You must forgive one another just as the Lord has forgiven you.
(14) And to all these qualities add love, which binds all things together in perfect unity.
(15) The peace that Christ gives is to guide you in the decisions you make; for it is to this peace that God has called you together in the one body. And be thankful.
(16) Christ's message in all its richness must live in your hearts. Teach and instruct one another with all wisdom. Sing psalms, hymns, and sacred songs; sing to God with thanksgiving in your hearts.
(17) Everything you do or say, then, should be done in the name of the Lord Jesus, as you give thanks through him to God the Father.
(18) Wives, submit yourselves to your husbands, for that is what you should do as Christians.
(19) Husbands, love your wives and do not be harsh with them.
(20) Children, it is your Christian duty to obey your parents always, for that is what pleases God.
(21) Parents, do not irritate your children, or they will become discouraged.
(22) Slaves, obey your human masters in all things, not only when they are watching you because you want to gain their approval; but do it with a sincere heart because of your reverence for the Lord.
(23) Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as though you were working for the Lord and not for people.
(24) Remember that the Lord will give you as a reward what he has kept for his people. For Christ is the real Master you serve.
(25) And all wrongdoers will be repaid for the wrong things they do, because God judges everyone by the same standard.

What are we missing?

Once again I have a little help today, but as I read this today I thought to myself, really what am I not seeing from the Lord because of this busy life that we try to lead?! If it's not the kids, then it's our spouse. If it's not our spouse, then it's work. If it's not work, then it's the community, and so on. I know that these are dear things to our hearts, yet while trying to do better for our families and others, we are missing out on what God has in store for us. So as we go through our days we need to take a few moments to just step back and see God's salvation and what He has right before our eyes for our lives!!

Rylisms (James Ryle)
While the Parade Passes By

"Stand still, and see the salvation of the Lord." Exodus 14:13 (KJV)

We live in the world of Hullabaloo, with clamor and clutter packed to the rafters. There are bells and whistles, and sirens galore; trumpets and drums, clowns and monkeys, dogs and ponies, jugglers and acrobats — all that, and more. There's even a cat in a hat.
Our news channels, both TV and radio, are packed with a host of talking heads; each filled with a variety of opinions which are rudely expressed — sometimes simultaneously with at least three other people also trying to get their point across. In the end, no one has really said anything worth hearing at all.

And our over-the-top entertainment consists of non-stop flash and razz-a-ma-tazz; the music never ends; the laughter, hollow and crackling, runs incessantly on a looping sound track designed to make us think something is funny....when it isn't.
Even the dear Church is not exempt from the circus. Our services start promptly with polish and style, delivering the Word with sparkle and smile; ending in time to go to the game, which is backed up on TiVo — oh, bless His name.

So it can be rather disconcerting when the Lord pulls you aside, and has you stand still while the parade passes by. What is He thinking? Doesn't He know how important it is that I step out there and make a big splash? Surely I should — and I mean right now!
But the Lord says, "No."

It turns out that the kingdom of Hullabaloo is not the kingdom of God. Jesus did not come to be like Santa on a float in the Macy's Parade. Nor is He to be found in the endless marches of angry picketers, which fill our streets with protest each political season. Rather, His work is like a river, often running underground, which never ceases in its life-giving flow.

"Stand still," He says, "and see the salvation of the Lord." Could it be that we are not seeing all that much of God's salvation, because we are so busy running around here and there, trying to save ourselves?

It strikes me as something worth thinking about...while the parade passes by.

Taken from the Devotional authored by James Ryle, titled Rylisms.

What the Lord is after.

What the Lord is after, is us. I took the opportunity today to use another devotional from the e-Sword software. All I can say is, that what James Ryle says in this devotional, is all I need to hear! Enjoy!

Rylisms (James Ryle)
Green Jeans and Soggy Bottoms

"He makes me lay down in green pastures, He leads me beside still waters." Psalm 23:2 (ESV)

It's kind of nice at first, especially if your life has been a whirlwind of activity; running to and fro, closing deals and climbing the never ending ladder; burning the candle at both ends; living on the edge; coming apart at the seams.

A getaway to a nice balmy meadow, next to a gentle babbling brook is just what the doctor ordered; all we need now is Bambi and Thumper and the picture is complete. Like I said, it's kind of nice — at first. But as the days turn to weeks, and then draw into months...and then years — green and wet can get a little old.

But the Lord is not fooling around here. He's after something far more valuable than you being a success, as this world defines it. He is after you being the man or woman He created you to be. And to this end He will make you lay down — even if you don't want to. He will lead you by still waters, even though you scramble to go somewhere else. And why is He doing this? So that your trust will be in Him — and not in your own fleshly striving.

If you can somehow get up and walk away, then the Lord is not your Shepherd. And you will never know the indescribable payoff that awaits all those with green jeans and soggy bottoms.

(3) He restores my soul. He leads me in paths of righteousness for his name's sake.
(4) Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil, for you are with me; your rod and your staff, they comfort me.
(5) You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies; you anoint my head with oil; my cup overflows.
(6) Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life, and I shall dwell in the house of the LORD forever. Psalms 23:3-6 (ESV)

But you go ahead and walk away; I'm sure you'll find the finer fashions of this world more suitable to your blank eyes, and hollow chest. And, no doubt, the whirlwind will sweep you up in such a buzz that you'll not visit these parts again.

Until you are made to lay down in gray linen on a cold stone.

Taken from the Devotional authored by James Ryle, titled Rylisms.