"DO WE MEASURE UP?"

                                                      Good Evening to All!

Many of us consider ourselves Christian,  but if we really contemplate on what a TRUE CHRISTIAN is, and what it takes to be a Christian, How Do We Measure Up?  None of us are perfect, but God's Word says we must STRIVE for perfection.  He tells us to be perfect as He is perfect. 

The only way to do that is to "follow His lead".  Do as He says do.  We have the best instruction book there is, all we have to do is follow His instruction.  What's even better is that He will help us to do this if we ask.  He doesn't expect us to do this on our own. 

Please understand, when I am doing posts such as this, I am really "preaching" to myself, because I find myself LACKING.  I have learned not to point fingers at anyone because if I point my finger, there are always 3 pointing back at me.  I am not a preacher, Pastor, or Evangelist, so all I can do is pass on what God speaks to my heart and hope that there is someone else out there who needs to hear it as well. 

I don't have a printer here, but when I get home, I think I will actually ENLARGE THIS, Print it out and challenge myself every day to put these into practice.  If not all, then at least one or two a week until I have them conquered.  Will you do the same?  Let's see if we can start live up to the ATTRIBUTES of a Christian.  Anyone can say they are a Christian, but can they truly LIVE like one?

EPHESIANS  CHAPTER 4

25 Therefore each of you must put off falsehood and speak truthfully to your neighbor, for we are all members of one body.

26 “In your anger do not sin”[a]: Do not let the sun go down while you are still angry,

27 and do not give the devil a foothold.

28 Anyone who has been stealing must steal no longer, but must work, doing something useful with their own hands, that they may have something to share with those in need.

29 Do not let any unwholesome talk come out of your mouths, but only what is helpful for building others up according to their needs, that it may benefit those who listen.

30 And do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God, with whom you were sealed for the day of redemption.

31 Get rid of all bitterness, rage and anger, brawling and slander, along with every form of malice.

32 Be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving each other, just as in Christ God forgave you.

CHAPTER 5

1 Follow God’s example, therefore, as dearly loved children

2 and walk in the way of love, just as Christ loved us and gave himself up for us as a fragrant offering and sacrifice God.
Ephesians 4:25-5:2  NIV

Good Night to All and May God Bless!

LOVE = OBEDIENCE AND SACRIFICE

 Good Afternoon to All!

Have you ever thought about how easy we have it?  I'm talking about being obedient to God.  In the Old Testament, there are many examples, but several really brought how easy we have it home to me.  God has Never asked me to place any of my loved ones on an altar and kill them.  He has Never told me to just up and leave my home country and everything behind.  He definitely has Never made me be in charge of leading millions of people out of bondage.  

In the New Testament, He does give us many commands and expects us to obey them IF WE LOVE HIM.
KEEP His commandments.  This is according to John 14:15.  This does not mean just following the "big" Ten. 

If you will notice, you won't find anywhere in the Bible where He asks us to do anything, or even make a suggestion.  It is always a statement, which in turn is another word for command.  He never says "will you please..., or it would be nice it you would.....  It is always do this or that.  

Again, He tells us "if you love Me, keep my commandments.  He tells us to "enter into His gates with thanksgiving and into His courts with praise. (Psalm 100:4)  He told Peter to tell the people to Repent, be baptized everyone of you in the NAME OF JESUS CHRIST for the remission of your sins and you SHALL receive the Holy Ghost.  (Acts 2:38)  

If we love Him, WE need to take the initiative and make the effort to show Him.  As one example, in Exodus 3:1-4, Moses came to the Mountain of Horeb.  He notices the bush is burning, so he looks a little closer only to see that it is not being consumed.  It says that he said I will turn aside and see this great sight, why the bush is not burnt.  This tells me that he is curious, wants to involve himself more and shows more interest.  God told him to take off his shoes because he was on holy ground, so he did just that showing the willingness to please God.  He wants us to show that extra willingness to please Him.  
 Just as we go out of our way to please our loved ones and spouses, we should do as much or MORE for him.

We are to make that extra effort. God will not force us to do anything.  It has to come from within us.  If we want His help, We have to step up and ask Him.  We also have to show our faith in Him that He will do whatever it is that we need.   Just as in healing.  God is a healer, but WE MUST put up the effort to believe that He will do it.  After all, on the Cross, His last words were "IT IS FINISHED".  Meaning He has done His part. Now it's up to us to believe and have faith in Him.

He doesn't want us to read His Word like it is no different than a newspaper or a magazine.  He wants us to take an interest in it and study it so that we can learn more about Him, and the way He wants us to live. 

A relationship is impossible to have without knowing each other.  He knows us so well that He knows the number of hairs on our head.  His word tells us that He knew us before we were born (hows that for those people that don't think fetus' are babies?) That right there tells me that I need to get to know Him better, which means reading and studying His Word, praying and carrying on conversations with Him.  

We are in the last days.  His time is definitely drawing nigh.  Just listen to the news and study your Bible and you will see how close we truly are.  

God loves sacrifice and He loves obedience.  Therefore, we must give Him both.  Disobedience is a sin and as we all know, sin is not allowed in heaven.  Think about that one. 

I know this post was a bit all over the place, but I had so many thoughts roaming around in my head that I wanted to talk about them all.  LOL!

Have a Wonderful Afternoon and Evening, and May God Bless!

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"SPIRITUAL FASTING"

Good Evening to All!

As much fun as I had on my vacation, I am sure glad to be home and back in church getting fed spiritually again. I really missed being in God's house and getting my "meal from God".

Wednesday night was wonderful. It was my first night back, and I was swept up in the presence of God and His message.

When was the last time you fasted to show God how much you care? Fasting isn't about doing without food because you want to get healthy although that is one of the rewards. It is about crucifying your flesh. Showing your flesh "who's boss". Disciplining it to give up something for God.

The following is "some" of what my Pastor brought to us straight from God's "lips" to his (my Pastor's) heart.

Matthew 17:21 states Howbeit this kind goeth not out but by prayer and fasting. This comes about due to the disciples being unable to cast a demon out of a man's son. The disciples asked Jesus why they were unable to do so and He said it was because of their unbelief or lack of faith. Then stated also in Matthew 17:20 Because of your unbelief: for verily I say unto you, If ye have faith as a grain of mustard seed, ye shall say unto this mountain, Remove hence to yonder place; and it shall remove; and nothing shall be impossible unto you.

What is Spiritual Fasting?

Webster's Dictionary states: to keep from eating all or certain foods; to eat very little or nothing.

The Hebrew word TSUWM, meaning to cover the mouth, to fast.
The Greek word for fasting is Nestis, which means: not eating; to abstain from food.

What Spiritual fasting is NOT:

(1) A dieting process or program to help you lose weight. (2) Missing a meal or two because were too rushed or busy to eat. (I've been guilty of that one) UNTIL NOW. (3) Being without food because we are too poor to buy it. (4) A hunger strike to get someone...or the government to do something. (5) A physical health obtaining act.

What fasting IS:

(1) A spiritual pursuit to help subdue the
flesh so we can more clearly hear from God and be willing to submit to Him. (2) A spiritual and mental declaration of doing without food in order to achieve spiritual strength, answers, and direction for ourselves and others. (3) Fasting can and does assist in receiving the Holy Ghost. (4) Devils and spiritual strongholds of some types can not be cast out with out fasting and prayer (Mark 9:14-19). (5) Our fasting is to be unto God and not for the purpose of drawing attention to ourselves. (Zechariah 7:5; Matthew 6:18). (6) Fasting helps us to obtain skill, understanding and wisdom (insight and understanding). (Daniel 9:2-3; 21-22). (7) Fasting is an accompaniment with prayer to have maximum effect. In other words, when fasting, we need to have our focus set on God, and not other things to keep our mind off our hunger.


Here are some things that we should NOT do while fasting: (1) Do not indulge in most pleasure and preoccupy yourself with business. As I said earlier, focus on God. Pray, worship, praise Him, but we must not busy ourselves with "worldly things to keep us from thinking about our stomachs. (2) Don't fast for strife and debate. Don't bicker while you fast. (3) Don't Smite with the fist of wickedness. Don't fist fight. (4) Don't be of a sad countenance. Don't have a sad, or miserable look about yourself while fasting that would make people feel sorry for you. Your fasting is not to be "advertised. It is a special thing you do between you and God.

There is much more to this lesson, but I will skip for the benefit of space and tired eyes. However, I do want to tell those of you who are interested in checking it out, there are different types of fasts. Three types of fasts that are documented by Scripture in the Bible are: 1) The Normal Fast - On this fast, NO Food is eaten, but water is drunk. style="font-weight: bold;"> 2) The Absolute Fast - During this fast, you abstain from BOTH food and water. It is recommended that you do not go over three days without water unless supernatural help and strength is provided. 3) The Partial Fast - Here, the diet is restricted rather than total abstinence from food.

There are even a few others ways that we can fast: 1) The Jewish Fast which is eating only one meal a day at sundown or evening. 2) The Daniel Fast which is eating primarily fruits and veggies. 3) The Selective Fast is where you choose a food type you will fast such as meats, starches, sweets, and so on. and last but not least, 4) the 40 Hour Fast where we fast for 40 consecutive hours.

There is also a 5) a Progressive Fast which is gradual. Day one, no sweets/desserts. Day 2, no meats, Day 3 no starches, Day 4 fruits and veggies only, Day 5 Juices and broths only, and Day 6 Water only.

The Media Fast is where there is no internet, No video games, No radio, No TV, No DVD, video , No Facebook Twitter and so on.) You can use your phone for calls or texting only.

Now Three things that We Should Do Before We Fast are: 1) Have an objective. Have a reason for fasting. Have a specific reason, whether it is something you need, or needing to be healed. Maybe you have a friend who has a problem and you want to help them. 2) Schedule Prayer Times during your time of fasting. 3) Make up your mind that NOTHING is going to hinder your fasting. If need be, ask a friend to help you by being accountable to them. Before my best friend passed away that's what I did because I am NOT disciplined. It helped that she would call during the day and asked if I had eaten anything because I didn't want to embarrass myself by having to admit I ate a bag of potato chips.

Some things that we should do while fasting are Loose the Bands of Wickedness - in other words don't do anything "wrong" that you know you shouldn't be doing. Undo heavy burdens - get rid of things that are hindering you in your walk. Let the oppressed go free - forgive. God tells us that He cannot forgive us if we don't forgive others. That tells us that not to forgive is a sin. Sin is not allowed in heaven. Therefore, unforgiveness is definitely a hindrance in our walk with God. Break Every Yoke- Again, lay aside those things that hinder your prayer life, and your walk with God. Give Bread to the Poor and Hungry, and clothe the Naked. This is telling me to show charity to others. Hid not ourselves from our own flesh. Don't shut ourselves away from others.

Anoint your Head and Wash your Face. Clean yourself up and don't look disheveled while fasting. Take care of your grooming. As you would any other time.

The anointing was part of the Jews everyday ritual when they woke up. Appear not unto men that we are fasting. Don't let it show that you are fasting to others and fast unto thy Father which is in Heaven. Let our fasting be strictly for HIS glory. We are not doing it to gain recognition from others.

Think about all of the benefits that will arise out of fasting. Better health, a closer walk with God, answers to our prayers. and many, many more.

Now, I have a question to ask you. Which of these fasts do you think you, yourself could handle? Comment and let me know.

I have much more on this subject so if you are interested in learning more, just contact me.

Reference: Pastor Greg Hardin
Forty Days of Fire Literature
Holy Bible

Good Night to All and May God Bless!

Good Afternoon to All!

Now to Him who is able to do exceedingly abundantly above all that we ask or think, according to the power that works in us, (21) To Him be the glory in the church by Christ Jesus to all generations, forever and ever. Amen. (Ephesians 3:20-21 NKJV).

As He helped the Israelites back in Biblical times, He helps us today, just for the asking. He is the Same God He was back then. He is the same Yesterday, Today and Forever.

This being said, why is it that we STILL try and do things on our own without asking for His help? For some reason, we struggle and struggle through life trying to attempt things and often (more often than not) end up with a mess on our hands. If that doesn't happen and we actually succeed, it probably isn't without problems of some sort. I know, I'm just as guilty.

Asking God for help is the LAST thing on my mind when I'm doing anything. That is until I have been struggling and trying, and starting over and over again. and fighting with whatever it is I am trying to accomplish. If that doesn't work, I will call someone else to help and usually make myself look silly. Why not ASK God for help FIRST? He won't laugh at us, He won't condemn us for not knowing how to do something. That is a human trait. Whether it be a task at hand or even a way to approach a person to give them bad news or explain something, I am LEARNING to approach God's throne FIRST.

I do not express myself well, so I'm always afraid whatever I say will be taken out of context or completely opposite of what I am trying to say, so it takes me 20 or 30 minutes to explain myself and by then people are more than likely getting tired of listening. As my husband has so lovingly said MANY TIMES, It takes me 20 or 30 minutes to say what most people can say in 2 minutes! Of course I know he isn't trying to be mean, and he's telling the truth, but it still hurts my feelings, so I have really trying to do better. I try to remember to ask God to help me with whatever task or comment I am undertaking so I will get it right the first time.

What makes us think that we know more than God? What makes us think that we can accomplish things better or easier than God? I'm kind of talking to myself now because I still have a lot to learn, and I have a clue for myself, WE CAN'T. Now as God's Word says, "With God All Things Are Possible". In other words as long as we ask God for help in our endeavors, We can succeed (if what we are doing is in His Will).

God is SO GOOD! He WANTS us to ASK HIM for help. Remember, to Go to Him first when you have a problem or a task to undertake. He can make ALL OF THE DIFFERENCE.

Have a Wonderfully Blessed Day!

"FULLNESS OF LIFE"

In case you are wondering about this picture, it reminded me of me after I have made some "doozies of bad decisions without consulting God first. It has been pretty rough going at times. LOL!

Good Evening to All!

My son, forget not my law or teaching, but let your heart keep my commandments; (2) For length of days and years of a life [worth living] and tranquility [inward and outward and continuing through old age till death], these shall they add to you. (3) Let not mercy and kindness 'shutting out all hatred and selfishness' and truth [shutting out all deliberate hypocrisy or falsehood] forsake you; bind them about your neck, write them upon the tablet of your heart. [Col. 3:9-12.]

(4) So shall you find favor, good understanding, and high esteem in the sight [or judgment] of God and man. [Luke 2:52.] (5) Lean on, trust in, and be confident in the Lord with all your heart and mind and do not rely on your own insight or understanding. (6) In all your ways know, recognize, and acknowledge Him, and He will direct and make straight and plain your paths. (7) Be not wise in your own eyes; reverently fear and worship the Lord and turn [entirely] away from evil. [Proverbs 8:13.] (8) It shall be health to your nerves and sinews, and marrow and moistening to your bones.

I think this has got to be one of my favorite passages in the Bible. To me of course this is only my opinion, but it sums up quite a bit. To love God, His Word says that we will keep His commandments. As I have said many times before there are more commandments than just the "Big Ten". Let me say, I'm not using that expression of the Ten Commandments to be disrespectful. It's just that when the word "commandment" is used, people automatically think of the Ten Commandments. He also says he wants to have a "relationship" with us. He wants us to come to Him for advice. If we try and make our own decisions without consulting Him, more likely than not we will make a mess of things. If we will ask Him what He thinks and abide by what He tells our spirits, things will always turn out for the better. We may not think so at the time but by and by we will see that He knows what He is doing better than we do.

We all want a happy and successful life. We also want to make all of the right decisions and to see our children thrive and succeed in life. This passage tells us that this will happen if we follow God's lead. If we will listen to Him and abide by His Word. If we will surrender our will to Him and give Him control of our lives and decisions we will succeed in our goals.

Now let me clarify, because I have known some people to think that this meant asking God for help, and then just sitting back and watching to see what happened. That is not what I mean. God will help us by providing the means for something to happen. For example if someone is needing money, it isn't going to fall from the air. Someone may call with a job offer, or you might receive a refund or rebate in the mail. Someone who owed you money a long time ago may pay you back.

Another example was healing. Although God can and often does heal miraculously, he also uses doctors and surgeons to heal. I "laid hand on" a friend's husband and prayed for him. He had been diagnosed with cancer. A couple of months before that. He had gone to several doctors and they had him keep coming back and checking him. After I prayed, he went back to the doctor and they couldn't find the cancer anywhere. They looked and looked. Finally, they did find it, but instead of being spread as originally thought it was in a shell of sorts which made it a lot easier for the surgeon to go in and get it all out without worrying that there was any left. My friend's husband is still doing quite well today. This happened about 7 years ago.

The [point I am trying to make is that if we will rely on God's thinking and not our own, we will be much better off and a lot happier.

Qualities that are more radiant than gems are love and loyalty. The definition of "loyalty" is continually supporting someone of some cause. Being loyal to God is studying His Word regularly (as in every day) and trusting Him even if we don't see a solution to our problems. If we cast our cares upon Him like He tells us, things will work out for the best.

I know if you are not use to do this it is hard at first, but the more control you allow Him, the more you will be able to see His wonderful results and the easier it becomes to relinquish more control. This is what is known and increasing in faith.

Lots of bad things happen in life, but if we will allow God, He will help us through them. If we will lean on His understanding and knowledge rather than our own, several things will happen. First things will turn out better for us. Also, we will learn to depend more on Him like He wants us to. Our faith will increase because we will start noticing how much better things turn out and BEST of ALL, we will get closer to Him and develop an intimate relationship with Him.

There are two things that should be checked to measure the fullness or fulfillment of life. Those are our RELATIONSHIP WITH GOD, and FAMILY. (in that order). If we have a fulfilling relationship with God, then everything else will follow.

Good Night To All and May God Bless!

"LOVE AND PRAISE FOR WHO HE IS"

Good Evening to All!

In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. (2) The same was in the beginning with God. (3) All things were made by him; and without him was not any thing made that was made. (14) And the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us, (and we beheld his glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father,) full of grace and truth.
(John 1:1-3, 1:14)

My point of this post is this. We are always giving God praise for what He does. He created us, He created the universe, He delivered us from bondage, or addictions. He brought us out of a bad marriage, a bad life. He supplies all our needs. We love Him because He did. . . . We love Him because He FIRST loved us. Why can't we just praise Him and love him for WHO HE IS? Not just for what He has done for us, but literally Who He Is?

I mean lets face it. I sit and oogle over Mark Harmon every night on NCIS. (No I don't love him, but I still like watching Him). He is just another person that makes A LOT more money than I do, who has a beautiful smile, and is famous. We should look at God with MORE admiration and excitement than these movie stars. I don't like Mark Harmon because he did anything for me. Why should we do that to God? Just love Him and praise Him because He is God. He is love. He is truth . He is the way, the truth and the light. Yes, I know Jesus says He is the way, the truth and the light. See a common thread? God also said He (God) saved us. Jesus is our Savior. Notice the commonality? While I'm on the subject, when we go to concerts, or ball games, we get up and hoop and holler, wave our arms about and you would thing we won the lottery. That is another source of excitement. See? I keep coming up with all these exciting things and I'll bet you're sitting there agreeing with every word. Now, you'll probably hem and haw about this one. We should show God just as much excitement when we praise Him. He has done more for us than these football games or music stars. He deserves ALL of our praise. Without Him we are nothing. See, there I go talking about what He has done. We need to concentrate on just thanking Him for being who He is.

OK, that is another post. What I am truly trying to get at is yes, we SHOULD praise Him for what He did for us. God came to earth in the form of a human child, grew up among us, walked among us as an adult, went through more than His share of human suffering all so that we could be cleansed and sinless when we get to heaven. God did the hard part. He allowed His human body to be killed and blood to be shed on that "altar" of a cross so that we could spend eternity with Him. An even more amazing thing to me is that He told His Divine (Father) to forgive the same people who mocked, ridiculed, spat, and hung Him on the cross. I wonder how many of us could do that.

The thing is, the journey of "staying saved" is up to us. He expects us to live according to His Word. (Word in Greek is Logos or plan). So, God wants us to live according to His Plan. On a much smaller scale, my mom used to tell us girls, as long as you girls live under my roof, you will live according to my rules. In other words, she had certain rules for us to abide by and if we didn't we suffered the consequences. Anyway the point is if we are going to live with God in eternity we have to abide by His rules now. This once saved always saved idea sounds good, but and it is as long as you live for God, love God and realize that if you turn away from Him enough eventually He will count you as a reprobate (which means Hopeless case according to the dictionary).

God is love and He gives us every chance in the world to get our names in the Book of Life. We need to praise Him and love Him for His loving attributes. He equips us with everything we need to live for Him.

We live in a world where unfortunately there is too much emphasis put on conditions to be loved. To much of I love them because they did this or they will do that. I cannot imagine the generation of today living back in the old days, when women stayed with their husbands through thick and thin, or in Biblical times when women called their husbands lord. That would definitely stick in my craw if I had to do that today, but still we put conditions on our love for each other.

God is ONE who there should be NO CONDITIONS.

God gets lots of praise for what he does, but not enough for just being God. We need to acknowledge Him for WHO HE IS JUST AS MUCH.

I know that I have repeated myself probably WAY TOO MUCH in this post, but I guess you could say, I'm trying to get it through MY OWN THICK SKULL to do this. I am really harping at myself, because most of the time, that is what it takes to get things across to me, and it's ok for God to chastise me, or me to harp at myself, but I don't like my hubby to do it. I would say I am trying to beat him to the punch, but he doesn't like to talk about this subject, and that's another story.

All I am asking is that you LOOK UP, OR CLOSE YOUR EYES AND TELL GOD YOU LOVE HIM FOR WHO HE IS as well as for what He has done.

Good night to All and May God Bless!

"WHEN LIFE GETS DIFFICULT"

Good Evening to All!

Have you ever found yourself wondering why you have to learn everything the hard way? I know I have. I am always kidding around and telling people if there is a hard or difficult way to do something, I will find it. Nothing has ever come easy for me, no matter what it was. That is until I began building my relationship with God.

Life is still not a bed of roses, God never promised that. What He did promise is that He would help me through it. He would be there with me.

This being said, sometimes God takes us down the more difficult path rather than the easy way because He is a Good Father. He wants us to learn from our experience. Not only does He want us to learn from our experience, but also to lean on Him.

If everything in life is handed to us on a silver platter, or if we can do everything for ourselves how could we learn to have faith in Him? How could we learn to go to Him for help?

An example is God leading the children of Israel the long difficult way through wilderness. Now according to Joyce Meyer He did this to prepare them for the battles they would face in possessing the Promised Land. Her idea is that He was concerned that when they saw the enemy they might run back to Egypt and become enslaved again in their former bondage and God wanted to teach them Who He was and that they could depend on Him to fight their battles.

While this may be true, I also think that He did it because they had turned their backs on Him too many times, and were constantly complaining about what He was doing for them so He was leading them around the desert until the generation that had done this had died. Numbers 32:13 says And the LORD'S anger was kindled against Israel, and he made them wander in the wilderness forty years, until all the generation, that had done evil in the sight of the LORD, was consumed.

Now that being said, let's move on. I truly believe that a lot of people, especially NEW Christians have the wrong idea about their Christian journey. I have actually encountered people who thought that when they became a Christian, and especially when they received the Holy Ghost that all their problems would cease. That God would miraculously take them away. This is definitely an error in thinking. God will be with us as I said earlier through our trials. As far as receiving the Holy Ghost, it is He that gives us that little nudge when we are about to make the wrong decision. It is He that makes us have second thoughts about doing something that will cause us harm or trouble. He is there to guide us and to teach us, but ultimately, it is we who make the decisions in our lives. Right or wrong. If we listen to the Holy Ghost within us, it will be the right one. If we ignore it and something bad happens it is the wrong one. God will NEVER STEER US WRONG.

If you feel in your spirit that God has asked you to do something, don't back down because it gets hard. He does this so you will learn to lean on Him and ask for His help.

Well, I wasn't quite through, but somehow this got published, (by accident) so I better quit and add some pictures and color to this post.

My point to this whole post is, if God can part the Red Sea and save the millions and millions of Israelites from the Egyptians, if God can lead the children of Israelites around a desert for 40 years and not have the people's shoes and clothes wear out, or go hungry, why is it so hard to believe that He cannot provide miracles for us today? God NEVER changes. He is the same yesterday, today and forever. His Word DOES NOT LIE.

Next time you come upon a situation that you feel is "impossible", call on God for help. I bet He will answer.

I chose the above pillar of fire picture because it portrays the pillar of fire in the middle of the "dry Red Sea, with all of the people standing in the middle. I really like that picture.

The Answers to last night's Bible Challenge "Fish and Ships are as follows:

1. d) no one (Genesis 7)
2. d) Zebulon (Genesis 49:13)
3. b) Tarshish (1 Kings 10:22)
4. d) harpoons and spears (Job 41:7)
5. c) Habakkuk (Habakkuk 1:15)
6. a) Egypt (Isaiah 19:1-8)
7. b) Tyrus (Ezekiel 26:4-5)
8. c) Sea of Tiberias (John 21:1)
9. c) 153 (John 21:11)
10. d) Adriatic Sea (Acts 27:27-41)

I hope you did well on this challenge. It is also my hope that while looking up these scriptures you also were nudged to look beyond the "given" verse to gain a little more insight into God's Word.

Good Night to All and May God Bless!

"HAPPY THANKSGIVING !"

While you are "gobbling down" the wonderful turkey and all the trimmings, remember how he gave his life that you might eat hearty and gain a few pounds! LOL~ As a personal note, I DO want to Give thanks To and For All of my Blog Family. It would be a lonely and discouraging task getting God's Word out without knowing for sure that there are people out there who truly are hungry for His Word and Guidance. I would definitely keep on doing it, because this is my way to "witness", but it is wonderful to know someone cares to read and listen. Thank you again!



BUT, MOST OF ALL, Give thanks to GOD for what He has done for you, what He is GOING to do for you in years to come. EVEN MORE SO, GIVE THANKS to GOD JUST for WHO HE IS, no strings attached.

Too many times we think we have to have reasons to thank HIM. We DON'T. We can thank Him just for being who He is, our Father in Heaven, Our Creator. Our Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father and Prince of Peace.

Have you ever thought about "who He is", or have you just concentrated on what He has done? Yes, He GAVE HIS LIFE FOR US, and that was the ULTIMATE, but He IS our Physician, Our Provider, our Supplier of our need. He IS our advocate with the Father, He is our Lawyer. He is our Confidant. HE IS the ONE who will Never let us down.

Yes, I know you are thinking "she's talking about "Jesus". I AM. Jesus said, "I AND MY FATHER ARE ONE".


Have a Wonderfully Blessed Thanksgiving!

"THIS LITTLE LIGHT OF MINE"

Good Evening to All!

I had started out in one direction tonight, but when I was looking up one scripture, another jumped out at me, and I felt in my spirit that I should go with the latter one instead.

Matthew 5:16 says, Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works and glorify your Father in heaven.

Now the NKJV reference for this verse says: The believer does not have inherent light; rather we have reflective light. As we behold the glory of the Lord, we reflect it. Therefore, we need to make sure that nothing comes between us and the Lord's light (see 2 Cor. 3:18; Phil.2:14-16).

And all of us, as with unveiled face, [because we] continued to behold [in the Word of God] as in a mirror the glory of the Lord, are constantly being transfigured into His very own image in ever increasing splendor and from one degree of glory to another; [for this comes] from the Lord [Who is] the Spirit. (2 Cor. 3:18)

(14) Do all things without grumbling and faultfinding and complaining [against God] and questioning and doubting [among yourselves], (15) That you may show yourselves to be blameless and guiltless, innocent and uncontaminated, children of God without blemish (faultless, unrebukable) in the midst of a crooked and wicked generation [spiritually perverted and perverse], among whom you are seen as bright lights (stars or beacons shining out clearly) in the [dark] world, (16) Holding out [to it] and offering [to all men] the Word of Life, so that in the day of Christ I may have something of which exultantly to rejoice and glory in that I did not run my race in vain or spend my labor to no purpose. (Phil. 2:14-16)

Now first of all, I'm sure there are a lot of you out there that are a lot smarter than I am, but I had to look up the word "inherent". My thesaurus gave me synonyms such as: natural, native, congenital, inborn, inbred and real.

Therefore, we do not have natural light in us. The Bible tells us we were born in sin. We as humans have a sinful nature. Therefore the light which we have in us is God's light reflected in us.

It is possible to be "good people" and not be a "Child of God". A person can have a sense of right and wrong. He can be a good person, do nice things for people, volunteer, not steal, lie or things of that nature, and still not have God in his life. The sad thing is, if he doesn't have God in his life, then he is bound for a bleak eternity.

We need to get God in our life and keep Him there. We need to do what is required of us to be Children of God. This means fulfilling what I fondly call the "prerequisites" of salvation, which doing what Peter said and abiding by Acts 2:38. Then start your life over by living for God. Yes, it is a journey. Part of that journey is letting God's "reflective light shine through you to others, so that they too will want to know how wonderful it is to live for God and have the expectation of an eternity in Heaven with our Savior.

The reason I am saying this is because we need to make sure that when we take steps to change our lives (or I should say let God change our lives) then we need to make sure that NOTHING comes between us and the Lord's light.

If we aren't careful, we can let the worries of this world, the day to day battles get hold of us, and wear us down until it gets between us and the light. If we get tired of fighting what this "world" is shoving in our face constantly, it is possible if we don't keep God's light in the forefront of our lives that we could "fall away". The Bible even talks about that happening in the last days, and the last days are definitely here. I'm not saying that the end is coming tomorrow, next week or even 2 years from now, but it will be soon. All we have to do is look at the signs, and feel the spirits in the air. The immorality, the unbelief, children against their parents, parents against their children and on and on.

Let God's light shine bright in your life. Do it for yourself and for others. When you do, it makes you feel good deep down in your soul, and it also helps others to see this and maybe even bring them to Christ. It is time for the harvest. God needs "laborers out in His field. If we let His light shine through us, that alone can bring people to Him.

I feel like the "reference verses" are pretty self-explanatory. That we as Christians, as Children of the Most High God, are His ambassadors to the World. We are to be examples to the "world". We are God's hands, feet and mouth. The Bible says God made us in His image. I truly don't believe it was talking in the physical sense. When He first made us, we were perfect in every way. It was His intention that we would live forever with Him until Satan showed up and Eve allowed him to deceive her.

Therefore, I contend that when God says He made us in His image He was referring to His attributes, or having the "Fruit of the Spirit" in our lives. When we have the Fruit of the Spirit, we are kind, loving, patient, we have peace, joy, faithfulness, gentleness, practice self control, we show compassion, charity, and love. When these attributes are active in our lives, then God's light shines through us and others know there is something different about us from the "world", and they will want to be part of it also.

In case you are wondering about my choices of pictures, I liken the lighthouse to Jesus, because He is the light of the world. His light is so bright that He can shine it through us and we can allow others to see it if we don't let "junk get in the way". I liken us to a candle shining in the darkness. we are but a little flame, but as long as there is light coming from it, it cuts through the darkness of the world.

We must not let the world get between us and God's light. If it does, it will not only harm us, and make us into hypocrites, (I say this because I have seen people from churches I have been to in the past, turn toward the "world" after being in a relationship with Christ, and start doing things that it's obvious that God would not approve of, yet still call themselves Christians. Those are who I call hypocrites.

If a person is going to affiliate themselves with Christ our Savior, and call themself a Christian, then they need to talk the talk AND WALK THE WALK. This means letting God's light shine through them to others in full view.

If you have to, get that little song in your brain until it makes you want to start doing what it says: This little light of mine, I'm gonna let it shine, This little light of mine, I'm gonna let it shine. let it shine, let it shine, let it shine.

Another one is : You can't be a beacon if your light don't shine (the author's grammar not mine), you can't be a beacon if your light don't shine, shine a little light in all the world by God's design, you can't be a beacon if you light don't shine.

I learned these songs when I was a child, but the words still ring in my heart.

Good Night to All and May God Bless!