"SELF IMAGE MAKEOVER"

Good Evening to All!

He tried to get a look at Jesus, but he was too short to see over the crowd. He ran ahead and climbed a sycamore tree beside the road, for Jesus was going to pass that way.

When Jesus came by, he looked up at Zacchaeus and called him by name. "Zacchaeus!" he said. "Quick, come down! I must be a guest in your home today."

Zacchaeus quickly climbed down and took Jesus to his house in great excitement and joy. But the people were displeased. "He has gone to be the guest of a notorious sinner," they grumbled.

Meanwhile, Zacchaeus stood before the Lord and said, "I will give half my wealth to the poor, Lord, and if I have cheated people on their taxes, I will give them back four times as much!"

Jesus responded, "Salvation has come to this home today, for this man has shown himself to be a true son of Abraham. For the Son of Man came to see,k and save those who are lost."
Luke 18:3-10

Jesus didn't act like other religious leaders. His acceptance and His teaching triggered an inner makeover in Zacchaeus and a change of outward behavior as well.

Real change starts inwardly but needs to be confirmed by changed behavior. Some people may not accept that we have changed, and still watch and wait for our old behavior to return. They may continue to talk about our old, bad ways, but Jesus will stand with us. Each day we can examine our actions and words and ask ourselves if we need to change certain aspects of our being, and then CHOOSE TO DO SO. Always remember it is our choice whether to change or not. God will help us if we allow Him to, but He will not force us to change. It is our choice and we will suffer the consequence for our bad choices.

Many people refuse to change because they feel they won't be accepted anyway, no matter what they do. After so long of having people look down on you, criticize you and ridicule you for your mistakes and choices, a person tends to start giving up on themselves. The only thing that will bring them out of it is encouragement and acceptance. Believe me I know. For I'm living proof. I won't go into my personal testimony on line, but I will say in my younger days, before I met my present husband of 25 years, and before I got serious about my relationship with God, I made some HORRIBLE CHOICES for my life. I am so thankful for a loving and forgiving God.

Do you know someone who has made many mistakes? We as Christians need to speak to them in love, with kindness and acceptance. Our words could start an inner makeover just as Jesus' words did for Zacchaeus.

Before jumping to conclusions, or judging (which we aren't suppose to do anyway), we need to remember that WE ALL have made mistakes. Luke 6:42 NLT reminds us ⁴² How can you think of saying, ‘Friend, let me help you get rid of that speck in your eye,’ when you can’t see past the log in your own eye? Hypocrite! First get rid of the log in your own eye; then you will see well enough to deal with the speck in your friend’s eye. May each of us remember this verse when we start allowing the devil to put judgments and criticisms in our minds about people. Everyone has a story. We just don't know what it is. Instead of judging and criticizing, we should be loving and understanding toward people. This will go a long way in helping them to put the effort forth to change and lean toward God. We are to be instruments of God and help to bring others to Christ, not be stumbling blocks pointing out their mistakes and short comings.

The answers to the Bible Challenge "Laws and Rituals" are as follows:

1. b) His angel passing over the blood-marked homes of the captive Israelites when killing the Egyptians' firstborn. (Exodus 12:27)

2. True (Exodus 23:19)

3. True (Exodus 23:24)

4. c) eagle wings (Exodus 25:1-7)

5. a) death (Exodus 31:15, 35:2; Numbers 15:32-36)

6. b) anger at the Israelites and their golden calf (Exodus 32:19)

7. c) Jubilee (Leviticus 25:8-13)

8. a) with an ox and donkey yoked together (Deuteronomy 22:10)

9. a) clothes made of different materials in combination (Deuteronomy 22:11)

10. kindling a fire (Exodus 35:3)

Good Night to All and May God Bless!

"TIME FOR A CHANGE"

Good Evening to All!

All of us (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 Corinthians 3:18 Amp.)

The way Joyce Meyer Words it in her book helps to clarify it a bit. She says: All of us . . . 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.

In other words, we change gradually little by little, or as this verse states, "from one degree of glory to another." While these changes take place, we still make mistakes, and God's forgiveness is always available to us through Jesus Christ. Receiving this forgiveness actually strengthens us and enables us to keep pressing on toward new levels of holiness and better behavior.

According to God's Word, we ALL fall short of the glory of God. We All make mistakes. the key is getting back up and running TOWARD Christ again. Not let our "failings get us down and allow Satan to make us start beating ourselves up about this and give up. We have to just start again anew, and ask God to continue to help us get closer to Him, and then do it.

I will say from experience that the more you talk to God, the more you delve in to His Word and the more you align and associate with other Christians the closer to God you will become.

If we truly want to please God, we must allow Him to work in us. We must ask Him to mold us into what He wants us to be. We must lean entirely on the power of the Holy Spirit to speak to us about the changes that are needed and bring them about in our lives. It takes both of us. We must rely on the Holy Spirit to let us know what needs to be changed and we ourselves must put the effort forth to change.

There is not a single person who is made ready to be received into heaven. We All need to change. Yes, I've heard the saying that God loves and accepts us as we are. Yes, He loves us. He will NOT accept us as we are. From the moment we become true Christians ( who truly want to follow Christ), God begins to change us. He works on our heart. In His Word He even says that we are to "put off the 'old man' and put on the new". When we receive the Holy Ghost that is exactly what we are doing.

It isn't an over night happening, it is a process. It isn't magic, we have to put effort into changing. The Holy Ghost indwells with in us to teach us and to guide us in "how to live for God. Just because we are baptized in water and in Spirit, it doesn't mean we no longer have "free will". We still have to make choices. It's just that the Holy Ghost speaks to our spirit and nudges us in the right direction. If we ignore it and do the opposite and things go wrong, it's of our making because of the choice we made.

One of the ways we hear from God is we become uncomfortable in our spirit when are doing something that displeases Him. Any time the Holy Spirit wants to make a change in us or our behavior, all we need to do is surrender and He will go to work. Just say, "Your will be done Lord, NOT MINE.

When you have moments of God telling you to do something, but you want to do it another way, remember , God has seen the future. Another point I would like to remind us of is that we see us as we "are". God sees us as we will be when He finishes with us. He also has seen from the END to the BEGINNING. He knows what is best for us. He knows the outcomes. LET HIM BE YOUR GUIDE.

Good Night to All and May God Bless!

"CHANGE"

Good Evening to All!

First, let me remind you to CLICK HERE To Enter The Give-Away I'm Having for the Wonderful Devotional Book! ENTER WITH JUST AN E-MAIL ADDRESS AND A COMMENT! Good Luck!



Today's Seed: "So Jacob said to his household and to all who were with him, 'Get rid of the foreign gods you have with you, and purify yourselves and change your clothes.'"
(Genesis 35:2 NIV)

Change is never easy. From job transitions to moving far away from home, we resist and sometimes fear change. Jacob was moving his family to Bethel because God had given him instructions to go.

Jacob told his family that if they were going to change locations, they needed to change themselves too. He instructed them to throw away their foreign gods, clean up, and even change their clothes.

Like Jacob's family, we should throw away anything that might be keeping us from making the changes that God wants in our lives. If we rely on anything other than God, we are keeping "foreign gods." Luck, material possessions, and sometimes even our own abilities can become our gods.

Jacob asked his family to clean up their outward lives, but the real change he wanted for them is found in the next verse: "The come, let us go up to Bethel, where I will build an altar to God . . ." (Genesis 35:3).


Dig Deeper: The Hebrew word for "change" is chalaph, which is sometimes translated renew or sprout. The picture is of grass in the spring or a tree putting out new leaves. To really change is not merely getting rid of the old; it means being renewed or sprouting new growth.

Background Bulb: How could Jacob ask his family to make all these changes? Because he had been changed. He had been a deceiver and a thief when he tricked his brother to gain the family inheritance. He had run away from home. But God changed Jacob into a man of faith and courage because his heart was changed one night when he wrestled with God until dawn. God blessed him with new vision and courage for the future. He became the father of the nation of Israel.

Weed & Water: We often work to change our appearance. Fitness magazines and videos and gyms are some of the fastest growing businesses in the United States. We want to look better and make a good impression. Burt a change in appearance will not change our bad attitudes or give us hope. Only a changed relationship with Jesus Christ can renew the person we are on the inside. Have you allowed him to throw away your old negative attitudes and change you into a positive courageous person?


Think about it: Why might Jacob's family have been motivated to change when asked?
Who has been the greatest influence in your life and helped you change?


Prayer Pot: Lord, help me not to fear change but to embrace opportunities . . .


Take-Away Idea: Changed people change people.


In case you are wondering, I emphasized E-mail and comment above because a couple of people have entered my Give-Away, but forgot to leave their e-mail address. I have tried to go to their blogs from my comment section, only to only get the name of their blog on the profile. Please if you enter, leave this info so I can get in touch with you if you win. Thank you.

Good Night to All and May God Bless!

Challenge Answers and "I Want To Be More Like You"

Good Evening to All!

The answers to last night's Bible Challenge "Prayer" are as follows:

1. c) Enos' (Genesis 4:26)
2. b) Abraham (Genesis 18:23-33)
3. d) because Moses was stalling when he should have been taking action (Exodus 14:15)
4. d) 51
5. c) Solomon (2 Chronicles 7:14)
6. d) dedication of the temple in Jerusalem (2 Chronicles 6-7)
7. c) vain repetitions (Matthew 6:7)
8. Matthew 6:9-13, Luke 11:1-4
9. a) three (2 Corinthians 12:8)
10. d) My grace is sufficient for thee (2 Corinthians 12:9)

****************

We have the mind of Christ (the Messiah) and do hold the thoughts (feelings and purposes) of His heart. (1 Corinthians 2:16 AMP)

When we invite Jesus to come into our hearts, the Holy Spirit makes His home in us.

He indwells in our hearts which are the very centers of our beings. The Holy Spirit begins cleansing our souls ( our minds, wills, and emotions), but only if we allow Him to do so.

Before we filled with the Holy Ghost or the "indwelling of Jesus" in our hearts, we
think with our carnal or "natural" mind. We can't know what or how God thinks. Once we have the Holy Spirit within us, He will teach us and guide us in the ways of God. This is not to say it happens automatically. It is a process. Just as though we are in school. We have to learn how to think in the manner of God. What would He do in this situation, how would He deal with the situation at hand, or what was said.

Our emotions tell us how we feel in the natural sense, not what God feels about our situations, people we associate with or the decisions we make. The only way to know how He feels is to know His will, and the only way to do that is by being guided by the Holy Spirit within us and by studying His Word. The more we study His Word and Pray, the better we get to know Him because His Spirit will speak to our hearts and tell us. What it all boils down to is that He wants us to take on as many of His characteristics as possible. This is why the "Fruits of the Spirit" are so important to achieve. They are all attributes of Christ. He does not expect us to change by ourselves. That is impossible. If we ask God for strength, He will give it to us.

Our wills, or "what we want" also must change. In time, after spending time with God in His Word, under His guidance from the Holy Spirit, and prayer, we will find that our desires have changed. We will find ourselves desires more in line with what God wants for us. We can still desire natural things, houses, cars, good jobs, the normal things of life. The difference being they won't be on a whim. They will be in line with God's will for us. Also, God will provide us with more than we could ever dream of.

We will find ourselves asking Him for more spiritual things and things about our person such as asking Him for understanding, knowledge, or generosity. Our motives for wanting things will change. We will ask for things of normality such as a job with better hours, not so we can have more time to party, but better hours in the sense so they will line up with our church schedule so we won't miss church. We will ask for a better paying job, not because we want more money to buy a "fancier house or sports car, but so we can provide for our family better and give more tithes to God. (After all, He provided us with the money in the first place by getting us the job).

The more we allow the Holy Spirit to work in us, and the more we accept and heed His direction, the more mature we become in Christ. The more mature we become, the more like Him we will become, which is our goal.

We will NEVER be perfect as He is until we are caught up with Him in the sky and taken to heaven to live with Him forever (when our bodies become incorruptible), but His Word says to strive to be like Him, and with the guidance of the Holy Spirit is the only way to accomplish this feat.

There is a beautiful little chorus which we used to sing at church a lot, and I feel that it is so appropriate here. It 's called "I Want To Be More Like You".

I want to be more like You, Jesus , I want to be more like You.
I want to be a vessel You work through, I want to more like You.

We cannot be more like Him if we don't have the Holy Spirit guiding us.

With God's Help, you can manage your emotions instead of letting them manage you.

Good Night And May God Bless!

CHANGE

IN THE MIDST OF CHANGE

Good Evening to All!


Today's Seed: "So Jacob said to his household and to all who were with him, "Get rid of the foreign gods you have with you, and purify yourselves and change your clothes." Genesis 35:2

*******************************************************************

Change is never easy. From job transitions to moving far away from home, we resist and sometimes fear change. Jacob was moving his family to Bethel because God had given him instructions to go. Jacob told his family that if they were going to change locations, they needed to change themselves too. He instructed them to throw away their foreign gods, clean up, and even change their clothes. Like Jacob's family, we should throw away anything that might be keeping us from making the changes that God wants in our lives. If we rely on anything other than God, we are keeping "foreign gods." Luck, material possessions, and sometimes even our own abilities can become our gods. Jacob asked his family to clean up their outward lives, but the real change he wanted for them is found in the next verse: "The come, let us go up to Bethel, where I will build an altar to God...(Genesis 35:3) Jacob persuaded his family to stop the way they had been living and begin to worship God. Jacob had a great influence on his family and servants because he recognized that cleaning up the visible parts of our lives can only be meaningful if we also clean up the inside.

Dig Deeper: The Hebrew word for "change" is chalaph, which is sometimes translated renew or sprout. The picture is of grass in the spring or a tree putting out new leaves. To really change is not merely getting rid of the old, it means being renewed or sprouting new growth.

Background Bulb: How could Jacob ask his family to make all these changes? Because he had been changed. He had been a deceiver and a thief when he tricked his brother to gain the family inheritance. He had run away from home. But god changed Jacob into a man of faith and courage because his heart was changed one night when he wrestled with God until dawn. God blessed him with new vision and courage for the future. He became the father of the nation of Israel.

Weed & Water: We often work to change our appearance . Fitness magazines and videos and gyms are some of the fastest growing businesses in the United States. We want to look better and make a good impression, but a change in appearance will not change our bad attitudes or give us hope. Only a changed relationship with Jesus Christ can renew the person we are on the inside. Have you allowed Him to throw away your old negative attitudes and change you into a positive courageous person?


Think about it: Why might Jacob's family have been motivated to change when asked? Who has been the greatest influence in your life and helped you change?

Prayer Pot: Lord, help me not to fear change but to embrace opportunities. . . (Insert your thoughts).


Take-Away Idea: Changed people change people.



Tonights lesson was taken from "Bible Seeds Study Devotional for Growing in God's Word by Patsy Clairmont, and Florence Littaur

Good Night to All and May God Bless!