tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9436151255664147292024-03-13T04:08:12.040-07:00Front Porch MinistryAnonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10411868060572437245noreply@blogger.comBlogger16125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-943615125566414729.post-8825885241002012572015-10-27T11:40:00.001-07:002015-10-27T11:40:28.884-07:00God is watching.....<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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I was having a particularly stressful day at work. Many things just weren't going well. And I was having a hard time keeping my cool.<br />
Then it happened. I was told that I was being "watched".<br />
At first I wasn't really sure how to take this. Had my stressful situation brought out something in me that it shouldn't have?<br />
The woman stood in front of me and continued her statement.<br />
"You know I've been watching you."<br />
Oh boy, I thought. Here it comes. What kind of explanation shall I give her????<br />
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But what she said next nearly floored me.<br />
"I can tell this is not just a job for you. You really care."<br />
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I had to hold back the tears that started forming in my eyes.<br />
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You see I'm a nurse. And right there amidst all the chaos of stress and call lights blinking with not enough staff to answer them, God sent me a message.<br />
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"I see you......"<br />
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The woman told me, "God sent you here..."<br />
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God has a plan for every single part of our lives. And if we are smart enough to follow HIS lead, then His Will will never take us where His Grace will not keep us.<br />
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Psalms 29:11 says, "The Lord will give strength unto His people. He will bless His people with peace."<br />
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Are you where He wants you to be today? Remember, He is watching.<br />
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<br />Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10411868060572437245noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-943615125566414729.post-84441891610841991452015-08-16T07:15:00.001-07:002015-08-16T07:15:37.217-07:00Praise and Worship are your mightiest weapons<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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I was overwhelmed by what what was going on. I didn't understand it. I didn't know what to do about it. And it was eating me alive. I tried to occupy my mind with watching endless movies and with work. Anything so that I could 'just not think about it' . I felt helpless, under attack, like an army was waiting for me on the other side of the mountain to destroy me.<br />
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And then a friend said to me, "I beleive that you have a gift for worship. And in your worship you will find your strength, and your breakthrough."<br />
So I began to worship in earnest. And everything changed.<br />
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2 Chronicles chapter 20 tells us a story that at the onset seems like a dire situation. 3 different armies had joined forces to come against the people of God. They were coming to destroy them. They were just on the other side of the mountain.....<br />
But when Jehoshaphat heard about the imminent danger, instead of 'occupying his mind' with distraction so he didn't have to think about it, he "inquired of The Lord" (vs 3)<br />
He said "we don't know what to do Lord, but our eyes are on you!"<br />
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When God spoke to him he said, "Dont be afraid or discouraged because of this vast army! The battle isn't yours! It's mine!"<br />
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And they all began to worship and praise in very loud voices. As they sang and praised, the enemies that were coming to destroy them ended up destroying each other. And when God's people arrived on the other side of that mountain, instead of finding a battle to fight, all they found were dead bodies.<br />
So they praised and worshipped some more!<br />
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Your battlefield like mine may not be physical but spiritual. Your place of worship may be like mine, the kitchen, the living room, or in your car.<br />
If anyone is watching me on a daily basis, they may think I'm a little crazy, as I walk around hands raised, singing and shouting loudly at the enemy.....<br />
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But when I arrived ar the other side of my mountain, all that was there were dead bodies.<br />
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The Bible tells us to be anxious for NOTHING!!! (Without exception) but in EVERYTHING with thanksgiving, (praise and worship) let your requests be made known to God. Loudly. Forcefully. Mean it! Do it on purpose!!! With purpose! (Phil 4:6)<br />
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It's not easy to do sometimes. A lot of times. But God honors us with His presence and His gifts when we bring the sacrifice of praise. He delights in the praises of His people. He enjoys us.<br />
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As you are worshiping, God is causing your enemy to be destroyed. He is fighting your battle. And when you come over the top of your mountain, all you're gonna see are the dead bodies.<br />
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If you come to my house, and you are always welcome, there will always be praise and worship on in the background.<br />
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Use your weapons my friend!<br />
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It works!Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10411868060572437245noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-943615125566414729.post-9025065393565608272015-07-29T08:28:00.001-07:002015-07-29T08:28:36.136-07:00Are you a Persian impersonator?<br />
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<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-jpIhKn8cH34/VbjpMBx30UI/AAAAAAAAC8A/GtkYebdkUjU/s1600/IMG_2134.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="196" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-jpIhKn8cH34/VbjpMBx30UI/AAAAAAAAC8A/GtkYebdkUjU/s320/IMG_2134.JPG" width="320" /></a>We've all seen pictures of Persian princesses. The beautiful shimmering brightly colored dresses. The jewelry adorning the hands, the feet, the head. The elaborate make up. We picture rooms filled with plush pillows. And there's always a handsome prince around somewhere. Right? Haven't we all secretly wanted to be somewhere in this scenario?</div>
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Well back in the days of King Xerxes, who was the ruler of Persia, the people of God lived side by side with the Persians, and had for many years. They had assimilated themselves into the Persian culture, in dress, speech, diet, behavior and custom. They were for all intents and purposes "undistinguishable" as Jewish people. Adhering to the laws of Moses would have been "conspicuous" and possibly cause to be ridiculed or persecuted. So they had in essence forgotten their identity.</div>
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As American Christians we have become much like the Persian impersonators. We are so steeped in the culture we have become indistinguishable from the world. We have lost our sense of identity. We have forgotten who we are. We have "assimilated"</div>
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Romans 12:2 says "Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind.....</div>
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2 Corinthians 6:17 - come out from them and be separated......</div>
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The Persian Jews needed reminding of who they were, and if you read the book of Esther you'll see they were threatened with annialation. </div>
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Of course God wasn't about to let that happen. But He did allow things to be shaken up enough to bring them back to Him.</div>
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When you go to work, to school, or to the grocery store, can others tell you are a follower of Christ? Do you hold yourself to a higher standard in your behavior, your language, your dress, even your countenance? Or have you assimilated so much that you just blend in?</div>
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Does this mean that you should wear a t-shirt that says "I am a Christian?" Not necessarily. But you shouldn't be ashamed to either. I've seen many people with a cross around their neck and even a scripture tattooed on their neck with the mouth of a sailor. They wouldn't stop to feed the hungry unless you paid them. </div>
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No, what God expects from us is that we seek to be like Him. In all we say, all we do. In all our ways to acknowledge Him. To stop and think before we speak. To realize the world is watching.....</div>
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We should strive to be different. Not obnoxious but distinctive. The influential nor the influenced. </div>
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In light of how things have declined so quickly in the world with regard to Christianity, it will become increasingly difficult to stand out and be set apart. Like the Persian Jews we will be subjected to ridicule, and even persecution. But being set apart is what God has called us to be....He is not ashamed of us. What an honor! To be the person that others come to and say, " I want what you have" not the person that never speaks up, so that those people look up from hell and say "why didn't you tell me?"</div>
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Remember, you may be the only person to let someone know that God is real. </div>
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So are you a Persian impersonator? Or are you proud to be a child of God? </div>
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Please leave me a comment!</div>
<span id="goog_869133499"></span><span id="goog_869133500"></span><br />Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10411868060572437245noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-943615125566414729.post-1267008456509141952015-04-20T08:35:00.000-07:002015-04-20T08:35:04.428-07:00The "Now" Emmaus walk<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-SvtXzmlxErE/VTUSPVxODRI/AAAAAAAAC0s/xoFh9jbHrS8/s1600/15%2B-%2B1" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-SvtXzmlxErE/VTUSPVxODRI/AAAAAAAAC0s/xoFh9jbHrS8/s1600/15%2B-%2B1" height="221" width="320" /></a>My husband and I just moved. New house, new town, new job, new church, new circumstances, new experience.....</div>
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It's all still unfamiliar, a little bewildering, and specially for my husband, a little unsure regarding our future. It's the starting point for our "Emmaus walk" </div>
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Luke chapter 24 tells us a very enthralling story. Jesus had been crucified, and had died a horrible suffering death. The two men walking on the road to Emmaus were still reeling in the sight of it, still trying to understand all they had seen. They were talking about it when another man joined them not only in walking, but also in their conversation. They didn't know this man was Jesus until the end of their journey. This story begins with disbelief and sadness, but ends with joy, excitement, love, and true devotion. Why? Because Jesus had made himself KNOWN to them! He had opened their eyes, their hearts, and their minds to the reality that He was alive! And that all He had said to them was true! He equipped them and let them know it was time to move forward, to live in their NOW, and they did it with joy and excitement.</div>
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Our journey must also be in the "NOW". Moving forward. No matter what has happened in your past, whether it was trial or glory, Jesus is taking us on our Now Emmaus road. He wants to tell us something new, something different. Something thrilling! And He wants to walk right there beside us. Seeing our expressions of joy. Holding us up when we are weary, and sad. Never letting us be alone.</div>
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Have your problems and disappointments kept you from seeing Jesus right beside you? Ask Him today for a fresh Emmaus Road encounter. One that will cause you to look forward to a future bright with hope and excitement about eternal possibilities through Him!</div>
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The new NOW in your life will be the beginning of all the answers you are searching for. It will put you on the walk that will lead you home. And no matter how your walk begins, if you walk with the realization that Jesus is walking with you, then your walk will always end in joy.</div>
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Be sure and read the story for yourself! And let me know what you think! </div>
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<br />Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10411868060572437245noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-943615125566414729.post-89275707327167728872015-03-03T12:49:00.000-08:002015-03-03T12:49:31.546-08:00Who's holding your arms up?<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<a name='more'></a>Maybe you know the story. Maybe you don't. But in a nutshell, Exodus chapter 17 tells us a fantastic story about the power of God given friendship.<br />
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The chosen people of God were roaming around in the dessert. And up until the time of this particular story, they hadn't faced any opposition in the way of people. So now they have this encounter with the Amalekites, a group of roaming raiders that attacked them. Now the battle was on!!<br />
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Moses, their leader, stood on a hill overlooking the battle. And as long as his staff was raised, the Israelites were winning the battle!<br />
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But Moses became tired, and he couldn't hold his arms up any longer. And the enemy began to win.<br />
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So God sent his friends, Aaron and Hur, to hold his arms up until the battle was won and the victory was The Lords!<br />
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Many times we come under the attack of our own pack of raiders. The ones that raid our hearts and our minds and our strength. And for a while we may be able to hold up the staff and be winning the battle! But because we are human, we will begin to grow weary. And that's when God sends us some friends to hold up our arms!<br />
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When we think of Moses in The Bible we often only see the might of the things he did. The leading out of Egypt, the parting of the Red Sea, the Ten Commandments. But Moses had to step into another arena. He had to realize he was human and needed help. He had to allow his friends to hold up his arms.<br />
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The same is true for us today. We experience God in a mighty way, He calls us and we obey. We are used by Him in mighty ways! And after we have basked in His presence and all of His goodness, the enemy attacks.<br />
And God sends us a group of friends to hold up our arms until the victory is won!<br />
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To my arm holding friends, you know who you are. And I am daily thankful for you!<br />
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To those of you that are reading these words, "Who is holding up your arms???"<br />
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<br />Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10411868060572437245noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-943615125566414729.post-2045308356151644352015-02-13T07:40:00.001-08:002015-02-13T07:40:55.725-08:00Just blow your trumpets all ready.<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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I can just see the faces of the Israelites. "God said He wants us to do what?"<br />
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And I can clearly imagine Joshua, after hearing from God and thinking about all His strange instructions regarding the Jericho wall. "Why don't you just knock them down today Lord? Why do we have to walk around in circles and blow trumpets and carry the ark around? It's pretty heavy! And these people are gonna be staring at us over this walk laughing at us!"<br />
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In case you don't know the story, Joshua and the Israelites had reached the Jericho wall. Evidently it was one strong wall! No army had ever penetrated it with any of their might or weapons. But Jericho was part of the land that had been promised to God's people. Instead of just giving them the land immediately, God instructed them to do a specific set of things that included marching around the city for seven days, blowing trumpets, and then shouting. (Curious? Read all about it in the book of Joshua!)<br />
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It just didn't make sense. Certainly God could have knocked down the walls at any time. But what He wanted from them was simple obedience. And when they obeyed, God did something that was so miraculous it blew their sandals off!!!<br />
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Faith and obedience go hand in hand. If we are going to have faith to believe that God is going to do what He said He would, then we have to do our part. "If you love Me, you will keep My commands....."<br />
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Very often it doesn't make sense. You look at the numbers and know you don't have enough money to pay the bills. Then you hear God's voice telling you to give your money to someone else. Your first reaction is "But Lord! Why?" Then you rationalize. "If I do that I won't be able to pay my bills!"<br />
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But then you do what He asks, and miraculously you have the money to pay all your bills.<br />
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God is always at work in our lives. Teaching is, growing us, challenging us in our faith. What He requires of us is really very simple. And no, it often makes no sense. But the outcome is always amazing!<br />
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What have you asked God for today? What has He promised you? Are you willing to do what He asks? And blow your trumpet all ready?<br />
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Leave a comment and let me know what God has done for you!!!Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10411868060572437245noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-943615125566414729.post-43440666527765181302015-01-24T10:18:00.000-08:002015-01-24T10:18:23.721-08:00Jesus Specializes......<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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When you get a headache, what's the first thing you do? Reach for excedrin? Or pray? Which should you do?<br />
I'll leave it to you to decide. But let me pose to you another question. Do you think a headache is too small a problem to bother Jesus with??? Maybe you're going to wait to pray for healing when you're diagnosed with cancer?<br />
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"One of the most critical reasons believers experience defeat is because we catagorize only a few areas of our lives as Christs arena! Many believers think Jesus jurisdiction doesn't extend into certain areas. Many don't even get out of the church parking lot with Him on Sunday. As if to save Him the extra trouble of dealing with things that they feel don't concern Him, they leave Jesus at church to deal with areas related to His expertise.<br />
satan is greatly defeated when we start living our lives based on the truth that EVERY area is Jeaus Specialty!!!!"<br />
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Yes children of God! His specialties are all things! We don't have to wait for a major crisis, or a life threatening illness to call upon Him! As a matter of fact, Jesus is waiting patiently on a daily basis for you to talk to Him about everything.<br />
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So why not try it? What have you got to lose??!!!!Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10411868060572437245noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-943615125566414729.post-40103056892585457542014-12-05T10:36:00.000-08:002014-12-05T10:36:58.988-08:00The Purple Scarf and God's voice......<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-zIyIV_8mUTg/VIHuvSbomLI/AAAAAAAABTQ/Z29ms_rGO34/s1600/14%2B-%2B1" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-zIyIV_8mUTg/VIHuvSbomLI/AAAAAAAABTQ/Z29ms_rGO34/s1600/14%2B-%2B1" height="320" width="320" /></a>She stood outside of the store manning her red Salvation Army bucket on a cold overcast day. The weather reflected the mood I was in. I was feeling discouraged and generally down on the world and on human nature in general. She smiled at me, a big warm smile, and told me my purple was beautiful, and that she had something to give me on my way out. I did my best to smile back at her, "ok" I told her. And walked on into the store. I was supposed to give her something on the way out, not the other way around. Right?</div>
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I completed my transaction, and left. Sure enough, there she was waiting for me as I walked out. "Wait!" She told me. She handed me a soft purple scarf. It smelled like her perfume. I hugged it to my chest and said thanks. She smiled at me again, and said "God told me to give that to you."</div>
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I hugged the scarf to my chest again and started to cry right there on the curb. "You have no idea what this means to me!" She hugged me. I hugged her back. Her name was Nadine. "Yes, I know" she said. "When God speaks to me I listen"</div>
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I walked away from that store, feeling like a load had been lifted off my heart. I couldn't stop smiling. This is what Christmas is all about. This is what happens when you listen to God's voice.</div>
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As you go about this season doing your shopping, cooking, and checking off your list of "to do's" don't forget what it's truly all about. "Peace on earth good will to men" doesn't truly ring clearly unless we are listening for God's voice, and not just listening, but hearing and doing. </div>
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What will be your purple scarf this Christmas season? And who will you give it to? </div>
<br />Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10411868060572437245noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-943615125566414729.post-48396934362081010902014-08-15T15:21:00.000-07:002014-08-15T15:21:22.151-07:00The Simplicity of God"It can't be that easy"<br />
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I sat with her at her kitchen table. God had prompted me to sit down with her and share the salvation message. Her children had heard it a hundred times. They came to church without her. Single mom, drug addict, life filled with one pain after the other.<br />
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She listened intently as I answered her questions about why I beleive in God, why I know He is real, how He saves......... And when she asked me what she had to do to have what I have, and I simply said, "Ask!"<br />
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She proceeded to tell me about her past experiences with religion and how she had been hurt and confused by it all. Having been painted a picture of God as a big giant ruler with a set of standards that no one could possibly live up to.....<br />
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So I asked her to pray. And she did. And she was saved, born again, and she stated all the things that happen once Christ has come in and made you new, that "tingling" all over, that incredible weight lifted off your shoulders....<br />
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"That's how you know it's real!!!<br />
And yes, it's very simplistic.<br />
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When my sisters and I were young we sang together a lot. We did music with a purpose. One of the songs we sang was called "The Eagle Song" by The Imperials.<br />
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One of the verses in that song has always stuck in my mind.<br />
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"What human intellect can't sway must be explained away, earth, wisdom, creation of men.<br />
Search without end to fill the spirit housed within, simplicity of God somehow escapes man."<br />
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With all the knowledge and science and searching for answers about the origin of absolutely everything, mankind overlooks the only answer that is reasonable. All because to them, "It can't be that easy!" To just simply accept that "In the beginning GOD....... And that's all there is to it.<br />
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Have you ever wondered why it seems the most intelligent people on earth according to the standards of earth have such a difficult time believing in The God that created them?<br />
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Luke 11:9&10 says this: "Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you. For everyone who asks receives; he who seeks finds; and if you knock the door will be opened!"<br />
Pretty simplistic.<br />
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Today if you are confused, if you feel that salvation is difficult to attain or that you have to earn it in some complicated fashion, I'm here to assure you that all you need to do is ask. Yes it's that simple!<br />
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<a name='more'></a><img src="webkit-fake-url://65CDFD73-F23B-4B4C-95E0-FD62049145ED/imagejpeg" />Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10411868060572437245noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-943615125566414729.post-91414234162958457582014-06-10T11:29:00.001-07:002014-06-10T11:29:35.717-07:00The Substance of things hoped for<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<span style="background-color: white;"><span style="color: purple;">Faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen............Hebrews 11:1</span></span><br />
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<span style="background-color: white;"><span style="color: purple;">I am an optimistic person. I always have been. Optimism seems to come easily to a person who has the gift of FAITH.<strike> </strike></span></span><br />
Even when times were at their darkest for me, I always beleived that God was going to pull me through, and He always has. I've always had enough money. I've always been healed. I've been given more blessings than I could ever know about let alone count.<br />
So I would say that my "faith" is pretty big! And it stands to reason, because we have a Great Big God in which to have faith in!<br />
For many others though, faith does not come so easily. Faith is something that has to be worked on and grown, because for those individuals with a logical brain, faith has no substance.<br />
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My wonderful husband is one of these people. Although he loves God very much, and believes He is there, he has a difficult time believing that such an amazing being would be interested in our problems, our headaches, our struggles....<br />
And he also needs something that he can SEE.<br />
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The dictionary defines Faith as a confidence or trust or belief in God. It defines substance as "that of which a thing consists, or physical matter" or "concrete ness"<br />
It defines hope as "a feeling of trust, anticipate, or an expectation and desire for something.<br />
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I happen to like the Bible definition the best, which according to Webster would translate as, "Faith is the concrete physical matter of our expectations and desires for that thing we anticipate from God"<br />
Pretty cool right???<br />
Now, Matthew 17:20 says that if we have faith as small as a mustard seed, and this is teeny tiny, we can move mountains. I remember when I was a little girl and I heard this scripture for the first time. I was riding in the back seat of our family station wagon and I literally looked over at what I considered to be a mountain and told it to move!!!!<br />
Well it didn't. Lol. But in my child's mind I was taking this scripture very literally. It didn't shake my faith though, and as I grew and matured I realized that God probably did not intend our faith to be used for landscaping. Instead, the mountains of depression, discouragement, anger, oppression, and unforgiveness, just to name a few, could be removed with just a little faith.<br />
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Imagine what we could do with faith the size of a football!<br />
That same scripture goes on to say that "nothing will be impossible for you!"<br />
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I don't know about you, but to me that sounds pretty substantial.<br />
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How big is the substance of your faith? Do you have at least a mustard seed? What are you hoping for today?<br />
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Please leave a comment, I would be happy to pray for you!!<br />
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I went home to tell my husband all about it. And after I had talked and vented and pouted, he looked at me with that sad look he sometimes gets.<br />
"At least you have a father to hurt your feelings."<br />
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Now I have another perspective.<br />
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A close friend of mine had a dying mother. She became angry with God and told Him, "If I'm going through this pain just so I can help someone else, that is not ok. It's not acceptable."<br />
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Another perspective.<br />
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Two women walk up to a pastor, and let him know quite strongly, I hate men!!"<br />
One of them had been molested repeatedly by her step father. The other one had been taken to a truck stop when she was 10 and sold to the truck drivers for sex so that her mother could have drug money.<br />
These were the reasons for their hatred of men and subsequent lesbian lifestyles.<br />
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Another perspective.<br />
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A gay man had been treated so badly by church people professing to be "Godly" that he turned against God and became an atheist. More perspective....<br />
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As a woman that grew up with a near perfect childhood, Christian parents, precious promises, and prayer daily along with hugs and kisses and love.... It took my getting into the world, making lots of mistakes, and trying to lean on my own understanding to gain another perspective<br />
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Becoming pregnant at 18. Getting married at 19. Divorced by 20. And that's just the beginning of the story.<br />
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Proverbs 3: 5&6 says, "Trust in The Lord with all your heart. Don't lean on your own understanding. Acknowledge The Lord in all that you do, and He will direct your path."<br />
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Each time we take a path that is off the course that God set out for us, we gain a new PERSPECTIVE.<br />
And our new perspectives then become a vital part of our story. How we understand others, a little glimpse at the way God sees.<br />
My story is still being written. Every day I gain a new perspective.<br />
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What is your new perspective?<br />
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*****please leave a comment!*****Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10411868060572437245noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-943615125566414729.post-82718740832311002722014-04-14T11:54:00.001-07:002014-04-14T11:54:17.378-07:00What God KnowsWe had a "new girl" at kids club a few weeks ago. She sat there soaking up everything as the lesson was taught, focused intently on her craft, and gobbled up her snack. As we were getting things cleaned up, she approached me and asked, "Does God really know how many grains of sand there are on the beach?" My reply was of course an affirmative "yes!" Then she asked, "What else does He know?" Wow! What a question! I replied, "Well, He knows how many hairs there are on your head, and on the heads of every person in the world!" She looked thoughtful for a moment. Then asked, "Does He have it written down?" "No, I said. He just knows." Her reply was so sweet and innocent, "Wow! He must be really smart!"<br />
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Yes. He is really smart. He is God after all. He knows everything! I started to think about what God knows. Psalms 56:8 says "You keep track of all my sorrows. You have collected all my tears in your bottle. You have recorded each one in your book."<br />
God knows everything. And He always has known everything.<br />
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I think the most awesome and amazing thing about what He knows is that He knew exactly what kind of people He was creating, and still He created us. He knew we would reject Him and try to go our own way. He knew we would nail His son to a cross. He knew we would fall repeatedly into sin, hurt each other, and disappoint Him on a daily basis, and still He created us.<br />
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He also knew that we would need Him. He put that place inside of us that is only filled by Him. He knew that we would love Him. God just KNOWS. This awesome being that created the universe is interested in me! He knows my favorite color and my favorite flower, and He will give me glimpses of them just when I need them! He sees my heart when it is happy, and when it is breaking. He knew the very place I would be sitting today to write these paragraphs.<br />
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Whatever is hurting you today, He knows. Whatever you are trying to do for Him and feel like you're failing, He knows. Nothing catches Him by suprise. He loves you so much that no matter what you've done, no matter what you're going to do, He knows. And He cares.<br />
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"For the precious fallen daughter, for her devastated father,<br />
For the prodigal who's dieing in a strange new way.<br />
For the child who's always hungry, for the patriot with no country,<br />
I have a message........<br />
He sees you, He knows you, He loves you!<br />
Jesus loves you!<br />
(Twila Paris)<br />
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<br />Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10411868060572437245noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-943615125566414729.post-5446910249230789162014-03-10T10:37:00.000-07:002014-03-10T10:37:03.914-07:00Realizing your callingWhen I was young, I used to invite everyone to church. I guess I thought it was a pretty cool place to be! I'm sure all of my friends up into my teenage years got invited and was there at least once.<br />
When I had my own children, they started asking their friends to come to church. I borrowed a friends truck and piled them into it on Wednesday nights and off we would go.<br />
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Now I have grand children, and I started taking them to our Wednesday night service called "kids club". After a while my 2 oldest grandchildren began inviting their friends, and soon my car became too small. Since my father is the pastor, I asked if I could use the church van, and pretty soon it was filled with screaming kids, a lot of them from under privaledged families. After a while I started looking around for someone to help. I told myself that children were not my calling. I was called to be a missionary.<br />
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One day I was talking to my daughter and I told her that I was trying to find someone to drive the church van. I was tired of the stress it was causing in my life. "Children are not my calling......"<br />
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I hadn't even finished the sentence when my daughter started laughing at me."What are you talking abut?" I was a little indignant. "This is your calling mom, don't you remember when we were little and you drove us all to church! " this is you being missionary! "<br />
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It opened my eyes to a lot of things! Mostly to how wise she is! We talked about how these children had no one in their lives to show them love, or to be an example for them. She responded with "that's why He puts someone like you in their lives"<br />
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Wow!<br />
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So now when I pick up the van filled with screaming children, I look at them a lot differently. Do I still get tired? Yes. Do I sometimes want to pull over and throttle them all? Yes. Do I still have a headache from pure exhaustion at the end of every Wednesday? Well, not every ..................</div>
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I've always preached that God will not call us to do something without equipping us to do it. And I firmly beleive He doesn't call us to something that we wouldn't truly enjoy. The things we are passionate about. Nothing with God is ever random, or happens just "by chance". These things are all a part of His perfect design, His perfect plans.</div>
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Now I walk home after parking the church van filled with left over snacks and discarded memory verses. And as I'm walking, I'm smiling. </div>
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This is me being a missionary! And I love it! Because this is my calling!</div>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10411868060572437245noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-943615125566414729.post-20172460353930596072014-02-15T09:03:00.003-08:002014-02-15T09:03:59.391-08:00Just because you have failed, it does not mean you're a failure!I was recently told that I needed to "open up and talk more". Now, anyone who knows me might find this statement more than a little hilarious. I have no problem standing up and delivering a great sermon, be the main speaker for women's meetings, lead a mission team, and never have any trouble with "speaking".<br />
But when it comes to talking about myself and my shortcomings, well that's something entirely different.<br />
So the next time I was in a meeting, I decided to give it a shot. I'd talk about myself. I told how I had perfected the art of living a double life. On the outside I appeared to be very put together, patient, calm, and always smiling. And indeed that was the person I wanted to be. But the flip side of me was scared, discouraged, anxious, weak, and intimidated.<br />
I am a preachers daughter for heavens sake! A missionary! I sing on the worship team! I teach children's church! I'm not supposed to have all these weaknesses!<br />
After the meeting was over, a woman approached me and said, "I know exactly what you mean. I was a phony too."<br />
Well, I was immediately offended. That's not what I intended to say at all! And if that's all you got out of it, I'm going right back to not saying anything.<br />
I went home, and after thinking and thinking about what I had said, and what she had said, I realized that that was exactly what I was. A phony. A failure.<br />
I went to God. And He brought me to The Word. Psalms 37:24. "Though you fall, you will not be utterly cast down, for The Lord upholds you with His hand."<br />
Isaiah 41:10, "Don't be afraid, for I am with you. Don't be discouraged, for I AM YOUR GOD! I will strengthen you and help you, I will hold you up with my victorious right hand!<br />
I realized that I am not a failure, I'm just a human. And in that realization came a great peace.<br />
I need God and I need His strength, His wisdom! I need Him to lift me up with His mighty hand!<br />
2 Corinthians 4:9 ...we may get knocked down, but we are not destroyed.<br />
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And I could hear Jesus whispering in my ear, "Just because you have failed, that does not mean you're a failure!<br />
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So the next time I have the opportunity to share my failures with someone else, I can also share the truth that because of Jesus and His saving power, I am not a failure.Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10411868060572437245noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-943615125566414729.post-23743471944990593202014-01-11T10:50:00.000-08:002014-01-11T10:50:31.160-08:00Jesus is the greatest super hero, and His super power is grace!I love super hero movies. Super man, Spider man, Iron man, X-men, you name it. The thought of 'Getting the bad guys' with super strength, zapping them with lazers, bending them with my mind, forcing them to tell the truth, and saving the world just gets me all pumped up!<br />
I have often visualized just how I would go about zapping the people who have hurt and offended me or my loved ones. There's even an evil little grin that would come across my face, kinda like the one the grinch does when he thinks he's stolen Christmas.<br />
Oh how I have longed to have super powers! Even just for a day!<br />
How very arrogant of me!<br />
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The disciples displayed the same kind of arrogance in Luke 9:51-56, when they came across some opposition from a group of Samaritans. They asked Jesus, "Lord, do you want us to call down fire from heaven to destroy them?"<br />
Boy did I see myself in that question! <br />
But Jesus responded by rebuking them and walking away. I can imagine him looking at them and saying, "What in the world is wrong with you? How would they ever get saved that way? Fire from heaven indeed. Oh!"<br />
As a human, with human minds, given the super powers we crave, we would go around zapping people left and right. And just for doing what we perceive to be bad guys! Thank goodness we don't have super powers! Can you imagine the poor souls sent directly to hell without ever having the chance to repent? The more I ponder on super heroes, the more I realize that Jesus is the only real one. And of all the "super" things He did in the Bible, parting the Red Sea, starting fires in puddles of water, saving men from fiery furnaces and lions, the most amazing feat was this perfect being, putting on human skin, and giving his life so that WE could truly have eternal life.<br />
Super man couldn't do that.<br />
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Yes Jesus is the greatest super hero. And His super power is grace.<br />
<br />Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10411868060572437245noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-943615125566414729.post-60266750305228077452013-02-09T16:28:00.000-08:002013-02-09T16:28:11.583-08:00I was a turkey headed muleWhen I was a little girl growing up in Youngstown,Ohio, my mom used to drive me and my sisters around to the various stores in the family station wagon. I specifically remember her yelling out the window at someone who would cut her off in traffic, or just make her angry in general, "You turkey headed mule!"<br />
Now me and my sister Debbie would giggle uncontrollably at this statement, as we would try to imagine what a "turkey headed mule" might look like! Debbie being the artist in the family, I'm pretty sure she tried to draw one! <br />
But as I've grown older and encountered a few turkey headed mules in my life, I have realized that I am the biggest one of all!<br />
Let me explain; A turkey, by definition is a large bird that struts around showing off its feathers, and is known to be both gullible and comical! It makes a funny gobbling noise, and ends up on the dining room table for Thanksgiving dinner!<br />
Now the mule, as everyone knows, is just plain strong and STUBBORN!<br />
What a combination! <br />
Even though I was called at a very young age to be both a nurse and a missionary, I continuously got in my own way. I walked around life, strutting my feathers, filled with "self importance", being both gullible and I'm sure comical to those who were watching. I ended up feeling "eaten alive" by my own self induced circumstances. And even though I knew what I needed to do to break out of the oven, I was too willful and stubborn to change. <br />
I was a turkey headed mule! <br />
Luckily, I finally realized it, got down on my knees, cried out to a loving and forgiving Savior, and He pulled me right out of the fire. (Literally!)<br />
Am I still stubborn? Well ask my husband and he will say yes. And at times I am still a little gullible. <br />
But because of God's word I now know that if I "apply my heart to understanding, He will guard my course and protect my way......because WISDOM will be pleasant to my soul!" <em>Proverbs chapter 2</em><br />
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<em>I am no longer a turkey headed mule. </em>I am His child. I am chosen. I am waiting for Him to reveal all that He has for me! Cuz He makes All things beautiful in His time. Even turkey headed mules!<br />
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10411868060572437245noreply@blogger.com1