Friday, March 4, 2011

Watching What We Say And Do

Matthew 18:3; "And he said, Verily I say unto you, Except ye be converted. and become as little children, ye shall not enter into the kingdom of heaven. v.4 whosoever therefore shall humble himself as this little child, the same is greatest in the kingdom of heaven".


This is talking about when we are converted or accept Jesus as our Lord and Saviour as well as a child. The age of childhood is the learning age. We are learning all the things of God. Reading His Word is very informative. It tells us how we as a Christian should act and live.

To live as a Christian we want to get rid of ALL the fleshly desires. Get away from people that try to get us to live in a worldly way. By nature people follow a way of life that leads us away from God causing us to walk in a direction that leads us towards eternal death. We need to live in the manner God wants us to, let Him mold us as He wants us to be. This causes us to want to have and live a righteous life.

As we begin having a relationship with the Lord we will want to change our life. This means to change our complete view of our life. We watch what we are doing and saying. We have the love of Christ in us which causes us to love all. We even love our enemy which is hard but with the Lord's help we can do it. He gives us strength that makes it possible to do the things that would be impossible for man himself to do.

Matthew 18:6; "But whoso shall offend one of these little ones which believe in me, it were better for him that a millstone were hanged about his neck, and that he were drowned in the depth of the sea".

This is talking about whoever spiritually destroys a child or childlike believer, they will bring upon themselves the greatest wrath of Christ. Everyone should give attention to the Words of the Lord, especially teachers, pastors, and parents. It is the responsibility of the parents to instruct the children God has blessed them with. The parents need to protect the children from Satan and the world. Parents should not let their children be influenced by ungodly friends. Jenifer, the author of Sweet Blessings had a blog on this. To read what she had to say go to:  The World Is Watching. This also means the childlike believer needs to take special care and attention to the ones that might cause them to go astray.

There are plenty of ways for a new Christian (actually for all Christians) to be led away from God. They have to be careful of what movies they watch, radio, and even their own habits they had before they became a Christian. Satan will do anything he can to lead us astray. That is why we need to read the Word of God, pray, and fellowship with the Lord. It is through these things that will help them and us as Christians to be victorious over Satan and his lies.

Matthew 18:7: "Woe unto the world because of offences: for it must needs be that offences come; but woe to that man by whom the offence cometh"!

As I have said before the Word of God is so informative. This is talking about those who are influential in placing sinful things before others and especially the children. These people will receive the final condemnation. These things include humanistic teaching, pornographic literature, false teachings, immoral movies, alcoholic drinks, drugs, and even words especially the suggestive ones. This is joining oneself with Satan, the great liar and tempter. So, we need to remove all these things from our lives, the lives of our family, and our churches.

One needs to ask themselves; "What Would Jesus Do?" We know Jesus is a righteous person and would never do anything that was not righteous. So we have our answer right before us. We have to always watch what we say and do. It really isn't that hard, the Holy Spirit will guide us in all things. He will never lie to us. We need to make sure we are not the cause of someone being led away from the Lord.

Thank you for dropping by. I have enjoyed our visit. May you always know the peace and joy of the Lord.

Thursday, March 3, 2011

Life Is Beautiful

Life is beautiful. God has given us life and wants us to have the fullness of life.


At times life seems pretty difficult but anyone can make it if they want to. God has allowed us to go through trials and tribulations to help us, we become stronger and we learn we need God.

Romans 8:6; "For to be carnally minded is death; but to be spiritually minded is life and peace".

Have you ever thought about the different kinds of people? There are two classes of people. The ones that choose to live by the flesh and those who prefer to live according to the Spirit. Flesh is the sinful aspect of human nature. To live after the flesh is to need, taking pleasure, be busy with, and delight in the corrupt desires of one's nature. Galatians 5:19-21; "Now the works of the flesh are manifest, which are these; Adultery, fornication, uncleanness, lasciviousness, v.20 Idolatry, witchcraft, hatred. variance, emulations, wrath, strife, seditions, heresies, v.21 Envyings, murders, drunkenness, revellings, and such like: of the which I tell you before, as I have also told you in time past, that they which do such things shall not inherit the kingdom of God".

Each of these things are against God. It is impossible to live for God and to follow the fleshly desires. If a person fails to resist the flesh by the Holy Spirit and lives according to the flesh he will become an enemy of God. Being an enemy of God one can expect spiritual and eternal death; Romans 8:13; "For if ye live after the flesh, ye shall die:...".

The sinful nature of a person stays with the Christian even after they accept the Lord as their Savior. This is a deadly enemy to a Christian and is something that has to be dealt with. When we were born we were born with a sinful nature. Satan will try, say, and do anything to trick us into doing what we know is wrong. He will give us excuses for doing them, it will feel so good, he will tell us just one time won't hurt us, God loves us to much, God won't know, and the list just goes on and on.

The second class of people are the ones that prefer to live according to the Spirit. If a person decides to follow after the Spirit making the things of God their most important love and concern they can expect eternal life and communion with God. These are the ones that want to follow after righteousness or after God. They have what is called 'The Fruit Of The Spirit'. Galatians 5:22-23; "But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, meekness, temperance: against such there is no law".
As we follow the Spirit, this fruit influences our lives and we will be able to destroy the power of sin. This includes the works of the flesh. We need to continually walk in fellowship with the Lord. Philippians 4:13; "I can do all things through Christ which strengtheneth me". What more could we ask for? The Lord will never leave me where I can do nothing, He is with me to give me strength.

So, we can truthfully say life is beautiful. God gave us life and He will help us through our life, He will give us strength, guide us, care for us, and keep us safe from all things if we abide in Him and He in us. Our life will always be beautiful as the Lord is in the center of our lives and we walk continually with Him.

This has been a nice visit and thank you for stopping by. May you know and enjoy the peace of the Lord. Blessings to each of you.

Wednesday, March 2, 2011

God's Will

All of ask God for things. It may be for healing, guidance or strength, not to mention there are so many things we ask God for. The one thing we forget is that we should ask God to have His will in each and everything we ask for.


There are things we ask for that may not line up with God's will and this is what each one of us should want. God's will. If we ask for God's will to be done we know whatever it is He will do what is best for us.

You may have a refrigerator that isn't working properly, you just don't have the money to have it fixed so what would you do? The first thing I would do is pray that God would allow the refrigerator to start working or perhaps that He would allow the money to come in so that you could have it fixed. There is nothing wrong with praying for this.

I remember one night I had been over to Debi's home and it started storming. On the way home I noticed the gas gauge was on empty. This was before the cell phones became popular so I didn't have one. I started praying the Lord would allow me to at least get in my driveway before I ran out of gas. The Lord is so good. I not only got in the driveway I was able to park the car behind the house so I wouldn't have so far to go to get in the house. The next morning Dave went out to move the car and it wouldn't start, he then noticed the gas gauge, EMPTY.
He came in the house and asked me about it. I told him I noticed the gauge said empty and I prayed the Lord would let me get home and in the driveway before I ran out of gas and I told him I got it parked behind the house so I thought there was probably more gas than I thought. He said I was wrong as there was no gas in the car at all. I knew then the Lord had heard my prayer and He had even let me get closer to the house than I had asked Him. What an awesome God.

Sometimes we ask for something that seems so small but God has granted you this prayer request. Even though it was something small did you stop to think whether the request was in line with His will?

I John 5:15-15; "And this is the confidence that we have in him, that, if we ask any thing according to his will, he heareth us: v.15 And if we know that he hear us, whatsoever we ask, we know that we have the petitions that we desired of him".

When we pray for something we should always pray that God's will be done, no matter what the prayer is for. If it is for healing, finances, or whatever it is, we should always remember to ask for God's will. If we ask for God's will we know it will be done for us and for the glory of God.

We need to be sincere and have true faith. We always need to pray in Jesus' name. John 14:13-14; "And whatsoever ye shall ask in my name, that will I do, that the Father may be glorified in the Son. v. 14 If ye shall ask any thing in my name, I will do it."

We know what God's will is in many things as it is told to us in His word. But other times it is revealed to us as we seriously seek His will in our lives. When we realize His will about what we pray for then we can ask in assurance and faith, knowing that He hears us and that His plan for us will be done.

We also need to be persistent. Remember the persistent widow in Luke 18:1-7. This is a real good parable Jesus told, if you aren't familiar with I encourage you to read. You will find out what perseverance can do.
Prayer is such a wonderful thing. It keeps us close to God and there are so many times when I am earnestly talking to God I can feel His presence. It is an awesome feeling.

I have enjoyed our visit and I want to thank you for stopping by. I pray that you know the peace of the Lord. Blessings to all of you.


Tuesday, March 1, 2011

Is The Fire Going Out

How many of us are "lukewarm Christians"? I don't want to be, I want to be on fire for the Lord. It says in the dictionary that lukewarm is: 1. barely warm; moderately warm; said of liquids. 2. lacking warmth of feeling or enthusiasm.

Revelation 3:16; "So then because thou art lukewarm, and neither cold nor hot, I will spew thee out of my mouth". I know Jesus said this to the church of Laodicea but this applies to us today.

Are we working for the Lord as much as we can? Are we telling everyone about the Lord, about God's love, about God's blessings, about His healings, about His help, and how He wants all of us to have a home in heaven with Him?

There are so many things we can do to 'promote' the Lord. Of course there are so many things we can do that brings dishonor to Him. Which of these two do we want to do?

Being lukewarm is one that compromises things with the world. These people say they are Christian but in reality are spiritually despicable and miserable. They are more interested in the worldly things than being interested in doing for the Lord. They may be going to Sunday School and church but they have come to love what the world offers. Because their friends don't particularly believe what God's Word says they think it is okay. They will go along with their friend instead of showing them where they are wrong.

The following are some things I feel show a person is leaning more towards the worldly aspects of life than wanting to help God so are becoming lukewarm. These are just my thoughts and you may not go along with them, that is up to you.

Did you ever stop to think about the things we could do to dishonor Him? Some things are so small that we think it couldn't hurt anyone. For instance, if someone asks you a question and it just happens to be something you don't really want to answer so you think just one lie won't hurt anything. Well, what do you think the Lord thinks about this? Will this glorify the Lord? Maybe you think no one is going to know but you. The Lord knows, there is nothing we do that the Lord doesn't know.

We could really be nasty to a person that is trying to talk to us but we are tired or don't feel good so we don't want to be bothered. This conversation could have led to a conversation about the Lord and you possibly could have helped someone by answering their question about the Lord.

Someone needs help and yet we aren't willing to give this to them. Perhaps we are busy or just don't want to give them the time. If we help someone in need we are showing them love, the love of God. We could have some Christian fellowship with this person but you just can't do it.

When we first gave our life to Jesus and asked Him to be Lord of our life we were so on fire and as time has gone by it seems we have just let the fire go out. Why?
If we do anything that would not glorify God or we do not obey His commandments we are bringing dishonor to Him and His name. So if we can't bring glory to His name and work for Him without compromising, I feel we are lukewarm.

II Peter 2:21 "For it had been better for them not to have know the way of righteousness, than after they have known it, to turn from the holy commandment delivered unto them".

Now, you may think none of these things I have mentioned have nothing to do with being lukewarm. I think it does as it is showing we are not on fire for God but are doing our own thing or turning to worldly things.

Thank you for stopping by, I have enjoyed our visit. May you know the peace of the Lord. Blessings!

Monday, February 28, 2011

Wildlife And People

I feed the birds and deer. I love animals, I don't think I have ever met an animal I didn't like. I do like some better than others but God made them all. I think opossums are beautiful but most people laugh at me and think I am a little crazy. Beauty is in the eyes of the beholder.  
Well, I didn't go out to throw the apple wafers and put the corn in a feeder for the deer this afternoon because we have had lots of rain, thunder, and lightening. I thought to myself 'they won't come up'. I later looked out the window and the deer were up so I decided to go on out and throw the apple wafers out and put the corn in the feeder. By the time I got out there they were gone. I knew the wafers and corn would get soaked so I didn't throw it out for them as I didn't know when they would be back.
On the way home from church tonight Dave and I started talking about the animals and how God protects them. I said to Dave, "I should have known the deer would be up because they are out in the weather anyway". This just lead us on to other animals such as the birds. We think it is so amazing how the birds with such tiny legs and feet could survive the freezing weather. They are so small in size anyway. Here in Kansas it isn't near as cold as it is up north and out east but we do have some really cold weather.  But they did said where we live here in Kansas that one day it was officially -17 degrees this winter season, that was not the wind chill. I didn't hear what it was with the wind chill.

In the summer time when it gets extremely hot you can see birds and other wild life panting because it is their way of perspiring. They need water to drink. Lots of people will have birdbaths in their yards for the birds. They drink from this water and will also take baths. The deer I feed will sometimes go to the birdbath I have to drink water in the summer and winter.

One time I told my Dad that those crazy sparrows were here eating all the bird food. He said to me "Deane, they get hungry too". Since then I have not cared that the sparrows come here to eat. In fact I am glad they come here to eat at my home. I am glad Dad said that to me.
Matthew 10:29; "Are not two sparrows sold for a farthing? and one of them shall not fall on the ground without your Father". It is said here that it takes two sparrows to sell for even a penny. One isn't worth that much so for a penny a person could buy two. To God they are worth more than that as it goes on to say that not one of them will fall to the ground without the Father. When they land on the ground for food it is because the Father has, by His providence put it there. Perhaps through me God is feeding some of His creatures.

Have you ever stopped to look, I mean really look at the creatures God has given us? There are so many and they are beautiful in their own way. Take the opossums that I think are so beautiful, most people think they are the one of the ugliest creatures. Perhaps there is an animal that you think is really beautiful and I wouldn't, that is okay as we are all different and we see things differently.

God has made different types of animals just as He has people. The only difference is people are made in His image. Genesis 1:26-27; "And God said, Let us make man in our image, after our likeness:... v.27 So God created man in his own image, in the image of God created he him; male and female created he them". Man and woman were a special creation of God although everything He created is special. We, man and woman are both created in the likeness and image of God. We mean a lot to God in fact He loves us very much.

Matthew 10:31; "Fear ye not therefore, ye are of more value than many sparrows". This is telling us God values us and our personal needs more than the sparrows. God knows all of our needs, trials, and sorrows. We are never far away from His presence, His care, and His concerns. He does want to know we are faithful and loyal to Him and He wants to know we love Him above all else. If He cares so much for the sparrows just look at how He cares for us. He takes care of our lives, our comforts, and our souls. He takes better care of us than we do ourselves. He knows exactly what is best for us. We just have to learn to listen to what He says to us. He may say this to us through Scripture, music, through another person, and sometimes He does speak to us audibly.

So, the next time you think you aren't important just remember you are important to God as His word tells us that we are.

Thank you for stopping by and may you know the peace of the Lord. Blessings!