Thoughts ABCDEFGHIJKLMNOPQRSTUVWXYZONPRTOFF dateof comment Look Inside Data Conditions:Order: 1|2|3|4|5|6|7|8|9|10|11|12|13|14|15|16| Dateof Comment 07/18/2022 How many times in life do we get into trouble because we do not listen. I have seen this on the highways where people head out into storms and get stranded when they were told to stay home. God tells us to stay away from things like pornography and we do not listen and get addicted to it. Listening may not be just hearing but also from reading God's word. The deaf listen by reading. When God speaks he can be drowned out by earthly things. We then have no idea when he is talking to us. We need to expect him to say something. When he says something then the next step is to JUST DO IT. James has a lot to say about this. James 1:19-27(New Living Translation) Listening and Doing 19 Understand this, my dear brothers and sisters: You must all be quick to listen, slow to speak, and slow to get angry. [How many times does this get us into trouble? This is where the expression insert foot into mouth comes from.] 20 Human anger does not produce the righteousness God desires. 21 So get rid of all the filth and evil in your lives, and humbly accept the word God has planted in your hearts, for it has the power to save your souls. [This may mean turning the TV off and start hanging around people who love God.The world filters out God's word with its word. ] 22 But don’t just listen to God’s word. You must do what it says. Otherwise, you are only fooling yourselves. 23 For if you listen to the word and don’t obey, it is like glancing at your face in a mirror. 24 You see yourself, walk away, and forget what you look like. [The church has fallen into this trap. Abortion, homosexuality, pedophilia and other sins are ignored because we do nothing about it. We do not want any turmoil in our lives so Let's ignore it. ] 25 But if you look carefully into the perfect law that sets you free, and if you do what it says and don’t forget what you heard, then God will bless you for doing it. [See, there is Blessing when we remove what the world offers.] 26 If you claim to be religious but don’t control your tongue, you are fooling yourself, and your religion is worthless. [Many times what comes out of our mouth is the only thing people see of Jesus in us and who he is. This is the hardest one to keep but is possible with the power of the Holy Spirit. If you are not born again it may be time for you to commit to this. JUST DO IT.] 27 Pure and genuine religion in the sight of God the Father means caring for orphans and widows in their distress and refusing to let the world corrupt you. [This is when you begin to figure it all out.] As we listen to our King and do what he tells us, our life becomes this: Psalm 119:7 (New Living Translation) As I learn your righteous regulations, I will thank you by living as I should! 07/14/2022 There is something to be said about listening and doing what our King asks of us: John 15:10 (New Living Translation) When you obey my commandments, you remain in my love, just as I obey my Father’s commandments and remain in his love. I was wondering about the expression "remains in his love" so I checked out another version: John 15:10 (King James Version) If ye keep my commandments, ye shall abide in my love; even as I have kept my Father's commandments, and abide in his love. Abide is a verb. It means accept or act in accordance with (a rule, decision, or recommendation). "I said I would abide by their decision" Check out the synonyms: comply with, obey, observe, follow, keep to, hold to, conform to, adhere to, stick to, stand by, act in accordance with, uphold, heed, pay attention to, agree to/with, consent to, accede to, accept, acquiesce in, go along with, acknowledge, respect, defer to Another reason why we need to listen to and obey our King is to conform to his love. 07/13/2022 It is cool to be successful. The drive for success can minimize our God. Do we see this in our day to day life: Psalm 19:1-2 (New Living Translation) The heavens proclaim the glory of God. The skies display his craftsmanship. Day after day they continue to speak; night after night they make him known. We should see God just like this verse shows. Even in great duress of near starvation, Jesus never lost focus of what his Father said: Matthew 4:4 (New Living Translation) But Jesus told him, “No! The Scriptures say, ‘People do not live by bread alone, but by every word that comes from the mouth of God.’” Jesus Christ gave everything of himself for us and still honor the Father. Because of this: Philippians 2:9-11 (New Living Translation) Therefore, God elevated him to the place of highest honor and gave him the name above all other names, that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue declare that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father. If the awesome God elevated Jesus to the highest honor, we should be placing him high up in our own lives. Proof of this happening is how we love other people and how we live our lives around others. Seeing the presence of Jesus should make us want to brag about him to other people like many who brag about people in the entertainment world. I tell you this that Jesus Christ cares about you enough to die for you. Those in the entertainment world have zero interest in you. If we don't honor Jesus, God has made this promise: Psalm 46:10 (New Living Translation) “Be still, and know that I am God! I will be honored by every nation. I will be honored throughout the world." The same goes for Jesus. His name will be exalted everywhere: Zechariah 14:9 (New Living Translation) And the Lord will be king over all the earth. On that day there will be one Lord—his name alone will be worshiped. My life is the result of Jesus Christ's actions. He gets the Glory and the VIctory. I need to never forget this and live to please him. 07/12/2022 Do you feel like when you are working on doing things for God that what you are doing is insignificant. I will tell you that he is watching. We serve a big God: Jeremiah 32:17 (New Living Translation) “O Sovereign Lord! You made the heavens and earth by your strong hand and powerful arm. Nothing is too hard for you! To encourage us to keep going he has promises for us. Paul writes to the churches: Galatians 6:9 New Living Translation 9 So let’s not get tired of doing what is good. At just the right time we will reap a harvest of blessing if we don’t give up. Philippians 1:6 (New Living Translation) And I am certain that God, who began the good work within you, will continue his work until it is finally finished on the day when Christ Jesus returns. Just remember you are appreciated by God if you are serving him. So do not give up. Do not expect the world to understand what you are doing. We only need to please Jesus Christ. This verse says it all: Hebrews 6:10 New Living Translation 10 For God is not unjust. He will not forget how hard you have worked for him and how you have shown your love to him by caring for other believers, as you still do. This is the King that loves us and that we need to continue to serve. Zechariah 14:9 (New Living Translation) And the Lord will be king over all the earth. On that day there will be one Lord—his name alone will be worshiped. 07/08/2022 One thing about it when our God speaks he means every word he says. He confirms this in this verse: Matthew 24:35 (New Living Translation) Heaven and earth will disappear, but my words will never disappear. This is also true with what is in his written word. God makes promises with his people and keeps them. When it was impossible for Abraham to have a son God made a promise with him that he would have one and he did. He then also promised that his descendants would be as numerous as the sand on a seashore. That also happened. And it did not matter what Abraham did. It was all because of the faith that Abraham had in God. David describes God and his promises: Psalm 18:30 (New Living Translation) God’s way is perfect. All the Lord’s promises prove true. He is a shield for all who look to him for protection. God Backs everything he says with his glorious name. Psalm 138:2 (New Living Translation) I bow before your holy Temple as I worship. I praise your name for your unfailing love and faithfulness; for your promises are backed by all the honor of your name. Some of God's promises are based upon what we do. God said if you honor your mother and father you will live a long life. In Malachi 3:10 he said that if you tithe to me I will blow the doors off your barn with all the bounty. This is the only place in the Bible where God asks to be tested. The only way that I have ever seen God back down from a promise is when we humble ourselves: 1 Kings 21:29 “Do you see how Ahab has humbled himself before me? Because he has done this, I will not do what I promised during his lifetime. It will happen to his sons; I will destroy his dynasty.” In the story of Jonah after he told the people about their coming destruction, they repented and God spared them. But it is interesting that eventually the city would be destroyed later. In both scenarios the promise was kept but fulfilled later. If Jesus Christ is not Center Stage in our life, we cannot fully benefit from all of God's promises. So many of us want to isolate ourselves from God and do things our own way. Then we wonder why God's promises are not filled in our life. We have a free will and God will never force himself on us. When that happens His blessings over our life also disappear. The best way to get blessings out of life is to continually give our life over to Jesus Christ everyday. He really does want to bless us. 07/05/2022 One of the greatests myths is that man is good. God confirms that this is NOT true: Jeremiah 17:9-10 (New Living Translation) “The human heart is the most deceitful of all things, and desperately wicked. Who really knows how bad it is? But I, the Lord, search all hearts and examine secret motives. I give all people their due rewards, according to what their actions deserve.” God does search out impure hearts and will take us out if necessary to protect his children. Paul also confirmed Jeremiah: Romans 3:23-24 23 For everyone has sinned; we all fall short of God's glorious standard. 24 Yet God, with undeserved kindness, declares that we are righteous. He did this through Christ Jesus when he freed us from the penalty for our sins. Jesus Christ and the Holy Spirit can actually make our hearts pure. I believe he can transform the heart to the point where sin loses its total control over our life. Paul confirms to Timothy that this can happen: 1 Timothy 1:5 The purpose of my instruction is that all believers would be filled with love that comes from a pure heart, a clear conscience, and genuine faith. All good things require work but the reward is worth it. Jesus Christ thought I was worth dying for. So why would it be any different for you? Let’s all strive for the pure heart. We can change people lives for him by the way we live. Plus we will get to experience love, a clear conscience and genuine faith from having a pure heart. I am so grateful that I was chosen to be worthy by Jesus Christ and I never want to forget that. The pilgrims in 1620's understood this. They made a covenant with God to run their government under biblical principles. This is different when God made a covenant with Abraham. In other words the pilgrims chose God where God chose Abraham. The covenant of the pilgrims and todays prayer warriors are bringing America back as a nation under God as it should be. David explains this concept: Psalm 33:12 (New Living Translation) What joy for the nation whose God is the Lord, whose people he has chosen as his inheritance. You just wait until you see what God is up to. We are living during the time when he is about to release his Glory. God's prophets will confirm what I am saying is about to happen. So get ready to see the greatest move of God ever! 07/04/2022 One of the greatests myths is that man is good. God confirms that this is NOT true: Jeremiah 17:9-10 (New Living Translation) “The human heart is the most deceitful of all things, and desperately wicked. Who really knows how bad it is? But I, the Lord, search all hearts and examine secret motives. I give all people their due rewards, according to what their actions deserve.” Paul also confirmed Jeremiah: Romans 3:23-24 23 For everyone has sinned; we all fall short of God's glorious standard. 24 Yet God, with undeserved kindness, declares that we are righteous. He did this through Christ Jesus when he freed us from the penalty for our sins. Jesus Christ and the Holy Spirit can actually make our hearts pure. I believe he can transform the heart to the point where sin loses its total control over our life. Paul confirms to Timothy that this can happen: 1 Timothy 1:5 The purpose of my instruction is that all believers would be filled with love that comes from a pure heart, a clear conscience, and genuine faith. All good things require work but the reward is worth it. Jesus Christ thought I was worth dying for. So why would it be any different for you? Let’s all strive for the pure heart. We can change people lives for him by the way we live. Plus we will get to experience love, a clear conscience and genuine faith from having a pure heart. I am so grateful that I was chosen to be worthy by Jesus Christ and I never want to forget that. The pilgrims in 1620's understood this. They made a covenant with God to run their government under biblical principles. This is different when God made a covenant with Abraham. In other words the pilgrims chose God where God chose Abraham. The covenant of the pilgrims and todays prayer warriors are bringing America back as a nation under God as it should be. David explains this concept: Psalm 33:12 (New Living Translation) What joy for the nation whose God is the Lord, whose people he has chosen as his inheritance. You just wait until you see what God is up to. We are living during the time when he is about to release his Glory. God's prophets will confirm what I am saying is about to happen. So get ready to see the greatest move of God ever! 07/01/2022 God has given each one of us talents. We can develop these skills to a point where we become very good at it. God expects us to develop those talents for him. Others will develop their talents to become the best in the world at what they can do. Does our attitude look like this when this happens: Luke 18:9-14 Parable of the Pharisee and Tax Collector 9 Then Jesus told this story to some who had great confidence in their own righteousness and scorned everyone else: 10 “Two men went to the Temple to pray. One was a Pharisee, and the other was a despised tax collector. 11 The Pharisee stood by himself and prayed this prayer: ‘I thank you, God, that I am not like other people—cheaters, sinners, adulterers. I’m certainly not like that tax collector! 12 I fast twice a week, and I give you a tenth of my income.’ 13 “But the tax collector stood at a distance and dared not even lift his eyes to heaven as he prayed. Instead, he beat his chest in sorrow, saying, ‘O God, be merciful to me, for I am a sinner.’ 14 I tell you, this sinner, not the Pharisee, returned home justified before God. For those who exalt themselves will be humbled, and those who humble themselves will be exalted.” Paul has more to say about this: Romans 3:23-24 23 For everyone has sinned; we all fall short of God's glorious standard. 24 Yet God, with undeserved kindness, declares that we are righteous. He did this through Christ Jesus when he freed us from the penalty for our sins. He than give us a warning: Romans 12:3 (New Living Translation),Because of the privilege and authority God has given me, I give each of you this warning: Don’t think you are better than you really are. Be honest in your evaluation of yourselves, measuring yourselves by the faith God has given us. We need to keep our focus on Jesus Christ and remember that our talents are mainly to be used to glorify him, not to make money only for our selfish interests. Don't get me wrong, God desires to bless us as long as our heart is not like the Pharisee's heart. 06/30/2022 We are in a dangerous time in American “Christianity.” The pulpit has been absent of true gospel preaching for quite some time. The greatest mission field today is the American church. The church has been inundated with emotionalism and a subjective gospel making man the decider of what is true and false. He has interpreted the Scriptures to fit his idea of who God is. Churches have turned into entertainment facilities pushing a man-centered approach placing his needs first and God’s second. Christ is not to be a part of your life, He is your life. Man sadly desires a gospel of comfort and well being, not of self denial and sacrifice. George Whitfield in the 1700’s said when the gospel is truly preached, fewer believe it. Why? Because you give up your self. You have been bought with a price and are no longer your own. You were once a slave to sin and the devil, but now you are a slave to Christ. God has been pictured only as a loving God denying His wrath and hatred of sinners. Read Psalm 5. You start preaching the truth and you will lose most of your congregation. They hate the truth of the exclusivity of the Gospel. Acts 4:12. Boldness and the defense of the truth today are rare. We have today what I call easy believism. Just say a prayer and ask Jesus into your heart. That is nowhere to be found in God’s Word. Jesus says REPENT and believe the Gospel. It is NOT an invitation but a command. What does Amazing Grace say? I was blind but now I see who saved a poor WRETCH like me. Until God reveals to you the massive depth of sin in your heart and that sin has completely separated you from God, you will not see or even be able to enter Christ’s Kingdom (and by the way He is reigning NOW) or understand anything of a spiritual nature. Man is dead in Adam, and must be raised unto life by the same power that created the world. God alone saves. The Creation account is a picture of one who has been born of the Spirit. Out of the darkness He brought forth the light. Out of chaos he brought forth order. Read John chapter 3. Salvation belongs to the Lord. May the Lord grant mercy, for without it you remain in your sin. Chip from telegram 06/30/2022 In the action of living life, how many of us feel like we are insignificant. This is not God's plan for us to be of no value: Psalm 138:8 (New Living Translation) The Lord will work out his plans for my life— for your faithful love, O Lord, endures forever. Don’t abandon me, for you made me. Don't stop here. Check this verse out: Jeremiah 29:11 11 For I know the plans I have for you," says the Lord. "They are plans for good and not for disaster, to give you a future and a hope. God has plans for all of us. Sometimes his plans come later in ones life. Even Jesus Christ did not start his ministry until he was 30 years old. Continue to serve the King and trust that he has a plan. I was 60 years old before God started using my life in a big way. Our attitudes can effect God's timing on using us. So we need to prepare our hearts early. We are facing a spiritual battle now. God sometimes hides us to protect us from the enemy. Your day will come when God is ready for you to fight. Just remember you are not junk. 06/29/2022 .God has made a promise through his prophets that he is going to take out abortion, child trafficking and the corruption against his people. It is going on two years and everyone is getting impatient with what seems to be taking forever. But there is a reason why: 2 Peter 3:9 (New Living Translation) The Lord isn’t really being slow about his promise, as some people think. No, he is being patient for your sake. He does not want anyone to be destroyed, but wants everyone to repent. This is what true love is about. I would have toasted the bad guys by now. That is another reason why God doesn't ask for my opinion. He too will only take so much before he reacts. Just remember this: Matthew 16:25 (New Living Translation) If you try to hang on to your life, you will lose it. But if you give up your life for my sake, you will save it. It is time to repent and turn our life over to Jesus Christ. If we don't, the Lake of Fire will be our next home. Jesus would rather we be in the Kingdom of God with him. 06/28/2022 The NSA monitors all of our communications and has all of our phone calls, emails and texts stored in a database to see what we are up to. I believe this information is going to be used to clean up our government and destroy those in human trafficking because of this. Our God is omnipresent and monitors all of us: Jeremiah 23:24 (New Living Translation) Can anyone hide from me in a secret place? Am I not everywhere in all the heavens and earth?” says the Lord. So everything we do is seen by God. We cannot hide a thing. It really is a good thing though that he watches us. This way we get protection from the evil one. Jesus Christ was the only man to experience separation from God and he hated it. I am glad God sticks around because his separation is a terrible thing to have happen. Again Jesus Christ is their for us to make us righteous. He clears our recorded sins out of God's database when we ask for forgiveness. Jesus commands we love one another just as God did when Israel left Egypt. Leviticus 19:18 (New Living Translation) “Do not seek revenge or bear a grudge against a fellow Israelite, but love your neighbor as yourself. I am the Lord Shouldn't we do as Christ asks to honor him. 06/27/2022 The NSA monitors all of our communications and has all of our phone calls, emails and texts stored in a database to see what we are up to. I believe this information is going to be used to clean up our government and destroy those in human trafficking because of this. Our God is omnipresent and monitors all of us: Jeremiah 23:24 (New Living Translation) Can anyone hide from me in a secret place? Am I not everywhere in all the heavens and earth?” says the Lord. So everything we do is seen by God. We cannot hide a thing. It really is a good thing though that he watches us. This way we get protection from the evil one. Jesus Christ was the only man to experience separation from God and he hated it. I am glad God sticks around because his separation is a terrible thing to have happen. Again Jesus Christ is their for us to make us righteous. He clears our recorded sins out of God's database when we ask for forgiveness. Jesus commands we love one another just as God did when Israel left Egypt. Leviticus 19:18 (New Living Translation) “Do not seek revenge or bear a grudge against a fellow Israelite, but love your neighbor as yourself. I am the Lord Shouldn't we do as Christ asks to honor him. 06/24/2022 Many of us go to work everyday and do our duties. But while we are working, do we ever think about God. Or better yet, do we pray over our job before the work day starts. By praying and giving our job to God, this will happen: Isaiah 40:31 (New Living Translation) But those who trust in the Lord will find new strength. They will soar high on wings like eagles. They will run and not grow weary. They will walk and not faint. Many of us face job burn out when we leave God out of the equation. God will change your situation if your attitude is cool. He may bring someone into work that you can witness to. With a good attitude he can bless you at work and even at home. When you read this verse from Paul, he confirms this: 2 Thessalonians 3:3 (New Living Translation) But the Lord is faithful; he will strengthen you and guard you from the evil one. Both verses have one thing in common in that you will be strengthened to be able to handle the days tasks. Isaiah quotes "those who trust in the Lord" and Paul quotes "the Lord is faithful" When it is all said and done, trust in the Lord and he is faithful in strengthening you. Let's make burnout a thing of the past. Leave burn outs to muscle cars. There it is cool. 06/22/2022 Most of us never think about this but have you ever thought about how many times the true God has protected us from calamities while we serve him. I have even seen him protect others in their younger life because of a calling our God has over their life in the future. This verse proves this: Psalm 121:7-8 (New Living Translation) The Lord keeps you from all harm and watches over your life. The Lord keeps watch over you as you come and go, both now and forever. Once we release ourselves to Jesus Christ, the Freedom and peace begins.This means serving God but the power of this verse begins here: Psalm 91:1 (New Living Translation) Those who live in the shelter of the Most High will find rest in the shadow of the Almighty. God is the same today as he was yesterday and these verses are as true today as they were in King David's era. 06/20/2022 We all have dreams of some kind. The most common dream is to become rich and/or famous. Satan can give you all of this by giving him your soul. This may sound cool in the short term but: Mark 8:36 (New Living Translation) And what do you benefit if you gain the whole world but lose your own soul? Residing in the Lake of Fire for eternity is not a trade off I want. I have found that serving God may take longer to get things but it is worth it. He examines our hearts to see our motives. If you put your time and money into his Kingdom he has this promise: Malachi 3:10 New Living Translation 10 Bring all the tithes into the storehouse so there will be enough food in my Temple. If you do,” says the Lord of Heaven’s Armies, “I will open the windows of heaven for you. I will pour out a blessing so great you won’t have enough room to take it in! Try it! Put me to the test! I want to store treasure in heaven and also reap the blessings God has for us on this earth. The real estate is so much cooler in his Kingdom. It is also the most fabulous place to live. I will gladly live there for eternity. Why don't we all serve God and witness the most fantastic place ever. Jesus came to earth just for this purpose but we have to graciously accept his gift. This means turning our life over to him and serving him. 06/19/2022 Why is it we think suffering is a bad thing when it comes to serving Jesus Christ. If you want to play professional sports, just try to get on board without suffering. It can be painful to be the best at anything. What! being good at serving Jesus Christ does not have that much meaning to me. Like how can I get rich serving him? We always miss the point on this one. You have to prove yourself like the men with the talents. Your evil heart may be preventing wealth. The richest men in the old testament served God. This includes Job who God allowed Satan to try to break him. But in the end God restored everything. Suffering prepares us for the Kingdom of God: Acts 14:22 where they strengthened the believers. They encouraged them to continue in the faith, reminding them that we must suffer many hardships to enter the Kingdom of God. Righteous suffering promises rewards: 1 Peter 3:14 But even if you suffer for doing what is right, God will reward you for it. So don’t worry or be afraid of their threats. Those who endure suffering will get their spiritual body in shape: 1 Peter 5:10 10 And the God of all grace, who called you to his eternal glory in Christ, after you have suffered a little while, will himself restore you and make you strong, firm and steadfast. In order to share in God's Glory that dreaded suffering has to be overcome: Romans 8:17 And since we are his children, we are his heirs. In fact, together with Christ we are heirs of God’s glory. But if we are to share his glory, we must also share his suffering. Don't be bull headed about your suffering enduring it alone. This will soften it: James 5:13 The Power of Prayer Are any of you suffering hardships? You should pray. Are any of you happy? You should sing praises Now I Iike the ending: Romans 8:18 The Future Glory Yet what we suffer now is nothing compared to the glory he will reveal to us later. But until the end comes this promise will get us through it: 2 Corinthians 1:5 For the more we suffer for Christ, the more God will shower us with his comfort through Christ. It may not seem like it but it is a privilege to suffer for Jesus: Philippians 1:29 For you have been given not only the privilege of trusting in Christ but also the privilege of suffering for him. Just think about it. If you are doing God's work you are angering the devil and he will try to stop you. The world is the devils playground and he can easily find worldly individuals to come against you. His goal is to make you stop: 1 Thessalonians 2:14 And then, dear brothers and sisters, you suffered persecution from your own countrymen. In this way, you imitated the believers in God’s churches in Judea who, because of their belief in Christ Jesus, suffered from their own people, the Jews. When you serve Jesus you will experience: 2 Timothy 3:12 Yes, and everyone who wants to live a godly life in Christ Jesus will suffer persecution. What angers the devil pleases God. This is how he will stand with you. 2 Thessalonians 1:5 And God will use this persecution to show his justice and to make you worthy of his Kingdom, for which you are suffering. So keep your joy because you will become one powerful machine when it is all done: 2 Timothy 1:8 So never be ashamed to tell others about our Lord. And don’t be ashamed of me, either, even though I’m in prison for him. With the strength God gives you, be ready to suffer with me for the sake of the Good News. To finalize things from one of the coolest dudes in the Bible: James 5:11 We give great honor to those who endure under suffering. For instance, you know about Job, a man of great endurance. You can see how the Lord was kind to him at the end, for the Lord is full of tenderness and mercy. James would never have wrote this if it was not true for the rest of us. Let’s take God up on this for our own lives. 06/17/2022 For those who live near Denver Colorado you were greeted with a night light show that only God could put on. I heard that it was so bright that you needed some form of sunglasses to drive safely on the interstate. Our God loves the light and David said it perfect about our God: Psalm 68:4-5 (New Living Translation) Sing praises to God and to his name! Sing loud praises to him who rides the clouds. His name is the Lord— rejoice in his presence! Father to the fatherless, defender of widows— this is God, whose dwelling is holy. David was born before Jesus Christ came. That disadvantage did not stop him from getting closer to God. He did get close enough to feel his presence. He was so excited about that he created music and words to exalt God. Why is it we have Jesus Christ that we are not even closer to God? Jesus has given us a in with God by what he did on the cross and the Holy Spirit that is now available to all of us. The world around us can quench our praises to him. This verse explains why: Matthew 6:24 God and Possessions “You cannot be a slave of two masters; you will hate one and love the other; you will be loyal to one and despise the other. You cannot serve both God and money. Even though money is a great thing to have it can be a distraction on our understanding of God. The more irons we have in the fire the less time we have for God and his people. Do you want to know a secret? This is good thing to remember. Mathew 6:31-34 31 “So do not start worrying: ‘Where will my food come from? or my drink? or my clothes?’ 32 (These are the things the pagans are always concerned about.) Your Father in heaven knows that you need all these things. 33 Instead, be concerned above everything else with the Kingdom of God and with what he requires of you, and he will provide you with all these other things. 34 So do not worry about tomorrow; it will have enough worries of its own. There is no need to add to the troubles each day brings. So you want money; seek his Kingdom first. After seeking his Kingdom you will be moved to sing praises to his awesome name. Next you will began to realize he is on your side. With fathers day around the corner, let this sink in: Father to the fatherless, defender of widows— this is God, whose dwelling is holy. Because of Jesus Christ we are righteous and can come unto him anytime. 06/16/2022 As we read God's word we begin to understand who God is. We can see he is the ultimate Father: Psalm 103:13 (New Living Translation) The Lord is like a father to his children, tender and compassionate to those who fear him. Until we have that reverance for God we continue to miss out on the wonderful things our King has to offer us. God is a lot of ways like earthly fathers in that: Proverbs 23:24 (New Living Translation) The father of godly children has cause for joy. What a pleasure to have children who are wise. Don't kid yourself our God has joy when we live a godly life and we use the wisdom he gives us. We focus on becoming citizens of heaven. As this verse says: Philippians 3:20 (New Living Translation) But we are citizens of heaven, where the Lord Jesus Christ lives. And we are eagerly waiting for him to return as our Savior. With all the weird things going on it may be sooner than we think. Let's stay focused on Jesus so it will be impossible to miss him when he comes back. 06/10/2022 One of my favorite stories happened during Jesus Christ hanging on the cross. One of the men beside him mocked Jesus for not getting himself out of this predicament. The other man must have seen Jesus in operation before and understood that Jesus was wrongly crucified. He was very disturbed that the other man was treating Jesus in this manner: Luke 23:39-43 39 One of the criminals hanging there hurled insults at him: “Aren't you the Messiah? Save yourself and us!” 40 The other one, however, rebuked him, saying, “Don't you fear God? You received the same sentence he did. 41 Ours, however, is only right, because we are getting what we deserve for what we did; but he has done no wrong.” 42 And he said to Jesus, “Remember me, Jesus, when you come as King!” 43 Jesus said to him, “I promise you that today you will be in Paradise with me.” Both men probably committed atrocities that would make you want to leave the room. Jesus Christ does not give points for sin atrocity. He loves us so much and all he is looking for is for us to ask for forgiveness and a heart change. Not everyone gets to come to the Lord at the last minute like this guy did. You may die in the twinkle of an eye. Make sure you are saved today. Just personally ask him to forgive your sins and turn your heart over to him. The thief inherited a place in the Kingdom of God without being baptized. But it would honor God for you to go through the commitment of being baptized. The moral of the story is: Colossians 3:13 (New Living Translation) Make allowance for each other’s faults, and forgive anyone who offends you. Remember, the Lord forgave you, so you must forgive others. Jesus despises sin but because of his love and the shedding of his blood he forgives us anyway. He then forgets our sins. Do you know why we must forgive others? There are three things that happen: Only if you show love can you forgive someone else. This tests your ability to love others. The second is to humble us. If we do not understand what a gift that is to have our sins forgiven, we will have a pride issue and we will never forgive. The third thing is the peace that will abound in our lives after we forgive. The last thing alone makes forgiving someone worth it.
