Month: July 2018

DEAR GOD: Shining His Light from Within~

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But if our gospel be hid, it is hid to them that are lost: In whom the god of this world hath blinded the minds of them which believe not, lest the light of the glorious gospel of Christ, who is the image of God, should shine unto them.For we preach not ourselves, but Christ Jesus the Lord; and ourselves your servants for Jesus’ sake.For God, who commanded the light to shine out of darkness, hath shined in our hearts, to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ.

2 Corinthians 4:3-6 (KJV)

 

There are many people, too numerous to mention that haven’t been formally introduced to their Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. There are many people, again, too numerous to disclose, that don’t have an intimate relationship with Jesus, and sadly…so many of these people who are walking aimlessly in the “dark.”

It is up to us, as followers of Christ, to shine His light from within to “without” as we gently try to bring about change and a difference in those who don’t know Him. How do we do this? Not by “our power” instead, by the power of Christ, and through His wisdom and His guidance, and His grace, we are given that opportunity and gift to do so.

We are the “sowers” of the Word as we drop seeds…but it is up to Christ to do the watering. We are example of the “light” but it is His light that ultimately “shines and lights the path for those in the dark.”
It is His gospel that we are preaching; but make no mistake, it is the LORD’s guidance that is doing the teaching.

We are formidable adversaries against darkness, but it is Christ that is the light shielding us from that evil. It is the LORD who is our force of protection, and it is the LORD who commands the light to shine out of the darkness.

We need to be aware of others and those in the darkness. But, we need to draw upon HIM who can make a change through His power and magnificence, and grace. It is only through Christ that we can make a difference.

Look around…see anyone in the dark? If so, shine His light by the power and grace of His hands…and keep your inner light shining for all to see. Amen!

 

 

 

 

DEAR GOD: You Hear Our Prayers, Always~

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Then Jesus said to the disciples, “Have faith in God. 23 I tell you the truth, you can say to this mountain, ‘May you be lifted up and thrown into the sea,’ and it will happen. But you must really believe it will happen and have no doubt in your heart. 24 I tell you, you can pray for anything, and if you believe that you’ve received it, it will be yours. 25 But when you are praying, first forgive anyone you are holding a grudge against, so that your Father in heaven will forgive your sins, too. 

(Mark 11:22-25 NLT)

 

Praying is  not only a personal and intimate connection to our Father in Heaven,  but it’s also another way in which to show our devotion and love for Him and to Him.

When we profess our inner most thoughts and desires–of which He already knows before we even know it–(Matthew 6:8) –we are connecting our heart to His heart and climbing up higher into the realm of our faith.

Even when we pray and the prayer seems to go “unanswered” it doesn’t mean that our Father doesn’t hear us.  It means that He is waiting for the “right time” and the “right solution” to our requests.”

After all, it is always “His will be done” not “ours” — and when He grants our petitions and inner most heart felt desires, it is always for the betterment of His children, and His way is the “best way” and the “best outcome” contrary to what we may think or feel.  His way is the BEST…

So, as you go along in life and do your utmost best to stay in His Word and adhere to His Holy ways and commandments, remember this…God always hears us.  He is always listening.  And He is always close by holding us up with His right hand of righteousness. (Isaiah 41:10 ) 

Leading, guiding and showing us the way…forever here and now…and forever in the hereafter.

What an amazing God we serve huh?

 

“Father God, thank You for Your kindness, Your compassion, Your unconditional love, and Your hands of grace that touch our face each and everyday of our life, we are Yours forever more, in Jesus name, Amen.”

 

Fear thou not; for I am with thee: be not dismayed; for I am thy God: I will strengthen thee; yea, I will help thee; yea, I will uphold thee with the right hand of my righteousness.  (Isaiah 41:10 KJV)

DEAR GOD: Connecting with You Through Others~

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Do not judge others, and you will not be judged. Do not condemn others, or it will all come back against you. Forgive others, and you will be forgiven. 38 Give, and you will receive. Your gift will return to you in full—pressed down, shaken together to make room for more, running over, and poured into your lap. The amount you give will determine the amount you get back. Luke 6:37-8 (NLT)

 

 

Connecting with others and doing good in the LORD’s eyes is how we “connect to God” and how we show “our love” to Him.

In all things that we do and aspire to do there is one essential thing that is exceedingly important to remember, “never to judge” for when we sit in “judgement” of others we subject ourselves to the full wrath of the LORD.  When we help and provide and guide as in our “inner spirit” we are doing what we are called to do by being a follower of Christ, and aligning ourselves with His word and His will.

It’s easy to “point at others” and say, “such and such should never do that...”  or, “How does she put up with that? I would never do that!”  Nope, not a good thing to say or think!  For God is the only Judge we have.  We are not to judge ones character or what one has done for it is written “do not judge lest you be judged” and when we are judging others, we are pointing and three fingers are pointing right back at us!  As Jesus said, “cast the first stone if ye be without sin.”  And, all of us are guilty of sinning and having done some things we wish we hadn’t.  We are human, and flesh, and flesh “sins.”

So…we ask for forgiveness and we move on with a repentant heart…and try again to do all that we should in what’s right in our Father’s eyes.

When we “connect” with others…again, we are connecting with “Him.”

For Jesus said, “when you feed and clothe someone you are feeding and clothing me…”

Helping others, giving advice where needed, guiding someone, smiling at someone, praying for someone, or praying with someone, is critical to our faith filled lives through Christ.

So…the next time you see something and a voice whispers to you saying “look at so and so, I would never do that. Shame on that person...”  Remember this…that isn’t God speaking to you, but the enemy trying to get you on his side and into his camp.

Stay with the LORD and listen only to HIS VOICE...and stop judging…then go in and help where you can, the way the LORD wants you to.  Then know that you will be justly rewarded as your inner spirit grows with love and acceptance of all things that’s right.

We are His sheep and we hear His Voice…and those who don’t are not part of the flock.  Stay in His green pastures for growth, rewards and eternal grace and love…

 

 

“Father God we thank You for the opportunity to serve You and only You, help us to be neutral in terms of our brothers and sisters, and to remember never to point fingers or judge, for by Your grace we are saved, and by Your grace we are healed, and by Your grace our eyes have opened as have our ears,  all glory and honor are Yours now and always, in Jesus name, Amen.”

DEAR GOD: You are Everything~

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Listening to the news one can see that there is angst and sorrow all over the place. It is difficult to watch the news seeing the evil perpetrators while viewing the horrific repercussions of their actions.
Families grieving, children being molested, elderly being abused, animals in a circus being beaten! It is too much for a model citizen living and adhering to the law to comprehend such heinous crimes. And to hear people say, “where is God” while this is going on?

God is not doing these evil things-man is. “For all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh, and the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life, is not of the Father, but is of the world.” 1 John 7:16 (KJV).

There has always been Spiritual warfare going on since before the beginning of time. There was a great battle even before the earth was formed by God’s hands. Spiritual warfare is something real and ongoing. It will be going on until Christ returns with His army and battles the evil forces to make His Kingdom here on Earth. And, it will be beautiful, peaceful, idyllic- blissful for all eternity. When Jesus Christ establishes His rightful place, and all knees will bow and every tongue will proclaim Jesus Christ is Lord.

Those of us who choose to have real fellowship with Him experience His grace and live lives of holiness in His presence. When we walk in the light, it means we believe God’s truth as revealed in His word. We continue to make a sustained effort to follow in His word and deed. We are all sinners and we must try to formulate our existence in what He expects from us, His children.

If we claim that we have never sinned, we are in essence saying we do not need the efficacy of Christ’s death…Therefore making a liar of God. We all try to live without sin, but we are all susceptible to sinning. If we do fall into sin, the remedy is to confess and forsake that particular sin. Jesus’ death as the propitiation for our sins, and His heavenly ministry as our advocate is the basis and foundation for our assurance of forgiveness. He cleansed our sins. Jesus intercedes before God on our behalf on the basis of His atoning death. His blood washed us clean. His death and resurrection, and our active faith in Him is all we need to live forever. We can walk boldly into the inner courts of God because of Jesus’ blood.

God sent His son to cleanse us. We choose to either accept the living waters and the Lamb of God-in order to live forever, and thirst no more, or we don’t. For those who choose not to accept Him look around -it is clearly apparent in the news, on the streets where we walk and live. Not believing or accepting Christ, one can see where that might lead many.

So don’t say “where is God?” when things happen in the world that are disgusting. God is there and always will be there. It is your choice always has been. God’s arms are always open, He is always waiting to embrace you with His love and protection. You might be going through a difficult time, but it is so much easier with God in your corner.
For me the choice has is simple. How about you?”

 

 

 

 

Love not the world, neither the things that are in the world. If any man love the world, the love of the Father is not in him.” 1 John 7:15 (KJV)

“If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us. If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.” 1 John 1:8-9 (KJV)

“He that saith, I know him, and keepeth not his commandments, is a liar, and the truth is not in him. But whoso keepeth his word, in him verily is the love of god perfected: herby know we that we are in him.” 1 John 2:4-5 (KJV)

“But the anointing which ye have received of him abideth in you, and ye need not that any man teach you: but as the same anointing teacheth you of all things, and is truth, and is not lie, and even as it hath ttugh you, ye shall abide in him.”  1 John 2:27 (KJV)

DEAR GOD: You are Always There Since the Beginning of Time~

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While on our way to the supermarket earlier this morning,  we rode past a school yard, and when we stopped at the cross walk I noticed children jumping rope.  I smiled to myself and in my mind I saw myself  doing the same thing as if it were yesterday!  I saw it so clearly, my hair in a long pony tail, my favorite red shorts on and my polka dot blouse.  I saw my red sneakers with white anklets with delicate lace around the cuff, and could see me and my friends jumping rope. 

Innocent days of cotton candy, jelly apples, the Good Humor man and Mister Softee in my neighborhood, or relaxing on my wrap around porch on a hot summer day, with my “Beagle Candy,” and eating chocolate ices; and then walking to the store to buy my comic books running all the way home to read them on the hammock in the corner of  our porch, way in the corner!   It was great times, fun times and “feeling so protected times.”

By “feeling so protected” I mean by being so young, and feeling that my dad and my mom would never let anything happen to me.  The feeling of getting into my bed, and knowing my parents were in their bedroom, close by, and wouldn’t let anything bad happen to me.  They were always there for me, always protecting me, and always watching out for me, teaching me, guiding me, loving me. No worries, no anxieties, nothing but peace and happiness.

And, then I realized that all of those things my dad and mom did for me, my Father in heaven has done all along.  Protecting me, watching out for me,  keeping me our of harms way, teaching me, guiding me, loving me; and with all of that going on 24/7, there is an inner peace…no anxieties, nothing but peace and happiness. The Lord is beautiful, and he is in all things of beauty surrounding us with His love.

In retrospect, all my life I was being led by the Spirit, there was always a natural discernment.  The pieces of my “life puzzle” all coming together at different times, for different occasions;  and God was always there to help me with an additional “piece” to complete another journey of my life.

He was always here with me, He is still here with me, and He will never change or diminish in His character, or His harness of protection towards me.  He is my God, my Lord of Lords, my one true love.

The time I didn’t get the job I wanted, a better one showed up a week later.  The time I didn’t get the house we wanted, a better one showed up a month later.  He always knows what is best, and if we hold on to His hand, and walk in His ways, we can always be sure that He will take care of the rest.

So from my “jump rope Barbie doll playing days”…through my teens,  into young adulthood, and now in my “ahem” mature adulthood days; I am ever thankful to God and for all of His love and protection. 

My life is His plan, and He orchestrates it and I move to His music, and His voice.  I embrace all the years past, the years present, and the years to come;  until I am called home to rejoice with my loved ones that passed on, and to live with my Father in heaven.  But most important, I am so thrilled to know that His love will be with me forever.

Now, How amazing is that?

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Micah 6:8  “What does the Lord require of you but to do justly, to love mercy, and to walk humbly with your God?”   

 To be a good Christian requires more than personal devotions and a warm feeling inside. We need to show the world daily what He does inside of us-and do it by examples based on humility, kindness and love.

Michah 7:7 “I will look to the Lord; I will wait for the God of my salvation; My God will hear me.’

Whether we like it or not, waiting on God is a huge part of our walk of faith.  We need to trust God and wait for God to do the rest.

Micah 7:18 “Who is a God like You, pardoning inquity and passing over the transgression of the remnant of His heritage?”

God was never at any time under any obligation to forgive our sins, or our multitude of iniquities.  We do not deserve His grace or mercy; but He loves us unconditionally, and thus sent His son to die for our sins.  Who, I ask you, is a God like that?  

Blessed is your name Lord, we adore you, and we give you thanks~

 I love you Lord – Forever and Always…Amen~

 

DEAR GOD: Hurdles be Gone~

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Romans 5:19

For as by one man’s disobedience many were made sinners, so by the obedience of one shall many be made righteous.

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It’s difficult at times to wait as we ponder why a gap suddenly appears in our life. We wonder, why there isn’t a surge of continuation in terms of our purpose in the Lord.  God sometimes will allow a broken path for His purpose as part of His grand design in fulfilling our servitude to Him.
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What does this mean exactly? It means that there are reasons for all scenarios that will appear in our lives. It might mean God has a plan that is being set in motion and it’s not the time to release it yet.  He might be preparing us for the plan, and so it’s clearly His design to wait before bringing it to fruition.
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A gap may be representative of His bringing us to the fire to test our faith.  Or there may be a rough edge that needs to be smoothed, or a particular issue that needs to be resolved before He moves us along once again.
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We wait, and we must obey His will and remain faithful to His plans which invariably are for our best. During the “lull” times, His hands are busy at work, although we might not see it yet. He may be in the process of restoration in a particular relationship in our lives.  Whatever it may be, we must wait for His okay before we proceed. We must sit and wait for His clearance, and not rely on our “own mind-set”  we must rely on Him at all times.
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Abram listened to His wife instead of relying on God and His word and things got disastrous. In Genesis 16: 1-6 –His wife Sarai informs him of what he should do to take care of her need to be a mother. She wanted to produce a child for her husband so much so, she demanded he go into her maid Haggar so she might have a child. He listened to his wife’s voice, and not God’s voice or His promises. As a result, the maid Haggar despised Sarai, and things became ugly between the two. This wouldn’t have happened had he listened to the Lord, and waited for His instructions, and trusted Him.
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Likewise with God’s children of today. There may be times we wish to jump over a hurdle in the road to get to the other side. We impatiently want to get it out of the way, so we can continue on our way. We want to react instead of waiting, listening, and being faithful to God.  Did we ever think that hurdle may have been placed there by God  to protect us? Maybe He placed it there because on the other side of that hurdle was a great big gaping sink hole ready to swallow us up!
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We are under the protection of God’s wings at all times. When we follow, listen, and walk in obedience to His voice and purpose. We are part of His grand scheme and His divine will and we should surrender to it readily. That gaping sink hole ready to swallow us up may be “ravenous wolves” (Matthew 7:15). God always knows what’s ahead, we don’t. We need Him for all things.
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The next time you see a hurdle in your path…look up, say “thank you God” for you narrowly missed that sink hole! Amen!
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Then wait for our Father’s instructions so that His will be done for the true purpose in our lives…Amen
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Trust in the LORD with all your heart; and lean not to your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge Him and He shall direct all your paths.  (Proverbs 3:5-6)

 

DEAR GOD: Thank You For my Blessings & For my Parents~

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Hebrews 12:9 KJV

Furthermore we have had fathers of our flesh which corrected us, and we gave them reverence: shall we not much rather be in subjection unto the Father of spirits, and live?

 

Nineteen years ago on July 1… my wonderful handsome Dad died.  It was a tough gloomy day, and the time that followed was agony as we grieved together as a family.  What made it even more difficult was the way he died.  He went in for an operation with a high success rate and due to a horrific error by the surgeon, he sliced through his heart ventricle and bled to death.

My Dad was the best of the best.  He was funny, kind, wise, and knew how to teach us as we grew.  He was our champion supporter in all that we did.  He was the anchor that endured for each of his three children.  And, he was a compassionate and fair individual who had strong morals.  He was my protector and I felt safe in his arms.  When I closed my eyes at night I was safe, knowing my Dad was there.  Of course, I adored my Mom, who has since passed, and she was equally amazing, they were well suited and in love.  My beautiful sweet and kind Mom, that’s for another time, and another devotional…Right now…it’s about Dad.

All of those things I felt about my earth father was, and still, to this day in my heart and soul.

He was a fine conservative upstanding man, who was a fine example of a godly man. A great husband, father, son,  brother, uncle,  grandfather, and friend.  You are the Creator of all things big and small Father God…and You created a fine man/son when you created my dad.

So, today upon his 19th years anniversary going home to the LORD…I wish to give thanks to my Father God, who through His grace, and love, placed me in the womb of my Mom and I was born to two incredible people.

So, Father, as much as I loved my parents…I love you even more, because you love me…even more!

I gave you my heart so long ago, and I give you thanks for all things…big and small.  For all of the prayers you’ve answered along the way.  For the times you held me non stop through tough times (like my dad’s death, my mom’s death, and so many other loved ones that passed)—and through valleys of family illnesses, and troubles.  You’ve always been there.

Thank You for Your faithfulness in securing me by opening eyes and ears, and bringing the bowels and depth of your Word into my heart and soul. For enlightening my path, and for breathing Life into my soul.

Thank You for my Dad and Mom, I was truly blessed by their love and fine example of faith in You, as they taught us all about You.

Father God, You are amazing, I love You forever and always.

Now, may I ask You this?  If it’s okay with You, can You give my Dad a huge hug from me?  Can You tell him I love Him and still miss him?  And, can you kiss my Mom for me and tell her she is loved and missed more than she knows?

And, finally Father God, when my time is over, and You bring me home, can I hug You for a long time?

 

Remember your leaders and superiors in authority for it was they who brought to you the Word of God. Observe attentively and consider their manner of living (the outcome of their well-spent lives) and imitate their faith ( their conviction that God exists and is the Creator and Ruler of all things, the Provider and Bestower of eternal salvation through Christ, and their leaning of the entire human personality on God in absolute trust and confidence in His power, wisdom, and goodness).   

Hebrews 13:7 (KJV)