Rose Colored Stained Glass Windows

For those of us who attend church, what is our purpose for doing so?  Do we do it to "get out of the house", to make us feel good, so that we have a "social club", or do we do it out of our love for God, others, and then ourselves?  Are we there for a religious ceremony, or what is our purpose?

There is a song from the former Christian Rock band Petra that seems to fit this ideology.  It says, "Looking through Rose Colored stained glass windows, never allowing the world to come in, seeing no evil and feeling no pain, making the light as it comes from within, so dim, so dim."

In today's modern social networking, are we fans or followers of Jesus?  Do we go to church as spectators of a spiritual sporting exercise, or do we strive to live for Jesus each and every day of our lives?  Are we playing religious games with God, ourselves, and others while the world struggles to survive?  How can we say that we are FOLLOWERS of Jesus, unless we are truly FOLLOWERS of Jesus?  We can't live and truly be followers if we have one foot in the World, and one foot in the Gospel.  We can't be double-minded.  As Jesus said, "Either you are for me, or you are against me."  He also had said, "I would rather that you are either hot or cold.  If you are lukewarm, I will spew you out of my mouth."  The word "spew" in this context is another word for vomiting.  There is no room in God's eyes for "Closet Christians".  We need to show the World His love and life through our love and lives.  To the unbelievers, we may be the only Jesus that they'll ever see.  We may fool others, but God cannot be fooled nor mocked.  We need to take the messages that we all hear in church, apply the loving principles to our lives, then spread the Good News on to others.

Cancer

This is a very difficult t

Patience

Romans 5:4 NASB

4 and perseverance, proven character; and proven character, hope;

Even though it is tough to be patient sometimes, this is one of the benefits.  We are taught patience (perseverance) through our trials.  I know, we all want to fix the problem quickly, but if we are patient, God will give us the answer in our time of need.  No, God will not do everything for us; that's why He gave us a brain!  However, we are to trust him FIRST.  The old saying, "God helps those who help themselves", is not in the Bible.  The often quoted phrase came from an episode of "Little House on the Prairie".  We are to trust in Him first, not ourselves, not other people, nor the situation.  "Seek Ye FIRST the Kingdom of God and His Righteousness, and all these things shall be added unto you."  THATIS WHAT THE BIBLE SAYS!  Does this mean that God will let us
have anything we want?  No, it means that He will provide for all our needs according to His perfect and Holy will for our lives. O:-)

Interpretation

 I know that it has been an awful long time since I have posted anything here on my blog.  I know that it is a lame excuse, but sometimes life gets in the way.

Today's blog topic is scriptural interpretation.. I am not the expert on the subject, as no one is except God.  There are many ministers, counselors, and physicians who deal in this areas of all of our lives.  My question is this:  How do we decide on where to go for the absolute truth in Biblical interpretation?  There have been many ministers who have been shunned by their congregations, as well as communities for misguiding others with misinterpreted messages that they have given their congregations.  The only solution that I can think of is to follow the Bible and strive to use it as a guideline for one's life.  In with that, we all need to ask for God's guidance through the Holy Spirit to help us understand His Word.  Yes, pastors, teachers and prophets have their own gifts as God enables them, but as the Bible says, we are to test the spirits to see if they are from God.  That being said, when we study the Scriptures, we need to earnestly ask God to open our spiritual eyes when reading them.  If we read them through just the natural senses, we can often get confused, and get some of our own human ideas in there that conflict with the Holy Spirit.  For the Bible says that we are to "trust in the Lord thy God with all thine Heart, and LEAN NOT on thine own understanding.  In all your ways, acknowledge Him, and He will direct thine paths".  O:-)  Scripture interpretation is a spiritual thing, not a mankind thing.

Life in Jesus

"Tis only one life, twill soon be past.  Only what's done for Christ will last."  This is a favorite phrase that I have seen a few times over the years.  I know that it isn't in scripture, but the basic concept follows around a scriptural principle.  

There are a lot of people who think that just doing good deeds, going to church, praying, etc. makes one a Christian and thus will save a person from going to Hell.  That is far from the truth.  While those things are good  to do, they do not guarantee one's salvation.  What makes a person a Christian, and thus guaranteeing Eternal Life with the Father, is the belief in Jesus Christ as one's Lord and Savior, and actively seeking Him each and every day.  For the Word says in the Old Testament, "All our works are as filthy rags".  What that verse means, is that if we try to earn our salvation by doing good works, we are deceiving ourselves.  For Jesus said, "I am The Way, The Truth, and The Life.  No man cometh unto The Father, except by Me!"  Yes, God is a loving God, but He is also a just and righteous God.  Because He is righteous, sin can't reside in His presence.  When we have accepted Jesus as Lord into our hearts and lives, we have the righteousness through Christ, and thus we can be in God's presence for all eternity.  Yes, faith without works is dead, but also the reverse is true. Works without faith is dead too.  We need faith in Jesus, but the works part is the spiritual fruits actively abiding in our lives.

May God Bless each and every one of you reading this post.  I know that I haven't posted in a while, but I am going to try to make an effort to post more frequently.  O:-)

It's a New Year!

Today is the beginning of the rest of our lives. One year is past, and another new one is here.  Do you have any regrets about last year, or are you happy with whatever happened?  Whichever way life has gone, Jesus and our Heavenly Father have it all in control.  For in His Precious Word, it states that He knows every hair on our heads, and also has known us since we were in the womb.  This means that He knows EVERYTHING about us.  He has given us a hope and a future.

What is one of the biggest obstacles that happens when we all look into the future?  We ALL, including your truly, worry.  How can we help to prevent worry?  There is a BIG promise in His Word.  It says in Matthew that we don't need to worry, because he has it all covered. ( I am just paraphrasing what the Word says.  This is  very close to what it says, just not exact word for word.)  Anyhoo, Matthew states that if He cares for the birds by clothing them and giving them shelter, how much more will He take care of us?

What causes our worries?  They are caused by all of us looking at the events of the world through our natural eyes.  Two verses come to mind.  One states that we are to trust the Lord with all of our heart, AND LEAN NOT ON OUR UNDERSTANDING.  It also states in another verse to seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all things shall be ours as well.  To paraphrase this, it states that if we put Him first, and put on our spiritual eyes, He will take provide all of our needs.

On another final note, do you often feel inadequate?  It is normal that we feel that way from time to time.  "And such confidence we have in God through Christ Jesus.  Not that we are adequate to consider anything as coming as from ourselves, but our adequacy is from God." 2 Cor 3 vs. 4-5.  A song also comes to mind.  It says, "My hope is found on nothing less, than Jesus blood and righteousness".  Sure, life will never be easy, but God through Jesus has given us the tools through the Bible and the Holy Spirit to guide us through life's obstacles.  The first thing that we have to do, is to get ourselves and our foolish pride out of the way, so that He can work mightily in our lives.  May God Bless each and every one of you in this New Year 2012!  O:-)

 

Family

There is nothing greater than having the love of a family. However, in this complicated world that we live in, there seems to be a breakdown of traditional family values.

Every person is unique and wonderful, since we are all created in God's own image.

It also states that he knows everything about us. He knows every hair on our head. He even knows every thought that we have, even before we have one. He even knew us when we were in the womb.

You are probably thinking, then why does he allow some family to get out of love for each other? This. Goes back to the Garden of Eden. Ever since Eve and Adam ate from the Tree Of Life, there have been troubles. We all lost the ability to walk and talk with God on a one on one, and a. Face to face basis.

That was the beginning of the freedom of choice. God wants us to choose our paths. He wants us to follow Him out of our love for Him. He doesn't want us to be like robots, where He controls every move.

However, with this "free choice", it unleashes a lot of problems, if they aren't dealt with by following His Word. For it says, "From within the heart comes all kinds of evil. From within man comes murder, envy, strife, covetousness, greed, bitterness, anger, rage...".

We have a choice to go through life our own way, or to go through it with God's guidance through His Word.
In it, it is said, "Thy Word is A Light unto my feet, and a Light unto my Path.". It also says, "I have hidden my heart in Thy Word, so that I may not sin against Thee.".
Now what does that mean? Does that mean that God will prevent us from sinning? Not at all! What it is implying that if we meditate on His Word, it will help us to make better decisions to get closer to the heart of God.

"For the Fruits of The Spirit are: Love, Joy, Peace, Patience, Gentleness, Kindness, and Self Control." This verse can be found in Philippians 4.

In other words, if left to our own devices and only relying on rationalizations in our own minds, we will have loads of troubles.

Just like a car's owner's manual helps us to get to know our cars, The Bible is God's "Owner's Manual" that helps us to get to know Him better, and gives us the tools that we need to work through every day life.

Family relationships are the responsibility of each and every person in it. We all make mistakes, and it only makes things worse when blame sets in.

No faults that anyone has gives anyone the justification for others to hold grudges. It is much better to get whatever issues out on the table, deal with them, then press on and strive to have a wholesome future together. It will never be easy, but by using the precepts found in "The Good Book", life will be a lot easier. When we hold grudges, it actually hurts the grudge maker worse Than the person that the grudge is against.

"May the Peace Of God that passes all understanding, guard your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus, now and forevermore, Amen".