I WAS SITTING AT THE RED LIGHT AT 242 & I-485, WITH A BUS LOAD OF SENIOR CITIZENS. THE LIGHT TURNED GREEN & THE HOLY SPIRIT GRABBED ME IN THE STOMACH AND SAID “WAIT,” I STARTED TO RE-LOOK BOTH WAYS AGAIN AND BEFORE I COULD GET MY HEAD BACK AROUND TO THE RIGHT OF ME, A FULLY LOADED LOG TRUCK DOING ABOUT 70 CAME BARRELLING THRU THE LIGHT. JESUS SAVED MY LIFE THAT DAY, AS WELL AS ALL THOSE ON MY BUS. GLORY TO HIS HOLY NAME! I’LL NEVER FORGET IT. NO-ONE CAN TELL ME GOD DOESN’T TALK TO US IN THESE DAYS! AS HE SPOKE VERY CLEARLY THAT DAY, THANK GOD I LISTENED... DRU BLACKThis week’s blog features articles by Jolan, Judypie, and Adrian Rogers.
All is Well
by JesusLover Judy
Each and every day take time to pray Scriptural prayers, meditate and read your Bible. You can have complete assurance and boldness before God if you keep His commandments and habitually practice what is pleasing to Him.
Believe in and rely on the name of His Son Jesus Christ, and love one another, just as He has commanded us (1 John 3:20-24). Regardless of circumstances you can rest assured – all is well.
Father, I acknowledge and take to heart this day that the Lord is God in heaven above and on the earth below. There is no other.
Empowered by Your Spirit, I purpose to keep Your decrees and commands, which You have given me, so that it may go well with me and my children after me, and that I may live long in the land the Lord my God gives me for all time. To the glory of God the Father, I acknowledge that Jesus is Lord of my home, ministry and the work place. Jesus is Lord of my life!
Amen.
Know, recognize, and understand therefore this day and turn your [mind and] heart to it that the Lord is God in the heavens above and upon the earth beneath; there is no other.
Therefore you shall keep His statutes and His commandments, which I command you this day, that it may go well with you and your children after you and that you may prolong your days in the land which the Lord your God gives you forever.
Therefore you shall keep His statutes and His commandments, which I command you this day, that it may go well with you and your children after you and that you may prolong your days in the land which the Lord your God gives you forever.
Deuteronomy 4:39-40 [AMP]
Oh, that they had such a [mind and] heart in them always [reverently] to fear Me and keep all My commandments, that it might go well with them and with their children forever!
Deuteronomy 5:29 [AMP]
He Took on the Status of a Slave
1-4If you've gotten anything at all out of following Christ, if his love has made any difference in your life, if being in a community of the Spirit means anything to you, if you have a heart, if you care— then do me a favor: Agree with each other, love each other, be deep-spirited friends. Don't push your way to the front; don't sweet-talk your way to the top. Put yourself aside, and help others get ahead. Don't be obsessed with getting your own advantage. Forget yourselves long enough to lend a helping hand.
5-8Think of yourselves the way Christ Jesus thought of himself. He had equal status with God but didn't think so much of himself that he had to cling to the advantages of that status no matter what. Not at all. When the time came, he set aside the privileges of deity and took on the status of a slave, became human! Having become human, he stayed human. It was an incredibly humbling process. He didn't claim special privileges. Instead, he lived a selfless, obedient life and then died a selfless, obedient death—and the worst kind of death at that—a crucifixion.
9-11Because of that obedience, God lifted him high and honored him far beyond anyone or anything, ever, so that all created beings in heaven and on earth—even those long ago dead and buried—will bow in worship before this Jesus Christ, and call out in praise that he is the Master of all, to the glorious honor of God the Father.
Rejoicing Together
12-13What I'm getting at, friends, is that you should simply keep on doing what you've done from the beginning. When I was living among you, you lived in responsive obedience. Now that I'm separated from you, keep it up. Better yet, redouble your efforts. Be energetic in your life of salvation, reverent and sensitive before God. That energy is God's energy, an energy deep within you, God himself willing and working at what will give him the most pleasure.
14-16Do everything readily and cheerfully—no bickering, no second-guessing allowed! Go out into the world uncorrupted, a breath of fresh air in this squalid and polluted society. Provide people with a glimpse of good living and of the living God. Carry the light-giving Message into the night so I'll have good cause to be proud of you on the day that Christ returns. You'll be living proof that I didn't go to all this work for nothing.
Amen.1-4If you've gotten anything at all out of following Christ, if his love has made any difference in your life, if being in a community of the Spirit means anything to you, if you have a heart, if you care— then do me a favor: Agree with each other, love each other, be deep-spirited friends. Don't push your way to the front; don't sweet-talk your way to the top. Put yourself aside, and help others get ahead. Don't be obsessed with getting your own advantage. Forget yourselves long enough to lend a helping hand.
5-8Think of yourselves the way Christ Jesus thought of himself. He had equal status with God but didn't think so much of himself that he had to cling to the advantages of that status no matter what. Not at all. When the time came, he set aside the privileges of deity and took on the status of a slave, became human! Having become human, he stayed human. It was an incredibly humbling process. He didn't claim special privileges. Instead, he lived a selfless, obedient life and then died a selfless, obedient death—and the worst kind of death at that—a crucifixion.
9-11Because of that obedience, God lifted him high and honored him far beyond anyone or anything, ever, so that all created beings in heaven and on earth—even those long ago dead and buried—will bow in worship before this Jesus Christ, and call out in praise that he is the Master of all, to the glorious honor of God the Father.
Rejoicing Together
12-13What I'm getting at, friends, is that you should simply keep on doing what you've done from the beginning. When I was living among you, you lived in responsive obedience. Now that I'm separated from you, keep it up. Better yet, redouble your efforts. Be energetic in your life of salvation, reverent and sensitive before God. That energy is God's energy, an energy deep within you, God himself willing and working at what will give him the most pleasure.
14-16Do everything readily and cheerfully—no bickering, no second-guessing allowed! Go out into the world uncorrupted, a breath of fresh air in this squalid and polluted society. Provide people with a glimpse of good living and of the living God. Carry the light-giving Message into the night so I'll have good cause to be proud of you on the day that Christ returns. You'll be living proof that I didn't go to all this work for nothing.
Philippians 2:1-16 [MESSAGE]
With God, There is No Such Thing as Can’t
by Jolan
Not thinking, I blurted out, “If Primo ever cheated on me, I think I could forgive him but I don’t think I could be with him.”
She said, “Well my daddy used to tell me that when you make a blanket statement like that then it’s like you are testing God.”
Testing God?
Well this statement has stayed with me since last Saturday and I felt it important to share with you what I got out of this.
We have to take each situation as God gives it to us. We accept it and deal with it while leaning on our Father for help and understanding.
Jesus said to him, On the other hand, it is written also, You shall not tempt, test thoroughly, or try exceedingly the Lord your God.
Matthew 4:7 [AMP]
She also said, that when we say things like that it gives the devil way too much room to mess with our lives. I have really thought about this and have taken it to heart. Why should I say that I can not do something? It is like saying God cannot do something and we all know that is not true. God can do all things. As His child I have to be careful about the statements I make.
I don’t want Satan to have any hold over me. I don’t want to give him an opportunity to hurt me. It is like giving the enemy ammunition. Satan wants to hurt us. He loves it when we give Him reasons to sin or to dismiss Gods laws. When we are angry, it is hard to forgive but if we do not forgive others then God will not forgive us. When bad things happen it is easy to question God but when we worry and don’t trust in God but in mere humans then we are falling into sin, because we are showing lack of faith in God. Remember how the Satan tempted Eve…
NOW THE serpent was more subtle and crafty than any living creature of the field which the Lord God had made. And he [Satan] said to the woman, Can it really be that God has said, You shall not eat from every tree of the garden?
Genesis 3:1 [AMP]
Hmmmm.
Really did God really say you shouldn’t lie? A little white lie won’t hurt.
Porn – nahhhh, its not sinning if you don’t do anything.
Forgiveness? Why forgive when they hurt me…It’s just too hard. They don’t deserve it.
Sex before marriage, that’s not a sin, its not cheating if you aren’t married.
What lies are you listening to? How does the devil twist your thoughts to fit the crime. How does he justify your sin to you? Remember the devil is the Father of lies, he is slick and his number one goal is to hurt you and deceive you.
Many are the sorrows of the wicked, but he who trusts in, relies on, and confidently leans on the Lord shall be compassed about with mercy and with loving-kindness.
Psalm 32:10 [AMP]
By [the help of] God I will praise His word; on God I lean, rely, and confidently put my trust; I will not fear. What can man, who is flesh, do to me?
Psalm 56:4 [AMP]
I cannot predict how I will behave to future events but I now think, well my Father would never give me anything I could not handle.
For no temptation (no trial regarded as enticing to sin), [no matter how it comes or where it leads] has overtaken you and laid hold on you that is not common to man [that is, no temptation or trial has come to you that is beyond human resistance and that is not adjusted and adapted and belonging to human experience, and such as man can bear]. But God is faithful [to His Word and to His compassionate nature], and He [can be trusted] not to let you be tempted and tried and assayed beyond your ability and strength of resistance and power to endure, but with the temptation He will [always] also provide the way out (the means of escape to a landing place), that you may be capable and strong and powerful to bear up under it patiently.
1 Corinthians 10:13 [AMP]
But remember that the temptations that come into your life are no different from what others experience. And God is faithful. He will keep the temptation from becoming so strong that you can’t stand up against it. When you are tempted, he will show you a way out so that you will not give in to it.
The Bible is my comfort.
When I read Gods letters to me, I always learn something new. And if you read carefully enough God makes many promises, promises that if you follow, will prove true time and time again.
Be assured and understand that the trial and proving of your faith bring out endurance and steadfastness and patience.
James 1:3 [AMP]
For when your faith is tested, your endurance has a chance to grow.
Blessed (happy, to be envied) is the man who is patient under trial and stands up under temptation, for when he has stood the test and been approved, he will receive [the victor's] crown of life which God has promised to those who love Him.
James 1:12 [AMP]
God blesses the people who patiently endure testing. Afterward they will receive the crown of life that God has promised to those who love him.
[You should] be exceedingly glad on this account, though now for a little while you may be distressed by trials and suffer temptations,
1 Peter 1:6 [AMP]
So be truly glad!* There is wonderful joy ahead, even though it is necessary for you to endure many trials for a while.
So that [the genuineness] of your faith may be tested, [your faith] which is infinitely more precious than the perishable gold which is tested and purified by fire. [This proving of your faith is intended] to redound to [your] praise and glory and honor when Jesus Christ (the Messiah, the Anointed One) is revealed.
1 Peter 1:7 [AMP]
These trials are only to test your faith, to show that it is strong and pure. It is being tested as fire tests and purifies gold—and your faith is far more precious to God than mere gold. So if your faith remains strong after being tried by fiery trials, it will bring you much praise and glory and honor on the day when Jesus Christ is revealed to the whole world.
There is no part of the Bible that says life will always be great. Unfortunately life can be very trying and at times lonely and sad. But we are promised paradise. A paradise in heaven with our Father. With Jesus. I cannot even explain how wonderful it will be but there is no sadness or pain, only happiness. Think of your happiest moment. . .that will be nothing compared to the joy you will feel in heaven.
God will wipe away every tear from their eyes; and death shall be no more, neither shall there be anguish (sorrow and mourning) nor grief nor pain any more, for the old conditions and the former order of things have passed away.
Revelation 21:4 [AMP]
So when God sends trials and tribulations my way I will see them through with His help. I know that I can handle anything God brings me and in the future I’ll trust my Father. He would never lead me astray and if I obey His word, then there is no such thing, as I can’t.
Trust
by JesusLover Judy
As far as I am concerned, Father-God, You turn to good what is meant for evil.
You brought me into the position that I currently hold so that others may benefit from the blessings You pour through my life.
I rest in You knowing that in all things You are working for my good because I love You, and You called me according to Your purposes.
I will trust in You, Lord, at all times for Your ways are perfect.
In Jesus’ name, I pray. Amen.
As for you, you thought evil against me, but God meant it for good, to bring about that many people should be kept alive, as they are this day.
Genesis 50:20 [AMP]
We are assured and know that [God being a partner in their labor] all things work together and are [fitting into a plan] for good to and for those who love God and are called according to [His] design and purpose.
Romans 8:28 [AMP]
Trust in, lean on, rely on, and have confidence in Him at all times, you people; pour out your hearts before Him. God is a refuge for us (a fortress and a high tower). Selah [pause, and calmly think of that]!
Psalm 62:8 [AMP]
“In the glory of His Presence...I see the beauty of His ways”
Heavenly Father, I thank You for Your goodness. In the name of Jesus I cast the whole of my care—all anxieties, worries and concerns—upon You. I know that You love me and care for me, and those for whom I am praying.
Today I make all my requests known to You with thanksgiving. I know You hear me, and I believe Your best answers are on the way from the moment I ask. Amen.
Thank God! He deserves your thanks. His love never quits.
Thank the God of all gods,
His love never quits.
Thank the Lord of all lords.
His love never quits.
Thank the God of all gods,
His love never quits.
Thank the Lord of all lords.
His love never quits.
Psalm 136:1 [MESSAGE]
Don't fret or worry. Instead of worrying, pray. Let petitions and praises shape your worries into prayers, letting God know your concerns. Before you know it, a sense of God's wholeness, everything coming together for good, will come and settle you down. It's wonderful what happens when Christ displaces worry at the center of your life.
Philippians 4:6-7 [MESSAGE]
Casting the whole of your care [all your anxieties, all your worries, all your concerns, once and for all] on Him, for He cares for you affectionately and cares about you watchfully.
1 Peter 5:7 [AMP]
Trust the LORD in everything.
Peace
by Adrian RogersEach one of you is part of the body of Christ, and you were chosen to live together in peace. So let the peace that comes from Christ control your thoughts. And be grateful.
Colossians 3:15 [CEV]
In Florida where I was raised, we had a lot of hurricanes. Even as a child I learned that in the center of the worst hurricane, there’s a calm called the “eye” of the storm. When the storm passes over, there is a calm like a millpond on a summer evening. Friend, in your storm today there is a center that is calm.
It’s the heart of God.
He is there. He is the great I AM in the midst of your storm. As someone has well said, “God gives peace that the world can't take away.” It is supernatural peace.
Do you have the peace of God in your heart?
Claim the promises of Psalm 29:11, Isaiah 26:3, and Romans 5:1 today.
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