I Hope you have a great Day!

That’s what I say every morning when you walk out the door into this crazy messed up world, about to experiencing life’s ups and downs. But what I really want to say is…

I hope you remember that you are very important - highly valued - and always always loved!

I hope you don’t forget that everyone you encounter is precious to God.

I hope you learn to define success in the truth that you are so wonderful in God’s eyes, not by your accomplishments, or your wealth, or clothes, or possessions, or even by the way others treat you. I hope you don’t get caught up in the lie that you are not good enough and you will never be a success. Define success through God’s grace and you already are successful, even if it is a bad hair day.

I hope you get to know the excitement of pursuing your interests.

I hope you get to know the joy of helping others.

I hope you find the peace of trusting God when life stinks.

I hope you find lots of good reasons to laugh out loud.

I hope you take time to use your brain to filter everything that happens today through the scriptures. Then you can be wise and speak truth to every situation.

I hope you know all the blessings that God has provided for you.

I hope you understand more and more and more exactly what it was that Jesus did for us.

Ya, I wanna say all that.  But who has time?  I'll just say "Have a great day! 

Ephesians 1:3 Praise the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! Through Christ, God has blessed us with every spiritual blessing that heaven has to offer…so that we might be free from all evil before him in love: As we were designed … for the position of sons to himself… In whom we have salvation through his blood, the forgiveness of our sins, through the wealth of his grace, which he gave us in full measure… so that all things might come to a head in Christ, the things in heaven and the things on the earth…

Chrisitanity… “Am I Ever Going to Get this Right?”

Umm…No. I guess not. It looks like we are never going to reach a place of complete understanding and victory on this earth! In Philippians 3:12 Paul is talking about his feelings on the matter. “Not that I have already obtained all this, or have already been made perfect, but I press on to take hold of that for which Christ Jesus took hold of me.”

Wow!  Not that I have already obtained it? Paul had an amazing supernatural experience with God! He heard the voice of Jesus! He was blinded then healed. He was personally taught by the Holy Spirit the mysteries of the age of grace. If he can not obtain perfection, who can? How did I ever get the idea that I would?

Oh yea, I know how, the well- meaning Christian community… Three points and a poem, Seven habits of highly effective people, Ten rules for Christian dating, Guidelines for Godly marriages, Pray one hour a day. Rules, rules, rules. Which bring condemnation, condemnation, condemnation. My grade, C+. Come on, self, be good! Do better! Or how about I just beat my head against the wall?

There is no condemnation in Christ Jesus. (Romans 8:1) He is not asking for us to achieve perfection. He is asking us to acknowledge Him as our Lord.

In fact the bible mentions something called “freedom in Christ”. I have to admit that in some churches I have felt anything but free. So is this the freedom to sin? Is that your desire?

IT IS THE FREEDOM TO BE REAL. Freedom to find truth. Freedom to rest in the fact that Jesus Christ is your covering as you ask your ugly questions. As you go boldly to God and ask things like “What the "Hell" is going on down here? The entire earth is a war zone full of self- righteousness, political failures, and hurting people.” (He didn’t break it, yet we blame Him for not fixing it.) “ We humans can make it better, but we can’t fix it. God, when are YOU going to fix it?”

Someday, but not yet.

OK, then fix me. Why is my heart in such a mess? What lies have I believed?
At this point in my experience the Holy Spirit very gently began to show me things. He is not in a hurry or panicked, even though I often am. He allows me to ask Him my ugly questions and He helps me find the answers. Then he uses the bible in amazing ways to confirm what I think I heard, observed, or realized. This could take a lifetime!

The more I learn about God the more I understand how much he loves me. The real me, not just the dress- up- for- church me. The more I know the truth of His unconditional love for me, the more I am set free to love Him back, and the desire to sin or offend Him becomes very rare in me. My “want to” has changed.

There was a time when God walked and talked with man, face to face and heart to heart. God wants that relationship with us again. That is why He sent Jesus. He has a plan to heal the world, but right now He is healing the hearts of those who seek to know Him.

I bow my knee to Jesus Christ not because I am forced to, but because I see no better answer. I have no confidence that man can achieve perfection or fix this world, although God is being patient while we try it our way. The only victory I see man achieving is when Godly principals are followed. Love one another was God’s idea. Share, forgive, be humble, these things are not natural to fallen man.

All points lead to the fact that God is God and we need His Spirit to be our inner guide- the guide to truth, healing, and freedom, through open and honest fellowship with Him. Not out of obligation to try (and fail) to live up to any list of rules or cultural standards. Newsflash…God is not mad at us.

Eventually every eye will see that Jesus is Lord. Dear God, by your life-giving Spirit, help us to see it now.

 Go to https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8ckTUuSfSz8 for the song that helped me deal with this.  Jimmy Needham - Forgiven and Loved

Between Heaven and Hell

I used to think that being a Christian meant that nothing bad would ever happen in your life again. I heard that if you do and say all the right things then you would be lining up with God and you could have heaven on earth. And many times this was true, but not always. My grandma still got sick and died. Our dog died. Also we lost our business- a business that was dedicated to God.

We need to understand the times that we are living in. Adam and Eve had no death or loss. Then they chose to follow their own ideas instead of God’s and ate the fruit of disobedience making themselves their own Lords. From then on we all get to live a life where we experience good and evil. Earth became a place where we are exposed to things from both heaven and hell.

Someday Jesus will return to the earth and be King here. That is when there will be no more death and sickness here. For now we have the Holy Spirit in us to help us in difficult times. He is a powerful help and comfort. And yes, life is full of God’s blessings and sweet love. And many times people are spared, and healed. But, life on earth right now will not be without challenges.

You are in charge of your own life. You can help bring more of God’s goodness to the earth. Or you can try all kinds of evil activities and bring more sorrow into your life and pain to those who love you.

Many blessings are brought to us by following God’s guidelines. Yet many, many times we receive blessings in spite of our rebellion and failures. But nothing we do will cause God to disown us or kick us out of His family because Jesus already took any punishment we had coming to us.

Adam talked with God every day. They were good buddies, a close father and son. Likewise, God is waiting for us to chat with Him about our concerns, hopes, fears, and experiences. He cares about our details. His spirit is very gentle in the way he reveals truth throughout our life on earth.

The love of God is the most powerful force in the universe. I can not resist it.

And that love will never end. God will never stop wanting you to make your reservation for heaven. He will never stop wanting to teach you his heavenly secrets. He will love you from afar if that is the way you want it. How sad.

So when life gives you hell, run to Him -not from Him.

DON'T PLAY IN THE STREET

Maybe the Ten Commandments were written for our protection, like kindergarten rules for grownups.

Obey your Parents- Don’t learn everything the hard way. Follow good advice from people who love you.

Don’t steal- Don’t mistreat others.

Don’t murder- We can all agree on this one.

Don’t lie- Be real. Be yourself, own up. God loves the truth. He doesn’t want us to hide behind lies. The spirit of the Lord leads us to all truth.

Keep a Sabboth- Take a day off? Sure, my pleasure. This is also for our protection. So we don’t become a nation of stressed out workaholics. Wait! Too late. God wants to help you. You are not all alone in this. He knows your needs. Consider the lillies, man.

Do not covet other people’s stuff- Dude, you will never enjoy life if you always have to have the best stuff. Chillax!

No sex outside of marriage- Most people disagree with this one. But I have been married for 28 years and can’t bear the thought of my hubby being with someone else – even before we met. Yes, I can forgive it and get past it, just like God does. But I hate it. In a perfect world I could be his one and only. I guess that was God’s goal, a perfect world.

No other Gods- Well, if you can’t get this right, nothing else in your life will line up either. You will have constant confusion. Put God first and all these things will be added. Once you figure out that Jesus is Lord you will have your heading. Savvy?

Don’t take God’s name in vain- A sign of respect and belief. God says, “Hey! I’m right here. I can hear you”.

No carved images or idols- Wow, he really had to say this? Sad. God is not a thing you can see or possess. He is a spirit. You can only know him with your spirit. Many people are trying to find Him through science, reasoning, and academic proof. When it comes to God, the human mind can only process and confirm what the spirit already knows. Invite Jesus to make Himself real to you in a very personal way. Go ahead. I dare you. Believe me, He knows you better than anyone else. There will be things that only the two of you can share.

LOVE SONGS

There is someone who thinks you are amazing. He loves you more than you can measure. You can’t see this person with your eyes, but you can feel him with your heart.

You know those sweet love feelings that you can get when you hear your favorite song? Songs that say things like…

Girl, you know you are special. You know that I think of you all the time.
I’m yours. I long to be close to you. You are so beautiful.
I can’t help falling in love with you. I will always adore you.
I would die for you.
You are the one and only. I'm the lost and lonely.  Oh its magic when we meet.
Let’s be heart to heart. Heartbeat is a love beat and when we meet its a good sensation.
Let me take care of you. I want to shower you with my love. 
Love everlasting is what you're asking.  Until the twelfth of never I'll still be lovin you.
I'll be there to protect your with an unselfish love that respects you.  I'll be there.

And many more.

We get the message that someday there will be a special boy that will love us this much. But it is a trick because no human can love us as much as we want to be loved. What you feel when you hear songs like this could really be God singing to your heart. It is God’s Holy Spirit that causes those feelings of love in you, and hopes to draw you closer to Him. God can and will use anything in this earth to draw us to him.

We could go and search the whole earth. Try all kinds of exciting things. But will never find a greater love or a greater thrill. And maybe you will meet a wonderful guy someday and get married. But God wants to be your first love . His heavenly love for you will always be bigger than any human love you can find. God’s heart breaks when you ignore Him. Jesus laid down his life so he could have a relationship and a future with you. The bible says that the church is the bride of Christ. What great love!

I invite you to try this…the next time you hear your favorite song take a minute to pray. Ask Jesus if He is speaking to you through the song. Notice how your heart feels after you pray. See if you get happy tears. I bet that you will find that He is the real source of your special love. Go ahead and let yourself fall in love with Him. Sing to Him. Share your secrets with Him. He is the only one you can fully trust with your heart.

Who is your Best Companion?

Who knows you better than anyone else? Who can you talk to when there is no one else around? Who is the best listener when you need to vent your troubles? Who gives you a little extra affection and comfort? Who is always there and never leaves you no matter how much you mess up? Who is not judgmental or demanding? Who loves you unconditionally? Who can you lavish all your love on? Who can you trust with your secrets? Who can’t wait to spend time with you? Who wants to go on long walks and share life with you? Who wishes to rescue you? Who would love to teach you the hidden secrets of a restful, peaceful life?

It’s God. Jesus did the work of our rescue. The Holy Spirit is our companion and comfort. Invite Him to show you his unconditional love today. Call upon the name of the Lord, Jesus.

Faith, Hope, & Love

FAITH= Trust. Faith is putting your trust in something or someone. The only person worthy of your trust is the Lord Jesus. Faith is also allowing yourself to believe the amazing things that were written down for you in the bible. Childlike faith is a good thing.

HOPE=Optimism. Letting go of your fears and look for good things to happen in your future. A new life and home in heaven is our ultimate hope. But hope is also looking for God’s blessings in your life right now so you can recognize them when they happen.

LOVE= Giving. Love is doing something for another, fulfilling a need, helping, and putting someone else’s need before your own. Showing kindness when you don’t feel like it or it is not deserved. Jesus saw what mankind needed. He put our needs before his own. He defined love.

The bible says that these 3 things remain forever. Many things in our lives will change when we finally see God face to face. In fact, the whole earth will change and get a make over. But faith, hope, and love will not need to change. They will endure even in to a future age.

Everything about living on earth tells us to do the opposite of these three. We are told to “trust no one”. So we become fearful of taking a chance on faith. We also conclude that if we expect the worst then we will not be so disappointed in life. We become pessimistic and actually think that we are happier that way. If we listen to the advice that we should take care of ourselves first, allow survival of the fittest, and look out for number one. We may never discover the surprising joys of sacrificial love.

It seems easier to give up and live in negativity. That is the way life on earth pulls us. But faith, hope, and love are what God called us to do. He even said He will help us. That is the life He can work in. That is the mindset that produces a thankful attitude. For you will see what you are looking for. So with God’s help we can be brave and fight the good fight of faith.

1 Corinthian 13:13 Now abideth faith, hope, and love, but the greatest of these is love.