What Is A Disciple?

It Is Written, Mark 8:34, whoever desires to come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross and follow Me.
In Luke 14:27-33, it speaks of counting the cost before doing something. Do not deceive yourself, following Jesus has a cost that most are unwilling to pay.  The Gospels speak of loyalty to Jesus above loyalty to anyone else, including parents, spouse, children.
If you follow Jesus, all of your interests must be replaced by Jesus in your heart.  Personal interests must come last.  A follower must focus on Jesus all of the time.  They must want His will over their own interests.
As you have probably figured out by now, when you follow Jesus He will guide your steps every day. You will probably have hardships because of following Him.  At the same time you must go through what ever happens focused on Jesus.
As you can imagine, not too many people are willing to pay the price.  Praise the Lord, salvation comes through Jesus.  We do our best, but even though we are not perfect, He still loves us, and wants us to spend eternity with Him.
Bible references in regard to discipleship are, Matthew 10:37-39, Luke 14:26-27, Matthew 16:24-26, Mark 8:34-36, and Luke 9:23-25.
Have a blessed day. Praise the Lord!
Remember Jesus Loves You
Prayer of Salvation
Lord Jesus, I thank you for what you did on the cross for me.  Your blood washed away all my sins, by your stripes I was healed, your death and resurrection brought me salvation.  Please forgive my sins, and come into my heart as my personal Savior.
Thank You Lord
 Amen

Trust Causes Peace

It Is Written, Isaiah 26:3, you will keep him in perfect peace, whose mind is stayed on You, because he trusts in You.
Peace is something most people do not expect or think is possible in this modern world.  The world is a tough place, and peace seems totally impossible.  I won't go into the whole world thing, because we have seen with our own eyes, and heard with our own ears.
So how do you get perfect peace?  For starters, let's look at the opening verse.  It sounds simple, and it is simple.  Have no doubt about that.  We are so used to dealing with whatever comes up in the world, that it is very difficult to let someone else handle everything, even if it is God.
Consider this for a moment.  God knows everything that is going on now, and what will happen in the future.  He can do what none of us can do.  He can see every move by each person and how it will affect you, and the harm it can cause.
When you trust God completely and give Him control, you will have perfect peace, because you know He is manipulating even hundreds of things for your good.  Know Him from His Word.  He can do a much better job than we can, because He is God.  Ask Him to take over your life and trust Him. Let go and let God, and you will find yourself with perfect peace in your heart, and a much smoother life.  Have a blessed day.  Praise the Lord!
Remember Jesus Loves You
Prayer of Salvation
Lord Jesus, I thank you for what you did on the cross for me.  Your blood washed away all my sins, by your stripes I was healed, your death and resurrection brought me salvation.  Please forgive my sins, and come into my heart as my personal Savior.
Thank You Lord
Amen

satan's Tools

It Is Written, 1 Peter 5:8, be sober, be vigilant;  because your adversary the devil walks about like a roaring lion;  seeking whom he may devour.
This verse states plainly whom satan MAY devour.  This word "may" is absolutely correct,  because you have to give satan permission to get you. How do you give him permission?  Let's take a look.
We give satan permission any number of ways.  When we judge other people, gossip, have unforgiveness, have stress, despair, impatience, frustration, ignore what the Bible teaches, follow what the world does, and too many other items to list.
If we rebuke satan in Jesus name, he must leave, the Word says so.  So it stands to reason that if we do what satan deceives us into, we really are giving him permission to live in our hearts and run our lives.
If we know the Word and live it, satan will try to get to us, but he will not succeed.  We have no reason to fear him, because, 1 John 4:4 says, you are of God, little children, and have overcome them, because He who is in you, is greater than he  (satan ) who is in the world.
So you see, if you trust in the Word and what it says, you don't have to hide under the bed to try to keep satan from finding you.  Through Jesus, you are in charge.  Have a blessed day.  Praise the Lord!
Remember Jesus Loves You
Prayer of Salvation
Lord Jesus, I thank you for what you did on the cross for me.  Your blood washed away all my sins, by your stripes I was healed, your death and resurrection brought me salvation.  Please forgive my sins, and come into my heart as my personal Savior.
Thank You Lord
Amen

God's Way

It Is Written, Isaiah 6:8, also I heard the voice of the Lord, saying:  whom shall I send, and who will go for Us?  Then I said, here am I!  Send me.
When someone is made ready to do the Lord's work, he is sent to do it. You may be asking yourself at this point, what has that to do with me?  Let me give you an idea.
God knows His plan for each person.  He knows those who want to serve Him in special ways, such as healing.  What most of us don't know is that when we give our hearts and wills to God, He starts to get us ready to do His will.  Getting us ready, includes spiritually, and moving all the pieces of the puzzle into place, that are necessary in His plan.  The whole process can take a day, a week, a year.  It is part of the test to see if we are serious.
I believe God has boot camp for each person.  The training you get depends on the job He has for you.  He trains us to be non-judgmental, loving, trusting, and many other things that will be required.  He tests our faith, and persistence under adverse circumstances, such as dealing with other people and situations.  When we are ready to do the job properly, for the right reasons, He gives us a job.
I found out a long time ago that you must wait on God's timing.  If you just go charging out there on your own, un-prepared spiritually, you will fail. You may get so messed up that it would be difficult for God to use you.
It may sound easy to do God's will when you hear a preacher talking or you read it in the Bible.  That my friends doesn't tell you the whole story.  It just gives you an idea of what is possible.  So when you get an idea, pray about it, take it to God, and follow His lead.  It may not be easy, but it will be worth it, because you will be serving God.  Have a blessed day.             Praise the Lord!
Remember Jesus Loves You
Prayer of Salvation
Lord Jesus, I thank you for what you did on the cross for me.  Your blood washed away all my sins, by your stripes I was healed, your death and resurrection brought me salvation.  Please forgive my sins, and come into my heart as my personal Savior.
 Thank You Lord
Amen

Resurrection Day

It Is Written, 2 Corinthians 6:2, for He says:  in an acceptable time I have heard you, and in the day of salvation I have helped you.  Behold, now is the accepted time;  behold, now is the day of salvation.
Since the time of the resurrection of Jesus, people then, through the centuries, up to the present day, have tried to deny the resurrection of Jesus.
In some people's minds, the Bible was even wrong about the number of days from Jesus death until His resurrection.  The Bible is correct.  The Hebrews used to count a part of a day as a whole day.  So, the Friday was one, the Sabbath was two, and even if Jesus rose just after midnight on the Sabbath, it counted Sunday as the third day.
Jesus was a real historical figure.  There are reports of hundreds of dead people rising and being seen by many witnesses.  Eyewitnesses saw Jesus as recorded in the Bible.  Countless people were even converted because of this.  History tells of perhaps thousands of Christians dying for their faith. Do men die for fairytales?
Whether you believe Jesus rose from the dead or not, is your choice.  To believers this was, and is the most glorious event in history.  The resurrection means so much more than worldly perception.
As believers, we know that Jesus conquered death, and in so doing He conquered satan, and took back the authority the devil stole from Adam and Eve.  It also made us conquerors through Christ, and now we can spend eternity with Him if we choose to.
I find it hard to separate the true significance of Christmas, crucifixion, and resurrection.  All three were necessary in order to achieve what Jesus did.  It took all three events to keep us from paying for our own sins, in an eternity of hell.  Jesus did for us what we could never do for ourselves.  The power of God's love for us can never be fully understood by us during our normal lifetime.  The best way to thank God and praise God, is to have faith and trust in His Word.
Resurrection day, should be celebrated with song, worship, and praise, because by Jesus rising from the dead, we have a new life too.  We were dead in sin, but now we are alive in Christ.  Hallelujah!  Have a blessed day. Praise the Lord Jesus Christ!
Remember Jesus Loves You
Prayer of Salvation
Lord Jesus, I thank you for what you did on the cross for me. Your blood washed away all my sins, by your stripes I was healed, your death and resurrection brought me salvation.  Please forgive my sins, and come into my heart as my personal Savior.
Thank You Lord
Amen

Good Friday-The Crucifixion

Matthew Chapters 26 and 27
This Friday we remember the crucifixion of Jesus, and the events leading up to it.  For many years I never really paid much attention to it, until I came to be a believer in the Lord Jesus Christ.  One of the three most important days in the history of mankind, especially Christians, has gone unnoticed by many people.  The other two important days are the Resurrection and Christmas.
Have you ever stopped to realize that the crucifixion was something that Jesus went through many times?  Let me explain that.  When Jesus was here He was a man, with all the feelings of a man.  He however knew what was going to happen.  Being human, it had to work on His mind, and that would be pure torture, even for Him.  It would be like reliving a bad dream, only it was worse for Him because it was yet to come.  He was so stressed in the garden, that He sweat blood.  See note at the end.
The Gospels describe scouraging in such a way that it can only be described as unbelievably horrible.  Isaiah 53 is a narrative that gives a pretty gruesome picture.
The whole point of the crucifixion was that Jesus died for our sins, and took our penalty, so we wouldn't have to.  His blood washed away our sins, and by His beatings, we were healed.  What He did for us, put us in right standing with God, and paved the way for our salvation.
With almost everyone all through history hating Him, and some even joyful about His treatment and death, He sacrificed himself anyway.  He could have just walked away without going through what He did, but He obviously didn't.
Jesus knew that if He took the easy way, we would spend eternity with satan in hell.  He loves us too much to even give that a thought.  Only God knows why He loves us so much, or why He sent His son to be punished in our place.
I don't know about anyone else, but when I think of what Jesus went through, it grieves my heart.  If you take the time to really think about what His suffering really did for us, I'm sure it will touch you in a profound way.
NOTE!  A medical condition known as Hematidrosis, is the effusion of blood in perspiration, caused by extreme anguish or physical strain. Subcutaneous capillaries dilate and burst mingling blood with sweat.
I include that note, in case there are some skeptics, that don't believe it's possible to sweat blood.  Once again, it is what the Bible says it is.  Have a blessed day. Praise the Lord!
Remember Jesus Loves You
Prayer of Salvation
Lord Jesus, I thank you for what you did on the cross for me.  Your blood washed away all my sins, by your stripes I was healed, your death and resurrection brought me salvation.  Please forgive my sins, and come into my heart as my personal Savior.
Thank You Lord
Amen

God Is Everything

It Is Written, 1 Timothy 4:8, for bodily exercise profits a little, but godliness is profitable for all things, having promise of the life that now is, and of that which is to come.
As we go through each of the stages of life, we may or may not realize how similar our life is to everyone else.  Life follows patterns and unwritten laws.  Each stage of life has its own rules, problems, and fleeting pleasures. No matter what age we are, whether we realize it or not, our peers determine the choices we make to a large extent, much more than any of us realize or admit to.
When we are in the process of living, we always seem to have wants.  A fancier car, bigger house, better job.  It doesn't matter how old you are, when you get what you want, the novelty wears off in a short time, and you have an all new set of wants.  Like chasing but never catching.
It may sound corny to some, but the reason for the problem is, we are chasing the wrong thing.  We should be chasing God.  When you catch up to Him you will be satisfied, and your life will become exciting.  The more you learn about God and put into practice, the more exciting it gets.  The heart finally gets what it wants.  You can live your life walking in the blessings and favor of the Lord, if you make Him number one in your life.
One of the big benefits is you will find that cares and stress are no longer a problem, when you let God do it.  You  never get tired or bored, and you look forward to eternity with Him.  It all sounds so simple, but the fact of the matter is, it is just that simple.  Just seek Him first, and put all your trust in Him, and you will enjoy your life to the fullest.  Have a blessed day. Praise the Lord!
Remember Jesus Loves You
Prayer of Salvation
Lord Jesus, I thank you for what you did on the cross for me.  Your blood washed away all my sins, by your stripes I was healed, your death and resurrection brought me salvation.  Please forgive my sins, and come into my heart as my personal Savior.
Thank You Lord
Amen

What Saddens God

It Is Written, Ephesians 3:6, that the Gentiles should be fellow heirs, of the same body, and partakers of His promise in Christ through the gospel.
It is easy for most people to picture an angry God.  What they have trouble seeing, is a loving, caring, just God.  Most people only know what other people say is in the Bible.  They never find out for themselves what the real truth is.
Some of us are so hardened against God, we wouldn't recognize or acknowledge a blessing, if it was a sign 100 x 100' tall.  Here are some basic truths.
John 3:16 says, for God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life.
When Jesus suffered and died for us, all of our sins, past, present, and future were forgiven.  By His stripes we were healed.  Jesus conquered death and satan, and as a result we will to, because salvation was now possible through Jesus.
God has given believers the right to unlimited blessings in Jesus name.  All we have to do is to receive them.  Many people do not receive all that God has for them because they don't know, or they mistakenly think they are bothering God.
It saddens God when we don't accept what He has given us, and will give us.  When we lack faith or trust in His Word it saddens Him.  When we don't read His book of instructions, the Bible, it saddens Him.  When we don't talk to Him in prayer, it saddens Him.  When we don't recognize what Jesus did for us, it saddens Him.
The question we should all answer.  If we were God, would we give our only son to suffer and die for mankind?  If the world treated that son the way the world feels about His Son, would we still love them?   Have a blessed day.  Praise the Lord!
A WARNING!  Don't let second or third hand knowledge determine your eternity.
Remember Jesus Loves You
Prayer of Salvation
Lord Jesus, I thank you for what you did on the cross for me.  Your blood washed away all my sins, by your stripes I was healed, your death and resurrection brought me salvation.  Please forgive my sins, and come into my heart as my personal Savior.
Thank You Lord
 Amen

From Head to Heart

It Is Written, Ezekiel 36:26, I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit within you;  I will take the hardest stone out of your flesh and give you a heart of flesh.
Miracles that we pray for happen as a result of having faith, and trusting in our hearts.  There are dozens of verses that tell us how important what we have in our heart is.
Your heart determines belief in God or some false God such as money. Good or evil starts in the brain.  It is all about how you perceive things, and that is what gets transmitted to the heart.  Psalm 66:18, says, if I regard iniquity in my heart, the Lord will not hear.  Proverbs 23:26 says, my son, give me your heart, and let your eyes observe my ways.  Proverbs 21:2 says, every way of a man is right in his own eyes, but the Lord weighs the heart.
You may be thinking that your mind knows and believes, but you don't feel anything in your heart.  How do you get it from your head to your heart?  I believe the heart of every man longs for the Lord.  There is a feeling in the heart it knows only God can satisfy.  The heart is telling the brain what it needs and wants, but the brain is ignoring it.
The average brain is ruled by the body, and that is the problem.  Even though the brain knows deep down, what is right, it wants to take what it considers the easy way, and follows what the world thinks.
This situation is not hopeless.  You have Jesus inside of you, and the righteousness of God through Jesus.  Realize that your spirit is the boss, and the rest of you, including the brain must obey.
The only way to make your heart happy and full of faith is prayer and God's Word.  Tell your brain that there is a new boss in town, and it better start obeying.  The Word says draw closer to God, and He will draw closer to you.  So you see it all boils down to your brain being trained to make your body read God's Word, in order for the message to get to the heart.  It takes faith in your heart to get prayers answered.  Your brain is just the messenger from God's Word to our hearts.  Have a blessed day.           Praise the Lord!
Remember Jesus Loves You
Prayer of Salvation
Lord Jesus, I thank you for what you did on the cross for me.  Your blood washed away all my sins, by your stripes I was healed, your death and resurrection brought me salvation.  Please forgive my sins, and come into my heart as my personal Savior.
Thank You Lord
 Amen

Do You Know Jesus?

It Is Written, Jeremiah 17:7,  blessed is the man who trusts in the Lord, and whose hope is the Lord.
When thinking about Jesus, we should ask ourselves whether we know Jesus, or about Jesus.  There is a big difference between the two.
Unfortunately many people only know the Jesus portrayed by Hollywood. Movies over the last 50 years or so paint different pictures of Him.  Some movies portray Him in a way that gives you a reasonably decent picture of Him.  These movies are respectful of Jesus, and tell of some of His miracles. They are a good start to the story of Jesus for children.
The other type of movie is a typical Bible kind of movie, which is generally a combination of special effects, and pure nonsense.  Very little of it is even remotely true.  There are also a couple of so-called Jesus movies that are beyond disrespectful.  I guess they are made to play to a corrupt part of our society.
If you really want to know Jesus the person, it will be necessary to discover the true version as written in the Bible.  The Bible is the real deal.  You find out why He came and what He did.  We see His tremendous compassion and unconditional love for everyone.  His grace freely given to us so that we may be saved.
We must look at His heart, and how much He wants us to be with Him.  If we look just at His miracles, we are missing it.  Because of Jesus love for us, He gave His life for our sins to be forgiven.  He paid the ultimate price so we don't have to.
We are righteous in God's sight because of what Jesus did.  Reading and studying the Bible is a small price to pay in order to get to know the one who died for us.  I speak often about eternity, and where we will end up.  I tell you this for your own good.  Since we decide what will happen when we pass, do you want to make your judgment according to a suspect movie, or the true written Word of God?
Naturally there is much more about Jesus that can be written, but the space is short, so check it out for yourself.  Have a blessed day.            Praise Lord!
Remember Jesus Loves You
Prayer of Salvation
Lord Jesus, I thank you for what you did on the cross for me.  Your blood washed away all my sins, by your stripes I was healed, your death and resurrection brought me salvation.  Please forgive my sins, and come into my heart as my personal Savior.
Thank You Lord
Amen

Recognize Miracles

It Is Written, John 14:12, most assuredly, I say to you, he who believes in Me, the works that I do he will do also;  and greater works than these he will do, because I go to my father.
If you ask the average person if they believe in miracles, most people would probably say no.  If you ask those who believe in miracles if they have ever seen one, very few would say yes.
Do we know what miracles are?  Is the only thing we recognize as a miracle, is what Jesus did?  Are we among those who believe miracles died with Jesus, and cannot happen in these times?
Miracles happen every day.  Some you see, but do not recognize them as miracles.  Most people have a tendency to call it luck.  Here are a few that may have happened to you.
Someone runs a red light, and misses you by inches.  Some seemingly impossible thing happens for your good.  Someone lived through an accident that is usually fatal.  These are just a few examples.
Most miracles go unseen.  You get delayed a few minutes, or leave a few minutes early, and you avoid a fatal accident.  Traffic or a red light does the same thing.  I'm not saying this is always the case, but it only takes once.
Have you ever come across a bad accident in front of you that just happened?  Ever hear about someone who missed their flight, and the plane crashed.  Even on 9/11, people called in sick or were late, and lived.
There are so many (small miracles ) we never notice.  It is not luck, it is God watching out for us.  I believe if we dodge the bullet as the old saying goes, it is actually God giving us more time to find Him.  Have a blessed day. Praise the Lord!
Remember Jesus Loves You
Prayer of Salvation
Lord Jesus, I thank you for what you did on the cross for me.  Your blood washed away all my sins, by your stripes I was healed, your death and resurrection brought me salvation.  Please forgive my sins, and come into my heart as my personal Savior.
Thank You Lord
Amen

Believers Authority

It Is Written, Matthew 10:1, and when He had called His 12 disciples to Him, He gave them power over unclean spirits, to cast them out, and to heal all kinds of sicknesses, and all kinds of diseases.
All believers have the authority to act in Jesus name, and carry on the work He started.  The instructions He gave the apostles, apply to us today.  We are in effect, His hands, His feet, His voice, on this earth until He comes back.
Jesus told us what to do and how.  Many people today do not believe that we have the authority to access His power.  Some even think it might be heresy or blasphemy to even think that way.  We not only have this verse to go by, but even the great commission.  These verses pretty well spell it out.
Then you have a group of believers who accept the idea of authority, they just aren't sure how to tap into it.  Some make an effort by listening to preachers and trying to do what they say.  There are many good preachers, but unfortunately a lot of the believers inadvertently turn that instruction into a system of rules.  At that point it usually becomes just words.
The major problems facing most people when they pray, they don't fully believe, they think the outcome is a result of their efforts, and they don't believe God will do it for them.  As a result they get stressed out, and their doubt negates the prayer.
Let's take the mystery and stress out of prayer.  Read the Word regularly, and get to know Jesus and the Father.  When you do, you will hear the Holy Spirit in your heart.  Follow His lead.  If the voice does not line up with the Word, don't do it.
When you pray with authority in Jesus name, keep it simple and to the point.  When you finish praying, relax and leave it up to the Holy Spirit.  He will always answer prayer to the advantage of the one prayed for.
Maybe this example will help.  Consider that we are a hammer and Jesus is the carpenter.  He uses the hammer to build His projects.  Praise the Lord we are a tool in His hands if we choose to be.  Have a blessed day.       Praise the Lord!
Remember Jesus Loves You
Prayer of Salvation
Lord Jesus, I thank you for what you did on the cross for me.  Your blood washed away all my sins, by your stripes I was healed, your death and resurrection brought me salvation.  Please forgive my sins, and come into my heart as my personal Savior.
Thank You Lord
Amen

Authority

It Is Written, Matthew 28:18-20,  Jesus, however, came there and said to them, all authority in Heaven and on earth has been given to me.  Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations; baptize them in the name of the father, and of the son, and of the Holy Spirit;  and teach them to observe every command which I have given you.  And remember, I am with you always, day by day, until the close of the age.
Jesus had been given authority over everything by the father.  Jesus when He was going back to Heaven, delegated that power to the disciples so that they could do His work on earth till He comes back.
The vast majority of believers aren't even aware that that power passed to all believers through the centuries.  We have it, but very few use it.  When you pronounce your authority over illness, for instance in Jesus name and tell it to leave, it will.  First you have to realize how that authority works.
Here is an example.  When you get married, a duly authorized person performs the ceremony.  That person's authority comes from the state. The person performing the ceremony knows that they have the authority to do it, the couple knows that person has the authority, so no one questions it.
If this or any couple wants a divorce, that can only be granted by the state through authorized individuals.  Again authority in action.
When you are authorized to act for another, you are in effect taking the place of that person or agency because they gave you that authority.  Your actions are backed up by the power of the one doing the authorizing.
The authority Jesus gave us works the same way.  The apostles proved it, and it was passed on to all future believers.  Jesus cannot lay hands on anyone, He cannot tell satan to leave someone.  He cannot witness to people about salvation.  He needs our hands, feet, and mouth in order to exercise His power, compassion, and love.
What Jesus gives us, by His own laws, He cannot take back, because He would be breaking His word.  His word to all of us was the great commission.  His work is waiting for us.  Have a blessed day.                 Praise the Lord!
Remember Jesus Loves You
Prayer of Salvation
Lord Jesus, I thank you for what you did on the cross for me.  Your blood washed away all my sins, by your stripes I was healed, your death and resurrection brought me salvation.  Please forgive my sins, and come into my heart as my personal Savior.
Thank You Lord
 Amen

A Job From God

It Is Written, Psalm 127:1, unless the Lord builds the house, they labor in vain who build it;  unless the Lord guards the city the watchman stays awake in vain.
As you have probably figured out from this Psalm, in order to be blessed in our labors, we need the guidance of the Lord.  You may be wondering how you get that guidance.  Let's take a brief look at a good way to do it.
Most Christians at one time or another, stressed over what God's will was and how to follow it.  While this is a good idea, it can cause a lot of grief for you.
We mistakenly think that we will figure it all out.  Sometimes we get an idea that we think is from God, and we jump into it.  We think we are following the "step out in faith" idea.  Maybe it was from God, but the timing was wrong, so we fail.  How do you really know what and when.
This is not a hopeless situation, as many people have found out.  Before you start any project, tell God you are ready and willing to follow His lead. Thank Him for using you.  Keep thanking Him every day and listen for His voice.  When the proper time comes, doors will open.  If you have peace in your heart, go through those doors trusting in Him.  If it is from God you will be successful doing His will.  If He wants you to stop at a certain point, the door will close, but you'll be where God wants you to be.
The important thing is to follow the will of God to wherever it leads you. Keep your self out of it is much as possible.  You may be tempted to stray from the course or to continue when you should stop, or to get started too early in the first place, but the best advice you can get is don't do it.  Put it all in the Lord's hands, and you will have peace in your heart, and success beyond your imagination.  Have a blessed day.  Praise the Lord!
Remember Jesus Loves You
Prayer of Salvation
Lord Jesus, I thank you for what you did on the cross for me.  Your blood washed away all my sins, by your stripes I was healed, your death and resurrection brought me salvation.  Please forgive my sins, and come into my heart as my personal Savior.
Thank You Lord
Amen

Appreciate God

It Is Written, Ephesians 5:20, giving thanks always for all things to God the Father in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ.
When is the last time you really appreciated what God has done in your life?  Have you ever appreciated Him?  Sad to say, but the truth is, very few people can say they have.  Why is that?
Most of us never give God a second thought.  If we think of Him at all, it is a reminder about Jesus at Christmas, or maybe the crucifixion.  Generally even on those occasions we get involved with how everyone else celebrates with Santa and the Easter Bunny.
God operates in our lives in a very quiet way.  He helps us constantly to keep us on the right track through the Holy Spirit.  If there was a way to find out how many times He kept us out of trouble, protected us from diseases, or even saved our lives, we would not believe how big the number would be.
When God sent His only Son to save us, He did it knowing what would happen to Him.  He wanted to rescue us that much, because He loved us that much.  Jesus even became one of us to experience life as we know it.
When Jesus was crucified, He did it to atone for our sins with His blood.  His beatings were suffered in order to heal us spiritually and physically. When Jesus rose from the dead, He conquered death and satan, and gained eternal life for us, and restored to us what satan stole from Adam and Eve.
You could write many books explaining why we should appreciate God.  The two biggest things in my mind are, the fact that my sins are all forgiven, and I receive salvation and eternal life.
There's no way to imagine how long forever is, but I'm sure thankful that I will spend it with Him.  The idea of our God not being appreciated was an awakening to me.  I was no better about it than anyone else, but I thank God He made it known to me.  Now I begin in will my small way to really appreciate the countless blessings in my life.  Have a blessed day.        Praise the Lord!
Remember Jesus Loves You
Prayer of Salvation
Lord Jesus, I thank you for what you did on the cross for me.  Your blood washed away all my sins, by your stripes I was healed, your death and resurrection brought me salvation.  Please forgive my sins, and come into my heart as my personal Savior.
Thank You Lord
 Amen

The Heart

It Is Written, Psalm 51:10,  Create in me a clean heart, O God, and renew a steadfast spirit within me.

Just because God is in your heart, it does not mean He is in your life.  Stand on your authority as a believer, and let God do the work.God is not God unless you allow Him to be.

Have a blessed day.  Praise the Lord!
Remember Jesus Loves You
Prayer of Salvation
Lord Jesus, I thank you for what you did on the cross for me.  Your blood washed away all my sins, by your stripes I was healed, your death and resurrection brought me salvation.  Please forgive my sins, and come into my heart as my personal Savior.
Thank You Lord
Amen

Tithing Does Work

It Is Written, Proverbs 21:13,  whoever shuts his ears to the cry of the poor, will also cry himself and not be heard.
Like most people, I didn't want to hear about tithing.  I think my biggest problem with it was some of the people who constantly talked about it. You know the kind, send $1000 and get your house paid off.  It is understandable why so many people judge all tithing by the actions of certain people.
The Bible speaks hundreds of times about tides and first fruits.  The churchs back in the beginning helped people every which way, especially in the early Christian churches.  There was no one else to help, so it was vital to get tithes.
Churches today are little different.  Some of the bigger ones have various outreaches to help the poor all over the world.  Some local churches do what they can.
Matthew 25:42-45, explains that what you do, or don't do you are doing it to Christ.  In tithing, you are fulfilling the mandate from Jesus.  Make sure you do it happily, because it does no good doing it grudgingly.
God does payback tides.  It isn't always with money, but no matter how it comes back to you, it is more than you gave.  Many times it comes back as money you don't have to spend.  Things such as cars lasting longer with no repairs and so on.  Then you have other things like a refi on your house, good deals, maybe a good return on an investment you have, just to name a few.
Keep in mind that God will never go back on His Word.  Whether it is tithing or anything else, if He said it, it is.  Have a blessed day. Praise the Lord!
Remember Jesus Loves You
Prayer of Salvation
Lord Jesus, I thank you for what you did on the cross for me.  Your blood washed away all my sins, by your stripes I was healed, your death and resurrection brought me salvation.  Please forgive my sins, and come into my heart as my personal Savior.
Thank You Lord
Amen

Battle Of The Mind

It Is Written, Romans 7:23, but I see another law in my members, warring against the law of my mind, and bringing me into captivity to the law of sin which is in my members.
1 Peter 5:8, be sober, be vigilant;  because your adversary the devil walks about like a roaring lion, seeking whom he may devour.
Do you realize that all of your success and failure occurs in your mind first? There is a constant battle between good and evil all of the time in the average person's mind.
Suppose you get a thought in your head, that you know in your heart is wrong.  Your brain will try to rationalize that thought to try and get your heart or conscience to accept it.  The battle begins.  Your heart and brain continue to fight each other until a decision is reached.
Look at the world around you.  Whether you give in to peer pressure, wanting to be like everyone else, you think it's fun, or any of a number of reasons, the battle goes on until it is decided.
Maybe you say you are a person of faith, and you have accepted Jesus, and follow Him.  You have discernment so you can't be deceived so easy. Really?
Let me pass this one by you.  Prayer is the big reason for a battle in the mind.  You pray for something, and believe you will receive what you ask.  A couple of days goes by and you haven't received it yet.  The brain goes into action at incredible speed and trickery in order to get you to doubt, so that your prayer will not be answered.  Again it goes on until there is a winner.
Here's one thought to keep in mind.  You can stop satan in his tracks by using the authority Jesus gave you.  That authority is activated by using the name of Jesus.  If you know what is right, and you get thoughts contrary to that, rebuke satan immediately by standing on the authority and name of Jesus.  When that happens to me, I look at it as similar to the thorn in Paul's side.  Jesus told him he had the power to get rid of it.  Have a blessed day.  Praise the Lord!
Remember Jesus Loves You
Prayer of Salvation
Lord Jesus, I thank you for what you did on the cross for me.  Your blood washed away all my sins, by your stripes I was healed, your death and resurrection brought me salvation.  Please forgive my sins, and come into my heart as my personal Savior.
Thank You Lord
 Amen

God Is Truth

It Is Written, numbers 28:19, God is not a man, that He should lie, nor a son of man, that He should repent.  Has He said, and will he not do?  Or has He spoken, and will He not make it good?
If you are over the age of five, you probably know that truth is something most people are not familiar with.  As a matter of fact, it seems that the bigger the lie, or the more outrageous the statement, the more likely it is, that it will be believed.
In these times, you cannot even believe your own eyes.  With computers and special effects, you see someone's imagination, not a true picture.
Lying is so common that even top people in our government as well as other world leaders, lie quite a bit of the time and it seems to be acceptable.  No one is held accountable, because lying has become a way of life, to the point where a lie becomes the truth.  Nothing is as it seems.
If you want a break from all of this deception, go to the Word of God, for tell it like it is truth.  You will never be deceived, because unlike man, God cannot lie.  Just as you cannot make a good decision based on the wrong facts, ignoring the truth of God's Word, and making important decisions, even your eternal life, based on what society says, is a losing game.
If someone handed you a stick of dynamite with the wick lit, and said to you, it won't do anything, just grab it.  Would you?
Do yourself a favor, and take responsibility for yourself, and stop accepting lies.  Seek the truth in God's Word.  If you don't believe it, you at least made a decision by what you think, rather than what politically correct says.  Have a blessed day.  Praise the Lord!
Remember Jesus Loves You
Prayer of Salvation
Lord Jesus, I thank you for what you did on the cross for me.  Your blood washed away all my sins, by your stripes I was healed, your death and resurrection brought me salvation.  Please forgive my sins, and come into my heart as my personal Savior.
Thank You Lord
Amen

Denominational and Nondenominational Christianity

It Is Written, Ephesians 2:8-9, for by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves;  it is a gift of God, not of works, lest anyone should boast.
There are many people who do not know the difference between denominational and nondenominational.  People have a tendency to classify anything to do with Jesus as denominational or as they call it, religion.  In this message, a few of the differences are explained.  Keep in mind however, that the only way for salvation is through Jesus Christ.
Religion has split into a number of denominations over the last 400 years or so.  For this message we will look at Christian religions.  The various religions have become spinoffs of the old Protestant and Catholic religions. They were started by various reformers a few hundred years ago, as each tried to improve and get closer to the people's needs.  Therefore there are some differences between them.
Religions, although based on the Bible, sometimes differ in how they interpret it.  Because they all operate with many man-made rules, regulations, and rituals, many of them have strayed from basic beliefs in the Bible, and would have you believe, that you can work your way to heaven.
Nondenominational Christians, believe the Bible and everything in it.  They believe it is the true Word of God, and they stand on that completely, to the best of their ability.  Their reverence for the Word of God helps them build a relationship with God.  Their number one belief is as it says in Ephesians, we are saved only by the belief in and acceptance of Jesus Christ as our Savior.
So basically there you have it.  The key to everything is the acceptance of what Jesus did for us, and following the Word of God.  If your church is not teaching salvation through Jesus only, or tries to reinterpret the Word of God, but in order to be politically correct, or to attract new members, it would be a good idea to find a new church.  Have a blessed day.           Praise the Lord!
Remember Jesus Loves You
Prayer of Salvation
Lord Jesus, I thank you for what you did on the cross for me.  Your blood washed away all my sins, by your stripes I was healed, your death and resurrection brought me salvation.  Please forgive my sins, and come into my heart as my personal Savior.
Thank You Lord
Amen

The Old Testament Misunderstood ?

It Is Written, Deuteronomy 7:4, for they will turn your sons away from following me, to serve other gods;  so the anger of the Lord will be aroused against you and destroy you suddenly.
Deuteronomy 8:19, then it shall be, if you by any means forget the Lord your God, and follow other gods, and serve them and worship them, I testify against you this day, you shall surely perish.
I don't know how many times I have heard that the God of the Old Testament was cruel.  Life back then was a series of God destroying innocent people.  At one time I used to think that too.  When I got into the Word and thought about it, the picture looked different.
People have always had gods, because they needed to explain life and everything in it.  At one time, probably anything you could name was someone's God.
When our God made a covenant with Abraham, that became the beginning of His chosen people.  God said He would be their God, and Abraham and his descendents would be His people.
When the Hebrews left Egypt they were going to a land that God promised them.  Along the way they received the 10 Commandments.  As Moses was receiving the commandments from God Himself, some of the people made and worshiped a golden calf.  The people complained about everything and were a real problem.  So God decided to let the original people that left Egypt die off and give the land to their descendents.
God knew that His people were weak, and would follow false gods in the new land, because the people living there already, worshiped other gods. So He told the Israelites to take the land and destroy every person animal and false God, so that they would not be corrupted.
The history of the Hebrew people was sin, punishment, and forgiveness. After a number of times in this cycle, and several hundred years, they were finally destroyed and scattered all over the world by the Romans.
God is the creator, so He gets to decide what happens.  He loves everyone and wants them to get to Heaven.  Tough love is because you love someone and want to help them.  Then as now people can choose to follow the one true God or not.  In life when laws are broken, there are consequences, even capital punishment, and God's law was pretty plain. God sent the prophets to explain what God wanted from His people, and what would happen if they didn't follow those laws.
We are all fortunate, especially in these times, that God doesn't give us what we deserve.  Have a blessed day.  Praise the Lord!
Remember Jesus Loves You
Prayer of Salvation
Lord Jesus, I thank you for what you did on the cross for me.  Your blood washed away all my sins, by your stripes I was healed, your death and resurrection brought me salvation.  Please forgive my sins, and come into my heart as my personal Savior.
Thank You Lord
Amen

A Formula For Life

It Is Written, Proverbs 16:3, commit your works to the Lord, and your thoughts will be established.
Many people dismiss the Old Testament as not being relevant in these times.  The truth is the opposite.  We live in what has been referred to as the me generation.  The words in Proverbs and Ecclesiastes seem like they were written with these times in mind.  This message will give you a brief idea of what is contained in those books.  There is neither time nor space to go into it at great length, so please check it out for yourself.
The book of Proverbs is really a book about wisdom.  It's verses defining a value system.  It helps build character by its Godly guidance, and it also keeps you out of trouble by pointing out things that lead to sin and grief.
It is a book of opposites.  For instance an industrious person versus a lazy one, a person with wisdom versus a fool.  It is a book of wisdom that comes from God, and not your own brain.  It outlines what God says a person should do in order to know Him.  It's kind of a forerunner of the New Testament.  It doesn't come right out and mention the Holy Spirit, but His presence is seen through wisdom.  Wisdom is the spirit of God, and that spirit is the Holy Spirit.
Many people believe Solomon wrote Ecclesiastes.  This book tells of a preacher who was searching for something of value that never changes. He seems to be in despair at times because everything he looks at with his own mind and intelligence seems meaningless.  For example, he speaks of a life of toil and accumulation, and everything he toiled for becomes the property of someone who did not work for it when he dies.  Everything is repeated, there is nothing new.  Man's life in his own eyes is folly when seen from old age.
Proverbs and Ecclesiastes are a treasure to many people.  I have heard preachers talk about reading from one of those books every single day and they continuously read a chapter each day, because of the wisdom found in those books.  I often said that if a person started living his life by following these two books at an early age, his life would be productive and satisfying, and pleasing to God.  I am assuming of course we had  grace from God to know how valuable those two books were.  Do yourself a favor, and read some of Proverbs, or Ecclesiastes, or both, and see for yourself.  Have a blessed day.  Praise the Lord!
Remember Jesus Loves You
Prayer of Salvation
Lord Jesus, I thank you for what you did on the cross for me.  Your blood washed away all my sins, by your stripes I was healed, your death and resurrection brought me salvation.  Please forgive my sins, and come into my heart as my personal Savior.
Thank You Lord
Amen

Wait For The Holy Spirit

It Is Written, James 1:17, every good gift and perfect gift is from above, and comes down from the Father of Lights, with Whom there is no variation or shadow of turning.
Have you ever seen a preacher in person or on television, that had a healing ministry?  Did you envy him or her even a little bit?  Did you really want to do the same things they were doing?  Many people would give anything they had in order to do what they saw the preacher do.
The first thing you would find out if you read about the career of one of these people,  is that the great ones were anointed by God to do what they do.  Their lives are focused on God only.  It isn't unusual for one of these people to spend eight hours plus, every day, studying and meditating on the Bible.
If they aren't studying, they are probably praying.  They do what very few people would do.  They are able to do this, because they were anointed by God, and lead by this Holy Spirit.
Obviously not everyone is called to be a preacher.  But the good news is, God has a plan for each of us too.  It could work a couple of different ways with the rest of us.  The first step is to be familiar with what the Word says about God's instructions.
Some people go through life just like everyone else.  Then one day opportunities present themselves, and the Holy Spirit starts to direct them. That was God's plan for that person, and it was up to that person to put it into action.
Other times we may ask God to use us.  At some point a little voice will tell us what God wants us to do.  When that happens wait for further instructions.  Success comes in God's time.  He may not have planned for you to act today, so if you do jump into it, it may turn out to be a disaster.
David waited 20 years to be King after he was anointed.  Abraham jumped the gun and didn't follow God's timing, and the world is seeing the result today.  God planned Issac, Abraham produced Ishmael because he did not wait for God's timing.
If you ask God about His plan for you, He will tell you, but continue to pray until He says when.  Have a blessed day.  Praise Lord!
Remember Jesus Loves You
Prayer of Salvation
Lord Jesus, I thank you for what you did on the cross for me.  Your blood washed away all my sins, by your stripes I was healed, your death and resurrection brought me salvation.  Please forgive my sins, and come into my heart as my personal Savior.
Thank You Lord
Amen