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 Posted: Wed Nov 30, 2016 7:08 am
Not sure what happened to my thread. It all just disappeared. Luckily I had some of them saved in Microsoft Word and I will re-post them.
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Posted: Wed Nov 30, 2016 7:11 am
November 16, 2016
“But you, man of God, flee from all this [referring back to verses 9 & 10], and pursue righteousness, godliness, faith, love, endurance and gentleness. Fight the good fight of the faith. Take hold of the eternal life to which you were called when you made your good confession, in the presence of many witnesses.” (I Timothy 6: 11-12)
God doesn’t want us to focus on this world or to conform to it (Romans 12: 2) He wants us to focus on Him and His Word. In doing so we will be prepared and trained to be the spiritual warriors He wants us to be. No longer backed down or into a corner spiritually, but taking to the fight to the powers of the air and triumphing over Satan and his minions.
Read God’s Word, meditate over it. Let God speak to you and tell you what He wants you to do for Him and for those around you. The more you lift up God the more He lifts up you.
mrgreen mrgreen mrgreen
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Posted: Wed Nov 30, 2016 7:15 am
November 18, 2016
“`What do you want me to do for you?’ Jesus asked him [the blind man]. The blind man said, `Rabbi, I want to see.’” (Mark 10: 51)
Do you ever have a problem that you go round and round with, stepping out in faith ,fasting and praying, but don’t seem to be getting anywhere? Or you think that God is not answering your prayers?
Do you know what you should really pray for or are you guessing or laying out broad prayer requests to God? We need to know what God wants from us; to know what is the real problems in our lives and pray for those things. We often pray for things we don’t need or don’t even truly want, so our problems do not go away.
In the above verse, blind Bartimaeus had problems. He was a blind, jobless beggar that relied upon the charity of others so that he could live. Because of this he was probably malnourished, dirty, & didn’t live in a nice home. But when Jesus came to Jericho, Bartimaeus knew that Jesus could help him. When Jesus asked what He could do, Bartimaeus asked for his sight knowing that the rest of his problems stemed from that one.
We should examine ourselves to look for the root(s) of our problems. And only then, go to God with our prayers and supplications. God is willing to meet our needs, we just need to know what those are.
mrgreen mrgreen mrgreen
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Posted: Wed Nov 30, 2016 7:23 am
November 19, 2016
“In fact though by this time you ought to be teachers, you need someone to teach you the elementary truths of God’s word all over again. You need milk, not solid food.” (Hebrews 5: 12)
Instead of growing in God’s word daily, the body of Christ, the church, struggles in this word. Why? Be cause we are still babies feeding on the basics of the gosples. People will take in the milk of the word then set it aside not delving in deeply to learn the great truths that are hid from us by His Spirit until we are ready to receive it. The more we study God’s word, the more ready we are to understand and handle the revelations that the Holy Spirit will open our eyes, hearts, and minds to. Don’t get frustrated with yourself or God’s word just because you don’t understand something. Continue to study, even if it is the same passages over and over again. Eventually God will reveal His truths to you when you are ready to handle them.
We must also be willing to change our live to accommodate what we have learned. We can’t pick and choose what we follow in God’s word. It is all or nothing.
mrgreen mrgreen mrgreen
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Posted: Wed Nov 30, 2016 7:26 am
November 20, 2016
"Yet this I call to mind and therefore have hope: Because of the Lord's great love we are not consumed for His compassions never fail. They are new every morning; Great is your faithfulness." (Lamentations 3: 21-23)
Remind yourself of the benefits of having Jesus in your life. Psalm 103 spells them out for us.
1. He forgives all your sin.
2. He heals all your diseases.
3. He redeems your life from destruction.
4. He crowns you with loving kindness and tender mercies.
5. He satisfies your mouth with good things so that your youth is renewed like the eagle's.
6. He executes righteousness and judgement for you against oppression. He sets you free.
7. He makes known His ways to you.
8. He gives you His grace and mercy in times of need.
Remember and give thanks for all that He had done for you.
mrgreen mrgreen mrgreen
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Posted: Wed Nov 30, 2016 7:34 am
November 21, 2016
“This is to my father’s glory, that you bear much fruit, showing yourselves to be my disciple.”( John 15: cool
There is an old tradition that says God gets glory from the way His children bear pain and agony and that the world is impressed by this. That is a lie from Satan himself to keep God’s children in bondage.
The world doesn’t want more pain and suffering it has enough of that. They want relief from that suffering. They come into the church (body of Christ) when they see people getting healed, overcoming adversity, throwing off their addiction, changing their lives for the better.
Lives being healed and bearing the fruit of the spirit (love, joy, peace, patience, goodness, kindness, faithfulness, gentleness, & self control- Galatians 5: 22-23) is what brings glory to God and attracts others to Him.
mrgreen mrgreen mrgreen
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Posted: Wed Nov 30, 2016 7:38 am
November 22, 2016
“Get rid of all bitterness, rage, and anger, brawling and slander, along with every form of malice. Be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving each other just as in Christ, God forgave you.” (Ephesians 4: 31-32)
Domestic deputes, murders, school shootings, road rage, the list goes on and on of the negative things we constantly see in the news and all around us. Don’t let it touch your life in that you get swept up into it.
Have a sensitive heart for those who are lost. Be compassionate to those who hurt you. Bless those who curse you. We do this because while we were yet enemies of God, He sent His Son into this world to show us the Way, to die and shed his blood for OUR sins, to reconcile us back to Him. God showed us great love and tender mercy by giving us Jesus, Himself incarnate, and suffering for us. Let us show love and compassion to those around us. Maybe, just maybe they will see God in us and be drawn to Him.
mrgreen mrgreen mrgreen
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Posted: Wed Nov 30, 2016 7:41 am
November 23, 2016
”Whoever can be trusted with very little can also be trusted with much, and whoever is dishonest with very little will also be dishonest with much.” (Luke 16: 10)
Have you ever wanted to take on a big project from God, but things kept going wrong or it seemed that the Lord wouldn’t let you? There may have been a good reason…..Have you been faithful in the little things God has put before you to do? Many times we will ignore that still small voice that tells us to do things for other. God will try to get us to do what we may consider little things for others: Saying good morning to someone, helping a stranded motorist, sending a card or visiting a sick person, donating time or money to a good cause, giving someone a hug, etc. We don’t realize the impact these little things do for those they are done to. A small act of kindness may even save someone’s life. We don’t always know what people are going through or what they are thinking. You may be the instrument in God’s plan to bring them to salvation.
When we learn to obey God in these little things, He will allow us more responsibility in His kingdom and will lift us up as we glorify Him.
mrgreen mrgreen mrgreen
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Posted: Wed Nov 30, 2016 7:45 am
November 26, 2016
“And whatever you do, whether in word or deed, do it all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him.” (Colossians 3: 17)
Do you grumble and complain about work or school? Do you give it your best effort or are you just trudging along half heartedly?
Instead we should look at everything as if we were in direct employment of God and He is looking over our shoulder at our work. Don’t you want to make God proud of what you have done? He doesn’t want perfection from us in this worldly form, He just wants our best effort. The problem is that we just don’t try very hard most of the time.
So be determined today to put your best work into whatever you are doing today even if nobody but God is going to see it.
mrgreen mrgreen mrgreen
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Posted: Wed Nov 30, 2016 7:48 am
November 27, 2016
“Finally, be strong in the Lord and in His mighty power. Put on the full armor of God so that you can take your stand against the devil’s schemes. For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against authorities, against powers of this dark world, and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms. Therefore put on the full armor of God so that when the day of evil comes, you may be able to stand your ground, and after you have done everything, to stand. Stand firm with your belt of truth buckled around your waist, with the breastplate of righteousness in place, and with your feet fitted with the readiness that comes from the gospel of peace. In addition to all this, take up the shield of faith with which you can extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one. Take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God. And pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests. With this in mind be alert and always keep on praying with all the saints.” (Ephesians 6: 13-1 cool
A lot can be said about the above passage. In fact whole books have been written on them. I just want to remind you and myself that ours is a spiritual battle not a physical one. We need to use the tools and equipment that Jesus shed his blood and died for us so that we could have. God wants us to be victorious in our stand against Satan and has given us all we need.
mrgreen mrgreen mrgreen
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Posted: Wed Nov 30, 2016 7:51 am
November 28, 2016
“Remember your leaders who spoke the word of God to you. Consider the outcome of their way of life and imitate their faith.” (Hebrews 13: 7)
As Christians we look to Jesus as our prime example of word and action, but as we live here on earth, especially as a new Christian we need to look for a faithful and true man or woman of God to be a mentor and example of the faith God wants us to have. Observing their life and talking with them and getting them to help you understand God’s word more is important to your spiritual growth.
mrgreen mrgreen mrgreen
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Posted: Wed Nov 30, 2016 7:55 am
November 29, 2016
“All these blessings will come upon you and accompany you if you obey the Lord your God.” (Deuteronomy 28: 3)
Unfortunately the world has engrained into us a lie of the devil. We have been taught that Christian suffering is all part of God’s plan and that we should just face it and endure. Though it is true that God uses everything for the good of those who love Him (Romans 8: 2 cool , we do not have to accept the situation as is. God tells us in Deuteronomy 28: 1-14 that if we fully obey Him, He will lift us up in favor prosperity and blessing. God wants us to be financially stable, He wants us to have victory over our enemies.
Satan has gone to great lengths to convince God’s people that poverty is a blessing in disguise. You will hear it said “If you are poor then you are more reliant upon God.” But who has the stronger faith; a poor man obedient to God relying on God for all his provision or a wealthy man who is also obedient to God and thankful for what he has been given and uses that wealth for God’s glory in ministering to others?
Don’t buy in to Satan’s lies. Get your thinking in line with the word of God. If you are a born-again child of God you no longer have to live under the curse of poverty or any other curse for that matter. You have been redeemed.
mrgreen mrgreen mrgreen
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Posted: Wed Nov 30, 2016 7:57 am
November 30, 2016
“If you remain in me and my words remain in you, ask whatever you wish and it will be given to you.” (John 15: 7)
The more you get into God’s Word, the more God’s Word gets into you. Just like you can get a song stuck in your head, you can get God’s word stuck in your head also, which is a good thing. We need to have His word in our hearts and minds at all times. Every action, decision, or word that comes out of our mouths should be based on and driven by God’s Holy Scripture. We have to daily take the time to read the Bible not only to be able to understand it better, but to be able to live it better as well. So pick up your Bible and read God’s love story.
mrgreen mrgreen mrgreen
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Posted: Fri Dec 02, 2016 7:15 am
December 1, 2016
“We must pay more careful attention therefore, to what we have heard, so that we do not drift away.” Hebrews 2: 1
We have all done it. Followed the word of God for awhile and then gotten cocky and taken our eyes off of Him, thinking that we are all that. So what happens? Of course we stumble and fall. We had our nose stuck so far in the air that we didn’t see the stumbling block right in front of us. Had we remained in God’s word which He has taught and spoken to us we would have see it coming and God would have guided us away from it. So don’t let yourself drift away from God because of pride, anger, selfishness, self pity, or anything. Keep your eyes on “The Way” [Jesus] and He will not lead you astray.
mrgreen mrgreen mrgreen
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Posted: Fri Dec 02, 2016 7:16 am
December 2, 2016
“And when you stand praying, if you hold anything against anyone, forgive him, so that your father in heaven may forgive you your sins.” (Mark 11: 25)
We cannot hold on to grudges and un-forgiveness and expect God to work in our lives. We bind up his hands even to the point where we cannot get forgiveness of sin. The model prayer also called The Lord’s Prayer (Matthew 6: 9-13, Luke 11: 2-4) say that we ask for forgiveness the same way that we forgive others. So if we refuse to forgive others then we are asking God to NOT forgive us.
Don’t hold on to un-forgiveness, resentment, grudges or whatever you may stubbornly cling to. Forgive those around you so that you may be forgiven.
mrgreen mrgreen mrgreen
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