While Outside

As I sit in a special corner of my house, I have an amazing view of outside.  Not only is this my sit corner, but it also serves as my write corner, meaning most of my writings are done from this inspired spot. To look outside in times of loneliness, confusion, hurt or fear, one can see the magnificent glory of God. It is in HIs glory that we can find peace in spite of what is going on.  

 

While outside, take a look at the sky and just stare at it.  As you gaze at it, you can sense God’s power and His presence.  See His power in how He created the sky to protect us, the perfect bubble!   In Genesis 1:6-8, God said, “Let there be an expanse between the waters, to separate water from water.  God made the expanse and separated the water under the expanse from the water above it. And it was so. God called the expanse, sky.” Who could have created such an expanse?  NO ONE!  

 

While outside, take a look at a tree.  As your eyes flow from the root to the top of a tree, notice the intricate detail of the tree.  Notice how the tree birth smaller limbs or branches covered with leaves or seedlings. Notice how the tree reaches for heaven in a praise stance to God. In Genesis 1;11 God said, “Let the land produce vegetation; seed bearing plants and trees on the land that bear fruit with seed in it…”  The glory of God is wrapped up in any tree.  All one has to do is to take the time to look.  It is in His glory that we can find peace in spite of what is going on.

 

While outside, we can find peace, rest and joy.  We can let go of concerns and worries knowing that God, who created everything, can handle what ails us.  Peace is outside. Rest is outside. Joy is outside.  So, when you are burden with the issues of life, go outside.

BE BLESSED!

Day 31 of 365, the Year 2021

On Day 31 of 365, should I dare say “Happy New Year”?  What happened to Day 1 of 365?  

 

By waiting until Day 31 of 365, the Year 2021, I hope this message will rise above the normal chatter a new year brings and will engulf those who choose to read it with hope and encouragement. I hope that this message will stand alone on its own merit and be passed on to others without regret.  Finally, by waiting until Day 31 of 365, the Year 2021, I pray that the spirit of God speaks to those who are diligently seeking Him.

  

For almost a year, each morning brought about an increase in the numbers of people who have succumbed to COVID-19, increased global cases and hospitalization rates, and angered protestors.  It seems like we are in a never-ending science fiction movie. Unlike a “SY-FY” movie that has a defined ending, our COVID-19 reality, as we have come to know it, is real time, a real situation and with no foreseeable end in sight. 

 

If you have been listening, and I’m sure you have, people are wondering if we are getting closer to the end of times.  Are we seeing the beginning of "birth pains" before our Lord Jesus Christ returns?  Are we the generation that will usher in Christ’s return? 

 

Since the beginning of man (as we know of him), the world has been riddled with wickedness, diseases, discord, and evilness.  Has such increased or elevated in the 21^st century?  What is the significance difference between then and now?  How do we continue to believe and have faith in God when our aspects of life are in disarray? These are hard questions, and I can assure you the answers to these could be just as hard.  

 

My purpose of this writing is not to answer these questions, but to emphasize what God’s word says in regard to our current blight; and what our Lord Jesus Christ instructed us to do when “birth pains” appear in the world in our time (21^st century).  In the book of Luke Chapter 21, Jesus had a conversation with the disciples concerning what was to take place before his return.  The disciples asked him in verse 6, “And what will be the sign when these things are about to take place?”  Jesus answered them with these words, “When you hear of wars and disturbances, do not be terrified, for these things must take place, but the end does not follow immediately. Nation against nation, kingdom against kingdom, and there will be great earthquakes, and in various places plagues, and famines; and there will be terrors and great signs from heaven “(ASV).  In Matthew 24:8, Jesus called the signs the beginning of birth pains.  From these words of Jesus, we can conclude that we are experiencing (seeing) the birth pains. 

 

Is the end near? Although this is a good question, we should pay attention to what Jesus said about his second return.  In Matthew 24:36, Jesus said, “But of that day and hour no one knows, not even the angels of heaven, nor the Son, but the Father alone. (ASV).  Upon further study of the returning of Jesus Christ, the apostle Paul instructs us to “let no one any way deceive you, for it will not come unless the apostasy comes first, and the man of lawlessness is revealed, the son of destruction”.  (2^nd Thes. 2:3 ASV) In other words, there is much unrest and upheaval in our world – but these are merely birth pains. The apostasy (the falling away from God, abandoning God or rebelling against God) hasn’t come.  However, when it comes (apostasy), the human person of wickedness/lawlessness will be revealed, which he is described as a son of destruction. This person, the son of destruction was born to perform evil, wicked and deceitful acts of Satan, before Jesus returns.  Again, let me repeat, this person has not been revealed.  

 

So, what are we to do?  Jesus Christ our Lord, tells us in Matt. 24:42 to “….be on alert for you do not know which day your Lord is coming.”  He instructs us to “be on guard, that your heart may not be weighted down with dissipation and drunkenness and the worries of lift” and to “keep alert at all times, praying.” (Matthew 24: 36 and 42, respectively).   

 

PRAY AT ALL TIMES!

 

 

Righteousness, Part 1

The word righteousness is overlooked and underworked. You may be wondering, what on earth is she talking about?  It is my desire to layout, briefly, why I dare to say such a thing.  Often times when people are led to Christ, the clergy or lay person will have them cite Romans 10:9, which says, “If you confess with your mouth Jesus is Lord, and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you shall be saved;”  end of story.  Rarely does the Romans 10:10 come into play. 

 IT SHOULD.  THIS IS A BIG DEAL!

If you take a closer look at this scripture, you will notice that at the end of Romans 10:9, there is no grammatical period (.) after the word saved.  However, there is a semi-colon, meaning that it continues into verse 10, which reads, “for with the heart man believes resulting in righteousness, and with the mouth he confesses resulting in salvation.”  People are so elated for the saved soul, ( believe I am too), the righteousness part many times is just skipped over. 

I know this may come as a shock to some, but if you were to examine these two scriptures, you will see for yourself, that when a person confesses Jesus as Lord, not only is he or she saved or receives salvation, but he or she also become the “righteousness of God".  Think about that for a minute.  You who were nobody is now the righteousness of God.   How powerful and awesome is that? This is good news and we should get so excited about it and tell everyone. Praise God!

Furthermore, if we are the righteousness of God, given to us by God himself through belief in His son Jesus Christ, we are no longer sinners. We can’t be both, sinners and the righteousness of God through Jesus Christ.  When God sees us and hears us, He sees us as His righteousness through his son, Jesus Christ. 

So declare today and every day, “I am the righteousness of God through Jesus Christ.”

Be Blessed!

Prayer Instructions

Have you ever wondered to yourself, how should I pray or what should I say when I pray?  Many years ago, I found myself at this crossroad.  However, I've learned how to pray and today I want to share with you the instructions of prayer.   If you will get your Bible and turn to the Gospel according to Matthew, Chapter 6, verses 5-8, you will see what Jesus said about prayer.

In verse 5, Jesus instructed us “not to pray as hypocrites for they love to stand and pray in the synagogues and on the street corners, in order to be seen.”   In other words, don’t pray for other people’s adoration and attention.  Don’t pray just to be seen so you can get all puffed up.    Also in this same verse, Jesus tells us to “go into your inner room, and when you have closed the door, pray to your Father who is in secret, and your Father who sees in secret will repay you.”  WOW!  Did you catch that?  God will reward us when we pray in secret. 

Prayer is a personal and sacred act and it should be done in our “prayer closet”, a place where you go to pray, or the actual act of prayer.  The place doesn’t necessarily mean a physical place, but also a place in your heart, in your time, in your quietness, in your zone; a place to open up and converse with God Almighty.  Now don’t confuse your personal prayer time with praying at church, corporate prayer or at a religious ceremony.  If you are asked to pray, by all means do so.

Jesus goes on to tell us in verse 6 that when we pray “we should not use meaningless repetition, as the Gentiles do, for they suppose that they will be heard for their many words.”  You see, it’s not how many words, but the faith of those words; your faith in those words.  When we pray we should not babble and babble, saying words without faith and not much thought.   We should pray what God’s Word as already said and believe by faith that He hears us and will answer us. 

 

When you pray today, tonight or right now, remember to pray in faith in God’s word whether it is a real place, a secret place of your heart or a secret place of quietness.  

Be Blessed.

Prayer

Make a decision in 2019 to spend time in prayer.  The Bible tells us to always pray.  We are told to pray without ceasing.  In scripture, we read that Jesus would go to a solitary place and pray.  Now if Jesus prayed, how much more should we?  Some may be asking, how do I pray always and without ceasing?  Or better yet, what is prayer anyway?  

Prayer is simply talking to God and, I must stress, listening to God.  As you go about your everyday, talk to God like you would talk to a friend on the phone.  The exception to this is, if I may, don't complain to God like you complain to/with your friend.  

Let me illustrate.  Let's say that you are having trouble or have a concern.  First know that God already knows what's going on in your life.  So when you pray to Him, say God, "I honor you and recognize that you know the trouble that I am experiencing.  You said in your word Lord, that in the time of trouble, if I would call on you, you will hear me and deliver me from my trouble.  So Father God, I give it to you and believe by faith that you will work it out for my good.  It is in the name of Jesus that I submit this prayer and I thank you for answering me. Amen." (This is a prayer of faith and it refers to the promises of God that are in the Bible.)

Don't say, "God, I've been dealing with this issue for a long long time.  When are you going to take care of it for me? I don't know how much more I can take/stand. I've been praying and praying and I haven't seen any results. Well, anyone, it's me again with the same issue." (This is a prayer of doubt and unbelief.)    Do you see the difference? 

Let's say that you do have unbelief.  Just ask God in the prayer to help you in your/with unbelief.  Remember, He already knows it anyway.  So be transparent and honest about it and move on.  

So you might say something like this, "Lord I've prayed about this issue for sometime now and I want to believe that I receive.  Help me Father God with my unbelief. Help me in my weakness.  And I thank you now for hearing me, helping me and answering me, in Jesus' name I pray to you. Amen."

One more thing, I don't want you to think that you cannot cry out to God in your suffering or going through.  You surely can.  However, the key is not to stay there time after time.  Learn to encourage yourself with God's word and get out of the swamp of misery.  Satan, the devil, hates it when you rise to praise and worship at your darkest hour because he knows he can't win -  God says that "He will inhabit the praises of His people."  And where God is, Satan, the devil, and his evil work got to go.

Give God the glory - Pray on in 2019.

Words to Live By

Words to live by is merely scriptures from various books of the Bible that will help you in life as you go through your journey.  If you have a Bible, I suggest that you turn to each of these and ask God to help you in your understanding.  If you do not have a Bible, I suggest that you write the scriptures down on a piece of paper and ask God for understanding.

1. Humility and the fear of the Lord bring wealth and honor and life.  Proverbs 22:4  (Fear meaning the referential fear of the Lord)

2. He who pursues righteousness and love finds life, prosperity, and honor. Proverbs 21:21  (Ask God to show you how to pursue righteousness.)

3. Truthful lips endure forever, but a lying tongue lasts only a moment. Proverbs 12:19

4. Whoever of you loves life and desires to see many good days, keep your tongue  from evil and your lips from speaking lies.  Turn from evil and do good; seek peace and pursue it. Psalm 34: 12-14

5. Cast your cares on the Lord and he will sustain you; He will never let the righteous fall. Psalm 55:22

6. Hear my prayer, O Lord, listen to my cry for mercy. In the day of trouble, I will call to you, for you will answer me. Psalm 86:6-7

7. Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for men, since you know that you will receive an inheritance from the Lord as a reward.   It is Christ you are serving. Colossians 3:23-24

8. Do not be wise in your own eyes; fear the Lord and shun evil. This will bring health to your body and nourishment to your bones. Proverbs 3:7-8

9. My son do not forget my teaching, but keep my commands in your heart, for they will prolong your life many years and bring you prosperity. Proverbs 3:1-2

10. Jesus said, "My command is this: Love each other as I have loved you."  John 15:12

BE BLESSED!

How to Stand in Difficult Times?

Whatever your difficulty is in life, God has provided the means (away) for you to escape it and to come out victorious.  We live in a world that is full of evils and it appears that it is getting worse.  Every day we are bombarded with news from around the world reminding us of such.  So how does one stand and believe in his/her own difficult times? 

First and foremost, we need to understand who is responsible for the abounding evils.  The Bible tells us that Satan (the thief) came to kill, steal and to destroy (John 10:10).  Satan is a spiritual being and he is real.  He is the culprit behind all of this mayhem.  The Bible tells us that we wrestle not with flesh and blood, but with spiritual powers in heavenly places.  

Take a look at the following scripture.

Ephesians 6:11-12 say, “Put on the full armor of God, so that you can take your stand against the devil’s scheme. For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms.”

Praise God, we now know who is causing the evils that we face.  Praise God again because Jesus was sent (by God) to the world to destroy the works of the devil (1^st John 3:8).  Praise God again because He (God) gives us instructions in Ephesians 6:10-18 on how to stand in our difficulty times.  How?

God instructs us to put on the full Armor of God. (It is suggested that you study these scriptures.)

Armor of God

1. The belt of truth – God’s word is true, believe it, speak it and see it
2. Breastplate of righteousness – You are the righteousness of God through Jesus Christ
3. Gospel of peace around your waist – Love all people and proclaim the Gospel
4. Shield of faith – Faith is your protection, believe God’s word
5. Helmet of salvation – Protection, provision, deliverance, healing is part of your salvation
6. Sword of the Spirit – The word of God coming out of your mouth.  Speak and declare God’s word

In reality our wrestling is praying, praising and believing. When we do our part, we are saying, OK Lord Jesus, I’m standing on your words.  I going to keep on praying, I won’t stop.  I’m going to keep on praising you, I won’t stop.  I’m going to keep on believing you, I won’t stop. 

Be Blessed