Tag: Jesus

Special Posting: Christmas 2012

26 “In the sixth month of Elisabeth’s pregnancy, God sent the angel Gabriel to Nazareth, a town in Galilee, 27 to a virgin pledged to be married to a man named Joseph, a descendant of David. The virgin’s name was Mary. 28 The angel went to her and said, ‘Greetings, you who are highly favored! The Lord is with you.'” ~ Luke 1:26-28, NIV Bible.

An angel came to Mary, the mother of Jesus and said to her, ” Greetings, you who are highly favored.” In retrospect there is no better opening; no news greater; nothing more spatular, than what we as mortal beings could have ever hope to hear whether in the time of Mary or in our own current day. How awesome it would have been to be told by an angel of God that you are highly favored. I can’t even begin to imagine what was going through Mary’s mind upon hearing those words spoke aloud. Building upon what would have most certainly been a highly emotional event for Mary; firstly the shock of seeing an angel of God, secondly the impact of what he had announced must have been overwhelming in and of itself, those breathe taking and at the same time scary words Gabriel spoke to her. To be certain Mary indeed was blessed, and God was truly with her in that moment and in every other precious moment she experienced and would ever experience from that moment on. For me I think Christmas begins with these words spoke by Gabriel, “Greetings, you who are highly favored!”, because through the promise of Jesus, His salvation, the future events which had not yet come to fruition at the time Gabriel came to Mary, I can’t help but to think that Gabriel was really speaking to all of humanity, that he had foreknowledge of the mission of Jesus and was thus so excited when first addressing Mary. There is no arguing to the fact that God loves us and wanted us to be close to him, to have a lasting rewarding relationship with Him, thus logically the first present given to humanity by God in this moment was these very words spoke by Gabriel, thus adding to Gabriel’s excitement and jubilee; “Greetings, you who are highly favored!”

29 “Mary was greatly troubled at his words and wondered what kind of greeting this might be. 30 But the angel said to her, ‘Do not be afraid, Mary; you have found favor with God. 31 You will conceive and give birth to a son, and you are to call him Jesus. 32 He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High. The Lord God will give him the throne of his father David, 33 and he will reign over Jacob’s descendants forever; his kingdom will never end.'” Luke 1:29-33, NIV Bible.

If it was fear that Mary first felt, then the second emotion must have been the smallness of being mortal, or even more to the point the feelings of being inferior and undeserving. The first question which might have crossed her mind might very well have been; (Who am I to have won such favor with God?) Again many of us today ask this very question when God blesses us with miraculous miracles that we know that we do not deserve; ( Who am I to have won such favor?) This question also would elude to a devastatingly awesome humility that few of us exhibit in today’s time, but Mary was filled with it. In fact it was Mary’s humility which concurred the sin of pride exhibited by Eve in the garden of Eden. It was our beloved mother Mary which redeemed for all time women and their roll in society. Her love which concurred the law in Joseph her betrothed that which kept him from turning her over to be stoned as it was demanded by the Mosaic law of the Jews. This same love that for thirty years fostered in Jesus Christ our Lord and Savior. All of this told to her by the angel Gabriel to calm her and to ease her for what was to come. Mary’s fear and then humility was honest and forthright and it was qualities which God Himself feel madly in love with. Proof of this can be found in the blessing God bestowed unto her both in life and in death, for what she received no other person has or will ever receive, the chance to give life, to give birth, to be the mother of the most High God. In truth the story of Christmas started nine months before the birth of Christ, as there where many individual miracles which manifested themselves to make this one event possible, all of which was given as foreknowledge to Mary as both a promise and proof of God’s power and unfailing love for her and of all mankind. Truly this is a time of love, sacrifice, forgiveness, mercy, and a season of giving.

34 “How will this be,” Mary asked the angel, “since I am a virgin?” ~ Luke 1:34, NIV Bible.

On this verse of the Bible, Mary’s concern is one of the worlds not of God, but a fare question as she would have to deal with the repercussions of becoming pregnant before marriage as everyone that she knew would believe she had been with a another man when in fact she had not been. What of Joseph, his disgrace; but how would giving birth to the Son of God be disgraceful? Another valid question which she did not ask, but rather implied with her first and only real question. With no tangible manner in which for Mary to cling onto, the angel Gabriel steadfast in his mission answered her;

” 35 The Holy Spirit will come on you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you. So the holy one to be born will be called the Son of God. 36 Even Elizabeth your relative is going to have a child in her old age, and she who was said to be unable to conceive is in her sixth month. 37 For no word from God will ever fail.” ~ Luke 1:35-37.

If there was any fear or uncertainty in Mary at this point, the Bible does not mention it, again her humility, her nobility in God, and her strength which she is so known for was all that remained. Her questions seceded and her humanity took over, for Mary must have known her unborn child’s mission, and of his fate. The gravity of the moment and its life altering affects also must have loomed large in her mind. But despite these challenges Mary forged on, and accepted it, gave herself to God, and with it the salvation of all mankind.

” 38 I am the Lord’s servant,” Mary answered. ‘May your word to me be fulfilled.’ Then the angel left her.” ~ Luke 1:38, NIV Bible.

Thus, let it be so that in this Christmas season we celebrate not just the birth of Jesus, but also of Mary His mother who over came fear and doubt, but who also loved us enough to make this sacrifice for all of us. May we remember those gifts which came into this world that might not have if Mary had not been humble and obedient to God. May we give thanks to her bravery and forthrightness in all her deeds in raising Jesus to be who He eventually became.

Amen

If you have been moved by this reflection please do not hesitate to leave a comment, and may your holidays be filled with the love and blessing of our loving God.

Reflection 7: Unexpected Miracles

“22 Then Jesus said to his disciples: ‘Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat; or about your body, what you will wear. 23 For life is more than food, and the body more than clothes. 24 Consider the ravens: They do not sow or reap, they have no storeroom or barn; yet God feeds them. And how much more valuable you are than birds! 25 Who of you by worrying can add a single hour to your life? 26 Since you cannot do this very little thing, why do you worry about the rest?'” ~ Luke 12:22-26

Jesus Christ told His disciples not to worry, but instead trust in God for all their needs. This message in reflection is a simple idea, but is so hard to do daily. The people of that age had nothing in comparison to what we have in our modern day lives and yet they found it hard to have such trust in God as we suffer the same difficulties today. God blesses us with so much wealth and good things in our lives and yet few of us really thank Him for it. I have written on this blog in the past of the difficulties of our lives and the temptations which we face with every waking breath. I have given example after example of the hardship of following this simple directive from Jesus. So in this post I want to begin sharing examples in my own life of the smallest of blessings God grants daily which prove God loves us and provides for us in the most unexpected ways.

The Oak Tree

I loved going to grandma’s house as a boy. My grandma would always have cookies ready for my two sisters and I piping hot right out of the stove when we got there. The house always smelled of joy and of happiness which filled the heart with love as soon as you walked through the front door. Grandma was so loving and kind, she always had a smile on her face, she always had something witty to say and she was filled with such energy it made it hard to leave her when it was time to go home. In short no one held a candle to my grandma, and in truth I miss her greatly every single day of my life since her passing. But on this day she told me that to get a cookie I would have to help clean the back yard. There was some tree limbs which had fallen that she wanted me to move to the brush pile so grandpa could burn them. So I did what she had asked me, but once I had finished I saw a twig laying on the ground. It was a long twig, one reminiscent of the twigs I would get swatted with by my dad on those long outings on the road when my sisters and I would fight in the back seat and cause a terrible commotion and had truly deserved the swats. At-any-rate I heard this voice in my head that told me to pick it up and skin it, play with it then it will grow. So I did exactly that, I skinned it, played with it all day, beat it against the tree drunk, concrete stairs, I even chased the poor dog around the back yard a bit with it, (never hitting the dog), and then I was told to place the twig into the flower bed my grandma had just off the back porch. Again I complied and thought nothing of it at the time, then I went in and claimed my cookies for a job well done. When it was time to go home I told grandma to water the twig. In retrospect it looked very lonely amongst the beautiful flowers of the flowerbed, and in truth I didn’t think my grandma would comply with my request. But then seven days later my grandma called the house excited. She had asked my mother to bring me to her house because she had something to show me. So my mother and father packed all of us kids in the car and we drove to grandma’s house. The car ride was filled with thoughts about why grandma had wanted us to visit as excitement began to claim a hold over everyone as grandma had been quite vague about her request. When the car stopped in the driveway of grandma’s house I burst from the car and ran all the way into her house. Grandma smiled with excitement and said to me, “Come Brian! Come and see your twig!” She took me by the hand and off we went at quite a pace to the back door with the rest of the family in tow.  We cleared the back door with anticipation building with each pound of my heart until we got to the flowerbed. I did not know what I would find, but there amongst the beautiful flowers was there the twig with one little branch that had grown from a top of it and at the end of the tiny branch was the smallest little leaf I think I have ever seen. Grandma smiled and said, “Today is green thumb day at the Stark house!” I looked at grandma in amazement and just stood there, in shock. Then I remembered I had done exactly as I had been told to do by that little voice in my head. So I looked at grandma not wanting her to be saddened by my revelation, but I had to tell the truth. So I sheepishly looked up at her and said, “Grandma I don’t want you to be mad at me but God told me to do the things I did to this twig, so its not me who has the green thumb.” She smiled and said, “Well you listened and thats all I need to know. Tomorrow I am going to need your help planting more flowers in the other flowerbeds around the yard. Do you think you can help me with that?” I smiled and said, “Yes grandma, I can help.” I got to spend that night, and I fell asleep seeing the hand of God in action, taking care of the smallest most insignificant life in our world. God loves everything and upon that day I was convinced in God and in His power. The twig grew and grew until it was to large for the flowerbed. It became so large my dad dug it up and then replanted it in the front yard of our house in Oak Grove, Missouri. To my knowledge it became the largest tree in the neighborhood and is still there to this day.

27 “Consider how the wild flowers grow. They do not labor or spin. Yet I tell you, not even Solomon in all his splendor was dressed like one of these. 28 If that is how God clothes the grass of the field, which is here today, and tomorrow is thrown into the fire, how much more will he clothe you—you of little faith! 29 And do not set your heart on what you will eat or drink; do not worry about it. 30 For the pagan world runs after all such things, and your Father knows that you need them. 31 But seek his kingdom, and these things will be given to you as well.” ~Luke 12:27-31

The Sparrow

When I was thirteen I had a BB gun and I would go to grandmas farm and shoot at the sparrows. One day I hit one by accident and then I heard a voice in my head that told me to take the bird and slap the ground next to it and call it back to me. So out of horror of what I had done, I took its lifeless body to the concrete patio behind the house  and laid it down carefully. I looked up at the sky and cried out to God, begging Him to restore it to life. I then beat the ground next to the dead sparrow three times and it began to flutter with life. I placed my hand upon it and could feel its tiny heart beating. I then removed the BB from its throat and suddenly it sprang up from the patio and took flight. I ran after it in disbelief but also in relief as I saw it land in the tree by the front drive way. It chirped at me  from its vantage point then took flight again to where I do not know. It was in that moment I believed in the resurrection of Jesus Christ, and in all the miracles he had performed while here on Earth. If God cared enough to give life to a sparrow then He loves me even more to give me ever lasting life in heaven with Him.

“8 Another of his disciples, Andrew, Simon Peter’s brother, spoke up, 9 ‘Here is a boy with five small barley loaves and two small fish, but how far will they go among so many?’ 10 Jesus said, ‘Have the people sit down.’ There was plenty of grass in that place, and they sat down (about five thousand men were there). 11 Jesus then took the loaves, gave thanks, and distributed to those who were seated as much as they wanted. He did the same with the fish. 12 When they had all had enough to eat, he said to his disciples, ‘Gather the pieces that are left over. Let nothing be wasted.’ 13 So they gathered them and filled twelve baskets with the pieces of the five barley loaves left over by those who had eaten.” ~ John 6:8-13

No Food To Eat

Thanksgiving 2007 I was standing in the line at the supermarket with my daughter licking her chops at the selection of food we were getting ready to purchase for our Thanksgiving dinner. One big turkey, ham, potatoes, salad, raisin bread, and a pumpkin pie. This is what my daughter did not know about the food we where buying; I had run out of money several days before paying bills, and had nothing left over for the special dinner upon her visitation that day. I didn’t want to burden her or her mother by telling them I had no money for the dinner. I sat in my house pining away thinking of ways I could get something nice or make something non-traditional when I looked in the paper. I saw a coupon for a free Thanksgiving meal and in disbelief I cut it out. I called the store which was offering the coupon and asked if this was true, was it really free. The lady on the other end of the phone laughed at my disbelief and said yes; she also told me that I would need to bring in the coupon with a photo id. I remember asking why this dinner was being offered, and the lady said because it is our way of giving back to the community on such a wonderful holiday as Thanksgiving. Kiddingly I asked her if they where going to do it again for Christmas and with that I was politely told not to push my luck. So that day with no food to eat I picked my daughter up and we went to the store. We collected all the things the coupon covered and made our way to the register. Truth be told my heart was in my mouth and I prayed all the way to the line as I did not want to be embarrassed  in front of my daughter on Thanksgiving. But much to my delight the register totaled zero after the coupon was scanned. My daughter thought it was funny they asked for an id, but I told her they always do, thats when she was young and impressionable.  Upon getting home we took the turkey and it needed to be cleaned, something I had never done, and so I called my mom who gave me blow by blow instructions of how to do it. So instead of me putting my hand up the rear-end of the turkey I had my daughter do it, and to this day she never has forgiven me for having her to do that but her facial expression was funny. Together we cooked the turkey and ate like Kings and before we took a bight we thanked God for His kindness. In my silent prayer I thanked God for showing me the coupon, for feeding me and my daughter when we had no foods to eat.

“33 But seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added to you.” ~ Matthew 6:33

In these examples God’s love and grace was handed down to me in the simplest most unexpected ways. He knows my needs and I open completely up to Him. God has never let me down, He has always made it possible for me to survive, and in those moments that are out side my control I give it to Him. I give the Lord the praise He is due, I give Him credit for the miracles in my life, and without God I personally would be lost. I feel these things represent every man, women, and child if only we look at the small, unexpected  miracles in our life.  God grants to us so much we take for granted, He supplies every fascist of every need we have in our life, and He alone takes care of every detail no matter how big or small. But it is my personal belief he loves doing the unexpected things like giving renewed life to a dead twig, breathing life into an injured sparrow, and in feeding His sons and daughters in their hour of need. God can be found in everything, in all areas of our life, and He makes the excuse to work a miracle to prove His love for you each and every day of your life if only you take time to look for His mark on your heart.

Amen,

I truly want to hear form all of you who read Listening Faithfully with all your stories of all the wonderful miracles God has done for you. I also want to extend a warm Thanksgiving wish and pray that you are spending this special day with all those whom you love.

Special Prayer for a Sibling In Need

The special connection one has for a parent or sibling is certainly one that should be founded upon honor and love. It is these special people in your life which you truly spend your entire life with, through good and bad, richer or poor, and in sickness and good health. Thus it is the will of God that we move mountains for each other when we are asked to or when it is needed. For it was that Jesus treated everyone like this, he loved everyone, and cared about all of us equally. He even went to such lengths as to call us His brothers and sisters, sons and daughters of God. Therefore, when one of our brothers and sisters in Christ is in need we need to come to their call in every manner; with every special talent we have to answer that call.  So with this in mind I want to offer to this world community:  “Sisters and Brothers”,  I have created here with Listening Faithfully an opportunity to come together and send a special prayer for one of my brothers in Christ Jesus who’s sister has Leukemia and is fighting a good fight, running the race to the end. Please pray for my brother Neil McCarthy, and his sister Leslie Frankenheimer who has been at The City Of Hope Hospital since Thursday, September 27, 2012 and all their family during these trying times. I ask that you pray for his sister as she endures the medical treatment to save her life. So I ask everyone to pray twice tonight, and twice tomorrow, this special prayer;

 

Lord God in heaven, we pray to you through your son Jesus Christ, we ask that you hear our cry’s and our words of concern for this remarkably caring and beautiful woman who has served you by being a loving and devoted daughter, sister, wife, mother, and mentor to all that Leslie Frankenheimer has known and loved. Lord God in Heaven we call on you in this hour when dark clouds gather, we call on you to light our darkest day, Lord we as a community of the faithful call upon you to give us hope; to shine your light of love so our path is less dim, thus we call on you. Lord; My God; I know you are with me; I know you are with Leslie and her entire family and friends; and I also know that you hear all of our prayers. Lord; I also know we can count on you when no-one else will answer; Oh’ God of love it is you who is responsible for giving us a reason to go on despite our cup of joy sometimes has become a cup of sorrow; Lord it is you that we call. Lord we humbly ask you  to place a calming hand upon Leslie and her family, let them now proclaim your goodness within this time of trouble and hardship, let everyone see your glory, your blessing, your wisdom, and your forgiveness, and good works as you transform Leslie’s soul and mold her to be more like you as you prepare the table before her. Lord I ask for your voice to be heard in the hearts of all who pray this prayer on behalf of Leslie’s sake, as we all pray these words that had been joyfully shouted out by your servant King David:

1 “The heavens declare the glory of God; the skies proclaim the work of his hands. 2 Day after day they pour forth speech; night after night they reveal knowledge. 3 They have no speech, they use no words; no sound is heard from them. 4 Yet their voice  goes out into all the earth, their words to the ends of the world.” ~ Psalm 19:1-4

Lord we ask for your healing hand to be extended upon my brothers sister Leslie Frankenheimer and that you are there with her holding her hand,  reassuring her, building her up, showing her your path as you gently guide her through the rest of her journey. Please Oh’ God take away all her fear and doubt, rescue her completely with a full recovery that which is complete in your most powerful grace. It is to you Oh Lord; God in Heaven; Father Almighty that we turn, that we pray this prayer of healing and of recovery. In Jesus’s name, Amen.

While praying this prayer feel free to say “I” in place of “we” and “my” in the place of “our” where appropriate, but please do pray.

As always if you have been moved by this prayer, I invite you to leave a comment to show your support to my two sisters and their family.

Amen

Reflection 5: Unchanging God of Love

9 “As the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts.” ~ Isaiah 59.9

Many times I have heard that God of the Old Testament was a God of wrath, of punishment, a God of testing, and of laws which placed many conditions upon His people. Very different God from the New Testament who is a God of mercy, forgiveness, and of love.  But I argue this point and ask you all to consider this about our God. Our God in heaven has never changed because he can not change, He is forever the God of love, mercy, forgiveness, and yes He is also the God of judgement and punishment, and from last weeks Reflection we see He takes no pleasure from punishing the wicked instead He only wishes them to turn away from their wickedness and come back to Him. This clearly demonstrates that our God is a God of many chances. Our God loves us, He has always loved us and the only thing that has changed is humanity. The greatest of all miracles can be found in this one simple thing, His ways are higher than our ways, His thoughts are higher than our thoughts, His love is of a different order than our love, and God seeks and has always sought to love each and everyone of us since before we where born. It is humanity that has changed, we have forever altered how God can respond to us and thus changed the conditions in which God shows His love in your life;

59 “Surely the arm of the Lord is not too short to save, nor his ear too dull to hear. 2 But your iniquities have separated you from your God; your sins have hidden his face from you, so that he will not hear. 3 For your hands are stained with blood, your fingers with guilt. Your lips have spoken falsely, and your tongue mutters wicked things. 4 No one calls for justice; no one pleads a case with integrity. They rely on empty arguments, they utter lies; they conceive trouble and give birth to evil.” ~ Isaiah 59:1-4

In Isaiah we can clearly see that it is not God who has lied, spoken falsely, or have blood upon His hands. In fact it is our sin, our lack in faith, our indiscretions which God has had to deal with over our short history here on earth. Think of each lie told as a small needle which God has had to defend against, each word uttered to condemn an innocent person to death as a razor blade cutting away at Gods justice, and look at each action that harms another human being done purposefully as a sword thrusted into the side of Jesus and then you will have just barely scratched the surface to the pain and suffering our Lord endured upon the cross.

2 “And His disciples asked Him, “Rabbi, who sinned, this man or his parents, that he would beborn blind ?” 3 Jesus answered, “It was neither that this man sinned, nor his parents ; but it was so that the works of God might be displayed in him.” ~ John 9:2-3

By sending Jesus, God again shows His unyielding love for all man kind, He finds the most awesome ways to prove His love over and over again. In healing a blind man who was blind from birth Jesus illustrates His love and mercy for us. This miracle is a two fold miracle, one that shows the power of God, but also shows the love of God. The lesson Jesus was teaching was that it mattered not to the blind man whether it be day or night, but as long as Jesus was in the world His light would penetrate every soul and make them see, even the blind who where blind from birth a medical condition which there is no cure. But moreover, this miracle shows that it matters not what we suffer, that God can take that suffering and us it to glorify Him, to bless us, and to show to others His unchanging love.

4 “We must work the works of Him who sentMe as long as it is day ; night is coming when no one can work. 5 “While I am in the world, I am the Light of the world.” ~ John 9:4-5

The very notion of being the “Light of the World” is one that also proves Gods love, and the lengths He has gone to not just save us, but to also lift us up in His perfect love despite the many sins we have committed. The term Jesus uses is a technical one in heavenly speech, a term that Satan knows well as he was once the Morning Star in heaven. Jesus is the truth, the light, and all who follow will walk in ever lasting life. Satan, does not want this, so the scriptures tell us that Satan entered into Judas to betrayed Jesus. Think for a moment how glorified God was within this moment, think how magnificent God is to be able to shine through this great deception of darkness. Understand that God not just opened the eyes of a blind man, but of all men and women on this planet in that one moment of darkness, the light of the world indeed still shown through it.

Because we have so completely changed the scope of how God communicates, and how he sends His divine love to us each occasion is then an opportunity for God to prove His love in our life, even in times of our greatest suffering.  The bible points out four unique  types of suffering which we endure, that are in large part connected to our sinful nature, thus connecting suffering with sin. The first is found as follows:

22 “Some time later God tested Abraham. He said to him, “Abraham!” “Here I am,” he replied. 2 Then God said, “Take your son, your only son, whom you love—Isaac—and go to the region of Moriah. Sacrifice him there as a burnt offering on a mountain I will show you.” ~ Genesis 22:1-2

2 “Remember how the Lord your God led you all the way in the wilderness these forty years, to humble and test you in order to know what was in your heart, whether or not you would keep his commands.” ~ Deuteronomy 8:2

6 “One day the angels came to present themselves before the Lord, and Satan also came with them. 7 The Lord said to Satan, “Where have you come from?” Satan answered the Lord, “From roaming throughout the earth, going back and forth on it.” 8 Then the Lord said to Satan, “Have you considered my servant Job? There is no one on earth like him; he is blameless and upright, a man who fears God and shuns evil.” 9 “Does Job fear God for nothing?” Satan replied. 10 “Have you not put a hedge around him and his household and everything he has? You have blessed the work of his hands, so that his flocks and herds are spread throughout the land. 11 But now stretch out your hand and strike everything he has, and he will surely curse you to your face.” 12 The Lord said to Satan, “Very well, then, everything he has is in your power, but on the man himself do not lay a finger.” Then Satan went out from the presence of the Lord.” ~ Job 1:6-12

In these three examples God uses person strife to work the biggest miracles. He uses every occasion to test and mold each one of us into a more perfect person. He tests us to prove our loyalty and love to Him, which is the true miracle and the prove of His never changing love. God tested Abraham by having him offer up his only son to God as a burnt offering upon Mt. Moriah. Though Abraham did not want this test he proved his belief in God and trusted in his wisdom enough to follow through with God’s request, even up to the very moment of raising the knife high above his head, only then did God send His angeles to stop him. Again, God tested the people in the hot desert for forty years to hone them and to test each one of them. To bring them from a complacent slave like nature to one that was sharpened in every aspect of God, even unto their very last breath would they obey to build a nation in hostile lands. Finally God shows us the test of love through the greatest suffering of Job. Here was a man who had everything, and in Satan’s hands was brought down lower than low and still he refused to turn away from God. We are tested in our faith, in our actions, in our words, through our suffering.

The next form of suffering God uses as a means to mold us into a more perfect person, to edify us and to raise us up higher than we where before, consider;

5  “And have you completely forgotten this word of encouragement that addresses you as a father addresses his son? It says, ‘My son, do not make light of the Lord’s discipline, and do not lose heart when he rebukes you, 6 because the Lord disciplines the one he loves, and he chastens everyone he accepts as his son.’ 7 Endure hardship as discipline; God is treating you as his children. For what children are not disciplined by their father? 8 If you are not disciplined—and everyone undergoes discipline—then you are not legitimate, not true sons and daughters at all.” ~ Hebrews 12:5-8

God chastens each one of us in order to bring us through each hardship, to prove his love on a personal level. God calls out to us and encourages the goodness to always shine through much like we see in Jesus upon accepting His divine mission here on earth.God Speaks about chastening his own son, and without this specialized attention we are like the lump of clay that has been cast aside. Jesus talked about praising God in the mists of your troubles, rejoice in your pain as God is always with you, and if you turn from this then indeed you have proven to God you are not one of his sons or daughters. Again this is not what God want’s for He prefers your heart to turn from wickedness and your spirit should have ever lasting life.

The third form of suffering we, (the human population),  have brought upon ourselves by rebellion against God, examples of this can be found  in the following scriptures;

22 “And the Lord God said, “The man has now become like one of us, knowing good and evil. He must not be allowed to reach out his hand and take also from the tree of life and eat, and live forever.” 23 So the Lord God banished him from the Garden of Eden to work the ground from which he had been taken. 24 After he drove the man out, he placed on the east side of the Garden of Eden cherubim and a flaming sword flashing back and forth to guard the way to the tree of life.” ~ Genesis 3:22-24

8 “Take the staff, and you and your brother Aaron gather the assembly together. Speak to that rock before their eyes and it will pour out its water. You will bring water out of the rock for the community so they and their livestock can drink.” 9 So Moses took the staff from the Lord’s presence, just as he commanded him. 10 He and Aaron gathered the assembly together in front of the rock and Moses said to them, “Listen, you rebels, must we bring you water out of this rock?” 11 Then Moses raised his arm and struck the rock twice with his staff. Water gushed out, and the community and their livestock drank. 12 But the Lord said to Moses and Aaron, “Because you did not trust in me enough to honor me as holy in the sight of the Israelites, you will not bring this community into the land I give them.” 13 These were the waters of Meribah, where the Israelites quarreled with the Lord and where he was proved holy among them. ~ Numbers 20:8-13

14 “All your lovers have forgotten you; They do not seek you; For I have wounded you with the wound of an enemy, With the chastisement of a cruel one, For the multitude of your iniquities, Because your sins have increased. 15 Why do you cry about your affliction? Your sorrow is incurable. Because of the multitude of your iniquities, Because your sins have increased, I have done these things to you.” ~ Jeremiah 30:14-16

God punishes but takes no pleasure in it. In Genesis Adam and Eve are kicked out of the Garden of Eden because of their collective sin against God. This was brought upon them by their actions. We see this repeated throughout the bible as this theme is again brought forth with Moses and Aaron who are told by God to gather the people and strike the rock to glorify God’s love for them by giving them water to drink. But Moses does not mention God before striking the rock, and in essence stole from God the glory due Him. In the last example found in Jeremiah God specifically states His wrath and punishment is due because of the sins and increase of the inequity of the people. Our suffering is forever linked to our sins, and the increase of our sins are linked to our increased suffering. Again God takes no pleasure form this but He does and will bring you closer to His perfect love through all your trials and tribulations you may suffer throughout your life.

Finally the fourth kind of suffering is brought about specifically to show Gods might and glory which can be found in the following examples;

5 “‘Now Moses in the law commanded us, that such should be stoned: but what sayest thou?’ 6 This they said, tempting him, that they might have to accuse him. But Jesus stooped down, and with his finger wrote on the ground, as though he heard them not. 7 So when they continued asking him, he lifted up himself, and said unto them, ‘He that is without sin among you, let him first cast a stone at her.’ 8 And again he stooped down, and wrote on the ground. 9 And they which heard it, being convicted by their own conscience, went out one by one, beginning at the eldest, even unto the last: and Jesus was left alone, and the woman standing in the midst. 10 When Jesus had lifted up himself, and saw none but the woman, he said unto her, ‘Woman, where are those thine accusers? hath no man condemned thee?’ 11 She said, ‘No man, Lord.’ And Jesus said unto her, ‘Neither do I condemn thee: go, and sin no more.’ 12 Then spake Jesus again unto them, saying, ‘I am the light of the world: he that followeth me shall not walk in darkness, but shall have the light of life.'” ~ John 8:5-12

9  “And as Jesus passed by, he saw a man which was blind from his birth. 2 And his disciples asked him, saying, ‘Master, who did sin, this man, or his parents, that he was born blind?’ 3 Jesus answered, ‘Neither hath this man sinned, nor his parents: but that the works of God should be made manifest in him. 4 I must work the works of him that sent me, while it is day: the night cometh, when no man can work. 5 As long as I am in the world, I am the light of the world.’ 6 When he had thus spoken, he spat on the ground, and made clay of the spittle, and he anointed the eyes of the blind man with the clay, 7 And said unto him, ‘Go, wash in the pool of Siloam’, (which is by interpretation, Sent.) He went his way therefore, and washed, and came seeing.” ~ John 9:1-7

“4 When he heard this, Jesus said, “This sickness will not end in death. No, it is for God’s glory so that God’s Son may be glorified through it.” ~ John 11:4

In these final three examples we see Jesus using sin, blindness, and death as a way to communicate His love, Gods power and might, all which glorifies God in the Highest. Jesus over and over gives new life in each action he takes, this proves beyond all reason of how much God truly loves us, to what lengths God goes to show His love, thus proving He has not changed, His mission has not changed, but rather God has always been the God of love, mercy, forgiveness, and a God of many chances.

Amen

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Prayer of Strength

ImageEach day you get out of bed pray this simple prayer, I promise it will fill you with the holy spirit: “Dear Lord, in Jesus’s name I pray; I ask you to give me the strength I need to do your will, I ask you for the words from your loving heart to spread to those who would do me wrong, and to uplift those who need it the most. Lord, God in heaven I beg you to fill my heart with your wisdom so my actions reflect your divine purpose, and Lord I humbly require the courage to make all this a reality in this day and every day for the remainder of my life. Lord I surrender completely to you. Amen”

Special Posting: Irreplaceable

” 13 I was watching in the night visions, and behold, One like the Son of Man, coming with the clouds of heaven! He came to the Ancient of Days, and they brought Him near before Him. 14 Then to Him was given dominion and glory and a kingdom, That all people, nations, and languages should serve Him. His dominion is an everlasting dominion. Which shall not pass away, and His kingdom the one which shall not be destroyed.” Daniel 7:13-14

People have fights, they argue, get upset, we say things we don’t mean. Sometimes we say hurtful things we don’t mean, we do things out of anger which is destructive to our relationships and without God we keep on hurting those we love. Without love we keep on hurting those who are the closest to us. In the heat of battle people can be so cruel and we sort of go into this evil zone of blocking the pain we inflict to others and to ourselves. When the armies collide all fear goes away as the instinct to survive takes over, but even in this intense moment God is ever present, and is willing to take us from this place of grief and into his arms, His irreplaceable forgiveness which is so protective that nothing can shatter it, break it, move it, or keep you from it. 

A very wise person told me once that, “We can have an argument and be mad or upset with one another. We can even hate each other for a time. But, I still love you and that means I am never willing to throw you to the wolves.”

My mother could make me feel like I was a king and she could also make me feel two feet tall. She can come up with such marvelous words both in her anger and in moments of sorrow and regret. I asked her in my anger,

“Why not throw me to the wolves, then you will have one less person to worry about?” 

We had had a fight about money, our life being poor, her worries, and not having enough. During that conversation I had said something I deeply regretted which started a round of comments at the end of which I got my feeling hurt. As a man now I look back and I see my error in ever starting that argument. I can see how much pain I caused my mother by saying what I had said. I also see now her regret in losing her temper with me. As a boy however, it was going to take a lot of time for me to get over it before I could apologize, but my mom dig in with her response.

“I could never throw you to the wolves Brian, because you are my child, and because I love you. That makes you irreplaceable to me.”

When my mother said that to me, I felt such peace in my heart, I could see God standing in front of me telling me that I was irreplaceable to Him as well. Call it what you will, but I had an epiphany within that moment, euphoria engulfed me, and in the following seconds I turned around and I screamed at the top of my lounges, “I love you too mom!” as tears rolled down my cheeks I murmured over and over as my tears soaked her shoulder, “I am so sorry.”

My mother in that moment had become irreplaceable to me. In fact my entire family had become irreplaceable to me within the blink of an eye, and our problems suddenly no longer where just my parents problem, but the entire families problems. In a blink of an eye I found God, my family, and myself. I learned that you don’t abandon  your family, you do not forsake them, and you never leave them behind. This was the lesson I learned as a boy, this was a feeling I have only had one other time in my life, and that was when my beautiful daughter was born. Let me also take this moment and just say, my daughter is and always has been irreplaceable to me, and as her father I have spent a lifetime trying to protect her and make her feel just as my mother had once made me feel long ago.

God is irreplaceable, his love is enough to stop wars, to heal all wounds, his words work miracles, and we do not have to be thrown to the wolves, because Jesus did that for us already through His undying love and sacrifice on the cross.

“For he hath made him to be sin for us, who knew no sin; that we might be made the righteousness of God in him.” 2 Corinthians 5:21

Jesus before time became the king of our world, He delivered us from bondage, He paid the terrible debt, and without Him we all would be lost. We would be like those people who fight and fight and have done so for so long they have forgotten why they fight, and their eyes and hearts are absent of Gods love. To some people faith is a joke, God is a joke, they refuse to believe and they disown Him and in doing so they throw Him to the wolves over and over. But soldiers in P.O.W. camps they have nothing but their faith, it their pocket bibles that are issued to each service member which becomes the life line and helps them to survive in situations which would have otherwise killed them. It is faith in God which people in Communistic countries cling too even at the point of their own death. It is faith in God which helped millions of people in the German death camps during WWII, and the list is endless. God is irreplaceable and He looks at each one of us as if we are also irreplaceable to Him. 

Amen

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Reflection 1: Spiritual Accountantcy

” 15 And he said unto them, ‘Ye are they which justify yourselves before men; but God knoweth your hearts: for that which is highly esteemed among men is abomination in the sight of God.‘” ~ Luke 16:15

Life is a journey of immense struggles pitted with many victories and defeats. It is a race to the finish line of judgement, once there many will have ran a good race but will have done it without moral conscience and will be damned to hell for all eternity. Many will have ran the same race but prevailed with great love, faith, and ethics, and will be allowed passage into the Kingdom of God. The difference between the two is incalculable if coming from the filter of modern life, celebrating our many luxuries and comforts afforded those with what is termed as the good life. But if viewed from the prism of our Lord and Savior then it becomes more personal, deeply ethical, riveted with countless moral guidelines that help to forge a sinner into a born again child of God. It is not an easy path, in fact it is filled with much sacrifice and with many painful defeats. For to choose to be a child of God is not for the faint of heart and in the end, within the very hour of our death, Jesus promises for the faithful that they shall never taste death.

“47 Verily, verily, I say to you, He that believeth on me hath everlasting life.” ~John 6:47

For many of us it is hard to put into place a moral life while being surrounded with such temptations which we find at our fingertips on a daily basis. It is hard to not give in to the world of excess and comfort with so many voices telling us we don’t have too. The prevailing belief advertisers drown us with daily is, “Life doesn’t have to be so hard” and “Why wait when you can have it now!” We have become a society of capitalistic carnivores devouring everything while ignoring the implications it places upon our life and our immortal soul. We make recluse justifications to explain away why we can, when the Holy Bible has clearly stated we should not. A world that places more value on things, property, and money, over relationships, love, honor, ethics, and that of our christian savior, who is the savior of every man, women, and child on planet Earth as we know it, is an abomination in the sight of God. There are so many sins, so many fruitless attempts at winning Gods favor while pleasing the flesh. People can be so awesomely good, and in the same breath find ways to be just as evil and destructive. When we look hard at who we have become, the choices we have made, the justifications for actions which caused countless others to suffer, it is then that our deeds will be told, despite the lies of our mortal legacies. For you can preach good all the days of your life, but in private do evil, it is in your heart and therefore God see’s the truth of your life. He can discern the proper judgement from the web of misleading, randomness and noise of sin which has permenantly blacked your heart.

“33 So therefore, any one of you who does not renounce all that he has cannot be my disciple.”~ Luke 14:33

Jesus warned against collecting wealth and then not sharing it but rather hording it. He warned against ignoring your own sins while calling to the carpet others sins. He warned against hypocrisy for in the eyes of God it is nothing more than “lip service”. Jesus warns against denying the poor food, clothes, shelter, and mercy. He warns against not raising your child up in the ammunition of the Lord thy God. For he also warned against excess of all kinds, depravity of all kinds, blasphemy of all kinds, and evil works of all kinds. Yet we do them daily, we ignore Him daily, and in doing so we mock Him daily!

“32 Whosoever therefore shall confess me before men, him will I confess also before my Father which is in heaven. 33 But whoever disowns me before men, I will disown him before my Father in heaven.” ~ Matthew 10:32-33

Be on guard for those who refuse to speak the truth of God, who refuse to hear you speak the truth of God, be warned they are filled with Satan. There are people who get upset when they are shown their immoral ways and are convicted by the light of God, and by His son’s moral teachings and inwardly repress God, reviling against all righteousness, for they are filled with the spirit of Satan. Stand firm and do not waver from the light of God for instead bask within its glorious rays for it shall purify thy soul. Profess daily the miracles of God in your own life, for each day is a true miracle as it was not promised to you before you went to sleep the night before. Be on guard of those who would manipulate your words, the words of others, and the words of God to suit their lying ways, for such is the arch tool of Satan himself. Walk away from profane, perverse, corrupt, immoral, and impure people as they will as soon suck you down with them than to see you happy and free in the light of God. For to disown God is a rejection of the miracle of ones own birth and life; for Satan does not hold the keys to these things; for only God can create life and can bring about death; for only God can destroy thy very soul. Be on guard of those who wish to systematically take from you all the things in your life which bring you happiness, for they have no conscience, no remorse, no ambivalence to using deceit to accomplish their goals. For these people are expert in their disguise and can make the most illogical thing sound logical, the most profane thing sound holy, and the most hurtful thing look to others as self-defense. For God has no tolerance for them and though in the moment they grasp victory, in reality they have only clutched defeat because what God meant for you and was stolen, he will give to you in abundance in Heaven, a reward they shall not reap for they chose a selfish and self serving path.  

“21 Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but the one who does the will of my Father who is in heaven. 22 Many will say to Me in that day, ‘Lord, Lord, have I not prophesied in Your name, cast out demons in Your name, and done many wonders in Your name?  23 And then I will declare to them, ‘I never knew you: depart from Me, you who practice lawlessness!” ~ Matthew 7:21-23

It is truly important to not just know which side of the tracks you are on, but to also profess it, teach it, embrace it, and above all love God with all your heart, mind, body, and soul; to do all things for God with all your strenght and might. It is simply not enough to say you love God to close family and friends then in private do wicked, but rather love God enough to always do good in public and private, for there should only be one message of your life, because there is only one God. Be sure to never take credit for the things which you have accomplished in your life for each accomplishment was first a gift from God, to do so would be to say you willed it to be so and that is a lie. For remember Moses who took credit for the miracle of the rock which sprang water; for the rod was from God, the power was from God, and the very words which Moses spoke to bring forth the water was from God, for such a sin he was denied entry into the promised land. Remember also King David who committed adultery and who God took from him the first born son in payment of the life he had stole from Bathsheba’s first husband Uriah the Hittite. Rather be like Christ who complied with the will of God even until the point of his own death.

“1 Be imitators of me, as I am of Christ.” 1 Corinthians 11:1

Spiritual accountantcy is the means which we review our own place with God, it is the act of asking where are we in our relationship to God. “Have I done things which God disapproves of, am I saved?”, is the question we need to ask daily and then we need to repent daily. Be assured God loves you, wants you, cares for you, and will never leave you if you never disown Him.

Amen.

If you have been moved by this blog I urge you to continue to come back and become a subscriber. Please do not forget to also visit us at http://listeningfaithfully.org.
May God bless you and keep you all the days of your life. Amen

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Morality Goal # 3:

Who Am I…”not” to forgive others of their transgressions against me, when God himself has commanded it to be so? (Matthew 18:15-17). Even if those same people hold on to their perceived complaints about me. Who Am I…”NOT” TO FORGIVE? (Matthew 18:32-35) For as a christian I am commanded by God to love my enemies, to clothe them if they go naked, to feed them if they are wanting for food, to love them as I love God…for the same God loves them equally as He loves and forgives me. (John 13:34-35) In the light of this truth, Why should I “not” forgive? Who Am I to deny others what God Himself will not withhold?

Morality Goal 2

It should be woven into the fabric of your life, so as all your deeds reflect it, and that all your words proclaim it, that you should love and forgive everyone whom is your enemy as you do your friends. For grievances are earthly and have no place in your heart as all earthly things shall pass away, so too shall your grievance. But your love and forgiveness is forever as is God, from which your love comes.

Reflections 4: Damnation

“11Then I saw a great white throne, and Him who sat on it, from whose face the earth and the heaven fled away. And there was found no place for them.  12And I saw the dead, small and great, stand before God, and the books were opened.  And another book was opened, which is the Book of Life. And the dead were judged according to their works, by the things which were written in the books.  13And the sea gave up the dead who were in it; and Death and Hades delivered up the dead who were in them. And they were judged, each one according to his works.  14Then Death and Hades were cast into the lake of fire. This is the second death.  15And anyone not found written in the Book of Life was cast into the lake of fire” (Revelation 20:11-15, NKJV, Pp.1188).

Damnation: 3. “Theology . Condemnation to eternal punishment as a consequence of sin” (http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/damnation ).

The living and the dead whose names are not written in the Book of Life, according to the Holy Bible are damned, and will burn forever in the lake of fire and brimstone. Forever damned for ones sins against God. When I read this I think about those people who have rejected God, rejected the teachings of our Lord and Savior, reject morality as it is so described in the Bible, and who think there is no consequence to their actions, I want to scream out loud, “Fools wake up!” Satan as described in Revelation will burn in the lake of fire. So if this is true my logical-self demands me to believe anyone linked with Satan, doing his bidding will also parish in the lake of fire and brimstone, not for a day or two, or a week, or a month,  or a year, but forever. Is this wicked behavior worth it? I dare say “No! It’s not worth it!” But for those among us who are truly lost will be blinded by their sins, which mount into a multitude, stacked so high they themselves have lost count, lost all feelings and emotions, and will burn in Hates forever. The told sum of sin-debt Jesus talked about and which the Apostle Paul wrote about so eloquently in I Corinthians bears enough testimony for the logical thinker to turn about and rethink ones actions while here on planet earth.

“8 No, you yourselves do wrong and cheat, and you do these things to your brethren! 9 Do you not know that the unrighteous will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived. Neither fornicators, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor homosexuals, nor sodomites, 10 nor thieves, nor covetous, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor extortioners, will inherit the kingdom of God.11 And such were some of you” (I Corinthians 6: 8-11, NKJV, Pp. 1102).

The most dramatic of these things which are of the wicked, according to the Bible and where supported by Jesus can be found in various New Testament Books such as Mark;

“18 So Jesus said to him, “Why do you call me good? No one is good but One, that is, God. 19 You know the commandments; Do not commit adultery, Do not murder, Do not steal, Do not bear false witness, Do not defraud, Honor your father and mother” (Mark 10: 18 – 19, NKJV, Pp. 979-980).

In the above verse from 1 Corinthians, Paul supports Jesus as found in Mark, by mentioning specifically, adulterers, thieves, and extortioners, or in the words of Jesus defraud.

Moreover, the unchanging word of God is supported by Jesus and Apostle Paul in the following verse from Leviticus as it relates to homosexuals and sodomites;

“22 You shall not lie with a male as with a women. It is an abomination” (Leviticus 18:22, NKJV, Pp. 111).

For those of you who require a less known voice as it refers to all sexual sin which permeates throughout the entire bible, and which supports the word of God, Moses, Jesus, and all the Apostles, then this one verse from Jude, a bond servant of Jesus and brother of James,  sums it up nicely;

“7 as Sodom and Gomorrah, and the cities around them in similar manner to these, having given themselves over to sexual immorality, and gone after strange flesh, are set forth as an example, suffering the vengeance of eternal fire” (Jude 1:7, NKJV, Pp.1173).

For it is these people to which is being referred too, that will not inherit the kingdom of God. The Bible is vast with a plethora of sins, all which are seen by God as an abomination. There are so many who live lives divorced from God, who will speak in a manner as to try and convenience the people of God that these sins mentioned above are not sins, but rather man’s nature, thus is not punishable by God. There again, my logical-self argues violently against such immoral arguments, as again God is unchanging in his will and is perfect, thus needing not to change. However, the words from Jesus as it relates to those who boast in their own works, in their own defense, and who argue matters which come from Satan because they are blind to their own sin, is indeed the most telling;

“42 Jesus said to them, ‘If God were your Father, you would love Me, for I proceeded forth and came from God; nor have I come of Myself, but He sent Me. 43 Why do you not understand my speech? Because you are not able to listen to my word. 44 You are of your father the devil, and the desires of your father you want to do. He was a murder from the beginning, and does not stand in the truth, because there is no truth in him. When he speaks a lie, he speaks from his own resources, for he is a liar and the father of it. 45 But because I tell the truth, you do not believe Me. 46 Which of you convicts me of sin? And if I tell the truth, why do you not believe Me? He who is of God hears God’s words; therefore you do not hear, because you are not of God” (John 8:42-45, NKJV, Pp. 1035).

Jesus also points out that their will be those who will be expecting to be saved but are not;

“21 Not everyone who says to Me, ‘Lord, Lord.’ shall enter the kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will of My Father in heaven. 22 Many will say to Me in that day, ‘Lord, Lord,’ have we not prophesied in Your name, cast out demons in Your name, and done many wonders in Your name? 23 And then I will declare to them, ‘I never knew you; depart from Me, you who practice lawlessness!” (Matthew 7:21-23, NKJV, Pp.941).

Damnation if taken seriously is a punishment that will last forever. It is shared by those who have been fooled by Satan, which is one third of all the angels, and all those who are blind, rebellious, hard of heart, staunch in their attitudes, with the conviction they shall suffer not. It is the most twisted joke which is being played upon humanity by a master deceiver, one who has indeed deceived himself. By virtue the path of the damned is wide, but the path of the righteous is narrow. To be sure God’s judgment is final and righteous. It is absolute without blemish or flaw. There will be neither argument nor rebuttal. For God’s judgment is eternal and fair.

“23 Do I have any pleasure at all that the wicked should die?” says the Lord GOD, “and not that he should turn from his ways and live?”  24 “But when a righteous man turns away from his righteousness and commits iniquity, and does according to all the abominations that the wicked man does, shall he live? All the righteousness which he has done shall not be remembered; because of the unfaithfulness of which he is guilty and the sin which he has committed, because of them he shall die” (Ezekiel 18:23-24, NKJV, Pp. 818).

It so completely amazes to me that so many people rather live for their own wants and desires, all of which are a sign of contempt and selfishness. The road signs are clearly marked we only have to read where they are leading too. Jesus was very specific on this point, as is God. Our immoral behavior will be judged according to their own works. The real fear I have every time I read Revelation, Leviticus, or any passage that I recognize where I have sinned against God, I have to stop and ask myself, “Where am I when my life is done?  Am I in the Lake of Fire, or am I with God?” Each time I contemplate this question it takes the breath from me, because though I have not sinned as much as others, I have sinned, and I have no other choice but to own it, as does the rest of humanity.

“23 For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord” ( Romans 6:23, NKJV, Pp.1089).

It is all too easy to say that if we just ask for forgiveness then we are forgiven. When hearing this message some of us nod their heads and reply, “Right… I have heard that all before.” All while discounting the simplicity of God’s love, compassion, and want for all of to join him in eternal life in the kingdom of God. But never the less, if you are sincere in you’re asking God through his son Lord, Jesus Christ for forgiveness, your name will be written in the Book of Life and your sins forgiven. The truth is there is no sin which God cannot forgive.  But be warned, you must mean it, because when your sins are forgiven you can feel it deep down in your soul, and you begin to express this in your everyday life, much like Apostle Paul. However, the first step as outlined by Jesus, as written by Matthew if followed, will radically change how you act, and what you believe in;

“22 Jesus said to him, “‘You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind. 38 This is the first and great commandment. 39 And the second is like it: ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself.  On these two commandments hang all the Law and the Prophets’ ” (Matthew 22:37-40, NKJV, Pp. 959).

Challenge question: If we don’t ask for Jesus’s forgiveness and live a righteous life now, then when?

Amen

If you have been moved by this blog I humbly invite you to leave a message telling me your thoughts and how this reflection has touched you. May peace and love be with you all the days of your life.  May God keep you and bless you.