Fire and Flood Protection

Christians can know we have a protection in this world and it is a truth that many do not comprehend.  It is always available to the saved.  We have heard and read these stories most our lives yet we fail to claim the promises.

Daniel tells of the 3 Hebrew children that were put into the heated furnace. To survive the fire was totally impossible, and yet they felt no heat or flame while inside. This is an astounding miracle for our feeble mind to embrace!

Isaiah 43:2 kjv When thou passest through the waters, I will be with thee; and through the rivers, they shall not overflow thee: when thou walkest through the fire, thou shalt not be burned; neither shall the flame kindle upon thee.

Some promises we can claim!

̶ Jesus keeps a constant vigil over us.
̶ His attention on us is very deliberate and we can find a strength we did not know was even available.
̶ He covers us and puts an enclosure around us.
̶ We have His protection against the deceitful attacks that are brought against us.
̶ His Grace surrounds our very soul and gives us protection.

In this world we encounter much difficulty but His Spirit controls the effects of the tribulation we face. We travel through intense times when our faith seems to make no sense.

When our faith is weakened ̶ His Grace surrounding us becomes strengthened.

It is as though God is saying to us, “Here are waters, and you must pass through them, the waters are on the road you must pass. The rivers have no bridge over them so you must go through the river. But, I will not let you pass through the waters alone because you would drown. I will go with you and will keep them from overflowing around you. While passing through them I will protect you.” Wow, what a security for the believer!

We can rest on the faithfulness of an unchanging God. It is upon that strong foundation I find rest.

I Don’t Belong Here

  As Christians, we were not intended to live in agreement with the way the world views right and wrong. I have a renewed desire to be a known as someone of peace in a violent world. Someone of forgiveness in a society full of hate and anger. I pray that God’s people will take a stand, together as a community, to loudly declare the Gospel that Christ gave His Life for us to have. What has happened to many who claim to have been set apart for the gospel of Christ?

As Christians, death no longer has a hold of fear for us because we know that death is not our final destination. Everyday we learn anew how to trust God for our every need because He already knows all of our needs even before we ask. We should have no desire to be defined by our looks, our wealth, our belongings, or our importance in society but to be known as a follower of Christ.  A follower of the One who gave all He had …for us. Oh what peace in knowing that He will never take His love away from us. Nothing that we will face in this world can take away the inheritance we have in Christ.

God did not send His Son to make us more religious but to teach us how to pattern our life after Jesus. Jesus allowed himself to be subjected to all the darkness, evil, and violence of this world… and yet He triumphed over it.  God loves us so much and He will give us victory over all the tragedies and sufferings we have to endure.  He has given us eternal life that death cannot shake and Living Water that will always satisfy our thirst. He is our Bread of Life and only He can fill our hunger.

We must take a stand and be a voice for those who can not speak or an advocate for those who have been abandoned and ignored by society. We must take a stand for those who battle with depression, anxiety, and all mental illnesses to help with their feelings of being broken. 

We no longer search to find help for the poor, the widow, the orphan, or the mentally ill.  We seek the approval of the affluent and the powerful.  Something is wrong. So very wrong.

Why are we allowing the Gospel of Christ to become so watered down?  We make an appearance to church on Sunday and we believe that will take care of the idols we have been living by and with during the week. We want to quote stirring and uplifting quotes we have heard yet we never pick up the Word He left for us.

Why don’t we look like him? Why aren’t we known by our love, our self-sacrificing life, our compassion? When we are as fearful of tomorrow and materialistic as everyone else, when His love no longer permeates our lives and hearts, something is wrong. God will not be a counterfeit God.

Do we believe God is impressed with us because we did attend church and we always make charitable contributions by giving to the poor at Christmas time. We are meant to be strangers in this land but instead too many of us are becoming willing participants in it. We find it more appealing to follow the world’s rules than to live the life of complete surrender. Our treasures are not to be laid up in this land where we don’t belong but in heaven where we will live for eternity.

We are getting a strong sense of security…where we don’t belong.

I Have No Value To This World

I have decided there will always be someone who is prettier than me. There will always be someone with a bigger house, more friends, better clothes, a better job, and more money than me. There are some that seem to value success on the wealth of a person, judge their value on their looks or the success on their accomplishments.

I was never really interested in trying to be better than another in outward appearance but I see more and more that it is important to some. What I do see is when we fix our eyes on those qualities it makes our relationships with others turn into power struggles. I have seen some that have spent so many fruitless days wanting or trying to measure up to someone else.

Coming from my background, I spent my life never being smart enough, never being beautiful enough, never being the one family or friends wanted, never having my worth defined by wealth, status, or success. But according to what I read in the Scripture it is very clear what is valuable to God. He isn’t mentioning the words like success, wealth, clothes, or jobs but clearly it says what the Spirit will produce in one’s life and heart, “But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, Meekness, temperance:…”Galatians 5:22-23  And these things are available to everyone. That is the part I love about God. He offers it to everyone!

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Powerful Image

The photographer is Meg Gaiger (Harpyimages)

This image is so powerful and unmistakable. Nothing else needs to be said.

Don’t Ever Give Up On YOU!

 

♥ YES! We All Are Simply Amazing! ♥

Slip In Some Extra Joy

This week while being at the table of some high profile political people, My husband was asked the question of “Who are some of the most interesting people you have been able to work with?”  They expected to hear political names but he gave his “heroes” of the Gospel and an acknowledgment of what made them a hero in his eyes.

Later that night as I replaying the whole evening and the amazing event, I thought of how I would have answered that question. But the people who come to my mind first are the ones whose names probably no one would recognize.

All I Know Is I Believe

−Life doesn’t always turn out the way we imagined it would.
−We have been confronted with loss, been battered in the storms, and sometimes dazed at not knowing what happened.
−We live in a fallen world and it’s all part of living here.
−Regardless of the circumstances we face – there is always hope.
−A hope that is true no matter what we have been through.
−Hope in God whose ways are higher than ours.
−Hope in the future He Promised He has begun to prepare for us.
−Hope that even though the rain clouds have come they will surely bring flowers tomorrow.
−I can’t even begin at this time to comprehend how He will bring this to pass.
−There is no limit to what My God can do.
−All I know is I Believe.

^{Isaiah 43: 2} When thou passest through the waters, I will be with thee; and through the rivers, they shall not overflow thee: when thou walkest through the fire, thou shalt not be burned; neither shall the flame kindle upon thee.

~Jen

But I’m Broken. Is There Hope For Me?

16 And he came to Nazareth, where he had been brought up: and, as his custom was, he went into the synagogue on the sabbath day, and stood up for to read. 17 And there was delivered unto him the book of the prophet Esaias. And when he had opened the book, he found the place where it was written, 18 The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he hath anointed me to preach the gospel to the poor; he hath sent me to heal the brokenhearted, to preach deliverance to the captives, and recovering of sight to the blind, to set at liberty them that are bruised, 19 To preach the acceptable year of the Lord. 20 And he closed the book, and he gave it again to the minister, and sat down. And the eyes of all them that were in the synagogue were fastened on him. 21 And he began to say unto them, This day is this scripture fulfilled in your ears. Luke 4:16-21

What a passage for Jesus to read as He began His public ministry! Reading from Isaiah 61:1-11, His gracious words were so different from what the people heard from the religious rulers of their day. Most people  I know, with very few exceptions, have a past they would rather not re-live. Haunting memories cloud our minds. We feel broken, imprisoned by our previous experiences. It doesn’t matter if these wounds were self -inflicted by our own sin or by someone else’s. The result is still the same.  Noone is excluded from the blessings of knowing Christ as Savior.

Jesus, in His sweet, compassionate voice calls to each one of us, offering us:

Wholeness for brokenness (Isaiah 53:4-5)

Liberty for bondage (Romans 8:1-2; John 8:31-36)

Light for darkness (John 1:4-5; John 8:12)

Joy for mourning (Psalm 30:11-12; 1 Peter 1:3-9)

A spirit of praise for despair (Ps. 40:1-3; 2 Corinthians 4:16-18)

Belonging for rejection (1 John 3:1; Galatians 4:6-7)

Righteousness for injustice (Isa. 26:1-8; Isa. 30:18-19)

In Him the disgraced find newness of life. The abandoned are taken under the shelter of His wings. Hope is restored. What a Savior!

Blessings! ~Kelly

Testimony From The Middle-east

I never had an easy life, but in my thirties I was in desperate need for help.  I felt like my life was falling apart at the seams.

 

I had a job, but the work was very, very hard, the workday was lengthy, and the pay was extremely low.  During my lunch breaks at work, I found myself in tears and praying to God to show me Himself.  About one week later, a man I worked with asked if he could sit with me during my break.  I told him “yes”.  He had a name that was not persian, as I was used to.  He was always smiling.  That made me think he was really crazy because his job was much harder than mine.  He was not allowed to sit down during the whole work day, only for a lunch break.  He very kindly told me that the Person I needed was Jesus.  Only He could help me.

About another week went by.  My friend kept being so nice to me.   I saw something different about him.  The words “You need Jesus.  Only He can help you” kept repeating in my head.  I asked my friend to tell me more about Jesus.  He took me to his pastor, and for about three months he told me more about Jesus.  I realized that Christianity was true.  I knew all other religions were false.  I asked Jesus into my heart, and I am now a changed person!  I love my Jesus with all my heart!

Please pray for our brothers and sisters who are in prison because they believe in Jesus.  Pray for their families. Pray the officials and others in the prisons will come to know Him too because of the Holy Spirit living in our brothers and sisters.  The only hope anyone has is in Him.  Only He can make a difference because only He is God.

(Name deleted)

~Kelly

Your Best Life Now ~ Really??

In Joel Osteen’s best-selling book, he stated we can “Have Our Best Life Now”.  Lots of good health, much money, happiness.  How many people “come to Christ” thinking that He will deliver them from their poor health, lack of money, and unhappiness?  I am very concerned