Welcome back!
The truth is that most people do use God like He is an ATM machine. No? How about the fact that most people pay little to no attention to God until they need something. This is one of those things that is really important, especially in these times. We are coming in to the end of the age. Your Bible goes into the Book of Revelation in the last days of the age. We are on a precipice of time and prophecy. It is so close that you can feel it in the spirit realm if you spend any time praying and talking to God at all.
But so many people do not spend that time but they get mad at God if He does not produce exactly what they wanted in the time frame they thought it should happen. That makes God either a handy corner ATM machine to be used only when necessary or, at best, He ends up being some type of sugar daddy that gives and gives and gives. The other end of that is that the person takes and takes and takes without giving anything back.
Now, this is my take on the subject just from reading what God has to say about many things. I believe that when the time comes for Jesus to call His own home, He will only take those who have had a personal relationship with Him and the Father. Does that mean that if you asked Him into your heart that you will be left behind. I did not say that. But it does bear thinking about, doesn’t it.
What type of relationship do you have with your Lord? At times, I have to think about that because I want the best relationship and fellowship I can have with Him. I want my Lord to tell me that He is pleased with His servant. I just wish I was more of a servant than I am. Do you think that? Do you feel that way? You are not alone. I once heard Billy Graham say that he was not sure of how Jesus would see him, that he had done nowhere nearly enough for God. It shocked me. If that blessed man of God does not see himself as having accomplished anything, how can I be seen as a servant??? Actually, God sees us individually and uniquely. He does not compare our works or serving to others. He does compare us to what we are supposed to be. Is that scary or what?
God made us in His image and called us to do His will which includes serving Him. We should be so grateful to be Christians because of the sacrifice on the cross that Jesus made that we would literally do anything for Him. Is that how you live your life for the Lord? Mine is sadly lacking in that area. But I hope I do not use Him as an ATM machine only wanting, wanting, wanting and not giving back to Him.
One of the ways you can give back to the Lord is simply talking to Him and listening to what He has to say. I realize that sounds simple but is it? Most people go about their business not paying any attention to what God has to say at all. I am guilty of that myself so I know that happens. What’s going on? We are wanting what He has to offer but we are not interested in learning all He can teach us. Weird, huh? Do you realize that if you were to listen and learn all that God could teach you, you would not have too much trouble right here on this incredibly evil earth? Why? Because He can teach you how to live here and walk in divine health, be available to serve and help as many as God sends your way. But, the big problem is that we do not want to listen long enough to learn all that. After all, we have our lives to live, right? And Who was it that gave you that life?
It is time to talk to the Lord, have a very personal relationship with Him especially at this very dangerous time in our lives. For those who live in the US, this is going to be a crucial time for us depending on who enters the White House. We are not looked on as the biggest power in the world anymore. In fact, our reputation is quite soiled now. We are not the greatest, most honest country anymore. The truth is that with the housing market what it is, the gas prices doing what they are and the whole security thing going on, we are on our own precipice and it’s about to break off. Things are going to get MUCH worse before they get better. If we are not prepared, we will have all the problems we have now and then some. Will you survive such a life?
Our lives have been truly blessed in so many ways. Despite the fact that we may not be able to always pay our bills, even if we are homeless, we have ways to deal with the problem. There are shelters and places to get food and supplies. We can find ways to live. But in other countries, that is not the case. Look at some of the truly poor countries. People are starving. We do not have that too much in this country. But, and that is a big one, when you see those other countries, if our country does not wake up to what God wants, it will be much like the ones you see that are so poor. Believe me, I did not want to say that but it is the truth and it will happen. We, as Americans, have been too full of ourselves. We MUST learn to walk with the Lord before it’s too late to do it!!!!
It is time to pray, to talk to God, to seek His kingdom because He says that if we do want anything from Him, that we MUST seek the kingdom first. DO NOT WAIT until it is too late. Seek God, seek His Face and begin to do what He wants you to do now!!! And for goodness sake, quit using God as an ATM machine that never runs out. It will.
It has been a crazy couple of weeks and so I did not get on here to post like I wanted to do. My husband was in the hospital last week for a heart cath. This week, he went back to the hospital with chest pains. Both things could have been difficult to disastrous but they were not. We believe that because of our prayer cover, everything came out okay.
There are people that will now say that it was likely to do that anyway. Perhaps. But we live with the belief that God is watching over us. With that in mind, we pray about our circumstance because we have all been there when we did not do so. See, I called some folks in another state who are prayer warriors. They, in turn, call others. We put these things on the website so that others can pray. And someone called a television ministry for prayer as well. With that network of prayer, how could we not see good things happening?
Jesus Himself went off to pray. If He did this, shouldn’t we do likewise? But often, we find our lives taking over and not allowing the time to pray. Often, we find that the only time we pray these days is when we eat…if then. Sometimes, the reason we cannot pray or don’t is because we have no idea what to pray about. God gave us a solution to that:
(Rom 8:26) Likewise the Spirit also helps our infirmities. For we do not know what we should pray for as we ought, but the Spirit Himself makes intercession for us with groanings which cannot be uttered.
The Holy Spirit will help us when we need to pray but cannot because we do not know what to pray. Many of those who prayed for my husband had no idea why or what they were praying about. All they knew was that someone needed the prayer. We have discovered that people we do not know are praying for us. Sometimes, it’s because they read our blog posts. Sometimes it was because of the ministry that was called. Other times, it is because our friends and family tell others and they tell someone else. The prayer network is awesome and all led by God, not people. Isn’t that fantastic? It means that people are not getting the credit for this. Awesome!!
So, if you should find yourself in need of prayer, call someone. Get them praying about your situation. If you do not have anyone to call, please feel free to let me know your prayer needs and I will post them here on this blog. We are here to serve!
Once again, we call on the Lord to help us in our time of need. Please help by praying for these requests that have come our way:
1) Ed-having a dye test for possible heart abnormality-if there is one, angioplasty. Thursday (5/22)
2) Harold-chest pains
3) Harry Ingram, Jr. and wife-God knows
4) Shanita-for her family, church family and new business venture.
5) A family who is having lots of attacks on them -financial, health, property, spiritual-God knows.
Father, we ask You to place Your healing hand upon each of these people who need You desperately! We agree with You that they are healed and their finances are restored. We ask that each of them be covered by the blood of Jesus. If any of them need to seek You further, please gently ask them to come to You! We know that You are the healer, the bread of life, the Savior, the Master, the One True God, our Father! Thank You, Lord, for the answers to each of these prayers. In the Name of Jesus we pray, Amen!
Because I believe firmly and strongly in the power of prayer, I also believe in the power of many people praying at once. Therefore, I am going to list a few prayer requests that have come my way.
1) Jamila – she needs prayer because of schizophrenia & the fact that her parents had abused her when she was younger.
2) Edna – She wants to be closer to God. She also wants to be able to stop drinking. We know that God can help her.
3) Mrs Reagan -she has much pain and has hip trouble.
4) A Mom who has a lot of financial problems and is very worried about money.
5) Divine Health to all who ask for it and believe that Jesus died on the cross so that we can have that healing and divine health.
Father, we pray for these prayer requests that we lift up to you now. These people are hurting, my Father. They need Your attention and Your hand upon them right now. Please guide them in Your ways. Please help them to see that You are in their lives always. Take the pain away, Lord, we pray. We thank You for Your abundance even if we cannot see it at this moment. We do know that You and only You are in control. Thank You, Lord! In the Name of our Lord, Jesus, Amen.
I apologize for not being on here more to write the devotionals that I am given to write. As I wrote in a past post, the world has gotten in and taken my focus away from this blog. It is very wrong to allow that to happen. Then I receive the news that a state judge has ruled in a homeschooling case and I am horrified of that outcome.
The state of California and the state judge who heard the case concerning homeschooling by parents has ruled against the parents and for the state. It means that he told the parents they were violating the law by teaching their OWN children without a teaching certificate which is incredibly pricey and, of course, takes a number of years to complete. Naturally the state wants it this way.
Many Christians have homeschooled their children for years. I do believe that this is an attack directly affecting those parents and children…possibly an attack directed AT those people. Here is a part of what the judge said:
Justice H. Walter Croskey wrote his ruling on February 28, 2008:
“Parents do not have a constitutional right to home school their children… parents who fail to comply may be subjected to a criminal complaint against them, found guilty of an infraction, and subject to imposition of fines or an order to complete a parent education and counseling program.”
Did you see that? If a parent homeschools their child are criminals. People, we are so close to the end of the age! This will directly affect many Christian parents. The children will end up going to public schools where they will be subjected to the inadequate teaching in inadequate schools just because some judge in a state that is power hungry and greedy wants to make sure that the state has control over the kids. They will be indoctrinated with the views of the teacher and the curriculum of the school system the parents have been trying hard to avoid.
We are here for such a time as this. Please pray for these parents, children and all parents and children who will eventually be affected by this ruling. When the other states see this, they will begin to do the same things. Our freedoms are being lost, one by one. And now we are not allowed to teach our children in the manner we see fit. Oh Lord, come quickly!!!
I have believed for years that the Lord is so very merciful to me because of the many times that I have come through things that should have killed or injured me, especially those times that I was out on the road driving the eighteen wheeler. But tonight, once again, I have been shown God’s amazing grace and mercy.
We live in the northern part of Arkansas in a little town near Hardy. We had been hearing all day that there was the possibility of severe weather coming our way. Now, there have been times that weather goes right around us and hits other areas. Not so tonight.
My brother-in-law had stopped by our house at around 6pm. We were watching a large storm coming our way. He had to go home quickly or get in the middle of a super cell. They were predicting tornado outbreaks all around us. My Mom lives about 18 miles from us almost due west and that was where my bro-in-law was heading. He left at about 6:25. I was in contact with my sister, who is his wife. When I called again, I found out that he had not yet gotten home. We were praying for his safety as well as all of the area because that super cell was headed straight at us.
Around 6:50 or so, my sister calls to tell me that her husband had been IN the tornado. He was driving a minivan. It was tossed through the air, rolling it over and over. The next thing may be hard to believe but it is the reason we are praising God tonight. The van landed on it’s wheels and my bro-in-law got out of it. He had a few scrapes and scratches, a head wound that was bleeding but simple to bandage. The van apparently is a total loss. He is all right.
This reminded me just how much our Father protects each of us through many things. He is an awesome God!!! His mercy is awesome. His grace is awesome. I do not think that I could actually think of enough things to say that would cover how I am feeling at this moment. God spared my bro-in-law!!!! He was transported to his home by a driver who was helping out.
See, our area got hit quite hard by a tornado. The small town of Highland, Arkansas is damaged severely. Small town of Ash Flat has a good deal of damage. Many homes, businesses and church are all either gone or damaged. A church, a fire station, a shopping mall are all just gone plus numerous homes. Our area needs much prayer but we have survived.
There’s a song by that name that says that if God didn’t care we would essentially be out in the cold….or there would be nothing at all. But doesn’t God show He cares in literally everything?
Yesterday, I put up a prayer request for a young lady who had collapsed at her home. She was without oxygen for at least 5 minutes and the doctors feared that she would be vegetative if she lived at all. Last night she died.
Now, to some, this would seem that God did not care at all for that young lady. That is not true. At times, it may seem that God abandoned us at our biggest need but, in reality, He did what any Father would do. He stopped the suffering. That young lady now is in the arms of our very capable Father who loves her very much. We have no idea what caused the collapse, nor the reason why He allowed this to happen. What we do know is that He is ever faithful, even when it may not look like it to us.
Yes, my God cares deeply for each and every detail of our lives. That’s why it is vital that we choose to spend time with Him, to seek His council on all things. If we do not, we are flying blind. It’s only through trusting in the Creator Who knows the machine we live in and the lives laid out before us that we are able to get to those things that God has for us as His children.
So, prayer does work regardless of what it may appear to look like. If God truly did not care, we would be floundering in a sea of confusion all the days of our lives. And that simply is not true. We do have guidance even when we seem to not be able to hear His voice. He has given us a love letter that we can read any time we choose to do so. It’s called a Bible.
Maybe now would be a good time to go dust off the Book and open the pages. Just read a few words, a paragraph a day. It’s amazing what will speak to you if you allow it. And please do not forget to keep the family of this young lady in prayer. This was devastating and unexpected. They were not prepared for it. God DOES care. He proves it every day you are alive.
This subject has come up recently concerning young teens who are willing to sit down and ignore the reciting of the Pledge of Allegiance at their school. Now first, I want to say that we live in a more or less still free country. Those teens are able to do that because of the country they live in. We do have free speech in this country regardless of what it may look like during Presidential trips through the streets.
But it saddens me to see that those teens have not seen the whole picture, from what I can see. Growing up, I learned that our country was founded by people of faith on the principle that our country would be governed by that faith. God was an important part of this country’s beginning. Through the years, as is usually the case, we have forgotten that this country and it’s beginnings were bound in the Christianity that the signers of the Declaration of Independence believed.
Dwight Eisenhower authorized the final change that was made to the Pledge of Allegiance on Flag Day in 1954. His reason was this:
“In this way we are reaffirming the transcendence of religious faith in America’s heritage and future; in this way we shall constantly strengthen those spiritual weapons which forever will be our country’s most powerful resource in peace and war.” ….President Dwight D. Eisenhower
Though the Pledge did not originally contain the words “under God”, this pledge has reflected the beliefs of most Americans then and now. And although I was very young at the time, in school we learned the Pledge of Allegiance just as it was changed to read. I was proud to say it then and I am proud to say it now just as it is.
What we seem to have forgotten is that God was a part of this country’s beginnings. People now choose to leave God out of the whole thing. They choose to change history to read it as they want it. This is not a new tactic. It was done during the time Jesus had died on the cross and those who led the Temple at the time did not want their people to believe that Jesus had risen from the dead. The story was that the disciples stole the body and ran away with it. That story still goes through Israel today.
But Jesus did rise from the dead and is our Savior and Lord. Our country was born on that belief. People choose not to believe that the words “separation of church and state” mean something totally different than what most people like to portray. Those words were so that the government would be kept from interfering with the church so that it would not become a state religion like it had previously been in England. It does NOT mean that the church is completely separated from the government so they cannot have the manger scene at a courthouse.
What needs to happen now is that those of us who are born again believers should pray for the sovereignty of our country, for the government to become what it used to be and for the leaders of our country to lean on the Lord for all of their wisdom. We must all live by seeking the Lord’s wisdom and knowledge. If we do not, the country and we ourselves will pay dearly for it.
As the day for the new year approaches, most people like to start working on their New Year’s resolutions. Others feel they do not need to do so. And still others realize that even though they make them, the resolutions will be broken before the end of the month anyway. Today, I watched a pastor on television talk about what we, as Christians, are to be doing here.
This was not a new idea by any means. In fact, it’s a rather old idea but was needed again. He said that about 20% of the church attendees do about 80% to 90% of the money giving and work at the church and for the Lord. Then, 80% of the people give little to no money and do almost nothing to nothing at all. He began to challenge us to decide what we must do to change that.
The first idea and really the only one is to get into your Bible for at least a half hour a day. I doubt that would be too much to ask considering what the Lord has done for you. I agree wholeheartedly that the half hour a day will do more for you than any other possible cure. Included in that half hour would be reading the Bible, meditating on the verse or verses and praying to the Lord about them. If you will do that, you will find yourself in a better mood, find more enlightenment concerning the Bible…things will become clearer to you….and it will be a relaxing time as well. This becomes a de-stressing agent as well.
I have to admit that I do not do as much of the reading and studying that I should. In fact, the last few weeks have been much less than usual due to the holidays that were coming up. How ridiculous can I actually get here???? We were honoring the Lord Jesus’ birth. This is the time to be more in the Bible, more interested in praying, more interested in study. I was less so. Hence the gap in the postings on this blog. I am ashamed of myself and am sorry to my readers who come to see what God has taught us today.
So, in the interest of making a commitment to the Lord, I do resolve to be in the Bible more, studying more, praying more and, therefore, writing more. It is a blessing to be a servant of the Lord!!!! Thank you for reading this blog. I hope to give you more inspirational postings in the future!!
Happy New Year to you all!!!
There are always questions on the Rapture, aren’t there. We all envision the event differently, I am guessing. Perhaps it will be like the portrayal in Left Behind with the people simply vanishing with clothes in a pile. Maybe it will be like another such movie that had the clothes neatly folded. However, it happens, it will happen.
Now, the thing is that I am not going to tell you WHEN the rapture is coming. Even Jesus did not know that fact. Only God knows this so I will not insult you by telling you times and dates. But, we are told in the scriptures that you can recognize the times and seasons. This we can do and should do as Christians. Guess what? The time is now. We are in the season of the Lord.
Too many things that are happening in the world point to the soon return of Jesus. Okay, is this going to happen like it’s been portrayed? People vanish and accidents happen? Shock takes over the world, then the bad guys? Is it going to be suddenly happening or quietly done? I can guess but that’s all it would be, based on what I have read in the Word of God. Perhaps it would be wise to read the books of Ezekiel, Daniel and the book of Revelation. “Oh, but I can’t understand the book of Revelation. Nothing seems to be real there.” Really.
Well, I can give you a way to deal with that. Please read the other books of God’s Word. By the time you get back to the book of Revelation (NOT revelations with an “s”), you will have a better understanding of how God speaks and it will become somewhat clearer. I say “somewhat” because it is unlikely that we will receive the full picture simply by reading. It will also take prayer and some time visiting with God each day. He is the owner of the Book and can tell you exactly what it says, word for word.
Spending time with the Lord will give you such insight that it will not worry you again about the times and seasons. You will have a need to get excited about His soon return. I used to pray that He not show up too soon because I had not been doing all that I should be for Him. Uh uh. That prayer does not work. We are expected to do our jobs for the Lord. However much you do is based on your faith and how excited you are to help witness. (My level of excitement had not been too high then.)
Anyway, I did promise you a video in the title of this post. So, here is a little something that says The Rapture as the title. Now, I can tell you here that I do not endorse this as THE way the rapture will happen, just a possibility. Check it out and then give me your thoughts and comments. (Comments are currently moderated because of spammers and people with nasty thoughts)
The Rapture
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So, whatcha think? Comments? Thoughts?
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