Archive for the ‘inspirational’ Category

An Unhappy Christian

Posted in Bible Study, Christian, Faith, inspirational, Praise, Scripture, Worship on February 15, 2007| 39 Comments »

Paint1

Many Christian people are not really happy deep down inside.  Oh, they can put on a good front, and smile and make small talk, but when they are alone and all is quiet there is no peace inside.  This kind of person finds it easy to become involved in bickering, quarrels and arguments, especially at home.  Is this the way it is suppose to be?

Have you ever noticed when the electricity goes off we say the POWER is off?  When that happens we have all kinds of unexpected problems.  We can’t take a shower, do a load of wash,  or run the dishwasher.  We have no water period.  Also, most likely, the heating system in our house won’t work without electricity.  In the winter this can be a serious problem.   All those things that we take for granted every day are suddenly out of bounds for us just because something unexpected happened at the power station and the power went off.  We feel helpless!

The POWER can go off in our Christian lives also.  When that happens we cannot function right. Too many people today have a  powerless and miserable life.  Yes, we continue to try to do the right things.  Perhaps we get up on Sunday morning and have an argument with our spouse while getting ready for church, and yell at the kids.  Then we all pile in the car and go off to church.  When we arrive we put on a happy face, and look just fine on the outside.  We can participate in the choir and greet each other with a handshake or hug.  But, at the same time we might be miserable on the inside.  We leave church and again find ourselves in the same old situation quarreling and arguing with others.  What has happened? You have lost your power source!

The Holy Spirit is our power source.    Do you know that we short-circut the Holy Spirit’s power in our life when we sin?  This happens even when we do so called little sins.  We sin and it breaks our connection with God.  We no longer have fellowship with him.  We immediately then revert back to living in our flesh like we did  before we were Christians.  It would be good if a bell would go off in our heads and alert us to the fact that we have sinned and lost our power source, but it doesn’t work that way.  Instead we find ourselves thinking and doing things that are not pleasing to God.  We try to accomplish things in our own strength  which will not work.  This behavior will go on until we realize we are not right with God. 

God is holy and He cannot look upon our sin.  He tells us in His Word:

“So when you spread out your hands in prayer, I will hide My eyes from you; Yes, even though you multiply prayers, I will not listen. Your hands are covered with blood.  (Isaiah 1:15) NASB

“Wash yourselves, make yourselves clean; Remove the evil of your deeds from My sight. Cease to do evil,  (Isaiah 1:16) NASB

God doesn’t want us to be powerless Christians.  He does not want us to quarrel and argue.  God loves families and He wants us to have peaceful, loving homes to bring up our children. He wants us to be blessed with all spiritual blessings.  He wants the very best for us.  After all He bought us with His own blood when He died on the cross for us. He is invested in us.

When we get into arguments with others the issue is not what we are arguing about.  It is about us.  We are sinning, and we can’t be happy inside in this state.  We are being selfish and prideful. We insist we have to get in that last word.  We need to examine ourselves against the scriptures and see if we measure up.  Where are we going wrong?

God tells us when we become a Christian a change takes place.  We become a new creature  in Christ. 

Therefore if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creature; the old things passed away; behold, new things have come.  (2 Corinthians 5:17) NASB

He has told us to put these old things aside.

But now you also, put them all aside: anger, wrath, malice, slander, and abusive speech from your mouth.  (Colossians 3:8)

Do not lie to one another, since you laid aside the old self with its evil practices,  (Colossians 3:9)

If you have a short temper and fly off the handle easily something is wrong.  We are not to fight and use abusive speech.  We are not to get even.  Some people I know say “I don’t get mad I just get even!”  That is the way of the world.   We are not to slander one another. And we are not to lie.  We are to practice telling the truth.  All of the above things are sin in God’s sight and when we do them we disconnect from our power source, the Holy Spirit. 

Some people say they can’t help themselves in these things because they are just made that way.   “Oh, I just have a short fuse.  My dad was the same way.  I come by it naturally.”  Well, that may be so, but just because your dad was a sinner doesn’t mean you have to continue in the same path.  These are simply excuses.  God requires change!  And, he has given us the tools to make those changes.

Therefore do not let sin reign in your mortal body so that you obey its lusts,  (Romans 6:12) NASB

We are to be in control and not let sin have it’s way.  Before we were Christians this was very difficult because we didn’t have the power in ourselves to do this.  But, now we have the Holy Spirit to help us, and we can have victory over sin. 

If you are an unhappy Christian on the inside, take time to examine yourself and see if you have unconfessed sin in your life.  Confess, repent, and get connected with your power source so you can please God and find true happiness.
 

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God’s Wonderful Grace

Posted in Anxiety & Stress, Bible Study, Christian, Faith, inspirational, Praise, Scripture, Worship on January 23, 2007| Leave a Comment »

Butterfly 

But He gives a greater grace. Therefore it says, “God is opposed to the proud,but gives grace to the humble.” (James 4:6) NASB Let’s take a brief look at this scripture

But This word shows us a contrast between the previous verses that show us how sinful we really are, and God’s wonderful grace.

He God is the one who gives us grace.

Gives God actually gave us grace before time and eternity. And, He keeps on giving it and will throughout the ages to come.

Greater This word is a comparitive word showing us that God’s grace is greater than all our sins. Isn’t that wonderful?

Grace Grace is God’s unmerited favor. Or, it is His goodness extended to those who deserve wrath. That is us, my friends. None of us deserve God’s goodness and kindness. It is His grace that forgives us and His grace that enables us to live in obedience to Him. We cannot do that on our own.

There is a wonderful old hymn that shows us the wonder of God’s grace.

He Giveth More Grace
by Anna J. Flint

He giveth more grace as our burdens grow greater,
He sendeth more strength as our labors increase;
To added afflictions He addeth His mercy,
To multiplied trials He multiplies peace.

When we have exhausted our store of endurance,
When our strength has failed ere the day is half done,
When we reach the end of our hoarded resources
Our Father’s full giving is only begun.

Fear not that thy need shall exceed His provision,
Our God ever yearns His resources to share;
Lean hard on the arm everlasting, availing;
The Father both thee and thy load will upbear.

His love has no limits, His grace has no measure,
His power no boundary known unto men;
For out of His infinite riches in Jesus
He giveth, and giveth, and giveth again.

Oh, what a wonderful, merciful, giving God we have.  If you are having a bad day full of anxiety and stress remember that God wants to help you.  If you are a believer and go to Him in prayer, confessing any known sin, our God if faithful to extend to you the fullness of his abundent grace. 

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Key to Prosperity

Posted in Bible Study, Christian, Faith, inspirational, Praise, Scripture on January 16, 2007| 1 Comment »

 

Ponderosa Pine3He is like a tree planted by rivers
of water, which brings forth its
fruit in season and whose leaf
does not wither.
Whatever he does prospers.

Psalm 1:3

Here is a wonderful promise from the Word of God.  The thought is of a beautiful tree growing by a river of water.  The tree grows abundantly and never has to worry about drought as the water continuously provides all its needs to bear its fruit in due season. This sounds great but wait, there is a catch!

Yes, God does give us a great promise, but there are some strings attached.  At first glance this sounds like a very easy way to have a wonderful, prosperous life.  We just wait like the tree and God does all the rest.  But, to get the full meaning of this verse, we must go back and look at the verses proceeding this one. 

How blessed is the man who does not walk in the counsel of the wicked, Nor stand in the path of sinners, Nor sit in the seat of scoffers! (Psalms 1:1)

Blessed, or happy, is the man who doesn’t walk in the counsel of the wicked.  Let me ask you this.  When you have problems where do you go for advice?  People are always ready to give us advice.  Have you ever thought about who is giving it?  Do you take advice from people in the workplace?  Are these people who are walking close to God?  It just seems natural to ask those around us for advice.  But, God says not to take advice from the ungodly people of the world.  Their mindset is different and they do not take in consideration the moral values God wants for us.

 When we need advice to work out some problem we have with daily living we need to go to trusted people who are walking with the Lord.  Look for a mature Christian who is strong in the Word.  He can help you discover what God says about your particular problem.  We are not to cozy up to the world. 

First, he says “walk,” in the councel of the wicked.  Then, there is a progression to “stand” in the paths of sinners, and finally, “sit,” in the seat of scoffers.  If we follow this path we are finally living just like everyone else who are not Christians. If we follow this path we will not be given the right advice.

But his delight is in the law of the LORD, And in His law he meditates day and night. (Psalms 1:2)

Instead of hanging out with the worldly people the person who wants to be prosperous delights in the Word of God.  He spends time in the Word reading and studying it, and he continuously mediates on the Word.  As Christians we need to keep in the Word and we will find how God wants us to live so we can make decisions based on his morality, not the worlds.

As you can see the key to prosperity is not just sitting back doing nothing, nor is it going to worldly people for advice.  The Psalmist says that in order to be prosperous we must keep in the Word, keep close to God, and look for our help from Him.  When we do this we will be prosperous!

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The True Gospel Message

Posted in Bible Study, Christian, Faith, Gospel, inspirational, Scripture, Worship on January 9, 2007| Leave a Comment »

                      WHAT IS THE TRUE GOSPEL MESSAGE?

There are many “gospel” messages being circulated today. In some circles one would believe that if we simply say “Jesus come into my heart,” we are saved.  They do not teach the whole gospel.

They leave out the cross and resurrection.  They don’t tell us that we are sinners and that we need a Savior. They don’t tell us that we will either spend eternity in Heaven or hell and our destiny depends on what we believe about Jesus.  They don’t tell us that now is the time to make that decision and after we die it will be too late. The gospel is sometimes presented as something we do, like going forward in church, or having some kind of emotional experience, so that we can find peace, happiness, wealth, and good health. The emphasis is not on the fact of how we are all dreadful sinners and in desperate need of a Savior.The Word “gospel” means good news.

What is the good news of the Bible?

“For I delivered to you as of first importance what I also received, that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, and that He was buried, and that He was raised on the third day  according to the Scriptures,…” I Corinthians 15:3-4 NIV.

The Apostle Paul wrote this scripture as he was inspired by God.  He tells the Corinthian believers that the first and most important thing he wanted to share with them was the gospel message as follows:

  1. Christ suffered and died on the cross for our sins, according to the scriptures.
  2. He was buried in a borrowed tomb, which was then sealed and guarded.
  3. He rose again on the third day, according to the scriptures. Death could not hold him.

My friends, that is the gospel message. Very short and to the point.

In order to understand the importance of these scriptures we must dig a little deeper.

Why did Christ have to die for our sins?

In the beginning God created the first man an woman, Adam and Eve.  They were made perfect. At that time there was no sin in the world. God placed them in the garden of Eden to live and populate the earth.

Genesis 2:16-17 “And the Lord God commanded the man, ‘You are free to eat from any tree in the garden; but you must not eat from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, for when you eat of it you will surely die. ‘”

But, Satan came along and enticed Eve to eat of the fruit on the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. Eve picked the fruit and ate it and even gave her husband Adam some to eat too.

Sin is disobedience to God.  Adam and Eve became sinners, and they passed that heritage down to us. From then on everyone was born with a sin nature. We do not have to learn to be sinners it comes naturally to us.

God came to visit with Adam and Eve, but they hid from him.  Why? Because they were ashamed and full of fear.  Here is where the blame game got started. Adam tired to blame Eve and Eve blamed the serpent (Satan) who enticed her to eat the fruit.  But, as God is all knowing He  knew the whole story. He knew they had disobeyed Him.

Up to this time Adam and Eve were naked in the Garden of Eden, and that didn’t bother them.  After they sinned they became aware of their nakedness and tried to cover themselves with fig leaves. They became aware of themselves. This is when conscience entered the human picture.

God did not view the fig leaves as a proper cover for them so he sacrificed animals to use their skins to make Adam and Eve clothing. Have you ever wondered why God replaced the fig leaves with animal skins?

God had told Adam and Eve that if they disobeyed him they would surely die. (Genesis 2:17) You see life is in the blood. If a person gets cut bad and loses too much blood he will die. Without blood there is no life.

Leviticus 17:11 says, ‘For the life of the flesh is in the blood, and I have given it to you on the altar to make atonement for your souls; for [Heb 9:22] it is the blood by reason of the life that makes atonement.’

God could not go back on His Word. He didn’t want to end the human race so He had to make another way.  He allowed the slain animals shed blood be a substitution for their own. Blood was shed and the sins were covered or atoned for. The skins were their covering and a reminder of the shed blood.

God is love. He made mankind so that he could communicate and fellowship with them.  But, God is also just.  He requires that justice be done. That is why he had to shed the blood of animals in the place of shedding the blood of Adam and Eve. The animals paid the price, for the disobedience of Adam and Eve.

In the Old Testament times, God required the people sacrifice animals daily to cover their sins. These sacrifices were looking forward to the day that God would give the ultimate sacrifice, His only Son, to die for the sin of the world. This happened in the New Testament era when the Lamb of God, which is Jesus Christ, came to this Earth to give His live and shed his blood on the cross to cover our sins.

God also said in the book of Romans that the wages or payment for sin is death.  Because God is just this payment must be made.

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

The other side of the coin is that God will give us eternal life as a free gift when we understand and accept the true gospel message.

Romans 3:23 “For all have sinned and come short of the glory of God.”

So, we can plainly see from the Bible that we need a Savior because we all are sinners.  God met our need by allowing His Son to come and be a substitute our sins.

Could anyone have died for our sins?  Did it have to be Jesus Christ?

Yes, it had to be Jesus Christ, because the sacrifice for our sins had to come from a perfect person, and none of us are perfect because we are born with a sin nature. He wasn’t because he did not have an earthly father. Christ was born of a woman and the Holy Spirit.  He was perfect without sin or imperfection.  He is fully man and He is God. He is the only one who could qualify to die in our place.

John 3:16 “For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whosoever believes in Him shall not parish but have eternal life.”

How was his burial different from others?

Jesus was buried and placed in a borrowed tomb.  He didn’t even own one of His own.  The Roman officials didn’t want anyone to steal the body and say that Christ rose from the dead. They didn’t want to stir up the people. So, they placed a huge stone in front of the tomb and even sealed it. Then they set a guard to watch it. There was no way the Lord’s disciples could pull a fast one. (Read John 19:38-42)

Why is the resurrection important?

Do you realize that the Christian religion is the only one that has a risen Savior?  All the others worship someone who is dead!  What good is a dead savior?  How could prayers be answered if our Savior was dead?

Jesus Christ rose from the grave on the third day, just as the scriptures foretold.

“For as Jonah was three days and three nights in the whale’s belly; so shall the Son of man be three days and three nights in the heart of the earth.” Matthew 12:40

He now sits at the right hand of God in Heaven pleading our case before our Father.

Hebrews: 10:12 “But this man, after he had offered one sacrifice for sins for ever, sat down on the right hand of God;”

Romans 8:34  “Who is he that condemns?  Christ Jesus, who died — more than that, who was raised to life– is at the right hand of God and is also interceding for us.”

The resurrection of Jesus is what makes the Christian faith different. He not only died for our sins, but he beat death.  Death could not hold Him! He rose again just as predicted in a glorified new body.

Oh friends, this is what gives us so much hope.  If Jesus could die and rise again with a new body, we can too. Death doesn’t have to be the end!

Some day we who know him as our Savior will meet Him face to face in Heaven and spend eternity with Him. Those who don’t know Him in this personal way will spend eternity in hell with constant torture and suffering. He has given each of us a choice.

Would you like to accept the true gospel message?

If you have read this far you now know the true gospel message. Perhaps you are wondering if you have accepted the correct gospel message.  If you have any doubt or question about it at all, then here is your chance to know for sure!

Or, you may be one who has have never been privileged to hear the gospel message before, and you are reading it for the first time in your life.

II Corinthians 6:2b “…behold, now [is] the accepted time; behold, now [is] the day of salvation.“

Lets again look to the Bible to see what it says about how to accept the gospel.

Romans 10: 9 “That if you confess with your mouth, “Jesus is Lord,” and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved.”

Romans 10:10 “For it is with your heart that you believe and are justified, and it is with our mouth that you confess and our saved.”

Have you ever noticed that what is deep inside us eventually comes out of our mouths?  We are ready to pray when we really believe deep down in our hearts what the Bible says about how Jesus died and rose again for us, and our hopelessly lost condition without Him. And when we are willing to count the cost of following Jesus and truly submitting to Him as Lord of our life.  Yes, then we are ready to pray.

Instead of walking an aisle and repeating some words that really mean nothing to you, like, “Yes, I accept Jesus into my heart.”  Or, just raising your hand in some church service where the pastor is asking if anyone wants to “accept Jesus.”  Instead you need to go to God on your knees, repent and confess, beg and plead with Him to accept you into His family.

Are you willing to follow Him?

II Corinthians 6:2b “…behold, now is the accepted time; behold, now is the day of salvation.” (KJV)

I could give you a sample prayer, but I’d much rather it came right from your own heart in your own words.  I pray you will submit to Jesus Christ as Lord of your life today.

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God Gave Me Security

Posted in Agoraphobia, Anxiety & Stress, Faith, inspirational, Panic Attacks, Praise, Testimonies on December 29, 2006| 1 Comment »

LakeSunset2

My name is Donna and I’m 47 years old.   Living with panic disorder and agoraphobia has been hard for me, but I know that God is with me, holding my hand, every step of the way. 

I was always nervous and insecure as a child.  I’m a victim of abuse from a older sibling.    I was abandoned by my father at an early age and even though he comes in and out of my life, I still lack the kind of security that lies deep within each person.   God has filled that insecurity up within my soul.    There are times when I go out of His will and feel that insecure feeling again, but thanks to God sending Jesus to die on the cross for my sins, I can go to Him and ask His forgiveness and feel His love inside my heart.  

I asked Jesus into my heart in 1974, but was what people call a “roller coaster” Christian.   Sometimes I would read my bible, then, even years would go by and I would think that I could do that another time.   But, the Lord always brought me back to Himself and planted my feet on solid ground.  He forgave me of my sins and made me feel secure again.    I had let the cares and worries of this world and of my affliction of panic disorder and agoraphobia almost rule my life sometimes.   I became housebound for a few years.    I’m not housebound now, but I still have to have my sister as my “safe person” when I go out.    I feel that God is healing me of this affliction but in His time.  Some people are healed instantly, while others have a resistant spirit and need more time to come to an understanding of how God works in our lives.   I’m one of those people.   But, God never gives up.  He say’s that nothing can pluck us out of His hand.  

Our comforter, the Holy Spirit, makes the insecurity go away from me and keeps me safe.   “The Comforter, which is the Holy Ghost, whom the Father will send in My name, He shall teach you all things, and bring all things to your remembrance, whatsoever I have said unto you.”   John 14:26   KJV  

It seems in this world today that people are so lost and do not want to be found, but for those who care enough about their lives and eternity, I encourage you to ask Jesus into your heart, to forgive you of your past sins and then go and live a life worthy to be called a child of God.   Ask yourself, where will I spend eternity?    “The trumpet shall sound, and the dead shall be raised incorruptible, and we shall be changed.”    1 Corinthians 15:52   KJV

Blessings to all,

Donna Summerlin

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Holiday Depression

Posted in Holidays, inspirational, Scripture on December 13, 2006| 4 Comments »

Christmasfloral

Do you ever get depressed around the holidays?  Many people do including myself. This year I decided I’d float through the holidays and just enjoy every minute.  Right!

I must explain that I have a physical handicap.  I have a serious eye muscle problem.  I’m only using one eye in order to avoid double vision.  This causes me to tire very quickly and I get many headaches.  The added pressures of the holiday season wear on me and I tend to dread them as my frustration level increases.

I’ve been trying to get into the swing of the holidays and yesterday set out to bake some wonderful Christmas cookies.  Well, after setting the smoke alarm off three times I gave up.  I can’t believe I burned up the Peanut Butter Blossoms.  They are now called Burnt Bottom Peanut Butter Blossoms.  Try saying that fast six times in a row.  🙂  My patience ran out, and my dh had to take over.  I thank for Lord for a wonderful husband who came to the rescue.

That was the second cookie failure in less than a week.  A few days ago I attempted some Pecan Tea Tassies.  I’ve never made them before, but they are one of my favorites and my niece said they were easy so I got busy.  To make a long story short, they didn’t turn out. 

After my cookie failures it would be easy for me to sink into a depression, as I was fighting it in the first place.  It seems like such a waste of time and money, and I feel like I failed.  I know there must be a lesson here some place, but I’m not sure what it is right now.  Maybe it is to really appreciate how patient and kind my husband is.

Depression robs us of our joy at the holidays.  Why does this happen?  Many of us are over stressed at this time of year.  There are so many things to do, and the pressure mounts.  We have many parties and celebrations with family and friends.  We have too much to do and to little time.  Much is expected of us.  There is the financial pressure of how much to spend.  In some parts of the country the weather can be another factor weighing on our shoulders.

We need to clean, shop, bake, wrap gifts, order things,exchange things that we bought by mistake, watch for the best sales, make sure we have all the ingredients on hand for the holiday baking, buy groceries for the parties, get the kid’s teachers gifts, make sure they have everything for their school functions, and on and on it goes.  All of this is crammed into a very short period of time and it is no wonder it gets of us down.

There are other reasons why some people get depressed at this time of year.  Many people have lost loved ones near the holidays and all of those unpleasant memories are again stirred up.  They miss those who have gone on.  Some have panic disorder and even the thought of shopping, crowds, and parties can be debilitating.

Some are lonely as all the family has either moved far away or they don’t really have any family.  Christmas is a time for families.  There are all kinds of problems associated with holidays and family gatherings.

So, if you are one who is experiencing holiday depression you are not alone, that’s for sure.  If you are a Christian, then you most likely are adding guilt on top of depression.  As everyone knows, “Christians are not to be depressed!”

Reality is that anyone can get depressed.  The important thing is to learn how to deal with it.  

Here are some ways to beat depression before depression beats you.  

Here is a very important one:

1.  Check yourself.  See if there is any unconfessed sin in your life.  If so, get right with God.  Confess your sin and turn from it.  Are you holding grudges?  Is there someone in your family or at work you need to forgive or ask forgiveness of? 

If we confess our sins, He is faithful and righteous to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. (1 John 1:9 NASB)

2. Think of others more highly than ourselves. We need to think of others needs before our own.  In other words, not be selfish.

For through the grace given to me I say to everyone among you not to think more highly of himself than he ought to think;  (Romans 12:3)

3.  Pray and ask God to fill you with the Holy Spirit and walk in his strength through the holidays making sure your actions and words are honoring to him.

4.  Be realistic.  Look at your schedule and see if it is overloaded.  Then, see where you can cut back. Give yourself a break.

5. Don’t be afraid to say no.  You can say “no,” if you have too much going on.  Use common sense.

6. Downsize.  We really don’t have to buy every new thing on the market for our kids and families.  Why not think about just getting one gift for each family member and take the rest of the money you would spend and give it to charity?  It’s a thought, and it might teach the children that it is better to give than receive.  It might be too late for this one this year, but what about next year?

7.  Take time to meditate on the real meaning of Christmas.  Listen to some relaxing Christmas music while sipping a hot cup of tea and enjoy a few Christmas cookies.  Hope they turned out better than mine.  Of course, my husband and I have to eat the Burnt Bottom Peanut Butter Blossoms!

The Lord wants us to have love in our hearts and joy in our lives this holiday season.  Remember the only one we really need to please is God himself.

May God bless you this holiday season!

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Christmas Time by Bonnie Lord

Posted in Holidays, inspirational, Poem on December 1, 2006| 1 Comment »

 

nataivity 

CHRISTMAS TIME
By Bonnie Lord

This is the Christmas time of the year,
“Santa Claus,” and “be good,” that’s all we hear.
The first gift of Christmas God gave us all,
Jesus, His Son, was born in a stall.
Wise men and shepherds brought frankincense and myrrh,
While angels were proclaiming, “peace on earth!”
Now look at this world, and look at this land.
It looks like something went wrong with the plan.
Santa Claus came, stole Jesus away.
The donkey became reindeer and sleigh.
Greedy men get rich, minding their store.
While we rush about buying presents galore.
But, God is still there, He is within reach.
We must turn to Him and let Him teach.
He has a special gift for us this year.
It’s eternal life for all who believe and hear.
Our sins tho red as scarlet you know,
Will be washed whiter, yes whiter than snow.
Let’s put Christ back in Christmas for you and for me.
And remember the day He hung on the tree.
Know in our hearts He won’t let us down,
But, believe in Him and live for our crown.

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Merry Christmas vs. Happy Holidays

Posted in Holidays, inspirational on December 1, 2006| 3 Comments »

Merry Christmas

Merry Christmas vs. Happy Holidays by Donna S.

My views of Christmas may differ from others, but I was raised to say Merry Christmas.   Even before I was saved by Jesus, I knew it was because of Him that there even is a Christmas.   It’s about His birth.   Saying Happy Holiday’s is fine sometimes when you just pass someone on the street, but I think saying Merry Christmas puts Christ in Christmas.    It lets people know you are sincere when you say those words.   

I remember when I was told there was no Santa Claus after all the young years of my life thinking of that fairy tale, to find out it wasn’t true was devastating at age 10.   

I know that Jesus is not a fairy tale and that there is no disappointment in reading about His birth at Christmas time or anytime.  If not for His coming to this earth, we would be lost forever without hope of our souls reaching heaven when our life on earth is done.  

It seems like this deciding between government and state and religion is ridiculous.    Why has it worked all these years and people were more happy with Merry Christmas and we buy a Christmas tree instead of a holiday tree?   If it’s a holiday tree, we could go out and buy one at any holiday of the year.   We could have a Thanksgiving tree in November,  a New Year’s tree in January, a 4th of July tree, a Labor Day tree, a Memorial Day tree.   All of these are holidays too.   

To me, Christmas is not just a holiday, it is when our Savior and Lord Jesus Christ was born of the virgin Mary and the 3 wise men came and shepherds saw the Star as a sign.   He came to earth as a human to teach us to serve others and to live a life worthy of the calling of God.  

This is my view of why we should say Merry Christmas.  We have for years and were happy before and to me, Happy Holidays just doesn’t mean anything but a passing sentiment.

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