Archive for the ‘Scripture’ Category

Audio Sermons

Posted in Audio Sermons, Bible Study, Christian, devotional, Gospel, inspirational, Religion, Scripture, Worship, tagged , , , , , on April 1, 2009| 1 Comment »

 

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Pastor Bob O’Leary has given us many wonderful sermons over the past few years and I would like to share many of them with you.

The first ones I’ve put up are on the Book of Colossians.  This book was written by Paul the Apostle to correct the false teaching that was infiltrating  the church. 

The theme of Colossians is the complete adequacy of Christ as contrasted with the emptiness of mere human philosophy.

Colossians 2:8 “See to it that no one takes you captive through hollow and deceptive philosophy, which depends on human tradition and the basic principles of this world rather than on Christ.”

As you listen to these sermons I guarantee that if you take them to heart and put them to work in your own life you will see growth in Christ.

Click here to listen to our Audio Sermons

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Can We Trust God?

Posted in Agoraphobia, Anxiety & Stress, Bible Study, Christian, devotional, Faith, inspirational, Panic Attacks, Praise, Scripture, tagged , , , , , , , , , on March 3, 2009| 6 Comments »

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“The root cause of anxiety is a failure to trust all that God has promised to be for us in Jesus.”  John Piper — Future Grace

 

These are hard times for many people.  Our economy is in a shambles and the stock market is going bonkers.  People are losing jobs and homes by the thousands and everything seems very bleak.  What are we to do?  My best answer is this…”God is still in control!”  If you are a Christian know that He will take care of you…we can trust God!

God is not merely man.  God is God!  While man will disappoint us over and over and let us down, God is always the same.  When our parents promised us something then it did not come about we were really hurt.  God will not do that to us because whatever God says in His Word is true.  And, there is one thing that God cannot do and that is lie. 

“God is not a man, that He should lie, Nor a son of man, that He should repent; Has He said, and will He not do it? Or has He spoken, and will He not make it good? Num 23:19 NASB

God cannot lie and that is a very good reason why we can trust him!
Some have told me they were abused while young and now cannot trust God because they have been so hurt.  Some are even angry at God for what man has done to them.  The result is an angry and bitter person who loses out on all the blessings God want to give him or her.

Now let’s look at some scriptures that show us we can trust God.

And those who know Your name will put their trust in You, For You, O LORD, have not forsaken those who seek You. Psa 9:10 NASB

Right there, in the above scripture, it says we can trust in God because He has not forsaken those who seek Him.  God will not desert us!

In You our fathers trusted; They trusted and You delivered them. To You they cried out and were delivered; In You they trusted and were not disappointed. Psa 22:4-5 NASB

God’s people in the Old Testament times trusted in God and He did not let them down when they cried out to Him.  They were not disappointed when they did this, so we to can call upon God in our troubles and He will hear us and answer us.

The LORD is my strength and my shield; My heart trusts in Him, and I am helped; Therefore my heart exults, And with my song I shall thank Him.
Psa 28:7 NASB

To think that the LORD is our strength, and He is.  And, to think that He is our shield, and He is.  He gives us the strength we need when we need it and he protects us all the time.  When we trust in Him with our whole heart and mind we are helped by Him.  When that happens it just makes our hearts overflow with joy and we can thank and praise Him for what He has done.

Trust in Him at all times, O people; Pour out your heart before Him; God is a refuge for us. Selah. Psa 62:8 NASB

What a powerful scripture this is.  It tells us to trust in God at all  times.
Not just when things are going good, but all the time.  Friends, if you are going through a rough spot right now, stop right now, and pour out your heart to God.  Tell Him everything.  If you need to confess a sin and repent then do it.  He is our shelter.  Run to Him! Don’t run to man.

“Behold, God is my salvation, I will trust and not be afraid; For the LORD GOD is my strength and song, And He has become my salvation.”
Isa 12:2 NASB

God is our salvation.  Trust in Him and you do not have to be afraid.  Why? Because He is our strength and our Savior.  Are you afraid?  Fear is a matter of not trusting God.  If we truly trust God we do not have to be afraid because He can save us out of our fearful situations. 

“Trust in the LORD forever, For in GOD the LORD, we have an everlasting Rock. Isa 26:4 NASB

God is Rock!  He is solid.  He is sturdy!  He is forever!  We can trust in Him because of who He is, and know that He will always be there for us.

For he hath said, I will never leave thee, nor forsake thee. Heb 13:5b KJV

An arrogant man stirs up strife, But he who trusts in the LORD will prosper.
Pro 28:25 NASB

Our attitude matters too.  God wants us to be humble and trust in Him and we will prosper according to His will.

The fear of man brings a snare, But he who trusts in the LORD will be exalted. Pro 29:25 NASB

When we fear man it becomes a trap to us.  We eventually end up ordering our life around that person or persons. We become in bondage.  Instead we need to trust the Lord and live according to his precepts.  He will lift us up.

In God I have put my trust, I shall not be afraid. What can man do to me?
Psa 56:11 NASB

When I am afraid, I will put my trust in You.
Psa 56:3 NASB

Again, God is the One who we can trust.  We don’t have to fear man or anything else!

Indeed, we had the sentence of death within ourselves so that we would not trust in ourselves, but in God who raises the dead; 2Co 1:9 NASB

Yes, we were on death row before we accepted Jesus as our Lord and Savior.  Because of that we could not trust in ourselves.  We couldn’t save ourselves. But glory to God, He could, and He raised us spiritually from the dead when we were saved. 

It is better to take refuge in the LORD Than to trust in man. Psa 118:8 NASB

“Blessed is the man who trusts in the LORD And whose trust is the LORD.
Jer 17:7 NASB

Is your trust in the Lord?  Have you come to the place after reading all these wonderful scriptures that show us why we can trust God, where you know that you cannot live your life yourself?  Do you need help?  Have you realized that other people will let you down every time?  Who can you trust?  Only One, and He is worthy of our trust. 

Dear Lord, Please bless these precious truths from your Word to hurting, scared, doubting, fearful, anxious, people today.  Please Lord, open their hearts that they may understand your love for them.  Let them let go of past hurts and come to the comfort of you our dear Heavenly Father who can be totally trusted.  In Jesus’ name. Amen.

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How Fear Has Been Dealt With

Posted in Agoraphobia, American culture, Anxiety & Stress, Christian, Faith, Health, Panic Attacks, Religion, Scripture, tagged , , , , , , , on February 12, 2009| 2 Comments »

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God takes care of the birds and will take care of us too.  Matt: 6:26

We live in tough times.  We hear it every day on the news.  Our future looks bleak, at least that is what they’d like us to think. 

As Christians how should we respond?  Should we be fearful and full of anxiety? 

“Fear is a more dangerous enemy than those your fear.”  Thomas Watson – Puritan author and pastor.

Isn’t that an interesting quote?  Do you realize many people in the Bible struggled with fear and doubt?  Fear is nothing new!

Just to name a few:

Adam and Eve; they disobeyed God and became fearful and hid from Him.

Abraham; he had a fear of danger, so he lied two times about Sarah being his wife in order to escape danger. 

Sarah had the fear of doubt.  She didn’t believe God that she would have a child so she got Abraham to take her handmaid to provide the child.  Ishmael was the result, and these two tribes still fight today.

Moses had the fear of not being good enough.  God called Him, but he made excuses and tried to get out of it. 

Peter had the fear of man.  Because of that he denied that he knew Jesus three times.

Sometimes our fear can cause sin.  Such was the case of Abraham.  He feared danger so he lied which was a sin.

Sometimes our sin can cause fear.  Such was the case of Adam and Eve.  They sinned first when they disobeyed God and that sin resulted in fear.

In our day it is still the same.  There are sins that can result in fear, such as adultery, lying, thief,  breaking the law, anxiety and worry.

Then there are fears that can cause sin such as fear of public speaking, which is a fear of people, (you back out of doing something God wanted you to do,) fear of what people might think can cause you to lie or cover up something.  

Have you ever wondered how the people from the time of creation until now, when we have psychology and special medications, coped with their fears and anxieties?  I have. 

Fear itself is nothing new we’ve seen that.  What is new is the way we approach it today.

Psychology came along and hijacked God.  The early fathers of psychology were not Christians and they had a secular, humanistic world view.  They believed that all of man’s fears and anxiety came from how a person was raised, their environment, circumstances, and negative thinking.  They came up with a new kind of “medicine,” called psychology. 

When you had emotional problems you would be sent to a psychiatrist, who is a physician but a specialist in “mental illness.”  He would diagnose you by using the Diagnostic & Statistical Manual (DSM) and come up with an “disorder” listed in there by number.  This was a great idea because then the psychiatrists could charge your insurance company for the sessions they would set up for you.  It truly benefited their wallets.  Also, the drug companies played an important role as they came up with drugs specifically for these “mental illnesses and disorders.”  These are called psychotropic drugs.

In 1966 there were 44 of these kinds of drugs, today there are 174.  We spend 27 billion a year on these drugs.  Did all of that fix the problems of fear, anxiety, and stress that people have? 

I think not!  Instead we became a nation of medicated people, going to psychologists regularly and not making any real progress. 

Do you realize  the answer lies in the Word of God?  Yes, God made us and he knows all about us.  Luke was a physician, so God does believe in doctors.  When we are ill in our body we need to go to a physician.  If we have a physical illness then it needs to be treated with medications.  That is true.

But, when we have a problem in our heart, minds, soul, (our spiritual side) then we need to go to the Great Physician and get our help from Him.  It seems the psychiatrist have come between the pastor and the hurting Christian.  Today even pastors send their emotionally upset members to the psychologist for worldly therapy.  Why, because they believe the lie that they themselves are not competent to help the people. 

So, when we have problems with stress, anxiety, fear, and worry, we should run to the Bible and look for our help there. 

For God hath not given us the spirit of fear; but of power, and of love, and of a sound mind.
2Ti 1:7 KJV

One important note:  If you are presently taking medication for anxiety and panic attacks, please, do not stop them without first consulting with your physician who prescribed them and ask him or her how to get off them.  It could be dangerous to try to quit them cold turkey.

Elyse Fitzpatrick, in her book, “Overcoming, Fear, Worry, and Anxiety,” has said the following:

“God loves to call the fearful heart to himself…Why does God delight in helping us to become trusting children, filled with peace and confidence, children who lean on His strength?  Because when He changes hearts like ours into hearts like His, He receives praise and glory.  When we discover that we’re able to walk peacefully through conditions that formerly terrified us, our hearts will overflow with gratitude and thanksgiving–and that brings joy to God.  Only He can change hearts that are frequently overwhelmed by fear into hearts that are overshadowed by His power and bravery, and it’s His delight to do so.”

Do you need a heart change?  If so, God is ready to help you.  He wants to work in your life.

Do you fear God working in your life?  Do you fear the possibility of getting better?  Or, do you look forward to that day wholeheartedly?  In other words, are you ready for change now?

My prayer for you is that you will turn to God for your healing.  That you will trust that He is able to make you the person He created you to be.  He loves you and has a purpose for your existence. 

Trust in Him at all times, O people; Pour out your heart before Him; God is a refuge for us. Selah.    Psa 62:8 NASB

What a wonderful Heavenly Father we have.  He knows us through and through and can work with us to make us whole.  You can be an overcomer!

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Where Did Fear Originate?

Posted in Agoraphobia, Anxiety & Stress, Bible Study, Christian, Faith, Health, inspirational, Panic Attacks, Panic Disorder Support, Scripture, tagged , , , , , , , on February 4, 2009| 7 Comments »

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wild turkey at our bird feeder

 

Have you ever wondered?  Where did all this fear come from anyway?  Where did it originate?

Fear had it origins way back in the Garden of Eden.  Adam and Eve disobeyed God and ate of the fruit of the forbidden tree.  That started the whole ball rolling.  When they did that their eyes were opened and they realized they were naked.  So, they made some coverings out of leaves.

“They heard the sound of the LORD God walking in the garden in the cool of the day, and the man and his wife hid themselves from the presence of the LORD God among the trees of the garden. Then the LORD God called to the man, and said to him, “Where are you?” He said, “I heard the sound of You in the garden, and I was afraid because I was naked; so I hid myself.”  (italics mine) Gen 3:8-10 NASB

Sin and fear entered the picture at this time.  Before that they were not afraid and they lived a very peaceful and fulfilling life in the beautiful garden where they had special and sweet fellowship with the Lord.  Oh, how I wish they had never eaten that fruit!

In this case we could reasonably say that their fear was a result of their sin.  This is something to think about.  When God gives us a command as He did Adam and Eve, which was not to eat of the fruit of that tree, and they disobeyed His command that was sin.  That sin nature has been passed down to all of us, unfortunately.

Today, God has given us many commands in the Bible and when go against them we also sin.  God says,

“Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God.”  Php 4:6 NASB

Thank goodness God has given the Christian an antidote for when we mess up and sin, because we all will and do.  It is found over in the book of John.

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

You will notice the little word “if” in this verse.  Well, in reality that is not so little, because the promise God gives us hinges on it.  “If we confess our sins,” then he is faithful to forgive us and cleanse us for our wrongdoing. So, it takes something on our part first, (confession) then he is faithful to fulfill His part. (forgiveness and cleansing.)
Actually confession means that we agree with God.  And, we should be sorry that we disobeyed.

Do you realize that God’s love is much more powerful than our fears?  Look at this scripture.

…that through death He might render powerless him who had the power of death, that is, the devil, and might free those who through fear of death were subject to slavery all their lives.   Heb 2:14-15 NASB

Isn’t that a wonderful scripture?  We can be free from the power of fear in our lives because Jesus Christ already took care of it. That is what he died on the cross for. What wonderful and powerful love that took.

We will end on a positive note.  Not all fear is sinful.  God has given all of us a kind of fear that protects us from danger. That is not sinful.  Also, God has given us a kind of fear that is godly. 

The fear of the LORD is the beginning of wisdom: and the knowledge of the holy is understanding. Pro 9:10 KJV

The fear of the Lord is a reverence of God’s majesty.  This is also a good kind of fear.

May God bless you today!

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The Obedient Christian

Posted in Bible Study, Christian, devotional, Faith, inspirational, Scripture, Worship, tagged , , , , , on January 16, 2009| 1 Comment »

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Do you realize that God has plenty to say about how we live our Christian lives?  He wants us to obey Him in every area.  We will look at the Bible and see some of the scriptures that shows us that.

2Co 13:5 NASB  Test yourselves to see if you are in the faith; examine yourselves! Or do you not recognize this about yourselves, that Jesus Christ is in you–unless indeed you fail the test?

God tells us to examine ourselves to make sure we are truly Christians. If we have Jesus Christ in us, then we are a new creation.  We should be able to look back on our lives and see a transformation since we were saved. 

The way our lives become transformed is by the study of the Word.  We can then apply it to our lives as we live in obedience to it.  That changes us.

God talked about obedience back in the Old Testament.

Deu 7:9 NASB  “Know therefore that the LORD your God, He is God, the faithful God, who keeps His covenant and His lovingkindness to a thousandth generation with those who love Him and keep His commandments;

God is faithful and keeps his promises, and lovingkindness.  But, note, it is to those who love Him and keep His commandments. 

Neh 1:5 NASB  I said, “I beseech You, O LORD God of heaven, the great and awesome God, who preserves the covenant and lovingkindness for those who love Him and keep His commandments,

Here the Psalmist says that he delights in God’s commandments and actually loves them.  Can you say the same?  Psalm 119 is an awesome Psalm.  It would be good to go ahead and read the whole thing.  There is so much in it about God’s Word and how it is sweet as honey.

Psa 119:47 NASB  I shall delight in Your commandments, Which I love.

Here Christ tell’s us that if we love Him we will keep His commandments.  That is the acid test of our love of God.  Do you love Him?  Do you obey Him?

Joh 14:15 NASB  “If you love Me, you will keep My commandments.

Look at this next verse.  It is wonderful!  If we keep God’s commandments it shows that we love Him.  It says, if we love Christ we will be loved by His Father.  Not only that, but Jesus will love us and actually disclose Himself to us.  Yes, He does that as we read and study the Word.  He allows our minds to be opened to take in and understand what He wants us to know.

What a privilege it is to be loved by Jesus and God.  What a privilege to have a personal relationship with the creator of the universe!  (If we obey Him.)

Joh 14:21 NASB  “He who has My commandments and keeps them is the one who loves Me; and he who loves Me will be loved by My Father, and I will love him and will disclose Myself to him.”

Again, “if” we keep His commandments, we will abide in His love.  Jesus Himself set the example as He obeyed His Father’s commandments, even to death on the cross.  Could we do that? 

Joh 15:10 NASB  “If you keep My commandments, you will abide in My love; just as I have kept My Father’s commandments and abide in His love.

When we love God and obey Him, we also know that we love other believers in Christ.  God’s love is this:  We keep His commandments, and they are not burdensome.  In other words, we are pleased to keep them.  The older I become as a Christian the more I see the wisdom in God’s commandments.  They are given to us for our own good.  The only thing that could keep us from obeying them is our own pride.

1Jn 5:2-3 NASB  By this we know that we love the children of God, when we love God and observe His commandments.  3  For this is the love of God, that we keep His commandments; and His commandments are not burdensome.

And to say it again.  We show our love of God when we obey Him and follow His commands. 

2Jn 1:6 NASB  And this is love, that we walk according to His commandments. This is the commandment, just as you have heard from the beginning, that you should walk in it.

I pray this little study in obedience has helped you realize that you are not your own.  He is our Lord and has every right to command us in our walk.  He owns us; He died for us; He paid the penalty of our sins.  We are His and as such we must bow the knee to his Lordship over our lives.  If He tells us something is wrong that we are doing we’d better pay attention. 

Trust and obey, for there is no other way, to be happy in Jesus, but to trust and obey.

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The Most Important Thing!

Posted in Christian, devotional, Faith, Gospel, Holidays, inspirational, Religion, Scripture, tagged , , , , , on December 10, 2008| Leave a Comment »

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Greetings!

The most important thing I can leave you with this season is that you get right with God. If you don’t you will spend eternity in Hell. It’s that serious. So, how do you get right with God?

First admit you are a sinner. We all are. The Bible even says so in, Romans 6:23 “For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God.” Everyone ever born has sinned, and has a sin nature.

Most people think that when someone dies they automatically go to Heaven. Growing up whenever any of our relatives died the family talked about them as being in a “better place.“ But, that is not always the case. If that person didn’t get right with God first they would not be in Heaven.

Others, don’t believe there is a Heaven or Hell and figure this life is all there is. We live, we die, are buried, and that’s it. But, that is not true either. There is an afterlife. Our bodies die, but our spirits (which are our true selves) live on forever.

Another myth people believe in is if they live a decent life, go to church, contribute to charity, or do good deeds, then they will go to Heaven when they die. Good works will not get you to Heaven.

We only get one chance to get right with God and that is in the here and now. It is crucial that you understand that. Life is fragile and none of us know what tomorrow will bring.

The Bible tells us there is a Heaven for those who believe. John 14: 2 “In my Father’s house are many dwelling places; …I am going there to prepare a place for you.”

To get right with God you need to acknowledge you are a sinner, and repent, (which means turn from your sins.) Acts 3:19 “Repent then and turn to God, so that your sins may be wiped out….” God is holy and can’t look upon sin, so He provided us a solution.

I Corinthians 15:3-4 tells us what we need to believe. “…Christ died for our sins according to the scriptures. And that he was buried, and that he rose again the third day according to the scriptures.”

Many times a person’s pride will stand in the way. But, please don’t let that happen to you. Admit the truth, and ask God to accept you and adopt you into His family. Make Jesus Christ Lord or your life. Let Him lead you and control you. You will not be sorry you did, and you will be welcomed Home when your time comes.

There is an excellent book written by John MacArthur called, The Gospel According to Jesus.

If you would like to know more about how to get right with God, click on this link where you can order the book.

http://www.gty.org/Products/Books/G

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Where Should We Go For Help?

Posted in Anxiety & Stress, Bible Study, Christian, Faith, inspirational, Religion, Scripture, tagged , , , , , , , , , on November 20, 2008| 1 Comment »

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Where should we go for help when we have problems?  That is a good question which everyone must answer.  We do have choices.

When you fall down and break your arm, it’s easy to decide to go to the doctor to get it set and a cast put on so that it will heal properly. God does the healing.

When you feel out of sorts and don’t know why, you know to get to a doctor and have a check up.  You might have some disease like diabetes, or thyroid problems, or the flu.  The doctor can help. 

So, where should we go when things get so bad that we are anxious all the time and even become afraid of doing things?  Or when we start having spells where we get out of breath, perspire, get weak, shaky, and our heart pounds? 

First, I believe you should go to your family doctor and find out if there is anything physical going wrong in your body.  They will run a few tests and tell you if you are physically alright. 

Second, if your tests all come out okay, but you are still having these kinds of issues, then you should consider them to be of a spiritual nature. 

“Struggles of the soul and problems of living must be dealt with as spiritual problems with spiritual solutions.”  Competent to Minister, The Biblical Care of Souls, by Martin & Deidre Bobgan. (Pg. 15)

Psa 1:1-3 NASB  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!  2  But his delight is in the law of the LORD, And in His law he meditates day and night.  3  He will be like a tree firmly planted by streams of water, Which yields its fruit in its season And its leaf does not wither; And in whatever he does, he prospers.

This Psalm tells us that we should not seek out worldly people for advice. That includes psychiatrists as well as Christian counselors who add psychology to their teaching.  We should not even hang out with worldly people.  Instead, we should go to the Word of God, delight in it, and meditate on it.  There we will find the answers to problems of the soul.  And God will bless us for going to Him for our counsel.

We can also go to mature spiritual Christians, or pastors who know the Bible and are living according to it.  They can pray with us and for us.  Along with the power of the Holy Spirit, God will reveal how to handle these problems.

Jeremiah 17:7-8 “(Most) blessed is the man who believes in, trusts in and relies on the Lord, and whose hope and confidence the Lord is. For he shall be like a tree planted by the waters, that spreads out it roots by the river and shall not see and fear when heat comes, but his leaf shall be green; he shall not be anxious and careful in the year of drought, not shall he cease from yielding fruit.” (Amplified Version)

God wants us to be blessed and not full of fear and dread.

Because God loves us and created us He knows how we tick.  He has given us His Word as a guide.

2Ti 3:16-17 LITV  All Scripture is God-breathed and profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness,  17  so that the man of God may be perfected, being fully furnished for every good work.

Scripture is sufficient to guide us in all things that have to do with the heart, soul, and mind. 

2Pe 1:2-4 NASB  Grace and peace be multiplied to you in the knowledge of God and of Jesus our Lord;  3  seeing that His divine power has granted to us everything pertaining to life and godliness, through the true knowledge of Him who called us by His own glory and excellence.  4  For by these He has granted to us His precious and magnificent promises, so that by them you may become partakers of the divine nature, having escaped the corruption that is in the world by lust.

The Bible is full of promises. There are hundreds of them.  God does not lie but He does keep His promises.  He can do that because He is God.  We fail miserably in that area don’t we?  How many times has someone broken a promise to you and you were heartbroken?  How many times have we also failed to live up to a promise?  We all do it because we are human.  But, not so, with God.  If you find a promise in scripture you can be sure God will not let you down.

We don’t need psychiatrists telling us how to live our lives.  We don’t need secular counselors giving us advise.  We don’t need all those psychotropic drugs that put us in la-la land.  We have the Wonderful Counselor! He is the Prince of Peace, and He can give us the peace that passes understanding.

Isa 9:6 NASB  For a child will be born to us, a son will be given to us; And the government will rest on His shoulders; And His name will be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Eternal Father, Prince of Peace. (NASB)

When Jesus left this earth He sent the Holy Spirit to indwell every believer to be our teacher, our comforter, and counselor.

Joh 14:26 LITV  but the Comforter, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in My name, He shall teach you all things and shall remind you of all things that I said to you. (LITV)

The Word of God is precious.  Immerse yourself in it.  Read and study the Word and you will find the answer to all your problems pertaining to life and godliness.  We want to live in a way that glorifies our precious Savior. 

As we grow in grace we become more and more like Christ.  Our old habits, fears, and worries pass away.  We don’t have to carry them anymore.  Our Lord handles them for us. We begin to change as we put on new godly habits, and give our troubles to the one who loves us most.  And, to think someday we will be like HIM!  Oh, Glory to God!

Blessings,
Bonnie

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A Thankful Heart

Posted in Bible Study, Christian, devotional, Faith, Gospel, inspirational, Scripture, Uncategorized, Worship, tagged , , , , , , on November 10, 2008| Leave a Comment »

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God’s Beautiful Handiwork!

God has given us all things to enjoy and my heart is thankful.  When I look around me I am very thankful for the wondrous beauty God has created.   The beauty of Fall in my part of the country can almost take your breath away.  And, yet, when we think about it, the Bible teaches us that we live in a cursed world, where even nature is cursed.  If this is what cursed looks like I often ponder, “How magnificent Heaven must be!”

Every year at Thanksgiving people stop to thank God for the things that matter most to them.  Usually we thank God for the things here on earth like our families, homes, cars, money, and all the material things we have.  We also stop and thank him for providing for us.  We thank him for the Thanksgiving turkey and all the trimmings we indulge in on that special day. 

This year my heart is thankful for those things, but even more, I’m thankful for my salvation.  I realize that if God had not in his mercy and grace chosen to adopt me into his family, I’d be on my way to spend eternity in Hell.  That is a scary thought! 

“Oh, God, how gracious you were to call me.  I am not worthy.  I am only a fallen, wicked, imperfect, sinner, whom you loved enough to include in your plan of salvation.  You even sent your only Son to take on my sins and die on the cross and endure the wrath of sin I deserved while He paid the penalty for me.”  That is truly amazing!

I ask.  “Why me Lord?”  “Why me?  I’m not worthy to be part of your family.”  I’ve come to realize that it wasn’t up to me.  I didn’t choose God, He chose me. 

Ephesians 1-4 says, “He chose us in Him before the foundation of the world…”

That boggles my mind! To realize that our most Precious God chose me way back in the past before He even created the world. He knew me and chose me to be one of His own.  Isn’t that a tremendous thought?

Again I say, “Why me God?”  God is Sovereign and Righteous.  He can do whatever He wants to.  He could have just as easily passed me by.  And, if He did that would not diminish Him one iota.  He would still be God in all of His fullness.  He didn’t have to chose me, but He wanted to.

My heart is thankful for God’s wonderful creation all around us; it is thankful for my undeserved salvation; and it is thankful for the future God has in store for me.

This is just the beginning, and it is going to get better and better as we spend eternity with our Lord and Savior. 

We will have troubles here on earth as we attempt to live out our daily lives.  But we must realize that those problems are for a purpose.  God is Sovereign and He is in control.  Nothing comes our way without Him allowing it.  Look at Romans 8:28.

Rom 8:28-29 NASB  And we know that God causes all things to work together for good to those who love God, to those who are called according to His purpose. 

I realize that there is a purpose for everything.  Even when I’ve suffered many health problems throughout my life, there was a purpose in it.  Praise God for that! 

He goes on to say in Romans 8:29  For those whom He foreknew, He also predestined to become conformed to the image of His Son, so that He would be the firstborn among many brethren;

I realize God’s purpose in my sufferings in this life is to make me more like Christ.  That is the purpose for you too if you know Jesus as your Lord and Savior.  He wants to shape us and mold us so that we become more and more like Christ.  We will not get there completely until we reach Heaven.

1Jn 3:2 NASB  Beloved, now we are children of God, and it has not appeared as yet what we will be. We know that when He appears, we will be like Him, because we will see Him just as He is.

We will be like Him.  What a thought!  We will be made complete in Jesus in the future.  Isn’t that another amazing thought, and something to look forward too.  My eyes are turned to the future; not on the past.  Listen to this:

2Co 5:21 NASB  He made Him who knew no sin to be sin on our behalf, so that we might become the righteousness of God in Him.

We are not just declared righteous when we become saved, but we have the hope that when we enter into Heaven we will become the righteousness of God in Christ.  We will become as holy, just, and righteous as God Himself.  That blows my mind away.  How can it be?  Only through God’s wondrous grace and mercy!

Below is a picture of the Second coming of Jesus Christ.  He comes out of Heaven as King of Kings and Lord of Lords to set up his Kingdom.  He is coming in judgement on mankind.  We will be following Him.  We will be riding white horses as He is, and we will be clothed in fine linen.  We are part of the armies of Heaven which is shown to us here. 

Rev 19:11-14 NASB  And I saw heaven opened, and behold, a white horse, and He who sat on it is called Faithful and True, and in righteousness He judges and wages war.  12  His eyes are a flame of fire, and on His head are many diadems; and He has a name written on Him which no one knows except Himself.  13  He is clothed with a robe dipped in blood, and His name is called The Word of God.  14  And the armies which are in heaven, clothed in fine linen, white and clean, were following Him on white horses.

Now my heart is just about busting open with thankfulness!  We have a wonderful, exciting, beyond our imagination or comprehension,  future with our Lord Jesus.  We can’t even fathom  the things to come.  Believe me the future won’t be boring. 

Oh, Lord, thank you for saving my soul!

Thank You Lord for saving my soul,
Thank You Lord for making me whole.
Thank You Lord for giving to me,
Thy greatest salvation, so rich and so free.

thankful

 

 

 

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