Category: Abide in Him

Unreasonable expectations


In today’s world every person on Earth looks for something or someone who is unreasonable, impossible even because we are looking for that “perfect specimen”. We not only look for an immortal beauty but we want her to be strong but gentle and one who can fulfill all of our desires and our needs. No woman or man exists which can fulfill these expectations! Sometimes we get these ideas from watching movies or reading books like romance novels or maybe some other form of lesser entertainment.

But…perfection in all areas doesn’t exist in this mortal plane. There isn’t a man or woman on Earth who can be all of these and be in love with us because each of us is also imperfect. If the perfect man or woman exists then anyone or anything less than perfection, such as you and me, just won’t cut it! It is something which we learn as young adults usually to our own peril and disappointment.

Just as Galatea and Pygmalion, we too are bound by expectation and disappointment to some extent. In the story, he prays for her to be made into a woman who is like his ideal and his goddess grants his request. In reality, unless perfection is mated to perfection, the relationship is doomed to fail because an imperfect being, such as you or me, cannot fulfill the expectations of the other.

God can change you into a new creation when He comes to live in your heart, but until you are brought to Heaven there will always be a human who fails and falls in this life. Is it possible to have perfection in this mortal body? No, it is not. It is an unreasonable expectation of our existence to even think that it is possible.

Even God cannot look on us and we cannot look Him in the face without dire consequences. Perfect love and sinless Life cannot stand in our presence without causing our death because we are unable to be perfect in any of those areas. Perfection doesn’t exist in this realm of existence and since God exists outside our reality it only exists where He is. Did God expect too much of mankind? No, because He knew when He created them that they could not be obedient in all of their imperfect ways.

God does give us an image, an ideal to work toward in the person of Jesus Christ, and we can strive toward that goal but in this life we will never attain it. Learning about Jesus, following hard after Him in this life, reading and studying Scripture and prayer asking Him to grant us wisdom enough to understand Scripture’s true meaning, these are the works which guide us toward Him and His image.

As long as we don’t create an imperfect, human inspired image of Him, changing Jesus into a more attainable human ideal then we will do fine. If we do that then we are guilty of creating an idol of our own which resembles Jesus only in our minds, because it is not Him but an imperfect copy. Our copy or idea of Jesus or even God is based upon the only form that we are familiar with and that is ourself.

“But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well.” Matthew 6:33

Why don’t relationships work?


Truly the reason that this happens is because of the foundation. Many marriages begin on the wrong foot and certainly on sand or loose gravel for a foundation. Why do we pursue a relationship that ultimately will fail?

IAM-JesusWe do this because we haven’t found the Relationship which can’t fail. We are born searching for something or Someone but for years we search and look for things and people to fill that void, that empty place which always feels as if it needs…to be filled. It is a scientific principle which states quite accurately that “nature abhors a vacuum”. At some point, something will fill that space whether it is good or bad, God or Satan, it doesn’t matter which, but it will be filled.

If we try to fill it with a career or a family, that can work for a while but it isn’t permanent. If we try to fill it with drugs or alcohol, our life and our relationships are doomed to fail because those things are designed to destroy whatever they come in contact with! But…if we will seek out our Savior, Jesus the Christ, and repent of the attempts which we have tried before, and ask Him to come in and clean our heart up, then our life will be placed on the right path.

Following Him, learning about Him by reading and studying the Bible, praying about your family and your problems, all of these will begin to fix your pathway and your life in such a way that your foundation will become complete and solid. When this happens, your relationship with your spouse and your family will begin to level out and become less bumpy and more smooth. This is the foundation which should guide our lives today but we tend to follow along with the rest of the crowd at school or church, if we go at all.

If everyone at school or at church is just going along to get along for the sake of being thought of as a “pillar of the community”, that is the wrong reason. Trying to earn a place in the eyes of people and “fair weather friends”, no matter how you earn it, doesn’t help you in the long run. Why? Because it isn’t built on God’s foundation which is Jesus.

You can decide to ignore this advice if you wish or just don’t read this at all, it doesn’t hurt my feelings one way or the other. But…what if I am right. When your life is going to hell on a slippery slope, which of your friends could possibly pull you out of it? A rich kid that you went to school with? No, they are likely off enjoying life just as they think they should. What about your dear friend from work? Not likely, they come home feeling even more tired than they did last year.

The only One Who can get your life back on the right path and give you strength enough to make it through all of your trouble is Jesus. No other religion or “holy man” or prophet can do that because all of them are dead! He is alive at the Father’s right hand and He is able to help you in your time of need. Seek Him out and make sure that He is your foundation and your Solid Rock, your Savior. Because without Him, we can do nothing.

Get your relationship with God and His Son, Jesus, right and the rest of your life will be so much better than it has ever been before.

Relationships and feelings


In this life we have many relationships. With family, friends, children, spouses, exes and also with God, so which one of those should we concentrate on? It depends. Which relationship is the most important to you?

As a Christian, your relationship with Jesus should be the most important followed by your spouse and family and then your friends. But, do we look at our lives that way? Many of us are so caught up in life until our relationships with most of these that I listed kinda falls by the wayside. We get caught up in careers and paying bills and taking care of children and parents, trying to put on a show of being a Christian while living the best we can outside the church.

So what can we do? Well…first you have to get your priorities straight. Which of those that are part of your life is the most important? Some would say our children and our spouse or family. They are important but are they the MOST important? First, you have to get your life under His authority, seeking Him daily, learning more of His Ways and His Character by reading and studying the Bible. If your relationship with God isn’t what it should be, then the rest of your life isn’t going to be any better either.

The Israelites found this out on many occasions. They would listen to their leaders and follow God for a while, then when their judge or their King who was following God’s lead died, they would go back to worshiping false gods. Then they would be punished and get into bondage of some sort and after a while they would cry out to God. He would send someone to deliver them and for a while all was good…until their deliverer died. Then the process would begin again.

We, in the New Testament Church, are NO different. We come to Jesus and on some days everything is good, then our health has a hiccup. We go to the doctor and find something that may be bad, something which is going to cause a real problem in life. Sometimes it is a family member who gets the message or has a wreck or maybe even a problem in a marriage. All of these are problems and arrows which are slung at you from Satan. He hates you because you are willing to follow Jesus, you are willing to belong to the King!

He tried to knock Job out of his faith, he has tried this same tactic with so many in the church and at some churches. He has broken marriages, he has broken churches, he has broken pastors but we need to bring our faith into today, We need to graft our faith into the Vine of Jesus the Christ, our Messiah! He is the One who gives us strength, He is the One Who can make those diagnosis’ go away, He can fix a crumbling relationship IF it can be fixed. Give it to Him, pray over it continually and then watch Him work!

Are you angry with God?


Let no one say when he is tempted, “I am being tempted by God,” for God cannot be tempted with evil, and he himself tempts no one. But each person is tempted when he is lured and enticed by his own desire. (James 1:13–14)

angerMany of us get angry when God doesn’t answer a prayer the way that we want Him to, but consider that He doesn’t have to answer your prayer the way that you want! God is Who He is and it is His prerogative and His desire to do great and mighty things with you and for you, but He doesn’t answer to you! We should not be angry with our Creator at all because it is His grace and mercy which keeps us and the rest of the universe in balance and alive.

“Count it all joy, my brothers, when you meet trials of various kinds, for you know that the testing of your faith produces steadfastness” (James 1:2–3)

Life is full of disappointments but most of the time, those things which didn’t go our way are not God’s denial of something for you. Usually it is because of OUR attitude or our prayer life or lack of one. It seems that many so-called “preachers” teach that God can be bargained with or forced to give you what YOU want in life. Seriously? You or I can’t force the Creator of the universe to DO anything! He will bless you in the way that HE sees as best for your life and your situation, NOT the way that you want it.

God is not your grandfather, nor is He like Santa either! He blesses us with life every day that we wake up and gives us the energy and ability to do our job regardless of what that job may be. If you are a pastor like I am, then He gives you the words which are needed to encourage others to come to know Jesus and to learn more about Him. Which is where all of these posts have come from. I certainly couldn’t come up with this stuff on my own!

Being angry with God does you no good at all. In fact it will quench the Holy Spirit’s actions in your life. Why would you be angry with God after all? It may be that your child has died or your doctor has given you a diagnosis which is not good. Being angry with God for any reason is like being angry with a tree because it sits in a certain place, you could cut the tree down but other than that what good does your anger do? Anger toward God is like being angry with a wall of concrete. You can’t get rid of it, you can’t push it down and beating against it won’t do anything except hurt yourself. God loves you, regardless of your anger or your hate toward Him. Seek Him out and learn about His patience and love for mankind.

God can do all things which we cannot, but don’t expect Him to give you the desires of your heart if it doesn’t bring glory and honor to Him. When your will aligns with His, then your prayers in Jesus’ name will be fulfilled!

Church?


Today we look at buildings, great and small and call them our church or “the church”. What is the Church? Truthfully it is the people who worship God. It doesn’t matter if it is in a tent or a cathedral, it is the people who make up the church. Just as it was after Jesus went to be with the Father, it was the people who believed in Him and worshiped Him that made up the Church. It was NOT a building at all! Some did worship in a building, like other believer’s homes, but it didn’t really matter about the place of worship as much as it mattered about the hearts of those who came to worship!

You can come to church, to a building, for many years and play the part of a Christian from the time you are a child in Sunday school on up into your 90’s. That doesn’t make you a Christian, only belief in Jesus and a daily walk with Him can do that. Belief comes first, then the desire to worship Him and then the desire to learn more about Him and baptism is mixed in there as well but my point here is that you can live in a cardboard box and still worship Jesus! The building made of bricks and mortar and wood and sometimes steel beams is just a structure…it is the people who attend services and worship God in that building that make up the Church!

God is doing many miracles even today that many don’t recognize or may not know about because the media doesn’t report on things which happen without the influence of science. Unless it was something which was so BIG that they had to report on it, miracles go unnoticed by the majority of people and news organizations…but they still happen.

If you are not a believer in Jesus or God and you have everything that you need, you probably think that you will never need God even if He exists. But what about when you go to the doctor and he finds a mass or a spot on your lungs or your liver and it turns out that it is cancer, stage 4, and there is little he can do. What then?

You could just lie down and die or you could search the whole world for some treatment which may help. The best cure for this cancer is in the person and the power of Jesus! Cry out to Him, seek His Presence and learn more of Him. Why? Because He loves you! Praying that He will take the cancer away is not the answer, asking Him to come into your life and your heart and make you a new person is!

Could He cure you of the cancer? Yes, He can. I don’t know if He will and I am not going to tell you that He will, but your life will be so much more with Him in your heart even if He doesn’t. Why do I say this? Because your friends will see the change that He has brought into your life and they will likely want what you have. He will give you peace, even when your life is getting worse OR He may heal you and take the cancer out of your body. Then you can tell people what an awesome God He is!

They will ask you why do you believe now when you didn’t before? Because the Creator came and took my sins away and destroyed the cancer and I am alive to tell it, that’s why!! God loves each of us but we have a rebellious spirit inside of us from the day we are born. Until we realize that He is the answer to all of life’s questions and our problems too, we won’t seek Him out. We will keep doing what we did yesterday or last week or last year, but when our heart and soul tells us that we need Jesus we will seek Him out.

Give your life and your heart to Jesus because He gave His life for you! One day soon everyone will see Him and then many will either ask Him to save them or they will hate Him with an unreasonable hatred. Your life is terribly short compared to eternity, make sure of yours before you enter into it.

Romans 8:23: And not only they, but ourselves also, which have the firstfruits of the Spirit, even we ourselves groan within ourselves, waiting for the adoption, to wit, the redemption of our body. The link for this passage has many of the Scriptures which will show you that you do need Jesus, if you will seek HIm for your salvation. I pray that you and all who read this will do so before your day comes.

All religions are not the same


In some circles it seems that religions are all thrown into the same pile, regardless of belief or the God or gods being worshiped. Many don’t seem to notice or care that some of those religions are or were created by man, out of man’s mind and not inspired by God Himself! Satan and his forces have been doing this since the beginning, and they are so good at it until the religions that were created by men who were acting under the influence or guidance of demons are accepted world-wide.

Yet, Christianity and Judaism are ridiculed and marginalized because we worship God the Creator of all!

The Bible tells of a time that people will look to their own wisdom instead of His. They will seek out teachers who tell them what they want to hear and make them feel good about themselves. Sound like any “teacher” that you may have seen on TV or heard about? God loves humanity, all of us, not just Christians and Jews. But the salvation and forgiveness of sins comes from belief in Jesus and His death and resurrection and your repentance from those sins.

We are living in troubling times where men do atrocious crimes. Murder, pedophilia, child molestation and slavery for sex…the list could go on and on. The point of this is that we live in a time just like Jesus described to His disciples where the world and the people in it are very much like those in the days of Noah. They didn’t call on God nor believe in Him and didn’t care about anyone except themselves. Sounds very familiar doesn’t it?

God’s love for us is what is keeping your life and mine on a path toward our futures. What that future is exactly, nobody knows for sure except for God. Each decision which you and I make is not controlled by God but is guided by Him. After your salvation you are happy and joyful at having your salvation. Then many people seem to get into a rhythm of going to church and going home then work and then repeat.

The problem with this is that we are supposed to be progressing just like a child or baby. The apostle Paul said it best when he chastised the church at Corinth about still being babes when they should be learning the meat of God’s Word! It is a fact that you can’t progress in your Christian life and walk with Christ if you don’t pray and learn His Wisdom from the Bible.

Being a Christian is a process just like any journey it begins with a step. The first step is accepting Jesus as your Lord and Savior then you have to take the next step and learn about Him from His Word. Study it daily and seek His Wisdom from it with prayer and sometimes fasting. The more that you learn about Him, you will realise that there is more to know about Him. You will never graduate from learning about Him until you are in Heaven. Then you will know and be known fully and completely.OnlyJesus

Who will lead us?


mygodisawesomeIn the world today there are many people who seem to be clamoring for a chance to be a leader in some fashion. Some are not worthy to lead a song, let alone a country, but that doesn’t stop them from being in a position of power if they can manage it. Power is seductive and it corrupts those who thought they were good, decent people particularly if they don’t have a strong foundation of values to stand on.

The lack of teaching from the Bible in America specifically has caused a terrible vacuum of responsibility and accountability in our country, but it seems that the majority don’t want this book as their compass in life. Most seem to be bent on doing their own thing, again. Like those who did this almost fifty years ago, doing your own thing is fine until it impacts on the rest of us. Today we are at the mercy of those who fought against the “establishment” and “the man” back in the day. The problem is that now they are part of it!

So much is happening and will happen in the future until we should be taking note of the things which are happening in the news today. It is part of prophecy and we need to be telling others of it and watching closely for the signs of Christ’s return.

The leaders of the world seem to be intent on doing almost anything to keep religion, in particular the Christian religion, out of government. The Bible has so much good advice for those who are in power yet they won’t listen to it or read it to gain that wisdom. Why? Because, they are trying to fit into the normal way of the world around us and politics seems to have nothing to do with religion for the most part. In the Middle East, religion and politics go hand in hand but that is a totally different culture from most of the world.

God places governments and their leaders in their positions in order to fulfill His purposes, whether we take notice of this in His Word or not. He raised up Pharaoh for the purpose of humiliating the gods of Egypt. God raised up Darius also as well as Nebuchadnezzar for His purposes. The Bible should be leading us toward our future regardless of which leader may be in power. Yet…today few people pay much attention to a book of Israelite history and religion because of the Person named in it as Messiah, Jesus the Son of God!

Seek out leaders who will acknowledge Jesus as their Savior because if they aren’t following Him, then who or what are they following? Themselves or some man-made god or religion?

 

Which god do you follow?


This is not the way that I refer to the God of Abraham from the Bible, but many people seem to look at God as just one more to add to the number of “gods”. He isn’t that at all! He is the Creator, our Creator and the God of All things! All created things in heaven and on Earth and under the Earth were made by Him, not some man-made god which came from someone’s imagination.

OnlyJesusThe hypocrisy needs to stop! Many people seem to be trying to merge Jesus and Islam because He is mentioned in the Koran. Some Christians are trying, very successfully, to merge new age thinking and Christian ideals as well. Some of this is even being taught from the pulpit! Why would anyone want to go to a church which teaches man’s wisdom, such as it is, and gives it equal validity with the Bible? Cults do this all of the time and get away with it, but many of their members are so ingrained in the teaching until they can’t tell the difference.

God told the Israelites that this would happen if they allowed their children to intermarry with those who lived in Canaan or the Promised Land. Which is why He told them to utterly destroy the people there and take over their lands, getting rid of all of the idols and groves and things which might draw them away from Him. It is happening in the church today in some countries, particularly in America.

Why can’t we get back to believing the Bible and teaching from it because it is the Word of God? I believe it is because we have compromised for two or three decades, maybe more, and we have become too tolerant of lifestyles and sins which our grandparents would not have allowed in the door of their church. “But, didn’t Jesus associate with sinners and others?”; yes, He did, but He didn’t agree with them or their lifestyle. He didn’t tolerate their beliefs, He told them that they were to “worship God and serve Him only”, it is true that in this particular instance Jesus was talking to Satan, but the Scripture that He quoted came from Deuteronomy 6:13.

Jesus also said that “the sick need a doctor, not those who are well“, and He was referring to those who were sinners needing Him rather than the Pharisees and the Scribes who didn’t think that they needed salvation. The point of this is that Jesus does love and care about all of humanity, but He doesn’t agree with our sinful lives nor our behavior. We are to seek Him out and come to Him for our salvation, not go to man-made religions and “gods” who are NOT God at all!

I pray that all of you who read this will see that I am not judging any sin or person, rather I write this to point you to the One Who can save your soul from the second death of being in darkness and away from God forever. Thank you for visiting.

Words and meanings


There are many different ways to say things, particularly in our media driven world today. Although you need to be careful of the things that you say in certain places, whether it is on social media sites or commenting on news sites, even in sending an email. Words once spoken cannot be unspoken or taken back, so the hurt that they cause can be just as devastating as a bomb and the damage can be lingering as well. Pastors and politicians have to consider this as well as teens and young adults. Small children say things which are hurtful at times but they don’t understand why it is hurtful.

All of us should realize that is the reason which God gave us two ears and one mouth and tongue. We should listen twice as much as we speak, but also we should consider (think about) what we will say before we say it, if possible. This is a failing which humanity has had since the beginning of spoken language and it really hasn’t changed much since that time.

The truth which we have access to in God’s Word is also littered with words and phrases which we should take as God’s wisdom and incorporate into our life. Learning about God and about His promises is not enough. Just as learning about history is not enough, we need to retain it so that the mistakes which were made in the past are not repeated in the future. We are given a very unusual task which is to tell others about salvation. Not so much for our life and being but for their eternity.

Telling others about Jesus and the offer of salvation is something which Christians should do just as easily as breathing, yet most of us shy away from it as if it causes us pain. Why is that? If you had something spectacular to happen in your life which didn’t involve religion or Jesus, wouldn’t you shout it out to nearly everyone you know? Some of us wouldn’t, by many would.

As Christians, believers in Jesus and His atonement for us, we have been given the most wonderful gift imaginable…the gift of salvation, forgiveness and eternal life! No amount of money, gold, silver or otherwise precious stones or metal can compare to those gifts which we are recipients of! Although, we can’t produce something tangible to show others if they ask about the reason for our joy in Christ, it still needs to be a conversation starter.

Here is a sampling of Scriptures which detail the path to salvation, I pray that you will consider it and become a child of God soon:

1. We must acknowledge God as the Creator of everything, accepting our humble position in God’s created order and purpose. Romans 1:20-21

“For since the creation of the world His invisible attributes are clearly seen, being understood by the things that are made, even His eternal power and Godhead, so that they are without excuse, because, although they knew God, they did not glorify Him as God, nor were thankful, but became futile in their thoughts, and their foolish hearts were darkened.”

2. We must realize that we are sinners and that we need forgiveness. None of us are worthy under God’s standards. Romans 3:23

“For all have sinned, and fall short of the glory of God.”

3. God gave us the way to be forgiven of our sins. He showed us His love by giving us the potential for life through the death of His Son, Jesus Christ. Romans 5:8

“But God demonstrates His love toward us, in that, while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.”

4. If we remain sinners, we will die. However, if we repent of our sins, and accept Jesus Christ as our Lord and Savior, we will have eternal life. Romans 6:23

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

5. Confess that Jesus Christ is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead and you are saved. Romans 10:9-10

“That if you confess with your mouth the Lord Jesus and believe in your heart that God has raised Him from the dead, you will be saved. For with the heart one believes unto righteousness, and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation.”

6. There are no other religious formulas or rituals. Just call upon the name of the Lord and you will be saved! Romans 10:13

“For whoever calls on the name of the LORD shall be saved.”

7. Determine in your heart to make Jesus Christ the Lord of your life today. Romans 11:36

The writer of this letter to the Roman church, Paul, was a persecutor of the faith which the disciples had after Jesus was resurrected. He put some in prison and at other times he stood by while the believers were stoned to death. Until his conversion by Jesus on the road to Damascus, he was known as Saul but afterward he changed his name to Paul and became the greatest missionary of the New Testament church. We should try to follow his example.

Short days and short times


It has been almost two millennia since the time of Jesus and His disciples and His prophecy concerning the end of the age , yet people don’t seem to be concerned. Even with many of the signs already shown and seen in years past, as well as the signs which are in front of us every day. When I say that the days are short I am not speaking of days like in the winter when the Sun seems to go down not long after it comes up. I am speaking prophetically of the time in which we are living.

It is true that many don’t believe that we live in these particular times, but in fact we do. There are many signs in the heavens which God has used recently which point toward this time, as our generation is called the “terminal generation”. Yet, most of the people in the world today don’t want to acknowledge the truth of what is going on around them. Even if they recognize that these signs are true and occurring almost on a daily basis!

I don’t bring this up to attempt to scare people into church or make you fearful enough to seek out the truth in the Bible, although you should be doing this anyway. What I am saying about this period of time is that we don’t know how long we have. It could be a couple of months or a few years yet, but just as the virgins in the parable, we need to be ready when the Bridegroom comes. Not sitting around twiddling our thumbs but watching for Him in Scripture and in our everyday lives.

Praying every day, seeking His wisdom concerning these times and those around us who are in need of His love and compassion. Telling those who are in need of salvation about Jesus is the mission which we have in these times. If they don’t want to receive Jesus, then tell someone else and move on. It is imperative that we keep telling as many as will listen because very soon, they will be on their own in a world which will not tell them of Jesus and will kill anyone who does profess faith in Him!

God loves humanity, but His patience is drawing to a close. The Spirit will strive with man for a while longer and yes there will be a few who accept Jesus during the Tribulation, but they will be in the minority when they do. I pray that most of you who read this will accept Him before this time has come. If you have not, then I will be praying for you from the balcony of Heaven. I hope that God might allow me to come to Earth during this time and help guide those who have given their lives to Jesus, because they will need the help.

I am not special. I am a sinner just as you were or maybe still are, but I am forgiven and that makes the difference. Please, if you are seeking your Savior, read the Bible and pray about giving your life to Him, asking Him to come in and change your life from the inside out.