Category: when you feel His call in your heart

We are loved…


As God’s creation, we are loved and we have been loved by Him since before the Earth was formed or even before light came into the universe. Isn’t that amazing? God loves you and me! The depth of His love toward all of humanity was not known until Jesus came into the world about two thousand years ago and He embodied God’s love toward humanity. He went around the sea of Galilee with His message of love, forgiveness, healing and the promise of an eternity with Him. What more could we need or ask for?

Here on Earth, many people search for more money or fame or stuff but what good does all of that do? All that it does for us is cause more worries and headaches and stress and at the end of your life…someone else gets it and most likely they will sell it or auction it off. The eternity which God offers us is worth far more than anything we can have here. We will have a home and a life with most of our loved ones. I say most because there are going to be some who either didn’t accept Jesus in this life or they walked away from Him and His offer of salvation. I know, that sounds like the same thing but it isn’t.

Some people won’t accept His offer of grace and salvation but they may finally accept it right before their death (if they have the time). Many will hear the message at some point but they will determine that it just isn’t for them and they will walk away and likely never darken the door of a church again. The thing is that only God knows your heart and their hearts so whatever choice you may make in this life, make sure that it is a sure one by walking with Him during your life and leaving your old sinful life behind. Why do I say this? Because other people need to know that your life has changed and you have changed! Your life should be a witness to others for Jesus whether you say anything to them about salvation or not.

That is what Jesus meant when He said for us to “take up your cross and follow Me“. In the passage which is linked here, He says to “deny yourself” which is exactly what you think it is. Deny or turn away from your old ways of living and follow Him by prayer and study of the Bible. People usually look at me funny when I say that they need to study the Bible, but I am not saying that you have to write it out word for word. I only mean that you should pray over what you read daily, just a chapter or two a day and you will read all of it in about a year. If you make it a habit like I have, going a day without it will feel strange.

Reading God’s Word daily is like walking with Him every day because you learn more about Him as you read His Word. Granted there are two books which are very difficult to understand or even know what they offer for our life today but they are necessary. Those books are Leviticus and Numbers. They deal with the Priesthood of Israel and the number of people in each tribe and how much is to be sacrificed to pay for certain sins, etc. What are they good for today? These two books show us how impossible it is to live a holy life, blameless before God without the Holy Spirit guiding us every day.

Make sure of your relationship with Jesus while there is time and opportunity to do so, because after your last breath the chance is gone.

Consider the sparrows…


They don’t work for their food or for their shelter yet God provides for them. He even knows when one of them falls to the ground. God has more love for us than for them, so don’t worry about what you will eat or what to wear. God has even numbered the hairs on our heads so if He cares enough for other parts of His Creation to take care of them, won’t He take care of us as well?

God has also named every star in the heavens and He knows where each one is because He hung it there. All of the atoms and elements in the universe are tuned by God so that life can exist here. So why do so many people think that He doesn’t care about them or each one of us? He has always cared for us and He knew each of us from the beginning of time yet there are many who won’t believe it today. Eternity is going to be very lonely and painful if you don’t know Him and believe in Jesus for your salvation.

Confessing Christ

(Luke 12:8-12)

32Whosoever therefore shall confess me before men, him will I confess also before my Father which is in heaven.33But whosoever shall deny me before men, him will I also deny before my Father which is in heaven.

The Sword of the Gospel

(Luke 12:49-53)

34Think not that I am come to send peace on earth: I came not to send peace, but a sword. 35For I am come to set a man at variance against his father, and the daughter against her mother, and the daughter in law against her mother in law. 36And a man’s foes shall be they of his own household.

Take up Your Cross

(Matthew 16:24-28; Mark 8:34-38; Luke 9:23-27)

37He that loveth father or mother more than me is not worthy of me: and he that loveth son or daughter more than me is not worthy of me. 38And he that taketh not his cross, and followeth after me, is not worthy of me. 39He that findeth his life shall lose it: and he that loseth his life for my sake shall find it.

The Reward of Service

(2 Kings 4:8-17)

40He that receiveth you receiveth me, and he that receiveth me receiveth him that sent me. 41He that receiveth a prophet in the name of a prophet shall receive a prophet’s reward; and he that receiveth a righteous man in the name of a righteous man shall receive a righteous man’s reward. 42And whosoever shall give to drink unto one of these little ones a cup of cold water only in the name of a disciple, verily I say unto you, he shall in no wise lose his reward.

If you have given your heart to Jesus and have been following Him in your daily life, you will not fear death nor anything which may happen in the future. Your future, your eternity is sure and you will spend it with Him. If you have not followed Jesus in your life and have decided that salvation is not something you want then your eternity is sure too, but it will be in hell with the rest of those who have rebelled against God. Make sure of what you believe and Who you believe in.

Do you believe in God?


According to a poll which was taken recently, over half of the people who believe in God do not believe in God as described in the Bible, God’s Word! Huh? Yes, the poll was taken about a year ago but how can you believe in God and not believe in the God of the Bible? God is the Creator and our Savior as well and He is described in His Word as God the Father, God the Son and God the Holy Spirit. So how can you decide to “not believe” in God as described in the Bible?

Is it because you don’t like Him or what He asks people to do? I looked at the picture which they had on the link above and it shows clearly how America’s belief breaks down. Here it is:

So how can this be in a country which claims to be Christian in it’s belief system? What happened in our churches or the sermons which people have heard? Have they heard a sermon preached from the Bible or was it just a pep talk about how they feel with a few scriptures thrown in for good measure?

I know that prayer and the Bible were taken out of our education system over fifty years ago but that can’t be the only reason which is making this kind of impact on our culture! College professors are teaching their own agendas in class and much of that is against any sort of Christian ideas. Then there are the other parts of our culture like movies and TV shows which push their agenda of unbiblical ideas and ideas which go against the Ten Commandments. All of this is piling up in our daily lives with our children watching these shows, unless we turn the TV off or just don’t have one in the house.

How can we fight this? By teaching our children from God’s Word and by preaching from God’s Word too. If we don’t teach our children from God’s Word, how will they know what God says about our sinful ways of living? People will never know what sin is unless they are taught from God’s Word and His laws which are what our laws are based upon.

If nobody goes into the world to tell others about God and His will for their lives, how will they know? Until preachers and teachers tell others about Jesus and God and His laws which have been a part of our world for over two thousand years the percentage of true believers will keep going down.

Jesus is coming back soon and until people know it and know why He is returning nobody will be expecting His return. Which means when it does happen, it will terrify the entire world even those who have heard it at least once in church. I pray that those who don’t believe in Him or have never heard this will seek Him while there is still time.

Jesus is Coming

6And he said unto me, These sayings are faithful and true: and the Lord God of the holy prophets sent his angel to shew unto his servants the things which must shortly be done.

7Behold, I come quickly: blessed is he that keepeth the sayings of the prophecy of this book.

8And I John saw these things, and heard them. And when I had heard and seen, I fell down to worship before the feet of the angel which shewed me these things. 9Then saith he unto me, See thou do it not: for I am thy fellowservant, and of thy brethren the prophets, and of them which keep the sayings of this book: worship God.

10And he saith unto me, Seal not the sayings of the prophecy of this book: for the time is at hand. 11He that is unjust, let him be unjust still: and he which is filthy, let him be filthy still: and he that is righteous, let him be righteous still: and he that is holy, let him be holy still.

12And, behold, I come quickly; and my reward is with me, to give every man according as his work shall be. 13I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the end, the first and the last.

14Blessed are they that do his commandments, that they may have right to the tree of life, and may enter in through the gates into the city. 15For without are dogs, and sorcerers, and whoremongers, and murderers, and idolaters, and whosoever loveth and maketh a lie.

16I Jesus have sent mine angel to testify unto you these things in the churches. I am the root and the offspring of David, and the bright and morning star.

17And the Spirit and the bride say, Come. And let him that heareth say, Come. And let him that is athirst come. And whosoever will, let him take the water of life freely.

Nothing May Be Added

18For I testify unto every man that heareth the words of the prophecy of this book, If any man shall add unto these things, God shall add unto him the plagues that are written in this book: 19And if any man shall take away from the words of the book of this prophecy, God shall take away his part out of the book of life, and out of the holy city, and from the things which are written in this book.

20He which testifieth these things saith, Surely I come quickly. Amen. Even so, come, Lord Jesus.

21The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you all. Amen.

Are you looking for your Savior?


The Lord will seek you out as well, but if you know that you need Jesus, don’t wait! Seek Him! Our world is rapidly moving toward the time which is described in the book of Revelation known as the Tribulation. Will people come to know Jesus during this time? Yes, they will, even though it will be dangerous for those who choose to worship Jesus. Because, during this time most will choose to worship the leader of the world, the Anti-Christ. They will choose because of his charismatic nature but also because if they do not take his mark and worship him they will be killed by beheading.

 

Why is this happening? 

This is happening because it was foretold in God’s Word. It is happening because we have pushed God and prayer and the Bible out of our children’s education and out of many homes. It is happening because even though we, as Americans, call ourselves “Christians” we don’t live as Christians. We claim to know God and we do know about Him but many in our country don’t attend church except once or twice a month or even twice a year or so. And then there is the fact that many people don’t read the Bible. Some have read a little of it at church or when getting ready for a Bible study, but I am speaking of daily reading and studying it. You can never find God’s will for your life if you don’t read the Bible because His will for every Christian is contained in His Word.

Are you seeking your Savior?

Have you felt God’s Spirit touch your soul and convict you of the fact that you need Jesus? Do you want Him in your life or will you just ask Him to leave you alone and decide that you can live your life just fine without Him? Our world is doing exactly that today. Many people try to read it and they can’t make sense of it but without faith, without Jesus in their heart, God’s Word is nonsense. It can be clear to you but unless you are looking for Jesus and seeking Him, you still may not understand it. There are times when we “act” like a Christian and go to church and read our Bible but playing a part, acting like a Christian doesn’t bring you salvation. Nothing that we do on our own can bring salvation into our lives.

Jesus is the only pathway to Heaven. Belief in Him and giving your life to Him along with repentance from our sinful ways is the only way to be forgiven and gain His righteousness to get into Heaven. Being a born-again Christian is not hard to do IF you allow Jesus to enter your life completely and change you from the sinner that you were into the child of God that you can be. It is only with His Spirit in your heart that you can be a Christian in the truest sense. You can’t do it on your own. There is no amount of money or work which will accomplish the change for you. Only by surrendering your heart and your life to Him to allow a total change in your being can you really live as a Christian.

Seek Him as your Savior and trust Him to save you from your sinful ways because only then will your life change because you have changed from the inside out. He paid the price for your sinful life so all you need to do in order to receive your new life is to believe in Him and grow in your faith after receiving Him.

Amen

Is your culture Christian?


In some areas of our country and in some other countries, there are cultures which have had access to a church or a Bible for most of their lives. But, just because you have heard sermons and had access to a Bible, either at home or at church, for most of your life does that really translate into you being a Christian? In America those of us who live in the “Bible belt” of the South seem to be culturally “Christian” just because we have grown up in the church, regardless of the denomination. We have heard sermons and watched crusades on TV and may even watch Christian television occasionally. But are we more like Christ or do we have more in common with the priests and Pharisees of Jesus’ day?

Are we truly Christians or do we just know about Christianity and its trappings?

Reading the Bible at church and singing the worship songs is great but does it mean that you or I are Christians? Have we accepted Jesus as our Savior because we know that we can’t get into Heaven without faith in Him? Or are we just going through the motions because that’s what we’ve always done? Jesus condemned people who think they are Christians and yet they really aren’t. Read it here:

“Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only the one who does the will of my Father in heaven. On that day many will say to me, ‘Lord, Lord, didn’t we prophesy in your name,drive out demons in your name, and do many miracles in your name?’ Then I will announce to them, ‘I never knew you. Depart from me, you lawbreakers!’” (Matt. 7:21–23)

Performing good works and going to church and praying “in Jesus’ name” doesn’t mean that you are saved! Giving your life and your heart to Him and repenting of your sinful ways and then growing in that faith is the only real proof of being saved and born again into the family of God. By your faith and your growth in your faith after you accept Jesus as your Savior is the only proof of salvation. Just praying to God every day or so or reading the Bible occasionally is proof of nothing except that you know Who He is and that you have read the Bible.

Satan knows every word written in the Bible and he knows Who God and Jesus are, but he won’t give his life to them or serve them. He can be the best religious attendee at your church or mine but he will cause a rift in the church eventually. He can appear as an angel in light and speak the words of the Bible in your ears but he is not serving God. He is trying to get you away from God and your salvation.

Beware the “feeling” of the experience in a church service because it is deceptive. It can make you feel as if you felt something, but what did you feel? Emotions don’t produce salvation or true repentance from your sinful life. If the Holy Spirit has convicted you of your need for Jesus, please seek Him out at a Bible teaching church or a friend who can lead you to your Savior. Don’t turn away from Jesus and the Holy Spirit’s calling in your life. Just because you have been in church all of your life doesn’t mean that you are saved, it just means that you know about God and Jesus and Who they are. I pray that anyone seeking Jesus will look for Him in God’s Word diligently and make sure of your salvation while there is still time to do so.

Salvation


What is it and how do I get it?

For one thing, salvation is not something that you just go out and get. The only time that we even realize that we need salvation is when the Holy Spirit convicts your Spirit that it is necessary. Most of us tend to go through our teen years without a care in the world. Sometimes we even get through college without feeling the need for salvation. We live our days with sins which we may not recognize as such until we feel the need for Jesus in our lives

That conviction of our spirit usually comes from a sermon or a friend who witnesses to us about their salvation and how they have gained their freedom from sin.

So, where do you go from the point of learning that you need Jesus? To the Bible and to church. Learn more about your Savior. Seek Him and learn as much as you can about Him. Here are a few verses about salvation:

Ephesians 2:8-9 “For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God, not of works, lest anyone should boast.”

+ 2 Corinthians 5:21 “For He made Him who knew no sin to be sin for us, that we might become the righteousness of God in Him.”

+ Acts 16:30-31 “Sirs, what must I do to be saved?” So they said, “Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and you will be saved, you and your household.”

Life in eternity is what these verses are speaking of and telling you that you are welcome in God’s house. He would rather have you in Heaven than to condemn you to an eternity of punishment in hell. But unless you believe in Jesus for your salvation and turn from your sinful lifestyle, whatever it may have been.

Whom do you serve?


2 Chronicles 7:14, 19 says this:

If my people, which are called by my name, shall humble themselves, and pray, and seek my face, and turn from their wicked ways; then will I hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin, and will heal their land; verse 19-20 also says this: 19But if ye turn away, and forsake my statutes and my commandments, which I have set before you, and shall go and serve other gods, and worship them; 20Then will I pluck them up by the roots out of my land which I have given them; and this house, which I have sanctified for my name, will I cast out of my sight, and will make it be a proverb and a byword among all nations.

These words from God tell about blessings and curses which will be laid upon the nation which humbles themselves before God and serves Him or the nation which turns away and follows their own ways. Which of these is happening in America today? Few people in our country give God any thought. We want and do those things which we want to do regardless of the consequences. We want it now and there is no humbleness of heart toward God. We don’t think that we are sinners and we don’t need any salvation.

So which of these would you think that we are living in today? I think that we are reaping God’s curses. Not yet has God plucked up our nation and destroyed it but if we keep following this pathway we will reap those punishments from Him. It is not a hard thing to follow God and His laws but we don’t want to hear anything from the Word of God because it is the Truth. There is no defense against the truth but those who cannot stand the absolute Truth will not hear it. Because there is no argument which will be successful against the Truth.

God loves us and has blessed our nation for many years but we are coming to a time in which there will be much trouble and despair. Will we, as a nation and a people, humble ourselves and draw near unto God so that the blessings might continue? Only time will tell. If you look at the news and listen to our representatives in Washington, DC, I don’t think that anyone is ready to humble themselves before God. It seems that most want to mock the Bible and everything which it stands for. They seem to want to close the mouths of those who do believe in God and have faith in Him. We are living in a very sad state of being these days.

The pathway to Heaven doesn’t have many lanes and intersections, there is only one path and it is not very wide. It is only through your belief in and by giving your heart to Jesus and following Him every day that you may gain entry into that wonderful place. Many people and religions tell you that there are many paths which lead to eternity with God but there is only one and that is through Jesus. The other paths and roads lead in a direction which may seem to be moving toward heaven but the end of that road crumbles and you fall into hell.

Seek Jesus as your Savior and put your faith in Him because that is the only way to live in eternity with your friends and family who have gone on before you.

Trials and troubles…


All of us go through these at one point in our lives. Sometimes they actually help and sometimes the lesson which comes with them is hard to see, at first. As long as we go through them with our hope and our eyes on Jesus, depending on His strength and not our own then the outcome will be assured.

The problem comes to us when we think we can get through our trials without Him. We try to “do it myself”, and we get into a really big mess at that point. True, going it alone is part of the way that many people are taught to do but it’s not always the best option. The thing you need to remember is that God will allow you to go it on your own even though He knows what is best. Then when you do realize that “I messed this all up” you will turn to Him and just like a loving parent, He will guide you back to where you need to be.

Many people are too stubborn and prideful to allow Him to help them. Sometimes they won’t let anyone give them advice whether it is a friend or a pastor. They would rather suffer in their trials and troubles until one day they realize that they don’t need to do it this way anymore. It reminds me of the parable of the prodigal son. He wanted his inheritance and he wanted to live it up the way he wanted to without his father or his brother getting in the way (or so he thought).

If you have heard the story it goes like this: he went away with his inheritance and enjoyed it tremendously, until he ran out of money. Then there was a famine in the land and all of his new “friends” left him. He began to be “in want”. He got a job feeding swine and he was so hungry that he wanted to eat the food which he was feeding the swine. For a Jewish boy, this was the worst possible thing that he could do. Well to shorten the story, he went home and his father welcomed him with open arms and a party!

Many of us get so far down, just like he did, until there is no way to go but toward our Father in heaven. Which is exactly what the point of the story is. Our trials and troubles don’t define who we are and we shouldn’t allow them to. But in your life walking with Jesus as your Savior, you shouldn’t take your eyes off of Him either. If you don’t know Him as your Savior, the troubles which you have to go through may be His way of bringing you to the realization that you DO need Him in your life.

I hope that all who read this may come to know Jesus as your Lord and Savior. If you have any questions about being a Christian or want to know more, please don’t hesitate to leave it in the comments. Jesus died to pay the price for our sins and He is coming back soon to take His Church to be with HIm. I pray that you will be counted in that group and in eternity we can get to know one another. In His Love and grace until He comes again. Amen

Life ahead


Are you prepared for life ahead of you? Most people today are not. Mainly because they don’t see much life ahead of them, particularly if they have a terminal illness or maybe they are advanced in years. But God says that eternity is in front of us even after this body is gone. Jesus told the thief on the cross that he would be with Him in Paradise that day. The cross and the death which it brought was not the end of life. Even though it was the end of the body, the Spirit would live on into eternity.

Most of us seem to have trouble preparing for retirement for the end of our working years (so we are told). Many don’t save up or invest enough to carry us into our later years and we miss out on the travel and the “golden years” as they used to be called. Nowadays people are working at Walmart or some other part-time job just trying to make it during those years after the job that they may have been lucky enough to retire from. Some don’t even get that luxury. They are laid off at such a late age until finding a job is next to impossible.

Your life with Jesus in eternity is something which we should be preparing for well ahead of the time, even when we don’t know when we may die. We should still prepare for it and we should start doing so as soon as we hear the gospel message and determine that we truly need Jesus! Many of us have been in church since we were children especially if we live in the South, the so-called “Bible Belt”.

But do we prepare for crossing over into eternity?

Unfortunately, most of us don’t consider our mortality until a near miss on the highway or when we get a disturbing diagnosis from our doctor. Until some of our friends begin dying before we do, death is just not part of our thinking process. Then when our grandparents and our parents die, we begin to consider that our life could end at any time as well. Even then some of us still put off any kind of preparation for eternity. I suppose we think that we will have time to do it just before the end.

The people killed on 9/11/01 didn’t have any warning that they wouldn’t be going home that night. People who are killed in car wrecks don’t have time to “fess up” before the car flips over or a truck hits them. Most of the time people who have a heart attack don’t even have the time to do more than die. The end of our life usually takes us by surprise. So much so until there is no way to prepare for it or the eternity which comes after it unless you have done so by giving your life to Jesus ahead of time. I pray that anyone reading this will seek Him out as their Savior today because tomorrow is not promised to anyone.

The Word


Have you heard that Jesus was the Living Word made flesh? Considering that He was with the Father in the beginning and it was the Word of God which brought everything into existence, I would believe it! John’s gospel tells us that He was with God and the Word was God and He was manifested with us as a man, the only begotten of the Father.

He is our Savior and Lord and He is our Creator too. There are many people who don’t want to believe in Him or the grace and salvation that He brings to us and all we have to do to receive it is believe in Him for our salvation. Then, to grow in His Spirit, we should choose to follow Him, reading His Word and studying it to know Him better and to be known by Him. This site is my only way of reaching out to the world and I pray that anyone who may be searching will seek Jesus out as their Savior and believe!

God loves us and He has loved us since the very beginning. That is why the Seed of the woman was promised so many years ago. Jesus came as the Son of God through His love for us so that we could regain our place in His house and His garden one day. Living your life as if the Word of God is null and void only makes your eternity an endless point of pain and suffering. Not because of your sins but because of the simple decision which could’ve saved you from that place!

God never intended for humanity to go to that place of torment, at least that is what I believe. But by deciding to do things your way and not His way, you are aligning yourself with Satan and his rebels. Eternity in heaven is only a decision away and I encourage you to make that decision soon. None of us are guaranteed tomorrow let alone next week. Make sure of your eternal destination soon because you may not get another chance.

and three nails. He did this for you, don’t turn away from Him.