Stand fast in your faith!

Watch ye, stand fast in the faith, quit you like men, be strong. Let all your things be done with charity. 1 Corinthians 16:13‭-‬14 KJV https://bible.com/verse-of-the-day/1co.16.13-14/42331

Happiness and Joy

They seem to be words that have the same meaning don’t they? But there is a fundamental difference between the two. Joy can be felt and known even when you feel sad and depressed, happiness can only be felt when you feel happy. Your circumstances have an effect on happiness, but joy is not subject to feelings or circumstances. Joy is felt and known by those who know Who their salvation depends on and salvation can only be known and felt through Jesus Christ.

Christians have joy in their hearts because of the grace that we’ve been given through accepting Jesus as our Savior. We have the joy of being loved by our Creator because He wants to love us and not because of anything that we deserve. Because we don’t deserve His love, it is a gift by grace through faith in Him. The joy of salvation is something that the world around us cannot understand nor can it comprehend it at all. Salvation doesn’t make sense to the world around us but fellow believers know it and can feel the joy of being known and loved.

Happiness is dependent on our situation and our feelings and has very little to do with the source of our salvation. We derive happiness from food and our family and from paying off bills. Happiness is a very human feeling that is totally dependent on your situation and very little else. It can be taken away at any time so it is very fragile, while joy is eternal when your joy comes from your relationship with Jesus your Savior. No one can take your joy from you because it is only truly found in Jesus Christ. Once you have a relationship with Him, your joy in that relationship will be yours forever. The “joy of the Lord is your strength“!

No need to say more

Even a fool, when he holdeth his peace, is counted wise: And he that shutteth his lips is esteemed a man of understanding. Proverbs 17:28 KJV https://bible.com/verse-of-the-day/pro.17.28/74705

We all need revival…

I have seen a book for sale about America needing a revival but I don’t think it is just America that needs a revival. A revival is needed in America for sure but it is also needed by all Christians in the world. We have become complacent in our lives. Not necessarily our everyday lives but our Christian lives. We are too comfortable with just going to church and occasionally reading the Bible.

The problem that we face is coming from the spiritual world. The spirit of fear can close a church and it has done so. There are many spirits like this and many more which can attack us at home and at our churches but most of us don’t think that the spirit world, where the devil and his cohorts work from, even exists. We may hear about the Holy Spirit as the Third Person of the Trinity but considering the spirit world being around us is something that we only see or think about at a movie.

My point is to bring attention to the fact that all of us, as followers of Jesus, need to become more dedicated in our lives and in our own spiritual lives of learning His Word, following Him daily, ready in prayer at all times. The time that we are living in is very close to the end of the age as Jesus was telling His disciples. Read Jesus’ prophecy in Matthew 24. Read Daniel and Revelation chapters 1-5. Many of those prophecies are coming true almost daily. Take note of the actual news because it is lining up with prophecy.

What would you do?

Jesus said through the apostle Paul that we should love each other and be kind one to another. Is that happening today? I think if you are honest with yourself when you look around you or read a newspaper (if anyone does that anymore), then you know we aren’t being kind or considerate to each other…even in our churches. God knows every word and every thought that goes through your mind, whether you belong to Him or not, and we all will be held accountable for those thoughts and words.

So…what would you do? Would you pay for someone’s groceries or maybe a meal if you had the chance and the ability to do so? Would you do it without drawing attention to yourself? Life is short and many of us may not see another birthday so why can’t we be more like Jesus and treat everyone as if they are our brother or our sister? I don’t mean that we should be like a brother or sister to them, I mean we should be a brother or a sister in Christ to everyone we meet. At work or at the store or the gas station. Every little kindness can make a huge difference in someone’s life.

Today there are so many selfish people that you see and hear on the news and in other places until it looks like our world is getting worse, more evil than good. It also seems that there are more people looking out for just me, myself and I today. It is very sad to see this happening but it is also part of prophecy that points to the time that Jesus will come for His Bride, the church. It also shows that the time for His appearing is getting much closer than it has been.

God loves every person on Earth but He doesn’t approve of the way they are living. Some are living in sinful lifestyles. Some are worshiping “false gods”. Some don’t care to believe in God or religion of any kind but one day in the near future every person will bow before the King of Kings, even Satan himself. Not one person on this world is guaranteed the arrival of another birthday. I pray that everyone who reads this will seek out Jesus as their Savior and Lord because if you don’t do it in this life, there is no second chance when this life is over.

Our Hope

Thou art my hiding place and my shield: I hope in thy word. Psalm 119:114 KJV https://bible.com/verse-of-the-day/psa.119.114/61816

What do you believe?

In our world today, many people don’t want to believe the truth. They would rather believe the lies and deceit of those who tell them what they want to hear. They would rather believe a politician than a preacher who is telling them about the Savior that they need. God loves each of you! He doesn’t like the life that you lead or the lifestyle that you cling to because it is not the life that He designed you to live. We are destined by our Creator for a certain task and we only find out about that task and our ability to fulfill it if we give our heart and our life to Jesus.

Now, some of you might say that “I don’t care about that destiny stuff if it involves going to church all the time!” Christians don’t go to church all of the time! We only go to church when the doors are open. My point is this: your eternity depends upon your decision about your Savior. If you accept Jesus as your Savior then your eternity is sealed and you will seek to do and be whatever God wants you to be in this life and the next. If you choose not to accept Jesus when you feel His touch during a service or at a revival or watching a preacher on TV…that may be the last time you get to choose. None of us are guaranteed to wake up tomorrow morning. We may have a wreck on the highway tonight or we might have a stroke or a heart attack before tomorrow morning.

Does that put fear in your bones? I have been accused of trying to scare people into accepting Jesus as their Savior but that doesn’t work. You have to feel His conviction of your heart that you are a sinner, like all of us are, and that you need Him as your Savior right now…tonight. It is usually a call that feels like you need to do it right now before something happens. If you feel that at some point, please don’t walk away from it. This life is very short compared to eternity and no amount of money or things will buy your way into Heaven. The only currency accepted is that you surrendered your life to Jesus Christ and repented of your old sinful life and followed Him for the rest of your life, however long or short that might be.

Bear fruit worthy of Him

Abide in me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself, except it abide in the vine; no more can ye, except ye abide in me. John 15:4 KJV https://bible.com/verse-of-the-day/jhn.15.4/67130

Be merciful

Be ye therefore merciful, as your Father also is merciful. Luke 6:36 KJV https://bible.com/verse-of-the-day/luk.6.36/420

Think on good things

Finally, brethren, whatsoever things are true, whatsoever things are honest, whatsoever things are just, whatsoever things are pure, whatsoever things are lovely, whatsoever things are of good report; if there be any virtue, and if there be any praise, think on these things. Philippians 4:8 KJV https://bible.com/verse-of-the-day/php.4.8/58420