Discipleship

Three hindrances to discipleship are:
Material comforts
Family and friends
Our job

Christ must reign in our hearts without a rival. All other loves and loyalties must be secondary. God is my first love and in 2004 I put aside everything else to follow Him and He has blessed me because of it.

Joy

Joy doesn't have anything to do with happy circumstances, it has to do with looking into the face of God and knowing He's all we'll ever need.

Polygamy case going to court

Chief Justice Bauman should watch the following video, as should anyone trying to legalize polygamy on LDS religious grounds. LDS archaeologists and anthropologists trying to prove Mormonism actually disproved everything Joseph Smith and other Mormon prophets said as religious fiction. These same people later converted to Christianity.

http://sourceflix.com/the-bible-vs-the-book-of-mormon/

What is God's Will?

The will of God is that we:
Fear God;
Believe in His Son;
Be sanctified;
Rejoice always;
Pray continually;
Give thanks in all circumstances;
Respect those appointed to be in authority over us;
Respect all people;
Love the family of believers.

This is the confidence we have in approaching God: that if we ask anything according to his will, he hears us. 1 John 5:14

It is God’s will that you should be sanctified: that you should avoid sexual immorality; that each of you should learn to control your own body in a way that is holy and honorable, not in passionate lust like the pagans, who do not know God; and that in this matter no one should wrong or take advantage of a brother or sister. 1Thess 4:3

Rejoice always, pray continually, give thanks in all circumstances; for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus. 1 Thess 5:16-18

For the Lord’s sake, respect all human authority — whether the king as head of state, or the officials he has appointed. It is God’s will that your honorable lives should silence those ignorant people who make foolish accusations against you. Respect everyone, and love your Christian brothers and sisters. Fear God, and respect the king. 1 Peter 2

For my Father’s will is that everyone who looks to the Son and believes in him shall have eternal life. John 6:40

The Beatitudes

“God blesses those who are poor and realize their need for him,
for the Kingdom of Heaven is theirs.
God blesses those who mourn,
for they will be comforted.
God blesses those who are humble,
for they will inherit the whole earth.
God blesses those who hunger and thirst for justice,
for they will be satisfied.
God blesses those who are merciful,
for they will be shown mercy.
God blesses those whose hearts are pure,
for they will see God.
God blesses those who work for peace,
for they will be called the children of God.
God blesses those who are persecuted for doing right,
for the Kingdom of Heaven is theirs.

Pride - Don't live with regrets

Listening to a story on the radio about a father who was dying and he asked the nurse to call his daughter. They hadn't talked for a year and when the daughter got the news she rushed to the hospital only to find she was too late, her father had died just before she got there. Through her tears she told the nurse the last thing she had told her father when they had a fight a year before was that she hated him. She said she didn't really hate him, she was angry and let her pride get in the way.

How many of us get upset at something someone has said to us so we ignore them, don't talk to them, don't see them then when we find out they're dying wish we could make it up to them.

Several years ago my sister and I stopped speaking to each other over something, for two years. We were both too proud. When I finally called her we were both so happy to talk to each other neither one of us could remember why we had stopped talking in the first place.

Don't live with regrets. How many of us are too proud to say I'm sorry or I forgive you or ask for forgiveness? Pride - a high or inordinate opinion of one's own dignity, importance, merit, or superiority, whether as cherished in the mind or as displayed in bearing, conduct, etc.

Do not mock God

Do not be deceived: A man reaps what he sows.

Here are some men and women who mocked God:

John Lennon (Singer): Some years before, during his interview with an American Magazine, he said: 'Christianity will end, it will disappear. I do not have to argue about that. I am certain. Jesus was ok, but his subjects were too simple, today we are more famous than Him' (1966).

Lennon, after saying that the Beatles were more famous than Jesus Christ, was shot six times.


Tancredo Neves (President of Brazil): During the Presidential campaign, he said if he got 500,000 votes from his party, not even God would remove him from Presidency.

Sure he got the votes, but he got sick a day before being made President, then he died.


Cazuza (Bi-sexual Brazilian composer, singer and poet): During A show in Canecio (Rio de Janeiro), while smoking his cigarette, he puffed out some smoke into the air and said: 'God, that's for you.'

He died at the age of 32 of LUNG CANCER in a horrible manner.


The man who built the Titanic - After the construction of Titanic, a reporter asked him how safe the Titanic would be. With an ironic tone he said: 'Not even God can sink it'

The result: I think you all know what happened to the Titanic


Marilyn Monroe (Actress) She was visited by Billy Graham during a presentation of a show. He said the Spirit of God had sent him to preach to her. After hearing what the Preacher had to say, she said: 'I don't need your Jesus'.

A week later, she was found dead in her apartment.


Bon Scott (Singer) The ex-vocalist of the AC/DC. On one of his 1979 songs he sang: 'Don't stop me; I'm going down all the way, down the highway to hell'.

On the 19th of February 1980, Bon Scott was found dead, he had been choked by his own vomit.


Campinas (2005) In Campinas, Brazil a group of friends, drunk, went to pick up a friend..... The mother accompanied her to the car and was so worried about the drunkenness of her friends and she said to the daughter holding her hand, who was already seated in the car: 'My Daughter, Go With God And May He Protect You.'
She responded: 'Only If He (God) Travels In The Trunk, Cause Inside Here.....It's Already Full

Hours later, news came by that they had been involved in a fatal accident, everyone had died, the car could not be recognized what type of car it had been, but surprisingly, the trunk was intact. The police said there was no way the trunk could have remained intact. To their surprise, inside the trunk was a crate of eggs, none was broken


Christine Hewitt (Jamaican Journalist and entertainer) said the Bible (Word of God) was the worst book ever written.

In June 2006 she was found burnt beyond recognition in her motor vehicle.

Many more important people have forgotten that there is no other name that was given so much authority as the name of Jesus.

Many have died, but only Jesus died and rose again, and he is still alive.

The Covenant - The Story of My People

Very disappointing. The production in itself was fine but it totally missed the message of the New Covenant Jesus gave to the people of Israel.

Luke 22:20
In the same way, after the supper He (Jesus) took the cup, saying, “This cup is the new covenant in my blood, which is poured out for you.

The musical production shows the Jews celebrating Passover and giving thanks to God for delivering them out of Egypt. Their was no mention of the last supper Jesus celebrated with His disciples when He gave them the new covenant. The only reference to Jesus was John 8:7 When they kept on questioning him, He straightened up and said to them, “Let any one of you who is without sin be the first to throw a stone at her.”

The worst / greatest day in history, Jesus' crucifixion / resurrection not only for the Jews but for all of mankind, was totally missed. Jesus poured out His blood for His Jewish brethen and they rejected Him, the prophesied, long-awaited, Messiah.

The children of Abraham are the children who, in faith, believed in the promise of God. That promise now, because of the unbelief of the natural Jews and their rejection of the Christ, has now gone to the Gentiles, the spiritual Jews.

Jesus will return and those who pierced Him will mourn as the Old Testament prophets prophesied.

Isaiah 53:5 But he was pierced for our transgressions, he was crushed for our iniquities; the punishment that brought us peace was on him, and by his wounds we are healed.

Zechariah 12:10 “And I will pour out on the house of David and the inhabitants of Jerusalem a spirit of grace and supplication. They will look on me, the one they have pierced, and they will mourn for him as one mourns for an only child, and grieve bitterly for him as one grieves for a firstborn son.

Revelation 1:7 “Look, He is coming with the clouds,” and “every eye will see Him, even those who pierced Him”; and all peoples on earth “will mourn because of Him.” So shall it be! Amen. And then it will be too late.

If God could deliver His people from Pharoah He certainly could've delivered His people from the Nazi genocide. But like Pharoah their hearts were hardened. Throughout history God delivered His people and throughout history they have continued to reject Him.

The message the Jews have missed throughout history is that the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob loved them so much He gave His one and only Son Jesus to be the sacrificial lamb to pay for their sins. Jesus became sin, for them, for you, for me and for everyone else. He was the one, pure, perfect lamb, the ultimate sacrifice.

A God Thanksgiving

Last year was my very best thanksgiving. I cooked a large turkey, mashed potatoes, cranberries, vegetables, gravy, dessert, the works and I took it with my best tablecloth, my best china and my silver place settings to a drug house. My best friend, who is a recovering addict, had stayed for a time with these 2 other addicts and we took them dinner. We had a fancy table complete with candles and crystal wine glasses for our pop. It was amazing. It was such a God Thanksgiving. I don't know who was more blessed, them or us. I absolutely loved it.

Jesus loves me

The fool says in his heart that there is no God. On December 11, 1966 I said there is no God. I was so heartbroken upon learning my second baby had died. What followed was 33 years of misery. Now, after being on my own for 19 years, I have more love, more joy, more peace than I would ever have thought possible. It's because I found there really is a God and He loves me. I am so thankful that even after I denied Him He continued to pursue me until I found Him. I look back over my life at all the stupid things I did and I can see how He kept me safe.

There exists no greater display of love than giving one's life for someone else. Jesus did that for me. And for you. Because He loves us that much.

I have thought how Jesus loves me in spite of me but in reality He loves me because of me, because of my very great need for a Saviour.

Jesus, our greatest need

Jesus Christ is the lover of our souls. He creatd a space in every human heart that only He can fill. We try to find fulfillment or significance or security in relationships, possessions, money, success but nothing satisfies. We go from relationship to relationship looking for love in all the wrong places. We buy more things thinking they will satisfy. We work harder, longer, hoping that will satisfy us thinking if we have more money we will be happy. There is only one thing that will satisfy the longings of the human heart and that is an intimate relationship with Jesus Christ. We may use drugs or alcohol for a temporary high but it does not satisfy, or we may use them to deaden the pain of loneliness or emptiness but nothing can satisfy our hearts except Jesus Christ.

God loves you so very much that He gave His one and only Son for you. He is love and His love is so amazing. Jesus died on the cross and was resurrected to life making a way for us to come into the presence of God. There is nothing that He won't forgive. There is nothing that we can do to earn His love, no amount of work. It is simply His amazing grace by accepting His Son Jesus Christ as our Lord and Saviour that we are brought into a right relationship with Him. Our broken, empty, lonely hearts are healed, not by anything we do but by His sovereign power and amazing love.

Our pride says we don't need Jesus but He is everything we need.

Case for Jesus' Resurrection

Jesus' disciples went to His tomb on the third day and found His body was gone.

While the women were on their way, some of the guards went into the city and reported to the chief priests everything that had happened. When the chief priests had met with the elders and devised a plan, they gave the soldiers a large sum of money, telling them, “You are to say, ‘His disciples came during the night and stole him away while we were asleep.’ If this report gets to the governor, we will satisfy him and keep you out of trouble.” So the soldiers took the money and did as they were instructed. And this story has been widely circulated among the Jews to this very day.

Well the disciples were martyred because they would not deny the resurrection. If there was no resurrection all they had to do was produce His body to be saved. Instead they were put to death by stoning; they were sawed in two; they were killed by the sword. They went about in sheepskins and goatskins, destitute, persecuted and mistreated.

Proud Pharisee or Grateful Sinner?

So which are you? Are you a proud Pharisee who thinks he's not a sinner? Or are you a grateful sinner giving praise and thanks to a merciful God?

We are all a depraved humanity in desperate need of a Saviour.

The Parable of the Pharisee and the Tax Collector

I go to a couple of churches, one on Saturday night, the other occasionally on Sunday mornings if I don't take my grandson to church.

They are very different and remind me of the story of the Pharisee and the Tax Collector.

To some who were confident of their own righteousness and looked down on everyone else, Jesus told this parable: “Two men went up to the temple to pray, one a Pharisee and the other a tax collector. The Pharisee stood by himself and prayed: ‘God, I thank you that I am not like other people — robbers, evildoers, adulterers — or even like this tax collector. I fast twice a week and give a tenth of all I get.’

“But the tax collector stood at a distance. He would not even look up to heaven, but beat his breast and said, ‘God, have mercy on me, a sinner.’

“I tell you that this man, rather than the other, went home justified before God. For all those who exalt themselves will be humbled, and those who humble themselves will be exalted.”

The Rich Man and Lazarus

“There was a rich man who was dressed in purple and fine linen and lived in luxury every day. At his gate was laid a beggar named Lazarus, covered with sores and longing to eat what fell from the rich man’s table. Even the dogs came and licked his sores. “The time came when the beggar died and the angels carried him to Abraham’s side. The rich man also died and was buried. In Hades, where he was in torment, he looked up and saw Abraham far away, with Lazarus by his side. So he called to him, ‘Father Abraham, have pity on me and send Lazarus to dip the tip of his finger in water and cool my tongue, because I am in agony in this fire.’

“But Abraham replied, ‘Son, remember that in your lifetime you received your good things, while Lazarus received bad things, but now he is comforted here and you are in agony. And besides all this, between us and you a great chasm has been set in place, so that those who want to go from here to you cannot, nor can anyone cross over from there to us.’

“He answered, ‘Then I beg you, father, send Lazarus to my family, for I have five brothers. Let him warn them, so that they will not also come to this place of torment.’

“Abraham replied, ‘They have Moses and the Prophets; let them listen to them.’

“‘No, father Abraham,’ he said, ‘but if someone from the dead goes to them, they will repent.’

“He said to him, ‘If they do not listen to Moses and the Prophets, they will not be convinced even if someone rises from the dead.’”

Going to church does not make you a christian

I met a 73 year old lady at Alpha who said she was a christian because she had gone to church her whole life. I knew that she didn't know Jesus and when we were on the bus going to the weekend retreat we were talking about Jesus.

She found me on Saturday night and she was excited as a person could possibly be. With her eyes gleaming and a smile on her face from ear to ear she told me she had just found Jesus. After a life spent in church she had finally found her Saviour. It was awesome.

Every time I saw her after that she said she couldn't help but tell all her friends, everyone she knew about Jesus.

Have you gone to church all your life? Do you really know Jesus or do you just think that you must because you've always gone to church?

This is really important because your eternal destiny depends on it. If you're not sure talk to your pastor.

Faith

Everyone has faith - faith that when we sit on a chair the chair will support us. Faith that when we board a plane it will get us safely to our destination. Faith that when we go to bed at night we will wake up the next morning.

I have faith in Jesus Christ, the risen Son of God.

Do you have such strong faith in something that you would rather die than deny it? Martyrs do. Jesus' disciples would rather die than deny Him so they suffered torture, mocking, flogging, chains, imprisonment. They were stoned, they were sawn in two and killed with the sword. And they are suffering today for their faith, refusing to deny Jesus.

Without faith it is impossible to please God.

What do you have faith in?

Gentiles obtained righteousness by faith; but the people of Israel, who pursued the law as the way of righteousness, have not attained their goal. Why not? Because they pursued it not by faith but as if it were by works.

Our eternal destiny - heaven or hell

When my Mom died I was devastated. There was no outward evidence of her having received Jesus and I thought she had gone to hell.

A couple of years ago in one of her more lucid moments Mom asked Jesus into her heart. Our soul and our spirit are separate. Outwardly all the bitterness in her soul masked a spirit that knew God.

Mom had dementia and most of the time in the past year she rarely spoke or when she did it didn’t make much sense.

When I visited her I would tell her that I loved her. Sometimes I would ask her who else loved her, but never got a response. One day when I asked her who else loved her clear as a bell she replied “Jesus loves me.”

A couple of times during her last week of life her mind was in such conflict that she would lash out and I would sing to her. I sang “Jesus loves you this I know, for the bible tells me so” and I could feel the fight and tension drain out of her body and she would be completely at peace.

As I thought how satan, the devil, can not say that Jesus loves him and how peace flooded her body when I sang to her I thought how the devil is the father of lies who wanted to deceive me into believing that Mom wasn’t with God.

The bible says that if you declare with your mouth, “Jesus is Lord,” and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. For it is with your heart that you believe and are justified, and it is with your mouth that you profess your faith and are saved. Mom did. She declared Jesus as her Lord and obviously believed it in her heart otherwise she couldn’t have said that Jesus loved her. She finally had the love she always wanted.

So now I have peace that Mom is with Jesus and that I will see her again.

Mom spent her whole life looking for love in all the wrong places, just as I did and now I too have the love I’ve always wanted.

I want all of my family to be together forever in heaven but we have to make a choice. We will all spend eternity somewhere, where we spend it depends on our choices.

Jesus loves every one of us and forgives everything we ever did wrong when we ask Him. He is the most amazing love you could ever want or need.

For everyone who chooses Jesus Christ as their Lord and Saviour will spend eternity with Him in His heavenly kingdom.

Whoever does not confess Jesus as Lord will spend eternity separated from Him in eternal torment in hell.

You wondered how I could have such peace even when I was told that I had terminal cancer. You were worried but I was just as content as I ever was. I am filled with His love and peace and joy every day. How could I ever be afraid of dying.

I love you and I hope you choose Jesus so we can all be in heaven together forever.

Jesus said, “I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one can come to the Father except through Me.” To reach God and live in heaven after you die, you must accept Jesus as your personal Savior and Lord.

To accept Jesus as your Savior, simply talk to God and admit that you are a sinner, believe that Jesus died for your sins and was raised from the dead, and give Him control of your life.

Here is an example of a prayer that will help you know what to say:
Dear God, I know that I’m a sinner and that my sin separates me from You. I realize that I can’t do anything to earn my way into heaven. I believe that Jesus took the punishment for my sins by dying on the cross and coming back to life. I accept Him as my Savior and Lord. And I will try my best to please You all the days of my life. Thank You for forgiving me and saving me now. In Jesus’ name, I pray. Amen.

Blessings

The Bible's book of Revelation talks about the blessings people will receive when Jesus returns.

The Sermon on the Mount teaches about the blessings we can receive on earth as well as when we get to heaven.


Blessed is the one who reads aloud the words of this prophecy, and blessed are those who hear it and take to heart what is written in it, because the time is near.

Blessed are the poor in spirit,
for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.


Blessed are the dead who die in the Lord from now on.

Blessed are those who mourn,
for they will be comforted.


Blessed are all who are watching for me.

Blessed are the meek,
for they will inherit the earth.


Blessed are those who are invited to the wedding feast of the Lamb.

Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness,
for they will be filled.


Blessed and holy are those who share in the first resurrection. The second death has no power over them, but they will be priests of God and of Christ and will reign with him for a thousand years

Blessed are the merciful,
for they will be shown mercy.


Blessed are those who obey the words of prophecy written in this book.

Blessed are the pure in heart,
for they will see God.


Blessed are those who wash their robes, that they may have the right to the tree of life and may go through the gates into the city.

Blessed are the peacemakers,
for they will be called children of God.

end of days

I had a dream I was with a good friend and we went to her daughter's house. The daughter was saying how very broke they were. They had no money to buy anything. My friend and her two daughters and I were all sitting around the kitchen table lamenting the daughter's financial state. The kids (young children) were fighting in another room so I went to see what was happening. Then everyone was outside in a park and the kids were playing on the playground equipment. The two girls husbands were there and one of them picked up a club and hit the other over the back of the head and again and he fell down. The man's oldest son saw this and was horrified but continued on his way to where the other kids were playing. My friend and her two daughters watched as the husband dragged his dead brother-in-law away. I was horrified and sickened. The women had hatched the plot while I went to see to the kids. I was thinking about what the bible says that in the last days we will all turn on each other. And this is the godliest family I know.

I woke up sickened but happy that it was only a dream.

If the godliest people can turn on each other in the last days what hope is there for the rest of us.

The Bible says the love of most will grow cold. Matthew 24:12

You will be betrayed even by parents, brothers and sisters, relatives and friends, and they will put some of you to death. Luke 21:16

Our hope is that because our faith is in Jesus Christ we will overcome. 7 times Jesus speaks of the blessings to those who overcome.

Will you...overcome?