Bless the Lord, O My Soul

Bless the Lord, O my soul and all that is within me, bless his holy name. Bless the Lord, O my soul and forget not all of his benefits:  Who forgets all my iniquities, who heals all my diseases:  Who redeems my life from destruction, who crowns me with loving kindness and tender mercies: who satisfies my mouth with good things: so that my youth is renewed like the eagles. The Lord executes the righteous and judgement for all of the oppressed. He made known his ways to Moses, his acts to the Children of Israel. The Lord is merciful and gracious, slow to anger and plenteous in mercy. Psalm 103:1-8

Yesterday's Trivia Question:

What were some of the rules that Sampson broke? Numbers 6:1-21

He was not to drink wine or any fermented drinks.

He was not to marry out side of Israel's faith, which he did by marrying a Philistine woman.

He was not to go near or touch a dead body

, 

Hello Friends. Thanks for coming by. I will not be posting tomorrow, July 31st and also am not posting a trivia question for the next post. A new question will be posted on August 1st. Thanks again for coming and God bless you!

Great is Our Reward in Heaven!

"Blessed are ye, when men shall revile you and persecute you, ans shall say all manner of evil against you falsely  for my names sake. Rejoice and be exceedingly glad, for great is your reward in heaven; for they persecuted the prophets before you." Mathew 5:11-12

It is gonna happen. If it hasn't already.It's going to happen when someone gets born again. People are going to make fun of us, hate us, tell us the bible is just as story book with fictional characters. That we are wasting our time. That God is dead or was never existed in the first place.....

Yes, it is gonna happen. If it hasn't already. 

But the fact is, we know better then to believe all that junk from someone that trys to tell us something that really isn't true. Because also and for a time, is  alive is our enemy the devil that would try to get us off the right tract and on to his own.

However, if we stay on and move forward with Jesus, despite the attacks that the devil uses in other people, then we can be assured that.....

we aren't alone, because it has happened already to the prophets before us

and

our reward in heaven is going to be great!

Last Trivia Question:

Who was Sampson in the Bible?

Sampson was an Israelite warrior and judge. And he was divinely inspired by God. He was a Nazirite  which meant that he dedicated to the special services of God from birth.

 He was a man of faith, but he failed to break Nazirite rules. And did break some moral rules.

Today's Trivia Question

What were some of the rules that Sampson broke?  Numbers 6:1-21

Thanks for coming by, Friends. Have a wonderful, and blessed day

He is Our Help!

I will lift my eyes unto the Lord, from where my help comes from. My help comes from the Lord, who made the heavens and earth. He will not suffer your foot to be moved, he that keepth thee will not slumber. Behold, he that keepth Israel will not slumber or sleep. The Lord is thy keeper; the Lord is the shade on the right hand. The sun shall not smite thee by day, nor the moon by night. The Lord shall preserve thee from all evil. He shall preserve thy soul. The Lord shall preserve thy going out and they coming in from this time forth, and even for evermore. Psalm 121:1-8




When we acknowledge God, he is where our help comes from. He is our help. He has made everything and he will not let us fall. Even as we sleep at night, he will not sleep because he watches over us. He protects us day and night from all evil, wherever we go. Whether coming or going. He will keep us forever. No matter what we are going through.

I plan to answer yesterdays Trivia Question tomorrow.


Thanks for coming, Friends. Have a blessed day!

What Our Salvation Means to Us

Blessed be the God and Father, of our Lord Jesus Christ, which according to abundant mercy has begotten us again unto a lively hope by the Resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead. To an inheritance incorruptible, and undefiled, and that has not faded away, reserved in heaven for you. Who are kept by the power of God through faith unto salvation, ready to be revealed in the last time. Where in ye greatly rejoice though now for a season if need be, ye are in heaviness through manifold temptations. The trial of your faith, being much more precious than gold that perisheth, though it be tried with fire, might be found unto praise, honor and glory at the appearing of the Lord Jesus Christ. Whom having not seen, ye love, in whom though, now you see him not yet believing, ye rejoice with joy unspeakable and full of glory. Receiving the end of your faith, even the salvation of your souls. 1 Peter 1-3

Salvation Is:

God's mercy for us

That we are begotten again (born again)

A new creation

We have an inheritance in heaven that is unlike any thing else we can have

An in inheritance that will never go away

We are kept through the power of God

That even through the tests of fire, we can rejoice because God has a purpose for them.

And in them, they are more precious than gold

Because in the end, when Jesus comes back

they will end.

And it will have been our faith in Jesus Christ, that we will be saved.

What was the mark that God put on Cain after he murdered his brother Abel? Genesis 4:10-11

The bible does not say what the mark was. However, it may have been something visible because it was meant that no one would be able to kill Cain before his time would be up on earth. It gives us the knowledge of God's mercy on us even in our own sin, that after being born again, his promise to us, that he keeps us to our end, just as he had Cain.

Today's Trivia Question:

Who was Samson in the bible?  Genesis 13-16

Hello, Friends! May God bring his blessings your way today! And while he is doing that, take them to those around you that need them in their lives as well!

Keep My Commandments

As the Father loved Me, I also have loved you; abide in My love. If you keep my commandments, you will abide in My love, just as I have kept My Father's commandments and abide in His love. These things I have spoken to you, that My joy may remain in you, and that your joy may be full. This is My commandment, that you love one another as I have loved you. Greater love has no one than this, than to lay down one's life for his friends. You are My friends if you do whatsoever I command you. No longer do I call you servants, for a servant does not know what his master is doing: but have called you friends, for all things that I heard from My Father I have made known to you. You did not choose Me, but I chose you and appointed you that you should go and bear fruit, and that your fruit should remain, that whatever you ask the Father in My name He may give you. These things I command you, that you love one another. John 15:9-17

Yesterday's Trivia Question?

What happened to Cain after he murdered his brother? Genesis 4:10-12

Not only did Cain murder Abel but then he lied to God about it when God asked him where his brother was. But God knew what he had done and he put Cain under a curse and drove him from his ground. He would work the ground but it would no longer yield crops. And then he became a restless wanderer of the earth. He went out from God's presence and lived in the land of Nod, which was east of Eden. 

Today's Trivia Question

Before Cain left God's presence, he put a mark on Cain. What was this mark and why did God place it there?  Genesis 4:10-11

Hello, Friends.  I hope your day has started off well so far. Until next time, God bless!

Fear Not.!

But now, this is what the Lord says-he who created you, O Jacob, he who formed you--O Israel: "Fear not, for I have redeemed you; I have summoned you by name; you are mine. When you pass though the waters, I will be with you; and when you pass through the rivers, they will not sweep over you. When you walk through the fire, the flames will not set you ablaze." Isaiah 43;1-2

Mondays Trivia Question Answer

Why did Cain murder his brother Abel? Genesis 4:2-5

Cain worked the fields and Abel took care of the animals. And so Cain offered some of his fruits to God, while Abel offered  some of the fat from his flock. God was pleased with Abel's offering over Cain's offering,  which had made Cain jealous and so angry that he invited Able's offering, and there he murdered Abel. It was the first murder recorded in God's word.

Today's Trivia Question 

What happened to Cain, after he murdered his brother?  Genesis 4:10-12

Thanks for coming by today, Friends. Have a blessed and wonderful day!

Love One Another

Dear Friends, let us love one another, for love comes from God. Everyone who loves has been born of God and knows God. Whosoever does not love does not know God, because God is love.This is how God showed his love among us. He sent his one and only Son into the world that we might live through him. This is love not that we loved God but that he loved us and sent his Son as an atoning sacrifice for our sins. Dear Friends, since God so loved us, we also ought to love one another. No one has ever seen God,but if we love one another, God lives is in us and his love is made complete in us. 1 John 4:7-12

Saturday's Trivia Question:

Adam and Eve had three sons. What were their names, and which brother killed his brother? Genesis 4:1-2, 5:3 and 4:8

Cain, Abel and Seth. 

Cain murdered Abel

Todays Triva Question:

Why did Cain murder his brother Abel? Genesis 4:2-5

Hello Friends. God's love is so great for us. Not because we loved him, but because he first loved us. And his kind of love is so needed in today's world with all the anger and hostility that has been going on these days. If God is really is in us, we should put off the sin of hatefulness and unforgiveness and truly show his love to those around us and pray for our enemies. Because that is what he tells us in his word to do. Sometimes that is not easy. But we can do it or he would not ask us to.  Thanks for coming by. Until next time,....

Where Are Our Affections?

If you then, be  risen with Christ, seek those things which are above,  where Christ sitteth on the right hand of God. Set your affections on things above, not on things of the earth. For you are dead, and you life is hid with Christ. When Christ who is our life, shall appear, then you shall also appear with him in glory.  Colossians 3:1-4

The things of earth will pass away at some point. Only those that trust in God, and ask him into their lives,  will spend eternity with him. In our everyday living here, we must continually look up to him. He is our only hope of salvation.

Yesterdays Trivia Question:

What kind of food did God provide for the Israelite's to eat in the desert? Exodus 16:4

Answer: 

Manna: A bread like substance

Today"s Trivia Question

Adam and Eve had three sons. What were their names and which son killed his brother? Genesis 4:1-2, 5:3, and 4:8



Good morning, Friends. Thanks for coming today! Until next time...

O Death Where is Your Victory?

Listen, I show you a mystery: We shall not all sleep, but we shall all be changed. In a moment, in a twinkling of the eye, at the last trumpet. For the last trumpet will sound, the dead shall  b:e raised imperishable, and we shall be changed. For the dead must clothe itself with the imperishable, and the mortal with immortality. When the perishable has been clothed with the imperishable, and the mortal with immorality, then the saying that is written, will come true: Death is swallowed up in victory. O death where is thy sting? O grave, where is they victory? I Corinthians 15:51-55

Are you ready for the return of Jesus Christ? Do you want to know more about it? Click on the following link:  1 Corinthians 15:55 Meaning of Oh Death Where Is Your Sting – ConnectUS

Yesterday's Trivia Question:

How does God first appear to Moses? Exodus 3:1-4

Answer:

In a burning bush.

Today's Trivia Question:

What kind of food did God provide for the Israelite's to eat in the desert?  Exodus 16:4

Hello Friends. thanks for coming by. Until tomorrow....

You Are My Strong Fortress...Psalm 3

Scripture for today:

In thee, O Lord, do I put my trust, let me never be ashamed; deliver me in thy righteousness. Bow down thine ear to me;  deliver me speedily; be thou my strong rock, for an house of defense to save me. For thou art my rock and my fortress; therefore for thy name's sake lead me, and guide me. Psalm 3:1-3

How much do you know about the bible? Each day, I am going to try to ask a question about a fact that some will know and maybe some will just be newcomers to the bible and may want to learn. I will ask a question and bible reference and then maybe you will want to look it up for yourselves. Each answer will be given the following day, and a new question will be added. Today, we start with an easy one.

Today's Trivia Question:

How does God first appear to Moses? Exodus 3:1-6

Thanks for coming by, Friends. Have a wonderful and blessed day as you wake up this morning, and rejoice in the Rock of Your Salvation!

No Excuse

I know someone that tries hard to do what God wants her to. She has been going through some hard things all her life. Alll during her life, after becoming a Christian, God has  been with her meeting her needs and answering her prayers.

Still, in struggling with life and its problems, she doesn't always stay right where she needs to. Knowing with out a shadow of a doubt that God will continue to be right there with her, working on behalf, even when she can't see his work.

At night she worries too much she can barely get to sleep. So she puts on Christian music to help her go to sleep. And in the mornings, as soon as her eyes open, her problems are there again, and she has already let the enemy start his work on her to worry, or be angry instead of waking up with the joy that God wants her to start the day off with..

Oh, she may get up, splash some water on her face, fix her a cup of coffee and sit down to read her devotions for the day. But what good does devotions do, if she does not take them to heart to apply them for the day: And instead, go right back to worrying, or whatever the enemy would throw at her at the time

But aren't we all like that sometimes? Most times, even. The battles within us start the first thing in the morning and really the best thing we can do to ward them off, is to remember that God's mercy is new every morning.because he loves us, and his faithfulness is great. Lamentations 3:22-23.

No matter what we are going through, but yes they may be there in the morning, just as they were the night before, but so is God's faithfulness and his greatness.

Going forth in the day, and not letting ourselves get down and knowing that the joy of the Lord is our strength.  Nehemiah 8:10

Because instead of giving in to satan's attacks,  God's promises can help us get through the struggles of the day.

And remembering that this is the day that Lord has made, let us rejoice in it, as Psalm 118:24 says.
His gift to us each morning is that as we open our eyes is that, he has made it just for us.

There really is no excuse we can have to let satan have our day. Or any day when we remember to acknowledge and do our best to stay on track with God's word. Even when we aren't actually doing devotions or reading God's word. There are too many scriptures that we can have hidden away in our hearts, to think on to let our joy be stolen.

Even in the worst of times.

And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding will guard your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus. Finally brothers, whatsoever is true, whatever is honorable whatsoever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatsoever is admirable,  if anything is ever excellent or praiseworthy-think on these things...
and the peace of God will be with you. Philippians 4:8-9

And: He will keep him in perfect peace, whose mind stays on the Lord because he trusts thee. Isaiah 26:3

 Easy? Not always? We are imperfect people that struggles each day just to get through it. And God understands it even though there is really.....

No Excuse

Thanks for coming by Friends. Have a blessed day going forth. 

No Condemnation!

There is therefore, now no condemnation for those that's in Christ Jesus. For the law of the spirit alive in Christ Jesus has set me free from the law of sin and death. Romans 8:1 & 2.

Well, that may be what the bible says, but its not true for me. I have done too many bad things for God to forgive me. So I am under his condemnation and might as well go on living life the way I have.

Right?

Wrong!!!!!

Once we confess our sin to him, and accept his mercy into our sinful life, he is faithful and just to forgiven us 

sin and all we have done, and we are no longer under condemnation,but are released from the things we have done.We are no longer held under the guilt and shame of those things.

It's why Jesus came. To die for us and take away our sin. 

Because, without the shedding of blood, there is no remission (forgiveness) for sin. 

(Hebrew 9:22)

And Jesus had to provide his blood to be shed for our sin because he was the only one that could do it. I mean, what human in his right mind, would volunteer to hang on a cross, beaten and ridiculed, and suffer such a painful death, than Jesus? It took someone that could.

And because of what he did, once we accept his forgiveness for it, we are no longer condemned, but have been freed from hell's clutches. We can then claim the promises of God and get to spend eternity with Christ.

What then, shall we say then? Shall we continue to sin, that grace may abound? God forbid....Romans 8:1-2

Let sin therefore not reign in your mortal body. that you obey its lust. (vs 12)

For sin shall have no dominion over you for you are no longer under the law but under grace. What then, shall we sin because we are no longer under the law but under grace? God forbid. (vs,14-15)

But now being made free from sin, and become servants to God, you have fruit into holiness, and the end everlasting  life. For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is everlasting life through Christ Jesus. ( vs.22-23)

And so you see Friends, if you are a christian and struggling with the guilt or shame of past or present sin, there is no condemnation from God. He is not condemning you to what you have done, or are doing. He is always here to forgive and so do not let satan steal from you your obedience and forgiveness of God. We are all sinners. we do sin everyday. But we do not have to let it control us because Jesus paid the price for what what we have done, and he gave to us what we don't deserve. 

His grace!

Thanks for coming by today. Have a blessed new week!

Our Sovereign Lord

Ah, Sovereign Lord , you have made the heavens and earth by your great power and out stretched arm. Nothing is too hard for you. You show your love to thousands, but bring your punishment to the parents sins into the laps of the children that come after them. Great and mighty God, whose name is the Lord Almighty, great are your purposes and mighty are your deeds. Your eyes are open to the ways of all mankind; you reward each person by their conduct and as deeds deserve. Jeremiah 32:17-19. 

Hello Friends. Thanks for coming by today. Is there anything too hard for God? No. But does he care enough even in the little things that we can trust him? Do you wonder if he is listening to you? Do you think that because you want something that is small compared to other things, that it has no value or importance to God and therefore, he won't answer it, so you don't even ask?

God loves blessing us and even in small things that we don't think matters to him, he does hear us and he can answer our prayers. James 4:2 says we have not because we haven't asked.

That doesn't always mean that when we ask him, he is obligated to give it to us immediately or even at all.. But if it his will to give it, he will when the time is right. Sometimes we just have to be patient and trust that he knows what we need and will give it to us at an appointed time.

Have a blessed Lord's Day, Friends!

Be No Stumbling Block: Judging Others

Today's Scripture Reading:

For it is written, As I live, saith the Lord every knee shall bow to me, and every tongue shall confess to God. So then every one of us shall give an account of himself to God. Let us therefore, not judge one another any more: but rather judge this, that no man a stumbling block or an occasion to fall in his brothers way. Romans 14:11-13

If you have been with me for a long time, you will know that years ago I was in a church whose teachings were...somewhat extreme. My dad used to call it a "borderline cult." And after I finally left it, I came to agree with that. 

When I left, it was after some things had happened within the church itself that I found questionable, but leaders refused to speak of or explain, and did not want their people to discuss them. And we wee told not to and if we tried to, members were to dissociate with them. But for awhile, I questioned myself that having left, did I also lose my salvation. Which is a typical teaching in a churches or groups of people that in cults. They didn't really allude to it in this particular church, (at least not the I can remember) but, that I even wrestled with it in my mind, was plain crazy because I had been saved as a child, grew up and got away from the Lord at the time, and came back to him and knew with out a doubt that I loved him, he loved me and I was trying to do what he wanted me to do.

But there were those questions still.And that went on for a few months. But every morning in my devotions, I would read what God's word had to say to me. And one day, I opened it to Romans 14. And the whole thing stood out to me. As if you read up into the scripture before these, you will find that Paul, was writing to the early Christians,  about the subject of judging their fellow Christians. That was going on in the church I was in, and it came right down to doing that to me, as well. 

It came to me, that according to those scriptures, they had no right to judge me or anyone else. They had no clue to what I was going through at the time. And I have written before on some of that, so I won't go back to that this time. But my life had been a mess and I was struggling just to get through everyday. They knew of some of it, and just knowing what they did, they should have been ready to give me help with some counseling or whatever else they might have been appropriate. But, instead, I was alone and hurting. God was the only one I could really depend on and I know the one I should have only needed. But, I could have used someone that just could have said, "We are here for you." And I didn't get that. 

When I read that in verses 11-13, it was what freed me from the stuff that tied me to that church. The Holy Spirit had used it to show me that I wasn't lost. He still had me. And I had him. Praise the Lord!

But it hasn't ended there with me. I have learned in later years, how we should not judge anyone. Sometimes I forget, and complain. But it always comes back that I do not have that right because I do not know what most people have been through. Even in my own family. On them, I can take a good guess in most. Because I went through some of the same things with them in my youth. But as our lives went different ways, what had they continued to go through in their life, and what new things things had been added along that I cannot understand. And so, likewise with myself. 

We cannot fully know anyone circumstances, nor their heart. And so, we are not to judge them. And one reason along with the fact that we don't know what they have been through, is that Mathew 7:1-2 tells us not to judge because however we judge, we will be judged as well. 

So I do try to not judge others, and instead, offer my ear to listen, or advice (which is rare) or any help that I can give, that they may need.

And it frees me up to not having to think about the negative things that I would have, if I am always judging them. How about you? It is something to think about.

Thanks for coming by Friends. God bless your day!

Which is Better? Living in fear or Trusting in God?

   

And God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes; and there shall be no more death, , neither sorrow or crying, neither shall there be any more pain for the former things shall be passed away. Revelation 21:4

In light of all that is going on in the world today, yea even in our own lives be it some kind of sorrow, or pain of any kind, from emotional to physical-the promise for those that truly love God and have asked him into their lives-is one that we so look forward to, as our time ends on earth, or at the time when Jesus comes back for those that are still here at that time.

This virus that hit us in March has literally scared the begeebees out of many people. And it has hit some of my family that way. When I go to the grocery store, people are wearing masks so that they don't catch it from someone else. And yet they touch items in the store, not wearing gloves, thus contaminating their cars when they get in them. And the masks themselves do not really protect them if they don't properly take care of them. 

There were people that didn't and couldn't even enjoy the July 4th holiday like they have in other years, simply because they didn't want to be around people during that time, even with their own families. 

I am not saying that we should not be careful. Or that it doesn't exist. I am saying, that if we truly believe God's word, he will take care of us. We are not to live in fear because he doesn't give us a spirit of fear. Instead he has given us a spirit of power, love and a sound mind. 2 Timothy 1:7. 

And so while we take precautions in anything we do, we should not fear or even dwell on what could happen, but trust in him. 

And remember that one day, when it all said and done, he will wipe the tears from our eyes, knowing that even so we were imperfect and we do worry at times, and we sometimes forget to trust in him, and there has been pain in our lives....

   ...he will wipe all that from us and we will have no more.

Hello Friends, what a promise that is! When we start worrying, or crying or are in bed because of any kind of pain, we can hold on to that promise and know that it will not last for ever and when God wipes those tears from our eyes, life for us will never be the same. Have a blessed day!

Lord, I just can't......

But I say unto you, love your enemies and bless them that curse yo, do good to those that hate you, and pray for them that spitefully use you and persecute you; That you may be the children of your Father in heaven, for he maketh  the sun to rise on evil and the good, and sends rain on the righteous and the righteousness. Mathew 5:44-45

Most of us have had someone in our lives that we have had to forgive. (or for some, not) There have been many times that I have to continuously forgive over and over.  Maybe even over silly things.

But what about those that have really done us wrong. I mean really.really done us wrong. And what if that person or persons are someone in our family?

I have a close relative in mine (Pam/not her real name), that has been going through an ongoing problem with her daughter (Kim/not her real name).for several years. They used to be quite close. Until a few years ago. Pam purchased a home and because of certain circumstances, put Kim's name on the deed with her. After that at some point, Kim met a man who was into drugs and she moved him in without her mom's permission. It was agreed though that the mortgage payment each month would be split 3 ways and for a few months that worked. However, in time, he pretty much forced Pam out of her own home because of the way he treated her and she was not going to take it.  She tried getting him out by legal means, but here she is several years later,  he is still living in her home. Consequently, during that time, Kim who was already addicted to alcohol, started using street drugs along with him and eventually their share of the mortgage payment stopped going to Pam.

But she had had to get an apartment and could not afford to pay the whole mortgage payment, so she has tried everything she could to get them both evicted so she could sell the property. To no avail. And why should they? They were living there free. At least until the mortgage company forecloses on it.

I could go on and on about that situation, but you get the picture. Pam has come to hate the boyfriend and has a name she calls him instead of his real name. I won't give it here, but it pertains to drugs. So she hates him for getting Kim, with whom she had once had a good relationship with, into the street drugs. And she hates Kim for staying with him because now the property has moved towards foreclosure which will hurt Pam's credit. 

And I get how Pam feels about the whole thing, because she is 70 years old and single. It has been her livelihood at stake and her good credit possibly going down the tube.

But in her rants and ravings to me about it all, she tells me she not only hates them but she will never forgive them for doing to her what they have done.

So, what does that situation have to do with that scripture in Mathew 5?

Pam is a born again Christian. She has been in church most of her life and delights in helping other people and serving God. So why after all this time, does he not answer her cries of help and done something to take care of this so that she doesn't lose her good credit, or worse yet, her own relationship with her daughter? She knows it is his battle. She knows he has the whole picture. She knows that he will take care of it in his own timing.

But she wants all that NOW! She has gotten tired of waiting, and has become bitter and it comes out of her every time she talks to me about it. She says she is trusting him, but then goes back to ranting about them.

If I am good at anything, it is being a good listener for people that just need to talk to someone and/or vent their problems to. I have had my own times like that, and I know it is not good to bottle things up. And if I feel I have something to say to encourage the other person, I do that.

I love Pam. And I wish God would do something. But outside of his will, neither of us can do anything. 

I had tried quoting Mathew 6:14-15 to her, which tells us to forgive so that our Father will forgive us. But if we do not forgive others, he will not forgive us.

I cannot fathom what Pam is going through. But that scripture says it all for me. I do want to forgive others, no matter their offence to me, so that I can be forgiven by my Father.

So is Pam in danger of not being forgiven? I cannot answer that question. God knows her heart. He does have the whole picture and hopefully he will make it possible for her to be able to do that. I do know that forgiveness is often a process. That is something that I have learned at different times in my life. And no matter how she feels right now, he will answer her cries. But she can't manipulate him into doing it before he is ready. And sometimes I wonder if that isn't what she tries to do. Probably without even knowing she is doing it.

And I also wonder, isn't that what some of us do at times. Try to manipulate God, even when we are in pain about something? It is something to think about.

Thanks for coming today, Friends. Have a blessed day!

Old Age

Even to your old age, I am he; and even to hoar hairs (gray or white hair) will I carry you: I have made and I will bear; even I will carry and deliver you. Isiah 46:4

: 

I discovered the above promise this morning in my scripture reading. I probably have read it sometime in my life, but not recently and if I had at one time, I had not grasp it in my mind and heart,  much less remembered it.

But in my life, I have learned something important. God gives us what we need, when we need it. And that goes for this promises in his word.

It reminded me of that poem: Footprints in the Sand. If you have never read it, I encourage you to do so. Especially if you are going through some trial in your life. It tells of a man that had a dream, and he was walking on the beach with Jesus and saw their footprints in the sand.  He saw his life as it had passed before him. But then, he noticed that one set of prints disappeared at the saddest times of his life. And so he questioned the Lord as to why Jesus had left him during those troubled times. Jesus had told him that he loved him and would never leave him, and when he saw the single set of footprints, those were the times that Jesus had carried him.

Indeed. Jesus has promised us that he would never leave us. or forsake us. (Deuteronomy 31:6)

But sometimes, we feel like he has. Even in our old age, and when our hair is graying. He is there. We just have to remember that and get it into our hearts so that when we go through the bad times, we know he is, without a shadow of a doubt.

And then, when he is ready....

.....he will deliver us.

Why?

Because, he loves us!!

Thanks for coming friends. May our God who loves us, richly bless you on this day!

The Psalm Trees of our Lives

I have never lived in a state that had psalm trees. Not until recently, that is. I have adult children that have lived around them for years and there have been times that we have visited them. And I always sort of looked down upon the trees with distaste. There are so many here. Like jungles of them in places. And they can have long branches of leaves that get brown and not so pleasant to look at.

But this morning, and reading God's word, I came across the following, scripture.

The righteous shall flourish like the psalm tree; he shall grow like a cedar in Lebanon. Those that be planted in the house of the Lord, shall flourish in the courts of our God. They shall bring forth fruit in old age; they shall be fat flourishing; to show that the Lord is upright; he is my rock and there is no unrighteousness in him. Psalm 92: 12-15

Groups of them, jungles of them, stand strong and tall along highways, streets, and in yards. And even when the hurricanes hit, many of them are bent over, but they have survived the tests of their lives. 

To say the least they are plentiful here. Whether we like them or not. 

But reading that scripture and thinking back to when riding along side them from our truck and seeing all of these trees, I remember the story of Jesus when he entered Jerusalem as King on Psalm Sunday riding a donkey and the people were cutting tree branches down to lay on the road before him. I have been in churches that have used psalm branches in their Easter Services in remembrance of that day so long ago. And even though I did not find scripture that actually said they were psalm branches, (that I can find), it did give new meaning to me as I saw the psalm trees used in Psalm 92. 

The righteous shall flourish like the psalm tree. Those that come and are planted into the house of God will flourish in his courts. They will bear fruit even in their old age to show that he is upright and because of his righteousness, so are those that are a part of him.

There is no weakness in those that trust in him. Oh, sometimes we feel we are weak when we go through difficult things. Like I did over the July 4th weekend. But, the truth is, I did not break. Like the psalm tree that stands and then gets hit by winds of a hurricane, does not break, I did not break during a very crazy weekend. And in fact, have not broken over the course of the not so easy years that I have been on this earth.

I pray that for myself, and you too, that when we stand before the Lord, we can stand tall and not be broken because we have endured this life and not let those things take us down in our own winds that have come along. And he can then say to us:

"Well done, good and faithful servant." Mathew 25:21

Not because of our own righteous, of which we have none, but of his righteousness that comes to those that are truly planted in his house. Bless God!

Have a blessed day, Friends!

Psalm 65:5-7

By awesome deeds in your righteousness, you will answer us. O God of our salvation. You who are the confidence of all of the ends of the earth. And the far off seas;  who established the mountains by his strength, being clothed with power, you will still the noise of the seas, the noise of the waves.  And the tumult of the people. 


Thanks for coming by today, friends. God bless you.

America

For the next few days with the approaching holiday, I may not be able to spend as much time here as I would like. But I will do something each day, even if it i short.

For today, I would just like to encourage you to thank God that he gave us this great country! The United States of America.  Yes, America, a place where there is violence, the government fighting amongst themselves, our rights slowly being taken away, and all this virus craziness....

....is still the very best place in the world to live.

And frankly friend, to those that disagree, well they have a right to do that.

But, to them, I would say, "If you don't agree with what I have said, then  you have a right to also go to some other country to live."

Because what we have here in America is still the very place we can be. And God, has given it to us to love. 

Thanks for coming today, Friends. God bless!

The Ferris Wheel and a Dream

The Ferris Wheel and a Dream

(True Story)

The young woman's life was not going well. She was having marital problems and was raising a family. There were financial problems among others as well. And yet, God had become very real to her and she was studying his word and trying as hard as she knew how, to become more like him. Hard as that seemed at the time.

As a young girl and going forth, she loved riding a Ferris Wheel when ever she could. That had never changed in her life, even as an adult. She loved  riding as the wheel would slowly take her to the top. And there she could look down on everything below. The crowds of people. The lights. Everything. It was amazing to sit for just a few seconds and enjoy it.

But going down was another story for her. As it started, the wheel would begin to pick up speed and she would begin to feel a bit panicked. In fact, about half of the way, she would feel like jumping out
of her seat so that she could get the ride over with before it crashed to the ground.

Of course, it never crashed. At least when ever she rode on one. But it was just that feeling of fear that would take over her, in those few moments before relief would take over and she was safely on the ground again. She never got over it. It happened every time she rode on one.

Later in her thirties though, Ferris Wheels and other rides had taken a back seat to rasising  a family and going through the struggles she had been facing since her early twenties. Still, she had made her way back to the Lord after some unsuccessful attempts at going her own way, without him. And she was clinging desperately to him as she read his word and tried hard to become more like him. Even though, it didn't seem like things around there were changing like she had hoped they would as she drew closer to him.

But one night she had a dream. She saw herself in that dream peacefully riding high up in a Ferris wheel, sitting at the top, and then coming down and feeling that same feeling of wanting to jump out before she might crash at the bottom. It was familiar to her but when she woke, what could it mean, if anything?

She felt like God was trying to speak to her using it, and so praying, she asked him to tell her. And he did.

Instantly, she knew what it meant. As she was going up, it meant the things in her life had been good for awhile. She had even been happy, on top of the world as she went out on her own in her late teens and then met her husband to be. But then not long after her marriage, she started having marriage problems, and then children started coming which although she wanted them and loved them, they compounded the problem through no fault of their own but then the money problems began to show up due to the demands of raising them.

Coming down from being on top of the world in the dream, she had begun to panic and she was scared. She was trying hard to stay in her seat so as not to jump out and get to the bottom safely. She was trying hard to do what God had wanted her to do by giving everything over to him and know without a doubt, that he was in control.

At the bottom of the Ferris wheel, she was relieved, as it came to its stop, And God had gotten her through, like his word had been telling her.

God had showed her in a dream,something that she could understand about her life as it was at that point. She knew him. She was trying to learn his word and be the kind of Christian he wanted her to be even through everything she was going through at the time. She just needed to understand and realize too that someday, she would get to the end and it would all be over because of him. All the problems, and struggles would be gone. The Ferris wheel would finally stop.

What a relief.

Things were not instantly better for her. She still struggled. In fact, most of her life she has struggled in one way or another. But, those immediate situations. Some of them did come to an end a bit sooner rather then later.. Later her children left home, one after another-giving her the joy of having some wonderful grandchildren. The money situation got better and in later years,  it has gotten more freed up so that she could do more with it and not be so strapped down..Other problems such as health etc would take their place. But putting it all into perspective, generally, life has been better. And those  things that she still tends to struggle with? They will hit the bottom and the ride will be over once and for all.

How do I know? Because this is my own story. The Ferris wheel. The dream. And most importantly...

Because of God

I often think back to those days and that dream. Because it had been so real to me and unforgettable. The things that he has brought me through. The things that God has taught me and continue to each me. Where I am today, rather then where I was then. Where I am going now as opposed to back then.

He is all we need, Friends. Because with him, nothing is impossible. And when he promises us something, he will bring it to pass. In his own time. In his own way. And sometime when we least expect it. 

Thanks for coming today. I hope you have a blessed day because as we know, he made it for us.

Till next time.....