Jesus: The Light and Life of the World

All things were made by him; and without him was not any thing made that was made.

 In him was life; and the life was the light of men. John 1:3-4

In weeks past, I have pointed to the fact that we need to not take man's teachings as truth, if they do not line up with the bible. The above scripture gives us the truth about how and by whom everything was created.

The theory of evolution or any other theory that departs from the teachings that God gave us in his word, should not be given a fourth of an ounce of thought in the minds of a Christian. 

Nothing was made, that was not made by Christ. 

And in him comes not. only our life, but our light. For he is not darkness, he is the ultimate Life. The ultimate Light. 

These two scriptures are so simple to understand and  believe. Why get hung up in theories that invented by men didn't understand. In fact, consider this one:

 But God hath chosen the foolish things of the world to confound the wise; and God hath chosen the weak things of the world to confound the things which are mighty; 1 Corinthians 1:27

Many smart men have come to conclusions that are actually ideas that our enemy the devil puts into their minds to confound those of us that would seek the truth. We only need to check those things against the word of God, to find the truth. 

It is the only way to know what the real truth is.

⭐⭐⭐

Hello Friends. I wanted to let you know that I will be taking some time off from posting. I plan on one for July 4th, but won't be back otherwise until July 8th. Until then, have a blessed and wonderful week and holiday coming up!

How Can It Be?

 I have decided to turn a different way in my blog posts starting wih this one today. I want to take us to the book of John and give a scripture or two each day and explain what it (they) means. In John 1:1-2 we find this:

 In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. The same was in the beginning with God.

Two short sentences but powerful in what they tell us. In the beginning, was God. Before time, as we have come to know it. Before the earth. Before the stars. 

Before everything.

However, there was someone else there with God. The Word was with God. Who was??

The Word.

His name is Jesus!

Jesus was with God in the beginning. He was the Word. And he became flesh when his mother Mary brought him forth, to walk among us and grow up to die for our sin.

How can such a thing be?  God. Jesus. Nothing existed before them. Only they know. But, we can be confident that as Genesis says in chapter 1:1-2, , that God created the heavens and the earth and goes on in that chapter to say that He created everything else. And in  John 1:1-2, that the Word as Jesus, was with Him as He created it. 

We have no idea how it can be. Maybe one day, when we get to heaven, God will reveal it all to us and we will get to know all the secrets of heaven. Until then, we can just wonder...                             

Thanks for coming by today, Friend. Til next time, God bless!

Zechariah

Because we as human make mistakes, aren't always true to God, and sometimes have to pay for consequences of the sin that we allow into our lives, it does not mean that God cannot still work in our lives to make bad situations good.

Enter one man in Luke 1, that played a great role in God's plan of salvation despite his disbelief in the fact that God was not going to give him the son that he prayed for.

   Zechariah 

Who was this man? He was a devout Jewish priest that ministered in the temple.  He was the husband of Elizabeth who was the cousin of Mary, the mother of Jesus Christ. And I would guess that his greatest accomplishment in life, was raising their son:

          John the Baptist

Why would I even suggest that? After all, wouldn't the fact that he was a priest in the temple be above being a father, in God's sight?

Well, as you may know, John the Baptist was no ordinary man in the bible. You see, his father Zacharias, as I stated, did not even believe it when an angel of the Lord appeared to him one morning in the temple to let him know that Elizabeth w was going to have a son. It was hard to believe, because just as Abraham and Sara had experienced having a child late in life, Zacharias and Elizabeth were old by this time as well and had no children. Why would God do the same thing for them?

Or better yet, the question should be, why would God not do the same thing for them? 

After all, if we believe God can do anything, then why not? But he did pay the consequence for his unbelief and that was that the angel struck him deaf and mute until after John was born. That was probably not good, since he could not speak or hear and was was a priest in the Temple.

The thing that stands out past Zachariah's unbelief though was that God does not let anything, even sin, to stop his will. And in this case, as John's father raised him, he raised him  raised him to know and love God. The bible tell us this about the special mission that God had for John:

And this is the record of John, when the Jews sent priests and Levites from Jerusalem to ask him, Who art thou? And he confessed, and denied not; but confessed, I am not the Chris And they asked him, What then? Art thou Elias? And he saith, I am not. Art thou that prophet? And he answered, No. Then said they unto him, Who art thou? that we may give an answer to them that sent us. What sayest thou of thyself? He said, I am the voice of one crying in the wilderness, Make straight the way of the Lord, as said the prophet Esaias. And they which were sent were of the Pharisees. And they asked him, and said unto him, Why baptizest thou then, if thou be not that Christ, nor Elias, neither that prophet? John answered them, saying, I baptize with water: but there standeth one among you, whom ye know not; He it is, who coming after me is preferred before me, whose shoe's latchet I am not worthy to unloose. John 1:19-27

It has been through the human Jewish priest father that came the one that would announce that our Lord and Savior would be arriving to save the world from its sin. What a mission they had. What examples of God's faithfulness they are to us.

Sometimes we don't think we can be good enough for God to use. But it doesn't matter who we are, what kind of parents we are or where our life has taken us, but that he can use any one he chooses for his glory. Even when we don't believe. 

Thanks for coming, Friends. Have a blessed day!

Eli

 In pursuit of the fathers that would be considered to be 'good fathers', we find a father that was pretty much a sorry excuse for one.

Not that he didn't serve God. He had done that. In fact, his two sons Hophni and Pineehas served in the Tabernacle. However, they didn't know God. They had disobeyed the law by keeping and eating meat from sacrifices that they were not given, along with other sins they should not have indulged in.

When reports got back to Eli, he rebuked their behavior but he did nothing to stop them. And so their sins were allowed to continue.

Because of this, Eli put them above God. And so, God had sent him a message through the prophet Samuel. God said because Eli had not taken action on his son's, he would cut short their time and allow them to be killed. Which they were, by their enemy, the Philistines. When Eli got word that his sons were dead, he fell off his seat and died of a broken neck.

God's judgement fell upon Eli's house. He had made some bad mistakes. And its a message to us today is as true for us as it was to Eli. And that is to bring our chidden up as God would have us do. But that doesn't always mean, that even though we do the best we can, our kids will turn out the way they should and not go off on their own way. However, let me point you to a verse that gives us hope.

Train up a child in the way he should go, and when he is old, he will not depart from it. Proverbs 22:6

                              Thanks for coming by today, Friends. Have a blessed evening!

Issac

 If t)here are any examples of godly men in the bible (and of course there are), one of them is Isaac. Most of us know the story of how when his parents, Abraham and Sara were very old, God gave them a baby which they named Isaac. 

What kind of a man and father did he grow up to be?

I think one of the most astounding things about him, was that as a youth, when God had told Abraham to take him to a mountain and sacrifice him to God. What must have Abraham and Sara gone through during this time of being asked of God, to kill the son that they had waited so long for?

We know though that as Abraham had raised his knife to kill Isaac, God stopped him and told him not to do it. It had been a test of his faith and he had passed it.

No doubt there was relief from both father and son, when Abraham had not had to carry it through. But Genesis 22 tells us that Abraham bound Isaac  and laid him on alter that he had built.

Perhaps the two had not been sure at first just why God was asking them to do what he had. But God was pleased that Abraham had not disobeyed him, or put Isaac before God.

As for God, it he did not struggle or get mad but willingly let his dad put him there.

And as I said, after he was allowed to live.....

 he went on to obey and serve God in many areas of his life.

But as a father, he had his own weakness there. He had favored Esau over Jacob which caused some serious problems.

But his life shows us  that as parents today we too  are human. We make mistakes. And sometimes those mistakes cause us our own serious problems. 

For both mothers and fathers, parenting is not an easy job. But our children are gifts from God and as we go throughout our lives, we do our best to keep them and our parenting of them in prayer and in God's hands. 

Thanks for coming today, Friends. I hope you have had a wonderful Father's day within your own family! 

God bless!

Adam

 Fathers Day-tomorrow, June 20. What does it mean for you? Do you have good memories of your own father or do your memories make you wish you never knew him because he wasn't a good father to you? 

According to this website (Bible Verses About Fathers To Encourage, Equip And Strengthen )

A father’s role in the family is a pivotal one.  He is called upon to be a leader and protector for the family, and to give an example of Christ’s love by being loving towards the children’s mother. He is also to be strong in the faith, and to bring the children up knowing right from wrong.

Its with sad regret that as a society, not everyone can say they have had a dad that loved and cherished them. Sin entered the world with Adam and because of that, life for many children from its beginning, have been void of all that God meant for it to be. 

I know that because it has been a busy week for me this week, I am getting a late start on Father's Day, but I am going to look into the lives of some of those in the bible to find what kind of the fathers they were in their day. Both good ones and the not so good ones. And so, with that in mind, I will start today off with Adam. What kind of man was he? Can we get a clear picture of the kind of father he was? Let's take a look.

Adam

And the Lord God formed man of the dust of the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and man became a living soul. Genesis 2:7

God's first human creature. Man. His story didn't always go well. Adam was given a job to do by God. And that was to take care of his surroundings, and to give the animals that he had created, their names. But no doubt Adam was lonely, and so God gave Adam a wife. Eve.

But God also gave Adam a commandment . God said he could eat from any tree in the garden except one. And that one was the Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil.

Many men since, want to blame Eve for the fact that she was able to get Adam to eat of that tree. It's all her fault they say, and they want to place the blame on her and not take any responsibility on themselves. Even today, some still do this. I knew a neighbor like this once who believed this, yet he was not a  Christian and in fact was an alcoholic and he was a bully to his wife.

But the truth is, if we believe that a father's role is to be the leader, the protector and the example of Christ's love-Adam sure did not accept those responsibilities that day when he ate the fruit of the tree that God had specifically told him not to.

And because of that sin entered the world. Yes, Eve had been tempted by satan, but it was when Adam listened to her and disobey God, it was his sin that set the world up for what has happened to it, since. 

And then what did he do? He hid from God or at least he tried to. As though he thought he could hide himself from the very one that had created him.

Because of their sin, life in he garden became very difficult. Not only for Adam but for the woman that he was supposed to love and protect. 

Their hardships? Eve had to endure the pain in childbirth, they had to work the land now filled with weeds and thistles, and do it by the sweat of their brows. They were banished from where God had originally put them, and would eventually die. Hummm. Sounds familiar, doesn't it.

And then, Adam and Eve had two sons: Cain and Able. Now we have sibling rivalry to deal with as two parents. And Cain, ends up killing his brother Abel.

To be honest, we do not know how our first parents dealt with the rivalry that no doubt existed between these two sons so far as I know. But it was undoubtable there for them just as it is for us today. And trying to raise four of my own kids, it was no picnic at times. So I cannot imagine what they went through or how they dealt with it as the first people on earth.

 Adam was our first example of a human father. 

However, he was in fact, not really the first example of a father to us.

That title belongs to One, and that is God himself.

And it was God that throughout His word, did give us examples of fathers that though human had been those that were good fathers to their children. That taught them right from wrong, and His word that they were to live by. 

Sometimes human fathers fail at protecting us, loving us the way we would hope, do not guide us in the way we should go. But they are human, just as Adam was. And should do all they can to be who God wants them to be. But when they fail, we can still know the love and protection of the One that like He had Adam, created us as well. God is good, and He loves us.

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

A Story of Grace

Bedwetting. Did you know that it is common among children who are abused? And then when they do this horrible thing, they get beat for it.

The man in today's post went from being abused as a child, to being a survivor, to eventually preparing for the ministry. You can read his story here at: Man, Christian, Survivor of Abuse: My Message to the Church - Our Stories Untold

It is a bit long so I am not going to copy it here. However, it is another story of a life once damaged, starting before birth, growing up and coming in to God's grace.

If you read about his beliefs on forgiveness/unforgiveness, they may seem a bit foreign to those of us that would judge how he believes. Especially in light of God's word on the subject that says: And when you stand praying, if you hold anything against anyone, forgive them, so that your heavenly Father may forgive your sins. Mark 11L25

In the context of his story, are we to believe that if we do not ask God to forgive those that hurt us, He cannot or will not forgive us?

I do not know, Friends. Because the thing is, I have never been through what he has been through. For myself, I have to say that I would rather not take any chances. Because I do want God's forgiveness for me.

But at the same time, I cannot judge him or anyone that was treated with abuse they had or are enduring by the "monsters' that do the evil things to those they are supposed to love because according to Mathew 7:1-2 it says:

Judge not, that ye be not judged. For with what judgment ye judge, ye shall be judged: and with what measure ye mete, it shall be measured to you again.

I try very hard not judge but what I can do is offer my empathy, love and prayer in its place and let God take it from there. For only He knows the hurts of their heart so deeply where I cannot. 

Thanks for your visit today Friends, have a blessed day!

Only God Can....

Concerning sin, be it cult experiences or not, we all have something in common. And that is the fact that we are good at making messes out of our lives. And when we get in deep enough, it can take on various mental issues and a hopelessness in things ever becoming right because we are stuck in places that we never wanted or thought we would be.

I have seen it in my own family and, in the various individual families that make up our whole family network.

But I have also seen God work in my family, answered prayer in the lives around me. And today's graphic sort of sums it up for me. No matter what we do: 

Only God can turn my mess into a message

My test into a testimony

My trials into triumphs

My thoughts of being a victim, into being a victor!

Why? Only because of what Jesus did for me on the cross over two thousand years ago. Even then he knew me. For this I do know and believe:

When my bones were being formed, carefully put together in my mother's womb, when I was growing there in secret, you knew that I was there— you saw me before I was born. The days allotted to me had all been recorded in your book, before any of them ever began. Psalm 139:15-16

Think of it. God knew us from the beginning and he knew us from each of our own beginnings. Hard to imagine, it is. But it shows just how great is his love for us, despite our sometimes or oft time wayward ways. 

In this series on cults, (and abuse, because that is what a cult is, the abuse of some one that is being taking advantage of)I gave some examples of those that are/were here right in our own country. There are many, many more. 

However, its time to switch over to the most positive things in life. What miracles have happened in a persons life, where God intervened. Starting with the next post, I am going to highlight some of those testimonies where God took a test in someone's life and turned it around to make it a testimony. Sometimes, hearing about some one elses triumphs can give us a hope for our own. Praise God!

Thanks for coming, Friends. You are a part of my own testimony because this blog was born out of a test that I did not see coming. Til next time, God bless!

Young Children Horribly Abused

In the past weeks, we have learned some things about the cults that exist in the US. And about the abuse that goes on, both in them and in general when children suffer at the hands of their own parents.  In May 2012 the parents of their six adoptive children, was charged in their abuse. This story is just deplorable. The children came here from Russia, and should have been placed in a loving home that could give them what they should have received in this country. But instead of that, they were treated like animals. And even animals should not be treated like they were.

Their stories of two of the children appeared on the Dr. Phil program, and you can find out more about them, if you go to:   International Adoptees Speak Out About Abuse They Claim They Endured At Hands Of Adoptive Parents | Dr. Phil

You would think that the so called parents punishment would be severe after all they did to these poor kids for the years they had them. But not so. The judge gave them a one year jail sentence where by they could work at their regular jobs during the day and the only time they actually had to spend in jail, was to stay there at night, according to the above program.

And we wonder about the Justus system in this country.

Where was it for those children?

The good thing for them, is that once they left that horrible life, they were adopted by parents that gave them the life they should have had in the first place upon coming to this country. 

It's been years since that time, and I pray that they have grown and overcome the sadness that began here and could be seen in their faces on his program.

Why does it happen? How does it happen? Especially here in the USA where we were founded under God, and all that the flag and the constitution represents to us (or is supposed to)? 

It all goes back to that three letter word. SIN. And what follows is, lust, greed, selfishness...and all the rest. 

And the very bottom line is where we find someone suffering for it by those the perpetrators are supposed to love.

Thanks for coming by today, Friends. May God bless your day

How Can They?

 We hear about cases of child abuse in both cults and families and most of us find it abominable.  

But why does it happen? And how? Especially, parents or other members of blood relatives that use, and abuse those they were given supposedly to protect and love. Or those in the same families that do despicable things to children in secret and threaten them with what they will do to their parents if they dare tell.

Well, we know the short answer to the questions of why, is one big little word. SIN! A three letter word that covers every kind of abuse.

We know by scripture that the devil is a roaring lion, seeking those that he can devour. 1 Peter 5:8.

Still when I hear of such  abuse in a child, the question in my mind always is: How could they do that to their child?  Or any child.

The long answer to that question, is not so simple. There of course, are many many answers even though the root cause of it, is sin.

The first thing to know, is what abuse is exactly. It can be any or all of the following:

Physical, sexual, emotional, medical and neglect. 

Physical can be anything that is meant to hurt someone and leaves scars, burses, broken bones, black eyes etc.

Sexual abuse is just what it says. Molestations, forcing a person to do unspeakable acts with them, raping someone, etc. 

Medical abuse can be denying children medical treatment, or giving them unnecessary medical treatment that they do not need.

Neglect is denying children from their basic needs of life. A place to live, food, medical care etc. Or perhaps even clean clothes and good hygiene.

Emotional abuse is not something that is always seen, or is apparent all the time. 

Many people have and do suffer from all of these areas, and much of it is forced upon them starting in childhood. As terrible as it seems, it happens to many even before birth, while babies are still in the womb when mothers are using drugs and alcohol. And then it continues all through their lives.

Their beginning of life are already in jeopardy of giving them a life of abuse for possibly as long as they do live. Many grow up and go on to abuse not only others, but also themselves. Prisons are full of these kinds of people that were abused as children and if not getting the help they need, go on to display various types of abuse and end up murdering people. Some end up in mental institutions because society has no other recourse then to put them in a place where they can't offend any longer, and they were deemed insane at their criminal trials.

These people probably did not get even the basic need of love filled when they were very young and grow up not loving themselves or anyone else.

However, there is some good that can come out of child abuse. It does not have to be the end of someone's life. God can bring healing to them and they can go on having a productive life maybe even fighting it and helping others that are going through it. 

And so, that is what it is and why people abuse their own. And sadly, it will go on until Jesus comes back to take us back to heaven with him. 

In the mean time, when I hear of how a child has passed because someone beat him to death, , or for some other reason-it makes me first wonder how someone can do that to a child, as I said. But then my next thought is always," he is now safe in the arms of Jesus,  and will no longer be hurt by the evil of the sin in this world." And I thank Jesus for that.

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

God's Mercy Endures Forever!

 Oh, give thanks to the Lord, for He is good!
For His mercy endures forever.

Psalm 118:1

This is the day the Lord has made;
We will rejoice and be glad in it.

Psalm 118:24

I was going to do a post on cults for today, but I felt God's urging to skip a day on that because after all, it is about all the negative stuff that goes on in them and I felt He wanted me to offer something positive for today. Early today, I took our two dogs out to let them romp around in our back yard, and I sat on the patio watching them. I began to look around at the new mowed grass that our son Rick and husband Larry had worked on a couple days ago. And it took me back to when we lived in the city not so long ago. It is so peaceful here as compared to our home there. The yard there was not fenced in well, and we could not let the dogs roam around. They had to be on a leash. God in his abundance had not only answered our prayers for what we needed here in this place, but even the dogs are able to enjoy it.

Beyond our fence is a pond that runs in back of a row of homes on both sides of it. Rick had used the weed eater to cut down a lot of the weeds that were growing there. Once in awhile we have seen fish in the water, and  large birds that fly up if we get too close.   And we often hear a bullfrog with a very deep croak. My husband has seen two smaller alligators swim by and we know we have to watch our dogs as we have heard the stories about them here. 

As I looked out over the property though, I thanked God for his mercy. Our journey here had not been an easy one, and there were many times that I felt like giving up. But, I am thankful that I endured it because it has been well worth the wait. And truly God's mercy does endure especially when we hold on to our faith, no matter what is going on around us.

Thank  you God. For not only where you have put us, but for our family members that we are close to here, And for those that aren't. Thank  you for all of your benefits. And thank you for my friends that come each day to visit here. May I never mislead them or make them stray from your truths, and may your blessings so abound on them each day.

Until next time.....

Cults and Family Abuse

 To me, the most sickening, saddest and yes, maddening kinds of cults, are those that perpetuate evil acts on the most innocent and vulnerable people in society. Children. 

Take for instance this group: The Family. 

Their agenda? They were grooming and abusing the children "as part of a bizarre experiment set to raise a 'master race' who would save the world after Armageddon. 

What? 

The groups leader was a so called glamorous woman by the name of Anne Hamilton-Byne who was a yoga teacher in Australia.

But guess who some of her followers thought she was?

If you guessed Jesus Christ, you would be correct. They considered her to be Jesus Christ in female form. (The Family cult, a new documentary shows where the children are now.)

My own fleeting thought on reading that about her, is that 'boy, Jesus Christ sure gets around in these cults.' 

I could go on and on about this cult and its very disturbing practices within. However, I am trying to stick to the ones here in our own country of the United States.

The above group reminds me of one family, though while perhaps not classified as a cult exactly, still lived in this land of ours, among our own and got away with the abuse  and torture of their own children for many years until they were found out by their own brave daughter who escaped and was able to call 911 to report them to the authorities.

As the story broke, we can be thankful that these children may have been able to finally go to learn to live a better life. How long will it take some of them? Its been about 3 years since this happened, so only God knows. But this girl might have well saved some of her siblings lives.

I am speaking of the Turpin Family, of course. And am so thankful that this family of children were rescued from these evil parents and do now have the chance of a better life that they certainly deserve.

I am also thankful that their parents will spend the rest of their lives in prison (I hope. But who knows sometimes about our justice system) and will never be able to hurt anyone again. ( Turpin case - Wikipedia)

What makes parents do abominable evil to their own? It is bad enough that groups like The Family do what they do to children that they are not related to, but these kids were the Turpin's blood. How could they have done it?

I think the answers to that are unimaginable. But in the next post, I would like to explore the questions of 'how' and 'why'? 

Thanks for coming by. Have a blessed weekend.

False Prophets and Teachers: The Church of Bible Understanding

:

 The Church of Bible Understanding (first known as the Forever Family) was founded in Allentown, Pennsylvania, in 1971 by Stewart Traill (1936–2018).^[1][2] It is a communal organization, teaching a form of evangelical Christianity.^[3]

Traill underwent a conversion experience in the early 1970s in Allentown, joined a Pentecostal church from which he was expelled, and began teaching Bible and developing a following.^[3][5] He changed the name of the "Forever Family" to the "Church of Bible Understanding" in 1976. Ex-members complained that they worked for very low wages, with all the money going to the church. The group had a communal lifestyle, with Traill maintaining that only he can understand the true meaning of the words of God. Traill encourages his group members to break off contact with their families. Over time, the members decreased in number.^[6] The group has been accused of being a cult, and it has been estimated that Traill became a millionaire from it.^[5Rev. Bruce Ritter of Covenant House accused The Church of Bible Understanding of enticing 17 youth out of the shelter with promises of salvation, and a state court enjoined them from housing or transporting youth under age 18 without parental permission.^[5d

^{More about this cult can be found here:} Church of Bible Understanding - Wikipedia

It is sad that so many people have and are blind to the truth. You might ask why God would allow them to be. Why doesn't he stop all the craziness? 

Don't worry, there will come a time when he will do that. In the mean time, he gives us a choice to decide for ourselves who we follow. God is a gentleman. He does not force or manipulate how we live our lives. 

Members of cults sometimes do escape from them, thank God. One of the members of this particular group  (James LaRue) did and wrote about his experience in a book titled: CAPTIVE CONGRGEATION-THE CHURCH OF BIBLE UNDERSTANDING 14 TEARS IN A MIND CONTROL CULT

I have not yet read his book but I do plan to If you are interested in knowing more, go to:         Captive Congregation - The Church of Bible Understanding | Fourteen Years in a Mind Control Cult. This book and others on this subject he has written can also be found on Amazon.

People start out with the desire to understand what they don't understand. They sometimes don't even realize that it is the true God of the bible that they are seeking, and trying to fill an empty void in their lives. It is why many go the way of drug and alcohol addiction, or chasing after the material things of this life. Others want to understand God and are easy targets for the kind of groups that get them in under fraudulent teachings to use what they can get from them.

When we diligently seek the God of the Bible, he promises that we will find him. Proverbs 8:17 But for those that are seeking some other god in a man, they will perish in the end. God does not want this. He wants no one to perish. 2 Peter 3:9. 

But being the kind of man he is, he leaves that decision entirely up to us. And if we choose the wrong way, we can't stand before him some day and give him excuses. Anything less will be unacceptable to him and it will be too late for those that did not heed his warnings during their lives.

Above all Friends, that will be the saddest thing I could imagine.

Thanks for coming by today. God bless,