When God's Heart Breaks...

What a sad few days it's been in our country. Tragedy has ripped through so many lives, altering lives forever. Tragedy's have struck close to home because of lives being lost through car accidents, suicides, abortions, illness...lives are being taken in the split second of a simple moment... here...then gone.

Grieving loved ones full of questions, fear, pain, anger... feeling lost among the rubble of confusion. Desperately seeking hope in the midst of the deepest dark.

People... all people... victims, murderers, loved ones, the hurting, the sad, the confused, the angry, the innocent...all are broken.

We often find ourselves in times like these asking God with sadness, deep pain, or anger "Why? Why? Why?"

We know that God loves us but how can He allow such senseless tragedy? Such hateful acts to invade our lives and rip apart our world?

It's because He loves us so much that He gave us "free will". The freedom to be, do, and act however we choose. Unfortunately with this great gift, it also allows people to choose evil. And Evil is not fair. Evil is out to destroy always. The consequences of Evil affect us all whether we participated in it or not. Innocence gets caught in the crossfire because Evil simply doesn't care and God promises EVERYONE a free will.

But dear broken child...      HIS HEART BREAKS more than you can ever imagine. He has done everything to give us a way out of the darkness. He has told us how to walk in freedom. He has shown us ALL how much He loves us over and over again. He wants His ENTIRE CREATION to love Him back and choose life. But... He has to watch...

 the people that He loves, that He died for, and desperately wants a relationship with... who choose to walk in Evil, to walk in hate, to do everything they can to destroy the lives of others. And NOTHING that you do in hate or in evil here on this earth, will even compare to what you will experience in Eternity without God.  And HIS HEART BREAKS FOR YOU... because this is completely YOUR CHOICE.

                       

                            He must watch...     

the people that He loves, that He died for, and desperately wants a relationship with... who choose not to go out and harm the world. who don't act out in violence or evil towards others, but choose to live in sin. He watches those He came to set free from the bondage of sin, the very thing Jesus died for on the cross so that nothing can stand in the way of our relationship with Him and our Eternity in Heaven... continue to CHOOSE sin over freedom. There is no worse sin than the other. There are no minor sins in the sight of God. Sin is sin and...IT'S ALL BAD. It all SEPARATES us from God. Sin is the very thing that will most definitely keep us away from God. Sin is deadly because it kills the soul. He has given us all the freedom and grace to overcome sin and walk in holiness. He watches AND HIS HEART BREAKS FOR YOU...because this is completely YOUR CHOICE.

He watches as all the innocent people that He loves, that He died for, and desperately wants a relationship with... who find themselves sideswiped into a whirlwind of pain and confusion, not knowing or understanding why their world is suddenly falling apart. He weeps for you because He understands your pain. He feels it too, only so much more intensely because it's not supposed to be this way, but He has to allow it because He allows each one of us in this world, all of His Creation...to choose who they will serve. HIS HEART BREAKS FOR YOU, because He loves you and He doesn't want any of                                                                                     us to hurt but He must allow it.

So what do we do amidst all this hurt? How do we make this world better?

We start with US.  There is Truth or there are Lies. There is Light or there is Darkness. There IS NO IN BETWEEN... We MUST CHOOSE each and EVERY day who we will serve. That means every day you only get 2 decisions: Obey God and Trust Him OR Disobey God and Trust yourself.  Plain and simple.  If we realize that those are our choices... we might start living differently. People might start seeing the Gospel for what it really is and want to live it too. See if we choose to be obedient instead of disobedient to God everyday, then we have to actually apply the Gospel to our lives instead of just quoting the parts we know. AND then maybe... people who live in darkness, will actually see the Light, can find hope in the Truth they are receiving by watching our actions and really know what it's like to be LOVED by God because His people are giving them the real thing. 

When we start caring more about what breaks God's heart than what offends someone we know... we begin to really "see" them through God's eyes. We begin to "understand" just how much He loves them and cares for them and does not want them to spend an eternity apart from Him forever... and we begin to "act" on that knowledge, and we start treating people the way God wants us to treat them. We begin to really understand what the meaning of "Love your neighbor as yourself" is really like. Because we have turned our complete focus of our day, our decisions, and our life into serving Jesus and really making Him Lord of our lives through CHOOSING to be obedient to Him. By US changing the way we view ourselves as the PRECIOUS Creation of our God... we can begin to make a life altering difference to the people all around us.

There is HOPE. God is love. God loves ALL people. It doesn't matter what you have done, murderer, liar, cheater, adulterer, homosexual, hypocrite, thief, unloving, prideful, gossip, ect... He is waiting for you to lay it down at His feet and leave it there... He WILL give you freedom, BUT we must ALL CHOOSE HIM. Because... He will allow us not to, and unfortunately for that, the fault lies with us.  If you want to make this world a better place... then You have to not just "know about" or "simply believe" in God...you have to live Him. You have to CHOOSE daily whether you will serve Him or not. Our lives can be over in one simple breath. You are NOT GUARANTEED A TOMORROW.  "Choose THIS day who you will serve"   it may be your last before you find yourself in Eternity.

God's Heart Breaks when the people He loves and created... choose to not love Him back completely.  I know I need to work on this...I hope you will join me and together we can make this world a better place.

Throwback Post July 2015: Where Are Your Tears?

Have you cried lately? Have you taken a really good look at the world around you today?  Do you feel God's heartbeat for the people you brush shoulders with everyday....in the supermarket...on the bus...at school...your neighbors....your family...your friends?  Do you know what grieves the heart of your God?  Do you see the pain that is being caused by sin in the world...in your community...in your church?

Have you stopped to wonder lately..."how does God feel about the state of this world....my town...my church...my life?"   Do you consider His words in the Bible and apply them to your life daily? Do you know what His words even are?  Have you fell to your knees recently and humbled yourself before the King of the Universe?   Have you stopped to consider recently whether or not your actions, your attitudes, your priorities...have in some way grieved the heart of God?

Have you found yourself during the last worship service you attended, worrying more about connecting with God on a whole new level or more about the people in the congregation who might be noticing you?  When is the last time the preaching of the Word of God has convicted your heart and brought you to your knees before your God? 

When's the last time you forgave someone who wronged you because you care more about pleasing God and your witness than your hurt feelings?  When's the last time you wrapped your arms around an "unlovely" person and told them that God loves them? 

When's the last time you stopped a conversation that started tearing someone else apart? When's the last time you stood up for what you know is right, not quietly in a corner but boldly in the face of opposition? When is the last time you told a friend that their sin will lead them down a path to Hell? When's the last time you looked at the sin in your own life that's leading you in that direction as well?

Do you know how much God really loves you? Can you comprehend what He goes through every time He watches you go your own way?  Do you know how many tears He cries as He watches the people He created as they turn from the Truth and embrace a life of sin?  Do you know how many tears He cries when He watches the people He created, cut Him out of all things and elevate evil instead...pray to evil instead....pledge their respect to evil instead?  Do you know how many tears He cries when we as His children...just don't get it?

Have you cried lately?

Pray for America...pray for your family...pray for your friends...pray for yourself....pray.

2 Chronicles 7:14 "If My people, who are called by My Name, will humble themselves and pray and seek My face and TURN from their wicked ways, THEN I will hear from heaven, and I will forgive their sin, and will heal their land."

Throwback Post April 2016: The Struggle Is Real ... finding joy in the puddles of life!

       I have been challenging myself a lot lately in this area of my life. Staying positive and focused on the goals while walking through the mud puddles of my life. It's always much easier said than done, but it's in the intentional "doing" that we learn the most about ourselves I think.

    I mean I've learned that some things stress me out way more than I ever thought they would.  I've learned that if I continually focus on the impossible of the situation, I quickly get overwhelmed and can feel at times defeated.  I've learned that if I do not get adequate time sitting at the feet of Jesus and growing in my relationship with Him, I can DEFINITELY tell in my day, my attitude, and my decisions.

      So I've made it a practical point in my day, that IF I begin to face the impossible, or feel overwhelmed by the inevitable... that I simply stop and take a breath, and remember that God may not change my circumstances, but if I keep ahold of His hand, ALL things are POSSIBLE.

      This has been a great source of comfort the last few weeks...or years of my life really. I'm definitely trying to be more intentional about remembering it now though! Ya know my heart has been very heavy lately for some of my "friends/people that I know" who are really struggling right now with confusion and a lack of hope. They often talk about how bad they are hurting in life and they don't know what to do to get back on track. They don't understand why life is so hard and why it is so unfair. The hard part is, they have been exposed and told about the TRUTH of Jesus, but they continue to CHOOSE to live life without Him. And we know that until you make your own choice to TRUST in Jesus, there's nothing anyone else can ever do, to make your life right and give you real peace.

     This has been another great reminder to me that I DO have hope. I CAN have peace. I just have to run to Him instead of away when life gets hard. I know that without holding tight to His hand I will be lost. I cannot do life alone, I am simply not strong or smart enough to make it on my own. I NEED Jesus. And when I start realizing just how amazing He really is and how much I really need Him, suddenly... nothing in my life that I'm going through really is that big any more. It doesn't mean that I won't get overwhelmed at times but it's in "those moments" that my faith is put to the test and that is a GOOD thing.

    We all like to talk about our faith in God, but it really has no merit until it's been put to the test right? Hard times of muddy waters force my faith in action. Will I continue to walk in what I know is truth despite the uncertainty of the worldly outcome? Or will I cave in and just sit in the mud pit for awhile and wonder where God is?  The truth that we all come to realize is that...God doesn't remove the mud puddles from our lives does He? His job has never been to make our lives easy by removing all the heartache this world offers, but rather He simply promises us that we will NEVER have to go through it alone. He is always by our side. We can most definitely push Him away, but He is always reaching out His hand to us. It's really our choice. 

    Sometimes the puddles are there by our own making. I know this truth all too well, and it's not a part of God's plan that I go through it but He will allow it because I had a free will to make the choices I did to create it. But if I reach out my hand to Him and bring Him back into the center of my life, He will help me get through it and come out stronger and wiser on the other side.  And sometimes those puddles are just there because we live in a world full of sin, and even though we may not have done anything to cause it, it happens because all sin has consequences and affects other people who don't deserve it. That's the problem with sin. Sin isn't fair. But the thing about God is, He is still right there with us, hand extended to help us wade through it to the other side.

THIS IS ME :)  BACK THEN, MUD WAS JUST MUD. ;)

 So I choose to hold tight to His hand. I choose to believe that no matter how scary it may seem, He is much bigger than any problem I might be facing. I choose Jesus daily. And ONLY by doing these things, can I have real peace and a lot of joy as I puddle jump my way through life. Even though life is hard... puddle jumping with Jesus, puts it in a whole different perspective. Let's do this! ;)

Throwback Post April 2015: Finding Kindness

          Where has kindness gone? Our society seems to rapidly be spinning itself out of control. We are losing a hostile battle of hatred, division, narcissism, and evil. People have turned on each other, "Christians" have turned on each other. Children are being taught that it's okay to treat others with hatred. Yes, part of it is the times we are living in. God told us it would be this way. But it makes me wonder... is He pleased with how we as His children are reacting in this day and age? 

      Are WE showing kindness the way that we should? What does kindness look like to God? What does He expect of us? This question has been rolling around in my thoughts lately as I watch the world around me. Everywhere I go, I'm not seeing people loving each other, helping each other, caring for each other, encouraging each other along in our journey with Christ; I see jealousy, and insecurity, takers and cheaters, people faking their love for God and for others. People out to get what's theirs regardless of who gets trampled on in the process. Where is kindness?

       Of course not everyone is lacking in kindness, I personally know several people who I see kindness spilling out of their life, but still...can we become better at it? Can we start thinking of others better than ourselves? Can we start looking out for the needs of others before we make sure we have everything that we want? Can we start caring enough about other people that we become kind enough to tell them the Truth about God? 

      There's a great song that I know and there's a line in it that states: "It's Your kindness Lord, that leads us to repentance..." what a statement. I believe this is true. I believe that not only did Jesus give us the ultimate act of kindness by dying on the cross for our sins, but also that He lived a life of kindness. Everywhere He went, He showed kindness. It doesn't mean that He never said anything that didn't offend anyone, no frankly He offended people all the time, sometimes the Truth is offensive because it interferes with our sin, but He knew the punishment for our sin was Hell and He was and is kind enough to point us to the Truth.  

      My thoughts are how can I be more kind in this world? If it's God's kindness that leads to repentance...I am a follower of Jesus, that means that I represent Him in everything I do. How can I show His kindness to others so that they can come to know Him better? If I truly want to please God, then I must continue on a journey of kindness to those I come in contact with daily. My prayer is that God will continue to show me how to be kind to those around me. To be aware of those around me whom He is needing me to be His arms extended. I am excited to look for more opportunities to show kindness to the ones I hold dear and to the ones whom I may only meet for a second. Let me be Your vessel Lord...love through me. Teach me how to be kind.

Hide and Seek

          One of the funnest childhood games we played was Hide and Seek right? You have to seek out the best place to hide you're entire body, without making a sound, and hope that the other person doesn't see or hear you. Your heart beats faster as you listen to the final countdown and sometimes you even second guess yourself that you may have not picked the best spot to hide in. Time is up and they come looking. The game is on!

We could spend hours playing this game and it never seemed to get old. We just continued to find new places to hide and better ways to figure out our opponent whether we were hiding or seeking. It's a game of strategy, and we liked it!    

As we grow older, we still like to play hide and seek, but maybe we play it in a slightly different way now then we did as children. We don't necessarily play it anymore for the giggles and laughs but more as a way to keep ourselves from getting hurt.  We don't want anyone to really know us completely because we don't want to be that vulnerable with others, after all, they'll probably hurt us. We don't want to let people know our deepest desires or dreams because they might find someway to ruin it for us. We don't know how to experience real friendship and trust with anyone because too many "friends" and "family" have let us down. So we hide. We make people "work" at getting to know us. We hide from failures, we hide from guilt, we hide from shame, we hide from our mistakes, we hide from opportunities, and we can even hide from love.   We are good at hiding aren't we? We are really good at this game because everyone else is playing it too. You could say, we are all "Experts" in this field.

But...is that a good thing? Why is it so hard for us to just be real with one another? Why do we live in fear of being who we are with everyone we come in contact with? Sure the normal answers come to mind...people say mean things, nobody will understand, too many people have hurt me so this is easier to just shut everyone out...but is it really?

There's the other route of people saying things like we can't disagree with anyone because that's not loving people. BUT funny thing is...why can't we disagree with each other? Why can't we be real? We don't have to be hateful just because we disagree, but simply saying NOTHING is hiding too! Crazy isn't it? We are all really masters at hiding. We make all sorts of excuses but do we really have the courage it takes to simply, be real?

     I do believe that it is possible. To be real. To not have to hide. I think it will take great courage and strength because we definitely live in a world of hide and seek. But the most awesome thing that I have discovered is that I know a God who DOES NOT play hide and seek with us. He simply says, seek Me with all your heart and you WILL find Me. Awesome! No tricks, no countdown, no time outs...if we look...there He is. That is what I need in this world. I cannot hide from Him and I will always find Him and that is exactly what I want.  A God who can be found whenever I look. A God who does not hide from Me. And frankly a God who never has to try to seek me out because He always knows right where I am.

     I believe that God does not have a problem with the childhood game of hide and seek, but I know First we must find Him, and then let others find us. Let's stop hiding shall we?

He does not want us living in that game. He wants us to be real with those we come in contact with. He wants us to stop hiding and closing ourselves off from the people around us. It's okay to disagree in life...but it's not okay to hide. If we really want to be a light in this dark world...

                                    So come out, come out...wherever you are! ;)

Throwback Post March 2016: Sometimes Life is just Sweet!

          So I had a great reminder of the sweetness of life today. My husband and I have been crazy busy the last several months with alot of ... let's just call it "life stuff". Every day has seemed to just swish by us so fast and we never seem to have enough time to finish all the things we've needed to get done.       Don't get me wrong, we've marked alot of things off of our to do lists: we've emptied two whole storage units (how did we get so much stuff!), we've fixed up the inside of the house we are living in (no little task), and we have slowly but steadily been working our way towards becoming debt free.

   

     We try to be as frugal as we can with our money. This has not always been the case but Praise God that we can live and learn how to become better stewards of our finances and resources. Lately, my husband has put in long hours and hard physical labor (he is a very hard worker and I love that about my husband!) and sometimes I wish he had more spending money to enjoy from the fruit of his labor, but for a long time now, we have been socking everything we can into becoming debt free and of course just paying normal bills. But he doesn't complain, he just gets up and works hard to provide.      Tonight when my husband came home...he hands me a couple very nice presents. Shocked and confused I accepted these gifts wondering why he would spend what very little he had on me and wondering how he paid for the rest. Came to find out that he still had gift cards left over from Christmas and he wanted to bless me with something nice. I love my husband. What a selfless act of love he displayed towards me.

   

      I began to look around at all our blessings, and I saw how my husband was a direct reflection of how God loves us. And I thank God for the wonderful blessing He has given me in a Godly husband. (There is much more to this blessing and maybe some day I'll have to share our story) For the rest of this evening, I started reflecting on some of the ways God has shown us His love, which has left me feeling pretty grateful tonight.

     

       One thing that I have learned and am still constantly amazed by is... God loves to love us. HE takes great pleasure in loving us. Sometimes I think we miss that concept about God. He constantly is dropping things in our path during our day just to let us know He is near and that He loves us. We just miss them sometimes. Okay, probably a lot of the time.  I know that when I make myself aware of God during my day (usually by just keeping Him in the center of my thoughts), I usually find myself completely overwhelmed by how personal He is and the tears usually well up out of pure joy.

     How great it is to be loved by my God. It's in moments like these, that I can't imagine my life apart from Him. Part of my journey with the Lord, is that I have determined in my heart that I want to "fall in love" with Jesus more every day. And in doing this, it has kept my heart centered where it needs to be and I have discovered so much about my God: Who He is, What He wants from me. What His plan is for my life. What He thinks about me. And I'm discovering how much He loves me.

      It was more than enough that Jesus died on the cross for me. He doesn't owe me anything. BUT I find it so incredibly humbling to know that even though He already gave me everything He had to give: His life, He STIll chooses to love me more. How can we resist a love like that?  No matter the struggles we may face in this life.... with a Savior like that... life is pretty sweet! ;)

A Political Spirit?

       
So I have been hearing this term "Political Spirit" a lot lately, lots of big name pastors use this term, tons and tons of Christians use the phrase..."I try not to get involved in politics" or "I avoid politics at all costs". So my inquisitive mind wanted to know.... "what is this Political Spirit I keep hearing about and why do other Believers, not want to get involved in politics?"
           
                                                             Here's what I've found...

       Though I completely agree that Satan is all over politics and things that are going on in the world... I believe this preaching of "Beware of the Political Spirit" is nothing but a huge play out of SATAN'S handbook. There is NO Biblical reference of this political spirit demon or attitude... and NO ONE that preaches on it has produced one either. So... watch out for the "political spirit"... okay, so what exactly does that mean? What are we supposed to watch out for?  

If we are saying that the Political Spirit makes us engage in things that clearly go against the Word of God and we stand in support of those things and vote for those things then....sure, no brainer, stay away from the Political Spirit.

If we are saying that the Political Spirit makes us lose our minds when the WORLD doesn't value the same morals and guidelines we do as Believers, so then we become hateful towards the world instead of a light in the darkness then.... sure, no brainer, stay away from the Political Spirit.

If we are saying that the Political Spirit makes us so afraid of offending the secular world with our knowledge of God's Truth, that we would rather shy away and not visually, verbally, or socially speak up against the things that break God's heart... because we simply don't like confrontation with the world then....sure, no brainer, stay away from the Political Spirit.

Here's the problem... demonic spirit influence or not... that is just called NOT BEING A REAL CHILD OF GOD. Let's not complicate it. Wait..but???... "The Political Spirit causes DIVISION in the Body of Christ"....Hey...there is NO DIVISION IN THE ACTUAL BODY OF CHRIST...PERIOD. The BODY OF CHRIST is COMPLETELY UNIFIED WITH WHAT GOD WANTS AND IS DOING.... So there can definitely be division caused by people who believe in Jesus sharing their OWN opinions of things, BUT for those who seek God's heart and will on any issue, will be united because GOD IS NOT DIVIDED!"(worth a ponder)  So Let's talk about the Truth on this issue about whether or not a Christian has any place in Politics, where do we really belong on this issue?

The Answer: EVERYWHERE. We as Children of God...belong everywhere that pertains to how things are run, what is made acceptable in our towns, states, country.... does it mean that we will always get our way? No. That's a pretty for sure guarantee we won't always get our way but it does not lift the burden of standing for what is Godly and what is right.    There is this belief that has been rising among Christians for a very long time that Satan was given dominion over the Earth.... Nope. Wrong! MAN was given dominion over the Earth. Adam and Eve were boneheads and allowed Satan to enter their lives and mess stuff up (that's the really simple explanation *wink wink) But that is still the Truth of the Matter...Satan still only gets what we give him! So why are we so afraid to stand up against what he is trying to do in the world we live in?

           We have got to stop living like we are playing by Satan's rules.  God is God of the Earth and Everything in it. He gives us all a free will to live in sin or to embrace His plan for our lives (this includes the world He created... there really is no separation). We cannot force morality on people BUT we most definitely can and should stand up and fight for things that honor our Creator and stand against those things that come from the Enemy to destroy what God has created.

           To say that God doesn't want us to be concerned with politics is not only absurd at best but it proves our ignorance of who God even is. Everything God does is about structure, law and order since the beginning of time. He established government even in the Garden of Eden! Think about it! He gave to Adam Eve, and they had dominion over the animals and the Garden (Government) and He forbid them to eat of the Tree (law and order).

           There are so many scriptures of God and government that it is so absurd for us as Believers to think we should stay away from getting involved in politics... why?

        Now I read a lot of articles about this "Political Spirit", I'm sure I have not read every single one out there, but I've read a lot... They all had a lot of "spiritually sounding" words that many people I'm sure eat up like heavenly candy...and these articles all had the same points in common which all steered people away from getting involved in politics. These articles used fear as a theme to discourage the Believer from engaging in any kind of debate over political issues just incase it would be deemed offensive to those on the opposing side. They used the fear of being prideful (this one came up a lot) and the result of turning people away from the love of God and cause them to become more defensive toward the Truth.

                                                          BUT.....

          If we, who know the Truth, know the Creator of the Universe, are called by God Himself to be a light in this dark world... why would we ever decide that God doesn't want us involved in the politics that affect our daily lives as humans on this planet? The right to be able to freely worship Him (better keep quiet and not offend other religions *that worship Satan???? hello.) the right to not do something that compromises your faith (just be silent, let them see it's not really that important to you *give them an inch...they will most definitely take a mile) We are literally standing here right now in this day and age, watching a war on Christianity take place right here at home. We are being attacked on all sides. The media attacks us, social activists attack us, politicians attack us, other religious groups that serve Satan attack us *whaaat???? well... if they don't worship God then WHO do they worship and follow??? Their religions are not innocent and it's time we recognize our enemies for who they are… doesn't mean we don't love...but we must recognize that we actually have people that want and are working on destroying us.  

         The Most used excuse among all people really, Believers and Non Believers alike love to bring up The Separation of Church and State. So Christians have no business talking about any issues that involve politics or the way our country is run. But here's the problem with that.... that's NOT what that law even is. This Law PROHIBITS the Government to Rule the Church. Period. It does not stop Christians from speaking up in political issues or being involved in politics! We are citizens too and our voice matters! So STOP using this as any kind of excuse to keep your mouth shut. We have to stop being ignorant of the laws of this land that protect our freedoms.... or we will eventually lose them! Here's the link... https://definitions.uslegal.com/s/separation-of-church-and-state/  Read it and please be informed!

     

  How can we expect God to Bless America if His Children are silent on the things that are important to Him and required of us? How can we expect America to thrive if we allow Satan to rule and reign?  As with anything in life, we can allow Satan to use it and it can become a stronghold in our lives... so yes, you can use politics in a way that pleases Satan, or you can use politics in a way that pleases God. It's totally up to you  but you Will use it in one way or the other...your choice. But this "political Spirit" stuff... I'm calling it nonsense. Stand up boldly for what honors God, there is a lot of really loud voices in our world right now screaming for the right to do things Satan's way... are you really going to sit back and keep your mouth shut? Do you really think God is pleased with that?

Be bold sweet friends! Find your courage in the Truth of your Saviour.  We can LOVE and OFFEND at the same time. The Truth sets people free. We are living in a dark age... people need the Truth.


Now, if we want to really talk about Church and Politics..... here's something to think about and weigh out in your own head and hearts        

*Some pastors (I have witnessed this in more churches than I care to count) will not confront sin in certain believers because they give a lot in their tithes and offerings and they worry that they will stop if they make them angry. These individuals also usually have a lot of influence on what the church does... Biblical or Political?

* Membership …. in the Body of Christ or the Church Building? Yes, it's important to be committed and able to VOTE on... what God is doing in the church? …. Biblical or Political?

*Tithing envelopes and Tax write offs.....Biblical or Political?

*Possibly my Least Favorite of these: Thank Goodness the Church is TAX EXEMPT... but ONLY if you DON'T preach on certain topics!!! (and just think, all this time you thought your pastor was just following Jesus' example and not talking about politics or major moral issues that are pushed by politics...nope, actually they haven't talked about it or encouraged you to follow Jesus' example and speak out against those things because of... well … MONEY. plain and simple.)  So... Biblical or Political?  *here's the link for your own perusal. https://www.irs.gov/charities-non-profits/charitable-organizations/the-restriction-of-political-campaign-intervention-by-section-501c3-tax-exempt-organizations

So if we are gonna talk about some sort of "Political Spirit"... let's at least get to the bottom of it shall we? How easy we can be swept away by the Enemy, he's really good at it....that's why we MUST SEEK GOD IN ALL THINGS... in our daily lives, in the politics that rule our country, and also in our churches. Be wise sweet friends, below are some scriptures worth looking up on these issues.

Obey the laws of the land, unless they go against what God says:
Rom 13:1 ; 1 Pet 2:13-14; Acts 4:19-20; Acts 5:29; Daniel chapters 1,3,& 6

Honor those in Authority: 
Rom 13:7; 1 Peter 2:17

Do right and cooperate with our authorities: 
Titus 3:1-2; 1 Peter 2:15

Pay taxes:
Rom 13:6-7; Matt 22:17-21

Pray for our government:
1 Tim 2:1-2

Share Jesus with and disciple government leaders!
Matt 28:19; 1 Tim 2:3-4

Be informed and vote for issues and candidates that uphold God's purposes:
Matt 5:13-16; Titus 3:1

Joy Nugget: A Safe Place

     "Whoever dwells in the shelter of the Most High will rest in the shadow of the Almighty. I will say of the Lord, 'He is my refuge and my fortress, my God, in whom I trust.'" Psalms 91:1-2


I love reading God's Word. I have found so many insights when I take time to really study His Word and look into the heart of God. So many times I think we like to take the "nice" passages and highlight those because they make us feel really good. And they should, but I think we can really miss what God is actually saying to us through these scriptures. 
          Like for instance this verse is truly amazing and if we really take a good look at it, we can see clearly what He is telling us.  God not telling us that He is someone we run to only when things are bad and we need a refuge...He's saying that whoever DWELLS with Him will have a refuge and a shelter. 
          It is also so amazing how God speaks to us in common concepts that we should totally get like....you have to be CLOSE to someone in order to be within their shadow now don't you? Interesting isn't it? 
        The bottom line is: God is telling us that we need to dwell with Him, stay close to Him and He will be our refuge and our shelter. Pretty amazing. God doesn't just want to step in at the last minute when it's most convenient for us...but He wants a REAL RELATIONSHIP with us that is close and intimate.  So I guess the real question here is: Are you DWELLING in that safe place or are you still looking for it? You CAN find it sweet friends! He's waiting..

Throwback Post February 2016: But I'm Like...Entitled Right?

I have had a great week. I've had some sort of a flu bug which has caused me to stay shut inside my house and frankly I've sat around and done a whole lot of nothing lately which is not my normal routine. BUT ... I've had a lot of alone time with my God and we've done some deep digging these last few days. I've cried and shared some of my hurts with my Lord and have accepted His words of comfort and strength that He offers so freely. I've also pondered lots of thoughts I've had over an ever growing trend amongst my fellow believers. 

     

   It amazes me how quickly we can get overwhelmed and discouraged by things not going our way. As we've been flooded with bills lately, sometimes it feels incredibly overwhelming and discouraging that we can't just write one large check and take care of everything and move on...instead we have to sit down with every paycheck and make that money stretch incredibly far and incredibly wide. So I know what it's like and have to constantly remind myself that if we continue to put God in the center of our finances and ask for wisdom and guidance, that we will continue to become debt free and will be able to breathe again soon!

  

    But as I've been home this week spending way more time on Facebook, I'm really noticing a pattern among my Christian friends that sort of disturbs me. I've been reading post after post of believers so discouraged because they aren't seeing God meeting their "needs" and finding it hard to trust Him because of all the bad things happening. And people claiming things in "Jesus' Name" because if we say that, then He's faithful to deliver on that promise...???  And I can't even begin to count how many people are upset with how unfair things are for them. It's literally "poor me, poor me, poor me" all over the place and it's CRAZY! 

It's not that I'm not sympathetic to the hardships that people are facing. But what concerns me is our twisted view of what we expect God to do about it. First of all... the world is unfair. duh. We're not going to be happy with a lot of things in this world but we need to just buck up and rise above the anger of unfairness and make the best of it. Speak out when necessary but don't expect the world to live like Jesus...that's our job.

    Secondly... "Name it and Claim it" only works in Biblical standards. God NEVER told us that what ever we want just to say His name and it's ours. He's not a genie in a bottle. And I know He's not pleased with this mentality. It's dangerous, misleading, and full of lies. He says if we ask according to HIS will, then we will receive it. And the promises that God makes in the Bible are not for everyone just because....it's for everyone who walks in His ways, who are obedient to Him, who are doing what He says. NOT EVERYONE IS BEING BLESSED WHO SIMPLY BELIEVES IN GOD. That's false doctrine and anyone who says differently, is wrong. Pick up your Bible and read all the scriptures on God's promises or blessings...they all have action involved, lifestyle involved. It's not just a whoever wants this blessing or promise can have it. His LOVE is unconditional but His blessings, and promises are not. ....Because He is a holy God, that's why.  

    Thirdly,,, We have really become a "needy" people haven't we? I need my cell phone...I need a haircut.... I need new shoes. These aren't needs. God promises His children food, shelter, clothing. We are not entitled to anything beyond that. And how many times do we fail to see how God has blessed us with so much more than just what He promises us, because we are so focused on the comforts that have become necessities in our lives that we can miss the blessing right in front of us? I was reminded this week that I need to keep my heart and my mind in check more often when I start to get discouraged in life because God has been and always will be so GOOD to me.  May I not take this life for granted and not go one more day without being completely THANKFUL for everything He's given me.