WHO IS GOD?

Say what! Who is God?! Are you kidding me?

If you don't know, you better ask somebody.  And if you do know or think you know, this is still a wise question to ask ourselves everyday.  We need to ask ourselves every day Who is God so we can answer ourselves, and remind ourselves Who He is:

He is the reason we wake up every morning.  First of all He exhales so that we can inhale.  Second of all, He keeps us through the day.  And, last, but not least, He is the reason why we can put head to pillow and sleep peacefully.  He never sleeps nor slumbers.

He is the Way Maker

He is alpha and omega; He is the beginning and the end; He is the first and the last; He is Genesis and Revelation

He is the Great I am

He is Lord and Savior

He is Jehovah-Jireh (My Provider)

He is the Good Shepherd

He is Abba (Father)

He is the one and only, true, and living God

He is Yeshua (Jesus)

He is Holy Spirit (Ghost)

He is the Holy Trinity

"Listen, O Israel! The Lord is our God, the Lord alone."  And you must love the Lord your God with all your heart, all your soul, and all your strength.  And you must commit yourselves wholeheartedly to these commands that I am giving you today.  Repeat them again and again to your children.  Talk about them when you are at home and when you are on the road, when you are going to bed and when you are getting up.  Tie them to your hands and wear them on your forehead as reminders.  Write them on the doorposts of your house and on your gates. (Deuteronomy 6:4-9/NLT)

This is Why He is God, and We Are Not!

Man can be fickled; fake, and phony any day of the week, but thank God, "Jesus is the same yesterday, today, and forever more."

We are quick to point out each others faults even though we have many of our own faults, but God (Who is faultless) covers our faults and gives us an opportunity to correct them.  That is why He is God.

God extends mercy and grace to us.  His mercy spares us from what we do deserve, and His grace gives us what we don't deserve!  That is why He is God.

How many of us make the mistake of being judgemental of those that we believe don't measure up based on our perspective.  This is not unconditional love.  Jesus loves the sinner not the sin.  No matter what, He loves all of us unconditionally.  That is why He is God.

But glory, honour, and peace, to every man that worketh good, to the Jew first, and also to the Gentile:
For there is no respect of persons with God. (Romans 2:10&11/KJV)

Acknowledge that the Lord is God!  He made us, and we are His. (Psalm 100:3A/NLT)

Needless to say, we can never be perfect like God, but we can strive every day to get as close as possible to godly perfection.  Remember, Holy Spirit (God in us) will always be there to help us along the way.

Humility Over Pride ! (It's Not About Me)

Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven (Matt 5:3).
                                             
Humility is proper expression when honoring God.  It is the right spirit for a Christian to have in representing Jesus Christ.  It shows Him that we understand Who He is and the ultimate importance He has in our lives. We understand that without Him we are spiritually bankrupt, and that we could accomplish nothing of value.
                                             
Pride on the other hand is taking undeserved credit for what God has done in our lives.  There are so many scriptures on the destruction of self, when pride is at work.  God hates pride because it takes away His glory and His deserved credit for fathering His children.

In his pride the wicked does not seek Him; in all his thoughts there is no room for God (Psalm 10:4)

We would be wise to remember that it is never about us, but always about God.  He is the Creator and we are the created.  He created us, and placed us here to have a right relationship with Him; to represent Him on earth, and to bring His Word to life.

We have been taught, from as long as we can remember, to be pridful about our accomplishments -- so we have to retrain ourselves,  through the Word of God, that pride should be Godly and not self centered.

Pride means there is no room for God in our lives. Think about that (selah) -- NO ROOM FOR GOD ! Where would we be?  How would our lives turn out?  Most of us already know the answer to this, because we know where we were in our pre-saved days.  How did it go for us? How did we make it out?  We all, personally, made alot of mistakes and had alot of regrets, but God!

Pride goes before destruction, and haughtiness before a fall.  Better to live humbly with the poor than to share plunder with the proud.  Those who listen to instruction will prosper; those who trust the Lord will be joyful.  (Proverbs 16:18-20/NLT)
                                             
                                                    To God be the Glory!

I'm Striving to do Better

Am I perfect - far from it, but I am striving to do better.

I am NOT God, so, therefore, I can not do His job, but I can put my best foot forward, and keep striving to do my part better.

I am so glad that our God is the God of another chance.  He gives us every opportunity to get our lives back on track; right with Him, others, and ourselves.

I like striving to instead of trying to.  Trying sounds like an excuse we use when we really don't want to do something, and we are trying to convey the fact that it is too hard.  How can this be - we're Christians, and there is nothing too hard for God!  Striving reflects a pressing forward with every ounce of strength connotation!  And why wouldn't we keep striving with such a loving and caring Father like ours who has our back; front; top, and bottom 24/7!!

We must keep striving against all odds.  No matter what life takes us through we must keep striving.  There has been and will be struggles; hard times; trials and tribulations; lean and mean times, for as Christians we are not exempt from these things, but all our good days will out weigh our bad days, and if we keep striving to do better then better times are coming.  And when better times come for us, let us not forget to extend our hands to our brothers and sisters-in-Christ, and our fellow man, and encourage them to keep striving to do better.  Amen 

An Idle Mind !

There is a set of English proverbs that are worded similarly:

• Idle hands are the devil's workshop
• Idle hands are the devil's tools ("Collections" 1808)
• Idle brains are the devil's workhouses (T. Fuller 1732)
• An idle brain is the devil's workshop (H. G. Bohn, "Hand-Book of Proverbs," 1855)
• If the Devil finds a Man idle, he'll set him at work (J. Kelly, "Scottish Proverbs," 1721)
• The devil finds work (or mischief) for idle hands to do

There are many variations, but they all follow the same theme: A person who doesn't have something in particular to occupy himself with doing will be tempted to occupy himself with sin.  The phrasing is not found in the Bible, but like many "chimney corner scriptures" it has its roots in a scriptural idea.  When we have too much free time, and we're not spending it with God, in the Word of God, we leave ourselves open to many sinful thoughts and temptations.  One thing I can personally think of is the internet and its world wide range.  Be careful what you click on, a virus might not only enter your computer, but enter into your home.

The one saying that we have heard momma and them use is: "the idle mind is a playground for the devil."  There are a lot of things that momma and them said and did that we should forget, but this is not one of them.  This is a good and true saying.  An idle mind is a dangerous thing.  We must preoccupy our minds with the Word of God, good works, positive activities, and most of all with "What Would Jesus Do?"

We must stay the course and keep the focus by keeping our minds and hands active for the Lord.

Besides, they get into the habit of being idle and going about from house to house. And not only do they become idlers, but also gossips and busybodies, saying things they ought not to. (1 Timothy 5:13)

We're Back !

See, I am doing a new thing! Now it springs up; do you not perceive it? I am making a way in the desert and streams in the wasteland. (Isaiah 43:19).

Hello and God Bless everyone. It has been almost 5 months since my wife and I last published a blog. God has been working in our lives.  He has taken us from the comfortable and familiar to a different place. Like Abram, sometimes God has to move us in order to bring us to the place He wants us to be; to depend on no one but Him.  We have to know that wherever God sends us that He will work it out, not just for us, but for the better good of the whole.

 Living in close proximity with different cultures has caused great growth in our lives, and has truly increased our faith.

We have been back to visit with our old church-home.  It felt so good, but you have to enjoy, and not get fooled by the familiar.  The familiar will always feel good.  It is okay to visit, but there is no going back unless God says so.  We have to keep moving forward to get what God has for us.

GOD IS ALWAYS IN CHARGE AND IN CONTROL!!!

HOLD TO GOD'S UNCHANGING HAND

There is Only One Good News

I am shocked that you are turning away so soon From God, who called you to Himself through the loving mercy of Christ.  You are following a different way that pretends to be the Good News, but is not the Good News at all.  You are being fooled by those who deliberately twist the truth concerning Christ.  (Galatians: 1:6-7/NLT)


Dear fellow believers, God is transitioning us from one place to another, and from one thing to another.  You will not hear from us for a while, but know that we are truly listening to hear God's voice so we don't go in the wrong direction or do the wrong thing.  We pray that all is well with you all, and that the Lord will watch between me and thee, while we are absent one from another.  We look forward to re-connecting with you in a few months.

Stay with Jesus is our prayer for you all and ourselves.

To God be the glory (TGBTG)