This past year has been good for some……

I'm not sure exactly how to describe the year 2009. It was the first year of Pres. Barack Obama’s presidency which some people consider a true victory. For others, this year has been a very hard year especially those who are unemployed, or those who have family deployed overseas in military operations or those who have lost a loved one because of those military operations. There have also been many "good people" who died this past year due to age or accidents or other causes.

I don't like to think about death, especially during holidays, but since it's a normal part of life I suppose it's always in the back of everyone's mind. I'm sure there are many people who don't really know where to turn when a tragedy strikes, if you can call death a tragedy. In some cases those who have died have lived a very long productive life, while others have died far too young. Yet in all cases we who love them are not ready to let go even if we know that they are going to a better place.

It is during times like these that we have to turn to God for our comfort and our strength, because the strength that we have is not enough. I have seen many people who try to ignore the grief and pain they feel when they lose someone but eventually it can take a terrible toll on your body if you do not let it out.

God loves us all, even if we have to go through some trials and tribulations here on earth. Christians can rely on the Him for their strength but people who do not have faith in God only have their own ways of dealing with grief, loss and pain which sometimes can cause more pain. Jesus came into the world to give us hope and strength through relying on Him so that we will be able to serve him and whatever capacity that we are called to.

In God's word, the Bible, you can find wisdom, hope, and much more useful information than you could find in most any library on earth. The Bible itself may be over 2000 years old but the information contained within it is timeless and is still relevant. There have been many people in the past few years that are trying to take all references to the Bible out of our society and our culture. As Christians in America we should not allow that to happen, in our service to Christ we cannot allow that to happen.

The Christmas season, joyous for all?

During this season of the year many people go through hunger, heartache, grief, anger and frustration. Some of these are caused by the season itself, some are caused by disease, war, famine and yet some of these problems are actually caused by humanity itself. Our inability to see you the needs around us or to take notice of those who are in need because of our selfishness.

Even in America there is hunger, homelessness, grief over the loss of a loved one because death does not take a holiday. The homeless depend upon the charity of others for their next meal them for shelter from the cold, the hungry just need to be taken care of until they can take care of themselves. Because most of the hungry in this country are children. In America we grow enough food to feed millions and yet children go to bed hungry almost every night somewhere in America.

God truly has blessed America but if we, as a nation, keep going down the road that we're on I fear that the blessing will be taken away. We don't revere God as much as we used to in fact there are more people bent on taking all reference to Him out of the public eye and as far from the government as possible.

I am proud to be an American but in the past few years, I have not been proud of some of the things we do at home, in our movies, or to each other on a daily basis. The moral character of our nation and its people is crumbling. Our education system was formed from the beginning of our country to bring up the children to know God and now we have taken God and all reference to him out of the schools. I have heard many people ask the question "Why is our nation in the trouble that it's in?", and the answer lies in the fact that we don't teach our children anymore.

God loves us all and He does want the best for us but, as the children of Israel found out, when you turn your back on God and chase after other gods He will punish you and I believe that America is beginning to be punished. Even with a revival and a turning back to God, I don't think that we could stay His hand. Like a parent with an unruly  child, there has to be discipline at some point.

The only possibility for us to truly change is for our country as a whole to turn back to God. It would truly take a miracle but if we all pray for this to happen, earnestly and on our knees, I do believe that revival is possible. Please get into the New Testament, read the book of Romans and pray over it. God will hear you, He always does.

Do you know God?

If you go to church and if you read your Bible, can you know God the way that he wants you to know Him. Our lives are extremely hectic today and in many ways we don't have the time to truly get to know God. I think He would really love to get to know each and every one of us. According to His word, the Bible, that is exactly what He wants.

Today it seems that those that He created have no interest in learning about or getting to know Him. Our Creator, the Creator of all things, cares deeply about each and every one of us. Otherwise He wouldn't have placed us on such a perfectly sized planet, in a perfect orbit around our Sun. Everything on earth works together to keep a life-sustaining planet from being a garbage heap.

It truly is sad that our lives have become so loaded with information and news and constant instant communication until we seem to be addicted to it all. The reason that we are that way is because we want more information about our father, God. Most of us don't know what we're looking for, or where to find the information. We're just looking for something. Until we find Him, and invite him in, that part of our hearts will forever have an empty feeling.

Are you looking for Jesus today? He's waiting for you. If you only invited me in, He would say, I would always be there no matter what. Our Creator knows us far more intimately than we realize or could possibly understand. Artists do have an idea of the way God feels toward us, at least those artists that sculpt or mold their art do. A potter does this when he creates a vase because he has to put his vision into it to make it what he sees in his mind. That is how God creates each of us, in His mind. He has known us since the beginning of time, exactly what we will look like and how we will act toward others and toward Him.

Did you kill Jesus?

For the Christians of the world this question is poignant but true. Yes, our sin caused the death of Jesus because He came to be the one sacrifice which would satisfy all of the requirements of God. Not just for some but for all.

The love and mercy of our God covers all. We are the ones who move away from Him and if we have never come to Him that is why we don’t feel His comforting presence.

He is our Creator! The Creator of all things including us. To turn away from Him and the grace that He extended to us through His Son is the ultimate rebellious act. God’s laws are not outdated  and they are not flexible! There are no appeals when it comes to breaking them and the punishment for such is death, spiritual and eternal. The death I am speaking of is separation from God or any knowledge of Him for eternity in hell! There will be no parties, no joy, no laughter.

God’s love for us, all of us, is true and unquestionable. Yet the response that God expects from us is acceptance of Jesus’ sacrifice for our sins. If you do not accept Jesus as your Savior, it is the same as driving the nails in His hands and feet yourself! Rejection of Him, especially if you have felt the pull on your heart, is the sin which will not be forgiven! Especially if you die before repenting of this sincerely, and ask Him into your heart.

Our life can be so much more if we will allow Jesus into our lives and, on a daily basis, follow Him. The peace which will flood your soul and give your life a purpose is indescribable by human terms. The contentment and love that you will feel from God will be with you regardless of your circumstances. Accepting Jesus will not make your life on earth easy, by the world’s standard, but it will give you a peace that few will know until they come to Him.

Give Him a chance in your life to ease your burdens and lift your spirit. He is the greatest physician that you can know because He can heal both body and soul!

God bless and keep you all.  (read Romans 8 it is good for the soul)

Division is great in math class but not in the Church

In the past one hundred years the Church has been divided so many times that it is nearly unrecognizable today. Christians, regardless of denomination, have become too permissive and meek. We allow people to run over us and around us in the guise of being “politically correct and inoffensive”.

Jesus said that He came to put friends and family against each other because of Him and His teachings. We are not to be so meek that we are run over by every religion that claims the title of religion. Just because Jesus said that the “meek shall inherit the earth” doesn’t mean that we take it to an extreme!

I am sure that there are some real Christians in our world today that could be called friends of God but they are so few in number that they would not fill the sanctuary of a small church!

Our life is to be in service to Him regardless of the occupation that we have and being divided in doctrine or belief in the authenticity of the Bible is not the way to do it. There is no middle ground of service you are either serving God or Satan, you cannot serve both.

The Bible is the true and inspired word of our Creator! Those who disagree with this are challenged herewith to find at least 66 authors from all different walks of life. Without telling them what to write about other than to say that they must all be in agreement and have their stories point to one truth alone, have them to write a coherent book which will rival the Bible. Even if our lives were un-naturally long, there would be no possibility of this book ever being published in a coherent form within the next one thousand years!

The Bible spans about fourteen hundred years and tells of history back to the beginning of the earth and yet the story points to one Savior, Christ, who will fulfill all of the prophecies in Himself and through His ministry and His death and resurrection will be the salvation for all of mankind who have been called by God.

Friends

Many people will walk in and out of your life, but only true friends will leave footprints in your heart.

Our lives are touched daily by people that we know and some that we don’t, but the ones who make a lasting impression are friends. I claim Jesus as my friend and I hope you will too.

The friends which we have around us are those that we have found through work or school or in other circumstances in which we find ourselves. Whether it is through an accident, military, or other types of operations which puts us together, they are the ones that we rely on and miss the most when they are absent. The length of absence doesn’t make any difference between friends, there is always some common bond between you that will be there regardless of the circumstances life throws at you.

I had such an encounter recently with a friend that I haven’t seen in almost thirty years. Yet there was a bond which spanned that time and made it seem as if it wasn’t a concern. This friend and his family are important to me in ways that they do not realize and when the patriarch of their family moved on to his heavenly home it saddened me. But, I still feel joy because of it. I know that we will see each other in Heaven and we will have an eternity of service to our Lord together.

The friendship which Jesus offers to all is closer than those which we have here during our lifetimes. As God’s word says, “ I will never leave you nor forsake you.” Deuteronomy 31:6. This is the kind of friend we need, now more than ever in these troubled times. I pray that anyone who reads this will take this message to heart and accept Jesus into their lives so that you will have a friend forever!

Service is only service if you serve!

If you are a religious person, who/whom do you serve? No person on this earth serves no one. Some may think that they only serve themselves, but they are being fooled by the original trickster, Satan himself. As long as your priority is yourself and no one else you are serving his purposes and him indirectly. We were not put here to be his servants. We were all put on earth to serve the Living God!

Our lives are but small puffs of wind compared to eternity so why not serve the One who created it all, God! He gave us a choice to do so or not but once you realize that your life is worth nothing if you don’t believe in Him and His purposes, it takes on a completely different meaning. Because your life has meaning in service to Him!

There are so many “priorities” vying for our attention on a daily basis until it is easy to miss the one that is most important. There truly is a small voice from God which is there you just have to listen with an open mind and a contrite heart. Being willing to do whatever that voice says and not wavering will get you great rewards in the end. Read the Bible, hear the wisdom in its words, get an mp3 Bible and listen to it. You won’t be disappointed or bored and your soul will shout for joy!