Monday, April 29, 2013

Be the Bug Light.........


Hello friends! I have to say that I have been looking at Facebook lately and I don't understand all the negativity. I guess we all deal with things and have hardships. Some of them are extreme too! I get that. But, here's the thing. Are your circumstances stealing your joy? Hey, I'll be the first to tell ya. My circumstances in my life have stolen my joy at times! I mean when things are great, we have joy. When things get hard or fall apart, we fall into depression. It's real! Let's just be honest and see how we can work through it or how God can help us. Let's dig into the good stuff and see what it shows us.........
Bible Verse: John 15:11 "These things have I spoken unto you, that My joy might remain in you, and that your joy might be full." John 15:11

What is joy? Where does it come from? Joy is the birthmark of the child of God. Every Christian ought to have joy from a consistent relationship with the Lord. Ok, here's is the deal. If our lives are entangled with Jesus then when adversity comes, we won't be as affected by it as much. Haven't you ever seen someone that was always happy? It didn't matter what was going on in their lives they were happy! It's so important that you have joy shining from your life in order to a beacon of hope for the lost. If you want people to believe in your Savior, the mark of an authentic Christian life is the joy of the Lord. Most people aren't that interested in all your church stuff if they don't see anything different about you. They want to know if it is working for you. And there's nothing more attractive in winning the lost to the Lord than the joy of the Lord in someone's life. It's like a bug light and the bugs will just keep coming!

Listen, I was the guy that carried some burdens and hardships lately and I was without the joy of the Lord. I had no gitty-up in my step. It was hard to smile! But, lately God has filled my heart so full of joy that it feels like it's going to explode. It's not too late for you either.  Remember "The joy of the Lord is your strength" (Nehemiah 8:10). Have a great day and God bless!

Sunday, April 28, 2013

Get the Bulldozer..........



Good morning. What a night I had at my house. We had a sleep over and the girls were making duct tape items and playing way too late. I will probably need a cattle prod to get them up for church. I was talking to a friend last night about some hardships some friends were going through. After I hung up the phone, God laid some stuff on my heart. Let's dig into some of the good stuff and see what we can find together.........
Bible Verse: James 4:7 "Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you."

Alright, let's just suppose you own a beautiful piece of property, and right in the middle of it you sell me an acre, and I have access in and out. Let's suppose all night long I'm playing loud music, partying, I throw trash around, I destroy your property. After a while you would probably say "I want you out of there. Move out. You're messing up my land."

But I say, "I'm not going! You can't make me go. You sold me this piece of property. I've got a legal right to it and I'm not moving." Guess what? My friend, you would not be able to move me out because you gave me a place there. Here's the thing, some of us have done almost the same thing with Satan. Certain things in your life have become strongholds and you have given a place to the devil. You cannot dislodge him unless you legally dislodge him. Yep, I brought out the law! Your probably saying "You go Mr. Po-Po!"
Even after you repent from sin, the devil is not going to just walk out. You're going to have to run him out of town! You still have to clean house. You have to say, "Satan, I've given you a place, but now I'm taking it back with Jesus by my side! Hey listen, don't shout at Satan, don't plead with Satan, don't argue with Satan, don't beg Satan. Just bring Jesus Christ against Him. He has no right, no authority. Your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit!. Satan is trespassing on my God's property! We must realize this and stand firm knowing God wants the best for us. We must fall at the feet of Jesus when these hard times come. He will give us the strength to work through anything. I promise if we try to fix it alone we will fail every time. We must truly seek His face and His will. Don't give up! Push forward and watch what He can do in your life. Then get in that bulldozer and push all that trash out of your life!!! Have a great Sunday and God bless!

Saturday, April 27, 2013

Leopard's can change their spots...........



Good morning! I sit here on a rainy Saturday morning with so much to do and yet kinda want to stay inside. At work this week a good friend told me about him sharing Christ with someone and them being so close to accepting Jesus into their heart. He told me that he was going to talk to him again that next day and wasn't going to let up. See, this guy has been through a lot lately and is searching right now. Well, I was talking to another gentleman about my friend witnessing to this man and here is what I heard next. "Even if he does accept Christ, he will probably go back to his old ways. Leopard's don't change their spots." That brings me to today's Bible verse. Let's dig into the good stuff!

Bible Verse: Galatians 6:1 Brethren, even if anyone is caught in any trespass, you who are spiritual, restore such a one in a spirit of gentleness; each one looking to yourself, so that you too will not be tempted.

Now, here is the real deal. Have you ever noticed that sometimes when a new convert comes down the aisle, especially if he's been a sinner that everyone knows, everybody watches him like a hawk? Well, the first thing you know, if he messes up or slips back into his old world, so many times us Christians say, "Uh huh, just as I thought. Look at him! Look how he failed." And rather than lending him a hand and helping him, it seems as though they put their heel on his head and push him down further into the mud. It has been said the Christian army is the only army in the world that shoots its wounded. I would believe it of late. When someone is wounded and hurt, we should be the first ones to surround them and protect them. I saw a video of a lion and crocodile fighting over a baby wildebeest. The herd of wildebeest’s surrounded the baby and went into protect mode. That is what we should do a Christians brother's and sister's. Sad to say, but most do not. To that I say shame on us. We are better than that. My friend sent me a verse this morning. Proverbs 27:17 Iron sharpens iron, so one man sharpens another.

We are not to criticize, we're to help, we're to lift, we're to boost. "Confess your faults one to another and pray one for another." This is the command we should obey. We should pray one for another and lift each other up. Do you know someone that needs help right now? What are you doing about it. Do you know someone who needs prayer right now? What are you doing about it? We are called and held to a higher standard. We are not of this world! N.O.T.W.!!!!! Have a great day and God bless!