To Do the Will of God

Are you "all ear" when God speaks? Luke 5:4-8, 1 Kings 11:4-11, Exodus chapters 3 and 4, Matthew 21:28-31, 2 Timothy 3:16, John 2:10, Romans 10:9-13,Mark 12:29, John 13:34/35, Romans 13:8-10, for good measure you might like to read Jonah, Daniel and about Joseph in Genesis chapters 37-47.

Bible translators who work with languages that are not yet put into writing often struggle to find the right word or phrase to convey the correct meaning of a portion of Scripture. One worker hunted long to find a way to translate the word obedience into the tribal language he was recording but had no success.

One day, the translator was going for a walk; and he whistled for his dog to come with him. The dog immediately ran to its owner. An old tribal man who saw what happened said to the missionary, "Your dog is all ear."
The missionary immediately knew he had the exact phrase to express obedience.
Are you "all ear" when it comes to obeying God? Let's look at some lessons about obedience and disobedience today.

Receive

Read this from Luke 5:4-8 (ESV):

"And when [Jesus] had finished speaking, he said to Simon, 'Put out into the deep and let down your nets for a catch' And Simon answered, 'Master, we toiled all night and took nothing! But at your word I will let down the nets.' And when they had done this, they enclosed a large number of fish, and their nets were breaking. They signaled to their partners in the other boat to come and help them. And they came and filled both the boats, so that they began to sink. But when Simon Peter saw it, he fell down at Jesus' knees, saying, 'Depart from me, for I am a sinful man, O Lord.'"
Jesus ran an "obedience school" for His disciples. He wanted them to learn to trust Him absolutely in every area of life. Peter hadn't been a disciple very long. He was weary from a night of unsuccessful fishing, and he felt he knew far more about fishing than Jesus did. But Jesus told him, "Go back out there on the water and try again."
Peter revealed his reluctance as he replied, "OK, Master, if you say so."
When the boats almost sank from the weight of the fish, Peter realized how sinful his attitude had been. He fell on his knees and said, "Lord, don't have anything more to do with this sinful man!"

Reflect

It's pretty irritating when your dog doesn't come the first or second time you call, isn't it? And you might say that it's downright infuriating when the dog just totally ignores you and keeps on doing its own thing when you call!

If a person willfully disobeys God, that is one thing; if he or she delays or reluctantly obeys God, that is another. But do you see how both attitudes show lack of faith?
Here is a Bible record of a person who willfully disobeyed God: Read 1 Kings 11:4-11.

• Who was the person who disobeyed?
• What did he do that angered God?
• How many times had God told him not to do what he did?
• What was the outcome of this person's disobedience?

Now, look at another person who was reluctant to obey God but changed his mind and later obeyed. Open your Bible to the Book of Exodus, chapters 3 and 4, and look at these verses about God's command to Moses to deliver the people of Israel from slavery in Egypt.

• What did God want Moses to do (Exodus 3:10)?
• What was Moses' first response to God's order (Exodus 3:11)?
• What was Moses' second response (Exodus 4:1)?
• What was his third response to God's order (Exodus 4:10)?
• What was Moses' fourth reaction to God's command (Exodus 4:13)?
• What was God's response to Moses' continuing reluctance to obey (Exodus 4:14-17)?

Someone has said, "Delayed obedience is disobedience." As long as you are reluctant to obey and you hold off doing something that God has told you to do, no matter what your intentions are, you are disobeying the Lord. And if you do finally get around to obeying, the blessing will never be as great as if you had obeyed the moment the Lord showed you what you should do.

Respond

Is God revealing anything to you these days that you ought to be doing but are delaying to do because of your lack of faith? Is there any area of your life where you are willfully disobeying Him?
Read Matthew 21:28-31 to see something Jesus had to say about willful disobedience and reluctant, delayed obedience.

Determine that you will no longer delay. Take the first step today to be obedient to God

By Back to the Bible Ministries

My Comments: At every moment of our lives God is speaking to us. Not usually like Jesus did with Peter or the Father did with Abraham and Moses yet He speaks. In our hearts, things that are going on, doors that close, confirmations by the body of believers, yet always by His Word (2 Timothy 3:16, all scripture is God breathed). His Son who is called the Word of God (remember He spoke the world into being and when He walked the earth He spoke His Fathers truth to all and especially taught the Apostles who taught and teach us today by the word they penned. Often people will say to me, "God doesn't speak to me," or "How do I know it is God telling me what to do?" or even, "I thought it was God telling me to do this." Yet they do not check it out with the Word of God to see if it measures up.

For instance a friend of mine and I were in a cult and she was told to go to coffee or she could go to coffee with a guy. She took that to mean she was to marry him. It was a disastrous marriage and ended in divorce. We did not truly know the Lord in those days yet had we then we would have been able to search the Word of God and see nothing like that in the Bible and would have concluded that was not the right choice. I with my fiancé, when I was in my late teens, decided we could say some words of marriage and God would bless our union. We were wrong even if we thought, "Well, people in the old days and in the Bible just said they were married so we can." If we had read the Word of God we would have seen that was not the way God had it set up.

Well, that is just a bit about listening to the Lord and checking out what we think we are hearing. Until I was made righteous through the blood of the Lamb by accepting His sacrifice, I did not have a reliable Pastor or godly person in my life to go to who would give me true Biblical advice yet I did have the power of prayer and His Word and if I had trusted Him and sought answers from Him through His Word, He would have guided me and I would not have made so many wrong choices.

The most obedient thing we can do first is to accept His gift of salvation that is offered through the Sacrifice of Jesus on the Cross, believe He died and rose again on the third day (this is the Gospel of Jesus). Jesus took away our sin and only He can make us pure. Only He can bring us up into the light and refresh us with the living waters. Only He can bring the light into our lives. Only He can forgive our sins because He paid the price for us by being sin for us and taking our punishment.

None of us are "good," though we often think we are  because of the teachings of the world. We say things like, " I have done everything I can to make peoples lives better so I am good" or "I have always been there for everyone so I am good" or  "I have never hurt anyone" or "I pray all the time" or "I'm not as bad as that person who....(you fill in the blanks)" or "I have kept all of the commandments (John 2:10 keep them all or Romans 10:9-13 accept Christ's righteousness because only He has ever kept the full commandments of the law and Mark 12:29 Jesus said, "Hear o Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is one. And you shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and all your soul and all your mind and with all your strength. The second is this: You shall love your neighbor as yourself.")" or "I have never broken the law (They are usually talking about man's law)" or well you get the idea none of us are good, none of us are sinless. Only Christ was and only He kept the full law of God His Father and ours. Jesus' commandment (and He only spoke the Word of the Father) John 13:34/35 "A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another; just as I have loved you, you also are to love one another." And Romans 13:8-10 Owe no one anything except to love each other, for the one who loves another has fulfilled the law. The commandments (some are listed)...are summed up in this word: You shall love your neighbor as yourself. Love does no wrong to a neighbor, therefore love is the fulfilling of the law."

All of this is to say keeping all the laws of the Old Testament Commandments are impossible that is why Jesus came and He fulfilled the Law and why we are to Love God and Love our Neighbor. If we listen obediently we will Love even when it is seemingly impossible or circumstances seem to make it feel impossible. I can only speak from my experiences. Some I have already written about and you may read over my comments on earlier postings on the blog. Some others the Lord walked through the fire with me on are: children running away or going to jail, early pregnancies, divorces, children in drugs and alcohol and being beat or raped, losing a child to SIDS, 4 miscarriages, losing my first Grandson (He was only 27), losing my 39 year old daughter to cancer a year later and losing all of my parents and step-parents and Grandparents and most of my Aunts and Uncles (we were a very close family on all sides), my husband suffering a disease and now cancer of the liver to name a few (update my hubby and best friend went home to be with our Lord October 2012). I could have said, "This is too much, what did I do to deserve all of this or why me?" Yet it did not matter. It was not about getting rid of all pain or worrisome issues in my life. It has always been about my relationship with my heavenly Abba (Daddy). About accepting Jesus the Christ as my Savior and His living in me. About trusting in Him and faith growing in all adversity.

All my life I felt a kinship with Job and Joseph the son of Jacob, and many others in the Bible. I knew God loved me and I loved Him and with Him I could weather all storms. Sometimes I felt down and that is because I was looking to myself and not to Him, even when I said to myself I was. I acted as a child who is doing what they think the parent wants them to do (inside they are wishing they could do something else usually) and then is disappointed when things do not turn out like the child anticipated so they feel the parent doesn't love them. Well, all you parents know that is not true. We love our children so we help them to grow through the hard times of living here in this alien land called earth. We don't stop the pain or the lessons because the lessons hurt; we are there to support and let them know we love them and if they ask we go through it with them because we love them and want them to grow so they can help others (like your Grandchildren some day).

Though I often felt like Job and Joseph yet I know I and many others, are like Jonah (read the book of Jonah) we are told by the Lord to go and do something and we balk for various reasons. Jonah refused and went away from the task the Lord set for him because he did not love the people of Nineveh (nor did he love God more than his own desires or feelings). So God did a really drastic thing and Jonah ended up going there anyway yet not with love for them. Jonah continued in his hard heartedness and stubbornness and suffered time and again but the will of God prevailed and 120,000 people came to know and love the Lord God.

God can even use an unwilling person to reach others or accomplish His will yet we miss out on the blessings if we do not willingly do His will. Read about Joseph who was sold into slavery by his brothers who wanted to kill him at 17 and Daniel who was in slavery yet he and Joseph ruled because they trusted and had faith in the Lord God that no matter what happened to them they would be with the Lord God as long as they did His will and not their own.

Are you "all ear?" and is your obedience done out of Love for God and for others, out of faith and trust that God knows best and has yours and others best in mind? We will not see the whole picture or know the answers until God tells us. He probably will not let us know here and when we get to heaven it won't matter. When we see and hold our loved ones in our arms. When our eyes behold heaven and the heavenly courts and most of all when we see the Lamb of God and God the Father, sitting on the throne. Oh, what a glorious day and none of this pain will matter and it will be gone!
Abba, Abba, Abba our hearts cry out to You our heavenly Father who adopted us through the righteousness of Your Son Jesus. We cry to You Abba to be with us in our pain and sorrows, sufferings and trials. Help us to go through them with faith and trust. Fill us with understanding and knowledge and wisdom so we may be lights in this dark world. Help us to read and understand Your Word so we may be salt. Give us Your Love for the world and all You bring into our lives. May we trust You to take care of everything so we are anxious for nothing and joyous for what we have. As we are obedient to You Abba may our hearts be right with You. We thank You Father for all You are doing and have done and will do in our lives; for all You allow us to go through and we ask You to help us to finish the race well for Your glory and not for ours. In the name of Jesus we pray with Your Holy Spirit, Amen
Rebishka

Are you willing to be made pure? Malachi 3:2.

Malachi 3:2

"But who can endure the day of His coming? And who can stand when He appears? For He is like a refiner's fire and like launderers' soap."
NKJV

Have you ever watched a goldsmith in action? It's an amazing thing to watch him heat up this precious metal and pour it into molds to harden so that it can be handled. But before he is able to pour it into a mold, he must first remove any impurities. These impurities, or dross, cannot be cut out of the gold or rubbed off. In order to remove the dross, the goldsmith must first heat the metal to incredible temperatures. Once this is done, the dross rises to the top and the goldsmith is able to scrape it off thus purifying the metal.

Friend, this is what our Father in heaven desires to do in each and every one of our lives. He desires to mold us and shape us more and more into the image of His Son, Jesus. To do that, He must often lead us into His refiner's fire where He will skim our imperfections off the top. Most of the time this is not a pleasant process, but we can trust that God has our best interest at heart. Like the ultimate goldsmith, God knows how much heat we can endure and how much handling we require. It's in His loving hands that we are refined so we reflect our Father's handiwork.

Life Lesson: God desires to act as refiner and purifier in our lives.

Dear Father,
Thank You for loving me. Thank You for Your work in my life and for Your refiner's fire. While it may be difficult during those times of trial and purifying, I praise You because I know it is for my good. Lord, continue to skim the dross from my life so that I may be a shining example of Your love and grace. In Jesus' name, Amen.

Living to tell what He died to say, Pastor David McGee

My Comments: God's Word tells us He is refining us yet it also says He goes through it with us. We do not rely on our own strength to go through it we rely on His. Isn't that a wonderful thing? I cannot tell you all that I have been allowed to go through in my life and regrettably how many things I have put myself through by my wrong choices. I have learned from both yet I have learned because of the consequences I would rather God allow the lessons and give me His strength to go through them because I come out purer through His refining fire than the hard lessons of life.

They have things to teach yet it is best to let the God who created us and knows what is best for us be the teacher, refiner, director of our lives.Okay, a few of the things I have been refined with are Polio (though I think that was more for my family as I was young and though I did learn lessons and become stronger my parents and Grandparents and Grandparents had to endure a child in pain and they had to go through the uncertainty of would I be on a lung machine or walk or die?), Scarlatina, two rounds back to back of German Measles as well as all the childhood ones being extreme (I was learning patience and being calm), nearly drowning and someone trying to drown me (I learned forgiveness early), molested and raped by males and females (yes I forgave them and asked the Lord to heal them and make them His), I was beaten by my first spouse and other things and God showed me how to love him in spite of what he did and pray for him and his wife that they would be Children of God, I have been beaten by other family through the years and lied about, gossiped about (sometimes true and often not and often by family and not to help but to hurt yet God loves them and so do I and my prayers are for their salvation).

 Those are a few and I know many who read this can relate to these things and I pray all who have endured pain, humiliation and sorrow will be able to forgive and turn to God. And if you do not know what He is allowing you to learn, what dross He is burning off of your sin nature, or how He is strengthening you then ask. Read His Word and lean not on your own understanding. Remember forgiveness is important to your growth and how can we ask God to forgive us if we are unwilling to forgive others?

Pray for those who have wronged you and you will grow more than you could ever imagine. We often feel we are better than others because.... you fill in the blanks. Yet this is so not true! We all have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God. Only one was born sinless and He died for our sin. Could you or I die and save someone from their sin? No! Absolutely Not. Can an animal die for our sin and remove it as far as the East is from the West (totally far away)? Again the answer is No. Only the one sinless one, dieing on the Cross, could save us from our sin completely and forever yet we have to accept it for the gift to be ours. This is why I can forgive and why everyone who wants salvation has to forgive. It is not a suggestion it is a command and is part of the contract, if you will, for salvation. We cannot say, "I want to be saved," and I will not forgive.... because....(again fill in the blanks).

There are no exceptions and yes, I know there are some horrendous things people can and have done to people yet there are no exceptions on our part. Only God can do what needs to be done in regards to them. Vengeance is mine saith the Lord. Though I have not sought vengeance only their salvation and I pray they all turn to Abba and become His children through the Blood of the Lamb of God, Jesus the Messiah (Christ).

Abba we thank You and praise You for all you allow into our lives and we pray You keep all evil from us and keep our souls Yours. Refine us Father and give us Your strength to endure the process. Steep us in Your Word that we will always keep our eyes on You and our ears ever tuned to Your voice. Keep our hearts as Yours for all who are a part of the refineing and keep our feet from stumbling. Wash us with the cleansing blood of the Lamb and the launders soap so we will be white as new snow. Firmly plant our feet on the Rock of our Salvation (Jesus) and may our path always be the straight and narrow one that leads to You. All glory be unto You my Lord and God for keeping us the apple of Your eye and bringing salvation to us by teaching us how to suffer and forgive as Your Son Jesus' did who was innocent and pure. We only can stand in Your Holy and awesome presence because we have accepted Your Son and His sacrifice and are now adopted sons and daughters of the King. Thank You Father for the refiners fire. In His name we pray. Amen.
Rebishka

Prayer and the Word of God (Bible) just go together (1); Proverbs 28;9, Psalm 119, John 15:7, Matthew 5:44, Luke 10:2, Phillipians 1:9, Exodus 20:15.

Some things just seem to go together--for example, bacon and eggs, Abbot and Costello, Simon and Garfunkel. Certainly one can exist without the other, but they're even better if you put them together.

The same is true of prayer and reading God's Word. You can certainly read the Bible by itself, but when you put it together with prayer, you have a dynamite combination. Let's see what the Bible says.

Receive

Scripture indicates that Bible reading should be an integral part of your prayer life. Take a look at Proverbs 28:9:
"If one turns away his ear from hearing the law,
even his prayer is an abomination" (ESV).
Law is often used in Scripture to refer to the Word of God--the Bible itself. For many more synonyms (and a wonderful reminder of how important the Bible is in our lives), read Psalm 119.
But this wasn't just an Old Testament idea. Jesus said much the same thing to His disciples but in a positive way. "If you abide in me, and my words abide in you, ask whatever you wish, and it will be done for you" (John 15:7, ESV).

• What does it mean to abide in Jesus?
• Give at least two ways you can have God's Word abide in you.
• How does prayer enter into this promise?

Reflect

Where does the Bible fit into your prayer life? Do you only open God's Word once a week at church, or do you make time for it every day along with prayer? If you want to know how to pray successfully, find out from God's Word what He wants you to pray about (See Matthew 5:44, Luke 10:2, Philippians 1:9).

Respond

Here are two way to integrate God's Word into your prayer life. For the next seven days, stop to pray before you open God's Word. Confess any sins that might hinder you from hearing what God might want to say to you from His Word. After you've read the Scriptures, pray again--asking God to apply what you've read to your life.

Another way of combining God's Word with your prayers is to take your Scripture reading and turn it into a prayer. If you've read, "you shall not steal" (Exodus 20:15), you might pray: "Lord, help me not to steal today. Help me not to steal time from my employer but put in an honest day's work. Help me not steal from my spouse by looking inappropriately at something (or someone) that would damage our relationship. Help me not to steal from my friends by saying anything that would hurt or cause them to feel badly about themselves. Amen." Your prayer can be written out or spoken spontaneously. Try this at least once a week for the next month.

By: Back to the Bible Ministries

My Comments: On the other hand you could just as well say prayer without the Bible could be done yet is not as profitable spiritually. That is why the God of the universe took the time to have 40 different authors write 60 books of the Bible and yet though they were physically written by them He authored it and that is clear to see when we read the Word (Bible). The books were written over a huge period of time by mostly men who never talked to each other until some from the New Testament. Yet it is consistent and true to all God taught over the ages to those who listened to Him. He is the same yesterday, today and tomorrow and cannot lie or contradict  Himself so when He wrote by inspiring them or even speaking directly to them He showed Himself truly the same.

We can pray and read a few scripture verses at a time and slowly build up to more over time. It is a spiritual muscle and needs to be exercised to be fully appreciated and enjoyed by most. Some take to it like fish in water. Some need to listen to the word on tape because they learn differently. Some need to hear it like a story. I have a Bible like that and though it has the full words of the Bible on the tapes it has music and different people sounds so you feel like you are hearing it for the first time and are really there. My hubby like that one when he is sick and needs to just listen. One of our daughters used to read and study a book and story and then tell it to her hubby at night when they were relaxing and he got into it that way. We all can think of ways to help ourselves and others to appreciate the Word of God and if we pray with them they can learn the importance of pray with the Word.

I really like what Back to the Bible Ministries says about combining God's Word with prayer and Scripture reading and making it a focus for the day. I think that would help cement the Word in ones mind and help us to remember the Word of God easier. I will be trying that because I see merit in using prayer to strengthen my reading of the Word and my spiritual growth as well.

Abba Father, thank You for this teaching we have been given and for the Ministry of Back to the Bible and for Your guidance in all we say, think and do. Grow us in Your Word and help us to see and understand where You want us to focus our prayers and energies. Use Your Word to guide, instruct and speak. May we find it sweet as honey in our mouths and when we feel how bitter it leaves our tummy's because we see how unequipped we are; will You help us to remember when we accepted Your Son Jesus' precious gift of Salvation we were redeemed and made new. We praise you and glorify You Father and we thank You for our Salvation. In Jesus we pray, Amen.
Rebishka

First Things First. Proverbs 15:29, Matthew 5:23/24, Mark 11;25, Proverbs 145:18, Proverbs 15:8, Proverbs 28:9, John 15:7, Hebrews 4:16.

"First things first"--you've heard that before, haven't you? Your mom yelled, "Come to lunch! Wash your hands first!"

Your boss told you, "Don't ever take out the company car without checking the oil first."
Your spouse warned, "I just vacuumed the carpet. Take your shoes off before you come in."
You know your car won't start unless you turn the ignition key first, and you can't read your email without booting up the computer first; but did you know there is a "first thing first" in prayer too? Let's see what the Lord says.

Receive

You are probably aware that your relationship to God should be right if you expect Him to answer your prayers. Proverbs 15:29 (ESV) says:
"The LORD is far from the wicked,
but he hears the prayer of the righteous."
But there's another condition to be met before your prayers can be effective--something that Jesus said you need to consider before you approach God. He said: "So if you are offering your gift at the altar and there remember that your brother has something against you, leave your gift there before the altar and go. First be reconciled to your brother, and then come and offer your gift" (Matthew 5:23-24, ESV).
"And whenever you stand praying, forgive, if you have anything against anyone, so that your Father also who is in heaven may forgive you your trespasses" (Mark 11:25, ESV).
Jesus is saying that "first things first" applies when we go to the Lord in prayer. God looks at our prayers as offerings to Him (See Revelation 8:4.). If you go to the altar of prayer and your brother has something against you, your offering won't be acceptable to the Lord until you have restored your human relationships. If you go to prayer with an unforgiving spirit, God will be deaf until you have first forgiven the one who offended you.

Reflect

Look up these verses and answer the questions:

• Psalm 145:18--What is God's condition for nearness to those who call on Him?
• Proverbs 15:8--Whose prayer is acceptable to God?
• Proverbs 28:9--Whose prayer is an abomination?
• John 15:7--Who may ask what they wish, and it will be done?

Respond

You should be very careful about rushing into the presence of God. A little preparation time before you go to the Lord can help you be on better "praying ground." Yes, Christ has given us the right to appear confidently before the throne of grace (Hebrews 4:16), but He has also warned us not to appear disobediently.

Set aside a few minutes in your devotional time to prepare to meet with the Lord. Ask Him to show you anything in your life that is hindering prayer. Try doing this for the next several days and see if it doesn't make a difference in the way you come before the Lord. Keep the first things first.
By: Back to the Bible Ministries

My Comments: When we accept the Lord Jesus as our Savior by accepting His gift that is the first thing one must do and the only thing one must do to receive the gift of salvation. It is free yet we must accept the free gift. When a gift comes in the mail say by Fed Ex first you must accept it and then you may open it. When you want dinner someone has to cook it first before you may eat of it. When you want to take a bath first you must have water. So when we want salvation we must first accept His Sacrifice.

My prayer is that you will afirst ccept then follow Jesus the just and righteous who can make you righteous and spotless before the Father.

Abba help us to know our sin nature has seperated us from You and only through accepting Your Son who You allowed to die on the Cross for our salvation, may we be cleansed from sin and given the strength, Your strength to resist our sin nature. Help us to flee evil and stand straight as we go through adversities relying not on others or ourselves for strength but only on You. Direct our paths oh, Lord and give us grace, peace and discernment so we will make the choices in our lives that You would have us to make. Help us to flee from sin and to not trust our sin natures that have led us astray as did the sin natures of Adam and Eve. We place our hope, trust and faith in You and desire to be Yours and to do Your will always in thought, word and deed.  Help us to put You first in our lives. In Jesus name. Amen, Amen, Amen.
Rebishka

Grace, peace, knowledge and wisdom are they yours? 2 Peter 1:2/3.

2Peter 1:2/3 

"May God give you more and more grace and peace as you grow in your knowledge of God and Jesus our Lord. By his divine power, God has given us everything we need for living a godly life. We have received all of this by coming to know him, the one who called us to himself by means of his marvelous glory and excellence."
NKJV

Knowledge is a powerful thing. With knowledge we have the ability to create buildings, machines and cure diseases. Knowledge helps us understand the universe around us and when put to action, knowledge can produce countless results, both good and bad. Yet, there is a specific knowledge that, when acted upon, brings eternal life. This is the knowledge of the Gospel.

Many scholars throughout history have examined the Bible and can understand the words on the page yet few have actually experienced the life-changing effect of those words. The Gospel is more than just a story; it is the power of God for our salvation. The truth of Jesus' life, death and resurrection can lead us into a relationship with God or can condemn us. It depends on what we do with it. God's powerful, life-changing grace rests on the pages of scripture and calls for us to trust it. When we do, we will truly experience the amazing grace so often sung about. This grace brings peace to the soul and hope for the future. Do you know that grace?

Life Lesson: In order to experience the power of Christ, we must first trust Him.

Dear God,
Thank You for Your offer of grace. Lord forgive me of my sins and make me new. I believe in what Jesus has done on my behalf and trust in His death and resurrection for my salvation. Fill me with Your Spirit so that I will be strengthened to live for You. In Jesus' name, Amen.

Living to tell what He died to say, Pastor David McGee Cross the Bridge Ministries My Comments: There are many, many verses in the Old and New Testament telling us how God loves us and that He is the same yesterday, today and tomorrow. Many tell us to trust Him and to have faith (which means it is a choice). Many say He is the God of hope. The Old and New Testaments tell of the coming of the Lord and the signs of times. The Lord gives knowledge and wisdom for us to understand the Words of our Father if we just ask and trust in Him. Though the Gospel of Jesus Christ is spelled out more easily in the New Testament, once you know how God writes one is able to understand how it is talked about in the Old Testament as well. What an awesome God we serve. What a wonderful Father we have who has adopted us through His Son Jesus dieing on the cross and our accepting the Sacrifice of Jesus. We have to do so little; just accept, believe, have faith and follow.  We do not have to "DO" anything. Saying so many prayers before we die, kneeling when we pray, looking sad all the time, working with the poor, paying money to help people, goinjg to a priest or rabbi nothing we can do will get us into heaven. The only thing He wants us to do is to turn to Him, and accept the free gift of Salvation. Then doing other things afterwards just show we are His. When we serve or forgive or evangelize or any other thing one can come up with to "DO" after we are His (Baptizm does not save one only accepting His gift does; Baptizm is the outward expression of an inward change that we want to share with the world and especially the rest of the "Body"). For instance I write this blog because the Lord impressed on me and confirmed through a friend saying I should write a blog. This is a do yet if I were not already saved it would not be counted for me to save me. Good works never saved anyone. Salvation comes from the unmerited gift of God through His precious Son Jesus dieing on the Cross. This is  redemption. We are redeemed by the blood of Jesus. But only those who accept this will be in Heaven one day with the Lord. It is a gift that is offered to all yet not all will accept. I thought for most of my life that if I died I would be in Heaven with God. I did not know the true Gospel of Jesus. I thought because I was baptized at 40 days old that I was going to Heaven. Just before 911 I was praying in my bedroom and watching tv when the Lord showed me I would not go to Heaven unless I accepted the free gift of Salvation. I did. Now I am saved, Born Again as Jesus says in the Bible. A few years ago my hubby and I felt the call to be Baptized with the rest of the believers and that was a glorious day!! God will speak to you if you have ears to hear. He will show you His truth if you have eyes to see and He will soften your heart for His word if you so desire. Read His Word, devour it and pray on what you read. Ask the Holy Spirit of God to teach, guide and fill you with the Knowledge of God and His understanding. Check things out for yourself or as it says "taste and see that the Lord is good." Abba we lift all to You who are searching Your Word, who are seeking Your truth, who desire to be one with You, who thirst for Your knowledge and understanding that they may be filled with a hunger for your Word and knowledge of what Your Word is and says, that they will seek and find Your grace, peace, and perfect wisdom, Touch their hearts Father and heal their anger, lack of trust, and help them to find forgiveness in You when they seek and find You. Thank You Lord for the Salvation You have obtained through You blood and may we be partakers of Your body and blood and we join You in the cross. Open our mouths with Your truths and give us Your love for others and especiallly those You have placed us with in our lives. Forgive us Father as we forgive others and keep us as the apple of Your eye. In Jesus' precious and Holy Name.. Amen Rebishka

One true  Gospel, one body. 1 Corinthians 10:17, John 17:20/21.

1 Corinthians 10:17
"For we, though many, are one bread and one body; for we all partake of that one bread."
NKJV

The Body of Christ is truly amazing as millions of believers all over the world come together with a common goal of sharing the Gospel. When the church, the body of Christ, is functioning correctly, the world around it is blessed as people are fed, clothed and given the life-changing Truth of God's Word. Unfortunately because of division, worldly pleasures or indifference, the church can lose sight of the lost as well as the One we are serving.

John 17:20-21 "I do not pray for these alone, but also for those who will believe in Me through their word; that they all may be one, as You, Father, are in Me, and I in You; that they also may be one in Us, that the world may believe that You sent Me." NKJV

Before Jesus was arrested, He prayed asking the Father to make all believers one as He and His Father are One. When Christians come together as the body of Christ, we come together with different likes and dislikes, personalities and social statuses. We may even have some secondary doctrinal differences but with all those differences, we have One unifying similarity. We have all been forgiven by a gracious God and we call Jesus Lord. With this as our banner, we can stand in unity as one body for the sake of the lost.
Life Lesson: There is a special relationship between people who are Christians.
Dear Father,
Thank You for the body of Christ. Thank You for loving brothers and sisters who are there to encourage and challenge me in my faith. Lord, I pray that You would help unite us as one so that we can be used in a powerful way to take Your Gospel to all the nations. In Jesus' name, Amen.
Living to tell what He died to say,
Pastor David McGee

My Comments:I was listening on the radio today to a Christian program and they were talking about why they believed a certain way about the "rapture" (a word we use for those who will be "caught up with Jesus"). Those discussions and others are all interesting though they should never separate the body. We should however be adamant when it comes to who Jesus is and what the Gospel is and how we are saved and who we can go through to God. We have Jesus's own words and God's to guide us and when God speaks either as the Father or through His Son we are to listen and not argue.

Jesus said He and the Father were one. He said He came to teach us how to worship the Father and even gave a guide on how to pray to the Father and that He is the only one we can go through to go to the Father. We pray to the Father through the Son because that is what God wanted and Jesus paid the price for us.

That is something else we do not argue about. He paid the price so we might live as sons (and of course daughters) of God, of the King. We have become of royal blood and are of the Priesthood line. So much happened when Christ died and took on our sins upon himself, He became sin who knew no sin so we might become justified. Abba, Father may we place our energies in serving You thereby serving others and not being self serving. We thank You Father for all the challenges in our lives and help us to know Your truths and be able to give a good account of what we believe and why based solely on Your word and Your truths. In Jesus' Name. Amen

All who have accepted this gift of Salvation are brothers and sisters with Christ Jesus and will one day be caught up and be one with Him. Oh, blessed day. Come Lord Jesus, Come quickly!
Abba, may we as one body as brothers and sisters of Christ Jesus remove ourselves from arguing and bringing You shame by our behaviors. Keep our words sweet and pure and may our actions bring You praise, glory and honor. May we be angry only when as Jesus in the temple, Your name is desecrated. Thank You Father for the challenges we face and help us to serve in Your name and not be self serving. In Jesus' Name, Amen

Rebishka

Remain steadfast and true to the Lord. James 1"12-15, Genesisn3:1-10, Genesis 3:22-24, Joshua 7:22-26, 2Samuel 11 and 12, Matthew 6:13, Matthew 26:41, 1 Corinthians 10:13.

Two Korean soldiers were joking and laughing as they walked along a path to join their unit. The war had been over for months, so there seemed to be no danger to worry about. One of the men suddenly spotted something shiny in the ditch beside the path. Stepping aside, he reached down to retrieve the object. There was a deafening explosion as a land mine went off and when the dust settled, the soldier lay dead and his companion had both legs blown off. A sign they had just walked by read, "Danger, Stay on Path."

God's Word puts up some danger signs to warn you about temptation as you walk on your daily spiritual journey.

Receive

James 1:12-15 (ESV)
"Blessed is the man who remains steadfast under trial, for when he has stood the test he will receive the crown of life, which God has promised to those who love him. Let no one say when he is tempted, "I am being tempted by God," for God cannot be tempted with evil, and he himself tempts no one. But each person is tempted when he is lured and enticed by his own desire. Then desire when it has conceived gives birth to sin, and sin when it is fully grown brings forth death."
How does this happen? Let's look at some people who were tempted to do wrong and ended up in a tangle of sin and shame.
Read Genesis 3:1-10 and re-read verses 6 and 7.

• What did Eve see?
• What did she desire?
• What did she do?
• Why did Adam and Eve hide? (3:10)
• What happened as a result of their sin? (see Genesis 3:22-24)

When Joshua led the people of Israel into the Promised Land, the first city they conquered was Jericho. God told the people that they were to keep none of the captured goods for themselves, but a man named Achan disobeyed and was later caught with the stolen things. Look up Achan's confession in Joshua 7:20-22.

• What did Achan see?
• What was his temptation about what he saw?

What did he do to satisfy his desires?

What happened because of his sin? (see Joshua 7:24-26)

Reflect

Do you see the pattern of temptation? They saw something...they desired it...they took it for themselves...they hid the results as well as they could from God and man, but they were caught and had to face the consequences.
The same thing happened to David in his adultery with Bathsheba. He saw her; he desired her; he took her. Then David tried every way he could think of to hide the sin, but he suffered tragic consequences for the rest of his life (see 2 Samuel 11 and 12).
Do you wonder what resources God has given us to ward off the temptations Satan brings our way? Here is some help. Look up the Bible answers to these questions:

• What does Jesus say about how we should regularly pray against Satan's temptations? (Matthew 6:13 and Matthew 26:41).
• If you are tempted, is there any way out before you fall into sin? (1Corinthians 10:13).

Respond

First Corinthians 10:13 says that temptation is a common experience for all people.
Someone once said of temptation, "You can't keep the birds from flying over your head, but you can keep them from nesting in your hair!"

Take some time right now to consider whether there are some weak spots in your life--an old habit, a wrong pattern of activity or a desire for something that requires disobedience to God in order to get. If you identify a weakness, ask the Lord now to give you strength and to deliver you from the temptations of the evil one.

Back to the Bible Ministries

My Comments: We all are tempted from the time we are very young and sometimes or often we find excuses for what we do even to ourselves yet when we do wrong we have no one else to blame but ourselves. We are born with sinful natures that want to gratify us and "make us happy" at the expense of everything even the loss of God. Oh, we tell ourselves pretty little things to make it seem okay yet it never is and only repentance, confession and turning back to God cleans it up (if you will, Not to say it ever becomes right).
When I was 18 I fell in love (I thought I knew what love really was) and because I said I would marry him I felt it was okay to sleep with him "because we were married in the eyes of God". This is the lie we told ourselves to do what we wanted to do because it made us feel good. When I was 7 I stole dolls and told myself "it's okay because I am Joe's Granddaughter and everyone gives me what I want", as a young teen I stole a comb "because they have insurance that covers it and I need it". Oh, the stories we tell to ourselves and to others to justify our thoughts, words and actions. I was wrong all those times and many more and when I went to the foot of the cross to accept I was a sinner and I needed the redemptive power of Jesus Christ, I repented, confessed and put on the mantle of my Lord and Savior Jesus, Immanuel.
When I am tempted now I like Christ say, "Get the behind me Satan," and flee his temptation as I know God does not and never has tempted me or anyone else. I pray and stay as close to my my Lord Jesus as, well as a second skin if you will because only then can I flee sin and it's temptations. My flesh is weak, I have already proven that that to myself and without the strength and guidance of God I will fall into temptation. In the prayer the Lord taught the disciples to pray to the Father we are taught to pray God protects us from temptation and from evil. We cannot if we want to finish the race well, relax our vigilance on our flesh or like Eve we will hear "Did God really say...?" and folks YES, He did say to not partake of temptation.
My Mom always taught me (wish I had listened when I was younger), "If in doubt don't" and "If you don't know ask me (her)" however my sin nature always thought it had all the answers and felt it a weakness to ask. Well, I am here to tell you to ask the Lord, ask a Pastor, ask someone who studies the Word or prays to the Lord without ceasing but do not rely on your sin nature to give you the answers you should listen to. Satan loves people who do.
Abba, Father we come before you fallen and knowing we cannot trust or lean on our own understanding. We know You only know all things and only You can take and make us pure as the new driven snow through the sacrifice of Your Son Jesus. Thank You Father for  making a way for our redemption for our sinful natures. Keep us from temptation and give us Your strength to over come, let us not rely on our understanding but on Yours. Cover us with Your mantle Lord and fill us with Your Holy Spirit so we will be discerning and filled with Your knowledge and able to overcome evil and temptation. Be our light and keep us on Your path and make of us a beacon to others to You that we may bring You glory, praise and honor. In Jesus' precious and mighty name. Amen
Rebishka