Bread of Life and Living Water

Habakkuk 3:17-18, New King James Version (NKJV) Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.,  "Though the fig tree may not blossom, Nor fruit be on the vines; Though the labor of the olive may fail, And the fields yield no food; Though the flock may be cut off from the fold, And there be no herd in the stalls- Yet I will rejoice in the LORD, I will joy in the God of my salvation." John 6:27-65,(NKJV)  27 Do not labor for the food which perishes, but for the food which endures to everlasting life, which the Son of Man will give you, because God the Father has set His seal on Him.” 28 Then they said to Him, “What shall we do, that we may work the works of God?” 29 Jesus answered and said to them, “This is the work of God, that you believe in Him whom He sent.” 30 Therefore they said to Him, “What sign will You perform then, that we may see it and believe You? What work will You do? 31 Our fathers ate the manna in the desert; as it is written, ‘He gave them bread from heaven to eat.’” 32 Then Jesus said to them, “Most assuredly, I say to you, Moses did not give you the bread from heaven, but My Father gives you the true bread from heaven. 33 For the bread of God is He who comes down from heaven and gives life to the world.” 34 Then they said to Him, “Lord, give us this bread always.” 35 And Jesus said to them, “I am the bread of life. He who comes to Me shall never hunger, and he who believes in Me shall never thirst. 36 But I said to you that you have seen Me and yet do not believe. 37 All that the Father gives Me will come to Me, and the one who comes to Me I will by no means cast out.38 For I have come down from heaven, not to do My own will, but the will of Him who sent Me. 39 This is the will of the Father who sent Me, that of all He has given Me I should lose nothing, but should raise it up at the last day. 40 And this is the will of Him who sent Me, that everyone who sees the Son and believes in Him may have everlasting life; and I will raise him up at the last day.” 41 The Jews then complained about Him, because He said, “I am the bread which came down from heaven.” 42 And they said, “Is not this Jesus, the son of Joseph, whose father and mother we know? How is it then that He says, ‘I have come down from heaven’?” 43 Jesus therefore answered and said to them, “Do not murmur among yourselves. 44 No one can come to Me unless the Father who sent Me draws him; and I will raise him up at the last day. 45 It is written in the prophets, ‘And they shall all be taught by God.’ Therefore everyone who has heard and learned from the Father comes to Me. 46 Not that anyone has seen the Father, except He who is from God; He has seen the Father. 47 Most assuredly, I say to you, he who believes in Me has everlasting life. 48 I am the bread of life.49 Your fathers ate the manna in the wilderness, and are dead. 50 This is the bread which comes down from heaven, that one may eat of it and not die. 51 I am the living bread which came down from heaven. If anyone eats of this bread, he will live forever; and the bread that I shall give is My flesh, which I shall give for the life of the world.” 52 The Jews therefore quarreled among themselves, saying, “How can this Man give us His flesh to eat?” 53 Then Jesus said to them, “Most assuredly, I say to you, unless you eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink His blood, you have no life in you. 54 Whoever eats My flesh and drinks My blood has eternal life, and I will raise him up at the last day. 55 For My flesh is food indeed, and My blood is drink indeed. 56 He who eats My flesh and drinks My blood abides in Me, and I in him. 57 As the living Father sent Me, and I live because of the Father, so he who feeds on Me will live because of Me. 58 This is the bread which came down from heaven—not as your fathers ate the manna, and are dead. He who eats this bread will live forever.” 59 These things He said in the synagogue as He taught in Capernaum. 60 Therefore many of His disciples, when they heard this, said, “This is a hard saying; who can understand it?” 61 When Jesus knew in Himself that His disciples complained about this, He said to them, “Does this offend you? 62 What then if you should see the Son of Man ascend where He was before? 63 It is the Spirit who gives life; the flesh profits nothing. The words that I speak to you are spirit, and they are life. 64 But there are some of you who do not believe.” For Jesus knew from the beginning who they were who did not believe, and who would betray Him. 65 And He said,“Therefore I have said to you that no one can come to Me unless it has been granted to him by My Father.” John 3:3-18, (NKJV) 3 Jesus answered and said to him, “Most assuredly, I say to you, unless one is born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God.” 4 Nicodemus said to Him, “How can a man be born when he is old? Can he enter a second time into his mother’s womb and be born?” 5 Jesus answered, “Most assuredly, I say to you, unless one is born of water and the Spirit, he cannot enter the kingdom of God. 6 That which is born of the flesh is flesh, and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit. 7 Do not marvel that I said to you, ‘You must be born again.’ 8 The wind blows where it wishes, and you hear the sound of it, but cannot tell where it comes from and where it goes. So is everyone who is born of the Spirit.” 9 Nicodemus answered and said to Him, “How can these things be?” 10 Jesus answered and said to him, “Are you the teacher of Israel, and do not know these things? 11 Most assuredly, I say to you, We speak what We know and testify what We have seen, and you do not receive Our witness. 12 If I have told you earthly things and you do not believe, how will you believe if I tell you heavenly things? 13 No one has ascended to heaven but He who came down from heaven, that is, the Son of Man who is in heaven. 14 And as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, even so must the Son of Man be lifted up,15 that whoever believes in Him should not perish but[b] have eternal life. 16 For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life. 17 For God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world through Him might be saved. 18 “He who believes in Him is not condemned; but he who does not believe is condemned already, because he has not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God. John 4:10,13, 14 (NKJV) 10 Jesus answered and said to her, “If you knew the gift of God, and who it is who says to you, ‘Give Me a drink,’ you would have asked Him, and He would have given you living water.” 13 Jesus answered and said to her, “Whoever drinks of this water will thirst again, 14 but whoever drinks of the water that I shall give him will never thirst. But the water that I shall give him will become in him a fountain of water springing up into everlasting life.” My Comments: The passage in John shows God's mercy and His purpose for us, it is what shows us the hope and the reason for singing and finding joy in all things. I grew up in the Russian Orthodox Church the same Church that my Great-Grandfather was Priest of. Though I knew God the Father as my Father and I knew Jesus came and died on the Cross for the sins of the whole world, I did not know Jesus as my personal Savior. I was taught that when I was Baptized at forty days of age, and was a good person, I was going to heaven when I died. I am so glad I did not die before learning the truth of God's word (I am not saying it is so for others who are of this faith. I am just stating how it was for me). Just before 9/11 happened here in the United States I was in a Catholic Cult called Soldiers of the Eucharist, that believed the teachings much the same as I had grown up with. Before going to work one day I was watching a television program and came to understand what "Accepting Jesus as my personal Savior" meant. Years before when raising my young children there was a movement here in the US called the "Jesus Movement" and they often talked about accepting Jesus as Savior and being "Born Again." No one ever explained what they meant and because I was Baptized as an infant I thought, "Well, I'm saved because I've been Baptized and I go to Church." Oh, Loved Ones, I was so very wrong. Baptism does not save. It is an outward sign of what has happened on the inside of those who believe in Jesus the Messiah as having gone to the Cross to save us from our sin and babies cannot profess Jesus as Messiah. Going to Church, even for ones whole life, does not save one from Hell. Being the "good" person does not save one from Hell. Only being Born Again, and accepting Jesus as our Savior, saves us. Jesus went to His people Israel to let them know their Savior and the worlds Savior had come to bring them out of the bondage of sin; to let them and the world know He was the awaited Messiah. In John 6 He tells them He is the bread of life (:35, 48) referring to His body which He was going to offer in sacrifice. And His blood was drink (:53, 54, 55) and the Living Water (John 4:10,13/14) and unless we eat His flesh and drink His blood then we do not abide in Him. In other words if we do not accept His sacrifice, accept Him as our Savior we do not abide in Him and He is not in us and we do not have the Living Water or the Living Bread of Life nor are we Born Again. When I finally understood what Being Born Again was, I accepted Jesus into my heart accepting His Sacrifice for my sin. I confessed my sin and gave my life to Him. Years later I realized how important (not to salvation but to show others I believed in Him) it was for me to be Baptized not as an infant (that is not a Biblical teaching), but as an adult who understood why I was being Baptized. My husband who had been raised in the Catholic Church, also saw the need to be Baptized as an understanding adult (though some young children do understand infants never do yet infants can be dedicated to God but never Baptized) and we were Baptized together with other believers. Jesus is the Bread and Water that sustains me and it is He who sustained my Husband and Friend, until he went home to be with our Lord. He will sustain me until I one day go home to my Lord and Savior. Loved One I pray you, too, will let Him take your burdens and sin upon Himself and accept His Sacrifice and become His. Ask Him to forgive your sin, ask Him to be your Savior and to come into you. Ask Jesus, for His Living Water and His Bread of Life. Ask Him to fill you with His Holy Spirit and you will be an adopted child of God our Abba (Daddy). He waits for you and longs for you. He loves you no matter what you have done. Turn from sin and turn to Life Eternal in Jesus the Messiah. Spend the rest of your life praising Him and thanking Him for His Love. You will find Love welling up in you because He will be in you. Decide to follow Jesus and your life will be so much more than you could ever have imagined. The song I hear on the radio right now is saying..."The Cross before me the world behind me, no turning back, no turning back." This has been my life. He sustains me and builds me up. Though the world turns against me I will never turn back. He is my all in all and life would not be anything with out Him. May it be so for you my Beloved. Abba, touch each and everyone who reads these words that they may come to know and accept Your Son, Jesus, as Lord and Savior. I pray they will give themselves to You and turn their lives over to You who loves them so much. You are our Father and You desire the best for us and the best is to be with You. Help us to live our lives serving You, praising You, and bringing glory to You. Sweet Jesus, fill us with Your Holy Spirit to guide and teach us so we may live our lives in honor of You. Thank You for Your Sacrifice and for loving us so much You came to earth to die upon the Cross, be buried and rise on the third day conquering death so we may rise to Heaven and be with You and the Father eternally. Abba thank You for sending Your Son that we might be redeemed. Lord Jesus thank You for sending the Holy Spirit who teaches and comforts, guides and fills us with Your joy, In Jesus name I pray, Amen. Rebishka

Walk on the waters of the storm.

1 Corinthians 9:12, New King James Version (NKJV) Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

"If others are partakers of this right over you, are we not even more? Nevertheless we have not used this right, but endure all things lest we hinder the gospel of Christ."
NKJV

John 15:7-23, (NKJV)

7 If you abide in Me, and My words abide in you, you will ask what you desire, and it shall be done for you. 8 By this My Father is glorified, that you bear much fruit; so you will be My disciples. 9 “As the Father loved Me, I also have loved you; abide in My love. 10 If you keep My commandments, you will abide in My love, just as I have kept My Father’s commandments and abide in His love. 11 “These things I have spoken to you, that My joy may remain in you, and that your joy may be full. 12 This is My commandment, that you love one another as I have loved you. 13 Greater love has no one than this, than to lay down one’s life for his friends. 14 You are My friends if you do whatever I command you.15 No longer do I call you servants, for a servant does not know what his master is doing; but I have called you friends, for all things that I heard from My Father I have made known to you. 16 You did not choose Me, but I chose you and appointed you that you should go and bear fruit, and that your fruit should remain, that whatever you ask the Father in My name He may give you.17 These things I command you, that you love one another. 18 “If the world hates you, you know that it hated Me before it hated you. 19 If you were of the world, the world would love its own. Yet because you are not of the world, but I chose you out of the world, therefore the world hates you. 20 Remember the word that I said to you, ‘A servant is not greater than his master.’ If they persecuted Me, they will also persecute you. If they kept My word, they will keep yours also. 21 But all these things they will do to you for My name’s sake, because they do not know Him who sent Me. 22 If I had not come and spoken to them, they would have no sin, but now they have no excuse for their sin. 23 He who hates Me hates My Father also. 

Luke 12:4, (NKJV)

4 “And I say to you, My friends, do not be afraid of those who kill the body, and after that have no more that they can do.

Luke 9:22-25New King James Version (NKJV)

22 saying, “The Son of Man must suffer many things, and be rejected by the elders and chief priests and scribes, and be killed, and be raised the third day.” 23 Then He said to them all, “If anyone desires to come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross daily,[a] and follow Me. 24 For whoever desires to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for My sake will save it. 25 For what profit is it to a man if he gains the whole world, and is himself destroyed or lost?

Mark 8:34-38, (NKJV)

34 When He had called the people to Himself, with His disciples also, He said to them, “Whoever desires to come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow Me. 35 For whoever desires to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for My sake and the gospel’s will save it. 36 For what will it profit a man if he gains the whole world, and loses his own soul? 37 Or what will a man give in exchange for his soul? 38 For whoever is ashamed of Me and My words in this adulterous and sinful generation, of him the Son of Man also will be ashamed when He comes in the glory of His Father with the holy angels.”

Matthew 14:31-33, (NKJV)

31 And immediately Jesus stretched out His hand and caught him, and said to him, “O you of little faith, why did you doubt?” 32 And when they got into the boat, the wind ceased. 33 Then those who were in the boat came and worshiped Him, saying, “Truly You are the Son of God.”

Matthew 6:30-34, (NKJV)

30 Now if God so clothes the grass of the field, which today is, and tomorrow is thrown into the oven, will He not much more clothe you, O you of little faith? 31 “Therefore do not worry, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’ 32 For after all these things the Gentiles seek. For your heavenly Father knows that you need all these things. 33 But seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added to you. 34 Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about its own things. Sufficient for the day is its own trouble.

Matthew 6:30-34, (NKJV)

30 Now if God so clothes the grass of the field, which today is, and tomorrow is thrown into the oven, will He not much more clothe you, O you of little faith? 31 “Therefore do not worry, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’ 32 For after all these things the Gentiles seek. For your heavenly Father knows that you need all these things. 33 But seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added to you. 34 Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about its own things. Sufficient for the day is its own trouble.

Mark 4:36-40, (NKJV)

36 Now when they had left the multitude, they took Him along in the boat as He was. And other little boats were also with Him. 37 And a great windstorm arose, and the waves beat into the boat, so that it was already filling. 38 But He was in the stern, asleep on a pillow. And they awoke Him and said to Him, “Teacher, do You not care that we are perishing?” 39 Then He arose and rebuked the wind, and said to the sea, “Peace, be still!”And the wind ceased and there was a great calm. 40 But He said to them, “Why are you so fearful? How is it that you have no faith?”

My Comments: The Lord gave His all for us and can we not do as much for Him? We have not been told life will be a bed of rose petals. It won't be guaranteed, if we are walking with our Lord and Savior. What we will have is our Lord Jesus walking with us. When Jesus walked out on the stormy seas to the Apostles who were in the boat Peter asked if he could walk on the water as well. Jesus bade him come to Him. He walked on water but when he took his eyes off of the Lord, instead of trusting the Lord, he had fear and started to sink. Then the Lord reached down and lifted him up with Him. When we walk with our eyes on the Lord through the storm we can stay on top. When we take our eyes off of Him we sink. Then we need only take hold of His hand which will always be there, and He will bring us back out. We need the storms to strengthen us, our faith, our trust and to show others His glory as He brings us through the storms stronger and more full of faith in Him. This is what happened with all the Apostles who kept their eyes on Him. Only one didn't keep his eyes on Jesus and he hung himself after denying Him. This one wanted Jesus to be as he wanted Him to be. We must never fall into that trap that leads to death. God created, we are His creation, the creation does not tell the Creator how He must be. The Creator tells the creation how He wants them to be. To do anything else is to be like Satan who wanted to be god. We can not be god nor can we create god the way we want Him. When we see Him truly then we can live and grow and go through the storms of life. Always keep your eyes beloved on the Lord Jesus. He will walk with you through the storms of life that will come. He will always bring you through as He determines is best for you and all who are in your life, even if it hurts. Out of that hurt comes a beautiful soul if the soul is always looking for the will and working for the glory of God. Oh, Abba my Father may we always keep our eyes on You, seeking Your will in all the storms of our lives. May we seek Your perfect will in all we do, want to do and where we go. May everything we do be in Your will only and not in our will. Thank You, Abba, for bringing us through all the storms of our lives and for guiding us through thy Holy Spirit. Jesus, thank You for always reaching out Your hand when we fall short in our faith and trust. Help us Jesus, Messiah, Light of the world who gives us the Living Waters, to always live lives that lead others to God our Father, Your Father. May Your light shine through our lives and Your Living Waters flow through us to a world so in need of Your Salvation. Holy Spirit, breath through us to a suffering world. Inspire in us the truth of the word of God and give us he words to speak to show the way to Abba Father through Jesus Christ the Son of God. Strengthen our faith and trust in Him who came to redeem us and offer us the free gift through His grace, adoption as Children of the King. This we pray in Jesus name in union with the Holy Spirit. Amen Rebishka

Are You of the Truth?

1 John 3:19-22, New King James Version (NKJV) Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

¹⁹ And by this we know that we are of the truth, and shall assure our hearts before Him. ²⁰ For if our heart condemns us, God is greater than our heart, and knows all things.²¹ Beloved, if our heart does not condemn us, we have confidence toward God. ²² And whatever we ask we receive from Him, because we keep His commandments and do those things that are pleasing in His sight.

1 John 3:19-22, New American Standard Bible (NASB) Copyright © 1960, 1962, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 byThe Lockman Foundation

¹⁹ We will know by this that we are of the truth, and will assure our heart before Him ²⁰ in whatever our heart condemns us; for God is greater than our heart and knows all things. ²¹ Beloved, if our heart does not condemn us, we have confidence before God; ²² and whatever we ask we receive from Him, because we keep His commandments and do the things that are pleasing in His sight.

1 John 1:9, New King James Version (NKJV)

⁹ If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.

1 John 1:9, New American Standard Bible (NASB)

⁹ If we confess our sins, He is faithful and righteous to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.

(Thought you might like to see how two of the Translations I use compare. I also like the New English Standard Bible as well).
My Comments: This week, in fact in just the last couple of days I have wrestled with my conscience. My sin nature wanted me to take a plant snip growing at the bank so I could either find out what it was or just plant it in my yard and have one. Some would say, "It is a small thing, no one will care or even know." This in fact is what my sin nature kept telling me every time I went to the bank and saw it. I would forget while in the bank to ask if I could take a snip and then go back out and argue with my sin nature. This happened at least three times over the last few days. I really wanted that plant snip. I have seen it growing in other places over the years and like it and I wanted it. Satan played on that desire. God kept me faithful and true. Today when I went in I remembered to ask. They allowed me a snip and I took it to the plant store and now know what it is and have a snip that is planted in my planter. And I was true to God's command to Love. Love does not let me steal.

Asking was what God wanted me to do. It was the right thing to wait. It was the right thing to not give into temptation or the desire of the flesh. My conscience prodded me to do the right thing. I would have felt and been untrue to my faith in Jesus the Christ if I had given in. I praise God for the strength to be faithful. This was not always the way it was for me growing up.  Yet with God’s grace it is the way I choose to be now. I choose to be true to the Commands of God and to take that would not be loving God or my neighbor.

I find God is working on me in other areas of my life as well. One is how I view others even those of my own family. How my love for others is growing, Less and less I say things or even think things that are unkind and do not build up or help others. When my husband was alive (he passed in 2012) he would caution me if I said something about another person that was not kind. He was a gentle man who loved greatly and in 36 years I hardly ever heard him say anything unkind about another human being. Now because of him I hear my conscience faster and louder when it comes to interactions and reactions. I bless God I had the pleasure of David in my life. I bless God I have the Holy Spirit who encourages, teaches and inspires me to try harder and to do better.

When I fall short of the goal I know the Holy Spirit will comfort me and in His understanding of me, He will help me to do better each time. I also know those lessons will continue, get harder and repeat until I get strong enough and have understanding. Then when I am tempted because I have been trained in the truth of the Word of God, I will attain the goal. When I make the wrong choice and choose sin over being true to God I know because I am His and have accepted Jesus as my Savior that I am forgiven as soon as I repent and turn away sin. Jesus in the desert for 40 days is my inspiration. He strengthens me to overcome my sin nature yet is there to pick me up when I fail. I praise God for His eternal love and kindness to me a sinner. I praise Him for leading me to the truth.

Abba, we raise ourselves up to You in all humility and faith. We want to do what is right yet we fall short. Give us the strength to walk away from temptation. Give us, Lord; Your strength to stay in Your light, on Your path and be filled with Your Living Water. Fill us with Your Holy Spirit continually teaching us and helping us to be more like You. Forgive us Father when we fall and know we are broken inside when we hurt our relationship with You who loved us so much You sent Your only begotten Son so we would be forgiven and able to be in heaven with You. So we may be adopted into Your family Abba.

Thank You Abba for all that we have and especially for our relationship with You, for the truth of Your Word, for Your Son Jesus the Christ, for filling us with Your Holy Spirit and for forgiveness. In Jesus name I pray with the Holy Spirit. Amen. 

Rebishka

Faith in Jesus is seen by how we live.

When you're feeling down and discouraged, where is your focus? When I feel that way, I'm usually focused on me--my problems, my worries, my pain--and I really can't see anything else (did you know this is idol worship?)--including God. But as long as we stay self-focused, we can't receive any help. Help comes only when we set our eyes, our hearts and our hope on our Heavenly Father and not on ourselves, others or things.

Receive

In Psalm 42, the psalmist speaks to his troubled heart:

"Why are you cast down, O my soul,
and why are you in turmoil within me?"
Then he offers a solution:
"Hope in God; for I shall again praise him,
my salvation and my God" (42:5-6, English Standard Version, ESV).

Why does he "hope" in God? Because he has the sure and certain confidence that God is faithful.
When we're down and discouraged, we need to get our focus back on God where it belongs. That's the perfect time to look to Him for our hope and to trust Him to deliver and take care of us. The rest of Psalm 42:6 says,
"My soul is cast down within me;
therefore I remember you" (ESV).
It's time to remember God who is faithful, good, compassionate, powerful--all the things you need when you're down.
There's a second step included. The first is to look to God and remember who He is and what He can do, but Psalm 42:5 also encourages praise. You see Him as your hope; then you praise Him for that. You remember His faithfulness; then praise Him for that too.
Psalm 20:5 tells us to celebrate:
"May we shout for joy over your salvation,
and in the name of our God set up our banners!" (ESV).

Raise the flags; hang up the banners or set off fireworks; show everybody that you belong to the God who is your salvation. That's what setting up banners is all about. It's how you tell others about God's faithfulness and draw them in to celebrate with you.

Of course, before you can celebrate it, it helps to be familiar with God's faithfulness and the hope He offers. Jot down what you learn about God's faithfulness from these verses:New King James Version (NKJV)

Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

Deuteronomy 7:9

9 “Therefore know that the Lord your God, He is God, the faithful God who keeps covenant and mercy for a thousand generations with those who love Him and keep His commandments;

Psalm 86:15

15 But You, O Lord, are a God full of compassion, and gracious,
Longsuffering and abundant in mercy and truth.

Lamentations 3:22-23

22 Through the Lord’s mercies we are not consumed,
Because His compassions fail not.
23 They are new every morning;
Great is Your faithfulness.

Hebrews 10:23

23 Let us hold fast the confession of our hope without wavering, for He who promised is faithful.

The fact of God's faithfulness is awesome, but you can also find a reason to celebrate when you see examples of when or how He is faithful. How do you see that in these verses?
Psalm 91:1-6
Psalm 143:1-2
1 Corinthians 10:13
2 Thessalonians 3:2-3
1 John 1:9
Lamentations 3:20-24 is an excellent way to adjust your focus. Put it in your own words or memorize it for future need.
What are some examples of God's faithfulness you've seen in your life? When you've found your hope in Him? Put those in writing as a concrete reminder for days when you're feeling low and discouraged. I use a thankful journal to remind me of the things my Lord and Savior has done for me and those in my life. Reread it often as well as His word which more than anything reminds us of His love for us.

Then follow the example of Psalm 20:5 and "raise a banner." Be specific as you tell your spouse, your children or grandchildren how God has been faithful to you. Drop it into an email or a letter. If your family is around, turn dinnertime into a mini-party and give each member an opportunity to share. You can create a poster or maybe an actual banner that reminds you of God's faithfulness and how you find your hope in Him. Use your imagination to find a way to remember and celebrate today. It's a great cure for those times of self-focused discouragement.

*Most of the above was from Back to the Bible. Why reinvent the wheel when Pastor David has done so much hard work putting in verses. I did think of adding them in full yet felt it might be too much for many to want to read through so please if you do not have a way of reading them place a comment or email me and I will place them or send them to you from the Bible.

My Comments (and I welcome yours as well): Today I was thinking of some of my family who are saved. They have asked the Lord Jesus to accept them as His and He has washed them clean in the blood of the Lamb. My heart felt they needed some word of encouragement as we all do from time to time. I sent them a text of Philippians 4:6/7 do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer, supplication and thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. 7. And the peace of God which surpasses all understanding will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus. ( ESV)
One has walked with the Lord Jesus for a number of years another is pregnant with my another Grandchild while the other has just come to the Lord and accepted Him as his Savior and Lord (and two more Grands have accepted Jesus a their Lord and Savior, praise the Living God). As you can imagine these words have special meaning for me as well.
Having had so many of my loved ones go on ahead to our home with our King, and God there are times still when I need to think about what my faith means and check to make sure the defenses are strong. These last eight months since my husband (originally written in 2013) was taken home have given me special challenges and strengthened me in ways the Lord knew I needed. I bless Him for loving me so much that He has allowed me to have them and gone through them with me.
Sunday at church (a Calvary Chapel Church in my area where the Bible is taught straight through verse by verse) one of the Elders taught on faith. How appropriate. God knew it was something we needed to hear about and something I could share with others.
I would like to share some of the verses for you to look up and maybe comment back on how God uses them in your life. Using the book of Hebrews chapter 11:11-40 he taught of faith. I hope these strengthen your faith as you come to realize what God has placed in His word to help us in our walk and to strengthen us in our faith.
Romans 5:1/2
Matthews 21:21/22
Matthew 8:26
John 3:6
Isiah 7:9
Matthew 9:22, 27-30
Romans 1:16
Hebrew 10:25
Romans 12:3
1 John 5:1-5, 9-12
John 14:6 ( on belief which is faith)
2 Corinthians 4:8-15
Philippians 4:19
I am sure in your studies of the word of God you will find many more verses you can hold in your arsenal which will strengthen you in the days when hurtful things happen, challenges arise and people question your beliefs and faith in God and when you witness for Jesus the Christ so none will be without the chance to know Jesus and be a part of the Family of God. After all it was the Almighty who sent His only begotten Son to earth to take upon Himself our sins so we may be forgiven and saved so why would we withhold that from others? What an awesome God we serve who fills us with His Holy Spirit and makes us His adopted children and friends of the King. When we are His we have a duty, obligation and privilege to share Him with others.

Abba Father, thank You for loving us that You would send Your Son to be born in a lowly stable, to live in a human body. That He would suffer and die that we might live. May our faith daily grow in knowledge and understanding and may we be filled with Your understanding through Your Holy Spirit that we will shine Your light through us on a darkened and hurting world. Increase our faith through Your word, guide us as we walk through this world of snares. Fill us with Your hope and trust that our lives will be a light lighting the way to our Lord Jesus in a dark and fallen world. In Jesus Holy Name in union with the Holy Spirit I pray, Amen, Amen

Rejoice in the Lord

In October of 2012 my best friend and husband went to live with the Lord Jesus Christ. His final move was from a mortal body to his final home. I have rejoiced daily for him and in Jesus who showered my beloved with much grace and mercy. I wish all had known him and pray all who read this blog, all our loved ones and families and friends and yes even those who could be considered enemies, I pray will one day know and accept Jesus as the Christ, the Messiah who came to earth to take upon Himself the sin of the world so all who wish may live forever through His grace and mercy.
Both of us surrendered our lives and all that is in them to Christ our Lord, were Baptized and we ever were remarried in church as our way of showing the world we had changed our lives to please and glorify God the Father, Jesus the Christ the Son of God and accepted the indwelling of the Holy Spirit; God three in One. It was a blessed day when the Lord chose to show Himself to us and bring us into His family. What joy, unending joy even in sorrow and pain there is joy unending. David was very ill and suffered yet always gave glory to his friend, brother, Abba, Savior for His gift of Love and Salvation.
Now he rejoices with all those who have gone before. He had a beautiful voice here and I know he is singing praises continually to the God who saved him, the one who befriended him, the one who gave up heaven to be born a babe in a stable, lived life fully man, fully God but chose to be a man and take all mankind sin, suffer and die for all mankind so all could be with Him forever. What a beautiful Love. I have many children, Grandchildren, and Great grand children and yet I know I do not have the love to do for them what He did for all mankind. No greater love (John 1:13)... Yes, we might have love enough to lay down our lives for one or ever many, but not for all mankind and take on us the punishment all merits. We did not nor could we ever merit His love and mercy. He gave it and gives it freely. Oh, that I could love as He!
In John 14:6, Jesus reminds us who He is. He is the way, the truth and the life. Without Him there is no life eternal. If we do not believe all He has said and follow what He taught then there is no life eternal because we will fall by the wayside or brambles will grow up in our life choking off our life with Him (Matthew 13:9-23).
He who finds the Son and goes through Him only will find the Father and life everlasting (John 6:35, 6:44, the Bread of Life John 6:35, John 17:15, John 11:25, John 12:44, John 3:16). If one reads the book of John seeking the will of God then one will know that Jesus is the way the truth the life that leads one to the Father their Abba who loved them so much He sent His only begotten Son, Jesus, to bring them out of bondage into life eternal.
Abba, to thee be all glory, praise and honor. Thank You Abba for loving us so much You sent Your only begotten Son, Jesus the Messiah to die in our place so we may live life eternally with You. There is nothing we could do to earn this grace. It is free and Your love is free. Thank You Abba for loving us so much You would sacrifice Your Son for us. Thank You Lord Jesus for loving us so much You would willingly go to Calvary in our place and take on all our sin so we can one day stand before the Throne of God pure and forgiven. Help us to live our days for Your glory, in Your truth and light and may we bring Your truth and light wherever You send us. Place Your word in our minds, hearts and on our lips. Strengthen us with Your word and the full armor of God. May we love as You love. In Jesus name, Amen