Cry OUT Unto the Lord Jesus

"And they came to Jericho: and as he went out of Jericho with his disciples and a great number of people, blind Bartimaeus, the son of Timaeus, sat by the highway side begging. And when he heard that it was Jesus of Nazareth, he began to cry out, and say, Jesus, thou Son of David, have mercy on me. 

And many charged him that he should hold his peace: but he cried the more a great deal, Thou Son of David, have mercy on me. And Jesus stood still, and commanded him to be called. 

And they call the blind man, saying unto him, Be of good comfort, rise; he calleth thee. And he, casting away his garment, rose, and came to Jesus. And Jesus answered and said unto him, What wilt thou that I should do unto thee? 

The blind man said unto him, Lord, that I might receive my sight. And Jesus said unto him, Go thy way; thy faith hath made thee whole. And immediately he received his sight, and followed Jesus in the way." Mark 10:46-52

Don't be stopped or deterred by the naysayers.  Don't hold your peace.  Don't give up.  There is hope for you, no matter your situation.  This is not the end.

Press into Jesus all the more.  He is the only answer for you and for me.  It is His good pleasure to answer your prayer.

Chickens Don't Eat Chicken

Making of US What They Are

There has been a lot of hullabaloo lately about Chick-Fil-A's stand for marriage.  Apparently, they had the gall to assert that marriage was instituted by God as being between one man and one woman.

Now, there are various campaigns set against Chick-fil-A calling for boycotts in an effort to pressure them to conform with the demoralized social standards of this day.

Even supposed "Christians" are rushing forward to profess their love & acceptance for the homosexual lifestyle in order to avoid the fray.  Many of the same are stating that they too will join in the boycotts against Dan Cathy's (Chick-fil-A's President) stand for God's word.

But you know what?  Chickens don't eat chicken anyway! 

"Who knowing the judgment of God, that they which commit such things are worthy of death, not only do the same, but have pleasure in them that do them." Romans 1:32

I Love To Be With You

The days seem busier, years fly faster, and time seems shorter, but the Lord is ever the same. He is still there, available to you and desirous of your coming into sweet communion with Him.

Don't let this day pass without spending that time with Jesus.

I Love to Be with You

I love to be in Your presence Lord
I love to be with You
For when I touch Your glory
Your Spirit restores me
How I love to be with You
Lord I love to be with You

God of the Impossible

"But Jesus beheld them, and said unto them, With men this is impossible; but with God all things are possible." Mathew 19:26

I just want to remind you that our God is a God of the impossible!  There is nothing too hard for Him.

No situation He cannot turn.

No obstacle He cannot overcome.

No need He cannot meet.

No sin He cannot forgive.

No bondage He cannot break.

No heart too hard for Him to change.

No prayer He cannot answer.

Mercy Seat

"And there I will meet with thee, and I will commune with thee from above the mercy seat..." Exodus 25:22a 

Awakest, Thou That Slumbereth!

I wrote the following article in May of 2004 for the Omega Church & Ministries Center newsletter.  Although that was a while ago, I feel led to post that here today because much of the churchworld is asleep. 

I pray that this message is a blessing to you and encourages you towards self-examination.

“And that, knowing the time, that now it is high time to awake out of sleep: for now is our salvation nearer than when we believed.” Romans 13:11 

We all know that there are many passages in Scripture warning about the consequences of sleeping at a time when we ought to be awake.  Jesus admonishes us to be vigilant, to be sober, to be watchful unless His return catches us unawares. I have always taken these warnings to heart…so I thought. That is, until this past week.

The Dark Night Rises

The Following article is from Bro. Joseph Herrin at The Parables Blog.  Although I have shared his articles before in the past, for those who do not know, Bro. Joseph has a gift for understanding the spiritual significance of events in this life.  In the following post, he discusses the tragic shooting which occurred at the opening of The Dark Knight Rises in Aurora, CO on July 20, 2012.

Before getting into his article, I would like to point out one more connection that this movie has with end time conditions in the world.  In the news recently, an interview with Morgan Freeman is quoted where he expounds upon his views of God.  While basically sharing that he believes mankind invented God, he goes on to say that if he believes in god it is because he believes that he is god.

The denial of God and the elevation of man into some sort of godhood itself is also representative of the type of media message the "illumined" have been promoting to the masses and in line with the type of mindset we see revealed in Scripture for the last days.

Lastly, this same message to incite fascism and class war can be seen in much of what is promoted to our young people today.  From songs like Jay-Z's Run This Town to movies such as The Hunger Games (which also was represented by a symbol indicative of anarchy). What many do not understand is that this is not about finances or classes at all.  That is simply a means for Satan to launch a targeted attack against God and His people.

Please don't walk around in a stupor about Christianity and the times in which we live.  Satan and his illuminated ones are preparing mankind for the world they have planned in order to secure their control of the people and the resources.  However, God is preparing His people as well to stand during these times and show forth the power of God to save those who are lost before Jesus comes again in judgment of the nations.  Redeem the times I pray you, for if you are seeking the Lord with your whole heart, He is placing within it the wisdom and discernment to be prepared for the times we are in.

"Let no man deceive you with vain words: for because of these things cometh the wrath of God upon the children of disobedience. Be not ye therefore partakers with them. For ye were sometimes darkness, but now are ye light in the Lord: walk as children of light: (For the fruit of the Spirit is in all goodness and righteousness and truth;) Proving what is acceptable unto the Lord. And have no fellowship with the unfruitful works of darkness, but rather reprove them. For it is a shame even to speak of those things which are done of them in secret. But all things that are reproved are made manifest by the light: for whatsoever doth make manifest is light. 

Wherefore he saith, Awake thou that sleepest, and arise from the dead, and Christ shall give thee light. See then that ye walk circumspectly, not as fools, but as wise, Redeeming the time, because the days are evil." Ephesians 5:6-16

With that said, please read on to see Joseph's review of the tragic events accompanying the launch of this movie.

Beware the Ever Bleeding Soul

Will Thou Be Made Whole?

"The spirit of a man will sustain his infirmity; but a wounded spirit who can bear?" Proverbs 18:14

You can have a sickness or weakness in your body, yet still be emboldened by your spirit to endure and even prosper.  However, who can carry around or lift up a wounded spirit? The implication is that no one can...but there is one who will.

"He healeth the broken in heart, and bindeth up their wounds." Psalm 147:3

My children and I used to watch a series that they loved growing up called The Donut Man.  The premise of The Donut Man was that every person is born with something missing in their lives which can only be filled by God.  If I reflect on it, I can still hear my children singing, "Life without Jesus is like a donut, cause there's a hole in the middle of your heart."  LOL

It is true that we are each born with that type of "hole" because what we need and innately seek is to be made whole through reconciliation with the Creator who made us.  I have found it interesting that even adopted children- having been placed in loving homes - often still want to know who their birth parents are.  Even in the natural, there is a yearning to know more about and connect with where we come from.

Whether we know it or not, attempting to fill this "hole" is what drives everything we do in life outside of coming to Christ.  People spend their entire lives trying to, but to no avail.  And it doesn't have to be something illicit they turn to like fornication, alcohol, drugs, stealing, etc.  It can be something as seemingly benign as good works, relationships with others, or religious ritual.

In describing the vanity of this type of effort, Augustine wrote in his book Confessions:

“I carried about me a cut and bleeding soul, that could not bear to be carried by me, and where I could put it, I could not discover. Not in pleasant groves, not in games and singing, nor in the fragrant corners of a garden. Not in the company of a dinner table, not in the delights of the bed: not even in my books and poetry. It floundered in a void and fell back on me. I remained a haunted spot, which gave me no rest, from which I could not escape. For where could my heart flee from my heart?  Where could I escape myself? Where would I not dog my own footsteps?”

There is only one conclusion he could make:

“Dear Lord, You have made us for Yourself and our hearts are restless until they find their rest in You.”

The Witness of the Spirit

"These were more noble than those in Thessalonica, in that they received the word with all readiness of mind, and searched the scriptures daily, whether those things were so."  Acts 17:11

When I first began to learn about Jesus Christ (having come out of a Catholic upbringing), I was cautious.  I didn't want to be fooled again and brought into yet another religious delusion.

I was learning about the Lord through a Bible Study hosted by a woman at my job and I also began to listen to taped sermons from her husband, who is a pastor.  Although I had never heard the truth of the Gospel before, somehow within me I knew I was hearing the truth.  There was some inner witness that what I was hearing was true.  Although I didn't understand that at the time, I now know that it was the Holy Spirit witnessing with my spirit about the truths of the Word of God as He began to draw me to the Father (John 6:44).

The first time I met the pastor, I told him, "I don't believe everything you say just because you say it.  I read the word for myself to see if it is true."  He responded, "That's good.  How has it been so far?"  I answered warily, "You have been okay...so far."  He got a good chuckle out of my comments, but I was dead serious. 

"This is He that came by water and blood, even Jesus Christ; not by water only, but by water and blood. And it is the Spirit that beareth witness, because the Spirit is truth."  I John 5:6

I was reminded of this interaction recently due to a conversation with a commenter on this blog.  The commenter implied that they had been in agreement with a minister at one time.  Then they heard something reportedly said by that minister, causing them to consider that the minister was a false teacher.

Only one question stood out to me for that poster, "Where was the witness of the Spirit in their life?"

It was not of concern for me really whether the poster thought the minister was false or not.  What was of concern was that there didn't seem to be any inclination to find and honor truth.  If the Holy Spirit had once confirmed for them that this minister was preaching the truth, then why were they willing to so casually set that witness aside?  And if the Holy Spirit had never confirmed for them the truth of these teachings, then why were they following them?

Again, this is not about man, for no man is perfect.  It is about seeking to be led of truth in all things.  The standard for a Christian must be the witness of the Holy Spirit.  If not, we will fall into error every time.

Hear, Forgive, Listen, & Act

"Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly in all wisdom, teaching and admonishing one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing with grace in your hearts to the Lord." Colossians 3:16

The following was shared with me yesterday. It is from the site "Scripture Songs for Worship".  The entire site is filled with Scripture verses put to song by Esther Mui and are very beautiful.  I pray that it edifies you. 

Daniel 9:16-19

16 O Lord, according to all Your righteousness, I pray, let Your anger and Your fury be turned away from Your city Jerusalem, Your holy mountain; because for our sins, and for the iniquities of our fathers, Jerusalem and Your people are a reproach to all those around us.

17 Now therefore, our God, hear the prayer of Your servant, and his supplications, and for the Lord's sake cause Your face to shine on Your sanctuary, which is desolate. 

18 O my God, incline Your ear and hear; open Your eyes and see our desolations, and the city which is called by Your name; for we do not present our supplications before You because of our righteous deeds, but because of Your great mercies. 

19 O Lord, hear! O Lord, forgive! O Lord, listen and act! Do not delay for Your own sake, my God, for Your city and Your people are called by Your name.