Squeeze...

Happy Sunday!

Dr. Bill Winston continued his series entitled, "The Power of Love", with the subtitle "Climbing Without Compromise", Now, before you turn away and go back to your Facebook news feed, let me remind you that "commonly observed phenomena tend to show that it requires a minimum of about 21 days for an old mental image to dissolve and a new one to jell.” - Dr. Maxwell Maltz

We don't learn a thing the first or even the fifth time we hear it.  That's why the Word says, "Faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the Word of God". (Romans 10:17)  We must hear the Word over and over again until it becomes apart of us.  Last week Dr. Winston used a visual example.  He took a water bottle and squeezed it to show that whatever is in a thing will come out of that thing when under pressure.  Look at your own life.  If you walk through your bedroom in the darkness of night and stub your toe on the dresser, what words squeeze out of your mouth? What happens when a reckless driver cuts you off in traffic?  What happens when the co-worker you can barely tolerate gets the promotion you clearly deserve?  If you are anything like me, we can stand to hear this word again.

Jesus did not suggest that we love others, He commanded it!  John 13:34-35 says, "A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another. Just as I have loved you, you also love one another. By this everyone will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another.” (World English Bible)  He wasn't talking about the wishy washy love we see displayed on reality television!  He was talking about AGAPE Love.  Love that is unconditional. Love that is willing to love you even if you don't choose to love them back.  We all want love, artists make millions singing about love, but the love we experience seems to fall short of what we really seek.

Climbing without compromise requires love, and our mountain moving faith won't work without love. Galatians 5:6 says,"but faith which worketh by love." (KJV)   I bet you're saying, "You just don't know how hard it is to love these people!"  Oh, but I do and so does our Heavenly Father!  Dr. Winston reminded us that "No natural man can defeat Satan."  Ephesians 6:12-13 says, "For we are not fighting against human beings but against the wicked spiritual forces in the heavenly world, the rulers, authorities, and cosmic powers of this dark age. So put on God's armor now! Then when the evil day comes, you will be able to resist the enemy's attacks; and after fighting to the end, you will still hold your ground." (Good News Translation) Don't be afraid!  God thought of everything!  Jesus said, "Behold, I give unto you power to tread on serpents and scorpions, and over allthe power of the enemy: and nothing shall by any means hurt you." (KJV)  With God's power through the Holy Spirit we can Love!  

Where can I get this Agape Love? I'm so glad you asked! Romans 5:5 says, "And hope will never fail to satisfy our deepest need because the Holy Spirit that was given to us has flooded our hearts with God’s love." (Voice)  Isn't that awesome.  God tells you to love, then gives you his love to do it!  That's why we always, always WIN!  2 Corinthians 2:14 says, "But thanks be to God, who always leads us in victory through Christ. God uses us to spread his knowledge everywhere like a sweet-smelling perfume." (Easy-to-Read Version)

Allowing God's Love to flow through me...love and prayers, Cynthia

Climbing without Compromise

Happy Sunday!

Dr. Bill Winston continued the series entitled, "The Power of Love" with the subtitle, "Climbing without Compromise".

Matthew 22:34-35 says, "But when the Pharisees had heard that he had put the Sadducees to silence, they were gathered together. Then one of them, which was a lawyer, asked him a question, tempting him, and saying," (KJV)  The enemies of Jesus tried to tempt him.  In the same way, our enemy presents brilliantly crafted temptations to us. If you don't like chocolate, he will not tempt you with chocolate.  He can and only will tempt us with things we think about, and or desire.  James 1:14-15 describes it like this, "But every man is tempted, when he is drawn away of his own lust, and enticed. Then when lust hath conceived, it bringeth forth sin: and sin, when it is finished, bringeth forth death."(KJV)  John 14:21 tells us what we must do in order to resist temptation, "He that hath my commandments, and keepeth them, he it is that loveth me: and he that loveth me shall be loved of my Father, and I will love him, and will manifest myself to him." (KJV)  Did you get that?  When we keep(obey, follow, do) what the Word commands he promises to love us and to manifest(reveal) himself to us.  God wants us fully blessed, and fully protected!

How can we climb without compromise?  Good question! We must know the Word!  John 8:32 says, "And ye shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free."  When we know the truth, the truth that we know will make us free.  Jesus prayed that God would, "Sanctify them through thy truth: thy word is truth." John 17:17 (KJV)  Jesus also said, "I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me."

When we cherish the Word, and value the Word that same Word will empower us to stand.  Dr. Winston said, "Either you believe the Word or your don't!"  As the old folks used to say, "The proof is in the pudding."  That means don't tell me you believe the Word and don't live by it.  The world is supposed to be able to pick us out from the crowd. We should be living the abundant life in every area of our lives.  When we do, the Word promises...people will ask, "what must I do to be saved?" Acts 16:30 (KJV)  Jesus said it this way, in Matthew 5:16, "You are like that illuminating light. Let your light shine everywhere you go, that you may illumine creation, so men and women everywhere may see your good actions, may see creation at its fullest, may see your devotion to Me, and may turn and praise your Father in heaven because of it." (Voice)

Getting to know the Word better...love and prayers, Cynthia

Jericho

Happy Sunday!

Dr. Dennis Burke was the guest speaker today at Living Word Christian Center.  He encouraged us with Joshua 1:2-6, “Moses My servant is dead. Now therefore, arise, go over this Jordan, you and all this people, to the land which I am giving to them—the children of Israel. Every place that the sole of your foot will tread upon I have given you, as I said to Moses. From the wilderness and this Lebanon as far as the great river, the River Euphrates, all the land of the Hittites, and to the Great Sea toward the going down of the sun, shall be your territory. No man shall be able to stand before you all the days of your life; as I was with Moses, so I will be with you. I will not leave you nor forsake you. Be strong and of good courage, for to this people you shall divide as an inheritance the land which I swore to their fathers to give them." (NKJV)

God had already given the land to the Children of Israel, BUT they had to go in and possess the land! Did you get that?  It was already given to them, but they had a responsibility to go in and take ownership of what was given!  In the same way, we can't be casual Christians!  Just going to church on Sunday morning is not enough. We must live the life everyday. This life will not always be easy!  The old folks in the church used to say, "Life would not always be a flower bed of ease."  Life is hard, but God is good! What we must do is remember God promised never to leave us or forsake us.

We are promised good success and it involves a higher level of participation.  We must do our part. What's my part?  Great question.  We must obey God.  We must meditate on the Word so that when hard times and situations come, we act and react in the right way!  

Later in the book of Joshua, the story of Jericho sets the standard for how to win in this life.  Joshua 5:13-15 says, "And then this, while Joshua was there near Jericho: He looked up and saw right in front of him a man standing, holding his drawn sword. Joshua stepped up to him and said, “Whose side are you on—ours or our enemies’?” He said, “Neither. I’m commander of God’s army. I’ve just arrived.” Joshua fell, face to the ground, and worshiped. He asked, “What orders does my Master have for his servant?” God’s army commander ordered Joshua, “Take your sandals off your feet. The place you are standing is holy.” Joshua did it." (Message)  Honor God and respect his authority!  Be sensitive to the voice of God spoken through the Word!  When we honor the Word, we honor God!  If the Word says "GO" and you chose to stay you don't honor God!  If the Word says, "Give" and you refuse, you don't really honor God.

Joshua 6:1-5 says, "The gates of Jericho were kept tightly shut because the people were afraid of the Israelis; no one was allowed to go in or out. But the Lord said to Joshua, “Jericho and its king and all its mighty warriors are already defeated, for I have given them to you! Your entire army is to walk around the city once a day for six days, followed by seven priests walking ahead of the Ark, each carrying a trumpet made from a ram’s horn. On the seventh day you are to walk around the city seven times, with the priests blowing their trumpets. Then, when they give one long, loud blast, all the people are to give a mighty shout, and the walls of the city will fall down; then move in upon the city from every direction.” (Living Bible)  Follow God's instructions! Proverbs 3:5-7 says, "Trust God from the bottom of your heart;  don’t try to figure out everything on your own. Listen for God’s voice in everything you do, everywhere you go; he’s the one who will keep you on track. Don’t assume that you know it all." (Message)

I encourage you this week...remember we have already been given everything that pertains to life and godliness, honor God in all you do, and obey his instructions to the letter!

Love and prayers, Cynthia

P.S. - The Children of Israel walked around the city of Jericho for several days and saw no change. Don't be discouraged, distracted, divided, or deluded if the victory doesn't come quickly.  Just don't quit!  Trust God! Hebrews 11:1 says, "Faith is the confidence that what we hope for will actually happen; it gives us assurance about things we cannot see." (NLT)

No Compromise

Happy Sunday!

Dr. Bill Winston continued the series entitled, "The Power of Love".  This installment was subtitled, "Climbing Without Compromise".

Matthew 22:34-35 says, "But when the Pharisees had heard that he had put the Sadducees to silence, they were gathered together. Then one of them, which was a lawyer, asked him a question, tempting him, and saying..." (KJV)

The Sadducees and the Pharisees were tempting Jesus. The word tempt is defined as, "to entice or allure to do something often regarded as unwise, wrong, or immoral".  They wanted to find fault in Jesus and his teachings.  

Even today there are modern day Sadducees and Pharisees!  You probably work or attend church with some.  People who don't understand the calling and purpose on your life, and are hell bent on proving that you are just like them. They want to prove that you are nothing special!  But don't fall in their trap, and don't blame God for their actions. Remember, "Don’t blame God when you are tempted! God cannot be tempted by evil, and he doesn’t use evil to tempt others." James 1:13 (Contemporary English Version)

God created Man in his image and likeness. I recently saw a meme on Facebook, it said, "Sometimes I open my mouth and my mother comes out!" Just like we resemble and repeat the actions and preferences of our earthly parents, Christians should resemble and repeat the actions of our Heavenly Father. He gave man an assignment. Genesis 1:28 says, "God blessed them: “Prosper! Reproduce! Fill Earth! Take charge! Be responsible for fish in the sea and birds in the air, for every living thing that moves on the face of Earth.” (Message) We know that Adam and Eve fell for the temptation. But, God wasn't without other options, he conferred a blessing on Abraham. We are privileged to be a part of that blessing! Galatians 3:13-14 says, "Christ hath redeemed us from the curse of the law, being made a curse for us: for it is written, Cursed is every one that hangeth on a tree: That the blessing of Abraham might come on the Gentiles through Jesus Christ; that we might receive the promise of the Spirit through faith."

Dr. Winston recalled something that happened when he worked for IBM. He was set to do a presentation for the higher management of the company. While preparing he saw an old friend from another department. This person was angry with management, and felt that he had been mistreated. Dr. Winston sympathized with the person and when he presented he presented in anger. He left the meeting, and not long after that his boss came into his office. His boss was furious! He told him the higher management had come down to promote him, but after that presentation they changed their minds. He missed out on an opportunity to advance because he internalized someone elses percieved or imagined offense. Proverbs 22:24-25 says, "Make no friendship with an angry man; and with a furious man thou shalt not go: Lest thou learn his ways, and get a snare to thy soul." (KJV) Did you get that? Let's try it in another version, just in case you still don't understand! The VOICE translation puts it this way, "Do not befriend someone given to anger or hang around with a hothead. Odds are, you’ll learn his ways, become angry as well, and get caught in a trap."

God has promised us Good Success. We have to continue to walk in Love because Faith only works by Love. Part of this walk involves walking in integrity and not compromising what we believe. We just celebrated Mother's Day. I pray that your day was fabulous! If your mother is still with you, I sincerely hope you showed her some love. If your mother is enjoying Heaven with Jesus, I hope her memory caused you to smile. My mother loved the hymn, "Yeild Not to Temptation" by Horatio R. Palmer. The lyrics still speak to us today!

• Yield not to temptation, for yielding is sin;
• Each vict’ry will help you some other to win;
• Fight manfully onward, dark passions subdue;
• Look ever to Jesus, He’ll carry you through.
• 
  
• Refrain:
• Ask the Savior to help you,
• Comfort, strengthen, and keep you;
• He is willing to aid you,
• He will carry you through.
• 
  
• Shun evil companions, bad language disdain,
• God’s name hold in rev’rence, nor take it in vain;
• Be thoughtful and earnest, kindhearted and true;
• Look ever to Jesus, He’ll carry you through.
• 
  
• To him that o’ercometh, God giveth a crown,
• Through faith we will conquer, though often cast down;
• He who is our Savior, our strength will renew;
• Look ever to Jesus, He’ll carry you through.

Love and prayers, Cynthia

Heart Condition

Happy Sunday!

Dr. Bill Winston continued his series, "The Power of Love".  This installment is number 12, and the focus was "the condition of the heart".  I had a moment for a moment.  Then I remembered a story that Brother Andrew Wommack tells about a pastor that kept preaching the same sermon. Eventually, one of the deacons confronted the pastor to ask why he kept preaching the same message.  The pastor remarked, "When you learn this lesson, then we can move on to something else!"  The Holy Spirit knows we have so much more to learn about Love.

This week I was listening to Brother Andrew Wommack's teachings and posted this quote on Facebook. "It's not your words that make your heart evil. It's your evil heart that makes you speak evil words." - Andrew Wommack

Jesus described it like this, "A good man out of the good treasure of his heart bringeth forth that which is good; and an evil man out of the evil treasure of his heart bringeth forth that which is evil: for of the abundance of the heart his mouth speaketh." Luke 6:45 (KJV)

Dr. Winston reminded us of this fact, "You don't see with your eyes, you see through your eyes.  You really see with your heart!" The condition of our hearts is of the utmost importance!  Deuteronomy 8:2 says, "Remember how the Eternal, your True God, led you through the wilderness these past 40 years. He did this to humble you, to test you, to uncover your motivations, to see if you would obey His commands."  Did you see that?  God led them through a hard, dry place to uncover their hearts, their motives.

2 Kings 5:9-27, tells the story of Naaman.  He was a great man in the Syrian Army, but he was also a leper.  His young servant girl told him about a prophet in her country.  She assured him that the prophet Elisha could heal him. So he travelled to see the prophet, and the prophet didn't even come out to see him.  He was furius, and would have gone home sick, but his servant begged him to do as the prophet commanded and dip seven times on the muddy Jordan River.  He was healed and the Bible says, "And his flesh was made as well as the flesh of a little child. He was clean."  Long story short, Naaman tried to pay Elisha for the miracle. Elisha refused, but Elisha's servant Gehazi ran after Naaman and took the money and clothing that had been offered to the prophet. Ultimately, Gehazi was cursed for taking the money and clothing and the Bible says, "Because you have done this, Naaman’s leprosy shall be upon you and upon your children and your children’s children forever.” And Gehazi walked from the room a leper, his skin as white as snow." Ouch! Gehazi's heart wasn't right and he not only hurt himself, he also cursed his posterity forever!

Flashback to chapter 4 of 2 Kings, this would explain why Gehazi wasn't able to raise the woman's son from the dead.  Elisha sent him to lay his staff upon the boy.  Gehazi wasn't able to perform the miracle and the Prophet Elisha had to go and raise the boy himself.  Could it be that we aren't seeing miracles in our lives and the lives of others because the power of God can't flow through our evil hearts? Selah.

"Keep vigilant watch over your heart;

   that’s where life starts.

Don’t talk out of both sides of your mouth;

   avoid careless banter, white lies, and gossip.

Keep your eyes straight ahead;

   ignore all sideshow distractions.

Watch your step,

   and the road will stretch out smooth before you.

Look neither right nor left;

   leave evil in the dust." - Proverbs 4:23-27 (Message)

Love and prayers, Cynthia