Talking Back

Happy Sunday!

Sitting here for several minutes, wondering what to write and what to share with you this week! I'm so thankful that my parents introduced me to the Word, so thankful that after all that I've been through the Word still stands first place. The Word blesses me, encourages me, and keeps me sane.  I want to share it with you and hope that you are encouraged and strengthened as well.

This week I was encouraged to speak the Word even more than I already do. God created us in his image. He spoke the worlds into existence.  We have to use our voices to proclaim the Word and stop leaving our words unassigned. Dr. Barry Bennett said it like this, "When we find His words, believe them and then speak them, we are activating the eternal power of those words. Until we speak His words, they remain alive but unassigned. They cannot accomplish their purpose without our believing hearts declaring those words."

Think of it like this, my grandson Nesta sometimes disagrees with what I say.  If he voices his disagreement we say that he is "talking back", and that's disrespectful.  He's 4 years old!  What's your excuse?  God said, "by his stripes, you WERE healed." 2 Peter 2:4 (KJV)  But you talk back, and claim sickness, disease, and illness as your very own. God said, "never avenge yourselves. Leave that to God, for he has said that he will repay those who deserve it. Don’t take the law into your own hands." Romans 12:19 (Living Bible)  But we talk back, and talk about people behind their backs because it seems like God is taking to long to get them!  But God said, "Now the Lord is not slow about enacting His promise—slow is how some people want to characterize it—no, He is not slow but patient and merciful to you, not wanting anyone to be destroyed, but wanting everyone to turn away from following his own path and to turn toward God’s." 2 Peter 3:9 (Voice)   God says, "Give to others, and God will give to you. Indeed, you will receive a full measure, a generous helping, poured into your hands—all that you can hold. The measure you use for others is the one that God will use for you.” Luke 6:38 (Good News Version)  But we talk back and say, God knows I have these bills.

Let's think about not talking back as we go through the week.  Read, study, and meditate on the Word.  The more Word we know the easier it will be to say what God says.

But what does it say? "The word is near you, in your mouth and in your heart" (that is, the word of faith which we preach): that if you confess with your mouth the Lord Jesus and believe in your heart that God has raised Him from the dead, you will be saved. (Romans 10:8-9)

Being obedient, speaking what my father says...love and prayers, Cynthia

Wisdom...

Happy Sunday!

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

You cannot change a system that you must depend upon. Did you get that? If you rely on Guido and the Mafia for your daily bread, it will be impossible to encourage them to stop killing people.  You would have to decide between eating and being honest.  God doesn't want his children to have to live like this.  He wants us to learn to live in the Kingdom of God and by Kingdom rules.  Jesus said, "I have told you all this so that you will have peace of heart and mind. Here on earth you will have many trials and sorrows; but cheer up, for I have overcome the world.” John 16:33 (Living Bible)

In Luke 16, Jesus told a parable about an unjust steward. Even though the steward was doing wrong, Jesus was able to use the parable to teach his disciples. Luke 16:8 says, "For the children of this world are considerably more shrewd in dealing with their contemporaries than the children of light." (Phillips)  Jesus loves us and wants us to be wise. In Matthew 10:16, Jesus said, "Behold, I send you forth as sheep in the midst of wolves: be ye therefore wise as serpents, and harmless as doves." (King James Version) Proverbs 1 says, Wisdom is crying in the streets.  She's begging us to listen and learn.  She cries, "You simple, naive people, how long will you love your feeble ways? You simpletons, how long will you enjoy making fun of what you don’t understand? You fools, how long will you hate learning what truly matters? Turn to me and receive my gentle correction; Watch and I will pour out my spirit on you; I will share with you my wise words in order to redirect your lives." Proverbs 1:22:24 (Voice) Even the Apostle James encouraged the believers to seek wisdom, and ask God for it! "If you want to know what God wants you to do, ask him, and he will gladly tell you, for he is always ready to give a bountiful supply of wisdom to all who ask him; he will not resent it." James 1:5 (Living Bible)

1 Corinthians 13:13 says, "In this life we have three great lasting qualities—faith, hope and love. But the greatest of them is love." (Phillips)  Love makes our faith work.  With Love in operation we can overcome, succeed, and excel. With Love we can rise to the top.

Love and prayers, Cynthia

Unexpected

Happy Sunday!

Dr. Bill Winston continued his series, "The Power of Love" with the subtitle, "Climbing without Compromise.  The Word of God is alive!  Just like the writer of Hebrews wrote, "For whatever God says to us is full of living power: it is sharper than the sharpest dagger, cutting swift and deep into our innermost thoughts and desires with all their parts, exposing us for what we really are." Hebrews 4:12 (Living Bible)  Week after week, things that I have experienced, studied, and listened to are confirmed by the word preached.  It happened again this week.  Dr. Winston's title may be the same but the content was fresh and timely.

Dr. Winston said, "Problems are the avenue for promotion".  I've been listening to Pastor Duane Sheriff's series on patience all week.  We, and I mean me especially, want a life free of problems, obstacles, and difficulty.  As the old church folks would say, "we want to walk through life on flower beds of ease".  This desire is totally contrary to the word of God.  The Word says in Romans 5:3-5, "We are glad for our troubles also. We know that troubles help us learn not to give up. When we have learned not to give up, it shows we have stood the test. When we have stood the test, it gives us hope. Hope never makes us ashamed because the love of God has come into our hearts through the Holy Spirit Who was given to us." (New Living Translation)  Did you see that?  Patience is vital and must be added to our hope and faith.  The Apostle Peter wrote, "Friends, when life gets really difficult, don’t jump to the conclusion that God isn’t on the job. Instead, be glad that you are in the very thick of what Christ experienced. This is a spiritual refining process, with glory just around the corner." 1 Peter 4:12-13 (Message)

Dr. Winston used several bible stories as examples today, but my favorite was the story from 1 Kings 17.  The prophet Elijah has just prophesied that there would be no rain for several years.  I think we miss some of the points when we read this story.  It wasn't like Elijah was going to have miraculous rain on his property during this period.  He was going to have to experience the effects of the drought too.  BUT, he trusted God for his provision and God used some of the most unlikely people to make sure his servant, the prophet had everything he needed. Read it for yourself.  God even instructed ravens to bring the prophet food.  When that food was gone, he said, "Go to the town of Zarephath in Sidon and live there. I’ve told a widow in that town to give you food.” Verse 9 (Common English Version)  Don't miss this!  God told the prophet to go to another town because he had already instructed a widow there to give him food!  A widow!  Not the owner of a thriving business, or a farmer with grain stacked high in his barn! He used the most unlikely person to bless the man of God, but don't miss this either!  The widow, the woman whose husband had died, the woman without any means of support was blessed by being obedient to the Word of God.  Read verses 15 and 16, "The widow went home and did exactly what Elijah had told her. She and Elijah and her family had enough food for a long time. The Lord kept the promise that his prophet Elijah had made, and she did not run out of flour or oil." (Common English Version)

That's the Power of Love.  When we know how much God loves us, and we walk in love, God can use the most surprising and incredible circumstances and situations to bless us.  We don't have to worry about the evil people in this world.  We just have to respond to them with and in love. Jesus was our perfect example. 1 Peter 2:20-24 says, "Of course, you get no credit for being patient if you are beaten for doing wrong; but if you do right and suffer for it, and are patient beneath the blows, God is well pleased. This suffering is all part of the work God has given you. Christ, who suffered for you, is your example. Follow in his steps: He never sinned, never told a lie, never answered back when insulted; when he suffered he did not threaten to get even; he left his case in the hands of God who always judges fairly. He personally carried the load of our sins in his own body when he died on the cross so that we can be finished with sin and live a good life from now on. For his wounds have healed ours!" (Living Bible)

Be encouraged. Everything that happens is not good, but God can work everything out for your good. 

Walking in Love, with patience...love and prayers, Cynthia

Signed, Sealed, Delivered...

Happy Sunday!

Dr. Keith Hershey was our guest speaker today.  He used Revelation 5 and painted a picture of what's happening in heaven.  Most of us were raised in a Christian culture that glorified and placed all the focus on heaven. We were taught that everything would be perfect in the great by and by, but there was no victory for us in the nasty now and now. This is totally incorrect!  Even Jesus when formatting the model prayer included this statement..."Thy kingdom come. Thy will be done, as in heaven, so in earth." Luke 11:2 (KJV)  Did you get that? Jesus taught us to pray that God's will be done in earth just as God's will is done in heaven! 

What is God's will? How can I know God's will?  Great questions.  The will of God is the Word of God.  Think about it this way.  When a rich man dies, the family reads the Last WILL and Testament. The will outlines how the assets, property, and belongings of the rich man will be divided and disbursed. Ephesians chapter 1 tells us that we have been adopted into the family of God by the finished work of Jesus.  Jesus died and his death paid the price for our sins and made us joint-heirs.  Ephesians 1:11-14 says, "We have also received an inheritance in Christ. We were destined by the plan of God, who accomplishes everything according to his design. We are called to be an honor to God’s glory because we were the first to hope in Christ. You too heard the word of truth in Christ, which is the good news of your salvation. You were sealed with the promised Holy Spirit because you believed in Christ.  The Holy Spirit is the down payment on our inheritance, which is applied toward our redemption as God’s own people, resulting in the honor of God’s glory." (Common English Version)  2 Peter 1:3-4 says, "Everything that goes into a life of pleasing God has been miraculously given to us by getting to know, personally and intimately, the One who invited us to God. The best invitation we ever received! We were also given absolutely terrific promises to pass on to you—your tickets to participation in the life of God after you turned your back on a world corrupted by lust." (Message)

We become the sons and daughters of God when we accept Jesus as our Lord and Savior. John 1:12 says, "Even in his own land and among his own people, the Jews, he was not accepted. Only a few would welcome and receive him. But to all who received him, he gave the right to become children of God. All they needed to do was to trust him to save them." (The Living Bible)  

Now that we have accepted Jesus three things happened.  

1)  God has Signed for you - Just like we sign for packages or new car leases, God signed for us with the precious blood of Jesus.  1 Peter 1:18-19 says, "God paid a ransom to save you from the impossible road to heaven which your fathers tried to take, and the ransom he paid was not mere gold or silver as you very well know. But he paid for you with the precious lifeblood of Christ, the sinless, spotless Lamb of God." (The Living Bible)

2)  God has Sealed you - You have God's seal of approval!  Not because you are good, but because he is Good! Ephesians 1:13-14 says, "It’s in Christ that you, once you heard the truth and believed it (this Message of your salvation), found yourselves home free—signed, sealed, and delivered by the Holy Spirit. This signet from God is the first installment on what’s coming, a reminder that we’ll get everything God has planned for us, a praising and glorious life." (Message)

3)  God has Delivered you - God delivered you from a life of sin! Galatians 1:3-4 says, "Jesus Christ rescued us from this evil world we’re in by offering himself as a sacrifice for our sins. God’s plan is that we all experience that rescue. Glory to God forever! Oh, yes!" (Message)

So what's going on in heaven? So glad you asked.  All the focus is on Jesus!  The elders, and the creatures and the angels are all in awe of him.  Revelation 5 says, they worship Jesus continually and fall on their faces in reverence and say "Amen".  Amen means "so let it be".  It's a simple but effective prayer.  Until we get to heaven, we can worship Jesus right here on earth and we can agree with the Word of God and say AMEN.  Amen to health and healing, because the Word says, "by whose stripes ye were healed." 1 Peter 2:24 (KJV)  Amen to prosperity and abundance, because the Word says, "God is able to make all grace abound toward you; that ye, always having all sufficiency in all things, may abound to every good work:" 2 Corinthians 9:8 (KJV)  Amen to faith and wholeness, because the Word says, "For God hath not given us the spirit of fear; but of power, and of love, and of a sound mind." 2 Timothy 1:7 (KJV)

Yes, and Amen!  Love and prayers, Cynthia

God is Love

Happy Sunday!

Praying that you enjoyed the last week and are ready to embark on the next week.  Several weeks ago, I shared scriptures from Matthew 6.  They are very familiar scriptures that talk about worry and being concerned about daily necessities.  These words are written in red, that means they are statements made by Jesus himself.  Jesus said, "But seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you." Matthew 6:33 (KJV) Hopefully, you know me well enough by now.  I immediately began to examine myself and my situation.  If Jesus said, ALL these things would be added to me if I seek the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and I don't have some of the things he described in the previous scriptures...then something is off.  My lightning fast mind was able to deduce that the problem must be with me because Jesus is perfect and trustworthy.

In my quest to seek first the kingdom of God and his way of being and doing right, I have found even greater comfort and encouragement from the Word.  It's also good to hear great men and women of faith preaching and teaching on things I have read during the week.  Dr. Bill Winston continued his series, "The Power of Love" with the subtitle, "Climbing Without Compromise".  God intends for us to WIN!  In every circumstance, situation and arena!  He is our father.  Good fathers don't set their children up for failure.  Good fathers make sure their children are well provided for. God has given us everything we need to succeed..."Everything that goes into a life of pleasing God has been miraculously given to us by getting to know, personally and intimately, the One who invited us to God." 2 Peter 1:3 (Message)

The true power of love is God, because God is love.  We are created in his image and love should be an integral part of everything we do.  Knowing how much God loves us should comfort us and inspire us to love others. Romans 2:4 says, "Are you, perhaps, misinterpreting God’s generosity and patient mercy towards you as weakness on his part? Don’t you realize that God’s kindness is meant to lead you to repentance?" (Phillips)  And in Ephesians 4:32 it says, "And be ye kind one to another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, even as God for Christ's sake hath forgiven you." (KJV) 

In Deuteronomy 7, the Children of Israel were getting some last minute instructions before entering the promised land. The land was inhabited by seven groups that were physically and naturally more powerful.  One of the groups were the Jebusites.  Their name means to stomp on.  The Jebusite spirit that still exists is a spirit that encourages caste systems, racism, and inferiority complexes.  The Children of Israel were commanded to enter, conquer, and possess the land. We are given similar instructions.  We must go into our promised lands and conquer the enemy and possess the territory for the kingdom of God.  We cannot go in our own strength, just as the Children of Israel could not take the land in their own strength.  We need the supernatural assistance of God the Holy Spirit to empower us and enable us to succeed. Even our faith that can move mountains, only works by LOVE.  Love can change the atmosphere.

Seeking first...love and prayers, Cynthia

Cultivate

Happy Sunday on Monday!

Praying that you enjoyed the weekend!

Dr. Bill Winston continued his series, "The Power of Love", with the subtitle, "Climbing Without Compromise".  God wants you to succeed!  He has planned for you to reach the top of whatever field, business, art, or endeavor he has gifted you and created you to accomplish.  However, you must rise to prominence without compromise.  Watch the national news and you will hear of famous men and women that have risen to great heights only to be stripped of that respect and admiration when it is found that they have compromised in some area.

Dr. Winston referred to the definition of "culture".  The word culture is defined as the characteristics and knowledge of a particular group of people, defined by everything from language, religion, cuisine, social habits, music and arts.  It is also closely related to the word, "cultivate".  Genesis 2:15 says, "Then the Lord God took the man and put him into the garden of Eden to cultivate it and keep it." (NASV)  We have been strategically placed in the world to expose others to our Christian Culture.  Our culture is a culture of LOVE.  True love may sometimes involve hate.  Ok, wait a minute before you delete this e-mail.  Let me explain.  If someone you love is being attacked by a pit bull terrier.  You may love animals and never want to hurt them, but your love for that individual will cause you to decide...the dog may have to die for my loved one to live.  True love wants what is best for you. If drugs and alcohol are destroying your loved one, true love will tell them the truth even if it makes them angry. The Apostle Paul didn't sugarcoat sin. In Galatians 5:19-21 he wrote, "It is obvious what kind of life develops out of trying to get your own way all the time: repetitive, loveless, cheap sex; a stinking accumulation of mental and emotional garbage; frenzied and joyless grabs for happiness; trinket gods; magic-show religion; paranoid loneliness; cutthroat competition; all-consuming-yet-never-satisfied wants; a brutal temper; an impotence to love or be loved; divided homes and divided lives; small-minded and lopsided pursuits; the vicious habit of depersonalizing everyone into a rival; uncontrolled and uncontrollable addictions; ugly parodies of community. I could go on. This isn’t the first time I have warned you, you know. If you use your freedom this way, you will not inherit God’s kingdom." (Message)

Here's the same scripture passage in the Phillips Translation, "The activities of the lower nature are obvious. Here is a list: sexual immorality, impurity of mind, sensuality, worship of false gods, witchcraft, hatred, quarreling, jealousy, bad temper, rivalry, factions, party-spirit, envy, drunkenness, orgies and things like that. I solemnly assure you, as I did before, that those who indulge in such things will never inherit God’s kingdom."

Genesis Chapter 11 tells of the time when the godless people were attempting to build a tower that would reach to heaven.  You remember the story of the Tower of Babel, don't you?  Verse 4 says, "Then the people said, “Let’s build ourselves a city and a tower that will reach to the sky. Then we will be famous. This will keep us together so that we will not be scattered all over the earth.” (Easy-to-Read Version)  The surprising and interesting thing in this passage is that God agreed that they could do it and would do it! Verse 6 says, "And the Lord said, Behold, they are one people and they have all one language; and this is only the beginning of what they will do, and now nothing they have imagined they can do will be impossible for them." (Amplified)

What is God saying about you?  Are you using your powerful imagination to build others up or tear them down? Are you using your imagination to create solutions to the problems of society or are you agreeing with the world system and their doomsday predictions?  Yes, Jesus said the end will come...but no man knows the day or the hour.  What should we do in light of this information? Good question!  Colossians 3:23 says, "And whatsoever ye do, do it heartily, as to the Lord, and not unto men;"(KJV)  And 1 John 4:7-8 says, "Beloved, let us love one another: for love is of God; and every one that loveth is born of God, and knoweth God. He that loveth not knoweth not God; for God is love." (KJV)

Love and prayers, Cynthia

Independence from Worry

Happy Sunday!

Praying that you enjoyed the Holiday Weekend!  Praying that you are truly free and enjoying the freedom that only God can give! St. John 8:36 says, "If the Son, then, sets you free, you are really free!" (Phillips)

"Some people store up treasures in their homes here on earth. This is a shortsighted practice—don’t undertake it. Moths and rust will eat up any treasure you may store here. Thieves may break into your homes and steal your precious trinkets. Instead, put up your treasures in heaven where moths do not attack, where rust does not corrode, and where thieves are barred at the door. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.

The eye is the lamp of the body. You draw light into your body through your eyes, and light shines out to the world through your eyes. So if your eye is well and shows you what is true, then your whole body will be filled with light. But if your eye is clouded or evil, then your body will be filled with evil and dark clouds. And the darkness that takes over the body of a child of God who has gone astray—that is the deepest, darkest darkness there is. No one can serve two masters. If you try, you will wind up loving the first master and hating the second, or vice versa. People try to serve both God and money—but you can’t. You must choose one or the other.

Here is the bottom line: do not worry about your life. Don’t worry about what you will eat or what you will drink. Don’t worry about how you clothe your body. Living is about more than merely eating, and the body is about more than dressing up.  

Look at the birds in the sky. They do not store food for winter. They don’t plant gardens. They do not sow or reap—and yet, they are always fed because your heavenly Father feeds them. And you are even more precious to Him than a beautiful bird. If He looks after them, of course He will look after you.  Worrying does not do any good; who here can claim to add even an hour to his life by worrying? Nor should you worry about clothes. Consider the lilies of the field and how they grow. They do not work or weave or sew, and yet their garments are stunning.  Even King Solomon, dressed in his most regal garb, was not as lovely as these lilies.  And think about grassy fields—the grasses are here now, but they will be dead by winter. And yet God adorns them so radiantly. How much more will He clothe you, you of little faith, you who have no trust? So do not consume yourselves with questions: What will we eat? What will we drink? What will we wear?  Outsiders make themselves frantic over such questions; they don’t realize that your heavenly Father knows exactly what you need. 

Seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and then all these things will be given to you too." Matthew 6:19-33 (VOICE)

Love and prayers, Cynthia