Keeping It Real, Allways

Good Morning!! Just sixteen days until Christmas,...and a friendly reminder, Jesus is the reason for the season! God has called us to renew our "attention to what we have heard" (Heb. 2:1), to anchor our lives in God's word. Meditation on God's word inspires prayer; prayer nourishes faithful church membership; and vital church life motivates our witnessing for Christ in a world that is lost and adrift. This is the time we celebrate God's greatest gift to mankind.

God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.—-John 3:16(NIV)

How can we escape if we neglect so great a salvation?—-Hebrews 2:3 (NRSV)

Ours is indeed a great salvation. Through the grace that works in us, the church, God offers the world direction and an anchor that is steadfast and sure,...if we faithfully share the love that we see in Jesus Christ.

" Therefore, prepare your minds for action;

be self-controlled; set your hope fully on the grace to be given you when Jesus Christ is revealed."

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 Source of all life, help us to realize how great is our salvation, and to embrace it in word and deed,...not just for a season, but always. Amen.

" When we affirm actions and attitudes, we reap more of them.
Wise people know to reward the behavior they want to see more of."

Spiritual Focus

Good Morning!! It is not a lack of spiritual experience that leads to failure, but a lack of working to keep our eyes focused and on the right goal. At least once a week you should examine yourself before God to see if your life is measuring up to the standard He has for you. This means holding ourselves to the highest priority, year in and year out; not making our first priority to win souls, or to establish churches, or to have revivals,...but seeking only " to be well pleasing to God ".

I keep my body under control and make it my slave, so I won't lose out after telling the good news to others.—1 Corinthians 9:27 (AAJE)

Any goal we have that diverts us even to the slightest degree from the central goal of being "approved to God " may result in our rejection from further service for Him. As you begin to discern where the goal leads, you will understand why it is so necessary to keep " looking unto Jesus ".

My worth to God publicly is measured by what I really am in my private life.

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We make it our aim . . . to be well pleasing to Him.—2 Corinthians 5:9

" When we affirm actions and attitudes, we reap more of them.
Wise people know to reward the behavior they want to see more of."

Moving Beyond

Good Morning,...T.G.I.F.(Thank God I'm Forgiven)!!! GOD restores us as He forgives and forgets. Unfortunately we are not always willing to do the same for ourselves and others. We hold on to the mistakes and carelessly remind others of theirs as well. Often our words say that we forgive, while our actions speak something quite different.

Bear with each other and forgive whatever grievances you may have against one another. Forgive as the Lord forgave you.—Colossians 3:13 (NIV)

We judge others unfairly when we are constantly reminding and holding their past against them. Holding on to stuff makes it so difficult to embrace the grace and mercy of God, and to see ourselves and others as God sees,...through eyes of perfect love, creating a masterpiece in the image of Christ.

Continually reliving pain and hurts, only prevents us from moving forward, trapping us in the past.

L.I.G.(Let It Go)!!!

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Help us today to leave the past behind, and to move forward embracing Your grace and mercy,...and extending it towards others. Amen.

" It doesn't matter who pays us,...we work for God."

God Can, And He Will

Good Morning, My Prayers Are With You and Yours!! The key to overcoming problems in our lives is to maintain our focus and dependence on God. He is the ultimate problem solver. He lifts us up, our hope, our attitudes and our hearts, and He encourages us to keep going forward. If you find yourself in the middle of a problem that you can't seem to solve, just begin to reflect on the good things that God has already done. Remember the many other times you have seen your prayers answered and your needs met.

I will call on the Lord, who is worthy to be praised; so shall I be saved from mine enemies.—2 Samuel 22:4 (KJV)

Start praising Him now, not just when you see the solution coming, praise Him when you have no clue as to what may happen next. Praise Him for what He has done and what you are anticipating Him to do in the present situation. Don't get caught up in fear and worry; trust Him, Praise Him and expect from Him. You know He has and will deliver right on time.

Surely you must know that the God that made us, can and will take care of us.

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Trust in God's strength to sustain you. Do not worry,...and do not fear.

" It doesn't matter who pays us,...we work for God."

Follow Your Leader

Good Morning, What A Wonderful Wednesday!! I once thought that the way to holiness was achieved through rigid observance of rules and regulations,...but we can not legislate morality and goodness. Purity and goodness come from the inner self. You can and will allow them to be a part of you,...are not.

Do not be deceived: God cannot be mocked. A man reaps what he sows.—Galatians 6:7 (NIV)

You may feel life lived according to the Spirit is too subjective to be trustworthy. Paul answers this with the; " we reap what we sow " theory. If the seed we sow is self-gratifying pleasure, we harvest destruction. If the seed we sow is faith in Jesus Christ and submission to the Holy Spirit, we reap eternal life.

A life lived in submission to the Holy Spirit is going to be a purer, nobler, kinder, gentler, more generous life than that lived according to a set of rules and regulations.

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In the Holy Spirit the soul finds a Leader for life; a Decider in difficult times; a Comforter in sorrow; a Helmsman who steers one safely into the harbor.

" It doesn't matter who pays us,...we work for God."

You Don't Have To Do, What You've Always Done

Good Morning!! Every Christian is tempted to fulfill the natural desires of life in illegitimate ways on a daily basis. Some of us struggle more with sexual temptation. Others with eating too much, desiring to control others, looking good at any cost, taking things that are not our property. The list could continue for pages, but you get the point.
Therefore, since we have a great high priest who has ascended into heaven, Jesus the Son of God, let us hold firmly to the faith we profess.—Hebrews 4:14 (NIV)

It is surprising for some people to learn that the Bible shows us that Jesus knows what it is like to be tempted. He knows from experience what temptation is like. He is our high priest who intercedes for us with the Father. How comforting to know that He understands what we are going through,...even when we are tempted. We can go to the Father when we are struggling with anything, even temptation,...with an assurance that we will find understanding, and help.

Jesus was tempted,...but He did not sin. Let us learn to do the same.

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Father, we are so grateful for the knowledge that Jesus experienced temptation too. This helps us know that You will continue to love us, and will respond with kindness and help, when we turn to You in the midst of a struggle with temptation. Lord we thank You. Amen.

" It doesn't matter who pays us,...we work for God."

We Have To,...Let It Go

Good Morning!! There are no perfectly functional families,...because there are no perfect people. All of us suffer some dysfunction or another, and that is why recognizing destructive patterns in relationships is important. Just one person struggling with a problem can have a domino effect on the entire family,...both now and in the future. Some issues become hand-me-downs into our adult life, and begin to build the same dysfunctional patterns we experienced as a child, into our marriages and other relationships.
For you know that it was not with perishable things such as silver or gold that you were redeemed from the empty way of life handed down to you from your ancestors, but with the precious blood of Christ, a lamb without blemish or defect.—1 Peter 1:18-19 (NIV)

If your life heavily influenced by hand-me-downs,...or if you sometimes feel as though there is no way out,,...there's no way to be free of those negative influences. Well, there's Good news! Christ offers release from all enslaving hand-me-downs. We have a choice. We can continue dragging the hand-me-downs along,...or we can ask Jesus to set us free. We've all been influenced by these negatives for a long time, and the road to freedom will require more time and effort. But remember this; Jesus has paid the price for our freedom, and He will be at our sides as we move away from the enslaving hand-me-downs, and into a life of freedom in Him.

"So if the Son sets you free, you will be free indeed." John 8:36 NIV

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Father, we know that those negative things from our childhood are affecting our relationships today. And we know they are preventing us from being all You have designed us to be. Thank You that Jesus paid the price for our freedom. Please help us to accept our freedom,...and live a better, richer life. In Jesus' name. Amen.

" It doesn't matter who pays us,...we work for God."