A Girl's Message of Love

A friend shared this video with me and I wanted to share it with you. It is a reminder of the heart of Christ written in Matthew 22:35-41 King James Version (KJV)

³⁵ Then one of them, which was a lawyer, asked him a question, tempting him, and saying,
³⁶ Master, which is the great commandment in the law?
³⁷ Jesus said unto him, Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind.
³⁸ This is the first and great commandment.
³⁹ And the second is like unto it, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself.
⁴⁰ On these two commandments hang all the law and the prophets.
⁴¹ While the Pharisees were gathered together, Jesus asked them,

My Thoughts on Psalms 23

Here are my personal thoughts and perspectives when I read one of my favourite memory verses. I wanted to dig deeper than the surface so I asked questions and meditated on the words as I went along. My thoughts are in Blue to separate the original text from the KJV.

The Lord is my shepherd (The lord is a guide, a provider and protector, someone who oversees not only me but a group of followers); I shall not want. (My guide provides for all of my needs.)

² He maketh me to lie down in green pastures (Where he guides me leads to rest, abundance and is the perfect place for me): he leadeth me beside the still waters. (Not only does he provide peace but he also quenches my thirsts.)
³ He restoreth my soul: (From where I have fallen or gone astray, he has restored me.) he leadeth me in the paths of righteousness for his name's sake. (Leading connotes that I am following willing, and also in his name sake because my path was not the right path. John 14:6 Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me.)
⁴ Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil: for thou art with me; (Christ lives in me and is with me at all times even the gravest. With him death is only a shadow, because his victory on the cross took away it’s teeth for me and was made hollow. I too will rise again someday, so fear is dispelled.)  thy rod and thy staff they comfort me. (His rode of correction and staff of guidance help me maintain my daily path.)

⁵ Thou preparest a table before me in the presence of mine enemies (Christ invites me to his table to commune with him and part take of his life, and because of this enemies may abound, 1 Timothy 4:10 King James Version (KJV)10 For therefore we both labour and suffer reproach, because we trust in the living God, who is the Saviour of all men, specially of those that believe.

 : thou anointest my head with oil; my cup runneth over. (You have sealed me, blessed me, chosen me and set me aside for your own and because of this I will never thirst again thanks to the endless living water you provide.
⁶ Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life: and I will dwell in the house of the Lord for ever. (The goodness and mercy left behind which follow are the fruits born because of my path and the following of Christ and the ultimate gift of Grace, eternal life and communion with my creator, the One True God is mine and nothing and no one can change that. John 10:28
And I give unto them eternal life; and they shall never perish, neither shall any man pluck them out of my hand.)

Promises you and I count on.

Many Christians and even myself have found at one point or another several things in the Bible not clear and sometimes even cryptic. This occurs I believe because the Bible is living and so full of truth that it changes based on where we are in our lives. This is not to say that the words change or they’re meaning, but rather our understanding of them and their application in our life at that moment. This is why Christ said to his disciples,

John 16:12-14 King James Version (KJV)

 12 I have yet many things to say unto you, but ye cannot bear them now.

 13 Howbeit when he, the Spirit of truth, is come, he will guide you into all truth: for he shall not speak of himself; but whatsoever he shall hear, that shall he speak: and he will shew you things to come.

 14 He shall glorify me: for he shall receive of mine, and shall shew it unto you.

For many people Revelations is a book full of mystery and I have even heard of fellow believers being afraid to read it. I am here to let you know that I find Isaiah more cryptic and that I find more joy and hope in the prophecies and promises of Revelations than anywhere else in the Bible. The only people who should be afraid of the book of Revelations are those without Christ, and therefore without hope.

So be of good courage and strong heart, here are some verses as examples of great promises which we can all count on. I find them very encouraging.

Rev 1:3 Blessed is he that readeth, and they that hear the words of this prophecy, and keep those things which are written therein: for the time is at hand.
Rev 2:7 He that hath an ear, let him hear what the Spirit saith unto the churches; To him that overcometh will I give to eat of the tree of life, which is in the midst of the paradise of God.
Rev 2:10 Fear none of those things which thou shalt suffer: behold, the devil shall cast some of you into prison, that ye may be tried; and ye shall have tribulation ten days: be thou faithful unto death, and I will give thee a crown of life.
Rev 2:11He that hath an ear, let him hear what the Spirit saith unto the churches; He that overcometh shall not be hurt of the second death.
Rev 2:17 He that hath an ear, let him hear what the Spirit saith unto the churches; To him that overcometh will I give to eat of the hidden manna, and will give him a white stone, and in the stone a new name written, which no man knoweth saving he that receiveth it.
Rev 2:26 And he that overcometh, and keepeth my works unto the end, to him will I give power over the nations:
Rev 3:5 He that overcometh, the same shall be clothed in white raiment; and I will not blot out his name out of the book of life, but I will confess his name before my Father, and before his angels.
Rev 3:10 Because thou hast kept the word of my patience, I also will keep thee from the hour of temptation, which shall come upon all the world, to try them that dwell upon the earth.
Rev 3:12 Him that overcometh will I make a pillar in the temple of my God, and he shall go no more out: and I will write upon him the name of my God, and the name of the city of my God, which is new Jerusalem, which cometh down out of heaven from my God: and I will write upon him my new name.
Rev 3:20 Behold, I stand at the door, and knock: if any man hear my voice, and open the door, I will come in to him, and will sup with him, and he with me.
Rev 3:21 To him that overcometh will I grant to sit with me in my throne, even as I also overcame, and am set down with my Father in his throne.

Girls Gone Wild in The Red Light District

One of my good friends posted this video on Human Trafficking to raise awareness, and I wanted to share this with you. The selling of people is the number one crime globally and needs to stop. How can we help this cause? Check out this creative video and maybe you'll get an idea.

The Reality of Our Possessions

We all own things, or at least we act like we do. But when you really think about what we have in our homes, on our driveways in our fridges and our lives, do we not owe someone a great THANK YOU. How many times have I taken for granted that at the end of a long day my home, bed and wife will be there to provide comfort and solace? I mean I don’t celebrate this fact every single day, but perhaps I should. Once in a while I catch a glimpse of a beautiful sunrise and stand in awe of the creation and by extension it’s creator, but aren’t they all magnificent even if I am not present or acknowledge them? Who am I to add significance the rising of the sun? I can only be thankful that it happens on a daily basis.

But back to my point, the things we use on a daily basis, my toothbrush, my stove, my fridge and even that movie I borrowed the other day, should I be just as grateful for them as for the dawn? The answer is a resounding YES, and it should be YES every time we use them. This is a part of societies problem as a whole, we have all lost sight of the significance of an item simply because it has been there longer than 5 minutes. Some how our thankfulness for something wanes with time and inattention and it becomes less worthy of our recognition.

Let’s use the example of the borrowed movie to illustrate my point. Say I borrowed a movie from you, wouldn’t I take care of it and make sure that it came back to you in the same fashion that I received it? Wouldn’t you? Sure you would, you are responsible and know that our relationship would be injured should I damage the item and break that bond of trust. I mean wouldn’t you expect me to replace it if it was damaged? Of course you would.

So now that we are thinking about being responsible for those things we borrow and don’t own, let us go back to the question “What do we really posses?” I mean the Bible states that “…all good gifts come from above from the father of lights.” And that in him “we live and move and breathe...” and lastly “the Earth is the Lord’s and everything in it.” Which means that all of those things you and I used this morning. Our shower, clothes, toothbrush, coffee cup, car and everything in between are not really ours. It is on loan from our Father above and should be treated with the appropriate respect; after all doesn’t he deserve the same respect for his things as we ask for our own.

The bottom line is this, to ensure appreciation and proper respect for what we call, “our things.” We must realize that they are all gifts and loaners from God above and should be treated and used with proper respect and intent to glorify not us but him. In the end the only possession we have is our God given gift of choice, for we do not even have dominion over our own bodies. So rejoice in his gifts, give thanks and try not to forget that you are blessed and loved by a generous and gracious Father.

Snail's Pace

Have you ever felt like you are moving so slow you could barely tell if you are moving at all? I don't mean physically, but mentally, emotionally or in other words spiritually.

Many times in my life and even very recently I have asked the question, “What is my purpose in life, what am I supposed to be doing or more importantly, what is God’s will for me.” I know that I am not alone, I have had many conversations with other fellow Christians and this topic remains at the forefront of many people’s minds. I am glad to see that I am not alone, and that people are interested in what God’s will is for their lives. It means that they are looking beyond their own needs. And so since I know I struggle with a common issue I wanted to share my thoughts with you.

I have realized a few things; God sometimes does not answer this question because, you are right where he wants you. Stop and think for a minute, if God had some larger plan for you, do you think that it would be difficult for him to put you into that plan. He who hung the stars and planets into place can do all things. Also in my daily “Grind” as many people call it, I find myself with moments of sharing Christ with others. Now granted probably not as much as I should. But what if God just wants you to live a righteous life and be an example to those currently around you? Who says you have to go to another country to be a missionary? Aren’t the people in your life now just as precious as the ones half way across the world and don’t they need the hope of Christ as much as the next person?

Sometimes this realization slips my mind and usually because I have failed to connect with God the first thing in the morning. So I urge you to do daily devotions, everyday and encourage you that you are where he wants you. Look for God’s will in all the things in your life, “Seek ye first the kingdom of God.” And if you are looking for a more direct connection with the father, prayer and fasting have helped me in the past to be more sensitive to the Holy Spirit and his will. Keeping a journal is often helpful and even walks by your self, looking at his creation can be inspiring. That is how I came up with today’s topic, the birds morning song reminded me that praise and worship are fitting everyday and that his will for us is new each morning.

Brothers & Sisters

In John 13 Jesus is enjoying the last supper with his disciples. And because he knew what was to come; his death on the cross, he intends to impart some final wisdom. One of the things he does is wash their feet, which has a twofold meaning. One it indicates that he came to serve the world as a sacrifice and two he came as the only acceptable example of how to live. He even asks them if they know why he washed their feet.
John 13:12-17 “So after he had washed their feet, and had taken his garments, and was set down again, he said unto them, Know ye what I have done to you? Ye call me Master and Lord: and ye say well; for so I am. If I then, your Lord and Master, have washed your feet; ye also ought to wash one another's feet. For I have given you an example, that ye should do as I have done to you. Verily, verily, I say unto you, The servant is not greater than his lord; neither he that is sent greater than he that sent him. If ye know these things, happy are ye if ye do them.”
His point was that because they had excepted him as their master, they too should be kind and loving and serve others for the greater cause which is God’s will. And that if even he, the Son of God could do this thing, they likewise should be able. This message was so important that he mentions again what should define them as his disciples.
John 13:34-35 “A new commandment I give unto you, That ye love one another; as I have loved you, that ye also love one another. By this shall all men know that ye are my disciples, if ye have love one to another.”
So what is the bottom line the believer, or better yet myself? I am supposed to be aware of the needs of my brothers and sisters in Christ and serve them and by doing so give a contradictory example to the world in order to make people stop and ask why and give Glory to our father in heaven. Our focus should not and cannot be ourselves as true disciples. Just as Christ went to the extreme by giving his life for others, we as servants and called to do the same. If you don’t believe me then check out how many times Jesus made them “Marvel” by his words and actions.
John 15:13 Greater love hath no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends.
The question I pose to you and myself today, is how are you serving your Brothers and Sisters?