Tag: Spiritual

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Be A Participant

17 For it is time for judgment to begin at the household of God; and if it begins with us, what will be the outcome for those who do not obey the gospel of God? 18 And “If the righteous is scarcely saved, what will become of the ungodly and the sinner?” ~ 1 Peter 4:17-18

Please note that he did not say that the righteous will not be saved. Or that the righteous cannot be saved. But instead, he said that they are scarcely saved. Meaning this is not a spectator’s sport. We are not here to sit on the bench and watch. We are expected to “work out” our salvation with fear and trembling (Philippians 2:12).

Jesus gave His Church a mandate to go into all the world and tell the Good News of His death and resurrection. And we are to baptize and make disciples of all who believe. There are no couch-potato-Christians. There are no armchair Christians. We are expected to get up, stand up, and win souls for the LORD before Eternity Comes Crashing In.

His coming will be like a thief in the night, you do not know on which night or at which hour He will come back. Therefore, we must watch and pray that we are not found slumbering or without oil to trim our lamps, as was the case with the Five Foolish Virgins.

You cannot say that they were not saved because they were. They even had on their wedding garments. They looked the part, but they had no oil with which to trim their lamps. They had no growth. They were only spectators and not participants.

Listen … Jesus is coming back for participants, and not spectators. Which one are you? Are you a participant? Or are you a spectator? Do you look the part only? Or are you being the part? I’m not trying to insult you. I’m not trying to scare you. I’m not trying to place doubts in your mind.

What I am suggesting, however, is to take an inventory of your life. Evaluate your actions. Assess your purpose for Jesus. Do not let that day catch you unawares or unprepared, with no real treasure stored up in eternity. You do not want to be broke here and be broke there… that’s if you make it in at all.

We are not saved by works, but we are certainly saved to work. Adam was placed in paradise, the Garden of Eden, to work it and to keep it according to Genesis 2:15. We are fellow workers, not general spectators. Therefore, get up and start working before Eternity comes Crashing In on you, and you are caught with no real treasure in eternity.

But it all starts with Jesus. There is no life. There is no hope. There is no future without Jesus being first in your life.

Peace. Love. Go Forth and Be A Participant.

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Remain Sméagol

7 If you do what is right, will you not be accepted? But if you do not do what is right, sin is crouching at your door; it desires to have you, but you must rule over it. ~ Genesis 4:7

One of my favorite characters in The Lord of the Rings series (that’s including The Hobbit) is Gollum. Now, to many people, including my mother, that’s insane. She sees him as a horrible, creepy character, but honestly, I see him as a character that represents the majority of humanity. Gollum, for those of you who don’t know who he is, is the original owner of the ring; well, he’s the owner that Bilbo got the ring from. Anyways, Gollum is deformed and crazy, all because of this ring. So, this ring has created a dual personality within him. One of almost innocence, like a child, and one of pure evil and wickedness.

This ring gives anyone who wears it the ability to turn invisible to all. Now, the ring also causes the owner to be driven mad; the more you use it, the more you lose yourself to the ring. This is much like the world today. The more we give into sin, the more we lose ourselves to sin. The more we are deformed and driven farther and farther away from the person God created us to be. When we just look at the outside, it’s easy to dislike and want judgment for the wicked. It’s easy to look at Gollum and hate him, but if we take a moment to actually look at Gollum, we’d see he’s nothing more than a lost soul who has been corrupted by the thing he loves most. And because it corrupts him, he also hates it.

That is the same with us and sin. We love and hate it all at the same time. We struggle back and forth with it, yet ultimately give in the majority of the time. It becomes a never-ending struggle that we will be unable to overcome on our own. I think J.R.R. Tolkien (the author of both The Lord of the Rings and The Hobbit) said it best:

He [Gollum] will never be rid of his need for it. He hates and loves the Ring, as he hates and loves himself. Sméagol’s [Gollum’s original name before he found the ring] life is a sad story. Yes, Sméagol he was once called. Before the Ring found him. Before it drove him mad.

Gollum was never intended to be a character to be despised but a character to be pitied, for he represents the dangers of giving into sin’s desires and not ruling over it. This will be a never-ending battle for the rest of our lives unless we submit to a new master. Unless we fully submit to Christ, we will all lose ourselves, just as Sméagol did.

Peace. Love. Go Forth and Remain Sméagol.

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Proselytize

3 Even though the people were afraid of the local residents, they rebuilt the altar at its old site. ~ Ezra 3:3aNLT

The LORD God had mandated that the time had indeed come to rebuild His house. They had the finances. They had the skill. They had the help. They even had the Temple vessels for worship because Cyrus had given them back. But still, no one was doing anything about it, including Zerubbabel, the governor, and Joshua, the high priest. They were all too busy building their own homes, planting their own vineyards, starting and running their own businesses. They had gotten caught up ‘in life.’

Yes, they had rebuilt the altar and were sacrificing on it. Yes, they were even celebrating the Feast of Booths in the seventh month, but the Temple…not so much. It hadn’t even been started. Here is why. Fear! It was because of fear! Fear had gripped their hearts. Fear had stayed their hands. Fear kept them quiet. Fear stopped God’s work.

Why do we not witness? Because of fear of persecution. Why are we silent about issues that the Church should be involved in? Because of fear. Why do we not speak up about the insanity of so many different genders, although we know that it is not of God? We don’t speak up because of fear. Although we know that the Scripture says that those who do such things will be condemned; still, fear keeps our mouths shut.

Listen, God said that He made man in His own image, male and female He created them, therefore, there is no other choice, it’s either male or female that is it, nothing else. You are either a man or you are a woman. You cannot be both, and you cannot change from one to the other or to anything else, for that matter. What you have is what you are.

It’s not about your feelings; it’s about the Creator and Judge of the whole earth, and He’s coming back soon. And it’s His laws that we will be judged by, not man’s. Therefore, share the Gospel. Evangelize. Disciple. Lead through action. Let Christ live through you so that on that final day when we stand before the Throne of God, we will hear the words “Well done, my good and faithful servant.”

Peace. Love. Go Forth and Proselytize.

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Your Response

7 So Satan went out from the presence of the LORD and struck Job with loathsome sores from the sole of his foot to the crown of his head. 8 And he took a piece of broken pottery with which to scrape himself while he sat in the ashes. ~ Job 2:7-8

I want you to understand that at this time, Job is already in the crucible; it’s already hot, but now the fire, or the heat, is turned up even hotter. Satan went out from the presence of God and struck Job with painful boils from the soles of his feet to the crown of his head. In other words, there was no part of Job’s body that did not have a painful boil with pus oozing from it.

He had sores from head to toe that hurt and itched, so much so that he sat in ashes and scraped himself with a piece of broken pottery, trying to get some relief from the itch and the pain. When Job’s three friends heard all that had happened to him, they came to visit him so that they might bring some comfort to him. But they did not expect what they saw. Job was barely skin and bones. His affliction was so grievous that they did not even recognize him.

When they did see him up close and saw how great his suffering was, they tore their robes, sprinkled dust on their heads, and lifted up their voices and wept for him. When Job’s friend realized how great his agony and his misery were, they couldn’t speak a word for seven days and seven nights. They just sat on the ground with him, hoping to comfort him in all of his grief.

It was so bad that earlier, Job’s wife had said to him, “Do you still hold fast to your integrity? Curse God and die!” (Job 2:9) But Job replied to her in verse 10:

10 … “You speak as one of the foolish women speaks. Shall we indeed accept good from God, and shall we not accept adversity?” In all this Job did not sin with his lips.

Job 2:10b NKJV

This is the proper response when in the crucible. “Shall we accept only good from God? Shall we not also accept the bad as well?” This was not something that Job just inadvertently came up with off the top of his head. No, he was prepared. He had decided beforehand that he was in it for the long haul. That no matter what, he had decided that he would follow God and be obedient to Him.

We have to understand and admit that a lot of life is lived in the crucible. The fire may not be turned up as hot as it was turned up for Job, but we live a lot of life in the crucible. The rent is due in three more days, and we just don’t have it. A loved one was just diagnosed with terminal cancer. An unfortunate accident just claimed the life of someone you held dear. These are some of life’s challenges. They’re not easy to deal with, but with God…it’s a different thing because Jesus changes everything.

We also have to acknowledge that there are many innocent people who have been brutally hurt or severely injured by malevolent people who have no respect for life, nor do they care about others in general.But as harsh as it sounds, you can overcome that. No matter what life throws at you, with the right attitude you can overcome. All things are possible for one who believes (Mark 9:23b).

These are the words of Jesus Himself, when a father had brought his son to Him to have a demon, that tried to kill the boy on several occasions, cast out. The father had said to Jesus, “…if you can do anything, have compassion on us and help us (Mark 9:22b).” With Jesus in our life, we can do all things.

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A Lie Of A Parasite

10 The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy. I came that they may have life and have it abundantly. ~ John 10:10

Today is National Sanctity of Life Day. This day was first proclaimed by President Ronald Reagan in 1984 to honor the sanctity of human life and to mark the anniversary of the U.S. Supreme Court’s decision in Roe v. Wade on January 22nd, 1973, which legalized abortion in the United States at a Federal level. Today, even though Roe v. Wade was overturned on June 24th, 2022, the life of the unborn is still not counted as a life worth saving or even as a life, period.

If you walk around any secular college today and ask them their view on abortion, they will tell you they’re not only for it, but it is a human right because the fetus inside of the woman is a literal parasite. Imagine, the living baby inside of its mother’s womb is a parasite to this up-and-coming generation.

According to the American Heritage Dictionary, a parasite is:

(Biology) An organism that lives and feeds on or in an organism of a different species and causes harm to its host.

Does that sound like the journey of pregnancy that each and every one of us experienced to get here? No. No, it does not. But this is what is being indoctrinated into our young people today. But why? Why is abortion being pushed on our society so aggressively? I believe it is because there is a darker, more sinister evil behind the scenes guiding those in power.

10 The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy.

John 10:10a

According to God, we are fearfully and wonderfully made (Psalms 139:14). We are knitted together and formed by Him in our mother’s womb (Jeremiah 1:5). No unborn child in their mother’s womb is a parasite. This lie is pushed by the enemy in order to demean and lower the value of human life, so that he can more easily convince us to help him destroy humanity as a whole.

Therefore, today, let us spend a little extra time in prayer for all the unborn children that are at risk of being aborted. Let us pray for repentance of all of the millions of unborn children that have already been needlessly aborted. And let us pray for an awakening and change in our society, so that we, as a nation, might see that all life starts at conception.

Dear LORD, I pray for forgiveness for our people and all of the innocent blood that has been shed on our land. I pray that You would have mercy on America and forgive us for allowing this unnecessary bloodshed to continue for so long. I ask that You would heal this land and send conviction over the land, that we might turn away from the altars of self-indulgence, and instead, turn our eyes back to You. Please help me to stand for righteousness regardless of where I am or who I am around. Help me to never cave to evil, but to always stand for good. In Jesus’ name, I pray, amen.

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Keep Bearing Good Fruit

7 But when he saw many of the Pharisees and Sadducees coming to his baptism, he said to them, “You brood of vipers! Who warned you to flee from the wrath to come? 8 Bear fruit in keeping with repentance. 9 And do not presume to say to yourselves, ‘We have Abraham as our father,’ for I tell you, God is able from these stones to raise up children for Abraham. 10 Even now the axe is laid to the root of the trees. Every tree therefore that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire. ~ Matthew 3:7-10

This is John the Baptist speaking. He was speaking to the religious people who thought that their religion would save them. They were not bearing fruit, well, at least, they were not bearing good fruit. They were walking around in long flowing robes and even praying long, loud prayers in the public place. They believed that they had all that they needed, not realizing that they needed the very one they would plan later to kill.

John advised them, “Look, you better start bearing good fruit. That is what bearing fruit in keeping with repentance means. Good fruit. Remember that the word repentance actually means to stop what you are doing, change the direction you are going in, and start heading in the very opposite direction.  You do not continue in the type of lifestyle you used to live. You begin living for Jesus now. Repentance requires work. You are not saved by works, but you are judged by your works. Therefore, bear fruit in keeping with repentance. Do not presume that God loves you too much to reject you if you stop bearing fruit or if you turn away from Him.

Look at what John ended with, “Every tree therefore that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire.” This is a very serious matter; one day, we will all spend eternity in one place or the other. One place is blissfulness, and the other place is eternal punishment in a lake of fire. The fire is never quenched, and the flames are never extinguished. It is a place of eternal torment.

Here is what I suggest. I suggest that you begin taking inventory of your own life and noting those habits that are unprofitable. Then, change them. Those thoughts that lead you astray, change them, and begin living for Jesus, He is our only Hope.

Heavenly Father, please help me to change the things in my life that are unfruitful. Prune me so that I can bear even more fruit. I want to be ready for You when You return to get us; in Jesus’ name, I pray, amen.

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Work Out Your Own Salvation

12 Therefore, my beloved, as you have always obeyed, so now, not only as in my presence but much more in my absence, work out your own salvation with fear and trembling, 13 for it is God who works in you, both to will and to work for his good pleasure. ~ Philippians 2:12-13

I don’t understand churches that teach that you can live any old way you want because you have absolutely no responsibility in your salvation, when obviously Paul said, yes, you most assuredly do.  You have a big part to play in your salvation. Matter of fact, you have all of the responsibility in working out your salvation.

Look at what he wrote. He commended them for their obedience; then he encouraged them to continue in that obedience. But notice, it was not just continue, it was continue much more, working out their own salvation with fear and trembling. Now, how can they say we have no responsibility in our salvation?

Listen to what he wrote to the Roman Church, 13 For it is not the hearers of the law who are righteous before God, but the doers of the law who will be justified.

Romans 2:13

In other words, it doesn’t matter how much you go to church. It doesn’t even matter how much you read the Bible. I know that sounds a little out there, but it’s true. You can go to church every day and twice on Sundays and read your Bible for hours on end, and it will not matter when you stand before God’s throne if you are not obedient to God’s Word. Paul warned us it is not the hearers that are righteous but the doers that are justified. In other words, it is not the churchgoers; it is not the Bible readers, but only the obedient that will be justified.

So, I want to encourage you today to put some effort in your Christian walk. Get involved with your own salvation, and work it out with fear and trembling. Do not be a hearer only, but be a doer. Be who God has called you to be. You are called for much more than just a benchwarmer. You are called to do a mighty work for Jesus, but you can’t if you are just sitting on the bench, or if you are wavering between two opinions. You are either hot or you are cold. The lukewarm will be spewed out of God’s mouth.

Heavenly Father, thank You that You are a forgiving God and are not waiting in heaven for me to make a mistake so that You can swat me. But in great love and abounding mercy, You forgive all who repent. Thank You that You remember that I am but dust, and You look at me with compassion. Help me to live my life for You, working out my salvation with much fear and trembling. In Jesus’ name, I pray, amen.

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Beware Warm Handshakes

4 You adulterous people! Do you not know that friendship with the world is enmity with God? Therefore whoever wishes to be a friend of the world makes himself an enemy of God. ~ James 4:4

There is fear of speaking up. There is fear of telling the truth about what is really going on. Some say it is because of the fear of suicidal tendencies if you do, or the fear of getting a visit from the FBI, or at the very least, you offend people. I’ve seen the videos on the internet. I’ve heard the testimonies of those who lived it, and it is all for real.

But here is what Patrick Henry said, and I quote:

Should I keep back my opinions at such a time through fear of giving offense, I should consider myself as guilty of treason toward my country and of an act of disloyalty toward the Majesty of heaven, which I revere above all earthly kings.

His fear of God and love for the Savior was stronger than his fear of man. It would seem that we are in the same boat, with warm handshakes and broad smiles and pats on the back, which deceives the brainwashed into overlooking the acts of war and the play for the subjugation of the American population.

As Patrick Henry said:

Suffer not your cells to be betrayed with a kiss.

We’re living in a time where we’d rather believe and bow to the lies of the world instead of standing on and for the Truth of our God. We are often beguiled by seemingly kind words of tolerance, peace, and unity when in actuality, all they are promising is to be an enemy of the LORD.

So, be on your guard. Awaken your spirit man, so that you might have a direct connection to the Holy Spirit so that He can guide you through the beguiling of the enemy.

Dear LORD, please forgive me for every time I’ve given into the world and its deception. Please awaken my spirit man within me that I might hear from you and discern right from wrong. Please give me the strength to stand for righteousness. Please guide me in everything I do, and be with me always. In Jesus’ name, I pray, amen.

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An Anxious Struggle

7 Cast all your anxiety on him because he cares for you. ~ 1 Peter 5:7NIV

Anxiety caused by overwhelming thoughts or feelings is a weird kind of fear. Let’s break it down. In my case, I’ve been getting a paralyzing anxiety from overwhelming tasks that feel impossible to tackle. My heart begins to aggressively beat out of my chest; it feels like I can’t move. Then, the stress begins to cause my body to feel like it’s shutting down, leaving me with no other option but to pause and take a nap, hoping my body will relax a bit. This kind of stress, anxiety, and overwhelming feeling isn’t in God’s plan for my life. So where does it come from?

I’m sure there are deep-rooted issues that I need to work on that are the main source, but let’s look at what I know now. I’m a perfectionist. I want everything done the right way, done at the right time, and the way I expect it to be. Sometimes, my expectations for myself aren’t achievable, and this causes me great stress and anxiety. Sometimes, what I need to get done is so many daunting tasks that I feel stressed, overwhelmed, and paralyzed, unable to even attempt the task.

I suppose at the end of the day, my standard for myself is to be a perfectionist, but because I’m not a perfect person, I fall short every day. Because I fall short every day, this then adds to my stress by planting a seed in my subconscious that I’m not good enough. This then causes me to panic and stress. At least, this is seemingly one issue in the puzzle.

I know this is an issue because every time a mistake, problem, or issue is brought up about me, it causes me great stress, anxiety, and overwhelmness, and then, after a little while of these feelings, depression begins to sink in. It’s this continuous cycle that I’ve been stuck in for years. Now, don’t get me wrong, I’ve been chipping away at it, but until I can truly figure out the source of the issue, I’ll only be able to chop down the tree every time it shoots up.

While we don’t all struggle with anxiety and depression, we all struggle with something that pulls us back continuously. Something that we constantly have to battle and fight to overcome so that we can be free from it. This was never the plan, but it is the reality. So, what can we do? We bring it to God. We chip away at it until we get to the root of the issue.

Dear LORD, search me. Show me the source of my struggle. Show me the source of what is holding me back. Then please, LORD, show me how to uproot that source of my struggle and help me to remove it from my life forever so that nothing can keep me from the life You’ve planned for me. Please wrap me in Your love. Please fill me with Your peace. Please help me to overcome through You. In Jesus’ name, I pray, amen.

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Prepare For Perilous Times

1 But understand this, that in the last days there will come times of difficulty. 2 For people will be lovers of self, lovers of money, proud, arrogant, abusive, disobedient to their parents, ungrateful, unholy, 3 heartless, unappeasable, slanderous, without self-control, brutal, not loving good, 4 treacherous, reckless, swollen with conceit, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God, 5 having the appearance of godliness, but denying its power. Avoid such people. ~ 2 Timothy 3:1-5

As the days race toward eternity, the Return of Jesus draws closer and closer, and things will take a turn for the worse for the Church. And it already has in many places, but it will get even worse. Those who are called by His Name will be persecuted. We will be despised, hated, and even hunted down and killed, all because we love Jesus. Because we have chosen Him, because He first chose us.

Jesus has given us an opportunity to accept Him and to follow Him by loving Him and keeping His commandments. We love Him by being obedient to Him and loving others and living in harmony with each other. Therefore, we keep ourselves from being defiled by the world.

We live in the world, but we are not a part of the world. We do not partake in what they partake in. We do not take pleasure in what they take pleasure in. We are a peculiar people, a royal priesthood. A people chosen from before the foundation of the world (1 Peter 2:9).

We are loved by God, who purchased us with His own blood and wrote our names upon His palms and in His Book of Life. We all have been given the privilege of choosing Jesus (John 3:16). That is our choice. To accept Jesus or to reject Jesus. It’s that simple, but it has devastating consequences if we choose unwisely.

Therefore, separate yourself from the world. Be in the world, but not of the world. We are to be the light of the world (Matthew 5:14-16), not friends with the world. So, build your spirit-man now. Crucify your flesh now while these days are still ahead of us because when they come, it will be difficult to prevail without preparation.

Peace. Love. Go Forth and Prepare For Perilous Times.

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