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1.
Was recently asked just what is spirit/spiritual. From man's perspective, spirit/spiritual is God temporarily suspending or superseding His natural laws in order to accomplish His will in the earth. Examples are angels announcing the birth of Jesus, Moses parting the Red Sea and many others recorded in the Bible. Satan also has that ability but only as God wills, as Job in the Bible shows. Christians can operate in the spirit/spiritual if they are willing and yielded. Again, according to God's will. The spiritual is not under our control, contrary to Hollywood or Harry Potter. If anyone claims to operate in the spiritual it is either of God, Satan or an overactive imagination.
2.
As America drifts farther from God and persecution against Christianity increases, we need to remember that the battle is the Lord's. I think I've mentioned it in past posts but there is a verse in Song of Solomon about the bride coming from the wilderness leaning on her beloved. Christians are the bride, the wilderness is trials and suffering and Jesus is the beloved. The world says let trials make you strong. This verse says lean on the strength of Jesus. So when trials and persecution come, we speak the truth in love and trust in God. We may have to go through hard things because of our stand. You could well be hated. But we keep our faith and eyes on God. It's how the bride learned she could trust and lean on her beloved. The goal is to be a spotless bride who knows her beloved.
3.
What's really happening is Satan attacking the Christian foundation of America under the guise of "the rights of the individual." Promoting individual rights in a Godless society is a recipe for destruction. We were never created to live however we want. That's what the Bible calls the Antichrist spirit.
"He who has ears to hear, let him hear."
4.
It's difficult for a Christian to balance politics with their faith. I don't post much about it. But with the presidential election heating up I thought this quote from Michelle Obama was appropriate. I encourage each Christian to seek God on their approach to this topic.
"At the 49th African Methodist Episcopal Church's general conference, Michelle Obama encouraged the attendees to advocate for political awareness, saying, "To anyone who says that church is no place to talk about these issues, you tell them there is no place better – no place better, because ultimately, these are not just political issues – they are moral issues, they're issues that have to do with human dignity and human potential, and the future we want for our kids and our grandkids."
She isn't saying who to vote for but I believe she is saying you can't separate politics from religion.
5.
Addendum to last post:
Separation of church and state is to be accomplished by laws. How politics and religion play out are opinions, unless they break a law.
6.
I heard a sermon recently that described very well what's happening in America today. I have touched upon some of it in previous posts. Isaiah 53 puts it like this:
"We all like sheep have gone astray,
each one has turned to his own way;..."
The gist of the sermon was that people are trying to live their life their way. They are trying to find who they are and what life is about by themselves. The main point of the sermon was that confusion is always the result of trying to be in charge of your life. The worst song ever written spiritually-wise is "I Did it My Way." I have to agree that the best word to describe people today is "confused." The Bible says our identity is to be in Christ. He is the Great Shepherd:
"The LORD is my shepherd;
I shall not want.
He makes me lie down in green pastures;
He leads me beside quiet waters.
He restores my soul;
He guides me in the paths of righteousness
for the sake of His name."
No confusion.
7.
The Bible says we are to be salt and light in the world. Salt is meant to impact whatever food it's in. As Christians we are to impact whatever society we're in. Some may not like what's happening in America today. We're still to be salt. But neither can we compromise our beliefs. The Bible says that salt which has lost its flavor is only good to be cast out. That's what compromise does. So how do we be salt in an increasingly Godless society? It takes the wisdom and guidance of the Holy Spirit. When you are faced with a situation you don't know what to do with, take time to pray and ask God for guidance. Wait until you get a sense in your spirit of God's confirming a course of action.
8.
I was recently asked "What is the purpose of life?"
I responded thusly:
That's easy. The purpose of life is to live eternally in fellowship and relationship with God, who created us for that purpose. It would take more than an eternity to know who God is. We won't be floating around on a cloud strumming a harp.
“No eye has seen,
no ear has heard,
no heart has imagined,
what God has prepared for those who love Him.” 1 Corinthians 2:9
9.
I was watching a movie that took place in a dreary nursing home where the only way out was feet first. No one wants to end their life that way but it's a possibility, no matter how much you plan. There's a somber pall even over the best nursing homes. I was wondering how I would do if in that situation when I suddenly felt God's presence and realized He would be there with me and that was all that mattered. But I've worked hard at sensing God's presence. There are multiple verses such as "and, lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the world."
So don't fear scary scenarios. But do work on knowing God.
10.
Here are some misconceptions that can trip up even Christians:
I can do all things THROUGH CHRIST WHO STRENGTHENS ME, not thinking you can do anything you set your mind to. This includes positive thinking.
Meditate, but only on God's truth. It's the truth that sets you free. Any other meditation works short term only. Won't set you free.
Karma is what the Bible calls reaping what you sow. But it's only true from God's perspective. Many abuses and murders are never solved. But God knows.
Enduring hard things makes you stronger. That would be true if that were the goal. But the goal is to let hard things cause you to turn to Jesus. Satan is happy to throw hard things at you as long as you don't turn to Jesus.
11.
God doesn't look at your past mistakes, and neither should you. He's only interested in how you finish your race.
"I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith. Now there is in store for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous Judge, will award to me on that day—and not only to me, but also to all who have longed for his appearing."
Paul, who wrote the verse above, had much to be ashamed of. He could have let that cripple his life. But he didn't.
12.
The word "church" may bring up some negative reactions to some, but it's in the Bible. The Bible even lays out the nature and structure of how the church is to operate. It doesn't need a building but it does need an organized effort and the Bible says every Christian needs it. There are no lone eagles. We need each other.
13.
Jesus came to die and along the way He showed us how to live.
Before life can come there must be death. Death to self. Baptism is an expression of this truth. We are dead in our sin but through Jesus we are raised unto life eternal. I wonder if we Christians shouldn't be bolder in proclaiming this truth. We so want the life of Christ for others that we neglect the part about having to die.
The world is obsessed with trying to wring all the "life" they can from each day. Parachute from a plane. Free climb a cliff. They think that's really living. We need to show them what living really is.
Jesus answered, “I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.
And in John:
Anyone who loves their life will lose it, while anyone who hates their life in this world will keep it for eternal life.
14.
Saw a bumper sticker:
"I believe there is good in the world"
That's not the issue. The issue is why is there bad in the world. And sometimes downright evil.
Also seen "COEXIST" stickers. Paul says we are to do that when possible but implication is that it will never be totally possible because there will always be spiritual warfare that will spill over into the physical. Until Jesus returns, that is.
15.
Repeat of a truth I've posted before but felt worth repeating:
The cure for anxiety is being able to trust God regardless of outcome. This hit hard when I recently had to face a potentially life threatening situation. That's where the rubber meets the road. O death where is thy sting? O grave where is thy victory? We serve a God who has overcome death and the grave for us through Jesus.
16.
Two things that will bind God's hands from being able to work on your behalf: unforgiveness and unacknowledged sin.
17.
The limits on abortion don’t make a lot of sense. The law says it’s illegal to have an abortion after x number of weeks, but it’s ok to have one I day before? How about 1 hour? What changed? So time limits are just to salve the conscience, I guess. I understand the talking points but let’s be honest and call it what it is…killing.
I've spent years trying to know God and the Bible as much as possible. At this point, I feel God has compassion but I have trouble believing He is ok with the killing. But each person will be accountable for their own conclusions.
18.
God went by multiple names in the Old Testament, such as Jehovah Jireh, which means My Provider. Best I can tell, God never went by Our Father until the New Testament. I think that’s because He couldn’t until the sin that separated us from Him was addressed by Jesus. I think one thing Jesus modeled for the disciples was the concept of God as our Heavenly Father. I know many of us had less than ideal fathers. Yet the way God intended for fathers was one that incorporated all the names of God. Fathers are to be providers and peacemakers and always there for us. I would encourage each of us to try to relate to God as this kind of father. It will sustain you as nothing else can when you realize God is watching over you as a loving father watches over his children. It will quell your fears. Just as when a small child runs to a parent’s bed in the middle of a thunderstorm.
“But now in Christ Jesus you who once were far off have been brought near by the blood of Christ.”
19.
The Christian life really boils down to putting God first. It's a choice of your will which you do in every part of your life whether you realize it or not. God knows if your will is for Him, regardless of your words or even your actions, though eventually your words and actions will reveal what's actually in your heart.
So how can you know if your will is for God? You look at your desires. Is your desire to know God, to want all He has for you, to be holy and pure, to fight against the sins that have you under their control, and to be conformed to the image of Jesus? If so, in spite of how you feel your life is going, God will lead and give you peace and joy and fulfillment. And hope.
20.
Courage is admitting you need Jesus.
Definitions are so much different between God and man.
21.
You say you think life is worth living and you're fine with having to die at the end? Perhaps painfully? Perhaps violently? Do you realize how ridiculous that sounds? Wake up. Being woke means realizing how absurd that first sentence is. Go spend some time in a hospice wing or an ER ward or the front line of a war. But do it before you personally have to face a life threatening situation. To understand life you must understand death and to understand death you must understand why Jesus had to die for your sins.
22.
The only things we can take to Heaven are the times we chose Him over the pleasures of this world.
23.
When the Israelites cried out to the Lord because of Midian, 8 he sent them a prophet, who said, “This is what the Lord, the God of Israel, says: I brought you up out of Egypt, out of the land of slavery. 9 I rescued you from the hand of the Egyptians. And I delivered you from the hand of all your oppressors; I DROVE THEM OUT BEFORE YOU AND GAVE YOU THEIR LAND. I said to you, ‘I am the Lord your God; do not worship the gods of the Amorites, in whose land you live.’ But you have not listened to me.” (CAPS mine)
The Jews didn't take the land they're on, God gave it to them. That hasn't changed.
24.
I continue to get the sense in my spirit that the immigrants from the south are one of America's few remaining hopes. The other hope is a major move of the Holy Spirit, especially among the younger generation. Every major revival in the past has had the Holy Spirit as the common denominator.
25.
I recently happened to catch the first few minutes of a gathering celebrating nature and the speaker used the phrase "the light overcame the darkness.” What planet are they from, I thought to myself, because on this planet nature teaches us that darkness always wins in the end. No matter how much light you think we have, everyone dies. No one overcomes the darkness.
The Bible talks a lot about darkness and light. It calls Satan’s kingdom the Kingdom of Darkness and Jesus the Light of the world that has overcome the darkness. Makes more sense to me than that gathering saying the light has overcome the darkness as people somewhere in the world are dying even as they speak.
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