God's Love- Our Love.

 We make choices every single day and by those choices our lives are shaped. We may think our everyday lives have very little meaning when we are not out there in the world - a doer- a helper - a person who visibly gives of themselves selflessly. We may believe that because we are not of the bent to interact with others that we are useless to God. I'm serious. God would have us doers of the word, helping those in need, loving others as He would love them. Giving not receiving. All true, all His truth. God would have us love, and love is so much more than what we might perceive it to be. What if God's purpose for you was to love a single other person so fully, so completely that love spilled over to others through that person and the outreach of that love expanded so widely there was no way to know just how many people it touched. I have no way of knowing if this is true, but I do know my God is love and that all those that choose to belong to Him and live in His love are used of Him in His ways, not the ways man sees. We simply need to love wherever we are, in whatever situation we are in. We need to love those God brings into our lives and love them as He would love them, not as the world defines love. What do I mean by that? I mean God's love is a love that goes beyond this life. Do we love others for eternity? Through all the horrors of life big and small? Forgiving others everything? Yes, I said, everything. Do we love? We can love all- from our family, our friends, and we can also love all those we meet every single day. It's true. We can love with God's love which is not the distorted love of the world. When I tell you that you can love everyone it sounds preposterous when you believe I'm talking about loving as the world loves- because that kind of love is preposterous. That kind of love is the kind that you can 'fall out of'. That kind of love has conditions placed upon it. The world we live in has so much to offer that isn't of God, we have to love with God's love, not the world's. We have to love God, not the world, and God would have us love those in the world, with the hope they will be in His world, His love.

(More on this tomorrow by the grace of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ!)

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Unspotted from the world, friendship with the world is enmity with God. Being a friend of the world means being an enemy of god. Not of this world, Jesus was not of this world. Being not conformed to this world. Delivered from this present evil world.        The world is crucified unto us, and we are crucified to the world. Affections set in heaven, not on earth. Love not the world. Love neither the things in the world. All the  lusts of the world are not of God. Doing the will of God- abide forever. Being born of God-overcomes the world. Believing that Jesus is the Son of God, overcomes the world. 

Jas 1:27  Pure religion and undefiled before God and the Father is this, To visit the fatherless and widows in their affliction, and to keep himself unspotted from the world.

Jas 4:4  Ye adulterers and adulteresses, know ye not that the friendship of the world is enmity with God? whosoever therefore will be a friend of the world is the enemy of God. 

Joh 17:14  I have given them thy word; and the world hath hated them, because they are not of the world, even as I am not of the world. 

Joh 17:15  I pray not that thou shouldest take them out of the world, but that thou shouldest keep them from the evil. 

Rom 12:2  And be not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God. 

Gal 1:4  Who gave himself for our sins, that he might deliver us from this present evil world, according to the will of God and our Father

Gal 6:14  But God forbid that I should glory, save in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ, by whom the world is crucified unto me, and I unto the world.

Col 3:1  If ye then be risen with Christ, seek those things which are above, where Christ sitteth on the right hand of God. 

Col 3:2  Set your affection on things above, not on things on the earth. 

Col 3:3  For ye are dead, and your life is hid with Christ in God

1Jn 2:15  Love not the world, neither the things that are in the world. If any man love the world, the love of the Father is not in him. 

1Jn 2:16  For all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh, and the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life, is not of the Father, but is of the world. 

1Jn 2:17  And the world passeth away, and the lust thereof: but he that doeth the will of God abideth for ever. 

1Jn 5:4  For whatsoever is born of God overcometh the world: and this is the victory that overcometh the world, even our faith. 

1Jn 5:5  Who is he that overcometh the world, but he that believeth that Jesus is the Son of God? 

1Jn 5:18  We know that whosoever is born of God sinneth not; but he that is begotten of God keepeth himself, and that wicked one toucheth him not. 

In the Morning, My Prayer

 

Our Fortress.

 Psa 71:2-6 Deliver me in thy righteousness, and cause me to escape: incline thine ear unto me, and save me.  Be thou my strong habitation, whereunto I may continually resort: thou hast given commandment to save me; for thou art my rock and my fortress.  Deliver me, O my God, out of the hand of the wicked, out of the hand of the unrighteous and cruel man. For thou art my hope, O Lord GOD: thou art my trust from my youth. By thee have I been holden up from the womb: thou art he that took me out of my mother's bowels: my praise shall be continually of thee. 

We are delivered not by our righteousness, but God's righteousness. We escape through our Lord's righteousness. Our God will save us, He will hear us as we call out to Him for help. He is our strong habitation where we have to continually go.

David sang the words…be thou my strong habitation, whereunto I may continually resort.  

God wasn't some text on a screen, words on papers, but a reality to David in such a way that He could CONTINUALLY resort to God as being his STRONG habitation, David considered God to be his ROCK and his FORTRESS! 

Was David delusional?  No.

God as a reality to David made him believe that God was his protector. David could constantly, continually, over and over resort to God, his protector. David knew God had given a commandment to save him! David sang- Deliver me O my God, out of the hand of the wicked, out of the hand of the unrighteous and cruel man.   

We too need this kind of relationship with God. This relationship is revealed to us for our edification, for an example to us. We have wicked and unrighteous and cruel people all around us everywhere. No, most of us do not have these sorts seeking us physically ready to kill us, to harm us, but some people around our world right now do have people wanting to harm them and even kill them simply because they belong to God. Like David we must cry out to be delivered.

'For thou art my hope, O Lord GOD: thou art my trust from my youth. By thee have I been holden up from the womb: thou art he that took me out of my mother's bowels: my praise shall be continually of thee.'  

God is our HOPE. God is our TRUST.  David trusted God from His youth. 

By God we are kept alive even in our mothers as we are growing, and while we are being born! All praise to God always, constantly!

Oh, to be able to sing with David our love of God, our assurance of God, our wonder and awe of God. The truth beyond doubt, the knowing of God as our all in all! 

Is God your strong fortress, your rock, your place of refuge? What makes God this impenetrable place of safety, when in truth our flesh is so frail and constantly subject to degradation as we age? We are vulnerable beings living in a world of chaos. There is no rhyme nor reason to who gets what disease, deformity, injury, hardship of any sort. The richest person can be taken down instantly in an accident, their money unable to save them. The poorest person could have disease heaped upon them on top of their monetary deprivation. There is no fairness in our chaotic world, yet God can be our hope, our refuge because He offers us the HOPE beyond all of this!  Beyond each of our heartaches, our setbacks, our pains, and agonies of living God has given to us, the hope of our Savior, who is the hope of our Salvation from all enemies, all of them in whatever form they take. 

God be with us always, all through Jesus Christ our LORD now and forever!!!!!! Amen!

I Don't Trust Myself, I Trust Jesus!

 Psa 71:1  In thee, O LORD, do I put my TRUST: let me never be put to confusion.

Where do you put your trust? Do you put it in yourself? Can you really trust yourself to do all the things you know are right to do? Or are you constantly finding yourself being disappointed in yourself? Or are you never disappointed in a single thing you do, or have done, I'd like to be able to say that's a great thing, but I really think it's most likely a bit delusional. 

If we can't trust even ourselves when we are really supposed to be our biggest supporters, then who can we trust? We try to trust each, don't we? We put a great store in trying to trust others. Others put their trust in us and time and again we disappoint them, don't we? We don't mean to. We don't want to be horrible people who are untrustworthy. 

You might be reading this and saying that you are trustworthy, you don't disappoint people, and that's wonderful! However, I'm not talking specifically about HUGE things. 

How often do we disappoint in tiny things? Again, we don't mean to disappoint, not even in tiny things. A misplaced word, a spoken thought that should have never reached our lips, you know those tiny things. And how many times have we disappointed someone without even realizing it? 

Trust. I've broken the trust of people who I cared greatly about, and regret doing so. It's one of those situations where you wish you could turn back time and undo everything. Okay, I've had more than one of those situations in my life. I'm not sure where you stand on this, I hope you do not have any of those situations, and never do. I keep having to remember these verses-

Php 3:13  Brethren, I count not myself to have apprehended: but this one thing I do, forgetting those things which are behind, and reaching forth unto those things which are before, 

Php 3:14  I press toward the mark for the prize of the high calling of God in Christ Jesus.

I need to forget the things that are behind… the past is in the past and it can consume you if you let it. Recent past, past forty years ago, past 55 years ago it doesn't matter. All the broken trusts, all the guilt from the disappointment they caused, all these are unchangeable but they are forgivable. 

Where do we put our trust? It can’t be in ourselves our track records speak for themselves on that account. We can't put it in others, they are just like us. We disappoint, they disappoint, we are all a part of the same sinful human race. 

If we put our trust in our Savior He will forgive us of all those past horrible moments in our lives that Satan wants to use against us forever. If we put our trust in our Savior He will be our constant strength, present, and future! Our Savior alone has the power to do for us what we cannot do as sinners. We must press toward the mark for the prize of the high calling of God in Christ Jesus!  Press towards the mark! The prize of the HIGH CALLING OF GOD IN CHRIST JESUS! In thee O LORD, do I put my trust: let me never be put to confusion!  

Where do we put our trust? IN JESUS CHRIST!

Psa 71:1  In thee, O LORD, do I put my TRUST: let me never be put to confusion. 

Psa 22:5  They cried unto thee, and were delivered: they TRUSTED in thee, and were not confounded. 

Psa 25:2  O my God, I TRUST in thee: let me not be ashamed, let not mine enemies triumph over me. Psa 25:3  Yea, let none that wait on thee be ashamed: let them be ashamed which transgress without cause. 

Psa 31:1  To the chief Musician, A Psalm of David. In thee, O LORD, do I put my TRUST; let me never be ashamed: deliver me in thy righteousness. 

Psa 125:1  A Song of degrees. They that TRUST in the LORD shall be as mount Zion, which cannot be removed, but abideth for ever.

Psa 146:5  Happy is he that hath the God of Jacob for his help, whose HOPE is in the LORD his God

1Ch 5:20  And they were helped against them, and the Hagarites were delivered into their hand, and all that were with them: for they cried to God in the battle, and he was intreated of them; because they put their TRUST in him. 

Rom 9:33  As it is written, Behold, I lay in Sion a stumblingstone and rock of offence: and whosoever BELIEVETH on him shall not be ashamed. 

1Pe 2:6  Wherefore also it is contained in the scripture, Behold, I lay in Sion a chief corner stone, elect, precious: and he that BELIEVETH on him shall not be confounded. 

Isa 45:17  But Israel shall be saved in the LORD with an everlasting salvation: ye shall not be ashamed nor confounded world without end

Jer 17:18  Let them be confounded that persecute me, but let not me be confounded: let them be dismayed, but let not me be dismayed: bring upon them the day of evil, and destroy them with double destruction. 

Now also when I am old and grayheaded, O God, forsake me not

See Beyond the Horrors to the Hope.

 Lam 3:25,26  The LORD is good unto them that wait for him, to the soul that seeketh him.  It is good that a man should both hope and quietly wait for the salvation of the LORD. 

Rev 14:12.13  Here is the patience of the saints: here are they that keep the commandments of God, and the faith of Jesus.  And I heard a voice from heaven saying unto me, Write, Blessed are the dead which die in the Lord from henceforth: Yea, saith the Spirit, that they may rest from their labours; and their works do follow them.

Jer 29:11-13  For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, saith the LORD, thoughts of peace, and not of evil, to give you an expected end. Then shall ye call upon me, and ye shall go and pray unto me, and I will hearken unto you. And ye shall seek me, and find me, when ye shall search for me with all your heart. 

An expected end. Our expected end is either living and witnessing our Lord's return for us without ever dying, or dying and entering our long rest and letting our works follow us when we are awakened from death's sleep to meet our Lord upon His return for us.  This is our expected end, belonging to our Savior forever. 

We wait for Him, we seek Him, we hope for Him, we wait patiently, quietly.  We keep the commandments of God. We keep the faith of Jesus.  We call on the Lord, we pray unto the Lord, we seek Him, we will find Him. We must search for Him will ALL our heart! 

Learning of Jesus, surely this is a searching we do with all our hearts. 

Mat_7:7  Ask, and it shall be given you; seek, and ye shall find; knock, and it shall be opened unto you

Act_17:27  That they should seek the Lord, if haply they might feel after him, and find him, though he be not far from every one of us

Our Lord isn't far from any of us, He wants us to seek, to find, to knock, to learn of Him! How is it that our learning of Him is a never ending constant education? Can we ever truly know all there is to know of anyone? Sure, we know a lot about each other. Married couples who have been together fifty years will know most of the ins and outs of each other- but they can never fully know the innermost being of each other. We are in a constant state of learning. Is it any wonder that some people get to a point in a relationship where they can say they are different than when they were married, they've changed? Marriage is an agreement to remain together as the changes occur. Some changes certainly aren't for the better. We change as we grow. Circumstances can change us, the things we go through can change us and we are constantly learning and changing. 

Our God is the same --- Heb_13:8  Jesus Christ the same yesterday, and to day, and for ever.

And yet we are forever learning of Him because as we interact with each other- fulfilling the second of the greatest commands- to love one another (the last six of the moral laws are all about loving one another) we are learning to love people where they are in their lives. We are learning love. God is love. We will never be able to stop learning to love it is a fluid thing that never stops surrounding us in so many ways. Learning of Him, He wants us to learn of Him, learn of love, His love, His perfect love. 

The Lord want us to be His, this is His desire. The Lord wants us to know His peace. His peace that had Him live a life in human flesh, and still cling to His Father. His peace that saw beyond the horror to the everlasting hope. 

2Th_2:16,17  Now our Lord Jesus Christ himself, and God, even our Father, which hath loved us, and hath given us everlasting consolation and good hope through grace. Comfort your hearts, and stablish you in every good word and work.

Being able to see beyond the horror to the hope can truly give us peace. Our world is in a constant state of chaos. Not a single person in this world has a life free of it horrors. The horrors take on different shapes and sizes for all the different situations people find themselves in- rich, poor, young, old, sick, well, heartbroken, content- all these people face horrors in their lives. We must live beyond the horror and for the hope that only our Savior can give us. That hope makes the horrors bearable- if barely sometimes- because that hope offers us heaven. The hope of our Savior returning for us! Come Lord, Jesus, come!

All in the name of our Savior, now and forever!!!!!!! Amen!

(Jerry Note & A Study)

 A sad day and a blessing. Today I had to go to the DMV (Department of Motor Vehicles) to get our car title transferred to my name. I went through the check in process where they told me I'd have a very long wait. I'd already heard the person in front of me being told they'd have over an hour wait so I wasn't looking forward to the waiting. Jo and I went and sat down to begin the long wait and I silently prayed. I spoke to the Lord telling Him that I know it's not possible to just make the time pass really fast, but couldn't He maybe make the people who are in front of me have simple things and get done quickly. I had number- N141 and they called N129, there were 12 people needing to be seen before me. Five, ten minutes passed and during that time N130 was called, then a few more minutes and N131 was called. A few more numbers without the N- people needing different sorts of things done- were called then after about 15 minutes waiting N140 was called.  I'm like, what just happened? Why weren't N132-139 called? And then just a few minutes more and N141, my number was called!  Now, I know different workers take people based on the type of service they need so this isn't unheard of, but it was a BLESSING for me, a huge blessing and I have to thank and praise God for doing that for me. During the time I was being serviced I continued to hear numbers being called, I heard N132, N133 and so on, so the people hadn't gone home.  

As I was being served I started to tear up, I couldn't help it. The talking of my "deceased husband"- handling the death certificate, just simply answering the question 'What day did he die?" All had me fighting tears. I finally turned the death certificate over so I didn't have to sit there looking at it, which helped a bit. God blessed us in another way too. The woman helping us had me sign a paper that explained it would be 80.00 then she walked away to do more things with the papers and came back and said I have to sign the same form again because it is now only 10.00, they just had a change in policy recently and she hadn't been aware of it, her manager just told her. God is good! 

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Joh 1:1  In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. 

Joh 1:2  The same was in the beginning with God. 

Joh 1:3  All things were made by him; and without him was not any thing made that was made. 

Joh 1:4  In him was life; and the life was the light of men. 

Joh 1:5  And the light shineth in darkness; and the darkness comprehended it not. 

Joh 1:6  There was a man sent from God, whose name was John. 

Joh 1:7  The same came for a witness, to bear witness of the Light, that all men through him might believe. 

Joh 1:8  He was not that Light, but was sent to bear witness of that Light. 

Joh 1:9  That was the true Light, which lighteth every man that cometh into the world. 

Joh 1:10  He was in the world, and the world was made by him, and the world knew him not. 

Joh 1:11  He came unto his own, and his own received him not. 

Joh 1:12  But as many as received him, to them gave he power to become the sons of God, even to them that believe on his name: 

Joh 1:13  Which were born, not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God. 

Joh 1:14  And the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us, (and we beheld his glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father,) full of grace and truth. 

Such beautiful words! Jesus was in the beginning-Jesus was the WORD-

In the beginning …

Gen 1:3  And God said, Let there be light: and there was light. 

And God said! The WORD was in the Beginning speaking! 

Joh 1:1  In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. 

Jesus was WITH God-  God with God in the beginning of our creation!

Joh 1:2  The same was in the beginning with God. 

Joh 1:3  All things were made by him; and without him was not any thing made that was made. 

Nothing was made without God who would in time take on flesh and become the only begotten Son of our Heavenly Father God. Such beauty! Such wonder! Knowing that the Word made flesh- was the same Word at the Beginning of our world. Jesus' relationship to the Father is amazing. Jesus' life did NOT begin in Bethlehem as a baby, Jesus' life, like that of the Father is from everlasting to everlasting. There was a decree made and Jesus was to take on the flesh of a human baby, flesh corrupted by sin's long degradation against it. Jesus in taking human flesh divested Himself of His powers as a God with God and became completely and utterly dependent upon God the Father for all His power. All the miracles performed by Jesus were performed through the power given to Him as a human, by God the Father. 

Joh 1:4  In him was life; and the life was the light of men. 

Joh 1:5  And the light shineth in darkness; and the darkness comprehended it not. 

Life in Jesus, life that was the LIGHT of men. Light shining in the dark, but…the dark did not understand. 

There is a very real analogy between light and dark, how could there not be. Light dispels darkness, truth dispels lies, knowledge dispels ignorance. Jesus would have us LEARN of HIM and to learn of Him means to come to know Him. Jesus is the LIGHT, we need to comprehend the light. 

Joh 1:9  That was the true Light, which lighteth every man that cometh into the world. 

Joh 1:10  He was in the world, and the world was made by him, and the world knew him not. 

Joh 1:11  He came unto his own, and his own received him not. 

True light- meaning… there can be a false light. Take a few seconds to think about that. False light. Untruthful light. You see, we can gain so much knowledge, our brains can be illuminated with grand things, our minds expanded with dark knowledge. Do you remember in that Garden in Eden the tree was of Knowledge- of Good and Evil.  Knowledge of evil is false light. It's still knowledge but a knowledge that deceives and causes spiritual darkness. Jesus was the TRUE LIGHT which LIGHTETH EVERY MAN THAT COMES INTO THE WORLD!   Jesus' truth is offered to everyone in the world! Jesus was in the world and the world was MADE by Him and the world KNEW HIM NOT. Jesus came unto His OWN and His OWN received HIM NOT!  

Oh how long Israel belonged to Jesus as God with God in heaven! Israel was HIS! Israel were taken to be a people of God and they perverted that honor! Time and time again throughout their history as God's people they turned their back on Him! It's no wonder that when Jesus God took on flesh and came to His own as the Son of God, they didn't receive Him. They had often rejected God's prophets, they would continue that rejection. 

Joh 1:12  But as many as received him, to them gave he power to become the sons of God, even to them that believe on his name: 

Joh 1:13  Which were born, not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God. 

Joh 1:14  And the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us, (and we beheld his glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father,) full of grace and truth. 

But…   there were those of His own that separated themselves from the corporate body of Israel and did receive Him! And Jesus gave them the power, the ability to become sons of God!!!!!!!  Even to them that BELIEVE ON HIS NAME!

God gives NEW life of the Spirit when we receive Him! We can't get a new birth of flesh and blood, that's impossible. We can't will ourselves to have the Spirit, it must be given to us! We do NOT possess it of our own accord, we can't! Jesus will give this to us when we are His!

Jesus was the Word and that Word was MADE FLESH, and Jesus dwelt among us. We are so incredibly blessed to be able to BEHOLD His glory! Glory! He is the ONLY begotten of the FATHER- HE is FULL OF GRACE and TRUTH!

Let us LEARN OF HIM! Forever learn of Him!

All by His grace and mercy, His love! All through the SPIRIT that Jesus has given to us! All through the FATHER in Heaven! Now and forever! All glory, honor, all thanksgiving, all LOVE to our GOD! Amen!