You WILL Come Through...Promise #2

Isaiah 41:10 says, "Do not fear for I am with you; do not anxiously look
about you, for I am your God. I will strengthen you, surely I will help you,
Surely I will uphold you with My righteous right hand."(KJV)

Panic is a constant companion for those who do not know Jesus. In the early
days of the Great Depression, those who had made money and material things
their God, and finding out that they had lost everything, threw themselves
out of windows and others chose other methods of suicide. How utterly sad.
They had families, children and yet all they could identify with was
personal greed, wealth and status before the world. And as Christians we
know where suicide took them.

As Christians we WILL go through desert times. But if we learn to look at
those desert times as God's boot camp, and look at the wisdom to be gained
at God's hand instead of the personal and temporary crisis, we would always
come out a better and stronger person. Is it fun? NO. Is it necessary?
YES. As parents we are always teaching our children even when they are
grown. It is the same with our Heavenly Father. There is no time in a
human beings life that we stop learning and growing. It makes us stronger
and brings us closer to a personal relationship with the Father.
In Matthew 7:24-27 we learn, "Therefore whoever hears these sayings of Mine,
and does them, I will liken him to a wise man who built his house on the
rock: and the rain descended, the floods came, and the winds blew and beat
on that house; and it did not fall, for it was founded on the rock. "But
everyone who hears these sayings of Mine, and does not do them, will be like
a foolish man who built his house on the sand: and the rain descended, the
floods came, and the winds blew and beat on that house; and it fell. And
great was its fall."(KJV) So the next time you enter the desert, remember
your Father in Heaven is with you. He is always with you as Isaiah 41:10
says. Stop panicking and running all over the place like a chicken with
it's head cut off and learn to listen to the Father. You will learn much.
You will come out a much stronger and better person. I didn't say it was
going to be easy, but you will come through....Patti

Promise From God #1

(KJV) 2 Corinthians 5:17, "Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new
creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new."
This can be supernaturally obtained at the time of salvation and is a
promise of your Heavenly Father. But.....

I see many "Christians" after they have been saved, continuing their
previous life style. If you think that Jesus is merely a "Get out of Jail
Free" card, you are wrong. In Matthew 7:23 it says, "And then will I
profess unto them, I never knew you: depart from me, ye that work
iniquity."(KJV) In order to have to "depart" from someone, you would have
had to "come" to them in the first place. Make no mistake, God will not be
mocked. You can no more say that you used to be an Alcoholic and continue
to drink then you can say that you used to be unsaved and of the world and
now are a Christian and continue in your worldly ways. We are called to a
higher standard. 2 Timothy 2:19, "Nevertheless the foundation of God
standeth sure, having this seal, The Lord knoweth them that are His. And,
let every one that nameth the name of Christ depart from iniquity." (KJV)
The Holy Spirit comes to dwell within you when you are saved. If he were to
materialize before you, would you really want him to go to the places you
go? To bars...to terrible movies, do drugs and get drunk and have illicit
sex? Whether you realize it or not, that is exactly what you are doing.
And when you grieve the Holy Spirit, He will leave. Ephesians 4:30, "And do
not grieve the Holy Spirit of God, with whom you were sealed for the day of
redemption.: (KJV)COME ON PEOPLE!! WAKE UP!! TIME IS TOO SHORT TO WASTE!!
Completely dedicate your life to Jesus and renew your commitment and your
soul to Him today. Before it is too late. The Trump is about to sound.
All you have to do is ask the Holy Spirit to help you to change your ways
and He will do it. Tell Jesus you love Him and He will take you back. Get
into the Bible and see what your salvation really means and what you have
been saved from. And once you truly realize how amazing this gift of
salvation is, you will want to see everyone around you saved as well. Make
no mistake...there are no parties in hell....Patti

There is nothing He Cannot Fix....

"Ye shall walk in all the ways which the Lord your God hath commanded you,
that ye may live, and that it may be well with you, and that ye may prolong
your days in the land which ye shall possess." Deuteronomy 5:33 KJV

For the next 198 days I will be posting a PROMISE from God, to His people.
God is not a man that He should lie. (Numbers 23:19, "God is not a man,
that he should lie, nor a son of man, that he should change his mind. Does
he speak and then not act? Does he promise and not fulfill?"NIV)

Sometimes when the world seems to overtake us and we are facing trials and
it seems like all that is ahead of us is a brick wall, we give way to fear.
The Word of God also tells us that God is not the one that gives us a spirit
of fear. (Romans 8:15, "For you did not receive a spirit that makes you a
slave again to fear, but you received the Spirit of sonship. And by him we
cry, "Abba, Father."NIV) When you see that brick wall, remember your
Father's covenant with you and rest in it. (Haggai 2:5, "This is what I
covenanted with you when you came out of Egypt. And my Spirit remains among
you. Do not fear."NIV) Do not look at the wall, but instead, lean on the
promises of God. This is why it is so very important to know the Word. In
Ephesians 6 it tells us to take up the sword of truth, which is the Word.
It is a weapon. And the weapons of OUR warfare are not carnal.
(2 Corinthians 10:4, "For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal but
mighty in God for pulling down strongholds," NKJV) The minute problems
overtake us, we panic and try to figure out how WE can fix them. The enemy
will tell you that you created this mess and now YOU have to clean it up.
The enemy will always take our Heavenly Father out of the equation. God
knows the "flesh"....he became flesh and died for us. This act took all the
weaknesses of the flesh to the cross, crucified them, and paid their price!
So don't ever think that when a huge problem arises, even if you caused it,
you are somehow away from Jesus. He knows and He has already taken care of
it!! Go boldly before the Throne and tell him you goofed big time and that
you cannot fix the mess. (Hebrews 4:16, "Let us therefore come boldly unto
the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy, and find grace to help in
time of need." KJV) Repent of your misdeeds and turn the reins over to Him.
Anything you ask of the Father in Jesus name, He is faithful to give you.
(John 14:13, "And whatsoever ye shall ask in my name, that will I do, that
the Father may be glorified in the Son.") (John 14:27, "Peace I leave with
you; my peace I give you. I do not give to you as the world gives. Do not
let your hearts be troubled and do not be afraid." NIV) ( Deuteronomy 4:31,
"for the LORD your God is a merciful God, He will not forsake you nor
destroy you, nor forget the covenant of your fathers which He swore to
them."NKJV).

As you can see, His Word is a comfort and a fortress in our time of trouble.
So ALWAYS turn to him and NEVER lean on your own understanding of the
situation. (Proverbs 3: 5-6, "Trust in the LORD with all your heart, And
lean not on your own understanding; In all your ways acknowledge Him, And He
shall direct your paths.NKJV) How you see your problem and how your Father
sees your problem are two totally different things. Now be honest, who
would you rather see solve your problem? You or God? I will pick God every
time. Believe me, you will see a solution come from a place that you would
NEVER have thought of. It will take a little practice and a lot of FAITH,
but once you have gone through it a couple of "brick wall" situations, you
will discover that His ways are truly not your ways and there is nothing
that He cannot fix....Patti

The Duck & the Devil

There was a little boy visiting his grandparents on their farm.
He was given a slingshot to play with out in the woods.
He practiced in the woods; but he could never hit the target.
Getting a little discouraged, he headed back for dinner.
As he was walking back he saw Grandma's pet duck.
Just out of impulse, he let the slingshot fly, hit the duck square in the
head and killed it. He was shocked and grieved!
In a panic, he hid the dead duck in the wood pile; only to see his sister
watching! Sally had seen it all, but she said nothing.
After lunch the next day Grandma said, "Sally, let's wash the dishes."
But Sally said, "Grandma, Johnny told me he wanted to help in the kitchen."
Then she whispered to him, "Remember the duck?" So Johnny did the dishes.
Later that day, Grandpa asked if the children wanted to go fishing and
Grandma said, "I'm sorry but I need Sally to help make supper."
Sally just smiled and said, "Well that's all right because Johnny told me he
wanted to help."
She whispered again, "Remember the duck?" So Sally went fishing and Johnny
stayed to help.

After several days of Johnny doing both his chores and Sally's; he finally
couldn't stand it any longer.
He came to Grandma and confessed that he had killed the duck.
Grandma knelt down, gave him a hug and said, "Sweetheart, I know. You see, I
was standing at the window and I saw the whole thing, but because I love
you, I forgave you. I was just wondering how long you would let Sally make a
slave of you."

Thought for the day and every day thereafter?
Whatever is in your past, whatever you have done... And the devil keeps
throwing it up in your face (lying, cheating, debt, fear, bad habits,
hatred, anger, bitterness, etc.).whatever it is...You need to know that God
was standing at the window and He saw the whole thing.
He has seen y our whole life. He wants you to know that He loves you and
that you are forgiven. He's just wondering how long you will let the devil
make a slave of you.

The great thing about God is that when you ask for forgiveness;
He not only forgives you, but He forgets.
It is b y God's grace and mercy that we are saved.
Go ahead and make the difference in someone's life today.
Share this with a friend and always remember:
God is at the window!
When Jesus died on the cross; he was thinking of you!
Author unknown

Three Trees

Once there were three trees on a hill in the woods. They were
discussing their hopes and dreams when the first tree said, "Someday I hope
to be a treasure chest. I could be filled with gold, silver and precious
gems. I could be decorated with intricate carving and everyone would see the
beauty."

Then the second tree said, "Someday I will be a mighty ship. I will
take Kings and queens across the waters and sail to the corners of the
world. Everyone will feel safe in me because of the strength of my hull."

Finally the third tree said, "I want to grow to be the tallest and
straightest Tree in the forest. People will see me on top of the hill and
look up to my branches, and think of the heavens and God and how close to
them I am reaching. I will be the greatest tree of all time and people will
always remember me."

After a few years of praying that their dreams would come true, a
group of woodsmen came upon the trees. When one came to the first tree he
said, "This looks like a strong tree, I think I should be able to sell the
wood to a carpenter, "and he began cutting it down. The tree was happy,
because he knew that the carpenter would make him into a treasure chest.

At the second tree the woodsman said, "This looks like a strong
tree. I should be able to sell it to the shipyard." The second tree was
happy Because he knew he was on his way to becoming a mighty ship.

When the woodsmen came upon the third tree, the tree was frightened
because he knew that if they cut him down his dreams would not come true.
One o f the woodsmen said, "I don't need anything special from my tree, I'll
take this one," and he cut it down.

When the first tree arrived at the carpenters, he was made into a
feed box for animals. He was then placed in a barn and filled with hay. This
was not at all what he had prayed for.

The second tree was cut and made into a small fishing boat. His
dreams of being a mighty ship and carrying kings had come to an end.

The third tree was cut into large pieces, and left alone in the
dark.

The years went by, and the trees forgot about their dreams.

Then one day, a man and woman came to the barn. She gave birth and
they placed the baby in the hay in the feed box that was made from the first
tree. The man wished that he could have made a crib for the baby, but this
manger would have to do. The tree could feel the importance of this event
and knew that it had held the greatest treasure of all time.

Years later, a group of men got in the fishing boat made from the
second tree. One of them was tired and went to sleep. While they were out on
the water, a great storm arose and the tree didn't think it was strong
enough to keep the men safe. The men woke the sleeping man, and He stood and
said "Peace" and the storm stopped. At this time, the tree knew that it had
carried the King of Kings in its boat.

Finally, someone came and got the third tree. It was carried through
the streets as the people mocked the man who was carrying it. When they came
to a stop, the man was nailed to the tree and raised in the air to die at
the top of a hill. When Sunday came, the tree came to realize that it was
strong enough to stand at the top of the hill and be as close to God as was
possible, because Jesus had been crucified on it.

The moral of this story is that when things don't seem to be going
your way, always know that God has a plan for you. If you place your trust
in Him, God will give you great gifts.

Each of the trees got what they wanted, just not in the way they had
imagined.

We don't always know what God's plans are for us. We just know that
His Ways are not our ways, but His ways are always best.
Author unknown.....

THE LORD'S BASEBALL GAME

Freddy and the Lord stood by to observe a baseball game. The Lord's team
was playing Satan's team.

The Lord's team was at bat, the score was tied zero to zero, and it was the
bottom of the 9th inning with two outs. They continued to watch as a batter
stepped up to the plate named Love. Love swung at the first pitch and hit a
single, because Love never fails.

The next batter was named Faith , who also got a single because Faith works
with Love .

The next batter up was named Godly Wisdom. Satan wound up and threw the
first pitch. Godly Wisdom looked it over and let it pass: Ball one.
Three more pitches and Godly Wisdom walked because he never swings at what
Satan throws.

The bases were now loaded. The Lord then turned to Freddy and told him He
was now going to bring in His star player. Up to the plate stepped Grace .
Freddy said, "He sure doesn't look like much!"

Satan's whole team relaxed when they saw Grace. Thinking he had won the
game, Satan wound up and fired his first pitch. To the shock of everyone,
Grace hit the ball harder than anyone had ever seen! But Satan was not
worried; his center fielder let very few get by.

He went up for the ball, but it went right through his glove, hit him on the
head and sent him crashing on the ground; the roaring crowds went
wild as the ball continued over the fence.

The Lord's team won!

The Lord then asked Freddy if he knew why Love, Faith and Godly Wisdom
could get on base but couldn't win the game. Freddy answered that he
didn't know why.

The Lord explained, "If your Love, Faith and Wisdom had won the game, you
would think you had done it by yourself. Love, Faith and Wisdom will get
you on base but only My Grace can get you Home."

'For by Grace are you saved, through faith - and this is not from yourselves
it is a gift of God - not by works, so that no one can boast.' Ephesians
2:8-9 NIV.

Author Unknown

Listen and He Will Get You to Safety...

There is not one Christian who does not experience trial and tribulation in
their life. And I am willing to say that most of the time we as Christians
are responsible, at least in part, for getting ourselves into those trials
and tribulations. And we all know that the first thing we do when all hell
breaks loose in our lives, is run to God like a scorched cat, screaming and
waling and beating our chests and saying something like, "Oh God, if you
don't do something to help me right now, I will not be able to make it until
tomorrow. Thank you for loving me and caring for me and I know that you
will help me out of this situation! After all, you are God and you can do
anything." Sound about right? And then we feel better for a few moments.
We have relied on the Word of God and it's promises. We know that we,
through Jesus Christ, are a son or daughter of the living God. Our Father
owns the entire world and everything in it and now He will come to our
assistance because we have called on Him through our relationship with
Jesus.

Well, a week later, hell is still breaking loose in our lives and nothing
has been resolved. What? We pray, we repent, and nothing has happened?
That is not what the Word promises. Well, there are a few things at work
here. First remember that God is the Alpha and the Omega. He saw you
getting into trouble, and he has seen you at the end of your trouble. He
knows the outcome and what He will do to see you through. However, His time
is not our time. And His ways are not our ways. Secondly, the enemy comes
in like a Lion seeking whom he may devour. His entire mission is to steal,
kill, and destroy everyone and everything in his path. (John 10:10) And
because God has not jumped through our hoop...we, even though we know
better, start listening to the devil. He lies and tells us that God is too
busy for us and that He has no intention on helping us because we are
totally unworthy. The devil tells us that we are evil and that what Jesus
did on the cross applies to everyone else but us. I will quote a scripture
a little further down. Please take note of the word "ALL". And/or thirdly,
we decide that we need to "help" God. Just think about that statement for a
minute. Do we actually believe that God needs our help? Now I am not
saying that if God tells you to do something, you should not act on it, but
know too that there are times that all we do is try to handle the situation
ourselves and say God is in. You need to be very sure that He is in it or
in the process, we get in God's way. It is like getting ready to paint a
room. We don't really know what we are doing and we get into it and create
a mess. It is such a mess that we have to call in a professional painter to
clean up that mess and make the room fit to live in. If you were paying a
professional painter some thirty dollars an hour to fix a mess that you
created, you know full well that you would just leave until it was finished.
You would not even think of going into were that professional was cleaning
up your mess and telling them how to do their job. And if you did, odds are
they would just lay their brush and tools down and leave. Well, when we
stick around and try to "help" God clean up our messes, that is exactly what
we do to Him. He will simply stop helping. He tells us in Matthew 11:28-30
(KJV)"Come unto me, ALL ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give
you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn of me; for I am meek and lowly in
heart: and ye shall find rest unto your souls. For my yoke is easy, and my
burden is light." You can go to the Father through Jesus His Son, and he
will give you peace and He will resolve your crisis. (KJV)Luke 12:32 "Fear
not, little flock; for it is your Father's good pleasure to give you the
kingdom." You will see that He will put answers and solutions in your
hands. Then you can carry out the solutions He will give you. One of the
first things we are taught in grade school is how to behave in an emergency.
When the fire alarm goes off, you don't panic. You get in line and follow
your teacher to safety. Know that in your walk with the Lord that teaching
still applies. Don't panic, don't listen to anyone else except your teacher
and He will get you to safety.....Patti

Independence Day Prayer

Dear Lord,

There is no greater feeling of liberation than to experience this freedom
from sin and death that you have provided for me through Jesus Christ. Today
my heart and my soul are free to praise you. For this I am very thankful.

On this Independence Day I am reminded of all those who have sacrificed for
my freedom, following the example of your Son, Jesus Christ. Let me not take
my freedom, both physical and spiritual, for granted. May I always remember
that my freedom was purchased with a very high price. My freedom cost others
their very lives.

Lord, today, bless those who have served and continue to give their lives
for my freedom. With favor and bounty meet their needs and watch over their
families.

Help me to live my life in a way that glorifies you, Lord. Give me the
strength to be a blessing in someone else's life today, and grant me the
opportunity to lead others into the freedom that can be found in knowing
Christ.

Amen

(Author Unknown)

Jesus, A Success Story!

Success

(by Ralph Waldo Emerson)

To Laugh often and much;

To win the respect of intelligent people and the affection of children;

To earn the appreciation of honest critics and endure the betrayal of false
friends;

To appreciate beauty, to find the best in others;

To leave the world a better place whether by a healthy child, a garden
patch, or a redeemed Social Condition;

To know even one life has breathed easier because you have lived.

This is to have succeeded.

I am sure that Ralph didn't realize it at the time, but he was describing
the life of Jesus. A life of selfless love and without the expression "WHAT
ABOUT ME!?" Would Ralph's definition of Christ describe you? You cannot
achieve any of the above on your own merit and get into heaven. That would
be "works" and the Word reminds us in Ephesians 2:9 "Not of works, lest any
man should boast."(NKJV) But by putting your faith ONLY in Jesus Christ and
Him crucified, can you become transformed and overcome the ways and sins of
the world and obtain Heaven. The true end result of living your life for
Jesus is what old Ralph describes. Success.

I know that you have heard "The Golden Rule". The World would love to take
credit for that one. If fact if you ask anyone ,who was the author of that
saying, you would get many answers, but few would know that it was Jesus who
gave it to us in the form of a Commandment before he departed this world.
"Then one of the Scribes came, and having heard them reasoning together,
perceiving that He had answered them well, asked Him, "Which is the first
commandment of all?" Jesus answered him, "The first of all the commandments
is: 'Hear, O Israel, the LORD our God, the LORD is one. And you shall love
the LORD your God with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your
mind, and with all your strength. This is the first commandment. And the
second, like it, is this: 'You shall love your neighbor as yourself. 'There
is no other commandment greater than these."

It would seem like Jesus and Ralph Waldo Emerson agreed that LOVE=SUCCESS.
How successful are you today?...Patti