Author: talk2shari

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A Trip to the Station

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Isaiah 22:13-19 ~  And behold joy and gladness, slaying oxen, and killing sheep, eating flesh, and drinking wine: let us eat and drink; for to morrow we shall die. And it was revealed in mine ears by the Lord of hosts, Surely this iniquity shall not be purged from you till ye die, saith the Lord God of hosts. Thus saith the Lord God of hosts, Go, get thee unto this treasurer, even unto Shebna, which is over the house, and say, What hast thou here? and whom hast thou here, that thou hast hewed thee out a sepulchre here, as he that heweth him out a sepulchre on high, and that graveth an habitation for himself in a rock? Behold, the Lord will carry thee away with a mighty captivity, and will surely cover thee. He will surely violently turn and toss thee like a ball into a large country: there shalt thou die, and there the chariots of thy glory shall be the shame of thy lord’s house. And I will drive thee from thy station, and from thy state shall he pull thee down.

 Stations in Life

I will confess to you that over my lifetime there have been countless stations that pride factored in. I loved the title, I did not always love the job. When I left my job with the courts, I left because I was absolutely miserable. When I received the job it was a blessing and an appointment from a Circuit Judge, a job of prestige of sorts; but with it came heartache and sorrow of families, personal information about the lives of people in my community and day by day it tore at my heart. Coupled with the politics of the place I was not a happy camper. Station meant nothing at that point, I just wanted out.

This was not the case with Shebna. His position had gone to his head and he began to think himself so important that, while his city lie in ruin around him, he had built, or engraved for himself, a house in stone that Isaiah referred to as his own sepulcher. Nice huh? A house that looked like a grave plot; my spine just shivered. Mainly because I’ve witnessed much of the same in society today when they build huge houses of enormous cost and then fill it with misery and death. But God sends Isaiah with a message in verse 19 that says “I will drive thee from thy station.”

I don’t know at what point God’s going to get there with the American political faction but He will. I don’t know if I’ll get to see it, but it will come to pass, because God detests prideful acts where people live with total disregard for others. I don’t think God’s going to take care of it on the political realm only, but on the spiritual as well. For too long church leaders have set in their stations of life enjoying the prestige that the role carries while their communities lie in shambles. Wicked television evangelist squander every dollar they can from their fans with total disregard for the hardship it caused, proclaiming that it was for God’s glory when in reality it fueled their jet. I’m not lumping them all in the same category. There are some good television ministries, we have some awesome leaders in our churches, we have a “few” decent political allies. It must only be a few, else they’d be more done in Washington.

My point of this blog is this. We need to be more aware of our surroundings. Those within and without. I speak very personally now. I waste so much. I could do so much more with what I’ve been given. I don’t live in a mansion, or drive a Cadillac, but I’ve got some poor priorities. Today for myself I just want to examine my “station” in life lest God sends me a messenger…

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Children of the Wind

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Ephesians 4:14 ~  That we henceforth be no more children, tossed to and fro, and carried about with every wind of doctrine, by the sleight of men, and cunning craftiness, whereby they lie in wait to deceive;

As Christians go I am likely on the mouthier end of the spectrum. I have lots of opinions, most of which are Bible based, but I can occasionally throw my own in there for bad measure and have to take a trip to the woodshed to get it beat out of me. Paul through the Holy Spirit gives sound advice to the body of believers in Christ Jesus.

Children of the Wind

The bible says to study to show thyself approved. Speed reading won’t work, I’ve tried. There’s a reason God wants us to stay in His word; so that we’re not swept up in the nonsense of the world that’s out there today. Even the slightest of things can skew your judgment. There are popular sayings that I’ve heard all my life and quoted many times thinking there to be bible foundation only to find out later that it was an interpretation of the scripture and often a bad one! Just the other day I referenced the lion laying down with the lamb in scripture. It ain’t in there, why I thought it was I have no idea. Mostly because I’ve heard well intentioned folks quote it, and just picked it up as truth. It makes me wonder what else I may have “picked up.” The verse actually reads “The wolf also shall dwell with the lamb, and the leopard shall lie down with the kid; and the calf and the young lion and the fatling together; and a little child shall lead them.” Isaiah 11:6.

So you may say that it’s apples and oranges, different yet the same. That won’t fly either.

Let’s look at Mark 10:24 in the King James version of the Bible.

“And the disciples were astonished at his words. But Jesus answereth again, and saith unto them, Children, how hard is it for them that trust in riches to enter into the kingdom of God!”

Now let’s look at the same verse in the NIV. “The disciples were amazed at his words. But Jesus said again, “Children, how hard it is to enter the kingdom of God!”  I read that this morning and my stomach rolled over. Christ said it was hard for “them that trust in riches to enter the Kingdom,” The NIV left the riches part out. Apples and oranges? Not so to an unsaved soul that hears “it is hard to get to heaven.” And says to themselves, “then why try.”

Misquoting scripture can cause a doubt to be cast onto the Word of God. Not understanding it for yourself can cause a doubt in your life. Don’t assume that every good intentioned Christian knows what they’re talking about, for certain don’t assume I do. Read and study it yourself. Most of them don’t misquote scripture or say things with the intent to harm, but you can believe that Satan can use even the most subtle of things to twist the Word of God as he did to Eve in the Garden of Eden.

Genesis 3:1-3

Now the serpent was more subtil than any beast of the field which the Lord God had made. And he said unto the woman, Yea, hath God said, Ye shall not eat of every tree of the garden? And the woman said unto the serpent, We may eat of the fruit of the trees of the garden: But of the fruit of the tree which is in the midst of the garden, God hath said, Ye shall not eat of it, neither shall ye touch it, lest ye die.

Eve added “neither shall ye touch it.” Satan’s words of doubt caused her misquote the Lord. And while it seemed such a small matter, we all know how that story ended…

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Grafted & Grateful!

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grafted and grateful copy

Romans 11:19-21 ~ Thou wilt say then, The branches were broken off, that I might be grafted in. Well; because of unbelief they were broken off, and thou standest by faith. Be not highminded, but fear: For if God spared not the natural branches, take heed lest he also spare not thee.

I have very few Jewish friends, and although there are no synagogues close by (only 0.1% of our entire state of West Virginia is Jewish) it does not lessen my burden for the Nation of Israel and my responsibility to pray for them. I do not understand much about the Jewish culture, but that’s okay; I don’t have to understand all there is to know about the modern day Jews to understand there was an olden day plan that’s still in effect. It makes my heart quiver when I see the government leaders of the United States turn their backs on Israel; I may not know a lot, but I know how God feels about His elect and those who fail to help them. I know from a mother’s perspective how I would feel if my children rejected me, it would more painful than I could possibly imagine and I know that God’s hurt is much deeper than that. So, when I think about God grafting the gentiles into the nation of Israel, I don’t take it lightly. He also knew how we’d treat Him, by the way.

It was God’s choosing to cut Israel off for a season because of their rejection of His Son, and it was His choice to allow a rag tag bunch of gentiles to come into His table and sup with Him as one of His own. Israel was, still is and forever will be God’s chosen people. What has changed is that they are no longer “exclusively” His people. Gentile believers are “grafted in” to His Chosen People Israel through the gift of the Holy Spirit upon our acceptance of His Son. It’s an honor, and one that is yet to be fully comprehended on how great it is. But when we gather in glory we’ll get it. Today I’m just grafted and grateful and I know that I don’t want to break my Lord’s heart.

Being a grafted part of the tree makes me want to have my roots by the water’s edge. Psalm 1:1-3 says “Blessed is the man that walketh not in the counsel of the ungodly, nor standeth in the way of sinners, nor sitteth in the seat of the scornful. But his delight is in the law of the LORD; and in his law doth he meditate day and night. And he shall be like a tree planted by the rivers of water, that bringeth forth his fruit in his season; his leaf also will not wither; and whatsoever he doeth shall prosper.”

A Threefold Promise from being grounded in the Word of God.

Fruit – Strength – Prosperity. They do not come to the slothful or those inattentive of the things of God.

We’re not to walk in the counsel of the ungodly. Be careful where you get advice. Matthew Henry said that “God knows His people by name, but we must know them by their character.” We’re called to witness to the lost not to walk with them until we look more like them than Christ.

We’re not to sit in the seat of the scornful – those who make light of faith and talk against Heaven. There are some jokes that I’m pretty sure God doesn’t laugh at; such as those that make light of sinful acts or of the holiness of God.

We are to meditate in the Word of God. Not just read it and move on, but mull it around for a spell! Take a verse and consider how it applies to your life, search and see if your life matches up with the Word of God, or are there some areas that can use some work. I know what the answer is in my life.

It’s a privilege to have the Word of God, it is through the Holy Spirit that we have understanding of it. We have the Holy Spirit because God loved us enough to adopt us into His family and graft us into His family tree. Don’t take it for granted…

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Damage Control

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James 3:5-10

Even so the tongue is a little member, and boasteth great things. Behold, how great a matter a little fire kindleth! And the tongue is a fire, a world of iniquity: so is the tongue among our members, that it defileth the whole body, and setteth on fire the course of nature; and it is set on fire of hell. For every kind of beasts, and of birds, and of serpents, and of things in the sea, is tamed, and hath been tamed of mankind: But the tongue can no man tame; it is an unruly evil, full of deadly poison. Therewith bless we God, even the Father; and therewith curse we men, which are made after the similitude of God. Out of the same mouth proceedeth blessing and cursing. My brethren, these things ought not so to be.

I know this will surprise many of you but I have occasionally shot my mouth off when things would have been better left unsaid. I truly believe that I have been called to be somewhat of a cheerleader of the faith, to encourage believers young and old to continue in their fight of faith by using my mouth as weapon of warfare for the Lord’s work. And then there are those times…

The times that I have to pray that the Lord will shut my mouth because it will say things that “ought not so to be.” I don’t always heed my mother’s advice. As a child in the Strange Creek Grocery store in Braxton County, WV I once corrected an old man’s grammar. My mother wasn’t long about lining me out that she could correct my grammar because that was her job, it was not my job to correct anyone’s. God and I had that same talk this morning…. I’m still a slow learner.

It generally happens when I’m frustrated because of circumstances or hurt. I sometimes am my own cheerleader. “Who do they think they are? Here I am trying to encourage the believers and do the will of God, I’m the one down in the trenches, the one who’s been committed to the Lord’s work for the last 17 years, the one who’s fought Hell with a water pistol and they have the audacity to…” Yea… that’s godly right? So I have to pray, God give me the bridle, put the bits in my mouth and yank them tight or I’m going to do damage.

I heard God say, “That’s not your job.”

James’ words convicted my heart this morning, my prayer was answered. God bridled my tongue and I understood what James meant when he said “and setteth on fire the course of nature; and it is set on fire of hell.” The old nature shouts, “Give’em a piece of your mind.” The new nature says “you’re supposed to have the mind of Christ.” The old nature says, “Curse them.” The new nature says, “God made them, you have no right.”

There’s a war within me, you too for that matter; and I don’t want to set a fire with a course for hell. Did you catch that in James’ words? I sure did. I believe that it was God’s way of saying to me this morning. Those piddley things in life don’t mater… unless you allow Satan to use them to blind the eyes of a sinner and they go to Hell. That I’ll lay to your charge.

Bridle me Lord! Amen.

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Confidence in the Wait

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Hebrews 10:35-36 ~ Cast not away therefore your confidence, which hath great recompense of reward. For ye have need of patience, that, after ye have done the will of God, ye might receive the promise.

Waiting for the will of God… never my strong suit. I pray for it continually and then there are those times that I strive for it about 30 seconds. I’m just keeping it real. I’ve told you before, I am the poster child on what not to do. God must tell me again and again sometimes before I get it. Why He is so patient I don’t understand. I fully believe I was set apart for such a time as this and I don’t say those words lightly because I know from reading the scripture that those who do the will of God generally don’t have an easy time of it. Trouble befell them, their families were often caught up in it, they lost their lives and yet they rejoiced.

We know that scripture says our trouble here is just for a little while, and yet trouble can feel like an eternity when you’re in the midst of it. That’s why verses like Hebrews 10:35-36 are in the scripture.

On my way home from the office a few days ago I stopped at a convenience store and this cute little old lady, cute as can be was checking out in front of me. As always I was in a hurry; so when she pulled out her lottery tickets my stomach rolled over. True to form my eyes probably did too. I detest the lottery just so you know. It’s a waste of money and another way that the wicked get wealthy at the poor’s expense. So I waited as she cashed in her $3.00 win for two bottles of water and thought to myself, “Well at least praise God she didn’t buy beer with it.” And when she finished that transaction I gleefully thought my suffering was over. But no. She then had to determine what new flavors of destruction she was going to purchase by way of lottery tickets. I wanted to tell her that God had so much more for her, but she went on her way and I paid for my soda pop and walked out feeling discouraged.

Lottery tickets are a hoped for quick fix with your chances of winning 1 in 175,223,510. Of course that’s your chances of winning the Powerball, you may win a mesely dollar or ten. But in truth how much did you spend to win it? And the wicked laugh all the way to bank as you do without something good that God would have liked for you to have. God’s ways are not generally a quick fix but hallelujah they’re guaranteed!

C.S. Lewis once said “ There are two kinds of people: those who say to God, ‘Thy will be done,’ and those to whom God says, ‘All right, then, have it your way.’”

I’m not sure who this was written for today, other than me. But God’s word says to be confident in the reward, and patient, and that after His will is done you’ll receive the promise. The will of God? If you run that through a concordance what you’ll discover is that His will is around His service. He may use many other means to get there, but the end result should come back to His glory.

Want to know what’s not His will?

Matthew 18:14

Even so it is not the will of your Father which is in heaven, that one of these little ones should perish.

How are you serving today?

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The Private Times of a very Public Gospel

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2 Peter 1:20

Knowing this first, that no prophecy of the scripture is of any private interpretation.

I praise God for a simple mind. Even when God gives me something that I think is spiritually “deep”, I’m pretty sure it’s from the shallow end of the pool. When I read the scripture I seldom find any grand and glorious revelation, it’s more of an “Oh, so that’s how it is Lord, thanks!” The scriptures (at least the recommended King James Version) are written on an eighth to tenth grade level. God loves simple people, what can I say. Theologians who can delve into the scripture and write page upon page of deep theological studies  have nothing on me, so can I, it’s just when I explain it it’s in much simpler terms. Where Dr. Mryon Guiler, one of my heroes of biblical knowledge, can expound great truths for an hour on two words from one text, I can for all intents and purposes read the text and “get it.” I’m okay with that. The Bible was meant for understanding.

The Big Lie

“I don’t read the Bible because I just don’t get it.”

I said the same thing… and then I got saved. Ahhhhhhh. Yes I said it. I’m not saying you’re not saved, but you’re either not saved or you’re rebellious. I know from experience because I’ve been both. As a baby Christian in 1996 I discovered what 2 Peter 1:20 meant. This morning I discovered it anew! That’s how the Bible works. I recommend you not take my word for anything written here, but read 2 Peter, Chapter 1 for yourself. It’s but 21 verses, it won’t kill you. As a matter of act it will give you life! But here it is, Shari quoted in the simples of forms.

Verse 1-8

The Bible is all that and a bag of chips. No, it’s much, much more! It’s everything you need to get by in this world unscathed by the wickedness you’re surrounded in. It is the precious promises of God. Perhaps we’ve heard that phrase so much we’ve dulled our ears to it. Or perhaps promises have become so “un-meaningful” in life that we’ve stopped believing the word actually exists in its purest form. Well it exists, and through eternity we’ll experience that every Word in the Holy Text was real. And you need it to survive. I warned you I was simple, read it yourself, you’ll probably get much more!

Verses 9-10

Remember when I said if you don’t get the Bible, you’re either not saved or not right. Insert grin here. It’s the truth, God said it first. Verse 10 reads “Wherefore the rather, brethren, give diligence to make your calling and election sure…” If you’re not understanding the Bible, make sure you’re saved.

Verses 11-15

Peter reminds them and now I remind you that you need to stay in the Word of God. It’s your ticket to Heaven. Peter wrote (the Lord said) in verse 11 “For so an entrance shall be ministered unto you abundantly into the everlasting kingdom of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ.” It’s not just be reading, but by understanding that the Word of God is how the Lord speaks to His children. So you may ask “What about the people who can’t read and understand.” If you’re reading this, you can understand. All others, God will take care of, He’s a very nice God that way.

Verse 16

Peter writes as an eye witness of the Savior.

For we have not followed cunningly devised fables, when we made known unto you the power and coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, but were eyewitnesses of his majesty.

We’ll read the Sunday Gazzette and take it for the gospel (foolish mortals that we are) and yet question if the Bible is literal or figurative. Call me simple, but if a guy was there, and speaks as an oracle (truth and revelation) of the Creator of the Universe, I’m gonna believe him over some yahoo that received a “new revelation.”

Verses 17-19

In Peter’s day he walked with the LORD, he heard GOD Himself from Heaven speak to His Son, Jesus Christ. He was there at the mount of transfiguration (Luke 9:27-36) when Christ spoke with Moses and Elias. But now Christ dwells within the heart of the saved, which is how you interpret the Bible.

Verses 20-21

Which is what started this blog today.

Knowing this first, that no prophecy of the scripture is of any private interpretation. For the prophecy came not in old time by the will of man: but holy men of God spake as they were moved by the Holy Ghost.

Don’t worry that you don’t understand the entire Bible, what you need to understand the Holy Ghost will reveal to you. I’m not a Bible Scholar. I don’t know all there is to know about the Bible, but little by little, (just what my pea brain can get) God reveals to me His Word through the Holy Spirit. It’s not just for Preachers. Peter was fisherman, Matthew was an IRS agent, and so on and so forth God used ordinary people. He’ll use you too. In these perilous times you need to understand current events, and if you want the truth go to the Bible, not the evening news.

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Courage for the Day

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Joshua 1:6-9 ~ Be strong and of a good courage: for unto this people shalt thou divide for an inheritance the land, which I sware unto their fathers to give them.  Only be thou strong and very courageous, that thou mayest observe to do according to all the law, which Moses my servant commanded thee: turn not from it to the right hand or to the left, that thou mayest prosper withersoever thou goest.  This book of the law shall not depart out of thy mouth; but thou shalt meditate therein day and night, that thou mayest observe to do according to all that is written therein: for then thou shalt make thy way prosperous, and then thou shalt have good success.  Have not I commanded thee? Be strong and of a good courage; be not afraid, neither be thou dismayed: for the Lord thy God is with thee whithersoever thou goest. 

Although all of God’s Word, from every punctuation mark to name is of equal importance, there is sometimes a special emphasis on something repeated. It’s as if God is saying, “Did you catch that? I need you to understand, so here it is again.” We know with the children in our own lives that there is sometimes a necessity to repeat something especially if we fear that they’re in harm’s way. In today’s scripture Moses had just died, Israel was about to go forth with a new leader, into a new land, unchartered territory, much like my own beloved Victory Baptist Church is facing with the leaving of our Pastor. It’s also been on a personal level for me many times over the past few years that I have had to face things never I’ve never been through before. My own unchartered territory. It’s a time that Satan loves to mess with your mind; he loves goading you into doubt and dismay of the unknown. He diligently tries keeping you from the Word of God because he knows that there is power and strength to be found among the pages.

Whether you are in a new stage of life or not, for you’ll be on the brink of one eventually, this message will help you. Not because I’m anything great, but because the Word of God will not return void; the bible says so.  God told Israel to have courage three times with three important facts. Facts that we need to remember as we move forward in our lives.

Be courageous because I’ve given you a promise.

God promised Israel deliverance into a new land. He didn’t promise them it would be without battles and giants but He promised it would be theirs. I’m for certain it would have been easier on them if they’d have gone the first time God told them to go in obedience, but their disobedience didn’t change God’s promise. We may change our mind, but God doesn’t change His. He may however change the method of the deliverance because of our unwillingness to go along with His original plan… speaking from experience. In my heart I know that God has made promises in my life. Jeremiah 29:11 says “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.” God has a plan, and I believe that as time passes in our lives He reveals it to us as a promise with our obedience. He has a great plan that doesn’t necessarily come easy, but if we continue on His way, it’s a promise.

Be courageous because I’ve given you My Word.

Staying in the Word is crucial in times like these. With the political nonsense going on in the world I found it “enlightening” when Joshua wrote “turn not from it to the right hand or to the left.”  Our political power is not where we need to be turning for guidance. Can I get an Amen on that one? Both sides have a lot of work to do to get in line with God. If you want to know how to live your life or how to make a decision, base it on the Word of God, nothing else. If you want to know how to prosper, Joshua just told you… “Live according to God’s law.” That doesn’t promise you’ll be a millionaire, you may be a “nillionaire” (have nothing) but you’ll prosper in ways unimagined and God will take care of you.

Be courageous I’m with you.

If we believe God’s promises and we earnestly pray for His guidance; if we stay in His Word, we’ll get to where we’re going; but regardless child of God, even when we make the wrong decisions in life God never, ever forsakes us. In the deepest valley’s to highest peaks of the mountain God is there.

Are you in unchartered territory? I am. But I’m trusting in God’s promises, I’m believing in God’s Word and I know He is with me. Be courageous, God’s got ya covered!

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As He Is, So are We

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Psalm 26:2

Examine me, O Lord, and prove me; try my reins and my heart

In Psalm 26 we find David confident is his walk with God, asking God to open up his heart and look within him, test him and see what direction he would go. He was confident that his relationship with the Lord was in such good form that God would be well pleased. I’m not so sure that I could ever pray that prayer with great confidence! Maybe a window of twenty seconds… maybe then I could get my heart right enough to say God, look now! But please do it quick.

My wonderful husband got me a new camera for my birthday which is coming up in a few days and I was super excited about it! As I looked through the lens at various subjects in my living room, including Sammy the Jack Russell which lay by my side I was well pleased that a snap shot of his fur gave such clear detail. You could see each strand of hair in fine detail. And then I began to wonder if God examined me in such close proximity what would He find? Would it be a picture worth framing or one I’d rather delete? God knows.

In the teen class Wednesday we talked candidly about the subject of Christian testimonies and how important it was to walk as closely to God as possible for we were all examined by our peers. It would do no good to stand and testify about the glorious goodness of God on Sunday morning if we had shouted expletives at a ballgame on Friday night. While none of us are perfect, nor was David as he wrote the Psalm, we must still examine ourselves. Paul said as much in his second letter to the Corinthians but he capped it off with the good news…

2 Corinthians 13:5

Examine yourselves, whether ye be in the faith; prove your own selves. Know ye not your own selves, how that Jesus Christ is in you, except ye be reprobates?

While I on my own cannot with clear conscience say “All is well within my heart,” because there are seeds of doubt, temptations and pride that can rear their ugly heads at any time; I can say “IT IS WELL” in Christ. His blood has covered my inadequacies in finer detail than any camera can capture. Were it not for that I would live defeated.

So many Christians, myself included, fail to examine their faith before we examine our lives. I speak on the assumption that you who read are saved. If you’re not sure of salvation (click here), otherwise, read on!

Examine Me

We know that we’re all sinners,  Romans 3:23 says “For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God;” so how can one say “Examine me, O Lord?” Because we’re being examined through our faith. And not just our faith, but His!

1 John 1:9

If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.

Did you catch that, He is faithful! Our part of the deal is to come to Him and acknowledge that we’ve messed up, once that’s done He cleanses us, we can do nothing to cleanse ourselves. So upon further examination God sees a clean heart.

Prove me

While I by no means believe there is salvation by works, when I received the salvation of God I desire to work! James 2:17  says “Even so faith, if it hath not works, is dead, being alone.” Apostle Paul told the Galatians in  Galatians 6:4 “But let every man prove his own work, and then shall he have rejoicing in himself alone, and not in another.” A desire to serve God brings joy to the soul and upon examination is further proof that you are His child, covered by the blood of Jesus!

Try me

1 Peter 1:7 says “That the trial of your faith, being much more precious than of gold that perisheth, though it be tried with fire, might be found unto praise and honour and glory at the appearing of Jesus Christ:”

I don’t know if you remember, but I remember what it was like to go through a trial pre-salvation vs. post-salvation. And although trials are still not something I enjoy I’ve never been in one that my relationship with the Lord did not grow. And when I came out on the other side I could look back and say, “It is well with my Soul!” Because God never left my side.

So when I say “Lord, Examine me, prove me and try me.” It’s not that I’ll be found perfect. It’s that I know that God will be found perfect.

John says it well in 1 John 4:17 ~ Herein is our love made perfect, that we may have boldness in the day of judgment: because as he is, so are we in this world.

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Empty Satan’s Pockets

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Acts 16:14-20

“And a certain woman named Lydia, a seller of purple, of the city of Thyatira, which worshipped God, heard us: whose heart the Lord opened, that she attended unto the things which were spoken of Paul. And when she was baptized, and her household, she besought us, saying, If ye have judged me to be faithful to the Lord, come into my house, and abide there. And she constrained us.  And it came to pass, as we went to prayer, a certain damsel possessed with a spirit of divination met us, which brought her masters much gain by soothsaying: The same followed Paul and us, and cried, saying, These men are the servants of the most high God, which shew unto us the way of salvation.  And this did she many days. But Paul, being grieved, turned and said to the spirit, I command thee in the name of Jesus Christ to come out of her. And he came out the same hour. And when her masters saw that the hope of their gains was gone, they caught Paul and Silas, and drew them into the marketplace unto the rulers, And brought them to the magistrates, saying, These men, being Jews, do exceedingly trouble our city,”

There is great financial gain in many avenues of life, some in sin and some in labor; both have one often common characteristic… distraction. There were two such women in the book of Acts 16 and both have a story of financial freedom. Lydia, merchant in the city of Thyatira was “all that and a bag of chips” as the saying goes, she worshipped God and was a successful woman in the textile industry. And then came Paul! and all of a sudden it was no longer about selling purple fabric but about serving Christ. It’s an oddity to the world how a person can walk away from what they view as success and begin serving the Lord. Lydia’s finances had no doubt brought her freedoms that few women in that era would have been afforded; but her focus changed when the Lord opened her heart to see what great freedom serving Christ brought. Lydia experienced the greatest freedom any woman could have… the freedom that seeing your family serve Christ and the knowledge that come what may, their souls are in the hands of the Master.

And then there was the woman without a name, who through her demon possession was taken advantage of and used as money making scheme by wicked men. Men who were VERY upset, when at Paul’s command in the name of Jesus de-demonized her and she experienced the freedom of deliverance from the financial bondage those men had over her life. On both ends of the spectrum, from the poverty to powerful the same holds true with regards to money… If you’re not using what you have for the glory of God, then you’ll not receive the full blessing of it. When Lydia opened her heart to the things of God, it didn’t say she stopped selling purple, but I have a feeling her purple peddling priorities changed. When the lady possessed with the demon was healed her words that had once distracted those delivering the gospel now focused those who witnessed her healing onto the glory of God!

Luke 16:13 says that “No servant can serve two masters: for either he will hate the one, and love the other; or else he will hold to the one, and despise the other. Ye cannot serve God and mammon.”

I’m getting a firmer grasp on that… unfocused finances are a distraction. Lydia opened up her home and began focusing her financial gain on the things of the Lord and she her household were baptized. Wow. The unnamed lady was no longer a tool in the hands of the Devil but was now a weapon in the warfare, and people were angry. Can I tell you if you’re finances are serving Satan, there’s going to be some unhappy people when you stop. But oh the gain! What about your finances? Are they Christ focused or world centered? Are you asking God what He wants you to do with your gain? Are you allowing your finances to be used in non-glorifying ways? Heavy questions, but worth pondering.

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Stay In It!

Written by talk2shari Published Discussion Leave a Comment on Stay In It!

stay in it!

Ezra 6:16 ~ And the children of Israel, the priests, and the Levites, and the rest of the children of the captivity, kept the dedication of this house of God with joy.

For four years the children of Israel had labored on the temple in Jerusalem. On this day the house was finished. God had commanded it, the elders and others had labored side by side, heathen kings encouraged it, everyone was about it and the house was built. Hallelujah, what a day! Let’s dedicate this house!

Scroll forward to today… who’s building it now? There are no heathen leaders encouraging church in America, but rather encouraging the embracement of pagan religions.

I don’t speak of a physical building, church buildings across the country are a dime a dozen. And hundreds of them, if not thousands sit empty and in shambles. But we know now that the temple where God dwells is within us.

I Corinthians 6:19

 What? know ye not that your body is the temple of the Holy Ghost which is in you, which ye have of God, and ye are not your own?

Are you building it?

I myself sometimes feel like the children of captivity in the land of the free. Freedom of expression we’ve discovered is only free to those who want to hear nothing of Christ. You can pray and build in the name of Buddha, Allah, or a purple cow in the middle of a cornfield and no one cares, just don’t mention the name of Jesus. So how do we build this temple when we are troubled on every side at the very mention of our Lord, media caters to filth and the demons of the flesh are but a mouse click away?

II Corinthians 4:8-10 ~ We are troubled on every side, yet not distressed; we are perplexed, but not in despair; Persecuted, but not forsaken; cast down, but not destroyed; Always bearing about in the body the dying of the Lord Jesus, that the life also of Jesus might be made manifest in our body.

Stay on the right side. Don’t cave in to what the world says is acceptable, it’s distressing. When the children of Israel built the temple they used only the best. In the first year of Cyrus the king the same Cyrus the king made a decree concerning the house of God at Jerusalem, Let the house be builded, the place where they offered sacrifices, and let the foundations thereof be strongly laid… (Ezra 6:3a)

Lay strong the foundation of your life which is:

  • The Word of God, stay in it!

2 Timothy 3:16 ~  All scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness:

  • The House of God, stay in it!

Hebrews 10:25 ~ Not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together, as the manner of some is; but exhorting one another: and so much the more, as ye see the day approaching.

  • Prayer, stay in it!

Philippians 4:6 ~ Be careful for nothing; but in every thing by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known unto God.

We seldom have the world encouraging us to build the temple of God within ourselves. If anything they tear it down brick by brick. But if we stick together and encourage one another in the faith we can celebrate every day. I hope today finds you in the house of God that preaches the Word Loud and Strong! Stay in it!