Do Not Love The Things Of The World...

1Jn 2:15-17 Do not love the world nor the things in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him. For all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh and the lust of the eyes and the boastful pride of life, is not from the Father, but is from the world. The world is passing away, and also its lusts; but the one who does the will of God lives forever. (nasb)

Being a believer and living in this world can be very difficult. We are faced with temptations, lusts of the flesh, and opportunities to partake in sin around every corner. We are called to not love the things of the world but to do the will of the Father.

In order for us to do the will of the Father we first need to understand what that means. Finding God's will for our life can be a challenge if we are looking for things to do rather than just being in Christ and allowing the spirit of God to guide us in this. The first step to understanding God's will in our life is to not love the things of the world. When we spend our time watching television, going to movies, acquiring or foolishly spending money, and other things that tempt us and take our time away from God, we are showing that we love the things of the world rather than the things of God.

This scripture reference tells us that when we give in to the things of the world rather than spend time with Christ and doing the things He leads us to do we are showing that the Love of the Father is not in us. The things of the world are decaying and will one day be gone. The love of the Father is everlasting and when we accept Him we are a new creature and the things of the world must pass away in our lives.

Do not love the things of the world but love the things of God. This is how you accomplish His will. Love God, love people, and serve those who have a need.

Is Jesus A Prime Number?

My 12 year old son asked me today if 777 is a prime number. I told him that it was a prime number because it was only divisible by the number one and itself. He thought it to be quite interesting that it is the number associated with God and there is only one way to get to it.

Then he pointed out that 666 is considered the number of the beast and there are many ways to get to that number... Quite an amazing thing if you think about it. Jesus is the only way to God, but there are many ways to entertain the devil.

There are so many ways we can take every day things, such as prime number, and point them in some way to God. I believe that God, in his infinite creativity, has done this for our pleasure and fascination.

What things have you seen today that point you to Jesus? For me and my son it was the simplicity of a prime number...

May God show himself to you in even the most simple ways today as you seek after Him.

Skip About Like Calves From The Stall

Mal 4:2-3 "But for you who fear My name, the sun of righteousness will rise with healing in its wings; and you will go forth and skip about like calves from the stall. "You will tread down the wicked, for they will be ashes under the soles of your feet on the day which I am preparing," says the LORD of hosts. (nasb)

I really like this verse. I came across it recently in my Bible reading and I decided to not skip over it, but to ponder it for awhile. There are so many things I discovered as I read it over and over again. I tried to imagine what the prophet Malachi was visualizing when he wrote these inspired words.

First and foremost we are to fear the Lord. Proverbs 1:7 tells us that the fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom and knowledge. To fear God is to have a deep reverence for His Holiness, and those who fear the Lord, the sun of righteousness will rise with healing in its wings. Jesus is the sun of righteousness (see Luke 1:78). He will come and bring healing. There will be no more suffering, no more calamity, and no more sin in our lives. He will become our righteousness before the one true God and we will be able to approach His throne pure and holy.

I guess for me the piece of this verse that is so intriguing it the part referring to the redeemed "skipping about like a calf from a stall." I really enjoy this mental picture. I sat back for a moment and imagined a small herd of well protected calves finally released from their fences that have kept them safe from harm for so long. Once they are let loose they dance about and frolic in the pasture of His glory for all of eternity. (not sure if my theology is fully correct but it is what came to my mind..)

As believer's in the Lord Jesus, we too will dance about one day. Soon and very soon the gates of Heaven will open up and we will be able to have a redeemed body, a new spirit, and spend all eternity discovering the excitement and joy of the place we will call home for ever... And best of all, we will spend it with our savior.

We Live In Evil Times

Eph 5:14-16 For this reason it says, "Awake, sleeper, And arise from the dead, And Christ will shine on you." Therefore be careful how you walk, not as unwise men but as wise, making the most of your time, because the days are evil.

We live in times that are evil. Paul addresses the church in Ephesus with this same message that is quite relevant today. There are many things that tempt us to walk in these evil ways and Paul instructs us today to be awake and to be careful. When we are awakened from our dead state then Christ will shine in us. When we have Christ in us doing the work, then making the most of our time becomes less difficult. When we are in Christ then the things of this world are less tempting to our soul.

Today we are reminded to do several things:

• Be Awake
• Arise from the dead
• Be careful how we walk
• Walk as wise men
• Make the most of our time

As we see in the early part of the book of Ephesians it is Gods work in us that awakens us and allows us to rise from the dead and sinful world. (eph 2:1-7)

Eph 2:1-7 And you were dead in your trespasses and sins, in which you formerly walked according to the course of this world, according to the prince of the power of the air, of the spirit that is now working in the sons of disobedience. Among them we too all formerly lived in the lusts of our flesh, indulging the desires of the flesh and of the mind, and were by nature children of wrath, even as the rest. But God, being rich in mercy, because of His great love with which He loved us, even when we were dead in our transgressions, made us alive together with Christ (by grace you have been saved), and raised us up with Him, and seated us with Him in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus, so that in the ages to come He might show the surpassing riches of His grace in kindness toward us in Christ Jesus.

Then, once we begin to follow Him we are more capable to carefully walk as wise men and make the most of our time. Jesus calls us to follow Him. Are you following Him and walking as a wise man (or woman) today? I encourage you to wake up, arise from the dead, and allow Jesus to shine in your life today. This evil world desperately needs it!

He Will Wipe Away Every Tear

Rev 21:4 and He will wipe away every tear from their eyes; and there will no longer be any death; there will no longer be any mourning, or crying, or pain; the first things have passed away."

One day the trials of this life will cease. There will no longer be any pain in our lives to mourn over. No physical pain to anguish over and no emotional pain to weep over. Jesus will wipe the tears from our eyes and love us into eternity. There will be unending joy because death will be defeated and life will be triumphant... one day.

But what about today? What about the pain you and I might be going through right now? Pain from losing someone very close to us to cancer. Financial struggles and the disappointments that come from not being able to provide for your family. The thought of packing up all the bags of clothes and toys and everything you own and moving on yet again. Starting over, broken relationships, shattered dreams. These things are real and they happen to all of us eventually. There is hope that one day the tears will dry up, but until that day what do we do?

2Co 1:3-5 Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of mercies and God of all comfort, who comforts us in all our affliction so that we will be able to comfort those who are in any affliction with the comfort with which we ourselves are comforted by God. For just as the sufferings of Christ are ours in abundance, so also our comfort is abundant through Christ.

We seek out our comfort in Him. Jesus is our comfort and our shelter from the many storms that crash upon our shores. Not only in eternity but in the here and now. 2Cor 1 tells is that He is the Father of mercies and the God of ALL comfort. He will comfort us when our loved one dies. He will comfort us when we lose heart and don't feel like taking another breath. He will comfort you and me when trouble comes our way unexpectedly. I encourage you to turn over all your affliction to Him. Don't hold back, don't try to fix it, and just trust in Jesus. He always does what He promises, if He didn't He wouldn't be God.

Are you needing His comfort today? He is there waiting for you to cry out to Him and put all your cares and trouble on His shoulders. In addition to crying out to Jesus I encourage you to seek a friend who will pray with you today. We all go through trials in our life and Jesus wants us to be comforted and then in turn comfort others.

Cry out to Him, pray for healing, and seek out others...

Remember the words of Jesus today:

Mat 5:4 "Blessed are those who mourn, for they shall be comforted.

More resources to help those who are suffering.

I Will Rise When He Calls My Name...

I will Rise!

Jesus has overcome the grave and with His strength we can overcome all the obstacles that threaten our peace.



Thank you Lord for paying the ransom for us to live eternally with You. Please let us rise with You!

God Saves From Our Distress

Isa 25:4 For You have been a defense for the helpless, A defense for the needy in his distress, A refuge from the storm, a shade from the heat; (nasb)

I thank God today for His strength in my life. This verse in Isaiah gives me comfort during time of need. Lately it feels like all of the hurt and trauma from the past has been flowing over me like a great waterfall and my refuge has been to draw close to the Lord. I don't find comfort in material things, other people, or some of the things that would normally be a way to calm my soul. I can only find it right now in Jesus Christ. I know that for many of us there is something in life that has changed how we relate to our self, others around us, and God Himself. Some kind of trauma or difficulty has altered the path and caused pain and regret. Regardless of the event, abuse, or addiction, God will heal the broken hearted and restore their soul.

If you are someone today who has gone through a painful time in your life I encourage you to rest in the Lord. Take some time and reflect on His goodness towards you. If He seems like He has abandoned you then cry out to Him and ask Him to reveal Himself to you in a fresh new way today. Seek someone you can trust to pray with you and ask God to intervene in your life right now.

If you are someone who hasn't experienced the kind of pain and trauma I am talking about I praise God today for your life of freedom. Won't you pray for those around you who have gone and are still experiencing the effects of trauma in their life?

Several years back when I began the healing process from childhood trauma I wrote a poem. On occasion I go back and read it and I thought I would share it today on my blog.

It Is Time To Survive

when all hell breaks loose
with a fit and a fury
and your life seems to
be tumbling around you
it is time to survive

when they don't understand
the pain you are going through
and the only thing you can do
is walk the thin line
it is time to survive

your heart wants to stop
and your heads spinning faster
all of your past comes rushing
at you like a raging river
it is time to survive

take hold of the One
who knows you and made you
your troubles are His now
so take peace in Him...

You Will Survive

Psa 107:19-20 Then they cried out to the LORD in their trouble; He saved them out of their distresses. He sent His word and healed them, And delivered them from their destructions. (nasb)