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Psalms 51

4/29/2016

Psalms 51:12

"Restore to me the joy of your salvation, and make me willing to obey you."

We should feel this joy all the time because we have accepted Jesus as our Lord. Our focus should be on heaven and what God has for us and our stay on earth should be one of thankfulness to God daily. When we open The Word and pray the Holy Spirit in us fills us with joy and that joy cannot be taken away.

When we are running on empty and feel tired, thank God and remember what Jesus has done for us. Then at that time the Holy Spirit will shine in us and fill us with joy. Look at what it says in Luke chapter 1 verses 43-45 Elizabeth is talking to her relative Mary the mother of Jesus our Lord. “Why am I so honored, that the mother of my Lord should visit me? When I heard your greeting, the baby in my womb jumped for joy. You are blessed because you believed that the Lord would do what He said.” The baby, John the Baptist, jumped for joy with the sound of Mary's voice because of the Holy Spirit. Verse 41 says, “At the sound of Mary’s greeting, Elizabeth’s child leaped within her, and Elizabeth was filled with the Holy Spirit.” We are filled with the Holy Spirit and should be full of joy because of that.

Turn to Jesus daily and understand the peace, that only can come from Him, can give us the rest we need and let the Spirit lead our lives and keep our joy flowing. Look at John chapter 14 verse 28 and let it always remind you what we have in Christ. “I am leaving you with a gift—peace of mind and heart. And the peace I give is a gift the world cannot give. So don’t be troubled or afraid.” Only truly knowing Him will give us peace of mind and heart and true joy will come when we understand who we have living in us. I want to finish this writing where I started it so read it again and pray. Psalms 51:12 "Restore to me the joy of your salvation, and make me willing to obey you." Amen

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Matthew 25

4/23/2016

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Matthew 25:13
“So you, too, must keep watch! For you do not know the day or hour of my return.”

There is something about being prepared and understanding that staying alert is a quality that keeps us strong. This story always touches my heart and helps me focus on what seeking really mean. It's not earning something but it is accepting something and showing that the gift matters to you. It says in Matthew chapter 25 verses 1-2 "Then the Kingdom of Heaven will be like ten bridesmaids who took their lamps and went to meet the bridegroom. Five of them were foolish, and five were wise.” See they all wanted to see the same thing but 5 didn't think they needed to prepare and be ready, that the same old things they always did would be good.

God sent His son because He loves us, that gift is for us to take and use with excitement and joy. The more we learn the more we grow and when we grow and prepare Jesus perfects our faith and we do all we can to be like Him. We will never be perfect on earth but as we put our attention on the truth He sets us free and we continue to desire His wisdom. Look at the excitement from the 5 bridesmaids that were ready. In verses 6-7 it says, “At midnight they were roused by the shout, ‘Look, the bridegroom is coming! Come out and meet Him!’ “All the bridesmaids got up and prepared their lamps.” They wanted something and were determined to have everything they needed.

The next 5 didn't think much of the journey, they wanted to meet Jesus but they felt just knowing Him and going with the others would be good enough. Verse 8 says, “Then the five foolish ones asked the others, ‘Please give us some of your oil because our lamps are going out.’" See even though they believed they didn't want to accept and prepare what was going to happen. We can't look back and keep our old lives burning, we need to look forward and seek wisdom filling ourselves with Him so the Holy Spirit is loud and clear and we always have oil ready for our lamps. See it says, no one knows the hour of His return, so don't get stuck like the foolish bridesmaids. Look at verse 10, "But while they were gone to buy oil, the bridegroom came. Then those who were ready went in with Him to the marriage feast, and the door was locked.” Don't let the door be locked, it's not what God wants, so He has given us everything we need. Have purpose and be strategic so the fruit of the spirit shines and people see a difference in us and know without a doubt that the door is opened to us. Amen

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John 12

4/18/2016

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John 12:5-6
“That perfume was worth a year’s wages. It should have been sold and the money given to the poor.” Not that he cared for the poor—he was a thief, and since he was in charge of the disciples’ money, he often stole some for himself.”

As I read this today the Holy Spirit filled me with how when we don't surrender our will our belief doesn't move to faith. See Judas was with Jesus believed in Jesus and did miracles with the others but never let go of the struggle that kept him stuck, money. When we move and grow our belief should change to faith and that faith shows our love for the Lord. In 1 Corinthians chapter 15 verse 57 which says, “But thank God! He gives us victory over sin and death through our Lord Jesus Christ.” When we believe in our hearts that Jesus is Lord and we confess with our month we will be saved.

Believing with our words is different than believing in our hearts. Judas never let go of the thing that gripped him and he never went through Jesus to be free. I love the story of Zacchaeus because we see someone that had the same struggle with money but he was seeking change and when Jesus told him to come down and that He needed to eat at his house look what Zacchaeus did. In Luke chapter 19 verse 8, “Meanwhile, Zacchaeus stood before the Lord and said, “I will give half my wealth to the poor, Lord, and if I have cheated people on their taxes, I will give them back four times as much!"

He had a changed heart because of his desire to seek and surrender to Jesus. Then Jesus says in verse 9, “Jesus responded, “Salvation has come to this home today, for this man has shown himself to be a true son of Abraham.” See our belief on its own is dead, we must let it grow by letting go and having faith. Jesus is the way the truth and the life, no one get to heaven except through Him. Let's open up and surrender our will and see the amazing things God has for us when we have faith. Amen

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John 11

4/8/2016

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John 11:14-15
“So he told them plainly, “Lazarus is dead. And for your sakes, I’m glad I wasn’t there, for now you will really believe. Come, let’s go see him.”

This is so plain to see because Jesus says it, we can believe something but deep in our minds have doubt. The disciples said they believed, and they did, but they still struggled with grasping the power at times. We can easily get caught doing the same thing, when life gets tough and we don't feel the hope. That is why our actions are so important, because that is what moves our plain believe to faith. And it is by faith that we move in His will and shine a light for the world to see.

Look at what Paul shares in 2 Corinthians chapter 1 verse 24, “But that does not mean we want to dominate you by telling you how to put your faith into practice. We want to work together with you so you will be full of joy, for it is by your own faith that you stand firm.” We can't hope someone else's faith will be good enough for us, we must develop and seek His wisdom on our own. Now the faith of others can help inspire us to change. That is why we live out our faith so others see our belief and want to have the same.
We can't just say we believe and be done, we need to work on understanding what is being taught and keep moving and growing. Jesus is with His disciples for 3 years and they only really got it after Jesus accented to heaven. They had doubts, argued, denied, ran and more, until Jesus rose from the dead and met with them.

We need to remember Jesus is alive and we have the Holy Spirit in us guiding us to what is right, so as Jesus said to His disciples, "...now you will really believe..." I love the story in Mark chapter 9 when the father comes and ask Jesus to heal his son who is having seizures. The father says if you can, and Jesus responds in verses 23-24 like this, “What do you mean, ‘If I can’?” Jesus asked. “Anything is possible if a person believes.” The father instantly cried out, “I do believe, but help me overcome my unbelief!” We must keep praying and keep growing so that our belief is not just a word that we say but the life that we live. Amen

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Psalms 51

Matthew 25

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