Everyone loves to get those little cookies after an Asian meal, right? Whether you like the cookie or not, you still open the cookie to read what that little paper says. Have you ever wondered why we do that? I mean, really, we hold on to that little piece of paper like it has genuinely just told us our fortune! Some company somewhere prints out millions of these and sticks them in a little folded cookie and ships them to your nearest Chinese restaurant where they are then randomly given out. And yet, we will anxiously rip it open and possibly even believe what it says, rather than getting into God's Word and finding out the absolute truth for our lives.
Why is it easier to crack open a cookie and take what it says as truth than it is to believe and follow God's Word? Well, that is just what the enemy wants you to do....take the easy road. Satan is okay with you believing....even having faith. He just wants you to have too many beliefs, and certainly not enough faith to make a real difference in your Christian walk. It's like when I was growing up, before dinner was ready, I would be so hungry. Mom wouldn't let me have something big to eat because that would destroy my appetite and I wouldn't eat dinner. She would give me a sample and that would usually hold me over. I would then stop bothering her, and go play. That is just like Satan, he is fine if you just get you a sample of faith, a smidgen of beliefs, because then you will have just enough to satisfy you, but not enough to fill you!!!
Now I am not saying it is wrong to read that little 'fortune' in the cookie.....it is quite fun to see what that little note says! What I am saying is, don't live on just a little 'fortune' given to you, when it comes to your Christian walk! II Timothy 2:15 says, "Study to shew thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of faith." Life is real, and death is certain! Live your life unashamed by knowing what you believe, because when life is over, eternity begins! Where will you spend eternity?
Don't have a hope so religion....don't rely on a little snippet of quotes, or verses to get you through this life.....because Satan's desire is to have you! Get in the Word and hide it in your heart!
Thursday, October 6, 2016
Wednesday, July 27, 2016
This Little Light of Mine...
I'm sure we have all sung that song growing up as loud as our voices could sing! How long has it been since we have really remembered the words of that song? 'This little light of mine, I'm gonna let it shine, this little light of mine, I'm gonna let it shine, let it shine, let it shine, let it shine!' My main question this morning is this: Are you letting Him shine through you, or are you casting a shadow?
Matthew 5:16, "Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father which is in heaven." John 8:12, "Then Jesus again spoke to them, saying, 'I am the Light of he world; he who follows Me will not walk in the darkness, but will have the Light of life." Go back a couple verses in Matthew 5, verse 14 says, "You are the light of the world. A city set on a hill cannot be hidden..." Psalm 119:105, "Your word is a lamp to my feet and a light to my path." John 9:5, "While I am in the world, I am the Light of the world." Isaiah 60:1, " Arise, shine; for your light has come, and the glory of the Lord has risen upon you."
Those are just a few verses that speak about the Light. We as Christians have Christ, THE Light, dwelling within us. We know this, this is an elemental foundation to our belief system. The issue is, are we letting our flesh cast a shadow? Are we allowing ourselves to hinder God's work through us? Let's face it, the world hears, sees God through Christians! What kind of God do they see when they look at you? We are the only Bible sinners often see. How much of the light is shining through your life? Someone just cut you off on the highway.....are you quick to scrunch up your eyebrows, raise up your hand allowing one finger to be pronounced, and open your mouth letting words fly?? Well, after all, we are only human....and besides, no one can see me, I am in my car by myself. It's just my temper anyway, I can't help it. Hmmm..... Well, let's really examine this. You may very well be in the care alone, but there is someone out there who possibly saw the attitude you just portrayed, but more importantly, God saw it. We are quick to tell our children how God watches them, but we forget that He is always watching us as well. Now you have given way to the flesh, you have casted a shadow and dimmed His light in you. You are dimmer now, and others can tell the difference.
Same scenario, someone just cut you off on the highway.....but before you left home, you had been in God's Word, you have prayed and talked with the Father, and continued that conversation in the car, while listening to Christian music on the radio. As the person cuts you off, you feel angry....the Bible tells us it is perfectly okay to be angry.....just to sin not! (Ephesians 4:6). Before flesh has a chance to cast a shadow, God let's you think, that guy may be rushing to the hospital to be at his dying mother's bedside; that guy may have just been fired from his job and is desperately trying to figure out what to do next......who knows? Instead of self righteous indignation setting in, you find yourself whispering a prayer for that person....WHATTTT???? Yep, that is letting your light shine. Stop casting shadows!
One of my favorite quotes is this: Your attitude determines your altitude with Christ! You can see with a 15 watt bulb in your lamp.....yes you can. It won't be very bright, but it will be a light. But you can also put a 60 watt bulb in that lamp and see a lot clearer, see the world brighter, shine the light further! It's your choice. How much of His light do you let shine through??
I recently watched some older people.....who are supposed to be very seasoned in their Christianity...allow a small little night light shine, where it should be a big ole 100 watt flood light be shining. It broke my heart, and made me furious as well!! It is so true what they say, it is so much easier for bad to pull down good. That is why you must watch who you hang around. You want to rub the 'good' off on someone...but 9 times out of 10...bad will rub off on the good! This is what I witnessed. Convictions lost out to 'good times'. Being separated for Christ fell to the waste side so that they could 'fit in' with everyone else. I am a Christian, and I could not tell who else was because they were all doing just as the world does! So sad. And yet, I was made to look like the bad guy because I didn't join in? Isn't that just like ole Lucifer?!! Wow....fellow Christians can be meaner than sinners! It truly is getting harder to tell Christians from the world! Even so, come quickly, Lord Jesus!!!
We have to work daily at letting our light shine brightly! We have to keep our vessels clean so the maximum light can shine through! You dip your lantern in the mud, the light wont be able to shine through! Study His Word daily, pray, hide His Word in your heart, meditate on Him, be faithful to the House of God, keep what is going in your ears and go through your eyes Holy.....be the cleanest vessel you can be so that the light is shining through you, and you are not casting shadows.
This may be a long blog, but this is my total desire. To become less me, and more Him! What better way thing to write about on this, my 100th blog! People are watching....even when we don't think they are....are you letting Him shine, or are you casting shadows? It's not only sinners that are watching, it is fellow Christians as well. Are you directing them down a dim lit path? Are you disappointing your fellow brothers and sisters with the way the light is shining in you? You may be the one thing that shows a fellow brother or sister that it is worth staying in the race.....will your actions keep them keeping on?? What you think you do that no one sees.....does affect your ability to let Him shine through you when someone is watching. Keep your spiritual 'windex' out at all times and keep your windows clean!!
II Corinthians 6:17- 18, "Wherefore come out from among them, and be ye separate, saith the Lord, and touch not the unclean thing; and I will receive you, and will be a Father unto you, and ye shall be my sons and daughters, saith the Lord Almighty." IF you are saved, then get in God's Word and grow and mature in Him. Get your convictions settled with Him and stay strong in them. Be separate from the world and stop trying to blend in with them. Sin is still sin, wrong is still wrong! Your are saved, you are no longer like the world, show them that! Not with a haughty or high minded spirit, but with meekness, humility and love! If it is a sin or a conviction at home....then it is on vacation as well! It still is with whatever friends or family members you are around! God's light is in you.....don't fog up the windows so His light is dull. The world is watching.....they are in search for that hole in their heart to be filled....you've been there....you know that feeling!!! Don't cast a shadow that causes the world to not see the Light that you received to fill the void in your life that nothing else could ever fill!!!! Stop trying to fit in......be OUTFITTED in Christ's light!!
Matthew 5:16, "Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father which is in heaven." John 8:12, "Then Jesus again spoke to them, saying, 'I am the Light of he world; he who follows Me will not walk in the darkness, but will have the Light of life." Go back a couple verses in Matthew 5, verse 14 says, "You are the light of the world. A city set on a hill cannot be hidden..." Psalm 119:105, "Your word is a lamp to my feet and a light to my path." John 9:5, "While I am in the world, I am the Light of the world." Isaiah 60:1, " Arise, shine; for your light has come, and the glory of the Lord has risen upon you."
Those are just a few verses that speak about the Light. We as Christians have Christ, THE Light, dwelling within us. We know this, this is an elemental foundation to our belief system. The issue is, are we letting our flesh cast a shadow? Are we allowing ourselves to hinder God's work through us? Let's face it, the world hears, sees God through Christians! What kind of God do they see when they look at you? We are the only Bible sinners often see. How much of the light is shining through your life? Someone just cut you off on the highway.....are you quick to scrunch up your eyebrows, raise up your hand allowing one finger to be pronounced, and open your mouth letting words fly?? Well, after all, we are only human....and besides, no one can see me, I am in my car by myself. It's just my temper anyway, I can't help it. Hmmm..... Well, let's really examine this. You may very well be in the care alone, but there is someone out there who possibly saw the attitude you just portrayed, but more importantly, God saw it. We are quick to tell our children how God watches them, but we forget that He is always watching us as well. Now you have given way to the flesh, you have casted a shadow and dimmed His light in you. You are dimmer now, and others can tell the difference.
Same scenario, someone just cut you off on the highway.....but before you left home, you had been in God's Word, you have prayed and talked with the Father, and continued that conversation in the car, while listening to Christian music on the radio. As the person cuts you off, you feel angry....the Bible tells us it is perfectly okay to be angry.....just to sin not! (Ephesians 4:6). Before flesh has a chance to cast a shadow, God let's you think, that guy may be rushing to the hospital to be at his dying mother's bedside; that guy may have just been fired from his job and is desperately trying to figure out what to do next......who knows? Instead of self righteous indignation setting in, you find yourself whispering a prayer for that person....WHATTTT???? Yep, that is letting your light shine. Stop casting shadows!
One of my favorite quotes is this: Your attitude determines your altitude with Christ! You can see with a 15 watt bulb in your lamp.....yes you can. It won't be very bright, but it will be a light. But you can also put a 60 watt bulb in that lamp and see a lot clearer, see the world brighter, shine the light further! It's your choice. How much of His light do you let shine through??
I recently watched some older people.....who are supposed to be very seasoned in their Christianity...allow a small little night light shine, where it should be a big ole 100 watt flood light be shining. It broke my heart, and made me furious as well!! It is so true what they say, it is so much easier for bad to pull down good. That is why you must watch who you hang around. You want to rub the 'good' off on someone...but 9 times out of 10...bad will rub off on the good! This is what I witnessed. Convictions lost out to 'good times'. Being separated for Christ fell to the waste side so that they could 'fit in' with everyone else. I am a Christian, and I could not tell who else was because they were all doing just as the world does! So sad. And yet, I was made to look like the bad guy because I didn't join in? Isn't that just like ole Lucifer?!! Wow....fellow Christians can be meaner than sinners! It truly is getting harder to tell Christians from the world! Even so, come quickly, Lord Jesus!!!
We have to work daily at letting our light shine brightly! We have to keep our vessels clean so the maximum light can shine through! You dip your lantern in the mud, the light wont be able to shine through! Study His Word daily, pray, hide His Word in your heart, meditate on Him, be faithful to the House of God, keep what is going in your ears and go through your eyes Holy.....be the cleanest vessel you can be so that the light is shining through you, and you are not casting shadows.
This may be a long blog, but this is my total desire. To become less me, and more Him! What better way thing to write about on this, my 100th blog! People are watching....even when we don't think they are....are you letting Him shine, or are you casting shadows? It's not only sinners that are watching, it is fellow Christians as well. Are you directing them down a dim lit path? Are you disappointing your fellow brothers and sisters with the way the light is shining in you? You may be the one thing that shows a fellow brother or sister that it is worth staying in the race.....will your actions keep them keeping on?? What you think you do that no one sees.....does affect your ability to let Him shine through you when someone is watching. Keep your spiritual 'windex' out at all times and keep your windows clean!!
II Corinthians 6:17- 18, "Wherefore come out from among them, and be ye separate, saith the Lord, and touch not the unclean thing; and I will receive you, and will be a Father unto you, and ye shall be my sons and daughters, saith the Lord Almighty." IF you are saved, then get in God's Word and grow and mature in Him. Get your convictions settled with Him and stay strong in them. Be separate from the world and stop trying to blend in with them. Sin is still sin, wrong is still wrong! Your are saved, you are no longer like the world, show them that! Not with a haughty or high minded spirit, but with meekness, humility and love! If it is a sin or a conviction at home....then it is on vacation as well! It still is with whatever friends or family members you are around! God's light is in you.....don't fog up the windows so His light is dull. The world is watching.....they are in search for that hole in their heart to be filled....you've been there....you know that feeling!!! Don't cast a shadow that causes the world to not see the Light that you received to fill the void in your life that nothing else could ever fill!!!! Stop trying to fit in......be OUTFITTED in Christ's light!!
Wednesday, June 15, 2016
What does it matter......no one really cares, right?
What does it matter? Why do I even try?? No one even cares. These thoughts ever cross your mind? Well of course they have! Everyone has felt this way at times. We are human, and Satan is a roaring lion seeking whom he may devour. Recently I was at a Ladies Tea. The speaker was awesome, she had the Spirit of the Lord all over her. She quoted a scripture to help bring out one of her points, and that scripture was a light bulb moment for me. It was not a new scripture to me, I have read it many times, and heard it quoted in many sermons over the years. But, in that moment, I saw it in a new light.
Matthew 10:30, "But the very hairs of your head are all numbered." Very simple statement. And, I can hear you now....okay, that's cool.....But WAIT....it is! It is so cool!!! Luke also mentions this very statement in 12:7, "But even the very hairs of your head are all numbered. Fear not therefore;ye are of more value than many sparrows." I could do a whole other blog on the sparrows....but that is for another time, perhaps.
My hair on my head is numbered....so what? Well, I will tell you.....it is so awesome to think that our Creator actually knows how many hairs are on our very heads, right? Well, get this....He not only knows how many hairs are on our head, but he has them numbered........not just counted.....but NUMBERED!! What's the difference? Well, I thought you would never ask!!
As verbs the difference between count and numbering is that count is to recite numbers in sequence to tally quantity, while numbering is a sequence of numbers indicating order or otherwise used for identification. Did you get that? One of the things I do as a school nurse is hand out a medical record information card to each student. Before I do this, I count each card to make sure I have enough for each student. But once the students receive them and start filling them out and turning them in, I then number them. By numbering them, I can tell who has, and who has not turned them back in to me. Oh yeah, I see that light bulb above your head going off now......
God cares so much for all of us that He not only counts the hairs on our heads, but He numbers them!! He cannot only tell you how many hairs you have on your head, but He can tell you that hair number 112, 245, and 16 came out as you were brushing your hair this morning!!! Let that sink in for a minute!
When we are counted....we are just a 'number'....but when we are numbered, then we have an identity! You can be in a crowd, at the DMV (department of motor vehicles) and someone can count 30 people in the room. Well, that's great, but you won't get service until you 'take a number'. When you are assigned a number, then you have an identity, you are no longer 'just a part of the crowd' that is counted!!
Thank you, Lord for caring so much for me that even the hairs of my head have a number....have an identity to You! No matter how alone we feel, or how much we feel that no one cares............HE CARES!!!
Matthew 10:30, "But the very hairs of your head are all numbered." Very simple statement. And, I can hear you now....okay, that's cool.....But WAIT....it is! It is so cool!!! Luke also mentions this very statement in 12:7, "But even the very hairs of your head are all numbered. Fear not therefore;ye are of more value than many sparrows." I could do a whole other blog on the sparrows....but that is for another time, perhaps.
My hair on my head is numbered....so what? Well, I will tell you.....it is so awesome to think that our Creator actually knows how many hairs are on our very heads, right? Well, get this....He not only knows how many hairs are on our head, but he has them numbered........not just counted.....but NUMBERED!! What's the difference? Well, I thought you would never ask!!
As verbs the difference between count and numbering is that count is to recite numbers in sequence to tally quantity, while numbering is a sequence of numbers indicating order or otherwise used for identification. Did you get that? One of the things I do as a school nurse is hand out a medical record information card to each student. Before I do this, I count each card to make sure I have enough for each student. But once the students receive them and start filling them out and turning them in, I then number them. By numbering them, I can tell who has, and who has not turned them back in to me. Oh yeah, I see that light bulb above your head going off now......
God cares so much for all of us that He not only counts the hairs on our heads, but He numbers them!! He cannot only tell you how many hairs you have on your head, but He can tell you that hair number 112, 245, and 16 came out as you were brushing your hair this morning!!! Let that sink in for a minute!
When we are counted....we are just a 'number'....but when we are numbered, then we have an identity! You can be in a crowd, at the DMV (department of motor vehicles) and someone can count 30 people in the room. Well, that's great, but you won't get service until you 'take a number'. When you are assigned a number, then you have an identity, you are no longer 'just a part of the crowd' that is counted!!
Thank you, Lord for caring so much for me that even the hairs of my head have a number....have an identity to You! No matter how alone we feel, or how much we feel that no one cares............HE CARES!!!
Wednesday, January 13, 2016
Christian Chameleons
In greek, the word Chameleon translates as this: Chamai- on the ground; Leon- lion.
This is interesting to me. Lion that is on the ground. I Peter 5:8 says, "Be sober, be vigilant, because your adversary the devil, as a roaring lion, walketh about, seeking whom he may devour;" I've known this verse for years, I have studied it, and referenced it many times. But the other day, I was learning about chameleons, and when I saw the greek meaning, my mind began spinning.....scary, isn't it??
Knowing that verse, I have always envisioned that big lion with his furry mane, charging down the streets, roaring at the top of his lungs, just waiting for someone to be in his path so that he may devour them. Satan certainly does do that! Then I began studying these 'lions on the ground'. Chameleons' skin have a superficial layer which contain pigments. Under this layer of skin are cells that have guanine crystals. Light is reflected off the crystals causing them to change color.
Functions for changing color are: social signaling, reactions to temperature, and camouflage. Color change signals a chameleons physiological condition and intentions to other chameleons. They tend to show bright colors when displaying aggressively to other chameleons, darker colors when they submit or give up. Like snakes, they have no middle ear so they have no ear opening or drum. They detect sound frequencies. They have long tongues, one and a half of it's body length (excluding the tail). They ballistically project their tongue in order to catch their prey.
Now that I have given some chameleon facts, let me put this into a spiritual lesson. While Satan is a roaring lion, seeking whom he may devour, I believe that people can be a chameleon, a lion on the ground doing damage to your spiritual well being. These chameleons can be sinners, but they can also be fellow Christians. Sinners, I don't have as much of a problem with, because they are just that...sinners. We all are born sinners, and but for the grace of God are we saved! It's the Christian chameleon that can be such a problem! James 1:26 says, "If any man among you seem to be religious, and bridleth not his tongue, but deceiveth his own heart, this man's religion is vain." There are also those who say they are Christians, but in fact have never been saved. In Matthew 7:21, Jesus says, "Not every one that saith unto me, Lord, Lord, shall enter into the kingdom of heaven; but he that doeth the will of my Father which is in heaven." While these 'chameleons' can be very hurtful, they are still doing about their worldly father's business.
The chameleons that bother me the most are the Christian chameleons. Psalm 55:21, "The word of his mouth were smoother than butter, but war was in his heart;" Psalm 28:3, "Draw me not away with the wicked, and with the workers of iniquity, which speak peace to their neighbours, but mischief is in their hearts." There are so many civil wars being fought in the Christian community. It is sad, but it is just what that ole roaring lion loves! If he can get enough chameleons (ground lions) working in the Christian community, then he is defeating us from the inside out! No one wins as a whole, when there is war going on internally.
We are all human, we all fail, and we are all sinners. We must remember that, lest we turn into a chameleon ourselves. Stop looking to that person and saying they hurt you.....they are a sinner, just like you, if grace has been applied, they are a Christian, but still having to battle that flesh! Love that person, for they are God's creation, just as we all are. It is the actions that have hurt you. And those actions are from the enemy. Turn your hurt to Satan, and not that person. That is not easy, and will always be a struggle. However, by doing this, you can pray for that person easier, and you can forgive that person....even if they don't ask for it....to prevent bitterness from settling in your heart....and you turning into a chameleon as well.
Christian chameleons don't only fool the person looking at them, but they are fooling themselves. They walk around the church....looking like the church. They can look in the mirror and satan can blind them into seeing what they want to see....a good person, doing work for the Lord. That is why it is so hard to detect them....they blend in. That is why the hurt is so painful....they aren't what they appear to be.
Keep your eyes on the cross, stay in His Word daily, stay in a mindset of prayer, crucify your flesh daily! Don't become a chameleon that appears to be right with God, only to project your tongue and hurt some fellow Christian, or God forbid, prevent a sinner from salvation!! Matthew 7:16, "Ye shall know them by their fruits. Do men gather grapes of thorns, or figs of thistles?" While we do not judge, we can be fruit inspectors. God gives discernment, stay in that spirit of prayer and He will guide you. Vengence is the Lord's, and none of His children can do wrong and get by. Love the person, hate the action....and know that it is Satan who has crept in and changed something in that person's life to make them 'change their colors'. Pray for them!!
I have someone in my life who is not where they need to be, they are not walking according to the Bible.....but they are blinded by the colors of Satan, so they think they are in God's will. Their actions, however, prove they are not. I could be, and have been so hurt by this person....but, as I look at it differently, God has helped me. That person is just a chameleon right now, projecting what they want others to see them to be....instead of what they are. But for God, I could be in that same state. And Satan would just love to start a civil war in the Christian community. Get Thee Behind Me Satan.......I love this person, even though they don't acknowledge my existence. I don't love their wrong doings. But by taking what they are doing wrong away from the person, I can pray more effectively for this person, love this person, even feel sorrow for this person....and put those feelings of anger and hurt toward who has conjured them up....the devil!!
One day we won't have to fight the enemy any more!! His days are numbered!! Let's keep God's army strong!! We don't need any chameleons in this army! Stay true to yourself, and more importantly to God!!!
This is interesting to me. Lion that is on the ground. I Peter 5:8 says, "Be sober, be vigilant, because your adversary the devil, as a roaring lion, walketh about, seeking whom he may devour;" I've known this verse for years, I have studied it, and referenced it many times. But the other day, I was learning about chameleons, and when I saw the greek meaning, my mind began spinning.....scary, isn't it??
Knowing that verse, I have always envisioned that big lion with his furry mane, charging down the streets, roaring at the top of his lungs, just waiting for someone to be in his path so that he may devour them. Satan certainly does do that! Then I began studying these 'lions on the ground'. Chameleons' skin have a superficial layer which contain pigments. Under this layer of skin are cells that have guanine crystals. Light is reflected off the crystals causing them to change color.
Functions for changing color are: social signaling, reactions to temperature, and camouflage. Color change signals a chameleons physiological condition and intentions to other chameleons. They tend to show bright colors when displaying aggressively to other chameleons, darker colors when they submit or give up. Like snakes, they have no middle ear so they have no ear opening or drum. They detect sound frequencies. They have long tongues, one and a half of it's body length (excluding the tail). They ballistically project their tongue in order to catch their prey.
Now that I have given some chameleon facts, let me put this into a spiritual lesson. While Satan is a roaring lion, seeking whom he may devour, I believe that people can be a chameleon, a lion on the ground doing damage to your spiritual well being. These chameleons can be sinners, but they can also be fellow Christians. Sinners, I don't have as much of a problem with, because they are just that...sinners. We all are born sinners, and but for the grace of God are we saved! It's the Christian chameleon that can be such a problem! James 1:26 says, "If any man among you seem to be religious, and bridleth not his tongue, but deceiveth his own heart, this man's religion is vain." There are also those who say they are Christians, but in fact have never been saved. In Matthew 7:21, Jesus says, "Not every one that saith unto me, Lord, Lord, shall enter into the kingdom of heaven; but he that doeth the will of my Father which is in heaven." While these 'chameleons' can be very hurtful, they are still doing about their worldly father's business.
The chameleons that bother me the most are the Christian chameleons. Psalm 55:21, "The word of his mouth were smoother than butter, but war was in his heart;" Psalm 28:3, "Draw me not away with the wicked, and with the workers of iniquity, which speak peace to their neighbours, but mischief is in their hearts." There are so many civil wars being fought in the Christian community. It is sad, but it is just what that ole roaring lion loves! If he can get enough chameleons (ground lions) working in the Christian community, then he is defeating us from the inside out! No one wins as a whole, when there is war going on internally.
We are all human, we all fail, and we are all sinners. We must remember that, lest we turn into a chameleon ourselves. Stop looking to that person and saying they hurt you.....they are a sinner, just like you, if grace has been applied, they are a Christian, but still having to battle that flesh! Love that person, for they are God's creation, just as we all are. It is the actions that have hurt you. And those actions are from the enemy. Turn your hurt to Satan, and not that person. That is not easy, and will always be a struggle. However, by doing this, you can pray for that person easier, and you can forgive that person....even if they don't ask for it....to prevent bitterness from settling in your heart....and you turning into a chameleon as well.
Christian chameleons don't only fool the person looking at them, but they are fooling themselves. They walk around the church....looking like the church. They can look in the mirror and satan can blind them into seeing what they want to see....a good person, doing work for the Lord. That is why it is so hard to detect them....they blend in. That is why the hurt is so painful....they aren't what they appear to be.
Keep your eyes on the cross, stay in His Word daily, stay in a mindset of prayer, crucify your flesh daily! Don't become a chameleon that appears to be right with God, only to project your tongue and hurt some fellow Christian, or God forbid, prevent a sinner from salvation!! Matthew 7:16, "Ye shall know them by their fruits. Do men gather grapes of thorns, or figs of thistles?" While we do not judge, we can be fruit inspectors. God gives discernment, stay in that spirit of prayer and He will guide you. Vengence is the Lord's, and none of His children can do wrong and get by. Love the person, hate the action....and know that it is Satan who has crept in and changed something in that person's life to make them 'change their colors'. Pray for them!!
I have someone in my life who is not where they need to be, they are not walking according to the Bible.....but they are blinded by the colors of Satan, so they think they are in God's will. Their actions, however, prove they are not. I could be, and have been so hurt by this person....but, as I look at it differently, God has helped me. That person is just a chameleon right now, projecting what they want others to see them to be....instead of what they are. But for God, I could be in that same state. And Satan would just love to start a civil war in the Christian community. Get Thee Behind Me Satan.......I love this person, even though they don't acknowledge my existence. I don't love their wrong doings. But by taking what they are doing wrong away from the person, I can pray more effectively for this person, love this person, even feel sorrow for this person....and put those feelings of anger and hurt toward who has conjured them up....the devil!!
One day we won't have to fight the enemy any more!! His days are numbered!! Let's keep God's army strong!! We don't need any chameleons in this army! Stay true to yourself, and more importantly to God!!!
Tuesday, January 5, 2016
Under His Feet
Ephesians 1:22, "And hath put all things under his feet...."
We've been studying the book of Ephesians in Sunday School. And when we got to this verse, these words just kept speaking to my heart. It was during the Christmas season, and this thought came to mind. With all the presents around the house, comes all the boxes, and paper, and trash. That got me thinking.
My arms are loaded down with boxes, and I'm walking to the trash can, thinking, how am I going to make all this fit?? I try to push and squeeze the boxes in my arms, but that really doesn't do much good. What do you do?? Well, you do what you've seen Mom and Dad do, you put the box on the floor and step on it! And just like that, the box is flat and small and able to fit in the garbage can! So much more force and weight are applied when you use your foot, the box is no match!
So then, I get a spiritual picture. Here I am, carrying my heavy, big burdens around with me. I don't know how I'm going to keep carrying them, or what I'm going to do with them. I try to push on them, work on them, try to make a difference myself. When, finally, I get self out of the way....and carry them to my Father. He can do all things, and He puts my big ole burdens under His feet, and just like that, they are small and able to be managed!! Why do we wear ourselves out wrestling with our burdens when, He 'hath put all things under his feet'?
Brings a song back into my remembrance that I used to sing with my Mother and Aunts:
"When Simon Peter walked abreast, putting his faith unto the test, he said, 'Master will thou bid me come unto thee?' Jesus said, come, so Peter went and when the faith he had was spent, Peter sank low but Jesus had waves roll under his feet
Under his feet, under his feet, there's not a problem that you'll face, he cannot meet. Whenever you've waded out too far in waters too deep, remember when waves are over your head, they're under his feet!
He's got it!! Trust in Him, put it under His feet!! The load is so much lighter and easier to manage!!
We've been studying the book of Ephesians in Sunday School. And when we got to this verse, these words just kept speaking to my heart. It was during the Christmas season, and this thought came to mind. With all the presents around the house, comes all the boxes, and paper, and trash. That got me thinking.
My arms are loaded down with boxes, and I'm walking to the trash can, thinking, how am I going to make all this fit?? I try to push and squeeze the boxes in my arms, but that really doesn't do much good. What do you do?? Well, you do what you've seen Mom and Dad do, you put the box on the floor and step on it! And just like that, the box is flat and small and able to fit in the garbage can! So much more force and weight are applied when you use your foot, the box is no match!
So then, I get a spiritual picture. Here I am, carrying my heavy, big burdens around with me. I don't know how I'm going to keep carrying them, or what I'm going to do with them. I try to push on them, work on them, try to make a difference myself. When, finally, I get self out of the way....and carry them to my Father. He can do all things, and He puts my big ole burdens under His feet, and just like that, they are small and able to be managed!! Why do we wear ourselves out wrestling with our burdens when, He 'hath put all things under his feet'?
Brings a song back into my remembrance that I used to sing with my Mother and Aunts:
"When Simon Peter walked abreast, putting his faith unto the test, he said, 'Master will thou bid me come unto thee?' Jesus said, come, so Peter went and when the faith he had was spent, Peter sank low but Jesus had waves roll under his feet
Under his feet, under his feet, there's not a problem that you'll face, he cannot meet. Whenever you've waded out too far in waters too deep, remember when waves are over your head, they're under his feet!
He's got it!! Trust in Him, put it under His feet!! The load is so much lighter and easier to manage!!
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