Am I the Same or Have I Grown?

I would hope that I am wiser today than I was a year ago on December 30, 2010. As we leave 2011 and head into 2012 most of us will reflect on the past and resolve to improve and grow in physical health, wisdom, and understanding in the future. As adults, hopefully, we have matured and no longer respond to situations as an infant, toddler, or teenager would. Our maturation happens in stages and over time. There is physical change but there should also be emotional, intellectual, and spiritual growth.

The world revolves around a baby and that is the way it should be. A baby is totally dependent but with the passage of time the baby is gradually taught how to become more self sufficient. As the years pass we should leave behind our selfish dependent selves. Our world broadens and we become more aware of the needs of others. We stretch out of our myopic infant box and should demonstrate more selflessness. Each of us is in a different place. Wisdom and maturation isn’t gauged chronologically. It is important to be growing forward and not getting stuck so that we remain in the same place for any length of time. I have known some adults who still react like toddlers, throwing temper tantrums when they get angry. Some adults still think that the earth continues to exclusively revolve around them. Each of us is somewhere between the infant stage and Mother Theresa, being the epitome of selflessness.

God uses the circumstances of life to grow our spirits. Our human spirit is carnal and selfish. When I received Christ as my Savior, the Holy Spirit entered my physical body birthing God’s Spirit within me. This is the second birth which God speaks about in His Word. Read the conversation between Jesus and Nicodemus in the third chapter of John.
We are mind, body, and spirit. Each part of us must be nurtured. We would not want to remain a baby. As Christians we do not want to continue being a new born Christian. In order to grow, we must feed our spirits with daily spiritual bread. In Matthew 4:4 Jesus said “People need more than bread for their life; they must feed on every word of God”. In the Lord’s Prayer we ask for God to give us our daily bread. The food which we ask for is spiritual as well as physical. God promises to hear our prayer and supply all of our needs. Philippians 4:19 tells us that He does this “according to His riches in Glory in Christ Jesus”.

I study the Word because I believe, have received, and want to be in God’s perfect will. How will I know what His will for my life is if I don’t know Him personally? My faith is a gift and it grows as I hear the Word of God (Romans 10:17). As God’s Spirit within me increases, my carnal spirit decreases. For the stubborn and logical minded this internal battle can be a difficult and long process. God doesn’t just want pieces of us; He wants to be the Lord of our entire life. He wants us to trust Him and to rest in His presence and promises.

I will be in eternity far longer than I am on this present earthly journey. I will continue to seek a closer walk with my Lord so that I will be nearer to Him next year than I am with Him today. I will keep on sharing my journey with you through my blog thoughts and writings. I would encourage you to be discerning and search the scriptures for yourself because you are on your own journey. My New Year’s wish and prayer for my family and friends is that each of you would seek a new or deeper spiritual walk with Father God, Our Creator, through His Son and our Savior, Christ Jesus who is the promised Messiah.

Prepare the Way

In the season of Advent we anticipate a beginning, a start, an arrival, a coming. We are to prepare our hearts for the celebration of the birth of Christ but most of us get caught up with the busyness of the holiday itself and forget to take time to reflect on Christ, the reason for the season.

As we look at the account of the First Christmas in the Scriptures we remember Mary, Joseph, Baby Jesus, the manger, the shepherds, the sheep, other animals, the star, and the Wise Men. As Christians, this picture is etched in our minds and in our hearts. We believe that Father God sent His Son, Jesus, to be born of The Virgin Mary so that He would become our Savior so we could live our eternal lives in Heaven with Him. We see this in John 3:16 and read the Christmas story in the Gospels of Matthew and Luke.

To prepare is to make ready or to put in condition for something. In the Scripture account of the Christmas Story, God was preparing Elizabeth and Zechariah to parent John the Baptist. Mark 1:1 says, “Here begins the Good News about Jesus, The Messiah, The Son of God. In the book of the prophet Isaiah, God said, ‘Look, I am sending my messenger before you, and he will prepare your way. He is a voice shouting in the wilderness’…. This messenger was John the Baptist”. The Angel Gabriel came to Mary to announce that she would be blessed by God to be the mother of the promised Messiah. She believed and responded to the angel, “I am the Lord’s servant and am willing to accept whatever He wants”. In her obedience, she prepared for the birth of Jesus. Joseph was prepared by God in a dream. He believed, took Mary as his wife, did as God wanted, and prepared by taking care of Mary in anticipation of the Baby’s birth.

God prepares us, His children. He grows our spirits and makes us ready to be used by Him for His Glory. Mary, Joseph, Elizabeth, Zechariah, and John the Baptist were all chosen and prepared by God to be used in the fulfillment of His plan of redemption; the plan which is written about in the Old and New Testaments. The Messiah was to be born from the lineage of David and this list of ancestors is recorded in Matthew 1. This lineage was prophesied and planned by God. In Jeremiah 1:5, God says to Jeremiah, “Before I formed you in the womb, I knew you, before you were born I set you apart, I appointed you as a prophet to the nations”. Jeremiah 29:11 says, “For I know the plans I have for you”, says the Lord. “They are plans for good and not for disaster, to give you a future and a hope”.

I believe that God has a plan for our lives as He did for Mary, Joseph, and the others in the Christmas Story. We are all on a spiritual journey. Let us prepare to hear, see, and experience the love and promise of the Christmas Story in our lives this Christmas.

In the past I posted a Blog, “My Journey to Bethlehem”. I am going to update it and re-post it with this Blog. As I read it again, I recall all that God has brought me through in my personal spiritual story. I remember His faithfulness and I will continue to prepare the way for my ongoing spiritual journey. It is a season which fills itself with memories; sad ones and happy ones. May we all prepare for Christ to enter our hearts as we get ready to make new Christmas memories and look forward to 2012. Wishing you God’s Blessings, His Peace, and His Presence in your lives at Christmas, in the New Year, and always.

With Love and Merry Christmas to All, Anna Mae


December 17, 2011

My Journey to Bethlehem

As God prepared the road for Joseph and Mary, He is preparing our road.
Our road is our walk through this physical journey of life and our spiritual journey to God. My walk has taken me to Bethlehem and The Christ Child.

We are all at a different place in our spiritual walks.
God will help us to walk forward into a deeper place.

How do we get there?
How does our spirit grow?

I have found that God uses the circumstances and trials of life to awaken our spirits and to make us open to what He wants to teach us.

When the situations of life empty our cups of what we think is so important; God then, has the opportunity to fill our cups, our spirits, with the things which are spiritually and eternally important.

The things of this life are temporary. The physical busyness of getting ready for Christmas is soon over and we are taking down the tree, putting away or returning gifts, and making New Year’s resolutions to diet and exercise.

Each of us is looking for more than the temporary.

Scripture has taught me that “faith comes by hearing and hearing by the word of God”.

As we hear again the Christmas story, as we listen to and read scripture, as we sing songs of adoration, praise, and thanksgiving, as we worship together, and as we share our faith with each other, we grow and move into that deeper spiritual place.

I have found that love is contagious and so is faith.
Faith is a gift from God.
The Bible says that we all have been given the gift of faith even if it is as small as a mustard seed.
When we believe and receive this gift, our faith will begin to grow. We are to confess our faith, use our faith, and share it with others.
I have been given the gift of faith. I would like to share with you a little about my life and my personal faith journey.

To grow in faith is a choice. How God chooses to bring us to the place where we meet Him is not usually a choice. I have asked Him, “couldn’t you have brought me into a closer walk with you some other way?” I personally believe that God has a purpose and plan for each of our lives.

I was born in Brooklyn. My father was born in Norway. My mother was born in North Dakota. Her parents were pioneers from Norway and she was a teacher who taught in a one room school house. Dad was a carpenter. I have two sisters, Marlene and Jane.
We moved to Huntington in 1955. I graduated from Walt Whitman High School in 1960 and from Methodist Hospital School of Nursing in 1963. In 1964 I married my high school sweetheart, Richard. We started our family 6 years later. We lived in West Hempstead during our first years of marriage and moved to Dix Hills in 1974. Richie built our home on Long Island and we lived in it for 35 years.

God gave us four daughters but has only allowed us to raise two of them.
Erica is 39 and married to Trevor. They have two sons, Trevor and Hunter.
Christa is 28 and is married to Kristopher. They are expecting their first child in the Spring.

Our first born Elisa died at 9 years of age in 1979.
Our third born Carrie died at 2 weeks of age in 1980.
Elisa died in her sleep early one morning and Carrie was post mature in utero and died of the complications of meconium aspiration.

Needless to say these were the hardest years of my life.

My faith was being severely tested.
No physical person could help me.
I felt as if I was walking in a fog.
I was going through the motions of living.
I had to keep going for Erica. Richie couldn’t even function.
My parents and sisters were devastated.
No one could help us.
I was searching for comfort and purpose.

Many couples are unable to make it after the loss of a child because both are hurting so much that they can’t help each other.
Prior to the death of my children my life had been a very stable one.
Richie did not have an easy childhood but was now settled and happy as a husband and father. His world came crashing in on him once again.
His spiritual foundation was not strong enough to bring him any peace or comfort.
My friend Bobby said “you have the Lord and Richie has you”.
My faith gave me strength.
As God lifted me up I could keep Erica and Richie going.

My foundation of faith was begun and nurtured by God fearing parents who brought me to church and Sunday School at a very young age. I was baptized at Bethelship Methodist Church in Brooklyn.
I was confirmed at Gloria Dea Lutheran Church in Huntington.
I attended and taught Sunday School as a teenager at West Hills Methodist Church.
While living in West Hempstead, I attended Hempstead Methodist Church. This is where Elisa and Erica were baptized.
When we moved to Dix Hills in 1974 we attended the Dix Hills Methodist Church.
After the death of my children, I went back to West Hills Methodist Church to be with my parents and to be spiritually fed by a wonderful pastor who helped me through a very difficult time.

In my search for deeper understanding, increased faith, and spiritual growth, Erica and I began attending The Commack Church of God. God used the preaching and the loving congregation of this church to feed my spirit and to bring me into a deeper dimension of faith.

It was during this time that I continued to pray for another child. I had had two miscarriages. My prayer became, “God, if it isn’t in your plan please take the desire for another child away from me”. I had submitted to his will. He did not take the desire away. He gave us the desire of our hearts on May 25, 1983. Christa Grace was born. I thank Him every day for giving us another child and for giving Erica a sister.

In 1984 our family joined St. Luke Lutheran Church. It became our church home for 23 years. I taught Sunday School for 10 years and as a family we grew in faith and love for our Lord. Pastor Froehlich baptized, confirmed, and married Christa. Pastor confirmed and married Erica and baptized her two sons. The people at St Luke were our extended family.

In 2008 we sold our home of 35 years; I retired from Oncology Nursing at Huntington Hospital; and we moved to Orefield, Pennsylvania. Our new home is one mile away from Erica and one hour away from Christa. We had purchased a house in The Florida Keys in 1991. Again, God has given us the desire of our hearts. We are spending our retirement between sunny Florida in The Keys and Orefield, Pennsylvania near our children and their families.

I can only remember one time in my life when I questioned God’s existence. It was after Baby Carrie died. I couldn’t believe that a second child would be taken from me. When she died, others including Richie questioned how I could maintain my faith. How could a loving God have allowed this to happen again? Maybe the God, whom I’ve always known, was not really there. It was the loneliest time of my life. Who could I turn to if He wasn’t there, if He wasn’t walking with me.

This dry period only lasted a few weeks. I searched the scriptures. Where else could I go for answers? I would sit in my yard with my Bible. God led me to the Book of Job. Job was God’s most beloved servant and God allowed him to loose everything including his children. Job never lost faith. I wasn’t going to either! I was reminded of the poem, Footprints in the Sand. God was there and He would continue to carry me through the tough times in life.
When I read 2 Corinthians1: 4, 5, I knew that the words in this passage were meant for me. “God helps us in all of our troubles, so that we are able to help others who have all kinds of troubles, using the same help that we ourselves have received from God”.
He spoke to me through His word. I would continue to search and believe! I was sure that He had spoken to me; I was sure that He was there! I knew that He would use me in the lives of others and He has.

Faith is an awesome gift but with that gift comes responsibility. To he whom much is given, much is required.
Jesus is the Lord of my life. I love Him with all of my heart, mind, and soul. I am able to love others because He loved me first.
I pray for wisdom and discernment daily, asking God to use me to His glory in the lives of others. My trials have given me spiritual strength and understanding. God in me, through The Holy Spirit, gives me the ability to know what He would want me to do or to say to help others. He has touched people through me in my personal life and in my professional life as a nurse. I want to be His vessel and I know He hears my prayer.

Nothing is more important to me than being in God’s will. What I do for Him is the only thing that will last throughout eternity.

The Bible is our road map and GPS, giving us direction. It is God’s love letter to each of us. God’s promises are real. Jesus is our Savior. The Holy Spirit is our comforter and guide and God’s power within us.
We are God’s children and He calls each of us to come to Him just as we are. He draws us to Himself; asking us to believe and to receive the gift of faith. Anyone who truly confesses believing and receiving Christ will never want to turn back from their walk to Bethlehem.

By sharing myself with you, my hope is that your faith will be encouraged.
If anyone is going through a difficult time in their lives, you are not alone, God is with you. Ask for and seek His presence. He will make His presence known and give you His peace.

As we walk the road to Bethlehem this Christmas; may we grow in the love of Jesus, may we grow in faith, and may we pass on our increased love and faith to others.
I pray that the lights of Christmas will glow through each of us all year long.

I wish a Merry Christmas to everyone. I plan to continue my writings in the New Year. I thank The Lord for working in me and through me to complete my 2011 blogs. It was a promise which I made to Him and to myself two years ago. Thank you Dear Lord.

Wishing all who read my blog, a happy, healthy, and spiritually full 2012 as we continue our faith journey together.

The Body of Christ

As Christians, we are called The Body of Christ. Romans 12:5, tells us that “we are all parts of His one body, and each of us has different work to do”. As different parts of the same body, we belong to, and need each other. We are a family, the family of God. Romans 12, goes on to say in verses 6-8, “God has given each of us the ability to do certain things well. So if God has given you the ability to prophesy, speak out when you have faith that God is speaking through you. If your gift is serving others, serve them well. If you are a teacher, do a good job of teaching. If your gift is encouraging others, do it! If you have money, share it generously. If God has given you leadership ability, take the responsibility seriously. And if you have a gift for showing kindness to others, do it gladly”.

When we ask Christ into our lives, our spirit connects with God’s Spirit. This is the beginning of our spiritual journey. The first birth is physical. The second, or new birth, is spiritual. Our conviction and choice to believe can occur at any physical age. We are physical beings on a spiritual journey. The third being of the trinity now lives within us. In Romans 12:2, God tells us that now He wants us to stop “copying the behavior and customs of this world, but let God transform you into a new person by changing the way you think. Then you will know how good and pleasing and perfect His will really is”. The renewing of our mind is a continuous and ongoing process. Ones mind chooses to believe and with this decision, a spiritual journey is begun. The Holy Spirit now lives within us and we begin to experience the gifts of the spirit in our life. These desired gifts of the Spirit are recorded in Galatians 5:22. They are love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control.

As these gifts become who we are and direct how we act, they light up how we serve. “They will know we are Christians by our Love” is a song title identifying who we are by how we act. We are accountable to God for our actions. No one is perfect but we are also held to a greater accountability by others because of our faith. More love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control should exemplify our lives as being a member of the body of Christ.

A Lifestyle of Thanksgiving

Psalm 100 is called a Psalm of Thanksgiving. It says,
“Shout with joy to the Lord, O earth! Worship the Lord with gladness.
Come before Him singing with joy. Acknowledge that the Lord is God!
He made us and we are His. We are His people, the sheep of His pasture.
Enter His gates with Thanksgiving; go into his courts with praise.
Give Thanks to Him and bless His name. For the Lord is good.
His unfailing love endures forever, and His faithfulness continues to each generation”.

Throughout the Psalms, David comes to God in Worship, Praise, and Thanksgiving. In Psalm 138:1, David says, “I give you Thanks, O Lord, with all my heart”. Psalm 136 lists the numerous reasons why we should be Thankful to our God. These include various acts of creation and the powerful acts of miraculous interventions in the lives of God’s people, the Israelites.

We should be in constant awareness of God’s gifts in our lives but instead we take so much of what we have for granted. It seems that only when we face the loss of something of importance do we prioritize the things we treasure. Examples of these treasures are; life it self, health, and the ones we love. After the experience of a loss, we no longer tend to be consumed with the trivia which seemed to be so important to us previously.

Let us not take God’s gifts in our lives for granted. Let us continually live in an attitude of Thanksgiving, an attitude of gratitude! A positive person is a Thankful person. A positive person is a witness to the goodness of God and is a light in the darkness. A negative, complaining, and ungrateful person lives in darkness. No one wants to listen to or be around a constant complainer for any length of time. Let us not be consumed with what we do not have. We should be aware of and grateful for that which we do have, no matter how humble. We tend to take the beauty around us for granted, including the splendor of nature, our family, and our loved ones.

God’s love endures forever! Belief in this love and in the knowledge that God is in control with a plan for my life gives me a sense of peace. This faith and peace give me the ability to rest in God’s promises and blessings. As I seek first the Kingdom of God and His righteousness, I know that He will supply all of my needs according to his riches in glory. He is generous with me and I will be generous with Him. A generous attitude is a positive and Thankful attitude. He has, does, and will continue to meet my needs. His faithfulness is a constant in my life and I will continue to live a “Lifestyle of Thanksgiving”. When I pray, I pray believing. I thank Him for all of His blessing in my life. I also thank Him for the anticipated answers to my prayers even before my requests are realized.

I am especially Thankful for Richard, Erica, Trevor, Christa, Kris, Trevor, Hunter, and my expected grand-baby-to-be. I am grateful for our Lab, Molly, and now for Richie’s new little kittens, Suki and Socki. I lift up a prayer of Thanksgiving for the successful surgery on Richie’s right hand. The operation went well and I pray a prayer of gratitude in anticipation of the successful restoration of motion in his right thumb after the cast removal and rehabilitation. Thank you, Lord!

I Thank you Lord for family and friends and most of all I thank you for your love and the gift of faith which you have given me. With a grateful heart I wish everyone a Blessed and Happy Thanksgiving. “In all things we are to give Thanks” (Ephesians 5:20). My favorite bible verse is Romans 8:28, “All things work for good to those who love the Lord and are the called according to His purpose”. Even if you are going through a difficult time in your life, know that God is with you and He is weaving the circumstances of your life for good. In times of discouragement and difficulty, keep thanking God for carrying you through. He will! His joy and peace are internal and do not change with the external circumstances of life.

As recorded in 1Chronicles 29:13, “now therefore, our God, we thank thee, and praise thy glorious name”. Amen

The Verb "To Be"

In grammar, we know that a noun is a person, place, or thing. God is a person, therefore in grammar, God by definition, is a proper noun. Recently, in a sermon I was made aware of the fact that God is also a verb. This fact became an Ahah moment in my greater understanding of God’s character.

In Exodus 3:14 God told Moses that His name is “I Am”, revealing Himself as the God who is always there. YHWH, "I Am who I Am", is a divine name containing the truth that God alone IS in the fullness of Being and perfection, without origin and without end.

A verb tells us something about the noun or subject of a sentence. It expresses actions, events, or states of being. “To be” is a linking verb connecting the subject to the action. It shows the condition or existence of the subject.

God is “I Am”. “I am” is from the verb “to be” which can be conjugated into past, present, and future. God, the “I Am”; IS, Was, and always Will Be.

God is always at work in our lives.
God is, was, and always will be Life itself.
God is, was, and always will be Love.
God is, was, and always will be Light.
God is, was, and always will be Triune
God is, was, and always will be Spirit.
God is, was, and always will be Truth.
God is, was, and always will be The Way.
God is, was, and always will be Omniscient.
God is, was, and always will be Omnipresent.
God is, was, and always will be Omnipotent.
God is, was, and always will be Merciful.
God is, was, and always will be Gracious.
God is, was, and always will be Righteous.
God is, was, and always will be Holy.
God is, was, and always will be Good.
God is, was, and always will be Wise.
God is, was, and always will be Unchanging.
God is, was, and always will be Sovereign.
God is, was, and always will be Faithful.
God is, was, and always will be Eternal and Infinite.
God is, was, and always will be the Living Word.

“I Am” is not just an identity, it is an action. God IS what He does. He IS the act of Love, Mercy, Truth, Graciousness, Goodness, Faithfulness, and Righteousness.
Because “I Am” is who He says He is; let us be who He wants us to be in faith and love.

Promises and Fulfillments in God's Story

We find God’s story in the scriptures. The book of Genesis, the beginning, reveals God to us. We see His character, who He is, and His creation, who we are. Throughout the sixty six books of the Bible, He shows us His plan to make the way for us to be right with Him. We were created to commune with, and to praise Holy God. Natural man fights this spiritual relationship until he or she has a personal encounter with our Holy God. The New Testament is the fulfillment of that which He promised in the Old Testament. One is the continuation of the other. The New Covenant fulfills the Old Covenant. The Old Testament is quoted throughout the New Testament. The New Testament fulfills prophesies found in the Old Testament. The Bible is the most widely and carefully read book of all times. It IS the living Word of God. God and His Word are the same yesterday, today, and forever.

Reading and studying the Bible grows our faith. In it we find the building blocks of our faith. It is the living Word, because when we let it, it speaks to us; God speaks to us through His word. His presence, through His Word, will fill the emptiness that each of us experiences at times in our lives. We try to fill our longings, hungers, and emptiness in all of the wrong places until we have a personal encounter with the Living God found in the Living Word. You cannot believe this because of my experience, you must seek to have your own experience and spiritual encounter.

God gave His law in the Old Testament. We were separated from Him because no one could follow all of the law. In the Word, God uses building blocks to lay out His plan to fulfill His promises to us, preparing the way, to the Gospel Story. Jesus, in the New Testament, fulfills God’s promises and God’s plan. Jesus IS The Messiah. God reveals this throughout His scriptures. All believers become connected, become one in Christ.
He is the final sacrificial lamb. In Revelation, the sixty sixth and last book of the Bible, God shows us, through John, a new heaven and a new earth without the barriers between God and Man. God’s promises have been, are being, and will be fulfilled. We read in Revelation 21 that John was shown “The Holy City, Jerusalem, descending out of heaven from God. It was filled with the glory of God….The wall was made of Jasper, and the city was pure gold, as clear as glass…..No temple could be seen in the city, for the Lord God Almighty and the Lamb are its temple. And the city has no need of sun or moon, for the glory of God illuminates the city, and the lamb is its light… nothing evil will be allowed to enter….but only those whose names are written in the Lamb’s Book of Life”. As a believer, I know that my name is written in the Lamb’s Book of Life because John tells me in 1John 5:13 that “I write this to you who believe in the Son of God, so that you may KNOW you have eternal life”. I choose to believe in God’s word and I have made Christ The Lord of my life. I believe that He is who He says He is. I believe God’s promises and I believe that He will fulfill what He has promised. Revelation 22 says, “See, I am coming soon, and my reward is with me, to repay all according to their deeds. I am the Alpha and the Omega, the First and the Last, The beginning and the End”.

Justified by Faith

Grace, faith, and the light of God’s word are the thoughts that come to mind as I think about the historical significance of the Reformation. We are saved and justified by God’s Grace alone, through our faith alone, because of God’s plan of salvation through Christ alone. Our own good works and personal merit do not save us. We can’t be good enough, religious enough, or follow the law perfectly enough to be saved or justified by our own actions.

God wants to have a personal relationship with His children. He wants us to come directly to Him. He wants us to read the word for ourselves. He wants us to come straight to Him in prayer and conversation. We come to the Father in prayer, worship, and bible reading through our spiritual leaders such as priests and pastors, but we should also come to Him in personal, private worship. In history, prior to the Reformation, prior to the translation of the bible into English, and prior to the printing press, Christians didn’t have bibles in their homes like we have today. They depended on the church for scripture reading and explanations of the word. Today, God speaks to us directly as we come to Him in the privacy of our own homes.

Grace does not eliminate God’s laws. His laws set parameters and act as guides in our lives. But the law does not save! Our belief in the Lord Jesus Christ saves us through our faith, by God’s grace, alone. Through Jesus we are forgiven for not keeping the law. No one in his own ability or power is able to keep the whole law. “None are righteous, no not one” (Romans 3:10). Without God’s laws, there are no absolutes and everything is permissible. With God in our personal lives and in the life of the society in which we live, there is righteous order. God’s promises, laws, words, and righteous order are absolutes.

God’s Grace gives us what we don’t deserve. God’s mercy spares us from what we do deserve. Jesus did it all for us! Jesus didn’t come to earth to start a religion. He came to show us the heart of God. He didn’t come to abolish the law; He came to fulfill the law (Matthew 5:17). When we try to follow the law and leave grace out, we become legalistic. When we follow Christ, we are set free; we are free indeed (John 8:36). There is liberty in Christ by grace through faith when we come to Him believing that He is who He says He is. Search the scriptures for yourself. We are justified by faith (Romans 5:1).

We all Experience Miracles in our Lives

The definition of a miracle is the occurrence of any event or happening which appears contradictory to or unexplainable by the laws of science or numerical odds. It is a marvel usually attributed to God. We see examples of miracles throughout the Old and New Testaments in the Scriptures. When we reflect on our own lives each of us can recall personal examples of these unexplainable events.

A few of the miracles recorded in the Old Testament were; the parting of the Red Sea, the water flowing from the rock which Moses struck, Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego remaining unharmed in the fiery furnace, Baalam’s donkey speaking, David slaying the giant with a sling shot, and Gideon’s fleece becoming wet or dry according to his request concerning God’s word to him.

In the New Testament Jesus turned water into wine, Jesus walked on water, He fed the multitudes with a few fishes and loaves of bread, He healed Jairus’ daughter, and raised Lazarus from death. The early church, Paul, and the disciples experienced many miracles as well.

Hebrews 13:8 tells us that Jesus is the same yesterday, today, and forever. What He did before, He is able to do today, and will continue to do in the future. The birth of a child is a miracle. My children and grandchildren are miracles in my life. I have experienced many unexplainable events and circumstances along the way. God uses His word, people, situations, and signs as I walk the path through my life’s journey. The greatest miracle is in knowing that Christ gave His life for me so that I could come to God through Him and know that I have been given eternal life; to be with Him and those who I love throughout eternity.

We increase our faith and raise the anticipation of miracles in our life when we remember the miracles of the past; personal and biblical. We must have an awareness to recognize the miracles in our life. When we recognize them we should recount them by talking about them or writing them in a journal. We must come to God in thanksgiving for the numerous little miracles and the greater miracles which we experience. We are to rejoice and celebrate the miracles. He is to be glorified for the work He is doing in our lives.

The keys to recognizing and experiencing the miracles in our lives are to stay connected to God through prayer, praise, and worship. His answers, blessings, and favor are the daily miracles which touch and change our lives

God does have His reasons for performing miracles. They become tangible proof that He is God and they help people to believe. They help Him to increase people’s faith. Miracles identify the person He is using as being sent by God. Miracles help to meet the needs of His people. Sometimes He uses miracles as judgment like He did with the plagues in Egypt. They arouse fear and respect for God. No matter who God uses as the vessel for His miracle, God must be the one to receive the glory. Our eyes are to be upon Him, not upon the miracle. To God be the Glory!

I Needed to Rest in The Lord Today; and That is What I Did.

Last night, Saturday, we had dinner at Key Colony Inn. It is our most favorite restaurant in the Florida Keys, or for that matter, maybe the one we prefer over any other, any where. We consider the owners and their long time, hard working, attentive, staff to be our friends. When we came back home to Layton we were on the computer and watched some TV. I love Bill Gaither’s Old Time Gospel hour at 7PM on Saturday nights on TBN. After that, Richie and I watched Charles Stanley’s Sunday message and shut the TV off.

We must have gone to bed too early, because neither of us could fall asleep. It was senseless just lying there, so I got up to read. I took my bible off the table and looked at the index listing the books in the Old Testament and New Testament. The two books that I had in mind to read again are Nehemiah in the Old Testament and Hebrews in the New Testament. I decided to start reading the book of Nehemiah and before I knew it, it was 2AM and I had finished reading all of the chapters in the book. I found God’s message to Nehemiah, a cup bearer for the King of Persia in about 400 to 500 BC, to be applicable to 2011 AD. We can compare and apply God’s clear message, given to Nehemiah, to rebuild the wall of Jerusalem to the need to restore and rebuild America’s foundation today. Our country was built on Judeo-Christian principles, laws, and values. Just like the fallen walls of Jerusalem, our system is being torn down, economically, morally, socially, and spiritually. Political correctness and self-serving individuals have broken down our walls. The book of Nehemiah shows how God’s people, armed with God’s power and resources, can accomplish God’s plan for our individual lives and for our nation.

Nehemiah was a man who walked with God. He knew God, he talked to God, he mourned with God, he waited on God, he submitted to God in obedience, and he gave God all of the glory for everything in his life. I want to be like Nehemiah. I want to walk with God and saturate myself in His word before I find myself in the middle of a crisis. I want to be prepared to be used by God where He places me and where He needs me. God put a plan in Nehemiah’s heart. Nehemiah explained the plan to the Israeli people of Jerusalem who had returned from exile. One by one, group by group, they worked together to rebuild different sections of the total wall. The wall which was 2 ½ miles long and 8 feet deep was rebuilt in 52 days. God was in Nehemiah. God was in the plan. God gave His people the will, ability, and power to carry out His plan. They knew that God’s hand was upon them and upon the plan. When the wall was completed they all gave God the glory. God’s will, done God’s way, never lacks God’s provision. When we look at what God has accomplished, we are sure of what He can do, and we live in anticipation of what He will do next. Faith acted upon grows greater faith in our lives. We must be strong in the Lord when we face opposition against our plans and in our lives. We are not to be surprised or fearful when it happens because God is sovereign and will walk with us through life’s difficulties and oppositions.

I spent today talking to the Lord. I was in prayer for my family, loved ones, and friends; especially for those going through times of trial and sickness. I do pray The Jabez prayer for each of us and for America daily. I pray that God will Bless America. I pray that He will direct and empower His people and strengthen and expand her spiritual territory. I pray that His hand will be upon her and I pray that He will protect her from harm and from doing harm as Jabez had prayed. As instructed in Psalm 122:6, I also pray for the Peace of Jerusalem.

I spent time writing my blog and reflecting on the teachings found in the book of Nehemiah. In quiet meditation I praised and worshiped the Lord by myself. He hears me and He gives me His peace. He brings thoughts to my mind and He clarifies and confirms my thoughts, my plans, and my decisions. I fed my spirit by listening to a few internet sermons by the pastor of my daughter’s church in Pennsylvania. He is doing a sermon series on Nehemiah. He helped my understanding. Faith comes by hearing and hearing by the word of God (Romans 10:17).

Life does get busy even when one is retired. I set my priorities and spend time daily with those I love; my Lord being on the top of that list. If you love someone, you want to spend time with them, know them, and connect with them emotionally and spiritually. We are comfortable with our loved ones. Peaceful rest in the Lord refreshes. I am refreshed.

Lord, fill me with your Spirit and continually refresh and renew my mind.
To God be the Glory as I rejoice in this day!

The Key of Faith

The access to God is a door which is opened by the Key of Faith. Prayer turns this Key when we speak to God believing that He hears us and will answer us.

Christ knocks at the door of our hearts. I can remember singing a song in Sunday School, “One door and only one and yet there are sides of two; I’m on the inside, on which side are you?” My faith has unlocked the door to Christ’s heart and I have accepted him into my heart. We are connected. God is my power source, my battery. Christ is my way to the source, my redeemer, my rescuer. The Holy Spirit is the power in my life, God’s power within me.

Prayer turns the Key of Faith activating God’s power within us. A credit card does not do us any good if we don’t activate it. It must be officially connected to the source of credit. A car doesn’t run if the gas tank is empty. The gas in the tank fuels the car’s engine giving it the energy and power to operate. Our lives do not work on empty. Our lives become fruitful and productive when we are activated by God, in Christ, through the Holy Spirit. He is The Vine, we are the branches. I abide in Him and He abides in me. Read John 15:5.

Faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the word of God (Romans 10:17). Read His Word. Study His Word. Believe His Word. Faith is a gift (Ephesians 2:8). Receive God’s free gift of Faith. Come to God in prayer and turn the Key of Faith. You will have an encounter with God and you will experience His power in your life. Don’t be too proud to try it. He will prove Himself to you as He has to me.

I Pray

I begin my day and end my day praying for God’s blessings in my life and in the lives of others. My family knows that I pray for them daily but many on my personal prayer list do not know that I am praying for them specifically by name and have been doing so for years. My prayer is that The Lord would bless each life and that He would make Himself known to every person that I lift up to Him in prayer. I know that He hears me. The scriptures assure me that He will honor my faith filled believing prayers. I do not have to see what God is doing in their lives. I just know that He is at work in each life.

In addition to those who I continually pray for, God asks me to pray for those who are facing times of challenge, suffering, and pain. My heart becomes burdened for hurting loved ones, friends, and acquaintances. I feel their tears as Christ feels my tears. The more one loves God, the more love and compassion we have for others. Christ has said that if a person doesn’t love his neighbor, who he can see, he does not love God, who he does not see. Also, when we help or care for any one in need, we do it as unto the Lord. The opposite is also true; when we are able to help someone and don’t, it is as if we have ignored the Lord. We are to be God’s hands, feet, ears, eyes, and voice in the lives of those we love and those whose path we cross. The Holy Spirit speaks to my spirit. He directs me and I want to be obedient. At times my prayers are what He calls me to do. Sometimes I feel so helpless and prayer is the only thing I am able to do. If I tell someone that I will be praying for them; I pray. We should not promise someone that we will be praying for them if we do not intend to carry out our promise.

Many years ago I was introduced to Jabez in the Bible. He appears in the Old Testament book of 1Chronicles, chapter 4. Bruce Wilkinson wrote about Jabez in his little book, “The Prayer of Jabez”. At that time I started praying The Prayer of Jabez for my self, my family, and everyone on my prayer list. Jabez changed the course of his own life by praying a one sentence prayer for himself to God. The Bible tells us that God heard his requests and granted them. God is no respecter of persons and will hear us too. Jabez, named for the fact he was born in pain, didn’t want distress and pain to be his destiny. He asked God to answer four requests. He prayed, “Bless me indeed, Enlarge my territory, Keep your hand upon me, and Protect me from evil or from causing pain”. I ask God to bless me, to grow my faith and use me, to always be with me, and to protect me from harm or from doing harm. He continues to bless me as He hears my prayers. He says that He will grant my requests and I believe Him. The promises in his word are true.

I believe and I pray.

Continuous Communication

It is a beautiful late summer Saturday. I am having my first cup of coffee as I sway in my swing and experience the peace of the morning. Some crickets are chirping and a gentle breeze is moving through the trees. The corn field across the road from our home is high and almost ready to be harvested. I have a view of a Church Steeple in the distance and a chipmunk near by in the grass. God is everywhere. I feel His presence as I talk to Him and quietly sing songs of praise. I sing, “In my life Lord, Be Glorified, Be Glorified, Be Glorified Today”. I also ask Him to Be Glorified in the lives of my family as I lift them up in prayer and whisper each name. He hears me and He honors my prayers. Then I sing “Father, I adore Thee, lift my life before Thee, how I love You. Jesus, I adore Thee, lift my life before Thee, how I love You. Spirit, I adore Thee, lift my life before Thee, how I love You”. God inhabits the Praise of His People! (Psalm 22:3)

As I come to Him in prayer, I ask Him to Bless me, Keep me, Fill me, Teach me, and Use me. “Live in me Lord today”.

I come to you this morning and lift up my prayer,
Bless me Oh Father, today and always,
Keep me Oh Jesus, forever in your arms,
Fill me Oh Spirit, that I might feel your power,
Teach me Oh Lord, so my faith can grow strong.
Use me Oh God, in somebody’s life today,
May someone who is searching be able to see You, in me;
I want to walk closer to You.

I Thank You Lord for hearing my prayer.
Now help me Dear Lord, to be still.
I want to hear what You have to say.
My prayer isn’t formal, it is just conversation.
I know that you care about the little things and the big things in my life.
You tell me to “pray without ceasing” (1Thessalonians 5:17).
Lord, you and I are in continuous communication;
I can always find You where I am. (Matthew 28:20)

As I love, learn, and listen to your Word,
I hide it in my heart.
This You have asked me to do (Psalm 119:11).
I hear you speak to me throughout my day.
Your Word, hidden in my heart, speaks to my mind, and You answer my prayers.
Lord, show me Your Way, so I might live as You say.

Seek God for a Lifetime

When we truly look for God, we will find Him. Luke 11: 9, 10 says, “And so I tell you, keep on asking, and you will be given what you ask for. Keep on looking, and you will find. Keep on knocking, and the door will be opened. For everyone who asks, receives. Everyone who seeks finds and the door is opened to everyone who knocks”.

If anyone is questioning God’s existence, scripture tells us to come to Him seeking. God will honor a sincere searching heart. As we ask Him to make himself known to us, the Holy Spirit will draw us unto himself and into all understanding.

Jeremiah 29: 11-13 says, “For I know the plans I have for you”, says the Lord “They are plans for good and not for disaster, to give you a future and a hope. In those days when you pray, I will listen. If you look for me in earnest, you will find me when you seek me. I will be found by you”, says the Lord.

As seen in these verses, everyone who seeks God will find Him. “For God so loved the world that He gave His only Son, so that everyone who believes in Him will not perish but have eternal” (John 3:16). When we find Him, we will experience changes in our lives but our seeking cannot stop at that point in our Christian walk. 1Chronicles 16:11 tells us to “Search for the Lord and for His strength, and keep on searching”. When we seek and acknowledge God, He will bless and reward us. We must continue seeking God throughout our faith journey.

First, we seek to find Him; to have a personal relationship with God through Christ.
Second, we seek to learn more about Him as we study the Word and travel our Christian journey. Our Faith will grow and so will our knowledge and understanding.
Third, we seek him to be sanctified; to be made holy and more like Christ.

Proverbs 2:1-8 instructs us to “tune your ears to wisdom, and concentrate on understanding. Cry out for insight and understanding. Search for them as you would for lost money or hidden treasure. Then you will understand what it means to fear the Lord, and you will gain knowledge of God. For the Lord grants wisdom! From his mouth comes knowledge and understanding. He grants a treasure of good sense to the godly. He is their shield, protecting those who walk with integrity. He guards the paths of justice and protects those who are faithful to Him”. We learn of God’s ways, His promises, and His instructions for our lives as we read, discover, and study His Word.

Seeking God is a vital necessity as we journey through life. We experience His peace and presence when we seek and acknowledge Him. Matthew 6:33 tells us to seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness. When we do, God will take care of helping us with all of our other needs and concerns. Put God first and He will help you with the rest.

When we find God, He will give us His peace, His presence, His strength, and His power; the abundant life. We must not stop seeking and must not forget what He has already done for us. As we seek God, “surely goodness and mercy shall follow us all the days of our lives and we will dwell in the house of the Lord forever” (Psalm 23:6).

Spiritual Anemia

I have been suffering from Spiritual Anemia. I have been depriving my spirit of the spiritual food which it needs to grow and be healthy. In the Lord’s Prayer, we pray, “Give us this day our daily bread”. If we don’t feed our physical bodies daily, we can get physically sick. A few months ago, I was diagnosed with Iron Deficiency Anemia. I wasn’t eating enough iron rich foods such as beef and spinach etc. My fatigue and weakness was diagnosed and my doctor put me on a high dose iron supplement. It was what my body needed to elevate my red blood count, hemoglobin, hematocrit, and serum iron count. One thing does affect another and because my body couldn’t circulate enough oxygen to my system, due to the low red blood count, the platelets in my blood started overproducing to compensate. It resulted in an abnormally high platelet count. I was feeling horrible and couldn’t even participate in minimal exertion before I had to sit down to rest. After proper diagnosis and treatment I am feeling so much better and my stamina has returned.

I have just described a true physical scenario which resulted from an unbalanced physical diet. What happens if we don’t feed our spirits? If we don’t give our spirits their daily bread, spiritual food, our spirits become stagnant and are unable to mature. Our beings are made up of our physical body, our mind, and our spirit. All three components of the whole have to be fed. Our mind has to be kept active; constantly learning or being fed new information, so it can remain sharp.

Spiritual anemia is when we don’t grow up in our faith or when we have a dry period in our Christian walk. As Christians, we have to ask ourselves, “Am I chronically spiritually anemic or am I just going through a low calorie dry period in my Christian growth and walk?” We can’t just be fed for one hour a week on Sunday. That single meal can’t be expected to carry us through the week. As a believer, I have accepted Christ as my savior. I have a desire to learn more about God, and the desire for Him to reveal His purpose in my life. I feel His presence and He satisfies my spiritual hunger when I spend time with Him. I want to be His vessel, to be used by Him. This can only happen if my spirit is nourished.

I have been in a dry spiritual place. When my spirit is underfed, I don’t have enough nourishment to spiritually extend myself to others. The busyness of life overtakes the quiet time which I need and desire to learn, grow, read the word, and be filled with God’s Spirit. I have been attending a number of churches to find one where my spirit can be fed. My spirit was fed yesterday as the pastor did a study on Psalm 34:1-10. I was reminded that “They that seek the Lord shall not want”. In the Psalm, David praised the Lord at all times. We are to praise God even in the hard times, or the dry times when we can’t feel His presence. David was the youngest and ‘least’ of his brothers. God choose David, the smallest and weakest, so that He would be glorified. When we are weak, then God becomes our strength. Philippians 4:13 tells us that we can do all things through God who strengthens us. David sought God, and cried out to Him. God heard David’s cry. God answered, delivered, and rescued David. David had an encounter with God. When we encounter God as David did, we will never be the same. David knew that God was his strength and that God was ever present in his life. David wasn’t afraid when he faced Goliath. God had been David’s strength when he protected his sheep from wild animals. God would be his strength against the giant, Goliath. I was reminded that God is my strength against all of the Goliath’s in my life. David said “don’t fear anything”. When we know that God is with us, we don’t have to depend on our own strength or ingenuity. It is not who we are; it is who’s we are. We are a child of The King. He is our strength.

“Faith comes by hearing and hearing by the word of God” (Romans 10:17). We must feed on God’s Word. As we read, listen, and are fed, our faith will grow. We become more open to the things of God and are able to experience his presence. When we encounter his presence, as David did, we will live in anticipation of what God will do in our lives. When we encounter His light we become lit. He will shine through us so that He can touch the lives of others. They see Him in us. “The Angel of the Lord dwells in those who reverence the Lord”.

I will feed on the word. I will not be spiritually anemic.

Do You Need Me? Asks God

 

Do You Need Me? Asks God

Are you a strong, logical thinking, bright, and stubborn? Are you unhappy or even depressed if things don’t go your way? Does being in control of your life and circumstances keep you happy and stable? Are you a perfectionist, therefore a great procrastinator if things aren’t perfect? In life, our greatest gifts can be our worst shortcomings.

I have lived with a wonderful strong, logical, bright, stubborn, perfectionist for almost 47 years. It is said that opposites attract. In the case of Richard and me it sure is true. I am certain of the fact that God gave Richard to me in marriage to help ease his stubbornness, his tendency to depression and anger, his desire to control, and his impulsiveness. Our marriage would never have survived if our personalities had been alike. When I look back, I can see how my personality has helped him and how his personality has made me stronger and helped me to learn how to stand up for my rights and become who I am.

I can never remember a time when I didn’t know that The Lord was with me. I had a very stable childhood with a strong Christian foundation and upbringing. Richard did not have stability as a baby and a young child. After his birth in December of 1942, during WW2, his biological father was going overseas and his mother refused to wait for his return. She gave Richard up for adoption to a couple, who were family friends. Alf and Martha took this baby into their lives and adopted him when he was 5 months old. Richard was brought to the Lord as a baby, being baptized first catholic, and then in the Lutheran Church after his adoption. The second abandonment in his young life came when he was 3 years old. Martha left Alf and Richard. Richie has memories of the Christmas Eve after Martha left. No one thought to invite them to share the holiday with them. He can remember sitting on the edge of the bed with Alf who was crying and holding Richie in his arms. Alf was the one stabilizing factor in Richie’s life. He loved Richie unconditionally and would do anything to keep his child’s life as happy and stable as possible. When Alf went to work, Richard was cared for by family friends who were members of the Swedish Lodge which Alf belonged to. Richie spent many weekends with Alf at Lindberg Lodge Picnics. Alf had been born in Sweden and he was an active member of the Swedish Vasa Order of America.

It was through the Vasa organization that Alf met Angela Ulman and her sister and brother-in-law Albert and Carrie Peterson. Alf and Angela were married when Richie was about 7 years old. Alf wanted Richie to have a mother. Angela had been widowed young. She and Bill were never able to have the children which they had so desired. Her sister, Carrie lost their only child, Justa, when he was 12 years old, from a ruptured appendix in the years before the discovery of penicillin. Alf, Angela, Aunt Carrie, and Uncle Albert all loved and cared for Richie and even spoiled him, which is very understandable. He is so grateful to have had them in his life.

When Richie was 17 years old, Alf died suddenly. He had a stroke while on his way to work early one Fall morning. Richie had just graduated from High School. He was now the man of the house. Angela did some baby sitting and ironing to help with finances. Uncle Albert was able to get Richie into the Carpenter’s Union after High School. He worked for an Acoustical Ceiling and Lathing Company, working on LI and in NYC.

When did I enter the picture you ask? We both went to Walt Whitman High School. I have been told that on the day he first saw me, he went home and told his mother, Angela, that he saw the girl that he was going to marry. I knew nothing about it, as we had never even met. We were in our junior year at Walt Whitman High School in South Huntington. We were in the same physics class and he also says that he remembers seeing me in the hall that day and remembers what I was wearing. Devine Destiny? God’s plan is perfect but I sure didn’t know about it at the time, nor did I learn about it for a long while after that. We were introduced, and we did go to our high school senior prom and senior banquet together. For High School Graduation and my June birthday, Richie bought me an expensive Omega Watch. I tried to refuse accepting it but he says now that he knew that it was a long term and permanent investment. I guess I was clueless! He always thought big and always put his whole heart and concentration into attaining his goals and dreams. Angela always said that Richie could sell a refrigerator to an Eskimo. This God given gift of persuasion and sales ability has helped him in his career as a construction superintendent and in the process of establishing two businesses. He overcame childhood rejections, developed a strong work ethic, and demonstrates the consistent ability to prove himself by hard work and persistence by reaching so many of his goals. Another strong character trait which he possesses is his integrity. God has always directed Richie’s life. He has helped him through the hard and painful times. God has blessed him and has shown him His favor throughout the years. There have been internal battles between the natural man and God’s Spirit within, as there are in each of our lives. God continues to prove Himself to us in our individual lives and in our marriage.

I like to say that Richie pursued me until I caught him….or something like that. He sure was persistent. He set his sites and nothing was going to dissuade him. The last thing he would do every night before going home after riding around Huntington was to ride past my house on Vermont Street. I understand that he even did this when I wasn’t at home; I was attending Nursing School at Methodist Hospital in Brooklyn. He demonstrated his love for me in many ways. I can remember one instance when my sister, Marlene, friend, Anna Johnson, and I were headed upstate for a weeks vacation. I could see the concern on Richie’s face and in his heart as he said, “If you have any problems with the car or any other concerns, call me and I will drive up to wherever you are to help you”. I knew that he meant it and I think at that moment, I became so very sure of his love. We were engaged when I was a junior in Nursing School and married in 1964, four years after high school and one year after I became a nurse. We will be celebrating our 47th anniversary on September 25th of this year.

This writing has taken off in a different direction from my beginning thoughts. It’s like life which turns corners that we would never have imagined that it would take us. God’s persistence is supernatural. He has a plan for each of our lives. He loves us with an everlasting love. Sometimes we have to step back and reflect on where we have come from, and where He is bringing us to, in order to put where we are now, into perspective. He knows us and loves us and desires for us to know Him and to love Him in return, but He will never force Himself on us. The circumstances of life and the choices we make can all alter the path which we find ourselves on. I think that many times we get to the place where He has planned for us to reach but we get there our way, which is harder and longer than it would have had to be because we didn’t seek His guidance and direction along the way. Our human nature is stubborn, proud, and sometimes too logical. We depend on ourselves instead of leaning on the Lord. We don’t think that we need God. This is where faith and trust come in. “Faith comes by hearing and hearing by the word of God”, as is written in Romans 10:17. Hebrews 11:6 tells us that, “But without faith it is impossible to please God, for he who comes to God must believe that He is, and that He is the rewarder of those who diligently seek Him”. We can’t expect Him to answer our prayers if we aren’t sure that He hears our prayers or if we aren’t sure if He is even there at all.

When we seek God, we will find Him. We are told this in Matthew 7:7. God wants us to need Him and to depend on Him. God wants us to have more than a superficial faith. As we seek God and pursue a deeper faith, He will make Himself known to us. We will experience His Presence, His Blessings, and His Favor. WE KNOW! BECAUSE WE KNOW! BECAUSE WE KNOW! God doesn’t logically instruct us to believe, He reveals Himself to us. God is omniscient (all knowing), omnipresent (present everywhere), and omnipotent (all powerful). The more we seek Him, the more sure we are of Him. The more we trust Him, the more we depend on Him. The more we know that we need Him, the more obedient we become in our Christian walk.

Blessed

I am so very grateful to God for the many blessings I experience and especially those which have occurred within the past month. Richard and I had a safe, enlightening, and amazing trip to Santorini, Greece and Rome, Italy. On June 20th we attended the destination wedding of a wonderful young couple. Paul Christian, the groom, and his family are from Norway. Melora, the bride, and her family are from Australia. Paul’s late grandmother and I are first cousins. “Devine Destiny” brought Paul and Melora together at a church service in Australia. Paul was in Australia finishing his chiropractic education. The initial meeting, followed by the social networking of facebook, led to this meaningful wedding on the beautiful Island of Santorini with its multinational guest list. The most impressive and significant memory for us is that of God’s place in the day, His place in each of their lives, and in their promise to each other, and to God, that He would be positioned first in their marriage. After thanking their family, friends, and parents for loving and supporting them, they expressed the following, “Most importantly, we thank God for bringing us into relationship with Him and for revealing His Son, Jesus, to us. He is the ultimate example of who and what Love is. We thank Him for bringing us together, to love and serve one another, for all of our days”. The new Mr. and Mrs. Pallesen have asked for all to keep them in prayer as they begin and continue their journey as husband and wife. This I will do.

The scripture readings at the ceremony were: 1Corinthians 13:1-8, 13, Isaiah 54:10, Micah 6:8, 1John 4:12, and Ephesians 3:14-22. They tell us that “Love never ends”, “God loves us with an Everlasting Love”, and “His power is at work in us and all Glory will be unto Him forever, and forever”.

Santorini is a semicircular shaped island created by the eruption of a volcano which was active as far back as prehistoric times. Santorini is steep and rocky on the west coast where it faces the volcano’s crater and plunges down into a circular lagoon, the caldera. Perched on the rim of the cliffs are the island’s main towns. Paul and Melora were married at the Santo Winery and the reception was in Fira, both were on the edge of these cliffs. The volcanic origins of the island render it unusually fertile. Its most prized product is wine. Grape vineyards cover much of the island. The reception in Fira was held at sunset and was at one of the numerous restaurants which covered the rim of the rocks overlooking the Caldera. It was an amazing site as the sun set and the countless restaurant lights began to illuminate the cliff’s edges.

The island’s east coast is flat and fertile with miles of black pebble and sand beaches. We stayed in Kamari on the East coast. Along the miles of beach were also miles of out-door restaurants. Our favorite one, along the beach, was Irini’s where we had fresh fish, stuffed peppers and tomatoes, stuffed zucchini, Greek salad, etc. and of course some Santorini wine.

The weather was sunny and warm with a breeze. We rented a quad and had fun touring the island from Oia in the North to the lighthouse on the Southern tip of the island. The Giorgaros Fresh Fish Tavern, close to the southern tip, was recommended to us and we had an amazing meal there twice. It is family owned and run. The father fishes, the mother cooks, and the young daughters serve. We were brought into the kitchen to choose the fish we would eat. Richie and I shared a Red Snapper which was prepared to perfection. On our second visit we were with our friends from London, Barbara Jane and Bill. The mother prepared two slipper lobsters with a light oil and tomato pasta dish which we all thoroughly enjoyed. We continued to tour Santorini by car on the two days in which we were joined by our friends.

In addition to attending the very exceptional wedding, we experienced many other blessings. We are so grateful to have been with our family from Norway, to have been joined by our friends from London, to have met so many new wonderful and interesting people, and to have had the opportunity to visit Santorini and Rome. To Paul Roy and Torunn and your family, and to Barbara Jane and Bill…. you are all special blessings in our lives and we thank the Lord for your friendships.

I do not take for granted everything that I have been blessed with in my life. I am grateful for the opportunity and ability to take such a wonderful trip. I am grateful for my devoted husband, for our loving family, and for our forever friends. Richie and I will be married 47 years in September. I thank the Lord for being with us, guiding us, and supplying all of our needs and so much more. He has been with us during the hard times and the happy times; in the valley and on the mountain top.

We thank you Lord for your Blessings and for your Favor. We will continue to seek a closer walk with you, and continue to serve you, as we live in anticipation of what you will be doing next in our lives. We are blessed.

Reunion

I have been thinking about reunions lately. Alumni who graduated from Walt Whitman High School in South Huntington, NY, 50 years ago are planning a 50th Reunion. Where did the years go? High School helped us to prepare for life and relationships. When I look at our High School year books, some of us had long term goals and direction, but most of our personal comments involved temporary likes and aspirations. Life was really less complicated then, and most of us were a little naive. Some of the likes described under our pictures were; sports, cars, dancing, food, money, and days off from school. Dreams mentioned were; to own a corvette, travel the world, to graduate from High School, to graduate from college, to get married, to be a millionaire, to marry a millionaire, and to live “the life of Reilly”. Kids today wouldn’t understand that last one! One student’s dream was “to be alive at 50”. Well he made it! he’s coming to the reunion. My likes were very essential; eating, sleeping, and talking on the telephone. My dreams were long term and I have been granted both. They were to have success and happiness in a nursing career and marriage. My profession and my family are huge parts of who I have become. I started Nursing School in the fall after High School graduation. A year after becoming a nurse, I married Richard, my high school sweetheart. We will be celebrating our 47th anniversary on September 25, 2011.

My mother would say, “your high school years are the best years of your life!”. While in the middle of a life’s stage, we can only see the present, not the whole picture. I can remember worrying about temporary things like tests, grades, and friendships. We are usually unable to see how a school’s philosophy or how the power of individual teachers will have a permanent effect on our lives.

Who we become, is influenced by family genetics, family values and interactions, choices we make, and the external experiences of life. Our high school years did help to mold us. God uses all of our life experiences to shape our character and form who we become. Our mind, spirit, and emotions grow as our body matures and changes through out our life time.

This reunion is certainly special, but the ultimate reunion will be at the end of this life. At that time, we will be reunited with our loved ones on the other side. I envision my Mom, my Dad, and my girls, Elisa, and Carrie, being at heaven’s entrance to meet me. With them will be Aunt Carrie, Heidi, and other believers who have touched my earthly life and gone on ahead of me. Most of all, Jesus will be the all consuming light and presence in Heaven. I will be with Him and my loved ones throughout eternity. What a Reunion that will be!

I thank you Lord for the gift of faith and the hope of eternity which is within me.
I will continue to live my present life to its fullest as I await the ultimate reunion.

Grandma's Glimpses of God

After having a conversation with my grandsons I started thinking about the ways in which I could write my blog so that they, being 7 and 5, could better understand my words. The boys are two of the reasons why I am writing down my spiritual thoughts in a blog. They will be able to read it for themselves in the future but, now, I want to write words which they can understand. Words sometimes make the things which we feel, see, hear, smell, and taste very complicated. God’s love is not complicated, and all the ways in which I experience God are not complicated. Below are some ways in which God occurs in my life. Many times the feelings that these thoughts and experiences convey, bring tears to my eyes. I know God is in them and He is in me. I love Him with all of my heart.

I see God in the words of the Bible.
I see God in the faces of children.
I see God in the animals we love.
I see God in the moon and stars in the dark night sky.
I see God in the colorful fish swimming in the ocean.
I see God in the waving wheat fields and in the majestic corn fields.
I see God in a red rose and in all of the other beautiful flowers in my yard.

I hear God in the laughter of children.
I hear God in the soft falling rain.
I hear God in the wind rustling through the trees.
I hear God in a baby’s first cry.
I hear God every time someone tells me that they love me.
I hear God each time the church bells ring.
I hear God in the sound of a bird’s sweet song.

I feel God’s presence when I sing a hymn
I feel God’s presence when I pray.
I feel God’s presence when I read His word.
I feel God’s presence when I sit quietly.
I feel God’s presence when I hold a sleeping child.
I feel God’s presence at home, at church, or walking a path in the woods.
I feel God’s presence in a hug and when my family is all together.

I experience God’s presence in the smell of a beautiful flower.
I experience God’s presence in the smell of a freshly powdered new born baby.
I experience God’s presence in the smell of the air after the rain.
I experience God’s presence in the repeat of a smell which I had smelled in a past memory; knowing that He was with me then as He is with me now.
I experience God’s presence as one of my daughters walks into the room with the distinct smell of their favorite perfume.
I experience God in the smell of fresh pine at Christmas time when I celebrate my Savior’s birth.
I experience God’s presence when the aroma of food fills the room where my family is; cooking and preparing to eat a meal together.

I taste the presence of God, at the alter, during communion.
I taste that God is good when I feed on His word.
I taste the presence of God, just knowing that His words are as sweet as honey.
I taste the presence of God when I say grace before a meal to thank Him for the food which He has provided for my family and me to eat.
I taste the presence of God in the way the Israelites did when they were wandering in the dessert God provided them with manna, quail, and streams of living water. He does the same in my life when I am in a troubled, dry place.
I taste the presence of God when He instructs me of the fact that I do not live by bread alone.
I taste the presence of God because I know that He is my daily bread.

God is Good!
God’s presence is all around us and within us!
Look for Him, Seek Him, You WILL find Him!
He is the Creator.
As we live our lives in a conscious awareness of all of His creation;
He continually gives us glimpses of His presence.
Whether a grandchild, or a grandparent;
Don’t miss what He is showing you and what He is trying to tell you throughout your day, and throughout your life.

Vertical and Horizontal Relationships

Our relationship with God is vertical, heaven to earth and earth to heaven. Our worldly relationships are horizontal, from person to person. Jesus wants to be at the point where the vertical and horizontal of our existence meets. Christ became man, a person in the horizontal realm so that we might understand the vertical relationship between ourselves and God. When we choose to believe in Christ Incarnate being flesh and spirit, man and God at the same time, He becomes our way to God. And God now sees believers through the filter of Christ. How can we know how to live and love horizontally without God’s vertical love and direction? Many try to live life without this order and direction, never finding this point of vertical and horizontal intersection.

When Adam and Eve disobeyed God they took all of humanity with them. We are all born with original sin. No baby has to be taught how to be bad, we all have to learn how to be good and to do the right things. The Bible says that none are righteous, no not one. When we choose to believe in God and His Word we take on Christ’s righteousness. God sees imperfect us through our Perfect Savior. He took our sins with Him to the Cross. God’s Salvation Plan starts in Genesis after Adam and Eve sinned and fell from favor with God. No one is good enough or has worked hard enough to be saved because of who he is or what he has done. We are saved because we choose to believe. We experience a personal vertical relationship with God because we come to God through Christ. Christ reconciled us and restored man’s relationship with God.

Jesus came to show us how to live horizontally and how to treat and respond to others. The Bible is our guide book and also God’s love letter to each of us. As we grow in our Christian walk we should become more like Christ. We must examine our lives and our spiritual growth. Our spirits must be continually fed. Are we feeding our spirits at all? Are we satisfied with our eternal security thinking that we don’t have to grow from a baby Christian to a mature Christian? Do we listen to sermons, read the word, fellowship with other Christians, and study the scriptures? Are we still only feeding ourselves the milk of the word or are we getting into the meat of the word? We cannot become more “Christlike” if we don’t know what Christ was like!

Our Savior and King was first seen by the world in a humble stable. He came to show us how to humbly serve and love one another. Our Lord demonstrated servant-hood by bending down and washing His disciples’ feet. He is the Good Shepherd and we are His sheep. He was kind, soft-spoken, loving, forgiving, humble, generous, thoughtful, truthful, trustworthy, and obedient. Horizontal relationships require humility and love. As Christ bore our burdens, He wants us to bear each others burdens. He says that if you have helped or given aid to anyone, even the least of your brothers, it is as if you have done the good deed unto Him. The opposite is also true; if we harm someone we hurt our Lord and His spirit is grieved.

I will continue to study the word and nurture my faith. Faith is a gift and as I use and expand my faith it grows and develops into a mature faith. The more I stand out in my faith the more it becomes who I am. I will train the habit of faith. I trust God’s word and strive to be obedient to God’s leading in my life. I will persist to seek a more intimate vertical relationship with God and a more loving horizontal relationship with my family, friends, and everyone I meet. I want to hear God’s voice and do His will.

A Special Expression of Love on Mother's Day

Mother’s Day is bitter sweet for me. Each year memories of the 1970 Mother’s Day floods my mind. This was the day I went into labor with our first child, Elisa Lynn. She was born on May 11, 1970. Richard and I spent the day with my parents, my sisters, and their families at my sister Jane’s house on Sunday the 10th. I was in labor for more than 16 hours and Elisa was born on Monday morning. Elisa was nine years old when she died on June 27, 1979.

Much has happened in my life since then. My daughters, Erica and Christa, have given me many sweet memories throughout my years as a mother. I am blessed and consider being a mother my most important life time mission. They make me so proud. They are my legacy. Now this legacy has been wonderfully extended to include my grandsons, Trevor (7 1/2) and Hunter (5).

This year Christa visited me a couple days prior to Mother’s Day with her good wishes and a beautiful White Trumpet Lily Plant. Richard and I were with Erica, Trevor, Trevor, and Hunter for dinner on Mother’s Day. I have been going to physical therapy for leg muscle and sciatic nerve pain. Something which I needed was an exercise mat so I can do my exercises at home. This was my very welcomed Mother’s Day gift from Erica.

After dinner I was presented with a special and priceless gift from Trevor and Hunter. It was their precious sweet little voices reading the Hallmark Book, “All The Ways I Love You”. When I first opened the package I thought that they wanted me to record the readings but soon found out that they had recorded their words for me. At Christmas time I had recorded a Hallmark book for them. I was “The Christmas Story”. It took me a long time to read and record each page because I couldn’t do it without crying. It was very emotional for me because of the thought, “if I am able to pass on anything to my grandsons, my faith, my spiritual legacy, is by far the most important thing I can do”. I want them to know Jesus and the Christmas Story. I feel a deep sense of responsibility and honor to be part of their lives.

Erica’s job getting the boys to read, say, and record each page was not easy and is much appreciated. Having 5 and 7 year old boys sit still and concentrate for any length of time is a feat in itself.

I would like to share the words which they recorded for me. I only wish you could hear their little voices as they took turns reading or memorizing the words on each page. Trevor is in the first grade and can read. Hunter is Pre-K so had to memorize his half of each page.


“Happy Mother’s Day Grandma. We love you.”
“I love you quicker than a minute. I love you longer than an hour.”
“I love you stronger than the wind. I love you softer than a cloud.”
“I love when you are quiet. And I love when you are loud.”
“I love you closer than your shadow. I love you further than the sun.”
“I love you, too, when raindrops fall;...one...by one...by one.
“I love you round and round the world. I love you through and through.”
“And when it seems impossible to love you more.....I do.”

My grandsons sure know how to melt a grandmother’s heart!

I thank you Lord for all you have brought me through. I thank you for our daughters, for our son-in-laws, and for our grandsons. As you have loved me, I love them. May each of us pass on your love to others. Thank you Father, for allowing me to be a mother and a grandmother. Amen

Loving Others is a Reason For Our Existence

Life is a journey. God is with us throughout the earthly journey which we are on. He knows and cares for our physical needs and uses the circumstances of life to help us mature spiritually. We are mind, body, and spirit. He is working in every area of our lives. We are spiritual beings in a temporary physical body. God, at times, allows us to experience problems and pain. He uses our times of suffering as a pathway to our spiritual maturation and growth.

In my life’s journey, I have found out that whatever God leads me to; He will see me through. I have also learned that God’s Will never takes me where His grace will not care for me. When I am in the middle of a storm, God is there to give me direction and a quiet peace; a peace that only comes from knowing Him personally. The more I trust Him and demonstrate my obedience to Him, the more my faith grows. We grow in faith by watching God work in our lives and work in the lives of others. Faith is contagious and it is an action word. Our faith grows as we use it. We see God’s power at work and we become bolder in the expression of our faith. God can use me in the lives of others as I allow His reflection to shine through me. Because He loves me, I can love others. I do not want any credit for being His reflection or His vessel. I give God all the Glory for everything He has and will be doing in my life.

The following is a written piece by Claudia Minden Weisz called,
“And God Said No”.

“I asked God to take away my pride, And God said ‘No’.
He said it was not for Him to take away, But for me to give up.
I asked God to make my handicapped child whole, And God said ‘No’.
He said, ‘her spirit is whole, her body is only temporary’.
I asked God to grant me patience, And God said ‘No’.
He said that patience is a byproduct of tribulation, ‘It isn’t granted, it’s earned’.
I asked God to give me happiness, And God said ‘No’.
He said He gives blessings, ‘happiness is up to me’.
I asked God to spare me pain, And God said ‘No’.
He said, ‘suffering draws you apart from worldly cares and brings you closer to Me’.
I asked God to make my spirit grow, And God said ‘No’.
He said I must grow on my own, But He will prune me to make me fruitful.
I asked God to help me love others, As much as He loves me,
And God said, ‘Ah, finally you have the idea'."

Loving others is truly a reason for our existence. I love The Lord and I hope my love for each of my readers shines through my writings. I love all of you; family, friends, and everyone reading this blog, even if I don’t personally know you. May each of us pass on to others, God’s unconditional love.

The Greatest Man in History; His Name is Jesus

He had no servants, yet they called Him Master.
He had no degrees, yet they called Him Teacher.
He had no medicines, yet they called Him Healer.
He had no army, yet kings feared Him.
He won no military battles, yet He conquered the world.
He committed no crime, yet….they crucified Him….
He was buried in a tomb, yet He lives today.

I do not know who originally wrote the above, but I do know that everyone should think about these facts and decide personally, whether they choose to believe in God’s perfect salvation plan or not. Who do you say Christ is? Peter had to answer this question directly to Jesus. Peter said, “You are the Christ, The Son of The Living God”. You can read about the presentation of this question in the following scripture passages: Mark 8:27-33, Luke 9:18-20, and Matthew 16:13-20.

Have you answered this question in your own life? Pray, honestly seek, and ask The Holy Spirit to reveal the truth to your heart and spirit. He Will!

Wishing everyone the Blessings of Christ’s Resurrection as you celebrate Easter!

Peace is Precious

True peace is found in the presence of God. The absence of peace is strife, uneasiness, stressfulness, and even war. We cannot experience peace when we are at war with God. Philippians 4:7 tells us that when we receive God into our lives He will give us the “peace that passeth understanding”. This promised peace can’t be bought or worked for. It is God’s gift to believers. It is a fruit of the Spirit. Galatians 5: 19 says, “When you follow the desires of your sinful (carnal) nature your lives will produce evil results”. Strife and stressfulness will be consequences. Galatians 5: 22 says, “But when The Holy Spirit controls our lives, He will produce this kind of fruit in us: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self control”. Galatians 5: 24-26 says, “Those who belong to Christ Jesus have nailed the passions and desires of their sinful nature to His cross and crucified them there. If we are living now by The Holy Spirit, let us follow The Holy Spirit’s leading in every part of our lives. Let us not become conceited, or irritate one another, or be jealous of one another”. God’s peace within us will show us how to respond to the circumstances of life and help us to know how to react to people who are irritating or harming us.

Judges 6:24 says, “The Lord is Peace”.
Psalm 34:14 says, “Seek peace, and pursue it”.
Isaiah 48: 17-18 says, “I am The Lord, your God, who teaches you what is good and leads you along the paths you should follow. Oh that you had listened to my commands! Then you would have had peace flowing like a gentle river and righteousness rolling like waves”.
Romans 15:33 says, “May the God of peace be with you all”.

With God, we can experience peace in times of trouble. There is peace in the middle of a battle, in a raging storm, and in the darkest valley which we walk through. Peace is the consequence of believing. We should not seek peace, we should seek a personal relationship with The Peacemaker, our Creator God. God helps us rise above our weaknesses, our infirmities, and our failures. He puts us onto the path of righteousness and peace. Matthew 6:33 tells us to “seek first The Kingdom of God and His righteousness and all these things will be added unto you”. When we seek and find God, peace and the other gifts of the spirit will follow.

FAITH

Faith is believing in, or for, something that seems impossible. It is knowing that nothing is impossible with God. Faith cannot be logically described. I think that is why it is harder, and takes longer, for a very logically minded person to accept God’s free gift of faith. Faith defies logic. Faith cannot be worked for. Faith is believing in, and hoping for that which is not seen. The scriptures say that if we see what we hope for we stop hoping for it, whatever it may be.

We live in a three dimensional world. Logic only sees, hears, feels, tastes, or smells that which is around us. God is greater than our five senses. He is in us and all around us. There is a supernatural world. Deep faith, in a Supernatural God, opens up this supernatural world to the believer. We let ourselves think out of the box as we read the Bible and read God’s promises in the scriptures. We believe that God can do anything.

The believer can visualize the Creation Story as described in Genesis. The believer knows that Moses received the 10 Commandments directly from God on Mount Sinai as recorded in Exodus. We believe the story of the Angel of the Lord, Balaam, and the talking donkey as found in Numbers 22. We want to have faith like that which was demonstrated by Joseph in Egypt, by Daniel in the lion’s den, and by the three Hebrew boys, Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego when they were in the Fiery Furnace, as seen in Daniel 3.

We are all God’s children, His unique, individual creations. Each of us is directly connected to Him. No matter how logical you think you are, you are not a mutation; you are a creation. God created you, God loves you, and God has a plan for your life. It is up to you to believe and receive these facts. And yes, it takes faith, not logic! Each of us chooses to believe that God is who He says He is, or we choose not to believe that He is who He says He is; our creator. All have free will; all of us have a choice to make. It will not be forced upon us. Everyone has an internal longing for truth and meaning in our lives. We search for faith. Many find faith, meaning, success, and love in all the wrong places. When we find God, who was there for us all the time, we find the love and meaning that we were looking for. We experience a changed life. When we accept God and His plan of Salvation, we are given the gift of a measure of faith. Galatians 5:22 tells us that Faith is a fruit of the Spirit, one of the gifts of the Spirit. The bible says that every believer is given a mustard seed sized faith.

How does the small mustard seed faith that we are given grow into the great faith we search for? Romans 10:17 tells us that Faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the word of God. We cannot sit back and expect our faith to increase by osmosis. When we hear and read God’s word, look for and experience God working in our lives, and become bold in our faith and obedience to Him, we will see our faith grow from small mustard seed faith into mountain moving faith. Faith has to become an action word. When we stand out in faith, not wavering, we will see God working in our life and see the situation we are believing in and for, become a reality. As we stand on His promises and see His outcomes, we get bolder and our faith increases. We learn to trust Him more and obey that which we believe He is saying to us. Our faith leads us to follow where He is growing us and where He bringing us to. We now live in anticipation of what He will be doing next in our life. The faith journey is a very exciting one. I am excited and humbled by what God has done and continues to do in my life. I wish the same for you!

ONE WAY ?

The Scriptures say that God created Heaven and earth.
His creation and His plan for us is recorded in His Word, the Scriptures.
Everyone on earth has a direct relationship to God because He made each of us. He has His stamp on each person’s life; “Made By God”. He is the potter, each of us is the clay. Whether a person believes in God or not, God has this direct relationship with each of us as His creation.

I do believe that The Bible is The Word of God. I believe that there is One Creator, Father God, True God, “Elohim”. The Hebrew word for God in Genesis 1:1 is Elohim. This word is a plural word meaning three or more; The Father, The Son, and The Holy Spirit. Deuteronomy 6:4 says, “Hear, O Isreal, the Lord, our God is One!” Here again the name used for God is Elohim. Also the word ONE is “echad” which means unity in plurality. Our God is The Three in One, The Father, The Son, and the Holy Spirit. We read about Creator God, The awaited Messiah, and the Holy Spirit throughout the Old Testament as seen in Isaiah 53 and Psalm 22. The fulfillment of these old Testament prophesies is found in the Gospel accounts of the New Testament.

I found an article by Kevin Haag, parts of which I am going to paraphrase here:

The Old Testament tells us of God’s redemption of His chosen people, the Israelites. He brought them out of slavery, gave them his law, and delivered them into the Promised Land. They forsook the Lord and worshipped other gods. He gave them judges but they refused to give up their evil practices. He pleaded for his people to return to Him.
Today, most of us don’t worship idols made of stone but we are all sinners in the eyes of a Holy and Righteous God (Romans 3:23)

God has always had a plan for our redemption. He sent his son, Jesus Christ, to redeem the world (John 3:16). When Jesus became God incarnate, He was truly God and truly man. (Philippians 2:7,8). He had a divine nature and a human nature.
Jesus was unique, He lived without sin. No other religious leader can claim that.
Jesus was different than any other religious leader; we cannot give equal honor to Him and other leaders. Buddah (Siddhartha Gautama), Muhammad (claimed to be a “prophet” of God), and Confucius, did not claim to be deities, they were all mortal men.

Jesus was without sin. He was in a class by Himself. When He came to earth, He lived without sin (2Corinthians 5:21). No other religious leader can claim that, nor can any mortal (Romans 3:23- read verses 21-31).
The greatest of other religious leaders could mediate the law, instruct on the law, council others, think deeply, and speak wisely, but none was qualified to offer atonement for the sins of the world. Jesus’ death was made as a payment for the sins of mankind. His sacrifice was perfect. He voluntarily suffered an exhausting, agonizing, and painful death because He (God Incarnate) loved us. (John 10:11-18 and Romans 5:6-11)

Jesus was resurrected from the dead. He was raised from the dead by God. This fact gives Him credentials that no other religious leader possesses. Buddha, Mohammed, and Confucius are dead. Christ is alive!!

Religion doesn’t save, joining a church or a denomination doesn’t save, doing good works doesn’t save, nor does being a good person save.

The dictionary definition of “save” in a theological sense is “to deliver from sin”. The theological definition of “salvation” is “spiritual rescue from sin and death”. Every man comes into the world with a sinful nature. When we choose to believe, and receive God’s Spirit into our spirit, we allow Him to become greater and our own sinful nature to progressively decrease.

Proverbs 14:12 says, “There is a way that seems right to a man, but in the end it leads to death”. We all will face physical death someday. The death which Proverbs is referring to is a spiritual death, the void of God’s spirit within us (The second death). By believing “He is” who He says He is, God says that He will come in to our hearts and dwell with us now and throughout eternity.

God does give us free will. We choose to believe or not to believe. That is why it is so very important to seek for the truth for ourselves. The bible tells us that if we seek, we shall find. We are saved by God’s Grace, not by anything which we do, in and of ourselves. Salvation and Faith are gifts from God to anyone, anywhere, who seeks, believes, and receives. They are free gifts from God to us; given because of His love, grace and mercy. Being born again of the spirit means that we have chosen to believe what God says in his word, to believe the whole council of God. Either we believe that the whole bible is the Word of God, or we don’t. Either we believe in God’s plan of salvation, which He planned from the beginning, or we choose not to believe.


It does matter what we believe; the decision is an eternal one. Jesus Christ, the Son of God, God incarnate, the Son in our triune God of Father, Son, and Holy Spirit is the only way to God; the only way to heaven; the only way not to be absent from God throughout eternity. He alone is able to redeem. He alone is worthy of our devotion and worship. God’s word is true. Jesus is The Word. Jesus is Truth. He says, “I am The Way, The Truth, and The Life; no man comes unto the Father but by Me” (John 14:6).

1Timothy 2:5, says “For there is One God and One mediator between God and men, the man, Jesus Christ”.