I really don't think any of these things that I call secret are intended to be secrets by God. The scriptures are clear but Satan seems to fog our minds and keeps us from learning the things in this life that really bring happiness. So keep praying to be filled with His Spirit and Satan will lose his power to confuse us and things will be made plain to us so that we can understand God's will for us.
All my life I have thought that it was OK to let people know how you feel about different things and to make it clear to them feelings or no feelings involved. I'm talking about simple conversations, that take on emotions and when emotions get involved anything can happen.
When you share your home with someone, you are in close proximity all the time and when it is a family member that you haven't lived with for years, it can get quite complicated getting use to each others ways and habits.
My son and I are sharing my motor home together, talk about close proximity, even though it is a large motor home it is small quarters for two people that have not been together for years. I am very happy to have him with me, having rescued him from a very abusive situation and I mean abusive. That's all I am going to say about that, but I want to say that what he has been through and other members of my family have been through is very difficult to know how to deal with the after effects and not understand the pain that they have gone through.
So together we have learned that our tongue can be a tool for happiness or unhappiness and cause us to be depressed or happy. We have learned it the hard way, instead of reading the word of God and taking it to heart, we are a stubborn people and usually have to learn things the hard way by experience. That's what has happened to us, by little insinuations we have hurt each other and I am probably more guilty than he is, not knowing how to handle someone that has been hurt to the core and the pain of it is so real it shows on their countenance.
Just recently we have been studying the book of Proverbs and not knowing what being filled with the Spirit will do we realized that God had sanctified our tongues and that the happiness that it brings is unreal. No more worries about what the other thinks or does, we just accept each other as they are and pray for each other. It brings happiness that nothing else can compare.
James 3:2 "For we all stumble in many things. If anyone does not stumble in word, he is a perfect man, able also to bridle the whole body." Now I am not saying that we are perfect, not at all, perfection is
something to strive for but for us to know what our condition is about is for God to judge and not for us to brag about and end up with a load of pride that is worse than before. This is not a brag session, this is real life situations that God takes in His own hands and gives us the remedy and sometimes we don't know that He is even working it out. If I'm bragging at all it is about what God is able to do for us and through us if we ask Him in sincerity. This is another gift of the Spirit, a Sanctified Tongue. It brings a world of happiness that nothing can be compared. You might say all these gifts are a gift of love that God pours out on those who come in sincerity and in humility asking for His fullness.
Be filled with His Spirit and enjoy the blessings of love that He pours out in your life each and every day and share some of them with me. I would love to hear of your experiences that God is pouring out in your life. Grandma Joan
Saturday, January 31, 2015
A Secret That Shouldn't Be
It seems to be a secret anyway, I never hear anyone talking about it, not even from the pulpit and now that I've discovered it, I am going to let it out to the public. It's a shame to keep anything so wonderful a secret and I personally don't think God intended it to be that way but for some reason no one that I know of talks about it.
I touched on it the other morning but yesterday as I was thinking about what God had done for me I was overwhelmed with thanksgiving and wonderment and love for Him. I am nothing special and when I asked to be filled with the fullness of God, I didn't think about the results of that request.
Several times now, not just once but several times I have been aware that He has taken something away that was offensive to Him and I didn't know it until it revealed itself in my daily life. For example:
Someone offended me in a very offensive way some time back and it not only did me in, it did my children in that observed it. I was hoping that I would never be confronted with the person again. BUT, I was, very recently and you know what? I was so surprised by my reaction that I haven't gotten over it yet. I greeted them with happiness and was actually glad to see them. It surprised me so much that I just have to share what being filled with the Spirit means. My feelings of horror were gone and I was able to be Christlike. It never occurred to me what being filled with God's Spirit would do in my life. I didn't do anything to deserve this except ask for God's infilling, so I know from experience that we do not earn these gifts that God wants to pour out in our lives. They are gifts. That happened to be the gift of forgiveness, and it's a wonderful gift of the Spirit.
There is another gift of the Spirit that is powerful:
I was the one that offended someone and I noticed a few days later that the peace in my heart vanished and I was overwhelmed with uneasiness and could not figure out why and so I asked God to help me and show me why my peace had vanished. Then I remembered what I had said and I had to pray for help in making it right and when I finally did, my peace returned. I was overcome with sorrow that I had hurt someone unintentionally but had really hurt someone. That is called the gift of repentance, and that is a wonderful gift also. I didn't ask for these gifts, I asked to be filled with the fullness of God and that is what I received as an answer to my prayer. Wonderful gifts of the Spirit.
Another gift of the Spirit I discovered was when I pray for the conversion of a friend or family member I thought I had to do something to straighten them out. Wrong idea. I guess I always thought it was my duty to inform them of their sins and they would respond. I guess they did respond by ignoring me and I can't say as I blame them, now that God has revealed the real way to win souls, I see how wrong I was and not only wrong but it was offensive to them. I have been impressed that love is the only way God works in our lives and in the lives of others, anything else fails and fails miserably. So I have decided to pray for them and let God do the work on their hearts and can you believe it, it really works. Being patient and letting God do His work is another gift of the Spirit. It is not our job to convict or convert, it is God's and He does His work well. The secret here is to stay out of His way by trying to do His work and let Him have full sway in their lives and in our lives.
This should not be a secret but it seems to be a real hidden item in the Christian's life and was in mine too. So let's remember if we want real happiness let God fill you with His fullness and receive these three gifts, forgiveness, repentance and love.
There is another secret that I am going to share with you tomorrow that shouldn't be a secret but as I said I haven't heard much about it if anything at all. So until tomorrow, keep seeking to be filled and you will be, I know, if He can do it for me, He can do it for anyone.
Remember the text Ephesians 3:19 "To know the love of Christ which passes knowledge; that you may be filled with all the fullness of God." O, to be filled with His fullness, I am looking forward to more of His fullness each day and please don't forget to ask, we must ask if we want to receive.
Grandma Joan
I touched on it the other morning but yesterday as I was thinking about what God had done for me I was overwhelmed with thanksgiving and wonderment and love for Him. I am nothing special and when I asked to be filled with the fullness of God, I didn't think about the results of that request.
Several times now, not just once but several times I have been aware that He has taken something away that was offensive to Him and I didn't know it until it revealed itself in my daily life. For example:
Someone offended me in a very offensive way some time back and it not only did me in, it did my children in that observed it. I was hoping that I would never be confronted with the person again. BUT, I was, very recently and you know what? I was so surprised by my reaction that I haven't gotten over it yet. I greeted them with happiness and was actually glad to see them. It surprised me so much that I just have to share what being filled with the Spirit means. My feelings of horror were gone and I was able to be Christlike. It never occurred to me what being filled with God's Spirit would do in my life. I didn't do anything to deserve this except ask for God's infilling, so I know from experience that we do not earn these gifts that God wants to pour out in our lives. They are gifts. That happened to be the gift of forgiveness, and it's a wonderful gift of the Spirit.
There is another gift of the Spirit that is powerful:
I was the one that offended someone and I noticed a few days later that the peace in my heart vanished and I was overwhelmed with uneasiness and could not figure out why and so I asked God to help me and show me why my peace had vanished. Then I remembered what I had said and I had to pray for help in making it right and when I finally did, my peace returned. I was overcome with sorrow that I had hurt someone unintentionally but had really hurt someone. That is called the gift of repentance, and that is a wonderful gift also. I didn't ask for these gifts, I asked to be filled with the fullness of God and that is what I received as an answer to my prayer. Wonderful gifts of the Spirit.
Another gift of the Spirit I discovered was when I pray for the conversion of a friend or family member I thought I had to do something to straighten them out. Wrong idea. I guess I always thought it was my duty to inform them of their sins and they would respond. I guess they did respond by ignoring me and I can't say as I blame them, now that God has revealed the real way to win souls, I see how wrong I was and not only wrong but it was offensive to them. I have been impressed that love is the only way God works in our lives and in the lives of others, anything else fails and fails miserably. So I have decided to pray for them and let God do the work on their hearts and can you believe it, it really works. Being patient and letting God do His work is another gift of the Spirit. It is not our job to convict or convert, it is God's and He does His work well. The secret here is to stay out of His way by trying to do His work and let Him have full sway in their lives and in our lives.
This should not be a secret but it seems to be a real hidden item in the Christian's life and was in mine too. So let's remember if we want real happiness let God fill you with His fullness and receive these three gifts, forgiveness, repentance and love.
There is another secret that I am going to share with you tomorrow that shouldn't be a secret but as I said I haven't heard much about it if anything at all. So until tomorrow, keep seeking to be filled and you will be, I know, if He can do it for me, He can do it for anyone.
Remember the text Ephesians 3:19 "To know the love of Christ which passes knowledge; that you may be filled with all the fullness of God." O, to be filled with His fullness, I am looking forward to more of His fullness each day and please don't forget to ask, we must ask if we want to receive.
Grandma Joan
Thursday, January 29, 2015
Disappointments
I know for a fact that I am not the only one who has been disappointed by something in life's struggles.
I remember making plans to run a lifestyle center, long before Weimar entered the scene, I kept dreaming of how I would do it and not sure where but eventually I had the where too and all of a sudden, I really don't remember the real reason but it all fell through. I have been greatly disappointed that I couldn't do that, my heart has always since I was young been set on helping people get well and stay well.
Wouldn't you say that that was a great disappointment? Yes, it was and sort of, still is. I assume that I am not the only one who has had a great disappointment in their life. Some have been disappointed in friends or a special friend, I have had that experience too. A great friend that I thought we would be friends for life, all of a sudden turned cold on me and I could not figure out why. I was so broken up by it I turned to the Lord for the reason why and He reminded me of an incident where I had been guilty of making a new friend in my life and who by the way is still my friend and who reads my blogs. My other friend that turned cool, was of a very jealous nature unbeknowns to me and didn't want me to have other friends. That was a disappointment to me. She passed away not long after that and I felt so bad about it, it took me quite a while to get over that disappointment.
Some have a disappointed relationship with a spouse they have chosen for life. I cannot relate to that as well as others might, we were married 63 years and yes, there were some disappointments along the way but nothing major that caused a separation or hatred like some people have. My heart goes out to those kind of disappointments because to start with they are to be a life long relationship and didn't end up that way. I know it is heart breaking and I understand and have seen the pain that it has caused.
Others have been disappointed over how their occupation that they have chosen has turned out. I can't quite relate to that because the things that I did as occupations were just sort of handed to me and I am happy with the way they turned out, some were harder than others but all in all, not a disappointment to me at all.
People in Bible times suffered great disappointments, the disciples when Jesus was put to death on the cross, thought that was the end of their relationship with Jesus. But three days later He was with them again. Their disappointment was rewarded with a life time of service for their master.
Joseph was greatly disappointed when he was sold as a slave but decided in his heart he would serve the Lord regardless of what happened, he was accused of trying to go to bed with his bosses wife and was put in jail for three years but he was such a good prisoner that he was put in charge of the prisoners. He was released to interpret a dream for the Pharaoh and that led to being the highest office in the kingdom next to Pharaoh. That was his reward after his great disappointment.
Abraham was disappointed when he didn't have any children and God had promised him a son and he was one hundred years old when the promised was fulfilled. I am sure the intervening years of waiting were a great disappointment. God kept his promise that his seed would be as the sand of the sea and that was his reward.
Moses was disappointed when he sinned that one time and was forbidden to enter the land of Canaan with the Israelites and had to lay down his life because of his sin. I am sure that he was greatly disappointed after forty years of wandering in the wilderness and then not being able to enjoy the journey into Canaan. His reward was that God came down and took him from the grave to heaven with him. What wonderful rewards these men of God received after such great disappointments.
God has a reward for us to after our disappointments, eternal life with Him forever and ever if we are faithful to him as these men were. Oh, I know we slip up and fail Him so did all of these Bible characters that I just mentioned, they were a disappointment to Jesus at times in their life, but they still trusted Him and had faith in their reward.
We can do the same, repent when we fail Him and when we are disappointed in the happenings of our life we can still go on and with His help have a better life and life eternal when He comes again in the clouds of heaven. That is the greatest reward of all and there will be no disappointments in heaven or on the new earth, none at all, no tears, no sorrow, no pain and NO disappointments. Grandma Joan
I remember making plans to run a lifestyle center, long before Weimar entered the scene, I kept dreaming of how I would do it and not sure where but eventually I had the where too and all of a sudden, I really don't remember the real reason but it all fell through. I have been greatly disappointed that I couldn't do that, my heart has always since I was young been set on helping people get well and stay well.
Wouldn't you say that that was a great disappointment? Yes, it was and sort of, still is. I assume that I am not the only one who has had a great disappointment in their life. Some have been disappointed in friends or a special friend, I have had that experience too. A great friend that I thought we would be friends for life, all of a sudden turned cold on me and I could not figure out why. I was so broken up by it I turned to the Lord for the reason why and He reminded me of an incident where I had been guilty of making a new friend in my life and who by the way is still my friend and who reads my blogs. My other friend that turned cool, was of a very jealous nature unbeknowns to me and didn't want me to have other friends. That was a disappointment to me. She passed away not long after that and I felt so bad about it, it took me quite a while to get over that disappointment.
Some have a disappointed relationship with a spouse they have chosen for life. I cannot relate to that as well as others might, we were married 63 years and yes, there were some disappointments along the way but nothing major that caused a separation or hatred like some people have. My heart goes out to those kind of disappointments because to start with they are to be a life long relationship and didn't end up that way. I know it is heart breaking and I understand and have seen the pain that it has caused.
Others have been disappointed over how their occupation that they have chosen has turned out. I can't quite relate to that because the things that I did as occupations were just sort of handed to me and I am happy with the way they turned out, some were harder than others but all in all, not a disappointment to me at all.
People in Bible times suffered great disappointments, the disciples when Jesus was put to death on the cross, thought that was the end of their relationship with Jesus. But three days later He was with them again. Their disappointment was rewarded with a life time of service for their master.
Joseph was greatly disappointed when he was sold as a slave but decided in his heart he would serve the Lord regardless of what happened, he was accused of trying to go to bed with his bosses wife and was put in jail for three years but he was such a good prisoner that he was put in charge of the prisoners. He was released to interpret a dream for the Pharaoh and that led to being the highest office in the kingdom next to Pharaoh. That was his reward after his great disappointment.
Abraham was disappointed when he didn't have any children and God had promised him a son and he was one hundred years old when the promised was fulfilled. I am sure the intervening years of waiting were a great disappointment. God kept his promise that his seed would be as the sand of the sea and that was his reward.
Moses was disappointed when he sinned that one time and was forbidden to enter the land of Canaan with the Israelites and had to lay down his life because of his sin. I am sure that he was greatly disappointed after forty years of wandering in the wilderness and then not being able to enjoy the journey into Canaan. His reward was that God came down and took him from the grave to heaven with him. What wonderful rewards these men of God received after such great disappointments.
God has a reward for us to after our disappointments, eternal life with Him forever and ever if we are faithful to him as these men were. Oh, I know we slip up and fail Him so did all of these Bible characters that I just mentioned, they were a disappointment to Jesus at times in their life, but they still trusted Him and had faith in their reward.
We can do the same, repent when we fail Him and when we are disappointed in the happenings of our life we can still go on and with His help have a better life and life eternal when He comes again in the clouds of heaven. That is the greatest reward of all and there will be no disappointments in heaven or on the new earth, none at all, no tears, no sorrow, no pain and NO disappointments. Grandma Joan
Wednesday, January 28, 2015
Promises for our Children who are not in a Saving relationship with Jesus
I'm sure that we all have children, grandchildren and even great grandchildren who are out in the world and not in a saving relationship with Jesus. It is the heartache of about every parent or grandparent. We love our children and grandchildren and want them to be with us in heaven, that is my desire and I am sure that most of you have the same desires.
Well, God has given us some very special promises for us to trust in and I want to share them with you this morning.
Isaiah 49:25 "But thus says the Lord: Even the captives of the mighty shall be taken away, and the prey of the terrible be delivered; For I will contend with him who contends with you, and I will save your children." I believe He is speaking of Satan trying to steal our children away and He promises that He will contend with him and save our children. A wonderful promise. Pray in faith for your children.
Isaiah 54:13 "All your children shall be taught by the Lord, and great shall be the peace of your children." All my children and their children need peace, and I am sure in this day and age, most of us and our children could use a lot of peace in our hearts and God promises great peace to our children.
Jeremiah 31:16,17 "Thus says the Lord: Refrain your voice from weeping, and your eyes from tears; For your work shall be rewarded, says the Lord, and they shall come back from the land of the enemy. There is hope in your future, says the Lord, that your children shall come back to their own border."
God says there is hope in our future that our children shall come back to their own border. I believe that and I know from my own experience that God does answer our prayers regarding our children and grandchildren, so keep praying for them and keep trusting in His promises.
In 2 Peter 1:4 it says that we "have been given exceedingly great and precious promises, that through these you may be partakers of the divine nature, having escaped the corruption that is in the world through lust."
Do you want too be a partaker of His divine nature? That is why we have been given these special promises so we have His sure word to lean on in times of distress and anxiety. I know most of us are anxious over some family member and so trust in His promises for our families and He will save them because He has promised. Put these promises on cards and memorize them. They are specially written for us and He wants us to partake of His divine nature and escape the corruption in the world.
We need to pray that our children will escape the corruption that is in the world too. Please trust in His power to save. Grandma Joan
Well, God has given us some very special promises for us to trust in and I want to share them with you this morning.
Isaiah 49:25 "But thus says the Lord: Even the captives of the mighty shall be taken away, and the prey of the terrible be delivered; For I will contend with him who contends with you, and I will save your children." I believe He is speaking of Satan trying to steal our children away and He promises that He will contend with him and save our children. A wonderful promise. Pray in faith for your children.
Isaiah 54:13 "All your children shall be taught by the Lord, and great shall be the peace of your children." All my children and their children need peace, and I am sure in this day and age, most of us and our children could use a lot of peace in our hearts and God promises great peace to our children.
Jeremiah 31:16,17 "Thus says the Lord: Refrain your voice from weeping, and your eyes from tears; For your work shall be rewarded, says the Lord, and they shall come back from the land of the enemy. There is hope in your future, says the Lord, that your children shall come back to their own border."
God says there is hope in our future that our children shall come back to their own border. I believe that and I know from my own experience that God does answer our prayers regarding our children and grandchildren, so keep praying for them and keep trusting in His promises.
In 2 Peter 1:4 it says that we "have been given exceedingly great and precious promises, that through these you may be partakers of the divine nature, having escaped the corruption that is in the world through lust."
Do you want too be a partaker of His divine nature? That is why we have been given these special promises so we have His sure word to lean on in times of distress and anxiety. I know most of us are anxious over some family member and so trust in His promises for our families and He will save them because He has promised. Put these promises on cards and memorize them. They are specially written for us and He wants us to partake of His divine nature and escape the corruption in the world.
We need to pray that our children will escape the corruption that is in the world too. Please trust in His power to save. Grandma Joan
Tuesday, January 27, 2015
Promises for the Elderly
There is a common saying that says something like this: 'Old age is not for sissies.' I guess to some extent they, whoever 'they' are, are right, it is hard to grow old and feeble too. I have always been a workaholic and still am in my mind but to do everything my mind tells me needs done is not possible any more. I do try but it can get discouraging at times when this body just won't cooperate with my will to do.
I must admit that I need encouragement to continue on in this life because of my physical condition. So this morning I have looked up some texts that really have been encouraging. God doesn't want us to be discouraged just because we are climbing up there in years, He wants us to have joy and happiness in serving Him no matter how old we are. So let's check out some texts and promises that are just for us.
David is pleading with God in Psalm 71:9 "Do not cast me off in the time of old age; Do not forsake me when my strength fails." Also in Psalm 71:18 "Now also when I am old and grey headed, O God, do not forsake me, until I declare Your strength to this generation. Your power to everyone who is to come." According to this, maybe God has some work for me yet. I pray that He does.
Psalm 92:14 "They shall still bear fruit in old age; they shall be fresh and flourishing, to declare that the Lord is upright; He is my rock, and there is no unrighteousness in Him." Now that is what I call encouraging!!
Proverbs 16:31 "The silver-haired head is a crown of glory, if it is found in the way of righteousness." O, may I be found in the way of righteousness, so that I may be a crown of glory to my Lord and Savior.
This is the Ultimate promise to me: Isaiah 46:4 "Even to your old age, I am He, And even to gray hairs I will carry you! I have made, and I will bear; Even I will carry, and will deliver you." Can you think of a better promise than that?
I am so encouraged this morning from reading these promises and instructions for me, I hope that it has been an encouragement to you if you are elderly or maybe you know someone that could use this encouragement. Please bless others with this hope too. Grandma Joan
I must admit that I need encouragement to continue on in this life because of my physical condition. So this morning I have looked up some texts that really have been encouraging. God doesn't want us to be discouraged just because we are climbing up there in years, He wants us to have joy and happiness in serving Him no matter how old we are. So let's check out some texts and promises that are just for us.
David is pleading with God in Psalm 71:9 "Do not cast me off in the time of old age; Do not forsake me when my strength fails." Also in Psalm 71:18 "Now also when I am old and grey headed, O God, do not forsake me, until I declare Your strength to this generation. Your power to everyone who is to come." According to this, maybe God has some work for me yet. I pray that He does.
Psalm 92:14 "They shall still bear fruit in old age; they shall be fresh and flourishing, to declare that the Lord is upright; He is my rock, and there is no unrighteousness in Him." Now that is what I call encouraging!!
Proverbs 16:31 "The silver-haired head is a crown of glory, if it is found in the way of righteousness." O, may I be found in the way of righteousness, so that I may be a crown of glory to my Lord and Savior.
This is the Ultimate promise to me: Isaiah 46:4 "Even to your old age, I am He, And even to gray hairs I will carry you! I have made, and I will bear; Even I will carry, and will deliver you." Can you think of a better promise than that?
I am so encouraged this morning from reading these promises and instructions for me, I hope that it has been an encouragement to you if you are elderly or maybe you know someone that could use this encouragement. Please bless others with this hope too. Grandma Joan
Sunday, January 25, 2015
Comments Anyone? Be Complete in Him.
I surely don't want to leave any subject fuzzy in anyone's mind, so if you agree with my blog, let me know and if you don't let me know so I can clarify myself with the Bible so any fuzziness can be cleared up.
I received a comment the other day that encouraged me greatly, I was thinking about giving up my blog again but if only one person benefits from it, it is worth it. Of course I am always benefited by studying a subject and blogging but it is always encouraging to hear from my bloggers also.
I was thinking lest I should leave a shadow of a doubt on your mind about our worthlessness or our worthiness to add a thought or two to it. We are not worthless to Jesus, He is our creator and redeemer and the price He paid for our redemption shows the value of a soul. So to Him we are worth it all. We may feel worthless when we are living outside His grace but every sinner no matter how deep we have sunk in sin is worth the price of His life on the cross.
Unworthy? Yes, there is no way we can earn salvation, we must humble ourselves as the Centurion did and realize that Jesus is the worthy One and it is His worthiness that saves us. Is that a little bit more clear? I sure don't want to leave anyone with the idea that we are not worth anything, because according to the price of our redemption, we are worth a whole lot more than some of us realize. That should make us want to give our lives to Jesus and live for Him and surrender and humble ourselves before Him so He can transform our lives into the kind of person He wants us to be.
If you are being blessed by my worship thoughts, please let me know and if things are unclear, please let me know that too. I sure don't want to leave anyone with a foggy mind on anything that I say.
When we give our hearts to Jesus, in willing surrender and humility, it is He that transforms our lives. Our job is to surrender and believe that He will do what He has promised.
Philippians 1:6 "Being confident of this very thing, that he who has begun a good work in you will complete it until the day of Jesus Christ." Is that clear enough? If not, here is another great promise.
1 Thessalonians 5:23,24. "Now may the God of peace Himself sanctify you completely; and may your whole spirit, soul, and body be preserved blameless at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ. He who calls you is faithful, who also will do it."
Paul says in Philippians that He will complete the work that He has started in us and in 1 Thessalonians he says that He will sanctify us completely and that He is faithful to do it. So what are we waiting for? Or maybe I should ask what He is waiting for? He is waiting for our complete surrender.
Philippians 1:9-11 "And this I pray that your love may abound still more and more in knowledge and all discernment, that you may approve the things that are excellent, that you may be sincere and without offense till the day of Christ. being filled with the fruits of righteousness which are by Jesus Christ, to the glory and praise of God."
Jesus wants to fill us with the fruits of His righteousness, isn't that a great thought, much higher than we can even imagine for ourselves. Be blessed today with Paul's words of promise in Philippians and 1 Thessalonians. Many people and I mean many including myself, have thought that I had to work to earn my salvation when all the time Jesus is waiting for us to give our hearts to Him to complete the work in us that He has started. We must plead for the infilling of His Spirit and show that we really want it and He will fill us and complete our characters into His likeness. Grandma Joan
I received a comment the other day that encouraged me greatly, I was thinking about giving up my blog again but if only one person benefits from it, it is worth it. Of course I am always benefited by studying a subject and blogging but it is always encouraging to hear from my bloggers also.
I was thinking lest I should leave a shadow of a doubt on your mind about our worthlessness or our worthiness to add a thought or two to it. We are not worthless to Jesus, He is our creator and redeemer and the price He paid for our redemption shows the value of a soul. So to Him we are worth it all. We may feel worthless when we are living outside His grace but every sinner no matter how deep we have sunk in sin is worth the price of His life on the cross.
Unworthy? Yes, there is no way we can earn salvation, we must humble ourselves as the Centurion did and realize that Jesus is the worthy One and it is His worthiness that saves us. Is that a little bit more clear? I sure don't want to leave anyone with the idea that we are not worth anything, because according to the price of our redemption, we are worth a whole lot more than some of us realize. That should make us want to give our lives to Jesus and live for Him and surrender and humble ourselves before Him so He can transform our lives into the kind of person He wants us to be.
If you are being blessed by my worship thoughts, please let me know and if things are unclear, please let me know that too. I sure don't want to leave anyone with a foggy mind on anything that I say.
When we give our hearts to Jesus, in willing surrender and humility, it is He that transforms our lives. Our job is to surrender and believe that He will do what He has promised.
Philippians 1:6 "Being confident of this very thing, that he who has begun a good work in you will complete it until the day of Jesus Christ." Is that clear enough? If not, here is another great promise.
1 Thessalonians 5:23,24. "Now may the God of peace Himself sanctify you completely; and may your whole spirit, soul, and body be preserved blameless at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ. He who calls you is faithful, who also will do it."
Paul says in Philippians that He will complete the work that He has started in us and in 1 Thessalonians he says that He will sanctify us completely and that He is faithful to do it. So what are we waiting for? Or maybe I should ask what He is waiting for? He is waiting for our complete surrender.
Philippians 1:9-11 "And this I pray that your love may abound still more and more in knowledge and all discernment, that you may approve the things that are excellent, that you may be sincere and without offense till the day of Christ. being filled with the fruits of righteousness which are by Jesus Christ, to the glory and praise of God."
Jesus wants to fill us with the fruits of His righteousness, isn't that a great thought, much higher than we can even imagine for ourselves. Be blessed today with Paul's words of promise in Philippians and 1 Thessalonians. Many people and I mean many including myself, have thought that I had to work to earn my salvation when all the time Jesus is waiting for us to give our hearts to Him to complete the work in us that He has started. We must plead for the infilling of His Spirit and show that we really want it and He will fill us and complete our characters into His likeness. Grandma Joan
Friday, January 23, 2015
Unworthy?
Some folks do not like the idea that they are not worthy. I have thought about that a lot for years and I find it very difficult after years of pondering the subject to believe that I am worthy of anything. What have I done to be worthy of eternal life? what have I done to deserve the love of God and His mercy? I can't think of a thing that I have done to be deserving of any good thing at all. I've tried to think about it and there just isn't anything to make me deserving of the least of His favors.
I would like to quote a story from the Bible that you are probably familiar with but maybe you haven't seen it in this manner.
Matthew 8:5-11 "Now when Jesus had entered Capernaum, a centurion came to Him, pleading with Him, saying, 'Lord, my servant is lying at home paralyzed, dreadfully tormented.' And Jesus said to him , 'I will come and heal him.' The centurion answered and said, 'Lord, I am not worthy that you should come under my roof. But only speak a word, and my servant will be healed. 'For I also am a man under authority, having soldiers under me. And I say to this one, 'Go', and he goes; and to another, 'Come,' and he comes; and to my servant, 'Do this,' and he does it.' When Jesus heard it, He marveled, and said to those who followed, 'Assuredly, I say to you, I have not found such great faith, not even in Israel!"
What was it that showed Jesus of his great faith? He said that he was not worthy for Jesus to come to his home, but to just speak the word and his servant would be healed. Even though he was a man of authority, he still was humbled before Jesus. He did not feel worthy for Jesus to step foot in his home. Just speak the word and the servant would be healed.
How many of us when we ask a favor of Jesus are humbled by being in His presence and feel our unworthiness. It is when we feel our great need and are humbled by His presence in our life that we have the answers to our prayers.
Micah 6:8 "He has shown you, O man, what is good; and what does the Lord require of you but to do justly, to love mercy, and to walk humbly with your God?"
How are we to walk? Humbly with our God. Are you willing to humble yourself and admit your unworthiness to Jesus so He can answer your prayers. This is great faith, Jesus said, great faith.
Do you have great faith? I want this kind of faith and I truly with all my heart want to walk humbly with my God. How about you? Grandma Joan
I would like to quote a story from the Bible that you are probably familiar with but maybe you haven't seen it in this manner.
Matthew 8:5-11 "Now when Jesus had entered Capernaum, a centurion came to Him, pleading with Him, saying, 'Lord, my servant is lying at home paralyzed, dreadfully tormented.' And Jesus said to him , 'I will come and heal him.' The centurion answered and said, 'Lord, I am not worthy that you should come under my roof. But only speak a word, and my servant will be healed. 'For I also am a man under authority, having soldiers under me. And I say to this one, 'Go', and he goes; and to another, 'Come,' and he comes; and to my servant, 'Do this,' and he does it.' When Jesus heard it, He marveled, and said to those who followed, 'Assuredly, I say to you, I have not found such great faith, not even in Israel!"
What was it that showed Jesus of his great faith? He said that he was not worthy for Jesus to come to his home, but to just speak the word and his servant would be healed. Even though he was a man of authority, he still was humbled before Jesus. He did not feel worthy for Jesus to step foot in his home. Just speak the word and the servant would be healed.
How many of us when we ask a favor of Jesus are humbled by being in His presence and feel our unworthiness. It is when we feel our great need and are humbled by His presence in our life that we have the answers to our prayers.
Micah 6:8 "He has shown you, O man, what is good; and what does the Lord require of you but to do justly, to love mercy, and to walk humbly with your God?"
How are we to walk? Humbly with our God. Are you willing to humble yourself and admit your unworthiness to Jesus so He can answer your prayers. This is great faith, Jesus said, great faith.
Do you have great faith? I want this kind of faith and I truly with all my heart want to walk humbly with my God. How about you? Grandma Joan
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