The Return

 After four years, our "Old Time Gospel" group has returned to our local rehab hospital.  The room we met in was soon filled. We had freedom to speak from the Bible and to play the familiar old hymns. The audience shared and one lady requested that we close with the Lord's Prayer.  Many of the staff remembered us and that we had been faithful for longer than most who worked there.  Thank you Lord for a good beginning. We will return once a month, this is our plan. We did not forget those who were in need of encouragement.

When John the Baptist was in jail, he may have been having the devil giving him doubts about if Jesus was the Messiah. He sent two of his disciples to inquire of Jesus if he was truly their Messiah.

Luke 7:20  And when the men had come to him, they said, “John the Baptist has sent us to you, saying, ‘Are you the one who is to come, or shall we look for another?’” 

Luke 7:21  In that hour he healed many people of diseases and plagues and evil spirits, and on many who were blind he bestowed sight. 

Luke 7:22  And he answered them, “Go and tell John what you have seen and heard: the blind receive their sight, the lame walk, lepers are cleansed, and the deaf hear, the dead are raised up, the poor have good news preached to them. 

Luke 7:23  And blessed is the one who is not offended by me.” 

Jesus loved those who needed healing and he loved John.  When things look bleak, remember that Jesus loves you and in him we are blessed. He died to make us free in him and to not be forgotten. In him we live forever in the kingdom of God. 

Rejoice in Truth

 

I have been reading stories about the change in the lives of those who came out of human trafficking and who were saved from guilt and shame by their faith in Jesus Christ. Jesus gave his life for our sins to be removed. "I will greatly rejoice in the Lord."

Isa 61:10  I will greatly rejoice in the LORD; my soul shall exult in my God, for he has clothed me with the garments of salvation; he has covered me with the robe of righteousness, as a bridegroom decks himself like a priest with a beautiful headdress, and as a bride adorns herself with her jewels. 

Being made free from sin's punishment we are free to reach out to others and to care about them. It is a joy to be free and saved. We love others because God has first loved us.

Rom 12:15  Rejoice with those who rejoice, weep with those who weep.

1Co 13:4  Love is patient and kind; love does not envy or boast; it is not arrogant 

1Co 13:5  or rude. It does not insist on its own way; it is not irritable or resentful; 

1Co 13:6  it does not rejoice at wrongdoing, but rejoices with the truth. 

1Co 13:7  Love bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things. 

Prayer: Thank you God for new life in the family of God through  Jesus Christ our redeemer. He has paid for our sins with his own blood. I love the word of God, for it is true. Through God we endure all things.

A Butterfly

Sometimes we see or experience something that is special.  I was in the front yard when a beautiful Tiger Swallowtail Butterfly swooped down where I was and made several turns as if it was on it's solo flight. It looked as big as a hand, a child's hand, and it had an innocence about it and a wonder for me to see. I was not alone in the yard. The neighbors Siamese cross bred sandy colored cat was lounging in the cool grass in the shade of the trees. He awakened,from his nap, he was woke and had his eyes fixed upon that butterfly that had perched in the Pecan tree. That cat was as tense as a spring ready to pounce on the playful butterfly.  It would be play for the cat, but a loss of life for the innocent butterfly.  The devil is like that cat. If he sees something innocent, naive and alone, he will try to pounce on it, but this time it is a human soul.

Children who have not any knowledge of God , in their innocence they have angels that report to God.

Mat 18:10  Take heed that ye despise not one of these little ones; for I say unto you, That in heaven their angels do always behold the face of my Father which is in heaven. 

1Pe 5:5  Likewise, you who are younger, be subject to the elders. Clothe yourselves, all of you, with humility toward one another, for “God opposes the proud but gives grace to the humble.” 

1Pe 5:6  Humble yourselves, therefore, under the mighty hand of God so that at the proper time he may exalt you, 

1Pe 5:7  casting all your anxieties on him, because he cares for you. 

1Pe 5:8  Be sober-minded; be watchful. Your adversary the devil prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour. 

1Pe 5:9  Resist him, firm in your faith, knowing that the same kinds of suffering are being experienced by your brotherhood throughout the world. 

God sent Jesus Christ to defeat the devil and to deliver us from evil. This is a beautiful truth. Bring your innocence and your guilt to him and he will make you a new life filled with blessings.

Their was another time when a Tiger Swallowtail was sent to me. I was focusing on a Thistle flower when all of a sudden a butterfly landed on it. It certainly did bless me. 

Prayer: Thank you God for loving us. Help us to be faithful and aware of your presence. Help us all to see your beautiful things under the protection of Jesus Christ, amen

Overcoming the world

I have friends that I know and can trust, but many are caught up in the evil that is in the world.They are living in fear and confusion and some are fighting the demons from their past.  God sent Jesus his son to take away our sins and to make us free in him. God loves us and wants us to be saved out of the evil of this world. Let us read His truth.

Rev 21:7 He that overcomes shall inherit all things; and I will be his God, and he shall be my son.

 1Jn 5:4  For everyone who has been born of God overcomes the world. And this is the victory that has overcome the world—our faith. 

1Jn 5:5  Who is it that overcomes the world except the one who believes that Jesus is the Son of God? 

He that overcomes the world, the devil and sin, how? Through faith and confession that Jesus is the acceptable sacrifice for our sins. Our good works will not save us. Jesus is our way to overcome, for he has fought our battle for us. In him is our victory! Come to Jesus and be in his truth and blessings. This is real and the truth.

Freedom

This is the slowest year of my sharing the Bible on the Internet. I used to send out a "Daily Bible" lesson. In the early days of AOL chat rooms we led scores of people to the Lord Jesus Christ.  Many that were reached on the computer were victims of human bondage with all the ugliness of using a living body and soul for selfish lusts. Women, men, boys and girls were horribly abused. Many were dead inside and some were given multiple personalities as a way to endure.  Setting them free physically from bondage was the beginning of the quest for true freedom.  I was able to share with many the power of a new life in Jesus. Jesus will remove the sin and shame. The Bible is the absolute truth of God in a time when many are told that there are no absolutes. Showing love with God's  word and his forgiveness were the beginning steps to freedom. Those who had been slaves needed the Daily Bible lessons to learn and to grow to be free.

John 8:31  Then said Jesus to those Jews which believed on him, If ye continue in my word, then are ye my disciples indeed; 

John 8:32  And ye shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free. 

Isa 55:11  So shall my word be that goeth forth out of my mouth: it shall not return unto me void, but it shall accomplish that which I please, and it shall prosper in the thing whereto I sent it. 

I no longer have a target audience of newly saved people to share with, but God knows the end results of sharing his truth.

Prayer:  Lord forgive me for being slack in the sharing of your word. Help me to be more faithful to this ministry. amen