1 Thessalonians 5:18 Thankful Sunday

1 Thessalonians 5:18 In everything give thanks, for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus concerning you.

The call to the people of God is to be thankful “IN” all things. I am not saying everything that happens to us is good because sometimes bad and evil things happens to us, but,even in them we should be thankful.

I have learned that life could always be worse even when we think it could not get any worse.

Praising God in the midst of trials and being thankful to Him for keeping us in our right mind in the midst of them will help redirect our minds to a state of gratitude and not complaining and ungratefulness which is easy for many today especially if they are going through.

This text before us reminds us that we are to be "thankful IN everything and IN all circumstances".

When we find ourselves overwhelmed with burdens and worried about tomorrow, we can praise God for who He is and His promise to never leave us or forsake us.

I may not have all the things I want but God is able and still providing the necessary daily needs and I am grateful to Him for that.

I am grateful for who I am and who I am becoming through Christ Jesus as He daily cleanse and purify my soul.

I believe if we praise God more and be more thankful for what we do have, we can quiet the enemy of ungratefulness and discontentment that attaches itself to our minds often.

Today is thankful Sunday! Give thanks IN all things for this is the Lord’s will for us in Christ Jesus.

IN all things give the Lord Thanks!

God bless!

Debra

I do not own any pictures or videos on this blog site nor do I claim ownership of them.

Psalm 145:1-3 A CLARION CALL TO PERSONAL WORSHIP IN GOD PRESENCE

This post today is an invitation to worship God. I was not lead to have much saying on today, but to send out a clarion call to ALL of you to make the sacrifice of entering into the presence of the true and living God as a priority on today. One on one! You and God alone!

I felt lead by the Holy Spirit to post this scripture and song today. I heard the Lord saying that He wants you to find a quite place alone today and spend some time in meditation on his word and worship. If you do, He promises to not only meet you there, but also to abide with you there.

Today is a good day to release all your hurts, pain, anxieties, fears, uncertainties, and heavy load burdens you have been carrying around. Take them with you in the presence of God, who is the only one that is able to do something about your situation.

God can and will work on your behalf, but you must seek Him, talk to Him, open up to Him and tell Him what He already knows about you, but want to hear personally from you on today concerning them.

Today can be your day of “RELEASE” if this is your heartfelt desire. The cares of the world has been weighing you down too long. It’s time to let it go and give it to God. He said for you to “CAST” (throw off) your cares upon Him for He cares for you.

Psalm 145:1-3 I will exalt you, my God the King; I will praise your name for ever and ever. 2 Every day I will praise you and extol your name for ever and ever.

3 Great is the Lord and most worthy of praise; his greatness no one can fathom.

Study of God’s Word should always lead us to a place of worship to Him after we have finished reading. When you have finished reading your bible, find a quiet place alone and meditate on His goodness and His presence with you.

If you desire more of God and to know more about Him, you must enter that secret place with in and you alone. Find a quiet space and shut out all other voices and distractions that wants to take you away from this time with the Lord your God.

Seek the Lord while He may be found! Call upon Him while He is near.

God bless.

Debra

Romans 12:2 The Ever Turning Wheel

Romans 12:2 Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, that you may prove what is the good and acceptable and perfect will of God.

The mind is a wheel that never stops turning, until death. We think thoughts 24/7. The mind wheel is constantly turning, even when we are not thinking on something. It is a constant, thinking and processing machine.

Thoughts are injected into our minds from just about every area of life. They originate from what we know, see, hear, taught, think, speak, believe, learn, what others tells us, our opinions and other people opinions of us, ideas, what the world tells us, what we tell ourselves, what the Bible tells us, etc.

Because the mind is a wheel that is ever turning, we must be careful what we allows to ride on the wheel of our minds. We must filter, minute by minute, what we allow the mind wheel to think, do or respond to.

The world is a noisy place and if we are not careful, it can have an affect on how the wheel of our mind turns minute by minute. The “world” references the world system in what they do and how they think. Those that chose not be be a part of God Kingdom through Christ Jesus.

The call today is to “DARE TO BE DIFFERENT!” Stand firm in your Christian faith, regardless of who likes it or not. Hold fast to that which you know is true according to the Word of God. This world is not our home, it’s only a temporary journey through earth to eternity either with God, or apart from God.

The ever turning wheel called the mind!! What’s spinning on yours, even now? What’s in your mind view? The world and all it’s temporary affairs, or the things of God that are eternal?

If the enemy of your mind is telling you that the wheel of information into your mind can not be changed because you have gone too far, it’s a lie from satan! Remember “I can do all this through him who gives me strength” (Phil. 4:13).

Be not conformed to this world, but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind!!

God bless.

Debra

Psalm 139:1-7 Always In His Presence

Psalm 139:1-7 Where can I go from your Spirit? Where can I flee from your presence? 8 If I go up to the heavens, you are there; if I make my bed in the depths, you are there. 9 If I rise on the wings of the dawn, if I settle on the far side of the sea, 10 even there your hand will guide me, your right hand will hold me fast.
11 If I say, “Surely the darkness will hide me and the light become night around me,” 12 even the darkness will not be dark to you; the night will shine like the day, for darkness is as light to you.

The Psalmist declares that God knows our every move, therefore, every where that we go, God is there too.

Sometimes the cares of life may attempt to make us believe that God is absent, but this text begs to differ. There is no place that God is not.

Today, you and I can rest assured in knowing that God is always with us in whatever situation we may find ourselves.

When we are worried, God is our confidence, when we are lonely, He is our companion, when we face danger, God is our protector. Trust Him on today!

Remember, God is always present with you!

God bless.

Debra

I do not own any pictures or videos on this blog site nor do I claim ownership of them.

Acts 5:1-10 Be Honest In What You Do For The Lord

Acts 5:1-10 Now a man named Ananias, with his wife Sapphira, sold a piece of property. 2 He kept back part of the proceeds with his wife’s knowledge, and brought a part of it and placed it at the apostles’ feet.

3 Then Peter said, “Ananias, why has Satan filled your heart to deceive the Holy Spirit and keep back part of the proceeds of the land? 4 While it remained unsold, was it not your own? And when it was sold, was it not under your authority? Why have you conceived this deed in your heart? You did not lie to men, but to God.”

5 On hearing these words, Ananias fell down and died. And great fear came on all those who heard these things. 6 The young men rose and wrapped him up and carried him out and buried him.

7 About three hours later his wife came in, not knowing what had happened. 8 Peter said to her, “Tell me whether you sold the land for this amount?” She said, “Yes, for that much.”

9 Peter said to her, “How is it that you have agreed together to test the Spirit of the Lord? Look! The feet of those who have buried your husband are at the door, and they will carry you out.”

10 At once she fell down at his feet and died. Upon entering, the young men found her dead and carried her out and buried her beside her husband. 11 Great fear came on the entire church and on all those who heard these things.

Attempting to be deceptive in your dealings with God does not come without a price. “Be not deceived; God is not mocked: for whatsoever a man soweth, that shall he also reap” (Gal. 6:7).

“Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; 6 in all your ways submit to him, and he will direct your path” (Prov. 3:5-6).

God bless.

Debra

James 1:22 Hearing And Doing Go Hand In Hand

James 1:22- Be doers of the word and not hearers only, deceiving yourselves.

Hearing plus doing! The two goes hand in hand. One can not function properly without the other.

When we go to church services and hear the word of God, or when you come to this blog site and hear the word of God, it should motivate you to not only enjoy what you heard, (Gospel truth) but also motivate you to believe what you heard to the point of action upon that which the word of God spoke to us in the ear of our hearts.

The call in this text is to every believer to not only be hearers of the word of God, but also doers of what it is telling you to do.

When we put the word of God to action in our lives, our hearts and minds are transformed into the likeness of Christ, and we begin to bear much fruit for God’s Kingdom.

Hearers and doers will forever reap the promise of God’s everlasting presence with them, regardless of what life may throw at us. God’s promise is to never leave or forsake us, but to be with us always, even unto the end.

“The one who looks intently at the perfect law, the law of liberty, and abides by it, not having become a forgetful hearer but an effectual doer, this man will be blessed in what he does. (Jas. 1:24-25)

When we learn to become “hearers and doers” of the word of God, we begin, and continues to grow in grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ as we walk in maturity of the faith in spirit and in truth, which is turn causes us to bring forth good works of righteousness, which God not only planned for us before time, but is also pleasing in His sight .

When we hear the word of God and do not apply it, we are only deceiving ourselves!

Be not only hearers of the Word of God, but also doers of what it says to us!

Remember, Hearing plus going goes hand in hand!

Speak to our hearts Lord!

God bless.

Proverbs 2:1-22 Treasures Are Found In Godly Wisdom

IF THERE EVER WAS A TIME WHEN THE WISDOM OF GOD WAS NEEDED IN OUR LIVES, IT IS NOW!

Proverbs 2:1-22 My son, if you will receive my words, and hide my commandments within you, 2 so that you incline your ear to wisdom, and apply your heart to understanding; 3 yes, if you cry out for knowledge, and lift up your voice for understanding, 4 if you seek her as silver, and search for her as for hidden treasures, 5 then you will understand the fear of the Lord, and find the knowledge of God. 6 For the Lord gives wisdom; out of His mouth come knowledge and understanding. 7 He lays up sound wisdom for the righteous; He is a shield to those who walk uprightly. 8 He keeps the paths of justice, and preserves the way of His saints.

9 Then you will understand righteousness and judgment and equity, and every good path. 10 When wisdom enters your heart, and knowledge is pleasant to your soul 11 discretion will preserve you; understanding will keep you, 12 to deliver you from the way of the evil man, from the man who speaks perverse things, 13 from those who leave the paths of uprightness to walk in the ways of darkness; 14 who rejoice to do evil, and delight in the perversity of the wicked 15 whose ways are crooked, and who are devious in their paths; 16 to deliver you from the immoral woman, even from the seductress who flatters with her words, 17 who forsakes the guide of her youth,  and forgets the covenant of her God. 18 For her house leads down to death, and her paths to the departed spirits; 19 none who go to her return again, nor do they take hold of the paths of life.

20 So you may walk in the way of good men and keep the paths of the righteous. 21 For the upright will dwell in the land, and the innocent will remain in it; 22 but the wicked will be cut off from the earth, and the transgressors will be rooted out of it.

Ponder the scripture below and you will understand the necessity of Godly wisdom.

“What do you benefit if you gain the whole world but lose your own soul? Is anything worth more than your soul” (Matt. 16:26).

Regardless of how much people tells us that they love us, no one loves you more than your Creator, God. He proved it to you and I at the “Cross of Christ.”

We ALL are in desperate need of hearing from God, regardless if we want to admit it or not! Godly wisdom lets us know this!

IT IS GOD’S WILL THAT NONE SHOULD PERISH, BUT THAT ALL WOULD COME TO REPENTANCE! This can only happen when we seek the wisdom of God! Apart from Him, we will perish!

Right now, you can start a new chapter in your life! You can start over right now!

Speak to our hearts Lord!

God bless.

Debra

I do not own any pictures or videos on this blog site nor do I claim ownership of them.

Psalm 91:1-2 God Is That Secret Place Where You Can Hide

Psalm 91:1-2 He who dwells in the shelter of the Most High  shall abide under the shadow of the Almighty. 2 I will say of the Lord, “He is my refuge and my fortress, my God in whom I trust.”

This Psalm says “he who dwells, shall abide.” He who keeps his or her mind stayed on Jesus by faith!

This dwelling place is not a place where you would make a pit stop on your journeys of trouble in life, but a place of His continual presence and spiritual rest that is avilable to you and I regardless of our circumstances in life. A place where we can find love, mental shelter, assurance, comfort, peace and hope in God, regardless.

Are you in need of a hiding place on today? Do you need Shelter in God? Are you weary and wounded in mind and spirit from the cares of this world? If we could be honest for a moment, we all are at times! But even in weariness, God is calling us to find shelter in Him on today!

“Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest” (Matt. 11:28, NIV).

Believe it or not, but true rest and safety is found in the presence of the Lord your God alone. No one can fill that empty void you have inside, but God.

RUN TO JESUS! He is calling you to Him even now. He wants to shelter, comfort, heal your wounds, and give rest to your weary soul on today.

Speak to yourself, God is my hiding place! To Him will I run to find shelter!

God bless.

Lamentations 3:22-23 - MERCY SAID "NO"

Lamentations 3:22-23 It is of the Lord’s mercies that we are not consumed;His compassion do not fail; 23 They are new every morning, great is Your faithfulness.  

Are you hurting and in need of God's mercy? Have you tried everything the world has to offer and now find yourself more miserable than ever before? If you answered yes, the mercy of God is calling you.

In the midst of Jeremiah’s lamentation over the sin of Israel, he proclaims God’s faithfulness.

Even in God’s wrath, there is mercy. Even in God’s judgments He is compassionate towards us. 

Although life may seem to throw hard and heavy blows at us at times, we have not been consumed or overtaken by them for we are still here.

I urge you all on today to take the time to recognize God's faithfulness in your lives for His compassion towards you and I are new every morning. They never fail, regardless of what we may have to endure! God's love towards us is never ending for it is from everlasting to everlasting!

God’s mercy said no to eternal death for us for our sins.

 Think on this for a moment:At Calvary, "MERCY" said "NO" sin would never take control!

God has decided to deal with us in mercy and not wrath. That thought should make your heart a melting pot right now.

Are you in trouble and standing in need of a Savior on today? Try Jesus for He is faithful and He is willing to show you mercy on today.

Believe it or not, our God who is merciful and faithful loves you more than anyone could ever love you. He proved it to you at the cross. 

Thank you Jesus "Mercy" said "NO".

God bless.

Debra

I do not own this video nor do I claim ownership of it. This video is copyright by CeCe Winans.

1 Corinthians 6:20 - Jesus Christ Paid For Our Redemption With Blood

1 Corinthians 6:20-You were bought with a price. Therefore glorify God in your body and in your spirit, which are God’s.

The Apostle Paul reminds us that we were bought with a price. Yes, it cost God something to redeem us.

"We were bought" means that our redemption was not free for God, even thought it was freely given to us.  

The price that was paid to redeem us, set us free from the wrath and penalty of sin and reconcile us back to God was the cost of "Blood" which was shed by God's own Son, Jesus Christ at Calvary while we were yet sinners who were separated from God because of our sins.

Hebrews 9:12-14 Neither by the blood of goats and calves, but by his own blood he entered in once into the holy place, having obtained eternal redemption for us. 13 For if the blood of bulls and of goats, and the ashes of an heifer sprinkling the unclean, sanctifieth to the purifying of the flesh: 14 How much more shall the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered Himself without spot to God, purge your conscience from dead works to serve the living God?

The Apostle Paul describes himself this way in Romans 1:1-Paul, a slave of Christ Jesus, chosen by God to be an apostle and sent out to preach His Good News.

If you have been redeemed by the blood of Christ, here is what scripture says concerning you in 1 Corinthians 6:19- Do you not know that your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit, who is in you, whom you have received from God, and that you are not your own?

Have you accepted God's payment for your redemption? If not, I exhort or plea with you on today to make Jesus your choice. He is calling you to trust Him with your future and your life now and in eternity.

Remember, you and I are not our own for we were bought with a price!

Our redemption was paid with blood, therefore, we rejoice and be glad in it.

God bless and I love you all.

Debra