Friday December 30,201                                                                  Thoughts of being His child

I have been pondering the idea that I am God's child, and that brings such inner peace to me that I needed to write about it.

How many of us, as we were growing up thought that we needed to act in a certain way or do certain things so that our parents would be proud of us? And with that we thought they would love us even more than they already did? I was like that, at times. Always doing things that would garnish a pat on the back, or anything that would bring a verbal praise from them?

In reality our parents loved us no matter what we did! It may have been a family bond, or a closeness that our hearts just knew? Some of us didn't have that though, as we were always put down. Always hearing that we "could have done better." So, if we went to church at all we may have come to think that God looked at us that way, even though the bible said otherwise.

So as grew up thinking that and, maybe, came through when we talked to our own children? Giving to them the same thoughts that we grew up with? At times I thought the same way. And so I gave up, at times, giving in to the idea that no matter what happened I was not "loved" much.

Well I am here to say that that is not how our Heavenly Father operates! His love for us is unconditional. No matter your past, His love is determined by what we do, or don't do. All He wants from us is to follow Him. Allow His correction to guide our feet along the path He has made for us. I did not find this out until I was set to go to prison. But when I did the weight, of all those years of beating myself up because I was "not good enough" was lifted off me. The light of His Glory broke through my hardened heart, giving me an inner peace that I had never felt before!

Allow me to tell you that is all Christ wants for you also. I finally came to the understanding of just what His death on the cross had done for me, and for you. That shed blood took the separation that we had had with Him, and brought us close to Him. Allowing everyone to be able to come to Him, through prayer, to lay our fears, doubts, sorrows, our sinfulness, at His feet. To be separated from them forever! To humbly say to God, "I can't go any longer! Help me Lord!" And He is faithful to do just that.

In Romans 8:35 it says, "Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall trouble or hardship or persecution of famine or nakedness or hanger or sword?" Then in verses 38 & 39 it says, "For I am convinced that neither death not life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord."

So in other words, nothing that we have done, or will do, separates us from His love. Giving up not what the world says we should do, but that is just what we must do. We can humbly come to Him and He will heal us, He will heal our wounds. The wounds of un-wantedness, past heartaches, defeats, sorrows. Christ dearly wants the past not to define your future. Our pasts have been separated from us by the blood that Jesus shed on the cross. He made a way for us to come to Him and be made whole. I pray that you will allow your Heavenly Father to come into your heart to begin the healing process, so that the rest of your days may be lived living in the Light of His glory and grace that He has for you. I pray that you will allow the indescribable peace of Jesus to overwhelm you. Overwhelm you to the point that tears of gratitude and the feeling of total forgiveness come out of you. And that you will start to live in that feeling every day!

Wednesday December 28, 2016

This time of year is supposed to be cheerful, meeting with family and friends for the holidays. For some, though, it is not. I recently had a nephew commit suicide, so for my Brother & Sister-in-Law and niece these past few days have been anything but. The days have been very dark. There are a lot of us that have very dark days and this time of the year is especially dark.

I, too, have had many dark days. Relationships are strained. Coping in becoming a "free man." Keeping myself busy. There have been days when I have groped around in the dark looking for the light switch.

It is at those times when I sit and have devotions. I read the stories and then open my bible to the corresponding verses and suddenly the Light of my Savior comes. Now this does not make me "suddenly happy and gay," no my day may still be tough. But just knowing, then, that God is walking with me does something for my heart. The darkness may not be completely gone, but I am no longer in utter darkness. Just knowing that I can go to Jesus at any time, in prayer, lightens the heaviness that I have been carrying.

Now you may not be one that readily opens the bible and begins to read. Just know that you can go to your Creator at ANY TIME, and talk with Him. In doing so He will begin to lighten the load that has burdened you. By going to Him in prayer, you are acknowledging, to Him, that you are in need of help, and in so doing, you humble yourself before Him. Jesus then takes you into His arms and holds you.

I know that was hard for me. Giving up, giving in, admitting that I was helpless to do anything to alleviate what I was going through, was tough to do. The world tells us that this is not "natural." It goes against what we have been told. But this world looks at the outside of a situation or circumstance. The world tells us we need to do it ourselves, no one else will help. It is a "pull yourself up by your bootstraps," type of mentality. But our Heavenly Father is not of this world. His ways are not the ways of the world. He does not think as the world thinks. And that is the liberating Spirit of Christ. He tells us to be different, from this world. To believe in Him and not this world.

Giving up and giving in, to Him, allows His Light to enter into your heart and give you the peace and joy that this world can never give you. His grace and mercy dispels the darkness that you are in. Now you may say, "Hey, dude, I have done that and I am still in darkness. My life is going nowhere and I have no hope that things will change." To that I have to say that you are not at the bottom yet. In your heart you are still trying to do it on your own. I too was that way, then I hit bottom. My life was shattered and broken. I lay at the bottom of the hole that "I had dug" bleeding, bruised and broken. It was then my heart was ready to accept what Christ had, for so long, been telling me. My heart accepted the fact that I could not do it, I could not put my life back together.

For some of us, myself included, that is what it takes in order that we begin to listen to His voice, calling us back to Him. For some, though, they know that they can't do it and come to Him before calamity befalls them. In either case, He lovingly brings us to the path that He wants us to walk. Know that He DOES allow us to fall into our holes, in order to get our attention. We have dug the holes by the sinful life we have lead. He does not like to do that, but for some, again myself included, the "2x4 upside the head" is what it takes. And in that there will be anger at Jesus for allowing it to happen. But if we surrender to Him in these cases, we can later reflect on what has happened, and thank Him for what He allowed to happen. We will begin to see that He walked with us through all of what we have gone through, and that will bring praise for Him to our lips.

There is evil in the world because of the fall of Adam and Eve. That was not in God's plan, but He did not make either one of them robots, doing what He wanted. He gave each one of us the "free will" to do what we want. He wants us to follow Him, but many do not want to, because the world is much more desirable, because of our sinful nature. But once we come to Christ, we finally see that His ways are better than the worlds ways. He blesses us for our obedience to Him and His ways. It is then that we begin to understand His love for us, our hearts feel this love and wants more and more of it. We have an inner peace that we have not experienced before, and we don't want to leave it! But we also see that this world holds nothing but heartache, doubt, fear and rejection, a place that we don't want to go back to.

I will pray for you, that 1) you come to Jesus before you hit rock bottom, but 2) if you do, that you will look to Him for your healing. By doing that, you will begin to see Jesus for who He truly is, the loving, merciful, and gracious Savior who died for you and me. Neither one of us has walked too far from Him. He continually pursues us, calling out our names, telling us to follow Him. Allow His shed blood cover your sins, which they already do. But, if you have listened to the words of this world, and think that you are too far gone for Christ to help, know that is Satan talking and he only spews lies from his mouth. Jesus died for you, and me. He conquered death, meaning eternal separation from Him.

Take time today to go to Him in prayer and allow His glorious light come into your heart, dispelling the darkness of sin and eternal death. Allow Him to heal your wounds and put you on His path to blessings, peace, and an inner peace. Acquiring them will bring about a change in your life, in a way that others will notice. And a life that will bless you in ways that you have never seen. 

Thoughts for December 24, 2016

Reading the Peoria Paper about the shootings in Chicago this past year.

I read of the loss of young life, due to the shootings that Chicago has experienced this past year, and the kids that have lost their lives to gun violence. Life can end at any time, and I think, "Were they walking with the Lord?" I am sure that many were, so in that there is peace in knowing that they are now in a place where there is no violence and blood shed. They are at peace walking and talking with their Savior, something that I will be doing someday. So that makes me reflect back on my life, I was not shot, but my life, as I once knew it, ended in 2009, as I willingly walked into the Federal Prison in Texarkana. My life as a "free man" ended.

The sinfulness of my former life, now, had to be paid. The only thing that helped me walk in with my head high was the love that Jesus Christ had for me. In the months leading to my incarceration, I consumed the bible, and finally saw what God had been trying to tell me all of my life. That His love and compassion for me was always there, even though I thought that I was too far gone for Him to be concerned for me. Satan's lies, up to that point, had succeeded. I was chained by his lies and had been carrying those chains, and the weight they produced, for the majority of my life. So the reason that I was able to walk into prison with my head high was that my Savior had freed me from them, He had taken them away, when He died on the cross for me, and for those victims in Chicago.

As the birth of Christ approaches, reflect back on your life this past year. Are you carrying burdens and pains and sorrows and sins, that have you weighed down? Has Satan been lying to you, be honest! The truth is very hard to look at. But in order to truly understand what Jesus did for us, with HIs birth and death, we MUST be honest with ourselves. To look truth in the eye. For me, doing that was so liberating, so freeing, I felt  the weight, of my sinful past, being lifted away. The lies of Satan came to light, and the "darkness fled from the Light."

By being honest with myself, my hearts door opened and Jesus could come in and took residence there. He packed my sins away and separated them from me, "As far as the East is from the West." And peace entered in. So the tears that came from that freedom and peace and joy flowed, as I suddenly began to understand the "Flow of redeeming blood" that Jesus shed for me.

As the New Year approaches, take some time and reflect back on the past year, be honest, was there an inner peace in your heart? Did sorrows and disappointments take their toll on your health, marriage, your job? Was there frustration that you could not make "better" on your own? Did your world fall apart? And as much as you tried, you could not put things back together yourself? Satan was lying to you! He told you, "You can do this." "Leave your wife, she is holding you back." "Leave your family, you're better off without them." "You are a failure if you can't get that promotion." If those things happened, were you, are you, better off? If not, can you see that what you listened to was a lie?

Just like I could not blame God for my misfortunes, neither can you. The truth, as I finally and honestly looked at eye to eye at, was that the decisions that I made were made because of my selfishness. Getting things that I wanted no matter, what or who got in my way. I had bought into the lies of Satan. But at 8:40 AM on Tuesday August the 26th, I saw the Light. God's voice trumpeted over the lies of Satan, God said, "Todd, I love you!" My sinful world came crashing down and I allowed Jesus to come in and heal me, heal my wounds, change my heart. His love for me, and what He did for me, on the cross, gave me an inner peace and comfort that I was unable to find anywhere else.

Jesus wants to give you that same peace and comfort! He wants to restore you, to bring you along side of Him on the path that He has laid out for you. But know that His correction is done in a loving way because He loves you unconditionally.  He knows the entire length of the path that you are on and the end that it will bring. He knows the trials and tribulations that lay ahead. And He can see the heartache that you will encounter if you don't have a relationship with Him. My correction was hard, but Jesus NEVER left my side! I was able to call on Him at anytime. And He lovingly corrected me and put my feet on His firm path, the path that He had designed for me, before I was created, by Him.

Again, Jesus wants that for you! So no matter how far you think you have roamed away from Him you are NEVER too far to call out to Him for help, because He walks right beside you day by day. Calling out to you to follow Him, allowing Him to guide and direct and WALK with you. So don't believe the lies of Satan! It is not an easy path to follow, at first, but by opening your heart to Him and allowing Him to show you the way, He is there when life gets tough, when you feel like you can't go on any longer. He is just a prayer away. If you can just get a "taste" of the love God has for you, and understand the "sacrifice" that Jesus willingly did for you. You will then see that the ashes of your life, can be made into something wonder. You will be refreshed by the love and compassion and grace, that flows from the One that created you and wants nothing but to bless you in so many ways.

So I pray that you will accept Jesus as your personal Savior, if you haven't already. If you have, begin to open your bible daily and take in the nourishment that comes from HIs word, and allow that word to bring you to a place of fulfillment. God can do for you as He did, and does, for me daily. By giving you an inner peace and joy that cannot be found in anyone, or anywhere, else in this world.

Here I am listening to Air1 again.

Crowder is singing "My Victory" and here are my thoughts.

Christ died for me! What a thought! So many times we forget that, especially during this time of year. We concentrate on His birth, and put why He was born to the back of our minds. During this time, though, we must think ahead, if you will, to remember why He was born.

God incarnate, in the form of a human, Jesus. With that being said, He must of known from early on just what lay ahead of Him and why He came. We sometimes worry, for days, of impending situations that we know lay ahead of us. And we stew and fret. But Jesus did not do that, even when death was impending, He went willing to the cross. He was well aware of the outcome of His actions and what the outcome would be.

I am so glad that He did what He did, not only for me but for the  WHOLE WORLD!! I am not good at thanking Him daily for what He has given me, but since the New Year is close I will make a resolution and start doing that. And you must do the same.

Jesus shed His blood to free me from the sins that bound me. He died so that I could die to an eternal death separated from Him. His blood flowed so as to cover me and my sinfulness so I would have the opportunity to live with Him in heaven, when I pass from this world. To live in a place that is free from sins and pain and sorrow. What a glorious thought!

Many think that they are too far gone for Christ to be able to help them, Satan has ensnared their hearts into thinking that they are a hopeless cause and that God has no love for them. LIES-LIES-LIES!!!!!! Satan is a destroyer plain and simple!! When he tells you that you need this or that, the pleasure from that will only last for a short time. The pleasure will give you no long term happiness or satisfaction. With Christ, He knows what you need, even before you ask. And what He gives you is everlasting, never ending. He gives you an inner peace that is indescribable. What ever peace you have had in the past. How long did it last? Was there an inner satisfaction that lasted more than a day or two? If it didn't, then it was not true peace. It was only superficial, not long lasting. It was because Satan lied to you and you fell for it. I was in that boat, and at times, I still am. But the good thing is that I (and you) can go to Jesus and ask for forgiveness. And He graciously gives it, not looking at what I have done, but wrapping me in His arms and loving me unconditionally.

It is not in God's nature to lie, He is only truth. And His correction does not harm, but lifts up, restores and makes a person new. By accepting Christ as your personal Savior, He sends the Holy Spirit to enter into your heart. By doing so you become a new person, in Christ, able to take hold of the inheritance that is waiting for you in heaven. Now I have gone through many valleys since my acceptance of the Lord. But God has never left or forsaken me. His discipline does, at times, hurt. That is because we are convicted by our sins, and the truth that Jesus speaks into our hearts so the hurts we feel is the shame of hurting Christ. Through this truth, He has spoken to our hearts allows me to begin to heal and start living for Him in a better way. No matter where you are at in your walk, I truly believe that Jesus continually calls out to you, calling you to follow Him on the path that He has made for you. I am telling you that Christ died for you because He loves you so much. Then, no matter what you have done, know that Christ loves you enough to always be calling out to you. To give you peace. Take away the sorrow and pain. Take time today to call on Him and ask Him to help you to get to know Him better. And remember that the blood He HAS shed on the cross has covered your sins, this past tense, because He has done it.

Todays Thoughts 12-19-2016

I am listening to a live feed from Air1. The last couple of songs have spoken to me. So here is what God is speaking to me.

The song by Manifest makes me think of my son. He struggles financially. Just keeping his head above the water. Gulping for air every day. He is a believer that walked away from God. He claims to be "Agnostic." I always struggle what to say to him so that he won't completely close his ears to what I am saying. I know now that my past life, all the brokenness, can be used by God to open his eyes to see what my Savior has done for me, He can do for him also. Manifest sings of never giving up, that what his mother had said to him in the past is now in his life also. I want my son to see that.

Christ has given me so much! My life has changed so much in the past 7 years. And God is doing so much in my life now. I continue to pray for the courage to tell others. But I feel that God is not listening, but He is. His timing right now is not for me to verbally tell others, so maybe this is the medium?

My daily devotions, of late, have opened my eyes to His word and how I understand it. The words have lifted me up. His glorious light shone from the pages. The Holy Spirit enters into my heart so that His peace enters in, giving me a renewed strength. If anyone reads this I want you to know that. I walked through a valley for 7 years while I was incarcerated. The valley of being separated from family and friends. But even then the Glorious light of His love for me shone all around me, so that this "Valley of death" did not scare me.

If you are walking through a valley right now, I pray that you will just open His word and allow those words lift you up. Many times, as this world tells us, we have to "suck it up and just do it!" So you do that. What happens? Things don't work out and you get discouraged and get down. Christ is with us always, He walks with each one of us everyday, all day, constantly! And just as He endured the cross and was victorious over it, we can give Him our problems. We can unload our burdens on Him, and He gladly takes them from us. I was like you probably are, "I am not good enough. I can't go to Jesus as I am, He won't accept me as I am now. I will have to 'clean up my act first."' I didn't and He came to me anyway! He came to me in my brokenness and accepted me as I was, broken and bleeding.

See Christ was us broken. He wants us that way so that we can experience His mercy and grace that He has for us, just as we are. Now you are probably thinking "Well yea, but I'm in a different situation that you were. I have this, or that, in my life right now and He won't do anything for me while I am in this condition." This is the devil talking to your heart! Satan is the deceiver, lying all the time. His only agenda is to knock you down and put doubt in your mind, not only about you but also about God the Father. He will beat you up without you even knowing that He is doing so. By just asking God for help. He then has the opening that He needs to come into your heart. Dispelling all the lies that Satan had been putting in your head.

Again, allowing God to enter in He can then prove to your heart that what I am saying is true. He can bring His peace to a place that has not known peace in a long time. Satan brings peace too, but his peace is short lived, only lasting for the moment that it comes. But God's love and peace will last your entire life. So, do you want to live in, and for, the moment? Or would you rather have the life long peace that our Father in heaven can bring? Once you experience His peace, my question will be answered!

The main thing with this is that you must be patient and allow God to work in His time and not yours. The darkness only lasts as long as the night is here. Morning does come! The Light of His Glory does rise up and fills us up, allowing us to walk in the freedom of knowing that we are loved and that He does accept us in all our brokenness and shame and hurt. The feeling is so liberating that you may feel overwhelmed, enough so that tears begin to flow as you suddenly realize that the pain and hurt and sorrow are flowing away, being taken up by Jesus's love for you.

Again, I pray that you come to Him, especially during this time of year to allow Him to take you to a place that you have never been and that you will not want to leave. By accepting Christ as your Savior you will never leave that place. And death will no longer have a hold over you. In Christ death was defeated. Of course we all die, but having the knowledge that you are saved and now live with Christ, death no longer has a hold on you. At death, all believers will see God face to face, and we will experience a peace that is indescribable.

Giving us His love

 

      When did you reach the end of your rope? When did it seem like the storms in your life would never end? Where did the friends, that you knew for a life time, go? When there was nowhere else to turn, what did you do or think?

          That happened to me. And I am sure that for you, as it was for me, it was a scary time. A time when all there seemed to be was darkness and pain. I was there myself. I felt alone because I had let down those friends, along with my family. The walls that I had surrounded myself with seemed to be insurmountable. But in all the pain and heartache there was a voice. And I was amazed at just how loving and sweet it sounded. In that moment I knew just how much Jesus cared for me and most importantly just how much He loved me.

          He came to me in all my brokenness. He waded through all my sins to hold me and heal my wounds. It is not ironic that just His voice broke through the stone that encased my heart. Now that my heart was one of flesh and not stone the Holy Spirit was able to come in, changing me forever. Thus began a transformation in my life, one that was being led by Jesus Christ.

          When He came in the darkness that I had been struggling in was gone, replaced by His glorious light. Every sin was erased, completely forgotten. I started to feel a peace like never before. The yoke of the world I had been following was lifted from my shoulders and replaced by His yoke. I tell you it was so light, almost like it wasn’t there. Now there have been times when I did get heavy, but those were the times when my walk started to veer off from His path, making my walk more difficult, something that Jesus did not want from me. But it was never a hard pull or quick swat with a cord. It was a gentle reminder, a reminder of what he had done for me on the cross. It was the tear that fell from His eyes that I saw. Those are the things that brought me back time and time and time again.

          It was my surroundings, a place that I did not want to be in, but knew it was Christ who had planned all along to have me there. A place to learn and begin to reflect on who He is and what He did. A place to slow down and truly focus on Him and His ways for my life. To begin to fully understand just how much He loves not only me but the world. It was a place where my Savior could begin to change my head and heart, so as to live His way. To show me that through it all He never left me nor forsook me. For the first time I was able to live a life of peace and have the strength in order to follow Him through all my storms, knowing that the other side would be better than the side I left.

          So here I am today. I still struggle, and have times of sin. But I have the head and heart knowledge that Christ loves me no matter what. That His blood covers all sins, forever, separating them from me. That His love never fails.

          If your life seems out of control. If you live in constant darkness. If the storms of your life never seem to fade let alone go away, go to Him. He is not concerned with your past, just your heart. Christ is not a tyrant, ruling with an iron fist. He is a loving Father who wishes for you to accept Him as your Savior. See you are not a savior, you cannot save anyone, even yourselves. Good works will not do it. So trying to help others to make yourself look good to God is not the right plan. Humbling your heart, repenting, asking for forgiveness. Opening up yourself in order to let Him in is the way to go.

Dead Now Alive

 

Ephesians 2: 4,5: 4) “But because of his great love for us, God who is rich in mercy, 5) made us alive with Christ even when we were dead in transgressions.”

          How was my life before I truly knew Christ? Oh, I knew of Him, but didn’t truly know Him. And my life reflected that because I walked in the darkness of my sinful life. So even through that Jesus continued to call out lovingly to me back to Him, my only desire was to go down the path of self, gaining all I could for me. Since my fall I have come to learn that His only desire was for me to fully walk with Him, enjoying the joy, peace and love that CAN ONLY BE FOUND IN HIM!! “How great is the love the Father has lavished on us, that we should be called children of God!! And that is who we are!! The reason the world does not know us in that it did not know him.” 1 John 3:5 (AB). “He saved us, not because of any works of righteousness that we had done, but because of His own pity and mercy, by [the] cleansing [bath] of the new birth (regeneration) and renewing of the Holy Spirit.” Titus 3:5 (AB).

          So through my circumstances I humbly came to Christ, asking for forgiveness, and I laid my life at His feet. I gave up control to Him allowing Him to pour the Holy Spirit into my heart. When I accepted Christ as my personal Savior I experienced a rebirth, becoming alive in Christ. My spirit, then, truly set free so I knew right then that what I had learned about Christ was true He freed my heart from the grip of sin. He opened my eyes in order that I could walk in the light of His glory, clearly seeing the way, no longer stumbling, tripping and falling under the weight of unforgiving sins that I was carrying. “then we will not turn away from you; revive us, and we will call on your name.” Psalm 80:18 (NIV). “According to Your steadfast love, give life to me; then I will keep the testimony of Your mouth [hearing, loving, and obeying it]. Psalm 119:88 (AB).

          I also, then, truly begin to grasp the understanding of how much God does love me. I had always heard, “He sent His Only Son,” but my heart never allowed it in because of my sinful nature. I walked the path of self-reliance, self-preservation. Even when I read the word, my blindness, because of my sinful life, did not allow its power to enter into my heart. I failed to comprehend that my frustrations in life were the results of the absence of Christ in my heart. I was walking along through life dead leading a lifeless existence because of my sinful life. Circumstances in my life broke me to the point that I finally heard Christ calling my name. My blindness was taken so that the power of the words I finally and truly read entered into my heart. Christ swept my heart clean of my sins and His love for me began to overflow out of me spilling into the lives of family and friends. “When you were dead in your sins and in the circumcision of you sinful nature, God made you alive with Christ, He forgave us all our sins.” Colossians 2:13 (NIV). “For the grace of God that brings salvation has appeared to all men so that, having been justified by his grace, we might become heirs having the hope of eternal life.” Titus 2:11 & 3:7 (NIV).

Courageous; is His way for us

 

 

“Have I not command you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be discouraged for the Lord your God will be with you wherever you go.” Joshua 1:9

          Life is tough, at times I am scared and somewhat uncertain what way I need to go. And there are times when I don’t go to my Father in prayer as I should. The storms clouds appear on the horizon and my life feels the wind start to pick up. It is at these times that I feel unworthy to serve Him. I am fearful of something. Something that many time I cannot put my finger on. At other times I am aware of my sinful nature and it acts like the curtain did in the temple separating my spirit from the Spirit of God. It is our freewill that many times is our downfall, our sinful nature creates the storm clouds in our lives, causing us to fear our Heavenly Father. That is why daily prayer is so essential. Being able to speak with Jesus numerous times during the day, will chase away our doubts and fears that lead us to half-heartedly follow His paths made for us. Only in Christ Jesus can we obtain our power to combat our fears and un-certainty. “Finally, be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power.” Ephesians 6:10.

          By my daily study of his word I gain the power, through those words, to follow Him. To follow Him even when the winds of fear and pain swirl around me. To disregard what I may have read earlier in the day is to slap Jesus in the face. Knowing that the Lord Jesus Christ is continually walking with me, gives my heart His power to continue to walk on this path that He has now set my feet ON. To fear only brings on the inability to walk on stable legs, it keeps diverting our eyes off of Him and onto the one that we have set as our idol. We must be renewed daily by His word, if not, fear, doubt and pain comes in. Fear, in this case, means that our focus dims, the power form His word begins to fade in our hearts. His word needs to be taken into our hearts on a daily basis to nourish our spirits. To bring our hearts eye back into focus on our Lord and Savior. Our sinful nature also brings about fear; it begins to close the door in our hearts so that the voice of the Lord becomes harder to hear. By not being able to clearly hear Christ, we begin to walk our own paths eventually failing to follow His commands, if we stay on that path. “Be alert and on your guard; stand firm in your faith (your conviction respecting man’s relationship to God and divine things, keeping the trust and holy fervor born of faith and a part of it). Act like men and be courageous; grow in strength!” 1 Corinthians 16:10 (AB).

        Fear also brings with it despair. If we are facing an uncertain future or circumstances beyond our control, the power of His word brings light into our beings, the light of His glory and grace. So that we can face whatever it is, with the courage and strength that only comes through our understanding of His word and the power of His mighty right hand on our shoulders. “So do not fear, for I am with you; do not be dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen you and help you; I will uphold you with my righteous right hand.” Isaiah 41:10 Here we read not to be dismayed, because we believe in the Lord Jesus Christ. Even in our fearful and darkest times, if we believe what we have studied, we will know in our hearts that our Father is walking with us. His powerful right hand is holding us firm. I felt this many times while I was incarcerated. During my dark times, the Holy Spirit assured me that It was still there and the whispers that It spoke encouraged my heart. Even in my freedom, now, I am encouraged daily by the love that Jesus has for me. My desire is to stay obedient to Him, to take in what he says. Then to put His words into action, to move out of my comfort zone and go out to where He has directed me to go.

          So I come here and write, allowing the Holy Spirit to guide my words. I have a desire to share with others of how Jesus came and changed me. By writing these papers, I have come into a media of my own. My hope is that many will read these papers and come to know Him as their Savior, Redeemer, and Friend! Being filled with the power that comes from knowing the Creator of the world, and the Creator of them!

Bringing All to The Feast

 

Luke 14: 12-14; 12) “Then Jesus said to his host, ‘When you give a luncheon or dinner, do not invite your friend, your brothers or sisters, your relatives, or your rich neighbors; if you do, they may invite you back and so you will be repaid. 13) But when you give a banquet, incite the poor, the crippled, the lame, the blind, 14) and you will be blessed. Although they cannot repay you, you will be repaid at the resurrection of the righteous.”

Let’s look at these verses and add a twist to them, if you will. Let’s look at them through the eyes of a believer, who filled with the Holy Spirit, has burning desire to tell others about Jesus and His love for the ones He has created, which are ALL of us.

          Now if he/she goes to their friends, family, co-workers or neighbors who already believe in Jesus, and walk in His ways, what are they accomplishing for the kingdom? They are speaking to those who already believe. Now they may encourage some of those they speak to, which helps those who may be struggling, but the love of Christ is not truly being spread. There is a repair job being done, nothing is being changed, in respect to the advancing of the gospel. In essence the dented fender is being repaired but the car is the same. There is an inner feeling of something good being done, between the believers, but is there really heavenly reward?

          But if the believer truly listens to the voice of Christ and steps out in faith to minister to the poor, of inner courage, or the crippled, of unbelief, or the blind, who do now know the word, or the lame, whose walk is hand in hand with the world, Christ will store up treasures for the believer in heaven, if the believer shows those people Christ first hand by the way they live their lives and by the actions that they show in their lives. And they can express to this world that the Creator of ALL the world is storing up treasures for them also, and they can claim those treasures if they only accept Christ as their Savior.

          Through the life of the believer, they share the love God has for His people. They display the actions Jesus Christ displayed towards the same kind of people He came in contact with. Through the words that God lays on the believer’s heart, they share with those who Satan has lied to or distorted the truth to.

          The believer then becomes somewhat of a healer. He opens the eyes of the blind. He helps the lame and the cripple to walk in Christ. They share with them their past, of how Christ came in and healed them, how He restored them to spiritual health. And through the gifts He has bestowed on the believer, they use those gifts to further God’s kingdom. How He gave Himself as a sacrifice for their sins. And the non-believer may now become a believer and start his own collection of heavenly treasures.

          So the obedience of the believer opens their hearts in order for the Holy Spirit to enter in an even greater way. So through that indwelling, the believer’s desire to share the gospel, and live an even stronger life for Christ prevails. It over flows out from them flooding their lives and so washes over those around them too. Christ’s love flow to those whose lives need the living water making the believer, in essence, an oasis in the desert of this world.

          And so the believer, through their understanding of His word, are filled with the knowledge that treasures for them, are in heaven. They are filled with patience no longer wanting to live for the here and now, but live to share God’s word with all they can. When they give away they know they will receive more. Their faith in the truth they know, is the force behind their sharing, Jesus has demonstrated, in their lives, His truths! He has done what He said He would do! And the believer, filled to overflowing with the Holy Spirit, goes to the poor, crippled, lame and the blind using the words of Jesus to bring them into the banquet hall so they may ALL SHARE the feast Jesus has for them to eat.

Being like John

Luke 1:76-79: 76) “And you, my child, will be called a prophet of the most High; for you will go on before the Lord to prepare the way for him, 77) to give his people the knowledge of salvation through the forgiveness of their sins, 78) because of the tender mercy of our God, by which the rising sun will come to us from heaven, 79) to shine on those living in darkness and in the shadow of death, to guide our feet into the path of peace.”

          We as believers must be like John the Baptist, proclaiming the love and forgiving grace of Jesus, and just as our lives have been changed by the power of Christ, others need to hear of, and experience, that change also. “And he will go on before the Lord, in the spirit of Elijah, to turn the hearts of the fathers to their children and the disobedient to the wisdom of the righteous----to make ready a people prepared for the Lord.” Luke 1:17 (NIV). So we pray for strength and boldness, to speak to others about Jesus. And through our continued study of His word, we gain the knowledge to share His word, and the power contained within, with those who are searching and lost. “No longer will they teach their neighbor, or say to one another, ‘know the Lord,’ because they will all know me, from the least to the greatest, declares the Lord. For I will forgive their wickedness and will remember their sins no more.” Jeremiah 31:34 (NIV).

          For both the believers and non-believers that verse can be so spiritually liberating. Because, “He committed no sin, and no deceit was found in his mouth, (1 Peter 2:22) we can believe what is written here. We can whole heartedly know that God was being truthful when speaking to Jeremiah. Because Jeremiah repeated those words to the people of Israel! We can go out in confidence, then, that the Lord will be with us, giving us the words to say, in order that He is heard by those who need to hear.

          So as we, “go out,” leading lives led by Jesus, by the ways we have studied, there will be a light radiating out from us. The light of His glory that is in our hearts. Others will notice how we treat them because they will see the difference between the world’s way and our way, which is really God’s way. Others will notice how the world speaks and how we speak because the words of the world will bite, sting, and hurt. Our words, seasoned with the Holy Spirit, will sooth, lift up, encourage, and heal because of the light that comes from those words will be a Light of healing, mercy, grace and forgiveness. “But for you who revere my name, the sun of righteousness will rise with healing in its rays. And you will go out and frolic like well-fed calves.” Malachi 4:2 (NIV). “The night is nearly over; the day is almost here. So let us put aside the deeds of darkness and put on the armor of light.” Romans 13:12 (NIV).

          So the light that comes from within us, the Holy Spirit, will be seen by others and the gentleness of God’s word that comes out of our mouths will draw others to Him. Their hearts will be drawn to Him, through us, because they will feel comfort and peace that Christ is giving them through those words. They may be worried about their past, not realizing that Christ has forgotten them due to what He accomplished by dying on the cross. So by coming to the Light, in us, they are coming to a person that will speak words to them, given by Jesus Himself, and if they are ready, they will come out from behind the shadow of death. They will not allow the wall Satan has put between the hearts and Jesus, to stand in their way any longer. Christ will honor us, because we have fearlessly followed His commands, followed His leading that we have felt in our hearts, and spoke the truth to them. “The people walking in darkness have seen a great light; on those living in the land of deep darkness a light has dawned.” Isaiah 9:2 (NIV).

          So we use God’s words to guide and direct those who come to the path that God has directed us to show them. Because our hearts have been changed due to the indwelling of the Holy Spirit, we follow the teachings of our Lord and Savior that He has shown us through our study of His word. We look on others through the eyes of Him who loves ALL HE HAS CREATED!! Our over whelming desire is to share not only our testimony, but what God lays on our hearts, every day, to express to others. Christ gives us the insight to ask questions of others, not to pry but to initiate some type of conversation. They know that by opening their hearts, that we will earnestly listen and not condemn so they will be at peace to confide in us. So by sharing the inner peace which overflow within us they will possibly allow that peace to enter into the open the door of their hearts. The door Christ is knocking at, and by letting Him in they will experience His transforming love and know that He accepts them as His children so they can now share in the inheritances awaiting them in heaven. Christ Jesus will also give them peace in their hearts during the violent storms and negative circumstances in their lives. The peace that comes from hearing God’s voice when the world is screaming all around them. The peace that comes through the power of His word which will be the foundation their prayer life is set on. “The mind of sinful man is death, but the mind controlled by the Spirit is life and peace;” Romans 8:6 (NIV). “For the kingdom of God in not a matter of eating and drinking, but of righteousness, peace and joy in the Holy Spirit,” Romans 14:17 (NIV).

Hope, Confidence, Splendor

 

Psalm 71: 5-8; 5) “For you have been my hope, O Sovereign Lord, my confidence since my youth. 6) From birth I relied on you; you brought me from my mother’s womb. I will ever praise you. 7) I have become like a portent to many, but you are my strong refuge. 8) My mouth is filled with your praise, declaring your splendor all day long.”

          How many believers can look and say, “Boy God was watching over me when I did that or when I did this.” And at those times we may not have been walking with God, like we should have. But Christ was there, walking with us. Watching over us. So now as followers of Jesus, we see that. And we lift up our praises to Him for guiding us through those times, and for guiding us now. Our trust in Him, to watch over us and walk with us during our trials, re-enforces on our hearts the love, grace, mercy and forgiveness He has for us. “Blessed are those whose help is in the Lord their God.” Psalm 146:5 (NIV). “When I am afraid, I put my trust in you.” Psalm 56:3 (NIV).

          As we mature in our faith and trust in Jesus, we do lift our praises to Him. Our being is dependent on Christ. As we study His word, we become more aware of Him, and how He has brought us to this time in our lives. We praise Christ for having His hand on us, guiding and directing our steps in order to accomplish His will. We now may begin to see how God has guarded us, shielded us, in order for Him to break the chains of sin that has us captive. His plan for our lives trumped the evil, Satan wanted from us. So now we look to the change of life Christ called us to, and our hearts leap with praise and worship to Him. “For He guards the course of the just and protects the way of his faithful ones.” Proverbs 2:8 (NIV). “I will sing to the Lord as long as I live; I will sing praise to my God while I have any being.” Psalm 104:33 (AB).

          So we continue to be obedient and follow Jesus. Our daily devotions, bible reading and prayer, work to strengthen our hearts. We call on the Holy Spirit to help guide our daily walk, knowing that it will call on God to assist us with words that will draw others to Him. Through the power of His word, in our hearts, we develop an overwhelming desire to spread His name. To declare to others what Christ has done for us. How our lives have been refined through the fire of hardship, pain, sorrow or prison. How Jesus took and washed us in His blood in order to take away our sins. Oh, our earthly sinful nature still exists, but the blood Jesus shed on the cross, changed us. We are spotless to Him, whole, with not a blemish. So by sharing that with others, we lift up Jesus to them. We praise our Creator in front of those we share with. Our stories need to plant the seeds of salvation in others. We may not water.  We may not reap. But we will plant. We will show others the Christ that leads us, when we share and praise Jesus, “Let them exalt Him also in the congregation of the people and praise Him in the company of the elders.” Psalm 107:32 (AB).

He can take your chains

       This story is taken from the lyrics of “Chain Breaker” by Zack Williams.

 

          I was walking down road after road trying to get to somewhere I thought I needed to go. Another dead end, turn around, go back, turn, another dead end, repeat. How many years was it for me? Over 50! But there was always a voice, right there in the back of my head I never listened, why, because the world had all the answers, or did it? NO! It has nothing but lies, lies concocted by Satan. He is the one that entwined me in chain after chain. As my life went on they became heavier and heavier. Much like erosion, that takes away the mountain a little at a time, so too were the chains that Satan secured me with, a little today, a little the next week, it was not really that noticeable. But when life did become too much, and I cried out to Jesus, Satan was right there telling me that I “was not worthy of Jesus, He will not come to you, look at you, you are nothing to Jesus.” So I hung my head in shame and continued on, struggling to carry the chains of pain, sorrow defeat, unworthiness. But the truth is I was worthy. Why? Jesus died for me. I knew that, but again, the world was screaming louder than the voice of my Savior, because of my hardened heart.

          Yes, my life was being lived in the darkness of a sinful life. I knew that Christ was out there but all I could do was grope around feeling for His hand, but because I was in the dark I was unable to see it in order to take hold. The glorious light of Jesus had not made it into my heart yet. So I kept living the life that I knew, sinful or not. But yet there was some yearning in my soul for something more. At time I grew weary trying to find it, I fell many times battering myself up, bleeding over everything that I did. I was fighting constantly to stay on my feet, but tripping over something and falling again. It was beginning to be too much. I was trapped in the prison of my selfish desires.

          Then my world crashed in on itself. I laid at the bottom of a pile of broken dreams and lives. It was then, through the cracks of my brokenness, that the light of Jesus appeared. The pain of constant defeat, heart ache, and self-centeredness was taken from me. The darkness that surrounded me was lifted by the infusion of the light of my Savior, His light of Mercy and Grace. The gates of the internal prison that I was held captive in were opened by the blood of the Lamb. Christ came to take me out of there. He heard my cries for help and knew that it was time, time to show me the way to eternal happiness. He showed me that He did care for me, that all the stories of what He did for me on the cross were more that stories, they were true! He did that for me! He came into my life and broke the chains that had held me tight for all these years.

          So I write these blogs because I truly believe that this is what Christ has wanted me to do for years. But it took going to prison in order that I listen to His voice and follow His commands. To live a life worthy of Him, telling others of His greatness and love and mercy and grace, that await them too! Christ died for you, and for me. The lies of this world are hard to ignore, they make sense to a non-believer. They did to me for so many years. But the fact still remains, that they are lies, lies to make you feel defeated, angry, unworthy of the love that God has for you. So no matter your past. No matter your present. Jesus loves you and desires a relationship with you. I have learned that following Him is not easy, there have been storms and rocky times. And through the infusion of the Holy Spirit in my heart I know without a shadow of a doubt that Jesus has never left me, He has carried me when needed. That’s the good thing about my Savior, He no longer looks at my past but only at my future, the one that He has known about from before I was born.

          He has a plan for you too, one where He leads you to further His kingdom through your lives, lived by being obedient to His calling. Christ is the one who has washed us in His redeeming blood, washing us white as snow. He is not concerned from where we came from, only where He is leading us. If you accept Him as your personal Savior. His death, and ultimate resurrection, has the power, to open your hearts and show you His love for you, to break the chains that hold you bound. The Holy Spirit will give you the faith and knowledge that He has defeated Satan by rising from the grave, so that Satan no longer has a hold over you. By accepting Him, whatever chains that Satan has laid on you, Christ Jesus can break them, forever separating you from them. Giving you freedom and saving you from an eternity separated from Him.

          I had pain, He’s a pain taker. I was lost, He’s a way maker. I needed freedom, and saving, He’s a prison-shaking Savior. I was bound by chains, He’s a chain breaker!

 

 

 

 

 

 

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Psalm 91: 14-16: 14) “’ Because he loves me,’ says the Lord, ‘I will rescue him; I will protect him, for he acknowledges my name. 15) He will call upon me, and I will answer him; I will be with him in trouble, I will deliver him and honor him. 16) With long life will I satisfy him and show him my salvation.’”

          Love. There are many definitions. Love for God, our creator, gives us a return that no love, we have for anyone or anything, is so great and wonderful. In the midst of our storms, trials and disappointments God is faithful to walk with us. Even though we may cry out in anger, due to our different situations, God continues to be by our sides. His arms are around us even though we don’t feel them. His hand is there to help us up. In our trials, trust in His word must continue to burn on our hearts the changing life power that comes from the Holy Spirit in us, fuels the fire. And from our lips come words of praise and glory and worship. And we are carried to the other side of our storms where Christ places us again on firm soil, His path, so we can continue our walk with Him. “I love you, O Lord, my strength.” Psalm 18:1 (NIV). “Whom have I in heaven but you? And earth has nothing I desire besides you.” Psalm 73:25 (NIV). “The Lord will rescue me from every evil attack and will bring me safely to his heavenly kingdom. To him be glory for ever and ever. Amen.” 2 Timothy 4:18 (NIV).

          As we continue to walk the path of obedience His word becomes rooted in us. Our lives, actions, speech, treatment of others, our prayer life, our hearts take in His word and we walk in the Light of His glory. Our minds are opened to His intentions so we begin to follow what we feel His intentions are. Utilizing the power of prayer in order to see and hear the struggles, pain and hurts of those around us, eagerly lifting up our prayers for them. Knowing that He may very well use us to walk with them guiding them to an understanding of Him. In order that they will open their hearts door to Him. Allowing Jesus to send in the Holy Spirit.

“Then you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.” John 8:32 (NIV). “The poor and needy search for water, but there is none; their tongues are parched with thirst. But I the Lord will answer them; I, the God of Israel, will not forsake them.” Isaiah 41:17 (NIV).

          As we live our lives being obedient to the Father, He will bless us with long lives. Lives that constantly allow His glorious light to shine into the life of others. He will bless us with resources to aid the homeless and the hungry, He will give us wisdom to gather the lost to Him. He will give us the courage to use our gifts to proclaim His righteousness. So as we mature physically and spiritually, Christ will use us, to be an examples of His mighty power. We will be able to use our brokenness, and how Jesus healed us, to bring the blind and deaf to Him. So that His salvation power can be poured over them. We can anoint their heads with the power of God’s grace and mercy. Our longevity will be a blessing for us. And to those who we bring into God’s family. “Whoever serves me must follow me; and where I am, my servant also will be. My Father will honor the one who serves me.” John 12:26 (NIV). “My son, do not forget my teaching, but keep my commands in your heart, 2) for they will prolong your life many years and bring you prosperity.” Proverbs 3: 1, 2 (NIV). “Trust in the Lord forever, for the Lord, he himself, is the Rock eternal.” Isaiah 26: 4 (NIV).

 

1 John 2: 9-11   9) “Anyone who claims to be in the light but hates his brother is still in the darkness. 10) Whoever loves his brother lives in the light, and there is nothing in him to make him stumble. 11) But whoever hates his brother is in the darkness and walks around in the darkness; he does not know where he is going, because the darkness has blinded him.”

          How many of us know Christ in our hearts, but yet pay no attention to the pain in people’s voices? How many believers pay no attention to the trial’s others are going through? How many followers walk in the shadow of His light, because they are in front of Jesus? Is this a sign of hatred against brother, or self? If we live our lives and not concern ourselves with how others are doing, do we really know CHRIST? “Burning lips [uttering insincere words of love] and a wicked heart are like an earthen vessel covered with the scum thrown off from molten silver [making it appear to be solid silver].” Proverbs 26:23 (AB). “If anyone says, ‘I love God,’ yet hates his brother, he is a liar. For anyone who does not love his brother, whom he has seen, cannot love God, whom he has not seen.” 1 John 4:20 (NIV).

          For many believers, life is not this way. The love of Christ, meaning the love Jesus has for ALL He has created, lives in them. Their eyes have been opened, so as to be aware of other’s circumstances and situations. And their ears have become able to hear the pain and sorrow in the voices of those around them. Their hearts, now obedient to Jesus, have His compassion for the hurting, down trodden and the lost. Their daily prayers are for guidance on how to physically and spiritually help others. The true believer is being led by the Spirit to do what Jesus has laid on their hearts to do. The Holy Spirit in them has cultivated their hearts, so that “love of their brothers and sisters” grow stronger. “And he has given us this command: Whoever loves God must also love his brother.” 1 John 4:21 (NIV).

          So in order to stay grounded in our lives, to continue to be obedient to His calling, to walk in the light of His glory, being in His word daily will be our help. His word gives hope to the hopeless. It drives away fear. It calms the storms. It gives total inner peace, to the believer and non- believer alike. By allowing God’s word to work in our situations and circumstances of life, we can better share with others. Our firsthand knowledge of the power of His word, through the Holy Spirit, will come out in our voices and actions as we give others our testimony. The sincerity in the tone we speak will tell others this Jesus is real, alive and powerful in our lives. We must showcase the grace, mercy and love of Jesus and live lives in a way so as to be believed, in order to bring glory and honor to the Creator of the universe. Our lives must freely show Jesus in us, and Jesus flowing through us. “Whoever says he abides in Him ought [as a personal debt] to walk and conduct himself in the same way in which He walked and conducted Himself.” 1 John 2:6 (AB).

          Believers then must continually be aware of their walk. Getting away from the path God has laid in front of us we become hard hearted and then lead others astray. This world, and its evil ways, always tries to lead the believer off Christ’s way and on to a path of self. Our ways are blanketed in darkness because we block the light of Jesus that is in us, we walk ahead of Him. In doing so we lead ourselves into destruction. And we also may lead others there too. “If we claim to have fellowship with him yet walk in the darkness, we lie and do not live by the truth.” 1 John 1:16 (NIV). Believers must rely on the power of His word, daily looking into it. They must continue to keep their eyes focused on Jesus. But there are times when trials come, and the tears of hurt and pain clouds their sight. At those times it helps to have other believers around us and the believer begins to slide when they reject help from others. The slope becomes steep when anger in a situation boils over. Satan will continually bombard the believer when he is weak, when he is walking in the dark. “But you are not in [given up to the power of] darkness, brethren, for that day to overtake you by surprise like a thief.” 1 Thessalonians 5:4 (AB). That verse must encourage us. It tells us we are in Christ and He has a hold of us. This “darkness” is only for a short time. We will emerge out of the other side renewed, stronger, better able to conquer the darkness that trials in our lives bring. And out of this, our testimony will be more powerful. Empowering others to boldly trust in Jesus, so that His power will live in them.

Our Shame is Gone        

 

We now have a “new live in Christ” when we accepted Him as our Savior and we are progressing to a deeper faith as we walk with Him. The Holy Spirit has entered into our hearts and us a desire to share with others how we have been changed. How often does the shame of our past transgressions get in our way? In our minds we know we are forgiven, we have been washed “white as snow” by the shed blood of Christ. How many of us stop there? How many of us will continue to listen to Satan as he throws our pasts lives up in our faces. How many spiritual fires are dampened by Satan as he continues to suppress what God has for us to do?

          God’s children, who are new to the faith or have been God’s children most of their lives, need to continually remember that the shame of their past sins are also taken away, covered by the blood of Jesus. The Father has equipped us with the Holy Spirit and His word. Christ knows the gifts He has given to us to use. Why then would He leave our shame uncovered knowing Satan would use it to hinder what work He has in mind for us to do?

          As we daily go to the Lord in prayer, our praise to Him must include our giving up that shame, so that the Lord can remove it from us. Our desire to live a life that reflects the indwelling of Jesus Christ in our hearts must not be hindered by any shame we may be carrying. Our lives need to show others that the Christ we serve has vindicated us completely. Our sins AND SHAME have been separated from us. God took them so that we can freely, with no obstructions, go about executing the gifts our Lord and Savior has given us to further His kingdom here on earth. That even though our past is still with us, it has no control over us any longer. Our past cannot and will not affect our work for Christ.

          Two things happen when shame is also atoned for. We are freed form it’s torment, its constant reminder of failure. And we are also free to boldly proclaim the heart healing power of Jesus and His she blood. We can confidently proclaim his love, mercy and grace the Father has on ALL His creation. Because of our confidence in the truth, God’s word, others will hear it in our words and see it in our actions. As children of the most High God, our sins AND SHAME have been forgiven. Allowing us to raise our hands, in praise and worship, to Him. It gives us the boldness and courage to share with others the power of Christ’s love, mercy and grace for them.

Wind Turbine or Windmill?

 

 Driving to Bloomington today I noticed the wind turbines turning in the wind. They were generating power, this made me think...”am I generating power for the Lord?” I have also noticed that at times some of the turbines are moving and some are not. So…this also made me think “you could say 1 of 2 things here. 1) could the stationary turbines be thought of as believers that are not generating any power for Christ or 2) could they be thought of as non-believers?” Let’s take a look at both.

          How many times does a recent convert go blue blazes, getting their testimony out for others to hear, only to get bogged down by this world? They turn freely in the wind, the wind of God, but soon the lack of proper maintenance starts to take its toll. They once rose early to read the word before work, but problems arose, the storms of life began to take a toll on their devotion time. Their spirits got rusty and the flow, of the Holy Spirit out of them, starts to slow down. Soon the power that they once were generating is now down to a trickle. Soon the blades fail to turn. Satan has accomplished the task of shutting down another power source for Jesus Christ. “Some people are like seed along the path, where the word is sown. As soon as they hear it, Satan comes and takes away the word that was sown in them.” Mark 4:15 (NIV). Of course this is a slow process. Over time the devil takes more and more of the wind away so that the blades turn slower and slower, finally the blades stop and the Power, once made for their testimony for Christ, is no longer generated. Then the storms come, the lightning and driving rain in their lives have them crying out to Jesus for help. And He comes. He begins the repair of their lives. He fixes their blades, if you will, and soon they are again generating a testimony for the Lord, just like they did before. This time, though, they see that the lack of maintenance, the daily devotions and time with Him in prayer, must not be overlooked or neglected. Christ has made their repair complete by the shedding of His blood for them on Calvary’s cross. His gentle and ever sustaining wind begins to blow again against the blades of their lives and power in Christ is again made.

          Now for the non-believer. Just as we can see many, many turbines on the landscape. There are many, many non-believers out there. Christ has “built” each one of them. And even though they fail to recognize their importance, Christ built each one for a purpose, His purpose! Now the one who has fashioned us for this very purpose is God, who has given us the Spirit as a deposit, guaranteeing what is to come.” 2 Corinthians 5:15 (NIV). But the non-believer does not see this. They are so consumed by the world that their ears and eyes do not hear, or see, what destruction lies ahead of them. The “power” of Christ is not in them, they are hopelessly lost being led like sheep to the slaughter. The wind turbine is set in place, the wind is blowing, but the blades fail to turn, locked up with the rust of worldly aspirations and hopes. Their blades are “locked” so as to provide no use to anyone, but themselves. The Father sends out the workman to repair the problems. But for some, they turn away the help. Others don’t listen to the help. Christ keeps coming, calling out their names but they turn Him away. “[I] They can make the repairs themselves!” But it never happens. They rely on others to help, but they are just as lost themselves. So the repairs are not made, and as time keeps going on the chances of a rebuild seem to be going down the drain. Will power ever come from them?

          The answer is YES!!! The love that Christ has for us, which is unimaginable, does come and repairs are made. His shed blood is the tool needed to make repairs that will NEVER go bad. For the believer the power that once was generated by their acceptance of Christ will begin to flow again. The gentle breeze of the Holy Spirit will again turn the blades that will generate the power needed to help the non-believer to have repairs made to their generator. So that they too may experience the joy and peace that only being washed in the blood of Christ can bring them. Every one of us needs the luxury of preventive maintenance. The type that Jesus Christ can accomplish each day in our lives. And this is done by daily reading His word, through a bible study of daily devotions, and by praying. Going into His throne room, and humbling ourselves before Him, He will lift us up and His power will come forth through us. In our actions, and the leading of the Holy Spirit in the words we speak, others will hear the healing words that our Father has given to us to say. So that as we ALL stand tall on the horizon, our blades will turn with ease and the power we generate will energize others to follow Him as their Lord and Savior. So they too will generate the power needed to weather the storms of life knowing that God will never leave them or forsake them.