Thanksgiving

 

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Enter into His gates with thanksgiving,

And into His courts with praise. Be thankful to Him and bless His name. Psalm 100:4 (NKJV)

This verse is from a chapter in Psalms we had to memorize when I was in the fifth grade. I always think on this chapter during the month of November.

Each of God’s children must be thankful for no other reason than they belong to God. God blesses, (inward joy is theirs), us because He chooses to.

Each week at the beginning of that week’s journal thoughts, I list things I am thankful for, I call these pages, “Praise More.” This exercise helps me keep in mind who He is and what He does for me.

Do we ever take the time to thank God for bringing us through to another day? We must because each day we have is a gift from Him.

Do we remember to give thanks to Him for His watch care over us? Have we ever barely missed being involved in a car wreck because of something that kept us from being where we could have been severely injured?

Do we realize that God is our protector at all times during our life? He knew us in our unformed state (Psalm 139:16) and watched over us even before we knew Him.

All we can do in return is give thanks and praise Him for who He is.

Through His Guidance

 

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In Him also we have obtained an inheritance, being predestined to the

purpose of Him who works all things to the counsel of His will.

Ephesians 1:11 (NKJV)

In Jesus, we have received a gift from God, a gift determined by the LORD’s aim for us. God works all things in accordance to His will.

Our heavenly Father knows what He plans for each of His children. We learn His purpose for our lives through the experiences we have as we grow in Him, the spiritual gifts He gives us and through His guidance through our days.

Over the years, I have taken at least three Spiritual Gifts surveys. The results have guided me as I walk with Jesus. Some people find that those gifts change over time. Some of mine went from strong gifts that I could use and to waiting gifts that I could use if I could develop them.

Have you done a Spiritual Gifts survey?

A Gentle and Quiet Spirit

 

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Do not let your adornment be merely outward—arranging your hair, wearing gold, or putting on fine apparel—rather let it be the hidden person of the heart, with the incorruptible beauty of a gentle and quiet spirit, which is very precious in the sight of God. 1 Peter 3:3-4 (NKJV)

Words of the Apostle Peter to those who were dispersed into five regions of Asia Minor.

His words speak of the inner beauty of the believers of Christ. Per his thought, the inner person is what God sees and deems as our true selves.

I am concerned that our world has worshiped youthfulness, forgetting that people age. Madison Avenue (the advertising industry) has caused us to forget the fact that we are aging. Several of my lady friends have aged gracefully. I have a picture of one of them and her husband in our living room.

Now, please do not misunderstand, there are things we might need to do to our skin. However, there are things we need to do to keep our inner self presentable before God.

#Reading God’s Word

# Applying what it says to our heart

# Living out His Word to others

# Seeking His guidance through prayer

Father God, Please help each one of us to be gentle and humble as we go through our days. In Christ’s Name, I pray. Amen

Patience and Gentleness

 

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By long forbearance a ruler is persuaded, and a gentle tongue breaks a bone.

Proverbs 25:15 (NKJV)

Moses listened to the Lord and patiently awaited the day that Pharaoh would finally let the Israelite people depart Egypt and head to the land God had promised them.

Hannah exercised patience and faith as she awaited receiving her first-born son, Samuel. Hannah also practiced gentleness, although it was difficult, as she endured the taunts from Peninnah.

When we have stress-causing circumstances in our lives, we have to practice patience and, yes, gentleness in our daily lives. We may have to spend more time with God, as he gently whispers words of comfort, healing and love into our ears as we face overwhelming circumstances in our lives.

When we hear things from others that upset us, we need to apply the rule that our mothers said, “If you can’t say anything nice, say nothing at all.” This was a rule that a lot of us senior citizens heard from early on in our growing-up years. It is a pity that this rule seemed to fall by the wayside during the last half-century

Can we begin teaching this “rule” to children of these times?

Show Humility to All Men

 

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Remind them to be subject to rulers and authorities, to obey, to be ready for every good work, to speak evil of no one, to be peaceable, gentle, showing all humility to all men. Titus 3:1-2 (NKJV)

Paul’s words to Titus whom he describes as a “true son in our common faith.”

Paul lays groundwork here for believers to follow.

* To submit to rulers and authorities.

* To not speak badly about anyone.

* To live peaceful lives.

* To show humility to all we know.

Paul makes some very strong points, getting to the core of human relationships. He writes these words to a pastor who is young. Titus faces a huge task, that of establishing churches.

As we go through our days, we must follow these words of guidance from Paul. We are tasked to helping enlarge the kingdom of God, however, we must learn to daily practice gentleness.

This is a very difficult thing to do. Recently, I received a phone call from a friend who lives in my neighborhood. She wanted my advise on something. She told me her feelings on an issue and I told her that if she felt uncomfortable doing what she was asked, then maybe she should not do it. She had some good reasons about why she felt the way she did. I could have been more gentle about certain related issues she spoke of. I intend to be more careful in the future.

Do we always find ways to show humility to those around us?

Bear with one Another in Love

 

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I, therefore, the prisoner of the Lord, beseech you to walk worthy of the calling with which you were called, with all lowliness and gentleness, with long-suffering, bearing with one another in love, endeavoring to keep the unity of the Spirit, in the bond of peace.

Ephesians 4:1-3(NKJV)

Words of Paul written to Ephesian believers.

walk worthy of the calling

He encouraged them to live in a way that reflected God to others. He goes into detail as to how that would look. As we read those words, they can also apply to us who live in the 21^st Century.

with all lowliness and gentleness,

As believers in Christ, we must abandon all thought of ourselves as being better than others. We must also respond to each other with tenderness, no matter how others treat us.

bearing with one another in love,

Believers must accept those around us in love and be available for others as we can be. I sometimes find this difficult to do given the mindset of those in the world.

endeavoring to keep the unity of the Spirit

Paul’s purpose in his ministry was to introduce people to Jesus Christ and then to educate them in the ways of Christ. His goal was to unify those converted to the faith.

in the bond of peace.

Paul tells his readers, then and now that all we should do must have peace as its ultimate aim. I have had times when someone in the business world has been almost rude in response to a question I asked. In one instance, the woman could have explained their position better than she did.

Do you find it difficult to bear  certain people in your life?

He Rewards Faithfulness

 

But, without faith it is impossible to please Him, for he who comes to God must believe He is and that He is a rewarder of those who diligently seek Him. Hebrews 11:6 (NKJV)

When we go before the LORD, we must believe He is who He says He is. The writer of Hebrews tell us without our believing in Him we cannot please Him. When we go before His throne, there are certain things we must believe:

* He will listen to our pleas.

       If our hearts are in tune with Him.

* He will answer our requests.

      In the way that is best for us and His plan.

* He will reward us for our efforts.

      His rewards may be a lightness of heart.

      He may give us new insight into a concern or a problem.

However, we must concentrate on Him while we seek His guidance.

“But you, when you pray, go into your room, and when you have shut your door, pray to your Father who is in the secret place; and your Father who sees in secret will reward you openly.“ Matthew 6:6 (NKJV)

Sometimes, we can follow Matthew 6:6 when we are in a crowd. Other times we can do obey this scripture by physically removing ourselves from the circumstance that needs our prayer.

Because of His Faithfulness

 

Through the Lord’s mercies we are not consumed, because His mercies fail not. They are new every morning; Great is your faithfulness. Lamentations3:22-23 (NKJV)

Did you ever have ‘one of those days’ when nothing went the way you planned or wanted it to go? Because we are human, we all have them. Not sleeping at night, forgetting where you put something you need to function, needing to alter plans to accommodate someone else are just a few of the ones we could face in our days.

Because we belong to God, we can function in spite of the plans that go awry. He blesses us with the strength to continue with what we need to do.

My study Bible lists some advantages because of God’s faithfulness:

*We can have confidence when we pray.

*We can conquer evil and temptation.

*We can praise Him.

*We can have courage when we are afraid.⁽¹⁾

We all must rely on His faithfulness as we go through our lives. When we do we become stronger in our witness and testimony for God.

_____________________

(1.)Jeremiah Study Bible, Dr. © 2013 David Jeremiah Inc, Worthy, Hatchette Book Group NY, NY. Page 1045.

Our Joy May Be Full

 

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These things I have spoken to you, that my joy may remain in you, and that your joy may be full. It is my commandment that you love one another as I have loved you. Greater love has no one than this, than to lay down one’s life for his friends. John 15:11-13 (NKJV)

 

Jesus has just told His disciples that He loved them as God loved Him. He also told them that if they ‘keep’ His commandments, they will have His love in their hearts.

 

Jesus told these disciples for them to remember His joy and rely upon it. He then commands them to love one another as He has loved them.

 

Have you ever wondered what our world would be like if each of us would love those around us as Jesus has loved us?  

 

As I think on this, I see a world where there are no broken homes, no divisions in extended families, no fights that lead to killings, each holiday would be truly a time of joy.

Abound in Hope

 

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 Now may the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, that you may abound in hope by the power of the Holy Spirit.  Romans 15:13 (NKJV)

 

This is a prayer of blessing Paul wrote to the believers in Rome.

 

There are times, even today, that we need to experience joy and peace in our lives. There has been a lot of heartache these past two years beyond the COVID pandemic. Families have lost loved ones to various other illnesses and conditions. Parents have had to bury their children.

 

Our nation received an influx of refugees from the middle east last year. It looks as if we will be receiving refugees from the Ukraine.

 

We may have become weary because of the issues we have faced these past few years, however, looking at this verse of scripture, I find that we may find hope through the Holy Spirit.

 

We will receive the power of the Holy Spirit to stay the course as we seek God’s guidance and direction for our lives.

 

 

               

Joy Inexpressible

 

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In this you greatly rejoice, though now for a little while, if need be, you have been grieved by various trials, that the genuineness of your faith, being much more precious than gold that perishes, though it is tested by fire, may be found to praise, honor, and glory at the revelation of Jesus Christ, whom having not seen you love. Though you do not see Him, yet believing, you rejoice with joy inexpressible and full of glory, receiving the end of your faith—the salvation of your souls. 1 Peter 1:6-9 (NKJV)        

 

Believers have times of grief due to trials entering their lives. Knowing Jesus does not make us exempt from the hurts of our earthly life.

 

However, the apostle Peter tells us because of the realness of our faith, being more valuable than gold, we will receive God’s praise (commendation or approval), honor (possibly crowns at the judgment seat of Christ) and glory (a precious, enduring, and genuine faith) because of our suffering.

Like Peter’s readers, we have not actually seen Jesus. However, we rejoice with a joy we cannot describe to anyone else.

 

Prayer: Father God; We thank You for our salvation, for your guidance through our days. We thank You that, when we see You, you will honor us with various crowns for our faith while we walk this earth. In the Name of Jesus, we pray. Amen.

Joy’s Seen in Gentleness

 

 

Rejoice in the Lord always. Again, I will say, rejoice! Let your gentleness be known to all men. The Lord is at hand. Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God, and the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus. Philippians 4:4-7 (NKJV)

 

The Apostle Paul tells his readers, us included, to rejoice. He repeats this thought He was imprisoned! He spent 24 hours a day chained to a Praetorium guard. What could Paul have to rejoice about? Simply put—He knew the LORD was in control.

 

He says that we are to let our gentleness be known to all men. Gentleness is defined as being reasonable—not so concerned with unimportant matters that a person fights over nonessentials^{. (1)} Paul reminds his readers that the Lord is nearby.

 

Paul continues with the best counsel. He tells us to be anxious for nothing. He then tells us to request what we need from God through prayer and humble entreaties (pleas) and then thanking Him.

 

By prayer and thanksgiving, we will receive God’s protection for our hearts and minds through His Son, Jesus Christ.

 

(1) Jeremiah Study Bible © 2013 Worthy Publishing Co. Hachette Book Group, New York p.1662)

Be Merciful

 

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But if you love those who love you, what credit is that to you? For even sinners love those who love them. And if you do good to those who do good to you, what credit is that to you? For even sinners do the same. And if you lend to those from whom you hope to receive back, what credit is that to you? For sinners lend to sinners to receive as much back. But love your enemies, do good, and lend, hoping for nothing in return; and your reward will be great, and you will be sons of the Most High. For He is kind to the unthankful and evil. Therefore, be merciful, just as your Father is merciful. Luke 6:32-36 (NKJV)

 

This passage has good guidance in it. Jesus tells us to “love your enemies, do good, and lend, hoping for nothing in return”. If we follow this command, we will be loving those around us as Jesus loved.

 

And if you do good to those who do good to you, what credit is that to you?

In our Christian walk we will see people who need help but cannot repay us for what we do to help them. According to these words of Jesus, we need to help them anyway.

 

if you lend to those from whom you hope to receive back, what credit is that to you?

Sometimes, it is difficult for a person to find a way to repay a loan, it may be such that it would be a double hardship for them to repay.

 

But love your enemies, do good, and lend, hoping for nothing in return;

These are words of Jesus telling us these things. Even when we love someone with Christ’s love, that does not mean that they love us in the same way. When we do good, Jesus sees that in us. Jesus makes it clear here that we should not expect anything in return for the goodness we do.

 

and your reward will be great, and you will be sons of the Most High

Our reward will come from Jesus.

 

“For He is kind to the unthankful and evil.”

When we obey this command we display a certain type of love—mercy. As we do these things to those who do not respond thankfully, we show His mercy. “For He is kind to the unthankful and evil.”

 

“Therefore, be merciful, just as your Father is merciful.”

 

When we show mercy to someone, we are reflecting Jesus and His love to that person and to those around us as well as those who might hear of our action.

 

God Is Love

 

God Is Love

 

He who does not love does not know God, for God is love. In this the love of God was manifested toward us, that God sent His only begotten Son into the world that we might live through Him. In this is love, not that we loved God, but that He loved us and sent His Son to be the propitiation for our sins. Beloved, if God so loved us, we also ought to love one another.

1 John 4:8-11(NKJV)

 

God personifies love. When a believer thinks of love, he or she looks to Him. In looking to the LORD God, we learn that love is THE main attribute He has.

 

In dealing with others, we must remember that about God. He loves us even when we are unlovely. My best friend was teaching a class of children on the love of God. She named some people who had done some terrible unlawful acts to others. As she named them, she asked, “Does God love that person?” The answer in each instance was, “Yes!”

 

God loves the vilest criminal as much as He loves you and me. We wonder how that is possible. God loves everyone because He made them, the murderer, the thief, the insurrectionist, the thieves, and the ones who violate others.

 

The Newness of Life

 

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 Or do you not know that as many of us as were baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into His death? Therefore, we were buried with Him through baptism into death, that just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, even so we also should walk in the newness of life. Romans 6:3-4 (NKJV)

 

As I understand what Paul writes here is that when a person is baptized, the sinful part of him or her dies. We were not only baptized into our death but into Jesus’ death as well.

 

We should walk in a new life because when God raised His Son, He raised Jesus into a new life by resurrecting Him and taking Jesus to live with Him. Because God did this for His Son, the Son will do it for us.

I wonder, do those who submit to baptism realize what it means to go through this ordinance. It was a long time before I did.  When I returned to the LORD, I started attending a church near our home. This church was of the same denomination of the one in which I was baptized but they spoke of people being saved.

 

I now believe that present day churches need to return to the scriptures and their meaning rather than allow the world to shape their theology.

 

A New Heart

 

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Then, I will give them one heart, and put a NEW spirit within them, and take the stony heart out of their flesh, and give them a heart of flesh.” Ezekiel 11:19 (NKJV)

 

The prophet Ezekiel heard from God. Part of what He said states a very basic belief. God gives new hearts to those who believe in Him.

 

When a believer truly lives for Jesus, his or her life changes. Nothing is viewed in the same way. This does not mean that all is easy for the believer. God will bring His children through very difficult times. The Israelites were being hauled into exile when God spoke to his prophet Ezekiel.

 

In our present world, God speaks to each of His children, as He has need. A man and his wife at our church are praying for their son’s soul. He was hurt in an accident in March of 2021. He can’t go back to his job until he is completely healed physically, it could be another year. When you pray, please remember this couple and their adult son.

“The Lord will cleanse His people from sin as they repent. He will transform their hearts and minds and place His Spirit within them to empower them to be obedient. They will repopulate the desolate land and enjoy His rich covenantal blessings”. ⁽¹⁾

(1)   Jeremiah Study Bible© 2013 Worthy, Hachette Book Group, New York, NY. Page 1064 (FYI) Sidebar.

Blessings

 

 

 Blessings crown the heads of the righteous, but violence overwhelms the mouth of the wicked. Proverbs 10:6 (NIV)

 

This verse intrigues me. It tells me that the righteous people will receive blessings from God. There have been times when we wonder if we have done something we shouldn’t because we must go through something that causes us hurt. We learn something from those times, something that we might not have known and, yet have needed to know.

 

Some things I have experienced through this pandemic have been there all the time; I just didn’t realize they were. Yes, there have been struggles but out of these struggles have come some blessings.

 

On the other hand, I hear and read of stories that a person was responsible for personal hurt to another individual, either something they said or did to cause major issues. Sometimes, these hard feelings escalate and cause more and greater problems for the individuals involved and even for our society.

 

As Children of God, we must remember to thank Him for the way He blesses us. This must become a daily habit.

 

For some time, I have had trouble falling asleep at night. Two different friends have said they spend time, after their heads hit the pillow, just thanking Him for what He has done for us and what He has given us, not asking Him for anything. I decided to try it and I have slept better than I have for quite a while.                              

 

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Abiding Forever

 

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Do not love the world or anything in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him. For all that is in the world—the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, the pride of life—is not of the Father but is of the world and the world is passing away and the lust of it, but he who does the will of God abides forever. 1 John 2:15-17 (NKJV)

 

John the Apostle tells us some deep thoughts here.

 

He points out that all the divisive actions and thought we see and hear in this world are created by the world and not by God.

 

We see and hear of things every day that bring heartache and sadness to God’s people.

Our city recently heard of at least three shooting in less than a week. One of them was due to road rage and involved narcotics. I don’t believe God wants us to have these issues in our world. But certain segments of our society seems to want what it wants.

 

I have all but given up watching the TV news programs because certain elements of make claims that are not true or cause detriment to our people.

 

However, we must not forget that God is watching over all the events that cause Him pain. We serve a God who loves us and guides us through these fallen times.

 

In the Gospel of John, Jesus asks his disciples if they want to leave Him as several others have done. Simon Peter responds by saying, “Lord, to whom shall we go? You have the words of eternal life. We believe and know you are the Holy One of God.” (John 6:68, NIV)

 

Yes, we who follow Jesus believe and know that we are to continue to walk with Him to live with Him forever. 

 

Abide in Him

 

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 “I am the true vine, and My Father

 is the vinedresser. Every branch in Me

  that does not bear fruit He takes away;

and every branch that bears fruit He

prunes, that it may bear more fruit…

           Abide in Me and I in you. As the branch       

                   cannot bear fruit of itself, unless it                     

abides in the vine, neither can you,

      unless you abide in me.”

John 15: 1,2, and 4 (NKJV)

 

 Jesus speaks to His disciples about the importance of living for Him. He calls God the vinedresser, one who cares for the vine and the yield of fruit. He tells them that He is the vine; His followers are the fruit.

 

In His comparison, the vinedresser (God) prunes the vine for that vine to bear more fruit that stays on the vine matures and flourishes.

 

Is this not what God does for His followers today? Believers beset by difficult, if not traumatic, circumstances in their lives make decisions to either stay with God or go their own ways.

 

What are ways we can abide in Jesus?   

    Through prayer

                Through Bible reading

                Through Bible study

                Through meditation

                Through Journaling  

                Through listening to Him

                Through obeying what He tells us

 

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John the Baptist

 

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            In those days John the Baptist came, preaching in the desert of Judea and saying, “Repent for the kingdom of      heaven is near.” That is he who was spoken of through the prophet Isaiah. Matthew 3:1-3a (NIV)

 

John the Baptist was what we today call an itinerant preacher. The prophet Isaiah described him as “the voice of one crying in the wilderness, ‘Prepare the way of the LORD.’”

 

John told the people to repent, to turn away from sin and not return to those ways.

 

During the wandering of the Israelites, they would stop doing things that God did not like but they always seemed to fall back in their sinful ways.

 

When they closely followed God, things went well. However, when the Israelites fell into sin and did not follow God’s ways, their collective life was in torment. A former Sunday school teacher made the analogy of a roller coaster ride—they followed God, all things went well; they disobeyed God and all things did not go well at all.

 

As a people, we face difficulties at every turn. Nothing happens in our world that gets accepted by a vast majority of us.

 

We must trust the LORD and wait patiently for Him to act. We also must prepare our hearts for Him to use us according to His will.