Sing praises to Him

1 Chronicles 16: 9 “Sing to Him, sing praises to Him; Speak of all His wonders.”

No one knows how much I wanted a “Tallis Prayer Shawl” and today God gave me one.  My friend Cornelia came to my office and said as she was praying God said that I should have this Shawl.

I was so taken and tears just poured from my eyes with such gratitude and gratefulness. My life is stormy at the best of times and currently, I am going through some stuff and I felt like God has forgotten me.

In all humility and with a grateful heart I can only say thank You Lord for answered prayers. This “Tallis Prayer Shawl” was very special to Cornelia as it was her mom’s and she brought it all the way from Israel.  A place I will still visit.

My thanks to a God who knows when we need an encouraging moment? Today is so significant to me I will always keep this as a special day. Thank You, Lord for sending me this beautiful shawl it is something that I will always treasure and keep close to my heart. The fact that only my husband knew that I wanted this shawl makes this even more significant to me.

God knows the desires of my heart and granted me this today. 

Prayer

Lord God all I can do is come in adoration to Your throne and say Thank You so much for this beautiful “Tallis Prayer Shawl” all the way from Israel. O Lord You know who I have desired to own my very own Shawl. I am so very grateful that You answer prayers even those which are secret. Lord all the honor and glory to You and thank You also for placing this on my best friends heart. I am so very grateful. Praise Your Holy Name, I will worship and praise You for the great God You are. Amen

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Say “Yes” to God

Isaiah 6: 8 “Then I said, “here am I! Send me.”

We are all preparing for our futures and as scholars, we are in the fortunate position in still living at home with our parents. I don’t know whether you have experienced any life-changing encounters with God. What I do know and realise is that each experience we go through is teaching us and moulding us into the person we will become in the future.

One day the prophet Isaiah was praying and this was the message he received: “I heard the voice of the Lord, saying: “Whom shall I send, and who will go for Us?” Then I said: “here am I! Send me.” And He said: “Go, and tell these people.”

Isaiah needs to have a life-changing encounter with God before he was able to act on these words. “Then one of the “archangels” flew to me, having in his hand a live coal which he had taken with the tongs from the altar. And he touched my mouth with it, and said: “Behold, this has touched your lips; your iniquity is taken away, and your sin is purged.”

My question today is “Is God preparing you and are you ready to go?” If so, say yes.

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Are you a fully functioning part of the Church?

Ephesians 4: 16 ESV “from whom the whole body, joined and held together by every joint with which it is equipped, when each part is working properly, makes the body grow so that it builds itself up in love.”

When last have you attended church? When Sunday morning comes along are you up and ready for church or do you pull the covers over your head? I wake up early and start rolling around and then I just jump out of bed and get ready for church. I love attending church services as I want to grow spiritually and I want to hear what God has for me that day. 

I love teaching and when the Pastor is a teacher I seem to thrive on the sermons. I think about one of the services I attended, I was so taken in with the message I complete forgot about time. Then there are times when I just keep on watching to see what time it is. 

Now are you fully functioning as a part of your church? Do you realize that the church is paralyzed when you aren’t there? Each of us has a roll to play in the church and don’t forget you are “the church”.  Looking at 1 Corinthians 12 verse 12 we see “One Body with many members – for just as the body is one and has many members, and all the members of the body, though many, are one body, so it is with Christ.” Continue in verse 18 “But as it is, God arranged the members in the body, each of them, as he chose.”

Come to church and grow spiritually, you don’t know when God is going to send Jesus back for us.  I believe if you aren’t attending church you risk the chance of missing your calling. 

If you are absent we suffer because of your absence and our numbers dwindle and you are missed.

Prayer

Lord bless each person today reading this message, Lord we need people to return to church and we are calling them back. They need to be fed and the best way is to attend church services and from there they grow and become stronger. Bless each person in the Name of Jesus Christ. Amen

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#Sanctified

Romans 15: 16 “to be a minister of Christ Jesus to the Gentiles in the priestly service of the gospel of God, so that the offering of the Gentiles may be acceptable, sanctified by the Holy Spirit.”

What does it mean to be “sanctified?” I believe that you are “set apart.” It also refers to being holy, consecrated and hallowed. Christians have sanctified as well as the Israelite.  God’s name is also sanctified.

I believe we are set apart so that we can be used for something specifically in the salvation plan of God.  Once you become a Christian the Holy Spirit takes up residence in your heart and you start changing. This is because you are copying many of the things you learn and read about in the Bible. For most Christians, it’s about become more like the Lord Jesus Christ.

As a believing Christian, I think the Holy Spirit is constantly changing things and thoughts in my life. I am leaning more and more the Holy Spirit to get through the day. 

I believe this is a process and in time I hope that I will be a perfect picture of the Lord Jesus Christ but I realize that I am on earth and that I am influenced by many other things in my own life. I actually have to make it my business to stay connected to the Lord through reading the Bible and Studying Gods Word.

Prayer

O Lord God, I want to pray please sanctify me and make me acceptable in Your sight. I cover myself with the blood of the Lord Jesus Christ and dress in the Lord Jesus Christ. Help me as I go through this day, renewing my mind and let me see people through Your eyes. Amen

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#Mistaken #Identity

“Fear not, I have redeemed you, you are mine.” Isaiah 43:1

Feelings of unworthiness and condemnation used to plague me constantly, I must be honest I looked at myself in the mirror and wondered “who are you?”

It took me some time to come around and get myself sorted out I didn’t know who I was in Christ. You know I got side tracked and moved away from where I was and before long I was floundering around in a sea of despair and pain. This gave the devil ample opportunity to come along and remind me of my past sins. My mind was plagued with feelings of insecurity, feelings of uselessness and I believed that I was unworthy.

Last year I took a stand and fasted for many days, I came humbly to the Lord and repented of my sins. I confessed my thoughts and actions.  Asking for forgiveness and also forgiving myself for the sins I felt so condemned for.

I started a new journey with the Lord my God, I asked Him to help me realize who I was in Christ. Not this “mistaken identity” I assumed for myself. I have come to realize that I have been called by name and that I belong to God. I also realized that God loves me and that I am precious. I cloth myself with the Lord Jesus Christ every day and I take my thoughts captive to the Lord. I do not allow negative thoughts to come and plague my mind any more. I take up my cross each morning and I know that the Holy Spirit is with me.

I don’t need the approval of other people to live my own life, I make the decisions concerning me and God is on my side. No weapons formed against me shall prosper.

Prayer

Lord we back slide and turn away from You on many occasions. We don’t always realize the pain we inflict upon our own lives. We take a wrong turn and before long we don’t know who we are in You. Assuming “mistaken identity” without realizing what we are getting into. Smoke and mirrors and then we allow the devil a foothold in our lives. Please forgive us for our wrong turns in our lives as we repent asking for forgiveness of sins. In the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth we pray, amen.

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#Forget!

“If you have anything against anyone, forgive him.” Mark 11: 25 (John C Maxwell, Thinking for a change.)

I love my husband and it is true we have been married for 7 years and believe me that we have conflict in our marriage.  Our conflict is due to a disagreement with how to raise his kids.  I have a different view point to him and I feel he gives them too much slack when he feels I am too rid get. 

We can go on for months and live will be perfect and one day things change and we are both upset and angry because we cannot agree about how to deal with the kids.  I read John C Maxwell’s “Thinking for a change” and it struck me that we need to learn how to deal with conflict and manage our differences.  The fact is I am learning to deal with “self-control” especially when I feel disregarded or made the scapegoat.  

John C Maxwell suggests that we need to try to forget.  To act like God when people hurt you and make you mad.  Isaiah 43 verse 25 says “I, even I, am He who blots out your transgressions for My own sake; and I will not remember your sins.” Using this verse to help me go forward is part of my study.

Believe me it isn’t easy to deal with hurt and pain and to top it off I probably am still holding onto past hurts which makes matters worse. 

Prayer

O Lord, You know my circumstances and understand where I am coming from. Today I want to pray about the person that grinds my teeth and makes me so angry, I forgive them.  Lord I set them free and ask that YOU will forgive them too.  Lord help me move forward and help me to forget what they did to offend me. I pray this in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ. Amen