The Lord is with us all the time

The Lord is so rich in mercy and so good. Here we are, privileged to see the end of another year, the start of a new year and decade. The 'roaring 20s' are coming up. For me personally, this year was one of the hardest years I've ever lived through. 

So what? Life is hard for everyone. We all have different struggles. At the end of the day, you have to stay in your lane and live out the life that has been set before you no matter the circumstances. 

Before David could be King, David was the lowest of the low. David was the youngest of his brothers. He was a shepherd. Before David fought Goliath, David fought a lion and a bear. David had to learn that God was with him so that when he stood before the giant, he had experience to defeat the giant. 

David fought and killed a lion and a bear with his bear hands. I'm sure those battles were hard and bloody. David must've took a scars but he didn't die. In the time out in the pastures, David also gained confidence and the favor of the Lord so that when the day came to fight Goliath, he was ready and he killed the giant. 

God has been preparing you. You've been down and out. You've been passed up and looked over. You've been lied on and gossiped about. When everyone has turned their back on you, the Lord has not. You've been faithful, as hard as it was, but you kept on with the Lord. You've fought the lion and the bear but now it is time to fight the giant. It's time to put to use what you have learned. It's time to exercise faith in God. God has been preparing for such a day so that when Goliath steps up you can boldly say " Who is this uncirmcised Philistine that defies the armies of the living God?" Not only that, but strike down the giant and cut its head off in victory. 

It wasn't until the giant was killed that David could receive the blessing of the crown, the blessing of the kingdom and enter into the palace. So all you have dealt with this year, was preparing for what's coming. The giant is next, but God is with you and the giant will go down. It's not only because God can, it's knowing God will be with you when the giant comes. After the battle, will come God's blessing. 

One other thing I want to mention. After David became king, he sinned by taking a married man wife, empregnating her and having her husband killed. Did even such a great sin change who David was? No. Did God have to judge David and correct him, yes. But David didn't loose his place and his blessing. David repented of his sins and continued to serve the Lord. David is still considered one of the greats of the Bible even to this day. 

The bottomline is this. You've been through a lot. You've wanted to quit but you didnt. You fought hard battles but you received victory because you stayed praying and going after God. Now the climax of it all is upon you and it's time to ready up. The giant is coming, but there is no reason to fear because you've been prepared long before this battle. 

Fight well in 2020 and remember that God is with you always, even unto the end of the age. Happy new year and new decade! 

Thankful for the affliction

Up until I began to write this blog post, I despised 2019. No lie,the hardest year I've ever lived...so far. We are not promised an easy life, but we are promised that the Lord Jesus would accompany us the entire way. Even until the end of age. Something changed today. I began to learn how to be truly thankful. Not just for the good times and the blessings, but also for the storms, the trials and tribulations of life. 

Father, I praise your mighty name. Not only for all the amazing, wonderful and excellent things you have done, but also for who you are. You are ADONAI, JEHOVAH, YHWH, IAM, EMMANUEL, LORD OF LORDS AND KING OF KINGS. 

Thank you for all the job opportunities I was not hired for and positions I was passed up for. You showed me that you are my provider. Although I spent most of the year broke and unemployed, I was never without. I even had enough to give away. I had everything that I needed. You took care of me and my family. 

Thank you that you brought me low and humbled me. You showed me that we should not think so highly of ourselves. That you hate pride and you love humility. Thank you for humbling me and making look more like Jesus. 

Thank you for preserving my life. I wanted to quit, but you have me grace to keep going. How dare I attempted to destroy the temple of the Holy Spirit. Lord forgive me! I was such a fool. But thank you for stopping me from pulling the trigger. Thank you for loving me through it and never forsaking me. 

Thank you for all the heated discussions me and my wife had. It taught me how to love and forgive someone who isn't lovable and unforgivable. You taught me through your love for me, that I can love my wife. You taught me to forgive the unpardonable because You forgave the unpardonable in me. 

Thank you for my enemies and my haters. Lord, bless them. You said to pray for your enemies and those who persecute you. I have plenty of them. But they provide me a chance to exercise my faith and show that I love you. Because you said those who love you, obey your commands. And your commands are not a burden. 

Thank you for the times when I was alone and I was balling my eyes out, calling out to You, pleading my case before the throne of grace, boldly. Forgive me Lord the times that I was frustrated and I was so angry. Forgive my carnality. Thank you for forgiving me. 

Thank you for the times we didn't know how we were going to make it. Because you showed yourself faithful and full of mercy. Great is thy faithfulness! His Mercy endureth forever and evermore! 

Thank you for all the tears I cried. I cried tears of sadness and tears of joy. Ive wept for the lost, the orphans, the needy, and the sick. Ive been broken over my sins and cried tears because I offended the Lover of my soul. I owed you death, but you gave me life. Thanks you for the tears of joy. I experienced the joy of the Lord and it was so good and so powerful. I look forward and long for the day to praise the Lord at the foot of His throne. 

Thank you for sending your word to me when I needed it. When I was feeling down. When my faith was small. When I felt hopeless. When I wanted to give up on everything. 

50 - This is my comfort in my affliction, That Your word has revived me. 

67 - Before I was afflicted I went astray, But now I keep Your word.

Psalms 119:50‭, ‬67

Lord, this year was really tough but You got me through it. I pray that one day I understand why I went through what I went through. I give you praise for all you've done in the past, present and future. Hallelujah praise the Lord! 

In the name above all names, the name that every knee shall bow and the name that all tongues will confess as Lord, in Jesus mighty and holy name..

Amen. 

The Chef and the Waiter.

I read a quote recently that likened an evangelist or a pastor as a waiter and God as the Chef of the restaurant. Please allow me ask you, the reader, a question. When you go to a restaurant, do you compliment the Waiter for cooking the meal? You may say to the Waiter to send your compliments to the Chef; but who gets the glory for cooking the meal? The Chef. 

And like that, the pastor and the evangist are the ones who serve the people and delivery the word of God. To the babes in faith, they get the warm milk of the gospel. For the more mature believer, a hearty meaty steak of the gospel. God is the one who has spoken and we are the ones who deliver the message. 

Now, if the Waiter has done a good job, by all means let the Chef know that his servant is doing a fine job. So that, the Chef may bless the Waiter for a job well done. But all the honor and glory goes to the Chef. All honor and glory to the Lord Most High! 

"Taste and see! The Lord is good." I just realized that sounds almost like a slogan for a restaurant. So what am I trying to tell you? The conclusion is this; God has spoken through the Bible and has given us all instructions on how to be in right standing with Him. God the Father has been good to His promise of sending us a Son to die on our behalf. The Father has validated the death of our Savior, Yeshua the Christ, with the resurrection of the Son of God. The Lord Jesus spoke of sending us a Helper, the Holy Spirit. God has given us His word and 'plated' it and has had His servants go out and deliver the word much like a Chef and a waiter work together. The glory for to the Lord, not the servant for the word. 

The Lord said that He would speak to us at times in parables so that with the example used in the physical to explain what is occurring in the spiritual. Today He spoke to me and made this reference. I understand it because I have worked as a waiter in high school. Also, I recall all the times I've sat at a restaurant and was served. Then, I recalled the times the Lord has used me. (My prayer is that He would use me even more!) I recalled the times a brother in Christ would preach or be teaching or testifying about the Lord. Delivering the word like a waiter bring a fresh meal to a customer's table. 

Love is the greatest because God is

The greatest of these is 

L O V E. As I was meditating on this verse, I wondered why love is the greatest. I found several reasons. First, God is love. God is Almighty, Alknowing and Holy. God is eternal and there is no one that can be found to be His equal. Without love, our works mean nothing to God. So, Love is powerful and it's unique. Love is to be treated with the reverence. Without God, there is no such thing as love. Faith and hope are the two things we being to the table. Our faith and hope may fail, but the love of God will never fail. Not that faith and hope don't carry any kind of eternal weight. It is faith that moves the hand of God and pleases Him. It is our blessed hope to one day stand before the throne of God and praise Him forever, for eternity. Amen.

Who are you?

Someone needs to read this. 

Who are you? The Bible says that YOU are the crowning glory of ALL creation. The climax of creation is mankind. Take all the wonderful and marvelous creatures and created things in all existence past and future; despite how good looking or how unattractive you are, you are still the climax of creation. We were made in the image of God and we were created to be in intimate relationship with our God and creator. Your value is extremely high. If you are born again, you were purchased at a HIGH price; the life and blood of Jesus Christ who is the word of God made flesh. He is the visible image of the invisible God. In other words, if God took a selfie, the image would look like Jesus. Jesus is God with us. The word became flesh and dwelt among us. Sin was punished and paid for by Jesus, on the cross. The sacrifice was validated with the resurrection. 

You are highly valued, and your God loves you beyond measure. Literally, you cannot measure the height, depth, and width of God's love. It is an everlasting love. You are eternally loved. Do t listen to your feelings or what other people say. The only opinion that matters is God's opinion and YOU are to DIE FOR! What is love? Here is some homework and go read 

1 Corinthians 13 4-7

A vision I received July 4, 2019

To be honest, I have been very hesitant to share what I am about to share. In fear of what others will say and my damaging my reputation. But that was just a form of pride and self preservation. For that, I repent and ask the Lord for forgiveness. 

On July 4th 2019 sometime in the early hours I suspect, I got this vision or dream. I believe it's from the Lord, but I invite you to pray about it and test the spirit to ensure it is infact from the Lord. If you have the gift to interpret the dream for it's true meaning, please contact me. 

In the vision I was hovering over a Roman era colossium and Christians were being burned at the stake. I saw Christians tied to a stake in the ground with their arms tied behind their back. There was large piles of wood at their feet. Then I heard the Christians singing "Amazing Grace." Oh, the sound was so beautiful and glorious. As the fire smoke began to get thick, then I looked up and I saw clouds and a very bright light shining through them. I saw these Christians being lifted and floating into the light. But I also saw myself lifted and going into the clouds to meet the Lord. We continued to sing and it seemed to get louder as we got closer the light. It was beautiful! It was a beautiful sight to see and hear. I was overwhelmed with joy and tears. It encouraged me that even if we are perscuted, even unto death, we can still sing the praises of the Lord. Even unto death! Get to the other side singing the praises of the Lord along with all the angels and Saints in heaven. 

Have you been born again?

When Christians ask, "Have you been born again?"what we're really asking is, "Have you repented of your sins and trusted in Christ as Lord and Savior and been made alive and transformed by His Holy Spirt?"

So...have you been born again?

Book of John, chapter 3, verse 7, Jesus said "You should not be surprised when I say 'You must be born again.' "

Dont be surprised that in order to be a born again disciple of Christ, you must've repented of your sins, trusted in Jesus as your Lord and Savior, and made alive and transformed by the Holy Spirit.

Stop Trying To Fulfil the Law Yourself

If you are being taught to follow the law as a Christian, you are being taught wrong. I invite you to read Galatians 3, Matthew 22:35–40, Mark 12:28–34, and Luke 10:27. 

Jesus fulfilled the law, meaning He did every command, over 600 and excuted then perfectly. That's why we are born again and hidden in Christ so that it can be counted towards us the fulfillment of the law through Christ. 

The sum of the law is this: love the Lord your God with all your heart soul and mind. The 2nd command is to love your neighbor as yob love yourself. We are justified by God's grace and our faith in His Son, Jesus Christ. Not by works or the law. 

The law isn't done away with. Jesus fulfilled it and then taught us how to live it out, by love. Without love, we are nothing. God is love, so without Him, we can not do anything that has any eternal weight in glory.