Ephesians 3:16-19

What an encouraging book of the Bible. The reassurances and prayers are wonderful. For instance in Chapter 3 verse 12 it states, "In him and through faith in him we may approach God with freedom and confidence." Once we profess that Jesus is our Lord and Saviour; admit that we are sinners and that we need him, God not only gives us the free gift of salvation but tells us that through our faith in him that we can approach him with freedom and confidence. WOW!! In telling us this I think that he not only tells us that we can but he wants us to!

Right after this, the scriptures go into a prayer for the Ephesians (a prayer I once committed to memory but somehow did not stay there ! lol) I love this prayer!

 Ephesians 3 16-19

I pray that out of his glorious riches he may strengthen you with power through his Spirit in your inner being, so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith. And I pray that you, being rooted and established in love, may have power, together with all the Lord’s holy people, to grasp how wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ, and to know this love that surpasses knowledge—that you may be filled to the measure of all the fullness of God.

We could pray this for anyone: our family, our friends, our church. We need to 'take to heart' the Scriptures and do the things that God wants us to do. To go before him with freedom and   confidence. Give Him our praise and lay before him our hearts desires.  Seek his leading in all things and wait in anticipation for the answers to our prayers. They may not be the answers we expect but he will answer.

Ephesians 2:8-10

Ephesians 2:8-10 For it is by grace that you have been saved through faith-and this not from yourselves, is the gift of God--Not by works so that no on can boast.  For we are Gods workmanship, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.

What an encouraging scripture. There is nothing we can do to save ourselves. We only have to accept the free gift from God! and it doesn't stop there! He has things prepared for us to do. He is just waiting for the invitation into our hearts. How awesome is that!

Brian's Baptism

Today my oldest brother made his public profession of faith of Jesus Christ as his Saviour by going through the waters of Baptism. He has always been my brother but when he made this decision he became my brother in Christ. What a Joy!

This is was was written in the bulletin at the service for his baptism: A Christian is a brand new somebody. You belong to Jesus Christ, lock stock and barrel. You're not your own.You're bought with a price, not a thing in this world belongs to you. It's not your health, your mind, your money or your job. because you belong to Jesus, you're His. If we can get church members to see that ownership, they will no longer be satisfied with an hour on Sunday and reading the Bible once in a while and praying in a jam. People are called to make commitment, the regular practice of their lives.

 A Joyous Family Affair!

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A Wonderful Prayer

Ephesians 1:17-19a I keep asking that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the glorious Father, may give you the Spirit of wisdom and revelation, so that you may know him better.   I pray also that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened in order that you may know the hope to which he has called you, the riches of his glorious inheritance in the saints and his incomparably great power for us who believe

What a great prayer to pray for your family, your church or even yourself. I pray this for my children and their families. God Bless.

1 John 5:7-8 For there are three that testify:the Spirit, the water and the blood; and the three are in agreement.

Had to get my commentary out for this one! Chapters 4 and 5 teach a lot about loving God, believing that Jesus is born of God and loving one another. And in the verse above it says that the Spirit, the water and the blood testify that Jesus is the Son of God. 

In my commentary it states that the Spirit refers to God and we can find His witness in His written Word. The water ,they believe, refers to when Christ was baptized and God opened the heavens and proclaimed that Christ was His Son. Finally, the blood, refers to Christ on the cross. Christ laid down his life; no one took His life from Him; He laid it down by Himself.  If he were a mere man , He could not have done this. 

Don't know how many times I have read this but this one did have me wondering.

1 John 3:6

1 John 3:6 No one who lives in him keeps on sinning


This one made me think, "No one who lives in him keeps on sinning" I went back and read it 2 or 3 times! I believe I live 'in Christ', so does that mean that I don't sin? I don't think so! Does it mean that when I sin, I am no longer 'in Christ? again, I don't think so! My take on this is based on a revelation that I had about a year ago; When Christ died on that cross he bore our sins, once and for ALL. I believe ALL means not only for ALL times but ALL the sins of the world.  ALL our sins are forgiven; past, present and future. Once I committed my life to Christ and asked his forgiveness I am 'in Christ', no matter what. I asked and through Him I received the free gift of salvation; He purifies me so that I may be presented to God pure and blameless. Our sins are already forgiven and all we have to do is ask him into our hearts and we become part of his family...... eternally! WOW

1John 1 & 2

1John 2:17 The world and its desires pass away, but the man who does the will of God lives forever

What a great verse! We get so focused on things of the world we forget about God but if we would only focus on Him, and do His will, our lives will not only be better but we will live forever!

This one makes me think:
1 John 2:27 As for you, the anointing you received from him remains in you, and you do not need anyone to teach you. But as his anointing teaches you about all things and as that anointing is real, not counterfeit--just as it has taught you, remain in him.

This almost sounds like we do not need someone to teach us about His Word! I know he teaches me much through the reading of His word but I am glad that there are others to help us understand his Word.

A Blessing for our Children and Families for 2012

My biggest prayer for my children, not only for 2012 but always, is that they and their families draw closer to the Lord and build on that relationship. So my verse for them for 2012 is:

Romans 15:13

 May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace as you trust Him, so that you may overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit. 

Romans 12

Romans 12:1 Therefore, I urge you, brothers, in view of God's mercy, to offer  your bodies as living sacrifices, holy and pleasing to God--this is your spiritual act of worship.

Another great thing to put into place for 2012.And Romans 12 goes on to teach about loving one another. and it states in verse 12, Be joyful in hope, patient in affliction, faithful in prayer. Can we do these things? The answer is  yes we can, with God's help. 

Happy New Year! and welcome to 2012!

Well another year is here and like we always say, "Where did the year go!" Time passes by soooo quickly! This year started on a Sunday, so it was a great way to start our year.  Our message at our church was on Paul's message of how we keep doing the things we do not want to do based on Romans 7:7-25. Cliff Queale, stated; "When is a mistake a mistake? When is a mistake a choice? and When is a choice a lifestyle?" And he also stated that a mistake becomes a choice when we do it over and over a gain! And he asked , "Do we make our decisions based on common sense or by the leading of the Holy Spirit?" Well my prayer for the beginning of this year is that I will seek the leading of the Holy Spirit in all that I say, think and do! Cliff quoted Romans 12:2:Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world but be transformed by the renewing of your mind.?" Who wouldn't want that, 'renewing of your mind'.

In bed last night I was reading from a book of Max Lucado's, "Just Like Jesus" I think I have read it before, but one part brought me to tears. It was Max's take on what the leper, that Christ healed, might have gone through. The 'moral of Max's story is a truth from the Bible. Christ could have healed the leper with a word but Christ reached out and touched the leper (something no one had probably done in a very long time) and then spoke words to heal him. Can you imagine after feeling the touch of those you love; your father, your mother, your child, your husband, your wife. And then, because of a disease, no one, not even those who love you so dearly, not wanting to touch you? God loves us even more than we love our own children and spouses.  God wants so desperately to touch our lives! Not just be near us or speak to us but touch us! That is what brought me to tears. How often does God nudge me and I ignore it? Will I, in 2012, allow God to touch my life more often? I hope so. Max also encourages us to set apart a time to spend with God alone, in the Word and in prayer. I prayed last night that God get me up at 6am. And that will be my prayer. This is the best time for me to spend time in the Word.  I was awake at 5:58 this morning and got out of bed at 6:10.

I have been reading in Romans and this morning I read Romans 10 and 11. Here Christ raises Lazarus from the dead. He says to his disciples, in verse 11:11: "Our friend Lazarus has fallen asleep, but I am gong there to wake him up."   How often does God try to "Wake us up!" but we ignore him. I pray that I not only listen when God speaks to me, but that as I listen is sense his touch upon my life! I want to be touched by God!