Got Friends?

A man that hath friends must shew himself friendly: and there is a friend that sticketh closer than a brother.Proverbs 18:24

Friends are extremely important to me. In my 30 years moving around with the United States Army many of our fellow military and civilian friends have become like a second family to us. We have shared holiday meals and done many things together. I am blessed with a very  large Christmas card list. There have been losses of friends though too, some to early death and some who just were tired of being my friend. Those hurt.

If you have ever been jilted by a dear friend it is very painful and confusing. Nothing you can say or do matters so it is best to let it go and shake the dust off your feet so to speak. Concentrate on the friends who do appreciate you with all the quirks that come with you. Don't force anyone to like you. Only God can change a heart. 

PRAYER: Thank you Lord for the blessing of friendship. Thank you for the way. You have brought people into my life and the lessons I learned from those who "unfriended" me. In Jesus' name. Amen.

PRAISE GOD FROM WHOM ALL BLESSINGS FLOW!

Do you ever sit and be still and ponder all that the Lord has done for you? If not in this year of new beginnings why not try that.  Psalm 68:19(KJV) says 'Blessed be the Lord thy God who daily loadeth us with benefits, even the God of our salvation.' The Lord is the creator of this magnificent world. He is still on the throne even when chaos or doom seems to be around us. He has given us food to eat, sunshine to stay warm and light the day. He has provided life and breath.

Psalm 103:1(KJV) reminds us to bless Him. 'Bless the Lord oh my soul and all that is within me. Bless His Holy name.'  2 Corinthians 9:15(GNT) says 'Let us thank God for His priceless gift.'

Do you find yourself complaining instead of praising?  Are you ungrateful for the many blessings in your life? Do you always seem to want more and not content with what you are blessed with? Psalm 37:1(KJV) says 'I will bless the Lord at all times, his praise shall continually be in my mouth.' Is God's praise continually in your mouth? Are you able to praise Him even in hard times?

Hebrews 13:5(NIV) is a good verse to conclude with. 'Keep your lives free from the love of money and be content with what you have, because God has said, "Never will I leave you not forsake you."'

What is keeping you from praising God today?

PRAYER:Thank you for the things you have done for me Lord, and blessed me with in my life. At times I have acted like a spoiled child so please forgive me. I choose to praise you and not give the enemy a foothold. In Jesus' name. Amen.

TOO BLESSED TO BE STRESSED

Several years ago a close friend of mine gave me a button which said "Too blessed to be Stressed"! Think about that phrase for just a moment. If you are reading this from the United States you probably truly are extremely blessed beyond measure. Even people in poverty in the U.S. often are much better off than those in Third World nations.

Stop for a moment and list the blessings in your life. Write them down. Things like food, clothing, freedom to worship, freedom in general, friends, great marriage, family that loves me,car to drive, bike to ride, ability to walk,great healthcare, and on the list will go. It is in fact true,I for one am "too blessed to be stressed".

Yet sometimes we find ourselves caving into fear,worry,cares of this world and we start to get "stressed out". Why do we allow ourselves to do this when we know we have a loving God who wants us to give Him our cares? Perhaps we are not focused on God and His goodness like we should be.

Psalm 34:1(NIV) says 'I will bless the Lord at all times His praise shall continually be on my mouth'. When you take time to praise Jesus and thank Him for your blessings you will have very little time to be down in the dumps. Why not try it today?

PRAYER: You are so wonderful Lord. Your blessings are new every single morning. You are so wonderful to me. I thank you Lord. In Jesus' name. Amen.

OVER THE HUMP

There is a familiar phrase in the business world called "over the hump" simply meaning "I am half way through my work week and the weekend is coming!" Most who work long hard hours can hardly wait till another familiar term "casual Friday" is here!

We believers here on Earth need to be always thanking God for our jobs or even volunteer work we perform. Jobs are a gift and blessing from God. Not everyone who wants a job is blessed with one, then others have one and just complain. Actually I have met people who love their jobs. For instance my two sons and daughter in law love theirs.

When you are doing work do it with integrity. No taking home company paper,ink pens, paper clips and other "souvenirs" as they do not belong to you. No copying your own personal things on the company computer such as Sunday school or Bible study material. This is sort of stealing from your employer if you think about it. If you have been guilty of this ask for forgiveness from your employer and God. Also sitting playing games on the Internet at work is a big NO as well.

Looking forward to being over the hump is not a bad thing but keep working hard till the end of the week. In Colossians 3:23(NIV) it says 'Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for human masters.'

Maybe if you do not like your job you really can't hardly wait to have two days off. Be thankful anyway and try to muster up a good attitude. If your "job" is that of a stay home mom, do not demean your status. I have told people that being a Stay Home mom was a true blessing and I was thankful to have the opportunity to do so all the way through their high school days. It has been my favorite job by far!

1 Thessalonians 5:18(NIV) says ' give thanks in ALL circumstances for this is God's will for you in Christ Jesus. Are you thankful for work and for the paycheck it provides? Do you remember to give God a portion of that money back as a tithe? God is the one who gives us the ability to get work.

Are you as excited about getting over the "Saturday hump" too in order that you are excited to go worship the Lord on Sunday. One of Tony Campolos' famous sermons' is entitled "It's Friday but Sundays' coming!' If you are dreading church because of all the "religious" things associated with it and you feel dried out spiritually, perhaps you need to find a church where you do not dread having to go. If you have not yet asked Jesus to be Lord of your life and take control do that right now.

Remember the spiritual "over the hump" should be looked forward to with anticipation.

PRAYER: Lord Jesus sometimes just being closer to the weekend to relax is much anticipated. I thank you for where you have me in life. Forgive me for ever complaining. Help me shine my light for you where you have me in life. In Jesus' name. Amen.

TROUBLED WORLD

This blog is read sometimes by people in other countries, so I hear, but the majority are here in the United States and here in the United States we are in trouble. The very foundations this nation was founded upon are being challenged and our Constitution is being ignored by those who swore an oath on a Bible to uphold and defend it. Lying is pretty normal for some but it is wrong. This is not about a political party but is about the survival of these free United States of America. Many have buried their head in the sand and choose to ignore what is happening. If people become lethargic and too busy to care that is when destruction will occur. This is a spiritual battle for control of a free nation that always used to put the Ten Commandments and the Bible first. Not so any more. Sin is being normalized by laws being enacted. Many are being made to believe lies about the founding of this great land. Desensitization to sin is occurring in a huge way.  Many churches even are afraid to speak up and speak out against the sin going on. We are in our 'Holy Huddle Social Clubs'.  We know God is in control and has the final say but that is no reason to become complacent and not speak up against injustice and evil. If we don't, one day we may wake up to find ourselves living under tyranny and no longer in the free land we love. Some say "Don't bother me with politics". Praying is the best thing to do but also speaking up in love.

The Bible says in Psalm 46:1 that "God is our refuge and strength a very present help in times of trouble."  Proverbs 6:16-19 sort of sums of the evil going on in a nutshell. It says " these are the six things the Lord hates, yes seven are an abomination to Him. A proud look, a lying tongue, hands that shed innocent blood. A heart that devises wicked plans, feet that are swift in running to evil, a false witness who speaks lies, and one who sows discord among brethren." We are not to hate evil men but to pray for them. Pray hard and never give up. In Luke 18:1 it says "men ought to pray and never give up."

Proverbs 24:17-18 says " do not gloat when your enemy falls, and do not let your heart be glad when he stumbles, lest the Lord see it and it displease Him, and He turn away His wrath from Him." Part  of the battle is to learn to sincerely pray for those who hurt us. It is very difficult to do when we see so much evil going on to hurt America but we have to ask God to change our heart and continue to pray. Matthew 5:44 says "but I tell you love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you."

I will leave you with this verse and say it out loud and take it to heart. 2 Chronicles 7:14 says "if my people who are called by my name will humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven and will forgive their sin and heal their land."

PRAYER: Thank you Lord for the freedoms we have enjoyed in the USA. We have been a blessed nation. We need men and women to wake up and get on their knees in prayer. Lord send us leaders who know and love you. Open up the eyes of those deceived by the enemy to the schemes of the devil to take this great Christian nation down. Open the eyes of Christians to not be tricked by the enemy. Open the hearts of Christians to not be too busy to care and stay informed. Lord we lift up those in leadership who are doing evil and making laws protecting and condoning sin. We ask for you to convict their hearts of what they are doing and have them repent. Save our land. We need God back in America again. In Jesus name. Amen.

Note: click on link below and enjoy a wonderful praise and worship song.
http://youtu.be/wutmEjdbedE

GOD BLESS YOU!

Do you feel blessed? For those readers who live in America simply having what we enjoy here is a tremendous blessing. What is a blessing? It is approval and favor of sorts. Psalm 25:12-13 has something to say about how to receive blessing from the Lord. It says "who is the man who fears the LORD?   Him will he instruct in the way that he should choose. His soul shall abide in well-being,   and his offspring shall inherit the land." Psalm 112:1-3 further elaborates on the theme of blessing. It says "Praise the LORD! Blessed is the man who fears the LORD, who greatly delights in his commandments! His offspring will be mighty in the land; the generation of the upright will be blessed. Wealth and riches are in his house, and his righteousness endures forever."

Psalm 1:1-3 says "How blessed is the man who does not walk in the counsel of the wicked, Nor stand in the path of sinners, Nor sit in the seat of scoffers! But his delight is in the law of the LORD, And in His law he meditates day and night. He will be like I  tree firmly planted by streams of water, Which yields its fruit in its season And its leaf does not wither; And in whatever he does, he prospers."

Do you delight in God and his word? By delight I mean do you desire to do what pleases Him and do you spend time in His word daily getting to know him better? Just walking in church one hour on Sunday is not taking delight in the Lord but it is meeting, what some feel, is an obligation. God does not want your legalistic obligation or he does not want you to see him as a 'duty' but He wants you to delight in Him. Do not compromise what you believe and do not squeeze God out of your day. Try waking up and saying "Lord I love you. Thank you for another day. Use me in someones life today."  Ask God to give you a desire for his word. He is waiting to bless you so take the time to get to know him better.
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PRAYER:  I need you in my life Lord. Forgive me for not wanting to spend time with you. I know the devil does not want me to know your word and it is easy to get lazy and just leave the Bible buried under a heap of magazines on my coffee table. I want to let you have control of my life and I want to be a blessing to those you put in my path. Thanks for your blessing. In Jesus name. Amen!

Note: Take time to click on link and listen to praise song 'Put the Drum Beat Back in My Heart'.
http://youtu.be/CoadbYfGH0U