HIS LOVE NEVER FAILS!!

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[The Lord’s] compassions [love] fail not. They are [brand] new every morning. Lamentations 3:22-23

“When I was a child, one of my favorite pastimes was playing on the teeter-totter in the nearby park. A kid would sit on each end of the board and bounce each other up and down. Sometimes the one who was down would stay there and leave his playmate stuck up in the air yelling to be let down. But the cruelest of all tricks was getting off the teeter-totter and running away when your friend was up in the air­ he would come crashing down to the ground with a painful bump.

Sometimes we may feel that Jesus does that to us. We trust Him to be there with us through the ups and downs of life. However, when life takes a turn and leaves us with bumps and bruises, it may feel as if He has walked away leaving our lives to come painfully crashing down.

But Lamentations 3 reminds us that “the steadfast love of the Lord never ceases; his mercies never come to an end” (v.22 esv) and that God is faithful to the end even when everything seems to be falling apart. This means that in the midst of our pain, even though we may be lonely, we are not alone. And though we may not feel His presence, He is there as our trusted companion who will never walk away and let us down!” Joe Stowell

Thank You, Lord, that we can trust in Your faithful presence even when we feel alone. Help us to wait patiently for You to manifest Your presence in our lives. Give us strength, wisdom, and discernment during times of uncertainty. Remind us that Your compassion never fails, Your mercies never comes to an end and Your love never gives up on us. Your word says that when we are faithless O’God, You remain faithful and for that and that alone we say, Thank You, Thank You, and Thank You for never letting us down, in Jesus’ name, amen!

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I GOT A NEW ATTITUDE!

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What are the actions of a true authentic follower of Christ? Would you say, going church 2-3 times a week, reading the bible, pastoring, preaching, evangelizing, teaching, prophesying, tithing, and quoting scriptures qualifies us to be an authentic Christian? Sadly, many people today believe in order to be an authentic Christian you’re required to do all these things. Yes, attending church services, studying God’s word, preaching, teaching, prophesying, pastoring, and giving time, talents and treasures are important tools in our Christian development and advancing God’s kingdom however; what’s equally important if not of greater importance is possessing the right heart. I Corinthians 13:2-3,
essentially says, that without ‘love’ all of our actions are meaningless, purposeless, and fruitless. I have heard it said in the Message translation that whatever we do without ‘love’ we are bankrupt. Watch this, we can clothe ourselves with a false sense of authenticity or we can ask God for a complete spiritual wardrobe ‘makeover’. Now, you won’t be able to buy these garments online nor at Macy’s or Dillard’s however; you can access them in Colossians 3:12-14, “Since God chose you to be the holy people He loves, you must clothe yourselves with tenderhearted mercy, kindness, humility, gentleness, and patience. Make allowance for each other’s faults, and forgive anyone who offends you. Remember, the Lord forgave you, so you must forgive others. Above all, clothe yourselves with love, which binds us all together in perfect harmony.” C.S. Lewis once said, “We are ordered to ‘dress-up’ as Christ and though it may seem like a pretense, it is in fact that we are ordered to do so. But there is is a good kind (of pretending) where the pretense leads up to the real thing. When you don’t feel particularly friendly but know you ought to be, the best thing you can do, very often is to put on a friendly manner and behave as if you were a nicer person than you actually are. And in a few minutes as we all have noticed you will be feeling friendlier than you are. Very often the only way to get a quality in reality is to start behaving as if you already possess it.” So today be true to yourself by being true to God. If your Heart ain’t right seek God through prayer. Trust and believe God can fix it and remember your are not alone each of these garments (clothes) we are required to wear were worn by the ONE who gave it all for us.


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FAITHFUL OVER A FEW THINGS!

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In Matthew 25:15-23 we learn about the parable of the talents. In the NLT ‘talent’ is translated ‘silver’. 2 of the three servants actual did something with their portion but the 1 that received 1 measure of talent (silver) did nothing. In verse 15 we see that the Master (Jesus) gave to each of His servants according to their abilities. Therefore the talents (silver) were distributed and proportioned accurately. Watch this, God doesn’t give us more than we can handle. So why did the 1 servant not do what he was supposed to do? There is probably a laundry list of reasons however; do you really think Christ desires His servants to be idle? Absolutely not! Proverbs 19:15 exclaims, ” Slothfulness casts into deep sleep, and an idle person will suffer hunger.” Paul encouraged his brothers in 2 Thessalonians 3:6-12 to keep away from any brother who is walking in idleness. I found that each measure of talent (silver) is reported to have weighed over 80lbs so the 1 servant had to probably exert more effort in burying it, than investing it. Perhaps this servant felt that his portion was insignificant. Maybe he felt that he deserved more. The bottom line was this servant didn’t do his best according to his ability. 2 Corinthians 8:12 says, “Whatever you give is acceptable if you give it eagerly. And give according to what you have, not what you don’t have.” We should be able to relate to this servant because we too at some point in our spiritual journey have hoarder God’s gifts. Thankfully and unlike the servant that was cast out we can seek 4giveness. We can start over! The take away is to be confident in what God has given you and He will take the little and turn it into much! Be encouraged!!

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GOT A SHOVEL?

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Is it practical or sensible to drive to an ATM, insert your debit card, punch in your PIN, and enter a dollar amount knowing that you haven’t deposited any funds? The answer is an obvious ‘NO’. Today my question is, why do so many Christians attempt to access the power of God but refuse to study the word God? IDK, however, I would like to focus on the reasons to study God’s word rather than the excuses for not studying God’s word. We should study the bible because it is God’s word to us, it is totally reliable, it is unchanging, because there is false teachings/teachers, it equips us to serve God, and it help us to look past the attractive “bait” to the painful “hook” in sinful temptations, so that we can learn from others’ mistakes rather than making them ourselves. S. Michael Houdmann CEO of Gotquestions.org published, “The Bible is a book that is not merely for reading. It is a book for studying so that it can be applied. Otherwise, it is like swallowing food without chewing and then spitting it back out again—no nutritional value is gained by it. The Bible is God’s Word. As such, it is as binding as the laws of nature. We can ignore it, but we do so to our own detriment, just as we would if we ignored the law of gravity. It cannot be emphasized strongly enough just how important the Bible is to our lives. Studying the Bible can be compared to mining for gold. If we make little effort and merely “sift through the pebbles in a stream,” we will only find a little gold dust. But the more we make an effort to really dig into it, the more reward we will gain for our efforts.” Watch this, 2 Timothy 3:16 says, “All Scripture is breathed out by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness.” If one of these reasons don’t work for you, I encourage you to pray and ask God to show you why and when He responds to you…….start diggin!

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GET TO THE ROOT!

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Yesterday, my family and I uprooted an old palm tree that we planted nearly 9 years ago that died due to last year’s unforgiven winter. I figured the roots had already died off and it would be a cinch to remove it from my garden. I would find out relatively quickly this was not going to be the case. If any of you know anything about palm trees, you know they are very tenacious. They can typically with ease resist hurricane forced winds without snapping! So here we go; armed with a shovel, rake, gloves, and a couple of hand saws, I was ready like the movie 300!! I assessed it would take 45-60 minutes but of course it ended up taking 3 hours. I learned really fast that palm trees are as resistant to humans uprooting them as they are with hurricane forced winds attempting to snap them. I later discovered that every palm tree has fibrous roots that not only fan out to great distances but also can travel down deep into the ground soil. Fortunately, the family and I prayed before beginning the task and after several failed attempts and 2 1/2 hours later I ended making a trip to the HOME DEPOT to rent a chainsaw. Now armed with my ‘Heaven-sent’ chainsaw, I scurried back home and long story short within 30 minutes, I was able to compromise this palm tree’s fibrous root system thus enabling it’s removal from the garden!! Let me say this, the power didn’t come from the Home Depot or the chainsaw, the power came from God. My point is, A.) Always ask God for help. It doesn’t matter the size of the task or assignment. As I mentioned my family and I prayed not only for strength but also for wisdom and it was wisdom that sent my butt to the Home Depot. B.) Don’t give up too early. Always seek an alternative
solution. When you have the right tools you will yield the right results. Lastly, know that with God all things are possible. So today if you are facing a task that seemingly appears to be impossible to accomplish, speak to the ONE that makes the impossible-possible and have a MAGNIFICENT MONDAY!

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3 (Nails) + 1(Cross)=4(GIVEN)

HIS PASSION for us to live WAS more powerful and GREATER THAN man’s (our) choice to SIN! The world can rejoice because Jesus Christ our LORD is RISEN!

If you are reading this and you have never made a faith confession repeat after me (aloud); Father God, I have been feeling you tugging on my heart for awhile now, so today by the power of the Holy Spirit, I make you Lord of my life. I confess with my mouth that Jesus is Lord and I believe in my heart that You raised Him from dead. I believe because of my proclamation, I am saved and sealed with an unbreakable seal until the day of redemption and upon that day, I will live in paradise with You for eternity. I believe that all of my past, present, and future sins are now forgiven not because of what I’ve done but because of what Jesus did. I accept Your grace which was freely given to me and I declare and decree that I no longer live in condemnation. Thank You Lord for loving me and for receiving me into Your kingdom. In Jesus’ name I am set free and I believe!

Beloved, if you prayed this prayer for the first time or if you are recommitting your life back to Jesus, congratulations! If you haven’t already; find a solid bible base church and continue growing spiritually by PRAYING (you talk to God), READING THE BIBLE (God talks to you), and WITNESSING (you talk for God). God has something great in stored for you so let Him use you to bless others!!

3(NAILS) + 1(CROSS)=4GIVEN

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It’s ALL about HIM!!

THE PERSON OF THE BOOK
GENESIS: Promised Seed
EXODUS: Passover Lamb
LEVITICUS: Scapegoat
NUMBERS: Brazen Serpent
DEUTERONOMY: Great Lawgiver
JOSHUA: Prophet, Priest and King
JUDGES: Judge of All the Universe
RUTH: Kinsman Redeemer
SAMUEL: Anointer of Kings
KINGS: King of Kings & Lord of Lords
CHRONICLES: Great Historian
EZRA: Rebuilder of the Temple
NEHEMIAH: Rebuilder of the Wall
ESTHER: Saviour of the Jews
JOB: Friend that Sticketh Closer than a Brother
PSALMS: Song of the Ages
PROVERBS: Truth
ECCLESIASTES: Great Preacher
SONG OF SOLOMON: Wonderful Lover
ISAIAH: Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father and The
Prince of Peace
JEREMIAH: Weeping Prophet
LAMENTATIONS: Street Preacher
EZEKIEL: Rebuilder of the Kingdom Temple
DANIEL: Stone Cut Out Without Hands That Will Someday Come Back to
Earth and Establish a Kingdom as Supreme Ruler and King
HOSEA: Forgiving Lover
JOEL-MALACHI: One Coming in Bethlehem Judea

MATTHEW: King of Kings
MARK: Suffering Servant
LUKE: Son of Man
JOHN: Son of God
ACTS: Power of the Church
ROMANS: Dynamite of the Gospel
CORINTHIANS: Restorer of the Carnal Nature
GALATIANS: Rent Veil and Overcomer of the Schoolmaster
EPHESIANS: Heavenly One
PHILIPPIANS: Our Sufficiency
COLOSSIANS: The Shadow
THESSALONIANS: The Great Coming Christ
TIMOTHY: Our Great Appearing God
TITUS: Blessed Hope
PHILEMON: Great Master
HEBREWS: Best of All
JAMES: Fulfiller of the Law
PETER: Rock of Ages Cleft For Me, Let Me Hide Myself in Thee
JOHN: Assurance of our Salvation
JUDE: One Able to Keep Us From Falling and Present Us Faultless
Before Christ in Glory
REVELATION: One Saddled on a White Horse Coming Back to Set Up His
Kingdom
HE’S THE PERSON OF THE BOOK!!

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When He said it was “Finished”, He meant it!

 

Christ said, “It is finished” and then He yielded His spirit to God. Now then, we know to be absent of the body is to be in the presence of God (2 Cor 5:8) therefore, the fact He yielded His Spirit is enough to establish that Christ’s Spirit did not die at the cross and that His Spirit in fact left His body. IOW, His body was officially dead however, His Spirit was officially alive. Remember the last supper? He said, “Take and eat, this My ‘body’ which is given for you.” (Luke 22:19) This may be somewhat confusing but you must also factor that He was 100% God and 100% man. So we’re good, right? Ok, now that we are on the same page my question is what did Jesus do from the point of His bodily death to the point of His bodily resurrection? Don’t know? Me neither! The Bible isn’t entirely clear on what exactly Christ did in the 3 day time frame however; it does seem, though, that He was preaching victory over the fallen angels and/or unbelievers. Check out, 1 Peter 3:18-20, 22 (CEB), “Christ himself suffered on account of sins, once for all, the righteous one on behalf of the unrighteous. He did this in order to bring you into the presence of God. Christ was put to death as a human, but made alive by the Spirit. And it was by the Spirit that he went to preach to the spirits in prison. In the past, these spirits were disobedient—when God patiently waited during the time of Noah. Noah built an ark in which a few (that is, eight) lives were rescued through water. vv 22 who is at God’s right side. Now that he has gone into heaven, He rules over all angels, authorities, and powers.” Watch this, Peter referred to people as “souls” and not “spirits” (3:20). In the New Testament, the word “spirits” is used to describe angels or demons, not human beings, and verse 22 seems to bear out this meaning. What’s my point? Before and after death, Jesus was about His Father’s business. After death and I believe in those 3 days Jesus took the keys of hell and death. So today know that our God is not dead, the devil’s power is broken, and death lost its sting! We are VICTORIOUS because He is VICTORIOUS!

I am forever grateful and forever 4GIVEN!

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He loved me anyway

The day, You said, “Tetelestai“, “It is finished“, and “The debt is paid-n-full“, I questioned why did You have to go through so much pain, suffering, and agony? Why did you carry not only my weight but the weight of the world? Why were you flogged with the “cat of nine tails”, spat on, whipped, punched, ridiculed, falsely accused, wrongly sentenced, back-stabbed, given a crown of thorns, and before all the torturing, why didn’t you say something, why were you forced to carry an extremely heavy wooden beam on which you would be lifted up, stripped of your clothes, nailed in the wrist and feet, stabbed, with a spear, given sour water to drink, and then after all that, You were left to die? After deliberating for a brief moment the verdict was easily rendered…..it was because of love!! I remember John 3:16, “God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whosoever will believe in Him will not perish but have everlasting life.” Ok, I am good with that, but why did You die when I was the thorn in His crown, I was the sweat from His brow, I was the nails in His wrist, and I was Judas’ kiss? When, I was the man who yelled out from the crowd for His blood to be spilled on this earth shaking ground. Yes, then I turned away with the smile on my face with this sin in my heart tried to bury His grace. And then alone in the night I still called out for You, so ashamed of my life, my life, my life! (SWP) I know You love me! But then it hit me like a ton of bricks!! He was the propitiation for my sins, and not only for me but also for the sins of the whole world. (1 John 2:2) I thought for a moment, how could I ever repay Him but then I remembered He said, “Tetelestai”, “It is finished“, and “The debt is paid-n-full“!!

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The ONE who gave it all

 
 
Moving right along; after the rooster sang (crowed) the next morning Jesus was handed over to Pontius Pilate. Side question: Is this where ‘Pilates’ derived from? Ok, I know stay focus Lowell!! IJS!! Then Judas commits suicide by hanging himself. Jesus then faces Pilate. Later, Barabbas and Jesus are auctioned like cattle. The people picked Barabbas (The people’s Champ). Pilate then asked, “What s…hall we do with Jesus? (God’s solution to sin and the people’s Savior)” The people repeatedly answered, “Let Him be crucified!” Pilate, washed his hands as a symbol of innocence and then the people proud of what they had accomplished said, “His blood be on us and on our children.” (The Gospel according to my boy Matt) Wow, as much as I hate to admit, we too are much like the people of Jesus’ day every time we fall short. Although we don’t say it aloud with our voices our actions speaks much louder…”Crucify Him!” Watch this, every time we fall short by ‘missing the mark’ we hypothetically crucify Christ again and again. (see Hebrews 6:6) Right now, I am singing, ‘Were it not for grace, there’s no telling where I’d be, wandering down some pointless road to nowhere with my salvation up to me…..I know I can’t sing but the lyrics penned in this song speaks volume. So today no matter what keep pressing forward in your faith journey because as it stands the VICTORY of life has already been WON by the ONE who GAVE it ALL!! Jesus went ALL IN why can’t we?
 

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