The Minor Prophet

Christian Carnival - 216

Thu, 20 Mar 2008 02:53:00 GMT

The 216th Christian Carnival is up at Crossroads.

I Wish We'd All Been Ready video

Thu, 20 Mar 2008 02:46:00 GMT

I mentioned in a message on my home page a few weeks ago that Larry Norman passed away and that he wrote one of my favorite songs of all time. Here's my favorite version of the song (dcTalk Live)

Insert pastor's weekly hot button

Sat, 15 Mar 2008 03:31:00 GMT

Michael Spencer comments on preaching a theme as opposed to preaching a passage.

He has some interesting points. But, the real challenge for any pastor that preaches on a theme is that each week begins with the question, "What shall I preach this week?" From there it's a slippery slope to, "I wonder if I can find scripture that says <insert pastor's weekly hot button here>."

Christian Carnival - 211

Thu, 14 Feb 2008 14:18:00 GMT

The 211th Christian Carnival is up at Brain Cramps for God.

Cool skit w/ Lifehouse music in background

Sat, 09 Feb 2008 02:01:00 GMT

A Canadian high school teacher is facing the possibility of losing his teaching license

Sat, 09 Feb 2008 01:54:00 GMT

A Canadian high school teacher is facing the possibility of losing his teaching license due to his faith. Specifically, he is being criticized for his out-spoken beliefs against homosexuality.

In an e-mail sent out this morning, Kempling told supporters that he received a letter informing him that he is being cited on numerous counts for conduct "unbecoming" of a teacher. One of the counts on which he has been cited, he says, is simply for being a candidate for the federal political party, the Christian Heritage Party.

Christian Carnival - 210

Sat, 09 Feb 2008 01:46:00 GMT

The 210th Christian Carnival is available at Imago Dei. Check it out.

All past Carnivals can be found here.

The Real Party - An Invitation to the Biggest Party

Wed, 05 Dec 2007 16:09:00 GMT

AN INVITATION TO THE BIGGEST PARTY

Did you know that God is going to throw the biggest party in the history of the Universe? Revelation 7:9 says, “Blessed are those who are invited to the wedding supper of the Lamb!” All the people who are in heaven will come together for a great big feast after their victory over the devil. Now that will be a party! And did you know you are invited? The God of the Universe wants you to come. You may be like me and have already RSVP’d for the party or you may not have accepted your invitation, yet. All you have to do is tell God you are sorry for putting yourself on the throne, and that you want Him on the throne of your life. Tell Him you want Him to be your God and invite Him into your heart. Thank Him for sending Jesus to die on the cross for your sins. Ask for forgiveness for the sins you’ve committed, and tell Him you accept His forgiveness. Then ask God to help you turn away completely from your sins and grow closer to God each and every day. We are SO glad you are coming to the party. It will be the best party we’ve ever attended! We will be dancing on streets made of gold, and laughing our heads off, and seeing with our own eyes, our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. This is the real party we have always longed for. I can’t wait to see you there! Until then, let’s celebrate in our hearts, day after day, hour after hour the glory and the splendor of our God, and Savior Jesus Christ! Psalm 16:9-11 concludes it all by saying, “Therefore my heart is glad and my tongue rejoices; my body also will rest secure, because you will not abandon me to the grave, nor will you let your holy one see decay. You have made known to me the path of life; You fill me with joy in your presence, with eternal pleasures at Your right hand.”

The Real Party - Victory

Sat, 17 Nov 2007 12:44:00 GMT

VICTORY

Did you know that in the end Jesus, and all who follow Him, win? That is worth celebrating in itself!! But, also, while we are still here on this earth we CAN live victorious lives! Genesis 4:7 says, “If you do what is right, will you not be accepted? But if you do not do what is right, sin is crouching at your door; it desires to have you, but you must master it. “ How can we master sin? By continuing to focus on our Savior. Jesus will fight our battles for us if we give them to Him. 2 Chronicles 20:17 states,”You will not have to fight this battle. Take up your positions; stand firm and see the deliverance the Lord will give you, O Judah and Jerusalem. Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged. Go out to face them tomorrow, and the Lord will be with you.” Now read this verse again, but fill in your name where it says O Judah and Jerusalem. Does that cut straight to the heart?

In 2 Samuel 18:28 Ahimaaz called out to the king. “’All is well!’ He bowed down before the king with his face to the ground and said,’ Praise be to the Lord your God! He has delivered up the men who lifted their hands against my lord the king!” When we lift up our hands and surrender all to God, He will deliver us and God will bring victory in our lives!

Okay, here is the command once again. Pray and Read your Bible! Did that annoy you? Well, Psalm 119:133 gives you the key to victory over sin. And, do you know that the Bible is full of keys for living and wisdom for all things. It is way more helpful than any self-help book, way more powerful than any superhero because it is written by the REAL SUPERHERO. Hebrews 4:12 tells us “ For the Word of God is living and active, sharper than any double-edged sword, it penetrates even to dividing soul and spirit, joints and marrow; it judges that thoughts and attitudes of the heart.” Basically, this verse is saying that the Word of God is where it’s at. Within the Word of God is where the Truth is. It is where the party’s at! In the Book of Nehemiah, it shows how the Israelites finally realized the power of joy in the Book of the Law. They found their unique strength neither in government nor in worship rituals, but in reverence for God’s written Word. Nehemiah 8:12 says,” Then all the people went away to eat and drink, to send portions of food and to celebrate with great joy, because they now understood the words that had been known to them.” Friends, until we really understand God’s Word and what God is telling us through it, we won’t know the joy that only God can bring. Pray for God to give you an understanding of His Word, and then dive in and explore all the exciting words from our Holy Creator. He is talking to you!!

Okay, so is victory over sin realistic? DEFINITELY! Romans 6:14 says, “ Sin shall not be your master, because you are not under law, but under grace.” I am not saying that we will be perfect, above sin, and never fall again. I am saying that we will be spared from more or most of our sin if we live this way. It does say in 1 John 3:5-6, “But you know that He appeared so that He might take away our sins. And in Him is no sin. No one who lives in Him keeps on sinning. No one who continues to sin has either seen Him or known Him.” That is victorious living!! We will never be exactly like Jesus, because we can’t be perfect like He is, but we can sure try to be close to what He is like.

How about our thoughts? If Jesus can keep our foot from being snared, what about our minds? Our thinking, in my opinion, is the hardest thing to change because our thoughts are always there, always moving. We are constantly thinking something. (There have been moments in my life when I have doubted that about myself). But, if we don’t fill our minds with Truth, with Scripture, and praise and prayer to our Father in Heaven, then our thoughts can easily get carried away sinfully. When we are not thinking about God, or in prayer, it is easy for satan to intervene in our thought life – to fill us with lies, untruth, hideous things, bitterness, fearful visions, even dreams, sexual thoughts and fantasies, and anything that can take us away from thinking about our Savior. But God wants us, once again, to focus on Him, continuously. This takes true self – discipline. And let me tell you guys, that if this attention deficit girl can do it, then I know that you, too, can have victorious thinking resulting in victorious living!

Jude 24-25 states, “To Him who is able to keep you from falling and to present you before His glorious presence without fault and with great joy – to the only God our Savior be the glory, majesty, power and authority, through Jesus Christ our Lord, before all ages, now and forevermore! Amen.” And the greatest part is not only can we have victory on earth, but Jesus will have victory over all in the end! Revelation 20 :7-10 says that “When the thousand years are over, satan will be released from prison and will go out to deceive the nations in the four corners of the earth – Gog and Magog – to gather them for battle. In number they are like the sand on the seashore. They marched across the breadth of the earth and surrounded the camp of God’s people, the city He loves. But fire came down from heaven and devoured them. And the devil, who deceived them, was thrown into the lake of burning sulfur, where the beast and the false prophet had been thrown.” And Revelation 19:6-8 rejoices. “Hallelujah! For our Lord God Almighty reigns. Let us rejoice and be glad and give Him the glory! For the wedding of the Lamb has come, and his bride has made herself ready!” We are the bride, so let us make ourselves ready!

Christian Carnival 198

Thu, 15 Nov 2007 02:52:00 GMT

Wow! It's already time to host the Christian Carnival again. Where has the time gone. Time seems to be moving by faster and faster every day. Amanda and I now have a 3 month old baby boy at home - our 6th (2 boys, 4 girls). David is our oldest. He's eleven, but it seems like just yesterday that he was learning to walk, to talk, to dribble a basketball. This week we found out that he made the 6th grade basketball team at school. Is this the little boy at play?

I don't remember growing older
When did they?
When did she get to be a beauty?
When did he get to be so tall?
Wasn't it yesterday
When they were small?
Sunrise, sunset
Sunrise, sunset

Whoops! Sorry. Anyway, here are the Carnival submission this week. Enjoy.

(5 points to the first person that can name the Broadway play from which that song originated.)

Rodney Olsen presents Russell Crowe considers spirituality posted at The Journey.

William Meisheid presents Memory, Hold the Door for Me? posted at Beyond The Rim....

Hopeful Spirit presents Thankful Thursday: One Small Step for Humankind posted at On the Horizon.

Diane R. presents A Guide to Emergent-Speak posted at Crossroads: Where Faith and Inquiry Meet.

Weekend Fisher presents Religious Ambition as Idolatry posted at Heart, Mind, Soul, and Strength, saying, "When does self-improvement become self-serving? When does religious ambition become more ambitious than religious? And is God at the center of any of it? Weekend Fisher ponders in Religious Ambition as Idolatry."

Tom presents The Peace of Christ and the Soteriology of the State posted at Theology for the Masses.

Richard H. Anderson presents The Words of Amos posted at dokeo kago grapho soi kratistos Theophilos.

Adam Faughn presents Growing in Knowledge posted at The Faughn Family of Four.

e-Mom presents The Jewish Feast of Hanukkah: A Festival of Victory and Light posted at C h r y s a l i s, saying, "An exploration of this Jewish winter holiday for Christians. Includes the two miracles, Jesus as the Tree of Life, Hanukkah and eschatology, plus rules for dreidel spinning."

Cory Tucholski presents An Atheist Reads the Bible posted at Josiah Concept Ministries.

Amanda Ottaway presents My Choice for Faith posted at Mandi Kaye.

Everyday Liturgy Writer ***author specified in remarks*** presents The Medium and The Message posted at Everyday Liturgy, saying, "***Kara is the author*** Kara comments on the way technology changes the Church's message: to pretend or argue that making changes to our medium does not change our message is at least naive and in its worst case dangerous to our Churches and our theology. We need to consider what changes are being made to our message when we change the medium."

Henry Neufeld presents The God-Talk Club - Tornadoes! posted at Jevlir Caravansary, saying, "This week I take a risk and submit from my fiction and fun blog rather than my Bible study blog (Participatory Bible Study Blog) where I host. This is a short story in the form of a dialogue amongst people discussing a theological issue."

Jody Neufeld presents Delight in the Lord posted at Jody Along the Path, saying, "What does it mean to truly delight in God?"

Jeremy Pierce presents Dating Deuteronomy 32:26-27 posted at Parableman, saying, "Reflections on the date of Deuteronomy from Deut 32:26-27"

Mark Olson presents Adam, Noah, Justification, and the East posted at Pseudo-Polymath, saying, "In the guise of a book review, I attempt to highlight some of the key differences between Eastern and Western views of Justification."

ChrisB presents What’s wrong with naturalism? posted at Homeward Bound.

Annette presents He is perfect posted at Fish and Cans.

Barb presents And the rains came posted at Tidbits and Treasures.

Please let me know of any errors or omissions.

- In Christ and for His glory

The Real Party - Staying The Course

Wed, 14 Nov 2007 00:57:00 GMT

STAYING THE COURSE

Life can be a rollercoaster ride where we feel that the circumstances of life toss us to and fro and side to side. One day we’re up and high on life, then the next day we are in the valley once again feeling sad and sorry for ourselves. Our lives do not have to be this way. In my opinion, there are two reasons why our lives tend to be so up and down.

The first reason is when life does take an unexpectant turn and things can turn sour. During those times we have to remember that we have a God who is constant, never changing, but always staying the same, always there, and forever loving us. Our emotions are tossed around by our thinking and our perspective. When my 3 year old spends much of the day whining, pees in her pants, and my one year old has a huge explosion in her diaper, and overturns the dogs water bowl all over herself and the kitchen floor, I can yell and scream and become bitter which only leads to a rotten day.

Or I can praise God for the sweet kids He has given me, and have a thankful , blessed day. I am here to tell you that in the day in, day out course of living, we don’t have to live on windy, hilly roads, but we can live on a level plain. I am talking about those times when your life is great AND when your life is crazy. How can we do this? By remaining in Jesus. John 15:4 says , “ Remain in me, and I will remain in you. No branch can bear fruit by itself; it must remain on the vine. Neither can you bear fruit unless you remain in me.” By remaining in Jesus , we can have the right perspective when our lives get crazy and seem out of control, and when things are great and we feel we don’t need God. The right perspective will keep us positive, sane, happy, thankful, and full of praise. When things in life go awry we can “trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in ALL your ways acknowledge Him, and He will make your paths straight.” (Proverbs 3:5-6) And Proverbs 3:11-12 says, “I guide you in the way of wisdom and lead you along straight paths. When you walk, your steps will not be hampered, when you run, you will not stumble.”

The` second reason we tend to wander is when we are in tempting situations or enticed by the temptations around us. My little baby girl is crawling now. One day recently she was crawling fast down the hallway. As she was moving along, I soon discovered that on her right side about a foot away on the kitchen floor was a penny that could easily go in her mouth and choke her. On her left side was the stairs that went down, and the gate was not there at that moment to protect her. As I was in front of her down the hallway, all I could think was “ Sweetie, don’t look to the right or the left, but keep your eyes fixed on me.” I knew if she looked to the right or the left , she would have been enticed by what she saw, and it could have been disastrous. Thankfully she did keep her eyes forward and nothing happened. Jesus wants us not to look to the left or right and wander off our path, but keep our eyes forward, fixed on Him, and He will , then, keep our paths straight. Proverbs 4:27 says it perfectly, ”Do not swerve to the right or left; keep your foot from evil.” “For a man’s ways are in full view of the Lord, and He examines all His paths.” Proverbs 5:21 “Now, then , my sons listen to me; blessed are those who keep my ways. Listen to my instruction and be wise; do not ignore it.” (Proverbs 8:32-36) We are blessed if we stay the course following Jesus. We will be blessed on earth and we will be blessed for all eternity.

Although roller coasters are fun, the rollercoaster way of living, being up one minute and down the next is not much fun. Nor is it any way to be a light to the dark world which surrounds us. Let’s choose to be focused on our Lord, to praise Him continually regardless of what happens during our day. Those around us will wonder about the joy that we continually have!

The Real Party - Fear and Love for Christ

Mon, 12 Nov 2007 12:59:00 GMT

FEAR AND LOVE FOR CHRIST

How can you praise God all day every day when you don’t feel you love and fear God? Once again, ask Him for help. Lord, help us to fall in love with You and fear You. One of the definitions of fear is “awe”. We should be in awe of our God because He is AWESOME! The definition of revere is “to regard with deep respect, love.” Do you have a deep respect and love for our God? Psalm 91:14 says, “Because he loves me, the Lord says, I will rescue him: I will protect him , for he acknowledges my name.” And 1 Corinthians 2:9 states “ However it is written: No eye has seen, no ear has heard, no mind has conceived what God has prepared for those who love Him.” But what is the main reason we choose to love God. 1 John 4:19 says it best. “ We love because he first loved us.” It would be hard to love a God that we didn’t know loved us in return. “ But because of His great love for us, God who is rich in mercy, made us alive with Christ even when we were dead in transgressions – it is by grace you have been saved.” Ephesians 2: 4-5

There is NO other god like the One True God! There is no other god that has come to earth proclaiming His love for all, and then sacrificing Himself on the cross for the sake of His love for people. Many people worship gods made of stone who demand good works in order to go to heaven. But our God actually came to earth in living form with a heart of flesh, not a heart of stone. He came to earth to show us His love for us.

“For God so loved the world, that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.” John 3:16 But our God says that our good works are insufficient for salvation. “For it is by grace that you have been saved, through faith – and this is not from yourselves, it is a gift of God – not by works, so that no one can boast. “ Ephesians 2:8-9 Does that make you fall in love with Jesus even more? It is by grace that we are saved! There is nothing we can do to earn our salvation – only accepting Jesus into our hearts! How can we not love and revere the God of grace, for He loves us so much! He is our Protector, our Redeemer, our Counselor, our Financial Advisor, our Teacher, our Provider, our Bridegroom , our Friend, our Energizer, our Motivator, our Encourager, not to mention our Lord, our Creator, our Sustainer of breath and life, and the Giver of all good things! I want to fall more and more in love with this Guy! And when we fall head over heels (literally)in love with our God , we will not be able to help but praise Him and celebrate Him all the days of our lives! Fear of the Lord brings a lot of good things. Proverbs 1:7 says,” The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom.” And Proverbs 3:7 says, “ Do not be wise in your own eyes : fear the Lord and shun evil. This will bring health to your body and nourishment to your bones.” I am not saying that God is our genie in any way, but if we humble ourselves and fear Him, He really will bless us in many ways.

The Real Party - As A Nation

Wed, 07 Nov 2007 22:32:00 GMT

AS A NATION

God HAS blessed America. God has given us His favor. Why? Because we were founded on the principles of God. We were “one nation, under God”. We need to put Him back on the pedestal. As believers , we need to come together, as one body, praising and worshiping our Lord and Savior. The morality in this country is declining, and the sin is increasing. The Christians in this country need to be contagious to those who don’t believe. We are not standing out, we are not different, we are not attractive to those seeking and searching for the Truth. The moral decline in our country can only be our own fault. The Bible says, “With our tongues we praise our Lord and Father, and with it with curse men who are made in God’s likeness. Out of the same mouth come praise and cursing. My brothers, this should not be. “ We love our Lord, but not enough to live lives worthy of His calling. We think God is great, but not great enough to tell our friends and family about Him. Come on people, we need to change! How Great is our God! He is WORTHY of our praise! Our tongues need to be used for His glory – to tell men who are made in God’s likeness about God. We need to use our tongues to sing of His praises all day. Some Christians in other countries consider us Christians to be weak. They pray that we will be persecuted so we will be forced to stand up for our God. But let’s show them that we don’t need to be persecuted in order for our faith to stand out. Let’s praise God because we are free in this country to do so. And when and if persecution does come to this country, at that time, then let’s continue to praise our Lord. Let’s be REVIVED people! Revival means “ to return to life.” Revive means to “return to consciousness or effectiveness.” Let’s awaken and open our eyes to see that those who are with us are more than those who are with the enemy(the devil). Our God is more AWESOME than anything that is visible to us! Let’s come to a new way of living – living that is effective and productive for Jesus. Psalm 92 says:

“It is good to praise the Lord and make music to your name, O Most High,

to proclaim your love in the morning and your faithfulness at night,

to the music of the ten-stringed lyre and the melody of the harp.

For you make me glad by your deeds , O Lord; I sing for joy at the works of your hands.

How great are your works, O Lord, how profound your thoughts!

The senseless man does not know, fools do not understand,

That though the wicked spring up like grass and all evildoers flourish, they will be forever destroyed.”

Let’s remember how God has blessed America. And let’s definitely not forget why He has blessed America. If we get ourselves right with God , He will heal our land. There is a great song that I love that says,” Let it be said of us that our hearts belong to Jesus… Let it be said of us that we will choose to be a blessing for life.”

Let us be a blessing because we , too, are blessed. Let’s use the blessings that God has bestowed on this country to spread the gospel to our nation and every other nation, and also help the poor and the needy.

I love the fact that there is a radio station (KLOVE) that is aired all across our country. I love thinking that people in every state are listening to the same songs at the same time worshiping and praising our Lord together as one body in one nation.

What if churches were opened every single day playing music and praising our Lord. Could it be possible that our church doors were wide open every day inviting people, saved, and unsaved, to enter and see a glimpse of Christ’s glory – that He is a part of everyday living. He’s not just around on Sundays. Let’s keep our doors open and let’s invite our friends and family who are hurting to meet our Wonderful God who loves them very much. In Acts 2:42-47 it says,”They devoted themselves to the apostles teaching and to the fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to prayer. Everyone was filled with awe, and many wonders and miraculous signs were done by the apostles. All the believers were together and had everything in common. Selling their possessions and goods, they gave to everyone as he had need. EVERYDAY they continued to meet together in the temple courts. They broke bread in their homes and ate together with glad and sincere hearts, praising God and enjoying the favor of all the people. And the Lord added to their number DAILY those who were being saved.” I think that our church attendance should not be just on Sunday, but everyday if possible – to meet there and praise God together – to fellowship together everyday and bring those who need Jesus!! May the joy of the Lord be our strength!

Christian Carnival 197

Wed, 07 Nov 2007 22:29:00 GMT

The 197th Christian Carnival is up at Crossroads. Check it out.

The previous 196 can be found in the Christian Carnival Archives.

The Real Party - Hard To Praise Days

Tue, 06 Nov 2007 12:54:00 GMT

HARD TO PRAISE DAYS

Let’s face it! Not everyday are we going to wake up rejoicing. For example, we may not be feeling well physically, someone close to us may be hurting, we may not have had an answer to prayer, or we may just decide to through a pity party for ourselves. So what do we do when we don’t feel like praising God? We put our eyes back on the cross, we read verses that point us to praising God, and we ask God to help us rejoice. God knows our hearts and minds. He created us and put every little fiber together, so He knows sometimes it’s flat out hard to praise Him. Don’t hesitate to ask Him to help you!!

And what about those days that we, to be completely honest, forget to praise God. Simply put, but hard to do, we need to make it a HABIT. Just like our quiet times, the only way we are successful in making it happen is only if we have done it for many days in a row – to make it part of each and every day... Okay, it is more like weeks in a row, but you CAN do it!! Set notecards around your house, in your car, or on your computer, and in your shower to remind you until praising God is automatic.

What is the opposite of praising God? I say it is complaining. Complaining is very easy to do and what happens when we do. Satan wins. He loves to hear us gripe and moan and groan, for he is the ultimate whiner. Proverbs 15:4 says ,
Griping brings discouragement.” After God rescued the Israelites from slavery and provided for them day after day, what did they continue to do? Grumble. Their grumbling did not make God happy. If we are here to please our Lord and Savior, complaining is not going to do it. Philippians 2:14-15 says, “Do everything without complaining and arguing, so that you may become blameless and pure, children of God…” Instead of griping , let’s remind ourselves of His promises. If you don’t know any of God’s promises, you can find them in The Bible Promise Book. If we go back to the cross, we have something to thank Him for and be rejoiceful about Here is a practical tip for you. When you catch yourself complaining about something, stop, and instead offer four praises up to God. We need to change the way our minds think or as I have heard a couple of pastors put it -- change our “stinkin thinkin.”

There are many dead people (spiritually) who need life. There are many dead Christians who need to be revived. I was one of them at one point, and can still be if I don’t have my priorities straight. I used to be good at going through the motions at my church. It is easy to read the Nicene Creed and not really think about what it is saying. It is easy to sing songs and not feel the passion and excitement in your heart as you release the words from your lips. But Jesus wants us to have a zeal and a passion for Him.. Romans 12:11 states, “Never be lacking in zeal, but keep your spiritual fervor, serving the Lord.” I know what it is like to be dead in sin. I know what is is like to be a dead Christian. I know what it is like to be battling with intense fear, but, my friends, I also know what it is like to be a free woman! And Jesus can rescue you , also , from sin and deadness. I know that there is nothing else on this earth as exciting and fun as a relationship with Christ. If we focus on Him, we can keep ourselves from getting back into sin and dullness of living. In the Book “Lies Woman Believe” Nancy Demoss says, “Most people simply don’t make the connection between their natural, fleshly choices and the consequences in their lives, their marriages, their children, their health, and their relationships with God and others.” Here is a passage in the Bible that helps me get back on track -- Psalm 19:7-11. As you read it from your own Bible, pray the Scripture for yourself. Pray that God would revive your soul through His Word. Pray that He would make wise the simple, give joy to your heart, give light to your eyes. Pray that you would have fear of the Lord. Let’s choose wisely! Let’s choose not to complain, but be thankful and full of praise for our Lord, even on those hard to praise days.

The Real Party - Enjoying Christ

Mon, 05 Nov 2007 00:43:00 GMT

ENJOYING CHRIST

Has it occurred to you that we should enjoy Christ? The definition of enjoy is “get pleasure from” or “have the benefit of”. We have the benefit of talking with the God of the Universe anytime and anywhere. He wants us to enjoy spending time with Him. Those who have been in church since they were young have heard the command “pray and read the Bible” so much in their lives it can become a chore. But Jesus is so fun, exciting, and interesting that we should never feel burdened to spend time with Him. The Christian walk is the most enjoyable journey there is ! We should eagerly desire to spend time with our Savior. He is waiting patiently for us to hang out with Him. He desires so much to spend time with us. It is the reason we were created. Let’s please Him by enjoying Him. During the part of the day when we are not in God’s Word or prayer, we can still have a sense of His presence in our lives. Our awareness of God can fill us with much enjoyment during the day. In Beth Moore’s book “Living Beyond Yourself” she states “The Greek word for joy is chara. Chara means “joy , rejoicing, gladness, enjoyment, bliss”. In many ways, chara means “to celebrate!” Once again, let’s celebrate Christ by enjoying Him throughout our days. In Luke 10:20 Jesus said.” However , do not rejoice that the spirits submit to you, but rejoice that your names are written in the book of heaven.” If we continually remind ourselves that Jesus is preparing a place for us in heaven, our hearts will be filled with joy. Let’s keep an eternal perspective! Remember, on the timeline of eternity ,we are only here on earth for a very short time. Let’s keep our eyes focused on our Savior and on what’s to come. By doing that , we can enjoy Christ this day. Consider each day a celebration for Jesus . Consider each day a party for Jesus. The wise Soloman said, “ A man can do nothing better than to eat or drink and find satisfaction in his work. This , too, I see, is from the hand of God, for without Him, who can eat or find enjoyment. “

And the psalmist exclaimed,”Then , will I go the the altar of God, to God, my joy and my delight.” Let’s make God our joy and delight!

Christian Carnival 196

Thu, 01 Nov 2007 01:07:00 GMT

... is up at Participatory Bible Study Blog.

Remember: all previous Christian Carnivals can be found at ChristianCarnival.com.

The Real Party - Just Ask

Wed, 31 Oct 2007 05:09:00 GMT

JUST ASK

Jesus says, ‘The thief comes only to steal, kill, and destroy. I have come that you may have life to the full.” Abundant living!! Is that what you are craving? Is that what you are longing for? Now let me be straight with you. This doesn’t mean having an abundance of things, but being full of what Jesus calls fruits of the Spirit. These are love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control. Don’t we want to be overflowing with joy!? Don’t we want to have true peace for the first time in our lives!? Jesus can bring these to you. All you have to do is ask. Luke 11:9 says, : Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you. For everyone who asks receives, he who seeks finds, and to him who knocks, the door will be opened.” 1 John 5:14 states,” This is the confidence we have in approaching God: that if we ask anything according to His will He hears us. And if we know that He hears us, whatever we ask, we know that we have what we have asked of Him.” You do not have because you do not ask God. Romans 15:13 quotes, “ May the God of all hope fill you with all joy and peace as you trust in Him, so that you may overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit.”

Our God wants to fill us with His joy, peace, and hope and all the other fruits of the Spirit that truly fill that void in our hearts. What do we try to be filled with? We try to fill our houses with lots of material items. We like to fill our closets with clothes, our refrigerator with food , and our bank accounts with money. Proverbs 1:13 says,” We will get all sorts of valuable things and fill our houses with plunder.” But the true peace comes from filling our hearts with God. Remember when I mentioned how God delights in us? Well, He says in Psalm 37: 4 that “ when you delight yourself in Me, I will give you the desires of your heart.” God desires to give us good things. Just like a parent wants to give their children good things, God wants to give us blessings beyond our wildest dreams. He really is a good God despite what the media says. Despite all the tradgedy that goes on around us, He really does want good things for us. Psalm 34:8 says, “ Taste and see that the Lord is good.” And once we find God, we find ourselves. It is the greatest thing!! Once we turn our eyes toward Jesus, we see who we truly are. Our identity lies in Jesus. We are free to be ourselves because we have found God. This is real! And for the first time in a long time we can be real, because we know who we really are! Now that is good stuff.

Be careful, my friends, because the verse I shared with you at the beginning of this chapter says that the thief , who is the devil, is out to steal , kill, and destroy. Did you know that the devil hates you and wants to make your life miserable. He wants to rob you of all the good in your life, so he lies to you. He tells you that something you might think is bad ( ie. Having an affair) would be not that bad. He is the ultimate liar and he wants to ruin your life. Doesn’t that make you want to be against him, and on the side of the ONE and ONLY PERSON who can defend against the devil – JESUS CHRIST. Jesus is Truth, and Truth will set you free. The devil is like a lion looking for someone to devour, but be encouraged because the next line in that verse says “ I have come that they may have life to the full.” Jesus has come to bring us the fullest life. I want the fullest life , don’t you? Are we catching a glimpse at where the real party is? The party is with Jesus. We should be as a song says , “ dancing on streets of gold, and celebrating in our souls” day after day, minute after minute. We just have to seek after Him. Jeremiah 29:13 says, “You will seek me and find me when you seek me with all your heart.”

The Real Party - The Other Parties

Tue, 30 Oct 2007 04:29:00 GMT

THE OTHER PARTIES

What is it about those other parties that we are searching for? Love? Friendship? The filling of a void? Don’t get me wrong – I love parties and celebrations. I will be the first to say that I am coming to a party and accept more than one on the same day because I don’t want to miss out. But what do we think is there that we need. We are searching , longing to find ourselves, who we really are. And sometimes parties make us feel good, happy, satisfied for a brief moment. We feel accepted, and like there is actually some meaning to life. Ecclesiastes 3:2 says Soloman “ tried cheering himself with wine, and embracing folly” and then in verse 11 he says, “nothing was gained under the sun.” A teacher once taught about why people get drunk. She said people seek out to get drunk because they want to feel different. They don’t like the way they normally feel , so they want to feel good even if it is temporary. The same is true for drugs. People who use drugs want to get high because there is no other High in their lives. Okay, let’s talk crazy! What if I were to tell you that you could be drunk and high everyday without drinking any alcohol or using drugs. The teacher I spoke about earlier ended by telling us that we need to be drunk on the Holy Spirit, and I say we can be High on the Most High. That is what makes life meaningful and joyful.. Psalm 57:2-3 says,

“I cry out to the Lord Most High, to God, who fulfills His purpose for me. He sends from heaven and saves me, rebuking those who hotly pursue me. God sends His love and His faithfulness.”

I want more of the Most High in my life, don’t you?

The Real Party - A Celebration To Last Through Out The Year

Mon, 29 Oct 2007 03:04:00 GMT

A CELEBRATION TO LAST THROUGH OUT THE YEAR

Zephaniah 3:14-17 says,

“Sing, O Daughter of Zion; shout aloud, O Israel! Be glad and rejoice with all your heart, O Daughter of Jerusalem! The Lord has taken away your punishment, He has turned back your enemy. The Lord, the King of Israel, is with you; never again will you fear any harm. On that day they will say to Jerusalem, “Do not fear, O Zion; do not let your hands hang limp. The Lord your God is with you, He is mighty to save. He will take great delight in you , He will quiet you with His love, He will rejoice over you with singing.”

Can you believe it? The Lord delights in us! He quiets over us with His love! He rejoices over us with His singing! Did you hear that? He rejoices over us! He loves us so much, so what keeps us from rejoicing over Him? We must rejoice because we are loved, my dear friends, we are so loved by the Creator of the Universe. Are you understanding how very small we are and how very BIG He is? Are we understanding how powerless we are and how POWERFUL He is? Are we getting a glimpse at His vastness, a taste of His goodness? We, dear ones, need to stop focusing on ourselves and start focusing on our Creator and His great and awesome son Jesus. “ Let us fix our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfector of our faith, who for the joy set before Him, endured the cross, scorning it’s shame , and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God.” Let’s fix our gaze so that we see God on the throne and not ourselves. And this new focus is not only a Sunday occurrence, but an all day, everyday lifestyle. 1 Thessalonians 5:17 says, “ Be joyful always, pray continually, give thanks in all circumstances , for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus.” Did you catch the ALWAYS, CONTINUALLY, and in ALL circumstances? That does not mean occasionally! This is God’s will for us – to be focused on Him ALWAYS! TO be joyful always! TO be thankful always! Not just on Thanksgiving.

Our Savior died on the cross for our sins not so we could be free sometimes, but ALL THE TIME! Galatians 5:1 says, “ It is for freedom that Christ set us free. Stand firm then, and do not let yourselves be burdened again by a yoke of slavery.” Galatians 5:13 says, “ You, my brothers, were called to be free. But not to use your freedom to indulge in the sinful nature, rather, to serve one another in love.” Colossians 1:13-14 says, “ For He has rescued us from the dominion of darkness and brought us into the kingdom of the Son He loves, in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins.”

Now that, my friends, is worth celebrating! We have been rescued and freed! We need to throw a party for Jesus !

He deserves to hear us shout and sing and dance in His honor!

SHOUT

“Announce this with shouts of joy and proclaim it! “Isaiah 48:20

SING

“I will sing to the Lord, for He is highly exalted … The Lord is my strength and my song. He has become my salvation. He is my God, and I will praise Him , my fathers God , and I will exalt Him. The LOrd is a warrior. The Lord is His name.”

DANCE

“David, wearing a linen ephod, danced before the Lord with all his might, while he and the entire house of Israel brought up the ark of the Lord with shouts and the sound of trumpets!” 2 Samuel 6:14-15

The Lord is a party! He loves to celebrate! When someone is saved there is a huge party in heaven. Let’s celebrate out great God!

Psalm 150 tells us how to praise God.

“ Praise the Lord.

Praise God in His sanctuary; praise Him in His mighty heavens.

Praise Him for His acts of power; praise Him for His surpassing greatness.

Praise Him with the sound of trumpet, praise Him with the harp and lyre.

Praise Him with the tambourine and dancing, praise Him with the strings and flutes.

Praise Him with the clash of cymbals, praise Him with resounding cymbals.

Let everything that has breath praise the Lord.

Praise the Lord.”