Don't be fooled. God is as real as ever. He is a living entity. His guidelines set forth in the Bible on how to live your life will only bring you peace, health and blessings.
Well, I am about to sound off about a couple things that are not popular
to sound off about these days. However. . . . some churches,
Christians and pastors today are tiptoeing around the truth of the
Bible, God's word. Too many are concerned about offending someone or
driving people from church with the truth. If they take offense or
leave because of the truth, let them go. They will only pollute the
body. The truth will strengthen the church and true Christians. The
Bible is our manual for living yesterday, today and tomorrow. God never
changes. Since He created man, the manual on how to live is important
for keeping us in the best lifestyle that blesses us. We have to
return to the truth especially in this day of "political correctness"
which threatens the very foundation of our society.
Here are a
couple verses to remind us of the importance of truth: I John 4:6, II
Timothy 2:15 and Ephesians 6:14 which tells us, "Stand firm then, with
the belt of truth buckled around your waist. . .". God's truth, as
stated in His word, the Bible, is that abortion is premeditated murder,
sex before marriage is wrong, a gay lifestyle is an abomination and
tithing to the church is ordained. There are other truths that are
being swept under the carpet these days but these four are some major
issues.
Abortion: Ex. 10:13 tells us not to murder. (Original text uses the word "murder", not "kill") God knows the unborn child, Ps. 139:13,15. We are created in the image of God; that makes life special. We are told to be fruitful and multiply - the opposite of killing an unborn child. Gen.1:28 Also see Gen.9:6 & 7.
Sex before marriage: In Song of Songs 2:7, 3:5 and 8:4, there is a strong warning against premarital sex when it says, "Do not arouse or awaken love until it so desires" - three times. In other words, save sex for marriage! There are special blessings for the married couple that come from obedience to this rule. I have known many who regretted sex before marriage but have yet to meet a couple that were sorry they waited.
Gay lifestyle: Lev.18:22, 20:13; these verses are very plain. There is also the story in Sodom where a crowd of the town wanted Lot to turn over the two male visitors in his house so they could have sexual relations with them. There is no indication that the townsmen were aware the visitors were angels.
Tithing: The is the foundation of giving appreciation to God for everything. Genesis 14:20 is the first instance of tithing and it was done by Abraham to God's representative, Melchizedek, right after they partook of the first communion 14:18. Tithing has been ordered ever since. The Bible is full of blessings listed that come to those who tithe. The tithe is returned to God through His representative on earth, the church.
How many ills of society can you name that have their roots in these issues? Disease, heartbreak, broken homes, broken hearts, mental and emotional breakdowns, suicide, adoption, abandonment, alcoholism, and the list goes on.
Anyone who knows me will tell you, I get along with
everyone and I am not about to condemn the individual for the action.
Heaven knows I have done my share of wrong living. This is one reason I
feel I can spout off. I have lived a lifestyle without God and
presently try to live according to God's instruction as stated in the
Bible. It is amazing what a difference it really makes in my life to
follow the guidelines my maker put into force at the time of creation.
You actually have to walk the walk before you can see the results. Your
first step has to be through faith; the rest will come. When we can
understand His absolute love and find the faith to follow through with
right choices, our lives improve immeasurably. THIS IS TRUTH.
God
set all of His instructions in place for our benefit physically,
emotionally, spiritually and looking to the future. We are rebellious
children and when we disobey, punishment comes through our physical,
emotional and spiritual well being. This explains so much unhappiness
in the world today. Our choices need to mature. We need to give up our
selfish lifestyle and live the rich blessings of right choice.
Further
reading: John 4:24, 8:34, Psalms 119:160, 145:18 and I John 3:18
which says, "Dear children, let us not love with words or speech but
with actions and in truth."
*Title for this writing is a quote from my mother that she was fond of.
Thus says the LORD, Who gives the sun for light by day And the fixed
order of the moon and the stars for light by night, Who stirs up the sea
so that its waves roar; The LORD of hosts is His name: Jeremiah 31:35
In the verse above and Exodus 15:11, we are reminded of the awesome
power and authority of God. When we understand this, we develop what is
known as "awe" of God. Awe is a reverential fear. This is not fear
that sends us running for a secure place to hide (as if that existed
with God). This is the type of fear that recognizes the power and
majesty of the All Might; the type of fear that produces respect for the
greatest power in the universe that loves us beyond any human
understanding. We see and understand the power of our Creator. This
can be related to the awe we had of our parents when we were young. We
recognized that they had the power to reject, reward, discipline, deny,
give and create the atmosphere of our lives.
Once we reach this
state of "awe", we want to worship and praise in gratitude - just as we
felt about our parents. When young, they controlled our entire world
and we stood in awe of the way they went about the business of work and
providing everything. In Psalm 68:35, we are told of the power of God
that He can give to us. In Isaiah 66:2, we are told of who He favors
among His people.
Our parents were proud of us and bragged on us
when we were respectful. We were rewarded when we obeyed them and did
as we were instructed. I recognized that my mother had all authority
and she demanded respect. We feared what she could do if she did not
get that respect (awe) through our disobedience. At the same time, we
were certain of her love because of the way she commanded right living.
I loved my mother, obeyed her and she returned this with love. I
respected her for her power over me and she loved me for it.
God
bestows good things, blessings, on those who who trust Him. Psalm
31:19. In Luke 1:50, we are told that proper fear of God grants us
mercy from Him. We learn in Psalm 103:11 that God loves those who love
Him. Love comes from respect, a type of awe. Isaiah 33:6 tells us that
through fear/awe of the Lord, we will be given salvation, wisdom and
knowledge as treasure.
The Lord listens to and hears those who
fear Him. Malachi 3:16-17 Proverbs 14:27 tells us we can receive
health and long life through fear of the Lord. Proverbs 19:23 goes
further to add that our life will be content and untouched by trouble
when we fear Him. Finally, we see in Proverbs 22:4 that even riches and
honor are added to our life for fearing the Lord.
How do we
stand in awe and fear the Lord? We accept His unconditional love and
grace imparted to us as a free gift through the sacrifice of His son on
the cross.
We do not have to earn this love from God; His grace is a free gift. Our sins were forgiven on the cross. Hebrews 10:12 Amen
Do you have a pet? One that you just adore?
I do. His name is "Digger" and he is a Russian tortoise.
Digger is an amphibian, a cold blooded animal. He gets body warmth from his surroundings. I have to see that his surroundings are the correct temperature and humidity at all times. I have to make sure he gets enough sunlight every day and enough dark to accommodate his sleep cycle. His diet is important and I see to it that he gets a variety of the leaves and vegetables that are good for him. I don't let him have any plant that might be harmful to his system.
When he has a full tummy, he often falls asleep in his food dish. It makes me feel good that he is content.
Every few days, he
needs to soak in water because he is a dessert tortoise and needs
moisture. I make sure he gets time to soak and exercise in the sink.
Why? This seems like a lot of bother. So why do I make all this effort for his well being? I adore this cold blooded animal more than I ever imagined I
would.
Hours were spent, with a shovel, in the hot sun, creating an outdoor habitat for summer weather. Digger likes me. He actually acknowledges me when I am in the room or go to his outdoor pen to get him when the weather changes. If he is hungry when I go outside, I call and he comes to me. I like it when he notices me and shows me attention and appreciation just like God wants us to sing, praise and visit with Him.
It gives me joy when Digger is happy; just like God is thrilled with our happiness, peace, health and comfort.
God loves us like this. Just as I sacrificed hard work in the hot sun, God sacrificed His son, Jesus, who sacrificed his life for us.
Digger likes my warm hands;
He does not like cold rain.
I know what he likes and I try to accommodate his surroundings.
God does the same for us.
I am happy when Digger is happy;
God is happy when we are happy.
I know what he needs;
I supply all of Digger’s needs
God supplies all of our needs and takes great joy in doing so. He takes such great joy in our acknowledgement of His love by saying "Thank you" and offering praise throughout the day, that He offers blessings for the gratitude and praise we give Him. He promises to bless us when we thank Him and praise Him for providing our needs.
What an amazing God we have.
Amen
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