Salvation Sunday: Knowledge is POWER!!!!

Knowledge, knowledge, knowledge, knowledge. This is such an interesting topic. In a bible study at the McCormicks, the topic of knowledge has come up for at least the past 3 weeks. And the main thing to get knowledge is through the Word of God. We have to make sure that we study God's word!! We have to know the word of God. Hosea 4:6 says "My people are destroyed for lack of knowledge: because thou hast rejected knowledge, I will also reject thee, that thou shalt be no priest to me: seeing thou hast forgotten the law of thy God, I will also forget thy children.". Therefore, we gotta know the word so we are not destroyed. But, you might ask how can we be destroyed or something along those lines. Well, being a Christian, we are constantly in a fight for our lives. For one thing, Satan is trying to stop us from fulfilling our purpose and He sure enough doesn't want us knowing Gods word. The only way to fight Satan is to throw the word of God back at Him because he can't do anything. When Jesus was in the wilderness, Lucifer tempted Jesus to serve lucifer. One instance was that Satan was trying to get Jesus to turn rocks into bread. But Jesus said, in Matthew 4:4, "But he answered and said, It is written, Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceedeth out of the mouth of God.". So, Jesus accessed the power by quoting scriptures and He won the battle.

The other reason is that the Bible talks about in the last days there will be a lot of deception going around. People are going to go around speaking false truths and convincing Christians and mad people to believe these lies. One common thing that I've heard is that there is this mother that we are supposed to worship. And the thing is some of these groups will twist the Bible to make it work for them. So, you really need to know the word. When you know the word, you will be able to know what is true. A favorite verse of mine goes perfect with this idea. 2 Timothy 2:15 says "Study to shew thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth.". As a Christian, we can use the Bible to check any preacher that we can hear. In addition, we can use it to know what's right and what's wrong. We have to study the word so we can divide what we hear to be either right or wrong.

We should have a desire to want to know God. We should want to know His Word and His presence. Just as our guest blogger, Shamar, said, we need to know God. And the way to know God is through his word. And Hannah also said that we need I develop our relationship but the only way to do that is to know His word because that is how you will know who God is.

So, I encourage you this week and for the future to continue to seek God through His word. Get a desire to know God. Study His word. Let His word be hid in your heart, so you won't sin against Him, like David said.



Stay blessed!!!
Salvation Sundays: Steven Gable

GUEST BLOGGER FOR JUNE: No God, Know God

Sorry, never heard of him. Oh, OK, I think I've run into him before.  Yes, I met her last week.  I remember her.  He's my best friend since way back, that's my bro...  These are a few answers to a question we get asked almost everyday.  Do you know someone?  It could be anyone. Think of what each answer means and how you felt when you gave each of those answers.  Now, which answer would you give to this question?  Do you know God?

1 Samuel 3 explains the night God spoke to young Samuel.  What we must KNOW first is that Samuel is serving under the reign of Eli.  King Eli is well into his UNDERSTANDING of God, in fact his age is spoiled by the text telling use is almost blind.  Gotcha key-point! Samuel mistakes Gods calling for Eli a few times before Eli tells him what to do.  Although being nearly blind, Eli KNOWS God's voice (we live by faith and not by sight). Samuel follows a man of God all day, prays all day, and serves God all day yet still did not KNOW him.  WOW! But a nearly blind man did.  Why? Throughout time Eli had learned to KNOW him.  

"KNOW" means to be acquainted, understand, have establishment with someone.  Eli took the time, diligence, patience, etc to do all those things so he could KNOW when God was speaking.  He could not see but he felt Gods presence and heard his voice.  

How many of us KNOW God?  When is the last time you said, "Yes, Lord, your servant is listening". Do you know God? Can you say you recognize his voice? It’s funny how when Samuel first heard God call for him, he ran to Eli. Is that not us? When we have a good idea, when adversity comes, or even when a thought pops to our head we so oftenly run to friend.  What if that thought or concern that popped in your mind was God saying "hey, remember I can fix this problem". Maybe it was God saying "You should try this". If we take the time to seek him by studying his word, praying, and fellowship with like-spirited believers you will be "led by the spirit" aka KNOW Gods voice. 

Decisions I made in the past were made because, at times, I did not KNOW Gods voice. He spoke but I ignored him because I didn't recognize the voice. I assumed the message was for someone else. How many times have you gone out to hang out and something told you to stay inside? What happens when you go out? Exactly, you end up hearing "I told you" as soon as you get back.

Beloved friends, God is simple, he spoke in parables to the masses because they wouldn't KNOW what he meant if he spoke spiritual jargon. WOW, watch this y'all (I just got excited typing this)!!! But when he spoke to his disciples, whom already KNEW him, he broke the parables down IN THEIR ENTIRETY. If we take the time to get to KNOW him just like we would our boo, he will meet us half way. We would KNOW what God wants the first time.

Think for a second if Samuel KNEW God the first time he called.  What would that look like in our lives? What decisions would we make?  To KNOW is something we must DO.  To UNDERSTAND is someone we must become.  We cannot understand unless we take the time out to KNOW him daily.

        

         Food for thought:

         Original piece from ~S.H.A.M.A.R.~

         Where you gonna run

         when it's all said and done

         No more friends to back you up now it's You, Father, Son

         don't matter what you got

         because the temp is getting hot

         He either KNOWS you or he KNOWS you not

         But don't get mad at me 

         Just listen to the plot see

Your whole life you've been chasing lies like you're running with the Nazis

         "Yes I'm a Christian, but that lifestyle is not me"

         Later for this Jesus, ill just settle for a Knot $ see

GUEST BLOGGER FOR JUNE: SHAMAR

Saturday Sacrifice: Will you Marry Me?????

“What therefore God hath joined together, let not man put asunder.”

I’m sure everyone once in their life has heard this verse said at a wedding.

But, why at a wedding is this verse so popularly read?

For the reason that the wedding is a demonstration of the covenant that a man and woman makes when they vow to love, serve, and commit to each other for a lifetime.

God established this covenant or as we call it “marriage” between a man and woman. He created this.

I believe in addition to the many other reasons why God established this wonderful thing, God has also established this for us as an example as to how we have a covenant or “marriage” to him.

In today’s reading God used Hosea as an example of how he loves his people, the Israelites even though they chose to turn to false gods.

God said, “Go, show your love to your wife again, though she is loved by another man and is an adulteress. Love her as the Lord loves the Israelites, though they turn to other gods and love the sacred raisin cakes.”

Even when we fail to maintain our covenant or “marriage” with God, he still loves and continues to chase us!!!=)

He also continues to shower us with blessings that we don’t even deserve. Do you know why?? Because he loves us soooooo much, and wants us to realize that no one can love us, love you like He can…no one.

“So I bought her for fifteen shekels^[a] of silver and about a homer and a lethek^[b] of barley. ³ Then I told her, “You are to live with me many days; you must not be a prostitute or be intimate with any man, and I will behave the same way toward you.”

⁴ For the Israelites will live many days without king or prince, without sacrifice or sacred stones, without ephod or household gods. ⁵ Afterward the Israelites will return and seek the Lord their God and David their king. They will come trembling to the Lord and to his blessings in the last days.”

 

To me being a Christian is having you own personal relationship or covenant with God. Just like any other relationship it requires love, trust, communication, service, and commitment etc.

 

And just like any other relationship it grows. However, if we are not doing our part it halts the growth of the relationship. “Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.”~ Matthew 22:37

God is chasing us, but are we running to him?? Our God is a good God. He doesn’t force his love on anyone.

 

 

³⁵ Then Jesus declared, “I am the bread of life. Whoever comes to me will never go hungry, and whoever believes in me will never be thirsty… All those the Father gives me will come to me, and whoever comes to me I will never drive away. ³⁸ For I have come down from heaven not to do my will but to do the will of him who sent me. ³⁹ And this is the will of him who sent me,that I shall lose none of all those he has given me, but raise them up at the last day. ⁴⁰ For my Father’s will is that everyone who looks to the Son and believes in him shall have eternal life, and I will raise them up at the last day.”~ John 6:35,37-40

 

So, continue to develop your personal relationship with God. It is a beautiful thing. If you do not have one, I pray you choose to do so today, it’s never too late =). God is soooooo good, and his love is soooo amazing. Jesus is the perfect one to be in a relationship with. He provides everything you lack, and gives you more than you can ever imagine. He is your peace, your joy, your hope, your provider, your comfort, your confidence, and your everything.

 

We love because he first loved us.~ I John 4:19

I thought this was funny lol...check it out!!

 

 

 

Stay is God’s Peace, not in pieces =)

Saturday Sacrifice:Hannah

 

 

 

 

Friday Fellowship: Can God?

Can God?

This is a common question to the unknowledgeable or nonbeliever. “Can God” is also a question to a believer, but since they believe it is known as doubt. Can God do this? Can God do that?

Mark 9, we see people are questioning “Can God heal a man’s son?” The disciples, the followers of Jesus were with these people doubting the ability of God. Since we’re all human we will all battle the questions of “Can God”. The important thing to do when battling these “Can God” questions are to correct them by staying connected to God, seeking God and reading God’s word. As long as this question remains unanswered, you are forfeiting THE INTERVENTION OF GOD in your desire.

²² And ofttimes it hath cast him into the fire, and into the waters, to destroy him: but if thou canst do any thing, have compassion on us, and help us.
²³ Jesus said unto him, If thou canst BELIEVE, all things are possible to him that believeth.
²⁴ And straightway the father of the child cried out, and said with tears, Lord, I believe; help thou mine unbelief.

If you ask “Can God” this is the best indicator that it is time to seek God through his word, prayer, fasting and however you can to correct your doubt or lack of knowledge.

           

In 2010 I worked 2^nd shift and I desired a new job with earlier hours. Two years later, I’m still searching, but that year of 2012 my car broke down. Without a car I began doubting “Can God” bless me with a job? I have no transport; I’m restricted to certain places.

Finally, through seeking God I received faith. My new thoughts and prayer said “GOD YOU CAN” bless me with a job anywhere. If it is far, you will provide a ride or if it is not far, then I will walk and “GOD YOU CAN” provide strength to endure.”

Months later God answered my prayers by first opening up my prideful and stubborn eyes. I prayed for any job except my current one, more pay and for new hours. At this time my job for months had been attempting to replace my new supervisor. They found the replacement, but the transition never occurred for unknown reasons to me.

Through the word of God and praying God revealed to me those reasons. God held the job for me, this was the reason it couldn’t be filled. God was fixing my pride and stubbornness. After, humbling myself to God’s will, I accepted his answer to my prayer and I applied for the job. I spoke to the supervisor which was leaving and they filled me with many reasons to doubt. Clearly my supervisor was annoyed exclaiming my late interest in the position put me at a disadvantage and that I originally turned down the job. Also, informing me that technically the position had been filled for months, but for some disclosed reasons the transition could not occur. Right at that moment I had a choice, TRUST GOD or question CAN GOD? I chose to trust God and instead of questioning CAN GOD, I said “GOD YOU CAN” and God did as I received that job.

           

          I am not at the job that I desire, so my search continues, but I learned in prayer to say “GOD CAN!!!” and not “CAN GOD?” He did it once, so I know he can twice. This is a verse I love when facing extreme odds and to help you say “GOD YOU CAN”.

1 Corinthians 2: 5
“That your faith should not stand in the wisdom of men, but in the power of God.”

God Can!  God Can!  God Can! God Can! God Can!

Thirsty Thursdays: Eternal Life

Today’s reading I found particularly interesting, due to the irony of discussing a similar topic in my Tuesday night bible study. In bible study we discussed 2 Peter 3 and how “3…in the last days scoffers will come scoffing and following their own evil desires. 4 They will say where is this coming he promised?” Doubters and skeptics will go around doubting God, his return and the existence there of. They will attempt to distort your view and fill you with confusion, which is why it is imperative to be strong in the word. Otherwise you may also be lost and live like “You Only Live Once.“

One question from bible study was how does lack of belief affect the scoffers lifestyle? General consensus was that one would in turn do whatever it was he or she pleased. Without future eternal reward or consequence for ones actions, there wouldn’t be much meaning to what is done, there isn’t much to look forward to, anything to work for, the hope is gone. Everything would be superficial and about pleasing the flesh at the current moment, nothing would really matter. After death, regardless of doing this or doing that, would be nothing.

Luckily as believers, we know there is more. There is more than the material things we tend to place such high value in; there is more than the superficial feeling of pleasing your flesh or chasing temporary desires. There is true meaning of love, hope and joy; there is significance, purpose and the promise of eternal life. We have this and more to look forward to.

We have the understanding that although nice, earthly possessions are just that, earthly. They don’t last forever; you can’t take them with you when you die. We know that we have one physical life here on earth but that there is a heaven in which our Lord and savior resides. So we live righteously standing firm on God’s word and his promise. “Whoever wants to be my disciple must deny themselves and take up their cross and follow me. 35 For whoever wants to save their life will lose it, but whoever loses their life for me and for the gospel will save it. 36 What good is it for someone to gain the whole world, yet forefeet their soul? 37 Or what can anyone give in exchange for their soul? 38 If anyone is ashamed of me and my words in this adulterous and sinful generation, the Son of Man will be ashamed of them when he comes in his Father’s glory with the holy angels” Mark 8:34-38.

Grow in the grace and knowledge of Jesus Christ. Study the word. There will be those who attempt to insert doubt in your mind or confuse you, but be firm and confident in God’s promise. Don’t spend your lifetime simply trying to acquire earthly status or material objects etc. neglecting your soul and relationship with God.  Our possessions our status can be taken away at any moment and eventually we all experience the same fate, DEATH. As we read in yesterday's wonderful Warrior Wednesday post, God wants to bless us, not only with what we need but with an abundance. Seek his righteousness, we ought to live holy and godly lives as we look forward to His return, cause  what good is it for someone to gain the whole world, yet forfeit their soul

Stay Thirsty My Friends

Thirsty Thursdays  

Warrior Wedsnesdays: Blessings Beyond Your Expectations

Do you know that God wants to bless you with more than you need and with more than you could ever want? Mark chapter 8 demonstrates how God blesses far beyond our needs and desires.

Many of us have heard the story of Jesus feeding a large crowd with a few loaves of bread and a few fish, but did you know he preformed this miracle twice? He fed a group of 5000 with five loaves of bread and a group of 4000 with seven loaves. One of the most amazing parts about the story is there was food remaining!

Jesus speaking to his disciples asked ,"When I brake the five loaves among five thousand, how many baskets full of fragments took ye up? And they said, Seven. And when the seven among four thousand, how many baskets full of fragments took ye up? And they said seven." Mark 8:19-20 This shows that after Jesus had fed both groups there was still baskets full of food. There was more food than the people could eat. Think about that for a moment, Jesus provided enough food to feed 5000 people and still have baskets of food left over! That is a lot of food! Not only did God meet the need of the crowd but he exceeded the need.

When you are going through a trying situation  remember God WILL bless you with more than you need or could even want. He blesses far above our heart's desires! Have faith and believe!

Stay Blessed and Continue Warring for Christ!
Warrior Wednesday: Brittney

TRANSFORMING TUESDAY: It All Starts From Within...What's In Your Heart?

A few months ago I remember blogging on the heart. This must be something that God wants me to deal with since once again, today's reading focuses on the heart. Everything starts with the heart. We need it to survive. Without it, there is no us. We can survive being brain dead (God forbid) as long as we have a working heart. The question then becomes, if the heart is so important, what are you doing to take care of it/keep it clean?

If you have a white carpet in your house you'll do whatever it takes to keep it clean. If you have children they're not allowed to eat in whichever room the carpet is, if you have guests they take their shoes off, if you have a pet then they stay outside. And if the carpet does become dirty, then you clean it. Most people don't like anything that looks dirty, because anything that is associated with dirt is also associated with negativity. We become so consumed with the outside and what people can see, that we forget what really matters...the inside!

Just as change starts from within, positive actions also start from within. This is because what you put in, in any situation, is what you get out. Consequently, you reap what you sow. In today's reading in Mark 7, Jesus focused on what defiles a person. According to him, everything starts from the heart. What are you harboring in your heart? If you harbor hate in your heart, then it will surely show. Whatever is in your heart is what controls your actions. Think about it!! Your mind can have all of the logic in the world, but if your heart wants something different, then you'll follow your heart most of the time. For example if you're in a bad relationship and you keep going back, it's probably because in your heart you may love that person. I used to harbor unforgiveness in my heart. God surely delivered me from that when he humbled me. My unforgiving attitude showed in everything that I did. I would become so defensive, I would cut off friends who did me wrong, I would even stop speaking to people. In the end although most of my actions may have been justified, there was no reason in the world for me not to forgive! When I harbored such ill feelings towards people I cared about, I was the only one truly suffering. I didn't want to suffer any longer. Life is too precious to worry about others, and after all, people get what they put out. In addition, I ask for forgiveness from God on a daily basis. If I can't forgive then I can't expect God to forgive. Now I'm at a place where I freely forgive. I have so much peace in my life and I owe it all to the idea that I surrendered my heart to God. There is no other explanation.  

Your mind could be telling you no, but your heart could be saying no. Your heart becomes so important that it can influence your mind. So once again, what is in your heart, because whatever lies there defines who you are. Is God at the center of your heart? If he is then life becomes so much easier. You must remember that evil people have evil thoughts and evil thoughts develop in the heart. What you harbor in your heart is what you produce. According to the Bible, " 20 And he said, “What comes out of a person is what defiles him. 21 For from within, out of the heart of man, come evil thoughts, sexual immorality, theft, murder, adultery, 22 coveting, wickedness, deceit, sensuality,envy, slander, pride, foolishness. 23 All these evil things come from within, and they defile a person.” So what separates us from evil people is what lies in our hearts. 

My prayer is that we all get to a place where we can harbor

positive things in our hearts, because positive thinking starts from within. I also pray that before we turn to evil as a resort, that we first turn to God. Not just when we feel like we've tried everything else, but instead as a first and thus last resort. There is more to life than just evil. it is my belief that we all go through issues, however it is no reason for us to harm and defile one another. I say this because there are people who have gone through far worse issues, but they choose not to exhibit evil. Even though we are currently living in a chaotic world, God is always the answer. Change starts from within so if you do harbor anything but love in your heart, just know that God is a forgiving God. It's never too late to repent for your sins until it's actually too late.

Yolanda Adams - Open My Heart

IT'S NEVER TOO LATE TO TRANSFORM YOUR TUESDAY!!!

TRANSFORMING TUESDAY: JAMERA