Learning versus passing

Then the way you live will always honor and please the Lord, and your lives will produce every kind of good fruit. All the while, you will grow as you learn to know God better and better.

Colossians 1:10 NLT

Me and my mother was having a conversation last night about the school system. When I tell you that she is passionate about kids and education, you have no idea. What we talked about was how a teacher told her that he doesn’t like teaching the kids the way he does, but because of the way the systems requirements are he has to. What he has to do is teach them how to pass a test at the end of the year. That literally the material that he uses is off the test the kids have to take.

HERE IT IS…

Just as the teacher has to teach how to take a test, we also teach ourselves how to just pass test, seemingly get by. When in fact we need to actually learn more about what we are doing so that we can grow. We have to learn about what our teacher (God), is showing us and live it daily, rather than trying to learn how to just get by. Learn how to please God and watch how your life changes.

Happy born again day

He personally carried our sins in his body on the cross so that we can be dead to sin and live for what is right. By his wounds you are healed.

1 Peter 2:24 NLT

I can remember seeing my kids being born. I can remember seeing them being carried around for months and months and the changes that they experienced I side the womb. The way the ultra sound changed. The way they grew. How the doctor described what happened, what developed, what formed, what was created in each month. Being carried around for nearly a year and being born to see that whole process is amazing. New life given…

HERE IT IS…

Jesus carried your sins and mine for years inside so that you could be born again. You were developed inside of him and the different changes you went through to become who you are. To watch the spiritual ultra sound and see just how Jesus removed all those sins, one by one, so that you can have a new life. By his wounds, his spiritual C-section, his stretching and pulling of his skin. His ability to bear all the pain so that you can have life. Thank you God for your son who died so that we could have a right to salvation and eternity.

Never alone

For I hold you by your right hand— I, the Lord your God. And I say to you, ‘Don’t be afraid. I am here to help you.

Isaiah 41:13 NLT

The song “help” by Ericka Campbell is such a awesome song and reminds me of when I have had to cry out to God myself. When there were times I was alone, afraid and confused. Times where it was me alone with no one else to call, count on, to trust, or to help me. Ever had those times where you just had to cry out to God for help? I am talking about verbally yell like someone had just tried to steal everything at that moment?

HERE IT IS…

In so many times and ways this has helped me. Because it shows God comforts us, he claims us, covers us. He comforts us by giving us something to hold on to. Matter of fact what he does is he holds on to us. He tells us that he got us by hold us by our right hand, a sign and position of honor. He claims us by telling us who he is to us. He says that he is OUR God. That he is your God, he has claimed you to be his. It always feels good when your alone to have someone come and say that you are with them. The last thing is that he covers us. He tells to not be afraid because he is here to help. He tells us that he has it, that you don’t have to worry anymore. All you have to do is continue to hold on to his hand, your never alone…

Joy, grow, encourage, and peace

Dear brothers and sisters, I close my letter with these last words: Be joyful. Grow to maturity. Encourage each other. Live in harmony and peace. Then the God of love and peace will be with you.

2 Corinthians 13:11 NLT

Be joyful, grow, encourage, and live peacefully. What a way to live a life. To always be able to be joyful, grow and mature, be encouraging to others, and live a peaceful life. How can I live joyful when there is so much going on in my life?
Grow and mature, why should I when I can’t get ahead?
Encourage someone else when I don’t feel like getting up?
Live in peace, how?

HERE IT IS…

Joy-

All praise to God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ. It is by his great mercy that we have been born again, because God raised Jesus Christ from the dead. Now we live with great expectation, and we have a priceless inheritance—an inheritance that is kept in heaven for you, pure and undefiled, beyond the reach of change and decay.

1 Peter 1:3‭-‬4 NLT

Grow to maturity-

Then we will no longer be immature like children. We won’t be tossed and blown about by every wind of new teaching. We will not be influenced when people try to trick us with lies so clever they sound like the truth.

Ephesians 4:14 NLT

Encouragement-

Let us think of ways to motivate one another to acts of love and good works. And let us not neglect our meeting together, as some people do, but encourage one another, especially now that the day of his return is drawing near.

Hebrews 10:24‭-‬25 NLT

Live in peace-

Work at living in peace with everyone, and work at living a holy life, for those who are not holy will not see the Lord.

Hebrews 12:14 NLT

Hope, patience, prayer

Rejoice in our confident hope. Be patient in trouble, and keep on praying.

Romans 12:12 NLT

Hope, defined by google;
a feeling of expectation and desire for a certain thing to happen.

What do you hope will happen? What is it that you have been waiting on to be done, that you hope will happen? What has been in the back of your mind that you are now seeing things come together and you hope it will be done? We hope in a lot of things, or hope a lot of things will be done. We expect things to happen and desire , as the definition says, for things to happen. What are you expecting God to do? What are you desiring God to do?

HERE IT IS..

We have 2 things we have to understand that we must do when we hope things to happen. Before that we must have faith first.

Faith shows the reality of what we hope for; it is the evidence of things we cannot see.

Hebrews 11:1 NLT

Once we are able to discover that our hope is built on the faith we have in God. We can look at the instructions from this verse.

1. Be patient in trouble –
We are pressed on every side by troubles, but we are not crushed. We are perplexed, but not driven to despair. We are hunted down, but never abandoned by God. We get knocked down, but we are not destroyed.

2 Corinthians 4:8‭-‬9 NLT

2. Keep praying –
Confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you may be healed. The earnest prayer of a righteous person has great power and produces wonderful results.

James 5:16 NLT

Today was tomorrow

Don’t brag about tomorrow, since you don’t know what the day will bring.

Proverbs 27:1 NLT

“Man I can’t wait until tomorrow…”
“Tomorrow is going to be so much fun”
“Do you know what I’m doing tomorrow?”
All things we have all said and felt a some point in our life. We have all put all our eegs into the basket of tomorrow. We all have made claim to this day as if it was a guarantee or a promise or even as of it was ours to claim.

HERE IT IS…

Today is the only day you have. Today is the day that is given. Today is the day that you are allotted. What are you going to do? Are you going to spend part of it thinking about what you can put off to tomorrow? Thinking about the stuff that can hold off until tomorrow? Or seeing as though you don’t know if this is it. Will you do what God asked of you and live it for him? Tomorrow, what tomorrow? Let’s do it today!!!

Use the right name

You can ask for anything in my name, and I will do it, so that the Son can bring glory to the Father. Yes, ask me for anything in my name, and I will do it!

John 14:13‭-‬14 NLT

Yesterday I was teaching bible study to the youth and as we were going through the lesson we got to a point in the lesson where this scripture came up. When this scripture came up is was like something went off for me. I don’t know how many times I have read this scripture but this particular time, it was something different. In the last portion of verse 13, it says “so that the son can bring glory to the father.”. What got me is that there are certain people I know that depending on where I am I can use they’re name and get where I need to go. People that know me that I can call and they can provide a way to get to where I need to be. It only takes me so far…

HERE IT IS…

There is a name that is above every name. There is a name that allows me to go wherever I want to bring him glory. There is a name I can use that allows me access to things that I need and want. This name allows things that I don’t need to experience or see will be kept from me. His name is the name that brings glory to his father’s name. This name allows me the ability to live even though I don’t deserve it. Allows me another opportunity every morning with new mercies and Grace. “Ask it in my name and I will do it.”.
In Jesus name…

I have love

I pray that from his glorious, unlimited resources he will empower you with inner strength through his Spirit. Then Christ will make his home in your hearts as you trust in him. Your roots will grow down into God’s love and keep you strong. And may you have the power to understand, as all God’s people should, how wide, how long, how high, and how deep his love is. May you experience the love of Christ, though it is too great to understand fully. Then you will be made complete with all the fullness of life and power that comes from God.

Ephesians 3:16‭-‬19 NLT

One of my favorite love songs is “I need love” by ‘LL cool J. That song and so many others touch our hearts because we can relate to it. We can seemingly recite that love song word for word. Jam to that and some others and remember who we dedicated that song to, who it reminds us of, who we think about when we hear it. It takes us back. It brings a sense of nostalgia to us.

HERE IT IS…

This section of scripture says exactly what we want to experience from God’s love. One of many love songs to him.

May you experience the love of Christ, though it is too great to understand fully. Then you will be made complete with all the fullness of life and power that comes from God.

Ephesians 3:19 NLT

We can talk about who we were with, what we was doing, what car we was in, what time of day, what we had on. Now I have a new love song, because the day he saved me. I know now that the love I thought I had, doesn’t compare to what Jesus did for me.

Tell your story

The high priest and his officials, who were Sadducees, were filled with jealousy. They arrested the apostles and put them in the public jail. But an angel of the Lord came at night, opened the gates of the jail, and brought them out. Then he told them, “Go to the Temple and give the people this message of life!”

Acts of the Apostles 5:17‭-‬20 NLT

Who wants to talk about the mistakes they made? Who wants to talk about being captured and having been caught doing something that got them in trouble? Who wants to actually admit they’re wrongs and faults openly so that people will judge and talk about them? I suspect no one does. I suspect that no one likes to be talked about, judge, looked at funny, cast to the side, or mistreated because of the things they have done. No one wants to talk about it at all…

HERE IT IS…

The apostles were arrested, cool! They were put in PUBLIC JAIL, cool! Guarded and watched, got it! Still told to GO and give a message of life. They say experience is the best teacher, right? To be honest there are some experiences I wish I would have learned by listening and not experience. When you talk about your life people may focus on the part of hell you went through. The issue of incarceration of trouble in your life. However, the part where you are released is the best part. You can tell your story and celebrate because you made it through everything the devil through at you. Slipped and stumbled and fell along the way. Thank God I made it out…

Keep going

After this prayer, the meeting place shook, and they were all filled with the Holy Spirit. Then they preached the word of God with boldness.

Acts of the Apostles 4:31 NLT

Can you see it. 2 men standing in front of the council trying to get they’re point of view across. The people that they helped ate all piled in the room fighting for a position to see and make sure they’re friends are being treated fairly. As they are all told to get out the room and the council talks about what they should do. They know they can’t be harsh for the crowd would riot. And here they are in the counsel waiting to hear what they say. They tell them to never to preach again using the name Jesus

HERE IT IS…

They prayed and once they said amen the meeting place shook and everyone was filled with the holy spirit. Which meant that everyone that was in the presence of the meeting place and prayed preached the word of God with boldness. I will step out and say that the saying “it’s not what you know, it’s who you know.” Is wrong. I would say it like this; “it’s what you you know about who you know that makes a difference.” Because I know that my God will supply all my needs. He will move on my behalf, because he told me if I ask in his name he will do it… Don’t let people stop you from doing what God has called you to. Keep praying, keep reading, keep preaching, keep teaching. Keep going