Blood

Do you believe that you can act righteously? Do you believe that you can clean up, get yourself together, walk the line? Do you believe you can do good deeds? Do you believe that you can please God?

Do you believe that you should abide by the law of Tithing 10% of your money? Do you believe that a good Christian lives by the 10 Commandments?

Do you believe in penance, ritualistic prayers, saints, a certain catechism, use of religious objects, or religious rights to bring about holiness before God?

Do you believe that certain attire, actions, or dietary practices set you apart as a better believer?

Do you believe that church attendance, days of worship, or holy observances are necessary for the Christian life?

Do you believe that certain theological or church requirements mark you a “good Christian”?

 

If you answered YES to any of the above questions then you believe…

Any old blood will do….

The Heavens Declare

Psalm 19

The heavens declare the glory and creative work of God…not massive amounts of stellar time.

The Glory of God is revealed by swirling galaxies, gas giants, and purple nebular clouds…

Think on this AMAZING FACT….

The statistical probability of ONE planet ANYWHERE in the universe fitting the necessary parameters for life is approximately 10 to the -194 power. Meaning, there is less than 1 chance in 100 thousand trillion trillion trillion trillion trillion trillion trillion trillion trillion trillion trillion trillion trillion, that there is even ONE planet that could support life in the ENTIRE UNIVERSE.

But Earth does……….

 

The Peony Nebula - Getty Images

Your heart has been ransomed!

“The heart is deceitful above all things and beyond cure. Who can understand it? “I the LORD search the heart and examine the mind, to reward a man according to his conduct, according to what his deeds deserve.”- Jeremiah 17:9-10

Did you know that if you have accepted Christ to live in your heart, and have invited the Holy Spirit to guide your life, and have accepted God’s awesome LIFE TERMS, then your HEART is no longer WICKED???!!!!

Yes that’s right you have a new heart, a heart of flesh, circumcised by the atonement of Christ, made new in Him. Your heart is GOOD. I mean GOOD like ice cream, newborn babies, spring rain, and the first snow good.

This teaching in the CHURCH has been stomped for 2000 years! Because the ENEMY DOES NOT WANT YOU TO LIVE WITH A NEW HEART! He wants you to waste away in self pity, rejection, self loathing, and despondence, thinking that “if I could only get to heaven, I’d be ok”. We really don’t think we are OK!!!!!

WHAT? I mean I am sitting here thinking of all the times the Enemy has gotten me with this one. YOU ARE NOT OK. YOU SUCK. YOU ARE NOT CHOSEN. YOU ARE NOT SINLESS. YOU ARE A FILTHY RAG. YOUR LIFE IS CHOKED WITH WEEDS.

Well where the HELL is the Gardener, the Counselor, the Shepherd of my Soul??????

IN MY HEART!

Your heart has been ransomed, transformed, made whole, made clean, and made new!!

REQUIRED READING FOR THE FAINT AT HEART:

Waking the Dead: The Glory of a Ransomed Heart by John Eldredge

Ransomed Heart Ministries

 

Captivating by John & Stasi Eldredge

Wild At Heart by John Eldredge

Ezekiel

Many prophetic scholars agree that the massive military conflict of Ezekiel 38 & 39 has not yet occurred in Israel’s history. I won’t go into all the theological reasons for this belief, but I wholeheartedly agree. There are several major statements in the text that indicate a definite “End Times” context and that preclude any explanation prior to 1948.

I believe EVERY person interested in prophecy should read Ezekiel 37-40 with MUCH interest. The book foretells of

1) The miraculous WORLD WIDE restoration of Israel

2) A terrible military attack by “Gog” “Magog” “the prince of Rosh, Meshech and Tubal” “Persia” “Ethiopia” “Put” “Beth-Togarmah” and many other peoples

3) A MIRACULOUS salvation from this terrible military attack by an ACT of God that can only be viewed as CATASTROPHIC

4) And finally a NEW glorious temple with the RIVER of life flowing out of it!

There is major hope in the book of Ezekiel for those who believe that God is the salvation of the world and of Israel. We should read it with open eyes and hearts and discern the Truth that God is sharing with us.

Who are these nations that will attack a “peaceful” Israel? When will this occur? What will this attack look like? What will this Act of God look like that will astound the nations?

Keep watch! Be vigilant! I believe this will happen VERY soon!

Law & Grace

Law and grace are two opposite ways in which God deals with the human race. We can describe them as dissimilar principles under which He tests man. Or we think of them as two covenants that He has made with His people: “For the law was given by Moses, but grace and truth came by Jesus Christ” (John 1:17).
Under the principle of law, man receives what he earns or deserves. Under grace he is spared from what he deserves and is enriched beyond description- all as a free gift. The two principles are described in Romans 4:4, 5: Now to him that worketh is the reward not reckoned of grace, but of debt. But to him that worketh not, but believeth on him that justifieth the ungodly, his faith is counted for righteousness.
Grace and law are mutually exclusive; that is, they cannot be mixed……. .. If by grace, then is it no more of works: otherwise grace is no more grace” (Rom. 11:6).
Law is a conditional covenant: God says, “If you obey, I will reward you, but if you disobey, I must punish you.” Grace is an unconditional covenant: God says, “I will bless you freely.”
The law says Do, whereas grace says Believe. But believing is not a condition; it is the only reasonable response of a creature to his Creator. And it is not meritorious; no one can be proud that he has believed on the Lord. He would be foolish not to believe on the only dependable Person in the universe. Under law holiness is required but no power is given to live a holy life. Under grace holiness is taught (Tit. 2:11, 12) and the necessary power is given.

Someone has put it this way: “The Law demands strength from one who has none and curses him if he can’t display it. Grace gives strength to one who has none and blesses him in the exhibition of it.” The Law brings a curse: “Cursed is every one that continueth not in all things which are written in the book of the law to do them” (Gal. 3: 10). Grace brings a blessing: ” Being justified freely by his grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus” (Rom. 3:24). Under law boasting is encouraged, but under grace it is ruled out. “Then what becomes of our boasting? It is excluded. On what principle? On the principle of works? No, but on the principle of faith” (Rom. 3:27 RSV).

There cannot be any assurance of salvation under law: a man could never know whether he had performed enough good works or the right kind of good works. Under grace there is full assurance because salvation is a gift; you know when you have received a gift! A person under law could not have true security because he could not be sure he would continue to meet the requirements.

Under grace the believer enjoys eternal security (John 10:27-29) because his salvation depends on the work of Christ. There is no salvation by the law. God never intended that anyone would ever be saved on that principle. The purpose of the Law is to show man that he is a sinner. “By the law is the knowledge of sin” (Rom. 3:20) -not the knowledge of salvation. Salvation is by grace (Eph. 2:8,9). It is the free, undeserved gift of God to those who receive the Lord Jesus Christ as their only hope for heaven. Under law sin is aroused (Rom. 7:8-13); under grace it is despised. When sinful man is put under law he immediately wants to do what is forbidden. It is not the law’s fault, but the response of sin in man’s nature. Under grace, sin is despised. The memory of what our sins cost the Savior makes us turn away from them. Under law the work is never finished. That is why the Sabbath, the seventh day, came at the end of a week of toil. Grace tells us of a finished work, so we begin our week with the Lord’s Day, our day of rest.
The Law tells what man must do. Grace reveals what God has done in Christ.
The Law is a system of bondage (Gal. 4:1-3); grace is a system of liberty (Gal. 5:1). Men under law are servants; men under grace are sons.
The Law says, “Thou shalt love.” Grace says, “God so loved…”
The Law says, “Do and thou shalt live.” Grace says, “Live and thou shalt do.”
The Law says, “Try and obey.” Grace says, “Trust and obey.”
Under law a wayward son was taken outside the city and stoned to death (Deut. 21:18-2 1). Under grace the prodigal son can confess his sin and come back into the fellowship of his father’s house again (Luke 15:21-24).
Under law the sheep die for the shepherd. Under grace the shepherd dies for the sheep (John 10:11).
The superiority of grace has been described as follows: grace is not looking for good men whom it may approve, for it is not grace but justice to approve goodness; but it is looking for condemned, guilty, speechless, and helpless men whom it may save, sanctify, and glorify.

I will praise the LORD according to his righteousness: and will sing praise to the name of the LORD most high.

 

*(From AgapeCafe – Yahoo Groups – Don’t know author.)

God Will Surpass What I Expect

The Lord has really been dealing with me lately about what I expected His promises for my life to turn out like. To look like. To feel like. I heard a sermon from Mark Rutland on what our life with God looks like after maturity. We hear the promises of God, or the call, or the dreams God has placed in our heart. We get really excited and think “I can’t WAIT!” And then, not that God lets us down, or that He is a mean Father who withholds good things, but the circumstances of our lives don’t always LOOK the way we envisioned. They don’t always go the way we expect.

God promised me love & he brought me a husband who He specifically told me was His will for my life. I knew it. I honored the promise. I followed God. I obeyed His leading. But as the years marched on, I started to feel slighted, cheated, and ignored. I started to feel like God’s promise for this relationship was just not good enough. I wanted my old expectations fulfilled. I wanted it MY way.

I am still walking this one out. So I won’t say that I’ve arrived to some place of maturity where I can say, “Ahh so that is what God was up to. How amazing!”

For right now, I am talking it out with God. Praying, reading, sometimes impatiently and frustrated. But other times peaceful and full of HOPE.

I think God wants us all to know, that the circumstances of life will come. They may look one way. They may seem out of whack! They me even seem downright miserable. But remember these verses, and know that God cares about the desires of our hearts!

2 Corinthians 1:20“For all the promises of God in Him are Yes, and in Him Amen, to the glory of God through us.”

Ephesians 3:20 “Now all glory to God, who is able, through his mighty power at work within us, to accomplish infinitely more than we might ask or think.”

Someone Always Reads This

Instead of embarking on this blog by saying, “No one every reads this…” (read in a pitiful, pouty voice) I am going to say that someone, some lone geek with NOTHING better to do, always read this. It is the internet after all and millions of people are out there running around digital land right now.

It is a late night. I’ve had a quite a day with my little beast child. We hiked and walked and ran and played pretend and went on a ride on his little John Deere gator. We ate lunch. Then after lunch my friend came over and I helped her with her website while her 2 little beast boys and mine destroyed the gravel driveway outside. Then my husband watched the beast boy this evening while I went out to eat and a fancy restaurant with my momma-in-law. It was simply a marvelous day.

On a completely different subject, My mother is getting married on Sunday and she just told me today! Its not quite as much of a shock as it sounds. She’s been planning it for a while, she just had not set a date until today, and the date she set is 3 days away! So I’m going to be helping her with the decorations and flowers. Fun, fun!

I am anticipating 6 books in the mail from one of those incessant book clubs. I can’t wait to read get them in the mail so I can do something at night OTHER than WORK on the computer and play bubble blaster on my pocket PC. I am a hopeless insomniac and I should be in bed right now. But I am not. This computer DOES NOT help with my insomnia. It makes it entirely worse.

While God gives me an abundant life, this computer gives me a recreational life. Silly, huh? Most people play tennis, or have white elephant parties, or collect ceramic roosters, but I BLOG, surf the internet for prophecy news, order things that I can’t get in my town, and email randomness to my friends and family. Mostly I design things. I really love doing that and would probably choose that over blogging. But it gets tiresome after a while. Like all work.

Well it is time to sleep and I am going to go. Adios.

Piece of digital art:

“Girl and Spirit Cloud”