Have faith down to the last crumb...............................

       1 Kings 17:10-24  ( I'm not going to type this whole thing , but grab a Bible and read it for yourself.)

  In 1 Kings chapter 17, there is a story about a widow and her son. They were starving, and had only a little meal and oil to make a little bit of bread . They would eat the bread, then eventually die from starvation. Then, the prophet Elijah came to her house, and told her to make him some bread. She told him that she had only a little food for she and her son, and if she made him some, there would not be enough for them. He told her to have faith , and make him a " cake " first, and then make some for herself and her son. She did as she was told.  

   The Bible says in 1 Kings 17:16 says: " And the barrel of meat wasted not, neither did the cruse of oil fail, according to the word of the Lord, which he spake by Elijah."   Since she had faith , and made Elijah some food first, the Lord blessed her with an endless supply of ingredients she needed to make bread! God was teaching her a lesson, and through this story He is teaching us too.  Have faith that the Lord will provide for your needs. Put Him first, and He will take care of you. Have faith down to the last crumb!

Create in me a clean heart!

    Psalms 51:10-12  says : " Create in me a clean heart,O God; and renew a right spirit within me. Cast me not away from thy presense ; and take not thine holy spirit from me. Restore unto me the joy of the salvation ; and uphold me with thy free spirit."  

    We are filthy , horrible, sinners. We are in great need of God's mercy and grace! If we ask Him, God will clean us up, and give us His Holy Spirit , so we can be His witnesses. He won't do this unless we ask Him. The Holy Spirit is a gift. He can't give it to you unless you ask, and you have a clean temple for Him to dwell in!

    Lord, I pray that You will clean my heart, and renew a right spirit within me, so the Holy Spirit can dwell in me. I ask for Your Holy Spirit today, Lord! May I dwell in heaven with You, when You come again! Amen.
  

Christmas Eve - A time to remember a couple of very important things!

      It's Christmas Eve! I can't believe it ! Time has flown by! Around Christmas time, it can be easy to get caught up in the hustle and bustle of shopping, and cooking, and writing christmas cards, that we forgot the most important part of Christmas! ( no it's not getting gifts!)

       Although the Bible doesn't tell us the exact date that Jesus was born, we celebrate it on December 25 every year. God sent his one and only Son to be born in this horrid , sinful  world, to die for us, so we could have eternal life. God sent His Son to be the perfect example for us.

      Christmas isn't about getting gifts, but it can be a good time to show others how much we love them by giving them a gift they can use and enjoy. It's not the gift that matters, it's the thought that the person put into it. It is more blessed to give than to  receive.

     Acts 20:35 says : " I have shewed you all things, how that so laboring ye ought to support the weak, and to remember the words of the Lord Jesus, how he said, It is more blessed to give than to receive"

     Remember all these things this Christmas as you enjoy spending time with your loved ones. Remember God's Gift to us. Merry Christmas to all!

A man isn't a failure who has friends!

      You know that phrase at the end of the movie : It's a Wonderful Life!, it says : " A man isn't a failure who has friends. That's is so true! You can be dirt poor, sick, and dying, but if you have friends, and a BEST FRIEND ( Jesus Christ.) , then you're rich in Christ!

     Proverbs 18:24 says : "A man who has friends must shew himself friendly : and there is a friend that sticketh closer than a brother." Who is the friend who sticketh closer than a brother? Jesus Christ! He is our constant friend. He is the bestest Friend anyone could have!
 
    A true friend loveth at all times.  Proverbs 17:17 says : " A friend loveth at all times ,and a brother is born for adversity." Sometimes friends are closer than family!  Friends will fail us , but Jesus will always be our FRIEND!

JOY

 J esus First
O thers Second
Y ourself Last

          Have you ever heard of this acronym?  It says that Putting Jesus first, others second, and yourself last will bring you JOY!  It can be hard to put Jesus , and others before yourself! We are selfish humans who want to be first! But to be a true Christian we must live as He would want us to!
 
          Putting Jesus first means: Putting Him first in your day, reading your Bible and praying first thing! It also means putting His will before your own! Ask Him to work out all things according to His will! It is very important to put Jesus first before everything! He is our creator and God!

            Putting others second means: Helping others who are in need. It is important not to be selfish, and give to others from what God has blessed us with!

            Putting yourself last can be hard.  Everyone likes to be first! But , God can give us the strength to let go of our selfish nature, and do His will!

             Dear Lord,  please help us to put You first!

Are the dead really dead?

    What happens to people when they die? Where do they go ? Are they in heaven or hell? Let's try to answer these questions by looking to see what the Bible says!

    God made us from dust. Genesis 2:7 says: " And the Lord God formed man of the dust of the ground,and breathed into man the dust of the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life, and man became a living soul." Our body will return to dust when we die.
    
       Ecclesiastes 12:7 says : " Then shall the dust return to earth as it was: and the spirit shall return unto God who gave it." What is the spirit that returns to God? It is the breath of life that God gives us!
  
      James 2:26 " For as the body without the spirit is dead, so faith without works is dead also."
    
    Job 27:3 " All the while my breath is in me, and the spirit of God is in my nostrils." The spirit is the breath of life. We cannot live without that breath that God gives us. The spirit does not have any life, wisdom , or feelings after a person dies.  Body + Breath = Life. Without either one there can't be life!

   Do people go to heaven when they die?  There will be people in their graves when Jesus comes again! John 5:28,29 says: " All that are in their graves shall hear his voice , And shall come forth."

       Acts 2:29, 34 says:
 " David is both dead and buried, and his sepulchre is with us unto this day." "For David is not ascended into the heavens."  People do not go anywhere after they die. The "sleep" in their graves waiting for Jesus to come again.

    Do people know anything after death? Ecclesiastes 9:5 says : " For the living know that they shall die: but the dead know not anything, neither have they anymore reward, for the memory of them is forgotten." Psalms 115:17 says : " The dead praise not the Lord, neither any that go down into silence."

   There is so much more information on this subject. If you would like an Amazing Facts study guide on this subject, called: Are the dead really dead? , go to www.amazingfacts.org and request one. They are offering it free this week. It should be listed on the homepage as : "This week's free offer!"

Forgiveness

  Sometimes it can be hard to forgive someone who has hurt us. Jesus so easily forgives us when we confess our wrong to Him. We can't expect for God to forgive us , if we don't forgive others.

     Matthew 6:14,15 says : " For if ye forgive men their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you: But if ye forgive not men their trespasses, neither will your Father forgive your trespasses." Jesus said that if we don't forgive others, He won't forgive us! We all want to be forgiven , right? So, we need to have a forgiving heart, and forgive others.

   God will give you a forgiving heart if you ask for it! I definitely want one, how about you?

   Jesus will forgive you if you confess your sins to Him! 1 John 1:9 says: " If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness! "


   Dear Lord,
     Please forgive me of my sins today, and cleanse me from all unrighteousness! Create in me a clean heart ,oh God , and renew a right spirit within me! ( from Psalms 51:10) I love you Lord, and I want to go to heaven with you when you come again!

        Amen

Soft Answer or Harsh Words?

  Proverbs 15:1 " A soft answer turneth away wrath: but grievous words stir up anger."

 Have you ever been in a situation where someone says something mean and rude in an angry voice, and you spit something back just as mean and rude? It doesn't turn out very well,  does it? In Proverbs, we are advised to answer softly when met with an angry comment. For example, if someone says: " You were so mean to me last night! I'm mad at you! " The best answer would be : " I'm sorry if I hurt your feelings last night, I didn't mean to. I apologize , Please forgive me!" When you answer in a soft , humble manner, things usually go much better. If you  answer angrily, the conversation will go back and forth , and you'll end up saying things you'll regret! So, when you are faced with a angry remark, ask the Lord to help you answer softly, and handle the situation the way He would!

Decisions, Decisions....................

    Yesterday was my 17th birthday, and I came to realize that I am getting to the point in my life where I am going to make some important decisions.  College, Job, etc. are important issues that are coming very soon to my life! When I get worried about making big, life - changing decisions, I have to remember that God is in control! He will show me the way to go, the decisions I need to make!  God knows the plans He has for me!
All things will work together for good ! Romans 8:28 " And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them that are called together according to His purpose!" So , I know that God is control of my life!

Don't worry about tomorrow...............................

   God's already there!  Philippians 4:6 " Be careful for nothing; but in every thing by prayer and supplication, let your requests be made known to God!" (kjv) This verse is translated in other versions: "Don't worry about anything, pray about everything......."  It doesn't do any good to worry about the future. God has a plan , He will take care of it. Instead of worrying about things, pray and give your worries to God!  1 Peter 5:7 says: " Casting all your care upon Him; for He careth for you." He cares sooooooo much for us, He wants us to give our burdens to Him. Our burdens and troubles may seem huge, but nothing is too big for God! Jeremiah 32:17 " ........... and there is nothing too hard for thee." Don't worry about tomorrow, God is already there!

The Golden Rule

      Matthew 6:12 " Therefore all things whatsoever ye would that men should do to you, do ye even so to them: for this is the law and the prophets."

      Jesus admonished us to treat others as we would want to be treated, to "do unto others what you would have them do unto you." We need to treat our fellow man as we would want him to treat us! We all would like to be treated kindly wouldn't we? So, we need to treat others kindly, treat them the way Jesus would! We cannot of our own human strength treat everyone the way Jesus would! We have to ask Him for His strength so we can do His will! Ask Him for His strength today!

........through Christ who strengthens me!

Philippians 4:13 " I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me."

   We can't do anything without God! He is the one who created us , who keeps us alive and breathing! Philippians 4:13 says that we can do all things through Christ who strengthens us! So without Him we can do nothing! We can do the right thing , obey Him, only through His strength which He promises to give to us if we ask Him! He will give us His strength !

   Ask Him today to give you His strength to do the right thing, to live like He wants you to!

Faith

  Hebrews 11:1 " Now faith is the substance of things hoped for , the evidence of things not seen." Faith is believing in things you can't see or feel. Believing  that there is a God , even though you can't see him, is faith. Believing that God will work everything out for good is having faith. Faith is very important in your christian walk.
God  wants us to have faith in Him!

8 laws of Health blog series concluded!

 Well , that's it! My 8 laws of health blog series is concluded! I hope you have learned something to have a healthier body, and a better relationship with Jesus!

   Here's a layout of the 8 laws of health:

   N utrition
   E xercise
   W ater

    S unlight
    T emperance
    A ir
    R est
    T rust in God


    If you would like a Amazing Health magazine that covers the 8 laws of health , go to : www.amazingfacts.org, and click on store , and search for Amazing Health Magazine!

Trust in God

  "Trust in God" is the most important of the 8 laws of health. If you don't trust in God, but follow the other 7 laws of health perfectly, you still won't be perfectly healthy!  Proverbs 3:5 says " Trust in the Lord with all thine heart and lean not on thine own understanding." We need to place our trust in the one and only God, the creator of the universe.

   Worry can take its toll on your health. The best thing would be to not worry but to place your trust in Jesus! He is in control of all situations, and will work everything out for good ! Romans 8:28 says " And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God , to them who are called according to His purpose." If you trust in the Lord with all of your heart , and love Him, everything will work together for good. God always has a plan for your life. It may seem that the bad things that are happening aren't necessary, but trials are necessary to refine our characters!

    There's a saying that goes like this : " If you're going to pray , why worry? If you're going to worry , why pray?" That's so true!

    1 Peter 5:7 says: " casting all your care upon Him , for He careth for you!"

Rest

    Genesis 2:2 " And on the seventh day God ended the work which he had made; and he rested on the seventh  day from all his work which he had made."  After God created the world, he rested! It is important for us to rest every day , but God gives us a specific day to rest and not do work, the seventh day. 

     Which day is the seventh day?  1st day- Sunday ,  2nd day- Monday,  3rd day- Tuesday,  4th day- Wednesday,  5th day- Thursday, 6th day- Friday,  7th day- Saturday! Saturday is the day given to us by God in which to rest. It is also to be a day of worship! 

        Exodus 20: 8-11 " Remember the sabbath day to keep it holy. Six days shalt thou labor, and do all thy work: But the seventh day is the sabbath of the LORD thy God: in it thou shalt not do any work, thou, nor thy son, nor thy daughter, nor thy manservant, nor thy maidservant, nor thy cattle, nor thy stranger, which is in thy gates: For in six days the Lord made the heaven and earth , the sea, and all that in them is, and rested the seventh day: wherefore the Lord blessed the sabbath day , and hallowed it."

       Our bodies need rest. We should get about 7 to 8 hours of sleep per day, and too much sleep increases the risk of many common diseases, so don't sleep too much!