Faith, Author at FollowingJesusUS.com

Faith Over Fear

Faith over fear: what does that mean exactly?

It does not mean that bad things will never happen to us. After all, we know that here on earth, bad things happen to good people. Just as we know that Jesus told us that in this world, “we would have troubles”.

However, one thing that it does mean is that if we Follow Jesus -in the end – we will go to Heaven where there will be only Joy and Peace for all eternity 🙂

Faith over Fear does mean that we do the right thing, even when we are afraid.

Faith over Fear also means that when we are afraid, we turn to God in prayer and ask for His Help, for “our Help comes from the Lord” always. And there is no situation on this earth that God is not able to handle 🙂

Prepare, Pray & Be Ready!

God’s Law :)

“It is time for you, LORD, to work for they have made void your law”-Psalm 119:126

Millions seems to be disobeying God’s Laws these days. Just look at the children and adults murdered at the Christian school in Nashville!

Please pray the verse above everyday. We need our Lord desperately. And we need Him now!

And please pray for all of those who were hurt by this shooting. All those who loved someone who died. All of those who fear sending their children to school and all those children who are now afraid. And please pray for those who helped, such as the first responders, for they suffer too.

Prepare, Pray & Be Ready!

Prison Ministry

“And the King will answer them, ‘Truly, I say to you, as you did it to one of the least of these my brothers, you did it to me.’

““Then he will say to those on his left, ‘Depart from me, you cursed, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels. ⁴²For I was hungry and you gave me no food, I was thirsty and you gave me no drink, ⁴³I was a stranger and you did not welcome me, naked and you did not clothe me, sick and in prison and you did not visit me.’ ⁴⁴Then they also will answer, saying, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry or thirsty or a stranger or naked or sick or in prison, and did not minister to you?’ ⁴⁵Then he will answer them, saying, ‘Truly, I say to you, as you did not do it to one of the least of these, you did not do it to me.’“-Matthew 25:40-45

I would hate to be judged by my worst day. And for many in prison, they are in prison for the choices that they made on their “worst” day. They made a bad choice and they are paying the price for that choice. But that price is not supposed to last forever!

The Good News is, if they accept Jesus and Follow Him, they will go to Heaven just like anyone else. Their time in prison is temporary! They get to make a new choice. And that is where we can all make a difference. We can pray for them; visit them; write them… And remind them that one day, we will all be in Heaven-together!

Jesus forgives them and wipes their slate clean and so should we. I have been so Blessed to be a part of a prison ministry. Sometimes they have taught me more about Jesus than I have shared with them! My life is immeasurably richer because we have shared our faith in Jesus together 🙂

So don’t wait. Reach out to those in need today! We can enrich our own lives and theirs and Follow Jesus together 🙂

Prepare, Pray & Be Ready!

We Are What We Eat!

“But we all, with unveiled face, beholding as in a mirror the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from glory to glory, just as by the Spirit of the Lord.”-2 Corinthians 3:18

There is a saying-“We are what we eat”. Whether it was made in 2022 or 2023, the TV shows and movies on so many of the apps, including netflix, use God’s Name with a swear word and the name of Jesus in such horrible and inappropriate ways that it is not only an offense to God, but it is a subtle message to all of us that God-somehow is not important, and sometimes even bad!

One example is Last of Us on HBO Max. There was a recent article that talked about Last of Us. It wrote of how the preacher was the “bad guy”. In my opinion, the subliminal message is Christianity is bad. How dark many TV shows and movies have become! Just like the world we live in!

“The HBO series featured a cannibalistic Christian preacher using Bible verses”-Fox News Article

“a later scene featured the preacher attempting to rape the series protagonist Ellie, a young girl.”-Fox News Article

Whether we see outright offenses to God such as this, or we see carnage with God’s Name used with a swear word or we see Jesus’s Name used inappropriately, they are all wrong and a violation of the Ten Commandments! We do not want these scenes or words in our hearts or minds, or anywhere else!

Jesus suffered much to save us, shouldn’t we at least choose our TV and movies wisely?

There is no doubt that finding decent TV and Movies is hard, but it is possible. And although many of us fall short in this area at times, perhaps we need to consider to shutting off the TV and making a different choice. Reading. Going for a walk and being filled with God’s beautiful gift of nature. Maybe it’s time to learn new recipes or read the Bible. Play a family game. Talk with one another. Read a good book. There are so many good choices!

The truth is: We Are What We Eat – And What We Watch. We can either fill ourselves with Godly things and seek to become more like Christ. Or we can watch some of these types of programs and struggle not to fall!

It’s our choice, given to us by God Himself!

Prepare, Pray and Be Ready!

Never Stop Praying!

A great friend of mine wrote this and sent it to me. It was so good; I just had to share 🙂

NEVER Stop Praying!!

“Fervent prayer IS a very important part of spiritual warfare. In fact, it IS the Lifeblood of those who seek to be Victorious in Jesus Christ. That’s why the evil one would like nothing better than to keep you from praying, so he sends distractions, delays, and disappointment (he is a master at these fiery darts). If for instance, you have two productive days of watchful prayer, the evil one might let you believe that you have finally mastered the discipline of prayer. Then, on the third day when you fail, he will tell you that you’re an utter failure, that you’ve completely blown it, and that there’s no use trying any further. If you miss one day in fruitful prayer, he will try to convince you that you are beyond help and hope – that you need not try again. Do NOT believe these lies!! The Good News IS, there’s a secret to overcoming this deception. As with any other area of spiritual life, if you fail, the thing to do IS begin again – Renewed and Refreshed by the Holy Spirit! There is NO permanent failure in learning to be a faithful disciple of Jesus. If you have a bad day in your prayer life – do NOT give in to the evil one’s tactics that are designed to keep you from praying. NEVER stop praying!!!”

“The enemy wants to keep you from developing a relationship with the Father, Son and Holy Spirit, which he knows will bring Joy and Peace to you. SO, by the Mercy and Grace of your Heavenly Father, you need to commit to keep on praying! Only in the process of praying, will you find the meaning of life: a Dynamic, Personal Relationship with the Creator, the Living Lord, the Babe of Bethlehem, the Savior of the cross, the Resurrection-morning Victor, the Only One who IS Life to you. A well-known Billy Graham story is about a woman who wrote that she had pleaded in prayer for ten years, for the conversion of her husband, but that he was more hardened than ever. Mr. Graham advised her to keep on praying. One day he received another letter. The husband had been gloriously saved. “Suppose she had stopped after only ten years,” said the evangelist. Then he added, “NEVER stop praying – not matter how dark and hopeless your case may seem.”

Prepare, Pray & Be Ready!

Thank You Mary For Saying Yes!

Every March 25th, the Annunciation of Mary is celebrated all over the world. The Annunciation simply refers to the time that Gabriel, an Angel, appeared to Mary, Our Blessed Mother, to tell her of the coming of Christ’s birth. It was Gabriel who told Mary to name the baby Jesus; it was Mary who said YES 🙂

Christ’s Birth Announced to Mary

“²⁶Now in the sixth month the angel Gabriel was sent by God to a city of Galilee named Nazareth, ²⁷to a virgin betrothed to a man whose name was Joseph, of the house of David. The virgin’s name was Mary. ²⁸And having come in, the angel said to her, “Rejoice, highly favored one, the Lord is with you; blessed are you among women!”

²⁹But when she saw him, she was troubled at his saying, and considered what manner of greeting this was. ³⁰Then the angel said to her, “Do not be afraid, Mary, for you have found favor with God. ³¹And behold, you will conceive in your womb and bring forth a Son, and shall call His name Jesus. ³²He will be great, and will be called the Son of the Highest; and the Lord God will give Him the throne of His father David. ³³And He will reign over the house of Jacob forever, and of His kingdom there will be no end.”

³⁴Then Mary said to the angel, “How can this be, since I do not know a man?”

³⁵And the angel answered and said to her, “The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Highest will overshadow you; therefore, also, that Holy One who is to be born will be called the Son of God. ³⁶Now indeed, Elizabeth your relative has also conceived a son in her old age; and this is now the sixth month for her who was called barren. ³⁷For with God nothing will be impossible.”

³⁸Then Mary said, “Behold the maidservant of the Lord! Let it be to me according to your word.” And the angel departed from her.”-Luke 1:26-38

When I read Luke’s verses in the Bible, I am always in awe of Mary’s faith. I only hope and pray that one day, my faith will be as strong. It’s hard to even imagine just how much She must have loved God and just how strong Her faith was-

Because She did not hesitate to do God’s Will and nor should we 🙂

In Jesus’ Name, Amen.

In All Things God Works For The Good Of Those Who Love Him :)

“We know that in all things God works for the good of those who love Him; who have been called according to His purpose.”=Romans 8:28

When we first read this verse, it is clear that there are two qualifiers: Loving God and Being Called according to His purpose. But the good news is that: Those who love God ARE called according to His purpose.

So lets look at one example. A wife takes care of her sick husband for years. The tasks are difficult and exhausting, but she is happy to do them because she loves him. She is his wife and his 24/7 caretaker. But despite her loving care, he dies anyway. She is overcome with grief. What good can come out of that?

She takes some time to grieve and then goes on to help many other widows not only grieve, but come out of their grief. She goes on to help many turn to Jesus. She helps many other caretakers learn not only how to navigate the difficult challenges they face, but also how to rest in the Lord. She volunteers at church. And she finds a new kind of joy and peace in her heart, the kind of joy and peace that only God can give :).

Bad things happen to good people. This is earth-not Heaven.

But we know that we can trust God, even when bad things happen, because “in all things God works for the good for those who love Him”

Prepare, Pray & Be Ready!

Choose Wisely!

A good friend and Pastor from Kenya reminded me of two wonderful verses:

“This is what the Lord says—your Redeemer, the Holy One of Israel:
“I am the Lord your God, who teaches you what is best for you,
who directs you in the way you should go”.

“If only you had paid attention to my commands, your peace would have been like a river, your well-being like the waves of the sea.”-Isaiah 48:17-18

God does know what is best for us and what will make us happy. We can either follow His commands and find the Peace that only God can give or we can reject His commands and know misery. It’s our choice, given to us by God Himself.

We need to choose wisely 🙂

Prepare, Pray & Be Ready!

“They Have Made Void Your Law”

“It is time for you, LORD, to work: for they have made void your law.”-Psalm 118:126

“Therefore I love your commandments above gold, yes above fine gold. Therefore I esteem all your precepts concerning all things to be right, and I hate every false way. Your testimonies are wonderful: therefore does my soul keep them.”-Psalm 118:127-129

Need more be said?

Prepare, Pray & Be Ready!

The American Soldier

While I was praying the Rosary, I saw American soldiers.