Author: Faith

Not Jesus and not us!

Jesus loves us all.  He doesn’t care what color we are or what political party we belong to.  He doesn’t care if we are well or sick.  And He doesn’t care which country  we live in or what neighborhood.  He loves us all and He commands us to love God and love each other.  Not a lot to request considering all He has done for us ?

But the world is not looking very loving these days.  Sure, there are pockets where love is the top priority, but they are few and it doesn’t have to be that way!

We can reach out to one another and love each other well, regardless of our differences.

We stop focusing on the media and the government.

Instead, we need to focus our hearts on God.  We need to focus our efforts on loving each other as Jesus loves us.  And we need to ask the Holy Spirit to help us love like Jesus.

Because remember, Jesus loves everyone and we need to do the same.  We can’t just love the people who look like us or who agree with us.   We need to love every single person no matter how they look or whether we agree with them.

Difficult?  Sometimes.  But as they say, “anything worthwhile in life is ”.

With God’s Help, we can do this! God created us and made us capable of loving Him and loving each other.  Jesus came to Save us.  And the Holy Spirit is here to Help us.  Surely, we can love God and others!

Reach out and be kind to someone today ?

“Beloved, do not be surprised at the fiery trial that has come upon you, as though something strange were happening to you.  But rejoice that you share in the sufferings of Christ, so that you may be overjoyed at the revelation of His glory. If you are insulted for the name of Christ, you are blessed, because the Spirit of glory and of God rests on you. Indeed, none of you should suffer as a murderer or thief or wrongdoer, or even as a meddler.  But if you suffer as a Christian, do not be ashamed, but glorify God that you bear that name. For it is time for judgment to begin with the family of God; and if it begins with us, what will the outcome be for those who disobey the gospel of God? If it is hard for the righteous to be saved, what will become of the ungodly and the sinner? ” – 1 Peter 4:12-18

A preacher preached on these very verses years ago. And looking around our world today; there does seem to be great Truth in them, Truth that applies to our lives today.

Many of our current governments and cultures, not to mention people, do attack those who follow God’s Word. Sometimes Christians are hurt emotionally, sometimes physically and sometimes financially. The list is long…

But the great encouragement from God’s Word above comforts us, because it tells us that our suffering is not in vain! When we suffer for being Christian, it matters! It counts! And even better, it counts with the one who matters the most-God Himself!

So take Heart. We will not be the first to suffer and we won’t be the last. But our suffering will count with the one who matters most – Our Lord 🙂

Psalm 85:

“Lord, You have been favorable to Your land;
You have brought back the captivity of Jacob.
² You have forgiven the iniquity of Your people;
You have covered all their sin. Selah
³ You have taken away all Your wrath;
You have turned from the fierceness of Your anger.

⁴ Restore us, O God of our salvation,
And cause Your anger toward us to cease.
⁵ Will You be angry with us forever?
Will You prolong Your anger to all generations?
⁶ Will You not revive us again,
That Your people may rejoice in You?
⁷ Show us Your mercy, Lord,
And grant us Your salvation.

⁸ I will hear what God the Lord will speak,
For He will speak peace
To His people and to His saints;
But let them not turn back to ^[a]folly.
⁹ Surely His salvation is near to those who fear Him,
That glory may dwell in our land.

¹⁰ Mercy and truth have met together;
Righteousness and peace have kissed.
¹¹ Truth shall spring out of the earth,
And righteousness shall look down from heaven.
¹² Yes, the Lord will give what is good;
And our land will yield its increase.
¹³ Righteousness will go before Him,
And shall make His footsteps our pathway.”

A friend sent this, it was so good-just had to share 🙂

“Truly, just because one appears to be good, does not mean they are in the Sight of God. Only He knows what is in their heart. Jesus had this problem when He walked the earth. He revealed to His disciples those who were so-called beautiful on the outside but were rotten on the inside (i.e. the Pharisees). He warned His disciples to know them by their “fruit”. 

We should really ask our Heavenly Father to send His Holy Spirit to Help, Guide and reveal to us those that need God’s Word shared with them. There are those whom appear bad, but are reaching out for what is good. We should not judge who we think is good or bad or who we should approach. We should ALWAYS seek advise from the Only One who knows what is in their heart. That IS why Jesus is constantly waiting outside for them to open their heart’s door, repent and ask Him in.

Jesus had shared, with those following Him, that there would be more tax collectors, bad people, etc. in heaven because they were at the bottom of the pit and reached up to Him to change their life.“

“The final battle between the Lord and the kingdom of Satan will be about marriage and the family. Do not be afraid, because anyone who works for the sanctity of marriage and the family will always be fought and opposed in every way, because this is the decisive issue. However, Our Lady has already crushed his head.” -Sr. Lucia

Sr. Lucia dos Santos was one of the three children to see Mary near Fatima. She lived until the age of 97 and is being considered for Sainthood by the Catholic Church. She shared that the Final Battle would be about marriage and the family.

And the current battle occuring right now: Gay Marriage and the Family.

During Fatima, Mary warned us that if we did not stop insulting God, WWII would come.  And it did.  And it was even worse than WWI!  And yet our insults to God and our poor behavior have only worsened.  Will there be a WWIII?

We must, as we did then, ask for forgiveness for our sins, repent, pray, “forgive others as we ask to be forgiven”. 

And we must change. Repent means change.  It doesn’t just mean we are sorry for the sins we committed (although of course we are!); it means we are committed giving our best effort to refraining from committing that same sin again.

We must stop insulting God before it is too late!

With the Holy Spirit’s Help-Read the Bible. It tells us how to live a life that is pleasing to God!

And then we can ask the Holy Spirit to Help us to Live it 🙂

And we can Follow Jesus 🙂

A silver lining is defined as, “A silver lining is a sign of hope or a positive aspect in an otherwise negative situation”. 

We may live in difficult times and there seems to be no limit to the dark clouds forming sometimes, but God has indeed Blessed us with many signs of hope for “His Blessings are new every morning”.

From Bible verses to signs of hope in our personal lives such as a beautiful sunrise or a hug from a much loved individual, Hope Lives In Our Lives ?

Below are just a few Bible verses to hold on to when the day is long ?

“Fear not, for I am with you; be not dismayed, for I am your God; I will strengthen you, I will help you, I will uphold you with my righteous right hand.” – Isaiah 41:10

“There is surely a future hope for you, and your hope will not be cut off.” – Proverbs 23:18

“But blessed is the one who trusts in the Lord, whose confidence is in him.” – Jeremiah 17:7

“And the God of all grace, who called you to his eternal glory in Christ, after you have suffered a little while, will himself restore you and make you strong, firm and steadfast.” – 1 Peter 5:10

“But those who hope in the Lord will renew their strength. They will soar on wings like eagles; they will run and not grow weary, they will walk and not be faint.” – Isaiah 40:31

“Since, then, you have been raised with Christ, set your hearts on things above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God. Set your mind on things above, not on earthly things.”- Colossians 3:1-2

“May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace as you trust in him, so that you may overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit.” – Romans 15:13

“Those who are wise^[a] will shine like the brightness of the heavens, and those who lead many to righteousness, like the stars for ever and ever.” – Daniel 12:3

“He will wipe every tear from their eyes. There will be no more death or mourning or crying or pain, for the old order of things has passed away.” – Revelations 21:4

A word about Daniel 12:3 (above).  We all have a choice to make.  We can be wise and shine in these dark times, or we can refuse to do so.  It’s a choice given to us by God Himself.  We can and should seek Hope in God, because truly He is our Hope, but we can also offer Hope to another.  It’s our choice ?