Faith & Flowers

As spring returns, there are flowers that spring new, there are flowers that return and there are flowers that appeared dead, but are once again growing. And there are flowers that are, sadly, dead.

Just like our own faith and the faith of others, we can find ourselves in different places at different times. And that is okay, as long as we all end up in the same place: Home πŸ™‚

It’s a Journey πŸ™‚

Prepare, Pray & Be Ready!

Our Hope Is In God :)

“Violence shall no longer be heard in your land, Neither wasting nor destruction within your borders; But you shall call your walls Salvation,
And your gates Praise. The sun shall no longer be your light by day,
Nor for brightness shall the moon give light to you; But the Lord will be to you an everlasting light, And your God your glory.”-Isaiah 60: 18-19

We look around the world, indeed our own country, and we see violence and destruction in it daily. And it all weighs on our hearts. We can’t help but wonder just what kind of world our children will inherit.

But then we turn to the pages of God’s Word and we are reminded that our Hope is in God, not in this world. And one day, we will return home and worry no more. And our children will have that same path way open to them! πŸ™‚

Prepare, Pray & Be Ready!

Asking Mary To Pray For Us!

There are many who feel we should not ask Mary to pray for us. There are many who feel that we should. My Pastor in Ohio used to say, β€œIn essentials, unity; in non-essentials, liberty; in all things, charity”. This quote has been attributed to (Saint) Augustine of Hippo.

I ask Mary to pray for me every day. I ask her to pray for me because I know that she loves me and that she is very close to Jesus. After all, she is His mother and Jesus loves her very much :). And so, it only makes sense to me, that Jesus would listen to her even more, because she is His mother :).

Mary always points to her Son and she has taught me so much about Jesus. And I am so grateful. For not only do I feel Mary enriches my faith in Christ; I know just how much she loves me πŸ™‚

The first part of the Hail Mary comes straight from the Bible (see Luke 1:28) (The word Grace appears in the Greek Translation)

 And the angel came in unto her, and said, Hail, thou that art highly favoured, the Lord is with thee: blessed art thou among women.”-Luke 1:28

The next part also comes from the Bible:

Then she spoke out with a loud voice and said, β€œBlessed are you among women, and blessed is the fruit of your womb!”- Luke 1:42

The last part of the Hail Mary reads:

“Holy Mary, Mother of God, pray for us snners, now and at the hour of our death.”

Who wouldn’t want Mary to pray for them at the hour of their death?

But perhaps what we should remember most of all is the beginning of Revelation in the Letters to the Churches. One strikingly clear message comes from the Letters to the Churches: no church does everything right! There will be churches and people who ask Mary to pray for them, and there will be those who do not.

For me, Mary enriches my faith, provides for me a great example and prays for me because she loves me. I am so grateful to Mary and wouldn’t miss her presence in my life for the world!

Prepare, Pray & Be Ready!

We All Sin – But God Forgives Us :)

“Now the word of theΒ LordΒ came toΒ Jonah the son of Amittai, saying,Β 2Β β€œArise, go toΒ Nineveh, thatΒ great city, and cry out against it; forΒ their wickedness has come up before Me.” 3Β But Jonah arose to flee to Tarshish from the presence of theΒ Lord” – Jonah 1:1-3

Jonah did his best to flee from God. He knew it was wrong, but he did it anyway. But God forgave him and Jonah went on to become the prophet he was meant to be and to help the people of Nineveh.

We all make mistakes. Sometimes we even sin just outright and on purpose; we are disobedient. But God forgives us anyway, that’s why Jesus came πŸ™‚

We need not fear to turn back to God when we have sinned; God loves us and He is waiting for us. And God will be filled with joy when we turn back to Him πŸ™‚

Prepare, Pray and Be Ready!

Ninevah & America

There was a reason that God wanted Jonah to go to Ninevah. The culture itself had become so wicked; they no longer even realized just how wicked they had become. God wanted Jonah to warn them! So they could repent and return to God in time!

Can we think of another country who has allowed its culture to become so wicked that the majority of the country no longer seem to even see it? How about our own country? Has the majority of America become so wicked they can not even see?

Our country has indeed become a dark place, perhaps the prayer, “God, Please Open Our Eyes is the right one for us!

Prepare, Pray & Be Ready!

Do Not Fear!

“No weapon that is formed against thee shall prosper; and every tongue that shall rise against thee in judgment thou shalt condemn. This is the heritage of the servants of the Lord, and their righteousness is of me, saith the Lord.”-Isaiah 54:17

We need not fear, for God Is With Us πŸ™‚

Prepare, Pray & Be Ready !

Sharing Our Faith :)

“Less than two percent of believers ever share their faith in Christ with others.” – Dr. Bill Bright, Founder of the Campus Crusade

“The Holy Spirit will give you the words to say at the moment when you need them.”-Luke 12:12

Many of us worry about how to share our faith. It’s a common worry. We ask ourselves, “What words should we use?” , “How do I begin the conversation?”, “What do I do if the person if the person becomes angry?” …

But the Holy Spirit will Help us; we need not worry about what we will say πŸ™‚

And maybe we should also worry about how we will feel when that person does not get to know Jesus and does not go to Heaven.

Prepare, Pray & Be Ready!