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“We ought always to thank God for you, brothers and sisters, and rightly so, because your faith is growing more and more, and the love all of you have for one another is increasing. Therefore, among God’s churches we boast about your perseverance and faith in all the persecutions and trials you are enduring.

 All this is evidence that God’s judgment is right, and as a result you will be counted worthy of the kingdom of God, for which you are suffering.  God is just: He will pay back trouble to those who trouble you and give relief to you who are troubled, and to us as well.

This will happen when the Lord Jesus is revealed from heaven in blazing fire with his powerful angels. ⁸ He will punish those who do not know God and do not obey the gospel of our Lord Jesus. They will be punished with everlasting destruction and shut out from the presence of the Lord and from the glory of his might ¹⁰ on the day he comes to be glorified in his holy people and to be marveled at among all those who have believed.

St. Paul The Apostle

This includes you, because you believed our testimony to you.

¹¹ With this in mind, we constantly pray for you, that our God may make you worthy of his calling, and that by his power he may bring to fruition your every desire for goodness and your every deed prompted by faith. ¹² We pray this so that the name of our Lord Jesus may be glorified in you, and you in him, according to the grace of our God and the Lord Jesus Christ” – 2 Thessalonians 1

God is always Fair and always Just!

“For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life.”-John 3:16

The Mercy of God is in His Great Forgiveness; it is in Jesus’s Willingness to go to the Cross to Save us. And it is in His Great Love for us!

But that does not mean that God is not Just. He is as Just as He is Merciful. And God is always Fair.

“Yet the children of your people say, ‘The way of the Lord is not fair.’ But it is their way which is not fair!  When the righteous turns from his righteousness and commits iniquity, he shall die because of it.  But when the wicked turns from his wickedness and does what is lawful and right, he shall live because of it. ²⁰ Yet you say, ‘The way of the Lord is not fair.’ O house of Israel, I will judge every one of you according to his own ways.”-Ezekel 33:12-20

But God’s Mercies are endless. While we are on earth, He forgives almost any sin, if we willingly repent. He loves us as we are and will meet us wherever we are! He chases after us as a Shepherd does his lambs. He gives us His Word so that it will be “as a lamp unto my feet, light unto my path”. He is with us always, every second of everyday. He listens to our every thought, worry and fear with great concern and love. And He is always cheering us on when we succeed! And He is really happy for us! And perhaps one of my favorites is that:

“The steadfast love of the Lord never ceases; his mercies never come to an end; they are new every morning”

Lamentations 3:22-23

Follow Jesus & Keep Praying; Prayer Changes Things!

I had the privilege of watching the church service at a Ukranian chuch, The Monastery, St. Michael’s Golden-Domed Monastery. The service taught me so much about being grateful. I read many of the comments of the people attending who have suffered SO much and yet they were Thanking God and Praising Him. We could learn much from them!

Even in the midst of no power and freezing cold. With bombs and missles raining down on them and their homes destroyed. Ukranians were Thanking God and Praising Him. What a wonderful lesson for all of us!

The Blessed Virgin Mary has also always had a very special relationship with the people of Ukraine. Dating back to the very first century, the Ukranian people have turned to Our Blessed Mother for protection. And in their darkest ours asked her to lay protective veil over them to protect them. To this day, many of the people of Ukraine wear that same scarf of protection.

Referred to as the Queen of Ukraine, Our Blessed Mother’s love for the people of Ukraine and the love of the people of Ukraine for Mary have always been well known. Would that America might someday be the same someday 🙂

St. Michael the Archangel has also had a very special relationship with the people of Ukraine. St. Michael the Archangel is known as the Patron Saint of Ukraine. The coat of arms of Ukraine has had St. Michael the Archangel on them since the 16th century. “A bronze and gold statue of the Archangel Michael stands above the Liadsky Gate in Independence Square in Kyiv” and “The Archangel Michael was honored in battles against enemies of Christianity, such as the Mongols and Tartars. His image was also used on the flag of the Ukrainian Sich Riflemen in 1914, and by the Ukrainian National Republic and Ukrainian Galician Army during the revolutionary years of 1917–1923”. A Golden Domed Monastery was built to honor him. (see above photo).

There are so many times that the people of Ukraine have honored St. Michael the Archangel for his service and protection. He loves the Ukranian people and they have loved him. St. Michael the Archangel served and protected the people of Ukraine. He will always be there for them. Always.

Many of the Ukranian people continue to praise and thank God despite their tragic circumstances. We could learn so much from them.

But there are some who have lost their faith due to the horrific circumstances they live and fight in. Please pray for them!!!

Whether the United States should fund the Ukranian war has become a political issue, but there are no politics in prayer.

Please pray for the people of Ukraine in Jesus’ Name-all of them!

“Don’t be anxious about anything; rather, bring up all of your requests to God in your prayers and petitions, along with giving thanks.  Then the peace of God that exceeds all understanding will keep your hearts and minds safe in Christ Jesus.”-Philippians 4: 6-7

Dear God:

Thank You!

Thank You for Family & Friends!

Thank You for filling our hearts with Joy.

Thank You for the tears that help us to release any pain that we have!

Thank You for the many times that you have helped us to walk Your path, instead of our own.

Thank You for the many times that You have helped us love, really love.

Thank You for the many times You have taken care of those we love.  Thank You for making their Path to You and in this world easier.

Thank You for being with those we love and walking through their difficult times with them.

Thank You for walking with us and for helping us to face the difficult times in our own life.

Thank You for the many times You have helped us show compassion and love, rather than ingratitude or anger.  

Thank You for helping us to help others.  And to really find joy in helping others.

Thank You for Prayer, for it brings us so much closer to You.

Thank You for the many times we haven’t been afraid, because we knew You were with us.

Thank You for the many times that You have helped us rise above our own feelings and realize again that Faith is not about how we feel on any given day, but who we follow.

Thank You for giving us Guardian Angels to be with us each day!  And thank you for helping us know that they are with us.

Thank You for the Gift of Nature; it is so beautiful and so often reminds us of You.

Thank You for the Gift of Hugs!

Thank You for those that love us on earth!  They bring us so much happiness!

Thank You for babies that bring us so much joy!

Thank you for smiles, laughter and puppies…

Thank You God for your Word that is in the Holy Bible.  It has helped us every day and we are so grateful for its guidance and its constant reminders of Your love!

Thank You so much for loving us.

Thank You so much for giving us the Freedom to Choose You.

Thank You for Saving us!!!

Thank You God for all of this and more!

“ For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life.” -John 3:16

Thanksgiving is often a time for gathering family and friends together. And truthfully, we enjoy taking time to give thanks, with those we love, for all of the Blessings that we have received this past year. It is a good thing 🙂

But perhaps this year, we might give even more thanks for our God who does the Blessing.

For where would we really be without God? What if God had not sent Jesus to Save us? What pain God must have felt as He watched His only Son die on that Cross. What pain Jesus must have felt as He died on that Cross. And all because God loved us and was willing to do anything to save us!

Are we willing to do anything and everything it takes to Follow Jesus?

Perhaps that is a great way to give thanks. Love God as much as He loves us 🙂

Follow Jesus & Keep Praying; Prayer Changes Things!

“³⁵ And Jesus went about all the cities and villages, teaching in their synagogues, and preaching the gospel of the kingdom, and healing every sickness and every disease among the people.

³⁶ But when he saw the multitudes, he was moved with compassion on them, because they fainted, and were scattered abroad, as sheep having no shepherd.

³⁷ Then saith he unto his disciples, The harvest truly is plenteous, but the labourers are few;

³⁸ Pray ye therefore the Lord of the harvest, that he will send forth labourers into his harvest.” – Matthew 9:35-38

Before we know it, the Great Harvest of Revelation will be here. But until then, we can need to reach out to as many people as we can to share with them the Good News of Jesus Christ.

We can not “make” anyone receive Jesus as their Savior, but we can certainly share the Good News of the Gospel of Jesus Christ and the way to Heaven. And we can pray for them and those we love.

Let us bring as many as possible with us to Heaven and let there be as few left as possible to face God’s Wrath. If we truly love God, we need to love all of God’s People, because God does God 🙂

“A new command I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another. ³⁵ By this everyone will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another.” -John 13:34-35

Follow Jesus & Keep Praying; Prayer Changes Things!

How does one prepare for the Great Harvest? We pray. We pray daily. We pray often. We pray always. For the most important thing we can do to prepare for the Great Harvest, is to grow closer to Jesus. And the way we can do that is to Pray as often as possible, truly as often as possible.

And we can share Christ with others. Revival begins with us. This is true. But it doesn’t end with us!

Unsure how to begin. We can ask the Holy Spirit for the help we need and the opportunity.

But don’t wait! The Great Harvest will come, whether we are ready or not. Be Ready. And help those you love Be Ready as well 🙂

Follow Jesus & Keep Praying; Prayer Changes Things!

Please pray for the people of Ukraine. Many of the embassies are closed, including the U.S. Embassy and many of Europe’s embassies as well. A large attack is expected, and whether we have been supporting the funding of the war in Ukraine or not, it does not matter. What matters is that the families of Ukraine need your prayers because they are suffering so.

When flesh rips, it hurts horrifically. When people bleed, they suffer and are horribly frightend. Because so much of the power for electricity has been destroyed, many do not have heat. Can we imagine the cold? And what about the mother and father whose heart breaks because they can not keep their child warm. And imagine how they feel when they realize they can no longer protect their child!And when their child dies, there are just no words to describe the kind of pain that those who love that child go through! Please pray for all of them.

So many of those who fight in Ukraine are someone’s child. And those parents suffer horrifically. And the 25 year old soldier suffers as well. Wounds can hurt unbearably, whether they be physical or emotional. Please pray for the soldiers and their families as well.

The Ukranian families could so easily be us. The distance that our enemies are from us will only protect us for so long. And before our nation can expect God to protect us, we must turn our nation back to the Lord, before it is too late.

Please pray for the families of Ukraine and pray for our nation as well.

Follow Jesus & Keep Praying; Prayer Changes Things!

“Then I looked, and behold, a white cloud, and on the cloud sat One like the Son of Man, having on His head a golden crown, and in His hand a sharp sickle.”-Revelation 14:14

Are we ready? Because the Great Harvest WILL come. Will we be part of the good Harvest, the grain harvest, which enters Heaven? Or will we be part of the winepress and go to Hell? It’s our choice, given to us by God Himself.

Jesus loves the lost and reaches out to them all. But if we refuse His Help, if we refuse to allow Jesus to Save us, then we will one day face the consequences.

If we follow Jesus, we must love those He loves and so we must love the lost while they are lost. Let it be said that we did the very best we could to love our neighbors well 🙂

Follow Jesus & Keep Praying; Prayer Changes Things!

“⁴ I looked, and there before me was a white cloud, and seated on the cloud was one like a son of man^[a] with a crown of gold on his head and a sharp sickle in his hand. ¹⁵ Then another angel came out of the temple and called in a loud voice to him who was sitting on the cloud, “Take your sickle and reap, because the time to reap has come, for the harvest of the earth is ripe.” ¹⁶ So he who was seated on the cloud swung his sickle over the earth, and the earth was harvested.”-Revelation 14-16

Here we read the Bible Verses regarding the “good” harvest. There is also verses regarding those who are not with Jesus:

“⁷ Another angel came out of the temple in heaven, and he too had a sharp sickle. ¹⁸ Still another angel, who had charge of the fire, came from the altar and called in a loud voice to him who had the sharp sickle, “Take your sharp sickle and gather the clusters of grapes from the earth’s vine, because its grapes are ripe.” ¹⁹ The angel swung his sickle on the earth, gathered its grapes and threw them into the great winepress of God’s wrath. ²⁰ They were trampled in the winepress outside the city, and blood flowed out of the press, rising as high as the horses’ bridles for a distance of 1,600 stadia.-Revelation 17-20“

One question for us all-is which Harvest will we choose to be a part of?

Follow Jesus & Keep Praying; Prayer Changes Things!