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Holy Saturday

“For our transgressions are multiplied before thee, and our sins testify against us: for our transgressions are with us; and as for our iniquities, we know them;” – Isaiah 59:12

On Holy Saturday, we remember Jesus’ Triumphant descent into Hell. While Catholics and Protestants may view this even differently, at the end of the day, Jesus is Triumphant and on that we can agree 🙂

And there is something else that we can all agree on, without Jesus we would all be in hell.

But there is something else that we don’t talk enough about. All of those who Loved Jesus-were mourning. One can’t help but think of Mary, His Mother, how she must have felt! Or Mary Magdalene, how she must have mourned! And then there were Christ’s Apostles! They all witnessed Jesus’ suffering! How much pain that must have caused them!

See, it wasn’t just Christ that suffered, although He suffered horribly. It was also all of those who loved Him!

Our gratitude to Jesus can not be understated! His willingness to suffer for our sins is amazing.

But I am also grateful to all those who loved Him, for I know that must have weighted heavy on Jesus’ heart because He loved them too!

The Last Supper

“The Lord is on my side: I will not fear: what can man do unto me?” – Psalm 118:6

There is just so much for us to contemplate regarding the Last Supper. Jesus’ pain as He sat with His friends, knowing what was ahead. Jesus’ pain in facing Judas’ betrayal. His coming sacrifice for our sins and His great Love for us.

Jesus knew what lay ahead and the sacrifices that He would make in order that our sins would be forgiven. He did not hesitate, though He knew the suffering that lay ahead for Him, He did not fear.

See, Jesus knew that as hard as the road would be that lay before Him, His Father would be just on the” other side”. He knew that, because He would pay the price of our sins, we would all have the chance to be on the “other side” with Him. And He knew that He would see those He loved very soon.

As painful as the Last Supper was, Jesus was not afraid.

And if we keep our eyes fixed on Jesus, we won’t be afraid either 🙂

Spy Wednesday

“For, behold, the darkness shall cover the earth” – Isaiah 60:2

Holy Wednesday is a very dark day in Holy Week. It is the day that many of us think about the betrayal of Jesus by Judas Iscariot. Some Christians refer to it as Holy Wednesday and some refer to it as Spy Wednesday.

It’s hard to imagine how much it must have hurt Jesus, when his friend Judas, one of the twelve, betrayed Him. And while Judas was paid 30 pieces of gold for his betrayal, his reasons were probably more complicated than that. And he probably thought he was doing the right thing.

Fast forward to today, and those who do evil in our world probably think they are doing the “right thing”. But they are not.

During the Last Supper, Jesus said (regarding the man who betrayed Him):

“It would have been better for that man if he had not been born.”-Matthew 26:24

There are some people on this earth that Followed Jesus for a time and then betrayed Him.

Food for thought…

Prepare, Pray & Be Ready!

Will We Follow The Mob Or Follow Jesus?

“But their idols are silver and gold, made by human hands.
They have mouths, but cannot speak, eyes, but cannot see.
They have ears, but cannot hear, noses, but cannot smell.
They have hands, but cannot feel, feet, but cannot walk,
nor can they utter a sound with their throats.” – Psalm 115: 4-7

“Those who make them will be like them, and so will all who trust in them.” – Psalm 115:8

There have been mobs who tried to destroy God’s People from the beginning. We see it in the Old Testament above and we see it in the new. There were mobs calling for the death of Jesus!

The mobs also tried, and try, to convince others to follow them instead of God. But God is clear, if we trust them-we will be like them.

And we can’t follow both, “for no man can serve two masters”

As Easter approaches, we get to choose once again. Will we follow the mobs of this world or will we Follow Christ? The mobs of today’s world are not unlike the mobs of the past. If we trust them, we will be like them.

If we Trust Jesus, we will be like Him :).

The Bridge

“For our transgressions are multiplied before you, and our sins testify against us; for our transgressions are with us, and we know our iniquities:”-Isaiah 59:12

This Monday, we prepare for Easter, the most Holy Day of the year. But before Easter, comes Good Friday, when Jesus took all of our sins on Himself to Save us. And perhaps, this Monday, we need to take some time to think about what those actual sins are and tell God just how sorry we are for them-in Jesus’ Name.

It isn’t just the sins we commit. But how many acts of kindness have we failed to do? How many times have we been self-centered? How many times have we chosen to act for our own pleasure rather than God’s Will? How many times have we seen a person in need, but kept walking?

And how many times have we failed to love God or our fellow man as we should?

We all fall short, that’s one reason why Jesus’ Gift of Salvation is so incredibly important. We could never build a relationship with God on our own. And we could never make it to Heaven on our own.

Jesus is the Bridge.

Hope Still Lives :)

“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

Our Hope, and our Help have always come from the Lord. Our country has changed, but our Hope, and our Help, have not!

It’s hard looking at the events in the news this week and not feel that our country, that we love so much, is falling apart. But there is a saying, “Sometimes, when things are falling apart, they may actually be falling into place.”. God has a plan for us, we just need to Trust God.

And here to is a word of Hope from Mary. When Mary appeared in Equador, She spoke of a time to come much like this. And She said that just when all looked lost, the Christian Church, meaning all of us, would be restored. :).

Keep Praying in Jesus’ Name and Keep Your Eyes On Jesus 🙂

Prepare, Pray & Be Ready!

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!