Bitter or Better?

Happiness is a choice so let's start the day with a renewed attitude!

2 Corinthians 5:17 "Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; old things have passed away; behold, all things have become new."

As adults, we must pave our own path and stop blaming our parents for our shortcomings. The Bible says to “honor thy father and thy mother.” Honoring our parents may not fix all our shortcomings, but it usually works well as an overriding principal to those of us who blame our parents for everything. Let us love and honor the people who did the best job of raising us given their own shortcomings and circumstances. When we honor our parents, God sees our obedience and He will honor us and grant us the desires of our heart and erase all the bad from our past.

I was reading someone’s comment on the internet... she stated that she finally found peace with her parents when she read a bumper sticker while waiting at a stop sign: “It’s never too late to have a happy childhood.” This lady further stated that for her, following the Bible commandment “Honor thy father and thy mother”, is what changed her outlook on life. She could not change her childhood, but she chose to remember the good things. She said that her parents have passed away for some time now, but she likes to think that even today when she remembers the good things, no matter how small, she has a positive and honoring connection with them.

From the time we are born into adulthood, we know the right from wrong. God has placed that instinct in us. That instinct is nurtured by our parents during our formative years the best way they knew how. We grow up knowing the right from wrong and we make our choices. Everything in life, good or bad, we choose what to do with that knowledge and we continue to live by learning from our mistakes. Therefore, there is no need to blame our parents or anyone else. They did what they could with the knowledge and resources they had at the time. And no matter how much we want to blame others, there comes a time when we are responsible for our actions. Instead of blaming others or denying the problem, we need to change our direction and focus on correcting what’s not right so we can do better for ourselves and for our children.

We have to recognize our shortcomings and strongholds and attack them one by one. Only then we can proceed with the right attitude for a better future. Nobody is perfect. Our parents are also products of their own parents. We have to realize that when we become parents one day, we will make mistakes too no doubt. You have to step out into action to live your life to the fullest. You cannot step back into safety and dwell on past regrets because you will miss out on your God-given opportunities.

Yes our parents have something to do with who we are today, but not everything. We are also influenced by our teachers, babysitters, friends, environment, co-workers, and last but not least our own coping mechanism with each battle we are faced with. The devil is very much alive and he works overtime to steal, kill, and destroy our strength, hope and joy. He magnifies our little shortcomings and erases the good from our past. My pastor used to say ‘we use the same amount of energy to think negatively as we do positively; so why not use our energy towards positive?’ God can wipe away our tears and our hurts and give us a new beginning, but we have to be willing to change.

Isaiah58:58 "Then my favor will shine on you like the morning sun, and your wounds will be quickly healed. I will always be with you to save you; my presence will protect you on every side."

I would like to share a short story about my childhood. When I was 2-years old, my dad passed away from severe allergy reaction to Penicillin. Soon after that, my mom abandoned me and my two older brothers. My aunt (my dad’s sister) had a big heart and adopted us even though she had 7 grown children of her own. When my two brothers came of age, they decided to move out and be on their own. In their minds, they were doing this as a favor to my aunt. Before they moved out, they told my aunt that it was best if I stayed with her since I was young and I needed a mom. Their decision to move out and leave me with my aunt tore me apart. Not that I didn’t love my aunt and her family or not that they didn’t take care of me and love me, but I was going to be separated from my two brothers (the only two things I could hold on to from my past). However, my brothers did what they thought was best for me and my aunt at the time without realizing how their decision would affect me emotionally. Yes, it was hard in the beginning and I could have held on to my ashes and make myself miserable forever, but I chose not to because I knew they had my best interest at heart. We can't cry over spilled milk, we have to move forward and when we are willing to move forward then God, who sees our willingness, will replace our ashes with His beauty.

2 Corinthians 1:3-4 "Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of compassion and the God of all comfort, who comforts us in all our troubles, so that we can comfort those in any trouble with the comfort we ourselves have received from God."

In our life experiences, not everything that happens to us is good, however if we are obedient to God, He can change our bad experiences to something good. We can overcome our hurts by using our own experiences to help others overcome theirs. As long as we stay obedient to God, He will not waste our burdens, instead He will use them to promote us and to turn them to our greatest ministries. God knows our flaws, limits and capabilities, therefore He won't give us more than we can handle and He won't forsake us because He is a covenant God.

Jeremiah 1:5 "Before I formed you in the womb I knew you, before you were born I set you apart; I appointed you as a prophet to the nations."

The journey of a thousand miles starts with the first step. When we do our part, God will do His. His grace is sufficient for everyone. When we are weak, He is strong! His joy is our strength!

Our shortcomings that we often over-magnify, somehow become embarrassingly minute after we watch the video below. In this world, we will fight our share of battles, however "how" we fight those battles depends greatly on our attitude and the choices we make. There comes a time when we can no longer blame our past for our present! Here’s the challenge: "Do you want to be Bitter or Better? It is a choice!

God Bless,

Lucine

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H8ZuKF3dxCY or http://www.lifewithoutlimbs.org/

How do we worship God?

Worshipping God is not about how we worship or where we worship. Worshipping God is substance over style. It is not about us or our emotions and what we get out of it. It is about what God gets out of it. God looks at our heart and He knows our motive.

We start being critical in church when we see someone worshipping God in a different way than we do. Who are we to judge? Each person’s worship method is between that person and God. God sees the heart and not what style worship we are offering or where we are worshipping. Worshipping God in my closet, in the privacy of my home, is just as effective as worshipping God in a mega-church with fancy musical instruments and famous worship leaders as long as my worship is in spirit and truth. This does not mean that we should not go to church, on the contrary, we need to go to church to get connected with other believers and to get charged.

God is interested in what is in our heart when we worship. He is not interested in our outwardly appearance, or whether we are clapping, raising our hands or dancing. True worshippers will worship the Father in spirit and truth. During our worship, we have to focus on God alone and exalt, honor and glorify Him. Our attention should be totally on Him and not on us or other people in church.

John 4:23-24 “Yet a time is coming and has now come when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and truth, for they are the kind of worshipers the Father seeks. God is spirit, and his worshipers must worship in spirit and in truth."

Hebrews 12:28 “Therefore, since we are receiving a kingdom that cannot be shaken, let us be thankful, and so worship.”

Worship period at our churches should not be like going to a concert for our own entertainment. It is not for us to get something out of it! Worship time should be for God alone! People get upset and say “I don’t like their praise and worship style, it’s not for me”, or they say “those people are too wild or too loud for my taste”, and so forth. Well, worship was never meant to be for our own entertainment. It is for God alone! God is the audience here, not us! Worship time should be holy and sacred to God and it should be God-centered.

Hebrews 13:15 “Through Jesus, therefore, let us continually offer to God a sacrifice of praise - the fruit of lips that confess his name.”

Matthew 10:37-38 "Anyone who loves his father or mother more than me is not worthy of me; anyone who loves his son or daughter more than me is not worthy of me; and anyone who does not take his cross and follow me is not worthy of me.”

Our worship should be 100% focused on God. We have to clear our minds of off our family situations, bills, chores, work, and all other worldly issues and make time to just focus on Him - that’s the least we can do during our worship for our great God who is the giver of ALL good things - life, peace, health, comfort, and even riches.

Isaiah 29:13 The Lord says: "These people come near to me with their mouth and honor me with their lips, but their hearts are far from me. Their worship of me is made up only of rules taught by men.”

Our worship should not be in vain, it should be according to ‘His Commandments’ and not by rules made up by pastors or church members.

Mark 7:7 “They worship me in vain; their teachings are but rules taught by men.”


Romans 12:2 “Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God's will is - his good, pleasing and perfect will.”

So let us come together in His Name and “Worship Him” in spirit and truth because where two or three come together in His Name, there HE is among us :-)

God Bless,
Lucine

Evil exists in this world, so don't blame God...

It is our human nature to blame God every time things go wrong in our lives. I hear “why would a loving, compassionate and forgiving God allow something so terrible to happen?”

God planted the tree of knowledge of 'Good and Evil' in the center of the Garden of Eden and told Adam and Eve to eat from every tree in the garden, except for that one tree. God gave Adam and Eve a command which they chose not to follow. They made a choice to disobey God and ate the fruit from the tree of life.

Due to their disobedience, they were exiled from the Garden of Eden and sin/evil entered into the world. God will take care of all our needs when we stay obedient to Him. Obedience always brings us His blessings. However, due to greed and fleshly desires, we get away from God's Word and try to quinch our desires through worldly things which gets us in trouble.

God told Adam and Eve that they could stay in the garden and enjoy everything in it as long as they obeyed Him and did not eat from that one tree. When we make selfish decisions based on our fleshly desires and end up in a mess, it is not God’s fault, it’s ours! God’s will for us is good and not evil, but we bring on the evil because of our own free choices.

God commands us to love one another as ourselves. How often we truly abide by that command? God wants His will to be done on earth as it is in heaven, but do we choose His will on a daily basis?

We have a choice to run to the light or to run to the darkness. We run to the light if we want to please God or we run towards darkness (separation from God), if we want to please the devil. It is a choice we make and thus we reap what we sow! So let us not blame God for the evil in this world!

God Bless,
Lucine

Are we truly in Christ?

"John 3:16" from the New Testament of the Bible is the most used verse... This verse is the "core" of the Christian Faith. However, do we truly understand the depth and meaning of the verse or do we apply it to our daily life and live sacrificially?

We claim to be Christians, but are we truly in Christ? Faith is not something we obtain in an instant. It's a slow transformation from the old to the new us in Christ. First, we have to start by truly believing that Jesus is the Son of God, that He sacrificied his life for our sins so we can have eternal life, and that He rose from the dead on the third day and that He is the only way, the truth and the life. By believing that, we begin our journey towards the effort of being saved. We slowly start surrendering our old ways to God and start our new walk with the Lord. Then we continue to live by yielding constantly to His ways. Once God sees our willingness and effort to please Him, He starts the cleansing process and will continue to purify us. When we are purified, we are transformed into His image at which time we start reflecting Him in everything we say and do.

If we really believe in Jesus, we would desperately seek Him. We would want to receive His blessings daily, we would become eager to continue to live a sin-free and righteous life, we would thirst and hunger for more of His presence in our life. We would allow Him to take total control of our thoughts, etc. When we are truly in Christ, we would do everything and anything to please Him thus bringing Him honor and glory - it's always about Him, not us!

1 Peter 1:4-9 "...and into an inheritance that can never perish, spoil or fade - kept in heaven for you, who through faith are shielded by God's power until the coming of the salvation that is ready to be revealed in the last time. In this you greatly rejoice, though now for a little while you may have had to suffer grief in all kinds of trials. These have come so that your faith - of greater worth than gold, which perishes even though refined by fire - may be proved genuine and may result in praise, glory and honor when Jesus Christ is revealed. Though you have not seen him, you love him; and even though you do not see him now, you believe in him and are filled with an inexpressible and glorious joy, for you are receiving the goal of your faith, the salvation of your souls.

1 John 5:3-5 "This is love for God: to obey his commands. And his commands are not burdensome, for everyone born of God overcomes the world. This is the victory that has overcome the world, even our faith. Who is it that overcomes the world? Only he who believes that Jesus is the Son of God."

To overcome the world means to fight the good fight of faith by believing that we have victory over sin because He has overcome the world!

2 Timothy 1:8-10 "So do not be ashamed to testify about our Lord, or ashamed of me his prisoner. But join with me in suffering for the gospel, by the power of God, who has saved us and called us to a holy life - not because of anything we have done but because of his own purpose and grace. This grace was given us in Christ Jesus before the beginning of time, but it has now been revealed through the appearing of our Savior, Christ Jesus, who has destroyed death and has brought life and immortality to light through the gospel."

Titus 2:11-14 "For the grace of God that brings salvation has appeared to all men. It teaches us to say "No" to ungodliness and worldly passions, and to live self-controlled, upright and godly lives in this present age, while we wait for the blessed hope—the glorious appearing of our great God and Savior, Jesus Christ, who gave himself for us to redeem us from all wickedness and to purify for himself a people that are his very own, eager to do what is good.

"Jesus said "not everyone who says to me 'Lord, Lord' will enter into the Kingdom of heaven..."

Matthew 7:21-23 "Not everyone who says to me, 'Lord, Lord,' will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only he who does the will of my Father who is in heaven. Many will say to me on that day, 'Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name, and in your name drive out demons and perform many miracles?' Then I will tell them plainly, 'I never knew you. Away from me, you evildoers!'

Hebrews 12:14 "Make every effort to live in peace with all men and to be holy - without holiness no one will see the Lord."

1 John 3:2-3 "Dear friends, now we are children of God, and what we will be has not yet been made known. But we know that when he appears, we shall be like him, for we shall see him as he is. Everyone who has this hope in him purifies himself, just as he is pure."

John 6:40 "For my Father's will is that everyone who looks to the Son and believes in Him shall have eternal life, and I will raise him up at the last day."

Hebrews 5:9 "...and, once made perfect, he became the source of eternal salvation for all who obey him.."

John 11:26 "... and whoever lives and believes in me will never die. Do you believe this?"

Galatians 5:19-21 "The acts of the sinful nature are obvious: sexual immorality, impurity and debauchery; idolatry and witchcraft; hatred, discord, jealousy, fits of rage, selfish ambition, dissensions, factions and envy; drunkenness, orgies, and the like. I warn you, as I did before, that those who live like this will not inherit the kingdom of God."

Ephesians 5:5-6 "For of this you can be sure: No immoral, impure or greedy person - such a man is an idolater - has any inheritance in the kingdom of Christ and of God. Let no one deceive you with empty words, for because of such things God's wrath comes on those who are disobedient."

1 Corinthians 12:3 "Therefore I tell you that no one who is speaking by the Spirit of God says, "Jesus be cursed," and no one can say, "Jesus is Lord," except by the Holy Spirit."

Unless we allow Jesus to be in control of our life whether it's at home, at work or amongst our friends, then He is not our Lord. Unless we acknowledge Him without worrying about what people might think or say, then He is not our Lord. Jesus doesn't want a bunch of hypocrite Christians who behave one way with certain people and differently when with others. Jesus wants us to honor and acknowledge Him with our lips, our actions, our heart, mind and soul!

Mark 7:6 "He replied, "Isaiah was right when he prophesied about you hypocrites; as it is written: 'These people honor me with their lips, but their hearts are far from me."

To inherit the Kingdom of God, we need to beleive 100% that Jesus is the only way to God! Going through the storms of this life is part of our journey from sin-to-pure. We will be faced with trials and tribulations no matter what. During these afflictions however, because of our selfish nature, we’ll become angry and denounce God (look at what the Israelites did when God brought them out of Egypt from their bondage. No matter what God did for them, they still complained and whined to Moses. Their ungratefulness and sinfulness angered God and extended their stay in the wilderness to 40 years...) However, if we keep our eyes focused on the non-temporary things instead of the temporary things of this world, then we will be able to stay on the right path. Jesus suffered for us so we should participate in His sufferings in order not to perish, but to inherit the Kingdom of God which is eternal.

1 Peter 4:12-13 "Dear friends, do not be surprised at the painful trial you are suffering, as though something strange were happening to you. But rejoice that you participate in the sufferings of Christ, so that you may be overjoyed when his glory is revealed."

1 Peter 2:21 "To this you were called, because Christ suffered for you, leaving you an example, that you should follow in his steps."

2 Timothy 2:11-12 "Here is a trustworthy saying: If we died with him, we will also live with him; if we endure, we will also reign with him. If we disown him, he will also disown us..."

1 Peter 4:1-2 "Therefore, since Christ suffered in his body, arm yourselves also with the same attitude, because he who has suffered in his body is done with sin. As a result, he does not live the rest of his earthly life for evil human desires, but rather for the will of God."

Galatians 5:22-23 "...the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law."

Galatians 5:24 "Those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the sinful nature with its passions and desires."

Therefore let's live like Christ did! Let us strive to be more like Him and less like the world! Let's apply the 'fruit of the Spirit' to our lives so we can say with 100% assurance: "we are in Christ"

God Bless,
Lucine

The Night of all nights!

CHRISTmas is a joyful time of the year. It is the time we celebrate the birth of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ! Jesus was not an ordinary baby! He was a Gift from God to mankind. God showed how much He loves us by sacrificing His one and only Son. God wanted His best for us, so He gave us His Best!

John 3:16 "For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life."

John 1:4 "In Him was life; and the life was the light of men."

When we accept Jesus as our Lord and Savior and repent of our sins and start living for Him, something wonderful happens inside of us. Our heart is illuminated with His presence. As we continue to live for Him by following His commandments, we become beacons to a dark world. It is His "light" in us that makes us different from other people. It is the love, joy and peace that comes from Jesus that other people see in us that's different. Even when we are going through the storms of this life, we can still have peace, joy and hope because of the One who lives in us. The Bible says: "Greater is He that is in me, than he that is in the world." When we allow Jesus to live in us, we allow the "Christmas spirit" to stay with us all year round and not just in December!

John 3:17 "God sent His Son into the world, not to condemn the world, but to save the world."

Luke 2:14 "Glory to God in the highest and on earth peace to those on whom His favor rests."

Matthew 2:10-11 "When they saw the star, they were overjoyed. On coming to the house, they saw the child with his mother Mary, and they bowed down and worshiped him. Then they opened their treasures and presented him with gifts of gold and of incense and of myrrh."

God gave us His one and only Son so we can be saved... Hosanna to the Son of David! Blessed is He who comes in the name of the Lord! Hosanna in the highest!

1 John 1:5 "Now this is the message that we have heard from Him and declare to you: God is light, and in Him there is no darkness at all."

Jesus is the Lion of the tribe of Judah, the Root of David, the One who has triumphed! He is the One who is able to open the scroll and its seven seals in the end. He is the Alpha and Omega - the Beginning and the End! He is the only Way, the Truth and the Life!

John 14:7 Jesus said "I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one can come to the Father except through me. If you had known who I am, then you would have known who my Father is."

Psalm 29:11 "May the Lord give might to His people; may the Lord bless His people with peace!"

...May 2009 be our best year yet filled with HIS peace, love, joy and abundant blessings!

Merry CHRISTmas!

Lucine

Faith, hope & love.. but the greatest of these is love

"There are not thousands of religions in the world, but only two", states Dr. Robert Jeffress in his book titled 'Hell? Yes!' He continues on to say: "All of the other religions of the world are spelled 'd-o'. Regardless of its label, every other religion tells us what we must 'do' to earn God's favor. But Christianity is spelled 'd-o-n-e.' The foundation of the gospel is not what we do for God, but what God has already done for us in sending His Son to atone for our sins."

Yes, our salvation is a gift from God because of God's unconditional love for us. Only Christianity makes that claim!

I'm listing only a few of the 400+ Bible verses on 'love':

1 Corinthians 13:13 "And now these three remain: faith, hope and love. But the greatest of these is love.'

1 John 4:19 "We love because he first loved us."

Luke 6:27-28 Jesus said: "But I tell you who hear me: Love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, bless those who curse you, pray for those who mistreat you."

Mark 12:31 The second is this: 'Love your neighbor as yourself.' There is no commandment greater than these."

Luke 6:31 "Do to others as you would have them do to you."

John 8:13 "Greater love has no one than this, that he lay down his life for his friends."

Romans 12:9 "Love must be sincere. Hate what is evil; cling to what is good."

Romans 13:10 "Love does no harm to its neighbor. Therefore love is the fulfillment of the law."
1 Peter 4:8 "Above all, love each other deeply, because love covers over a multitude of sins."

1 John 4:7 "Dear friends, let us love one another, for love comes from God. Everyone who loves has been born of God and knows God."

1 Corinthians 13:4-8 "Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. It is not rude, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres. Love never fails. But where there are prophecies, they will cease; where there are tongues, they will be stilled; where there is knowledge, it will pass away."

Ephesians 5:25 "Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her."

Ephesians 5:33 "However, each one of you also must love his wife as he loves himself, and the wife must respect her husband."

Colossians 3:14 "And over all these virtues put on love, which binds them all together in perfect unity."

Luke 6:35 "But love your enemies, do good to them, and lend to them without expecting to get anything back. Then your rewards will be great, and you will be sons of the Most High, because He is kind to the ungrateful and wicked."

For more on "love", read the "New Testament" of your "Bible" :-)

God Bless,
Lucine

A beacon in darkest times...

Time is short... What are we doing for God's Kingdom? Are we being a beacon or idling in our comfy zone?

Acts 20:35 "In everything I did, I showed you that by this kind of hard work we must help the weak, remembering the words the Lord Jesus himself said: 'It is more blessed to give than to receive.'

John 9:4-5 Jesus said, "As long as it is day, we must do the work of him who sent me. Night is coming, when no one can work. While I am in the world, I am the light of the world."

Matthew 5:14-16 "You are the light of the world," Jesus told His followers in the Sermon on the Mount. "A city on a hill cannot be hidden. Neither do people light a lamp and put it under a bowl. Instead they put it on its stand, and it gives light to everyone in the house. In the same way, let your light shine before men, that they may see your good deeds and praise your Father in heaven."

We should get out of our complacency and reach out to people just like Jesus did! Let's not be content with where we are in our comfy-zone and our own cirlce of friends! Let's reach out to the helpless, hungry, deceived, poor, sick, hopeless, confused, lonely, tired and torn. Let's be Jesus' hands and feet and share the good news wherever we go... and let's do it all in love and compassion one person at a time.

We have it a lot easier than Jesus' disciples. They had to walk from town to town to share the free gift of salvation. We on the other hand, are the privileged generation. We can reach people within seconds. This has been made possible by TV, radio, missionaries, Bible offerings and translations and other high-tech communication systems. So what is our excuse? Is it because we are too busy or we don't know what to say or is it because we are ashamed to claim Jesus? We can come up with all sorts of excuses to avoid doing what Jesus instructed us to do, however, our excuses are worldly excuses based on our emotions and fears of what people might think or say. We need to start looking beyond feelings and emotions! We need to focus on facts! This is about our salvation! Based on the choices we make here on earth, we'll set the future! We will be either in heaven with Jesus or in eternal darkness separated from Jesus (the Light of the world). The choice is ours!

Jesus said that the end won't come until the gospel is preached to every corner of the world. It's a big possibility that this could happen in our lifetime considering the high-speed communication tools we have. Also, the Bible prophesies are being unfolded one by one. Although we may not know the exact day and time of our Lord's return, we need to prepare ourselves and others. God wants ALL His children to be saved!

Matthew 24:14 "And this gospel of the kingdom will be preached in the whole world as a testimony to all nations, and then the end will come."

Romans 3:10–11 "As it is written, 'There is none righteous, no, not one: There is none that understandeth, there is none that seeketh after God."

Romans 3:23 "For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God."

Romans 5:12 "Therefore, just as sin entered the world through one man, and death through sin, and in this way death came to all men, because all sinned."As followers of Jesus, we get the urge to tell people about Him because there is no higher motive to do so than the love of God. Let us daily saturate ourselves with Biblical wisdom so we know how to share our faith with others openly and wisely. There is a way which seems right to man, but it leads to death and darkness. People ignore the fact that the love of God, His ways and His standards are pure and higher than ours!

1 Peter 3:15 "In your hearts set apart Christ as Lord. Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have."

2 Corinthians 5:14 "For Christ's love compels us, because we are convinced that one died for all, and therefore all died."

Proverbs 14:12-13 "There's a way of life that looks harmless enough; look again, it leads straight to death. Sure, those people appear to be having a good time, but all that laughter will end in grief."

Let's share the truth with people and let's educate them. Being good and doing good deeds, volunteering, being ethical, and morality are all good, but not knowing Jesus or not accepting Him as our Lord and Savior is not going to get us to Heaven! The Bible makes it very clear that no amount of good works will save us! If we could get to heaven based on our good works alone, then Jesus' crucifixion was in vain! It is God's unconditional love for ALL His children that lead Jesus to that cross! Christians celebrate Easter every year, but how many people actually know or remind their children the 'true' meaning behind Easter? More emphasis is placed on coloring eggs, candies and bunnies rather than the cross, and when I say "cross", don't focus on Jesus' death, but on HIS Resurrection - because that's the Hope of eternal life with Jesus!

John 3:16-18 "For God so loved the world that he gave His one and only Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish but have eternal life. For God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through Him. Whoever believes in Him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe stands condemned already because he has not believed in the name of Jesus."

The cross should be our everyday reminder that we were not created to live for ourselves, but to live for Him!

Jesus said: "The one who comes to Me, I will certainly not cast out. Come now, and let us reason together... Though your sins are as scarlet, they will be as white as snow; though they are red like crimson, they will be like wool."

Romans 10:13 "Everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved."

John 14:1-3 “Do not let your hearts be troubled. Trust in God; trust also in me. In my Father's house are many rooms; if it were not so, I would have told you. I am going there to prepare a place for you. And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come back and take you to be with me that you also may be where I am.”

Revelation 14:13 Then I heard a voice from heaven: "Write this," it said. "Blessed are the dead who die as believers in the Lord from now on." Yes, says the Holy Spirit. "They will rest from their labor. What they have done will not be forgotten."

God is not asking too much from us. He knows that we're all sinners and He knows our limits and capabilities. Unless we accept Jesus as our Lord and Savior, there's no way we can make it to heaven. The only things that God requires of us is to confess our sins, to ask for forgiveness, to believe that Jesus is the only Way, the Truth and the Life and that there's NO other way to God except through Jesus. That's it!

We need to reach out and share the good news with everyone we come in contact with and make a difference for God's Kingdom. We can affect our everlasting destiny by learning the Bible and teaching it to others. God wants 'ALL' His children to be saved. So it's up to us, we can continue to live for ourselves or we can become a beacon to a dark world!

God Bless,
Lucine

Nothing happens unless God authorizes it!

I am amazed at how during this presidential campaign, our mainstream media and the entertainment industry folks are getting uglier and uglier with the way they're reporting the news about the candidates. They are out to destroy anyone and everyone without any concern about the consequences of their actions. They somehow seem to forget that their job is to report the news honestly by being fair to both parties. However, their ratings seem to take priority over country and the American people.

For instance, a responsible journalist, as part of his/her job, should report the ‘truth’ from both sides and let the public make up their mind. Unfortunately, that's not how it works these days. The journalists are very bias. A good example of this is what I heard on CNN the other night. It's a good thing that I had watched the entire debate that took place in Alaska between the Alaskan governotorial candidates. The CNN reporter chose to show only a 'selected segment' of what Sarah Palin said during this debate and told the viewers that 'what she said at the debate was contradictory to what she said on VP nomination night.'

That was not good journalism! That's called manipulation of the truth! The CNN reporter should have showed the whole debate to the public so they could hear what actually was said and why. The reporter deceived the public by manipulating the content of the debate and imposing his own personal opinion on the viewers. I'm not trying to get into politics here. This is not about promoting McCain/Palin or Obama/Biden, I'm talking about "where is the fairness?"

This is about the journalists, entertainment industry, politicians, CEO's, lawyers, etc., who are lying and manipulating the system to promote their own agenda and raise their ratings by hurting their country and deceiving the American public.

The entertainment industry and the media don't know the meaning of "integrity" anymore! They anapologetically take sides and they don't care if they destroy that person and that person's family. Fairness, truth, and respect are no longer popular values in our society.

When I try to analyze why all this is happening, I seem to always come to the same conclusion. I truly believe that the reason people become mean, carless, and selfish is all because they have distanced themselves from God. If they still respected and loved God, they will do their best to please God! Yes, this is a free country and we have freedom of speech, but that freedom is a privilege and it comes with a big responsiblity! The Bible says: 'Live as free men, but do not use your freedom as a cover-up for evil; live as servants of God. Show proper respect to everyone...'

The Bible is full of wisdom and guidelines to help us live a life of integrity, but somehow we prefer to look at worldly sources for guidance. I truly believe the reason we are in this big mess is because we have forgotten our Maker and we rely too much on our own strength. Somehow we have let our big ego and arrogance get in the way preventing us to have an intimate relationship with the Lord. Nowadays, being a Christian and claiming Jesus as our Lord and Savior is no longer considered 'cool'. Folks are influenced by the rising popularity of the new age movement, eastern religions, meditation, and belief in past lives and reincarnation, thus forgetting their Maker. Also the departing of certain Christian denominations from the original teachings of the Bible has not helped the situation either.

Not admitting the existence of an omnipotent God makes it easier to live life without guilt and to be part of the crowd. However, the truth will be revealed sooner or later and whether we like it or not! Soon, every nation and every knee will bow down before the King of kings and Lord of lords and everyone will see "Truth" and realize they've been decieved by the world.

We think we are somehow smarter and wiser than God and we look at the contents of the Bible as foolishness or something of the past. It is easier to nullify God in order to keep on doing what we are doing. Some of our entertainment industry folks make a comfortable living out of mocking Jesus, the Bible and its followers. They think Bible believing folks are 'dilusional, fanatical or freaks'. I heard one comedian on Larry King say he believes "Billy Graham and mother Theresa had mental issues." Mental issues? Give me a break! It is obvious, we (CHRISTians) are easy targets. After all, we turn the other cheek and we don't blow up people. They don't dare ridicule other religions because they're afraid of them! However, no matter what goes on around us, how people treat us or may percieve us, let us not lose heart. Let us remain strong in our faith and let us put all our trust in the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. Let the Words of Jesus give you comfort and strength when you feel misunderstood:

Matthew 10:16 "I am sending you out like sheep among wolves. Therefore be as shrewd as snakes and as innocent as doves."

Deuteronomy 31:6 "Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid or terrified because of them, for the LORD your God goes with you; he will never leave you nor forsake you."

1 Corinthians 1:25-31 "For the foolishness of God is wiser than man's wisdom and the weakness of God is stronger than man's strength. Brothers, think of what you were when you were called. Not many of you were wise by human standards; not many were influential; not many were of noble birth. But God chose the foolish things of the world to shame the wise; God chose the weak things of the world to shame the strong. He chose the lowly things of this world and the despised things - and the things that are not - to nullify the things that are, so that no one may boast before him. It is because of him that you are in Christ Jesus, who has become for us wisdom from God - that is, our righteousness, holiness and redemption. Therefore, as it is written: "Let him who boasts boast in the Lord."

Jude 1:8 "In the very same way, these dreamers pollute their own bodies, reject authority, and slander celestial beings."

Jude 1:16 "These men are grumblers and faultfinders; they follow their own evil desires; they boast about themselves and flatter others for their own advantage."

Matthew 10: 26-31 "So do not be afraid of them. There is nothing concealed that will not be disclosed, or hidden that will not be made known. What I tell you in the dark, speak in the daylight; what is whispered in your ear, proclaim from the roofs. Do not be afraid of those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul. Rather, be afraid of the One who can destroy both soul and body in hell. Are not two sparrows sold for a penny? Yet not one of them will fall to the ground apart from the will of your Father. And even the very hairs of your head are all numbered. So don't be afraid; you are worth more than many sparrows."

1 Peter 2:13-21 "Submit yourselves for the Lord's sake to every authority instituted among men: whether to the king, as the supreme authority, or to governors, who are sent by him to punish those who do wrong and to commend those who do right. For it is God's will that by doing good you should silence the ignorant talk of foolish men. Live as free men, but do not use your freedom as a cover–up for evil; live as servants of God. Show proper respect to everyone: Love the brotherhood of believers, fear God, and honor the king. Slaves, submit yourselves to your masters with all respect, not only to those who are good and considerate, but also to those who are harsh. For it is commendable if a man bears up under the pain of unjust suffering because he is conscious of God. But how is it to your credit if you receive a beating for doing wrong and endure it? But if you suffer for doing good and you endure it, this is commendable before God. To this you were called, because Christ suffered for you, leaving you an example that you should follow in his steps."

Romans 13 "Everyone must submit himself to the governing authorities, for there is no authority except that which God has established. The authorities that exist have been established by God. Consequently, he who rebels against the authority is rebelling against what God has instituted, and those who do so will bring judgment on themselves. For rulers hold no terror for those who do right, but for those who do wrong. Do you want to be free from fear of the one in authority? Then do what is right and he will commend you. For he is God's servant to do you good. But if you do wrong, be afraid, for he does not bear the sword for nothing. He is God's servant, an agent of wrath to bring punishment on the wrongdoer. Therefore, it is necessary to submit to the authorities, not only because of possible punishment but also because of conscience. This is also why you pay taxes, for the authorities are God's servants, who give their full time to governing. Give everyone what you owe him: If you owe taxes, pay taxes; if revenue, then revenue; if respect, then respect; if honor, then honor."

Nothing in this world is a "coincidence", God authorizes everything! And yes, even the next president of the United States is authorized by God. God will do what He has to do to work His plan! If we follow God's ways and be truthful to ourselves and to others, we will win no matter what. Therefore, during this critical election period, let's vote for what's right and what's just. Let us focus on the important issues, such as what's best for the country and the American people instead of focusing on making our party win. Let's do our homework and find out from various 'reliable' sources about each and every candidate, instead of relying solely on what we hear from our bias mainstream media or what we read on the internet. Because not everything we hear or read is always right. But most of all, let us pray so God will guide us in making the right decision. God bless America - One Nation Under God!

Proverbs 3:5-6 "Trust in the LORD with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways acknowledge Him, and He will make your paths straight."

God Bless,
Lucine

Why Pray for Israel?

Let's see what the Bible says about the importance of praying for the Jews and Israel; (God's chosen people and His Holy land).

As more and more Christians are becoming familiar with the Bible, they are realizing they have a Biblical mandate to share their faith with the Jewish people and to pray for them.

Genesis 12:2-3 "I will make you into a great nation and I will bless you; I will make your name great, and you will be a blessing. I will bless those who bless you, and whoever curses you I will curse; and all peoples on earth will be blessed through you."

Psalm 121:1-4 "I lift up my eyes to the hills where does my help come from? My help comes from the LORD, the Maker of heaven and earth. He will not let your foot slip he who watches over you will not slumber; indeed, he who watches over Israel will neither slumber nor sleep."

Romans 11:11-12 "Again I ask: Did they stumble so as to fall beyond recovery? Not at all! Rather, because of their transgression, salvation has come to the Gentiles to make Israel envious. But if their transgression means riches for the world, and their loss means riches for the Gentiles, how much greater riches will their fullness bring!"

Based on the above, we can say that we are reaping God's blessings due to Israel's unbelief and denial of her Messiah. This is God's way of provoking the Jews to jealousy so they will envy us and desire what we have; 'the blessings of the new convenant through Jesus'. However, our God is a good God and He keeps His promises! He has not forgotten His chosen people! He wants us to pray for the Jews daily so they'll turn away from their sinful ways and accept Yeshua as their Messiah.

Unfortunately, our actions in the past and even now have not made us trusthworty in the eyes of the Jews. Israel has suffered persecution after persecution under the hands of many, including Christians. Therefore, we need to pray for Israeil and re-introduce them to Christ by showing them love and compassion so we can win their trust.

When we study the Bible diligently, we gain knowledge and realize the importance of defending Israel and praying for her. God says "I'll bless those who bless you". As we truly pray for the Jews, God will intervene and create in them a spiritual awakening like never before.

The Bible says: "all peoples on earth will be blessed through Israel".

Romans 11:21-24 " And if they do not persist in unbelief, they will be grafted in, for God is able to graft them in again. After all, if you were cut out of an olive tree that is wild by nature, and contrary to nature were grafted into a cultivated olive tree, how much more readily will these, the natural branches, be grafted into their own olive tree!

Romans 11:25 "I do not want you to be ignorant of this mystery, brothers, so that you may not be conceited: Israel has experienced a hardening in part until the full number of the Gentiles has come in.

Ezekiel 39:22 "From that day forward the house of Israel will know that I am the LORD their God.

Ezekial 39:29 " I will no longer hide my face from them, for I will pour out my Spirit on the house of Israel, declares the Sovereign LORD."

Zechariah 2:8-9 "For this is what the LORD Almighty says: "After he has honored me and has sent me against the nations that have plundered you - for whoever touches you touches the apple of His eye. I will surely raise my hand against them so that their slaves will plunder them. Then you will know that the LORD Almighty has sent me.

Some scholars argue that the contents of the Bible are not applicable to the present times and they chose to ignore the prophecies. The Bible is God's Word and we should not twist its meaning. It is what it is! God is the same yesterday, today and forever!

When we hear about the persecutions of Christains and Jews just like the prophecies have predicted, we should not get overwhelmed. Instead we should pray and ask the Lord to give us strength and courage so we can face anything that comes against us. The Bible prophecies are not meant to scare us, but to prepare us. Although the media may be one-sided in reporting only the bad news, there are a lot of good things happening around the world that we don't hear about. God is raising up a whole new generation of radical Christians who are winning souls everywhere and who are making a difference for God's Kingdom.

God's chosen people, His holy land and all His believers will live through it all no matter what. Even if Israel's enemies claim they will wipe her off of the face of the map, Israel's future is in God's hands and no one can snatch her out of God's hand. What Israel's enemies do not realize is that the war they plan to have against Israel will be a war against the Mighty God of Israel and God will win that war!

The United States has prospered and has been blessed because of the support and prayer she has been providing Israel in the past. However, if we keep trying to negotiate with Israel's enemies for the sake of politics, peace and safety, and try to divide her land, we will anger the Lord and His curse will come upon us. We are already seeing some of the consequences of those negotiations that the U.S., UN and EU are making with the corrupt Palestenian and Jewish officials for the sake of peace and safety.

1 Thessalonians 5:3 "While people are saying, "Peace and safety," destruction will come on them suddenly, as labor pains on a pregnant woman, and they will not escape."

Joel 3:1-2 "In those days and at that time, when I restore the fortunes of Judah and Jerusalem, I will gather all nations and bring them down to the Valley of Jehoshaphat (the Mount of Meggido). There I will enter into judgment against them concerning my inheritance, my people Israel, for they scattered my people among the nations and divided up my land."

Ezekiel 24-26 "No longer will the people of Israel have malicious neighbors who are painful briers and sharp thorns. Then they will know that I am the Sovereign LORD. 'This is what the Sovereign LORD says: When I gather the people of Israel from the nations where they have been scattered, I will show myself holy among them in the sight of the nations. Then they will live in their own land, which I gave to my servant Jacob. They will live there in safety and will build houses and plant vineyards; they will live in safety when I inflict punishment on all their neighbors who maligned them. Then they will know that I am the LORD their God."

Jeremiah 16:14-16 "However, the days are coming," declares the LORD, "when men will no longer say, 'As surely as the LORD lives, who brought the Israelites up out of Egypt,' but they will say, 'As surely as the LORD lives, who brought the Israelites up out of the land of the north and out of all the countries where he had banished them.' For I will restore them to the land I gave their forefathers." But now I will send for many fishermen, declares the LORD, and they will catch them. After that I will send for many hunters, and they will hunt them down on every mountain and hill and from the crevices of the rocks."

Ezekiel 37:21 "and say to them, 'This is what the Sovereign LORD says: I will take the Israelites out of the nations where they have gone. I will gather them from all around and bring them back into their own land.God will gather the remnant of His chosen people to the Holy land again. He will breathe new life into them and the whole world will recognize who the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob is once and for all!

Ezekiel 37:3 "He asked me, "Son of man, can these bones live? I said, "O Sovereign LORD, you alone know."

Ezekiel 37:5-6 "This is what the Sovereign LORD says to these bones: I will make breath enter you, and you will come to life. I will attach tendons to you and make flesh come upon you and cover you with skin; I will put breath in you, and you will come to life. Then you will know that I am the LORD.' "

Ezekiel 37:6-8 "So I prophesied as I was commanded. And as I was prophesying, there was a noise, a rattling sound, and the bones came together, bone to bone. I looked, and tendons and flesh appeared on them and skin covered them, but there was no breath in them."

Jesus gave us lots of hints to prepare us for end times. Most of the Bible prophecies have already been fulfilled. The greatest one that amazes theologians is Israel is back in the land and Jerusalem is once again under the rule of the nation of Israel, just like the prophets had foretold! A thing of impossibility with men, but possibility with our great God!

Luke 21:28 "When these things begin to take place, stand up and lift your heads, because your redemption is drawing near."

Luke 21:32-33 "I tell you the truth, this generation will certainly not pass away until all these things have happened. Heaven and earth will pass away, but my words will never pass away."

Although we may not know the exact day or time of our Lord's coming, the Bible clearly states that what we are going through now is "labor pains". When Noah started building the ark out of obedience to the Lord, people were teasing him and labeled him as 'crazy' - they saw it as foolishness. Noah chose to ingnore the critizism and remained obedient to the Lord. When finally Noah had finished building the ark and the animals started coming, Noah and his family knew that the time of the deadly rains was nearing. For the other folks, it was business as usual. They were too busy with their worldy things and were not concerned about anything else. The flood took them by surprise and they all perished. God is not a mean God, He gave them plenty of warnings to turn away from their wicked ways and to repent, but they chose not to. In the end, we are responsible for our actions and we reap what we sow because of our disobedience.

Matthew 24:36-37 "No one knows about that day or hour, not even the angels in heaven, nor the Son, but only the Father. As it was in the days of Noah, so it will be at the coming of the Son of Man."

Thesselonians 5:2-3 "For you know very well that the day of the Lord will come like a thief in the night. While people are saying, "Peace and safety," destruction will come on them suddenly, as labor pains on a pregnant woman, and they will not escape".

Other major signs, which are rampant in the U.S. and throughout the world are self-centerdness, materialism, addictions of all sorts, hatred, pride, anger, divorce, persecutions, self-righteousness, etc. Natural disasters are on the rise as well. This is what the Bible says:

2 Timothy 3:1-5 and John 17:21-23 "But mark this: There will be terrible times in the last days. People will be lovers of themselves, lovers of money, boastful, proud, abusive, disobedient to their parents, ungrateful, unholy, without love, unforgiving, slanderous, without self-control, brutal, not lovers of the good, treacherous, rash, conceited, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God - having a form of godliness but denying its power. Have nothing to do with them."

In addition to all the above, multi-belief system is growing too (i.e. new age, scientology, universalism, etc.). These folks claim to be 'open-minded' and 'free-thinking'. They cling to any belief system that would make them feel good. They pick whatever quinches the fleshly desires and feeds the inner cravings.

Idols such as money, material possessions, friends, status, etc., are all temporary and short-lived. No matter how much of these things we have, we will still feel empty, lonely and unhappy if we don't have Jesus. Jesus is the Living Water and only He can quinch our thirst. True joy and contentment comes only through Jesus Christ!

Exodus 20:3-7 "You shall have no other gods before me. You shall not make for yourself an idol in the form of anything in heaven above or on the earth beneath or in the waters below. You shall not bow down to them or worship them; for I, the LORD your God, am a jealous God, punishing the children for the sin of the fathers to the third and fourth generation of those who hate me, but showing love to a thousand of those who love me and keep my commandments. You shall not misuse the name of the LORD your God, for the LORD will not hold anyone guiltless who misuses his name."

Matthew 5:19 "Anyone who breaks one of the least of these commandments and teaches others to do the same will be called least in the kingdom of heaven, but whoever practices and teaches these commands will be called great in the kingdom of heaven."

Proverbs 14:12 and Proverbs 16:25 "There is a way that seems right to a man, but in the end it leads to death."

When we pray, we are showing God that we are obedient and we are totally depending on Him. God will do wonders when we pray. The Bible predicts that during the latter days, a lot of unbelievers will turn to Jesus in alarming numbers through visions, dreams and other venues. A major revival is taking place as we speak all around the world and the Lord is lifting off the veils from the eyes of many so they can see "Truth". All this is happening because of the prayers and obedience of God's warriors throughout the world. Prayer is a powerful tool and it works!

The gospel is being preached to a lot more people and at a lot faster rate than ever before due to high-tech systems. God is raising up a new generation of young, radical warriors who are hungry and thirsty for God and who are willing to go the extra mile without intimidation and despite satan's efforts to stop them. At the same time, God and His army are busy in the spiritual realm helping people to come to Jesus and accept Him as their Lord and Savior.

For instance, with all the attacks that Israel has encountered, Israel should not even exist! Consider her size; approximately the size of New Jersey with a population of less than 6 million, also, she is surrounded by enemies from left and right whose population exceeds 300 million, but Israel still stands and stronger than ever! God has supernaturally protected her.

It is amazing to me that not only Israel exists, but Israel is reborn and thriving! Israel is a wealthy nation and has some of the highest technologies in the world. Israel has also given birth to numerous Nobel Prize winners for their inventions. This is not a coincidence, it's the hand of God, fulfilling what the prophets have foretold us. So let's stay encouraged because God is still in control and He will never leave or forsake us.

Yes, days of persecutions are still ahead for Jesus' followers, but He will be right there with us to give us strength, courage and wisdom to do what's right. We just need to pray daily to strengthen our faith so we don't grow weary and give up.

The Bible says: "...and you will be hated by all for My name's sake. But he who endures to the end shall be saved".

So why does the world hate Israel? Why do the Arab nations want to wipe Israel off of the map? There is real evil in this world! Satan is well and alive and he knows that the promises of God will not be accomplished if Israel is destroyed and annhiliated. Satan also knows that his time in this world is almost up and God will come to take over and reign forever. The devil is fighting with all that he's got to destroy God's people and God's plan!

No matter what the devil and his followers do, we should not lose hope because the glory of Zion and the glory of all God's children is drawing near! Jesus has aleady won the battle and we have the victory, but because of God's mercy and grace, He is willing to give us a chance after chance after chance to repent and to turn away from our sinful ways while we're still alive, but once we die without accepting Jesus as our Lord and Savior, then there would be no more chances. We will be in eternal darkness, separated from God (the Light of the world). God wants 'all' His children to be saved, not just some. However, the choice is up to us; we can follow the world's way or Jesus' way.

Zechariah 12:10 "And I will pour out on the house of David and the inhabitants of Jerusalem a spirit of grace and supplication. They will look on me, the one they have pierced, and they will mourn for him as one mourns for an only child, and grieve bitterly for him as one grieves for a firstborn son." (the Old Testament is talking about Jesus long before His birth... but Israel didn't see it - they chose to be blind to the truth)

Revealtion 12:12 "Therefore rejoice, you heavens and you who dwell in them! But woe to the earth and the sea, because the devil has gone down to you! He is filled with fury, because he knows that his time is short."

Isreal will come to the realization of what she's done to her prophets and Messiah and she will repent. The restoration of Israel is near! The Jews are regathering in Israel from every corner of the world just like the Bible has prophesized. The Jews have an undying desire to return to their homeland without realizing that their actions are fullfilling Bible prophecy.

Acts 3:19-21 "Repent, then, and turn to God, so that your sins may be wiped out, that times of refreshing may come from the Lord, and that he may send the Christ, who has been appointed for you - even Jesus - He must remain in heaven until the time comes for God to restore everything, as he promised long ago through his holy prophets."

Isaiah 60:1-3 "Arise, shine, for your light has come, and the glory of the LORD rises upon you. See, darkness covers the earth and thick darkness is over the peoples, but the LORD rises upon you and his glory appears over you. Nations will come to your light, and kings to the brigthness of your dawn."

Zechariah 12:3 "On that day, when all the nations of the earth are gathered against her, I will make Jerusalem an immovable rock for all the nations. All who try to move it will injure themselves."

Those nations who vow to annhiliate Israel are not aware that their war will be against the God of Israel. Israel's enemies will be the ones who will be wiped off the face of the map while the whole world will watch in amazement, and because of that, a lot of people will come to accept Jesus as their Lord and Savior.

Zechariah 14:2-3 "I will gather all the nations to Jerusalem to fight against it; the city will be captured, the houses ransacked, and the women raped. Half of the city will go into exile, but the rest of the people will not be taken from the city. Then the LORD will go out and fight against those nations, as he fights in the day of battle."

As we near to the Lord's second coming, our troubles will escalate for sure. Believers in Jesus will be faced with tribulations, anguish, afflictions, sufferings and persecution. It will become clear that the battle is between "good" and "evil". Satan and his army will be fighting ferociously, but they'll lose and harvest will come for God's people.

The future is bright even if it seems dim right now. We should not waste our time and energy on the temporary things of this world, instead we should focus on what is unseen; the promised eternal life in heaven with our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, where there will be no tears or suffering! But in the meantime, we need to continue to be responsible, hard working, honest, kind, and compassionate Christians so we can win more souls for God's Kingdom!

Hebrews 12:1 “Let us strip off anything that slows us down or holds us back.”

1 Corinthians 7:31 "Deal as sparingly as possible with the things the world thrusts on you. This world as you see it is on its way out.”

2 Corinthians 4:18 "We fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen. For what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal.”

Matthew 13:30 "Let both grow together until the harvest. At that time I will tell the harvesters: First collect the weeds and tie them in bundles to be burned; then gather the wheat and bring it into my barn."

1 Thessolonians 4:13-18 "Brothers, we do not want you to be ignorant about those who fall asleep, or to grieve like the rest of men, who have no hope. We believe that Jesus died and rose again and so we believe that God will bring with Jesus those who have fallen asleep in him. According to the Lord's own word, we tell you that we who are still alive, who are left till the coming of the Lord, will certainly not precede those who have fallen asleep. For the Lord himself will come down from heaven, with a loud command, with the voice of the archangel and with the trumpet call of God, and the dead in Christ will rise first. After that, we who are still alive and are left will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. And so we will be with the Lord forever. Therefore encourage each other with these words."

The blindness is coming off of the eyes of Jewish people in greater numbers since the first century. If we want Jesus' return, we need to do our part to reach out and spread the gospel to as many people as we can and that should include the Jewish people!

Isaiah 1:18-19 "though your sins are as scarlet, they will be as white as snow. Though they are red as crimson, they shall be like wool. If you are willing and obedient,you will eat the best from the land."

Isaiah 11:10-13 "In that day the Root of Jesse will stand as a banner for the peoples; the nations will rally to him, and his place of rest will be glorious. In that day the Lord will reach out his hand a second time to reclaim the remnant that is left of his people from Assyria, from Lower Egypt, from Upper Egypt, from Cush, from Elam, from Babylonia, from Hamath and from the islands of the sea. He will raise a banner for the nations and gather the exiles of Israel; he will assemble the scattered people of Judah from the four quarters of the earth."

Matthew 23:39 "For I tell you, you will not see me again until you say, 'Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord."

If end-time prophecies interest you, you may also want to read Psalm 83, Ezekiel 37 and 38, the book of Zachariah, and Daniel, etc.

God Bless,
Lucine

The Power of Prayer...

Matthew 18:20

"For where two or three come together in my name, there am I with them."

Mark 11:24

"Therefore I tell you, whatever you ask for in prayer, believe that you have received it, and it will be yours."

If we truly understood the power of prayer, we would be on our knees 24/7 praying and reaping the consequences. We can pray to the Father anywhere and anytime, and as long as we are sincere and we are not asking for things out of selfishness, God will give us the desires of our hearts.

James 4:2-3 "You want something but don't get it. You kill and covet, but you cannot have what you want. You quarrel and fight. You do not have, because you do not ask God. When you ask, you do not receive, because you ask with wrong motives, that you may spend what you get on your pleasures."

Matthew 6:5-8 "And when you pray, do not be like the hypocrites, for they love to pray standing in the synagogues and on the street corners to be seen by men. I tell you the truth, they have received their reward in full. But when you pray, go into your room, close the door and pray to your Father, who is unseen. Then your Father, who sees what is done in secret, will reward you. And when you pray, do not keep on babbling like pagans, for they think they will be heard because of their many words. Do not be like them, for your Father knows what you need before you ask him."

Jeremiah 33:2-3 "This is what the LORD says, he who made the earth, the LORD who formed it and established it - the LORD is his name: "Call to me and I will answer you and tell you great and unsearchable things you do not know."

After we pray, we need to trust God and wait patiently for His response. God's timing is not the same as ours; His timing is always perfect! See what the angel told Daniel after he prayed:

Daniel 10:10-12 "... then a hand touched me and set me trembling on my hands and knees. He said, "Daniel, you who are highly esteemed, consider carefully the words I am about to speak to you, and stand up, for I have now been sent to you." And when he said this to me, I stood up trembling. Then he continued, "Do not be afraid, Daniel. Since the first day that you set your mind to gain understanding and to humble yourself before your God, your words were heard, and I have come in response to them. But the prince of the Persian kingdom resisted me twenty-one days. Then Michael, one of the chief princes, came to help me, because I was detained there with the king of Persia. Now I have come to explain to you what will happen to your people in the future, for the vision concerns a time yet to come."

Satan wants us to believe that God does not hear our prayers, does not care or love us. But it's Satan who wants to steal our joy, kill our hope and destroy our relationship with Jesus. When we wait long enough and our prayers do not get answered, we start doubting God and we distance ourselves from Him. Precisely what the devil wants! He wants to destroy our trust in God! During that period of delay, we should not get angry with God; instead, we should continue to pray and we should rebuke doubt and unbelief in Jesus name.

God knows what we need before even we ask Him, but when we ask Him through prayers, He rejoices to know that we are fully depending on Him. Our faith, obedience and trust in God always brings Him honor and glory.

Hebrews 11:1 "Now faith is being sure of what we hope for and certain of what we do not see."

Hebrews 11:6 "And without faith it is impossible to please God, because anyone who comes to him must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who earnestly seek him."

John 14:12-14 "I tell you the truth, anyone who has faith in me will do what I have been doing. He will do even greater things than these, because I am going to the Father. And I will do whatever you ask in my name, so that the Son may bring glory to the Father. You may ask me for anything in my name, and I will do it."

Jeremiah 29:11 "For I know the plans I have for you," declares the LORD, "plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future."

If we truly believe in Jesus with all our heart, mind and soul, what's to stop us from doing the miracles that Jesus and His disciples did in the Bible days? All we need is a little bit of faith! Jesus said, if we have faith the size of a mustard seed, we can move mountains.

With true faith and obedience, we can carry on His mission until His glorious return. God wants us to go to Him with all our needs. Wouldn't we want the same from our children? We want them to come to us whenever they need something because they know they can trust us and they can depend on us, but most of all they know we love them.

Matthew 7:7-11 "Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you. For everyone who asks receives; he who seeks finds; and to him who knocks, the door will be opened. "Which of you, if his son asks for bread, will give him a stone? Or if he asks for a fish, will give him a snake? If you, then, though you are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father in heaven give good gifts to those who ask him!"'

Don't let the enemy, who comes in the form of many different things, deceive you into unbelief. Our afflictions in this world are for a short period. We need to look above and beyond our earthly circumstances. God says to store up our treasures in heaven. We only see the things of this world which are temporary, but the things which are not seen are eternal.

We need to build a strong and honest relationship with the Lord before it's too late. We cannot say "I'll start praying tomorrow" or "I'll give my life to Jesus when I get older." Today should be the day of our salvation because we don't know how long we have on this earth and tomorrow belongs to the Lord!

Matthew 25:13 "Therefore keep watch, because you do not know the day or the hour."

2 Corinthians 4:16-18 "...therefore we do not lose heart. Though outwardly we are wasting away, yet inwardly we are being renewed day by day. For momentary light troubles are achieving for us an eternal glory that far outweighs them all. So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen. For what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal."

Hebrews 13:5 "Keep your lives free from the love of money and be content with what you have, because God has said, "Never will I leave you; never will I forsake you."

God has not changed. God of the Bible is the same yesterday and today! We focus too much on earthly success and status and become arrogant or self-righteous. Our fame, financial security and material possessions give us false sense of security and we somehow forget about our Maker; the Creator of all good things.

When we pray and we don't hear from God, we give up too quick and turn to worldly sources for quick answers and we start losing our faith and give up on God althogether. Some turn to horoscopes, visit physics or get involved in witchcraft. The devil is not stupid! As a matter of fact, he knows very well who God is and that Jesus is the only way to God. He also knows about us to give just enough information to these entities so they can mislead us and destroy our faith.

These entities may give us instant answers to make us believe they know the future. Slowly, we start depending more and more on these sources and denounce our God. However, we need to remind ourselves that only God knows our future and only God should be our source. And in order to do that, we need to be praying constantly so we can strengthen our relationship with God. God's silence to our prayers does not mean He doesn't care or doesn't love us. Of course sometimes His delay could be because we are still sinning and we are not aligned with His will, but if that's not the case, then God is waiting for the 'perfect time' to answer our prayers because He loves us and knows what's best for us. God's timing never fails!

Deuteronomy 18:10-12 "Let no one be found among you who sacrifices his son or daughter in the fire, who practices divination or sorcery, interprets omens, engages in witchcraft, or casts spells, or who is a medium or spiritist or who consults the dead. Anyone who does these things is detestable to the LORD, and because of these detestable practices the LORD your God will drive out those nations before you."

Isaiah 45:6 "I am the Lord and there is no other".

We need to rely on God at all times. He is Jehovah Jireh; our Provider! Prayer refreshes, restores and energizes us. Prayer also keeps us in close relationship with God. Prayer gives us confidence to face anything that comes our way and it takes away our anxieties and fears.

Psalm 91:4 "He will cover you with his feathers, and under his wings you will find refuge; his faithfulness will be your shield and rampart."

If necessary, God will move heaven and earth to show us His will and He assumes full responsibility for our needs as long as we are obedient to Him. Here's a story about what God does when we pray:

It was a week before Christmas when I decided to drive to the mall during my lunch hour to buy a couple of presents. After I finished shopping and was trying to get out of the parking lot, I found myself stuck behind a line of non-moving cars. People were honking, gesturing obscenities with their hands and getting real impatient. We watched 3 green lights come and go and still not moving. It was obvious that there was either a car accident or some construction work ahead of us. Instead of getting frustrated, I decided to turn on a contemporary Christian radio station to listen to uplifting songs. I also mumbled a prayer "Please God, let me get to work safe and sound and don't let me be too late."

Finally at the 4th geen light, the cars started moving slowly at which time it had also started raining and traffic was turning to a big mess. I was trying to make a U-turn under a very busy overpass when my car started skidding. I got very scared and said a quick prayer "Jesus, please help me", then I let go of the steering wheel and took my foot off the brake. My car made 360 degree turn and stopped facing in the direction I wanted to go. I was very shaken and my heart was beating so fast that I thought I was going to pass out. I was wondering how much damage I had caused. However, when I looked around, I noticed I was the only car under there and had not hit anything. I was expecting the worst and here I was sitting in my car without a single scratch. It puzzled me as I thought "this is lunch time and this road gets very busy, how come there are no other cars here?" I looked around again just to make sure, but there were no damages.

On my way back to work is when it dawned on me that this was the hand of God. He knew what was ahead and He delayed my exit at the mall to create the perfect timing so no one would be under the overpass when my car started skidding. My little prayers made the difference! Heaven reacts when we pray! My God had turned what would have been an ugly, messy and even fatal situation to a minor incident. What a great God we serve! I took a moment to thank my God and give Him all the glory and honor. I had never been so scared, but my Father was right there with me protecting and watching over me. Some people may read this and say "it was just a coincidence", but I know better! I don't believe in coincidence - I believe in devine interventions!

Philippians 4:6 "Do not be anxious over anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication along with thanksgiving, let your petitions be made known to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus."

Isaiah 55:6-9 "Seek the LORD while he may be found; call on him while he is near. Let the wicked forsake his way and the evil man his thoughts. Let him turn to the LORD, and he will have mercy on him, and to our God, for he will freely pardon. "For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways," declares the LORD. "As the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts."

We need to pray constantly. No matter how busy we are, we need to make time to pray! God should be our #1 focus throughout the day! When we have a genuine relationship with the Lord, we will wake up thinking about Jesus and we will go to bed thinking about Jesus. And when we do that, we will experience the most restful and peaceful sleep we've ever had.

2 Chronicles 7:14 "If my people, who are called by my name, will humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then will I hear from heaven and will forgive their sin and will heal their land."

Jesus said "In this world you will have trouble, but take heart - I have overcome the world." Jesus has the Victory already! Therefore, until that glorious day of His second coming, we need to stand vigilant in the fight for Truth by being obedient to His Word and by praying constantly - not just praying for ourselves and our loved ones, but also for our country, government officials, our soldiers, neighbors, friends, co-workers and even our enemies! And when we pray and do it in Christ-like love, then God will do His part to bless us above and beyond our expectations!

God Bless,
Lucine