Ok, here we are with another post. This time though it didn’t take as long to write again. In the previous post I talked about God’s gifts being impenetrable. There is nothing greater than a gift from God. But, today I am going to cover more then one area.

One is not to be afraid of the gospel of Jesus Christ. People are using social media to talk about anything. Some of it is vulgar or even morally wrong and they don’t worry about offending anyone. Yet we as followers of Jesus are afraid to say things because we don’t want to hurt people.  So what happens next. They make fun of us, call us weak, and push us around. Well its time to stop this and turn it around. Remember that Jesus said that we will be persecuted for His Name sake. If its going to happen anyway, then lets give them a reason. Shout from the roof tops that Jesus is Lord and wants you.

Next is the fact that we need to know who our neighbor is. The great commandment is love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your mind, with all your soul and with all your strength. The second part is to Love your neighbor as yourself. So, who is my neighbor? Its everyone other than yourself. Yes its your real next door neighbor. But its also your family, parents, children and friends. When was the last time you considered your spouse as your neighbor? Take the time to truly love them as Christ loved the church. Do this and watch what changes God makes in their life and yours.

Now, how about the “golden rule?” Matt. 7:12 “do unto others as you would have them do unto you.” We  need to stop treating people like dirt if they disagree with us. We are really bad in this when we talk to other “Christians” who are of a different faith. As long as we have the same core beliefs, why can’t we agree to disagree and go on as one body? Or even when we see a “sinner” (lesbian, homosexual or maybe an atheist) and we quickly run in the other direction. They need to see Jesus and experience Him as much if not more than we do. But they won’t if we are not. Not reading the Bible. Not praying. Not walking as He did. And not spending time with Him ourselves.

It may be a lot to do all of this at once. So do only what you can at first. And I would start with the most important one first. That is your relationship with God. Once this one gets going good, then try another one. Here is a simple experiment. Go to a mirror, face it and close your eyes. Clear your mind. Then open them and what do you see? What is your first thought? What are our first impressions? Just be honest with yourself. If you don’t like what you see or don’t know what you see then you have a good starting point for prayer. If you really do like what you see, then ask God if this is what He wants people to see in yourself. So remember that its not done until its  over.

Be blessed, Ken

Hey everyone, how are we doing on our baggage claims? Have we asked God to reveal it so we can lay it down at his feet and leave it there. This study has had a revealing effect. The more I dig into it the more I need to lay down. You know when you start to do a study of God’s word He reveals stuff that has been hidden or that you may not have known was there. This is all good, because it causes you to draw closer to Him.  Which leads me to the next part of running the race. We will find in James 1:4 “Let perseverance finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything.” Lets look at perseverance or in other versions it may say endurance. When running this race its not a short dash to the finish line. This is a marathon. One that lasts the rest of our lives here on earth. So endurance is a priority.

You will notice that it mentions you being mature and complete not lacking anything. Another version says of it having its perfect result. A question we may ask is when do we get to this perfect result? The answer is when we are finished running the race. Have you ever watched a race where the runners were carrying baggage with them? Or maybe a marathoner bringing a stuffed backpack while running. Well then leave the baggage and endure the race.

Remember Jesus said He was the Bread of Life and the Living Water. He is all that we need. He sent out the disciples without supplies when He wanted them to minister to the people. And yet they endured for quite a long time. Also when we focus on the word endure it gives us the thought of doing something. Yes this is another part of the race. That is the part of being a doer of the word. We are to be doing His will. If we just listen it makes us no better then anyone else. The word also says that if know and don’t do it we are sinning. I don’t know about you, but I don’t like the thought of sinning.

Ever notice in the book of James in verse 5 it talks about wisdom. And if you ask for it He will give it to you. Wisdom will help you endure the race. Wisdom gives you the guidance to navigate the course. To follow God’s design for you. Ask and He will give it generously.

All 3 of these parts are essential to the race. They work together for the good  of him who is called by His name. Continue to take some time and work on  your relationship with God. Pray and read. These are very good ways to start. Until later, keep on walking.  Please share this posting so that others may be blessed. Thanks again for reading.

Be blessed, Ken

Hey all, how are you doing ? How are things going? In the last post I mentioned baggage. I hope you have found out what yours is and have let it go. Its a subject that I have thought about quite a bit lately. In my prayer time I have asked God to help me see mine and let it go. But during this last Sunday God was telling me some more. He was saying that social media and society tell us to hang on to our hurts. To remember those who have hurt us and not let go. So, my response was to say “why?” Why am I supposed to hang on to theses things?  What good does it do? Who is going to benefit from it? Well the answer is simple. Its the devil that benefits the most. Society will tell you that it empowers you. It gives you strength. It gives you purpose. Your character will be built up. Your focus will improve. All of this is nothing but a bunch of lies.

All of these “benefits” go totally against God and His word. James 4:4 tells us that being friends with the world is hostility  toward God. In Matt. 22:37- 40 we read Jesus’ answer to what is the greatest commandment. The second part of the answer tells us to LOVE your neighbor as yourself. For all the laws and prophets depend on these. How’s that for shredding their statements to pieces. Anyone who is a child of the living God Cannot do both. You either believe God and His word or you side with society and the Devil. Plain and simple. There is no in between. That is another lie of the Devil. God does not work in the so called “gray” area’s. Its either yes or no. Even in His word we hear about doing His good, pleasing or perfect will. Yet these are all still positive. We want to strive for the perfect will. Who wants to settle for the lesser? Yet we do all the time in our lives. We think that the perfect is unattainable, so we don’t even try. Thats about when the Devil says yeah your right don’t bother trying. Stop listening to him. He wants you to keep carrying that baggage with you.

I say this so that you don’t have to be over the head with the Holy Spirits 2×4. I have felt that way to many times in my life. My son said it must be made of Ash or really hard Hickory otherwise it would have been broken by now. Funny as it is, he is probably right. I am just saying let go of it and let God take care of it. Its His job and He wants to do it. He loves doing it for us. He’s just not going to do it unless we let Him.; The time is now to get on our knees and pray. Asking for forgiveness and to be cleansed from our iniquities. Now we are in a position to make change. Because at this point we need to continue on this path by submitting to God ourselves. Then watch the Devil run. For he sees that we are not alone. God is standing next to us. What a great place to be in.

All I am asking is that you take time in prayer very soon and ask God to show you your baggage. Being encouraged to leave it at the alter of His feet. Now the hard part is leaving it there. Don’t listen to the enemy of our souls. Submit to God and tell the Devil to leave. I pray for a total release of the Holy Spirit in your lives at this time. Being creates anew and without spot or blemish. Having the Light of God shining through ever so bright as you walk in His ways. Being a pathway for others to follow. That they may find Jesus and be saved. Amen.

Be blessed, Ken

Here we are enjoying a mild fall with temps about 15-20 degrees higher than normal and thinking about spending more time outside. This is interesting because God keeps talking about spending more time with Him. We can do both it just takes some adjusting our schedule. Like getting up earlier and reading the bible or spending it in prayer. And yet the bible tells us to be ever mindful. That means making a conscious effort to be with Him. Even while driving we can be praying and paying attention to what is going on around us. A good question becomes why is God seeking a greater amount of time with us. Its simple. Times are getting tougher on His children. The enemy of our souls is making a greater effort to stop the plans of God. The Devils time is running short and he wants to take out as many of God’s children as possible.

How is he doing it? By getting us to be complacent in our walk with God for one. By accepting worldly ways into the church for another. All of this leads to questions like “why don’t we see signs, miracles and wonders?” Actually we do. It’s that we aren’t looking hard enough or even in the right places. we don’t pay attention unless its big, elaborate, or loud. We want an entertainment value added to keep our interest. And don’t forget that we want to be done in an hour or so. There is no reason for a service to last over an hour.  Really, what have we become? As much as its about us, its even more about our Lord and Savior. He is the reason we live. He is the reason we have life He is our everything. Without Him we are not.

So, when the enemy attacks us we are not ready for it. We don’t know what to do. Scripture verses start to come mind like “resist the devil and he shall flee?” Why will he flee. He has nothing to be afraid of. But, when we look at the first part of that verse we see “submit yourselves therefore to God.” And that is the problem. Submitting is hard to do. We just get in the way of ourselves. Pride and arrogance come to the fore front. ” I don’t submit to anyone.” Or “I’m a Christian and the Devil has to leave me alone.” Well guess what, he doesn’t have to leave you alone and because you won’t submit and be obedient to God he is going after you with all he has. Which brings us back to the beginning of this post . Talking about spending more time with God. He is the answer for this time. No other can help us as He can. So, get off your hand made throne and get to your knees. Start a conversation with God and see what He is willing to do for you. For in Malachi ch.3 God says” return to me and I will return to you.” We need to make the first move. To get out of our own way and just say yes. Its not as hard as it seems. Then afterward you will feel better than before. Closer than before. Better prepared than before. And you just might be helping someone else at the same time.

Be blessed, Ken

Dear friends, here is another post based off of thoughts and observations. The other day I was going for a walk with my beautiful bride of 30 years down at the lake. That is Lake Michigan. The waters were a little rough that night. The waves were splashing up against the rocks ( see photo’s).

As I was watching this a thought came to my mind. It was about the Holy Spirit. How it comes upon us as we encounter God. The last photo shows it covering the rocks. Completely encasing the rock with its presence. But as we seek more and a closer walk it can splash against us a bit higher. As in the second photo where it splashes upward reaching a new level. Then as we continue to press in it can come upon us to an even greater level. Covering us more than before. Like the third photo where the water goes to an even greater length to cover the rock. So I ask this question, are we pressing in to the point of where the Holy Spirit can come in and cover us completely like these waves?

Just to let you know that when the Holy Spirit comes this way it has an overwhelming effect on us. It can leave us in a place of feeling drunk. Often explained as “drunk in the Spirit.” This is a place where many Christians like to get to. At this point I recommend that a person stay there and receive all that God has for you at that moment. This moment is a time of equipping, retooling, preparation and positioning. He brings you to this place for more than a good feeling. He is preparing you for more and greater works. Works that He has planned for us in advance. For the purpose of reaching the lost and guiding them to the door of salvation. For the purpose of building up the Body of which we belong to with Jesus as the head.

These pictures of water also remind me of a couple of scriptures pertaining to water. One is found in Rev.22:1-2 where it describes the river flowing down the middle of the street of the great city. How important is it when God gives this prophecy to John that He includes this vision? We need this water that flows from His throne. Which brings me to Eze.47:1-12 and the river that flows from His throne out from the temple. This river that brings life and pushes out sin (salt). The trees here bear there fruit all the time and their leaves are used for healing. If we are at this river drinking in the water that flows from the throne, we are partaking in life and life more abundant. We will also be pleasing to the eye. To the eye of God and others in search of Him who brings life.

So when the opportunity to spend this kind of time in His presence let the water of the Holy Spirit overwhelm you. Receive all that He has for you and be fully equipped for the task at hand. He is preparing His Bride. Don’t be afraid of the task because you don’t do it alone. He is with you every step of the way.

Thanks for reading these postings. Pray for me and this site of encouragement. Time is coming for me to pay for the up keep of this site.  I do enjoy sharing here what I receive from Him. For our Lord and Savior has put it upon me to build and edify His Body. So as I pray for direction, please do the same for me and for yourself.

Be blessed, Ken