Is Your Devotion All Emotion

I used to attend a church in New York city. We would have these long services, four and five hours.The people would jump up and down, some would speak in tongues, other would purge, while other would cry out to the Lord. I would often watch all of this and just wonder. Some of the people that were doing all of this were friends of mine. But, as I watch I was confused because these were the friends that would drink the alcohol,smoke the marijuana,have sex and were not married. When the day came for me to be baptized I ran. I literally ran out of the house. You may ask why did I run. The thought of being part of this frightened me. It gave me this ere feeling inside. I felt that something wasn't right and fatally wrong here. This artist expresses the very thing that I could put my finger on at the time. Please listen with you heart.

HE (GOD) HAS NOT FORGOTTEN YOU

It doesn't matter what we are going through in life because there is someone who cares. He knows our pain, our sorrow and concerns. He know what causes depression and the weight that seems almost impossible to bare. But, he has not forgotten us, although it may seems that way at times. How could he forget us when we are fearfully and wonderfully made. We were made by him in His image. He has not forgotten us for we have the very stamp of his image on us. God want you to see that he has not forgotten about you. This video says it all.

HIS STORY AND HISTORY

Perhaps, You have wondered is the story of Jesus truth or just a fairytale. We must read the Holy Bible and examine world history for ourselves. If the pieces to the puzzle fit then we have a picture. A picture is worth a thousand words. My dear friends what does the picture tell you? What are you going to do about the picture? Will you tear up the picture? Will you burn the picture from the walls of your mind or will you tell others that it is time to stand? Which side will you stand on? Will you be on His side in HIS STORY with HIS people for eternity? What would be your answer if you had to answer at this moment? It's time to decide, now! Why? because HIS STORY will live forever and you can be a part of it. But, HISTORY as we know it will one day soon come to an abrupt end. Watch the first 6 videos then prayerfully decide.

No Need To Fear, God Got This!

In life we have our up and downs. At times it seems like we have more downs than ups. But, I say my friends no need to fear. Do you remember the very real story of David and Goliath? This story can be found in 1 Samuel Chapter 17. Goliath held the a whole nation of Israel hostage for 40 days due to his challenge. You see Goliath was a soldier from the Philistine army. He was no ordinary soldier. He was a champion. He was the best. Goliath was also a giant. Some say that he was 9 feet and others say that he was taller. It was evident that Goliath was a large in statue because when the Israelites look upon him they became afraid and ran. What is so strange about this story is that this giant of a man also wore a special armor. In those days all the soldier wore armor. But, his armor was unique.It appeared that his armor could not be penetrated. It protected him from defeat. I'm sure all of Israel look at him and his armor and wondered how could we defeat this man? They were fill with doom and gloom. They could see that it was possible and they lost hope.

So, the men of Israel who were suppose to be representing the God of the Universe were afraid. All most all of the men of war seem to had forgotten what God had done for them in the past. But, not a little shepard boy named David. David was not afraid. He said to King Saul,"Your servant has been keeping his father's sheep. When a lion or a bear came and carried off a sheep from the flock, I went after it, struck it and rescued the sheep from its mouth. When it turned on me, I seized it by its hair, struck it and killed it. Your servant has killed both the lion and the bear; this uncircumcised Philistine will be like one of them, because he has defied the armies of the living God. The LORD who delivered me from the paw of the lion and the paw of the bear will deliver me from the hand of this Philistine".


David has several things going for him. He didn't forget how God had led him in the past. He was also used to fighting giants in the power of God. He also had a relationship with God. David would talk to God like we talk to friends each day. David had learned ti trust God and depend on His wisdom. David had faith God would help Israel to be victorious. The King of Israel and the army of God seem to had lost faith. This was evident with King Saul who said to David go ahead and fight Goliath. He even told him to use his armor. Have you ever really thought about what the King did? He told a little shepard boy to go and fight a giant. The agreement was that the loser would have to be a slave to the winner.That meant that one nation would have to be the slave to the other. The King entrusted a little boy with the freedom of the nation.




So, as the story goes David goes out to meet the giant against his brother's wishes. David has no armor. He's a boy and not a man. He is just equipped with a sling and a few small stone. The giant Goliath sees him coming. He can't believe his eyes. Perhaps he thought that Israel was trying to get him to surrender. How would it look if he beat up on a little boy. Goliath was furious. In 1 Samuel 17:43 Goliath says," am I a dog, that thou comest against to me with staves. A staves is a rod or stick. Note, David has no sword, no javelin, no shield, and no armor. Is he calling David a stick? We may never know, but it kind of sounds like it. It's just David, God, a sling and a few smooth stones. Goliath curses David out. David tells Goliath that he has come to him in the name of the Lord. Then he shockingly says,"I will smite thee and take thy head off" (1Samuel 17:46). My friends David did just that. David put one smooth stone in his sling and as the confident cocky giant who had his helmet lifted came toward David and was struck by the stone in the forehead and it killed him. David later beheaded him.The giant defied God and the armies of God. He didn't realize who he was messing with. He also didn't realize that his armor was his only protection.

1.My friends if you're on God side the giants in your life (the bills, the debts, the court case, the bully, the sluggish economy, etc) can and will come tumbling down. We serve a God who slays giants.

2.It doesn't matter what your size,shape,age or who you are God can give your the knowledge and the power.

3. My friends David by God power David prevented a nation from becoming slaves. He can give you the same power to do the same in any nation as well.

4. God has a miraculous work for you to do. Don't be afraid of the giants. He will give you the victory over them. "Walk by faith not by sight".

5. If you don't have a relationship with God start one today. It is better late than never. It is simply done just talk to God like you are talking to a friend and trust in him.Trust in His Holy Word the Bible. The enemy of our soul Satan is a giant that come at us daily through individuals, but He doesn't really know who he is messing with. He is messing with God's child. God will to turn your despair into hope and your darkness into sunshine. No need to fear my friend, God's got this!

Tht Benefits of Christianity - The Second Commandment-Part 2

In the 2nd Commandment the obvious blessing is mercy. God promises," mercy unto thousands of them that love me, and keep my commandments". In other words God is saying I will not give you what you deserve. It will be like when we go before the courts when guilty of a crime. We will get imprisonment instead of the death penalty. Perhaps, probation instead of a prison term. That is indeed a blessing.

The Benefits of Christianity-The 2nd Commandment

The question is often asked why should I keep the Ten Commandments? What benefit will I get out of it? Can't I just live my life and experience true happiness without keeping the Ten Commandments? Well, that is a good question. Let's take a look at one of the commandment, the 2nd commandment. It says that,"thou shalt not make unto thee any graven image, or any likeness of anything that is in heaven above, or that is in the earth beneath, or that is in the water under the earth".

"Thou shalt not bow down thyself to them, nor serve them: for I the LORD thy God am a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children unto the third and fourth generation of them that hate me";And shewing mercy unto thousands of them that love me, and keep my commandments".

First, we are told not to make any graven image. A graven image is an image that had been made through engraving, etching or something that had been sculpted (cut). The 2nd Commandments not only says don't make any graven image, but it also says don't make any likeness of anything that is in heaven above, or that is in the earth beneath, or that is in the water under the earth". What is in the heaven above? In literal heaven there are angels. In heaven(sky)flying creatures and light sources? What is in the earth beneath? There is so much in the earth beneath, but I will try to make it short. In the book of Genesis in the Bible it gives us an idea of what was put on the earth during creation week. There was grass, flowers, trees, creeping things, animals, man, woman, etc. In the water there were swimming creatures such as whales, dolphins, and all other types of sea creatures. The 2nd Commandment emphasis is on worship. It say don't bow down to them. What it is really saying is that an image should not be made of them and worshipped.


The question then is what is wrong with worshipping an image? This is what God has to say,"Thou shalt not bow down thyself to them, nor serve them: for I the LORD thy God am a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children unto the third and fourth generation of them that hate me";And shewing mercy unto thousands of them that love me, and keep my commandments". In other words God is offended by this. These things are not worthy of worship. These things once made in an image do not represent him (God). These are things that he created. They should never be put before him. That was not His purpose for creating them. The Bible calls this idol worship. These images represent God's enemy, Satan. This is why God is offended. So, then how do we worship a God who we can not see? "But the hour cometh, and now is, when the true worshippers shall worship the Father in spirit and in truth: for the Father seeketh such to worship him. God is a spirit: and they that worship him must worship him in spirit and in truth." (John 4:23-24)Jesus the Son of God said this.

Today these images are called by other names like statues, monuments, or historical pieces. Some of these images resemble saints, men, women, angels, animals,etc. But, God said regardless who they may resembles or what they may resemble don't bow down to them. In Bible times many worshipped images and it displeased God. The Philistines worshipped Dagon the fish god (1 Sam 5:1-7). Diana also called Artemis, she was the goddess of the moon.

Jesus says," But seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you (Mt6:33). Ask, and it shall be given you; seek, and ye shall find; knock, and it shall be opened unto you (Mt 7:7). The benefit of keeping this Commandment and the other nine is having the God of the Universe smiling on us. Another benefit is having the power of getting what we need when we need it, just by simply asking for it. God wants us to have a relationship with him. He came to seek and save the lost. It is sad to say that those that worship images, pictures, people,etc can't be blessed by that which they worship. True happiness comes from God and God alone. God says it is better to obey than to sacrifice.Let's give God a chance to help us experience the benefits today.

It's Time To Pray For President Obama

It was just a few months ago when Senator Obama was elected as President of the United States. Just a few days ago he was inaugurated as the 44th President of the United States of America. Now that he is President of the United States what should the Christians who didn't vote for him do? Many have said that they feared for his life. This was just one of the reason why some decided not to vote for him. Some may feel that they shouldn't support him because of their own personal reason. As a Christian there is really no option here. President Obama is now Commander and chief in America, but there is the Commander and Chief in Heaven demanding something from his children.


He says in His word," Let every soul be subject unto the higher powers."For there is no power but of God: the powers that be are ordained of God". Whosoever therefore resisteth the power, resisteth the ordinance of God: and they that resist shall receive to themselves damnation"."For rulers are not a terror to good works, but to the evil. Wilt thou then not be afraid of the power? do that which is good, and thou shalt have praise of the same:

"For he is the minister of God to thee for good. But if thou do that which is evil, be afraid; for he beareth not the sword in vain: for he is the minister of God, a revenger to execute wrath upon him that doeth evil". "Wherefore ye must needs be subject, not only for wrath, but also for conscience sake"."For for this cause pay ye tribute also: for they are God's ministers, attending continually upon this very thing". "Render therefore to all their dues: tribute to whom tribute is due; custom to whom custom; fear to whom fear; honour to whom honour". "Owe no man any thing, but to love one another: for he that loveth another hath fulfilled the law." Romans 13:1-8.


It is a mandate that all Christians support, show love and respect for the President of any country. This support, love and support should be showed toward the 44th President of the United States of America Barack Obama. He needs our prays. Besides, the God of the Universe demands this, he is in control. We must do our part. If we decide as Christians to do otherwise God says this,"For rulers are not a terror to good works, but to the evil. Wilt thou then not be afraid of the power? do that which is good, and thou shalt have praise of the same". "For he is the minister of God to thee for good. But if thou do that which is evil, be afraid; for he beareth not the sword in vain: for he is the minister of God, a revenger to execute wrath upon him that doeth evil".(Romans 13:3,4). God says,"but if thou do that which is evil be afraid". God is not slack concerning his promises. He will do as he says. Christians put your differences aside and obey your God.