reflections for Friday 18 April 2oo8

Forgiven!>>>more
devotion from rbc ministries

This one word is so hard to do at time and so hard to believe at times and I guess it's according which side of the word you are on. Sometimes we hold people hostage with this word, sometimes we have so much guilt that we can't believe we are set free when someone says, "I forgive you." I have been on both sides of that word and to be honest neither side feels good. I have hurt, I have been hurt, I have carried the guilt of the hurt I have afflicted on someone and sometimes it's hard to let go of it.

But then I always remember what Dr. David Jeremiah says whenever I know I have went to God and asked for forgiveness but I still carry the "weight" of it. Whenever I get into one of those, "I know God is forgiven me but I just can't forgive myself" David Jeremiah's comment, "If your Heavenly Father has forgiven you and forgot it what gives you the right not to let it go...are you God?" and that shuts me down and makes me let it go. One thing my queen always says, "It's okay to be convicted but not condemned" because Christ Jesus has already paid that huge price for me. Knowing this in my heart I have no right and no reason to carry that burden with me because His blood has insured me that I can never be taken out of the loving arms of God.

Now, as I have always made it clear...does this mean I do not pay a consequence for my decision? Yes I have to because God is not a genie in a bottle, whenever I get myself in a mess I can just "wish" myself out of that situation. Adam and Eve paid for their decision, Abraham, Sarah, Moses, King David, King Solomon, Peter, Paul...I can go on and on because in the end God forgave them for their sins but God could not violate his own laws and principles. For me, the more I realize this the more I try and not make decisions that I know will hurt not only myself but my family in the end.

The wonderful love of God lets me know that when I come to him with a open heart, pride set aside, and ask for true forgiveness, He gives it to me and will forget it. I may have to still deal with the consequences but I would rather receive his chastisement than His wrath. In the end I try and be a wise man instead of a clever man because the older I become, I don't have time to keep coming up with ways to get out of situations and you realize day in and day out, time is too precious to waste.

Be Blessed, Be Safe,
& Have a Wonderful Friday/Weekend

"For every thing that lives is holy, life delights in life."
~William Blake(1757-1827), America: A Prophecy

great audio message for Friday...
The Struggle With Unforgiveness
Dr. Charles Stanley-In Touch Ministries

reflections for Monday o4.14.o8

When In Doubt--->more
devotion from rbc ministries

One of the most cool things about being a follower of Christ is that my Heavenly Father covers all questions of life for me...even when I doubt. Yes, I said the "D" word.

This devotion is a great one and I will keep a couple of this in my wallet along side the bible passage as well. We as Christians have doubts from time to time and again God knows because he created us. No, not to doubt Him and to be honest we would not have doubt but we live in a fallen world so we at one time was separated from God but through the blood of his Son we have that connection again, but again we still have human emotions, love, hate, sorrow, sadness, anger, doubt.

What this devotion is saying to me is that when we are by ourselves sometimes, when we are going through something that is so heavy on our heart we tend to ask God, "Where are you? Is this pain worth me going through? What's the deal?" and it's okay to have questions like that for our Heavenly Father because one of the most import things is that He wants that closeness with His children. He wants us to know that He is there for us every step of the way and that He ALWAYS sees the end results of what we are encountering certain situations.

Now this is not to say that God puts us in harms way for His amusement because He is not like that at all. There are things we go through to make us stronger and if we were truly honest with ourselves most times we go through certain "valleys" in our lives because of the choices we have made and not being obedient to God's word. I said "most" not all. What about those who have been raped, molested? I would never say God planned something like that because again God does not plan evil for our lives and He does not tempt us "just because." I can say this for myself...

Being a child of molestation and ridicule growing up because of my stuttering it has made me the man that I am. I try to be a man that is more compassionate when it comes to children that are talked to harshly. There is a difference between "disciplined" and just plain meanness toward a child. When our grandchildren are over I make sure they are a gift from God, they are blessed with certain talents, gifts to make this world a better place. I make sure that they check out their surroundings, be very observant, and try to instill in them that "words" do matter and that life is precious because if you teach them to love and respect themselves they will see others in the same light.

My pain has also taught me that when I come across someone that has difficult with their speech to have patience, compassion for them because I know how hard it is when you want to say something and the words cannot come out fast enough or you stumble and stuttered. It's makes life unbearable at times and you dread to have someone call on you to speak or to read out loud. I am so thankful that God has taught me how to deal with stuttering and how to put myself in their shoes when it comes to speech because some people will stutter and stammer over their words for the rest of their lives. Coming up with those two blows against me you know I cried out to God "why me?" How could he allow someone to violate me that way and how could he allow me not be able to speak like other children? You talk about doubt, it was there in Spades.

But I am older, and I am wiser and I realize God did not allow me to get molested because that was his plan...that evil act was done by that person because of their own free will and I know in the end God will deal with that person in His own way , His own time. God did not want me to be laughed at when it came to my speech because like I said earlier, when Adam and Eve allowed Satan to become the ruler of this world imperfect crept into this world: disease, evil thoughts, evil acts, jealousy, murder, greed and so forth. My stuttering allowed me to fight for me find a way to overcome it and to be able share with the world that it can be teach you that words are truly important and that in a weird way to let you know, "yes, words do matter.

When doubting God it does not make you less of a follower of Christ, but a better Christian because it will draw you closer to Him and you will want a closer relationship with your Heavenly Father and in return you will become a brighter light for Him in the end. So ask away..He's always willing to listen and help you through your rough patches in life.

Be Blessed, Be Safe,
& Have a Wonderful Monday

great messages for today:
Never Try to Catch a Falling Knife{Part I}{Part II}
A New Beginning-Greg Laurie

Thru the Bible Questions & Answers-o4.12.o8
Thru the Bible-Dr. J.Vernon McGee

"the fountain of content must spring up in the mind, and he who hath so little knowledge of human nature as to seek happiness by changing anything but his own disposition, will waste his life in the fruitless efforts and multiply the grief he proposes to remove."

~Samuel Johnson(1709-1784)
The Rambler

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