North Korea Persecution of Christians

During prayer request time at church this morning, someone made a request for the communist country of North Korea. She related the story of how a Christian woman who was brutalized had made it to safety and then wanted to return to N. Korea with the good news of Jesus. I have read and heard that followers of Jesus face a tremendous amount of persecution because of their faith. Believers in the Western World need to lift them up in prayer. May we thank God for our freedom and prosperity and ask for His blessing on our brothers and sisters in North Korea.North Korea Christians

Gracious Uncertainty

Gracious Uncertainty

I LOVE THIS DEVOTION BY Oswald Chambers, be sure gk click on the link and read today's devotion from My Utmost for His Highest. Today's devotion talks about the uncertainties of the Christian life and the certainty of God. One thing is certain, we can depend upon God to be with us in life's uncertainties. Have a great day, God bless, and give God the praise.

Vampires of My Youth

Outside my darkened windowpane, lurking in the shadows, biding their time. Waiting for sleep to overcome my weary eyes, so they can creep their way inside. Perhaps it is my friend we buried upon the cemetery hill or maybe some unknown, undead soul raised to drink its fill. Its fill of the life that courses through my veins, that warm rich solution through which I am sustained. So I dare not sleep, nor close my eyes till the blessed rising of the sun. For we all well know that the blood sucking hounds of hell, the sunlight well do shun. When daybreak comes I shall at last, close my eyes and rest in peace. Until the darkness falls again and the cursed beings I fear are on the world released. On the other hand. How the daylight changes ones perspective. After a sleepless night, hoping against all odds that my nightmare did not become real. Late in the day, I took to some familiar woods, some game hoping to kill. No fear in those woods, only me and my shotgun and the querry I pursued. The fears of the night before were shoved in the back of my mind, from conscious thought removed. Lost in my quest, in my familiar woods I did not notice the shadows beginning to lengthen. But as dusk fell on the forest trees I soon realized what a mess that I was in. In the woods at sundown, away from any safety. Surely those whom I fear, in these woods would at last find me. So I crashed through the trees, heart beating fast down the woodland path that led to my sanctuary. Hoping to make it home before the sun went down and those whom I fear awoke to fall upon me.

What Do You Want?

What Do You Want?
It us real easy to want things from God or want Him to use His miraculous powers to work miracles or orchestrate our circumstances to our likingm. There is nothing wring with seeking God for our needs and depending upon Him to work out the details of our lives or to seek His blessings, in fact I think we ought to do that. But may we realize that the greatest, most important, most precious thing we can seek from God is to know Him bettter. The great blessing of God is not the things He gives us but God Himself is the great blessing! I like how Rich Mullins put if "Our God is an awesome God " or how an old hymn writer put it "How Great Thou Art"

Nothing wrong with asking for daily bread but do not forget to seek the "Living Bread " which is Jesus. With Jesus, the. Living Bread our soul can have a continual feast.

Joy in the Lord

I usually do not divulge too much of my personal life in my blog posts, but tonight I must post about the joy I feel. It is a joy that I have not experienced in a long while, a joy that thrills and scares me at the same time. It thrills because it is a joy that I feel comes from fellowship with Jesus, not that I have done anything meritorious of His fellowship, just been reminded of His amazing grace by the Memoirs of Brennen Manning. It scares me because sometimes when things are going good and you have mountaintop experiences you can have a fear that the rug is fixing to be pulled out from under your feet or that all hell is fixing to break loose. However, that is an unfounded fear that I am not going to let rob me of the joy and peace I have in Jesus.

I am reminded of the writings of the Apostle Paul towards the end of the 8th chapter of Romans:
³¹What shall we then say to these things? If God be for us, who can be against us?
³²He that spared not his own Son, but delivered him up for us all, how shall he not with him also freely give us all things?
³³Who shall lay any thing to the charge of God's elect? It is God that justifieth.
³⁴Who is he that condemneth? It is Christ that died, yea rather, that is risen again, who is even at the right hand of God, who also maketh intercession for us.
³⁵Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or sword?
³⁶As it is written, For thy sake we are killed all the day long; we are accounted as sheep for the slaughter.
³⁷Nay, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him that loved us.
³⁸For I am persuaded, that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor powers, nor things present, nor things to come,
³⁹Nor height, nor depth, nor any other creature, shall be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.

Oh soul why worry, be happy and enjoy the joy that He has given you today.
For in Him you have been given sweet fellowship that will never pass away.
Trust in Jesus and don't you concern yourself for what the future may hold.
 But embrace it fiercely with a steadfast hope and do not fear but be thou bold.
For He has made a promise to you and me, a promise that the winds of time cannot erase
.Lo I  will be with you always, even to the end of the age.

Got to Get Going

Ouch, another sunrise, just want to close my eyes and cower inside
Hide inside myself, put life on the shelf, take a break from this crazy ride
Aches and pain wrack this earthen frame that carries my tired and lonesome soul
But life cries out to me, will not let me be, tells me that the show must go on.

Can a Saint Falsely Accuse God?

Can a Saint
Falsely Accuse God?
God has given us His Holy Spirit, may we say with the Apostle Paul, " I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me. As Christians we have been given so much, yet act like we have so little. Let us look to the hills of of Heaven, to the habitation of God and realize that our God is an awesome God who lives inside the heart of every child of God. May we realize that the same Spirit that worked through Jesus Christ and raised Him from the dead in dwelling inside of us as Christians. Praise God today for His awesome power and the incredible gift of His Holy Spirit.