Category Archives: Posts

Posted on

THE FATHER HIMSELF LOVES YOU!

Ask!


In John 16, Jesus told his followers not to ask him, but rather ask the Father in his name, because, he said, “the Father Himself loves you.” He told them the reason the Father loved them was because, “you have loved me, and have believed that I came out from God.”

Ask Him, because the Father Himself loves you!

Oh God, great Creator, my Father, You are in heaven! Holy, holy is Your name!

Your will and Your purposes are priority on Earth as they are in heaven; may Your will be done!

Please be kind and gracious and merciful to me regarding my requests.

Thank You for life.
Thank You for eternal life.
Thank You for forgiveness.

Oh God, my Father, You are able to do exceeding abundantly above all I ask or think.

My God, You shall supply all I need according to Your riches in glory by Christ Jesus.

My God, You are able to make all grace abound toward me, so that I will always have all sufficiency in all things, so that I can abound to every good work.

As the heavens are higher than the earth, so are Your ways higher than my ways and Your thoughts than my thoughts.

Teach me oh God, lead me, and guide me.

I deserve nothing. I can earn nothing. But by prayer and supplication, thanking You, oh Father, I am letting You know my requests, in Jesus Christ’s name.

Your ears are open unto my prayers, therefore I am casting all my cares upon You because You care for me.

I am coming to speak freely and openly at Your throne room of Grace.

God loves me. God is willing. God is able.

Isaiah 41:10 and 13
Fear thou not; for I am with thee: be not dismayed; for I am thy God: I will strengthen thee; yea, I will help thee; yea, I will uphold thee with the right hand of my righteousness.

For I the LORD thy God will hold thy right hand, saying unto thee, Fear not; I will help thee.

Ask Him, because the Father Himself loves you!

Posted on

THE DELIVERING POWER OF GOD

God Has Solutions Even In Complex Situations


Recently when my wife suddenly became ill, I said to someone, “Complex situations are irrelevant when it comes to the delivering power of God.” And I do very much believe that to be true.

There are many examples of the delivering power of God in all sorts of situations recorded in the Bible. Perhaps one of the most familiar is the parting of the Red Sea for the children of Israel. The situation was indeed complex, hopeless to say the least, and apparently, there was no solution.

But the delivering power of God intervened in a most dramatic way. The waters parted and they walked across on dry ground. Can you imagine? Dry ground?

Not just once…

Posted on

IT’S NOT MY CHRISTIAN DUTY

Why Do You Do What You Do?


I don’t like the phrase, “my Christian duty.” It sounds very mandatory and obligatory. I don’t do things because its “my Christian duty,” nor do I encourage others to do things out of “Christian duty.”

In third grade my friend Dallas was waiting for me to walk to school. When I finally walked out of my house, I told him I was sorry for being late but that my mother had me go back and brush my teeth. I asked him if his mother makes him brush his teeth. He answered, “No, I brush them so I don’t get cavities.”

I hadn’t actually considered that reason to brush my teeth. I’m sure my mom probably told me. Yet, at that moment, it really struck me. From that day forward my motivation for brushing teeth changed.

The word “duty” is defined as a moral or legal obligation, a task or action that someone is required to perform. When it comes to living our lives as Christians, according to what the Bible teaches, do we do and say those things because it is our Christian duty? Because we have to? Because we are supposed to? I don’t.

Two Reasons

Posted on

WE NEED GOD

Many things can and are being said about what has been happening in and to our country for a long time.. Solutions and blame abound. This song addresses a very deep, spiritual message.

Check out my YouTube Channel; over a hundred (most under 2 minutes) inspiring and encouraging videos for practical Christian living. “Like” them! Subscribe! Share! Thank you!

If you’d like a signed copy of my new book, “What Does It Mean? Click Here

Posted on

YOUR FUTURE IS NOT DEPENDENT UPON YOUR PAST

Putting Your Past Behind You

A couple of weeks ago I was speaking at The Phoenix Rescue Mission.  I teach there several times a year. My topic that night was, Overcoming Challenges and Setbacks.

I spent some time on how to get rid of defeating thoughts of the past.  Thoughts of past failures; condemnation, sin consciousness, guilt, unworthiness; those are some of the most crippling and defeating thoughts we can think.

Below is an article I posted three years ago, titled, What’s in Your Past?   It starts with a man who had an extremely ugly past, and yet, he overcame it.  So can you!

WHAT’S IN YOUR PAST?
What would you call an extremely religious man so committed to his beliefs that he goes about seeking to find and murder those who do not hold the same beliefs? A fanatical terrorist? It sounds a lot like the kind of things we hear going on today, but I’m actually talking about someone who lived quite some time ago.

I’m talking about a man whose mission in life

Posted on

INDEPENDENCE DAY 2019

Some History


Here in the United States, we once again remember and celebrate our Independence Day. Below is some interesting history of how our country’s Constitution came about. Sadly, many of these important details are no longer taught in schools. Since every elected official swears to support and defend the Constitution, I thought a little history might be refreshing.

Did you know….
“The Constitution of the United States might never have been ratified if the framers hadn’t promised to add a Bill of Rights. The first ten amendments to the Constitution gave citizens more confidence in the new government and contain many of today’s Americans most valued freedoms.” (article)

“The Declaration of Independence was signed in 1776. The Articles of Confederation and Perpetual Union was an agreement among the 13 original states of the United States of America that served as its first constitution. It was approved, after much debate (between July 1776 and November 1777), by the Second Continental Congress on November 15, 1777, and sent to the states for ratification. The Articles of Confederation came into force on March 1, 1781, after being ratified by all 13 states. A guiding principle of the Articles was to preserve the independence and sovereignty of the states.”

12 years after the signing of the Declaration of Independence, a Grand Convention of state delegates gathered to work on revising the Articles of Confederation.

From another article from archives.gov:
“The Constitutional Convention assembled in Philadelphia in May of 1787. The delegates shuttered the windows of the State House and swore secrecy so they could speak freely. Although they had gathered to revise the Articles of Confederation, by mid-June they had decided to completely redesign the government. There was little agreement about what form it would take.

One of the fiercest arguments was over congressional representation—should it be based on population or divided equally among the states? The framers compromised by giving each state one representative for every 40,000 people in the House of Representatives and two representatives in the Senate. They agreed to count enslaved Africans as three-fifths of a person. Slavery itself was a thorny question that threatened to derail the Union. It was temporarily resolved when the delegates agreed that the slave trade could continue until 1808.

Writing the Constitution

After three hot summer months of equally heated debate, the delegates appointed a Committee of Detail to put its decisions in writing. Near the end of the convention, a Committee of Style and Arrangement kneaded it into its final form, condensing 23 articles into seven in less than four days.
On September 17, 1787, 38 delegates signed the Constitution. George Reed signed for John Dickinson of Delaware, who was absent, bringing the total number of signatures to 39. It was an extraordinary achievement. Tasked with revising the existing government, the delegates came up with a completely new one. Wary about centralized power and loyal to their states, they created a powerful central government. Representing wildly different interests and views, they crafted compromises. It stands today as one of the longest-lived and most emulated constitutions in the world.”

If you haven’t read The Bill of Rights lately, check out last year’s Independence Day post.
If you haven’t read The Declaration of Independence lately, see it here.

The elected representatives of The United States of America, those who swore to support and defend the Constitution, need our prayers!

________________________

Check out my YouTube Channel; over a hundred (most under 2 minutes) inspiring and encouraging videos for practical Christian living. “Like” them! Subscribe! Share! Thank you!

If you’d like a signed copy of my new book, “What Does It Mean? Click Here

Posted on

FATHER’S DAY 2019

 

Happy Father’s Day, Dads!

For Father’s Day this year, I recommend some past posts from this blog:

This one has some great quotes –  Father’s Day.

Do take a few minutes to watch these two very cool Andy Andrews videos, from, Father’s Day 2012

And finally, a number of years ago I recorded an interesting and perhaps insightful podcast, titled, Who’s Your Daddy, and What Does He Do? (In the gospel of John there’s a pretty intense discussion about, “Who’s your daddy,” between Jesus Christ and the religious leaders!)

Happy Father’s Day Weekend to all you Dad’s!

If you’d like a signed copy of my new book, “What Does It Mean?  Click Here

Check out my YouTube channel;  over a hundred (most under 2 minutes) inspiring and encouraging videos for practical Christian living.  “Like” them!   Subscribe!   Share!  Thank you!

Posted on

WHAT IS PENTECOST?

The Events In Acts 2 Are Monumental!

On Sunday, June 9, many Christians will celebrate Pentecost, remembering the events recorded in Chapter 2 of the book of Acts.  But what is it really all about?

Some Christians do not see the great significance of Pentecost. In fact, it’s hard to find it included on a printed calendar.  And yet,  just 8 days before it happened,  Jesus specifically spoke about about it right before he ascended.

Below is an article I posted last year and in 2017, entitled, “What Is Pentecost All About.” This article gives great insight about that momentous event in Acts 2. Perhaps after reading it you might consider that Pentecost is a really big deal!

What Is Pentecost All About?

There are a number of popular celebrations on the Church calendar. The biggest and most popular of course, is Christmas. People understand they are celebrating the birth of Christ. This Sunday, June 4th, is Pentecost, but many wonder what it’s really all about.

When it comes to Pentecost, what exactly are we remembering?  We hear it’s all about commemorating the descent of the holy spirit upon the Apostles. That event, along with details of what followed is recorded in Acts Chapter 2.

But was that original Day of Pentecost of even greater importance and significance than the birth of Christ? Is it possible it was the greatest event to date in the history of mankind? What’s the real significance

Posted on

MOTHER’S DAY 2019

Moms are more than special

rose - 1Happy Mother’s Day to all Moms!

My mother fell and broke her leg getting off a bus one month before I was due. The bus driver just drove away, and she lay on the sidewalk for half an hour before some kind soul rendered help.

In the hospital, they told her they could not hear the baby’s heartbeat. They informed her as a result of the fall, she was going to lose the child.  But, before they began the procedure, a heartbeat was heard (my heartbeat!), and my mother was told all was well! She spent the next month, in the hospital, with a cast on her leg. She endured all that before I even arrived! Thanks, Mom!

 I’m posting the following for Mother’s Day, because
Mom’s are very, very special!  If you like it, share it with someone!

MOM

Some governments use the word “ministry” to describe various functions, like ministry of finance, or ministry of education. The word “ministry” means service. Therefore, the minister of education would be one who serves the country with regards to education.

I believe being a mom is a ministry, a very, very unique service.

No woman can ever study hard enough or prepare long enough to be ready to be a mom. Moms surely need God’s gracious help and encouragement with the responsibilities and challenges.

It actually begins nine months before she is

Posted on

WHO IS JESUS?

Two Unique Truths About Jesus

For the last 1900+ years, more has been written about him than any other person. Who is Jesus?

He never taught at or established an institution of higher learning, yet all the schools of all times could never measure even close to his number of students. Who is Jesus?

All the rulers who ever reigned, all the government bodies that ever sat, and all the military campaigns ever engaged, have not affected the life of mankind as powerfully and dynamically as Jesus of Nazareth.

Jesus was the most unique human being who ever walked the face of the earth. His birth and