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Apr 30, 2011

"Your Bible & His Purpose"

DAY #120 - 'A Woman of Faith' Devotional
VERSE: "The words of the Lord are pure words, like silver tried in a furnace..." Psalm 12:6
In yesterday's devotion found HERE, we spoke of 'Give us this day our daily bread', 'bread' being that which we need to go through each day, not just the actual food itself. In Matthew 4:4, it says, "Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceeds from the mouth of God", meaning that we are not to live on just 'bread', but also by the 'bread of life' which is God's Word. God's Word as in the Bible is important for us, but just as in yesterday's devotional, 'Prayer Changes Things & You', God's words in prayer are just as important. When we pray to Him, He may come and speak to us. Now it is not audible everytime, but I guess for some it could be. I usually feel His voice in my spirit or my heart. He reveals things to me like that. If He has spoken audibly, I have obviously missed out because I haven't heard & listened to it. There are times when I think I hear an 'audible' voice, but I'm not sure it's not just someone around me. I know that we all, but I myself have to pray and get deeper into the Word more so that I can discern better, so that I may grow more intimate with Him.

In my teaching classes, I always tell the children/youth how important God's Word is to them, for we are soooooo blessed to be able to have more than one in our homes, where people around the world may only have one page of it, or not be able to have it at all or they will be killed. We need to treat it as a rare treasure, not just another book on our shelf or coffee table... or in our hotel room bedside drawer. His Word reveals His purposes, but His Word becomes 'my' Bible, that brings life, truth and hope to me. Do you want to know what to do with your life? He can reveal that to you through His Word. Are you struggling with pain of the past, or health issues? God can minister to you through His Word. Are you seeking Him for more blessings, whether it be spiritual, financial, physical, emotional, social, mental... for you and/or your family, your friends, your co-workers, your clientelle & their families, or even just those around you who are hurting? It's all in the Word, God can and will do great & mighty things for us, but there are also some things that we need to be doing here on earth for Him to move in great power. He doesn't need us,  but He wants us. Sometimes we think we don't want Him, but we always do truly need Him. We need to fulfill our mission or calling here on the earth, and be the hands and feet of Jesus, completing His mission of bringing everyone into the kingdom. But we cannot find out our mission, if we do not humble ourselves & pray, and submit to Him and read his Word daily.

"Finding one's mission, and then fulfilling it, is perhaps the most vital activity in which a person can engage." ~ Laurie Beth Jones

Maybe you have never heard the GOSPEL MESSAGE, or you don't have that 'relationship' with Christ. That's what it's all about it's not religion, it's a relationship. Here is the GOSPEL MESSAGE simplicity - -



We are ALL sinners - Sin results in Death - God loved the world so much, He sent us His Son Jesus - Jesus came to earth to teach, train, equip, and mentor - Jesus did the work of the Father, praying, healing, performing miracles, teaching of His Father's love - Jesus died ONCE & FOR ALL for our sins, so that we didn't have to die - He rose again, to live with His Father in Heaven - Jesus intercedes for us to the Father - We are commissioned to do the work of the Father, trainging, teaching, equipping, praying, healing, performing miracles, but most importantly sharing His story, 'History' not fiction (the gospel) - Jesus will come back for believers - We as believers get to live eternally in Heaven with Him. (If we do not believe, then we will have eternal death, as we haven't accepted the FREE gift of Salvation).

**If you have never prayed the 'salvation prayer' before (or maybe you did long ago and have drifted away)& haven't experienced the joy of the relationship that is spoken of above, then here's your chance today. The only thing you are giving up is things that aren't going to last long anyway -- which if you don't give up, will only make your own life not last as long as it could (which is eternally). --- You've already made the first step known - admit to God that you are a sinner, because after all - all of us are sinners. (Romans 3:23 "For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God") After that you need to believe that God is God, and that Jesus is His Son. He sent His Son to die for us, so that we as sinners didn't need to be condemned to death. (Romans 6:23 "For the wages of sin is death, bu the gift of God is eternal life through Christ Jesus.") Then do something a little difficult, and Confess your sins to Him and ask for forgiveness -- and then confess aloud that JESUS IS LORD. (Romans 10:9-10 "If you declare with your mouth, “Jesus is Lord,” and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. For it is with your heart that you believe and are justified, and it is with your mouth that you profess your faith and are saved.") We need to daily ask for forgiveness (sometimes more than once a day), because we are human and we will always mess up in some way or another. God is willing and able to forgive us, and welcome YOU into His family. I don't like to write out a prayer anymore to say word for word, as this important step is something that you need to tell God in your own words. (But if you need someone to help you or to chat with, just comment below.) Just tell Him what's in your heart - you're a sinner, you want to believe in Him but it may be hard, you want Him to forgive you of what you've done, and you want to choose life with Him through His Son Jesus. Then find a local SPIRIT-FILLED, Bible believing, covered by the BLOOD church to be a part of, to encourage you along the way. It's as simple as that. ** GOD BLESS YOU!

BE BLESSED & BE A BLESSING!

Apr 29, 2011

"Prayer Changes Things & You"

DAY #119 - 'A Woman of Faith' Devotional
VERSE: "And everything -- whatever you ask in prayer, believing -- you will receive." Matthew 21:22 HCSB

'Could you not tarry one hour?' is a question Jesus asked of his disciples in the Garden of Gethsemane. He asked them to pray with Him and for Him, and the disciples fell asleep. Jesus was in the most deepest prayer, and darkest time of His life, and He desired that His disciples intercede, and maybe they did for a short time, yet they fell asleep waiting for Him to return to them. God desires us to pray, as this is our main form of communication with Him. Sometimes we tend to make 'prayer' something bigger than it really is. Prayer is just simply talking to God. Somehow, we also tend to 'scare' other Christians (and maybe non-believers) by using the terms 'prayer meeting' or 'intercessory team'. Some Christians may not have the FULL gift of 'Intercession', but we are all called to intercede for someone, and of course for ourselves. Jesus then intercedes for all of us at the throne of God. Praying daily, and even throughout the day (not just at dinner, or at bedtime prayers) is what God desires of us. When we pray to Him (even just our 'Give me, Give me' prayers), He desires to speak back to us. Sometimes we just rush in to prayer, tell Him our wants & needs, and then rush out... He desires us to worship & praise Him; confess our sins so He may clothe us with righteousness & He may manifest his presence; thank Him for the many things that He has done, because He wants to pour out more and more; and, then we may ask Him for things that we NEED and desire according to His will.

It's been said that the quality of our spiritual life can be compared to the quality of our prayer life. When we are in prayer, God can communicate with us as well as through His word. Prayer CHANGES the atmosphere & things around you, same as worship, yet it also changes YOU, and what is going on in the Heavens -- there is an old hymn/song that the Gaither's have on their videos, 'Prayer is the Key to Heaven', and in that song it says 'Prayer is the key to Heaven, but FAITH unlocks the door'. We want to pray, but we also want to pray believing in faith that God will show up #1, but also that He will do what He says He will do.

The verse today says, '...whatever you ask for in prayer, BELIEVING -- you will receive.' This is not saying that 'whatever' we ask for we get, it is according to the will of the Father. Most times we think of the blessing side of this verse, and that we get what we want if we just believe we should have it. But there is also the flip-side to this... what about those prayers we pray in frustration or even just a simple prayer that we really didn't mean-- God can and will answer those too. I have learned that we need to be 'specific' in what we are asking for.

I have also learned through revelation of Holy Spirit, that we really should get back to 'The Lord's Prayer'. We shouldn't have to ask for money for example, or a new home, or money for a new home... or a new job, or a new car, or a new... whatever. 'Give us this day our daily bread' is what Jesus prayed. Yes God does like to hear us ask for things specifically, but He also does know our heart. Our problem is that we don't always know His heart. Saying 'Give us this day our daily bread', is basically saying, 'Hey God, you know that I would like _______, but give me what You know that I need today.'

...to be continued!

"Our prayers must not be efforts to bend God to our will but to yield ourselves to His." ~ Catherine Marshall

"Real Prosperity"

DAY #118 - 'A Woman of Faith' Devotional
VERSE: "Serving God does make us very rich, if we are satisfied with what we have. We brought nothing into the world, so we can take nothing out. But, if we have food and clothes we will be satisfied with that." 1 Timothy 6:6-8 NCV

"Our ultimate aim in life is not to be healthy, wealthy, prosperous, or problem free. Our ultimate aim in life is to bring glory to God." ~ Anne Graham Lotz

...to be continued!

BE BLESSED & BE A BLESSING!

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