Tag Archive | forgiveness

Dads and God

Jun9
Lead the way dads

I believe when God was in the process of creating human kind, He purposefully created the parent/child relationship as a blueprint for our relationship with Him. God desires parents, in particular fathers, to introduce their children to Him. Fathers do this by reflecting His characteristics to their children. For instance, being present in their children’s lives, expressing unconditional love towards them, exhibiting leadership qualities, instructing their children in the correct way, protecting their children, disciplining in a manner for their children’s good, providing for their children, and most in particular, modeling forgiveness. When a father models these characteristics to their children, their children get a grand introduction to their Heavenly Father.

But what if an earthly father fails to exhibit these godlike qualities to their children? Unfortunately, that is too often the case these days. We live in a world where that’s almost expected. And if we want to have an excuse for our own failures, we easily hand over the blame to the failures of our dads. When a dad isn’t able for whatever reason to sort through the godless philosophies running rampant in society then he and his children suffer. Being able to sort through what is true and what is false enables us to pass along life saving wisdom to our children.

But back to what a child can do when their dads fail them in this manner. Trench yourselves in God’s word. There you will find the necessary tips in refocusing on what to look for in a father (and how to become that kind of father). Try not to compare the failures you have been a victim of. Instead, search for a godly man that would take you under his wing.

Perhaps one of the hardest things to do will be to forgive your father for failing to introduce you to God. Find a Bible and read it! In order for any of us to have a relationship with God we must ask His forgiveness. Jesus really did exist, you know. He not only existed He took our place and paid the price for our sins. Remember, you are not fatherless. You have a Heavenly Father who will never fail you.

But the core truth here is that as children we all learn first about God via our dads. Dads are a powerful force in introducing their children to God by their day to day behavior displayed to them. And even those dads who have failed their children in this way, it’s not too late. Check out The Roman Road, there you will find the means to reclaim what was lost.

Unmasking our Idols

Jun7

Please fill in the blanks below:

_______________ comes first in my life.

_______________ influences the choices I make

______________ forms my perspective, attitudes, & beliefs

______________determines how I spend my time.

Whatever we write in the above blanks, is the force that rules our lives. It is what we worship, bow down to. It is our idol!

Next give the following some deep thought.

Can whatever we wrote in those blanks offer us eternal life? Can they offer peace in the midst of a storm? Can they offer solutions that just seemed beyond our understanding? Can they offer forgiveness. Can they offer guidance or light in our darkness? Can they put the broken pieces of our lives back together? Can they faithfully fulfill our needs?

Yet they do offer something. They can offer us eternal death. And existence forever separated from God.

Have we stopped to think that we have made other people, our jobs, seeking after money or pleasure, or even just pursuing our own will, the things we bow down to instead of God? If we give more consideration to these than we do to God, we have made them idols.

That may be shocking to us. Yet, hopefully this realization will shock us into making God first in our lives. That God’s word will influence the choices we make. That His Truths will form our perspectives and attitudes. That we will seek to follow God’s in how we spend our time.

These are not what they seem!

Therefore, my beloved, flee from idolatry, 1 Corinthians 10:14,ESV

Choose Easter’s Victory

Apr20

th-21

“He shall bruise your head, and you shall bruise his heel.” – Genesis 3:15

It’s important to remember Easter is ultimately a spiritual battle between Christ and Satan

 

   When God created man and Satan tempted Adam and Eve, the great civil war between man’s spirit and flesh began. Then Christ came and as a man and as God, resisted Satan. Easter makes a way for us to resist Satan’s fiery darts. By accepting Christ’s death for ourselves, we can be assured that after our death, just like Christ, we will ascend to heaven. 

   As I grow older and move closer to my life’s end, the thrill of heaven, being with Jesus, becomes more intense. Therefore, I do not fear death. Nor should any believer.

You see that’s the victory we as Christians have over the plan of Satan’s to steal, kill, and destroy. 

   Satan’s plan to remove the influence of God’s Word and spending time with God in prayer, makes possible the fulfillment of his plan. Just look around at all the people in our country that see nothing wrong with abortion, homosexuality, divorce, or lying to gain an advantage, etc. When we remove what the Bible says about either of these, and have no personal relationship with God, Satan easily victimizes us. And you know what, we won’t even realize how we have been deceived and manipulated. 

   When the world accuses Christians for standing firm on these issues, we get accused of all sorts of hateful actions. And Satan will make sure that our accusers don’t open up their Bible. Why? Because he doesn’t want the world to know about God’s love, compassion, forgiveness, redemption of those involved with the sins I mentioned above.

   Remember, if you ignore the Bible and prayer, you are easy prey to the enemy. He will lie to you with such skill, that you can become convinced that right is wrong and wrong is right.

   This Easter, choose Christ. Choose victory. Defeat the enemy. Begin cooperating with God as He gives us the desire and power to do what pleases Him. 

   Refuse to allow ourselves to be manipulated, deceived, and blinded by Satan.

Satan has come to condemn us; Christ has come to restore us.

The Fiery Darts of Abortion

Feb4

     I hardly know where to begin with this post. How can the purposeful death of an unborn child be justified? Yet as we recently witnessed in the news, abortion is  not only justified, it is celebrated. (bringing to mind visions of ancient rituals of offering up children to death, while people dance in mindless celebrations)

     But this can’t be. We are civilized. We are America! We would never be a part of or condone such barbaric behavior! Yet several states allow, by law, abortions up to 9 months! Since Roe vs Wade over 60 millions babies have had their chance at life brutally eliminated. 

And for what reasons was their chance at life snuffed out?            

Here’s a few: ( I call them fiery darts)

The reasons most frequently cited were that 

having a child would interfere with a woman’s education, work or ability to care for dependents (74%); 

that she could not afford a baby now (73%); 

and that she did not want to be a single mother or was having relationship problems (48%). 

Nearly four in 10 women said they had completed their childbearing, and almost one-third were not ready to have a child. 

Fewer than 1% said their parents’ or partners’ desire for them to have an abortion was the most important reason. 

Younger women often reported that they were unprepared for the transition to motherhood, 

while older women regularly cited their responsibility to dependents.

 

Here’s what God has to say about life

  13 For you created my inmost being; you knit me together in my mother’s womb. 14 I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made; your works are wonderful, I know that full well. 15My frame was not hidden from you when I was made in the secret place, when I was woven together in the depths of the earth. 16 Your eyes saw my unformed body; all the days ordained for me were written in your book before one of them came to be. (Psalm 139:13-16)

     Our culture is being deceived and manipulated. We have been desensitized to God’s Truth about unborn life. Even in the womb God has plans for that yet to be born child. 

      Before a woman will turn aside from hearing the truth (based on 2 Timothy 4:3-4) and exchange the truth of God for a lie (based on Romans 1:25), she must be desensitized to the truth.

in order for us to be desensitized toward the lies of fiery darts, we must first have our understanding of the Truth of Scripture diminished. By tempting us not to spend time in God’s Word, our ability to recognize the lies of fiery darts is equally diminished, if we give in to that temptation. In the place of God’s Truth, the world’s concept of truth (which is no truth at all) begins to define our thinking. p 35-36 FD’s 3rd edition

 

Believing lies (fiery darts) that justifies abortion, prohibits a woman from acknowledging and accepting the hope, love, forgiveness, and peace God offers her when she chooses life for her unborn child. 

 

Christmas – The Enemy’s Plan

Dec24

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If we keep Christ out of Christmas,

Then we live without the love, peace, joy, hope, and forgiveness He offers?

No other source offers ALL of the above! No matter what the fiery darts may claim! 

Do we really want to live without these gifts?

That’s the enemy’s plan!