Running From God ?

Are you running from God ? Are you not fulfilling the promises that you made God ? Are you avoiding, doing what you told God you would do in order to do what you want to do ?

Do you think that God does not know you are avoiding doing what you promised Him you would do ? Do you think God has forgotten about what you promised Him ? Do you think God allows you to change your promises to Him ? The Bible, God's Word says that a man is bound by the promises he makes until death. This means that if you make a promise then you are bound to keep that promise until you die. If you do not keep that promise then you are lost. Knowingly making a promise to God and then breaking that promise is knowingly committing sin and it will cost you in the end.

I know of a Preacher, who is a friend of mine. He promised God a long time ago that he would preach for the Lord. But before he got started preaching, even though he had promised God that he would preach for Him, he decided that he couldn't. That he was just not ready to keep his promise to God that he had made. My friend thought that he could run from doing what he promised God. He thought that he could do things his way. That he could do things when he was ready. It did not matter that God wanted him to keep his promise , he wanted to do things his own way and in his own time. But he found out the hard way that if you make a promise to God and you run from that commitment, God will set you down and chastise you in a way you don't want to be chastised in.

My friend thought he had got away from keeping his promise to God. Well my friend is married and has 3 daughters. His wife is a daughter of a Preacher. His wife knew what he had promised God and knew that he was running from God, even though he pretended he was not.

Well their oldest daughter got sick and had to be hospitalized. The doctors and the specialist discovered that she had a rare form of Meningitis . She was to the point of death. They said they had done all they could for the girl and that it was in God's hands now. My friend was driving to the hospital when God spoke to him. In his car driving down the freeway, God spoke to my friend.

God said to him," You are running from me. You did not do what you promised me you would do. And now where are you ? What is wrong with your child ? You promised to serve Me, to preach My Word, yet you did not do as you said you would. Where is your child, now ? She is in my hands. Her life is in my hands."

My friend had to stop and pull over to the side of the road. He cried out to God and repented of his sin against God of not keeping his promise. He said to God ,"I will preach for You, heal my daughter please. I will no longer run. I will do that which I promised, just save my daughter."

My friend got back on the road and continued to the hospital. His wife and the doctors, the specialists met him. It seemed his daughter had made a miraculous recovery and was no longer in danger. God had touched her and healed her. He rejoiced, he told his wife what had happened on his drive to the hospital. She wept tears of joy. Their daughter came home a few days later and my friend started preaching for the Lord God that next Sunday. He got a second chance to correct and follow through on what he promised God. But it took him almost losing his daughters life ,over not keeping his promise to God, before he opened his eyes up and stopped running from God.

Don't you be in the position that my friend was in. Don't put yourself in that place. My friend almost lost his daughter because he wanted to do things in his own way and in his own time. But God corrected him. Not everyone who goes against God gets a second chance. I encourage anyone who has promised God things, to keep those promises because if you don't you will lose your soul to hell. You may not get a second chance the way my friend did. That would be horrible if you made promises to God and did not keep them and ran from God and what you promised Him and never got another chance to atone for the wrong you did God.

Can you say that you have been true to God ? Can you truthfully, beyond the shadow of a doubt, say that you have been true to God and the promises you made Him ? If you can't then it is time to repent and do that which you promised God you would do. He is waiting with open arms to take you back in. Don't turn Him away ,you might lose something or someone you hold dear by not keeping the promises you made to God. God does not take promises made to Him lightly.

God never said it would be easy serving Him. In fact He told us we would suffer for Him. I worry for anyone who has made promises to God and decided not to keep those promises to Him. I would not want to be in that person's shoes come judgement day. Don't make promises to God unless you intend to keep them. Because if you don't keep them you will forfeit your soul to hell. If you keep them, then God will use you and bless you in your doing what you promised Him. You can't run from God. You can try but sooner or later God is going to set you down and you will be chastised by Almighty God.

Heartfelt

Have you ever had a heavy feeling in your heart. One that lets you know that someone you care about is in need of prayer. That they are burdened by something and your heart is burdened for them. I had this feeling this morning when I awoke and so I prayed.

I always pray when I have this burdened feeling on my heart because I know that God is urging me to pray for someone. Prayer is our way of intimately communing with God. God gave us prayer for a purpose and that was to use it to pray, to petition, to thank Him and just to talk with Him when we feel the need to.

Have you ever awoken at night with the feeling that you need to pray, or just with a heavy feeling of burden on your heart ? If so, how have you handled this ? Have you gotten up and prayed ? Have you laid there and prayed ? Or did you just turn over and try to push it out of your mind and heart and go back to sleep ?

When I am awoken, in the midst of the night or early morning hours, with this burdened feeling I get up and kneel beside my bed and pray. Sometimes I do not know who I have this burden for , while at other times God makes it clear for whom I am praying at the time. But I have to get up and pray because if I did not I would be doing God an injustice as He placed it upon my heart to pray for another. If you feel this urging, this burden upon your heart and do not know why, pray about it and ask God to help whomever is, in need of prayer. He will listen. He is the one who burdened your heart to pray in the first place.

Don't turn away from what God is urging you to do. After you pray the burden will be lifted from your heart. God is using you in His service to pray for others. He will visit this burden upon you at different times. Sometimes during the day, sometimes at night God may burden your heart to pray for someone. That someone could be yourself or it could be a friend, a family member or even someone you do not know. But please when you feel the burden in your heart to pray even if you do not know who for or what for, pray to God. Talk with Him about it. He knows the why, so take it to Him in prayer.

There is nothing that can take the place of heartfelt prayer. When you feel something in your heart it is heartfelt. That is why your heart feels burdened with prayer, it is a heartfelt burden and nothing better to treat a heartfelt burden with than heartfelt prayer. I urge you , the next time you feel this burden in your heart to pray, to please pray and not turn away from what God is calling you to do.


Remember there is nothing better to treat a heartfelt burden with than heartfelt prayer.

Keeping you all in my prayers.

Beauty

The children and I went on a walk today. There is a field of wild Daffodils blooming a short distance from our house and we decided to walk there and take some pictures of them. It was so beautiful to just look at the flowers with their yellow head bobing in the breeze. We took several pictures of the flowers . I posted the link below to the site I posted them on if anyone wants to view them.

http://www.christian.net/messages.php?forum=252&topic=13574

If the link doesn't work by clicking on it just copy and paste it into your browser and it should work. If not let me know, please.

But what struck me is the beauty of God's design. These flowers are growing wild in this field and in the surrounding woods. They have spread overtime to cover an area about a half an acre across. This made me think about the parable in the Bible that Jesus spoke of concerning sowing seeds on stony ground and on good ground. Some take root and some grow while others whither and die. These flowers were planted and left alone to see whether or not they would grow and multiply or whether they would die. These flowers grew and multiplied.


Now the parable that Jesus used of the seeds was about sowing the Word of God. To see whether the Word you shared with others about the Lord would grow and multiply or whither and die. Just as these flowers grew so too does the Word of God when it falls upon a fertile heart. A heart and soul that is ready and willing to receive what God has to offer it. Just as these flowers received the nourishment they needed from God in order to grow and multiply so too will and does anyone who turns their life over to God. God will prosper you and make you to multiply if you stay true to Him and His calling for you. It is truly amazing to see things grow over the course of time. But think how much more it means to God to see each of us, His children, grow over the course of time.

God is amazing. It is wonderful to help sow the seeds of God's Word to others and to watch it take root within them and grow. It is amazing to witness with your own eyes someone come to Christ and to help and watch them grow in the Lord. The flowers receive the rain, the nutrients they need to grow just as a child of God receives the instruction , love and all that they need to grow in Him.

It is wonderful to be a part of God's creation and even more awesome to help others to grow in Him and through Him. The Lord has wonderful plans for His children. He will prosper and multiply us , His children. This He says in His Word, the Holy Bible. I Love the Lord and I am His child. I thank Him for such a wonderful day to be able to view the beauty of the creations that He, Himself has made. God is Awesome.

Luke 8:5-18

Luke 8:5 A sower went out to sow his seed: and as he sowed, some fell by the way side; and it was trodden down, and the fowls of the air devoured it.

6 And some fell upon a rock; and as soon as it was sprung up, it withered away, because it lacked moisture.

7 And some fell among thorns; and the thorns sprang up with it, and choked it.

8 And other fell on good ground, and sprang up, and bare fruit an hundredfold. And when he had said these things, he cried, He that hath ears to hear, let him hear.

9 And his disciples asked him, saying, What might this parable be?

10 And he said, Unto you it is given to know the mysteries of the kingdom of God: but to others in parables; that seeing they might not see, and hearing they might not understand.

11 Now the parable is this: The seed is the word of God.

12 Those by the way side are they that hear; then cometh the devil, and taketh away the word out of their hearts, lest they should believe and be saved.

13 They on the rock are they, which, when they hear, receive the word with joy; and these have no root, which for a while believe, and in time of temptation fall away.

14 And that which fell among thorns are they, which, when they have heard, go forth, and are choked with cares and riches and pleasures of this life, and bring no fruit to perfection.

15 But that on the good ground are they, which in an honest and good heart, having heard the word, keep it, and bring forth fruit with patience.

16 No man, when he hath lighted a candle, covereth it with a vessel, or putteth it under a bed; but setteth it on a candlestick, that they which enter in may see the light.

17 For nothing is secret, that shall not be made manifest; neither any thing hid, that shall not be known and come abroad.

18 Take heed therefore how ye hear: for whosoever hath, to him shall be given; and whosoever hath not, from him shall be taken even that which he seemeth to have.

Billy

Today I signed a memorial book at our local Wal Mart. It was for the greeter that will be sadly missed at our local Wal Mart store. She was always there to greet anyone with a smile and a kind word. That was Billy.

She was a good person. She was always smiling, even in her old age she was still the greeter at Wal Mart. She will be missed by many. I have known her since I was in my 20's. She always was beautiful with her white hair piled neatly in curls upon her head. Her eyes sparkled with the joy of life and love for all and the Love of God. She was an inspiration.

Even when she was ill you could still find her at her post at Wal Mart, greeting customers. I will never forget the day that Elizabeth totally surprised Billy. Elizabeth was only 2 and we had just walked into Wal Mart and Billy greeted us as usual saying how big Elizabeth was getting and how pretty she was. Well Elizabeth looked right at her and pointed to her name tag and said," Billy". It blest Billy's heart. She clapped her hands together, a huge smile lit her face and eyes, and said, " She read my name, she read my name." I will never forget how happy Billy acted that Elizabeth at the age of 2 had read her name off her name tag. It blest my heart and I will always remember the way Billy's face and eyes lit up.

This lady made everyone who had the opportunity to meet her feel special. There was just something about Billy that God had put within her to be able to reach out to others. No matter who they were they felt special when Billy spoke with or to them. That is a wonderful way to be remembered. To know that you touched someones life and left them with a good feeling.

Billy was a wonderful Lady. And I thank God that I had the opportunity to be touched by her and to know her. She is Home now.

You see we never know exactly how we , in what we say or do, may affect someone else. We should always be mindful of this and try to make a difference in someones life each day . A good difference, be it a smile, a kind word , or just acknowledging that you care. A small gesture can make a difference in someones day. Share the Love of the Lord with someone each day and you will be rewarded in return. God is watching and He takes note.

Quest For Truth

I was sitting just thinking about something someone said to me. They said they had, just call it, a quest for the truth. I was taken aback by this comment as it came from someone who fails to see the truth in what they themselves are or what they profess to be. Yes they are on a quest of truth but it is a quest for worldly truth not for the Truth of God and what God can reveal to them. They first after worldly truths not after Godly Truths.

Why is that someone says they are on a quest for the truth , yet they fail to see the deceit of themselves ? Have you ever wondered this ? Have you ever wondered why a person hides from them self ? They are not true to self and so they are not true to others. They hide behind a facade, a wall, pretending to be someone or something they are not. That is falsehood. The Bible speaks of those who live a life of falsehood. This type of person will not be in Heaven.

Revelations 21 speaks of those who will hold no part in Heaven and a person who lives a life of falsehood will not be in Heaven. Why then do those who live a life of falsehood profess to be Christian ? Because in their own eyes they truly believe they are. God has turned them over to what He said He would and so they believe that while they are living a life of falsehood they are righteous.

It is truly heartbreaking to know someone like this and you continue to witness to them yet the whole time they believe that you and everyone else who witnesses to them that speaks contrary to how they are living is the one who is living in falsehood. And that is sad. It is heartbreaking to know and love someone who is living a life of falsehood and you know they have no desire to leave that life of falsehood for the Lord. They have lied to their selves and convinced themselves that they are sin free and it is heartbreaking to know that unless they change and seek God and stay true to God then they will end their days in Hell's fire and the Lake of Fire for eternity.

In a case such as this all one can do is pray for them. God knows of it all and those who are and have been hurt by such a person , God takes note of it all. He sees all, He hears all and that is what is so awesome. Knowing that throughout everything God is and has taken note of it all. People will continue to hurt other people, to break their heart, to threaten others, to steal, rob , plunder and pillage and harm others in so many ways. Yet God knows of it all. He gives everyone at least one chance to come unto Him. He guarantees us one chance. If we turn Him away, we may not get another chance. Some do but do you want to be the one that does not get another chance? Do you want to tempt God? Are you willing to risk losing the one chance that you may ever have by turning away from God ? Remember God knows who will be His and who will remain true to Him. If you seek Him and become humble, with a contrite heart and a broken spirit then He will forgive you. Don't turn Him away it may be your only chance at being able to spend eternity with Him in Glory.

Yes you may suffer in this life by choosing to be a Christian and by serving God and staying true to Him. But the pain you suffer here can not compare to Hell's suffering or the suffering in the Lake of Fire. Wouldn't you rather suffer while on earth in God's service and be rewarded of and by Him with eternal life in Heaven than to spend an eternity being tormented in hell and the Lake of Fire ?

The choice for me was easy. I chose to serve the Lord and I choose to serve the Lord. For whatever heartache, pain , sorrow, suffering I have to endure for the Lord while here on this earth is worth it. Eternity is worth it. Never lose sight of Eternity.

God is the Truth. If one truly is on a quest for the truth I have the Truth to share with you. That Truth is Jesus Christ, the Word of God.

John 14:6
6) Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me.

John 8:32
32) And ye shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free.

John 3:16
6) For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.

Make Yourself Available For God

Praising God for today and the many blessings He has blest me with and for those who listen to God's prompting.

First of all I have to share something with you all that happened at Church that I should have shared with you yesterday. Zak gave testimony in Church yesterday. It truly blest my heart and all those present. He was sitting in the pew between Elizabeth and I when Brother Jimmy asked if anyone had anything to say and Zak just spoke up so clear and it was so still in the Church when he spoke. He said," I thank God for saving my soul." I was so blest and rejoiced in the Lord. I cried because my heart was so rejoicing to hear Zak give testimony and I know the Angels were rejoicing too. It is so awesome how God blesses us. He is so awesome.

I got an uplifting message from a friend today.God is at work in people's lives and it is awesome to hear testimony of how He is working . There is nothing more encouraging than hearing of God helping someone or using someone to help another. I Love my Brothers and Sisters in Christ. God brings us together to help uplift each other and to better serve Him. Nothing should be allowed to get in the way of our sharing the Love and message of the Lord with each other. If we allow anything to get in the way then we are allowing the devil to win and I will not let the devil have victory over the Lord.

Today I went to an appointment I had and the children and I were sitting in the waiting room when a lady came in . I smiled at her and she smiled back. She went up to the receptionist and spoke to her then turned and started to walk out. She stopped in front of me and asked me a question about the building we were in so I answered her. I asked if she needed directions to somewhere in town and she said no. She turned to leave but turned back to me and put her hand in her bag she had with here. it was a large bag. She took a bag of peppermint candies out of her bag, The bag of candy was wrapped in festive paper and ribbons and she gave it to me. She told me to share it with my family. I thanked her.

There was a young mother sitting next to me with her little girl and I asked the mother if she cared if I gave some of the candy to her daughter and she told me I could. So I gave them some of the candy and gave the bag to Zak who held onto it until he got tired and asked Elizabeth to put it in her purse. The whole thing just blest my heart. people anymore just do not do those acts of kindness as they used to. God blesses us in so many ways . We may not always understand why He chooses to bless us as He chooses to but rest assured that He does it for a reason.

The other night, Thursday night, I was having some difficulties, God knows of them and a few close friends also know of them. Well I humbled myself before God and prayed in earnest to Him. I promised the Lord that whatever service He wanted me to do for Him, no matter what it was, as long as He showed me the way, I would do it for Him. I got up from praying fully at peace and knowing that God was taking care of everything.

Well today I got an email from a friend who is also a founder of a ladies group for fellowshipping with other Christian women and encouraging them. In the email she asked me to be a part of the groups ministry on Sundays and I knew that God had heard my prayer and was calling me into His service. It blest my heart because I know that if we make ourselves available for God's service He will use us for it. And that is so awesome. I of course told my friend that I would be of service to her and the Lord.

To be able to serve the Lord is reward in itself. God blesses us with what we need when we need it the most. I encourage each of you to make yourself available for the Lord's service. he will use you if you let Him. Don't turn Him away when He does call you into His service. Be a willing vessel for the Lord and He will bless you for it.

I praise His holy name for all the many blessings that He has given me. I may not be rich according to worldly standards but I am rich in God. And I thank Him for this. Thank You Jesus, Amen.


God is awesome.

Something To Ponder

Today , March 1st. The old saying is that if March comes in like a lion it will go out as a lamb. Well March came in as a lion. We ran the whole gambit of severe weather with Tornado watches to Severe Thunderstorm warnings. We had a few storms to pass through our area this afternoon but thankfully the Lord protected us through them. I thank God for His protecting Wings covering us in shelter. It will be intersting to see if March goes out as a lamb.

My Doctor's assistant called me today and said I am scheduled to have a consultation with a surgeon on Thursay March 7th. I have internal bleeding and it has caused my iron level to drop way low to 24 when the normal range is between 100-150. So I am taking iron tablets and they make me nauseated. But that is a common side effect of the iron tablets. Just a small thing to put up with in order to get my iron levels back up. I know that God will see me through all of this and all the other trials that are besetting me at this time.

I have a question that you might want to think about .Have you ever observed a flower ? Any flower ? The way it is formed, the shape of the petals, the various array of hues of color flowers come in, have you ever pondered upon this? A flower is a very intricate thing designed, rightly so, by God. Next time you are walking some where and happen upon a flower, stop, take the time to look at it, smell it's essence and look at the intricate way it is made. Look at the petals, the tiny veins that line them or the smoothness of a rose petal. Rose petals are like silk, so soft, so aromatic, beautiful, so delicate. Yet the stem of a rose has thorns. Sometimes to get to the beauty that we find, we have to make our way past the thorns to reach it.

Just like in life. Sometimes we have to go over a lot of rocky, bumpy and thorn strewn ground to reach the place where God wants us to be. The place where we are humbled enough to be used by Him in His service. We all have test and trials in this life but we are not to give in to those test and trials. We are to learn from them , to grow from them and turn to God and rely upon Him more openly through them. We are being refined in the fire and one day when the time is right, just as the bud of a flower burst forth in triumphant bloom, we will come forth as silver refined. We will shine with the Lord when we reach home. But until that time do everything you can to become the person that God wants you to be, not what the world wants of you, not what others want of you but the person that God wants you to be. For when it is all said and done God has the final say in everything.