Bloom where you are planted
The Lord is my shepherd (my guide)
I have no needs because He takes care of me
He MAKES ME lie down in green pastures
He leads me beside the still water
He restores my soul.
Have you heard the saying “The grass is greener on the other side of the fence”? Things must be better in another job, another love relationship, another town. We all suffer the desire to escape and go eat the grass on the other side of the fence.
Most of the time the Good Shepherd tells us the grass is green where we are. If we go to the other field, the grass probably is not as good as it looks, and the Good Shepherd will not guide us to the best spots.
There will always be imperfections in this sinful world, but we have a guide who directs our paths of righteousness. He snags us back from going over dangerous cliffs with His staff. He prods us forward with His rod. We don’t always like these instruments of righteousness, but ultimately we have peace and comfort because of them.
You are here now. Bloom where you are planted.
Sunday, February 22, 2009
Sunday, February 8, 2009
Let’s Praise the Lord!
I chose this scripture because Shane preached his sermon from this passage this morning. Way to go, Shane!
Before I could get it pasted to publish, Jim started to talk about this scripture and Shane's message of love. I hope this simple blog will give you strength, hope, and peace today.
14For this reason I kneel before the Father, 15from whom his whole family[a] in heaven and on earth derives its name. 16I pray that out of his glorious riches he may strengthen you with power through his Spirit in your inner being, 17so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith. And I pray that you, being rooted and established in love, 18may have power, together with all the saints, to grasp how wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ, 19and to know this love that surpasses knowledge—that you may be filled to the measure of all the fullness of God.
20Now to him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to his power that is at work within us, 21to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, for ever and ever! Amen.
This is the scripture from which Shane gave his message in church this morning. Way to go, Shane. This scripture is full of hope, strength, blessings, and direction in the absolute best direction towards worshipping God.
We bow humbly simply because God deserves our adoration.
He loves us so much that we are named after Him. In love my husband gave me his name, and thus I am Mrs. James Leasure.
Paul prays that the Ephesians are strengthened in the best way (through the Holy Spirit) and in the most important place (inside to out).
Christ comes to live with us through our faith in His redemptive power.
Rooted and grounded are solid, stable words, which our inner beings crave.
And we crave love, both to love and to be loved.
Love surpasses knowledge.
And He does do more than we can imagine.
Thus we praise Him and bow before Him.
I have this marked in my oldest and favorite Bible as a message given by an elderly, extremely wise man of God. I also remember the summer that I read Ephesians over and over and over.
I chose this scripture because Shane preached his sermon from this passage this morning. Way to go, Shane!
Before I could get it pasted to publish, Jim started to talk about this scripture and Shane's message of love. I hope this simple blog will give you strength, hope, and peace today.
14For this reason I kneel before the Father, 15from whom his whole family[a] in heaven and on earth derives its name. 16I pray that out of his glorious riches he may strengthen you with power through his Spirit in your inner being, 17so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith. And I pray that you, being rooted and established in love, 18may have power, together with all the saints, to grasp how wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ, 19and to know this love that surpasses knowledge—that you may be filled to the measure of all the fullness of God.
20Now to him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to his power that is at work within us, 21to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, for ever and ever! Amen.
This is the scripture from which Shane gave his message in church this morning. Way to go, Shane. This scripture is full of hope, strength, blessings, and direction in the absolute best direction towards worshipping God.
We bow humbly simply because God deserves our adoration.
He loves us so much that we are named after Him. In love my husband gave me his name, and thus I am Mrs. James Leasure.
Paul prays that the Ephesians are strengthened in the best way (through the Holy Spirit) and in the most important place (inside to out).
Christ comes to live with us through our faith in His redemptive power.
Rooted and grounded are solid, stable words, which our inner beings crave.
And we crave love, both to love and to be loved.
Love surpasses knowledge.
And He does do more than we can imagine.
Thus we praise Him and bow before Him.
I have this marked in my oldest and favorite Bible as a message given by an elderly, extremely wise man of God. I also remember the summer that I read Ephesians over and over and over.
Sunday, February 1, 2009
Reincarnation and Early Christianity
Reincarnation and christianity
I read a book that in passing stated that the early church believed in reincarnation. Whoa! Stop. There must be something amiss here. Reincarnation, which says that we keep coming back over and over again until we get the experience of life done the right way, and salvation, completely to the uttermost forgiveness of sins, and righteousness offered through the blood of Jesus, are diametrically opposed to one another.
Hebrews 9:27 (Amplified Bible)
27And just as it is appointed for [all] men once to die, and after that the [certain] judgment.
I found out the reference in the book was due to the early heresy of Gnosticism, which took many forms from one extreme of beating the sinful body into submission to the other extreme that it just doesn’t matter what one does after the initial salvation experience. None of these were acceptable as the truth of the New Testament.
Revelation 2:6 (Amplified Bible)
6Yet you have this [in your favor and to your credit]: you hate the works of the Nicolaitans [what they are doing as corrupters of the people], which I Myself also detest
Irenaeus taught that Nicolatians were Gnostics who believed that once accepting the gospel truth, then actions no longer mattered. Please read this link to understand that salvation is the essential first step to a genuine relationship with Jesus Christ, but is ever active and demands our response in daily life
http://www.wordoftruthradio.com/questions/38.html
Hebrews 7:24-25 (Amplified Bible)
24But He holds His priesthood unchangeably, because He lives on forever.
25Therefore He is able also to save to the uttermost (completely, perfectly, finally, and for all time and eternity) those who come to God through Him, since He is always living to make petition to God and intercede with Him and intervene for them.
We are saved to the uttermost. Praise the Lord! There is no doubt of being part of God’s Kingdom. I have talked to many who just can’t believe that God is going to forgive the unspeakable, secret, and detestable deeds they have committed. And yet as we are broken in spirit from our unrighteousness, Jesus is before the Father interceding on our behalf. What can be more powerful than the blood of Jesus! Let us not take lightly the great gift of atonement.
This does not mean that we can sin presumptuously thinking that God will excuse anything since we’ve believed in Jesus. After all, even demons believe in the atoning work of Jesus’ death on the cross. A contrite and broken heart is central to forgiveness. Then there must follow activity that reflects the example of Christ, and testifies of the indwelling of the Holy Spirit.
Do not be fooled: do not believe in reincarnation. Jesus’ blood can atone for our sins to the uttermost. It is appointed man once to die and then the judgment.
Go Steelers!
I read a book that in passing stated that the early church believed in reincarnation. Whoa! Stop. There must be something amiss here. Reincarnation, which says that we keep coming back over and over again until we get the experience of life done the right way, and salvation, completely to the uttermost forgiveness of sins, and righteousness offered through the blood of Jesus, are diametrically opposed to one another.
Hebrews 9:27 (Amplified Bible)
27And just as it is appointed for [all] men once to die, and after that the [certain] judgment.
I found out the reference in the book was due to the early heresy of Gnosticism, which took many forms from one extreme of beating the sinful body into submission to the other extreme that it just doesn’t matter what one does after the initial salvation experience. None of these were acceptable as the truth of the New Testament.
Revelation 2:6 (Amplified Bible)
6Yet you have this [in your favor and to your credit]: you hate the works of the Nicolaitans [what they are doing as corrupters of the people], which I Myself also detest
Irenaeus taught that Nicolatians were Gnostics who believed that once accepting the gospel truth, then actions no longer mattered. Please read this link to understand that salvation is the essential first step to a genuine relationship with Jesus Christ, but is ever active and demands our response in daily life
http://www.wordoftruthradio.com/questions/38.html
Hebrews 7:24-25 (Amplified Bible)
24But He holds His priesthood unchangeably, because He lives on forever.
25Therefore He is able also to save to the uttermost (completely, perfectly, finally, and for all time and eternity) those who come to God through Him, since He is always living to make petition to God and intercede with Him and intervene for them.
We are saved to the uttermost. Praise the Lord! There is no doubt of being part of God’s Kingdom. I have talked to many who just can’t believe that God is going to forgive the unspeakable, secret, and detestable deeds they have committed. And yet as we are broken in spirit from our unrighteousness, Jesus is before the Father interceding on our behalf. What can be more powerful than the blood of Jesus! Let us not take lightly the great gift of atonement.
This does not mean that we can sin presumptuously thinking that God will excuse anything since we’ve believed in Jesus. After all, even demons believe in the atoning work of Jesus’ death on the cross. A contrite and broken heart is central to forgiveness. Then there must follow activity that reflects the example of Christ, and testifies of the indwelling of the Holy Spirit.
Do not be fooled: do not believe in reincarnation. Jesus’ blood can atone for our sins to the uttermost. It is appointed man once to die and then the judgment.
Go Steelers!
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Great Grandfather Humes
Great Grandfather, Charles Humes, started the family interest in trucks. He is in the center of the picture and Great Grandmother, Eva Humes, is to the left of him.
