Our prayer for Wednesday, January 1

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Mighty God, Conceiver, Author, and Creator of this vast cosmos. You are beyond thought, beyond imagination, beyond human mind. You are greater than any galaxy, mightier than any sun, gentler than the softest feather. And, oh, your ability to love ~ it conquers everything that is bad because love is the strongest essence in existence.  Because of this, you created me. Lowly me. Your thoughts never leave me, your kindness never ceases, the honor of your presence never flies away. I extol you, honor you, and bow at your feet.

Please forgive me for not thinking of others more than myself. I get so caught up in my own life, I hide my eyes from others’ needs, others’ goals, others’ plights. Open my eyes and heart to them and help me be willing to leave my little world to spread your love abroad.

Thank you for loving me. You show it every day on the earth I trod, the food I eat, the birds that fly around me for my entertainment. You are in my every delight, my every movement, my every song. I am surrounded and protected by your high walls of salvation, your waters of life, and your light of truth.  How can I thank you for all you have done for me?

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365 Dat by Date-Front-Thumbnail365 LIFE-CHANGING SCRIPTURES DAY BY DATE.  We all want our life to change for the better. These 366 inspirational daily devotionals were written for that purpose. You will notice that the date coincides with the chosen scripture. For example, the scripture for February 7 (2/7) is Proverbs 2:7. To BUY NOW, click a book cover or paste this:  https://amzn.to/2SKNRSK

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Tuesday 12/31 ~ Mind-boggling heaven

The scripture for today, December 31 (12/31), is Luke 12:31 as found in the New Testament of the Bible:

Road to Heaven-COVER-KINDLE-THUMBNAIL“But seek his kingdom and these things will be given to you as well.”

The kingdom is already here (Luke 9:27; Colossians 1:13), but heaven is not. That is the final destination of the kingdom. Do you actively seek God’s kingdom? Or do you drift and think God should feel obligated to take you into his heaven? Do you feel like you’re “not so bad”, so God would be bad to not take you into his heaven?

Heaven is God’s home, not yours. God has a door into his home, just like you have a door into your home. God is not required to open his door to just anyone, just like you are not required to open your door to just anyone.  You cannot just show up at the door and smile and assume he will let you in, any more than people who knock on our door and smile can assume you will let them in.

You let people into your home who you have gotten to know and whose motives you trust. Have you given God a chance to get to know you and trust your motives? Are your daily motives to enter heaven, God’s home? Do you even like God?

This life you live on earth is not your permanent life or residence. This is the testing place to see how you handle problems and to see how much your spiritual muscles will end up being. God has plans for Christians in heaven we do not know about. What we do know is that he is not a God of idleness.

Do you live like the earth is all there is? Do you fear hell?  Do you prefer heaven where people will worship all the time? Does that sound boring to you?

You are about to enter a brand-new year. Today, decide to start over fresh and set your new goal: To enter God’s home his way and live with him in staggering, inconceivable, absolute, profound, incredible, astounding, mind-boggling joy.  FOREVER.

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Road to Heaven-COVER-KINDLE-THUMBNAILTHE ROAD TO HEAVEN begins in the Garden of Eden and by the middle of the book, it is at the Garden of Gethsemane.  From there on, it goes into our heavenly bodies and imagining just what heaven must be like.  Join in the adventure as we use logic and heart to clearly understand the Road to Heaven.  To  BUY NOW, click a book cover or paste this……….https://amzn.to/2QBK1sn

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Sunday 12/29 ~ The True Promised Land

The scripture for today, December 29 (12/29), is Deuteronomy 12:29 as found in the Old Testament of the Bible:

07-SHADOW-ChildsCartoonSmall“The Lord your God will cut off before you the nations you are about to invade and dispossess.”

Why would a good God drive people (the Amorite nations) from their own land so that other people (the Jews) could live there? Way back in Genesis 15, God promised Abraham that his descendants would possess the land he lived in as a wanderer; but first, they would be enslaved in a foreign country some 400 years. During that time, they would multiply. Indeed, they did grow from 70 of Abraham’s grandchildren to over three million.

Then it would be time for his descendants to possess the land. Why so long in the future?  Verse 16 explains it: “For the sin of the Amorites has not yet reached its full measure.” God always gives people plenty of time to repent and change.  But the Amorites continued to do horrible things including child sacrifices to appease their gods.

The Jews did finally possess the Promised Land, but God warned them, “If you defile the land, it will vomit you out as it vomited out the nations that were before you” (Leviticus 18:28). Indeed, they did eventually defile the land with horrible things including child sacrifice to appease the gods they traded the real God for. So, God kept his promise and sent them into exile in Assyria and Babylon.

Today, just as Abraham searched for a country and city not made with hands, join him.  Regardless of the condition of the nation you live in on earth, look ahead to that same country and city not made with hands.  Look ahead to the true Promised Land, the spiritual Promised Land ~ heaven. And it will be forever good.

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07-SHADOW-ChildsCartoonThmbnailA CHILD’S LIFE OF CHRIST: SHADOW OF DEATH gently tells of Jesus hurting on the cross, then dying, then coming back to life to live forever.  For the Christian, Death is gentle. Death is a glow of sunshine in the valley and a shining door into heaven.  To BUY NOW, click a book cover or paste this……….https://amzn.to/37iVMdW

 

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Thursday 12/26 ~ True and eternal honor

The scripture for today, December 26 (12/26), is John 12:26 as found in the New Testament of the Bible:

0-BK 4-FolkHero-Cover-Kindle-thumbnail-new“Whoever serves me must follow me; and where I am, my servant also will be. My Father will honor the one who serves me.”

Ah, Lord Jesus. We claim we understand how humble you were, then build great cathedrals which we claim are to your glory but which are really to our glory. We organize great musical performances which we claim are to your glory, but which are really to our glory.

Just where was Jesus when he was on earth saying this?  In a posh hotel in Jerusalem? Did he have great musicians performing in the background? Did he stand on a podium and declare this to multitudes? Who are you fooling when you declare you are his servant?  

Who or what are you really a servant to? Power in a workplace, club, congregation, neighborhood? Prestige in a community, an occupation, an organization? Self-indulgence of money, music, entertainment?

While you are pursuing things in life, is Jesus there with you? Are you doing what he would be busy doing?  Are you where he was when he said this?

Dare to be a servant to the power of Jesus’ love, prestige in the eyes of God, self-indulgence in the joy of worshiping Him. In this only is there true and enduring honor.

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0-BK 4-FolkHero-Cover-Kindle-thumbnail-newTHEY MET JESUS:  FOLK HERO. Jesus was a hero but never had a cathedral to preach in.  He never had a great choir or grand orchestra as a mood creator before his sermons.  He never wore clothes that were different from other people or insisted on people bowing and kissing his ring.  When he performed miracles of feeding thousands, he never had fine crystal or silver urns to distribute the food or gather up the leftovers.  How we, in our misdirected zeal, shame him.  We bow at his wounded feet and ask his forgiveness.  To BUY NOW, click a book cover or paste this:  https://amzn.to/2EXU85s

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Monday 12/23 ~ He was born to die

The scripture for today, July 23 (7/23), is 1st Corinthians 7:23 in the New Testament of the Bible.

0000-BK 1-StarSong-Cover-new-Medium“You were bought at a price; do not become slaves of men.”

Who were you bought from? Satan. God told Adam and Eve the day they sinned their souls would die. Satan is the source of death. When we sin, he holds us hostage.  I Timothy 2:6 says Jesus paid the ransom to free us from Satan.  “For He rescued us from the domain of darkness and transferred us to the kingdom of His beloved Son, in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins” (Colossians 1:13-14).

God loved you so much, he put his words in a human body (John 1:1,14). Why? Hebrews 2:14 says, “Since the children have flesh and blood, he too shared in their humanity so that by his death he might break the power of him who holds the power of death—that is, the devil.”

Then God told the world through his Bible that, if you will believe this really happened and follow his will for you, he will consider you perfect through the blood of Jesus and eligible to enter his perfect home ~ heaven.

But it is not automatic. Romans 6 speaks a lot of who we are slaves to and how to break those chains and come under the umbrella of what Jesus did for mankind.

As you celebrate his birth (whenever that was), do not forget why he was born. He had a precious gift for you. The gift lives on today.  A simple loving thank you is not enough, but that is all we, in our humanness, have to give.

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0000-BK 1-StarSong-Cover-new-ThumbnailSTAR SONG is novel one in the 8-novel series THEY MET JESUS.  Each chapter is about a different person involved in his birth and youth.  It is also published under the title, THEY ROCKED THE CRADLE THAT ROCKED THE WORLD.  Relive with them how the birth of the Son of God changed their lives forever. Relive the very first Christmas with them.  HALF PRICE for paperback and 99c for the ebook. To BUY NOW, click a book cover or paste this……….https://amzn.to/2rqfOUA

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Wednesday 12/18 ~ The heavenly temple

The scripture for today, December 18 (12/18), is Hebrews 12:18ff as found in the New Testament of the Bible:

0-REV-Cover-No Logo-KINDLE-lg-thumbnail“You have not come to a mountain [Sinai] that cannot be touched and that is burning with fire; to darkness, gloom and storms; to a trumpet blast….The sight was so terrifying that Moses said, ‘I am trembling with fear.’ “

“But you have come to Mount Zion, to the heavenly Jerusalem, the city of the living God. You have come to thousands upon thousands of angels in joyful assembly, to the church of the first-born, whose names are written in heaven. You have come to God the judge of all men, to the spirits of righteous men made perfect, to Jesus the mediator of a NEW COVENANT….”
The first paragraph refers to Mount Sinai in Arabia on which Moses received what was called the Law of Moses ~ not just 10 commandments, but over 600 ~ over a 40-day period. It was a terrifying experience for everyone. The second paragraph refers to Mount Zion where the temple was built in Jerusalem by the Jews.

Next, the writer of Hebrews shows that Jesus took mankind higher than either physical mountain through his new agreement with us. He took us from the Old Agreement of the Law of Moses to the New Agreement of the Law of Grace. He took us from the physical to the spiritual. The Christian Jerusalem is in heaven where angels and the living God dwell (Revelation 21).

Why would anyone want to dip into the old Law of Moses to get justification to do showy things in worship when Christian worship is so much more simple and spiritual? Why would anyone want to rebuild the Jewish temple when the temple is in the heavenly Jerusalem? Let us climb down off that old mountain of the Law and physical temple and soar with the angels to the spiritual, the heavenly.

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0-REV-Cover-No Logo-KINDLE-thumbnailREVELATION: A LOVE LETTER FROM GOD unravels all the confusion and logically takes you through each chapter and how they all link together in order.  The key is to understand the symbolism of the numbers.  I love the number 1000 because it is 10 X 10 X 10 which means all-inclusive X all-inclusive X all-inclusive.  Revelation is a beautiful book of love. It is a love letter to you from God.  To BUY NOW, click a book cover or paste this……….https://amzn.to/34yGgsz

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Saturday 12/14 ~ Hold fast. Stand firm.

The scripture for today, December 14 (12/14), is 1st Samuel 12:14 as found in the Old Testament of the Bible:

02-samuel-thumbnailcover“If you fear the Lord and serve and obey him and do not rebel against his commands, and if both you and the king who reigns over you follow the Lord your God ~ good!”

The Jews had just insisted on having a king rule over them instead of a supreme judge. Samuel, their last supreme judge, replied and said two IFs. IF they serve and obey the Lord, and IF they both (people and king) follow the Lord, then it is good.

Today as then, some people live in a nation where the king/government does not follow the Lord. What to do? Galatians 5:22 tells us to be loving, joyful, peaceful, patient, kind, good, faithful, gentle, and self-controlled, for “against such things there is no law”.

Is it hard to do this when crooked officials are getting all the advantages and you are being cheated and even threatened if you do not cooperate? Indeed, it is. It may seem they are living the good life. In reality (eternal reality, not earthly reality). They have lost everything. This life is fleeting. Keep your eyes on the eternal. Keep your eyes on God!

Hold fast!

       Stand firm!

             Do the right thing!

In the end, they lose. You and God win. And that is good!

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02-samuel-thumbnailcoverA CHILD’S BIBLE KIDS:  SAMUEL.  How did Samuel’s mother prepare him to live in someone else’s house when he was a toddler? How did Eli settle little Samuel’s confused mind when Eli suddenly became his “grandfather” while he grew up?  But grow up, Samuel did. And he became one of the strongest supreme judges Israel ever had.  But he was also the last.  He had to resign his position when the people wanted a king instead of him.  But, he never stopped being loyal to God.  To BUY NOW, click a book cover or paste this……….  https://amzn.to/2YPmlVe

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Sunday 12/8 ~ The meaning of life

The scripture for today, December 8 (12/8), is Ecclesiastes 12:8 as found in the Old Testament of the Bible:

Pearls Cover-Palms-300dpi-Thumbnail” ‘Meaningless! Meaningless!’ says the teacher. ‘Everything is meaningless!’ “

About thirty-five years ago some Christians in England did a sidewalk survey in the downtown of a major city. One of their inquiries was: “What question about your life do you ask the most?”. The answer almost always was, “Why am I here? What is life all about?”.

The entire book of Ecclesiastes is about all the things that the richest and most powerful man in the world did in order to have an enjoyable and fulfilling life: He built palaces and grand temples, he cultivated great gardens, he imported tons of gold and precious stones and fabrics from around the globe, he had numerous wives and mistresses, he built the largest army and navy in the world, he studied every possible subject. At the end, he said it was all meaningless.

The meaning of your life is that you were born to die and walk through a gate. This life is temporary. It is your proving ground. This life is the foyer of the life you will have eternally ~ a life in heaven or hell. You were not put here just to have fun, but rather to live in the very presence of your Maker and take many people as possible with you to the home of God, your Maker, the Lover of your soul. That is the meaning of life.

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Pearls Cover-Palms-300dpi-Thumbnail365 PEARLS OF WISDOM: GOD’S SOUL TO YOURS contains daily excerpts from Proverbs plus one passage from Job, Psalm, Ecclesiastes, or Song of Solomon.  This is one of three books in the devotional TOUCHING GOD SERIES. Original artwork on the covers and poetic font inside.  A beautiful gift book for Christmas and all through the year.  To BUY NOW, click a book cover or paste this………. https://amzn.to/2rvxON8

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Sunday 12/1 ~ Treasures in the heart of God

The scripture for today, December 1 (12/1), is Jeremiah 12:1ff as found in the Old Testament of the Bible:

0-BK 8-ComeFlyWithMe-Cover-Thumbnail-New“Lord, you always give me justice when I bring a case before you to decide. Now let me bring you this complaint: Why are the wicked so prosperous? Why are evil men so happy? You plant them. They take root and their business grows. Their profits multiply, and they are rich. They say, ‘Thank God!’ But in their hearts, they give no credit to you. But as for me ~ Lord, you know my heart ~ you know how much it longs for you. And I am poor, O Lord!”

Now compare this with Job 15:20-24:

“All his days the wicked man suffers torment, the ruthless through all the years stored up for him. Terrifying sounds fill his ears….He despairs of escaping the darkness; he is marked for the sword. He wanders about ~ food for vultures; he knows the day of darkness is at hand. Distress and anguish fill him with terror.”

These two passages contradict each other. So what is the problem? The words spoken in Job were by Eliphaz, one of Job’s well-meaning friends who took it upon himself to help Job figure out why he had lost all his wealth, all his children, and all his health. Was Eliphaz right?

At the end of the book of Job, is this: “The Lord…said to Eliphaz the Temanite, “I am angry with you and your two friends because you have not spoken of me what is right.” Then God ordered Eliphaz and his friends to sacrifice seven bulls and rams (not small sacrifices), then ask Job to pray for them so God “will not deal with you according to your folly.”

When we read scripture, let us be careful to investigate its context and ALL other scriptures on the same subject. Only then can we have the whole picture. Only then can we avoid religious folly.  And truly know the heart of God.

(And, by the way, always remember, this earth is not your home. You’re just passing through. Treasures beyond comprehension are being laid up for you right now in your permanent home ~ heaven.)

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0-BK 8-ComeFlyWithMe-Cover-Thumbnail-NewCOME FLY WITH ME is novel 8 in THEY MET JESUS  series.  Persecution of Jesus ended in his death, but it was his greatest triumph. Persecution continued with his twelve and would the rest of their lives. But, the reward at the end of the race.  Oh, the reward. Heaven in all its splendor and being with Jesus once again. To BUY NOW, click a book cover or paste this……….https://amzn.to/2OZFOxK

 

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Saturday 11/30 ~ What Adam & Eve did Right

The scripture for today, November 30 (11/30), is Proverbs 11:30 as found in the Old Testament of the Bible:

0-Michel-COVER-Kindle-Thumbnail“The fruit of the righteous is a tree of life, and he who wins souls is wise.”

Remember back in the Garden of Eden? Going by the age of their three sons, Adam and Eve were in the Garden close to one hundred years.  Instead of centering on what they did wrong, look at what they did right.  They were sinless for nearly a century! Hardly any of us can accomplish that in 100 minutes.

Just think. Walking through a garden lush with the beauty of holiness.  Walking through a garden with the water of life to drink. Walking through a garden with God (materialized) himself.

How many times did that snake Satan, upright like a king’s scepter and perhaps with a crown of gold and ruby on his head, make his way gracefully through the garden, laughing and enjoying the company of newly made humans? How many times did he coil up his tail like a maelstrom spiraling through the heavens full of light and beauty as he watched the couple enjoy the fruit of the garden? How many times did this magnificent creature sway back and forth, back and forth as cobras do as he spoke hypnotic words to make them feel like gods?

“Oh, look at the fruit on that tree over there? God told you never to touch it, but God is wrong.  Go ahead. Touch it. That’s right. Did anything bad happen to you? Of course not, because God is wrong.  How about touching it with your lips? That’s right. You’re not really eating it. You’re just touching it. Smell it too. Have you ever smelled anything so wonderful? God doesn’t want you to have it. He knows you will learn what evil is and then be as smart as him. God is jealous of you. Go ahead. Take a tiny bite. It won’t hurt you.  See there? Are you dead like he said you would be? No. You are still alive. God is a liar. I am the only one who tells you the truth. I am on your side. God hates you. Sure, go ahead and take another bite, and Adam might like some too.  It’s harmless. Do not believe anything God says. He hates you. I am the only one who loves you.”

How many thousands of times did Adam and Eve chase him off, only to have him back in their lives a few hours later? How many thousands of times did they try to resume what they were doing and try to put him out of their minds? How many times did they do it right? One stumble was all the enemy needed.

That was a long time ago. Now the Tree of Life, which God withheld from Adam and Eve, is in heaven waiting for them. Waiting for you.

And as you wait, win souls.  Snatch them out of the beautiful flower-strewn web of mankind’s enemy number one. He is still out here, still beautiful, still suave, and still lying.

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0-Michel-COVER-Kindle-ThumbnailMICHEL: THE FOURTH WISE MAN lived a few miles from the Garden of Eden where the Tigris & Euphrates Rivers meet.  It was now under water.  Michel descends from Daniel. His dream is to buy what was the Garden of Eden, restore it, and bring people to it to meditate and pray so that perhaps God will return and walk the earth again. Little did he know that is what was happening over in Bethlehem.  To BUY NOW, click a book cover or paste this……….https://amzn.to/2Y9Z4wQ

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