He will stop at nothing to make sure you last forever

The scripture for today, March 10 (3/10), is Colossians 3:10 as found in the New Testament of the Bible:

0-HS-592 VersesExamined-COVER-Thumbnail“And have put on the new self, which is being renewed in knowledge in the image of its Creator.”

Did you ever make something with your hands, and it was your pride and joy?  Were you so proud of it that you would stop at nothing to take care of it and make sure it lasted forever? Yes, you had a few rules about its care. You had a few rules about who could touch it and who couldn’t. You had a few rules about whether it should be kept at high or low temperature and should or shouldn’t be exposed to water. You were its creator, and it was, in a sense, a part of you.

Do you resist knowing the Bible because you think of it as being full of rules from a God who doesn’t really like you and is just giving you a hard time so you can’t have any fun?

Think again. He made you. You are his pride and joy. He will stop at nothing to make sure you will last forever. He made a few rules for your daily maintenance.

He is your Creator. He loved you enough to make you, and you are a part of him. Now he wants to take care of you so you can last forever. Can you love him back ~ your Maker and the Lover of your soul?

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0-HS-592 VersesExamined-COVER-ThumbnailTHE HOLY SPIRIT:  592 VERSES EXAMINED.  No feeding on pet peeves. This book considers all verses in the Bible about God’s Holy Spirit.  When studied like that, everything comes together, makes sense, and is beautiful.  To BUY NOW, click a book cover or paste this……….https://bit.ly/376695S

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Hold on while I lower than mountain for you

The scripture for today, March 6 (3/6), is Proverbs 3:6 as found in the Old Testament of the Bible:

0-REV-Cover-No Logo-KINDLE-mediumIn all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make your paths straight.”

Is your life full of twists and turns, short cuts that never work out, detours, mountains to climb and valleys to make your way through?  Welcome to the human race. Life on earth can be hard.  Did you know the Bible calls Satan the god of this world (2nd Corinthians 4:4) and ruler of this world (John 12:31)?

Your path to heaven is another matter. Your path to heaven is straight. God has done everything in his power to straighten your path and make it easier for you to reach him. How? By providing you with His Word to read any time you see trouble ahead (Psalm 119:105).

Do you see a mountain ahead of you so steep it is impossible to climb or valley so full of darkness you cannot bear the thought of entering it? Do you see a curve in the road ahead of you and dread knowing where it will lead you?

Colossians 1:13 says God can rescue you from Satan’s domain of darkness and transfer you to the kingdom of Jesus Christ. There God takes control. There God says, “Hold on a minute, Christian, while I lower that mountain, brighten that valley, straighten that curve.”

The path to heaven is even, bright, and straight. What path are you on?

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0-REV-Cover-No Logo-KINDLE-thumbnailREVELATION: A LOVE LETTER FROM GOD.  Once you understand that Revelation is a history book, you sees how God punished his people’s enemies in the past and will do it again,  Once you understand the symbolism of the numbers, you see the deep love and assurance that God keeps his promises.  Satan freed after 1000 years?  Ten meaning all inclusive years tells us that after all-inclusive years X all-inclusive years X all-inclusive years, Satan will be freed.  That after eternity ends!  Can’t get any more reassuring than that.  To BUY NOW and learn more, click a book cover or paste this:  https://bit.ly/36W2CqT

https://inspirationsbykatheryn.wordpress.com/1107-2/my-book-revelationa-love-letter-from-god/

Soaring to the heavens

The scripture for today, March 5 (3/5), is Titus 3:5 in the New Testament of the Bible:

0-BOOK 7-SHADOW-ChildsCartoonMedium“He saved us, not because of righteous things we had done, but because of his mercy. He saved us through the washing of rebirth and renewal by the Holy Spirit.”

God is perfectly good and cannot dwell with imperfection. How, then, could we ever live with him in his heaven?  After all, as hard as we tried, we could not be perfect. Mankind was held hostage by Satan.

God loved us so much that he solved our dilemma. He sent his Son to live that perfect life that is impossible for us to live. Then, his perfect “Lamb of God” took our punishment for our sins by paying the ransom to get us out of the clutches of Satan.

Romans 3:23 says the earnings of sin is death ~ physical death (separation from this world) and spiritual death (separation from God). Jesus took it all for us. And that included being completely separated from God. At the worst of it, Jesus cried out to God, “Why have you FORSAKEN me?” That’s when Jesus died spiritually for a moment. It was we who deserved to be forsaken by God. And in that same moment, he faced down Satan and conquered.

Sin and its power now destroyed, God said if we go “through the washing of rebirth” we will be renewed by the Holy Spirit.

But how? God did not leave us guessing, for in Acts 22:16 Jesus told Paul, “Arise and be baptized and wash away your sins” and in Romans 6:4 he said through Paul, “We were therefore buried with him through baptism in order that…we too may live a new life [rebirth].”  Then we could start over pure and washed.

Washing of rebirth is no more “water salvation” than the cross was “wood salvation.”  Both were physical things that accomplished spiritual outcomes. God took care of the hard part. He gave us the easy part. And so, we worship him with unspeakable gratitude that soars to the heavens and fills God’s throne room.

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07-SHADOW-ChildsCartoonThmbnailA CHILD’S LIFE OF CHRIST: SHADOW OF DEATH.  Even Jesus’ shadow is full of brightness.  He is so dazzling, he blinds even Satan.  In this toned-down account of Jesus’ crucifixion, children are led to understand that Jesus was injured in order to save us because he loved us so much.  THINK & DO at the end of each chapter.  To BUY NOW, click a book cover or paste this:  https://bit.ly/388AfYj

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In His World

The scripture for today, February 17 (2/17), is 1st John 2:17 as found in the New Testament of the Bible:

0-BK 8-ComeFlyWithMe-Cover-Medium-New“The world and its desires pass away, but the man who does the will of God lives forever.”

Have you lost anything very important to you lately? Has it left you feeling empty?

Were you injured and cannot participate in a certain sport anymore? Are your bones growing old, and you have to get around in a wheelchair?  Did you lose a savings or part of your income and no longer can buy fancy clothes, a shiny car, a big house?  Did you miss out on being a chairman for your committee or official for your community and all the importance that comes with it?

The previous verse in the KJV says there are three basic types of sins: Lust of the flesh and eye, and pride.

Is your loss devastating to you? Do you now feel worthless?  Do you sometimes even have fleeting thoughts that life is no longer worth living?

Or perhaps you recently obtained your heart’s desire. Were you satisfied? Or have you already begun to look higher, wanting a little more?

Take a deep look at yourself?  Do you think you will ever be truly satisfied?  What are your cravings? Are they all that important?  Are they all that valuable?

Only one thing can ever give you what you truly crave ~ doing the gentle will of God. He is your Creator, and he knows what will make you happy. Then you can have all you ever craved in his world ~ forever.

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0-BK 8-ComeFlyWithMe-Cover-Thumbnail-NewTHEY MET JESUS:  COME FLY WITH ME.  Jesus is dead and so is the dream.  Three years of hopes dashed. Three years of winning plunged into despair. Three years wasted.  All that is left is to pick up the pieces. But where are the pieces.  Jesus’ eleven descend into a world of nothingness.  “Calm down.  Have peace.”  Huh?  Who said that?  You’re alive? He’s alive! Hopes now soar, but the hard work has just begun.  He leaves them with the keys to enliven dead souls. They are beaten but keep on. They are jailed but keep on. They are lied about, stalked, defied but keep on.  Then one day…then one day…they’re HOME.  To BUY NOW, click a book cover or paste this:  https://bit.ly/2OzEnXc

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Do your best, Timothy. Do your best.

00-PAUL COVER-Medium-The scripture for today, February 15 (2/15), is 2nd Timothy 2:15 as found in the New Testament of the Bible:

“Do your best to present yourself to God as one approved, a workman who does not need to be ashamed and who correctly handles the word of truth.”

“Do your best,” Paul told a younger co-worker.  “Do your best.”

This was an apostle speaking. This was Paul who had endured multiple beatings with rods and lashings with whips. This was Paul who no one could stop.

He had endured floods and snowstorms, hunger and robbers on the road. Still, no one could stop him. He endured shipwrecks and even treading water a day and night in the sea. Nothing could stop him.e \

It seems with Paul, it was never enough. He was driven. When he was stoned and presumed dead, he got up and went back into the city! When he was imprisoned, he defied the magistrates who put him there and sang his sermons to the other prisoners. Nothing could stop him. Nothing could shut him up.

When he wrote this, he was now in prison. He had done his best. Now it was time for the next generation. He was handing the torch over to Timothy and the others.

“Do your best, Timothy. Don’t let them stop you. Never let them stop you. They are lost and don’t know it. Tell them, Timothy. Keep telling them, no matter how terribly they treat you. Keep telling them and keep telling them. Don’t stop, Timothy. Do your best.

“Some will stop what they are doing and listen to you. They will turn their life around. They will be there with you when it is time to be presented to God. They will be there with you, and with you they will say, “I did my best.”

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00-PAUL COVER-Thumbnail-PAUL: THE UNSTOPPABLE.  I sometimes wonder what kind of child Paul was.  I tend to think when his parents punished him, he got up and immediately did the offending thing again.  Why do I think that?  Because that is what he did as a missionary preacher.  Pagan priests beat him. But he got up and preached again.  Jewish priests lashed him. But he got up and preached again.  Governments imprisoned him. But he got up and preached again. What kind of stuff was Paul made of?  To READ THIS BEST SELLER, click a book cover or paste this:  https://bit.ly/UnstoppablePaul

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See? He’s running after you.

The scripture for today, February 8 (2/8), is Genesis 2:8 as found in the Old Testament of the Bible:

Pearls Cover-Palms-300dpi-Medium“Now the Lord God had planted a garden in the east, in Eden; and there he put the man he had formed.”

Just think: Mankind’s nursery was a garden. How God wanted to spoil us, his children. And dote on us.

He even visited us sometimes. He walked with us in the cool of the evening through the beautiful home he had given us. It was the first of many times in the future he would walk with man. It was a beautiful time.

Then jealous Satan appeared out of the shadows of time and lied to us. He claimed God was our enemy. How could he say that with God providing us with tasty food to eat and sparkling water to drink beautiful flowers and trees and…  Well, we had everything.

Satan knew he couldn’t deny that, so he planted in their minds what they did not have.  “See that tree over there? God doesn’t like you or he would let you touch that tree.  See that fruit over there? God doesn’t like you or he would let you eat anything you want.”  Oh, and the biggie. “God doesn’t want you to be as smart as him.  Evil is fun, but he is keeping you from knowing what evil is.  It’s the most wonderful thing in the world. If God hates you that much, then hate him back.”

So, they did. And Satan laughed. They were so gullible. Too late they discovered God had been trying to protect them.

Do you believe God doesn’t want you to have any fun? That is not true. God does not hate you. God is not trying to keep you from having a good time. The real good time is in heaven and he is trying to get you there.

Do not listen to Satan. He is the one who hates you. Do not wait until it is too late. Turn around and try once more listening to God. See?  He is running after you. He wants to protect you. He loves you beyond comprehension. And wants to spoil you. In heaven.

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Pearls Cover-Palms-300dpi-Thumbnail365 PEARLS OF WISDOM: GOD’S SOUL TO YOURS provides one proverbs plus one passage from a wisdom literature — Job, Psalms, Ecclesiastes, Song of Solomon.  This is book two in the devotional trilogy — GOLDEN BIBLE THOUGHTS: GOD’S HEART TO YOURS and SILVER-WINGED PRAYERS: YOUR SPIRIT TO GOD’S.  Original art on the cover and classical papyrus font on the inside.  Perfect gift for yourself in these trying times of Covid uncertainty or a gift to someone else.  To BUY NOW, click a book cover or paste this:  https://bit.ly/3epvDgU

https://inspirationsbykatheryn.wordpress.com/365-pearls-of-wisdom-gods-soul-to-yours/

 

You brought eternity into my soul

0-BK 5-FloodGates-Cover-Medium-NewI praise and adore you, Lord God of heaven and earth. Of angels and people. Of stars and beasts. Of galaxies and molecules. So great and so minuscule ~ too large and too small for me to even see. You are in all.  You made all.  Your glory and might and wonders are reflected in all.  You are my Maker, my Defender, the Lover of my soul. You make darkness light. You make rough roads smooth. You make my chains break and fall away. I feel so warm and loved in your presence. You alone are worthy of worship.

Thank you, Jesus, for all your sacrifices. Over and over you sacrificed ~ heaven, a normal childhood, being a suspected bastard, being hounded by would-be assassins for two years. You went in and out of hiding. You dared them to live what they demanded of others. They hated you for it. They tortured you, insulted you, crucified you. Then death and hell.  So much. Because of my sins. My sins. You never gave up on me. Satan tried to destroy you. No one can destroy God.  You destroyed him. You destroyed my sins. Your persistence brought light into my life.  Your love brought eternity into my soul. Your love is unfathomable.

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THEY MET JESUS:  FLOOD GATES.  Jealous leaders feel threatened by Jesus.  The people follow him everywhere.  He is feeding them free.  Healing them free.  Teaching them free.  Even commanding demons. He must be crushed. He must be destroyed.  Spreading rumors about him has not worked.  Blaming him for breaking the law has not worked.  He must be killed.  To BUY NOW, click a book cover or paste this……….https://bit.ly/2XsOXDS

https://inspirationsbykatheryn.wordpress.com/historical-novel-about-jesus/book-5-flood-gates-adults-childs-versions/

 

Come back! Come back to Me!

The scripture for today, January 13 (1/13), is Habakkuk 1:13 as found in the Old Testament of the Bible:

0-BK 7-ShadowOfDeath-Cover-new-Medium“Your eyes are too pure to look on evil; you cannot tolerate wrong.”

This pretty much explains why no one deserves heaven. Going to heaven has little to do with doing so many good works God will feel obligated to admit you. 

It’s all about sin.  Only sinless people can be in heaven, for God cannot coexist with sin and still be God. Of course, you cannot be sinless. If nothing else, you have sins of attitude and neglect.

For thousands of years, God let mankind try any way they could to be perfect. Some people he gave the Law of Moses to, and some people he continued to let try on their own. Neither worked. No matter how hard we tried, no one could get it right.

The wages you earn for sinning is death (Romans 6:23). Remember in the Garden of Eden God warned, “The moment you sin, you die.” He was talking about souls dying, and eventually, bodies dying. Satan was now holding mankind hostage. Satan causes death, so sinners collect the wages Satan pays for following him.

But mankind was still being held hostage and Satan wasn’t about to let us go.  So God set up a trap.  The death of God. Satan wanted to be God and this was the only way he could carry out his plan. He did not realize it would end up being the destruction of his power of death.

Galatians 4:4 says, “When the time was come, God sent his son.” Finally, when mankind understood everyone needed outside help, God sent Jesus. Hebrews 4:15 says Jesus lived the perfect life that was impossible for anyone to live; he was completely free of sin.

Then God was ready to crush Satan’s head.  God offered his son ~ God in the form of mankind. So, Satan freed mankind from his prison of soul death. But Satan was in for a shock.  He is not as smart as God. His gloating came to an abrupt stop.  God tricked Satan. You cannot kill Life.  God returned to that human body and came back to life.

It was too late. Satan had already freed mankind. 

That done, God ~ who is too pure to dwell with sin ~ is now able to allow obedient, faithful believers in Jesus into his home, heaven. For, through Jesus, we become sinless and pure. Glory of glories!

But something terrible happened after that. People began selling themselves back into slavery to Satan (Romans 6:15-23).  No!  No! This cannot be! Not after all God went through to save mankind from Satan.

So God, through Christians, continually calls out to those who no longer want to worship Him or encourage his Family, “Come back!  Come back to your Father!! Come back.  Your brothers and sisters miss you. I miss you….”

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0-BK 7-ShadowOfDeath-Cover-new-ThumbnailSHADOW OF DEATH takes the reader through the last hours of Jesus before the Great Sacrifice.  Two chapters are completely on his six agonizing hours on the cross ~ the first three in the scorching sun; the second three in cold, cold darkness.  Satan, the Romans, the priests, the Sadducees ~ all thought they had won.  They had only dug their own spiritual graves.  Jesus re-entered his body and walked the earth again.  To BUY NOW, click a book cover or paste this……….  https://bit.ly/2UcggRE

https://inspirationsbykatheryn.wordpress.com/historical-novel-about-jesus/book-7-shadow-of-death-adults-childs-versions/

 

Hold fast. Stand Firm. Do the right thing.

The scripture for today, January 12 (1/12), is James 1:12 as found in the New Testament of the Bible:

0-Joseph-Cover-Kindle-Medium“Blessed is the man who perseveres under trial, because when he has stood the test, he will receive the crown of life that God has promised to those who love him.”

How loyal are you to God? Is your relationship up and down, depending on how your life is going at the moment? If you pray for something and don’t get it, do you feel as though God is punishing you?  If everything seems to be going wrong, do you blame God instead of Satan? Do you pray over and over for God to relieve you of a particular burden, but relief hasn’t come so you’ve decided to quit the church?

Quit grumbling! God has assignments for you. What kind of soldier of the Lord are you? Do you tell the general you don’t like what he has assigned for you to do? Where you are today is where God wants you. Your job is to stay loyal no matter how difficult things get.  Be brave. Hold fast. Stand your ground.

Why? To prove that love is stronger than hatred. To prove that good is stronger than bad. To prove that right is more mighty than wrong. To prove that God is stronger than Satan. Ephesians 6:12 says Our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the powers, against the world forces of this darkness, against the spiritual forces of wickedness in the heavenly places.

Determine today to thank God for whatever state you are in, even if you do it in tears because it goes against all your emotions. And, even though you may feel helpless to do anything about it right now, in your helplessness, persevere!

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0-Joseph-Cover-ThumbnailJOSEPH: THE OTHER FATHER.  Have you ever wondered the pressure Joseph must have felt those thirty years raising the Son of God? To keep him safe in a violent world? To open up the scriptures to him? To defend him when neighbors called Mary names and Jesus a bastard? To rescue him from bears in the forest while cutting lumber? To watch him and wonder if and when he knew who he was?  And when he felt out of control, did he cry to the other Father, “God!  Help me protect our Son!”  Read this biblical historical novel of how it might have been.  To BUY NOW, click a book cover, or paste this:  https://bit.ly/30FFlbC

https://inspirationsbykatheryn.wordpress.com/books-more-biblical-historical-novels/book-5-joseph-the-other-father/

 

Shhh. Listen. God is calling you.

The scripture for today, January 11 (1/11), is 2nd Peter 1:11 as found in the New Testament of the Bible:

“And you will receive a rich welcome into the eternal kingdom of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.”

0-BK 8-ComeFlyWithMe-Cover-Thumbnail-NewHow often do you forget that earth is not your home? As an old gospel song says, “We’re just passing through.” Do you really believe that?

If someone told you tomorrow you were going to die, would you go into a panic? Would you beg God to let you live another ten or twenty years? Would you feel this was the beginning of the end?

To a true Christian, your dying is the end of the beginning. You have a whole “life” ahead of you in heaven. A never-ending life. Do you live like you believe it? Will you die looking forward to it?

Are you even a Christian yet? What is your life like? Do you even know what is in the Bible, God’s messages to you? Does the thought of heaven sound boring to you?  Do you even like God?

Stop and listen to the empty place in your heart (Ec. 3:11).  Do you hear it?  Shhh.  Listen…  God is calling you.

 

0-BK 8-ComeFlyWithMe-Cover-Thumbnail-NewCOME FLY WITH ME is the last novel in the series THEY MET JESUS.  Jesus has been buried. His apostles have mourned in confusion. Suddenly he is back!  Alive again!  He appears to them out of nowhere every Sunday until it is time to go. Training is over.  Now left alone, the apostles figure out their strategy.  Be bold.  They are, and they are beaten and imprisoned.  They cannot let their savior down.  They go back and preach again, and again the beatings and imprisonment.  Thousands become Christians anyway!  Eventually, they part ways to go into all the world.  Five decades pass. John is the only one left.  Then his old Friend from days of his youth returns.  What a reunion.  To BUY NOW, click a book cover or paste this:    https://bit.ly/2OzEnXc

https://inspirationsbykatheryn.wordpress.com/historical-novel-about-jesus/book-8-come-fly-with-me-adults-childs-versions/