Category: Inspirational

Wednesday 11/21 ~ Who Knows?

On By Inspirations By KatherynIn attitude, church, faith, Inspirational, powerLeave a comment

The scripture for today, November 21 (11/21), is Acts 11:21 as found in the New Testament of the Bible:

00-PAUL COVER-Thumbnail-“The Lord’s hand was with them, and a great number of people believed and turned to the Lord.”

What had just happened? Some Christians in Phoenecia (today’s Lebanon), Cyprus (the Mediterranean Island) and Cyrene (in today’s North Africa), went to Antioch, a city in Northern Syria near the southern border of today’s Turkey. There they established a congregation.

This little congregation ended up being the home congregation of Paul and Barnabas for many years. It started small; we don’t know the size it grew to. Regardless of the size, it had foresight and eventually did great things.

Perhaps you live in a town full of churches, but you’ve compared them with the New Testament, and none of them follows that pattern. Perhaps you have even given up going to church because of this problem. What is stopping you from beginning a little congregation after the New Testament pattern in your home?  

New Testament churches were simple ~ not elaborate like those mega-churches out there. And those simple churches have always been dynamic in their simplicity. Who knows but that your new little congregation will someday produce a Paul or a Barnabas….

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Image result for Buy the bookPAUL: THE UNSTOPPABLE starts out as a terrorist. What changes him? When he switches sides, what makes him tick that no one can stop him no matter where he goes?  To BUY NOW, click a picture or paste this:  https://amzn.to/2pwTdJ

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#small, #large, #growth, #churches, #denominations, #faith,

God doesn’t believe in atheists

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How can you be so patient, God, when we are so set in our ways? You’ve told us over and over what things are sin but we do them anyway. It doesn’t even occur to us that we are hurting you, our Father, and shaming you. It doesn’t even occur to us that Satan is laughing the whole time because we have believed his lies instead of your truths. Though you agonize for us, you love us still. I cannot begin to comprehend such patient love.

Thank you, Lord, for a warm house on these cold days, bright lamps on these dark days, colorful furniture on these bleak days, food on these barren days. Thank you for rescuing me from illnesses, moodiness, danger on the street and icy paths. Thank you for allowing me to stop and rest sometimes and holding my spirit in your strong, yet, gentle arms until my soul sees the sunrise.

God is calling to you

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My prayer for Monday

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I searched for you everywhere, Lord God. I flew to the top of a tree, but could not find you. I rocketed to the moon and still could not find you. I soared to the stars and searched in vain for you. Finally, I stopped, stayed still in submission, and I found you. I found you in my yearning heart, the heaviness of my spirit, the aching of my soul.  You had been here all along whispering to me. You waited as long as it took until I found you. Now I rest in you.

Thank you for giving us music. Music has been loved by all people throughout all generations. Fast or slow, exciting or gentle, loud or soft, high or low. Music expresses every emotion. You gave us music to help us express those emotions, sometimes those which we do not know how to express in words.  You love music so much, you delight when we sing to you. I wonder if you hum along with us. Ah, such delights in music. Thank you.

Monday 11/19 ~ Surely, not me!

On By Inspirations By KatherynIn attitude, ego, humility, Inspirational, worshipLeave a comment

The scripture for today, November 19 (11/19), is Ezekiel 11:19 as found in the Old Testament of the Bible:

0-Titus-Cover-Lg Thumb“I will give them an undivided heart and put a new spirit in them; I will remove from them their heart of stone and give them a heart of flesh. Then they will follow my decrees and be careful to keep my laws. They will be my people, and I will be their God.”

Although the 600+ commandments in the Old Testament/Covenant Law of Moses were nailed to the cross (Colossians 2:14; Hebrews 8:10-13), God has always had laws to keep us safe. In the New Testament/Covenant era, he does not have a lot of laws, but he still has them.

What is our worship like? Is it full of things God never asked us to do? Does our worship elevate God or ourselves? When we’re done worshiping, do we say, “We were so great!” or “God is so great!”?

We add all kinds of things to our worship that were commanded only under the Old Testament/Covenant Law of Moses, or things we think would “add to the effectiveness” of our worship. If, for example, it’s okay to add things to our singing and praying because then they would sound better, then it is okay to add lemon pie to the Lord’s Supper because then it would taste better.

Again, the question: Who are we worshiping and trying to please? God or ourselves? Do we deep down have a heart of stone, but put on our halo and say, “Surely not me”?

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Image result for Buy the bookPaul often sent for TITUS: THE ARISTOCRAT to solve church problems. He had a knack for making all parties think he was on their side. To BUY NOW, click a picture or paste this:  https://amzn.to/2FtMylS

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#HardHeart, #SoftHeart, #worship, #selfwilled, #LawofMoses, #OldTestament, #NewTestaent

 

A newspaper article about me in case you’re interested

On By Inspirations By KatherynIn Inspirational7 Comments

Here’s a newspaper article about me that appeared over the weekend in case you’re interested.

https://www.pinalcentral.com/casa_grande_dispatch/area_news/faith-inspires-cg-writer-to-keep-writing-and-to-teach/article_01ace361-98fb-540d-a703-3f991928777f.html

Katheryn Maddox Haddad

Go with the strength you have

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My prayer for Sunday

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Lord, I am like the sheep that walk around afraid to drink from troubled waters, so you lead me to where the waters are calm and peaceful. When I cannot see you, I am afraid to follow a stranger, so you keep me confined so I am safe until your return. Though I walk around with no concern for possible dangers, you are right there with me to make sure I do not fall into that danger. Sometimes I become restless and fearful if I sense a storm is coming close. Then, Lord, I hear your heart singing to my heart and it calms me and I lie down and rest in you.

The sun is shining, the frost is heavy, it is very cold out there, but I am inside warm, snuggled up, thinking, meditating and watching for the birds to discover the corn I put out for them. I am tired these days and a little depressed. But I thank you for these times when I stop everything, back off, and contemplate. I know it is often at such times that we take a good look at ourselves selves, try to see ourselves as others do, and make changes for the better. So, I thank you for this little bit of unhappy time when I can learn better who I am and how much you love me.

Sunday 11/18 ~ Maybe this is your assignment

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The scripture for today, November 18 (11/18), is Deuteronomy 11:18f as found in the Old Testament of the Bible:

0-Joseph-Cover-Thumbnail“Then the Lord’s anger will burn against you, and he will shut the heavens so that it will not rain and the ground will yield no produce, and you will soon perish from the good land the Lord is giving you. Fix these words of mine in your hearts and minds; tie them as symbols on your hands and bind them on your foreheads.”

Sometimes the country you live in goes through very bad times. You pray for the bad times to end, but they do not. What is going on? The above warning was to the Israelites just before they entered their promised land. God had just said through Moses, “Don’t worship idols”.

Perhaps your country is going through bad times because of idol worship ~ probably not like the hand-made idols of ancient times, but idols of money and power and lack of morality and ethics.

You may feel all alone in trying to get the people you know to do better. They may laugh at you, scorn you, fire you from you’re your job. There have been times in the Bible when a good man prayed, “God, I am the only one left who worships you.” God would reply there were a few others trying to do right also. But he never replied he was going to stop the punishing. The country hadn’t turned back to God yet.

Therefore, when you are suffering unjustly for what a majority of your countrymen are doing, you must bear it bravely. And while you wait it out, continue to remind yourself, your family, your neighbors, your countrymen of the righteous ways they should be acting.

In bad times, this is your assignment. Be brave and spread the news. Keep reminding and being as patient with them as God is with you. Perhaps someday in your lifetime, they will listen.

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#nations, #governments, #citizens, #morals, #ethics, #greed, #power, #persecution, #assignments, #countries, #Christians