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God, you are the friend of the world. No better friend could we have. But so many snub you out of arrogance, Satan telling them they can be their own god. They see you as their enemy, they fight you and twist your motives. Sometimes I do it myself because no one is immune to the influence of Satan. I know how often you must weep as we break your heart. You are only trying to save us from our enemy, Satan. You are only trying to bring us into the refuge of your home so we will be forever safe. How ungrateful and arrogant we are. Some believe you will have no choice but to take them into your home when they die, forgetting you have a door, a gate into your home and do not allow just anyone into your home for the same reason we have doors into our home. But you love all of us anyway. You are so patient. None of us deserve you. Despite my sins, I do praise you and magnify you in my heart. Of every being in the world, you are most deserving of my honor, respect, and love.
Lord, it is getting really cold outside but I am warm and cozy inside. Thank you for what I sometimes take for granted. And thank you for the hope of heaven. Sometimes I am tired and want to rest. Then I think of all the lost souls because they think you are their enemy, or they think they can get to heaven ~ your home, not theirs ~ their own way. Today, may I take a deep breath and keep going.
My Lord, you think of everything ~ four seasons and different climates for a serendipity off change. Trees without their leaves show me their shear strength ~ tall and bold, standing strong after storms, holding snow on their shoulders, even when it turns to ice. Reaching toward a gray sky from a stark earth, undaunted, sometimes for centuries. The trees I see out my window were seen by people before the invention of automobiles and airplanes and pre-prepared food and washing machines. Standing sentry. Standing strong with a heart to live yet longer. Lord, you are that way and more. Even when you seem stark to some people, you are strong and have a heart to live forever.
It is mid-November, we had a big rain yesterday, and suddenly there are no leaves on the trees. Before the rain, they had big yellow leaves. So now they are going to sleep as the trees rest a while. I thank you for periods of rest. And for color indoors from paint and dye and the food harvested last month. And the warmth of the indoors to keep me until summer blossoms returns. How interesting and exciting you made our exciting, enchanting, changeable world. Thank you.
The scripture for today, November 16 (11/16), is John 11:16 as found in the New Testament of the Bible:
“Then Thomas…said to the rest of the disciples, ‘Let us also go that we may die with him.’
This apostle is most often called “Doubting Thomas.” We’ve all heard the story about Thomas being absent when Jesus appeared to the other apostles, then later said he wouldn’t believe Jesus was alive again unless he could touch him. Well, the other apostles hadn’t believed until they saw him either.
After returning to life, Jesus first appeared to the women. Then, “when they came back from the tomb, they told all these things to the Eleven and to all the others…But they did not believe the women because their words seemed to them like nonsense” (Luke 24:9-11).
Now let’s look at our scripture for today. In the months before Jesus’ death, he had been traveling everywhere except to Judea where Jerusalem and the religious leaders were. Those leaders had plans to kill Jesus, and everyone knew it. Then Lazarus got sick just six miles from Jerusalem and his sisters begged Jesus to come heal him. It was dangerous for Jesus to go there. He didn’t go and Lazarus died.
John 11:7-8 says, “Then he [Jesus] said to his disciples, ‘Let us go back to Judea.’ ‘But Rabbi,’ they said, ‘a short while ago the Jews tried to stone you, and yet you are going back there?’ “
After explaining that he needed to get to Lazarus, it was Thomas who bravely spoke up and said, “Let us also go that we may die with him!”
Later, when Thomas did finally see Jesus, he called him “My Lord and my God” (John 20:28).
Doubting Thomas? Far from it! Brave Thomas. Devoted Thomas. Thomas who was willing to follow his Lord to the death. Thomas who was the first to call him God. That was the real Thomas.
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Read novel MICHEL: THE FOURTH WISE MAN. The Christmas carol is wrong. The STAR DID NOT LEAD THEM ALL THE WAY TO BETHLEHEM. After seeing Herod, it reappeared. So, how did they know to go to Jerusalem and then Bethlehem? To BUY NOW, click a picture or paste this: https://amzn.to/2FqntIx
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I praise and adore you, God of the universe, for all you do is right and good and just. At the same time, I tremble before your anger when I do wrong, realizing I am doing something that is hurting myself and you are trying to stop me. I do not and cannot fully understand you, even though you revealed what I can understand in your Word. I know you are perfect and cannot co-exist with the imperfect. Yet, you love me anyway and continually run after me when I sin, calling for me to stop, turn around, and return to you. You never give up on me. Through everything that life holds, you are my God and I worship you.
Once again, Lord, it is Sunday morning and the sun is just starting to rise as Jesus did when he returned to his body that morning so long ago. It proved who he was and proved his promise would come true that all Christians: When we close our eyes and die here on earth, we will open our eyes and step into true life in heaven. How wonderful! How glorious! How amazing. How can I thank you? I do not deserve it. But you love me even more than I love myself. I do not understand such love but I bow before you in gratitude.
The Scripture for today, November 15 (11/15), is Revelation 11:15 as found in the New Testament of the Bible:
“The seventh angel sounded his trumpet, and there were loud voices in heaven which said: ‘The kingdom of the world has become the kingdom of our Lord and of his Christ, and he will reign forever and ever!’ “
You belong to a kingdom/nation in this world. It is not perfect. Its leaders can sometimes do very bad things. And you wonder how you can stand some of the terrible things that sometimes happen within a government.
But your worldly kingdom/nation is not the only one you can live in. Colossians 1:13 says Jesus “has rescued us from the dominion of darkness and brought us into the kingdom of the Son he loves, in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins.”
Rescued! Brought you! Past tense! The kingdom isn’t something in the future. It is here now. And it goes by yet another name. Verse 18 says, “And he [Jesus] is the head of the body, the church.”
So, when you sometimes become discouraged about your kingdom/nation in this world that you live in, take hope. You can have dual citizenship! For there is another kingdom here, a spiritual one. The king of that kingdom will love you. Forever love you.
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WORSHIP CHANGES SINCE THE FIRST CENTURY is a year-by-year history of what changes were made and what their church-affiliated governments did to the protesters (torture). To BUY NOW, click a picture or paste this: https://amzn.to/2FxVWVY
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#ChurchOfChrist, #government, #DuelCitizenship, #KingdomOfGod, #KingdomOfChrist
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