My crowning glory

00-PAUL COVER-Thumbnail-How I adore you, God of Glory. You are so majestic, yet you love me. I am just one of billions, yet you know my name and hear my every thought. How astonishing.  It is as though I knew every grain of sand in and around the ocean ~ which, of course, is impossible for humans. You told Abraham his descendants would be as numerous as the sands of the sea or stars of the heaven. It would take trillions of years to cross the universe. One of the Psalms says you know every star by name. It cannot be done. But you do it without a second thought just like you do it for all humans who have ever lived. You are too wonderful to fathom. My cup overflows.

Father, I must keep circulating and searching for seekers. But sometimes I feel so tired. It’s so hard and no one encourages me to do this. Forgive me. I have lived a long time. When will my race be over?

I keep thanking you for your Bible. I can’t help it. I don’t have to guess what you are thinking or doing. You have actually shared everything with me. You didn’t have to.  You are God!  I’m just a small speck of your creation. But you made humans like me the apex of your creation, your crowning glory. In deep gratitude, I crown you my King of Glory.

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00-PAUL COVER-Thumbnail-PAUL: THE UNSTOPPABLE begins life robust and healthy, loving sports and excelling in many of them. But, when he becomes a Christian, rather than convert to the religion of each province, he lets them beat and slash and starve that body until, at the end, he is bent over from it all, his back one solid scar tissue, and bones either broken or brittle.  Why does he do it?  He lives for Jesus so he can live with Jesus ~ forever.  Give that up?  Never.  Though the state religions tried to break him with torture, he would only cry  out, “Jesus!  This is for you!.”  To BUY NOW, click a book cover or paste this:    http://bit.ly/PaulUnstoppable

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Another crown of thorns

          This morning I saw yet another picture of “Jesus’s” crown of thorns. It was completely round, nicely intertwined, and completely barren.
          All those pictures ~ pretty much all alike.  But that’s not the way it was. Have you ever formed branches into a circle? They don’t bend exactly round and usually end up lopsided.
          But, what gets me the most is that IT WAS SPRINGTIME. Do you think the soldier took the time to strip all the leaves off the branches?
          And how about the flowers? Boganvelias have thorns on them, but their blooms are beautiful and they abound in the Middle East.  So, when I  imagine the crown of thorns on my Lord, I imagine it lopsided but full of leaves and perhaps even flowers.
          If no flowers, he would have looked like winners of races and wars and kingdoms. Garlands of leaves in the Roman world meant winners.  Yes, what they put on him is what Caesar was sometimes crowned with.
          But Jesus’s? His crown added both pain and pleasure. His had the added thorns. But it also possibly had the added flowers.
          Flowers of spring. Flowers of resurrection.

This is my assignment?

00-PAUL COVER-Thumbnail-Ah, my Lord God. I try to comprehend what you did for me, but I cannot. You saved me from hell! I was headed straight for it along with all of mankind. I could not pay the ransom. The ghastly trinity ~ Sin, Satan, and Death wanted the death of God. So, you gave them what they wanted. But it backfired on them.  It took you only three days to conquer them all  ~ Sin, Satan, and Death.  You are strong with the power of the ages. In your right hand is Truth, in your left is Life. You ride on the wind, you leap between stars. You do whatever is necessary to protect us. For me, God? For me?

Father, I have been complaining a lot lately. Complaining about food I got at the grocery store that I didn’t realize was spoiled until I got home. Complaining about the weather. Complaining about the way a relative spoke to me. Complaining about the traffic and gasoline prices. Lord, it was actually you I was complaining about. This is where you want me to be. Complaining is akin to accusing. Satan is THE accuser. Lord, make Satan get away from me so I’ll stop complaining. And can you forgive me?

My God, you have been my comfort through so many things and over so many years. Must I praise you for all the horrible things I’ve lived through? You say I must and so I do. I am reminded that you have given everyone their assignments, and these have been mine. At each stage of my life you have given me different assignments. I agonized under some of them. I cried and screamed, and yet you would not release me.  I thank you for them all, Lord.  Truly, I do.  They made me stronger, didn’t they? I made Satan a little weaker, didn’t I? Together we did it.  Together forever.

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00-PAUL COVER-Thumbnail-PAUL: THE UNSTOPPABLE was just that. This historical novel follows him from his early years at the Temple school to enjoying Jesus’ crucifixion, to torturing Christians, then his own self-torture alone in a black room for three days comprehending the horrid things he had done.  After that, he can never do enough to make it up to his Lord. Go with him as he endures highway thieves, harrowing wrecks at sea, snow storms, starvation. Feel his beatings and whip lashings break through his skin.  Hear him as each time, he cries out, “Jesus!  This is for you!”  To BUY NOW, click a book cover or paste this:  http://bit.ly/PaulUnstoppable   

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Do you have anything to conquer?

Supper-Front Cover-MediumThe scripture for today, September 13 (9/13), is Psalm 9:13f as found in the Old Testament of the Bible:

“O Lord, see how my enemies persecute me! Have mercy and lift me up from the gates of death, that I may declare your praises…and there rejoice in your salvation.”

Life is a mixture of highs and lows. You sometimes experience difficult things ~ some minor, some major. Do you let them define your entire life? Do you cling to them, never getting over them, never letting them go, and reliving them over and over in your mind?

You cannot be “more than a conqueror” (Romans 8:37) unless you have something to conquer. You cannot have “victory in Jesus” unless you have something to be victorious over.

God said he can make “all things work together for good” to those who love him (Romans 8:28). He did not say bad decisions will end up with the best result. He said even the worst situation he will turn in to some kind of good for you.

Today, with the courage of God in your heart, the love of God in your soul, and the might of God in your very being, rise up! Rejoice! Thank God for your problems.  It is only when you have problems that you can experience victories.

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Teasing and Tantalizing

10-Daniel-KindleMediumI praise and laud you, my God, for you perform great things for me, greater than I realize. You are always doing something to help me that I do not know about. You are concerned about me in ways beyond my comprehension. You say the war is not against flesh and blood, but principalities and powers in spiritual places ~ Satan’s angels, Satan’s demons, Satan himself. What have you defended me against? What have you sent your angels to intercede for me over? I may never know, but this I do know: You will always protect me from forces too strong for me and will never make me face anything I cannot handle. My mind staggers to comprehend it all, and so I worship you.

Thank you, Jesus, that you gave me eyes that can see.  I have a friend who has never been able to see.  I cannot describe color to that person because they have no idea what I am talking about. I long to share the delight of color, but it is not possible. That is what you go through in trying to describe our life in your world, heaven, isn’t it? I shall try but realize you have wonderful surprises awaiting me when I arrive.  Thank you for teasing and  tantalizing me with promises of delights I cannot begin to imagine.

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Praying for Nero

The scripture for today, September 8 (9/9), is Daniel 9:8 as found in the Old Testament of the Bible:

0-Stephen-Cover-Kindle-Medium“O Lord, we and our kings, our princes, and our fathers are covered with shame because we have sinned against you.”

Have you prayed for your government lately?  I Timothy 2:1 & 2 says, “I urge, then, first of all, that requests, prayers, intercession, and thanksgiving be made for everyone ~ for kings and all those in authority.”

At the time of this writing, Nero was Caesar. First-century historian Tacitus said this about Nero in his Annals 15:44: “But all human efforts, all the lavish gifts of the emperor, and the propitiations of the gods, did not banish the sinister belief that the conflagration was the result of an order. Consequently, to get rid of the report, Nero fastened the guilt and inflicted the most exquisite tortures on a class hated for their abominations, called “Christians” by the populace.

“Christus, from whom the name had its origin, suffered the extreme penalty during the reign of Tiberius at the hands of one of our procurators, Pontius Pilate, and a most mischievous superstition, thus checked for the moment, again broke out not only in Judaea, the first source of the evil but even in Rome, where all things hideous and shameful from every part of the world find their center and become popular.

“Accordingly, an arrest was first made of all who pleaded guilty; then, upon their information, an immense multitude was convicted, not so much of the crime of firing the city, as of hatred against mankind. Mockery of every sort was added to their deaths. Covered with the skins of beasts, they were torn by dogs and perished, or were nailed to crosses, or were doomed to the flames and burnt, to serve as a nightly illumination, when daylight had expired.”

If the Apostle Paul could pray for such a government leader, can you not follow his instructions? Why don’t you stop and pray for your own government right now?

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00-Stephen-Cover-Kindle-ThumbnailSTEPHEN: UNLIKELY MARTYR is a novelized version of life as it may have been for Stephen who, history tells us, lived in Antioch of Syria, then Cyrene in Libya, then Jerusalem of Judea.  He was a deacon when killed, so had a wife and children, probably young. What could drive a young man to give up his whole life ahead of him?  When he went into the Sanhedrin chambers, he knew they’d never let him live.  What stirred within his young heart?  To BUY NOW, click a book cover or paste this……….  http://bit.ly/stephenmartyr

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How can it be, my Lord?

0-Mefiboset-KINDLE MediumHow can it be, oh Lord, that you love me, a mere worm crawling through the dust of sin? Won’t what your eyes behold take away your holiness? Won’t what you hear take away your purity?  My Lord, how can it be? Before your eyes behold my sin, you take it away. Before your ears hear my sin, you take it away. You never change. Sin cannot touch you. Sin does not exist where you are.  Your throne glistens white with sinlessness. You are crowned with virtue and you hold the scepter of goodness.

Thank you that I can freely breathe. There are some people whose lungs are bad and they struggle for their every breath. And thank you that I have two strong legs to stand on. There are some people wheel-chair bound and have to look up at everyone. And thank you that I can hear and speak. There are some people out there who can do neither. Lord, may I take a deep breath, walk to someone’s door and knock on it, and use the voice you gave me to tell them how much you love them. My every breath, my every step, my every word are gifts from you. May I ever use those gifts to glorify you and bring more souls to the safety of your heaven.

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Our friends and their chariots

The scripture for today, August 30 (8/30), is Acts 8:30 as found in the New Testament of the Bible:

Supper-Front Cover-Medium“Then Philip ran up to the chariot and heard the man reading Isaiah the prophet. ‘Do you understand what you are reading?’ Philip asked.”

Our friends, family, and neighbors will continue riding their chariots and understanding little of the Bible unless someone asks, “Do you understand?.”

“Do you understand why you are here?” “Do you understand why Jesus had to die?” “Do you understand that Satan holds mankind hostage, and Jesus paid our ransom with his blood?” “Do you understand the Bible can be proven true?” “Do you understand how much God loves you?” “Do you understand how the Bible is divided up and which parts give the life of Christ?”

People are afraid to ask us questions because they think we will make fun of their ignorance. We’ll probably never know what they don’t understand unless we do the asking. Let us go up to their chariots and offer to help them so that they, too, can understand.

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Ordering demons around

The scripture for today, August 29 (8/29), is Matthew 8:29 as found in the New Testament of the Bible:

0-HS-592 VersesExamined-COVER-Medium” ‘What do you want with us, Son of God?’ they shouted. ‘Have you come here to torture us before the appointed time?’ “

If you are not familiar with this passage, these are the words of a demon. If you have ever studied demons in the Bible, you will find they never tried to spook or scare people. They never made dishes rattle or lamps fall over.

All they did was cause physical problems during the lifetime of Jesus and his apostles. There is no evidence of demons doing this in the Old Testament before Jesus, nor after his apostles died, either in the Bible or in the writings of the apostolic fathers. It is as though the demons were loosed for a season so Jesus could show his power over them also ~ Ephesians 1:20-21.

Notice, demons never said bad things. If they talked at all, it was out of fear of Jesus and honesty.  James 2:19 says all demons believe in Jesus. In the book of Matthew, they knew who Jesus was. They called him the Son of God.

Jesus told them to be quiet. Why? He didn’t want evil beings telling people who he was; he wanted goodness to tell people who he was. And Jesus never did incantations or any begging to lure demons out. He demanded them to leave, and immediately, they obeyed him.

The movies have warped our understanding of demons. Let us search the scriptures to find out their true nature. Then we no longer have to guess. We can know.

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I feel the night

07-Jairus' Daughter-ThumbnailCoverI feel the night coming on, my Lord. Shadows surround me, I am growing weaker. But nothing can turn my soul away from you. I am in the valley now, Lord. The darkness is filled with the unknown. But I cannot feel alone as long as you are with me. Onward I will go. Though my enemies despise me and my friends desert me, still will I walk toward home.  You have always promised to never leave and forsake me. Though the blackness of dark leaps over me, it will be light in my soul. The valley is deep, but onward I go, for I know that on the other side will be the gate. With tears of joy and relief I will walk out of the valley and through that gate. You will take my hand in your wounded one, and walk with me through glory. On the other side. All on the other side. And I will then praise you forever and forever.

It is dawn. Thank you, Lord, for morning. Thank you for second chances and new opportunities and fresh insights.  The sun is rising higher and higher, spreading its rays of hope and cheer. Thank you for the rest that brought about new strength for a new day. And for time to reflect on the joy of you as I plan my day. Someday there will be another dawn. A dawn when I will close my eyes here and open them in the land of forever dawn where you are the sun and it is always morning.

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