Wonder of wonders

The scripture for today, July 1 (7/1), is Leviticus 7:1f as found in the Old Testament of the Bible.

0-BK 7-ShadowOfDeath-Cover-new-Medium“These are the regulations for the guilt offering, which is most holy. The guilt offering is to be slaughtered in the place where the burnt offering is slaughtered, and its blood is to be sprinkled against the altar on all sides.”

Romans 3:23 says the wages of sin is death. The earnings are paid by Satan, the author of death.  The earnings for your sins were collected by substitute deaths of substitute perfect animals over and over in the Old Testament. But Jesus nailed the Old Law to the cross (Colossians 2:14), and with his one sacrifice made it so that no more blood sacrifices were necessary (Hebrews 8-9).

In a sense, Jesus, the perfect Lamb of God, laid down on the altar of the world where his blood flowed from all sides of the cross to all sides of the earth. Why would anyone want to rebuild the temple in Jerusalem and nullify that horribleness Jesus went through in our place?

Jesus collected your wages from Satan for your sins in your place. We can never, ever thank him enough.  Instead of temple ceremonies, he asked you to commemorate his death with the Lord’s Supper, the Holy Communion each week.  Do you?  On Sundays, the day he came back to life, do you?

I adore you, God. I look up to you in awe that you, my Creator, allow me up so close to you. I am frail. I am feeble. I am made of dust. But you breathed into me the breath of life. Just think!  I have the breath of God in me.  Oh, miracle of miracles! I will return that breath to you in songs of praise. With that same breath I will extol you to the end of my days on earth, and then resume in your world before your throne forever.  As small as I am, you take time to know me ~ the good and the bad ~ and love me still, and make me your friend. More, you have made me your child. Wonder of wonders.

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0-BK 7-ShadowOfDeath-Cover-new-ThumbnailTHEY MET JESUS:  SHADOW OF DEATH.  Pilate was cornered by the people, Simon was cornered by the executioners. Jesus writhed in pain on the cross that should have been ours And invaded hell to provide escape for us. The thieves struggled with their mortality, Joseph struggled with religiosity, The guards struggled with impossibility.  Jesus saw the women, pursued Peter, And enlightened the depressed.  To BUY NOW, click a book cover or paste this:  https://bit.ly/ShadowOfDeath-7    https://northernlightspublishinghouse.com/historical-novel-about-jesus/book-7-shadow-of-death-adults-childs-versions/

Easter Every Sunday. You gave me your name

Supper-Front Cover-MediumHow can I praise you enough? Tell me and I will do it. You are in my thoughts and my dreams. You are my light in dark places. You are my warrior, my comforter, my hero.  You make promises and keep them. Even when things do not seem to go right, you are still keeping your promises. Even when a thousand years have passed, still you are keeping your promises.  Even when I have forgotten them, you never do. You are truth, integrity, fidelity. You are justice tempered with mercy. You are all I need and more than I can fully understand. You are above and beyond all things. Most of all, you are in my heart.

Please forgive me when I complain. Nothing happens to me without your permission. Help me see how my problems can only make me stronger if I let them. You did not set me in a lazy world where I do not have to lift a finger. You set me in a world with work to do, places to go, people to see. When I grow lazy, make me take a second breath and get out there and get back to work. It is the only way I can become spiritually strong.

Thank you, Lord, Jehovah, materialized in Jesus, magnified in his works, glorified in his words. You did everything possible to save me from hell.  You go after me when I wander away. You shine your light when I go into dark places. You love me even when I forget you.  I am unworthy. Yet you made me and I am yours. You protect me and give me strength. You give me your perfection just by believing all this. You even gave me your name.

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Supper-Front Cover-ThumbnailTHE LORD’S SUPPER: 52 READINGS WITH PRAYERS.   This book contains 52 Bible readings about Jesus’ perfect life, the horrors of his death, and inexpressible glory of his resurrection. Two prayers accompany each reading that will touch the hearts of participants.    It will stir worshipers who have been keeping EASTER EVERY SUNDAY for decades with a fresh and deeper insight into the death, burial, and resurrection of our Lord. Not only the readings from scriptures but also the prayers will help worshipers touch Jesus and say thank more than ever.  To BUY NOW, click a books cover or paste this:  https://bit.ly/LordsSupper52   

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Hold me up until my faith in you returns

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God, if I had a voice that was strong enough, I would declare your glory to the stars. If I had feet that were robust enough, I would climb the tallest mountain and raise a banner of love for the world to see.  If I had arms that were long enough, I would embrace the world with your magnitude. Give me eyes that see you in everything. Give me ears that hear you in all things. Though the world rebels against you, not wanting anyone to tell them what to do, I will defend you and reveal the part of you they do not understand ~ that you, their Maker, loves them so much you will spend their life running after them. They are falling into the mire and do not know it. They are obeying Satan and do not realize it. Waken them, Lord, with your magnificence and envelop them with love that goes deep into their souls and will not let them go. Give them new eyes to see you, new ears to hear you, a new heart that loves you back.

Lord, as hard as I try, sometimes I begin to doubt you. I think I am not the only one who goes through this. I suppose if Satan weren’t afraid of me and my relationship with you, he wouldn’t attack me with doubts. Forgive me when I succumb to the doubts he puts in my mind. Though sometimes he kidnaps my mind, keep him from having my heart and soul too. At such times, help me to at least hope. Hold me up until my faith in you returns.

Thank you for opportunities to suffer for you. Your Word says the righteous will always be persecuted. Take me down paths where I know persecution will travel toward me. May I never “play it safe”. Open up doors where Satan thinks he rules so I may have the privilege of proving him weak and wrong. Lord, you made me your bride. How blessed is that! Oh, the depths of the relationship you want with me. Thank you, my Lord, my God, the reason for my being.

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00-PAUL COVER-Thumbnail-INTREPID MEN OF GOD.  PAUL: THE UNSTOPPABLE traveled everywhere he was not wanted.  The honest ones needed Jesus, but did not know it.  The egotistical ones were jealous of Jesus and did everything they good to beat and destroy his ambassador.  To BUY NOW, click a book cover or paste this:  https://bit.ly/3fw2mlA 

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Let him be good to you

The scripture for today, March 25 (3/25), is Lamentations 3:25 as found in the Old Testament of the Bible:

Road to Heaven-COVER-KINDLE-MEDIUM“The Lord is good to those whose hope is in him, to the one who seeks him.”

That’s all?  Just hope?  I don’t have to have a deep, deep faith for God to be good to me? All I have to do is hope he exists? Hope he loves everyone. Hope he loves me?

Were you raised by atheists, or did you attend a university where professors criticize theists (believers in God)? Have you been told deity is just the essence of the universe with no personality? Are you confused by it all?  You can still hope there is only the One God who does exist, has personality, knows your name, and loves you.

Have you had a major tragedy in your life and can’t understand how a good God could allow that bad thing to happen (heaven on earth)? Do you live among people who believe all the gods in the world are the One God, so don’t pay special attention to any of them?

Amidst such confusion, is it hard for you to sort it all out and have faith in the One God of the Bible? What is faith anyway? It is the evidence of what you hope for.  If you cannot go so far as to say you have a deep faith in the One God, you can still hope! Keep that hope alive. Let the Lord be good to you.

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Road to Heaven-COVER-KINDLE-THUMBNAILTHE ROAD TO HEAVEN.  The long road to heaven began at the Garden of Eden. Through the centuries, God’s plan gradually came together to get that road built for us. The day Jesus came back to life, the road was done. Now what? As we walk on the road to heaven and draw closer, we realize the glories he has in store for us.  This book takes the reader through all the things God did to get us away from Death and back to Him, our creator and the lover of our soul.  To BUY NOW, click a book cover or paste this:     https://bit.ly/326kyOh 

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Heart of my heart

0-BK 7-ShadowOfDeath-Cover-new-MediumAh, my Lord God, you are the highest and greatest above all others. You are the epitome, the mountain peak, the inner depths of all.  You are so much more powerful than Satan. May you be now and forever. You alone are worthy of the world’s honor. You alone are true glory ~ on earth and in heaven. You alone are my Maker, my Sustainer, my Savior. The stars race through the firmament to be the first to magnify you. The oceans soar to the depths to be the mightiest to magnify you. The new-born baby basks in the memory of seeing you face to face and being rocked by you in the cradle of a womb. All things praise you. And I cannot wait to do so again tomorrow.

Help me, Lord, to find a balance. Help me not be judgmental and just not have an opinion as though nothing truly matters. Forgive me when I say anything that is hurtful. Help me compliment instead of complain. Help me be more like you.

I thank you, Jesus, for materializing and doing all you did to save me from my deserved punishment for my sins. You did not have to leave the comforts of your home to live in a dirty, smelly world. You didn’t have to give up being everywhere at once to be confined to a body. You didn’t have to jeopardize yourself on the cross. But you did. Such love. The agony and anguish you experienced in my place. Such love. I am not worthy. But you could not let me go. Oh, heart of my heart.

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0-BK 7-ShadowOfDeath-Cover-new-ThumbnailTHEY MET JESUS:  SHADOW OF DEATH.  Pilate was cornered by the people, Simon was cornered by the executioners. Jesus writhed in pain on the cross that should have been ours, and invaded hell to provide escape for us. The thieves struggled with their mortality, Joseph struggled with religiosity, The guards struggled with impossibility. Jesus saw the women, pursued Peter, And enlightened the depressed. To BUY NOW, click a book cover or paste this:  https://bit.ly/2UcggRE   

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

The pulse of the universe

Supper-Front Cover-MediumThrough the pulse of the universe praises rise to you, Lord God. All you created praise you. All material things. all good feelings, good knowledge, truth, love and life praise you. You made me in your image. May my efforts to remain like you be lifted up to your throne.  And someday, you will bring me home with the same image in which you made me ~ pure and innocent. Your heaven is all that is right and good because they are reflections of you. What will heaven be like? With you in the midst of heaven, it will be like riding the waves of your spirit.

Forgive me, Lord, when I secretly find fault with others. Secrecy does not mean you do not know. Cleanse my mind and my heart. Most things in the world do not matter. This world is just temporary. Help me speak only of what matters.

Thank you for materializing and coming to earth to demonstrate right living. No one quite understood before you came. It really helped. We saw the laws you gave Moses were to help us and help each other, not interfere with a fulfilling life. So, you lived the law perfectly because it was a reflection of you. How often during the day did you stop and pray?  How often during the day did you stop what you were doing so you could spend some time with an orphan? Did you carry around with you a bag of coins so you could drop something in the bowl of every beggar along the way? What was your everyday  life like? I do not know all the details. What I do know is in the sacred writings of the Gospel everything you did was good. Everything! Thank you for showing us you.

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Supper-Front Cover-ThumbnailTHE LORD’S SUPPER:  52 READINGS WITH PRAYERS.  Take a copy with you to meditate with while partaking of the Lord’s Supper.  Give a copy to your congregation or a friend who does not understand its importance.  To BUY NOW, click a book cover or paste this……….https://bit.ly/2ZvCTDS

The Lord’s Supper: 52 Readings with Prayers

Look out, world. Here we come!

The scripture for today, February 25 (2/25), is Revelation 2:25 as found in the New Testament of the Bible:

0-BK 8-ComeFlyWithMe-Cover-Medium-New“Only hold on to what you have until I come.”

Several years ago, my 91-year-old mother left this life. Some say that, at the moment of death, one’s life flashes before their eyes. In the case of my mother, at the moment of her death, her life flashed before my eyes.

I suddenly imagined her as a baby in her mother’s (my grandmother’s) lap. Then she was a toddler playing in their yard. Then I saw her in school, then as a young bride to my father, then at home with her husband and children gathered around her. Then I saw her as launching a career after we were grown, then retiring, then eventually going into the nursing home.

And when that brief moment of envisioning her whole life was gone, I whispered, “You made it, Mother! You made it! You never faltered. Through all those years of ups and downs, you never wavered in your faith that Jesus Christ was real and would accept you into heaven. You stuck it out. And now you’re home!”

May you live your life in such a way that, despite your ups and downs, you never wander from Jesus. Stick with him through every storm, every flood, every blast of tragedy, every tumbling of dreams. Hold on to what you have until the day you see Jesus coming for you.

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0-BK 8-ComeFlyWithMe-Cover-Thumbnail-NewTHEY MET JESUS:  COME FLY WITH ME.  He is dead and buried.  So is their dream.  Three years of hopes and dreams dashed into oblivion.  He had made promises he could not keep.  Everything now dead and gone.  Life ahead now only a hopeless haze.  How could he have tricked them like he had?  But wait!  What’s going on?  Jesus? Is that you?  It can’t be.  But it is.  Jesus, the God of miracles, is back from the grave and stronger than ever.  The movement is back on.  Look out, world.  Here we come!  To BUY NOW, click a book cover or paste this:  https://bit.ly/2OzEnXc

Book 8: Come Fly With Me

I wipe my tears away as you did my sins

Supper-Front Cover-MediumI adore you, Jehovah, God of the universe and God of my heart, my soul, my very being. I will spend my days searching your Word to follow you closer and know you better. When I read your words, I am filled with awe and wonder. You thought of everything to include in it for me. Some is advice, but most are examples of others who rose or fell and why they did. Ah, Lord God, you are the ultimate example of rising and never falling. You are what I strive to be. I will never rise that high, I know this. So I will continue to worship you.

Help me think of others’ feelings when I see them. Help me ask them what they’re doing and feeling every time I contact them. Help me steer the conversation away from me and be all about them.

Thank you, Jesus, for being my Passover Lamb. You died so I wouldn’t have to. Now, every Sunday I eat the representation of your body and think of the sins ~ my sins ~ that caused all your mental and physical anguish. I take a sip of the representation of your blood.  How could I ever take your precious blood for granted? The cup ~ your blood drained from your body ~ was all for me. For me. I fall at your feet and wash them with the tears of my remorse and wipe those tears away as you did my sins.

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THE LORD’S SUPPER:  52 READINGS WITH PRAYERS provides personal meditation during our holy communion with our selfless-Lord or public thoughts for those presiding at the table.  Put one in your church library.  To BUY NOW, click a book cover or paste this……….https://bit.ly/2ZvCTDS

The Lord’s Supper: 52 Readings with Prayers

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

Book 7: Shadow of Death

 

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

Book 8: Come Fly With Me