Wednesday, December 30, 2020

Ruffle People's Feathers... for Jesus


Why is talking about our Faith
so hard to do sometimes?

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We may easily talk about the latest TV show, video game, or console, but when the topic of God surfaces with my friends, they tend to clam up.  So do I.

I don’t want to appear pushy!  
 
 

 

You know, some of my friends have ridiculed me for my beliefs, calling me "extreme. "

I know people worry about sounding "Politically Incorrect  ...” or narrow-minded. 

It is natural to not want to ruffle people’s feathers!

 

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But I heard a guy recently who explained it this way:

Suppose that after much research, you found a cure for cancer.  You were certain that this cure would save many lives.  Wouldn’t you tell everyone you knew about it?  Talking about the cure would possibly become your mission and Passion in life!

There is a man who has recently become my friend.  His name is Joseph Benjamin Gootham, and our church supports his work in India.  He is the minister at the Church of Christ in Andrah Pradesh, India.  Look him up, write to him!  I DID!  He will write you back
 
 

He is on Facebook.  And he is a soul winner!! 
 
 

That's what I want to be, too. 

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Joy, Peace, Hope, Meaningful Life...

  This is what sharing the Gospel is like…

because a life APART from God is a DIRE way to live. 

We KNOW the key to eternal Life with God!!! 

We must spread the word around!!! 

Some will accept it.  Some won’t.  We CANNOT keep it to ourselves! 

I have another friend, a guy just a bit older than I am... his name is  Abe Howell.  ABE  and Ms. Gove worked  with orphans in Kenya. 
 
 
They LOVE serving God in this way.

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The word “GOSPEL” signifies the  good, merry, glad, and joyful tidings that make a soul  sing, celebrate, and leap for joy!  Jesus told his disciples in Mark 16:15 to “Go into the entire world and preach the gospel to every creature.”

 
Do you know my friend…  Wissam? 



He is IN the world Preaching Jesus!  I met him the first Sunday that we came to PA, 6 years ago.  He was on fire for Christ then, and he still is.  He has visited in our home, eaten at our Dinner Table, played Nerf gun Battles with me, and prayed with my family. 

Wissam and I
Shooting Nerf Darts at a Bull's Eye we drew on the Window
(I was seven years old in this photo)


Wissam is my Mentor. I write to him regularly.  I pray for him every day.  Mark 16:15 is his LIFE, converting many Muslims to Christ.  It is kind of a dangerous work, please pray for him.
 

Jesus’s command to Go and Preach is for US, too! 

 Those who accept the gospel will thank you on that final,  last day when we are taken to be with God forever!

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Have you accepted the Gospel?  Have you been baptized for the remission of your sins?  Do you have any need that the church is able to meet?
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We are here for you, ready to help, ready to teach, and waiting!   Please respond to this post in the comments below, and I will help you.  You will never regret that choice!

 

 

Monday, December 28, 2020

Things that make me go... Hmmmmm...

 


MY MOM SAYS THIS TO ME ALL THE TIME.  

Does your mom say stuff that kind of is like fingernails on a chalkboard?  But the funny thing is, her annoying words come back to me at the most helpful times.  Today, I called an old friend and found out that he is struggling badly with an addiction.  He has tried and tried to get out of it, but it is winning, he says.  This is a guy who was one of my strongest Christian influences a year ago. 

He led the most meaningful devos and was the most encouraging, nicest person in our whole youth group.  
His parents moved to Washington state and I hear that things are wild there. 
Like no morals at all

I live in the Bible Belt, so I really would not have an idea 
about Meth being given out like candy and stuff.

Anyway, I was on the phone, and to my horror, those annoying words of my mother 
just flowed out of my mouth as if I thought of them. 

"One Day, or Day One???"






Can you believe that?  

She and I are really quite close, but we are so much alike that we butt heads on the daily. 
Does anyone get along with their moms when they are 17?
I think not.  
Maybe girls do, but when someone is home educated and 
barely alone, with a house full of kids and 
a very strong willed mom... 

Well...

it is a recipe for WAR sometimes. 

He He


this was me at age 7 at a labyrinth in Pennsylvania



But we have this little agreement... 
no matter what happens, 
if the house explodes, even, 

We promised each other that we would never go to sleep mad at each other

Ephesians 4:26 tells us that we are commanded to "be angry but not sin."  I read through the Psalms every year, many times a year.  Psalm 4:4 reads, "Tremble and do not sin."  My preacher said that this was labeled an "Evening Prayer of Trust in God."  Verse 4 states, "When you are on your bed, search your heart and be silent."  I guess that means, listen for the answers.  Not audibly, but honestly, I can't tell you how many times when I have remained silent and just listened, something that my mom or dad said comes into my mind, and it is the perfect answer to the problem. 

So get mad at your mom, huff and puff, go for a run, ride your bike like a madman, and get all emotional, but don't go to bed like that. 

A lot of love, along with some seriously strong other emotions
go between us often, but I love my mom! 



Call a friend, go to a Labyrinth, pray, do anything except 
going to sleep angry. 
 
I think God knew what He was saying and we better heed His words
on that one. 

Just sharing some of my thoughts on this icy, stuck at home day in Missouri.

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PS pray for my friend, please !


Ju

Wednesday, October 7, 2020

Doing "Hard Things"

Source:  Ruth in the Barley field, The Children's Bible


 I will obey, even if it is really hard!  That is what Ruth must have been thinking, and I know that feeling!

I had to rake the yard today.  Both yards, the front and the back.  By myself.  No one to help me.  This is the time I wish I had 6 Siblings!  But I am an only child.  I tease my Mom and tell her this is an Urban Work Farm, NOT a home.  But both my Mom and Dad work really hard, too, so I can't really complain that much.   I just have to DO it... Rake and Rake and Rake some more.  


View out my back yard

But today, after I got over the fury of having to WORK so long and hard, I started to enjoy myself!  I love breathing in the scents of fall.  My Mom is an Herbalist, and so there are many neat plants growing all around that have the most fragrant scents.  I roam around, crushing plant leaves in my hand, smelling the delicious odors of the herbs.  

Yellow Rose still blooming
 
Even though it is Autumn, my Mother's roses are still blooming.  They are really beautiful!  And the leaves... their rainbow of colors are wonderful!  
Psalm 16:5 says 
 "Oh Lord, You are the portion of my inheritance
 and my cup, You maintain my lot." 

A shelf in my Dining room at our house

Wednesday, August 5, 2020

Unexpected Friendships


Did you know that
 
I go to the local Alzheimer's Unit every other
 
Tuesday with my Mom?
 
 
We visit, sing hymns with the residents,
and build relationships.

 

Something wonderful happened after we kept visiting
the Nursing Home Week after Week...
 
We made friends with Patients and Staff alike!
 

 

We got to know each other, and we found out that the residents

had a really UGLY patio outside of their unit.

 

We really did not like that. 

 

Just because they have Alzheimer's disease,

doesn't mean they have to live with a drab, boring patio.

  

And so, we decided to make it  beautiful!   

 
This is what we saw the first time we came out here in the spring this year.
We had planted these plants (Stella Dora Lilies, a red Knock Out Rose, and
a Lilac Bush) two years ago, but you will agree that the space lacks color and
excitement!  So we got busy...
 



"Successful and unsuccessful people
do not vary greatly in their abilities.
They vary in their desires
to reach their potential."

- John Maxwell



 
 
I got some of my buddies together and we worked for 2 hours out there on the patio...
 
Weeding, Pruning, Raking
 
 

It was not hard, and the place sure did look better after we
cleaned up the dead weeds and dead flowers.






 
 
 

Before clean up

Before clean up

After Clean Up
 
" when I called you answered me you made me
 bold and stouthearted (brave, courageous)."
 
 Psalm 138:3

Final Touches...

We planted a Grape Vine last year,
here are the fruits of our labor!
The Residents love them!


Pruning
My friends and I really made a difference!
 
 
Matthew 11:28
 
"Come to me, all who labor and are heavy laden,
and I will give you rest.
 
Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me;
for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls.
 
For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light."
 

Tuesday, July 14, 2020

Learning to be Selfless



The Bible says to serve those who cannot pay you back. 

 It says to look for the downtrodden, and lift them up.   


 James 1:27 reads, 

"True religion that God our Father accepts as pure and faultless is this:
 to look after orphans and widows in their distress 
and to keep oneself from being polluted by the world.” 


 
I care about people. 

 I want to care more about them, though.  

My Mom and I visit residents in the nursing home that is here by our house.  We go every Tuesday afternoon, just for an hour, and we read the Bible to the ones who never get visitors.  

Jesus cared about the forgotten people, the ones who were really desperate, 
like the woman who had the bleeding problem.  

I know God is pleased that I have not forgotten the ones 
who are hidden away, not noticed, forgotten. 

 Sometimes it is uncomfortable.  

Sometimes there are bad smells, or slobber, and dirt.  

But I am trying to look past all that.  I am learning to be more unselfish.  
That is how Jesus was.  


This is me, going into Brookdale Nursing Home to visit Mrs. Shaw,
who recently got her leg amputated

Wednesday, May 20, 2020

Will Your Anchor Drift, or Firm Remain?





 At the 2015 Convention, I led a hymn for the very first time.  I stood behind the podium.  It would have been better if I had  (continued if you click below)...

This is a Repost from my previous blog

You can read about it at my blog from years ago, (my first blog) here at

My Treasure is Jesus: Will Your Anchor Drift, or Firm Remain?:    

double click
 

Sunday, April 12, 2020

Holy is the Lamb (Good Friday Post)



Does He still feel the nails, every time I fail?


Does He hear the crowd cry, “Crucify!” again?
Am I causing Him pain?
Then I know I’ve got to change,
“Cause I can’t bear the thought of hurting Him.
And we cry “Holy, Holy, Holy is the Lamb.”
Yes, we cry “Holy, Holy, Holy is the Lamb.”
 
Popular song by Ray Boltz
 


Source:  Google images


 
First Corinthians 11 verses 24 and 25 reads, “And when He had given thanks, he broke
the bread, and said, ‘Take, eat, this is my body, which is broken for you. Do this in
remembrance of me.’ And in the same manner, He also took the cup after supper, saying,
‘This cup is the new covenant in my blood. This do, as often as you drink it, in
remembrance of me.”
 
 
Every Sunday, we gather to partake of the Lord’s supper, or “Communion.” In this
special part in our worship, we remember our Lord’s death as we drink the fruit of the vine,
and eat unleavened bread.
 
Jesus is the Lamb of God. Just as the Passover lamb was slaughtered to save the lives
of the first born children of Israel, Jesus was killed for the forgiveness of our sins.
Peter and John are recorded in the Bible as calling 

Jesus “the Lamb of God.”
 
Peter wrote that, “We were redeemed with the precious blood
of Christ, like that of a Lamb without defect or blemish” in I Peter 1:19.

Source:  Google Images
 

John wrote about the most majestic Lamb of God. Revelation 5:12 reads, “The lamb
who was SLAUGHTERED is worthy to receive power and riches and wisdom and strength

and honor and glory and Blessing!”

In thinking about the LORD’s suffering and death after the Crucifixion, I know that
Peter and John must have reflected on this assignment that Jesus gave them: “Go and
Prepare the Passover Lamb.”



Later they realized that their friend and leader had to be sacrificed like the perfect Passover lamb for the salvation of the world.

Like Peter and John, I hope that the image of the perfect lamb of God is deeply
engraved on our hearts as we remember what Jesus did for us on the Cross, especially
during the Lord’s Supper each Sunday!



Did you know that you can accept the sacrifice of the perfect lamb as the work of God for
the forgiveness of YOUR sins? The Bible says that if you confess yours sins, repent, and
take on the righteousness of Christ through the death, burial, and resurrection of Baptism,
then you can live your life for Jesus, receiving the free gift of eternal life with the Father,
God! It is a free gift, but it is not cheap!



So let’s remember His sacrifice, and give of yourself to
others in service, and give life to God’s way of living!

It is the best way to live. 
 


The following video is also one which features all of the lyrics to the song above by Ray Boltz.  I believe it is worth viewing, however, it is very graphic : https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XpHYJScbxCY


Tuesday, March 10, 2020

Take this for your Comfort...

My Sunday School Teacher is a pretty young man. 
When I say young, I mean 26 years old. 
He is Cool!  His name is Tim, and he is really a Bible scholar.
He knows the Word of God like the back of his hand.
He went to Harding University, graduated, and now he is home, working.
 
He says that the key to obedience is
 

Being Rooted in Faith

 
Tim says that we have to build our faith a little at a time.
 
We have to work on building our faith EVERY day.
 
Even though my classmates and I are only in Middle School,
we have to do things that will help build it, too, like when we
experienced the making of bricks, like Pharoah made the
Israelites do in Genesis.
 
One way I am growing more roots in my Faith is by
having a quiet time every morning
 
I do skip it on Sundays, but most every other day of the week,
I start out in my room reading the Bible, or some other
readings that my parents selected for me to
read and think on.
 
I have a journal, and I write down my thoughts, quotes I like,
and even my prayers in it.
 
 
 
This is a picture of my youth group and I
Mixing clay, sand, and hay
like the ancient Israelites
had to do in Egypt
when they were slaves.
 

 

*******Here's A Quote I liked*******

 
 

"Christian, take this for your comfort, 
that there is no change
 in Jesus Christ's love to those 
who rest in Him. 
 

"Yesterday you were on the mount
 and you said, 
"He loves me" 
 
Today you are in the valley of humiliation,
 but He loves you still the same"

.- Spurgeon♥ - A great man and Author 
From my early morning devotional readings