God Speaks I Listen

Genesis 1:26 Then God said, “Let us make mankind in our image, in our likeness,

Mathew 28:19 Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit,

In the Christian faith we believe that God is Triune or we say we believe in the Trinity ….simply put one God exiting in three distinct persons. The above scripture verses Has God explaining Himself in the plural and Jesus speaks of the three persons, Father Son and Holy Spirit.

There is only one God…..there are NOT three separate gods. Psalm 86:10 says He is God alone!!!!! Many people have argued about this fact and it has been difficult for some people to understand the concept of one God three persons. When my children were little I told them the egg story….there is one egg and it has a shell, a yoke, and an egg white but it is still an egg. It did calm their confusion over the thought of one God 3 persons.

I want to say for me …this has been one of the mysteries about God that is sometime hard to understand but this is how I make it work for me. I trust God and I trust His word and He describes Himself in the plural form so this is who He is for me. I feel if I over think this information it will start to be blurry in my mind and became a hindrance to me. There is no way my mortal brain can assimilate this information so I rather spend my time pondering His goodness and love for me.

When I talk to God I just straight out tell Him when I talk to Him I’m talking to them….Father, Son and Holy Spirit……I told God that I combine them when I address Him as God. It makes it easier for my brain.
There are times when the Holy Spirit Himself is ministering to me and I feel and know His distinct presence. Then there are times when Jesus and I are talking and He is so forgiving, loving and compassionate. Sometime I need my Father in heaven in His Father role to me. Although I have a relationship with them at different times…. in my mind I am very conscience at all times that they are one…they are God alone! You have to first study your bible to find out who each one of them are and then You must to spent time in prayer so you can get to know all three persons.

I personally find this attribute of God to be very exciting to me and it make me feel the uniqueness in who my God is. His nature is very complex and this makes Him so very special. I know I’m not dealing with the norm…the understandable…..your everyday earthly happenings…..I’m dealing with a totally supernatural being that nothing or no one can explain and I like it that way! I don’t think I could believe in an explainable God.

Ever hear of the show…Rippley’s Believe It Or Not?……It’s a TV show where they show you unbelievable things and you see it on TV and some of the things are so hard to believe but it’s up to us the viewers to believe it or not. Well God being 3 persons in one is also unbelievable, but I believe this wholeheartedly because the bible says this and the Holy spirit that lives in me has confirmed this in my spirit.

If….and that’s if you seek God you WILL find Him. He will reveal Himself to you…I’m not anymore special than you. Well if you’re not a Christian we are different and this is why God reveals Himself to me the way He does, But if you are not a Christian you can still seek God and ask Him to reveal Himself to you and HE WILL! Please just try it ……you might think …….”well she’s wrong, I don’t believe in all that”….but what if I’m right? What have you got to lose? (Getting off the topic here because I care about everyone so much)

My final words on the subject of the triune God is don’t try to over think it just relax and know that we have an awesome very unique God and He is out of this world!!!!!!!!

Message for today: God accepts us for who we are….Let’s accept Him for who He is….One God three persons….not really shocking…more like AMAZING!!!!

I just have to include this video with John Starnes singing Holy Holy Holy…after you hear this rendition you really feel like worshipping our Triune God for sure.

Mathew 5:13 “You are the salt of the earth. But if the salt loses its saltiness, how can it be made salty again? It is no longer good for anything, except to be thrown out and trampled underfoot.

I have another confession to make. If I keep up this blogging you will know all my personal business. I’m not proud of this confession, but here goes……I am a salt-aholic …a person who likes to eat salt. Yes I know….you don’t have to say it. I come from a long line of salt lovers…..some of my children are too. It makes food taste so good. I do have to give it up soon because it’s NOT good.  I’m  attempting to give it up right now in fact (wink)….pray for me!

Salt does have its place in this world though( yes I know…not in my mouth LOL). It’s very useful and God provided it for us when He created this world. We know already from my confession that it enhances the flavor of food and it also keeps food from rotting. It can be used for medicinal purposes too. So you see salt can be a good thing….just not for me.

Now Jesus used salt to tell the disciples and us how we should be as Christians and I’m sure everyone has heard many sermons on this subject but I want to give my spin on this using my own life. When we became Christians we got a mandate from the Lord to go out and share the good news and Jesus told us clearly that we are the salt of the earth. I took that to mean for me to have an effect on whoever I meet….that they will Know that I am a Christian because of the way I carry myself….because of the anointing that is on my life ….because the Spirit of God Himself is living in me……because my speech and my tongue is reflecting my nature which is in Jesus Christ…..and because I am holy because God is Holy.

Everything that I am spiritually is contributing to my saltiness. I thrive off of being salty because I am always trying to share my faith with others. Sometimes people just seem to know I’m a Christian……um…..saltiness. This is on my heart 24/7…just ask my family. It has gotten me in trouble, but I don’t care because Jesus wants me to do this. Now I’m not perfect and I sin like everybody else and distractions get in my way. But as I just stated in my blog the other day this is why we ask God to wash us clean so we do not lose our saltiness.

If we have a lot of distractions in our lives we may not be as effective and could lose some of our saltiness also. Some examples of salt reducers/distractions are: sin, sickness, job stress/loss, children and marriage issues, school/college, overly concerned with worldly things, TV, facebook/twitter, shopping, job and the list can go on.

Things that can insure you stay salty: regular bible study, confession of sins, forgiving others, regular prayer, regular church attendance, serving others, giving and this list can go on too.
The thought of losing my saltiness and being trampled underfoot is hard for me to imagine happening to me. Remember I love salt!! (Smiling here)

Some say these days that the church has lost its saltiness (they mean us…we are the church). I’m not going to agree or disagree with that statement because it’s better to Pray and make sure my own walk is up to par. I’m going to keep moving forward praying all the way because that’s what’s best for me.

Massage for today: Jesus said you are the salt of the earth……..know that ….live that.

You have been waiting for God to move in your life but God has been waiting on you. You have been thinking all this time that God has ignored your cries for help but He has heard you and has been trying to get through to you to tell you to handle some areas of your life that are not pleasing to Him and this is blocking your blessing. What are blessing blockers? They are clearly explained in His word and He will also reveal them when you ask in prayer. God will never block anyone willing to repent, but He will hold up a blessing until you are in the place to receive. He is your Father…go to Him and ask for clarity, study the attributes of God and learn His ways…get understanding. Your blessing is right around the corner….He’s waiting…He loves you so much!

Luke 8:43-48  ⁴³ And a woman was there who had been subject to bleeding for twelve years, but no one could heal her. ⁴⁴ She came up behind him and touched the edge of his cloak, and immediately her bleeding stopped.

⁴⁵ “Who touched me?” Jesus asked.

When they all denied it, Peter said, “Master, the people are crowding and pressing against you.”

⁴⁶ But Jesus said, “Someone touched me; I know that power has gone out from me.”

⁴⁷ Then the woman, seeing that she could not go unnoticed, came trembling and fell at his feet. In the presence of all the people, she told why she had touched him and how she had been instantly healed. ⁴⁸ Then he said to her, “Daughter, your faith has healed you. Go in peace.”

This is a story of a woman who risked her life to be healed.  In those days a woman was considered unclean when she had this kind of bleeding disorder.  She could have been severely punished even killed for this crime.  She spent a lot of money on doctors to no avail. She stretched her faith and reached out and touched Jesus robe and was healed….why?…..in Jesus own words “your faith has healed you.”

This morning as I write this I know God is speaking to me.  Where is my faith to believe in the power of the Lord?  You see I’m in need of some VERY big miracles.  I need for my faith to be at maximum level. I don’t need one drop of doubt in my mind.  Right now there are many things that are a distraction that’s pulling my energies in another direction and trying to weaken my faith.

The lady in this story had a lot of distractions.  She was a woman and she had to get through a throng of people including the men who surrounded Jesus. She knew she could get in big trouble for doing this. She also had to deal with her poor health.  Where would she even get the energy and strength that it would take to not only get to where Jesus was, but to dig her way through the crowd?  She had probably spent the little money she had on doctors.  This woman had distractions!!

I think she was at a point of total desperation and at the same time a point of great hope.  She put her hope in the right direction and stretched her faith…. in fact her faith was at an all time high because of a story she heard about a man named Jesus.  I assumed she had never met Him before….but from a story….a rumor….some local news that she heard in passing she heard enough and that news enacted her faith in the Messiah. There was no TV, no doctor referral, and no internet advertisement.  She felt in her heart and mind this was the truth and her only hope.

My eyes, my expectations, my total reliance, my dreams, my desires, and faith should only be focused on one person right now and that is Jesus.  When we put our faith in Jesus…He will not leave us hanging!!  Can you imagine if He had done that to this woman after all she went through, can you see her just lying on the ground crying in defeat and getting beaten, stone or jailed for what she did?

There may be many distractions in our lives today….but I know if we press our way through we will get our breakthrough. We must focus on the one who has the power and believe this power is real and will be used to heal us, help us and protect us.  Meditate on this….close your eyes and see yourselves reaching out to Jesus…..reach….stretch your faith….touch the hem of His garment…connect with the source of this supernatural power.  That’s it…keep your mind on Him…. not just right now but 24/7.

Bow your hearts with me and let’s pray together:

“Our Father, we stretch our hands to you and ask you to bless us. We believe in your ability to meet our every need.  We thank you for all you have done for us and we thank you in advance for the answers to our prayers. We love you! We ask this in your precious Son’s name… Jesus. Amen!”

There is a song that was made famous by Diana Ross called ….”Reach Out And Touch.” I changed some of the words ….try singing this song with the new words….really get into it…sing it from your heart.

Reach out and touch
The Master’s hand
He’ll make your world a better place
I know He can
Reach out and touch
The savior’s hand
He’ll put you in a better place
Yes He can

(Just try)
Take a little time out of your busy day
To receive encouragement
If you’ve  lost your way
(Just try)
Or would He be talking to a stone
If He asked you
To share a problem that’s your own
We can change things if we start trustin’ Him
Why don’t you

 Reach out and touch
The Master’s hand
He’ll make your world a better place
I know He can
Reach out and touch
The savior’s hand
He’ll put you in a better place
Yes He can

Message for today:  Reach out for the Lord today, stretch your faith…..you have it…..even mustard seed faith works…touch the hem of His garmnet which is to touch is heart….His love for you and His supernatural power to bless you.

       If Jesus says this to you…“Who touched me?”…..will your faith say to Him….”It was me!!!”

1 Samuel 1:12-16   ¹² As she kept on praying to the LORD, Eli observed her mouth. ¹³ Hannah was praying in her heart, and her lips were moving but her voice was not heard. Eli thought she was drunk ¹⁴ and said to her, “How long are you going to stay drunk? Put away your wine.”

¹⁵ “Not so, my lord,” Hannah replied, “I am a woman who is deeply troubled. I have not been drinking wine or beer; I was pouring out my soul to the LORD. ¹⁶ Do not take your servant for a wicked woman; I have been praying here out of my great anguish and grief.”

I am a prayer intercessor and that is praying to God on behave of others.  I have done this for many years and have a few other friends who are prayer intercessors and we have a little saying amongst ourselves:  “It ain’t prayer until the snot rolls.” Yes I know this sounds gross but it’s the truth.  Sometimes intercessory prayer can be an intense messy job.

Now Hannah may not have been an intercessor, but I tell you she knew how to pray for sure.  Hannah wanted a child very badly and she prayed a prayer that I myself have prayed.  She was praying so hard that only her lips moved so you know that was quite a sight.  Her own spiritual leader accused her of being drunk in the middle of the day.  She probably would have been severely punished for that being a woman in those days but Hannah didn’t care.

I think Hannah must have had on her ugly face.  Let me tell you about my ugly face prayer.  When I go into my prayer closet and I don’t let anybody see me.  In my earlier years I did this kind of praying in public church prayer meetings, but I have over the years learned this is NOT a good thing to do. I cry very very hard and I seriously have the most distorted face you ever want to see…lips twisted, eyes swollen from the crying, red nose….the works.  It’s so tiring that I have to pray lying down with a BOX of tissues.  Many times there are no words just tears and moans….but we know from my previous post that the Holy spirit interprets those moans for us to God.

Now everyone does not need to pray like this….I’m just saying it happens.  Like Hannah if I did this in the street someone would say I was drunk or crazy and call the police.  There are occasions where intense prayer is needed.   You yourself may have a need or someone you know…maybe your child, mother or husband.  You may have to pray the ugly face prayer.  It’s OK your face won’t stay that way.  The results will be a blessing.  We cannot manipulate God by doing this but I believe this kind of prayer is driven by what is in your heart (your motives), what’s promised in His word for the situation and it lets him know you are truly relying on Him as you source of help.

Hannah DID get her prayer answered and so did I.  In fact mine got so answered that I got 6 kids.  How’s that for answered prayer for a woman with a closed womb?

Message for today:  Have a real urgent prayer need….you may have to get your ugly face on.  Close the door and go for it.  God will be right there.

 Subtitle – If you don’t know who God is…. you won’t know what God can do

Exodus 3:14 God said to Moses, “I AM WHO I AM.  This is what you are to say to the Israelites: ‘I AM has sent me to you.”

One day I was having a pity party about all that I have been through and waiting for a blessing from God.  I was being impatient and having doubts.  So OK…am I by myself here or can I get a witness?  I can’t be the only one who has gotten tired of waiting on God to come through for them.

This day I was really whining to Him like a little child.  Why God why?….when God when?……how God how?…..I can’t take it anymore…….I need help now…….don’t you see what I’m going through…….How long God…. how long must I go through this?

Then I heard a loud voice in my heart and mind and I knew it was the Lord. His voice is very unmistakable at times especially when He is ticked off.  He said to me “Do you know who I AM?….Do you know who you are dealing with?  I was like….yikes!  For days I kept hearing His voice in my mind and as I meditated on that fact I sobered up from my pity party….repented for all of my doubting, impatience and whining.

God will do what He wants to do and when and how He wants to do it.  God says this about Himself:

Exodus 33:19 Then He said, “I will make all My goodness pass before you, and I will proclaim the name of the LORD before you. I will be gracious to whom I will be gracious, and I will have compassion on whom I will have compassion.”

God is all powerful…..He is God Almighty  (Genesis 17:1) He is The Alpha and The Omega (Revelation 21:6) There is no one in front of Him and no one in back of Him.  There are no words to describe the enormity of His nature or power that we can understand.  When I want to think of how big and powerful God is I look up at the sky on a clear day, think about me in the middle of the ocean and how big it is, I think about the loudest noise I’ve ever heard and the brightest light I’ve ever seen(The Sun) and 20 foot waves racing to the sea shore, the deepest valley and the highest mountain, the largest diamond and piece of Gold and the strongest wind and as powerful and brilliant as all of these thing are…it cannot compare to the awesome powerfulness of The Almighty God.

  He can create anything out of thin air, He sees all, knows all, can be everywhere at the same time,  he can hear everyone’s prayers at the same time….His entire supernatural existence is totally unexplainable.  This powerful incredible God is the one who I belong to, !!!!!!!  I AM HIS!!  He cares for me!  He watches over me!  He loves me and has my BEST interest in His heart. Can I really be worried, fretfuland doubtful?  He chose me, washed me, cleansed me and made me whole and then He filled me with His very own Spirit to strengthen and guide me every step of the way of my living existence and is prepared to receive my soul after my body cease to exist in this world.

I ask you….what in the world are we worrying for ??? 

You all know how much I love the story of ….The Wizard Of OZ….It’s the little girl in me.  Well Dorothy and her friends needed help and thought they had finally found help from the all mighty powerful OZ….but sadly and her little dog pulled the curtain back and revealed it was just a man.

People we have the real deal here….no fake or made up story.  We are the children of the one and only most powerful being in this whole universal existence of everything.  We’re gonna be OK!  I’m gonna be OK!  You are going t be OK!!  Believe it! Know it! Trust this fact!  God said He is The I Am!!  He is our Father.

So when He asked me do I know who I’m dealing with……I can say after meditating on what I know about Him from the bible and my pray times with Him… I do… and all my fears disappear. 

To those reading this today….will you take some time out to think about who you are dealing with…who our God is and all His power?  We need to meditate on this very often and we tend to forget at times about all His mighty power.  I pray this blog today will encourage all who read it. God bless each and every one of you.  Have a great day!

Message for today:  Don’t whine….trust The Devine!

If you have time please watch this video of a song I love: I Am God

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F3sNonxmjoc

I Am God

I am God, all by Myself
I don’t need any help
I can handle things on My own
I am the First, and the Last
Whatever you need, just ask
For I am, I am, I am God

 
I was there in the beginning
And I’ll be there when you get to the end
I’m all seeing, all knowing
All mighty, ever showing
For I am, I am, I am God

 
All of my promises are yea, I am God
I am the First and the Last
Whatever you need just ask I am
I am, Just stand still and know that I am
I am the First and the Last
Whatever you need, just ask
For I am, I am, I am God

Psalms 119:71 It is good for me that I have been afflicted; that I might learn thy statutes.

I am so grateful to God for not spoiling me.  I’m very thankful for the hard lessons that were tailor made for me to bring me to the place in Him I’m at today.  I’m glad for the lessons He will enact when I need them in the future.  It is all for my good.

Some may think God is mean, harsh, and unfair.  They get mad at Him and say all manner of negative things about Him, but I tell you we  should all be happy about the lessons if we knew or understood the motives behind them.

Ask anybody….I was tough on my 6 kids…they say I held no prisoners.  I made my kids listen and when they really went off the track they were disciplined.  They didn’t like it at all….but they all grew up to be wonderful adults.  I did what I had to do because I love them so much and I knew they would never learn good morals,  be honest,  have integrity and  most important the fear of God had I not afflicted them at some point with my mother ways.  It was for their good!  I was firm, consistent and loving.

One of the best examples of this lesson was a man my husband and I were honored to know.  His name was Rev. Irving and he has since gone home to be with the Lord.  He spoke about his lesson very publicly so that’s why I can share it.  He said He went to seminary and got his education and thought he had arrived. He was married, had a great life,  preached in a big church and all…..but……he said he was a proud man.

One day he had a major stroke that left him paralyzed on one side and he was very sick for a long time.  He lost everything…job, family, church, his health….everything except his life and his mind.  God spoke to him and told him why He had allowed this dreadful thing to happen to him ….. God said it was his pride.  He repented and God did allow Him to preach again but it was much different.  He was so humbled and went from church to church for years telling his story. He had one of the most powerful ministries……..even though his whole right side was still paralyzed and he had to use a cane to walk……and even though his speech was so slurred and he stuttered so badly that he could only get a few words out at a time..…he still preached.  It was painful to see him struggle to speak, but when he would praise the Lord it was very powerful.  We all understood what he was saying and the joy he now had.

Now God doesn’t give everybody the same lessons or afflictions.  Some of us need mild prodding while others need a big shove, but no matter the lesson or affliction it is for our good.  That’s why when we pray for others and we pray for ourselves we need to know how to pray for the situation.  This is where the Holy Spirit comes in and teaches us, guides us, and points us in the right direction.  He will lead us to a scripture or reveal to us what is in our hearts and we will get an understanding about our affliction.  It may be that we indeed need to repent, it might be a big attack of the enemy or we might just have something that normally may happen to us.  If the affliction is because of correction it is good and you will learn from the discipline, the bible says so.

Psalm 119:67 Before I was afflicted I went astray, but now I obey your word.

Message for today: Know your bible and obey the word….maybe you’ll have less test.