Checking in

Good morning family and friends, loved ones near and far, people I know in real life and also to ones I've met online,

How are you and how have you been?  I hope and pray this blog post finds you well!  I hope and pray that the Holy Spirit (also called by some the Rue Ok Ha Ko Desh) is filling you and blessing you and leading and guiding your life in all areas; for me as well!!

This morning, Sunday morning, makes (or marks) a highlightable moment for me.  Last week I made a decision to intentionally set aside 30 minutes (or more) a week, first thing in the morning, for prayer and worship with my God.  Let me tell you this, I've been having a blast doing so!  I continually "met with God" every morning from Monday this past week even until today (Sunday).  I cannot tell you how happy I am to do this.  Yes, I love placing a little sticker in my day planner to "check off" (or acknowledge) that I did this.  (But, the joy of spending time with my Creator is just wonderful and empowering).  

How about you?  I know we all have busy lives and different lots in life at the moment; some of you are way more advanced than me and you have every moment of the day in communion with God.  Yaye you!  Maybe some of you are desiring to spend time with God the Creator of the universe; well, let me encourage you today to do so, go spend time with God for it will be the most important thing you could ever do.

That was my introduction to what I was hoping to share today.  In my morning time today, a song came that I would like to share with you.  Then, hopefully share a scripture of where it comes from.  I'm not sure after that of what I'll write about.  I hope you enjoy this post and The Creator.

///Search my heart...look deep within my soul...see if there be...anything at all...that might keep me from loving You...keep me from hearing You...keep me from loving You, dear Lord///

Way back in the late 80s I heard this song sung in one of the worship church services.  I have no idea if it was ever "published" or not?  I have no idea who sung it, who wrote it, and so on.  But, the melody and the words stuck with me even 40 years later! (That's why I like to say they can not take away the songs and melodies we have learned from youth; hallelujah praise the Lord Jesus Christ always!)

The song writer is asking the Lord for help to be in right standing before Him; if there is any sin in our lives, known or unknown, we should confess it before Him, for He wants us to live holy and righteous lives before Him.  We cooperate with the Lord to confess our sin of the pride of life, the lust of the flesh, and the lust of the eye (as written in the New Testament).

I found a beautiful version of this in God's word here:  

Psalm 139:23-24

1599 Geneva Bible

23 Try me, O God, and know mine heart: prove me and know my thoughts,

24 And consider if there be any [a]way of wickedness in me, and lead me in the [b]way forever.

Do you know 1 John 1:9 my friend? If we confess our sin He is faithful and just to forgive us our sin and lead us into all righteousness.  Is that not a glorious promise from God? 

What does Hebrews 12:1-2 say?  Does the author not remind us to put off everything that hinders and so easily entangles, and to run our race of faith with freedom?  Our freedom is found in none other than in Christ himself.  See if the Son sets you free then you are free indeed.

Thank you for reading this blog; I hope you were blessed.  Continue your relationship with the Creator God, the One True God of the universe, the Father of Lights and the Light of the world.  I agape love you in Jesus Christ (of Nazareth).  Keep the faith.  Never ever ever ever ever EVER give up!

Where to Get a Free (or Cheaply Priced) Bible

 Do you need a Bible?  Would you like a Bible?  Where can you find an affordable Bible?

Here's a list of places where you might be able to find a Bible for low-cost:

• The Dollar Tree store 
• look for a sale at bible store online
• generous donors (I've seen generous donors who give away Bibles both online and in-person)
• pray and ask the Lord to lead you to his Word!
• go to bible gateway dot com or bible hub dot com and print a book at a time or 10 pages at a time; here at the public libraries you can print for 15 cents a page
• ask and you shall receive seek and ye shall find; ask the Lord where to find and read his Word for he will lead you and he will guide you!

Sing:

///Oh how I love Je-sus...oh, how I love Je-sus, oh how I love Je-sus, because he first loved me!///

///This is the day that the Lord has made...we will rejoice and be glad in it...this is the day, this is the Day that the Lord has made!///

///I love You Lord...and I lift my voice...to worship You...oh my soul, re-joice...take JOY my King...in what You hear...let it be a SWEET SWEET sound-in Your ear///

"Songs used for educational purposes only.  I do not own rights to songs."

If you do need a Bible, let me know on social media, and I will pray the Lord sends a Bible to you.  Blessings and shalom to you and anyone reading this now. May the blood of Jesus Christ cover you, me, and any and all true believers in Messiah Yeshua Messiah Jesus Christ of Nazareth.  I love him so much!!  We must love Jesus Christ, the One True God of the universe.  Hallelujah; praise the Lord Jesus Christ always.

Giving a Gospel Tract to the Gardener Today

Guess what I got to do today?

The gardener came to cut the grass, mow the lawn at my mom's house.  Suddenly, I got the idea to give him a water bottle and a gospel tract.  So, I grabbed two tracts, two water bottles, and two rubber bands, and wrapped them up!  Then, I prayed that he would still be there so I could give them to him.  And, I opened the front door, and there was the gardener!  I was so happy to give him the water bottles, and more importantly, the gospel tracts in comic book form, and in his heart language (Spanish).  I hope God will bless that man, and may he come to Christ soon.  Oh and we chatted for a bit too; I found out his name, and he asked about how my mom is doing, so we chatted about that a little bit also.  I was a little bit nervous, to talk about Christ with him, but I am glad that I could give him gospel tracts and water bottle.  Just wanted to share that with you real quick.  

Blessings and shalom to anyone reading this now. 

How to Lead a Person to Christ

How to Bring Someone to Christ:

1. Pray!  Ask G-d to help you!  Dear Lord Jesus Christ/ Abba Father (Yah), I confess that I don't know how to lead someone to Christ; but, dear Lord Jesus Christ of Nazareth, I have a very strong desire to see my family, friends, loved ones, co-workers and others get saved and know the love of Jesus Christ.

2. Share the Words of Christ both old testament and new; 

3. Practice; practice; practice; keep trying (by sharing / speaking the Word of God);  and, rely on God's strength to HELP YOU "save souls".  

4.. Be relentless; be faithful; be consistent; steadfast; unwavering.  Lord Your word does not return to You void.  Let my mouth speak what You desire for the others to hear; and, let the hearing of Your Word produce faith in them. I ask in Jesus Christ's name, amen.

Today I was listening to a podcast by a Russ Dizdar, in his Dynamic Discipleship series online course.   As I was listening in, a few things came to mind.  One, I will re-commit myself to a personal quiet time of at least 30 minutes (or more) a day; this will be a time where I seek the Lord, have fellowship with the One True God of the universe, and pray, sing worship songs to Him, and read my Bible, listening for His voice.  Two, I am thinking of starting a small group Bible study for the people I work with; either from the pizza place and /or from the gym for the gym members.  Hey, let's go have a coffee together and talk about faith in Christ, what the Bible says, and build them up in the faith.  I'm not sure yet what it's going to look like, as I am in the praying and dreaming/ getting vision stage.  I just want EVERYONE around me to know Christ and His amazing love, and to follow Him.  What can I do, what will I do, to that end, as Jesus has commanded me/ us in Matthew 28: 18-20 (The Great Commission, referred to by some, to go teach everyone everywhere to obey and do all that Jesus Christ of Nazareth Yeshua Messiah taught and did).

I am committing myself to a daily quiet time of 30 minutes or more; I am seeking the Lord regarding starting a small group Bible study for my family, friends, co-workers, and/ or gym members (where I work).  I am renewing my commitment to "save souls" and to "saving the lost" and to "building up the church" as the Lord leads me.  (Yes, I understand we are living in the end times, but we as believers still have a mandate from God to occupy until He comes; so let me be found doing so until He comes; amen.).  

When I was younger I had the opportunity to go teach English as a second language overseas in a different country.  And, I was asked to give a kind of speech to the parents of what the program was going to be like.  I was also invited to be one of the school's English instructors for their "English Camp" and one of my activities was to share Christ with the students, staff and parents.  I gave an invitation for the students to receive Christ at one of the chapel services (sort of like a rally), and I was blessed to find out that one of the girls from a budhist family had given her life to Christ!

Also, when I was younger, I led worship with my voice and guitar for the young girls around ages 10-12ish for a few years.

These are great memories to remind myself what God has already done through me.  However, I am sensing a very strong desire to go fish for souls, and do my part to help bring souls out of the kingdom of darkness and into the kingdom of Christ's glorious light.  May You Abba Father help me be a light in this world, and stay on my post, until your son's return or until I am called home.  I love You Abba Father, to the moon and back; You have been so so good to me; thank you, and I praise You.  You are worthy of all glory, honor and praise.  Amen. 

Biblical versus Un-biblical thinking on the USA-Related *Things*

 What's wrong with the USA "Pledge of Allegiance"?

• I pledge allegiance
• to the flag
• and to the united states of america
• and to the republic 
• for which it stands
• one nation
• under god
• indivisible
• with liberty
• and justice for all.

I would love to discuss where in the Bible the USA "Pledge of Allegiance" is unbiblical and / or unscriptural.  This will be one of my future/ current studies.

Are You Listening? Not Just a Song!

Do you remember the childhood song, "are you listening?"  The words went something like this:  

Are you listening (are you listening)

Brother John (brother john)

Morning bells are ringing (repeat)

Something-something (repeat).

Let's "listen together" but not to this childhood song; instead, let's listen for the words and teachings of Jesus, Jesus Christ of Nazareth; Yeshua Messiah.  I hope you will come along this journey with me!

Background Story.  Last night we had an earthquake; and, I felt it!  It felt like a really quick but strong jolt in my area.  Later, I found out it was located about a mile of San Bernadino, California.  For those of you who don't know, I am in the southern California area.

I posted I felt it on social media, and some people were like, no big deal, it was a small one.  Well, maybe to them it seemed small, because they were not near the epicenter, or they didn't feel it as strongly as I did!

For those of you who don't know, Jesus told his disciples that earthquakes in various places would occur.   I like to warn others of Jesus's return, and to encourage all, myself included, to get ready for his return.  So, when I remind people of earthquakes, whether big or small, I am reminding them of Jesus.  I am reminding people, and myself, to take heed of Jesus' words and teachings; to follow after Jesus; to obey all that Jesus taught and said; to go re-read for myself or yourself the words of Jesus and learn from him.  

What Happened Yesterday (see blog).  Only yesterday in my private reading Bible time, I was going through Matthew.  I read how Jesus says to LET MY LIGHT SHINE BEFORE MEN (ALL PEOPLE) in Matthew 7:16.  I think I even blogged about it yesterday!  Today, I feel led to go re-read Matthew chapter 24 where Jesus is responding to his disciples question about the end of the age.  One thing I noticed first, is that ALL THE STONES WERE KNOCKED DOWN AND DESTROYED.  Do you see it?  Did you see it?  Let's go to Matthew 24 and see what Jesus actually said in response to his disciples' (friends' and followers') questions.  If you want to skip to verse 7, that's where Jesus talks about EARTHQUAKES.  But, I included the other verses for CONTEXT.  (You can read entire chapter 24 at bible dot com).  One thing to notice is that Jesus is always speaking; are we listening to Jesus speaking?  We need to be!  Revelation 3:20 Jesus says, "I stand at the door and knock.  If any man hear my voice and open the door, I will come to him, and will sup with him, and he with me."

MATTHEW 24: 1-10

Jesus Predicts the Destruction of the Temple

1Then Jesus went out and departed from the temple, and His disciples came up to show Him the buildings of the temple. 2And Jesus said to them, “Do you not see all these things? Assuredly, I say to you, not one stone shall be left here upon another, that shall not be thrown down.”

The Signs of the Times and the End of the Age

3Now as He sat on the Mount of Olives, the disciples came to Him privately, saying, “Tell us, when will these things be? And what will be the sign of Your coming, and of the end of the age?”

4And Jesus answered and said to them: “Take heed that no one deceives you. 5For many will come in My name, saying, ‘I am the Christ,’ and will deceive many. 6And you will hear of wars and rumors of wars. See that you are not troubled; for all these things must come to pass, but the end is not yet. 7For nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom. And there will be famines, pestilences, and earthquakes in various places. 8All these are the beginning of sorrows.

9“Then they will deliver you up to tribulation and kill you, and you will be hated by all nations for My name’s sake. 10And then many will be offended, will betray one another, and will hate one another. 11Then many false prophets will rise up and deceive many. 12And because lawlessness will abound, the love of many will grow cold. 13But he who endures to the end shall be saved. 14And this gospel of the kingdom will be preached in all the world as a witness to all the nations, and then the end will come.

According to Jesus, in verse 8, all these (from verse 7, things like nation against nation, famines, plagues, and earthquakes will be the beginning of sorrows.  What sorrows are coming upon us?  

Let's look at verse 14.  What must happen before the end will come?  (this gospel of the kingdom will be preached in all the world as a witness to all the nations, and then the end will come.)  

 What does verse 10 mention?  (...many will be offended, many will betray and hate one another...)  My friend, do you want to be included in that group of betrayers and haters?  I for one, do not!  If you have offense, hatred, or betrayal in your heart towards me or others, why not go to Jesus and ask him to get rid of it for you?  We cannot get rid of sin in our hearts on our own, by ourselves.  But, Jesus can heal us.  Jesus can deliver us.  Jesus can set us free!!  Will you let him do that for you today, my friend?! 

Today's Prayer~

Dear Lord Jesus Christ of Nazareth, Yeshua Messiah, I am sorry for any and all sin, known and unknown sin I've ever done.  Would You please forgive me today for my sin against you, for my sin against others, for my sin against myself.  Lord Jesus, You are the Holy One, You are the Lion of Judah, You are the King of all kings, and You are the Lord of all Lords.  I declare that You are the Most High God, above all other Gods; Lord Jesus Christ, there is none like You!  I give You all the glory, honor and praise.  You are worthy dear Lord; yes, You are worthy Lamb of God!  I love you to the moon and back.  I am so grateful for your wonderful love.  Please help me live a life worthy of your calling in Christ Jesus upward.  I give You all of my life afresh and anew today.  Help me live for Your kingdom and for Your glory.  Amen.

For additional reading, see Matthew 24: 1-51 (bible dot com or bible hub dot com or bible gateway dot com).  Blessings and shalom to you and your household.