Oh...Her...

She's a low-life.
She's scorned.
She's a mess.
Very used.
Now busted,
stands accused
by man and church.

And the church is right.

She's a blatant sinner.

We mustn't fool ourselves...

She knows it.
















"Where are your accusers?"
He asks.

Relunctantly,
she looks up.

And she sees...

no look of disgust,
no trace of lust,
no pointing finger, it...
writing in the dust...

There He was...
Love of God...
Personified.



.

Am I or Am I Not?

Moms have wonderful memories...
tucked away,
deep in the heart and mind.













There was the day her son
prayed that sweet prayer...
at her knee, mom and son, together,
that God would make him His son,
and save him from the fires of hell...

And for all intents and purposes,
I believe God did save him...
for "whosoever calls upon the name
of the Lord shall be saved".

But when that life now seems to evidence
that he might not be born again,
that there seems to be no showing of it...
what do we think... what do we do?

There is only one thing to do.

Pray that that precious child will remain restless,
without peace, insecure, and fearful,
until THEY choose to answer the question
for themselves.



















AM I or AM I NOT born again?

The childhood prayer is not
the assurance of salvation...
even though it very well
could have brought salvation.

Only assurance is assurance.

And where do you find assurance?
In God's Word, for faith comes by hearing
and hearing by the Word of God.

And you can find it in yourself...
If you are truly born again, for
He who is born of God has God in Him
(the Spirit of Christ dwells in believers).

The question is...
is there evidence of it,
does it show,
can you tell?

Well-intentioned parents cannot
and should never assume they know...
and I cannot know...

Standing before God
is a One on one affair -
with no one else by my side.
I have to know that I am His.
And Anyone CAN know... right here...

1 John 5: 10-

10 He who believes in the Son of God
has the witness in himself;
he who does not believe God has made Him a liar,
because he has not believed the testimony
that God has given of His Son.
11 And this is the testimony:
that God has given us eternal life,
and this life is in His Son.
12 He who has the Son has life;
he who does not have the Son of God
does not have life.
13 These things I have written to you
who believe in the name of the Son of God,
that you may know that you have eternal life,^[d]
and that you may continue to believe
in the name of the Son of God.

_______________________________________

For further help... see this resource
















Only at Amazon.com can you click inside
and view the contents of the book...
here's the link.

Vanity Unfair

She thinks she knows how to look...





















...thinks she knows how to present.

Yes, the right look,
the right words,
the right everything...
so maybe
you can get
the right idea.

But,
vanity goes only so far...
...only so deep.















Nah... rather,
Vanity is empty.
Hollow.
Sad.

Promises much,
delivers naught.
Ask me.
I know.

The Simple Life

“It is no bad thing to
celebrate a simple life.”
- Bilbo Baggins

My Testimony

Long Beach, California was the place.
February 25, 1973 was the date.
I was twenty years old.
And lost.
Drugs taking a place in my life
where hunger and sadness ruled.
I was desperate and didn't know it.

I walked into this place one way;
ignorant, soul-hungry, alone and afraid.
I walked out a different way;
touched, given the Bread of Life,
and never to be alone again.

It was at this Chapel of our Fathers,
on the Forest Lawn Mortuary
in Cypress of Sunny Southern California...





















Almost too perfect to be true, it was.


A step-cousin from Florida, Bible in hand,
had, like the wind, blown in unexpectedly
to visit our family for a week or so.


("The wind blows where it wills, and you hear the sound
thereof  [the Word], but cannot tell where it comes, and where
it goes [only God knows]:so is everyone that is born of the Spirit." 
John 3:8)

He spoke those words off those pages to me
for two days straight, back and forth, from
Old Testament to New Testament. (Seeds planted)
I had to listen, he was rather handsome, and I
had nothing better to do.

I did not yet see, I did not yet understand 
in full, but I heard the Word. And that step-
cousin left like he came; (oh well) as the wind
blows; in, all around, and out.

And a week or so later,
another wind blew my way.


An old boyfriend came to the house
to see me. Unannounced. Uninvited.
Just like the wind.

Asked if I would come to church with him
the upcoming Sunday. I said "sure".

(No one comes to the Son unless the Father
draws him. John6:44;  
And I, when I be lifted up, will draw all men
unto myself. John 12:32;
Yea... with lovingkindness have I drawn
thee to myself. Jer. 31:3)

I had nothing to lose. To think that someone
would even ask me to go anywhere with
them surprised me.

So I went to this little church in the big city...
see how pretty it was?

















The pastor stood up there and preached.
Don't recall exactly what his message was
about, but at the end... he asked for a show of
hands from anyone interested in receiving
Christ as their Lord and Savior
that their sins might be forgiven,
their lives cleansed,
their souls revived,
and their destiny secured.

I couldn't do it.
I could not raise my hand.

(Except a man be born of water [natural]
and of the Spirit [supernatural], he cannot -
cannot  - enter into the kingdom of God. 
John 3:5)


He wouldn't want me... I thought...
that's impossible.

So guess what He did.

He received me. He drew me
to Himself... just as the Word says...
just as He had said He would...
some 2,000 years ago.

It was like this...

I stood there in tears, 
shamefaced,
not knowing what to do... 
feeling totally unacceptable... and
there came a vision of His arms and chest... 
open wide... for me.
There He was...

He received me.


















Imagine that.

And at the end of the service
I went forward, 
(how could I not?)
and listened,
and nodded, and agreed,

Yes, Jesus is the Son of God,
yes, He did die for my sins,
yes, I do need His forgiveness,
yes, I now belong to Him,

and I wiped my nose
and my eyes
and my cheeks.

And from that day on, 
I was no longer alone.
(Lo, I am with you always. Matthew 28:20)
 
I had inherited this huge, huge family.
Many more than Toula's Big Fat Greek family.
And I was welcome... to be with them.

It was all so new.
I had been so alone.
For so long.

Hungry.
Thirsty.
Confused.
Afraid of everything.

And now this.
It was so surreal.
Yes. That's what it was.
Supernaturally REAL.

I was born of the Spirit...
born from above.
(John 3:1, 14-16)

And today, THAT is my citizenship.

One day soon, I will be going home.
Where I belong.
All by the grace of God.
Nothing to do with me.
(No earning anything.)
Incredible.
Wonderful.
Supernatural.

To GOD be the glory
for what HE has done!

CHIEF OF SINNERS

WHAT? Chief of sinners?
Yes. That's me. Chief of sinners.
And that's how it should be.
Otherwise, I'm fooling myself.

Unelss I see myself as I really am,
there is no reason for change nor a desire to.

I almost relish it.
As Paul did - he "gloried in his weakness".

Is it too far to go... glorying in my weakness?

No! It is what makes room for the Saviour.

Indeed... I glory in my weakness...
and possess it fully.

Yes, yes, I will move on.
But first things first.

It took a long time getting here...
and I want the conviction to remain.










Indeed, I am the Chief of Sinners.


"Sin is a brat that nobody
is willing to own."

Commentator Matthew Henry




.

Love Them So.

I have three sons...




















and I love them so...


When they were little,
I messed up a bit.

And consequences have kicked in.

I didn't mean to mess up.
But I did.

(I loved them so.)

I think about it and cringe.
If they only knew.
I didn't plan it this way.

(I still loved them so.)

I thought I understood so many things
when they were young.
Read all the right books.
I thought I had it all under control.

I didn't.

I remember when it first became apparent.
We had company.
They behaved poorly.
I was surprised...
I hadn't seen it coming.

(I still loved them so.)

And many times,
home times around the fire,
camping out behind the barn,
playing in the corn fields,
swimming the lake out back,
we did do things right.
We did do things right a lot.
We really did.

























And then they grew older.
They grew more independent.
They became young men.
They spread their wings.
Naturally.

I believe we held them a bit too tight.
Not always, but often.

Sometimes we misunderstood.
Sometimes they misunderstood.
Sometimes we were difficult.
Sometimes they were difficult.
No one is perfect.
Not me.
Not them...
but...

Oh, How I love them so!




















And somehow,
I think they know.

HERE "I AM"

And Moses Cried out
from the desert...
"Whom shall I say sent me, God?
What is Your name?
These thousands of Jews
who are waiting for their
grand exit, their deliverance,
they will want to know...
Who are You?"

And very interestingly,
God answered...

Moses,
tell them...

"I AM" sent you.

I AM????

What kind of name is that??

I can picture the Father saying...

I'll tell you what kind of name that is, dear one.
The name of One who is very very close.
Take off your sandals...
you are on holy ground...
now I will tell you.

First of all,

I AM your Creator.
I AM your God.
I AM the Lover of your Soul.





















Then, by necessity

I AM your Saviour.
I AM your Redeemer.
I AM your Sin Bearer.













Also, delightedly,
I AM your Heavenly Father.

























And,
I AM your Friend.
I AM also your Peace.
I AM the Joy you need.
I AM ALL that you need...
Truly need...


I AM not only "I AM",
but "I AM HERE" as well.
I AM HERE for you...
not as servant,
though I am servant...
but as Father,
Helper,
Purifier,
Sanctifier,
Redeemer,
and your Lord.

I AM all these for you...
Here and now...

in whatever situation you find yourself.





















"the adulteress, protected"

PROMISES, PROMISES, PROMISES

"There are no promises, you know..."

We say there are no promises in this life...
promises that all things would go just as we wish.

Things do not always go
the way we want them to
and there are no promises that
guarantee 100% success...

But there are promises,
another Kind of "promises"...
as a matter of fact,

A whole storehouse of them...

a wharehouse of them...

waiting for the taking.

























Would that I would take them
for myself more often!

Here are some examples:

Heaven-anchored Thoughts:

"Commit thy works unto the LORD,
and thy thoughts shall be established. "
Prov 16:3

Peace of Mind:

"Thou wilt keep him in perfect peace
whose mind is stayed on Thee
for he trusteth in Thee." Isaiah 26:3

Internal Fortitude:

"Cast thy burden upon the LORD,
and He shall sustain thee..."
Psalm 55:2

Providence for Needs:

Seek ye first the kingdom of God
and all these things shall be
added unto you... Matt 6: 25-33

Direction in Life:

"Trust in the LORD with all thine heart;
and lean not unto thine own understanding.
In all thy ways acknowledge him,
and he shall direct thy paths." Prov. 3:5,6


This is only the tip of the storehouse.
The Bible is Big on Promises...and God does not lie.

So I say...

Yes! ... there ARE promises...


























And I Will Help Myself!




Grace and peace be multiplied unto you
through the knowledge of God, and of Jesus our Lord,
According as his divine power hath given unto us all things
that pertain unto life and godliness, through the knowledge
of him that hath called us to glory and virtue:
Whereby are given unto us exceeding great and precious promises:
that by these ye might be partakers of the divine nature,
having escaped the corruption that is in the world through lust.

2 Peter 1:2-4


________________________________________________________

GOD IDENTIFIED

I have a God who has made
Himself known, Who has clearly
identified Himself.  At the perfect time,
and at the perfect place.
































There is no question
that He has
reached out
to touch every
single one of us.

In this account (Luke 14:16-21),
He makes Himself fully known
and goes about His minstry
in deliberate and great fashion...
though many whisper and wonder.

Nevertheless, he continues
to touch and heal
and love and redeem lives.





















I wonder... why is there such confusion
as to whether there is a God or not,
and Who He is?

A Loving Father is not anonymous.

A Loving Father does not say...

"OK, dear ones, I could be any one of
the many gods out there... and you
know, there are many ways to get to me.
I'm sure you can figure it out. 
Just keep trying... "

If we don't know God,
it is not because
He hasn't identified Himself,
it is because we don't want Him.

They didn't want Him back then either.










Love must be wanted.

"For God so loved the world,
that he gave his only begotten Son,
that whosoever believeth in him
should not perish,
but have everlasting life."

John 3:16

POWERFUL WORD

by Jocelyne Sade


Oh to know the full impact of words,
to see the damage they can wield.
As fear stricken cattle, wild running herds,
Battering down souls without shield.

Consider the blood, brutally strewn
When words are shot without thought.
Consider the lives meeting ruin
By a man's tongue when bridled not.

Consider the child rendered weak...
Or the spouse with heart now broken
By the words we choose to speak,
Laced with poison, hastily spoken.

Tongue untamed, charged with fire,
Like a flame doth quickly destroy
All sign of life, and then retires,
Soul now smoldering, devoid of joy.

There was One who took the blows
Of tongues lashing, wishing death.
He looked upon them not as foes,
for did He not give them breath?

Sneers of men, taunts, stabs and jeers,
blasphemies and false verdicts...
Thou didst absorb them all, and with tears
Embraced the assaults of derelicts.

"Forgive them!" Thou didst cry,
For all men are cursed with guilt.
"It is finished!" Thou didst cry,
then died as thy blood was spilt.

Thy bruised, battered and disfigured face...
A Derision no other man has known.
Yea, thy Soul and body were disgraced...
And death Thy Love did not shun.

But Thou hast risen... true and bold
for Truth and Life cannot be stilled
And the story is forever told
That God, as man, for man was killed.

Yet hast resurrected as predicted;
Death destroyeth not This Life.
Death, though to men's souls addicted,
could not extinguish This Life.

May our tongues give Thee praise,
May our words reflect Thy Grace,
dispensing mercy and gracious ways
granted us from Thy Holy place.

These are the words that heal...
These are words that reveal...
to man the very heart of God.
Use them, I shall, and to men appeal,
for Thy words are words that heal...
Selah, Thou art The Word of God.



But these (Words) are written,
that ye might believe that Jesus is the Christ,
the Son of God; and that believing
ye might have life through his name.
John 20:31

FAMILY AFFAIR

Christianity is Exclusive.
So is my family, by the way.

I come from the Morency family.
There is no other family like my family.
I mean, Dad is Claude, Mom is Rolande,
and Serge, Danielle and Christian are my siblings.
You cannot be a part of my family
unless you were born into it.

That's just the way it is.

__________________________________

Now, about another family.


Jesus explains to Nicodemus:

"Verily, verily, I say unto thee,
Except a man be born again,
he cannot see the kingdom of God.

Nicodemus saith unto him,
How can a man be born when he is old?
can he enter the second time
into his mother's womb,
and be born? Jesus answered,

Verily, verily, I say unto thee,
Except a man be born of water and of the Spirit,
he cannot enter into the kingdom of God.

That which is born of the flesh is flesh;
and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit.
Marvel not that I said unto thee,
Ye must be born again. "

John 3:3-7

__________________________________________

And to the woman at the well...

Again, He speaks explicitly...

"But an hour is coming, and now is,
when the true worshipers
will worship the Father
in spirit and in truth;
for such people the Father seeks
to be His worshipers.

"God is Spirit,
and those who worship Him
must worship Him in Spirit and truth."
-John 4:23, 24

__________________________________________

That's just how it is.

You must be born INTO God's family.
Then and only then can you call Him Father...

All are born of the water of the womb. (physical)

All are called to be born of the spirit of God. (spiritual)

But not all respond. They just don't want to.

So, a Father is an exclusive Thing -
He does not impose Himself on anyone.
He's looking for those who will Love Him...
He is not interested in pre-programmed,
cold, heartless, and mindless children.

So there is a choice to be made -
all for the sake of true love.

It's a family affair...
And it's totally,
lovingly,
fair.

"The LORD hath appeared of old unto me, saying,
Yea, I have loved thee with an everlasting love:
therefore with loving kindness have I drawn thee."

Jeremiah 31:3


.

YES LORD?

"Do not worry about

your ability to hear God,

trust in God's ability

to speak to you."

Prayer is two-way conversation, after all.

And if I think Him too small to talk to me...

and His ability to make Himself heard too weak,

than I am of all men most miserable.

I've had enough one-way conversations in my

lifetime. This is one place, one conversation,

where I cannot settle for tid bits.

If I need take an hour to quiet my soul,

then that is what I must do.

God help me not settle for crumbs.

For it is not You Who is not able to speak,

but I who will not settle down

and be spoken to.

"Samuel... Samuel..."

"Yes, Lord, here I am..."

-1 Samuel 3:10

FROM NO LIMBS TO NO LIMITS

Would you like to witness someone who loves God
in the midst of most excruciating circumstances?

Ugh... excuse me.

No - from what I gather from his testimony,
excruciating would not be the right description.
This gentlemanly soul has learned to live life
trusting God through it all.

Would that I could do as well.

After 3 minutes of preliminary video snippets,
he gives a combined interview/message that will
inspire anyone. Well, hopefully... anyone...

Enjoy...

FRESH CONNECTIONS

James Olds, a professor of neuroscience
who directs the Krasnow Institute for
Advanced Study at George Mason University,
says that even the adult mind “is very plastic.”

Nerve cells routinely break old connections and form new ones.

“The brain,” according to Olds, “has the ability
to reprogram itself on the fly,
altering the way it functions.”













So, after all,

"... be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind..." (Romans 12:2)

...is not too much to ask of anyone,
of any age,
of any culture,
of any background,
of any history,
or of any dysfunction.

Ready for some changes?

Go Ahead...









Put it to the test ...
ask God to open your eyes...
and watch what happens.




"...For the word of God is quick,
and powerful, and sharper
than any two-edged sword..."

Hebrews 4:12

"And be not conformed to this world:
but be ye transformed by the renewing
of your mind, that ye may prove
what is that good, and acceptable,
and perfect, will of God. "

Romans 12:2




.