NCarolinian

Concerning ownership, in  Philippians 3:12 , Paul says,  " Not that I have already obtained all this, or have already arrived at my goal, but I press on to take hold of that for which Christ Jesus took hold of me." You can tell some things about a person by what they choose to own materially. You get to see what they value as either important or special. Some items they may need in their daily function or something may be acquired that is just nice to have around the home. We are all owners of Things & Stuff, the question really becomes - Do the Things & Stuff own us? There are other Things & Stuff besides the material world to be concerned with owning or being owned by. Such additional considerations as attitude, word choice, fellowship choices and so forth are examples of non-material things to have control over or they have mastery over us. Paul gives us three great steps toward a great mindset on Ownership in this Philippians 3:12 reference.  Hum...

Matthew 11:29-30 "Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.” Of all beings in existence, God has every right to be harsh and boastful. His yoke or plan for the lives of all under Him have every right to be hard and their burdens heavy. God does have a harsh side to Him, look at the judgments to come upon the world in the last days. God is boastful, read the Bible and you will see Him boasting of His Name - I Am - and His Son, Jesus, "This is my son, whom I love; with Him I am well pleased." (Matt. 3:7) . God's harshness and boasting are Justified, He is Holy and Perfect in all His ways. However, Matthew paints another side of God for us - a gentle, humble farmer. Just like oxen who have a collar or yoke around their neck for a farmer's guidance in the field, so too Jesus applies this thought to His followers or disciples. "Take m...

"God is our refuge and strength, an ever-present help in trouble." (Psalm 46:1) This verse and these pictures depict that at anytime in our lives, The Lord is a safe place to run to for anything - He understands. However, not only does Jesus merely understand, He has strength for us to endure the challenge(s) AND will be there to help at every moment along the way. His accessibility is instant because of the great price He paid with His life for our redemption.  There is no other person that restored our fallen relationship with Father God. Therefore, there is no other person we should pray to, through and in the name of than Christ Jesus.  " For there is one God and one mediator between God and mankind, the man Christ Jesus," (1 Timothy 2:5) . The next move becomes ours -  " Let us then approach God’s throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need....

Walking into any room, my desire is to introduce or display Jesus Christ without any words if possible. If you had "spiritual glasses" on - I would want you to see Jesus walk-in with me and speak through me in any given situation. My body, His atmosphere. I would want you to know and experience me as a Heavenly scent and light in your midst.  I desire to ooze with The Holy Spirit. I want every pore, every word selection, every behavior and every thought to be consumed by God's Presence. I crave there to be no option for people but to experience the overflow of God in my life. My hope is for the people that surround me to get saturated with all the goodness and presence of Christ. If those that surround me know Him as their Savior, I pray they receive encouragement and whatever they need. If those that surround me do not know Him as Lord then perhaps the atmosphere I bring will lead to the sharing of my testimony and The Gospel.  Ah, to be able to command a room a...