NCarolinian

As far back as I can account for in history, whether documented by books of eye-witnesses, books of oral traditions or books of faith - there has always been strife, struggle and violence. If you believe in The Fall of Lucifer (Ezekiel 28:12-19) , as I do, then the only time there seems to have been true peace was before Pride was found to have developed in him. Ever since that time, Pride has motivated him and many efforts of friction to the point of death throughout space and time. I cannot wait until Christ makes all things new and our motivation, interests, influences and passions will be utterly changed and perfected to Jesus and His views and ways. One might think that humans would learn the lessons of war, hate, covetousness, unforgiveness and the list is almost endless. The culprit continues to be, at this point, not only Pride but also the Father of Pride and he persists in instigating all the negative attributes that stem from or would be birthed out of Pride in order to ...

To my brothers and sisters in Christ I speak today and ask - upon Christ's return - What will He find you doing? Jesus, in Matthew 24:45-51 , speaking of the time upon which He will return, infuses all Christians, especially those charged with delivering the Word of God, with a challenge to live an accountable, faithful service record unto God. "Who then is the faithful and wise servant, whom the master has put in charge of the servants in his household to give them their food at the proper time? It will be good for that servant whose master finds him doing so when he returns. Truly I tell you, he will put him in charge of all his possessions. But suppose that servant is wicked and says to himself, ‘My master is staying away a long time,’ and he then begins to beat his fellow servants and to eat and drink with drunkards. The master of that servant will come on a day when he does not expect him and at an hour he is not aware of. He will cut him to pieces and assign him a place ...

Do you characterize and treat your body as a house or hotel when considering the Holy Spirit? Are you operating under hotel management, treating the Holy Spirit as a visitor and missing out on so many blessings? Or are you a house, home, and Temple of the Holy Spirit where God is comfortable and can counsel you on a daily basis from His Throne in the Living Room of your heart? 1 Corinthians 6:19 says, "Do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit, who is in you, whom you have received from God?" We are extremely mobile now-a-days and the Hebrew people were no strangers to mobility either. God’s presence also moved – from tent to tabernacle to temple. The theme of lives in motion is not new. Although God had conditions that had to be met by the Hebrew people for counsel with His Presence (Exodus 25:8-9 and Exodus 26; Exodus 40) , the message is that God desired to commune or tabernacle with His people and He did that through the display of His presence wherev...

Prayer in Gethsemane Matthew 26:39 Of all people in Scripture to study about a prayer life, Jesus is great to examine. I combed through each Gospel and tried to research when, where and what Jesus prayed. I want to expose you now to my research of The Prayers of Jesus. The first time prayer is mentioned or associated with Jesus is documented in Matthew when He is found sitting on a mountainside teaching on the subject of prayer. He is giving instructions on how to keep prayer sacred and providing a pattern of prayer to follow commonly referred to as The Lord's Prayer (Matthew 6:5-15) . I feel confident you have heard of "Saying Grace" as in saying a prayer or blessing over the food before you eat. The next installment of prayer by Jesus in Matthew 14:19 finds a prayer of thanksgiving, during the evening hours, over the coming miraculous meal of the feeding of five thousand with just five loaves of bread and two fish. Then after the Feeding of Five Thousand and before...

Why do we wait until it is too late in many instances to act in a situation? Procrastination causes more issues than if we were to at least attempt to take care of matters ahead of time. I don't mean to portray a sense of being an overly controlling person. I do mean to picture the many of us who miss the opportunities to ward off or as the Western movies say, "Meet 'em at the pass" concerning potential problems in our lives. As Christians, prayers to the Lord should not be a choice or option but the first and forever go-to in any situation. Why do you think the Lord and the Holy Spirit have the title/name Wonderful Counselor if they don't hear and answer our prayers. I certainly can testify to my Savior as my Wonderful Counselor. The spear of the Roman soldier is the weapon that is alluded to in Ephesians 6:18-20 as pertaining to prayer. With all the other pieces of the Roman soldier's gear named and paired with a spiritual application, there was one piece ...

There is nothing quite like having the perfect example supplied for a concept or instruction or lifestyle that is being presented for consideration. I have always been a pretty good copy-cat, so when I saw someone play sports or taught me - if they played or taught well then I did well. Same with many other facets of my life. The idea of needing better examples in our lives and being excellent emulations in the lives of others should come as no surprise. First Impressions and the subsequent display of our lives become all the more important. The challenge and encouragement this brings comes via some familiar phrases. Ever heard - "If you don't stand for something or someone, you will fall for anything"? A purpose driven life will be a rewarded and fulfilled life, but also many times a blessing to others, so look to stand for something or someone or both. When those that surround you, whether familiar or strangers, notice that you - "Practice what you preach or believ...

Have you ever heard the phrase - "Don't get your hopes up." This negative vibe surrounding one's future expectations can be found many places and one place is the movies. In the movie "Shawshank Redemption", the character named Red says, "Hope is a dangerous thing, my friend, it can kill a man...". Red's friend Andy replies, "Hope is a good thing, maybe even the best of things. And good things never die." The dictionary defines hope as the feeling that what is wanted can be had or that events will turn out for the best . So hope here is pictured as a feeling of relying on chance for a certain outcome.  However, hope as more than a feeling has been brought to the world and given to the world, as a gift, through Christ Jesus and the Holy Spirit. All the work of securing humanity's salvation and multitude of promises has been completed through Jesus Christ.  Jesus sealed everyone's spiritual, physical and mental salvation, empow...