Each and every person on the planet has a father. That's a fact we all know.
Want to know another crazy fact? (I am sure you know this too but its too exciting not to mention!)
We each have the same Father...
Its the truth.
God is our Father. He has reached out to every single person. But He doesn't force us to be His children.
Its as if we are orphans at an orphanage and you are instantly drawn to Him and Him to you. Last time I was in Africa we got to visit a baby orphanage. The beautiful children were all under the age of around 5. It was the highlight of the trip but the hardest. There was one child who stole my heart there at the orphanage. We had that instant connection and I didn't know how I would part from this baby. I knew the baby felt the same way because he clung to me with his dear life. He did not leave my side. In fact he wouldn't let me put him down. Every time I went to put him down, he would cry and would hold on even tighter. But once he was in my arms he had that peace and joy about him... I knew this would be a problem when I left. I was dreading that moment. I love this child. The time came closer and quiet streams rolled down my face as I whispered to the Lord that I couldn't do it. How could I possible leave? I wouldn't put him down. I was the last one in there and knew it was time. I tried 3 times to put him down and distract him with food or anything else. But he wouldn't let me leave. My tears were no longer silent and the sniffles came on stronger. I put this precious child a little further than me when I put him down and tried to swiftly walk away. Didn't work. So I picked him up and held him tighter... I couldn't stand the lost and lonely cry he cried. I had to comfort him and wished that I could take him with me. Finally, someone had to take him away.
The point of my story, is that God has come in and is waiting for us to come to Him. He wants to adopt us. He is not forcing us into His arms... He is welcoming us into His arms. We can chose to be His forever or we can find something else to be attached to. Just like I wanted so desperately to take that child home, God wants to take you as His own. Just as it broke my heart to see this child hurting, it breaks the Fathers heart to see you hurting. He knows how to stop the hurt. He wants to hold you and take you home. If you don't want Him to be your Father he lets you go but not with out feeling that deep pain and sorrow for losing you. His love is deep for you.
He wants to be your Daddy.
Will you let Him be your Father? Will you let Him adopt you into the family? God hand picked YOU to be His own.
"having predestined us to adoption as sons by Jesus Christ to Himself, according to the good pleasure of His will, to the praise of the glory of His grace, by which He made us accepted in the Beloved." -Ephesians 1:5,6
His perfect will is that you would accept Him. He went through the long suffering, costly adoption process to redeem you. There was no way we could get close to God because of the law. We are not perfect people and we cannot keep the law. So what He did is He sent His perfect Son to live a sinless life, to die on the cross for our sins... taking our punishment. Then He conquered death not only for Himself but He did it so that we can have victory over death too... if we would simply chose to believe Him.
"For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life. For God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world through Him might be saved."
John 3:16,17
He did what we never could do and all He wants from us is to accept it. To believe it. He is not asking you to join some crazy religion. To do all these crazy rituals. That is not what He wants. He hates religion. Religion is icky and imprisons you to expectations that are beyond us. Jesus wants a relationship with you. That's it.
He gives you so many changes to chose Him. The more you know about Him, the more responsible you are. Don't leave with out being His child. He does everything He can to stop you from going to hell. But is never forceful. He is a gracious God. In my devotion I have been reading about the Israelites. How and they were constantly going back and forth... serving/loving God and then turning away from Him, yet God was gracious to them (Deuteronomy 28-32). He let them go off and do their own thing, but that came with consequences. Just like when we go off and do our own thing that we know isn't right, there are consequences to our actions. When we are introduced to the truth and chose to not listen to it there are consequences to our actions because we chose to ignore the truth and listen to the lie. But God is constantly shedding the light on us. He is so good to us. (If you are having a hard time believing that this is the trust, then ask Him. He is more than happy to show you that it is truth. He can handle any and all your questions. Search for it in the Bible.) He knows we are human and that we mess up. He looks at our heart and knows our intentions.
"But He, being full of compassion, forgave their iniquity, and did not destroy them. Yes, many a time He turned His anger away, and did not stir up all His wrath; For He remembered that they were but flesh, a breath that passes away and does not come again. " Psalms 78: 38,39
When you see the wrath of God it is a justice wrath. You don't let you children go undisciplined when you strictly asked them not to do something. But when we ask for forgiveness He is gracious to give it to us. Listen to His voice now and don't let that punishment come upon you. He wants to show you mercy. You are never too far or have done anything so bad that He won't hear you or accept you. He is giving you another chance. There will be a time when He comes back that you cannot make this choice any longer. He is giving you chance after chance to chose Him over hell. Don't ignore it. Be filled with His mercy. Be His child. He is waiting.
To be saved, to be His child, to escape eternal death you just need to believe. The verses below explain a little more.
"As it is written: There is none righteous no, not one;"
Romans 3:10
"For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God,"
Romans 3:23
"Therefore, just as through one man sin entered the world, and death through sin, and thus death spread to all men, because all sinned-- "
Romans 5:12
"For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord."
Romans 6:23
"But God demonstrated His own love towards us, in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us."
Romans 5:8
"For whoever calls on the name of the Lord shall be saved."
Romans 10:13
"That if you confess with your mouth the Lord Jesus and believe in your heart that God has raised Him from the dead, you will be saved. For with the heart one believes unto righteousness, and with the mount confession is made unto salvation."
Romans 10:9,10
If you believe in Him or want to believe in Him and are having a hard time... pray to Him about it. If you are ready to be His child all you have to do is believe and pray for Him to come into your heart....
Lord,
I recognize that I am a sinner and I ask for forgiveness of my sins. Thank you for sending your Son to die on the cross for my sins. I believe that Jesus is the Son of God. That You have raised Jesus from the Dead. I ask that you would come into my heart today and change me.
In Jesus name, Amen.
If you prayed this, :) Welcome to the family. Know that I have been praying for you to see the truth. It would be good to get to know your Father... So here are some helpful things:
Get a Bible and start reading it. God reveals Himself through His Word. And it is so powerful!
Tell someone who is a believer. You need support around you because the enemy will come on strong, trying to lie to you. We do not need to fear the enemy because Jesus has authority over the enemy. Telling and surrounding yourself with others who have the same passion about Jesus is a great thing and you will learn so much about Him. You will also have lots of questions that will need to be answered and others around you will be able to point you in the right direction.
Find a BIBLE teaching church.
If you have any questions or criticism about anything please feel free to email me or ask me.
tinkatie@me.com
Don't just brush this moment off... go tell someone :) Spend some time getting to know Jesus. If you don't have any idea on what to do next... ask someone who has been walking with Jesus for a while who can help you out. If you are furious right now.... and have questions please ask.
Sunday, April 7, 2013
Saturday, April 6, 2013
He is my Strength
He might not change the circumstance, but He will change your heart towards it.
I am ready to accept that my circumstances will not change, at least for this season in my life.
He has helped me to chose that no matter how many migraines I get, no matter how weak I feel, no matter how tired I am or how emotional I am... I WILL PRAISE HIM.
He is a gracious God. Every time I have had a migraine (while here in Israel) it has been at a time where it is OK to miss out on what ever is going on. He will not allow me to miss anything important or exciting. :) He has been teaching me to spend more time in prayer as I try to fall asleep to let my migraine settle down. It hasn't been easy though. I go through moments of wishing I was "normal" that I didn't have to eat a special way or that I could just have energy all the time. Wishing I could keep up with everyone else.
Lately in class we have been going over all the miracles Jesus performed. It is like a knife to my chest sometimes. I get upset when I see that Jesus healed so many people but He isn't healing me. I get stuck thinking that I don't have enough faith to be healed. That I am going through all of these health issues because I did something wrong. LIES LIES LIES. We must stop ourselves. We must recognize the lies when they come. We must test them against scripture. I have to stop myself. Think Katie, think! Remember what He has already done... Jesus healed me from CANCER! Not just any cancer but a rare incurable cancer. Of course He can heal me from all my other health issues. Now just might not be that time. And since I cannot change my circumstances I must change my heart towards them. I must lean in closer to HIM. I must keep charging.
This week has been especially hard. Monday-Wednesday I had no energy at all. It was hard for me to stay awake. I barely had any energy to walk anywhere. I tried as much as I could to carry on and do the things I needed to do. But often had to withdraw from museum trips and other things to go sleep. This was a very frustrating week and a little bit scary. Why did I have no energy? Why can't I keep my eyes open? I couldn't even get my Bible out. Where is my strength?! I went through a whole list of guessing what could be wrong with me. ENOUGH analyzing what is wrong with me.
ALL I need is prayer.
That is all I am going to do and ask for. No more analyzing the situation. No more trying more of this, less of that. I thank the Lord for my mom who is always there to cheer me on. To give me scripture and pray for me over and over and over again. To ask others to pray for me as well. (Thank you for all the prayers.)
After the prayers were being sent out, I knew the Lord was strengthening me. I don't remember exactly how I got to this verse but God spoke to me through Isaiah 27:5 which says,
"Or let him take hold of My strength, that he may make peace with Me; and he shall make peace with Me."
He gave me His strength when I had none. I didn't even have strength to get in His word. To journal and talk to Him. He restored my strength so that our time together could be restored.
God is so good to us. He is so loving and caring. When we have no strength to run to Him, or even crawl to Him... He comes to us. Even the faintest "help" and He is there.
And once He gives us that little strength we MUST run to the Word. The Word revives us. It gives us life. Check out these verses from Psalms 119
"My soul clings to the dust; revive me according to Your word." -Psalm 119:25
When we feel like we cannot get up off the floor, go to His word. It is what picks us up. Even just a scripture to repeat over and over again... the Word is living and breathing. Let it breath life into you.
"My soul melts from heaviness; strengthen me according to your word." -Psalm 119:28
When we cannot handle the heaviness of the situation. When the news it too much to bare. When we cannot take life anymore... GO TO HIS WORD. It strengthens us. It gets us moving. It pushes us through the tough patches of life.
"This is my comfort in my affliction, for your word has given me life." -Psalm 119:50
I have found that the Word is truly the only thing that can bring me comfort. No matter how many times someone tells me "it will be alright" "you are not crazy" or what ever, it just doesn't comfort me like my Abba Father can comfort me. Why is this? It is because His words are truth. I can trust Him. You can trust Him too. And you wanna know a secret? He lets you get everything off your chest, He doesn't try to convince you of this or that. He simply lets you talk it out or yell if that's what you need to do. Then when you are ready He just holds you. He brings words of comfort. And He brings your mind back to the truth. He always leads you to the truth. No human has enough patience to listen to us pour out what we really think with out trying to stop us and get us to see things their way. Its nothing against us, its just humanness... That's why we need to go to Jesus to find comfort. To let it all out. His words bring us back to the truth and bring us back to life.
We must understand that we need to be absolutely honest with the Lord. If we are not, we allow the enemy to continue lying to us and the truth cannot be revealed.
This verse is one I have applied personally. It is talking of God being in the midst of Israel, that Israel will not be moved and He will help Israel. But the same goes for us too...
"God is in the midst of her, she shall not be moved; God shall help her." -Psalm 46:5
So what I have learned is to accept my health for what it is and to praise God through it all. To look at the positive in it all. (You can always find a positive in any situation.) To run to Him constantly. He is my strength. Let Him be your strength too. Run to Him before you run to anything else. We are all on this journey together and need to encourage each other to run to Him.
I am ready to accept that my circumstances will not change, at least for this season in my life.
He has helped me to chose that no matter how many migraines I get, no matter how weak I feel, no matter how tired I am or how emotional I am... I WILL PRAISE HIM.
He is a gracious God. Every time I have had a migraine (while here in Israel) it has been at a time where it is OK to miss out on what ever is going on. He will not allow me to miss anything important or exciting. :) He has been teaching me to spend more time in prayer as I try to fall asleep to let my migraine settle down. It hasn't been easy though. I go through moments of wishing I was "normal" that I didn't have to eat a special way or that I could just have energy all the time. Wishing I could keep up with everyone else.
Lately in class we have been going over all the miracles Jesus performed. It is like a knife to my chest sometimes. I get upset when I see that Jesus healed so many people but He isn't healing me. I get stuck thinking that I don't have enough faith to be healed. That I am going through all of these health issues because I did something wrong. LIES LIES LIES. We must stop ourselves. We must recognize the lies when they come. We must test them against scripture. I have to stop myself. Think Katie, think! Remember what He has already done... Jesus healed me from CANCER! Not just any cancer but a rare incurable cancer. Of course He can heal me from all my other health issues. Now just might not be that time. And since I cannot change my circumstances I must change my heart towards them. I must lean in closer to HIM. I must keep charging.
This week has been especially hard. Monday-Wednesday I had no energy at all. It was hard for me to stay awake. I barely had any energy to walk anywhere. I tried as much as I could to carry on and do the things I needed to do. But often had to withdraw from museum trips and other things to go sleep. This was a very frustrating week and a little bit scary. Why did I have no energy? Why can't I keep my eyes open? I couldn't even get my Bible out. Where is my strength?! I went through a whole list of guessing what could be wrong with me. ENOUGH analyzing what is wrong with me.
ALL I need is prayer.
That is all I am going to do and ask for. No more analyzing the situation. No more trying more of this, less of that. I thank the Lord for my mom who is always there to cheer me on. To give me scripture and pray for me over and over and over again. To ask others to pray for me as well. (Thank you for all the prayers.)
After the prayers were being sent out, I knew the Lord was strengthening me. I don't remember exactly how I got to this verse but God spoke to me through Isaiah 27:5 which says,
"Or let him take hold of My strength, that he may make peace with Me; and he shall make peace with Me."
He gave me His strength when I had none. I didn't even have strength to get in His word. To journal and talk to Him. He restored my strength so that our time together could be restored.
God is so good to us. He is so loving and caring. When we have no strength to run to Him, or even crawl to Him... He comes to us. Even the faintest "help" and He is there.
And once He gives us that little strength we MUST run to the Word. The Word revives us. It gives us life. Check out these verses from Psalms 119
"My soul clings to the dust; revive me according to Your word." -Psalm 119:25
When we feel like we cannot get up off the floor, go to His word. It is what picks us up. Even just a scripture to repeat over and over again... the Word is living and breathing. Let it breath life into you.
"My soul melts from heaviness; strengthen me according to your word." -Psalm 119:28
When we cannot handle the heaviness of the situation. When the news it too much to bare. When we cannot take life anymore... GO TO HIS WORD. It strengthens us. It gets us moving. It pushes us through the tough patches of life.
"This is my comfort in my affliction, for your word has given me life." -Psalm 119:50
I have found that the Word is truly the only thing that can bring me comfort. No matter how many times someone tells me "it will be alright" "you are not crazy" or what ever, it just doesn't comfort me like my Abba Father can comfort me. Why is this? It is because His words are truth. I can trust Him. You can trust Him too. And you wanna know a secret? He lets you get everything off your chest, He doesn't try to convince you of this or that. He simply lets you talk it out or yell if that's what you need to do. Then when you are ready He just holds you. He brings words of comfort. And He brings your mind back to the truth. He always leads you to the truth. No human has enough patience to listen to us pour out what we really think with out trying to stop us and get us to see things their way. Its nothing against us, its just humanness... That's why we need to go to Jesus to find comfort. To let it all out. His words bring us back to the truth and bring us back to life.
We must understand that we need to be absolutely honest with the Lord. If we are not, we allow the enemy to continue lying to us and the truth cannot be revealed.
This verse is one I have applied personally. It is talking of God being in the midst of Israel, that Israel will not be moved and He will help Israel. But the same goes for us too...
"God is in the midst of her, she shall not be moved; God shall help her." -Psalm 46:5
So what I have learned is to accept my health for what it is and to praise God through it all. To look at the positive in it all. (You can always find a positive in any situation.) To run to Him constantly. He is my strength. Let Him be your strength too. Run to Him before you run to anything else. We are all on this journey together and need to encourage each other to run to Him.
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