For most of us it may be the first Easter service you have missed.. Remember, God is with you every where you go. When you accepted Christ in your life you became a temple of God. I think this will be a very special Easter to reflect with great gratitude the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ our Savior. God bless you and your family.
I was looking through a discounted movie bin at a large super store and an elderly lady approached me. It kind of caught me off guard because it felt like she was looking for me. She asked me flat out, “Are you a Christian”, and I replied “Yes I am. ” Our discussion furthered as she was very inquisitive in my life and was full of questions. She is also a Christian and was missing church quite a bit due to the closer with the covid 19. She was missing her fellowship the same as I am. I shared some of the things that my family and I have done through God for our community and she had a huge smile the entire time. Her name is Chris and the more and more we talked the more we felt the Holy Spirit move with us. We discussed being strong during this time of need and that many lost souls will be searching for God and what bummer it is to see closed doors on the church. I explained that when a plane is getting ready to crash people all of the sudden learn to pray. Why can they not do this on an average day instead of waiting for a deadly virus? I asked if I could pray for her and she agreed. I am so glad that God placed her in my path that day and helped me to be more open with others.
“So humble yourselves before God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you. Come close to God, and God will come close to you. Wash your hands, you sinners; purify your hearts, for your loyalty is divided between God and the world. Let there be tears for what you have done. Let there be sorrow and deep grief. Let there be sadness instead of laughter, and gloom instead of joy. Humble yourselves before the Lord, and he will lift you up in honor.”
James 4:7-10 NLT
https://www.bible.com/116/jas.4.7-10.nlt
“And he gives grace generously. As the Scriptures say, “God opposes the proud but gives grace to the humble.””
James 4:6 NLT
https://www.bible.com/116/jas.4.6.nlt
www.bible.com/116/pro.21.26.nlt
We have all heard of the terrible two’s. That’s when our darling little toddlers become mine monsters. Some people never grow out of it no matter how old they get. It’s the me syndrome but when your an adult I think it should be spelled SINdrome. Due to the fact, that selfishness, envy and jealousy is sin. Jesus said, “The second most important commandment is Love others as much as you as you love yourself.” I think this is a great time to reflect on how we treat others. That includes family, friends and strangers.
The story below is a great example of loving others as yourself.
A man was at the grocery store standing in line to checkout. The lady behind him said, “oh, I see you were one of the lucky ones to get a package of toilet paper.” As she smiled she continued ,” the shelf was empty by the time I got over there.” The clerk started checking out the mans groceries. When she was finished the man paid. He turned to the lady behind him and said here you can have half of my roll of toilet paper. I live by myself and half of this package is all I need.
Sometimes it can be difficult for me to ask others to pray for me. It’s hard at times for me to show weakness when people think that you are strong. I do however love to hear others pray. It helps my prayer life expand how and when and what to pray for. If we are not allowing people to pray for us then we aren’t allowing others to expand their relationship with God and neglecting ourselves of a miracle. Humbling ourselves to God and others means that we are strong. It took me a minute to grasp this concept because I like to be in control. If we are in control then God isn’t taking the lead, is he? I challenge you today to take a back seat. Have a friend pray over your shortcomings and character defects and witness a true miracle in your walk with God. May God bless you abundantly today and fill your day with happiness. 1 Peter 5:6-7
“Call to me in times of trouble. I will save you, and you will honor me.””
Psalms 50:15 NCV
Use your heavenly connection and call on God anytime day or night. He says, “Call to me in times of trouble. I will save you, and you will honor me.”
I guarantee, you won’t get a busy signal, or an answering machine that tells you to leave a message. Our Heavenly Father is never to busy to hear our heart’s cry. He is overjoyed to hear from us. Continue praying and lifting your heart up to God. Tell him how you feel, share struggles you have, and thank him for being your God that loves, protects and provides all your needs. God gave us a gift of prayer! It’s his way of staying in touch with us.
On vacation two years ago we stopped at a rest stop. My husband immediately ran to the men’s room while I headed for the pay phone. I have to admit I grew up with pay phones not cell phones. This was very unusual , since I had not seen one in years. Especially a bright yellow one in the middle of no where. That’s when I saw the sign, Free Calls and right on top was Get Gods Blessings/Daily Prayer press *10. I was glad prayer was at the top of the list. And very thankful that when people were on a lonely desert rode and didn’t know how to pray there is a rest stop you can make a free call for prayer. Friends we know that you don’t need a pay phone to call God. He is with you everyday, just start talking to him use your heavenly connection called prayer.
My wife and I have multiple vehicles that we were blessed with from God. We’ve been working so much lately that our family wagon had to sit while we used our work vehicles. On tuesday I noticed that the tire was a little low but figured that I could fix it in the next couple of days before the weekend. As the days went by the tire kept getting lower and lower and my time kept getting more and more taken up by other things. Saturday had rolled around and it being the Sabbath we aren’t supposed to work. The only time we can work is if we are helping someone but not for money. I told God that I was fighting these feelings to go and get that tire fixed and that I wanted to keep my focus on Him. God touched my mind and had me do other things with my family and the tire was left alone. Now the tire was sitting on the rim. When Sunday came however, I had that tire off so quickly placed in the back of my work truck and was headed to the tire shop. Once there the owner came and grabbed the tire, filled it with air and dunked it in a bin of water checking for a leak. After 10 minutes he called me over and said, “Sir, I cannot find a leak anywhere”. I proceeded to help him thinking that he must have missed it and that a second pair of eyes would help spot it. After another 10 minutes neither one of us could find anything wrong with it. I put the tire back on and have been driving it for the last week or so and it hasn’t lost even the slightest bit of air pressure. God is great! He wants us to observe the Sabbath and to spend time with Him. Take that time, it’s totally worth it to be wrapped in his mighty arms to rest. Exodus 20:8- 11 Remember the Sabbath day by keeping it holy. Six days you shall labor and do all your work, but the seventh day is a Sabbath to the Lord your God. On it you shall not do any work, neither you, nor your your son or daughter, nor your male or female servant, not your animals, nor any foreigner residing in your towns. For in six days the Lord made the heavens and the earth, the sea, and all that is in them, but he rested on the seventh day. Therefore the Lord blessed the Sabbath day and made it holy.
www.bible.com/111/psa.24.10.niv
www.bible.com/111/isa.40.4-5.niv
Are U Up for the Challenge?