Get Your Free Gift Here-->God

Get your free gift.

Just send in your info, no purchase necessary.

Simply pay for postage and handling.

You can enter just about every type of sweepstakes

or contest you could think of.

You can buy a lottery ticket (or more)

every time you go to the neighborhood store.

Every one of these sweepstakes, contests, 

& lotteries will cost you something.

Either time, personal information (which can be sold)

or money.

Yet the greatest gift is free!

It is the gift of salvation.

Romans 5:18

Therefore, as through one man's offense judgment

came to all men, resulting in condemnation,

even so through one Man's righteous

act the free gift came to all men, resulting

in justification of life.

What do we have to do to get it?

Not much---just receive it!

God gave us His Son, Jesus Christ, as a free gift.

It is up to us to receive His free 

and unmerited gift of salvation.

By accepting this free gift we become a "whosoever".

Romans 10:13 ASV

for, whosoever shall call upon the Name of the Lord

shall be saved.

Not all can become a "whosoever".

Claim your free gift today!

Do Yourself A Favor

As we hold on to grudges and resentment

they tend to gain control over our lives.

Also, they grow out of proportion.

Resentment can materialize physically and emotionally.

Resentment makes us ill.

Psalm 37:8

Cease from anger and forsake wrath;

do not fret, it only causes harm.

Ecclesiastes 7:9

The Message

Don't be quick to fly off the handle

Anger boomerangs.

You can spot a fool by the lumps on his head.

Resentment leads to communication being cut off

and isolation from others.

Do yourself a favor and forgive.

Let go of anger, bitterness and unforgiveness.

Do this for yourself.

It may seem impossible, but nothing is impossible for God.

Luke 1:37

For with God, nothing will be impossible.

Romans 5:8

But God demonstrates His own love toward us,

in that while we were sinners Christ died for us.

The Bible tells us in Ephesians 4:31-32 to put away

all bitterness, wrath, and anger.

Forgive just as our Father God forgave us.

Beyond Description

God told Adam to name all the creatures in the Garden

Genesis 2:19

so He brought each one to Adam,

to see what he would name them.

Since that time, man has put a name on everything he sees.

Once named we can visualize it by the description.

It is hard to visualize someone who is invisible.

Which is why God is beyond our ability to describe Him---

or is He?

Even though the Bible does not give a physical

description of God, it does tell us about Who He is.

Isaiah tells us in chapter 55 verse 9,

His ways and thoughts are higher than ours.

Jesus told Phillip "he who has seen Me has seen the Father"

John 14:9

So when we look at Jesus we see a man who loved,

felt compassion, taught, healed the sick, and fed crowds.

He went out of His way to serve others.

He was not boastful or prideful.

Jesus lived as a man, using His divine nature to glorify God the Father.

Acts 10:38; Matt. 9:35; Matt. 20:34; Mark 1:41;

Mark 8:2; Lam. 3:22; Romans 5:8; Proverbs 8:17

God is beyond our human understanding 

and description.

But through the Holy Spirit, we can see Him.

He is love at the highest level and magnitude.

Living In His Sufficiency

We all like to be self-sufficient;

able to take care of ourselves fully.

The truth is we all need help.

The kind of help which is only available from God.

Psalm 121:2 NIV

My help comes from the Lord,

the Maker of heaven and earth.

All the riches of this earth are not enough.

They cannot help to gain complete financial independence,

emotional stability, or physical health.

No matter how may self help books we read

or seminars we attend,

we can never quite reach the point of being

completely sufficient.

God is bigger than our needs

and greater than our attempts at meeting them.

2 Corinthians AMP

Not that we are fit (qualified and sufficient in ability)

personal judgments or to claim or count anything

as coming from us, but our power and ability

and sufficiency are from God.

Trusting in God we become self-sufficient in His sufficiency.

Psalm 65:5-6 GNT

I depend on God alone; I put my hope in Him;

He alone protects and saves me....

It Starts At Home

Jesus gave two commandments for His disciples to follow.

The first, "love God with all your heart", Matthew 22:37

and the second, "love your neighbor as yourself", Matthew 22:39

The former verse wraps up and includes everything within

the Ten Commandments given to Moses.

By loving God, we are obedient to His word 

and are glorifying Him.

It is the greatest commandment.

The latter verse is wrapped up in the first.

Who would not want good things for themselves.

In the same way, we should want good things for our neighbors.

In a global sense, our neighbor is everyone.

We all live next door to someone 

and that person lives next to another, then another, and so on.

Our neighbors cross boundary lines, country lines,

and nationalities.

Love comes down from God

and starts at home.

It then travels exponentially outward in ever increasing 

numbers as others love one another.

Nothing is greater than love

and it starts with you! 

Meditate

It's okay.

Meditate.

The Bible instructs us to meditate 

on God's word day and night.

Meditation is not like Eastern religions

which puts one into a trance or hypnotic state.

It is keeping God's word close.

The word meditate  in Hebrew is"hagah".

It means to utter, muse, or mutter.

Utter means to speak.

Muse means a period of reflection.

Mutter means to say something in a low or barely audible voice.

Basically, the Bible tells us to speak in a low voice and reflect

the word of God daily.

We are to mutter or keep His words in our mouth constantly.

Meditation is reading His word and reflecting on,

thinking about, speaking it out and committing it to heart.

Let God's word dwell in your mouth, mind and heart daily.

Psalm 1:2

But his delight is in the Law of the Lord,

And in His law he meditates day and night.

Philippians 4:8

Finally, brethren, whatever things are true,

whatever things are noble, whatever things are just,

whatever things are pure, whatever things are lovely,

whatever things are of good report,

if there is any virtue and if there is anything praiseworthy

meditate on the things.

What Song Do You Sing?

Psalm 40:3

He has put a new song in my mouth.

Every day we are bombarded with noise.

Most of us start the day out with loud alarm clocks,

followed by the noise of traffic

or maybe its the kids screaming and yelling during play.

The dog is barking.

The phone is constantly ringing.

Teenage kids are driving up and down the street with their 10"

woofers and you feel your heart with every beat of bass.

We listen to the radio and what comes out is not gratifying.

Or the tune gets stuck in our head.

So do we let the noise around us become our song?

Do we let it get stuck into our head?

Music has been around since the beginning of time.

It is powerful.

It shapes our mood.

Sing to the Lord.

Sing from your heart.

The Bible is full of scripture about singing to the Lord.

The book of Psalms are all songs.

So it doesn't matter if its a hymn, Christian rock, or made up.

Today, sing a new song.

One which affects the spirit.

One that glorifies God.

And God will listen!

Psalm 96:1

Oh, sing to the Lord a new song, sing to the Lord

all the earth.

Dance Before the Lord

Dance before the Lord!

David danced.

He danced with abandon.

He praised and worshiped God with a joyful heart.

2 Samuel 6:14

Then David danced before the Lord with all his might....

It was David's way of expressing his joy for the return

of the Ark of the Covenant.

The Ark contained the Ten Commandments

and on it, the mercy seat where God would speak.

We should, in the same way, dance, sing 

and worship with all our heart.

For we have something better and greater than the Ark.

We are the living container for God.

We hold the Holy Spirit inside of us.

We have the Spirit of God dwelling within us.

Rejoice!

Sing and dance for the joy of the Lord.

Psalm 149:3-4

Let them praise Him with dance;

let them sing praises to Him with the timbrel and harp

For the Lord takes pleasure in His people;

He will beautify the humble with salvation.

Power of Words

There is power in the words we speak.

Speak out loud for what we say is very important. 

Words affect our emotions and state of mind.

Words can bring about spiritual, emotional, 

and physical changes.

There is life or death in the words we speak.

Proverbs 18:21

Death and life are in the power of the tongue

and those who love it will eat its fruit.

Basically, what we say can change us.

We can ultimately speak things into or out of existence.

When speaking in a negative way, feelings of anxiousness,

fear, rejection, physical sickness and depression can

become our normal.

Hearing hurtful and negative words from others

can cause a lifetime of pain.

God knew this.

He knew we could build up or tear down ourselves

and one another with simple words.

That is why He commanded us to control our tongue.

Psalms 34:13

Keep your tongue from evil

and your lips from speaking deceit.

James 3:9-10 AMP

With it we bless the Lord and Father,

and with it we curse men who were made in God's likeness!

Out of the same mouth come forth blessing and cursing.

These things, my brethren, ought not to be so.

The power is in you.

The Holy Spirit will guide you

and by faith your words can be powerful

and life giving!

The Heavens Declare

Psalms 19:1

The heavens declare the glory of God;

and the firmament shows His handiwork.

Psalms 8:3

When I consider Your heavens.

the work of Your fingers,

the moon, the stars,

which You have ordained.

1 Corinthians 15:41

There is one glory of the sun,

another glory of the moon,

and another glory of the stars;

Psalm 91:1

He who dwells in the secret place of the Most High

shall abide under the shadow of the Almighty

Isaiah 60:20

Your son shall no longer go down,

nor shall your moon withdraw itself;

for the Lord will be your everlasting light,

and your God your glory.

Psalm 136:9

The moon and the stars to rule by night,

for His mercy endures forever.

One nation under God

Revelation 21:1

Now I saw a new heaven and a new earth,

for the first heaven and the first earth

had passed away.

All photos by csmarcott.

Break The Hard Shell

Breaking our hard exterior may not be such a bad thing.

As children, we are bendable, pliable, and

can easily adapt to people, things, and situations.

We look with fresh eyes upon the world.

But then, we grow up,

and as we grow, we tend to lose our bendability.

We are shaped by our circumstances.

We can become stubborn, inflexible, obdurate (pig-headed),

and set in our ways.

But Jesus tells us 

"unless you change and become like 

little children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven."

Matthew 18:3 NIV

So how do we become like little children?

We break down the hard shell that surrounds us.

Once we do , we can be put back together in a different way.

A different form....the image of Christ.

2 Corinthians 5:17

We become a new creation,

and old things have passed away,

all things become new.

God is the Master Potter.

Isaiah 64:

But now, O Lord

You are our Father;

We are the clay, and You our potter;

and all we are the work of Your hand.

Let God be your Master Potter!

He can only transform your hard shell. 

The Lights Are On

God sees everything.

2 Chronicles 16:9

For the eyes of the Lord run to and fro 

throughout the whole earth.

He sees what we do in secret and 

when we are out and about with others.

God knows us, sees us, and

thinks about what we do.

Proverbs 5:21

For the ways of man are before the eyes of the Lord,

and He ponders all his paths.

Do we act the same alone and with others.

God sees us and all we do.

Jeremiah 23:24

Can anyone hide himself in secret places,

so I shall not see him? says the Lord;

Do I not fill heaven and earth? says the Lord.

He sees the good, bad, and the ugly.

He is pleased when we do right, sad when we do wrong,

but no matter what He loves us.

Proverbs 15:3 (a)

The eyes of the Lord are in every place....

Live as if the lights are always on.......

Jehovah-Compound Names of God

YHWH / YAHWEH / JEHOVAH:“LORD” (Deuteronomy 6:4;Daniel 9:14) – strictly speaking, the only proper name for God. Translated in English Bibles “LORD” (all capitals) to distinguish it from Adonai, “Lord.” The revelation of the name is first given to Moses “I Am who I Am” (Exodus 3:14). This name specifies an immediacy, a presence. Yahweh is present, accessible, near to those who call on Him for deliverance (Psalm 107:13), forgiveness (Psalm 25:11) and guidance (Psalm 31:3).

JEHOVAH-JIREH:"The Lord Will Provide" (Genesis 22:14) – the name memorialized by Abraham when God provided the ram to be sacrificed in place of Isaac.

JEHOVAH-RAPHA:"The Lord Who Heals" (Exodus 15:26) – “I am Jehovah who heals you” both in body and soul. In body, by preserving from and curing diseases, and in soul, by pardoning iniquities.

JEHOVAH-NISSI:"The Lord Our Banner" (Exodus 17:15), where banner is understood to be a rallying place. This name commemorates the desert victory over the Amalekites in Exodus 17.

JEHOVAH-M'KADDESH:"The Lord Who Sanctifies, Makes Holy" (Leviticus 20:8;Ezekiel 37:28) – God makes it clear that He alone, not the law, can cleanse His people and make them holy.

JEHOVAH-SHALOM:"The Lord Our Peace" (Judges 6:24) – the name given by Gideon to the altar he built after the Angel of the Lord assured him he would not die as he thought he would after seeing Him.

JEHOVAH-ELOHIM:"LORD God" (Genesis 2:4;Psalm 59:5) – a combination of God’s unique name YHWH and the generic “Lord,” signifying that He is the Lord of Lords.

JEHOVAH-TSIDKENU:"The Lord Our Righteousness” (Jeremiah 33:16) – As with YHWH-M’Kaddesh, it is God alone who provides righteousness to man, ultimately in the person of His Son, Jesus Christ, who became sin for us “that we might become the Righteousness of God in Him” (2 Corinthians 5:21).

JEHOVAH-ROHI:"The Lord Our Shepherd" (Psalm 23:1) – After David pondered his relationship as a shepherd to his sheep, he realized that was exactly the relationship God had with him, and so he declares, “Jehovah-Rohi is my Shepherd. I shall not want” (Psalm 23:1).

JEHOVAH-SHAMMAH:"The Lord Is There” (Ezekiel 48:35) – the name ascribed to Jerusalem and the Temple there, indicating that the once-departed glory of the Lord (Ezekiel 8—11) had returned (Ezekiel 44:1-4).

JEHOVAH-SABAOTH:"The Lord of Hosts" (Isaiah 1:24;Psalm 46:7) –Hosts means “hordes,” both of angels and of men. He is Lord of the host of heaven and of the inhabitants of the earth, of Jews and Gentiles, of rich and poor, master and slave. The name is expressive of the majesty, power, and authority of God and shows that He is able to accomplish what He determines to do.

Experiential Knowledge

God knows about being human.

He knows what trials we go through.

He knows our full range of emotions.

Not because He created us, but because He became one of us.

God took on human flesh in the Man Jesus.

Jesus laid His divinity aside to become us. 

Philippians 2:7-10

He had humble beginnings.

Born in a cave.

Fled Jerusalem to save His life from Herod.

Jesus had  a physical body, a mind with emotions.

A family with brothers and sisters.

He learned and took lessons.

He worked.

His friends and family denied Him.

Mark 6:4-5

But Jesus said to them, 

"A prophet is not without honor except in his own country,

among his own relatives, and in his own house.

He had adversity.

Hardship, sadness, hurt, distress, pain.

He had happiness, love, blessing, friends.

Jesus has experiential knowledge 

and knows the aches and pains our bodies have.

He knows what it feels like to be overwhelmed and tired.

He knows the depth of our souls.

Upon Ascension, the Holy Spirit was sent to live inside us.

Jesus connects with us not only because He lived like us

but through the connection with the Holy Spirit and our spirit.

It is a direct line to God the Father.

The Holy Spirit being one with Jesus knows the same 

things He knows. 

In this way we can have confidence God hears us,

sees us, knows us, understands and speaks to us.

Hebrews 4:15

For we do not have a High Priest Who is unable

to understand and sympathize and have a shared feeling

with our weaknesses and infirmities

and liability to the assaults of temptation,

but One Who has been tempted in every respect as we are,

yet without sinning.