Saturday, June 30, 2007

Abundantly Pardoned

Our Lord God Almighty abundantly pardons us if we seek His forgiveness and accept Jesus as our Savior. Ladies, no matter what bad things we have done in our pasts, no matter how ashamed we feel, the Lord wipes the slate clean, washing our sins away, and we are born new creatures, hallelujah! The Apostle Paul was a persecutor of Christians, dragging them from their homes to have them thrown into prison. (Acts 8:3) After his conversion he said, “God had mercy on me.” (1 Timothy 1:13 NLT) It’s time to put away the guilt. Nobody can ever look down their noses at us because we are beloved of God. We are abundantly pardoned. (Isaiah 55:7 NKJV)
Posted by Keneta, a Christ Follower at 09:00:40 | Permanent Link | Comments (0) |

Show the Goodness

Does your life show the mercy that God has shown you? Does your life shine as a testimony to the grace He has heaped upon you? Oh, that we would show the goodness of God as we live our lives each day. “You are royal priests, a holy nation, God’s very own possession. As a result, you can show others the goodness of God, for He called you out of the darkness into His wonderful light. ‘Once you had no identity as a people; now you are God’s people. Once you received no mercy; now you have received God’s mercy.’” (1 Peter 2:9-10 NLT) We are living proof of the goodness of God, and we need to show this to all people. Remember when you lived in darkness? Don’t you want others to find their way out of the darkness and into the light? The Apostle Paul said, “This is a trustworthy saying, and everyone should accept it: ‘Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners’---and I am the worst of them all. But God had mercy on me so that Christ Jesus could use me as a prime example of His great patience with even the worst of sinners. Then others will realize that they, too, can believe in Him and receive eternal life. All honor and glory to God forever and ever! He is the eternal King, the unseen One who never dies; He alone is God. Amen.” (1 Timothy 1:15-17 NLT) Be an example of God’s patience so that others will also believe. Don’t hide your light so that others can’t see it. You are in the light because of the mercy of our Lord God Almighty. Let it shine, dear one, let it shine!
Posted by Keneta, a Christ Follower at 08:59:32 | Permanent Link | Comments (0) |

Thursday, June 28, 2007

Don't Shoot Darts

Have you ever been sitting in the dining room on lunch break or at McDonald’s having a bite to eat when someone at the next table begins loudly tearing down their spouse to someone else (and their spouse isn’t even there to defend herself or himself)? Oh, this is why I don’t like to eat in noisy restaurants (I’d rather eat in my car any day of the week). Dear wives, don’t ever say bad things about your husbands to other people. If you have a complaint, please discuss it with him. 1 Thessalonians 5:11 tells us that we are to “encourage one another and build each other up.” Dear wives, set a good example for the institution of marriage by not saying bad things about your husbands to other people. No matter how tempted you are to say bad things about him, remember that it is exactly what Satan wants you to do. Darts shot out in aggravation or anger will find their way to his ears, and hurt, confusion and anger will be the result. When I worked in fast food restaurants years ago and someone made me angry, I’d go into the freezer and pound on the frozen fries bags to make myself feel better. When I worked in convenient stores and had to load up the coolers with milk, etc, I’d sing at the top of my lungs. Now that I’m doing my best to walk the Christian walk and stay on the right path, I take walks when I get angry (or say “Doggone it!” over and over). Ladies, let’s all find quiet, alone ways to relieve our frustration and anger. Let’s not set bad examples or cause others to become angry, thus causing others to sin, too. Let’s stick our heads in the refrigerators and sing, sing, sing! Have a blessed day!

Posted by Keneta, a Christ Follower at 16:39:27 | Permanent Link | Comments (0) |

Look! Up in the Sky! It's a Bird! It's a Plane! It's....it's....it's...

Ever since we were little girls, we’ve read stories about Prince Charming and knights in shining armor riding up to rescue us.  Some of us even still catch our breaths at the thought of Batman coming to our rescue or Superman swooping down to grab us into his strong arms and flying away with us. Ladies, we need to plant our feet firmly on the soil beneath our feet and toss our Bat-a-Rangs to the wind. We can’t put super hero expectations on the men in our lives, whether they be husbands, boyfriends, co-workers or the trash collectors. God didn’t create men to wear capes and fly about in the sky without the aid of engines or propellers. If He had, you would be married to Big Bird. Men have a difficult time living up to our expectations, and we need to let them now that we don’t expect a fancy air show or royalty on white horses. They need to know that we expect them to be the men God wants them to be---and they can read about that man in the Bible. Up, up and awaaaay!

Posted by Keneta, a Christ Follower at 15:54:31 | Permanent Link | Comments (0) |

Tuesday, June 26, 2007

You Don't Have To Be a Baywatch Babe

Have you ever heard that Joe Cocker song that goes “You are so beautiful to me”? Well, that’s what God thinks of us. Society dictates that beautiful women are the ones running down the beach in slow motion in a tight red swimsuit, or slithering down the catwalk in skimpy lingerie, but that’s not what God is looking for. God looks at the heart, and so should God’s people. The Lord told Samuel, “The Lord does not look at the things man looks at. Man looks at the outward appearance, but the Lord looks at the heart.” (1 Samuel 16:7 NIV). Is your heart beautiful? Do your search your heart daily to see how much beauty resides there? Leave behind everything that makes your heart dirty and ugly, then give your heart to God. You are beautiful to Him, because He made you, and He wants your heart to be beautiful, too.

Posted by Keneta, a Christ Follower at 16:25:14 | Permanent Link | Comments (1) |

Monday, June 25, 2007

A Vessel Scarred and Cracked

Every woman has something in her past of which she is ashamed. To deny it would be to lie. To not be ashamed of past sins would be a sin in itself. Don’t ever believe that there are women you know who are perfect with a perfect past. No such woman exists. Each one of us is battle-scarred in one way or another. Each one of us is a vessel with cracks made useful by our wondrous Potter. That’s right, no matter how cracked and scarred the vessel, the Father can and will use you. In fact, the more cracked and scarred you are, the more He can use you in His kingdom---if you will allow Him to use you. “For I am already being poured out as a drink offering….” (2 Timothy 4:6 NKJV) You see, the more cracked the vessel, the more wine can be poured out upon the thirsty. The more broken the bread, the more others can be nourished by the truth of God’s Word. Give yourself into the gentle, perfect hands of the Potter. He loves all His vessels, whether cracked, scarred or broken. After all, He made the vessel that became blemished.
Posted by Keneta, a Christ Follower at 19:42:48 | Permanent Link | Comments (0) |

Restoration

Has there ever been a time when you felt your life needed complete restoration? Has it ever felt like the walls have been broken down and your gates burned? Have you ever felt like Jerusalem after the siege when Nehemiah’s job was to rebuild the walls? Chapter 4, verses 10 thru 11 tells us:  “Meanwhile, the people in Judah said, ‘The strength of the laborers  is giving out, and there is so much rubble that we cannot rebuild the wall.’ Also our enemies said, ‘Before they know it or see us, we will be right there among them and will kill them and put an end to the work.’”  Is that how you feel, like your strength is gone, your life is filled with so much rubble that there can be no possible way that your life can be restored? And then there are your enemies, everyone who is pointing fingers at you and gossiping about you and wondering where you went wrong. You feel like no matter what you do to restore your life, those people are going to cause the wall to topple over each day. Take heart, dear one! Just as Nehemiah was able to rebuild the wall of Jerusalem , you can rebuild and restore your life! It hurts, I know, and it may take awhile for restoration to happen, but it will happen. Turn your life over to God. He’s the One who can rebuild your life stone by stone and gate by gate. Take every little thing to Him, because he doesn’t consider anything in your life to be little. He cherishes you, and He cherishes your life. Allow Him to destroy the person you were along with the rubble that lines the lanes of your life, and you’ll one day notice that you’re not the person you used to be. You will notice that you are not a child of the world, but a child of God who is joyfully dancing on walls of your life that stand firm and sure. Don’t allow this world to make you feel like you are less than what you are. You are loved by the Lord! He will restore you and your life, hallelujah!

Posted by Keneta, a Christ Follower at 16:23:23 | Permanent Link | Comments (0) |

Sunday, June 24, 2007

A Different Kind of Woman

“Yet, O Lord, You are our Father. We are the clay, You are the Potter; we are all the work of Your hand.” (Isaiah 64:8 NIV) Elisabeth Elliot said in her book “Let Me Be A Woman”, “The fact that I am a woman does not make me a different kind of Christian, but the fact that I am a Christian does make me a different kind of woman.” You see, the women that we are has no influence upon us when we are Christians, but when we are Christians, that fact totally influences us as women. Christian women love the Lord and want to obey Him in all things. When we become Christians in a full-blown relationship with our Lord, we become a completely different kind of woman---and our relationship with the Lord spills over into all other relationships. It shapes us into a completely different vessel and softens all our rough edges. It fills us with a love that we have never before felt for anyone, and we can face all troubles much, much better than we did before we became a strong Christian woman. Being a Christian woman is being a lump of clay in the hands of the Potter, daily becoming His work of art. And we would have it no other way.
Posted by Keneta, a Christ Follower at 20:25:44 | Permanent Link | Comments (2) |

Addictions: The Battle Is Not Yours'

When I had a daily email devotional/prayer group, there was one month I spent on writing addiction devotions. I had no idea that there were so many addictions in this world until I wrote those devotions. There are such addictions as gossip, eating, spending money, buying clothes, gambling, drinking alcohol, doing drugs, extra-marital sex, television, and the list goes on and on and on. When people have addictions, it is so hard to permanently kick them, because addictions keep grabbing you and yanking you right back into that same old, dark pit, again and again. Satan doesn’t want you to kick your addictions. He wants you to cling to them. He will even nurture your addictions for you! Addictions are anything that you make your idol---anything that takes up a lot of your time that you could be using for good---addictions are anything that has control of you instead of the other way around. Do you want to give up your addictions? Do you want to start a war against your addictions? It’s going to be a long, rough battle, but you can’t win that battle on your own. 2 Chronicles 20: 12 says, “For we have no power to face this vast army that is attacking us. We do not know what to do, but our eyes are upon You.” Is that how you feel? Like a vast army is attacking you? Verses 15 and 17: “This is what the Lord says to you: ‘Do not be afraid or discouraged because of this vast army. For the battle is not yours, but God’s.’ ‘You will not have to fight this battle. Take up your positions; stand firm and see the deliverance the Lord will give you….Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged.’” Woohoo! Do you hear that?? The battle isn’t yours’, it’s God’s! Give it up to Him! Philippians 4:13 says, “I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me.” That is where you will get your strength for the battle. Don’t ever give up on beating your addictions. Don’t ever stop the battle, no matter how weary you get, no matter how discouraged you get. Every time you fall back into that pit of despair, hoist up your boot straps and climb back out of there until, one day, you’ll find yourself so far from the addictions, you won’t ever fall again---“for the battle is not yours, but God’s.”
Posted by Keneta, a Christ Follower at 15:36:03 | Permanent Link | Comments (0) |

Saturday, June 23, 2007

Leaving Behind a Bad Childhood

“How priceless is Your unfailing love! Both high and low among men find refuge in the shadow of Your wings.” (Psalm 36:7 NIV) I know a lady who had a really bad childhood in which her mother favored her sister over her; in which her father stayed drunk, and her mother made her go with him and take care of him when he got drunk (she, as a child, would have to put the front driver’s seat of the car down and sit on it so that she could reach the gas pedal and brakes as she drove him back home); in which her mother would strike her whenever she became angry with her; in which her sister would mistreat her. It was a dysfunctional family that, over the years, found peace and Christ---but this woman has never found peace. She has lived a life of nonstop competition with everyone she knows or has ever known (including her sister) all because she has always felt the need to compete for attention and love. She has always told lies because of a deep-felt need to appear better in the eyes of all people. She has never been able to accept the fact that Christ loves her, that she is special and treasured in His eyes. She has never accepted the fact that she doesn’t have to compete for the love and attention of Christ or His people. She has never accepted the fact that she doesn’t have to lie in order to make herself look good. She lives a life of jealousy and envy. She lives a life of judging others, because, as a child, she was judged by her mother and made to feel worthless. Worthless. Our Lord God Almighty doesn’t think we’re worthless. He created someone special, someone from and for His heart. That someone is her, and that someone is you. No matter what has happened in your past, please know that the Lord God Almighty loves you. He wants you to leave behind that childhood in which you were ignored or mistreated. He wants you to live your life as the beloved child of God that you are. When you become a Christian, you are adopted into the family of God. You are loved! You are God’s treasured possession! Leave behind the pain, the tears, the sorrow that has warped your heart and soul. Allow God to re-shape you, re-create you into a brand new person, the person you were meant to be. Leave behind the past and wrap yourself in God’s love! :)
Posted by Keneta, a Christ Follower at 16:34:57 | Permanent Link | Comments (0) |
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