Twenty-20

(Coronavirus 2019 aka COVID 19)

The Covid-19 coronavirus has caused fear among many of us here in the United States of America, and around the world. The veracity by which the virus infects and kills it's victims, is both altogether alarming and questionable, leading many to doubt it’s verity. As we move further away from its genesis, and closer to the end of the year, even now, the never ending pressure and emotional violence of 2020 continue to haunt us. This year, the year of our Lord, 2020 is one that we all wish we could simply erase from memory, or perhaps at the least, start again; yet, as we know, this is not possible, we must only face it, overcome it, and move on. So, how do we do this? How do we face the challenges of such a formidable foe and come out on top? Simple, we have Faith. 

The Spirit of the Lord is upon us, He is calling His people to Repentance, Revival, and a Return to He who created the whole world. These are more than just simple words, they are a call to action, if we are to be who the Lord has called us to be, these are the steps we must take. The word revival has been used to describe many different concepts, programs, and events. To many, the word revival conjures up thoughts of special occasions and services, celebrated with the presence of special speakers and guest musicians; however, true revival is so much more. Revival is a burning and yearning within us that drives us to seek out the face of God, a desire to hear the voice of the Creator and to act according to His will. Revival is like that feeling of completeness you felt when you knew, I mean when you grasped and comprehended that something amazing had just occurred in your life, and it could only come from God. Repentance, Revival, and Returning to God, our first love, is similar to the experience we had the first time the Holy Ghost overshadowed us, filling us up from the inside out, causing our lips to stammer, a fire that cannot be quenched. What is revival? It is a shout of Joy, with words we cannot explain, a growling and a shout from the deepest parts of our soul, a renewal of Faith in the Mighty God we serve.

II Chronicles 7:14-15

 If my people, which are called by my name, shall humble themselves, and pray, and seek my face, and turn from their wicked ways; then will I hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin, and will heal their land... mine eyes shall be open... mine ears attent unto the prayer that is made...

Ezekiel 37:27-28 

My tabernacle also shall be with them: yea, I will be their God, and they shall be my people...

Jeremiah 32:38-41

And they shall be my people, and I will be their God: And I will give them one heart, and one way, that they may fear me for ever, for the good of them, and of their children after them...

(The Holy Bible)

The Bible is full of the promises of God, these three listed above are just a few of the many verses in which God speaks to us, letting us know that if we do our part, if we turn to Him through, Faith, Repentance, and living a life that is pleasing to Him, He would then turn to His face to us, and move mightily within our lives, but what is a life pleasing to God? In order to live a life pleasing to God, we must give ourselves to Him, in other words, we must become living sacrifices to Him who gave if Himself so that we may live. As described in Romans 12:1, we must live a  life of Godliness and Holiness, a life in which we give Christ Jesus the praise and worship He deserves, a life in which we keep the things of God Holy while also rendering to caesar what is his, by not conforming to the world, and by focusing on the things of God, we please Him; thereby, we rest in the knowledge that God is on our side. This my friend  is Revival, it's a change that begins within us; yet, it is not a momentary or temporary change, it's a permanent change, a lifestyle change, it's a "from this point going forward" change in which we dedicate more time to prayer, more time to reading the Word, and more of our personal time becomes God's time. 

In the year 2020, the financial situation of the nations have been grim at best, and this is reflected in the finances of many of us, the followers of Christ as well; however, if we are truly seeking revival, we must find it here in our own pocket books as well. Financial Revival, returning to God the gifts of our first fruits as He as given to us, and yes, I am as guilty as the next person in this area; however, we must Revive this part of our lives as well if we are to see the mighty moves of God that we are seeking. Listen, God knows times are tough, but He has already promised us in advance that if we give to Him  a portion of our first fruits, He will return it all and so much more, so much so that there shall not be room enough to contain it. (Malachi 3:10) The Renewing of our mind, soul, and spirit, it all begins within us, if we who claim to be the  children of God would begin to show the world what it truly means to be a follower  of Christ, perhaps it would then be not so hard to present the truth of the Gospel to those who are lost; however, clearly we do not. 

By our love for one another, the world shall know that we are the disciples of the almighty God, this is

(John 13:34-35)

what we are told in John 13:34&35; yet, throughout the year 2020, love seems to be waning if it was present at all. Hate filled speech, terrorism, mass destruction of property, theft, riots, and racism are the themes constantly repeated in the  mass media of today, clearly there a problem here, and it is a lack of empathy, sympathy, and most of all, love. The year 2020 has revealed to us the disconnect that lies between those who say they love God, and those who’s actions display that they are truly the children of God: but how do we decipher the difference? It really is simple, they will know us because of our love, one for another. This my friends is why we need revival, more than just in word, but in deed, in actions, and finally, the greatest of these is LOVE. 

In the book of  Mark, we find Jesus of Nazareth in conversation with a scribe attempting to catch Him in a twist by asking Him “what is the greatest commandment of all?;” however, Jesus being well aware of his hidden intent, effortlessly rebutted his inquiry with a rather deft and homely response, He quoted Deuteronomy 6:5, “thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thine heart.” Although Jesus’ reply was short, it was direct and to the point. The knowledge and wisdom that Jesus imparted on that day, still impacts us today, we are to love the Lord our God with all of our heart, all of our minds, and all of our souls, this Biblical principle expands all millennia, both Testaments, and all of time itself. 

Love is truly the key, when we love Christ Jesus, we will honor Him, praise Him, and worship Him as our Lord and Savior, and everything else simply falls into place from here. To love and honor God is to place Him above all other priorities in our lives, to do this, we must first love His temple, our own bodies which He created from the very earth on which we dwell. Love for ourselves becomes easier when we realize that we are not only the Temple of God, but that we are created in the very image of God, He  who Created the universe and all therein. Our next step should becomes effortless when we consider the instructions laid out before us in Mark 12:29-31, Matthew 22:37-40, and Deuteronomy chapter 6, amongst other places, that we are to love others as we love ourselves, as we love His Temple, we must love those around us, as we were created to have communion with Him, and with others.

Now, you may be wondering to yourself, “how did we get here, and what does this have to do with Revival?” Well, that is a great question, and here is the answer, when we love God, we love ourselves, and when we love ourselves, we love others, and when we love others, we do not wish them any ill-will, nor do we wish them any harm. Now, if we find the afore mentioned statement to be true, then we can’t help but share the Love of Christ with those around us, it is the natural flow of love, we give it away, but before we can give it away, we must revive it within ourselves, we must have Revival.

God is calling us to revival right now in 2020, 2021 and beyond, a true spiritual awakening in which we check our egos at the door. Please understand, now is not the time to chase after self gratification or selfish desires, we must instead cast those things aside in an effort to draw closer to Him, the One True Living God. Drawing closer to Christ Jesus will heal sicknesses, destroy perversion, and defeat the hedonistic ideologies of this world: leaving only the purity of God's love and the presence of the Holy Spirit within us. This all sounds pretty good doesn’t it; however, to achieve this, we must decide within ourselves, that this is not only what we want, it is what we need. After this, we must press in, push forward, and call upon Jesus Christ, asking Him to give us the strength we need to make it happen with the knowlege that only we can begin the Revival process: God will not move if it is not of our own desire for Him to do so.

And so, here we are again, speaking of Revival, which according to one definition is the restoration to life or consciousness, vigor, or strength, but what does it mean to you? Do you even care? If so, are you ready for Revival? God is calling

for Revival; but it isn't for Him, it's for us. God has given us His word to live by, His many promises to look forward to, and the Holy Spirit to guide us; yet, it is up to us to do our part. Once again, let the revival begin from the inside out, and then our families, neighborhoods, cities, and states, it is not tooo late, if we begin right now. We all know that 2020 has been a very difficult year to endure, but!, we have made it to the end. As we take this time to reflect, let us ,make an effort to reach the world with our own personal revival, let it spread from nation to nation until all the world knows the Depth of God's Love, and the Redemptive Power of the Blood of the Lamb.

II Corinthians 6:16-18

...for ye are the temple of the living God; as God hath said, I will dwell in them, and walk in them; and I will be their God, and they shall be my people. ...touch not the unclean thing... I will receive you, And will be a Father unto you, and ye shall be my sons and daughters...

Hebrews 8:10-12

...this is the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel... I will put my laws into their mind, and write them in their hearts... I will be to them a God, and they shall be to me a people. ...all shall know me, from the least to the greatest. For I will be merciful to their unrighteousness, and their sins... I remember no more...

The time is now for Revival... Amen...

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Justified

(Romans 3:23)

"For all have sinned and fallen short of the Glory of God," these words are found in Romans 3:23, and no words have rung truer than these throughout the centuries. From the highest-ranking general to the lowest-ranking private, it doesn't matter, we are all the same in the eyes of God. The book of Genesis tells us that God created mankind in His own image; therefore, we now know that whether we are a senior head of state, a simple guy, just taking an evening stroll down a tree-lined path, a "social justice warrior," fighting for the rights of others, or a "mighty politician" who believes that he, and he alone, knows better than you and I what we should do, it just does not matter, the scourage of sin covers us all. 

When Paul the Apostle wrote "all," he was describing every single one of us, you and I, and all who have, or ever will walk this earth. With this truth, we must keep in mind that we are all equal in the eyes of God, created by Him, and for Him. In life, there are many ups and downs, high peaks, low valleys, a joy that fills the heart, and pain that breaks it. According to Webster’s Dictionary, the definition of the word All is the total sum of a thing, the whole amount, or total extent of, every member or individual of a group, etc. The word All is “all” encompassing, it includes everything and everyone, including each and every one of us; thereby assuring us that even though we have messed, fallen down, or blown up, we are no different from anyone else. So, just think about this, when the enemy tries to convince us that we are forever lost, depressed, or unworthy, remember that Jesus paid the price for you and I in His own blood, and in return, we have received the gift of Salvation, Hope, and Freedom: we have been Justified by Faith, and Redeemed by the Blood.

Romans 3:24-26 Being justified freely by His Grace through the Redemption that is in Christ Jesus: Whom God hath set forth to be a Propitiation through Faith in His blood, to declare His Righteousness for the Remission of sins that are past, through the forbearance of God; To declare, I say, at this time His Righteousness: that He might be just, and the Justifier of him which believeth in Jesus...

By the Blood of Jesus Christ, and our faith in Him, as the One True Living God, we have received the gift of redemption. But what is redemption? in layman's terms, we have had the chains torn asunder and are free from the bonds of sin, we have been redeemed. By the Grace and Mercy of our Lord, we are justified and made righteous, and because we have been made righteous by His Precious Blood, we can cling tightly to the Promises of God. Three hundred and sixty-five times, that is the number of times the term "fear-not" is found within the pages of the Bible. Ironic isnt it, which should assure us that although we may slip, and although we may fall, the Lord Jesus Christ is right there waiting to catch us, hold us, and secure us in His Mighty Hands, there is no reason to be afraid.

Psalm 37:23-24 The steps of a good man are ordered by the Lord : and he delighteth in his way.  Though he fall, he shall not be utterly cast down: for the Lord upholdeth him with his hand...

(Justified By The Blood)

Faith in God and the Power of the Blood of Jesus Christ: this is what justifies us, and assures us that we are the children of God. The Apostle Paul had an ailment in which he saught the Lord's touch on three seperate occasions, and what God said to Paul, still applies to us today, “My Grace is sufficient for thee: for my strength is made perfect in weakness.” God alone is able to keep us from falling, it is by His Grace that we live and find our worth, and Christ is ultimately all we need to survive in this failed world. Justification through our Faith in Jesus Christ, God’s Grace and Mercy, and the Hope and Salvation through His Blood that was shed on Calvary Hill, all of this and more is available to you and I, BUT we must make the first move. 

As humans, we have the gift of free will, we can go left, or we can go right, we can go up, or we can go down, the choice is ours, and so are the results of those decisions. You and I must make the choice to place our Faith in Him above all else, we must place God in the driver’s seat, and we’ve got to ride in the back. Unfortunately, there are many who will not make this choice, there are those who will choose to live a life that is un-pleasing to God, resulting in this fallen world we see today. You see, God is a gentleman, and because of this, He will never force you or I to do anything outside of our own will, nor will He force anyone else to follow Him. Ultimately, the choice is ours, we can choose to live for God, or we can follow the self-destructive will of our flesh, but I promise you this, if you will make the first move, if you reach out in faith, God will never let you down. 

Wow, by the Blood of the Lamb, we are Justified! Freed from the wages of sin, and washed as clean as the driven snow!

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Mount up on the wings of eagles... Phone Lock Screen

 

Brothers & Sisters

(Group of Men and Women)

Brothers and sisters, those of us who call Jesus Christ our Lord and Savior, it is us who have now accepted the higher calling upon our lives. As we have been chosen by God to become His hands and feet on the earth and reach the world with the Gospel, we must be prepared to do so by praying, reading the Word, and living a life that is pleasing to God. Being that we have been chosen by God, and have accepted the call, it is up to us to do more than say that we are His, we must show the world that we are indeed truly His. The first step to showing the world that we are God’s children is to love God and love others more than we love ourselves. Jesus Himself stated, in Matt. 22:37-40, that to love God with all of our heart, and to love our neighbors as we love ourselves is the completion and fulfillment of the law; however, there’s still more to do. Our next step is to learn to love ourselves while also forgiving ourselves for the shortcomings and failures we have experienced in the past.

In the book of Romans chapter 12, we are admonished by Christ, through the writings of the

(Jesus)

Apostle Paul, to not be Conformed to the ways of this world, but instead, to be transformed by the Power of God’s Grace. To do this, we must step out of the darkness, and into the light. But what does this mean? Great question, and here is the answer, we must be separate, in the world, yet not of the world. Understandably, it would be very difficult for an individual to completely remove themselves from the rest of the world; however, we as individuals can differentiate ourselves in the way we dress, act and interact with others, the way we comb our hair, and even in the way we speak.

Matthew 12:36-37

But I say unto you, That every idle word that men shall speak, they shall give account thereof in the day of judgment. For by thy words thou shalt be justified, and by thy words thou shalt be condemned...

In the two verses above, Jesus is speaking to the Pharisees; yet, He is also speaking to the people of today as well when He warns them that there shall be an accounting to God for every single word we have spoken. We as the followers of Christ Jesus must understand that after we have put on the “new,” the “old” no longer applies; therefore, our language must change, our attitudes must change, in fact, everything about us must change. Again, Christ tells us that we shall be judged by the words that we speak; therefore, it is important that we as believers be very careful about what we say, and how we say it, words can lift up, encourage, and show love and mercy; however, words can also be dangerous, they can tear down, destroy, and even kill.

James 3:5-10

(Holy Bible)

Even so the tongue is a little member, and boasteth great things. Behold, how great a matter a little fire kindleth! And the tongue is a fire, a world of iniquity: so is the tongue among our members, that it defileth the whole body, and setteth on fire the course of nature; and it is set on fire of hell. For every kind of beasts, and of birds, and of serpents, and of things in the sea, is tamed, and hath been tamed of mankind: But the tongue can no man tame; it is an unruly evil, full of deadly poison. Therewith bless we God, even the Father; and therewith curse we men, which are made after the similitude of God. Out of the same mouth proceedeth blessing and cursing. My brethren, these things ought not so to be...

(King Cobra)

Again, as stated in the preceding set of verses, we who proclaim to be the children of God should know better than to speak both curses and praises from the same mouth and/or keyboard. All too often, there are Christians who will post pictures, tweets, or Facebook status updates describing women in a derogatory manner, use racist words, or other forms of crude terminology, only to then follow that up with bible verses, religious photos, videos, and the like; why, how can this be? It simply should not. For us, those who are called by the Name of Jesus, to use any of the language described above, it is not only a sin, it is deadlier than a snakes venom, causing divisions, pain, and destruction.

Brothers and Sisters, it is imperative that we as the followers of Christ, begin to take our walk with God much more seriously, but why? The answer to that question is simple, because there is always someone watching. With this knowledge, we must also know that any damage we cause by speaking or acting inappropriately, we must answer for in heaven. To be the hands and feet of God is to have the honor of not only being the child of God, but we are also listed amongst the kings and priest, those who are charged with reaching the world with the Gospel, those who are commissioned as intercessors, to be the bridge between the lost, and God, the salt of the earth. Finally, my friends, let us continue to live by faith, knowing that the God who has begun a work in you, is faithful and just to complete that which He has begun.

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Reference: Ep.4:29, Jm.1:26, Lk.6:45, 1Pt.1:15,3:10,

Heroes

(The United States of America)

Here in America, we celebrate our heroes, those who served, and/or gave their lives for the freedoms that we so dearly cherish, as we should. Unfortunately, just as we celebrate those who have fought, sacrificed, and died for us, we must also realize that there are many who continue to wish us harm; therefore, it is of the utmost importance that we continue to pray, seek God, and declare that the evils that have caused the deaths of many, cannot, and will not be repeated today, in our own time.

Recently, I met a WWII veteran who survived the beaches of

(The Real American Hero)

Normandy, fought all throughout France and the occupied territories, and finally met up with the forces of the other Allied nations as they crossed the Rhein river, headed into the heart of Germany and Hitler's Nazi fatherland. As we talked for those few minutes, I began to realize one thing, just as I am able to talk with this gentleman today, 75 years after the conclusion WWII, somewhere, out in this beautiful God-given world of ours, there remains many of the perpetrators of perniciousness that had stained Europe, Asia, and the entire world at that time.

The world that we live in today is not much different than the world of twenty, forty, 75, or even 2000 years ago, evil abides everywhere; however, there is a God who will hear the cries and prayers of His people, and He will hear us from heaven, and He will come in like a flood to aid and protect His people.

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