Message From A Messenger

I used to have trouble understanding how the Old Testament and New Testament lined up, but it takes time to receive revelation and understanding. As I read more than one version of the Bible, it helps to understand context and what certain words mean. When you begin to understand Jesus first (I recommend starting in the Book of John.) then moving to the Old Testament. Take time to digest when reading and when you understand the type and shadow, the words that explain Jesus was always just like the Father and the Holy Spirit were always One. God the Father, God the Son and God the Holy Spirit.

So much is taught with a religious and critical spirit. Whether it was from a place of fear or tow the line and if you don't here are the consequences. Who takes time to read, explain or and show new believers how to meditate on the Word of God? For years, I couldn't explain what I read if it was not built in a sermon and some times I had the wrong revelation about the verses and it was much later that a few believers had pointed out we needed to reread the Bible together to gain Understanding from the Holy Spirit.

A question that was posed and I think about it from time-to-time.

Do you know why most come to Jesus?  

Through His healing. 

That's because no one can deny it was Him.Jesus wept with Mary and Martha over their brother Lazerus and He was moved to compassion amongst the group that were mourning that He resurrected him from the dead. 

Jesus took the keys of death, hell and the grave.  What does that mean? It means that we can have eternal life with Him and all we have to do is have faith.  That's it.  To believe we need Jesus as our Lord and Savior, that He died on the cross, believe that He rose again in three days and He is alive! Repent, means to change your mind. Following Him is a step at a time, following Him doesn't mean you have it all together (in one day) and God doesn't expect you to. Sanctification is different with each person, but God knows everything you ever dealt with.  God is close to the brokenhearted and He binds up their wounds.  The only thing that keeps us from God, is us. Nothing can separate us from the love of God.  God is love.

In Genesis, if you read about God and how He created the universe, it says let Us make man in Our image, for years it was taught "in My image" God had a plan for redemption and salvation from the very beginning. He brought Adam and Eve out of the garden so they would not eat from the Tree of Life and live in their sin forever. 

God gives us free will, but He yearns to dwell with His children.

God seeks the hearts of men (and women) so many things that He has shown me in such a short time, the way He loves us.  So, from the very beginning Jesus was already here, He is the Word becoming flesh, God came to earth to show us the way.

One of my favorite stories was when Jesus went to the woman at the well, in the heat of the day, because He knew He needed to speak to the Samaritan woman. In those days the Jewish, especially men of God, didn't go to Samaria. He met her there at the well. He tells her about Himself and herself and in minutes she goes into the city to testify about Him. 

>>> THIS PART >>> The disciples are perplexed as to why He is speaking to her, but they just tell Him he should eat, but Jesus isn't concerned about eating He is watching her run with the excitement and joy to share.

Another favorite story in the Bible. When Jesus was on His way to heal a 12 year old girl and the woman with the issue of blood, who was not supposed to be in public, nevermind, in a crowd of people. She mustered up her faith to press through the crowd, just to touch the hem of His garment. 

Jesus asked the crowd, "who touched Me?" 

The disciples are saying this is a crowd of course someone touched you, but He turned around to talk to her. She knew she was caught and admitted it was herself. Jesus calls her daughter and that her faith made her well. It was not the reaction she was expecting, but Jesus showed her compassion. She had a new identity because of her faith!

The same compassion is in the parable Jesus shares about the good Samaritan.  The rabbi passes a man that was just robbed and beaten, the priest crosses the street right past the man too, but there was a traveler with a donkey and he stops to pour wine and oil on his wounds and bandages the man. Brings the man on his donkey to an inn to be taken care of, pays for it and tells the innkeeper he will be back if there are more costs to be paid when he returns.  Honestly, I think that is where paying it forward came from.  So many worldly positions came from the Bible masked in other words to make a profit or keep the delusion going.

The reason we need to be baptized is for the burial of our old man and the resurrection of our spirit. When Adam sinned it began that we entered this world as a sinner. God spent time with Adam in the garden of Eden. He used to commune with him. That is God's whole plan, it was to bring His creation back to Him. So when we get baptized, our spirit is awakened, we already have a soul and body.  Like God is a three head The Father, The Son and Holy Spirit, we commune with God through our spirit.

That is why our minds fight all this, it "feels" weird. God is definitely mysterious.  He has hidden these things on purpose.  He wants to see if we will seek His kingdom first, He wants to see if we will love Him with all our heart, soul, mind and strength.  Isn't that like parenting, don't we want to know if our children love us because they want to?  Don't we want the best things for them?  If you know that your children are in trouble you would do what you had to help them, protect them and give them security. That's God, He is a Father, that is Sovereign and He knows the danger up ahead, He knows the best way to do everything.  

I am going to ask a question most people have about God.

Do you know why bad things happen to good people?

God allows the things He hates for the things He loves to happen. He is slow to anger, because He can see beyond what we can see.  We have a limited perception.  We only know a very small point-of-view and what God wants His people to know is what He cares about. He doesn't want anyone to be separated from Him, not one. If we thought about eternity in hell that is a long time, even those who have committed crimes get a sentence and then go free, I don't think anyone could think about eternity in a place of torment like that.

God is relentless, He will continue to show you that He is right there. If you took a moment, you would see that is true. No one can run God...you can't go too far. Paul killed Christians before he realized that it was God that wanted him to believe in Jesus.  Peter denied Jesus three times. King David was an adulterer and yet God used these men.  He also used Rahab who was a prostitute.

God used women in mighty ways.

Esther became a queen and she went to the king, he didn't know she was a Jew and one of his men wanted to kill all the jews and she requested that he change the order to a law so that the Jews could fight in defense, she spared many lives by being courageous. God has used Deborah a judge, in acts 21:9 He had four unmarried daughters who prophesied. Philip’s daughters. 

Mary Magdalene was a disciple and if I'm not mistaken like an apostle. Ruth was taken care of by Boaz all because of her loyalty to her mother-in-law. Ruth wasn't a believer at first, but her husband died and so did her sister-in-law's husband and they both being young widows could go back to their families to remarry, but Ruth cared and learned so much from Naomi (MIL) that she wanted to depart with her back to her country.  Ruth was devoted to Naomi and wanted to be devoted to Naomi's God.

When we are cared for in the body of Christ, we begin to see something that we didn't have. I definitely have had people God has placed in my life that have poured into me. Like the fellowship through Prudent Peers Inc. It is the love that draws you to keep going. When someone needs support or prayer, people come around that person to show them they are not alone. God is intentional and He knows where we need to be and what we need and when we need it.  

Several months ago my kids and I were playing basketball outside together, shooting hoops on the court. It helped us in so many ways.  We were laughing and cheering each other on. I cannot believe how good that felt, since I was feeling rather lethargic again.  I am so grateful how God has been nudging me to do this or try that or focus on different things. 

I am sharing to encourage you, I am sharing because God has wonderful plans for you.

God loves you!  He always did!  It may not feel like it, but take a moment and ask God for yourself, God wants you to bring all your questions to Him. Some answers we don't like, but if you look back, there must have been moments where you knew His mercy was given. I don't know where I would be without my kids, all three of them. 

This is a fun fact about my children; my oldest daughter's initials are A.I.M. - her names holds all three names of my children combined.  That was not my intention, I had different names picked out. You could say that is coincidence or no big deal. It is a big deal when you hear God say unity, it is a big deal when you are worried about having children out of wedlock and people treat you like you will never be someone God will use.

You know what else is a big deal?

When your children ask about baptism, they read the Bible and they like talking to people about God or different stories in the Bible. It is a big deal when they notice for themselves how they are provided for and protected. You can't put a price tag on that. You can't tell me or my kids that God doesn't care or He's not real. He did so many miracles in our lives. My oldest daughter was looking like she needed surgery until one day she moved her arm in such a way I knew that it was God providing a miracle. My daughter has a brachial-plexus injury and I am believing for her complete healing. She is an adult now and she graduated high school.  With so many young ones who didn't get to see 18; I think about that daily. The miracle that we are still here!

I’m excited what God has in store, but I also understand from a world view it looks dreadful and scary.  God is shaking things in the nation, in the church, and worldwide. God wants America to repent.  We took God out the government, we thought separating church and state was a good idea, but we see with Trump and Vance they want to put Christian values back in. We have to remember the reason why America was one of the most fruitful countries was because of the founding fathers and their beliefs in Christianity. 

Yes, I agree that America is far from perfect, it definitely had its wretched parts in history for sure, but God allows certain things to happen and no I don't understand it all. However, we are still here, if God wanted to wipe us out for our rebellion, He would have done it by now. He is giving us a chance to turn it around. God controls the weather, the stars, the oceans and storms, He puts kings in charge and He takes them out.  I believe He will continue to have a great influence over Trump, I believe that God has a plan to endure it if we keep our focus on Him. 

I want to share with you and you can make up your own mind. None of us know how much time we have to turn to God, I wouldn't wait, there is so much more to gain. If you step out in faith and see for yourself; taste and see that the Lord is good! God is so faithful, so loving and His mercies endure forever. Beloved, I am speaking about eternity here.