A THOUGHT FOR THE DAY

As I was re-reading the Book of 2 Thessalonians this morning, I wondered and began to pray, “Lord, have I said enough? If we get cut off electronically or otherwise, has everyone in my sphere of life heard the truth about You, the second coming, and the necessary warnings about the anti-christ and the beast system that You Lord have not hidden, because it is written in Your Book. (Bible). Are people even reading the Bible? (I know many of you are) Do they know the consequences and danger they may be in by not knowing the truth?

Jesus greatest concern about the people alive at the end of the age was “deception”. (Matthew 24) He even wondered if He would find faith on earth when He returned. Do people know there will be a great falling away? (from the true faith) even some that called themselves Christians and may have even preached well for decades…..that even these could be fooled? You can’t “fall away” from something you have not been a part of.

2 Thessalonians 2:3,4 “ Let no one deceive you by any means; for that Day (Day of the Lord) will not come unless the falling away comes first, and the man of sin is revealed, the son of perdition, who opposes and exalts himself above all that is called God or that is worshiped, so that he sits as God in the temple of God, showing himself that he is God.”

We automatically think that this means a temple in Jerusalem and maybe so…..but the Bible also says that WE are the temple of the Holy Spirit. Does God consider our human bodies a temple? (1 Corinthians 6:19-20
“Or do you not know that your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit who is in you, whom you have from God, and you are not your own?”)

We know that Satan will completely possess the man of perdition aka anti-christ after he “recovers” from a mortal wound. (Revelation 13:3)

2 Thessalonians 2:9,10 “ The coming of the lawless one is according to the working of Satan, with all power, signs, and lying wonders, and with all unrighteous deception among those who perish, because they did not receive the love of the truth, that they might be saved.”

He may come with the false prophet saying: “We are together” (one world religion) , “We are loved” (tolerance without holiness) , “I am God” (new age already teaches this)

I guess what I’m encouraging all of us to do is to prayerfully study the scriptures more. NOT read someones interpretation of it – although that’s okay if you understand that people can make a mistake. But each one of us needs to read for ourselves, hear and know the Word of God and how to be led by the Holy Spirit. individually. (John 10:27 “My sheep hear my voice, I know them and they follow Me”)

One of our greatest treasures is the written Word of God. It anchors us, protects us, helps us to know the true and living God. Then as we prayerfully follow God, I pray for us all that we will navigate this intense time of deception and do it well. Only Light can shine in the darkness and dispel it.

TREASURE YOUR BIBLE AND KNOW IT WELL even if you don’t understand all you read – read it anyway and ask God for understanding.

Praying it will be a blessed 2019

John 16:33 “These things I have spoken to you, that in Me you may have peace. In the world you will have tribulation; but be of good cheer, I have overcome the world.”

A THOUGHT FOR THE DAY

A THOUGHT FOR THE DAY

Sometimes it’s easy to be going through life and forget that we, as Christ followers, have an enemy. And a crafty one at that. Look how he deceived Eve to commit the very first act of disobedience. But how beautiful that so quickly the Father came with a plan to “undo” what was done. He would send His only begotten Son (Jesus is the only human whose biological father (seed) was God) It was at a great cost that He fulfilled the legal price to purchase our freedom and entrance into the kingdom of God.

Anyway my point for the day is that Lucifer – who rebelled against God and desired to become God himself . Since he can’t overthrow God, he longs to cause God’s beloved creation (you and me) harm and pain. He goes before God and accuses us day and night. Check out this scripture….
Revelation 12:10
Then I heard a loud voice saying in heaven, “Now salvation, and strength, and the kingdom of our God, and the power of His Christ have come, for the ACCUSER OF OUR BRETHREN, who accused them before our God day and night, has been cast down.
Yay! That day is coming and was foretold to the apostle John so we would know it is coming.

How does he accuse us? Many times in our thoughts and sometimes through others that won’t let go of our past, or hunt for any faults and failures in us.

You see when we mess up and ask God for forgiveness and do our best to change….. the Bible says that He throws our sins as far as the east is to the west. He remembers them no more.

^{Psalm 103: 12} As far as the east is from the west,
So far has He removed our transgressions from us.

He is not ever the one “beating us up” in our thoughts about our past. That is coming from Satan …..our “accuser”. So if you are being tormented by accusations by people or from thoughts. Cast them down (thoughts/words) and resist accepting them if you have dealt with it before God. Satan and sometimes people want to hold you in prison to your past mistakes. Don’t let them.

For you are a new creation in Christ Jesus when you accept Him as Lord. Don’t let yourself be beaten up for something in your past. Remember God is for us and not against us! (Romans 8:31)

It is for Freedom that Christ has set us free. Have a great day – Shalom

A THOUGHT FOR THE DAY

A CALL TO ARMS

As I lay in bed early this morning and listened to the school bus go down the street in the pre-dawn hours, picking up neighborhood children……I thought about them, and about the events of yesterdays shooting in Las Vegas.

I thought about the following scripture and was stirred in my heart:

Ephesians 6:10-13 “ Finally, my brethren, be strong in the Lord and in the power of His might.  Put on the whole armor of God, that you may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil.  For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this age, against spiritual hosts of wickedness in the heavenly places. Therefore take up the whole armor of God, that you may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand.’

We live in a dark world. There is a battle going on that life tries to blind us to until something happens that jerks us back into “Kingdom realities”. We are called to fight. We have an enemy – a cruel one. (John 10:10 “. “ The thief (satan) does not come except to steal, and to kill, and to destroy.” His whole purpose against humanity is destruction.

God has given us tools to battle with. Through the redemptive work of Christ, His truth and His Spirit – we can be victorious – though the battles can be fierce. (2 Corinthians 2:14
“Now thanks be to God who always leads us in triumph in Christ…)

The enemy constantly tries to lull us to sleep to these truths. Because he knows if we awaken to truth and our God given authority to pray in Jesus name….that he’s gonna lose ground and be defeated. I think he still believes he can win against Christ and judgement day will never come.

I was pricked in my heart about these kids and how that since my children are now grown…..I seldom think to pray for the schools and for protection and revival to break out there like I used to. God forgive me! And all of us, as we have not taken our place in praying for our neighborhoods, families, cities, states, and nations. At least not to the level that God desires from His sons and daughters. Wickedness has flourished in our nation and we have not battled it out enough in the spirit realm with the name of Jesus on our lips. He has given us authority to pray in His name and that is a powerful thing.

As I prayed this morning I felt to say it out loud. IT’S A CALL TO ARMS. I pray this will inspire you to join me in “doubling down” on our prayers for our fellow Americans and be aware of all the other assignments the Lord may lay on our hearts.

2 Corinthians 10:3-5
“For though we walk in the flesh, we do not war according to the flesh.  For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal but mighty in God for pulling down strongholds…”

Cry out to God in prayer. Pray in Jesus name. Let this take priority over lesser things. This is a true war. Mark 4:23 “ If anyone has ears to hear, let him hear.”

A THOUGHT FOR THE DAY

SATAN IS AFTER THE THRONE OF OUR HEARTS! Just exactly what does that mean?
We must ask ourselves…..WHO is supposed to be the King of our hearts? God!! (Father, Son, and Holy Spirit!) We know from scripture that Satan is a thief and comes to steal, to kill and to destroy. (John 10:10)

What did he want more than anything? Isaiah records Lucifers words:

Isaiah 14:13-15
“For you have said in your heart:
‘I will ascend into heaven,
I will exalt my throne above the stars of God;
I will also sit on the mount of the congregation
On the farthest sides of the north;
I will ascend above the heights of the clouds,
I will be like the Most High.’

Lofty words he uttered. He wants to “sit on the mount of the congregation”. That is us.

So how does he accomplish this? Predominantly with lies and deception. (John 8:44) “…When he speaks a lie, he speaks from his own resources, for he is a liar and the father of it.”
(2 Corinthians 11:18)
And no wonder! For Satan himself transforms himself into an angel of light.

He comes in stealth to take the throne of our hearts and souls. Our soul is our mind, will, and emotions. That’s where it gets tricky. They are always at work and engaged in something. But according to the Word of God, anything we allow to take up our mind, will, and emotions more than God …has become an idol in our hearts. (1 Corinthians 10:14)  “Therefore, my beloved, flee from idolatry.”

On more than one occasion God has called me on the carpet saying “You have an idol in your heart” Each time I was floored thinking that it couldn’t be. But when He told me what it was….I had to agree and admit that what or who He named was occupying my thoughts more than He was. OUCH!

So I simply repented and began to pay attention to my thoughts and affections, making sure they were set first on God. Our priorities in life should be 1. God 2. Spouse 3. Kids/Family 4. Job/Ministry When this delicate balance gets out of whack so do we. It can result in depression, anxiety, overwhelming stress or show up in many different ways. These are just the symptoms that something is amiss in our souls and needs to be adjusted.

It is pretty easy to fix. Just recognizing it is half the battle. Then begin casting down and resisting those thoughts that occupy too much of our being! God is a jealous God. “…For I, the Lord your God, am a jealous God…” (Exodus 20:4) “…for you shall worship no other god, for the Lord, whose name is Jealous, is a jealous God…” (Exodus 34:14)

Actually I think it’s cool that He is so passionate about us. He certainly paid a huge price to show us how much He loves us. To prove His love for us.

I truly believe this is a season of repentance. Even on the Hebrew calendar …we are in the month that they consider a time of repentance. So I encourage each of us to examine our hearts and see if anything or anyone is occupying our mind, will and emotions more than our God. I pray you won’t be a stubborn mule like I can often be and wait until things start falling apart to get my attention! Thank goodness for His mercy! He loves us, wants us, created us…..to be His. I hope you can hear that this is truly a LOVE MESSAGE, and no condemnation. He wants you. What could be better news than that! The King of the Universe wants to be the King of your heart! You are loved!

TUG OF WAR

Oh Lover of my soul I cry
I need you closely standing by
Raging chaos can be found
Just by rising, feet on the ground

In my sleep the comforts reign
I can hear You call my name
Beckoning me to come to You
Such desire to see me through

Such confusion waits to pounce
On my soul to pull me out
Of the place abiding there
Where peace surrounds me, loving care

Light and darkness, always war
Try to hurt me to the core
But You teach me to return
To overcome, Your ways to learn

You hate my enemies oh Lord
You teach me how to pick up the sword
Sword of truth declaring loud
Tearing down deceptions shroud

Oh this life it is a dance
I’ve chosen You, my pure romance
Jealous is our enemy
Though he tries he can’t have me

Over and over and over again
I choose You Lord, my love I give
And You keep me in your palm
Rescuing me all the day long

copyright 2016 Jean Chamblee