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Tuesday, 28 July 2009

DO

This one was interesting... I've also heard others speak, a lot of people ask God to do a lot of things for them, help them, etc. The only way God will do these things for you is if you do things for yourself, and he will help and assist you on the way. I always thought about that, when I'm about to take a test I study really hard and I ask God to help me to remember, to lift my spirit when I am feeling down, or to give my body what it needs (like strength) to keep going, etc., and I've never been let down :) My grandpa told me this a lot time ago, and it stuck with me and has really helped, maybe it will help you too :)
<3 Amanda

“The Lord still waits for you to come to Him so He can show you His love and compassion. For the Lord is a faithful God. Blessed are those who wait for Him to help them.”
The Bonus Scripture is from Proverbs 3:6, “Seek His will in all you do, and He will direct your paths.”
The Super Bonus Scripture is from Psalm 103:11, “For His unfailing love toward those who fear Him is as great as the height of the heavens above the earth.”

A Quick Thought:
I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me (Philippians 4:3). Sounds great doesn’t it? Let’s look at this scripture more in depth. The subject is “Do.” I can do all things. In order for this scripture to become a reality in our life, we must be doing something. We can’t be doing all things unless we’re about doing His things, right? Here’s a do thing: 1 John 1:7, “Walk in the light as He is in the light. The do thing, walking. Are we walking in Christ’s light? Here’s another do scripture: 2 Timothy 4:2-3, “Preach the word! Be ready in season and out of season. Convince, rebuke, exhort, with all longsuffering and teaching.” Wow, there’s a bunch of do things in that verse. Preaching, being ready, convincing, rebuking, exhorting and I’ve just quoted only two do scriptures so far. Are you obedient in these does so far? Here’s another: 2 Timothy 2:15, “Be diligent to present yourself approved to God.” Hey, wait a minute stop right there – I didn’t think this living for Jesus stuff was going to require me to do so much work and labor! I wouldn’t have signed on to be a follower of Jesus if I knew there would be this much required of me. I’m too busy as it is; I haven’t the time to take on anymore tasks right now. I know He told us He requires much from us, but … Let’s not forget that nothing in life comes without a cost. God said, “much is required from those to whom much is given, and much more is required from those to whom much more is given.” (Luke 12:48). Jesus gave us eternal life through His salvation, that’s a immense gift. Therefore, He requires much from us. Is asking us to be instant in season and out of season with Him too much to ask? Is studying His word, to much for Him to ask? How about convincing, rebuking, exhorting, with all longsuffering and teaching God’s ways. Is that to much to ask us for the salvation He’s given us? I can quote a lot more scripture which has the do in them, but I task you with identifying those scriptures and asking yourself if you’re compliant. If a child is doing his chores without griping they are a delight to their parent. How much more are we a delight to our heavenly Father when we’re doing ours for Him willingly? When’s the last time you sat on your Father’s lap and asked Him how you’re doing? If you’re doing that periodically, you’re living for Jesus. That’s what matters.

Thursday, 23 July 2009

Currently
The Inauguration of Barack Obama: A Moment in History (ABC News)
By Barack Obama, Michelle Obama, Beyonce Knowles, Barbara Walters, Robin Roberts
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Let me listen to what the man has to say!!

Alright, so since this is my blog I'm going to rant about an issue that really urks me. Okay, so I'm in the south, I'm in the bible belt, and most of us southerners are Republicans, including myself. However, I am so tired of hearing about how much everyone hates Obama! When I am watching the news and Obama just so happens to be making a speech, don't come up to me and start talking about how he's going to do this and how he's not going to do that, he's a liar, he's a cheater, etc. Leave me alone and let me listen to what he has to say!! I'm not his biggest fan either, but jazz, he is the president and there's nothing we can do about it anymore, so let the man do his job. What else is there to do? Bitch and complain? Who knows? He might even surprise us, give him a chance it's only his first year in the seventh month. Most of you who come up to me when I am watching the news don't even know what you're talking about in the first place. Don't you have something else on your agenda to do rather than bother me with your stupid talk? There must be a sign on my back that says, "Hey, I want to talk Politics!" Is this some form of small talk? I'd much rather hear about the weather if that's the case....

Wednesday, 22 July 2009

Currently
At Folsom Prison
By Johnny Cash
see related
Sheriff Joe is at it again!

So, I got this in my e-mail at work and thought it was very interesting, I thought I'd share :)
-Amanda

Subject: SHERIFF JOE IS AT IT AGAIN!
You all remember Sheriff Joe Arpaio of Arizona , who painted the jail cells pink and made the inmates wear pink prison garb. Well..........

SHERIFF JOE IS AT IT AGAIN!

Oh, there's MUCH more to know about Sheriff Joe!

Maricopa County was spending approx. $18 million dollars a year on stray animals, like cats and dogs. Sheriff Joe offered to take the department over, and the County Supervisors said okay.

The animal shelters are now all staffed and operated by prisoners. They feed and care for the strays. Every animal in his care is taken out and walked twice daily. He now has prisoners who are experts in animal nutrition and behavior. They give great classes for anyone who'd like to adopt an animal. He has literally taken stray dogs off the street, given them to the care of prisoners, and had them place in dog shows.

The best part? His budget for the entire department is now under $3 million. Teresa and I adopted a Weimaraner from a Maricopa County shelter two years ago. He was neutered, and current on all shots, in great health, and even had a microchip inserted the day we got him. Cost us $78.

The prisoners get the benefit of about $0.28 an hour for working, but most would work for free, just to be out of their cells for the day. Most of his budget is for utilities, building maintenance, etc. He pays the prisoners out of the fees collected for adopted animals.

I have long wondered when the rest of the country would take a look at the way he runs the jail system, and copy some of his ideas. He has a huge farm, donated to the county years ago, where inmates can work, and they grow most of their own fresh vegetables and food, doing all the work and harvesting by hand.

He has a pretty good sized hog farm, which provides meat, and fertilizer. It fertilizes the Christmas tree nursery, where prisoners work, and you can buy a living Christmas tree for $6 - $8 for the Holidays, and plant it later. We have six trees in our yard from the Prison..

Yup, he was reelected last year with 83% of the vote.
Now he's in trouble with the A CLU again. He painted all his buses and vehicles with a mural, that has a special hotline phone number painted on it, where you can call and report suspected illegal aliens. Immigrations and Customs Enforcement wasn't doing enough in his eyes, so he had 40 deputies trained specifically for enforcing immigration laws, started up his hotline, and bought 4 new buses just for hauling folks back to the border. He's kind of a 'Git-R Dun' kind of S heriff.

TO THOSE OF YOU NOT FAMILIA R WITH JOE ARPAIO

HE IS THE M ARICOP A ARIZONA COUNTY SHERIFF

A ND HE KEEPS GETTING ELECTED OVER A ND OVER
THIS IS ONE OF THE RE A SONS WHY:

Sheriff Joe Arpaio (In Arizona ) who created the ' Tent City Jail':
He has jail meals down to 40 cents a serving and charges the inmates for them.

He stopped smoking and porno magazines in the jails. Took away their weights Cut off all but 'G' movies.

He started chain gangs so the inmates could do free work on county and city projects.

Then He Started Chain Gangs For Women So He Wouldn't Get Sued For Discrimination.

He took away cable TV Until he found out there was A Federal Court Order that Required Cable TV For Jails So He Hooked Up The Cable TV A gain . Only Let In The Disney Channel And The Weather Channel.

When asked why the weather channel He Replied, So They Will Know How Hot It's Gonna Be While They A re Working ON My Chain Gangs.

He Cut Off Coffee Since It Has Zero Nutritional Value.

When the inmates complained, he told them, 'This Isn't The Ritz/Carlton...... If You Don't Like It, Don't Come Back.'

More On The Arizona Sheriff:

With Temperatures Being Even Hotter Than Usual In Phoenix (116 Degrees Just Set A New Record), the Associated Press Reports:
A bout 2,000 Inmates Living In A Barbed-Wire-Surrounded Tent Encampment A t The Maricopa County Jail Have Been Given Permission To Strip Down To Their Government-Issued Pink Boxer Shorts.

On Wednesday, hundreds of men wearing boxers were either curled up on their bunk beds or chatted in the tents, which reached 138 Degrees Inside The Week Before.

Many Were Also Swathed In Wet, Pink Towels A s Sweat Collected On Their Chests And Dripped Down To Their PINK SOCKS.

'It Feels Like We A re In A Furnace,' Said James Zanzot, A n Inmate Who Has Lived In The TENTS for 1 year. 'It's Inhumane.'

Joe Arpaio, the tough-guy sheriff who created the tent city and long ago started making his prisoners wear pink, and eat bologna sandwiches, is not one bit sympathetic.. He said Wednesday that he told all of the inmates: 'It's 120 Degrees In Iraq And Our Soldiers A re Living In Tents Too, And They Have To Wear Full Battle Gear,
But They Didn't Commit Any Crimes,So Shut Your Mouths!'

Way To Go, Sheriff!

Maybe if all prisons were like this one there would be a lot less crime and/or repeat offenders. Criminals should be punished for their crimes - not live in luxury until it's time for their parole, only to go out and commit another crime so they can get back in to live on taxpayers money and enjoy things taxpayers can't afford to have for themselves.

If you agree, pass this on. If not, just delete it.

Tuesday, 21 July 2009

Currently
She Said Yes: The Unlikely Martyrdom of Cassie Bernall
By Misty Bernall
see related
Do you see Jesus in the mirror?

    Grandma sent a movie for us to watch called "Left Behind." I still need to actually sit down and watch the full movie. I caught the second half of the movie... but it was really good. It reminded me a little bit of yesterday's post about how many people don't take the end of time very seriously. Many people believe it is coming soon but are so "nonchalant" about it. I'd really recommend that movie, it's very interesting to see how many people are still left on this earth when all of the believers are gone. I'm not saying I'm an expert at this stuff, I am still beginning my journey but many people are very uninformed. The Rapture could begin any day, imagine waking up tomorrow and all your loved ones have disappeared? Do you see Jesus when you look in the mirror? Just something to think about :)
  - Amanda


He Is Risen
www.heisriseninyou.com
The Scripture Verse for this Tuesday, July 21, 2009, is from Matthew 5:16
"Let your good deeds shine out for all to see, so that everyone will praise your heavenly Father."
The Bonus Scripture is from Isaiah 60:1-2, "Let your light shine for all the nations to see! For the glory of the Lord is shining upon you. Darkness as black as night will cover all the nations of the earth, but the glory of the Lord will shine over you."
The Super Bonus Scripture is from Ephesians 4:15-16, "Instead, we will hold to the truth in love, becoming more and more in every way like Christ, who is the head of his body, the church. Under his direction, the whole body is fitted together perfectly. As each part does its own special work, it helps the other parts grow, so that the whole body is healthy and growing and full of love.

A Quick Thought:
"Therefore do not be unwise, but understand what the will of the Lord is." (Ephesians 5:17) Do you? The reason I’m asking is because Jesus is supposed to be alive and actively working within and through us with the fruits of His Spirit (Galatians 5:22-23). And since Christ lives within us, and even though we’re in this body, our spirit should be reflecting and manifesting those fruits in our face, demeanor and actions. We are supposed to be Christ like, right? So, the next time you gaze into the mirror, do you see Christ in you? If you can’t, than people can’t see Him in you either. I can’t emphases enough how important it is to have God’s Holy Spirit actively manifesting through you. God created us in His image and His likeness so He could use us as His mouth piece and our personality as an example to the lost and wavering that He is the way the truth and life. We were created so He could heal, counsel, help and minister to others His qualities and truth. One facet of that truth is His inner peace and happiness radiating from within us. Our eternal life depends on our relationship with Christ Jesus.   If you’ve recited the salvation words and no change has taken place, I’d question if you sincerely accepted Jesus into your heart. I know these things to be true because I’ve experienced a dramatic change in my life when I truly accepted Jesus; which proves 1 Corinthians 5:17. “Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; old things have passed away; behold, all things have become new.” Also, the joy of the Lord is our strength (Nehemiah 8:10). If you don’t have Godly joy and strength God may not be in full control of your life to the extent you're a reflection of Him. If you're complacent when it comes to your relationship with Christ Jesus, it's obvious something is not in alignment with God the Father. How can we say we walk by faith and there is no fruit of the Holy Spirit activated in us? "No good tree bears bad fruit, nor does a bad tree bear good fruit' " "Awake you who sleep, arise from the dead, and Christ will give you light. See then that you walk circumspectly, not as fools but as wise, redeeming the time, because the days are evil. Therefore do not be unwise, but understand what the will of the Lord is. (Ephesians 5: 14-17) So if God is not seen when we look at yourself in the mirror, you and the Lord need to reexamine your relationship. . Now, re-look at yourself and see Him manifesting Himself in your life. Now that's how to live for Jesus. That's what matters.

Monday, 20 July 2009

Currently
Fade into You
By Mazzy Star
see related
We have the ability to create

Monday, July 20, 2009. From Rob :) I really do enjoy these e-mails and I think they should be passed along to others for them to read as well :) Hopefully they touch at least one person, that's all I ask for. His word needs to be spread, especially now in this corrupt world.


He Is Risen

www.heisriseninyou.com

The Scripture Verse for this Monday, July 20, 2009, is from, 2 Timothy 4:8,

“And now the prize awaits me – the crown of righteousness that the Lord, the righteous Judge, will give me on that great day of His return. And the prize is not just for me but for all who eagerly look forward to His glorious return.”

The Bonus Scripture is from 1 Corinthians 15:51-52, “let me tell you a wonderful secret God has revealed to us. Not all of us will die, but we will all be transformed. It will happen in a moment, in the blinking of an eye, when the last trumpet is blown. For when the trumpet sounds, the Christians who have died will be raised with transformed bodies. And then we who are living will be transformed so that we will never die.”

The Super Bonus Scripture is from 1 Thessalonians 4:16-17, “For the Lord Himself will come down from heaven with a commanding shout, with the call of the archangel, and with the trumpet call of God. First, all the Christians who have died will rise from their graves. Then, together with them, we who are still alive and remain on the earth will be caught up in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air and remain with Him forever.”

A Quick Thought:

Satan can not create, so he steals from God’s creation, because he has no power of creation. He can’t create a tree, a cat, fish, a sunrise or sunset. The demons which follow him are fallen angels who were created by God. Satan is a master thief and always operates through stealth. Satan goes inside God’s creation to rob, cheat, steal and destroy that which was created and uses it for his own purposes. This is why he hates mankind so much because we have the power or should I say the ability to create. So Satan enters into man so he can manipulate man to create for him. He’s stealing the creative power from man. If a person allows him, he’ll even take whatever amount he can, even using an individuals tongue to destroy and harm others or self. Whatever area you allow him to come into he’ll enter and steal from you. You may not give him your entire body, mind, soul and spirit, but he will take whatever part you give him. Ignorance is very expensive. It can cost you your life. So what we need to do if not already, is to do a body, mind, soul and spirit security assessment, and protect your weak areas by building supernatural defenses to eradicate him in the Name of Jesus to protect you. Three major attack points Satan uses against us is complacency, busyness and weariness. Put off today what we can do tomorrow or I’m just too tired or too busy to interact with the Lord now. I’m amazed how many believers believe in the rapture of the church, but are complacent about it. A lot of the believers I’ve spoken with believe the rapture is near, but seem to take it so nonchalant and don’t seem concerned about it. Could this be a stronghold Satan has infiltrated and uses the person’s creative power to build a wall against something God says be ready and prepare for? This really bothers me because the rapture could happen at any moment, we’re that close on God’s timeline. 2 Timothy 2:25-26 says this about people and their mindset towards Him, “Perhaps God will change those people's hearts, and they will believe the truth. Then they will come to their senses and escape from the Devil's trap. For they have been held captive by him to do whatever he wants.” Here’s another self-examination we need to quickly assess in our life. Are you being held captive by the devil in a certain area? If so, identify the area and follow   James 4:7 instructions, “Therefore submit to God. Resist the devil and he will flee from you.” One thing I’ve learned in my Christian walk; when Satan comes in, God’s leaves. How prepared are you to be snatched away be Jesus at His rapture? If you’re complacent about it, you’re not following God’s directive to rebuke the devil and train your spirit to see him when he comes. “There will be special favor for those who are ready and waiting for
His return. I tell you, He Himself will seat them, put on an apron, and serve them as they sit and eat!” (Luke 12:37). Now that’s how to live for Jesus. That’s what matters.