My prayer ... (today & everyday)

Dear Lord,

I thank you for this day. I thank You for my being able to see and to hear this morning. I am blessed because You are a forgiving God and an understanding God. You have done so much for me and You keep on blessing me. Forgive me this day for everything I have done, said or thought that was not pleasing to you.. I ask now for Your forgiveness.


Please keep me safe from all danger and harm. Help me to start this day with a new attitude and plenty of gratitude. Let me make the best of each and every day to clear my mind so that I can hear from You.


Please broaden my mind that I can accept ALL things.


Let me not whine and whimper over things I have no control over. Let me continue to see sin through God's eyes and acknowledge it as evil. And when I sin, let me repent, and confess with my mouth my wrongdoing, and receive the forgiveness of God.


And when this world closes in on me, let me remember Jesus' example -- to slip away and find a quiet place to pray. It's the best response when I'm pushed beyond my limits. I know that when I can't pray, You listen to my heart. Continue to use me to do Your will.



Continue to bless me that I may be a blessing to others. Keep me strong that I may help the weak. Keep me uplifted that I may have words of encouragement for others. I pray for those who are lost and can't find their way. I pray for those who are misjudged and misunderstood. I pray for those who don't know You intimately.. I pray for those who don't believe. But I thank You that I believe.


I believe that God changes people and God changes things. I pray for all my sisters and brothers. For each and every family member in their households. I pray for peace, love and joy in their homes that they are out of debt and all their needs are met.


I pray that every eye that reads this knows there is NO problem, circumstance, or situation greater than God. Every battle is in Your hands for You to fight. I pray that these words be received into the hearts of every eye that sees them and every mouth that confesses them willingly..

This is my prayer.

In Jesus' Name.. Amen.

Martina McBride - Concrete Angel

She walks to school with the lunch she packed
Nobody knows what she's holdin' back
Wearin' the same dress she wore yesterday
She hides the bruises with linen and lace

The teacher wonders but she doesn't ask
It's hard to see the pain behind the mask
Bearing the burden of a secret storm
Sometimes she wishes she was never born

Through the wind and the rain
She stands hard as a stone
In a world that she can't rise above
But her dreams give her wings
And she flies to a place where she's loved
Concrete angel

Somebody cries in the middle of the night
The neighbors hear, but they turn out the lights
A fragile soul caught in the hands of fate
When morning comes it'll be too late

Through the wind and the rain
She stands hard as a stone
In a world that she can't rise above
But her dreams give her wings
And she flies to a place where she's loved
Concrete angel

A statue stands in a shaded place
An angel girl with an upturned face
A name is written on a polished rock
A broken heart that the world forgot

Through the wind and the rain
She stands hard as a stone
In a world that she can't rise above
But her dreams give her wings
And she flies to a place where she's loved
Concrete angel



Martina McBride

Nichole Nordeman - Why

We rode into town the other day,
Just me and my daddy
He said I’d finally reached the age
And I could ride next to him on a horse
That of course was not quite as wide
We heard a crowd of people shouting,
And so we stopped to find out why.
There was that man that my dad said he loved
But today there was fear in his eyes.

So I said, “Daddy why are they screaming?
Why are the faces of some of them beaming?
Why is he dressed in that bright purple robe?
I’ll bet that crown hurts him more than he shows.
Daddy, please, can’t you do something?
He looks as though he’s gonna cry.
You said he was stronger than all of those guys.
Daddy please tell me why,
Why does everyone want him to die?”

Later that day the sky grew cloudy
And Daddy said I should go inside.
Somehow he knew things could get stormy.
Boy, was he right! But I could not keep from wonderin’
If there was something he had to hide
So after he left I had to find out
I was not afraid of getting lost
So I followed the crowds to a hill where I knew men
had been killed,
And I heard a voice call from the cross

And he said, “Father why are they screaming?
Why are the faces of some of them beaming?
Why are they casting their lots for my robe?
This crown of thorns hurts me more than it shows
Father, please, can’t You do something?
I know that You must hear my cry
I thought I could handle a cross of this size

Father remind me why,
Why does everyone want me to die
Oh, when will I understand why?

My precious Son, I hear them screaming,
and I’m watching the face of the enemy beaming.
But soon I will clothe You in robes of my own
Jesus, this hurts Me much more than You know
But this dark hour I must do nothing
Though I’ve heard Your unbearable cry

The pow’r in Your blood destroys all of the lies
Soon You’ll see past their unmerciful eyes
Look there below,
see the child
Trembling by her father’s side
Now I can tell You why,
She is why You must die…

A Display of Strength

He that is slow to anger is better than the mighty; and he that rules his spirit than he that takes a city. ~ Proverbs 16:32



God is in the business of restoring and maintaining good relationships. Jesus gave us peace.

There is a scripture in the word of God for whatever your needs are so that you can experience this peace that Jesus came to give you. Therefore, if there are times that you have to put away strong emotional feelings such as wrath, you must allow the Word of God to well up inside of you and deal with the situation in a godly manner.






Wrath is violent anger and rage. It is one thing to have that strong feeling of displeasure, but it's another thing to allow it to get to the place where you become filled with rage and violence. We live in a violent society today because there's been very little ministry on the subject of anger and love. People have gotten away from love, thinking that love displays weakness. Love does not display weakness. Love displays strength!






Anger displays weakness. He said to put away wrath because wrath is violent anger. Wrath is anger that has been bottled up over a long time. Not dealt with properly, it can bubble up and explode. The result is some kind of violent act, possibly even a crime. And everyone else is wondering, "What happened? I didn't think he'd ever do anything like that." The individual who explodes like that is someone who has never gotten rid of that root of bitterness. They never dealt with the issue and swept it under the rug thinking it would go away.






The way to deal with anger is to turn it over to the Lord. The Lord will then tell you what to do about it. One-way of turning it over to the Lord is to find scriptures that apply to that situation. There is something in the Word of God for everything that happens in life. Then you act on the Word of God and do it God's way.






Notice that I didn't say that you would feel like acting on the Word of God. You are not a feeling. You are a Spirit being, created in the image and likeness of God. You may not feel like it at all. But, if you go on and do what the Word says, the feelings will follow.



A soft answer turns away wrath: but grievous words stir up anger. ~ Proverbs 15:1



A wrathful man stirs up strife: but he that is slow to anger quiets strife. ~ Proverbs 15:18






The discretion of a man delays his anger; and it is his glory to overlook a transgression. ~ Proverbs 19:11






A gift in secret averts anger: and a bribe in the bosom, strong wrath. ~ Proverbs 21:14






by Keith Butler

Who Made Satan?

An article I want to share ...


Most Christians believe the answer to that question is obvious: "God created Satan." But that is not really true. God created Lucifer. That may seem like a small distinction at first glance, but once you understand who really made Satan, it will change your perspective of him forever.

You will never again doubt your authority over the devil. You will realize that he is an inferior being, unable to do anything without the cooperation of a human being. And any fear you have of him will disappear as you realize he is nothing but a big zero with the rim knocked off.

I believe that God created everything, including Lucifer. He created Lucifer as a powerful anointed angel. However, Lucifer wasn't satisfied with that, and he didn't remain the anointed cherub that God created him to be.

Ezekiel 28:13-14 describes him as he originally was in the Garden of Eden:

"Thou hast been in Eden the garden of God; every precious stone was thy covering, the sardius, topaz, and the diamond, the beryl, the onyx, and the jasper, the sapphire, the emerald, and the carbuncle, and gold: the workmanship of thy tabrets and of thy pipes was prepared in thee in the day that thou wast created. Thou art the anointed cherub that covereth; and I have set thee so: thou wast upon the holy mountain of God; thou hast walked up and down in the midst of the stones of fire."

Most people believe that Lucifer took one-third of the angels and rebelled against God in heaven, where he was defeated and then cast to earth. This is all taken from one scripture, in Revelation 12:4, and was popularized by Finis Dake in the Dake's Bible commentary. I don't believe that is what actually happened.

I believe that Satan was originally on this earth in the Garden of Eden as Lucifer. He was God's number one angel sent to earth to be a blessing to Adam and Eve.

Hebrews 1:14 says this about angels:

"Are they not all ministering spirits, sent forth to minister for them who shall be heirs of salvation?"

Lucifer wasn't sent to the earth to tempt Adam and Eve but to bless them. He was an angelic being sent to be their protector, to minister to them, and to serve them. He was there on a divine mission, still in his perfect state. It was in the Garden that his transgression against God was conceived and carried out.

Ezekiel 28:15 goes on to say,

"Thou wast perfect in thy ways from the day that thou wast created, till iniquity was found in thee."

I have never been able to follow the logic that God sent Satan to earth to tempt man and see how he would respond. As a father, would you take your two-year-old child and put him or her in a cage with a lion just to see how he or she would respond? That would obviously be irresponsible; the child would be no match for the lion. God wouldn't do that to us, and he didn't do that to Adam and Eve.

So, what made Lucifer turn against God? Lucifer watched as God did something for man that He had never done with any other of His creation. When God created man, not only was he made in the very image of God, but he was then given unconditional authority over this earth.

Genesis 1:26 says,

"And God said, Let us make man in our image, after our likeness: and let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over the cattle, and over all the earth, and over every creeping thing that creepeth upon the earth."

He didn't say to them, "Now as long as you follow my leading and as long as you do what I want you to do, I will let you have dominion over the earth." There was zero qualification for this power and authority. God spoke it and that was it.

God says in Psalm 89:34,

"My covenant I will not break, nor alter the thing that is gone out of my lips."

In Hebrews 1:3 it says,

"Who being the brightness of his glory, and the express image of his person, and upholding all things by the word of his power, when he had by himself purged our sins, sat down on the right hand of the Majesty on high" (emphasis mine).

What this is saying is that God cannot lie; it's the integrity of His Word that holds the entire universe together. Unlike human beings who reserve the right to change their minds, God will not violate His Word. When He told Adam and Eve they had dominion, authority, and power to subdue and rule, it was done.

Lucifer understood the integrity of God's words, and when he heard this, I believe his antenna went up. He saw that Adam and Eve had something he wanted but didn't have: They had unconditional authority. In a way, they had been made the gods of this world; it was theirs to rule and subdue.

We read in Psalm 115:16,

"The heaven, even the heavens, are the LORD'S: but the earth hath he given to the children of men."

Even though Lucifer may have been God's number one angel, he still wanted more. He was jealous and envious; he actually wanted to take God's place.

In Isaiah 14:13 it says,

"For thou hast said in thine heart, I will ascend into heaven, I will exalt my throne above the stars of God: I will sit also upon the mount of the congregation, in the sides of the north."

The next verse says,

"I will ascend above the heights of the clouds; I will be like the most High."

Lucifer understood that if he could deceive Adam and Eve into willingly relinquishing their authority to him that he could become the god of this world. He could take the authority that was given to mankind, use it to thwart the kingdom of God, and receive the praise and adoration and glory he wanted.

Romans 6:16 says this,

"Know ye not, that to whom ye yield yourselves servants to obey, his servants ye are to whom ye obey; whether of sin unto death, or of obedience unto righteousness?"

So, who made Satan? We did! The moment Adam and Eve yielded to Lucifer, he became Satan, the god of this world. You might be thinking, But Satan deceived them. Shouldn't God have stopped him?

Read 1 Timothy 2:14:

"And Adam was not deceived, but the woman being deceived was in the transgression."

Adam knew what he was doing.

I believe, the moment Lucifer transgressed against God, he lost his angelic power. Satan now has no power or authority of his own; he only has what he has been able to deceive people into giving him. Now, that is a powerful statement.

Think about what that means to you as a believer. When we are resisting the devil and fighting against him, Satan does not have a superior power or authority. He is absolutely dependent upon the cooperation of a human being who will empower him with the authority God gave them.

Satan is going about like a roaring lion seeking whom he may devour. He is looking for people who will open the door through things like lust, rebellion, strife, unforgiveness, fear, and more. When we yield to those things, we are empowering him to destroy us, and I guarantee you, given the opportunity, he will eat your lunch and pop the bag.

Until you understand the power and authority that God has given you, you will never be able to defeat the devil, receive healing, prosper, and live in victory. Knowing your authority is a key!



Article by Andrew Wommack from his teaching Series on "The Believer's Authority"

http://www.awmi.net/extra/audio/1045

Here I am to Worship

Jesus Loves Me! This I know

Take "things" for granted

Is it true that people have the tendency to take things for granted? We normally "take" and hardly "give". We will "take" more especially when the other person seems to be a nice person, someone who loves us and take care of us, and will not scold us. Agree?


Many times, we take our parent for granted. Don't we? We expect them to cook for us, wash our clothes, treat our mom like "Maria", when our finances are running low, we will get it from mommy, need their help, always go to them, got ourselves into serious problems, always run to them. No matter how many times we did this to our parent, they will not say "NO". . Always there to support us, to pull us through.

But what happen when they wanna talk to us, or to spend time with us, we usually couldn't find the time for them. Have countless excuses to"escape". Very bad huh?


What about me? I am also taking God for granted. Whenever I am upset, I will pray, anything that I need, I will ask God to help me, of course, He has never fail me. I will earnestly seek HIM, when I need a miracle in my life. What have I done for Him? Nothing.


When I am happy, when life seems wonderful, everything is beautiful, I hardly find time to seek His face. Other than attending Church and cell group, I have not been spending enough time doing my Quiet Time, devotion time with my heavenly Father, talking to Him, reading His Words, and hear from Him.


I feel bad, as I don't like to have this kind of feelings. I know God loves me, He loves spending time with me, to hear me out. To build a strong relationship, dwell in His pressence, filled by His love. When we love a person, is very natural for the person to want to talk to us right?

uhmm..... is very bad.. God must be very hurt for me to behave this way, huh?


Yes, there are many things, such as : my health, my family, my friends, everything in my life, especially for God's love for me, I am taking them for granted. Father Lord, am sorry for behaving in this attitude. I repent from it. I really really want to grow deeper with You, Lord Jesus. Take away all my laziness, and unwillingness. I want to know You more.


Help me not to take anyone or things for granted. To appreciate the people and things around me. To cherish what that has given to me. Let me not live with regrets. Help me to give more. To be a giver, a cheerful giver, with all I have.

All good things come from heaven. I want to remember all these things that I have.. is from Your grace, mercy, love... n faithfulness..


Thank You, Lord.

God help those who help themselves?

I have been hearing alot of people saying ~ "God help those who help themselves".. Is this statement true? Before am a Christian, I used to say that too.

All of us are brought up by the culture and the belief system, "If you want to succeed, you got to depend on yourself, your own destiny is in your own hands." Make sense?


Then one day, I heard it from a my senior Pastor, "God help those who trust and believe in HIM". God help those who are helpless which is the reason why Jesus came to help us.. He is here to save us, to heal us, to restore us, bringing us Life. A life of purpose.


Life is not easy, especially when is without Christ. We got to carry it all alone, sad huh?

There are times, I have doubts, I will still remain positive, always hopeful, encouraging others, be the light of the world. To live this life to the expectation of God and man. I choose not to be affected by any obstacles. Is it easy? No.. is not, I have to hang on to HIM, never let HIM go. However, the spirit is willing but the flesh is weak. I must not give up, because I know, when I am weak, He is strong.

Knowing the fact that God will not leave nor forsake me, and will not given me anything I could not bear. Each time, I have to do it with a hope and prayer .. I can do all things through Christ who give me strength.


There are many issues in life, we have to sort out, God knows all our problems, our struggles, our pains and needs even before we ask from HIM. He is our Father, our Creator. He is our Provider, supply all our needs.


God will put people around my path, for me to minister to His people who are lost, who do not know Chirst, and show them the way to HIM. Also, to share His goodness that I have received, to let them know how God has carried me above the storms.


Yes .. Yes, some of them, their problems may seems worst than mine, is not easy for them to handle alone, without Jesus.. I need to use the Words of God, His Wisdom by FAITH to talk to them.. God is bigger than all, Nothing is impossible for Him to handle them.


"Taste and see that the Lord is good, blessed is the man who takes refuge in HIM" Psalm 34:8


Am so blessed to know I serve a good and faithful God. I may seems like am in the valley of darkness. I believe I can fly high like eagles, and to reach to the top by the Power of His love ...


Without faith, is impossible to please God. Faith without work is dead. so, to walk by faith and not by sight, trust in Jesus. Seek and you will find HIM.


Thank you again, Lord Jesus, for You have promised me a life, a hope and a future. I will not faint. Help me to be focus on You, to trust in You forever and ever.

Perspective

Is it right to say "There is no right or wrong answer" ?
Is there such thing as - "Nothing is absolute" ?

We are living in a confusing world, many of us often cook out our own ideas, to make it sound as if is from 'us'. A lot of us are afraid to share the truth.

From these ideas we shared... (please allow me to explain further..) Some are "borrowed" ideas from the books, some from the famous people, or from the people we "think" we admire, we kinda like that idea, we subscribe it, use it, modified a bit, and become our own idea.

Do we really believe in it? Nobody really bother to think or consider what we shared, is it truly what we agree, or is it somebody else's idea, that we just "copied" over? When we are being asked to share about our opinion / perspective from a particular topic.. What is the first thing that came to our mind? Will you be bold enough to take your stand to share your inmost thoughts? Will you just give the superficial answer, or the "model correct acceptable" answer? Is there anyone out there who dare to speak up the truth that we know? Are you fearing of rejection? Or are you ready to testify what you have learnt from the Bible?

There is always two sides of the coin, but there could have ONLY ONE answer. What am I saying all these? I just feel that, we got to RESPECT the fact that everyone is entitle to our views, but my question is - who is right, who is wrong, who will decide?

Ultimately, God is our Judge. He will judge all the living and the dead. He knows everything. He has all the answers. God's way are higher than our ways, and God's thought are higher than our thoughts!

There will always people who disagree with us, no matter what, there is going to have difference in "perspective". Why even bother to debate? What is the objective to start debating? To win?


There is really pointless indulging into such topics. Be constructive. Let our words be able to touch people lives.. to bring encouragement to others, comforting them, to bring hope to hopeless souls, to release positive energy, words that can build others up, not to tear them down.. showing them the Way to the Truth.. Be a good testimony.. and loving them just like God loves them..


What would Jesus do? I reckon that Bible teaches us to love God, and His people, doing His will. Do everything in love. We got to get our perspective from God's angle. I do not have all the answers myself, but one thing I know, I will pray for Holy Spirit to guide me, and direct me to the truth, fill my mind with God's understanding. Seek HIM always.

Always focus on Jesus, follow Him. The Bible has all the ANSWERS. It has the


B - Best
I - Information
B - Before
L - Leaving
E - Earth


Thank God for Holy Spirit. Wonderful Guidance..


Lord, help me to be bold to share YOUR Words, and not the words of mine. Give me Your Wisdom, and not the wisdom of the world. Just because I believe Jesus is THE WAY, THE TRUTH and THE LIFE.


We live by Faith and not by sight. Be courageous and fear not to share the gospel, be firm! The lost need to be found in the house of the Lord!


Amen!