MY HEAVENLY FATHER KNOWS...................

start again...... I had this partly done and deleted it all. grrrr

 My reading this morning was Matthew 6. I wanted the Lord to speak to me, in fact had asked HIM to! The very first thing I noticed (of course, duh!) was the first verse, but it truly was a good reminder!

 "Take heed that you do not do your charitable deed before men to be seen by them."

 By whom and when do I want my reward?????? By men or my HEAVENLY FATHER?  Now in this fleeting world or in ETERNITY? Something to think about!

 However, verse 8 was BEAUTIFUL to me.........

 "FOR YOUR FATHER KNOWS THE THINGS YOU HAVE NEED OF BEFORE YOU ASK HIM!" 

Verse 32........ "For after all these things the Gentiles seek..."

 For us today, that would be those who have not accepted the Lord Jesus Christ and His work on the cross for their sins. So, do I want to live like those who cannot truly say GOD is their Heavenly Father? He is their Creator, Yes but they do not have that personal relationship with Him. We ONLY have this through HIS PERFECT SON! On NO OTHER ground!!!!!

 "For your Heavenly Father knows that you need all these things!"

 So the thing that is convicting me right now is : if I have to constantly worry and put my energies into what I wear, eat, drink, my house decorating, gardening, vehicle(s), etc. ,etc....... I probably will not have much time, energy or interest in doing what the will of God is. ........ex.(s)  showing Christ's love and compassion to those around us whether believers or otherwise.  Or even reaching out to those who are dying and have no hope once they have left this world.  ? lending a listening ear sympathetically to someone's trials and disappointments even if they may have done something to deserve it.   Speaking well and often of our Lord and Saviour, Jesus Christ..............

A little insert..... Malachi  3: 16 .......  "Then those who feared the Lord spoke often one to another, and the Lord listened and heard them.  So a book of remembrance was written before HIM for those who fear the Lord and who meditate ON HIS NAME!"

We will do all those things (get clothing, eat and so on ) but I believe it shouldn't be our passion, our main topic of conversation. I have actually found if I pray about all those things before I start any projects, I don't have to spend so much time on the planning as otherwise. Mind you, I am not a creative person so need all the help I can get!

 My Heavenly Father feeds the birds! He clothes, the lilies, the grasses. I think he has a far better idea about colors and styles than I do. All I have to do to be convinced of that is take a 30 minute drive from Nouvelle to New Richmond and the evidence sure is there! What beautiful scenery. Every day, season, temperature change, weather pattern...... it always looks different but totally gorgeous.                                                                                                                                    

 So I think I'll just finish with the last 2 verse of the chapter.......

 "BUT seek first the Kingdom     of God and  HIS 

 RIGHTEOUSNESS, and all these things shall be added unto you."

 "THEREFORE DO NOT worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about it's own things. Sufficient for the day is it's own worry. "

 I think there maybe some commandments here that we pass over... just sayin'.

Why Worry?

The first 3 verses in my reading this morning in Acts 9 really caught my attention. Saul was still not saved and was "breathing out threats against the disciples of the Lord". OOHHH scary, n'est-ce pas? He got permission from the authorities to do what he wanted with them. I guess he kind of forgot about another authority. Since 1 Peter was still not written, I guess he didn't know about

ch. 3:21, ".... Jesus Christ, who has gone into Heaven
and is at the right hand of God, angels and authorities
and powers having been made subject to Him".

So Saul is heading to Damascus with letters to bring men and women who followed the Lord Jesus to bring them bound to Jerusalem. Here's the catch...

"As he journeyed he came NEAR TO DAMASCUS, and suddenly a light
shone round about him from Heaven, Then he fell to the ground and
heard a voice......" Acts 9:3,4

Saul did get NEAR To DAMASCUS! God allowed him to get only so close to his intended destination before He stopped him in his tracks! Before he ever got to Damascus, he was a follower of Jesus Christ and was a changed man. From then on his greatest desire was to see the unsaved saved and believers built up in the "most holy faith".

How encouraging! I HAVE to remember this.

Work or faith?

Can I be good enough to work my way to Heaven? Is it enough to be kind to my neighbor, not to steal, not to lie, not to take the Lord's name in vain....on and on goes the list. Just think, if I say, "I don't tell lies." Wow! Can I really, truly say that and not tell a lie? I think if each of us thinks through one day we would have to admit we do not tell the absolute truth every minute of the day. Think about everything you say!

What does God say about getting to Heaven? After all, isn't Heaven His? For that matter, the earth and all that we use are His! Can I go to your home and decide how I'm going to go in? What I'm going to do once I'm in there? How I'm going to treat you? Would you accept if once I am there, I act as if you cannot tell me what I can do in your home and how I can treat all that's in your home?

Again, we have to read God's Word to know what God's thoughts are on the matter.

"For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, not a result of works, so that no one may boast."

Ephesians 2:8,9

In Revelation 21, the theme is the Holy city (vs.2), the New Jerusalem which is when Time is over. It is the eternal state of things. The last verse says.

Rev 21:27 But nothing unclean will ever enter it, nor anyone who does what is detestable or false, but only those who are written in the Lamb's book of life.

"Believe in the Lord Jesus, and you will be saved.

Acts 16:31

You know what? I know I am not eloquent and almost anyone can write better than me. I know that there will be grammatical mistakes in every post I write. Put that aside and listen to God's Word. Read it! Ask the Lord Jesus Christ to show you the way. My words are so weak. He is the only One who can save our souls from Hell. He is kind and loving and did all He could to save mankind. He gave His life to pay the debt of sin that was ours. It's been 34 years since I've trusted Christ as my Saviour and though there have been bad days, I have NEVER regretted that decision. He is my strength!

Starting

I have been toying with the idea of a blog. Something in me, says "No!". Maybe I should listen to that voice but my only desire to help someone find a closer walk with God. Do I think I am a great example of a close walk with God? No! I think maybe most of us have the same struggles, though different levels in different areas. So it's in that way, I would like to help someone else.

First of all, to walk with God means to have a personal relationship with God. The only way to learn of this relationship is to read God's Word, The Holy Bible. Sadly , the majority of people today shy away from the Bible. Why? For various reasons....... Maybe anyone reading this, if you do not read God's Word take time to ask yourself why you don't. I will not be your judge on this issue.

John, the Baptizer, pointed to the Lord Jesus Christ one day and told those around him, "Behold the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world!" John 1:29. I love that verse.

Unfortunately, the word "sin" is not a popular word in today's generation. Most prefer faults, preferences, weaknesses....... You fill in the blank, But God in His love warns us faithfully, "...for ALL have sinned and fall short of the glory of God." Romans 3:23.

The Lord Jesus told Nicodemus (who was a very well learned Jewish religious leader of His day) "....unless one is born again he cannot see the Kingdom of God." John 3:3. He was speaking of a spiritual birth..... verse 6 He explained," That which is born of the flesh is flesh, (my birth into my natural family) and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit (the day I accepted by faith that Jesus died for me)."

Before the Lord Jesus went back to Heaven, He gave a great commission to His disciples, "Go into all the world and preach the Gospel (good news) to all creation. He who has believed and has been baptized shall be saved; but he who has disbelieved shall be condemned." Mark 16:15, 16. NASB Baptism saves no one: the deciding factor is what will I do with God's Son, the Lord Jesus Christ? Believing or disbelieving!

This good news brings peace to the heart of men and women, boys and girls. Jesus Christ, the Son of God, bore God's wrath that we had accumulated because of our sin. That is the new birth! Repentance toward God (for my sin) and faith in the Lord Jesus Christ! Only because of Him can we have assurance of a place in Heaven. Sin will never enter Heaven. The day I enter will be in a glorious renewed body like that of the Lord Jesus Christ's. It's not the one I have today...that one is still affected by sin.

It's a wonderful life, not because I am good or better than the person next to me who does not know Jesus as Lord, but because I have a wonderful Saviour, the Lord Jesus Christ. Ask Him to answer your questions today! Give His Word a chance.......read it.