I am really enjoying engaging in this new Bible I am reading… Today, I will share with you inserts of what we are applying to our life. It’s a blessing to be able to share these wonderful truths with the world.. I have enclosed inserts from: “What is missing in our lives”
Be blessed, enjoy it, and apply it to your life.. It’s life changing information!
Purpose, meaning, a reason for living—these are all things we desire and search for in life. Despite steps each one of us takes to find purpose and meaning in life, we still feel empty, unfulfilled. That is because there is a spiritual emptiness in each of our lives. We each have a hole in our heart, a spiritual vacuum deep within our soul—a “God shaped blank.” Possessions won’t fill this hole, nor will success. Relationships alone cannot satisfy this emptiness, and morality, in and of itself, falls miserably short of occupying this space. In fact, even religion cannot fill the void in our heart.
There is only one way to effectively fill that void. This way will not only help us to have a life that is full and rich on this earth, but—more important—will give us the absolute hope of spending eternity in the presence of God. Before we can truly appreciate this good news, though, we need to understand the bad news, which is a serious problem we all have.
The problem: s i n The Bible clearly identifies our serious problem as sin. Sin is not just an act but the actual nature of our being. In other words, we are not sinners because we sin. Rather, we sin because we are sinners! We are born with a nature to do wrong. King David, an Old Testament Israelite ruler, wrote, “For I was born a sinner—yes, from the moment my mother conceived me” (Psalm 51:5). Because we are born sinners, sinning comes to all of us how you can know GOD naturally. That is why it is futile to think that the answer to all of life’s problems comes from “within.” According to the Bible, the problem is within!
Scripture tells us, “The human heart is the most deceitful of all things, and desperately wicked. Who really knows how bad it is?” (Jeremiah 17:9). We are not basically good—we are basically sinful. This sinfulness spills out into everything we do. Every problem we experience in our society today can be traced back to our refusal to live God’s way. Clear back to the Garden of Eden, Adam made his choice, and he suffered the consequences of it, setting the pattern that all humanity would follow. The Bible explains, “When Adam sinned, sin entered the entire world. Adam’s sin brought death, so death spread to everyone, for everyone sinned. . . . Yes, Adam’s one sin brings condemnation for everyone” (Romans 5:12, 18).
“That’s not fair!” you may protest. Why should we suffer because of what someone else has done? Yet, given the opportunity, each one of us would have done the same thing as Adam. In fact, not a single day passes that we do not face the same test that was set before Adam. God has given us the freedom to choose between two separate paths: the path that leads to life and the path that leads to death. The Bible says, “Today, I have given you the choice between life and death, between blessings and curses. Now I call on heaven and earth to witness the choice you make. Oh, that you would choose life, so that you and your descendants might live!” (Deuteronomy 30:19).
w i t h o u t a l e g t o s t a n d o n Someone may say, “But I live a good life. I try to be kind and considerate to others. I live by the Ten Commandments.” But the truth of the matter is that the Ten Commandments, or the law, as they are called in the Bible, were not given to make us good but to show us how bad we are. The Bible tells us, “No one can ever be made right with God by doing what the law commands. The law simply shows us how sinful we are” (Romans 3:20). The purpose of the law is to make us realize how sinful we are. You might say that God’s law was given to “shut our mouths” and show us that we desperately need his help and forgiveness for our terminal condition as sinners.
Look at the passages below to get a better understanding of the nature and seriousness of sin.
1. We Have All Missed the Mark (see Romans 3:23).
Romans 3:23 says, we have all sinned. For those who would claim to be the sole exception to this eternal truth, verse ten of this chapter plainly says, “No one is righteous—not even one” (Romans 3:10). Another word for righteous is good. The word righteous means, “One who is as he or she ought to be.”
When the Bible says that no one is righteous, or good, it is not so much referring to behavior but to inner character.
What exactly is “God’s glorious standard” that Romans 3:23 says we have failed to meet? God’s “glorious standard” is absolute perfection. Jesus said, “But you are to be perfect, even as your Father in heaven is perfect” (Matthew 5:48). In other words, anyone who is not as good as God is not acceptable to him.
One definition of sin, derived from the Greek word hamartia, is to “miss the mark.” As far as the mark of perfection goes, we miss it by a mile. Although our sinful nature makes it impossible for us to live up to God’s standard, we cannot blame sin on our nature alone. Sin is also a deliberate act.
2. Sin Is a Deliberate Act (see Ephesians 2:1). Another word
for sin in Ephesians 2:1 is transgressions or trespasses. This word speaks of a lapse or deviation from truth. In contrast to simply “missing the mark,” this is a deliberate action. Because sin is a deliberate action, we cannot blame our sin on our society or our environment or our mental or physical state.
Everyone has chosen to do what was wrong. If we protest this point, “we are only fooling ourselves and not living in the truth” (1 John 1:8).
3. The Ultimate Penalty for Sin Is Death (see Romans 6:23).
According to the Bible, we have offended a Holy God. We have not done this once or twice, but so many times that we are unable to keep count. Romans 6:23 says, “The wages of sin is death. . . .” Wages are something you are paid for work rendered. In other words, you earn your wages. Because we have all repeatedly sinned, we have earned the penalty of death, which is eternal torment and punishment in a place called hell.
Amid all this talk about sin and death, there is some good news. God has given us a way to escape the penalty of our sin. He has made it possible for us to have a relationship with him and enjoy the hope of eternal life without punishment.
The Solution:
“JESUS CHRIST!”
God understood our problem and knew that we could do nothing about it. Because God loves us, he sent his own Son, Jesus Christ, to earth to bridge the chasm of sin that separates us from him.
Posted by: Minister Evelyn Diane Thomas
D&T: 12/18/2013
Cited: Inserts from: New believer’s BIBLE, new testament
first steps for new christians- GREG LAURIE, GENERAL EDITOR
“For the Lord your God is God of gods and Lord of lords, the great, the mighty, and the awesome God, who is not partial and takes no bribe.” ~Deuteronomy 10:17 (ESV)
“But he said to her, “You speak as one of the foolish women would speak. Shall we receive good from God, and shall we not receive evil?” In all this Job did not sin with his lips.”~ Job 2:10 (ESV)
Father God, you are an awesome God, and your name is greatly to be praised. You gave us life, and all that flourishes around us; you alone created the heavens and the earth, giving us Jesus-the light. Forgive us our ways, Father God, as we lose track of that light, falling into moments of darkness in which we experience loneliness. Without your Son, Our Savior, life is indeed lonely and empty. Often we want to find answers to those things we simply don’t understand; however, many times the things that we don’t understand-we have to believe in faith. Father God and Heavenly Creator, we breathe the air of life; we don’t see it, but we believe. We don’t see the circulating and refreshing wind, but we believe in its existence-and we believe in you-Our Father, Our Creator, Our Life.
Help us, Father, as we turn our life to you, as we leave the darkness behind for the precious and amazing light-to grow in faith, knowing that you are indeed an awesome God. Help us to continuously realize that even when we face moments of trial and temptation, that the light is still there with us; just like a nightly sky, where we don’t physically see the sun, but believe in the light just by looking up at the stars that are illuminated by the sun. Help us to always look up, to look forward-not backward and to always realize and remember that, Yes, you are and awesome God.
My little children, I am writing these things to you so that you may not sin. But if anyone does sin, we have an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous. He is the propitiation for our sins, and not for ours only but also for the sins of the whole world. And by this we know that we have come to know him, if we keep his commandments. Whoever says “I know him” but does not keep his commandments is a liar, and the truth is not in him, but whoever keeps his word, in him truly the love of God is perfected. By this we may know that we are in him: …
Numbers 23:19 (ESV)
God is not man, that he should lie, or a son of man, that he should change his mind. Has he said, and will he not do it? Or has he spoken, and will he not fulfill it?
Isaiah 45:7 (ESV)
I form light and create darkness, I make well-being and create calamity, I am the Lord, who does all these things.
1 Peter 2:1-25 (ESV)
So put away all malice and all deceit and hypocrisy and envy and all slander. Like newborn infants, long for the pure spiritual milk, that by it you may grow up into salvation— if indeed you have tasted that the Lord is good. As you come to him, a living stone rejected by men but in the sight of God chosen and precious, you yourselves like living stones are being built up as a spiritual house, to be a holy priesthood, to offer spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ. …
1 John 1:9 (ESV)
If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.
1 Timothy 2:1-15 (ESV)
First of all, then, I urge that supplications, prayers, intercessions, and thanksgivings be made for all people, for kings and all who are in high positions, that we may lead a peaceful and quiet life, godly and dignified in every way. This is good, and it is pleasing in the sight of God our Savior, who desires all people to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth. For there is one God, and there is one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus, …
John 14:26 (ESV)
But the Helper, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, he will teach you all things and bring to your remembrance all that I have said to you.
2 Chronicles 19:7 (ESV)
Now then, let the fear of the Lord be upon you. Be careful what you do, for there is no injustice with the Lord our God, or partiality or taking bribes.”
2 Peter 1:17 (ESV)
For when he received honor and glory from God the Father, and the voice was borne to him by the Majestic Glory, “This is my beloved Son, with whom I am well pleased,”
1 Corinthians 2:1-16 (ESV)
And I, when I came to you, brothers, did not come proclaiming to you the testimony of God with lofty speech or wisdom. For I decided to know nothing among you except Jesus Christ and him crucified. And I was with you in weakness and in fear and much trembling, and my speech and my message were not in plausible words of wisdom, but in demonstration of the Spirit and of power, that your faith might not rest in the wisdom of men but in the power of God. …
Psalm 92:15 (ESV)
To declare that the Lord is upright; he is my rock, and there is no unrighteousness in him.
Not many of you should become teachers, my brothers, for you know that we who teach will be judged with greater strictness. For we all stumble in many ways. And if anyone does not stumble in what he says, he is a perfect man, able also to bridle his whole body. If we put bits into the mouths of horses so that they obey us, we guide their whole bodies as well. Look at the ships also: though they are so large and are driven by strong winds, they are guided by a very small rudder wherever the will of the pilot directs. So also the tongue is a small member, yet it boasts of great things. How great a forest is set ablaze by such a small fire! …
Paul, Silvanus, and Timothy, To the church of the Thessalonians in God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ: Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. We ought always to give thanks to God for you, brothers, as is right, because your faith is growing abundantly, and the love of every one of you for one another is increasing. Therefore we ourselves boast about you in the churches of God for your steadfastness and faith in all your persecutions and in the afflictions that you are enduring. This is evidence of the righteous judgment of God, that you may be considered worthy of the kingdom of God, for which you are also suffering— …
Now there was a man of the Pharisees named Nicodemus, a ruler of the Jews. This man came to Jesus by night and said to him, “Rabbi, we know that you are a teacher come from God, for no one can do these signs that you do unless God is with him.” Jesus answered him, “Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born again he cannot see the kingdom of God.” Nicodemus said to him, “How can a man be born when he is old? Can he enter a second time into his mother’s womb and be born?” Jesus answered, “Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born of water and the Spirit, he cannot enter the kingdom of God. …
In the days when the judges ruled there was a famine in the land, and a man of Bethlehem in Judah went to sojourn in the country of Moab, he and his wife and his two sons. The name of the man was Elimelech and the name of his wife Naomi, and the names of his two sons were Mahlon and Chilion. They were Ephrathites from Bethlehem in Judah. They went into the country of Moab and remained there. But Elimelech, the husband of Naomi, died, and she was left with her two sons. These took Moabite wives; the name of the one was Orpah and the name of the other Ruth. They lived there about ten years, and both Mahlon and Chilion died, so that the woman was left without her two sons and her husband. …
And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other tongues as the Spirit gave them utterance. Now there were dwelling in Jerusalem Jews, devout men from every nation under heaven. And at this sound the multitude came together, and they were bewildered, because each one was hearing them speak in his own language. And they were amazed and astonished, saying, “Are not all these who are speaking Galileans? And how is it that we hear, each of us in his own native language?
Paul, an apostle of Christ Jesus by the will of God, and Timothy our brother, To the saints and faithful brothers in Christ at Colossae: Grace to you and peace from God our Father. We always thank God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, when we pray for you, since we heard of your faith in Christ Jesus and of the love that you have for all the saints, because of the hope laid up for you in heaven. Of this you have heard before in the word of the truth, the gospel, …
For everything there is a season, and a time for every matter under heaven: a time to be born, and a time to die; a time to plant, and a time to pluck up what is planted; a time to kill, and a time to heal; a time to break down, and a time to build up; a time to weep, and a time to laugh; a time to mourn, and a time to dance; a time to cast away stones, and a time to gather stones together; a time to embrace, and a time to refrain from embracing; …
To the choirmaster: according to The Doe of the Dawn. A Psalm of David. My God, my God, why have you forsaken me? Why are you so far from saving me, from the words of my groaning? O my God, I cry by day, but you do not answer, and by night, but I find no rest. Yet you are holy, enthroned on the praises of Israel. In you our fathers trusted; they trusted, and you delivered them. To you they cried and were rescued; in you they trusted and were not put to shame. …
After the death of Ahab, Moab rebelled against Israel. Now Ahaziah fell through the lattice in his upper chamber in Samaria, and lay sick; so he sent messengers, telling them, “Go, inquire of Baal-zebub, the god of Ekron, whether I shall recover from this sickness.” But the angel of the Lord said to Elijah the Tishbite, “Arise, go up to meet the messengers of the king of Samaria, and say to them, ‘Is it because there is no God in Israel that you are going to inquire of Baal-zebub, the god of Ekron? Now therefore thus says the Lord, You shall not come down from the bed to which you have gone up, but you shall surely die.’” So Elijah went. The messengers returned to the king, and he said to them, “Why have you returned?” …
So God created the great sea creatures and every living creature that moves, with which the waters swarm, according to their kinds, and every winged bird according to its kind. And God saw that it was good.
For he is God’s servant for your good. But if you do wrong, be afraid, for he does not bear the sword in vain. For he is the servant of God, an avenger who carries out God’s wrath on the wrongdoer.
“You are the Lord, you alone. You have made heaven, the heaven of heavens, with all their host, the earth and all that is on it, the seas and all that is in them; and you preserve all of them; and the host of heaven worships you.
James, a servant of God and of the Lord Jesus Christ, To the twelve tribes in the Dispersion: Greetings. Count it all joy, my brothers, when you meet trials of various kinds, for you know that the testing of your faith produces steadfastness. And let steadfastness have its full effect, that you may be perfect and complete, lacking in nothing. If any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask God, who gives generously to all without reproach, and it will be given him. …
For I am sure that neither death nor life, nor angels nor rulers, nor things present nor things to come, nor powers, nor height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord.
Paul, a servant of Christ Jesus, called to be an apostle, set apart for the gospel of God, which he promised beforehand through his prophets in the holy Scriptures, concerning his Son, who was descended from David according to the flesh and was declared to be the Son of God in power according to the Spirit of holiness by his resurrection from the dead, Jesus Christ our Lord, through whom we have received grace and apostleship to bring about the obedience of faith for the sake of his name among all the nations, …
Thus says the Lord God: “Clap your hands and stamp your foot and say, Alas, because of all the evil abominations of the house of Israel, for they shall fall by the sword, by famine, and by pestilence.
For he does not willingly afflict or grieve the children of men. To crush underfoot all the prisoners of the earth, to deny a man justice in the presence of the Most High, to subvert a man in his lawsuit, the Lord does not approve.
To the choirmaster. A Psalm of David, when Nathan the prophet went to him, after he had gone in to Bathsheba. Have mercy on me, O God, according to your steadfast love; according to your abundant mercy blot out my transgressions. Wash me thoroughly from my iniquity, and cleanse me from my sin! For I know my transgressions, and my sin is ever before me. Against you, you only, have I sinned and done what is evil in your sight, so that you may be justified in your words and blameless in your judgment. Behold, I was brought forth in iniquity, and in sin did my mother conceive me. …
These are the sons of Israel: Reuben, Simeon, Levi, Judah, Issachar, Zebulun, Dan, Joseph, Benjamin, Naphtali, Gad, and Asher. The sons of Judah: Er, Onan and Shelah; these three Bath-shua the Canaanite bore to him. Now Er, Judah’s firstborn, was evil in the sight of the Lord, and he put him to death. His daughter-in-law Tamar also bore him Perez and Zerah. Judah had five sons in all. The sons of Perez: Hezron and Hamul. …
After the death of Saul, when David had returned from striking down the Amalekites, David remained two days in Ziklag. And on the third day, behold, a man came from Saul’s camp, with his clothes torn and dirt on his head. And when he came to David, he fell to the ground and paid homage. David said to him, “Where do you come from?” And he said to him, “I have escaped from the camp of Israel.” And David said to him, “How did it go? Tell me.” And he answered, “The people fled from the battle, and also many of the people have fallen and are dead, and Saul and his son Jonathan are also dead.” Then David said to the young man who told him, “How do you know that Saul and his son Jonathan are dead?” …
Posted by: Minister Evelyn Diane Thomas
Saturday, November 2, 2013
I am truly honored to be piced by HearandPlay.com to be the fan of the week!! This is an awesome music ministry that I have been personally involved with since 1983! They are a blessing to all mankind.. Blessing to you Rev. Jermaine A. Griggs!!!
Proverbs 18:21 (KJV) “Death and life are in the power of the tongue: and they that love it shall eat the fruit thereof.”
Sometime in this life, you have to be willing to roll up your sleeves, being NOT afraid to get dirty and fight against spiritual warfare.. I find letting go and letting God requires you to let your guard down and get loose for Jesus.. No one can be pretty all the time, especially when the Holy Spirit takes over. I invite the Holy Spirit to take over and move self out of the way that he may be glorified and his will and God’s work can be done.. There’s no better feeling when the anointing falls upon you. When you pray in the spiritual realm, and God’s anointing come in, things have to change for the better! You will see healing take place, and lives change, marriages being restored, children obeying their parents, financing increasing, etc.. All I’m trying to say is there is POWER in the name of Jesus! We are made perfect only through Christ.. His LOVE makes us all beautiful from the inside out. That alone should give us every reason to want to serve God and his people.
No matter what it looks like, TRUST God!!! It may seem an uphill battle, but hold on to God’s unchanging hand. Believe me, I”m not advising anything that I’m not doing myself. I stand before you as a witness knowing that God is able! He is able to do anything but FAIL!
Greetings to all of our World In Focus International (WIFI Ministries) Subscribers, Family, Friend’s and Visitors… We would personally like to thank you all for taking this 52 day journey along with us. I don’t know about you, but we have been blessed, highly favored and successful as we pecked our way out into freedom and have exposed ourselves to new ideas and concepts that will stick with us for a lifetime. As I said on yesterday, “I’m so glad that we made it!!” This truly has been a wonderful, life changing experience… It feels good to know that these orders were given to each of us to apply to our lives for the better…
I personally want to take the time to say “Thank You” to WTAL 2012 Bishop T.D. Jakes for this experience. We will never be the same!
Finally, I have enclosed day 52 of Pecking orders to apply to our lives directly from Bishop T.D. Jakes.. We are reviewing each order, applying them all , and moving forward in Jesus…
We’ve reached the final day of The 52 Days of Pecking Orders, but don’t stop! Don’t turn back! Your POSITION has changed! You’ve been EXPOSED to things you’ve never seen! You’re more COURAGEOUS than you’ve ever been! You have new KNOWLEDGE to help in the days ahead! Now that you have all this, this is not the time to kick up your feet and relax. Go forth and possess all that God has for you. Fulfill His purpose for your life and watch Him take you to an even greater level!
And, I want to hear from you! Post your experiences below, and let me know how your life has changed during these 52 days!
Now, let’s end these 52 days in prayer…
Lord, we thank you for what you’ve done during these 52 days, and we ask you to continue guiding us to greater heights in you. Use us to accomplish your will in the earth. We ask that you continue speaking to our hearts as we go further, knowing we can do nothing apart from you. With you as our support and our Leader, we will keep carrying out our PECKING ORDERS!
Blessing to each of you on this wonderful and sensational Sunday.. We hope you have a fabulously wonderful week and we pray you had an ultimate worship experience on today!!!! Day number 49 of pecking orders are enclosed from Bishop T.D. Jakes ~
God wants to update your files with new KNOWLEDGE and information! Being equipped with old information prevents you from accurately distinguishing friend from foe, causing you to fight off the very people to whom God has EXPOSED you in order for them to help you! God often sends help in unlikely places from unexpected sources. As God directs you, learn to put away your sword and open up your heart!
This is a must read book that I recommend highly in this day and time we live in…
T.D. Jakes uses inspiration from the Lord’s Prayer to reveal how the act of forgiving—and learning to be forgiven—can lead you to a more joyful, peaceful, and purposeful life. As unconditionally loved children of God, we are all forgiven. Through His grace, we can forgive ourselves and the people around us. In this way, we can live the fulfilled and happy lives God has for us.
Philippians 3:13-14 (NIV) “Brothers and sisters, I do not consider myself yet to have taken hold of it. But one thing I do: Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead, I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus.
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Happy Saturday to our WIFI Subscribers, Visitors, Family and Friend’s… We are forgetting those things that are behind us and we pressing into our future… We are in Position and Yes, we are pecking our way out!!!! We have enclosed day number 48 of Pecking order directly from Bishop T.D. Jakes
Much love to you all, and know that we might have been delayed in getting out this post but was not denied the opportunity and we thank God!!!!
POSITIONING is a matter of strategy, and this strategy requires you to listen to God’s voice! Going off on your own will put you completely out of place and in a prime location for destruction. Heed God’s voice. Without His KNOWLEDGE and wisdom, there’s no way you will ever know where you are supposed to be. Get alone. Get quiet. Now, listen as God reveals to you the POSITION He has for you.
Greetings to each of you on this Fantastic Friday!!! I pray everyone had a blessed and wonderful Thanksgiving.. We truly have lots to be thankful for as we look back over our lives….
I have enclosed day 52 of Pecking Orders directly from Bishop T.D. Jakes.. Keep Pecking, we are almost there!!!!
God will equip you with KNOWLEDGE that will prompt you when it’s time to disengage from a relationship or process. Before you back away, accept that conflict can be an opportunity for true love and grace to flow! Don’t make the mistake of believing people must agree on every issue to be agreeable. Welcome the opportunity to talk to those with whom you might disagree. Be COURAGEOUS enough to look for peace in the midst of conflict.
