August | 2011 | Moore to Ponder

New Mercies…(Part One: Morning by Morning)

August 29, 2011 at 10:59 am (Assurance, Bible study, correction, Devotional Thoughts., Evangelism, Fear, Forgiveness, Grace, Guidance, Life, Lighter Burdens., Mercy, Obedience, Our Unchanging God, Peace, Resting, Sharing, Sovereignty of God, strengthening, Thanksgiving, Transformation., Trusting, When you are afraid, When You Feel Like Crying., Wisdom, Witnessing)

Scripture References;

⁴I cried unto the LORD with my voice, and he heard me out of his holy hill. Selah.

⁵I laid me down and slept; I awaked; for the LORD sustained me. Psalm 3:4-5 KJV

If I were to run into King David this morning my response to the words he spoke in the above scripture would be “Me, too!”. I am thankful for much this morning. Here are three things things for which I am thankful:

http://tonirand.wordpress.com/2011/08/29/of-bibles-and-bagels-%E2%80%A6/

http://iftodaywehear.wordpress.com/2011/08/27/strength-to-worship/

http://bendedspoon.wordpress.com/2011/08/29/ahhh-kiss/

Here below is a song that expresses what is on my mind at this moment:

Great Is Thy Faithfulness by Thomas O. Chisholm

Great is Thy faithfulness, O God my Father;
There is no shadow of turning with Thee;
Thou changest not, Thy compassions, they fail not;
As Thou hast been, Thou forever will be.

Refrain

Great is Thy faithfulness!
Great is Thy faithfulness!
Morning by morning new mercies I see.
All I have needed Thy hand hath provided;
Great is Thy faithfulness, Lord, unto me!

Summer and winter and springtime and harvest,
Sun, moon and stars in their courses above
Join with all nature in manifold witness
To Thy great faithfulness, mercy and love.

Refrain

Pardon for sin and a peace that endureth
Thine own dear presence to cheer and to guide;
Strength for today and bright hope for tomorrow,
Blessings all mine, with ten thousand beside!

Refrain

Please click on this link. It is a beautiful duet.

Do you know Jesus as your personal Savior and Lord? Please click here:https://pronetoponder.wordpress.com/category/about-salvation-very-important-words/ and make sure.

Do you have a Bible? If you don’t have one, you need not worry. Just click here: www.biblegateway.com They have many versions and translations of the Bible that you can read. Some of the best things in life are free!

13 Comments

Living Stones (Part 1: Created for a Purpose)

August 15, 2011 at 10:53 pm (About Sin, Assurance, Devotional Thoughts., Forgiveness, Grace, Life, Lighter Burdens., Mercy, Our Unchanging God, Peace, Resting, Salvation, Sins, Sovereignty of God, Trusting, When you are afraid, When You Feel Like Crying., Wisdom)

Scripture reference;

⁵Ye also, as lively stones, are built up a spiritual house, an holy priesthood, to offer up spiritual sacrifices, acceptable to God by Jesus Christ. 1 Peter 2:5 KJV

⁹But ye are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, an holy nation, a peculiar people; that ye should shew forth the praises of him who hath called you out of darkness into his marvellous light;

¹⁰Which in time past were not a people, but are now the people of God: which had not obtained mercy, but now have obtained mercy. 1 Peter 2:9-10 KJV

The Living Stone and a Chosen People

⁵ you also, like living stones, are being built into a spiritual house^[a] to be a holy priesthood, offering spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ. Peter 2:5 ESV

⁹ But you are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, God’s special possession, that you may declare the praises of him who called you out of darkness into his wonderful light. ¹⁰ Once you were not a people, but now you are the people of God; once you had not received mercy, but now you have received mercy. 1 Peter 2:9-10 ESV

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¹To every thing there is a season, and a time to every purpose under the heaven: Ecclesiastes 3:1 KJV

I find it interesting that there are some things that are always right or wrong. But there are other things that are right on one occasion yet wrong on another occasion, because they have to do with timing.

Have you ever heard of the game called “Aggravation”, or “Wahoo”? They both are games for up to six players in which the object is to be the first player to have all four marbles reach the player’s home section of the board. I remember playing it as a child. Each player had four marbles in one color. One player might have been red and the others were usually yellow, green, orange, or blue. It was “aggravating” when I was so close to home, and another player would come along and bump my marble off its spot. Sometimes we would fuss over who got to be a certain color. I would sometimes say “The red ones are mine!” There were times that the marbles seemed to have a life of their own and would tend to roll if the holes that they were meant to rest in were not made deep enough. If the owner of the game got mad he or she might gather up all of the marbles, the dice and the board and go home. It was at that moment we would be reminded that we were actually only “allowed” to play with those marbles when the owner let us.

In some ways people are like those marbles. We each have tendencies to roll in certain directions and need our holes ( preset boundaries), to keep us from rolling around when it’s not our turn to move. Sometimes other marbles bump us and cause us to go places to which we do not wish to go. We might do the same thing to others. Then when the time is right we are all reminded that we do not belong to ourselves, but to someone else who has the authority and power to do what He wishes.

It’s true…all people are created by God and will have to answer to Him one day:

²⁷And just as it is appointed for [all] men once to die, and after that the [certain] judgment, Hebrews 9: 27 Amplified Bible

Isn’t it comforting to know that God is good, and just, and promises to work good even in bad situations? I am really glad that the Lord loved the world so much that He made it possible to have eternal life and to have the burden of sins borne by Him:

¹⁶For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life. John 3:16 KJV
²⁸Even so it is that Christ, having been offered to take upon Himself and bear as a burden the sins of many once and ^[d]once for all, will appear a second time, not to carry any burden of sin nor to deal with sin, but to bring to full salvation those who are [eagerly, constantly, and patiently] waiting for and expecting Him. Hebrews 9:28 Amplified Bible

²⁸And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to his purpose.

²⁹For whom he did foreknow, he also did predestinate to be conformed to the image of his Son, that he might be the firstborn among many brethren.

³⁰Moreover whom he did predestinate, them he also called: and whom he called, them he also justified: and whom he justified, them he also glorified. Romans 8:28-30 KJV

²⁸We are assured and know that [^[j]God being a partner in their labor] all things work together and are [fitting into a plan] for good to and for those who love God and are called according to [His] design and purpose.

²⁹For those whom He foreknew [of whom He was ^[k]aware and ^[l]loved beforehand], He also destined from the beginning [foreordaining them] to be molded into the image of His Son [and share inwardly His likeness], that He might become the firstborn among many brethren.

³⁰And those whom He thus foreordained, He also called; and those whom He called, He also justified (acquitted, made righteous, putting them into right standing with Himself). And those whom He justified, He also glorified [raising them to a heavenly dignity and condition or state of being]. Romans 8:28-30 Amplified Bible

If we accept the Lord’s offer of salvation and call on the Lord we will no longer be just marbles, but will be “Living Stones” with a special purpose…we will dwell in the Light and praise Jesus.
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“And Can It Be That I Should Gain” by Charles Wesley

And can it be that I should gain
An interest in the Savior’s blood?
Died He for me, who caused His pain—
For me, who Him to death pursued?
Amazing love! How can it be,
That Thou, my God, shouldst die for me?
Amazing love! How can it be,
That Thou, my God, shouldst die for me?

’Tis mystery all: th’Immortal dies:
Who can explore His strange design?
In vain the firstborn seraph tries
To sound the depths of love divine.
’Tis mercy all! Let earth adore,
Let angel minds inquire no more.
’Tis mercy all! Let earth adore;
Let angel minds inquire no more.

He left His Father’s throne above
So free, so infinite His grace—
Emptied Himself of all but love,
And bled for Adam’s helpless race:
’Tis mercy all, immense and free,
For O my God, it found out me!
’Tis mercy all, immense and free,
For O my God, it found out me!

Long my imprisoned spirit lay,
Fast bound in sin and nature’s night;
Thine eye diffused a quickening ray—
I woke, the dungeon flamed with light;
My chains fell off, my heart was free,
I rose, went forth, and followed Thee.
My chains fell off, my heart was free,
I rose, went forth, and followed Thee.

Still the small inward voice I hear,
That whispers all my sins forgiven;
Still the atoning blood is near,
That quenched the wrath of hostile Heaven.
I feel the life His wounds impart;
I feel the Savior in my heart.
I feel the life His wounds impart;
I feel the Savior in my heart.

No condemnation now I dread;
Jesus, and all in Him, is mine;
Alive in Him, my living Head,
And clothed in righteousness divine,
Bold I approach th’eternal throne,
And claim the crown, through Christ my own.
Bold I approach th’eternal throne,
And claim the crown, through Christ my own.

Do you know Jesus as your personal Savior and Lord? Please click here:https://pronetoponder.wordpress.com/category/about-salvation-very-important-words/ and make sure.

27 Comments

All His Benefits (Part 7 Delight-Directed and Not so Delight-Directed Learning)

August 13, 2011 at 6:57 pm (About Sin, All His Benefits, Assurance, chastisement, correction, Devotional Series I Have Written, Devotional Thoughts., Forgiveness, Grace, Guidance, Home Education, Homeschooling, Judging, Love, Mercy, Obedience, Our Unchanging God, Parenting, Patience, Relaxed Homeschooling, Repentance, Sins, Sovereignty of God, Trusting, When you are afraid, When You Feel Like Crying.)

Scripture Reference;

Psalm 103

¹Bless the LORD, O my soul: and all that is within me, bless his holy name.

²Bless the LORD, O my soul, and forget not all his benefits:

³Who forgiveth all thine iniquities; who healeth all thy diseases;

⁴Who redeemeth thy life from destruction; who crowneth thee with lovingkindness and tender mercies;

⁵Who satisfieth thy mouth with good things; so that thy youth is renewed like the eagle’s.

⁶The LORD executeth righteousness and judgment for all that are oppressed.

⁷He made known his ways unto Moses, his acts unto the children of Israel.

⁸The LORD is merciful and gracious, slow to anger, and plenteous in mercy.

⁹He will not always chide: neither will he keep his anger for ever.

¹⁰He hath not dealt with us after our sins; nor rewarded us according to our iniquities.

¹¹For as the heaven is high above the earth, so great is his mercy toward them that fear him.

¹²As far as the east is from the west, so far hath he removed our transgressions from us.

¹³Like as a father pitieth his children, so the LORD pitieth them that fear him.

¹⁴For he knoweth our frame; he remembereth that we are dust.

¹⁵As for man, his days are as grass: as a flower of the field, so he flourisheth.

¹⁶For the wind passeth over it, and it is gone; and the place thereof shall know it no more.

¹⁷But the mercy of the LORD is from everlasting to everlasting upon them that fear him, and his righteousness unto children’s children;

¹⁸To such as keep his covenant, and to those that remember his commandments to do them.

¹⁹The LORD hath prepared his throne in the heavens; and his kingdom ruleth over all.

²⁰Bless the LORD, ye his angels, that excel in strength, that do his commandments, hearkening unto the voice of his word.

²¹Bless ye the LORD, all ye his hosts; ye ministers of his, that do his pleasure.

²²Bless the LORD, all his works in all places of his dominion: bless the LORD, O my soul.

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Now let’s look at verse 9:

⁹He will not always chide: neither will he keep his anger for ever. (KJV)

⁹He will not always chide or be contending, neither will He keep His anger forever or hold a grudge. (Amplified Bible)

“Chide” is a word we don’t often hear in conversation. I had an idea but wasn’t sure what it actually meant. The Amplified Bible gave me a clue. This came from an online dictionary:

Chide definition, to express disapproval of; scold; reproach

That is interesting, but the Amplified Bible says this: “or be contending”

I think I will look up the Hebrew meaning of the word “chide” in a Strong’s Exhaustive Concordance of the Bible.

Strong: H7378

Orig: or ruwb \i roob\i0\plain\f3\fs21\cf23 ; a primitive root; properly, to toss, i.e. grapple; mostly figuratively, to wrangle, i.e. hold a controversy; (by implication) to defend:–adversary, chide, complain, contend, debate, X ever, X lay wait, plead, rebuke, strive, X thoroughly.

That word says a lot. But when I think of this Psalm as a whole there are certain things that come into consideration. When I take into account that it is regarding how the Lord deals with Believers, and when I consider the way David has described himself in other psalms and even in other books of the Bible (such as in 1Samuel and 2 Samuel), and the way he described the Lord, and the nature of his relationship with Him…the meaning becomes more clear.

The words “rebuke”, “strive” and “contend” really speak to me. The Lord does“chide” His children, but He “will not ‘always’ chide” them. We have angered and will anger the Lord at times, but unlike mankind, He is slow to anger and doesn’t hold grudges…and you know what else? He never sins; not even when He is angry. Yes, He will both chide and chastise (chiding is one of the ways that He chastises) His children, but never in a cruel attempt to get revenge, and His discipline is always loving, for our own good, and is NEVER misguided. I am so thankful for that. Let’s look at some scriptures that give us a glimpse of this.

Wait. Something just came to me. I need to digress a little, and come back to what I was going to share a little later.

Have you ever heard of “Delight-Directed Learning”? It is a technique sometimes used to help students learn. In a delight-directed study, a child’s interests are ignited and sustained in ways that increase his or her interest in studies. We learn from both pleasant and unpleasant experiences. For example, all of us chocolate lovers probably know what will happen when we unwrap a Hershey’s Kiss and pop it in our mouth. Once we had the first one we never forgot what was inside that foil and needed to figure it out again…even if we had gone years without eating one. Then there is that not so pleasant memory some women have of accidentally putting there finger in their mouth after they have just removed their nail polish. We won’t forget what that is like either.

Here is another example: Your toddler will probably not fight you if you ask them to eat some candy, but how about some of that nasty pink liquid medicine you make them gag down when they have an ear infection or some other infection? We know they will fuss and fight us and we hate doing it, but we force them to take it. Sometimes they even vomit and we have to do it all over again. But we do it…because we love them and want them to get well. Aren’t we so glad when we see improvement the next day? Then there are times when they are more easily pursuaded. We will tell them they will get a reward like their favorite ice cream if they will just swallow one little spoonful of their medicine, and on some occasions this does the trick. No matter what method we use the motive is the same in both cases. We don’t make them take the medicine, because we find it amusing to see them gag. We make them take the medicine, because we love them and want them to get well.

Here is what came to my mind a little while ago. I love words. When I was a little girl (probably in the 2nd grade) I learned about “root words”; learned that many words share the same root, and if we saw a new word and we didn’t have a dictionary we could look at the root of that word and then at either the prefix or the suffix of that word and get a clue about the new word’s meaning. Here is an example:

misjudge: You have the root word judge and the prefix mis (to get wrong make a mistake). So if you misjudge you are making a mistake in your judgement.

I also really liked looking at lists of synonyms (words with similar meanings) and antonyms (words with opposite meanings). I believe the Lord enjoys using“delight directed learning” with His children. He knows that I love words, so He uses my love of words as one of various methods to get me to learn more about His ways. As I was thinking about “chiding” and a few other forms of chastisement I remembered some accounts in the Bible where people were chided.

In this account it was actually a pagan king who did the chiding (scolding):

Abram in Egypt

¹⁰ There was a famine in the land, so Abram went down to Egypt to live there for a while because the famine in the land was severe. ¹¹ When he was about to enter Egypt, he said to his wife Sarai, “Look, I know what a beautiful woman you are. ¹² When the Egyptians see you, they will say, ‘This is his wife.’ They will kill me but let you live. ¹³ Please say you’re my sister so it will go well for me because of you, and my life will be spared on your account.” ¹⁴ When Abram entered Egypt, the Egyptians saw that the woman was very beautiful. ¹⁵ Pharaoh’s officials saw her and praised her to Pharaoh, so the woman was taken to Pharaoh’s house. ¹⁶ He treated Abram well because of her, and Abram acquired flocks and herds, male and female donkeys, male and female slaves, and camels.

¹⁷ But the LORD struck Pharaoh and his house with severe plagues because of Abram’s wife Sarai.¹⁸ So Pharaoh sent for Abram and said, “What have you done to me? Why didn’t you tell me she was your wife? ¹⁹ Why did you say, ‘She’s my sister,’ so that I took her as my wife? Now, here’s your wife. Take her and go!” ²⁰ Then Pharaoh gave [his] men orders about him, and they sent him away, with his wife and all he had. Genesis 12:10-20 HCSB

In these two accounts Jesus chided Peter:

His Death and Resurrection Predicted

²¹ From then on Jesus began to point out to His disciples that He must go to Jerusalem and suffer many things from the elders, chief priests, and scribes, be killed, and be raised the third day. ²²Then Peter took Him aside and began to rebuke Him, “Oh no, ^[o] Lord! This will never happen to You!”

²³ But He turned and told Peter, “Get behind Me, Satan! You are an offense to Me because you’re not thinking about God’s concerns, ^[p] but man’s.” Mathew 16:21-23 HCSB

²⁰But Peter turned and saw the disciple whom Jesus loved, following–the one who also had leaned back on His breast at the supper and had said, Lord, who is it that is going to betray You?

²¹When Peter saw him, he said to Jesus, Lord, what about this man?

²²Jesus said to him, If I want him to stay (survive, live) until I come, what is that to you? [What concern is it of yours?] You follow Me! John 21:13-22 Amplified Bible

It never feels good to be chided. The Lord knows this, but He will do what is needed to cause His children to become contrite…full of regret and sorrow for their sins:

¹⁰ For godly grief produces a repentance not to be regretted and leading to salvation, but worldly grief produces death. ¹¹ For consider how much diligence this very thing—this grieving as God wills—has produced in you: what a desire to clear yourselves, what indignation, what fear, what deep longing, what zeal, what justice! In every way you have commended yourselves to be pure in this matter. 2 Corinthians 7:10-11 HCSB

It is true that the Lord uses different approaches when it comes to teaching us the things we need to learn. We won’t always understand all of the reasons for every thing we will experience here, but we can rest in the knowledge that He uses both the delightful and the not so delightful things for our good, because He delights in us.

¹¹ Do not despise the LORD’s instruction, my son, and do not loathe His discipline;¹² for the LORD disciplines the one He loves, just as a father, the son he delights in. Proverbs 3:11-12 HCSB

Do you know Jesus as your personal Savior and Lord? Please click here:https://pronetoponder.wordpress.com/category/about-salvation-very-important-words/ and make sure.

13 Comments

Sins and Their Effect on People

August 10, 2011 at 3:38 pm (About Sin, Assurance, Devotional Thoughts., Forgiveness, Grace, Guidance, Healing, Judging, Lighter Burdens., Love, Mercy, Peace, Sins, Thanksgiving, The Greatest Commandment, Transformation., Wisdom)

Originally posted on January 14, 2010 at 5:54 pm

Scripture References;

Have mercy upon me, O God, according to thy lovingkindness: according unto the multitude of thy tender mercies blot out my transgressions. Wash me throughly from mine iniquity, and cleanse me from my sin. For I acknowledge my transgressions: and my sin is ever before me. Against thee, thee only, have I sinned, and done this evil in thy sight: that thou mightest be justified when thou speakest, and be clear when thou judgest. Behold, I was shapen in iniquity; and in sin did my mother conceive me. Behold, thou desirest truth in the inward parts: and in the hidden part thou shalt make me to know wisdom. Purge me with hyssop, and I shall be clean: wash me, and I shall be whiter than snow.Make me to hear joy and gladness; that the bones which thou hast broken may rejoice. Hide thy face from my sins, and blot out all mine iniquities. Create in me a clean heart, O God; and renew a right spirit within me. Cast me not away from thy presence; and take not thy holy spirit from me. Restore unto me the joy of thy salvation; and uphold me with thy free spirit. Psalm 51:1-12 KJV

Now when Jesus was in Bethany, in the house of Simon the leper,There came unto him a woman having an alabaster box of very precious ointment, and poured it on his head, as he sat at meat. But when his disciples saw it, they had indignation, saying, To what purpose is this waste? For this ointment might have been sold for much, and given to the poor.When Jesus understood it, he said unto them, Why trouble ye the woman? for she hath wrought a good work upon me.For ye have the poor always with you; but me ye have not always.For in that she hath poured this ointment on my body, she did it for my burial.Verily I say unto you, Wheresoever this gospel shall be preached in the whole world, there shall also this, that this woman hath done, be told for a memorial of her. Matthew 26:6-13 KJV

And one of the Pharisees desired him that he would eat with him. And he went into the Pharisee’s house, and sat down to meat. And, behold, a woman in the city, which was a sinner, when she knew that Jesus sat at meat in the Pharisee’s house, brought an alabaster box of ointment, And stood at his feet behind him weeping, and began to wash his feet with tears, and did wipe them with the hairs of her head, and kissed his feet, and anointed them with the ointment. Now when the Pharisee which had bidden him saw it, he spake within himself, saying, This man, if he were a prophet, would have known who and what manner of woman this is that toucheth him: for she is a sinner. And Jesus answering said unto him, Simon, I have somewhat to say unto thee. And he saith, Master, say on. There was a certain creditor which had two debtors: the one owed five hundred pence, and the other fifty. And when they had nothing to pay, he frankly forgave them both. Tell me therefore, which of them will love him most? Simon answered and said, I suppose that he, to whom he forgave most. And he said unto him, Thou hast rightly judged. And he turned to the woman, and said unto Simon, Seest thou this woman? I entered into thine house, thou gavest me no water for my feet: but she hath washed my feet with tears, and wiped them with the hairs of her head. Thou gavest me no kiss: but this woman since the time I came in hath not ceased to kiss my feet. My head with oil thou didst not anoint: but this woman hath anointed my feet with ointment. Wherefore I say unto thee, Her sins, which are many, are forgiven; for she loved much: but to whom little is forgiven, the same loveth little. And he said unto her, Thy sins are forgiven. And they that sat at meat with him began to say within themselves, Who is this that forgiveth sins also? And he said to the woman, Thy faith hath saved thee; go in peace. Luke 7:36-50 KJV

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I am thinking about two passages that speak on the subject of sin.

Here is some background on Psalm 51:

It is a Psalm of David. It is said that King David was a man after God’s own heart. There is much written about his life in the Old Testament. Yet this King who already had plenty of wives took the wife of a loyal man who had done him no harm and committed adultery with his wife and then had the man killed in hopes to hide what had been done. Then Nathan the prophet confronted him and he confessed his sin and wrote that Psalm.

Here is some Background on Luke7:36-50:
The Pharisees were members of an ancient Jewish sect that emphasized strict interpretation and observance of the Mosaic law in both its oral and written form. They would not classify themselves as sinners, but Jesus repeatedly confronted them with the fact that they were sinners.

The conclusion I draw from this is that people sin; both those who have put their trust in Christ and those who have not. Once a person has put their trust in Jesus they will become more and more aware of their sins, and this will drive them to Him as their source of forgiveness and strength. As a result they will “love much”, and become more and more aware of the fact that “they are loved much”.

Here is a link you can click on and listen to a beautiful song that illustrates this truth I have been speaking about:

Do you know Jesus as your personal Savior and Lord? Please click here:https://pronetoponder.wordpress.com/category/about-salvation-very-important-words/ and make sure.

Do you have a Bible? If you don’t have one, you need not worry. Just click here:www.biblegateway.com They have many versions and translations of the Bible that you can read. Some of the best things in life are free!

13 Comments

Fullness of Joy: (Part 1…Fat and Happy)

August 2, 2011 at 5:12 pm (Assurance, Contentment, Devotional Thoughts., Forgiveness, Grace, Guidance, Holy Spirit, Joy, Life, Lighter Burdens., Love, Our Unchanging God, Patience, Peace, Praise, Prayer, Resting, Sovereignty of God, Thanksgiving, Trusting, When you are afraid, Wisdom)

Originally posted on April 25, 2010 at 12:42 am

Scripture references;

Wherefore do ye spend money for that which is not bread? and your labour for that which satisfieth not? hearken diligently unto me, and eat ye that which is good, and let your soul delight itself in fatness. Isaiah 55:2 KJV

Meanwhile his disciples urged him, “Rabbi, eat something.” But he said to them, “I have food to eat that you know nothing about.” Then his disciples said to each other, “Could someone have brought him food?” “My food,” said Jesus, “is to do the will of him who sent me and to finish his work.” John 4:31-34 NIV

John bare witness of him, and cried, saying, This was he of whom I spake, He that cometh after me is preferred before me: for he was before me. And of his fulness have all we received, and grace for grace. John 1:15:16

Jesus answered, “Everyone who drinks this water will be thirsty again, but whoever drinks the water I give him will never thirst. Indeed, the water I give him will become in him a spring of water welling up to eternal life.” John 4:13-14 NIV

On the last and most important day of the festival, Jesus stood up and cried out,“If anyone is thirsty, he should come to Me and drink! The one who believes in Me, as the Scripture has said, will have streams of living water flow from deep within him.” He said this about the Spirit, whom those who believed in Him were going to receive, for the Spirit had not yet been received, because Jesus had not yet been glorified. John 7:37-39 HCSB

⁹And I say unto you, Ask, and it shall be given you; seek, and ye shall find; knock, and it shall be opened unto you.¹⁰For every one that asketh receiveth; and he that seeketh findeth; and to him that knocketh it shall be opened.¹¹If a son shall ask bread of any of you that is a father, will he give him a stone? or if he ask a fish, will he for a fish give him a serpent?¹²Or if he shall ask an egg, will he offer him a scorpion?¹³If ye then, being evil, know how to give good gifts unto your children: how much more shall your heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to them that ask him? Luke 11:9-13 KJV

O taste and see that the LORD is good: blessed is the man that trusteth in him. Psalm 34:8 KJV

Thou wilt shew me the path of life: in thy presence is fulness of joy; at thy right hand there are pleasures for evermore. Psalm 16:11 KJV

You know, it is funny how we come up with interesting phrases, and figures of speech. Some get worn out pretty quickly, while others stay with us for a long time. I have two on my mind today. The first phrase on my mind is this one: “Is your glass half empty or half full?”. The idea was that it was up to you whether you were going to focus on the positive thing or the negative thing; on what you have or what you lack. It is true that we have our share of challenges and troubles, but there is always much to be thankful for, too. This is something that all people have in common. However, Christians have it even better. Our glass is completely full… So a better question would be not a question at all, but the statement, “My glass is completely full and flowing over!”…

…We are complete in Christ. In Christ we have access to so many things, and I can think of four things right off the bat. We have access to all things pertaining to godliness, happiness/joy, hope, and comfort. With that being the case, why do we lose sight of that? Well, it is because even though the Holy Spirit dwells in us, He dwells within earthen vessels that are flawed…to put it in the simplest terms, we are human. That “human” part of us (The Bible refers to it as “the flesh”.) gives us access to ungodliness, discontent, doubt, and despair. The Bible teaches us to follow the Spirit, but we do give in to the flesh and sin daily, and we always will as long as we are living this life here on the earth, but as we mature in Christ we will be more apt to follow the Spirit.

The second phrase I have on my mind today is the phrase “Fat and Happy”. I like this phrase. It is not about your liking your figure. LOL…you know this, too, …hopefully. It is about having your “needs” met and being content and glad. This, too is a state that all people can experience on a certain level…and once again, Christians are enabled to experience this on a much higher level. We have the privilege of an intimate relationship with our Savior that those who haven’t put their faith in Christ do not possess. In Jesus we can have “fullness of joy”. This is something that is so wonderful that there are no words or phrases that can fully describe it. It is something that just has to be experienced to be understood. Have you ever had mint chip ice cream? Imagine trying to explain that to someone who has never tasted mint, chocolate chips, or ice cream. In order to know that the Lord is good you must taste Him… taste and see.

Some people might ask these questions: “But how do I ‘taste and see’?” ”How can I have ‘fullness of joy’?” ”If I really ‘do’ have access to all things pertaining to godliness, happiness, hope, and comfort, how do I acquire them or make use of them?” Well, it really isn’t difficult. These things are very valuable and costly (expensive) things that we desperately need but could never afford. However, if you have believed the simple message of the gospel, and received Jesus as your personal Savior and Lord, your name has been added to a bank account that will NEVER have “insufficient funds” Look at these beautiful Bible verses:

⁸Unto me, who am less than the least of all saints, is this grace given, that I should preach among the Gentiles the unsearchable riches of Christ; Ephesians 3:8 KJV

^“14For this cause I bow my knees unto the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ,¹⁵Of whom the whole family in heaven and earth is named,¹⁶That he would grant you, according to the riches of his glory, to be strengthened with might by his Spirit in the inner man;¹⁷That Christ may dwell in your hearts by faith; that ye, being rooted and grounded in love,¹⁸May be able to comprehend with all saints what is the breadth, and length, and depth, and height;¹⁹And to know the love of Christ, which passeth knowledge, that ye might be filled with all the fulness of God.²⁰Now unto him that is able to do exceeding abundantly above all that we ask or think, according to the power that worketh in us,²¹Unto him be glory in the church by Christ Jesus throughout all ages, world without end. Amen. Ephesians 3:14-21 KJV

I know, I still haven’t answered the question of “How” we get them. In order to get those things we must believe that what those verses say is true, and we must also ask the Lord for them. Just like we would with earthy riches… if we do not believe there is money in our account we will not go to the bank. We could have a whole lot of money in our account, but if we do not know that a deposit was made we will not go and make a withdrawal. We can even believe we have money in the bank, but if we don’t go to the bank and ask the teller to withdraw it we will not be able to spend it. Look at these verses below.

¹³I write these things to you who believe in the name of the Son of God so that you may know that you have eternal life. ¹⁴This is the confidence we have in approaching God: that if we ask anything according to his will, he hears us. ¹⁵And if we know that he hears us—whatever we ask—we know that we have what we asked of him. 1 John 5:13-15 NIV

Do the above verses teach us that we can ask for anything like a fancy house or car? No. We must ask “according to His will”, and that means we can ask for the things that “are promised” in scripture. Those who know Jesus as their personal Savior and Lord can ask for the other things that aren’t promised, and sometimes they get them and sometimes they do not get them, but the things that have been promised are always “according to the Lord’s will”, and the Lord will grant their requests. Godliness, happiness (joy), hope, and comfort are all promised to we who believe; all we have to do is ask!

Do you know Jesus as your personal Savior and Lord? Please click here:https://pronetoponder.wordpress.com/category/about-salvation-very-important-words/ and make sure.

Do you have a Bible? If you don’t have one, you need not worry. Just click here:www.biblegateway.com They have many versions and translations of the Bible that you can read. Some of the best things in life are free!

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