Walking in kindness

Mathew 5:39

Jesus speaks on “an eye for an eye”

But I tell you , do not resist an evil person, if someone strikes you on the right cheek, turn to him the other also.

Come on now, some people are such a challenge sometimes aren’t they!

But Jesus tells us there will be trials with everything!!! So instead of getting mad or running from them try to live as though you were meant to see this person today and that person you are angry or annoyed with may just be teaching you something, even about yourself!  So, be kind, even if they are not. Show you belong to the Lord and follow in his ways, they are always loving and truthful.

As you read through the posts you will see a lot written for changing a heart, watching your step and especially for forgiveness.

Because….God is Simply Kind!

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Hope When There Is No Hope

Have you been struggling with many different circumstances that you just have no answer for. Well you are not alone in this, there is hope when you think there is no hope.

God sees your heart and knows what is going on so don’t worry about what isn’t or is happening, allow Him to guide you through the darkest of days.

There is hope that tomorrow will be a s better day for you. What you are going through will not last.

We can only see what our eyes tell us, but it is what is unseen that we hope for and as we pray and have faith that God will show you the way, it is then that we can find the solution to what is wrong. When you are finding such things are happening to you, maybe it’s time to step back and wait for God to show you what to do. For He is in control, not us.

Be kind to people who frustrate you, be gracious to those who are not fair and be hopeful for all that God promises you. He will not leave you or forsake you, it is He who guides your path and makes a way. Now you must do your part and believe that He will.

Jesus tells us in John 15:5

“I am the vine; you are the branches. If you remain in me and I in you, you will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing.

Shalom
Nancy
The Christian Writer

And Then The End Will Come

When will the end come?
Get your stuff ready, build the shelter, hoard the food, live like nothing matters….            all a farce.
In every generation, many have been fooled by someone that can sell you a bridge with your name on it. Let’s face it false teachers selling their agendas on end time events are gaining popularity as more and more people are being duped into their agenda, they make a feeble attempt to match up the Bible with their “opinion” on when these events will take place- “Did you see that thing in the sky?” Or “How about all these earth quakes, hurricanes and floods?” And so on and so on-this has the effect of placing fear/anxiety/hopelessness in the hearts of people who don’t know the truth of the Bible.
Matthew 24:36 “But about that day or hour no one knows, not even the angels in heaven, nor the Son, but only the Father.

Brothers & Sisters if you don’t know the Bible you will be tricked into believing and buying these false teachings. There is no sequence of numbers, blood moons, natural disasters or potential wars- Jesus says these are birth pains and tells us to look for the signs,
Matthew 24:4-8
 Jesus answered: “Watch out that no one deceives you. For many will come in my name, claiming, ‘I am the Messiah,’ and will deceive many. You will hear of wars and rumors of wars, but see to it that you are not alarmed. Such things must happen, but the end is still to come. Nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom. There will be famines and earthquakes in various places. All these are the beginning of birth pains.

Confirmations that we are getting closer:
– False Messiah’s (false teachings, anyone who leads you away from God) Some will fall away from God and follow false teachings of spirituality/growth potential/positive influencers or pastors following their own agenda and twisting the truth of the Bible.
– Nations are gathering against Israel, boycotting their products and services, the UN vote to block the move of the embassy to Jerusalem and the ongoing Gaza boarder war. You can read more on this link: https://www.timesofisrael.com/the-10-most-anti-semitic-countries/
Many countries are defending and gathering together to go against Israel, what we must do is to watch watch and wait for what will be coming next.
– Persecution
Jesus continues on to say that those who are Christians will be persecuted, which is happening now more than ever. The morals and values in which we seek are not God honoring.
Matthew 24:9-13 “Then you will be handed over to be persecuted and put to death, and you will be hated by all nations because of me. At that time many will turn away from the faith and will betray and hate each other, and many false prophets will appear and deceive many people. Because of the increase of wickedness, the love of most will grow cold, but the one who stands firm to the end will be saved.
If faced with the decision to worship Jesus or be thrown in jail, possibly put to death, many will run, trying to save their lives. God is still in control and the gospel will continue to be preached all over the world, regardless of what people think, say or do.

-Anti-christ
Jesus tells us clearly the anti-christ will stand in the holy place (temple) in Israel and proclaim he is God, (He will be highly regarded and people will think he is the savior) that is when things begin to accelerate. Many will fall away and be deceived by great “signs & wonders.”
Matthew 24:14-25 And this gospel of the kingdom will be preached in the whole world as a testimony to all nations, and then the end will come.
 “So when you see standing in the holy place ‘the abomination that causes desolation, (Anti-Christ) spoken of through the prophet Daniel—let the reader understand—then let those who are in Judea flee to the mountains.  Let no one on the housetop go down to take anything out of the house. Let no one in the field go back to get their cloak. How dreadful it will be in those days for pregnant women and nursing mothers!  Pray that your flight will not take place in winter or on the Sabbath. For then there will be great distress, unequaled from the beginning of the world until now—and never to be equaled again.
“If those days had not been cut short, no one would survive, but for the sake of the elect those days will be shortened.  At that time if anyone says to you, ‘Look, here is the Messiah!’ or, ‘There he is!’ do not believe it. For false messiahs and false prophets will appear and perform great signs and wonders to deceive, if possible, even the elect. See, I have told you ahead of time.

Jesus tells us immediately after those days
Matthew 24:30-31  
“Then will appear the sign of the Son of Man in heaven. And then all the peoples of the earth will mourn when they see the Son of Man coming on the clouds of heaven, with power and great glory. And he will send his angels with a loud trumpet call, and they will gather his elect from the four winds, from one end of the heavens to the other.

Jesus concludes in Matthew 24:32-34 by saying to be aware of the sign of the times, be aware of what is happening in the world around you. He says : Heaven and earth will pass away but my words will never pass away.” That gives us the knowledge to continue serving and looking for Him everyday. Stay in prayer, these days are getting harder for us, the world is turning from God and looking to their own lives for comfort, no matter what happens you know that Jesus promises you eternal life when you worship Him. Stand on that truth everyday brethren, He shall return and when He does the judgement will fall on those who have turned away from God.
Shalom
Nancy
The Christian Writer

#andthentheendwillcome #endtimes #Jesus #signoftimes

You Are Set Apart

I confess I am reading Leviticus in the Old Testament and finding it difficult wondering; how did they keep all the instructions and laws?

I also wondered were they afraid all the time of messing up and not being able to keep them? They did.
That is why the Book of Leviticus deals with their “right Living”, sacrificing for their sins, abiding by the laws and carrying them out, to be a holy nation set apart. Testing was their everyday challenge. Were they going to listen to God or do what they wanted?

Let’s fast forward to Jesus….
In his patience and love tells the Jewish people “I have not come to abolish the law but to fulfill it.” (Matthew 5:17) Jesus said He was the Messiah, many received Him with their whole heart- all were accepted Jews and Gentiles. Many devout Jewish leaders didn’t believe Him and their hard hearts turned away, the message fell on deaf ears. They were praying for a Messiah to save them from Roman rule, but in truth Jesus came to lead them to Himself for eternal life. Through Jesus the laws that kept them shackled could now be broken, but they could not hear or believe it, and they scrambled in stress to keep their laws in tact.

Isaiah 11:1-3. The Branch From Jesse           (Matthew 1:6 for lineage)
 
A shoot will come up from the stump of Jesse;
    from his roots a Branch will bear fruit.

The Spirit of the Lord will rest on him—
    the Spirit of wisdom and of understanding,
    the Spirit of counsel and of might,
    the Spirit of the knowledge and fear of the Lord—

and he will delight in the fear of the Lord.
He will not judge by what he sees with his eyes,
    or decide by what he hears with his ears;

I understand Leviticus it to be God’s instructions of holiness, sacrifices, worship & health, those instructions were instrumental to leading and guiding the Israelites as a holy people, setting them apart to follow God and abide by all his laws.

Why Are you set apart?

You were chosen by God to be a separate people when you came to Christ, there was a new life coming towards you, before Christ you were part of the world and now because of your faith in knowing that Jesus is Lord has saved you and takes you not physically out of the world but spiritually gives you a new life one that isn’t shackled to the earth, but is free to love and know that you have been set free by the power of His mighty blood.

Brethren don’t give up hope, it is for this time you have come into the world , maybe you don’t understand why but God has this great plan to show you how His mighty power works, JUST WATCH!

Shalom
Nancy
The Christian Writer

#setapart #Jesus #holynation # sacrifice #cross #God

There Is No Fear Of God

This is the direction of the world, but for those who seek God there is hope,

hope in Jesus!

I will post this Psalm to encourage you to not look at what the world is doing but to look to God. David witnessed many ungodly acts during times of distress, so he prayed seeking answers and this is God’s message through David as he writes;

Psalm 36

I have a message from God in my heart

    concerning the sinfulness of the wicked: 

There is no fear of God

    before their eyes. 

In their own eyes they flatter themselves

    too much to detect or hate their sin.

The words of their mouths are wicked and deceitful;

    they fail to act wisely or do good.

Even on their beds they plot evil;

    they commit themselves to a sinful course

    and do not reject what is wrong.

Your love, Lord, reaches to the heavens,

    your faithfulness to the skies.

Your righteousness is like the highest mountains,

    your justice like the great deep.

    You, Lord, preserve both people and animals.

How priceless is your unfailing love, O God!

    People take refuge in the shadow of your wings.

They feast on the abundance of your house;

    you give them drink from your river of delights.

For with you is the fountain of life;

    in your light we see light. 

Continue your love to those who know you,

    your righteousness to the upright in heart. 

May the foot of the proud not come against me,

    nor the hand of the wicked drive me away.

See how the evildoers lie fallen—

    thrown down, not able to rise!

May you find comfort in what God has spoken,

Don’t lose heart, God knows everything and is in control.

Shalom

Nancy

The Christian Writer

#thereisnofearofGod

#sinfulcourse

#yourunfailinglove,OGod

#Roman3:18

#Luke12:1-12

God’s Timetable Vs Ours

Waiting….. how hard is that?

We pray we wait, we pray we wait. Still no answer.

We want things to happen and for things to be shown to us clearly as we wait for direction.

But have you ever noticed that as you wait, you do see things clearly. In hindsight many things I prayed for did not happen, and that for my greater good. Maybe something was given to someone over my desire to have it because it wasn’t right for me and very right for another.

Don’t get me wrong, God has answered many prayers and I have seen many great things happen under His hand. I came to resolve that my timetable is not God’s. So for you weary waiter’s (and I don’t mean in a restaurant!) I say there is a season where you see a lot happening, you may be in it right now or as I call it a desert season just waiting for God as He is shaping you for whatever is coming your way next. Hold firmly onto trusting God for wherever you are now.  His plans are making a way for better seasons and as you wait, your faith is always being tested. Paul tells us this in the book of Hebrews devoting a full chapter 11 to the faith of the ancient people in the Old Testament. They may or may not have seen their dreams come true but God is always faithful to those who love and worship Him.

Hebrews 11:1

 Now faith is confidence in what we hope for and assurance about what we do not see. 

For those who have given up on your dreams, I say this to you, dreams are created in your life that others cannot see. When you have a dream, it’s because the dream you have is placed in you, to strive towards, used for the greater good of God and man. Dreams change and sometimes they die but if it is in you pray and see God’s hand and how He answers you.
Place your trust in God as He moves you closer to the things He desires for your life, surrender those tightly held plans and release them to Him, He knows the best direction.

It’s hard to see God working, isn’t it?
Especially when you think you should be going one way and the opposite is true. But God knows you better than you know yourself. That’s where trust, hope and faith come in.

Exodus 15:11
Who among the gods
    is like you, Lord?
Who is like you—
    majestic in holiness,
awesome in glory,
    working wonders?

In writing this to you I see my struggles with waiting, but I know as much as I struggle you do as well so as we are in the body of Christ we wait, we pray and we trust.
Shalom
Nancy
The Christian Writer

Red Sky at Night

Red Sky at Night

My father was in the Coast Guard in WW11, growing up we often would hear him say, red sky at night sailors delight, red sky in morning sailor take warning. Maybe you have heard this saying from your parents or grandparents, but there is so much truth to this!

Sometimes we can see the array of beautiful red colors in the sky when it is setting, like a painter’s brush strokes, we can take solace in the moment’s beauty. Just like the night, there comes a red sky the morning, the waves of the sea get rough, storms are coming. What is coming for us?

As if the weather could tell us so much about our own lives, good relationships, beautiful sunny days or calm days and everything seems to be going as planned. Next day, you wake up into a succession of storms. When things get stormy or out of control, what may be natural is to seek emergency prayer and know Jesus is with you. Storms end, beautiful sky again, all is good.

Did you forget who is in control of the wind and the waves?

Matthew 8:27

 The men were amazed and asked, “What kind of man is this? Even the winds and the waves obey him!” 

Would you be able to admit that when things are going well you place Jesus in a convenient spot in the back of the line, just waiting for you to call on Him when you need Him? 

He is not a God of convenience, He is to be worshipped, sought after and praised.

God, who moves the red sky in the morning, the roaring waves that crash down on the beach. God is in control of every aspect, even when you move away from His will, He loves you enough to bring you gently back and through tough lessons, back to the fold of Jesus’ arms. 

He is with you

Don’t ever forget that in the storm, Jesus creates a place for you to come to Him for shelter. He provides you with the strength to weather all storms. When you see red skies at night, the view that as if God is telling you I have brought you this far, my grace is sufficient, stand strong in it the storms are coming, if you have sinned, repent- because sin will cause the strongest of storms and shackle your life.

John 8:34 

Jesus replied, “Very truly I tell you, everyone who sins is a slave to sin.

Sins are forgiven through repentance and belief in Jesus Christ, who loves you with an everlasting love. Follow Him, keep Him close and know that He is with you in beautiful red sky nights and unpredictable red sky mornings. Don’t put Jesus at the end of the line when your prayers have been answered, put Him first and see that He never leaves you or forsakes you. Follow Jesus.

Shalom

Nancy

The Christian Writer 

#RedSkyatNight #Jesus #repent #sin

Gossip & It’s Destructive Force

Scrutiny… it’s just another word for gossip. Why? Because we are under the eyes of a scrutinizer. When we start out our conversations do they end up scrutinizing someone for their behavior? But in actuality, we are the ones that are behaving in a un-godly fashion. 

By gossiping, we are allowing the foothold of the enemy in our thoughts and words. If there is anyone who thinks that they are above gossiping, it is not the truth. The truth is that everyone is someone’s judge. We judge other people’s actions and think our ways are better. But are they? Maybe in each person’s sight, we are a vehicle for their wrath.  We need to check in on what we are doing as well. Not one is free from this and we all do some sort of judging. But when it’s taken to a place where it could severely damage someone’s reputation then this needs to stop.

Proverbs 18:8

The words of a gossip are like choice morsels;

    they go down to the inmost parts.

Gossip destroys relationships

One person may say one thing and a fire is let loose in it’s path, others get on board. Now you have a flame that’s out of control over something that could have been resolved just by a conversation to clarify everything.

Proverbs 26:20 

Without wood a fire goes out;

    without a gossip, a quarrel dies down.

Many families & friendships split because there are divisions that were misunderstood and “me” focused. “Look what they did to me?” -“Why did they say that to me?” Are just a few of things that can get blown out of proportion. Something misunderstood could be quite simple and pride rears its ugly head. Learning to let go is better than harping on it or blowing it out of context, like the storm that brings in the rough surf. No control just damaging waves.

Proverbs 16:28 

A perverse person stirs up conflict,

    and a gossip separates close friends.

Gossip prevents us from relationships

When you gossip and someone finds out you break confidence and trust. Now what seemed to be a good relationship is on edge with how much you will reveal. The lesson is this, if someone is gossiping to you, they are gossiping about you. So be careful who you let into your deep thoughts.

Proverbs 11:13 

A gossip betrays a confidence,

    but a trustworthy person keeps a secret.

Gossip just hurts

If someone finds out that things were revealed to someone else that’s hurtful and can really take time for someone else to regain trust again. Sadly the lesson is learned in a hurtful way. You lose confidence in someone you thought you had trust in.

1 Corinthians 2:15 

The person with the Spirit makes judgments about all things, but such a person is not subject to merely human judgments,

Gossip does nothing but hurt others, puts wedges between people and many times is not healthy. Ultimately God is our judge, it is He who judges us and our actions. Trust God, pray for everything.

Shalom

Nancy

The Christian Writer

Dry & Desolate Land

A traveling experience can be a great experience to see what is happening in the world as it takes us out of our comfortable life. It’s an eye opener to what is really going on with different cultures and their perspective on God.

If you know the Word of God, you pick up on things that people don’t notice and it grabs your attention, such as shopping. Innocent eyes of shoppers glance past statues displayed of idol gods. Defenders of this would probably say that it’s for serenity or just part of the decor, as we know it’s these subtle things that get unsuspecting people to think it’s cool or inquire about it at a later time. It only goes to prove that the presence of God has been replaced by idol worship. People have turned from God to the satisfaction of their self desires as many turn to false gods or worship false man-made objects.

What does God tell us when these things happen? 

His ears will not listen when they call to Him in distress -Jeremiah 11:14 

Why is it so easy for people to believe false things and not believe the truth?  

Romans 1:25

They exchanged the truth about God for a lie and worshiped and served created things rather than the Creator—who is forever praised. Amen.

This world has become a desolate dry place, people looking for water when they only find dry land. Jesus represents our water and food for our souls. But seeing all this right now confirms that the time is right for us to keep strong, march forward as the ways of man have fallen far from God. Those of us who follow God and His ways will be praying and listening more for the guidance of the Holy Spirit to know what to do as we direct people to Jesus. Always be ready for His return, don’t give up hope that is in Him!

I say to you, “Be ready at all times to give an answer for the truth that is placed in you”.

Hold fast and study brethren as the time is ripe for those who are seeking the truth. Trust the truth will set them free in this Dry and Desolate Land.

Shalom.

Nancy

The Christian Writer

#dry&desolateland  #Jesus

Are Your Roots Deep

Lately, I have been noticing that many are saying how much they need God and prayer, as people we seek the Lord when we find ourselves in desperate need of an answer. Many prayers of God’s people get answered, many don’t and we don’t know why, it’s a mystery only through God’s leading will you understand this. Today I want to share this Parable that Jesus spoke about to His disciples called the Four Soils. Starting at verse 4-8 – these verses may be difficult to understand, that’s why the disciples asked plainly “What do you mean?”. Luke 8:4-15 4 While a large crowd was gathering and people were coming to Jesus from town after town, he told this parable: 5 “A farmer went out to sow his seed. As he was scattering the seed, some fell along the path; it was trampled on, and the birds ate it up. 6 Some fell on rocky ground, and when it came up, the plants withered because they had no moisture. 7 Other seed fell among thorns, which grew up with it and choked the plants. 8 Still other seed fell on good soil. It came up and yielded a crop, a hundred times more than was sown.” When he said this, he called out, “Whoever has ears to hear, let them hear.” 9 His disciples asked him what this parable meant.  Are you wondering as well? 10 He said, “The knowledge of the secrets of the kingdom of God has been given to you, but to others I speak in parables, so that, “‘though seeing, they may not see; though hearing, they may not understand.’ 11 “This is the meaning of the parable: The seed is the word of God. 12 Those along the path are the ones who hear, and then the devil comes and takes away the word from their hearts, so that they may not believe and be saved. 13 Those on the rocky ground are the ones who receive the word with joy when they hear it, but they have no root. They believe for a while, but in the time of testing, they fall away. 14 The seed that fell among thorns stands for those who hear, but as they go on their way they are choked by life’s worries, riches and pleasures, and they do not mature. 15 But the seed on good soil stands for those with a noble and good heart, who hear the word, retain it, and by persevering produce a crop. Are You Firmly Rooted I’m seeing this in many people, they believe and pray to God for needs or when things are really bad, then when everything starts to look better, they turn away from God and turn back to their life again. These easier days will not last, things happen, the bottom falls out or some other problem comes up, where is the root?  Stand firm in God’s word and you will see your life change, so do circumstances, keep trusting God, stay firm, let your roots grow deep and pray. Become fruit for God to use in other people’s lives when they need that hope and firm foundation. People and things always disappoint but God never disappoints, put your faith and your life into His hands as He guides you along,, in peace and in every situation. Shalom, Nancy The Christian Writer                                             #areyoufirmlyrooted  #areyourrootsdeep

Spiritual Growth & God’s Plan

 

If you are like me, you constantly are measuring your growth in Christ. Many times I question, am I maturing and growing?  Am I behaving in a way that glorifies God or am I self-seeking? 

Today, I’m reflecting on David who was a man after God’s own heart (Acts 13:22)

Reading David’s Psalms we come to realize, he also was growing in his thoughts and behavior. David was clear on one thing, He knew with God all things are possible and he stepped out in prayer and faith. God grew his abilities to fight, guided him every day as a leader in King Saul’s army and kept him strong for whatever was coming his way.

Getting Stuck

David faced obstacles, King Saul, knowing David was next in line for kingship pursued him. We can only imagine his fear at times but we also know that God was with him and had anointed him to move through battles that were just about impossible for man to overcome and true miracles from the Lord’s Angel Armies. God had given David strength to scale every wall, victory in battle and as he leads, favor with men. David grew from a young sheep shearer to a great King, God was showing him the way because David got out of his own way. The plans were set for David, just as God has His plans set for us.

Psalm 33:11 

But the plans of the Lord stand firm forever,

    the purposes of his heart through all generations.

What can we learn from this and how can we get unstuck? 

There is no rock too big for God to move, let’s not let the one that is in front of us get in our way, it means only a detour for now, but later a victory. 

Psalm 25 Of David.

In you, Lord my God,

    I put my trust.

Where You Are

Looking back, from when you first felt God in your life and how you were led, do you see the work He has done in you? Do you see how He has led you from person to person, from teaching to teaching and has established your growth in ways only you can understand. As you study the Bible it becomes more real to you, your life unfolds in understanding the answers to your questions. As your prayer life changes your growth in Christ deepens and your relationship to Jesus goes from head knowledge to heart knowledge seeking the love that only He can give you.

Proverbs 19:21

Many are the plans in a person’s heart,

    but it is the Lord’s purpose that prevails.

Where You Are Going

God knows what each day will bring, not us. 

If you have you asked for direction with no answer in sight, it may take more growth, more tearing away the “old selfish ways” as Jesus makes new ways. 

Jesus does tell us to “Ask, Seek, Knock” and the door will be opened. The hardest part is waiting as we grow and understand that God’s way is better than our way. Pray and wait, the Holy Spirit will do the leading and you will know when things are right. Even if you make a mistake, He will gently show you the way back. He’s the potter, we are the clay. Trusting God is the most important thing you can do to know where you are going. Remember….. who’s plan, God’s!  

Isaiah 55:8

“For my thoughts are not your thoughts,

    neither are your ways my ways,”

declares the Lord.

Shalom

Nancy

The Christian Writer

#Godsplan #Spiritualgrowth #Jesus #askseekknock