 Galatians 4:7 “Therefore you are no longer a slave (bond-servant), but a son; and if a son, then also an heir through [the gracious act of] God [through Christ].” ~AMP
We are born into this world with our flesh directing us from birth. From the cries of a baby wanting milk to the complaints of a teenager when asked to wash the dishes after a meal. The flesh tells us to do this or not to do that. It tells us to go this way and not that way. When we are children our parents try to teach us righteousness by grooming us with chores. We reject this teaching because we don’t want to learn, nor do any work. Our flesh is trained by the world to take us on the path of 'least resistance'. In other words, in our youth, we may want things in our lives, but we don’t want to work for it. As we get older we grow unable to resist the orders or temptation of the flesh. We, unfortunately, become slaves to the world because of our flesh. God knows this. He created us for great things but knew the world could be an influence on His children. He knew the influence would bring His children into its bondage. This is why he created the spirit within us. And in His time, He will switch on that spirit so that we may break free from that worldly bondage. As hard as our parents fight to instill and teach us righteousness, it is not until we endure the trials of doing the 'right thing', even when we don’t want to, when we experience this 'switch' being turned on. When we learn to accept that day as ‘our day to wash dishes’, or our time to cut the grass and do yard work, we become prepared for the blessing. So that when that day comes and we take on the responsibility of owning our own homes, we are prepared to take care and maintain what we have because we learned that from our parents. God is the same way. Even though we are born slaves to the world and its ways, Galatians 4:1 says we are still created as God’s children. Which means we are His inheritors to the kingdom of heaven. But verse 2 goes on to say that until we are ready, we are under the supervision of, “...guardians and trustees until the time set by the Father.” Which means God watches over all of us and has His Angels watching over and teaching us as we prepare for our freedom. And when we are ready, when we receive Jesus Christ as our Lord and Savior, God will allow access to our inheritance. This is important because as our relationship with God increases, our bondage from the world’s grip decreases and we become free. We are no longer slaves! Because of Christ and His sacrifice, we are free. Free and available for God to do a great work in us! Because now our freedom allows God to fully take command of our spirit so that He can use us as He created us to be used by Him. May God bless and keep you under his umbrella of protection as you journey in Jesus’ name. Amen
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 Psalm 100:4 “Enter His gates with thanksgiving and His courts with praise.” ~CSB
As Christians, we should enter rooms excited. We should enter the next phase of our journey through the doors of the unknown, excited because God’s presence and power are in those rooms. These are rooms that He has led us to so that His power can be used through us to bless us and others who He will place in our paths. As His servants we should always recognize His presence. It is through this recognition we have the courage to continue knowing that God will do a great work in where He has brought us. Through these doors and in these new rooms He will have people there who have prayed to Him for His healing, His guidance and His wisdom and they will be able to receive all of that from God who will use us to that. With the passing of my mother I realize the significance of this. I feel that inside of her ceasing to exist physically, she has just finished her race. She has just accomplished a mission assigned to her by God Almighty. And in this completion of entering the next phase of her journeys in life, hearts were healed. Those who intersected with her path who were broken, became mended. After everything God has done through her was complete, it was time for her to take her place in the kingdom of heaven. To be with Him and His Son Jesus Christ. She did this because she had the spiritual courage to walk through doors of unfamiliarity. She had the strength to endure rooms filled with the unknown and confusion. She trusted God to use her in the places He brought her to. When we lose someone, instead of looking at the space where they once lived, look at the legacy they carved throughout their life. Use what they did to affect us and we will find that we can also practice celebrating God as we enter doors to rooms we know nothing about. To trust God to use us to make a difference in this world. I say this because my mother is a great example. During her final days and hours in this world, she made it clear that she was prepared. Her body was weak, but her spirit was stronger than ever. She knew her time in her earthly body was coming to an end. But she knew her story wouldn’t end there. She knew that because of Jesus Christ, there was a place prepared for her. She prepared herself to enter those gates, “...with thanksgiving…” and into “...His courts with praise…” And that is exactly what she did on May 13th 2025. Are we living our lives so that God’s accomplishments in us will be done? Have we practiced walking through the doors in this life and entering into rooms with praise and thanksgiving? Instead of fear, reluctance and confusion? We need to, because this is good practice in preparing us to walk in thanksgiving and praise in everything we do. Let us live our lives allowing God to work his power and miracles through us so that we may leave His mark of healing in those who cross our paths. May God bless and keep you in His love and protection in His Son Jesus’ name. Amen  Matthew 14:30 “But when he saw the strength of the wind, he was afraid, and beginning to sink he cried out, “Lord save me!”
It can happen to all of us. We have a game plan. We write the blueprint out for our next journey. Then we gather and obtain the resources we need to begin that new journey. Along the way things happen. Sometimes things don’t go as smoothly as we plan. In fact, obstacles appear that seem to block or maybe even destroy an avenue we were attempting to move forward on. This is what happened to Peter. In the text above, Peter can see Jesus walking on the water. He asks Jesus, in verse 38, “Lord if it’s You, command me to come to You…” Jesus tells him to “...Come…” Peter starts off well. He gets out of the boat and begins to walk on the water. This is how we begin as well. We pray and ask God for guidance just like Peter did. And in our prayers God will guide us. In anticipation of God answering our prayers, we step out of our boats and begin to walk on a path we’ve never walked before. We do it because God tells us to ‘...Come…’ But then it happens. The world around us will throw things at us. These obstacles represent the ‘wind’ in the scripture that took Peter’s attention. These obstacles can be people, situations, or past memories coming back to agitate unhealed wounds. When these things happen, we want to quit. We get frustrated as the obstacles thrown at us make us tired. We begin to lean toward negative ‘mindsets’ like, ‘Maybe this isn’t for me.’ We begin to sink in our own ‘oceans of trials’ as we, like Peter, take our eyes off Jesus and focus on all the chaos around us. Jesus already gave us what we need in verse 27, when He said, “Have courage!” Jesus not only tells us to be brave, He is also telling us that He has already conquered what we are afraid of. When we know Jesus has conquered, we can then accept the wind of chaos and trial, not as an obstacle but an ‘opportunity’. An opportunity to become stronger spiritually and an opportunity to grow stronger in our relationship with God through this process. Avoid sinking in the chaos of obstacles and stay above the waters by embracing the opportunities to be a better servant for the Lord. By believing that He has conquered the world. May God bless and keep you in his protection, love and grace as you journey in Jesus’ name. Amen  1 Thessalonians 4:13-14 “Now we do not want you to be uninformed, believers, about those who are asleep [in death], so that you will not grieve [for them] as the others do who have no hope [beyond this present life]. For if we believe that Jesus died and rose again [as in fact He did], even so God [in this same way–by raising them from the dead] will bring with Him those [believers] who have fallen asleep in Jesus.” ~AMP
A woman was asked to describe the process of Chemotherapy. She responded by saying that it reminded her of an ‘empty chair’. After being asked to elaborate on that view she said, “You go into a room with other people that are going through the same process as you are. Throughout the process, we talk and get to know each other. Eventually we all get to be close like a family sharing our stories through our endurance. Then one day you come to the room and notice an empty chair. That chair where a friend of mine once sat.” When we lose our loved ones or close friends it hurts. That hurt is hard to live with. There are those of us who will tell you that you never get over seeing that ‘empty chair’. But there is something we can do and there is something we must know. First we must take everything we have learned from our lost loved one. All that they were in affecting the good in others. We must allow that characteristic in that person to flow from us so that it may seed the same goodness in others as it did in us. Second, we must remember who we are. We are believers in the One True King. We are children of God. He loves and takes care of us. Through the death and resurrection of His Son Jesus Christ, death has been defeated. Believing in the power of the cross allows us to know that God will one day raise, "...all who have fallen asleep in Jesus…” The power of everlasting life will surpass all pain where death tries to bring sorrow. When you find yourself falling spiritually in grief, remember, Jesus has conquered the world, and He has conquered death. May God bless and keep you strong, healed and protected in Jesus name. Amen |
Authors Billy & YolandaThis is the place where we share our heart through God's Word in faith that will inspire and empower you to live in peace. Archives
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