Are You a Child Yet?

Greetings!!!

Are little children welcome in your church services? Do you enjoy their presence? Do you feel the children there for you to teach, or to teach you? One of the Scripture verses God gave me when we first started homeschooling was "As iron sharpens iron, so one man sharpens another." Proverbs 27:17 I took that as a goal. At first I did not realize it was God's plan to use my children to make me into what God wanted me to be as much as, maybe even more than, He wanted me to help my children become what He wanted them to be.

If you are blessed to have little children in your church services, I suggest that you watch them very closely, and embrace the opportunity before you with sober judgment. Consider Matthew 18:1-6. At that time the disciples came to Jesus, saying, "Who then is greatest in the kingdom of heaven?" And He called a child to Himself and stood him in their midst, and said, "Truly I say to you, unless you are converted and become like children, you shall not enter the kingdom of heaven. And whoever receives one such child in My name receives Me; but whoever causes one of these little ones who believe in Me to stumble, it is better for him that a heavy millstone be hung around his neck, and that he be drowned in the depth of the sea."

Do not feel bad if you have a hard time getting this. You are in good company. It was only one chapter in Matthew 19:13-15 that we find that the disciples did not get it either. Then some children were brought to Him so that He might lay His hands on them and pray; and the disciples rebuked them. But Jesus said, "Let the children alone, and do not hinder them from coming to Me; for the kingdom of heaven belongs to such as these." And after laying His hands on them, He departed from there.

Watch the children your church services. Children are carefree. They do not question whether or not they are loved, but are assured of it. They are convinced that they can have anything that they want and that it is right for them to want it. I love to watch them worship. In freedom and in sheer delight, they abandon themselves to God. At your age, have you become a child yet?

The LORD bless you with delighting in the little child inside you.

I love you,

Ruth

Wisdom-Knowledge-Discernment

Greetings!!!

Are you sagacious? Maybe I need to give you the definition: wise, foreseeing, to perceive acutely; having or showing keen perception or discernment and sound judgment. (New World Dictionary of American English Third College Edition) The Thesaurus might give you a broader understanding: wise, clever, intelligent, knowledgeable, sensible, sage discerning, judicious... are you getting the picture? (Funny... I could not come up with a picture.)

According to 1 Corinthians 12:1-11, becoming truly sagacious is a spiritual gift. "Now concerning spiritual gifts, brethren, I do not want you to be ignorant: You know that you were Gentiles, carried away to these dumb idols, however you were led. Therefore I make known to you that no one speaking by the Spirit of God calls Jesus accursed, and no one can say that Jesus is Lord except by the Holy Spirit. There are diversities of gifts, but the same Spirit. There are differences of ministries, but the same Lord. And there are diversities of activities, but it is the same God who works all in all. But the manifestation of the Spirit is given to each one for the profit of all: for to one is given the word of wisdom through the Spirit, to another the word of knowledge through the same Spirit, to another faith be the same Spirit, to another gifts of healings by the same Spirit, to another the working of miracles, to another prophecy, to another to another discerning of spirits, to another different kinds of tongues, to another the interpretation of tongues. But one and the same Spirit works all these things, distributing to each one individually as He wills." NKJV

Isn't it interesting that wisdom, knowledge, and discernment are all spiritual gifts? These gifts go beyond the wisdom, knowledge and discernment of this world. These gifts along with all the other gifts of the Spirit are given to God's children to make the church, the bride of Christ, everything God wants it to be... spotless, whole, without blemish, full of faith and power to overcome the world, the flesh, and the devil.

Again I ask, are you sagacious? If you are not, you can be. I you are not, why not. If you are not, you need to seek God until you are. When you receive spiritual gifts, you can begin to change your world, but do not stop with seeking only wisdom, knowledge, and discernment. All the gifts of the Spirit are available to you. Seek the Lord on what gifts He wants to have operating in you, and then do not be afraid to use them.

The LORD bless you with all the gifts of the Holy Spirit working in you and through you.

I love you,

Ruth

Are You In Prison?

Greetings!!!

Have you ever been in prison? Have you ever held onto unforgiveness against someone? Then I would venture to say that you have been or perhaps are in prison. I can almost hear you say, "But, Ruth, you do not understand what that person did to me!! The offense was too great. The wound is too deep. The scars are too ugly." Let me tell you that you are believing a lie. In your attempt to keep that person in prison because of their offense against you, you yourself are held in bondage by the devil, and he does not want to give up his prisoner.

https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjQgywbu1Z2D1TIR_5OTBaAFgGAcTgzhUjhMaPQxY9bw5Ld6-pe8pWruqkKYk08GUk0uBCJ7eRF2LLAlJZggylOINzfu1DBGj1Cs_O9q2lZogapOjqDfmWqAl_X3WBjiz13sLArx54aTn-I/s1600-h/prison.

I have two Scriptures to share with you. The first I want you to see is Ephesians 4: 26. "In your anger do not sin: Do not let the sun go down while you are still angry, and do not give the devil a foot hold." Being angry is not right or wrong. What you do with your anger can be. By allowing your anger to fester, you give the devil an opportunity to take over this area of your life. He keeps you thinking about the wrong committed against you. This causes animosity to build. Resentment, bitterness, anger, and rage increase. When you think of this person, you replay the injustice, and the cycle starts over. You are in prison, and you want to keep the person who hurt you in prison too. The only way to break the cycle is to forgive.

The second Scripture is part of "The Lord's Prayer". Matthew 6:12-15 "Forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors. And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from the evil one. For if you forgive men when they sin against you, your heavenly Father will also forgive you. But if you do not forgive men their sins, your Father will not forgive your sins." Wow! Did you get that? You are asking God to forgive you in the same way that you forgive other!! Think about that and let it sink into your spirit.

Are you tired of being help captive to a wrong committed against you? Make the choice to forgive. Choosing to forgive does not mean that you condone what that person did. Forgiveness does not mean that you have to trust that person. Extending forgiveness opens the prison door not only for the person who hurt you, but also, and more importantly, it opens the doors for your freedom. Do not continue to choose bondage and imprisonment. Do not continue to believe the lies of the devil. Choose freedom and forgiveness.

The LORD bless you with freedom from the bondage of unforgiveness.

I love you,

Ruth

Grief

Greetings!!!

Have you ever suffered a loss and struggled with the grief? There are all kinds of losses. Most people recognize and accept the grief associated with the death of a loved one, but there are many losses that can cause varying degrees of grief. Other things that can cause a person to grieve are job loss, failed marriage, a child leaving home-even for a good reason, a miscarriage, plus many other things I have not mentioned.

The ocean at Asseteague, Virginia, was a great example of how grief can suddenly overwhelm and crash in on life. Hurricane Bill was out in the Atlantic pushing its way up the coast making the waves at Asseteague, Virginia, almost large enough to surf. Although the waves were larger, they were mostly manageable and a lot of fun, but at times a wave would land that was so violent in its size and strength that we had no control and had to give ourselves over to the wave until we could get back to our feet on shore.

Are you struggling in the waves of grief feeling like you are about to drown? Ponder these words from Isaiah 43:1-3 "But now, thus says the LORD your creator, And He who formed you, "Do not fear, for I have redeemed you; I have called you by name; you are Mine! When you pass through the waters, I will be with you; And through the rivers, they will not overflow you. When you walk through the fire, you will not be scorched, Nor will the flame burn you. For I am the LORD your God, The Holy One of Israel, your Savior;"

Grief will come. It may feel like you will be overwhelmed by your grief. You may never be the same because of the grief you bear. But never forget that you are not alone. You are not unloved by the Father. He still has you in His hand. He still loves you with an everlasting love. You are still the apple of His eye. He still wants to hear all about what you are experiencing. He still wants to hold you and comfort you through your grief... even if you are angry with Him because He did not keep you from this grief. Do not hold back. Do not hesitate. Go to Him.

The LORD bless you with His comfort in your grief.

I love you,

Ruth

Roots

Greetings!!!

Do you have trees in your yard with roots that have become a problem? The roots of two maple trees in our front yard have gotten so big that it is difficult to mow around the trees. So I took on the task of digging out the grass around them and mulching that area. As intertwined as the as the branches are, the roots were even more entangled. It amazed me how many really large roots there are under these trees. I could not see how big the problem was as long as the grass covered the roots.

As I looked at the roots of these trees, Hebrews 12:14-15 kept coming to mind. "Make every effort to live in peace with all men and to be holy; without holiness no one will see the Lord. See to it that no one misses the grace of God (in the footnote : "Falls short of" or "fails to lay hold of" God's grace) and that no bitter root (in the footnote: Pride, animosity, rivalry or anything else harmful to others.) grows up to cause trouble and defile many."

What is your struggle? With whom are you struggling? It is up to you to bring peace to the situation. It is up to you to seek peace and pursue it. Cry out to God for His grace in the time of your need. Do not allow envy and pride lead to animosity and resentfulness. If you leave this unchecked, it will lead to bitterness. Bitterness is a deadly poison. Like the roots of our trees, it will entangle and disrupt everything near it and choke the life out of you and everyone around you.

The LORD bless you with doing what you need to do to rid your life of all resentfulness and bitterness and anything else that would keep you from the presence of God.

I love you,

Ruth

Are You Free

Greetings!!!

Did you do anything special on the Forth of July to celebrate your freedom? Our family went to see the fireworks display set off by Beaver Stadium at Penn State University. It made me think of all the battles fought, all the blood spilled, and all the lives lost to win my freedom. Have you ever thought about what it cost for you to be free? It was a high price.

Do you know that there is another kind of freedom? This freedom was even more costly. Here is what Romans 6:16-23 says: "Don't you know that when you offer yourselves to someone to obey him as slaves, you are slaves to the one who you obey - whether you are slaves to sin, which leads to death, or to obedience, which leads to righteousness? But thanks be to God that though you used to be slaves to sin, you wholeheartedly obeyed the form of teaching to which you were entrusted. You have been set free from sin and have become slaves to righteousness. I put this in human terms because you are weak in your natural selves. Just as you used to offer the parts of your body in slavery to impurity and to ever-increasing wickedness, so now offer them in slavery to righteousness leading to holiness. When you were slaves to sin, you were free from the control of righteousness. What benefit did you reap at that time from the things you are now ashamed of? Those things result in death! But now that you have been set free from sin and have become slaves to God, the benefit you reap leads to holiness, and the result is eternal life. For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord."

Have you been set free? How do you celebrate your freedom? If you have been set free from your past, you must choose to become a slave to the One who paid the price for your freedom - Jesus Christ. You see, when you have been set free, you become free to serve the One who can give your life meaning and purpose, and fill you with love, joy, and peace, and give you a future and a hope. It is worth giving up all that has you bound and keeps you from Him.

The LORD bless you with choosing to be His servant.

I love you,

Ruth

All Consuming Fire

Greetings!!!

Have you ever sung these words and meant them? "All Consuming Fire, Your my heart's desire, and I love You dearly, dearly Lord." When you think of that All-Consuming Fire, what comes to your mind? Is it a flickering flame like a candle? Perhaps a campfire or bonfire is more like the fire that comes to you mind. Or perhaps, just maybe, something like this Alaska wild fire is more like the image inside your head and heart. As I thought about God's all-consuming fire in church on Sunday, God spoke these words to my heart, "My fire is not one that can be controlled. It is bigger than even the largest wild fire that has been on the Earth. It cannot be controlled by man."

(Picture taken from http://tiee.ecoed.net/vol/v3/issues/frontier_sets.yellowstone/img/forest_fire%5BHR%5D.jpg)

There are two accounts of God and fire that immediately come to mind. The first is Exodus 3:1-4. "Now Moses was pasturing the flock of Jethro his father-in-law, the priest of Midian; and he led the flock to the west side of the wilderness, and came to Horeb, the mountain of God. And the angel of the LORD appeared to him in a blazing fire from the midst of a bush; and he looked, and behold, the bush was burning with fire, yet the bush was not consumed. So Moses said, "I must turn aside now, and see this marvelous sight, why the bush is not burned up." When the LORD saw that he turned aside to look, God called to him from the midst of the bush, and said, " Moses, Moses!" And he said, "Here I am."

The second passage is Exodus 20:18-20. "And all the people perceived the thunder and the lightning flashes and the sound of the trumpet and the mountain smoking and when the people saw it, they trembled and stood at a distance. Then they said to Moses, "Speak to us yourself and we will listen, but let not God speak to us, lest we die." And Moses said to the people, "Do not be afraid; for God has come in order to test you, and in order that the fear of Him may remain with you, so that you may not sin."

When you consider God's all-consuming fire, what will you do? Will you shrink back in fear like the Israelites, or will you, like Moses, press in and get as close as you can to it so that God can have His way with your life? It is God's desire that you draw near and press in, never forgetting that this fire is not a fire that you can control. You must allow God to consume everything that needs to be consumed in your life. You must give Him free reign. You will not regret it.

The LORD bless you with willingly stepping into His fire.

I love you,

Ruth