Sisters Serving the Lord

I Corinthians 12:4-7 (KJV) Says, "Now there are diversities of gifts, but the same Spirit. And there are differences of administrations, but the same Lord. And there are diversities of operations, but it is the same God which worketh all in all. But the manifestation of the Spirit is given to every man to profit withal."

In the above passage of scripture it is made clear that God gives each and every one of us gifts to be used in service to Him. Although these gifts vary from person to person, each and every one of them is important. Being born with free will, however,  it is up to us to opt to ask God to work through us utilizing our gifts and talents in service to Him. This blog offers a great example of how powerful and long lasting an impact opting to use your talents and gifts for the Lord can truly have. 

I want to share with you what God shared with me this morning through a group of gospel singing sisters,The Ballew Sisters, who opted to step out in faith and use the gifts and talent that God gave them to serve Him and bless others.  God blessed each and every one of them with a beautiful voice, and as if these gifts and talents weren't enough individually, when they come together their harmony reaches perfection. God is amazing, and the harmony they share is certainly proof of that. I grew up listening to them sing, and have been blessed by their music for years now. After Church on Sunday mornings my family had dinner at my grandmother's house. After dinner my grandmother, aunt, mom, sisters, and myself would listen to The Ballew Sisters and sing along as we cleaned the kitchen. These are memories I treasure and recall vividly. Their music blessed us then, and it blesses us now. 

My family and I are currently facing a mountain as we all do at times in this life, and during our storms encouragement and reminders of how great our God is are powerful. As we're facing this mountain, I get a package in the mail from One of the Ballew Sisters, Nancy, and it consists of several CD's containing songs recorded by her and her sisters. How blessed I felt to receive such a priceless gift. God's timing is perfect. Being anxious to begin listening to them, I decided to get in my truck, and go for a ride while I enjoyed them. The first CD that I began listening to was titled Mountain Climber. The first song on that CD was titled Mountain Climber, and the lead singer was Janet one of the sisters who has since the recording gone home to be with the Lord. I listened to the entire CD, and found myself listening to that particular song repeatedly; as it is so encouraging, strengthening, and relevant in my life at this time, and in the lives of my family. This song is a great reminder that we don't climb the mountains we face in our lives alone, but that God is right by our side to help us conquer them.

As I pulled back into the driveway the song, Mountain Climber, was coming to an end. I placed my truck in park, and sat there in the quiet for a moment feeling grateful for the encouragement I had just received through music. In the silence that followed, God showed me that this song and these sisters, Carolyn, Janet, Joy, Nancy, Patsy, and Suzy have made a powerful impact by choosing to use the talent and gifts He gave them. They've made a powerful impact, not just on the lives of me and my family members, but on the lives of many others. He further made clear to me that Janet and this song are proof that when you use your God given gifts, you continue to bless others even after God calls you home because the fruit of your faithful service to the Lord lives on. I'm grateful to Janet and her sisters for showing us what an encouraging and long lasting impact the gifts and talents God gives us can truly make.

I urge you to use the talents and gifts that God has given you to serve Him, and to love and encourage others. Don't waste all that the Lord has given you, when you could allow Him to work through you to make an important difference in the lives of others, and be a blessing to so many. Trust God and step out in faith knowing that He has equipped you, and He will be with you every step of the way. Like Janet, live your life in a manner that leaves a legacy so great it impacts and blesses others even after God has called you home. 

A special thank you with a heart full of gratitude to God for the blessing of these women and their music, to Janet who's faithful service lives on and continues to uplift and encourage, and to The Ballew Sisters for opting to use their God given talent and gifts to serve the Lord. May God continue to bless them as they continue to bless others.

If you have a prayer request and would like me to pray for you, leave me a message and I will be more than happy to do so. May God bless you!

Offended

Matthew 24:10-12 (KJV) Says, "And then shall many be offended, and shall betray one another, and shall hate one another. And many false prophets shall rise, and shall deceive many. And because iniquity shall abound, the love of many shall wax cold."

The above passage of scripture is spoken by Jesus as he answers the question posed to him by the disciples as to how they will know when the end of time nears. This passage makes clear that toward the end of time many people will be offended, and we are without a doubt seeing this come to pass. We are living in a world where people are not only easily offended, but they seem to purposefully seek out reasons to be. We are even seeing this in individuals who are self-proclaimed Christians.  If you are a born again believer in Jesus Christ, walking around with a spirit of offense does not fit who you are in Christ. As Christians we should not be easily offended, but rather we should look at all situations with a Christian worldview, and handle all things in a Christ-like manner. People should see in us love, kindness, meekness, understanding, compassion, and other like traits not someone who's walking around with a chip on their shoulder because they have allowed the spirit of offense to consume them. I'm by no means saying that there won't be times when someone says or does something that could result in our being offended. However, when this happens, it is not mandatory that we take the bait, and become offended. As Christians God has given us all we need through prayer and his Word to practice self-discipline, and to control how we receive, and respond to all situations.

The above passage of scripture also warns us that there will be many false prophets who will rise up in the end of time, and deceive many individuals. The Word of God tells us that these false prophets will deceive even some Christians. This is why it is so vitally important that we read and study God's Word for ourselves. When we read and study God's Word then we come to know exactly what it says, and will not be swayed from it, but rather will stand firm in it in it's entirety. We are seeing even Christians falling prey to false teaching in the world today. One example is found in some coming to believe that only a select few will make it to heaven, and those individuals have been chosen. This belief is easily disputed by many verses of scripture found in the Bible, and one example of those verses is John 3:16. This is a verse most learn as a small child, and it clearly states that WHOSOEVER believes on the Lord Jesus Christ shall be saved. When you are listening to someone teach or preach or you are reading any religious based material other than the Bible make certain that what you are hearing or reading coincides with the Word of God.

The above passage of scripture also tells us that in the end of time the world will be so full of sin that the love of many will wax cold. This is also something that we are witnessing in abundance. This too is seen among many self-proclaimed Christians, and that is a dire shame considering God by definition is love. We are seeing the love of many spouses waxing cold toward one another, we are seeing  love between some family members waxing cold, we are witnessing love between friends waxing cold, and we are even seeing love that should come naturally between parents and children fading into what seems to be non existent.

As born again believers in Jesus Christ, we should not allow offense to enter our life and consume us; rendering us useless as his disciples. We must study to know the truth of God's Word, and stand firm in it so we don't fall prey to false prophets. We should have no problem loving others as we should have the desire in our hearts, having the Holy Spirit dwelling within us, to love everyone as Christ loves us. In fact, the second greatest commandment given to us, out of the mouth of Jesus himself, is to love one another as he loves us.

I urge you to avoid allowing yourself to be offended, and to remind yourself that walking in the spirit of offense destroys your effectiveness as a disciple of Christ. I urge you to read and study God's Word for yourself and to stand firm in it in order to ensure you do not fall prey to a false prophet. I further urge you to remember that as a born again believer in Jesus Christ you are commanded to love others as Jesus loves you. You don't have to take my word for the fact that we are living in a world where these signs of the end of time are taking place, but rather all you have to do for confirmation is to look around.

If you have a prayer request and would like me to pray for you, leave me a message and I will be more than happy to do so. May God bless you.

Holding On

II Corinthians 5:17 (KJV) Says, "Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new." Romans 8:5 (KJV) Says, "For they that are after the flesh do mind the things of the flesh; but they that are after the Spirit the things of the Spirit."

The above verse of scripture taken from II Corinthians plainly states that once we accept Jesus Christ as our Lord and Savior, we become a new person, and that old things pass away. As new found believers we are on fire for Jesus, spend time praising him, thanking him, praying, reading his word, worshiping him, and having fellowship with other Christians. Another point this verse of scripture makes is that the moment we are born again old things pass away, as we no longer have the desire to live a life of disobedience to God.

We must be mindful to keep God first in our lives, and to make a conscience effort to spend time in personal devotion with him on a daily basis. It is of the utmost importance that we spend time daily praying, reading God's word, and listening to him for guidance, and direction in our lives. Unfortunately, many Christians at some point during their walk with God begin to drift away from him. This happens with some long time believers, as well as some that are new to Christ. There are many reasons for falling away none for which God is to blame. Some claim they have no time to spend with God because they are simply to busy. We should NEVER be to busy for God, but if we feel we are, then we need to clear a space for him in our schedule immediately. If we fail to nurture our personal relationship with God then we can prepare ourselves, because we are headed for disaster. When our personal relationship with God is not what it should be, then we become weak in the flesh, and we will give in to temptation very easily. Before long we begin convincing ourselves that various sins are so small they don't really matter, and that they are somehow okay knowing full well as born again Christians that they're not. We are also fully aware that when we conscientiously sin  we are doing something we should not be doing. If for some unknown reason we're not aware of it, then the Holy Spirit within us will certainly let us know.

The above verse of scripture taken from Romans tells us that those who are out to please the desires of the flesh are focused on the desires of the flesh. If you are focused on the things of this world then you cannot be focused on God. As this verse of scripture also states, those that have the desire to live in obedience to God are focused on the things of the Spirit. We cannot be focused on both at the same time. We must choose between living in obedience to God, and living in disobedience to him. We can't straddle the fence, and call ourselves followers of Jesus Christ. We cannot live in disobedience to God, and then question why things are going wrong in our lives, at least not if we are being honest with ourselves. Jesus set a perfect example for us on how to live our lives in a righteous manner, and his instructions are well documented in God's word.
 
Numerous times I've heard people moan, groan, and complain about how things are going for them in their lives. Amid all the moaning, groaning, and complaining, however, it is rare to hear anyone step up and admit that they have walked away from God, and that having done so has led to havoc in their lives. Most don't mention their relationship with Christ, and behave as though they are clueless that there are consequences for every action.

If you are a long time follower of Christ, or a new believer that has known sin in your life, and you are aware that you need to deal with it, I urge you to do so immediately. If you are aware of sin in your life, but have somehow convinced yourself that it's small enough not to count, then I urge you to stop lying to yourself. We all sin that is certain because we are only human, but to sin and continue in sin knowingly is a path that leads to destruction. I encourage you to ask yourself these questions: What sin do I have in my life that I know I need to turn away from, and ask forgiveness for? Why am I holding onto to something that is interfering with my relationship with Christ? Why am I holding on to something that prevents God from blessing me? Why am I holding on to something that is preventing me from having the greatest life I could possibly have?

 If you want the many blessings God has waiting for you and to live the best life possible, then I urge you to live in obedience to God. Walking with God brings the greatest joy, peace, and comfort that you will ever know. It is up to us to choose whether we will follow our fleshly desires or those of  the Spirit, but when we are choosing we must remember that we absolutely cannot walk with God, and hold hands with the devil.

If you have a prayer request and would like me to pray for you, leave me a message and I will be more than happy to do so. May God bless you.