THANK GOD TODAY

I am trying very hard not to question God...as I KNOW in my heart he is LORD OF ALL!! I listened to Joyce Meyer this morning and she really hit home with me...to be honest, I am not a t.v. watcher...but was not feeling well this morning, so sat in the chair and channel surfed...I came across her t.v. program and listened!! Her "topic" today was Practice Practice Practice and eventually it will become a habit. If we PRACTICE praying and thanking God everyday, it will become habit and we will continue to do it throughout the day, just like breathing! I am so BLESSED in this life, I know that satan tempts me throughout the day, whether it be my teenage children, financial problems, eating bad foods, smoking!!! The list goes on and on!! My sister and I are "studying" the Bible and I am finding the more I read, the more I questions, and I pray that God forgives me for this! I am finding also that I AM A SINNER!! I always knew I was a sinner, but I didn't realize that even me being "judgemental" (and I am!!, I am also trying to work on this) is a HUGE sin!! For Jesus says: Mathew 7:1-2 "Do not judge, or you too will be judged. For in the same way you judge others, you will be judged, and with the measure you use, it will be measured to you." This scares me and makes me realize that I must change my ways of judging others. TODAY I am working on praising those around me!! I am trying to NOTICE all the good that I see in people and OVERLOOK the bad, because I am sure (no, I know) that I have bad qualities too!!! God Bless EVERYONE and THANK GOD for the "little blessings" in our lives!!! Becki

Thank God for His Mercy and Grace!! I believe we all sin even though we are saved by the Blood of Jesus. If we didn't then Jesus would not have to sit at the right hand of the Father making constant intercession for us. The key is that after we are saved we repent each time we sin and strive to work toward being like our example Jesus Christ. I lived in bondage for most of my life because I thought that being saved meant being perfect and I always messed up. I thank God that I finally learned the truth!! As for the questions that arise as you study th Bible. the same thing happened to me when I began to seriously study the Word. I talked to my pastor and he said it is perfectly normal because the more Word you have the more power you have against Satan. Satan doesn't like that so he tries to confuse us as he is the author of confusion. If he can just get us to quit reading the Word he has it made. My advice is to talk to your pastor or someone else you trust about your questions. Pray and pray some more. Thank you so much for reminding me to thank God for the little things today..I seem to have times w I only look at the trough time I am having and forget to do that. hugs-Amy

Becki, I so appreciate your honesty. Yes, we are all sinners. Thank the Lord for His mercy & grace!!! If we don't read the word, we won't know how the Lord wants us to live. If we don't know how to live the way He wants, we will continue to sin and continue to be open to the blinding of the enemy. The word says in 1 Timothy 3:16-17 16All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness, 17so that the man of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work. God's word is our guide. It shows gives us what we need to do His work. So I say, keep reading, keep questioning. It just means that you are learning. Questioning what you read is not a bad thing. How else are you going to grow? It's very similar to how our kids learn. They question things. They ask WHY? They even question authority from time to time, which teaches them why they need to listen to authority. Praise the Lord you are growing in your faith! He is a wonderful counselor! Hugs, Robin

Oh Becki - anyone of us could have signed that posting and it would have applied. If we look closely at the Word of God it is fills us with so many questions. Why is that? Well the I believe the answer to that riddle is found in 1 Corinthians 13:10-12 "but when I was a child, I talked like a child. I thought like a child, I reasoned like a child. When I became a man, I put childish ways behind me. Now we see but a poor reflection as in a mirror,; then we shall see face to face. Now I know in part; then I shall know fully, even as I am fully known." This passage clearly shows the progression of our knowledge of God. Right now we are just reflections and poor ones at that, but when we come face to face with our Lord we will know Him fully just as he knows us fully. It is very exciting. As for your being judged because you judged someone. Well I think you might be taking that verse out of content. Jesus was preaching to the multitudes and that included non-believers. In a broad context of that sermon you will find that he addresses so many subjects in order to once again show us that no matter how "good" we try to be we will fall short. Only Jesus has been able to follow all his teachings. Thank goodness that we have been promised more from that sermon - He promises an open door - He promises that those who are seeking will find him (Matt 7:7-8). In studying this sermon we find both the beauty of grace and the harsh reality of the non-believer, the one who is unwilling to lay his life down and take up the cross. You my dear are clearly seeking to know your Lord. You do not seem to be building on shifting sand, but on the rock. One of my favorite verses is found in Romans 10:9 "That if you confess with your mouth "Jesus is Lord" and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. What a promise. Further down it is clarified yet again - Romans 10:13 "For everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved." Clearly we all have work to do in our personal walks with Jesus, but just knowing that he has promised me salvation - even in the face of all my flaws - fills my heart with gladness. Thank you for starting this topic. It forces me to look closely at what I believe about my Savior. I love this board. Thank you all for allowing me to participate in my search for a closer walk with Jesus. In His Loving and Firm Hands, Sally