Hello All! Sorry I have not been on in a few days. I was not feeling well, but I am doing much better. PRAISE GOD!
Today I want to tell you about a lesson that GOD taught me and I hope it will help someone else out there. Well, where do I start with this? HUM??? I guess I will start at the beginning ... It was 1999 and Randy's brother was in a horrible car accident that almost took his life. He was in the hospital for sometime recovering. PRAISE GOD he survived! He had a family which included a wife, an 11 year old and a new 4 month old baby. The house they were living in was pretty old and falling apart and they really needed another, especially with the baby.
Randy and I got a loan for them to get a house with the understanding that in time they would take over the note. Randy's brother recovered and went back to work and was doing real well making payments on the property.
A significant change took place over the course of a few years. In 2001, Randy went through a lay off at Boeing after the terrorist attack happened. He began taking some classes while he was on unemployment. Before Randy lost his job, we had been putting out our portfolio to many adoption agency's. We were trying to fill our home with children, but repeated miscarriages was preventing us from doing so, so we were trying to adopt. During Randy's unemployment season, we had an interview with a young lady who needed parents for her soon-to-be born child. We were elated to find out that she wanted us to be "said" parents. After we brought Brandon home from the hospital in July of 2002, I just wanted to stay home and be with him, but at that time I had to continue to work while Randy was still going to school and unemployed. After about 4 months I became pregnant again, and again miscarried. It reinforced the feeling in me that I needed to be home with Brandon. So, Randy had to make a serious decision...to stop school and get a job, but the economy was not good. Where would he get another job that would keep us in our home and keep us living the way we had been accustomed to? He could not locally, but he could enlist in the military and he could work and I could stay home and raise Brandon. It was a hard decision for us to make, but we chose to take the leap. It was scary, but worth it!
Randy left for basic training and AIT in 2003 and we were in Belgium in January of 2004. I told you major changes in our lives! It was hard going through it, but I can attest to you today that we are stronger people for all we have gone through. It is hard enough to be new parents, but to be new parents, change jobs, move from our home, leave our family and friends and go to another country all within 18 months was a bit much to handle, but again, we are stronger people because of it.
OK , now that you have the back story I need to get to the lesson GOD taught me. ( HE taught me many things on my journey, but I have one lesson in particular) So remember Randys brother had the house and making payments, ( remember that the deal was that they would eventually take over the note) he and his wife split up and each had moved out of the house. They never took over the note and also, we found out that they had quit making payments on the property. They abandoned the home, left us in serious debt, and on top of it all they refused to help us get it in shape to sell. It was left with so much junk inside and out and they would not even help get THEIR stuff out. We are in Europe and living on a meager military pay. We do not have extra money to pay for anyone to care for the property, so some of my family that lived not far from the property took charge and worked hard to get it cleaned up and in selling condition. THANK GOD for them! WHEW!!
My heart was heavy and I just wanted to find them and yell at them for doing this to us. How could they do that after we had helped them? My heart continued to get angrier and angrier at them. I would even pretent to talk to them in thin air just to relieve my stress. The house has been on the market for some time now and no one is intrested, and in this bad market, I was feeling defeated. Then GOD spoke to my heart. HE said, " The devil is a liar. Trust in ME and I will help you." I immediately became so peaceful. It felt wonderful to feel peace again in this area. But HE was not done with me. HE also told me that in order for HIM to forgive this debt, I would have to also forgive my brother and sister in-law for thier debt against us. It was so strong. I asked GOD to forgive me for harboring bitterness for them and to help me forgive them. HE told me that their spiritual wellbeing was more important than the large loan that is due. I felt ashamed of myself and for the first time I could think of them and actually feel love for them. I saw them through the eyes of GOD. HE wants them in HIS kingdom and if I continued the way I was going I would never show the true love of GOD to them. I would have done what the devil wanted and that is to hate. The BIBLE says that anyone who hates another person is equal to being a murderer. I thought about that I was horrified to think of myself as a murderer. Well, forgiveness abounds here in our home and I know for sure beyond any shadow of doubt, GOD HIMSELF will help us sell the property and all GLORY will be HIS.
My sweet ARMY husband just returned recently from a six month deployment. What joy and excitement to have him home again. I remember when he left; it was a time of sadness in our home, but also a time of being proud of my wonderful soldier. I had the kids and it was rough some days. I had just had my thyroid removed and at one point I was a bit unbalanced. (POOR KIDS) But, it did not take long for me to realize that I was not acting normal. I went to see the endocrinologist and he told me that my levels were extreamly high. Once my meds came down I felt much better and even my kids saw a great difference in me. I could have used my husband at that time for sure.
I tried to keep busy over the summer taking the kids to different places. At one point my daughter was able to go on a youth trip to Switzerland which is about eight to ten hours from here. She had a blast! She came back with beautiful pictures of the swiss mountains. I know that experience will be with her forever.
While Alyssa was in Switzerland, Brandon and I got to go see Randy in Germany. His ankle which he had surgery on at the beginning of the year was really causing him grief. Randys commander flew him to Germany to the hospital there to be seen. When I heard he was going to be there for a few days I loaded up the van and Brandon and I drove to see him. It is only four to five hours from here. It was really great to see him. He had been gone for two months by this time. Seeing him was so wonderful, but the morning after I arrived, Brandon came in our room where we were staying and was struggling to breath. We were right down the street to the ER and we ran there. They got Brandon in immediately and started him on a breathing treatment. It was so scary. We were there for about three hours and Brandon returned to normal. He has asthma and something in the Germany air set it off. I am so thankful that Randy was there to be with me during this time.
The days went by and it was time to go back to Belgium. Randys ankle results came back and there was nothing they could do. When he had his surygery earlier on in the year his bone had been cut during surgery and it takes bone a real long time to heal. They gave some pain medicine and sent him on his way. So, once again we had to say goodbye to Randy. It was so hard.
The rest of the summer went pretty well, but it was so lonely without Randy. The only thing I can say that got me through it all was GOD. I have ( had) a great fear of driving, but GOD gave me strength to persevere and I was able to drive to an unknown region. HE and HE alone did that for me. Through every tough time that I had to get through alone, GOD was there to help me. The BIBLE says HE will never leave us nor forsake us and I know that to be so true. GOD has shown me that with HIM I can do anything, but without HIM all I do will fail and I will end up living in continuous fear. The kind of fear that paralyzes me to the house. I strongly dislike that! But the BIBLE says that fear is the opposite of faith and for me not to have faith in my HOLY GOD would be sin against HIM. It would have been like telling HIM that HE is not capable of helping me. What an insult to HIM. I love GOD too much to insult HIM. So, with that, HE helped me replace fear with faith and voila, I made it to Germany and back not just once but twice. GOD is so good!
GOD did teach me alot during that time alone with the kids and though it was tough sometimes I know I was not truly alone, my FATHER in HEAVEN was there. Now that it is all over and my sweetness is home, we can get back to being a family. It takes a bit of time to get reaquainted after some time apart, but it has been so wonderful. The kids and I are enjoying every minute with Randy. Thank you GOD for bringing him home to us, and Honey...welcome home!
Hello all! My name is Donna and I am a novice to the blogging world. So, be patient with me. I am not sure what I am doing, but I know as time goes on I will get the hang of it.
I hope to just write about my day to day happenings and tell others how GOD has blessed me in that day. I hope to also get to know my brothers and sisters in CHRIST whom I do not know yet, while leading others to the CROSS so they too will come to know the SAVING GRACE of JESUS. I WANT MORE BROTHERS AND SISTERS!!!!
Labels: Introduction
Hello All, Grace and Peace be to you!
I am a big fan of Ray Comfort and Kirk Cameron. Do you remember Kirk Cameron from "Growing Pains"? He played Mike Seaver. Kirk is a true, Bible Believing, Christian. Ray Comfort is an evangelist from New Zealand. Ray and Kirk take the GREAT COMMISSION ( to take the gospel to every creature),very serious. They love GOD and they love their fellow man. They love other's so much, they go to the street's to witness to try to bring them to the understanding of why they need to be reconciled to GOD. Some choose CHRIST and some take their freewill and run away from CHRIST.
They Have a program called "The Way of The Master". The Way of The Master is a program that teaches how to witness the way JESUS did. If you want to learn how to become an effective witness for CHRIST, go to www.thewayofthemaster.com. On this site you will see video's of Ray and Kirk on the street trying win souls,and other video's such as Hells Best Kept Secret ( everyone needs to see this video) You will see study tools, a store where you can purchase very unique, but effective gospel tract's, and learn the tools of becoming an effective witness.
I have been studying Way of The Master for two years and it is awesome! I encourage everyone who calls themselves "children of GOD" to get out and tell others about CHRIST. If we do not, we are letting people go to the lake of fire. How can I let others go into the lake of fire when I have HEAVEN as my home? If we truly love GOD and our fellow man, we will not let fear stand in our way, but let GOD, through The Way of the Master be our guide.
This clip below is so powerful. Please watch! I hope you like Ray, I think he is a great example of how we all should be. PRAISE GOD!!
GOD BLESS!
Hello All, Grace and Peace be to you!
In Ephesians 6:10-20 NKJV says...
My Brethren, be strong in the LORD and in the power of HIS might. Put on the whole armor of GOD, that you may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil. For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkenss of this age, against spiritual hosts of wickedness in the heavenly places. Therefore take up the whole armor of GOD, that you may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand. Stand therefore, having girded your waist with truth, having put on the breastplate of righteousness, and having shod your feet with the preparation of the gospel of peace; above all, taking the shield of faith with which you will be able to quench all the fiery darts of the wicked one. And take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the SPIRIT, which is the WORD of GOD; praying always with all supplication in the SPIRIT, being watchful to this end with all perseverance and supplication for all the saints and for me, that utterance may be given to me, that I may open my mouth boldly to make known the mystery of the gospel, for which I am an ambassador in chains; that in it I may speak boldly, as I ought to speak.
The next armor piece is Righteousness which is the state of being right with GOD; justification; the work of CHRIST, which is the ground of justification. Psalm 119:40 says, Behold, I long for YOUR precepts; Revive me in YOUR righteousness. Psalm 23:3 (Amplified Bible) says, HE refreshes and restores my life (my self); HE leads me in the paths of righteousness (uprightness and right standing with HIM--not for my earning it, but for HIS name's sake.) Righteousness means being just, fair, and morally upright. We all should walk in righteousness, not because we have to for being bound by law, but because we love GOD, we will want to walk morally, just and fair. Where do we find out how to walk morally? It is in HIS WORD!
When the world is calling for us to act according to the flesh and sinful ways, we know that if we heed Apostle Pauls warning to put on Righteousness we will not easily be fooled by the enemie's scheme's and plan's.
The third armor piece "Gospel of Peace" will be in part three of this article.
GOD Bless you!
Hello All! Grace and Peace be to you!
Ephesians 6:10-20 NKJV says...
My Brethren, be strong in the LORD and in the power of HIS might. Put on the whole armor of GOD, that you may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil. For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkenss of this age, against spiritual hosts of wickedness in the heavenly places. Therefore take up the whole armor of GOD, that you may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand. Stand therefore, having girded your waist with truth, having put on the breastplate of righteousness, and having shod your feet with the preparation of the gospel of peace; above all, taking the shield of faith with which you will be able to quench all the fiery darts of the wicked one. And take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the SPIRIT, which is the WORD of GOD; praying always with all supplication in the SPIRIT, being watchful to this end with all perseverance and supplication for all the saints and for me, that utterance may be given to me, that I may open my mouth boldly to make known the mystery of the gospel, for which I am an ambassador in chains; that in it I may speak boldly, as I ought to speak.
In the verses above you see that Paul uses the roman soldier analogy, because he wants us to see that we are in a battle...a spiritual battle. My husband is in the ARMY and if he goes into battle, he has been trained to wear his battle gear to protect himself from harm and the possibility of death. GOD too, wants us to be trained to protect ourselves from spiritual warfare. We are battling some pretty nasty wicked beings. (If you notice it says that our war is not with flesh and blood= not with humans) They want us to fall for lies, self destruction, and most of all to keep us from telling others about what JESUS has done for us. This spiritual battle will continue until the day JESUS comes back for HIS people, so Paul tells us about our armor. Notice that Paul says in verses 11 and again in 13 to put on the “Whole" armor of GOD, giving the impression that it is possible to go into battle partially protected. It is important to understand what the armor pieces are, and how to apply them. The armor piece's (breastplate, sword,shield etc., are physical and we are dealing with the spiritual) should not be focused on, but focus on and apply to our lives those things that GOD says will protect us. What are they? The first is TRUTH. WE should apply TRUTH to our lives. "TRUTH" being of nothing false. GOD wants us to be honest and true to HIM, to man, and in all we do, think and say. The Ninth commandment found in Exodus 20:16 says, that we should not bear false witness. (We should not lie) Lev. 19:11 says, Ye shall not steal, neither deal falsely, neither lie, Ps. 119:163 says, I hate and abhor lying, Proverbs 12:22 says, Lying lips are abomination to the Lord, and John 8:44 says, The devil is a liar and the father of lies. If the devil is the father of lies, to battle him, we should put on TRUTH!
The second armor piece, "RIGHTEOUSNESS" will be in part two of this article.
GOD BLESS YOU!
Hello All, Grace and Peace be to you! I love GOD so much! I am in awe at HIS LOVE. HE loves us so much that HE came into the world as the person of JESUS CHRIST to die on a cross, taking our punishment on HIMSELF. We sin, ( commit crimes against GOD)and because of those sins (crimes) we are on the way to eternal judgement in the lake of fire. The BIBLE says in Romans 5:8, But GOD demonstrates HIS own love toward us, in that while we were still sinners, CHRIST died for us. HE loved us so much that even though people kill, steal, rape, lie, worship false gods, participate in sexual immorality...JESUS still chose to come to earth to save us. What is HE saving us from? Romans 5:9 says, Much more then, having now been justified by HIS blood, we shall be saved from wrath to come. JESUS came to save us from the wrath to come ( Lake of Fire). Revelations 21:8 says, But the fearful, ( fear is contrary to faith. Hebrews 11:6 says, But without faith it is impossible to please HIM, for he who comes to GOD must believe that HE is, and that HE is the rewarder of those who diligently seek HIM. Fear of the LORD is the beginning of wisdom. If you do not have faith in GOD, it is a sin) and unbelieving, and the abominable,( Worthy of, or causing, abhorrence, as a thing of evil omen; odious in the utmost degree; very hateful; detestable; loathsome; execrable. ) and murderers, and whoremongers, (sexually immoral) and sorcerers, and idolaters, (One who worships idols.)and all liars, shall have their part in the lake which burns with fire and brimstone (sulfur) : which is the second death.
People who never believe that JESUS died on the cross and ascended into HEAVEN will not not be saved. They will be forever the enemies of GOD, but for those who repent will be reconciled to GOD. Romans 5:10 says, For if when we were enemies we were reconciled to GOD through the death of HIS SON, much more, having been reconciled, we shall be saved by HIS life. We were GOD's enemies, GOD came anyway to die a cruel death so we could be right with HIM and escape torment to have HEAVEN as a dwelling place for all eternity. PRAISE HIM!
We committed crimes against GOD, and HE died, and paid our penalty in HIS life's blood to reconcile us to HIMSELF...WOW!!! That my friends, is true love! How about it friend, are you headed to the lake of fire? Wouldn't you like to know for sure you have HEAVEN as your home? Take a look at yourself and ask yourself this... Have I ever told a lie? Have I ever stolen anything? Have I looked upon another to lust after them ( JESUS says that if you look at another to lust you have committed adultery with them in your heart.) Have you ever used GOD's name as a curse word or irreverently? These are just a few of the Ten Commandments, and if you have said yes to any or even just one, you are guilty and GOD sees you as an enemy, but HE does not want to. HE wants you to look at Romans 10:9,10 and follow through with it, which says, If you confess with your mouth the LORD JESUS, and believe in your heart that GOD has raised HIM from the dead, you will be saved. With the heart one believes to righteousness, and with the mouth confession is made to salvation.
I hope you will consider your spiritual well being today friend. JESUS LOVES YOU INDEED!!!
Thank you JESUS for loving us so much that you would leave your home of safety to come to your world you created to teach the very people you created about the truth of your WORD. Thank you for dying for me and the whole world even though we did not, and do not deserve it. I pray that all will come to know YOUR SAVING GRACE! Thank you! I love you so much! Thank you for being my TRUE LOVE! IN JESUS name, AMEN!
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