The Small Things

I was listening to a preacher preach yesterday about praying to God. His words were to the effect of, "When I pray, I'm not going to ask God for small, mundane things. He has enough to worry about without that."

I disagree, completely. God wants your COMPLETE dependence on HIM. So, to ask for small things (like, the ability to be able to buy more tea this month) is just as important as big things (like my son is dying, will you help him?).

Personally, I am not too proud to ask God for anything. I talk to Him all day, not just in prayer at the beginning of my day. He is with me always, so I talk to him a LOT.

To think of God as "too busy" is to determine that He is not interested in YOU, and all the things YOU are. That would negate the description of "having a relationship". God wants a RELATIONSHIP, not your RELIGION. So, yes, He is interested in EVERYTHING about you.

Even if you just want some tea.

Run the Race

If you are doing everything to the best of your ability, as if you were doing it for the Lord, failure does not happen.

Even if you fail to make your desired goal, even if everything crumbles around you and falls apart, even if you lose what you have invested in it, you have not failed unless you quit.

Quitting is not an option. Giving up is not an option.

If you have continued to run the race in spite of the obstacles, even if you change course in the middle of the race and try to find a new road to the finish line, as long as God is directing you, you will make it to the Finish line.

You have not failed unless you gave up in the middle of the race and set down and decided not to run anymore.

The goal is not to be first to the Finish line. Instead, the goal is to make it to the finish line praising God the whole way there!

Hebrews 12:1

Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles. And let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us,

God's Laws: Feast these three times each year

Exodus 23

13 And in all things that I have said unto you be circumspect: and make no mention of the name of other gods, neither let it be heard out of thy mouth.
14 Three times thou shalt keep a feast unto me in the year.
15 Thou shalt keep the feast of unleavened bread: (thou shalt eat unleavened bread seven days, as I commanded thee, in the time appointed of the month Abib; for in it thou camest out from Egypt: and none shall appear before me empty:)
16 And the feast of harvest, the firstfruits of thy labours, which thou hast sown in the field: and the feast of ingathering, which is in the end of the year, when thou hast gathered in thy labours out of the field.

God has three main feasts that He wants us to observe throughout the year.

The first feast is the Feast of Unleavened Bread. It coincides with the Passover. It was celebrated on April 16th this year, and that week.

Here is a link to learn more about the Feast of Unleavened Bread: Click HERE

The second feast is the Feast of Harvest. It coincides with the celebration of The Pentecost. It will be on June 5th, this year. It celebrates the offering of the Firstfruits of the Harvest.

Here is the link to learn more about the Feast of Harvest: Click HERE

The third feast is the Feast of Ingathering. It coincides with Yom Kippur, and this year, it is celebrated on October 5th.

Here is a link to learn more about this celebration: Click HERE

Celebrating these feasts is the opportunity to take part in the Word of God, to become part of what God has planned, and what He has done.

I hope you celebrate with me this year!

God's Laws: Don't talk about other gods

Exodus Chapter 23
13And in all things that I have said unto you be circumspect: and make no mention of the name of other gods, neither let it be heard out of thy mouth.

You can talk about "Freedom of Speech" all you want, but God has rules about what you should and shouldn't talk about.

He doesn't want anyone to have any knowledge that there are gods out there that are not HIM. It is dangerous for His children to go exploring after other gods.

God knows that if you KNOW about other gods, your curious nature will always ask "why?" and seek out knowledge. There is a reason God told Adam that he and Eve were not allowed to even TOUCH the tree of knowledge. The old saying, "curiosity killed the cat" has merit; especially in this case.

Many of us are already guilty of breaking this law, myself included. I've studied witchcraft. I've looked up information about Bephomet. I've studied parapsychology and a lot of other anti-biblical subjects. My rationalization is that "You can't fight an enemy you know nothing about", and in some cases, this is true. But, as I reflect on this, I can understand how spiritual subjects can lead others down some very tricky roads.

This is part of the reason God doesn't want you to speak badly of other gods to those who follow them. To speak about other gods, no matter what the purpose, will most likely lead to having a conversation about them with the person you are speaking to. It opens the door for you, yourself, to be influenced by them. God wants to protect you from that.

Once you know the law, however, you are obligated to follow that law, and if you knowingly choose not to follow it, you are aggrivating your guilt.

In today's world, it is hard not to speak about these evils. We see it on TV, we hear it in the news, we see our neighbors practicing them, so how do we protect ourselves from such blatant disregard of God's laws -- particularly this one?

Thank God for Jesus, who died to save us from ourselves! And, in His sacrifice and victory over Satan in this world, He gave us the strength to try to do better!

God's Laws: Sabbatical Year

Exodus Chapter 23
9 Also thou shalt not oppress a stranger: for ye know the heart of a stranger, seeing ye were strangers in the land of Egypt.
10 And six years thou shalt sow thy land, and shalt gather in the fruits thereof:
11 But the seventh year thou shalt let it rest and lie still; that the poor of thy people may eat: and what they leave the beasts of the field shall eat. In like manner thou shalt deal with thy vineyard, and with thy oliveyard.
12 Six days thou shalt do thy work, and on the seventh day thou shalt rest: that thine ox and thine ass may rest, and the son of thy handmaid, and the stranger, may be refreshed.

In verse 9, God is repeating the command that we should be kind to people who immigrate to our country. You know the old saying, "You catch more flies with honey". Being kind and gracious to strangers allows us the opportunity to witness to them in such a way that they are open to hearing our testimony with no malice. You can't beat the Bible over people's heads, but you can gently nudge them into reading it. You don't lead people to true salvation by making threats and turning them away when they are in need.

Again, this is NOT saying we should allow everyone to invade our country illegally. It simply means that once they have followed the proper channels to get here, then they should be welcomed with open arms.

God tells us to work our lands for six years, and then to give our lands rest for a year. Today, most of us are not farmers and ranchers. It is not how we make our living. And, God wants us to honor Him with our work. Therefore, if you own a business, you should shut it down every seventh year to take a break and do something else. If you work at a job, you should take a leave of absence every seventh year to focus on something else. After the seventh year is up, you can go back to it, if it is what you are lead to do.

To put this in better perspective, God is telling us, once again, to work six days and rest one, that we can be refreshed.

Here is a great read concerning letting the land rest: Why Soil Needs As Much Rest As We Do

God's Laws: No Mobs, Bribes, or False Conspiracies

Exodus Chapter 23

6 Thou shalt not wrest the judgment of thy poor in his cause.
7 Keep thee far from a false matter; and the innocent and righteous slay thou not: for I will not justify the wicked.
8 And thou shalt take no gift: for the gift blindeth the wise, and perverteth the words of the righteous.

While you should not favor a poor man just because he is poor, as stated in verse 3, verse 5 states that you should not deny a poor man justice just because he is poor, either. A man is a man, whether rich or poor and all are equal in God's eyes. All sin is worthy of death (Romans 6:23). Jesus came that ALL could have life, not just those who were of one financial category.

If you know something to not be true, or to be conspiratorial in nature, you should not involve yourself in the spreading of the lie or the conspiracy. Know the facts. Live by what you know for a FACT. This will help you to stay honest. Oh, and always be willing to admit when you were ignorant in your knowledge of the facts, should you find out at a later date that what you thought was true was not true.

Finally, stay away from bribes. Don't let anyone make you offers that you can't refuse. You CAN refuse anything if it means maintaining your integrity. More than that, you SHOULD refuse it. God will step in and control the circumstances (he has done this for me so many times!) and you will always end up where HE wants you to be. That is all that matters. Proverbs 22:1 says: “A good name is rather to be chosen than great riches, and loving favour rather than silver and gold.”

Furthermore, you don't take gifts when it comes to doing the right thing because you never want to put yourself in the position of having to owe someone, or to give anyone other than God the credit for where you are. Abraham understood this when he refused the gifts from the King of Sodom. (Genesis 14:22-23)

God's Laws: Help Your Enemy

Exodus Chapter 23

4 If thou meet thine enemy's ox or his ass going astray, thou shalt surely bring it back to him again.
5 If thou see the ass of him that hateth thee lying under his burden, and wouldest forbear to help him, thou shalt surely help with him.

How many times have you seen posters of pets who have been lost or run away and the owner is asking for help to find them? This verse says that should you see those pets, you should return them to their owner.

If you see a cow that has somehow got loose from the pasture it was grazing in, you should notify the owner - simple as that!

In verse 5, if someone you cannot stand is stranded on the side of the road with a flat tire and no jack, and you have a jack, you should help him - simple as that. You don't make the man or woman abandon their vehicle for thiefs, any more than you would allow an animal to die under the weight of luggage they are carrying for the man or woman if they are moving and need to get it transported.

It is only right not to watch someone who is suffering and walk away, knowing you could have eased their suffering. And, God says it doesn't matter if you like them or not.

HE does.