Praying Hands - Are You Using Yours Correctly?
December 31, 2007
Do you find prayer intimidating? Have you ever said, “I don’t know how to pray”? If so, you may be surprised to learn that there is no “right” or “wrong” method of prayer. Nor is prayer reserved for a handful of religious professionals.
Prayer is the act of offering reverent petition to God and an expression of the commitment and trust we have in God by faith.
Matthew 6:6 But thou, when thou prayest, enter into thy closet, and when thou hast shut thy door, pray to thy Father which is in secret; and thy Father which seeth in secret shall reward thee openly.
When we come before God in prayer and give Him full control of a situation, we are acknowledging His ability to bring about a change in that area of our or someone elses life.
Matthew 21:22 And all things, whatsoever ye shall ask in prayer, believing, ye shall receive.
As a result, God begins to work on the problem with His all mighty, all knowing, everlasting power.
Over the years prayer has not received the recognition that it deserves.
Many people feel since God already knows about our needs, there isn’t any need to tell God about them.
The Sixties
December 31, 2007
A decade that stands out above the rest of our world’s history as a time of revolutionary changes from all over the globe - changes that even effected outer space. There was unprecedented levels of sexual freedom celebrated among the world’s youth, and teenagers around the world revolted against the generations before them. Radio brought the people completely new sounds in music, with the chart toppers fighting over the number one spots each week. The Beatles, The Rolling Stones, Bob Dylan, Elvis Presley, among others, released one hit after another throughout the sixties.
Stardom the likes that no one had ever experienced before surrounded The Beatles, both in the UK and in the United States. Jimi Hendrix played guitar like no one had ever heard it played previously, and remains one of the world’s favorite guitar players of all time. There were presidential assassinations, as well as deaths of famous people who were killed for standing up for their beliefs and leading others to make changes; Martin Luther King, JR and Malcolm X.
The sixties were a time of innovation, new products and services were developed, and discoveries of technological advances led to the first man to walk on the moon, and placing a satellite in orbit.
Guess Who Else Has a Problem With Confidence?
December 30, 2007
When I tell you what I heard you’ll be able to laugh at what you believe is your own lack of confidence.
I couldn’t believe it. Sunday, in a queue, in my local food-store an Olympic athlete stood behind me, chatting to another Olympic athlete. I looked at the contents of my shopping cart and wondered, which item I could get them to autograph! That is until I overheard them talking?
You see, I thought only you and me suffered from confidence problems. I thought we were the only ones who’d looked at a guy and thought he’d never feel attracted to a women like us. I thought we were the only ones who felt unworthy of going for the better job. I thought we were the only ones who over ate. I thought we were the only ones who talked ourselves down and felt like we don’t deserve anything nice. But what I discovered is that we’re not.
Standing in that queue on Sunday taught me that an Olympic athlete has the gold medal of lowest confidence, and, to be honest she can have it!
In The Beginning Christ!
December 29, 2007
As I was doing my studies, the Lord put something on my heart that really took me by surprise. He dropped a little bit of revelation knowledge into my mind, and it took me on a great ride. In this Newsletter, I want to share with you what the Lord has showed me. In no way is this a complete study of this subject, yet I do believe that this is a core teaching on the subject, and that the understanding of Christ is deeper then most believe.
Let’s open this study with Hebrews: 1:1-2:
God, after He spoke long ago to the fathers in the prophets in many portions and in many ways, [2] in these last days has spoken to us in His Son, whom He appointed heir of all things, through whom also He made the world.
The part that we won’t to look at is in verse 2 "He appointed heir of all things, through whom also He made the world." As I was reading this the Lord dropped in my thought that as I said early really shook me. That according to Hebrews, God made the whole world through Jesus. Now that’s not that big of a thought, but when God showed me this in the bible that is what God me excited.
Do You Have Disciples?
December 28, 2007
Follow me, and I will make you fishers of men.” That was the command of the master, Jesus of Nazareth when he walked the face of this earth to two fishermen, Simon and his brother, Andrew.
The scripture says: “At once they left their nets and followed him.” The question then is: why would two fishermen abandon their professional calling to follow a preacher who had no home, property or assets?
These fishermen were to form the fist two of the 12 disciples of the Lord Jesus. He chose, trained, and gave them authority and power, and challenged them to go and preach the good news of the kingdom of God. In less than three years, what was originally a team of timid and weary persons from diverse professions was transformed into a formidable team of bold and articulate men, who were fiercely loyal, spread the gospel message, teaching, healing, encouraging and touching the lives of the people with signs and wonders.
Native American Astrology: The Hawk (March 21 - April 19)
December 27, 2007
The Hawk is the first sign of the Native American astrology, it heralds spring and the end of winter. If you are born under this sign, you were born at the “Time of Awakening”.
Hawks have many of their own peculiarities and distinctions. For instance, if you’re a hawk, the direction that best suits you is north east. The East wind carries good tidings for you and your traditional totem animal is the falcon (or more popularly now, the raven).
The element that you’re most closely connected to is fire. Hawks often possess a powerful and intense personality marked by a recurrent habit of spontaneous activity. This spills over into their love lives, where hawks are firey, passionate and spontaneous.
Emotionally, Hawks have a tendency to be both fast and varied. Getting off to a “new start” is often a constant theme shared by those under this sign.
Gracious, adventuresome and ready to try new things, Hawks make for fun friends. But watch out, behind their sunny smiles and pleasant manners lurk less desirable qualities like impatience, a boastful attitude, and a leaning toward egocentricity.
Where is Your Happiness? Past, Present, or Future??
December 26, 2007
Achieving a level of personal happiness previously unknown is closer than you think. Much closer. But first, it’s important to stay in touch with the present.
"Stay in touch with the present? I’m thinking?I’m already IN the present!"
Well, certainly we all are in the present, since there is nowhere else to be, but that doesn’t mean our thoughts are in the present. And therein lay the challenges to our own personal happiness.
We as humans are the rarest of all species in that not only can we think, but we can think about our thinking.
And you can use this process of being aware of your self-thoughts to help you achieve contentment. It’s important for you to challenge what you see and believe. This insures that your view of the world matches reality. So often what we believe is the truth, is nothing more than glimpses of the past, present, and future.
We often take only the bad from the past, quickly breeze through the present, and falsely make up the future. The result is frequently guilt about your imperfect past, anxiety about a future that doesn’t exist, and impatience with the Now.
Be Careful How You Live — Ephesians 5:15-20
December 26, 2007
There is a sharp contrast in Ephesians between the "light" and the "dark" (cf. 5:8). There is only one way to live-not as the "Gentiles," in "futility of mind" (4:17), but "in Christ," the goal and source of our maturity and spiritual growth (4:15-16).
Those who live "in the light" are "in Christ." They are alive (2:5). God’s action leads them (2:4ff). God raises up those in the light and seats them in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus (2:6). There are immeasurable riches in the age to come for those in the light (2:7). God’s gift is given to them (2:8) and God has prepared things beforehand for them (2:10). The emphasis is on "now" and "in Christ" for those in the light (2:13); they are "brought near" into unity, oneness and peace (2:14). They are rooted in the truth (4:21), renewed in the spirit of their mind (4:23). They have put on the new self (4:24) and it is clear that they live in the light (5:8-15).
Work Ethics ? A Paradigm Shift
December 25, 2007
Work ethics is a hot topic in today’s business and educational worlds. Yet, how do we define this hybrid phrase with the word work meaning more than a specific outcome and the word ethics being more than the values that enhance that outcome?
When we say we are going to work, work becomes the place of employment. When we say we are working, the implication is that we are engaged in a work-related activity and should be performing one or more specific tasks. However, the word work in today’s global economy does not easily denote specific outcomes much less measurable ones.
Years ago when our economy was agrarian based, farmers said they were going to work the fields. Their work or more specifically the outcomes of their work could be viewed from the plowed fields to the stacked bales of hay. In today’s technology and service driven economy, workers outcomes are not as nearly recognizable, but what is noticed is their behavior.
Now, ethics is a difficult word to define, as it is more than the enhancement of outcomes. This is aptly demonstrated by the variety of expectations such as being to work or school on time, performing quality work, being self-directed, having self-initiative, or being positive to both fellow contributors and customers. Ethics, from these expectations, encompass the internal behaviors of the contributors or what I really believe are attitudes.
Amos And Social Justice Part 2
December 24, 2007
Amos was summoned by God to warn the Northern Kingdom of Israel of its impending doom due to the collapse of justice and the moral and spiritual decline of the nation. It should be understood that Amos did not travel to Israel in the footprints of Elijah and Elisha; working miracles and wonders. He went by divine commission with a prophet message. He had no soothing or cushiony words to comfort the poor and those in adversity. Indeed, he had only threatening words of vengeance and punishment for those who defied God’s will. Justice, not mercy, was what Amos insisted upon.
In Amos’ mind, social justice was a vital part of the covenant responsibility. He declared it so ferociously and defined it so sharply that the community of Israel must have thought he was crazy. Of course, people tend to think you are "crazy" when you speak candidly and truthfully. We are not too far removed from the response of the children of Israel. We live in a time when you are expected to sugar coat, sweeten, soften it down a bit. But pardon me, I digress.
