Eleventh Sunday After Pentecost… 7/31/2016 (REVISED)

HAVE COMMUNION WITH ME… (push)

Gracious Father, your blessed Son came down from heaven to be the true bread which gives life to the world.  Give us this bread, that he may live in us and we in him, Jesus Christ our Lord.

Have Communion with me…

We all have a commonality as followers of our Lord Jesus Christ.  I have a hard time trying to understand Religions that make other brothers and sisters in Christ feel alienated.  I hope and pray that no-one in my church mistakenly does this.  Being brought up a Lutheran and a member of a Lutheran church, I can name 95 excuses… THAT’S RIGHT… EXCUSES… why I shouldn’t want to have communion with Catholics; however, there is ONE truth of why I should… Jesus Christ is our Lord and Savior.

*IF YOU ARE VIEWING VIA MOBILE PHONE… CLICK “REPLAY” UNTIL IT GOES AWAY…

My question to Catholics is “am I welcome to have communion with you in your cathedrals?”  I have been told numerous stories on how Lutherans are not allowed to commune with Catholics; however, this feeling of alienation makes me want to go with a friend to a Catholic Mass in Harrisburg, PA…

Communion is a beautiful time in people’s life to remember the life and death of Jesus Christ with fellow brothers and sisters in Christ…

“Holy God, mighty Lord, gracious Father: Endless is your mercy and eternal your reign.

You have filled all creation with light and life; heaven and earth are full of your glory.

Through Abraham you promised to bless all nations.  You rescued Israel, your chosen people.

Through the prophets you renewed your promise (Isaiah 55:1-5); and, at this end of all the ages, sent your Son, who in words and deeds proclaimed your kingdom and was obedient to your will, even to giving his life.

In the night in which he was betrayed, our Lord Jesus took bread, and gave thanks; broke it, and gave it to his disciples, saying: Take and eat; this is my body given for you. Do this for the remembrance of me.

Again, after supper, he took the cup, gave thanks, and gave it for all to drink, saying: This cup is the new covenant in my blood, shed for you and for all people for the forgiveness of sin.  Do this for the remembrance of me.

For as often as we eat of this bread and drink from this cup, we will proclaim the Lord’s death”

Beautiful huh???

I learned that it is awesome to learn from the past and move on… (Jesus has RISEN) God sent us prophets written about in the Old Testament in our Holy Bible… I encourage you to read the prophecies of Isaiah.  Isaiah was extremely right on with his visions of the future.

An Invitation to Abundant Life

55 “Ho! Everyone who thirsts,
Come to the waters;
And you who have no money,
Come, buy and eat.
Yes, come, buy wine and milk
Without money and without price.
Why do you spend money for what is not bread,
And your wages for what does not satisfy?
Listen carefully to Me, and eat what is good,
And let your soul delight itself in abundance.
Incline your ear, and come to Me.
Hear, and your soul shall live;
And I will make an everlasting covenant with you—
The sure mercies of David.
Indeed I have given him as a witness to the people,
A leader and commander for the people.
Surely you shall call a nation you do not know,
And nations who do not know you shall run to you,
Because of the Lord your God,
And the Holy One of Israel;
For He has glorified you.”

BREAD… REMEMBER… READ…

*IF YOU ARE VIEWING VIA MOBILE PHONE… CLICK “REPLAY” UNTIL IT GOES AWAY…

To me, Isaiah offers us the words to instill a deep faith within our soul.  The birth, life, and resurrection of Jesus Christ verifies this scripture… let me explain… In verse 2 Isaiah asks why spend money for what is not bread? In John 6:35 Jesus says I am the bread of life.  Isaiah goes on by telling of a leader, who has covenant (promise) with you, to glorify God.  Truly, Truly I say to you… this is the point of taking communion.  Drinking the wine, is done in remembrance of the covenant (promise) between you and God.  Jesus Christ took your sins and mine to the cross to be put to death… LEAVE THEM THERE…

THANK YOU GOD FOR TODAY!!!

LET’s GO2 CHURCH.

Week of Eleventh Sunday After Pentecost… 7/31/2016

HAVE COMMUNION WITH ME… (push)

Gracious Father, your blessed Son came down from heaven to be the true bread which gives life to the world.  Give us this bread, that he may live in us and we in him, Jesus Christ our Lord.

Have Communion with me…

We all have a commonality as followers of our Lord Jesus Christ.  I have a hard time trying to understand Religions that make other brothers and sisters in Christ feel alienated.  I hope and pray that no-one in my church mistakenly does this.  Being brought up a Lutheran and a member of a Lutheran church, I can name 95 excuses… THAT’S RIGHT… EXCUSES… why I shouldn’t want to have communion with Catholics; however, there is ONE truth of why I should… Jesus Christ is our Lord and Savior.

My question to Catholics is “am I welcome to have communion with you in your cathedrals?”  I have been told numerous stories on how Lutherans are not allowed to commune with Catholics; however, this feeling of alienation makes me want to go with a friend to a Catholic Mass in Harrisburg, PA…

Communion is a beautiful time in people’s life to remember the life and death of Jesus Christ with fellow brothers and sisters in Christ…

“Holy God, mighty Lord, gracious Father: Endless is your mercy and eternal your reign.

You have filled all creation with light and life; heaven and earth are full of your glory.

Through Abraham you promised to bless all nations.  You rescued Israel, your chosen people.

Through the prophets you renewed your promise (Isaiah 55:1-5); and, at this end of all the ages, sent your Son, who in words and deeds proclaimed your kingdom and was obedient to your will, even to giving his life.

In the night in which he was betrayed, our Lord Jesus took bread, and gave thanks; broke it, and gave it to his disciples, saying: Take and eat; this is my body given for you. Do this for the remembrance of me.

Again, after supper, he took the cup, gave thanks, and gave it for all to drink, saying: This cup is the new covenant in my blood, shed for you and for all people for the forgiveness of sin.  Do this for the remembrance of me.

For as often as we eat of this bread and drink from this cup, we will proclaim the Lord’s death”

Beautiful huh???

I learned that it is awesome to learn from the past and move on… (Jesus has RISEN) God sent us prophets written about in the Old Testament in our Holy Bible… I encourage you to read the prophecies of Isaiah.  Isaiah was extremely right on with his visions of the future.

An Invitation to Abundant Life

55 “Ho! Everyone who thirsts,
Come to the waters;
And you who have no money,
Come, buy and eat.
Yes, come, buy wine and milk
Without money and without price.
Why do you spend money for what is not bread,
And your wages for what does not satisfy?
Listen carefully to Me, and eat what is good,
And let your soul delight itself in abundance.
Incline your ear, and come to Me.
Hear, and your soul shall live;
And I will make an everlasting covenant with you—
The sure mercies of David.
Indeed I have given him as a witness to the people,
A leader and commander for the people.
Surely you shall call a nation you do not know,
And nations who do not know you shall run to you,
Because of the Lord your God,
And the Holy One of Israel;
For He has glorified you.”

BREAD… REMEMBER… READ…

(Matthew 14:13-21) 🙂 🙂 🙂

Tenth Sunday After Pentecost… 7/24/2016 (REVISED)

WALK BY FAITH…

O God, your ears are open always to the prayers of your servants.  Open our hearts and minds to you, that we may live in harmony with your will and receive the gifts of your spirit; through your Son, Jesus Christ our Lord.

PRAYING FOR WISDOM

I must admit, in the presence of my friends in Christ Jesus, that I do not know everything… I think, I know enough to get by in life circumstances; however, there is so much I don’t know.  I do have a Bachelor in Science in Marketing from Penn State, a Master’s Degree in Business Administration from Penn State, and a Post-Graduate Certificate (6 courses) in Digital Marketing from the University of Illinios… However, you know what???

No accomplishment of mine will ever compare to the beautiful creation of this planet.  THANK YOU GOD!!!

This brings to mind a documentary I was watching on the History channel.  It was on the creation of the universe.  Stephen Hawking, who is to considered to be the most intelligent man, argued that God does not exist and the Big Bang Theory occurred from expansion of anti-matter and matter.  He is an atheist… I am praying for Jesus Christ to reveal Himself to Mr. Hawking.

The documentary went on by informing me that Mr. Hawking’s “conclusion” was based on the work and theories of a Zionist, Albert Einstein… YES… based on theories of a believer… I included one of my favorite quotes from Albert Einstein below…

*IF YOU ARE VIEWING VIA MOBILE PHONE… CLICK “REPLAY” UNTIL IT GOES AWAY…

My point is… man will always try to prove or disprove a theory; however, no man will truly have all the knowledge that God does…

In our Old Testament in the Holy Bible, King Solomon was conscience of the fact that he did not know it all… BUT… He did pray to the One who did.

1 Kings 3:5-12

Before Israel united as one nation under David, the countryside was inhabited by people who worship other gods. As Solomon prepares to build the temple and centralize worship of the one God—the Lord—in one place—Jerusalem—he finds it necessary to visit the former shrines of local gods and convert them to shrines to God. While this may have worked in the short term by introducing the people outside of Jerusalem to the worship practices of the Eternal, those shrines, called “high places,” will be the undoing of the entire country. By allowing people to worship at local shrines instead of only in Jerusalem, where the priests meticulously follow God’s laws, Solomon and future kings are opening the door to the blending of God worship and pagan worship.

The Eternal revealed Himself to Solomon in a dream while he was still in Gibeon.

Eternal One: Tell me, what is your request of Me?

Solomon: You have already revealed Your loyal love to my father, David, for he lived by Your truth and righteousness and honor during the days of his life. You have continued to show this loyal love to him by giving him a son who now reigns upon his throne. Eternal One, my God, You have allowed me to serve as my father David served, but I am still young and inexperienced. I don’t know much about anything,yet I am supposed to lead Your chosen people who are innumerable and even uncountable. Please give Your servant a listening heart for judging Your people and for knowing the difference between what is good and what is evil. Who is capable of judging Your chosen ones, a great people?

10 The Lord was delighted by Solomon’s request.

Eternal One: 11 Since you have asked for wisdom and not for an extended lifetime or for personal wealth or for the annihilation of your enemies, since you have instead asked for the ability to understand justice, 12 I will honor your request. I have planted the deepest human wisdom into your heart. There has never been nor will there ever be a man like you.

King Solomon was AWESOME!  I pray that each and every one of you is just as AWESOME!  SET AN EXAMPLE TO FUTURE GENERATIONS AND PRAY TO GOD FOR WISDOM.  Thank you +

*IF YOU ARE VIEWING VIA MOBILE PHONE… CLICK “REPLAY” UNTIL IT GOES AWAY…

(Romans 8:28-30)

THANK YOU GOD FOR YESTERDAY…

THANK YOU GOD FOR TODAY…

Psalm 138

The Lord’s Goodness to the Faithful

A Psalm of David.

138 I will praise You with my whole heart;
Before the gods I will sing praises to You.
I will worship toward Your holy temple,
And praise Your name
For Your lovingkindness and Your truth;
For You have magnified Your word above all Your name.
In the day when I cried out, You answered me,
And made me bold with strength in my soul.

All the kings of the earth shall praise You, O Lord,
When they hear the words of Your mouth.
Yes, they shall sing of the ways of the Lord,
For great is the glory of the Lord.
Though the Lord is on high,
Yet He regards the lowly;
But the proud He knows from afar.

Though I walk in the midst of trouble, You will revive me;
You will stretch out Your hand
Against the wrath of my enemies,
And Your right hand will save me.
The Lord will perfect that which concerns me;
Your mercy, O Lord, endures forever;
Do not forsake the works of Your hands.

THANK YOU GOD FOR TOMORROW…

“Let’s take that test”

Tenth Sunday After Pentecost… 7/24/2016

WISDOM…

#read #push #learn

O God, your ears are open always to the prayers of your servants.  Open our hearts and minds to you, that we may live in harmony with your will and receive the gifts of your spirit; through your Son, Jesus Christ our Lord.

PRAYING FOR WISDOM

I must admit, in the presence of my friends in Christ Jesus, that I do not know everything… I think, I know enough to get by in life circumstances; however, there is so much I don’t know.  I do have a Bachelor in Science in Marketing from Penn State, a Master’s Degree in Business Administration from Penn State, and a Post-Graduate Certificate (6 courses) in Digital Marketing from the University of Illinios… However, you know what???

No accomplishment of mine will ever compare to the beautiful creation of this planet.  THANK YOU GOD!!!

This brings to mind a documentary I was watching on the History channel.  It was on the creation of the universe.  Stephen Hawking, who is to considered to be the most intelligent man, argued that God does not exist and the Big Bang Theory occurred from expansion of anti-matter and matter.  He is an atheist… I am praying for Jesus Christ to reveal Himself to Mr. Hawking.

The documentary went on by informing me that Mr. Hawking’s “conclusion” was based on the work and theories of a Zionist, Albert Einstein… YES… based on theories of a believer… I included one of my favorite quotes from Albert Einstein below…

*IF YOU ARE VIEWING VIA MOBILE PHONE… CLICK “REPLAY” UNTIL IT GOES AWAY…

My point is… man will always try to prove or disprove a theory; however, no man will truly have all the knowledge that God does…

In our Old Testament in the Holy Bible, King Solomon was conscience of the fact that he did not know it all… BUT… He did pray to the One who did.

1 Kings 3:5-12

Before Israel united as one nation under David, the countryside was inhabited by people who worship other gods. As Solomon prepares to build the temple and centralize worship of the one God—the Lord—in one place—Jerusalem—he finds it necessary to visit the former shrines of local gods and convert them to shrines to God. While this may have worked in the short term by introducing the people outside of Jerusalem to the worship practices of the Eternal, those shrines, called “high places,” will be the undoing of the entire country. By allowing people to worship at local shrines instead of only in Jerusalem, where the priests meticulously follow God’s laws, Solomon and future kings are opening the door to the blending of God worship and pagan worship.

The Eternal revealed Himself to Solomon in a dream while he was still in Gibeon.

Eternal One: Tell me, what is your request of Me?

Solomon: You have already revealed Your loyal love to my father, David, for he lived by Your truth and righteousness and honor during the days of his life. You have continued to show this loyal love to him by giving him a son who now reigns upon his throne. Eternal One, my God, You have allowed me to serve as my father David served, but I am still young and inexperienced. I don’t know much about anything,yet I am supposed to lead Your chosen people who are innumerable and even uncountable. Please give Your servant a listening heart for judging Your people and for knowing the difference between what is good and what is evil. Who is capable of judging Your chosen ones, a great people?

10 The Lord was delighted by Solomon’s request.

Eternal One: 11 Since you have asked for wisdom and not for an extended lifetime or for personal wealth or for the annihilation of your enemies, since you have instead asked for the ability to understand justice, 12 I will honor your request. I have planted the deepest human wisdom into your heart. There has never been nor will there ever be a man like you.

King Solomon was AWESOME!  I pray that each and every one of you is just as AWESOME!  SET AN EXAMPLE TO FUTURE GENERATIONS AND PRAY TO GOD FOR WISDOM.  Thank you +

*IF YOU ARE VIEWING VIA MOBILE PHONE… CLICK “REPLAY” UNTIL IT GOES AWAY…

(Romans 8:28-30)

Ninth Sunday After Pentecost… 7/17/2016 (REVISED)

Hi…

O God, you see how busy we are with many things.  Turn us to listen to your teachings and lead us to choose the one thing which will not be taken from us, Jesus Christ our Lord.

TIME MANAGEMENT 101… TEACH US LORD!

(#dingding class begins)

Everyone is different.  We each have different life experiences and a different way of life.  This diversity makes life fun and interesting… The thing we do have in common is the faith of our Lord Jesus Christ.  This faith takes us on an individual walk with Christ Jesus only to find out that we are actually sprinting with other believers in the birth, life, and resurrection of Jesus Christ.

I, personally, am finding that my day is getting more and more filled with things of this earth… It might be a good thing or bad thing depending how you look at it… THANK YOU GOD FOR TODAY!!!

*IF YOU ARE VIEWING VIA MOBILE PHONE… CLICK “REPLAY” UNTIL IT GOES AWAY… (PSALM 86:11-17)

I want to share with you a teaching by our Lord Jesus Christ found in the Holy Gospel of Matthew…

Matthew 13:24-30

The Parable of the Wheat and the Tares

24 Another parable He put forth to them, saying: “The kingdom of heaven is like a man who sowed good seed in his field; 25 but while men slept, his enemy came and sowed tares among the wheat and went his way.26 But when the grain had sprouted and produced a crop, then the tares also appeared. 27 So the servants of the owner came and said to him, ‘Sir, did you not sow good seed in your field? How then does it have tares?’ 28 He said to them, ‘An enemy has done this.’ The servants said to him, ‘Do you want us then to go and gather them up?’ 29 But he said, ‘No, lest while you gather up the tares you also uproot the wheat with them. 30 Let both grow together until the harvest, and at the time of harvest I will say to the reapers, “First gather together the tares and bind them in bundles to burn them, but gather the wheat into my barn.”’”

BEAUTIFUL!!! This teaching by Jesus Christ can be interpreted many different ways… The diversity in one man’s interpretation makes life fun and interesting… THANK YOU GOD FOR TOMORROW!!!

To me, Jesus Christ informs us that we are like the wheat in his teaching.  Eventually, we will be gathered up and stored in His Kingdom (BARN)… Sadly, the non-believers, or Tares (an injurious weed resembling wheat when young) will be burnt and destroyed. I pray that these people are revealed the truth of our Lord Jesus Christ… Jesus Christ teaches us that faith in our Lord will lead to entrance into the Kingdom of heaven.  MY LORD IS JESUS CHRIST…THANK YOU GOD FOR YESTERDAY!!!

*IF YOU ARE VIEWING VIA MOBILE PHONE… CLICK “REPLAY” UNTIL IT GOES AWAY… (Jeremiah 32:17John 20:27:)

I hope and pray that you find time in your busy day to read these scriptures that I posted…

 

CLASS DISMISSED.

Ninth Sunday After Pentecost… 7/17/2016

Hi…

O God, you see how busy we are with many things.  Turn us to listen to your teachings and lead us to choose the one thing which will not be taken from us, Jesus Christ our Lord.

TIME MANAGEMENT 101… TEACH US LORD!

(#dingding class begins)

Everyone is different.  We each have different life experiences and a different way of life.  This diversity makes life fun and interesting… The thing we do have in common is the faith of our Lord Jesus Christ.  This faith takes us on an individual walk with Christ Jesus only to find out that we are actually sprinting with other believers in the birth, life, and resurrection of Jesus Christ.

I, personally, am finding that my day is getting more and more filled with things of this earth… It might be a good thing or bad thing depending how you look at it… THANK YOU GOD FOR TODAY!!!

*IF YOU ARE VIEWING VIA MOBILE PHONE… CLICK “REPLAY” UNTIL IT GOES AWAY… (PSALM 86:11-17)

I want to share with you a teaching by our Lord Jesus Christ found in the Holy Gospel of Matthew…

Matthew 13:24-30

The Parable of the Wheat and the Tares

24 Another parable He put forth to them, saying: “The kingdom of heaven is like a man who sowed good seed in his field; 25 but while men slept, his enemy came and sowed tares among the wheat and went his way.26 But when the grain had sprouted and produced a crop, then the tares also appeared. 27 So the servants of the owner came and said to him, ‘Sir, did you not sow good seed in your field? How then does it have tares?’ 28 He said to them, ‘An enemy has done this.’ The servants said to him, ‘Do you want us then to go and gather them up?’ 29 But he said, ‘No, lest while you gather up the tares you also uproot the wheat with them. 30 Let both grow together until the harvest, and at the time of harvest I will say to the reapers, “First gather together the tares and bind them in bundles to burn them, but gather the wheat into my barn.”’”

BEAUTIFUL!!! This teaching by Jesus Christ can be interpreted many different ways… The diversity in one man’s interpretation makes life fun and interesting… THANK YOU GOD FOR TOMORROW!!!

To me, Jesus Christ informs us that we are like the wheat in his teaching.  Eventually, we will be gathered up and stored in His Kingdom (BARN)… Sadly, the non-believers, or Tares (an injurious weed resembling wheat when young) will be burnt and destroyed. I pray that these people are revealed the truth of our Lord Jesus Christ… Jesus Christ teaches us that faith in our Lord will lead to entrance into the Kingdom of heaven.  MY LORD IS JESUS CHRIST…THANK YOU GOD FOR YESTERDAY!!!

*IF YOU ARE VIEWING VIA MOBILE PHONE… CLICK “REPLAY” UNTIL IT GOES AWAY… (Jeremiah 32:17John 20:27🙂

CLASS DISMISSED.

 

 

Eighth Sunday After Pentecost… 7/10/2016 (REVISED)

Almighty God, we thank you for planting in us the seed of your word.  By your Holy Spirit help us to receive it with joy, live according to it, and grow in faith and hope and love; through your Son, Jesus Christ our Lord.

SUFFERING??? i call it JOY.

I pray that you continue to strengthen your relationship with God and continue on your journey with Jesus Christ with the help of the Holy Spirit.  The way I strengthen my relationship with my Heavenly Father is to read the Holy Bible.  Truly, I tell you… this is the written word of our Lord.  THANKS BE TO GOD.

I stumbled upon a writing from the Apostle Paul while on my walk with Christ… I want to share this writing with you.

Romans 8:18-25New Revised Standard Version (NRSV)

Future Glory

18 I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worth comparing with the glory about to be revealed to us. 19 For the creation waits with eager longing for the revealing of the children of God; 20 for the creation was subjected to futility, not of its own will but by the will of the one who subjected it, in hope 21 that the creation itself will be set free from its bondage to decay and will obtain the freedom of the glory of the children of God. 22 We know that the whole creation has been groaning in labor pains until now; 23 and not only the creation, but we ourselves, who have the first fruits of the Spirit, groan inwardly while we wait for adoption, the redemption of our bodies. 24 For in[a] hope we were saved. Now hope that is seen is not hope. For who hopes[b] for what is seen? 25 But if we hope for what we do not see, we wait for it with patience.

*IF YOU ARE VIEWING VIA MOBILE PHONE… CLICK “REPLAY” UNTIL IT GOES AWAY…

Please excuse my excitement; however, this is AWESOME!!!  Paul’s word guided by the Holy Spirit makes me want to workout harder… yes, to those who do not know me in my personal life, let me explain.  I love going to a gym and discovering my limits.  A wise man once said that the only way to discover the limits of the possible is to go beyond them into the impossible.  Can’t wait to discover mine AGAIN!

While on our journey, with encouragement from the Holy Spirit, we find out that it truly does not matter what happens to us on earth as long as we have a hope in the life and resurrection of Christ Jesus.  I remember the words of our Lord to a criminal while being crucified… Today, you will be in paradise with me (Luke 23:39-43).

*NOTE* THERE IS MORE TO JESUS’s WORDS… read that story in LUKE 23.

I want to be in paradise; however, I will try to keep my grace while making my own here on earth…

THANK YOU GOD FOR YESTERDAY…

THANK YOU GOD FOR TODAY…

THANK YOU GOD FOR TOMORROW…

(let’s go2 church and read those lessons)

Deuteronomy 30:9-14 New King James Version (NKJV)

The Lord your God will make you abound in all the work of your hand, in the fruit of your body, in the increase of your livestock, and in the produce of your land for good. For the Lord will again rejoice over you for good as He rejoiced over your fathers, 10 if you obey the voice of theLord your God, to keep His commandments and His statutes which are written in this Book of the Law, and if you turn to the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul.

The Choice of Life or Death

11 “For this commandment which I command you today is not toomysterious for you, nor is it far off. 12 It is not in heaven, that you should say, ‘Who will ascend into heaven for us and bring it to us, that we may hear it and do it?’ 13 Nor is it beyond the sea, that you should say, ‘Who will go over the sea for us and bring it to us, that we may hear it and do it?’ 14 But the word is very near you, in your mouth and in your heart, that you may do it.

#allday #dingding

Eighth Sunday After Pentecost… 7/10/2016

NO PAIN… NO PAIN… NO PAIN…

Almighty God, we thank you for planting in us the seed of your word.  By your Holy Spirit help us to receive it with joy, live according to it, and grow in faith and hope and love; through your Son, Jesus Christ our Lord.

SUFFERING??? i call it JOY.

I pray that you continue to strengthen your relationship with God and continue on your journey with Jesus Christ with the help of the Holy Spirit.  The way I strengthen my relationship with my Heavenly Father is to read the Holy Bible.  Truly, I tell you… this is the written word of our Lord.  THANKS BE TO GOD.

I stumbled upon a writing from the Apostle Paul while on my walk with Christ… I want to share this writing with you.

Romans 8:18-25New Revised Standard Version (NRSV)

Future Glory

18 I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worth comparing with the glory about to be revealed to us. 19 For the creation waits with eager longing for the revealing of the children of God; 20 for the creation was subjected to futility, not of its own will but by the will of the one who subjected it, in hope 21 that the creation itself will be set free from its bondage to decay and will obtain the freedom of the glory of the children of God. 22 We know that the whole creation has been groaning in labor pains until now; 23 and not only the creation, but we ourselves, who have the first fruits of the Spirit, groan inwardly while we wait for adoption, the redemption of our bodies. 24 For in[a] hope we were saved. Now hope that is seen is not hope. For who hopes[b] for what is seen? 25 But if we hope for what we do not see, we wait for it with patience.

*IF YOU ARE VIEWING VIA MOBILE PHONE… CLICK “REPLAY” UNTIL IT GOES AWAY…

Please excuse my excitement; however, this is AWESOME!!!  Paul’s word guided by the Holy Spirit makes me want to workout harder… yes, to those who do not know me in my personal life, let me explain.  I love going to a gym and discovering my limits.  A wise man once said that the only way to discover the limits of the possible is to go beyond them into the impossible.  Can’t wait to discover mine AGAIN!

While on our journey, with encouragement from the Holy Spirit, we find out that it truly does not matter what happens to us on earth as long as we have a hope in the life and resurrection of Christ Jesus.  I remember the words of our Lord to a criminal while being crucified… Today, you will be in paradise with me (Luke 23:39-43).

*NOTE* THERE IS MORE TO JESUS’s WORDS… read that story in LUKE 23.

I want to be in paradise; however, I will try to keep my grace while making my own here on earth…

THANK YOU GOD FOR YESTERDAY…

THANK YOU GOD FOR TODAY…

THANK YOU GOD FOR TOMORROW…

(let’s go2 church and read those lessons)

Colossians 1:1-14 (NKJV)

Greeting

Paul, an apostle of Jesus Christ by the will of God, and Timothy our brother,

To the saints and faithful brethren in Christ who are in Colosse:

Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.[a]

Their Faith in Christ

We give thanks to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, praying always for you, since we heard of your faith in Christ Jesus and of your love for all the saints; because of the hope which is laid up for you in heaven, of which you heard before in the word of the truth of the gospel,which has come to you, as it has also in all the world, and is bringing forth fruit,[b] as it is also among you since the day you heard and knew the grace of God in truth; as you also learned from Epaphras, our dear fellow servant, who is a faithful minister of Christ on your behalf, who also declared to us your love in the Spirit.

Preeminence of Christ

For this reason we also, since the day we heard it, do not cease to pray for you, and to ask that you may be filled with the knowledge of His will in all wisdom and spiritual understanding; 10 that you may walk worthy of the Lord, fully pleasing Him, being fruitful in every good work and increasing in the knowledge of God; 11 strengthened with all might, according to His glorious power, for all patience and longsuffering with joy; 12 giving thanks to the Father who has qualified us to be partakers of the inheritance of the saints in the light. 13 He has delivered us from the power of darkness and conveyed us into the kingdom of the Son of His love, 14 in whom we have redemption through His blood,[c] the forgiveness of sins.

Seventh Sunday After Pentecost… 7/3/2016 (REVISED)

God of glory, Father of love, peace comes from you alone.  Send us peacemakers and witnesses to your kingdom, and fill our hearts with joy in your promises of salvation; through your Son, Jesus Christ our Lord.

LESSON LEARNED… Did i???

We are called as believers in the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead to proclaim this awesome news.  Granted men have confused Christianity with traditions and services; however, it does not make them wrong in their way of worshiping God.

I have a story that I would like to share with you.

It was the week of the  Sunday After Pentecost.  The weather was awesome!  My story takes place right after that two weeks of rain.  That rain, we had in Central Pennsylvania seemed like it would never end. Thank God it did or I wouldn’t have this story for you!

It was beautiful outside… the sun was shining… it was about 73 Degrees… there was no wind… it was beautiful… so beautiful that I decided to eat my salad (from Karn’s) outside. I finished eating my salad and went to throw out the container.  At that very moment a bird flew and landed right next to me.  It was a smaller bird (sparrow… I think).  Anyway, to my surprise the bird was not startled by me and did not fly away for a while.  It danced around me like it was trying to tell me something.

*IF YOU ARE VIEWING VIA MOBILE PHONE… CLICK “REPLAY” UNTIL IT GOES AWAY…

After about a minute of watching the bird dance around me at arm’s length… I started talking to the bird

“Isn’t it beautiful out here Mr. bird???”

“Why are you around me???”

“Is everything alright Mr. bird???”

The sound of my voice must have scared the bird, because he flew away.  That was odd I thought to myself and I continued to drink my Ice Tea.  I finished that Ice Tea and turned around to throw away that container.  At that very moment, I heard a rustling noise in the bush behind me by the garbage can.  I threw the bottle away and turned around to see what was happening.  That is when I saw it.  I saw a big bird (probably a raven) come down from the sky and started attacking that little bird that was just dancing around me.

I got p+ssed.

I started running after that big bird to try to scare it away and save that little bird’s life.  Unfortunately, the big bird had the little bird in its beak… The more times I would run after that bird, the more times it would bite down on the little bird and fly away from me.  Finally, the big bird flew out of my sight with the little bird’s life in its mouth.

THE LESSON I LEARNED… I cannot save every little bird I cross paths with

HOWEVER… THAT KNOWLEDGE WILL NOT STOP ME FROM TRYING…

Thank you God for yesterday…

Thank you God for today…

Thank you God for tomorrow…

*IF YOU ARE VIEWING VIA MOBILE PHONE… CLICK “REPLAY” UNTIL IT GOES AWAY…

Acts 13:48

48 Now when the Gentiles heard this, they were glad and glorified the word of the Lord. And as many as had been appointed to eternal life believed.

gen·tile
ˈjen(t)īl/
adjective
  1. 1.
    not Jewish.
    “Christianity spread from Jewish into Gentile cultures”