Alabaster Box.................

I am super excited!

 I have been searching for this song since I attended 

the conference Heidi Baker was at this summer,

  at Life Center. 

I guess Julie Meyer has a new album out, 

and this song is on it!!! Enjoy!

Alabaster Box (having trouble embedding it.......)

Taste. and. See.

Taste. Tangible. Savor. Relish. Comprehension. Real. Concrete. Actual. Definite. Detectable. Discernible. Substantial. Tactile. Touchable. Sensible. Perceivable. Perceptible. Objective. Sense. Delicious. Savory. Sweet. Succulent. Substantive. Obtainable. Palpable. Sensation. 

AND

See. Behold. Envision. Experience. Observe. Examine. Recognize. Ascertain. Know. Visualize. Realize. Vision. Conceive. Perceive. Grasp. Fathom. Discern. Detect. Encounter. Ponder. Unearth. Discover. Determine. Distinguish. Investigate. Notice. Envisage. Inspect. Pierce. Survey.

Deluge of Joy.............

joy

joy joy

joy joy joy

joy joy joy joy

overflowing

bursting 

from within

uncontainable

 I delight

I marvel

I revel

in You

Your love

Your smile

Your affections

and gift 

of jubilant felicity

in abundance

freedom 

from 

that which 

once 

bound....

 now I

 indulge in 

great happiness

treasuring 

the greatest prize

ever given

to me

 YOU

my

JESUS

Jesus 

you won 

my 

heart

forever

you have 

given me

this gift 

of yourself

 which

my heart

my mind

cannot 

fully

 fathom

nor grasp

yet as i ponder

this great mystery

my heart leaps

my minds 

whirls and twirls

and 

I long to 

flip

dance

shout

sing

even fly

liveliness 

overtakes me

I become

animated 

with intense

elation

aroused by

the desire

that overtakes me

for you

and from you

you

are

extremely 

gratifying

satisfying

permeating

my whole being

with 

all consuming 

passion 

fire

for you

joy

bliss

glee

wonder

fill 

abound 

arise

cascade

exude

emanate

flow

to overflow

from me

like 

unstoppable

rushing 

waters

splashing

spurting

pouring

forth

in 

ceaseless 

profusion

I 

thrive

in 

You

alone

You

who 

I 

long for

my joy

and 

my crown

I 

will 

ever live

in 

this ceaseless

state

of 

joyful

exuberance

I 

have found 

in

YOU

Precious One........

Precious One...

Little child

Just rest

In Daddy's arms

Snuggled up

Safe and warm

Cared for

Delighted in...

Precious One

How I love these moments

Treasuring them more than you will ever know

I will always be here for you

Just like this

Never tiring

of holding you, keeping you

close to me

dear to my heart...

Precious One

Oh how I long to hold you tight

and let all of your cares melt onto me

Always know

Daddy is here for you

whenever you need

no matter what

I will always

love you

and hold you

in my arms

and in my heart

Need a laugh?

I found the following video today, while reading Christian Feminism, a blog I haven't read in awhile. (which by the way, I highly recommend if you are coming out of any kind of male dominant type teaching.) I am not sure what to think of this video or the preacher. I am not sure what the point is, but I do know one thing, I laughed my head off. So, I thought I would share this as some comic relief........!! Or maybe it's intended as a plug for a really great blog, who knows. 

Jesus is an Awesome Plumber.....

Okay, I realize that title may have you wondering, what on earth? Has she gone loopy? Just hear me out. I have pondered the goodness and blessings of God in my life of late, and I just can't get over how much some of the little things he does just bless my socks off. I felt that the Lord would have me share some of them with others as an encouragment. 

My car was due to be inspected at the end of December. We did not have the finances, nor did we have the time to spare to lose our car for a day, as we only have one vehicle these days. So a few weeks went by and we finally had the money and so I scheduled it to be inspected. The day prior to the car going in to get all legal and official, I was driving along, illegally mind you,  and a cop passed me. A bit of fear rose up inside me, as I peered out the window to see if he might turn around and follow me. Perhaps he had seen my sticker. Sure enough, he did a U-turn. I decided that I would not let fear take over me, and just began to declare the truth about myself. I am God's princess, I have the King of Heaven on my side, no one can come against me. I am protected and preserved and kept by the God of the Universe!! Despite the fact that I indeed deserved a ticket, I decided not going to worry! He followed me for 6 long minutes, right behind me. The whole time I was watching and waiting and laughing. Finally, as I turned onto my street he continued on. Pfhew. I was so relieved. I was beginning to live as though God was watching out for me even though I don't deserve his blessings. The next day we took in the car for inspection. For a month or more, we had the sense that we would need to drop $400-600 on the car. We seriously thought we'd need 2 new tires as our mechanic had told us in the summer we would, and we thought we may need brake work. I had set the money aside for this and was banking on dropping some serious dough that day. Imagine to my surprise, when I called at the end of the day, to hear the receptionist say, the car passed all you needed was one brake light!! I was elated! What a blessing!!

 The following day, Keith came to me with a dumbfounded look on his face. I wondered if something was wrong and asked what was up. He said, "You know that item I was trying to sell, that I thought I was going to only make X amount on, it sold for double that!!!" (He makes his living, believe it or not, as an ebay entropenaur and it was a BIG ticket item!)

I was delighted. I thought, "Yes, this is the blessing that God bestows upon his children! This is the New Covenant life! One blessing after another!!" 

I share all of that to encourage! I share all of that to speak the truth of Jesus, the testimony of Jesus is the spirit of prophecy. When you hear someone's testimony of the goodness of God, it should encourage you to have faith for the blessings in your own life. This may seem like a small example, but it came after a month of many other blessings, some little and some more significant. What I realized was, I am to expect my Daddy to bless me. I am to believe that He is good all the time and that it truly is His heart to pour out His abundant goodness upon me and my family in many ways. Perhaps He wants me to get a hold of this truth so securely that I won't waiver and doubt in His truly good goodness! 

Okay so on with the rest of the story that inspired the title to this post. Several days ago or maybe it's been a week by now, I found my laundry room flooded. Problem =clogged sink drain that the wash empties into, therefore overflow!!! 

I spent significant time cleaning up the mess, then bailing out the sink, pouring boiling water, vinegar and baking soda, and then the heavy duty stuff................still clogged. This was over the course of 2 days. I had no luck. I wasn't thrilled about all of this, but I chose not to despair or let this problem ruin my peace and joy in life. So, instead I began to believe that God could unclog it for me and I asked him if He would please do just that. I would have called a plumber, but Keith didn't want me to. So what did I do, I asked my Daddy to fix it for me! After days of not being able to do laundry due to a drain that just wouldn't budge, I decided to go to the laundromat. I didn't prefer to do that, but I couldn't call a plumber since my hubby just couldn't wrap his mind around that. Anyway, yesterday I went into the laundry room to deal with some of the laundry and prepare to take the rest of the dirty stuff to the laundry mat. To my surprise and utter glee, the drain was empty after having had a puddle of water standing still in it all week!! I quickly turned on the water to see if it would continue to drain, YUP!! I quickly started a load of wash to see if it would drain too.....................it did, and faster than ever!! I was elated, I yelled up to Keith, "Jesus is the best plumber ever!!" 

Now you make think I am crazy, and perhaps irresponsible even, but think about how huge this is to a mom of 4 small kids, who does at least 2 loads of laundry a day!! I was dancing and singing and just so grateful that I did not have to a) wait any longer to be able to do laundry in my own home, and b) call a plumber and prepare to shell out big bucks, and c) because my Daddy God saw fit to meet my need even though I simply did not deserve it!! You see it's all of the blessings no matter how big or small, that I delight in!! If any blessing comes my way, I hope to stop and take note, and remember that my Father is kind to me. That even the small things matter to him. That He is not just going to take care of me because I have needs, but because it is in His very nature and heart of hearts to bless me! And any of His children for that matter!! (And do you know what, it is just like him to unclog my drain, because isn't he all about releasing freedom!! haha....)

So, I share this to hopefully be a reminder that we are to expect His goodness in our life! My experience of His goodness has increased over the time I have been getting a hold of His grace. Not just in my circumstances, but inside of me, in my heart and mind! I find myself very content lately. Not everything in my life is perfect, it never will be, but I am content and have great peace, because of His great love and awesome goodness!! Thanks to His grace, I do not have to qualify for the blessings. Jesus qualified for me, so I can live in the blessings and abundance of my inheritance in Him!! Thank you Jesus!!

John 1:16 - "From the fullness of his grace, we have all received one blessing after another." 

O Taste and See

Confidence in Jesus...............

Psalm 91

 1 He who dwells in the shelter of the Most High 

       will rest in the shadow of the Almighty. 

 2 I will say  of the LORD, "He is my refuge and my fortress, 

       my God, in whom I trust."

 3 Surely he will save you from the fowler's snare 

       and from the deadly pestilence.

 4 He will cover you with his feathers, 

       and under his wings you will find refuge; 

       his faithfulness will be your shield and rampart.

 5 You will not fear the terror of night, 

       nor the arrow that flies by day,

 6 nor the pestilence that stalks in the darkness, 

       nor the plague that destroys at midday.

 7 A thousand may fall at your side, 

       ten thousand at your right hand, 

       but it will not come near you.

 8 You will only observe with your eyes 

       and see the punishment of the wicked.

 9 If you make the Most High your dwelling— 

       even the LORD, who is my refuge-

 10 then no harm will befall you, 

       no disaster will come near your tent.

 11 For he will command his angels concerning you 

       to guard you in all your ways;

 12 they will lift you up in their hands, 

       so that you will not strike your foot against a stone.

 13 You will tread upon the lion and the cobra; 

       you will trample the great lion and the serpent.

 14 "Because he loves me," says the LORD, "I will rescue him; 

       I will protect him, for he acknowledges my name.

 15 He will call upon me, and I will answer him; 

       I will be with him in trouble, 

       I will deliver him and honor him.

 16 With long life will I satisfy him 

       and show him my salvation."

Beholding His Presence................

BEHOLDING THE PRESENCE

      by Bill Johnson

---

"I will bless the Lord who has given me counsel. My heart also instructs me in night seasons. I have set the Lord always before me. Because He is at my right hand, I shall not be moved. You will show me the path of life. In Your presence is fullness of joy. At your right hand are pleasures forevermore."

                                                                                                Psalm 16:7-8, 11

            "For David says concerning Him, 'I foresaw the Lord always before my face.'"

                                                                                                            Acts 2:25

David is saying, "I set the Lord before me." How did David do this? He set the Lord before him by recognizing His presence. We can do the same as we learn to adjust our hearts until we realize, "He's here." The ongoing realization of the presence of the Lord—the awareness of God being in us, upon us, and with us—is one of the most vital elements to the Christian life. 

David became the great leader over Israel by leading them into prosperity, blessing and their greatest military victories. They finally received all the land that was promised to them, all those years from Joshua onward. David came and brought them into their inheritance. David was a great leader because he was the greatest of worshippers and the greatest of warriors. David wasn't even a Levite, but he was the ultimate priest. I believe he was so effective because of this principle. I have sought to pursue this principle every day in my own life. I set God before me by becoming aware of the presence of the Lord who is with me. 

Our confidence levels skyrocket when the presence of the Lord becomes manifested to us. The clearer the manifestation of His presence, the greater the dimension of faith. To live by the theory of His presence is wrong. To say, "Well, I know He's always with me" is not good enough. That truth must launch us into an experience, or we're violating the truth. Truth is given as an invitation for divine encounter so that we would know by experience that God is upon us and God is with us. 

David's entire life as a warrior and a priest was focused on this one thing: to daily take time before Him until we can see Him. Since we can't imagine a place where He isn't, we might as well imagine Him with us. The imagination is a tool that God uses to express Himself in and through us. The imagination is to be harnessed and yielded to the Lord so that in the process of yielding it becomes sanctified, and the sanctified imagination is positioned to perceive Him. The Bible goes so far as to say, "Having our senses trained to discern good and evil." Through this process of training our senses, we become able to recognize the presence of the Lord. David gives us this key, the absolute heartbeat of his life, as if he is telling us, "This is how I made it. Every day I beheld Him with me." 

I feel that David's experience is a summons to the same privilege and responsibility to turn our awareness towards His presence, and in doing so, we invite the increase of that manifestation. As a result, when we behold the Lord, we have far greater success and far greater joy by ministering not out of principles but out of His presence.

Blessings found..............

Isaiah 54

1 "Sing, O barren woman, 
       you who never bore a child; 
       burst into song, shout for joy, 
       you who were never in labor; 
       because more are the children of the desolate woman 
       than of her who has a husband," 
       says the LORD.

 2 "Enlarge the place of your tent, 
       stretch your tent curtains wide, 
       do not hold back; 
       lengthen your cords, 
       strengthen your stakes.

 3 For you will spread out to the right and to the left; 
       your descendants will dispossess nations 
       and settle in their desolate cities.

 4 "Do not be afraid; you will not suffer shame. 
       Do not fear disgrace; you will not be humiliated. 
       You will forget the shame of your youth 
       and remember no more the reproach of your widowhood.

 5 For your Maker is your husband— 
       the LORD Almighty is his name— 
       the Holy One of Israel is your Redeemer; 
       he is called the God of all the earth.

 6 The LORD will call you back 
       as if you were a wife deserted and distressed in spirit— 
       a wife who married young, 
       only to be rejected," says your God.

 7 "For a brief moment I abandoned you, 
       but with deep compassion I will bring you back.

 8 In a surge of anger 
       I hid my face from you for a moment, 
       but with everlasting kindness 
       I will have compassion on you," 
       says the LORD your Redeemer.

 9 "To me this is like the days of Noah, 
       when I swore that the waters of Noah would never again cover the earth. 
       So now I have sworn not to be angry with you, 
       never to rebuke you again.

 10 Though the mountains be shaken 
       and the hills be removed, 
       yet my unfailing love for you will not be shaken 
       nor my covenant of peace be removed," 
       says the LORD, who has compassion on you.

 11 "O afflicted city, lashed by storms and not comforted, 
       I will build you with stones of turquoise, 
       your foundations with sapphires. 

 12 I will make your battlements of rubies, 
       your gates of sparkling jewels, 
       and all your walls of precious stones.

 13 All your sons will be taught by the LORD, 
       and great will be your children's peace.

 14 In righteousness you will be established: 
       Tyranny will be far from you; 
       you will have nothing to fear. 
       Terror will be far removed; 
       it will not come near you.

 15 If anyone does attack you, it will not be my doing; 
       whoever attacks you will surrender to you.

 16 "See, it is I who created the blacksmith 
       who fans the coals into flame 
       and forges a weapon fit for its work. 
       And it is I who have created the destroyer to work havoc;

 17 no weapon forged against you will prevail, 
       and you will refute every tongue that accuses you. 
       This is the heritage of the servants of the LORD, 
       and this is their vindication from me," 
       declares the LORD.

This is an exciting passage! Here are our blessings as New Covenant believers! 

Thoughts from the Book of Acts...........

I am loving reading the book of Acts again!! There are way too many wonderful powerful passages in this book. This book demonstrates what the first church, birthed after the New Covenant came, was like - full of power through the Holy Spirit. This is a better covenant, one with power and life! The promise of the Spirit was fulfilled, and the disciples began to move in power to spread the truth of Jesus! They modeled what church life should look like!! The Gospel continued to go forth with power and signs and wonders through the disciples! They continued in the same manner Jesus did, healing the sick, raising the dead, casting out demons and preaching the truth of Jesus!! Wasn't it kind of God to have demonstrated in such obvious, tangible ways! Why would he do this - to give faith to people, faith in Jesus who saves us from sin and sickness!! Everytime miracles were performed, eyes were opened, hearts were opened, faith was established! Faith!! And we know, without faith it is impossible to please God!! He is the author and perfector of our faith too!! This is a glorious gospel and covenant indeed!! 

Okay, so on with my random snippets from Acts.........................

After the Holy Spirit came upon those in the upper room on the Day of Pentecost;

Acts 2 - 14Then Peter stood up with the Eleven, raised his voice and addressed the crowd: "Fellow Jews and all of you who live in Jerusalem, let me explain this to you; listen carefully to what I say. 15These men are not drunk, as you suppose. It's only nine in the morning! 16No, this is what was spoken by the prophet Joel: 17" 'In the last days, God says, I will pour out my Spirit on all people. Your sons and daughters will prophesy, your young men will see visions, your old men will dream dreams. 18Even on my servants, both men and women, I will pour out my Spirit in those days, and they will prophesy. 19I will show wonders in the heaven above and signs on the earth below, blood and fire and billows of smoke. 20The sun will be turned to darkness and the moon to blood before the coming of the great and glorious day of the Lord. 21And everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.'
22"Men of Israel, listen to this: Jesus of Nazareth was a man accredited by God to you by miracles, wonders and signs, which God did among you through him, as you yourselves know. 23This man was handed over to you by God's set purpose and foreknowledge; and you, with the help of wicked men, put him to death by nailing him to the cross. 24But God raised him from the dead, freeing him from the agony of death, because it was impossible for death to keep its hold on him. 25David said about him: " 'I saw the Lord always before me. Because he is at my right hand, I will not be shaken. 26Therefore my heart is glad and my tongue rejoices; my body also will live in hope, 27because you will not abandon me to the grave, nor will you let your Holy One see decay. 28You have made known to me the paths of life; you will fill me with joy in your presence.'
29"Brothers, I can tell you confidently that the patriarch David died and was buried, and his tomb is here to this day. 30But he was a prophet and knew that God had promised him on oath that he would place one of his descendants on his throne. 31Seeing what was ahead, he spoke of the resurrection of the Christ, that he was not abandoned to the grave, nor did his body see decay. 32God has raised this Jesus to life, and we are all witnesses of the fact. 33Exalted to the right hand of God, he has received from the Father the promised Holy Spirit and has poured out what you now see and hear. 34For David did not ascend to heaven, and yet he said, " 'The Lord said to my Lord: "Sit at my right hand 35until I make your enemies a footstool for your feet." '
36"Therefore let all Israel be assured of this: God has made this Jesus, whom you crucified, both Lord and Christ."
37When the people heard this, they were cut to the heart and said to Peter and the other apostles, "Brothers, what shall we do?"
38Peter replied, "Repent and be baptized, every one of you, in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins. And you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. 39The promise is for you and your children and for all who are far off—for all whom the Lord our God will call."
40With many other words he warned them; and he pleaded with them, "Save yourselves from this corrupt generation." 41Those who accepted his message were baptized, and about three thousand were added to their number that day.

In the passage below, Peter knew he had nothing better to offer this man, other than to demonstrate the power of the gospel, of salvation in action - look at the response this powerful declaration and miracle received. Amazement and wonder and more who believed!! They all gave glory to God! 

Acts 3 - "1One day Peter and John were going up to the temple at the time of prayer—at three in the afternoon. 2Now a man crippled from birth was being carried to the temple gate called Beautiful, where he was put every day to beg from those going into the temple courts. 3When he saw Peter and John about to enter, he asked them for money. 4Peter looked straight at him, as did John. Then Peter said, "Look at us!" 5So the man gave them his attention, expecting to get something from them.
6Then Peter said, "Silver or gold I do not have, but what I have I give you. In the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, walk." 7Taking him by the right hand, he helped him up, and instantly the man's feet and ankles became strong. 8He jumped to his feet and began to walk. Then he went with them into the temple courts, walking and jumping, and praising God. 9When all the people saw him walking and praising God, 10they recognized him as the same man who used to sit begging at the temple gate called Beautiful, and they were filled with wonder and amazement at what had happened to him.

Then look at what Peter says to the astonished crowd................He clarified to them that they did not heal this man by their own power, but by the power of God. He then says;

"16By faith in the name of Jesus, this man whom you see and know was made strong. It is Jesus' name and the faith that comes through him that has given this complete healing to him, as you can all see."

Did you see that? "It is Jesus name and the faith that comes through him that gave the man COMPLETE healing." 

Then in Acts 4, Peter and John were seized and then questioned by the Sandhedrin. Can you imagine this scene?!

8Then Peter, filled with the Holy Spirit, said to them: "Rulers and elders of the people! 9If we are being called to account today for an act of kindness shown to a cripple and are asked how he was healed, 10then know this, you and all the people of Israel: It is by the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, whom you crucified but whom God raised from the dead, that this man stands before you healed. 11He is " 'the stone you builders rejected, which has become the capstone. 12Salvation is found in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given to men by which we must be saved."
13When they saw the courage of Peter and John and realized that they were unschooled, ordinary men, they were astonished and they took note that these men had been with Jesus. 14But since they could see the man who had been healed standing there with them, there was nothing they could say. 15So they ordered them to withdraw from the Sanhedrin and then conferred together. 16"What are we going to do with these men?" they asked. "Everybody living in Jerusalem knows they have done an outstanding miracle, and we cannot deny it. 17But to stop this thing from spreading any further among the people, we must warn these men to speak no longer to anyone in this name."
18Then they called them in again and commanded them not to speak or teach at all in the name of Jesus. 19But Peter and John replied, "Judge for yourselves whether it is right in God's sight to obey you rather than God. 20For we cannot help speaking about what we have seen and heard."

I love the first line and the last line in that passage, don't you? Peter is so full of the Holy Spirit, he is compelled and can not be silent about Jesus! I love it! Even in the face of danger...........

Then in Acts 5 -"12The apostles performed many miraculous signs and wonders among the people. And all the believers used to meet together in Solomon's Colonnade. 13No one else dared join them, even though they were highly regarded by the people. 14Nevertheless, more and more men and women believed in the Lord and were added to their number. 15As a result, people brought the sick into the streets and laid them on beds and mats so that at least Peter's shadow might fall on some of them as he passed by. 16Crowds gathered also from the towns around Jerusalem, bringing their sick and those tormented by evil^[a] spirits, and all of them were healed."

That passage is awesome to me! Peter's shadow healed them! How could that be? He must have been overshadowed by One who indeed carried the power!!! And did you see that more and more believed as a result?!!!

Also, I loved this part in verse 42, after having been persecuted; "42Day after day, in the temple courts and from house to house, they never stopped teaching and proclaiming the good news that Jesus is the Christ."

Further along in Acts we read Paul's message in Athens; 

24"The God who made the world and everything in it is the Lord of heaven and earth and does not live in temples built by hands. 25And he is not served by human hands, as if he needed anything, because he himself gives all men life and breath and everything else. 26From one man he made every nation of men, that they should inhabit the whole earth; and he determined the times set for them and the exact places where they should live. 27God did this so that men would seek him and perhaps reach out for him and find him, though he is not far from each one of us. 28'For in him we live and move and have our being.' As some of your own poets have said, 'We are his offspring.'29"Therefore since we are God's offspring, we should not think that the divine being is like gold or silver or stone—an image made by man's design and skill. 30In the past God overlooked such ignorance, but now he commands all people everywhere to repent. 31For he has set a day when he will judge the world with justice by the man he has appointed. He has given proof of this to all men by raising him from the dead."

Where is the church that moved in power like this? Was it really meant for just the early church? Do we believe in this same Gospel that the disciples preached, the one that came with mighty signs and wonders? If so, aren't we to move in power as the disciples did, and as Jesus did? If we are his offspring, and he is within us and we have been given the promise of the Holy Spirit - and it's in Him we live and move and have our being - wouldn't or shouldn't we be compelled to follow in His and the disciples footsteps! Not only compelled, but propelled and actually moving in signs, wonders and miracles! Proclaiming the good news of Jesus and demonstrating with signs, wonders and miracles to give faith to all those who hear....................why should we settle for less than what we see here in Acts? 

Sharing some fun........

A little birthday fun and some good ole' Southern Red Velvet Cake...........

I didn't have my camera, so we used photo booth on the laptop. Today we celebrated my husband Keith's birthday. Months ago, out of the blue, he told me he wanted Red Velvet Cake for his birthday. I was quite surprised at this request, but tucked into the back of my mind. In a recent email to Jamie, she mentioned Red Velvet Cake was her favorite and that she'd be happy to share her recipe. Of course I was honored. So this post is for her, and for fun and to share a piece of our family fun with my fellow blog family!! 

(By the way, it's not easy taking good photos on your laptop...........I had fun anyway!)

A treat for you..........

Many of you may have become aware of the fabulous grace filled, Jesus centered worship music done by Kelanie Gloeckler! (Thanks to my wonderful friend Jamie!!) If you aren't yet familiar with Kelanie, you are in for a treat!! I can't get enough of this music! I find that I can just let myself go and really enter into a wonderful time of loving up on my Father and him loving up on me!! He and I dance often to Kelanie! There is just something about music like this that seals the truth of who I am, how loved I am, how amazing this great Gospel of Christ and Him crucified truly is, in my heart and mind!! What a glorious privilege and blessing that we get to sing, dance and worship like this for the rest of eternity!! (swooning here....) Anyway, Kelanie has got a grip on who she is and I can assure you will too when you listen!! May I highly recommend you getting your hands on any of her cds!! Okay, now I want to make a repeat mention of another wonderful woman of worship, Sarah McMillan. I find that I am able to be so childlike in His presence while worshipping to her songs!! I feel like a little princess, so loved and so precious!! Seriously, I do!! Just being honest...............!! I have her site linked in my favorite worship music on the side and you can listen for free!!

So, today, I went to hunt down Kelanie's cds on Amazon, no luck they don't carry them, BUT I found the most wonderful duet done by Kelanie and Sarah (shriek!!), AND to top it off the most beautiful mandolin playing accompanying them!! Oh man, I am so in HEAVEN!!! Oh, and did I mention it's 10 minutes long, yeah I am happy!! And when I am bursting like this I just have to share with others!!

If you want to see what all the fuss is about go here, and click on Emmanuel/Do you recognize me. And for more Kelanie visit her MySpace page here. And of course you can always go hang out at Jamie's place for awhile!!

Let your light shine.......

I don't know what brought this verse to my attention, the Holy Spirit perhaps? I can't get it out of my head. Matthew 5:16 -"Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works and glorify your Father in Heaven." This was one of those bible memory verses years ago for my oldest son, but how do you explain this to a child? Unfortunately, the devotion book I read to my son back then suggested that letting your light shine, was about behavior. I want to clear the air and give a fresh perspective to this verse.  

Jesus said, "I am the light of the world." And we know that "In Him there is no darkness at all." 

 Also,  in the first part of the passage I am referring to Jesus said ,"You are the light of the world." ( I believe he was talking to his disciples here.) 

We know as believers we have the very life of Christ alive within us. His Spirit is one with ours. He is light! We have His light inside of us! When we "let go and let God" or rest in Him, or walk by the Spirit, we are letting our light shine. I think He wants us to get comfortable with this and let it shine everywhere we go! Letting our light shine, is another way we die to our right to be in control and let Him live the life! We need to know this truth of, Christ in us, the hope of glory. We need to really truly embrace it as a deep heart understanding, else we miss out on many meanings of many Scriptures. When we know it's Christ in us, we know that the light that we shine is Him. Not our trying to behave well to impress non-Christians. Anyone can be moral enough and behave and show kindness enough to impress someone!! I know lots of moral unsaved people and their kindness outdoes that of many Christians! So how could we think for one second this verse has to do with our behavior or our good efforts to look like Jesus to a lost and dying world. If we truly know it's Christ in us, His light, and we appropriate that truth and let him live through us, the good works we do are the works that Jesus is doing through us. Not us doing the works out of our flesh, those would be dead, dung, rubbish!! They will burn! No, it's Christ in us, working through us. The only works that will please the Father are Jesus' works! All our attempts and efforts at works are like filthy rags. If we are to do the works that Jesus did, we must let Him do them, through us! He initates, we respond!! 

So, when we do this, letting our light shine so that they (the lost world) may see our good works and give glory to God in heaven - we are pointing the world to Jesus! When they see Jesus in us, they will give glory to God!! Remember wherever Jesus went, whatever miracles he did, people were amazed and many believed, many rejoiced and praised God, as well as put their faith in Jesus! (I say many, because unfortunately there were those who were angry and jealous of Jesus, the Pharisees, the self-driven and self-righteous ones who wanted credit for all there hard work and living up to the high standards of the law, they wanted to be glorified  instead of God!!) 

So, it's Christ in you - believer, shining His light through you, before others so that they may see the good works that Jesus will do through you, and glorify our Father in Heaven!!!! We have the life of Christ in us, for us to share with the whole world!! Let's let them see our light!! 

Pressing ON...

" I did not come to entertain the people in the court,

I'm here to please the King, I wanna love on You, Lord

I did not come to camp outside and view You through a haze

I've got to look into Your eyes in the Holy Place, in the Holy Place

There's no going back to where I've been

'Cause You're in me and I am free from sin

I'm pressing on....

I'm pressing on....

I fix my eyes on the prize, I'm lookin' at You, Jesus

I fix my eyes on the prize, I'm lookin' at You

I did not come to settle for the average or mundane

'Cause the Spirit of Jesus Christ is flowin' in my veins

I did not come to bow down and give in to fear of man

I'll prophesy, sing a new song and dance Your dance

I'm gonna dance Your dance

The blaze in Your gaze is drawing me into You

I'm being chased by the very One that I pursue................"

- Kelanie Gloeckler 

Being established in the gift of righteousness.....

Eureka! I am very excited to have found out that Rob Rufus is doing a series on being established in the gift of righteousness!! (to check it out go here) I have only begun to listen to it and am half way through the first message, but I had to share it! It's so cool to me because I have recently spent some time discussing this very issue with someone, the issue of accepting that we are justified, yes, but that now that we are justified  we have to be sanctified and that involves us, somehow we have to do our part to grow in holiness, (do we really? did Paul teach this?)  -and now Rob is preaching on this very subject. A recent discussion took place on Joel's blog on this very topic. It seems like this is a truth that needs to get hammered and sealed into our hearts and brought to those who don't yet see it! I am truly excited!! I want to be established in the truth, don't you?!! It is good for our hearts to be established by grace!! 

"For they being ignorant of God's righteousness, and seeking to establish a righteousness of their own, have not submitted to the grace of God." - Romans 10:3

"He made Him, who knew no sin, to become sin for us, so that we might become the righteousness of God in Christ Jesus." - 2 Corinthians 5:21

What dying to yourself is really like.............

"Life is what happens when we allow ourself to die. To accept the death of our right to believe we're in control. Life is discovering that Grace waits at the end of our own personal resources, knowledge, and performance. Grace isn't the safety net God places beneath us as we attempt to master the high-wire trapeze of life. Grace is the ability to live as creatures that soar, no wires or nets required. Grace can't be earned or bartered for, nor do we eventually grow beyond it. We accept it. We grow in it! Our union with Christ clothes us in His Grace and what is true of us spiritually becomes more and more evident experientially. He lives in us and through us as we abandon our attempts to mimic authentic life." (quoting my dear friend and sister Jamie)

This simple quote is so profound to me. For many years of my Christian life I have heard the phrase, "die to yourself". I never fully understood this. What did it really mean? I think the way people meant it was more like you have to brace yourself, dig in your heels and work hard and serve and lay down your life like Jesus did. In other words, you had to work somehow in order to die to yourself. Die to your desires for the better good of others. And other such trains of thought. Since I have come to grace, or to Jesus himself, and a greater knowledge or should I say heart understanding of the Gospel, this phrase has puzzled me. "Die to yourself." Pick up your cross and die to yourself daily. What did it really mean? Well, today, Jamie has cleared the muddied waters in my mind on this issue. She summed it up so clearly and so simply that I just had to share. "Life is what happens when we allow ourselves to die. To accept the death of our right to believe we are in control."  Can it get any simpler than this, yet be as hard as hell at the same time? This is what true surrender is, "letting go and letting God." Some Christians don't care for that phrase. Wonder why? It's us letting go of the reigns and giving up trying so hard to live the life that we simply cannot live. Only HE can! It is a conscious effort, this letting go. We must surrender in our minds first, and give up trying and simply lean back into His arms and rest knowing that He's got it sorted. Him, not us!! 

And when we realize this, truly realize this truth, that we have to relinquish control knowing it's His life in us flowing through us, it's Him that will live the life and not us, it's then and only then that we begin to experience truly living. The life I now live, I live by faith in the Son of God - who lives in me!! This is mind bogglingly amazing! The more His love and His life gets a grip on me, the more I live abundantly and freely. Free from lots of things that once bound me tightly with fear, which ultimately led to a life lived in a "box" mentality. But life in Him, is not restrictive like that, it's so freeing. I get to live out in the fresh air and breath deeply and see all the amazing breathtaking views..............Okay, now I am babbling away. I just want to celebrate though, don't you? This kind of dying is LIFE GIVING! Crazy, huh?

The law in the life of a believer - GOOD or BAD?

So in light of some discussions I have been having, I decided it was time to review the place of the law in the life of a believer again. I find it to be helpful to me, to go back and reconfirm what I believe, by going through the Scriptures. It is so comforting for me to do this. Not only do I feel more confident in God's grace, I get to seal these truth's in my heart at a deeper level. And, I get to preach the Gospel to myself yet again. Something my former church insisted was crucial - "preach the Gospel to yourself everyday". Only problem was, they only understood part of it. (and I include myself.)

So what about you? Do you believe that the law is a good thing for the believer, does it bring him joy to live by it? Should we as believers aspire to live by the law? Is the law indeed God's set of moral values or standards for us? OR is the law a bad thing for the believer to live by, bringing death and condemnation? (You know which one I vote for!)

John 1:17 - "For the law was given by Moses, but grace and truth came by Jesus Christ. (truth is on the side of grace, not the law)

Galatians 2:21- "I have been crucified with Christ and I no longer live, but Christ lives in me. The life I live in the body, I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me." ( The moment you place the law of Moses between you and God again, you are negating the finished work of the Cross, of Jesus, for if righteousness could come through the law, then Christ died in vain.)

Col. 2:14 -"having canceled the written code, with its regulations, that was against us and that stood opposed to us; he took it away, nailing it to the cross" (the written code here is the law, does this sound "bad:" to you? You cannot reduce our christian walk to a list of rules, Jesus death fulfilled the righteous requirements of the law of the old covenant. The righteous requirements were nailed to the cross, so once we come to faith in Christ through the cross the law stays nailed to the cross, and we enter into a new covenant, and the way to God is now open - He fulfilled it so we don't have to! )

Matthew 5:17-"Do not think that I have come to abolish the Law or the Prophets; I have not come to abolish them but to fulfill them." (Jesus did not sweep the law under the carpet, He came and He fulfilled every requirement of the law perfectly on our behalf. The debt we owed to the law has already come and been fulfilled by our Saviour, we do not still owe payments or installments on that debt by keeping the law anymore, it is cancelled fully! The law has no hold over you anymore!!)

look at Col 2:14 and then 15, ..."having disarmed the principalities and powers, He made a public spectacle of them, triumphing over them in it." (It sounds like the devil was armed with the "handwriting of requirements that was AGAINST us. The handwriting of requirements was written on Mount Sinai by the finger of God on 2 tablets of stone - the devil armed himself with the law to accuse and condemn, man - remember he is an accuser.(see Rev. 12:10- he is the biggest legalist of ALL) God didn't give the law to arm the devil, but the devil, knowing that the law was AGAINST man, took advantage of it and has been using it against man ever since. The law always condemns and keeps man away from God. So the devil, knowing this, uses it to keep us from God - that's why when God nailed it to the cross, He made a public spectacle of the devil and all the powers of darkness.)

so when you here a voice telling you you failed and did not live up to the law and you feel guilty or condemned, you can point to the cross and say I am redeemed from the curse of the law, I stand fully justified and complete in Him and condemnation has no hold over me!!!

But if you insist that you need to keep the law, you are actually arming the devil again! God has nailed the law, he blotted out it's requirements and disarmed it, but when you subject yourseld to this old covenant system of the law, you are putting the weapon back in the devil's hands. ANY teaching that says, "we have to keep the law to be blessed by god and to sanctify ourselves" is putting the weapon of the law back into the devil's hands. Instead of resting in God's disarmament, people are rearming the power's of darkness!!! And let's not forget that if you insist that you need to keep the law,you must keep the whole thing perfectly!

Yes the law is holy, just and good. But, even though the law is holy, just and good, it has no power to make you holy, just and good. The law was added that the trespass might increase, it was added and designed to expose your weaknesses, your sins and your inability to be holy, just and good. It is like a mirror that exposes your flaws! You can't take the mirror and try to clean up your flaws, because that is not the purpose of the mirror. You need to realize that no amount of keeping the law can make you holy. Only the blood of Jesus can do that. Regardless, the law is holy and it is from God.

Romans 3:20 - " Therefore no one will be declared righteous in his sight by observing the law; rather, through the law we become conscious of sin."

Romans 6:14 - "For sin shall not have dominion over you for you are not under law but under grace." So sin WILL have dominion over you when you are under the law.

Romans 4:15 - " because law brings wrath. And where there is no law there is no transgression" ( Did you hear that? Where there is no law, there is no transgression. Did you also hear that law brings wrath, that doesn't sound good to me! Here's an example of what that would look like; say there is no law on how fast you can drive, there is no speed limit. the cops can't pull you over and give you a ticket for speeding, because there is no law stating that you cannot speed. In other words, no law = no sin. No recognition of sin equals no need for a Saviour - the law was given to bring us to the end of ourselves, so that in our desperation we would see our need for Jesus!! Because of the law, none of us can say that we were not sinners and none of us can say we didn't/don't need Jesus. That is the purpose of the law. It was not designed to make you godly, but to expose your ungodliness. The devil will use the law to make you conscious of all your shortcomings - but through Christ you are not under the condemnation of the law any longer!!! )

Righteousness is a gift, it's not a reward for perfect obedience to the law. You are clothed today not in your own righteousness, which is self-righteousness, but with the righteousness of Jesus Christ. God sees you as righteous as Jesus himself. Think of the parable of the prodigal son, remember in the story how the Father ran to the son, and kissed him and hugged him and wanted to throw a party for him and kill the fatted calf, he also put his finest robes on him, symbolizing the gift of righteousness, God's royal robes of righteousness. He loved us so much, he wanted to be with us, he didn't care that we had been in the pig sty after blowing all our inheritance on prositutes - he looked past all of that and blessed us anyway. What lavish love!!

Gal. 3:2-3 -" Let me ask you this: Did you receive the Spirit by works of the law or by hearing with faith? Are you so foolish? Having begun by the Spirit, are you now being perfected by the flesh?" (Do you believe the idea that the Holy Spirit helps us keep and obey the law? We no longer have a relationship with the law. We have died to it. The life we live now is not a life of Spirit-led keeping of the law.)

Let me say this too, that the difference between the old covenant of law and the new covenant of grace is: the law is deserved favor (when you obey the commandments perfectly, you will be blessed.) and grace is undeserved favor (Jesus obeyed God perfectly, and you will be blessed by BELIEVING in Him) So, which covenant are you under? Cause you can't mix the two and still call it grace. God found fault with the old covenant, Hebrews 8:7-8 (hect, read the whole chapter!) "for if that first covenant had been faultless, there would have been no occasion to look for a second. For he finds fault with them when he says; "Behold the days are coming, declares the Lord, when I will establish a new covenant with the house of Israel and with the house of Judah.........read on through verse 13. He made the first one obsolete............OBSOLETE!!!! No more old covenant keeping of laws and rules and regulations.

Romans 7:1-4 -"Do you not know, brothers—for I am speaking to men who know the law—that the law has authority over a man only as long as he lives? For example, by law a married woman is bound to her husband as long as he is alive, but if her husband dies, she is released from the law of marriage. So then, if she marries another man while her husband is still alive, she is called an adulteress. But if her husband dies, she is released from that law and is not an adulteress, even though she marries another man.

So, my brothers, you also died to the law through the body of Christ, that you might belong to another, to him who was raised from the dead, in order that we might bear fruit to God." ( I love this picture! We were all born into this world in Adam, married to the law. In other words, we are married to an authoritarian dominating husband, a husband that points out our faults, a husband that says, don't do this, don't do that, and he never lifts a finger to help, any time you try and argue with him and say that's not fair, you can't because he is always right.

And Paul is saying here, that you can't say, I am tired of the Law, this husband, I am just going to go marry Jesus - because Paul says, "Hey, while this husband is still alive you would be in spiritual adultery to go marry Jesus while the law is still alive." And to make it really bleak and dark and discouraging in the Gospels, Jesus says the law will never pass away. -So you're married to a husband who's fault finding, oppressive, dominating, a bully, always pointing out your faults, never lifts a finger to help you, is always right and you can't argue with him and he'll never pass away, and you can't go marry anyone else. - Pretty bleak and depressing right? Doesn't sound good to me! Is this good news? So what happens now - back to Gal. 2 - You died to that which once bound you, so that you may marry another - Jesus! Jesus is a husband that does not point out your faults, He is extremely gracious, extremely loving, extremely gentle, helpful, breathes life into you, stands by you, does not point out your faults, believes you, holds no sin against you- that's who you're married to, in Christ.

Romans 10:3 - "Christ is the end of the law."

Simplicity.....

This past summer, as I was sitting with a bunch of moms at swimming lessons, a conversation transpired that went like this. 

"So where do you go to church?" 

".............. How about you?"

"............... "  

Then a few random niceties, and somehow we were talking about worship and doctrine after discovering a familiar relationship to my old church. The woman spoke of her church and how they do things and why. 

"Yeah we sing songs with rich doctrine, not just "Jesus loves me, Jesus loves me", and all those other songs that repeat over and over like, "I love Jesus, I love Jesus".  We like to have rich theology in our worship." 

Anyway, I pause at this point because she lost me there. You see I have no problem with songs that sing of the truths of the gospel, and weave in theological truths,  but I do have a problem with thinking you can move past the simplicity of the love of Jesus. What was she insinuating in that statement? I can only guess. I however, like to keep it short and sweet and simple. If not for the love of God, and the fact that He loved us so much, out of love He sent us Jesus to remedy our relationship than I simply do not know where you and I would be. Why make a simple message complicated? Why always think there has to be more?  

I have a lovely little melody running through my mind often. One that I heard Whitney Houston sing in the movie Bodyguard. One that you and I all know so well. So simple even a child could grasp it's truth and sing it over and over, oh yeah and over again!! Enjoy!