Do you know what I believe?

This last Monday (Memorial Day), I had the privilege to visit with one of my favorite Vietnam Vets.  This dear friend/relative has always been a joy to visit with.  I met him many years after he served our country.  I did not know him when he came home from that terrible war, but I know from stories of his sons and nephews that he struggled for a long time after that.  By the time I met this man though, he was just another kind and gentle man who enjoyed his family and a good joke.  
This past Monday morning as I walked over to his place, I sat down outside with him.  He was reading the paper, and commented on how much bad news there always is.   This opened a wonderful conversation between the two of us.  As always, I can't help but talk about God and my faith when I am visiting with others.  This gentleman has always made it clear that he is not religious and has some issues when it comes to God.  But I have never experienced any animosity from him.  As we continued to visit, he mentioned that he appreciated that I wasn't one of those religious people that had to be so pushy.  He went on to say he had other religious relatives that every time they saw him asked him if he had repented.  I could tell that his experiences with people of faith had been less than pleasant.  I truly thought a lot about what he said that morning for many days. 

I try and always be myself and live my Christian faith out loud.  I do sometimes share the gospel message boldly, but most of the time I trust that God will use me and my life to be a witness of His great love.  But, I wonder sometimes about all the people I know and love that have not accepted Jesus Christ as the one and only way to eternal life with God.  I wonder have I said enough, done enough, prayed enough.  As I was thinking about all this, a letter I wrote fifteen years ago came to my mind.  God laid it on my heart to write a letter and send it to those I love and care about.  I have kept the original copy of this letter all these years, and I decided I would like to share it with all of you today.  I am not going to edit it from it's original form.  You will see my writing style and ability has improved since then, but the heart of this letter is the same as my heart today.  I hope it blesses you, and if it does that you share it with others.  If it changes your life, please let me know.   Like I told this dear friend on Monday morning, I pray and believe that those I love will all come to Truth and Salvation in Jesus Christ.  I wait for that day when each and everyone will call to say that day has come and that the peace, joy, and hope that is found only is Christ is now theirs.  My hearts desire is to live in eternity with all those God has blessed me to know and love in this short life here on earth.

My letter written in 1998:

This letter is for you from the Lord Our God.

 

This letter is for you, the one who feels unworthy.

 

This letter is for you, the one who says, "I am a good person, I'll go to heaven."

 

This letter is for you, the one who feels empty inside, like something is missing.

 

This letter is for you, the one who says, "there is no God, no heaven, and no hell."

 

This letter is for you, the one who believes in Jesus, but is unsure of your salvation.

 

This letter is also for you, the one who calls yourself Christian.

 

 

 I am writing this letter to encourage, guide, and direct you into the life God wants for you.  God wants you to be blessed and loved.  He wants you to be a part of his family.

 

This is the message God has for you:

 

First, I must share with you that the Bible is God's Word.  It is the key to knowing and finding God's will. 

Now, let me tell you that God sent His one and only son, Jesus Christ, down to earth in the form of a man, to die a horrible death on a cross for all mankind.  Anyone who believes that this is the truth, and confesses that they are a sinner(a person who is no good), can be saved from death.  This is how the Bible says it,

"For God so loved the World that He gave His one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life."  John 3:16 NIV



God loves you so much that he sent his son to earth for you. 
 In Romans 5:8 the Bible says,
"But God demonstrates his own love for us in this;  while we were still sinners, Christ died for us."
It is also written in Romans 10:9-10,
"if you confess with your mouth, "Jesus is LORD,"  and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved.  For it is with your heart that you believe and are justified, and it is with your mouth that you confess and are saved."
You see Jesus did not just die for you, but he also rose from the dead to prove He was God, the Christ, the only one who can save you from death. 

Now, to you who says, "I am too bad, he could not and will not forgive me for what  I have done."  Let me assure you that Jesus and only Jesus can and will forgive you. 
So, "Believe in the LORD Jesus, and you WILL be saved."  Acts 16:31
You say, but I can't change my ways.  You are right.  Only God can change you, so ask Him to save you, because it is also written,
"If anyone is in Christ, he is a new Creation, the old has gone, the new has come."  2 Corinthians 5:17

 

To you, the one who says, "I am a good person."  You may be a great person, but the Bible says,
"For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith- and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God - not by works so that no one can boast."
God says,
"For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God."  Romans 3:23
"If we claim to be without sin, we deceive ourselves and the truth is not in us.  If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness."  1 John 1:8-9
So,
"Repent, then, and turn to God, so that your sins may be wiped out, that times of refreshing may come from the LORD."  Acts 3:19
"For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our LORD."  Romans 6:23

To you the one that feels like something is missing, or your not sure of your salvation in Jesus. 
Jesus says," I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full." John 10:10b
So, "I tell you the Truth, whoever hears my Word and believes Him who sent me has eternal life and will not be condemned: he has crossed over from death to life."  John 5:24
So, believe that you are saved and rejoice in the exciting life God has for you.

To you the one who does not believe Jesus is the only savior, or maybe you believe he is okay for those who believe, but you can choose to believe you own way,
Jesus says," I am the Way and the Truth, and the Life.  No one comes to the Father (God) except through me."  John 14:6
"Salvation is found in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given to men by which we must be saved."  Acts 4:12
Jesus is the only way to eternal life in heaven with God.

To you who says, "There is no God, no heaven, and no hell."  I will not argue scripture with you.  I simple ask that you be sure in your heart that is what you believe.  Because I believe fully in God, and in His hope, peace, and my faith is firm in Jesus Christ.  I also believe that I am bound for heaven and without Christ's forgiveness I will be headed for hell.  How sure are you that you are right?  I am positive I am, and I want you to share eternity with me.

Now you may have read all this and are still saying, "I have waited too long, God won't take me now."  Or, "Jesus doesn't want me."  You are Wrong.  Jesus says,
 "Here I am!  I stand at the door and knock.  If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in."  Revelations 3:10
"He is patient with you, not wanting anyone to perish, but everyone to come to repentance." 2 Peter 3:9b
So now that you know Jesus is the son of God, and that he died for your sin, and rose to prove he is God.  What are you going to do?  Are you going to accept His gift?  I hope you will.  You can right now.  Just tell Him you know you are a sinner, that you believe He is God and died for your sins.  Thank him for his gift and become part of His family. 
"Yet to all who received Him, to those who believed in His name, he gave the right to become children of God."  John 1:12

God has given this letter to me to write to you.  It is not always easy to obey God.  This has been a difficult task for me and I realize by sending this letter to you I may offend you or anger you.  But, I pray that the Lord's Word will speak truth to your heart.  Here is a simple prayer to ask Jesus to be Lord of your life. 

Dear Lord Jesus,

 

I know I am a sinner and need your forgiveness.   I believe you died for my sins.   I want to invite you to come into my heart and make you Lord of my life.  Please, make me your child, a member of your family.  Thank you, Lord.

Amen

 

May the Lord guide and direct your life.

 

In the Lord's service,

Katie

Want to change to the World than Know God's WORD

All week my heart has been heavy.  I have been so burdened for the lost people of our world.  There are still so many people groups in the world who have not even heard the name of Jesus.  But, this is not the only lost souls of the world.  Here in our country so many do not know or understand the Truth.  There are churches full of people Sunday after Sunday, weekend after weekend, that are NOT free in Christ.  They have not heard the Truth, or they have not understood it.  How can this be?  How can we be living our lives side by side with our neighbors and not impacting them?  What is our role?  How can I make a difference?

As I prayed and searched my Bible, and visited with others on this issue of sharing the gospel and making disciples I realized there is only one answer.  It is the WORD of God.  I can tell lots of people my personal stories and experiences, but it is His Story that will change their lives.  It is His Word of Truth that has the power to save.  So I kept coming back to this same truth, the answer to how I can impact my world, is the same answer to the question how do I prepare my children for this world.  That answer is this.  If I want to change the World, I have to know God's Word.

There is a Nike commercial that goes something like this.  Eat Soccer, Drink Soccer, Sleep Soccer, Play Soccer, Live Soccer, JUST DO IT.  I want that to be my motto, just change soccer to the Bible, God's Word, the good book, whatever name you call it.

Eat God's Word, Sleep God's Word, Drink God's Word, Pray God's Word, Live God's Word.  JUST DO IT!

or maybe something more like this:

 

 

Read the WORD.

 

 

 

Study the WORD.

 

 

 

Memorize the WORD.

 

 

 

 

Listen to the WORD.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Share the WORD.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Teach the WORD.

 

 

 

I want to stop making excuses for bad behavior (that is a phrase we use in our house all the time).  I want there to be no reason why I can't live my life to the full, so I am going to make it my number one priority to JUST DO IT!!!

 

How about you?

 

 

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Are You Salty?

^{Colossians 3:18-4:6}

¹⁸ Wives, be subject to your husbands, as is fitting in the Lord. ¹⁹ Husbands, love your wives and do not be embittered against them. ²⁰ Children, be obedient to your parents in all things, for this is well-pleasing to the Lord. ²¹ Fathers, do not exasperate your children, so that they will not lose heart.

²² Slaves, in all things obey those who are your masters on earth, not with ^[external service, as those who merely please men, but with sincerity of heart, fearing the Lord. ²³ Whatever you do, do your work heartily, as for the Lord rather than for men, ²⁴ knowing that from the Lord you will receive the reward of the inheritance. It is the Lord Christ whom you serve. ²⁵ For he who does wrong will receive the consequences of the wrong which he has done, and that without partiality.

 

4 Masters, grant to your slaves justice and fairness, knowing that you too have a Master in heaven.

² Devote yourselves to prayer, keeping alert in it with an attitude of thanksgiving; ³ praying at the same time for us as well, that God will open up to us a door for the word, so that we may speak forth the mystery of Christ, for which I have also been imprisoned; ⁴ that I may make it clear in the way I ought to speak.

⁵ Conduct yourselves with wisdom toward outsiders, making the most of the opportunity. ⁶ Let your speech always be with grace, as though seasoned with salt, so that you will know how you should respond to each person.

 

I thought I would give you a little glimpse of one of the ways I like to study the WORD.  One of the ways I like to look at God's Word is to read a small section of it and see what jumps out at me.  Then I take the section apart by highlighting in different colors.  As I reread the verse over and over, I look at them from different perspectives, and find knew meaning in them.

If you take a moment and read the verse above out loud, emphasizing the different highlighted colors each time, you will hear a different perspective each time.  Read it first emphasizing the yellow.  As I do that, I see the LORD's role in my life as primary, not mine, or even others.  Now try focusing on a different highlighted color, or if you have time print out the verse for yourself and highlight the words you see jumping out at you.  Read and reread the passage several times, and let the Holy Spirit speak to you.  Then if you have time, share with us what spoke to you.  It will be interesting to see the many different responses. 

 

So, one of the things that stood out to me was "seasoned with salt."  I love salt.  I love how it makes everything taste better, if you put just the right amount in.  I was pondering the mention of salt in the Bible this past week.  In Mark 9:50, we are told by Christ to have "salt in ourselves," so to be at peace with one another. 

So what is SALT?  That is my question.  Salt is not sugar.  It doesn't make food sweet.  Salt is not pepper, it does not make things spicy.  Salt is not garlic or onion or oregano.  But, if I add salt to any of these other things it brings out the flavor of what I added it to.  It enhances what is already there.  So salt is defined as being used especially to season or preserve food in Webster's dictionary.  So what is Jesus and Paul trying to say to use Christians if we are to be salt.    When I am salty I can enhance and help preserve others lives.  COOL!  The results of having salt in us creates peace with others according to Mark 9:50.  The evidence of salt in us is the knowledge of how to respond to others with gracious speech according to Colossians 4:6.  Wow, I want to be salty.  How about you? 

 

Is it OK to speak out against Authority?

 

 

 

 

Those who know me, know I don't watch a lot of television, so therefore I don't often watch the news. But, this last week there was no getting around the media influence on the Internet. Every time I logged into the web, I saw something about abortion, homosexuality, and politics. The stories that ran last week, were big because they covered not just one area of interest but many. These stories were about sports, politics, and religion. So they were hot topics.

As I saw many different views of these stories, I was saddened to the core of how off course even the Christian church has gone. I wondered, like so many other believers, what is my role in all this. How do I handle these things? So, as I prayed and asked God to show me the answers, he did just that.

I always find the ways God works so cool. Anne started doing a blog study on the book of 1 Peter, and our life group returned to a Bible study, we started a few weeks back on 1 Peter. I love when God does that. So, now I get to study 1 Peter closely with others, near and far.

If you want to check out Anne's blog, she has only posted two posts on 1 Peter so you can catchup quickly, just go here and join in.

Back to my question of how should I, a child of God, handle the sad truth of what is going on in the world around me. Is it OK to speak up and say that sin is sin? Is it OK to say that those who lead my country are speaking and doing evil? What is acceptable according to God? In a conversation I was having on this topic with an acquaintance, he said, that the Bible said, we are not to speak against those God placed in leadership, like our President. I did not recall reading that anywhere in the Bible. I had read Romans 13, which speaks on Respect of authority and that God placed those in leadership in place. But I had also read the books of the Old Testament where the people asked God to give them Kings, and he gave the people what they asked for even when they chose the ways of the world over the Lord's ways. I have read Hosea 8, which makes it clear that even when Israel was warned to allow God to lead them, they chose men instead. But, in all my reading and studying I did not recall anything that said God's people could not speak truth about false leaders. So, I was praying and thinking about these thing,s and yesterday when I was in Bible study with my life group, boom God showed me the answer.

1 Peter 2:13-20

Honor Authority

13 Submit yourselves for the Lord’s sake to every human institution, whether to a king as the one in authority, 14 or to governors as sent by him for the punishment of evildoers and the praise of those who do right. 15 For such is the will of God that by doing right you may silence the ignorance of foolish men. 16 Act as free men, and do not use your freedom as a covering for evil, but use it as bond slaves of God. 17 Honor all people, love the brotherhood, fear God, honor the king.
18 Servants, be submissive to your masters with all respect, not only to those who are good and gentle, but also to those who are unreasonable. 19 For this finds favor, if for the sake of conscience toward God a person bears up under sorrows when suffering unjustly. 20 For what credit is there if, when you sin and are harshly treated, you endure it with patience? But if when you do what is right and suffer for it you patiently endure it, this finds favor with God.

So there it was, submit to every human institution, king, government, etc. Submit because it is God's will that we submit. So what does that word submit mean then. It holds the key to answering the question of how we respond to an evil and corrupt government. Does it mean I can not speak truth about the evil of the President? Does it mean I should do everything that the government tells me to do? Absolutely not. Submission is not allowing someone or an institution to rule over you with an iron fist. Submission is recognizing the authority that has been given to someone. It is treating people and institutions with the proper respect they deserve for the position they hold. I am called to submit to my husband as the head of my home. That means I respect him, and even obey him. But, it doesn't mean I can't stand up for myself or righteousness. If my husband is leading our family down a path away from God, then it is my duty as his help meet to gently and respectfully point out his error. This is no different in the world, those who have been placed in authority are to lead in righteousness and truth. If they are not then they need to be called out in love and respect to Truth. Every prophet in the Bible was given the job of speaking the truth in love. Often it made their lives terribly miserable because those they had to speak to were people of authority who did not want to change from their wicked ways.

  This too is our calling. As you read on in 1 Peter 2, we are reminded that Jesus had to speak out against the evil of His day. He had to shine the light of Truth for us all and because He did he suffered the greatest and worst suffering of all on our behalf. Therefore, it is our calling, our duty to follow Him in suffering for the Truth. This is the message of 1 Peter 2. Submit to authority, speak Truth in love, and Suffer for the sake of the Cross.

1 Peter 2: 21-25

21 For you have been called for this purpose, since Christ also suffered for you, leaving you an example for you to follow in His steps, 22 who committed no sin, nor was any deceit found in His mouth; 23 and while being reviled, He did not revile in return; while suffering, He uttered no threats, but kept entrusting Himself to Him who judges righteously; 24 and He Himself bore our sins in His body on the cross, so that we might die to sin and live to righteousness; for by His wounds you were healed. 25 For you were continually straying like sheep, but now you have returned to the Shepherd and Guardian of your souls.

    

So, if you are suffering because you are following Christ, be encouraged this is your High Calling.