God-Breathed

The more I have indulged the Word of God, the more apparent it has become that we as humans rely far to much upon our own understanding. As Christians, we have in our possession, literally at the tip of our fingers, unlimited access to God’s Word, known to us as the Bible. It has endured through time, lasting beyond any human or their achievements, and has been proven to endure, persevere and overcome. Countless lives have been shaped and effected by the words it contains; yet in our pride or ignorance, we neglect to meditate on it.

Why is that?

Why do we constantly look to other sources for wisdom, advice, and instruction? Other sources such as our favorite televangelists, preachers, New York Time’s Best Sellers, mentors, talk shows, podcasts, twitter accounts… or even just our own understanding. We consistently try to live by quotes of the day, philosophical ideals from times past or encouraging confessions, yet we’re not truly alive. God has provided us with a source of daily wisdom yet we reject it for our own artificial, manmade knowledge. The result of which is failure, disappointment, and confusion.

In Genesis 2:7, we see that God formed man from dust and then “breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and man became a living being” (NASB). If life was given to man by the breath of God, then why would we ever expect to find life apart from his breath. 2 Timothy 3:16 tells us, “All scripture is breathed out by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness.” (ESV)

In quoting scripture, Jesus reminded us that man lives “by every Word that proceeds out of the mouth of God” (Matthew 4:4 ESV) Man can only grow and thrive by the Word of the Lord. Every thing man has ever accomplished has eventually become irrelevant, fading into history or completely forgotten. So then, why do we give such weight and precedence to man’s ways? Human wisdom and achievements are futile. Only God’s Word will accomplish it’s purpose and endure forever.

“I have seen that everything [human] has its limits and end [no matter how extensive, noble, and excellent]: but Your commandment is exceedingly broad and without limits [into eternity].” (Psalm 119:96 AMP)

In my personal experience, when I found that man’s words could not sustain me, I turned to the Living Word and was satisfied. We as believers must resolve to submit our lives to the authority of God’s Word. Scripture ALONE is the only authoritative source regarding matters of life, faith, and practice of all Christians.

Evaluation:

In what ways have I tried to live according to man’s conventions?

What areas of my life have not yet been submitted to the authority of Scripture?

 Application:

The most fundamental way of submitting our lives to the God’s Word is by studying the Bible on a daily basis. Be intentional about a specific time to read each day and meditate upon the Scriptures. Allow them to be like a mirror, reflecting who you truly are; and make necessary adjustments in your life to line up with God’s precepts.

“But the one who looks into the perfect law, the law of liberty, and perseveres, being no hearer who forgets but a doer who acts, he will be blessed in his doing.” (James 2:25 ESV.

1. Examine yourself in Scripture
2. Act on what you see

Article by Caleb Angel

Photo Credit by Descendants of Noah

Can God Be Trusted?

“God is so certain of His own goodness that He isn’t at all threatened by our questions”

I think many of us distrust Him but think it too grievous a thing to admit. Lean in just a bit and allow me to assure you, He is big enough to confront and settle our doubts. In fact, God is so certain of His own goodness that He isn’t at all threatened by our questions. Thankfully, He isn’t a God we have to tiptoe around.

Here are 10 reasons we find in the Bible why God can be trusted:

1. God is a good and loving father. 

Which of you, if your son asks for bread, will give him a stone? Or if he asks for a fish, will give him a snake? If you, then, though you are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father in heaven give good gifts to those who ask him! (Matthew 7:9-11)

2. God gives good gifts. 

He who did not spare his own Son, but gave him up for us all—how will he not also, along with him, graciously give us all things? (Romans 8:32)

3.God provides you with a way out of every temptation. 

No temptation has overtaken you except what is common to mankind. And God is faithful; he will not let you be tempted beyond what you can bear. But when you are tempted, he will also provide a way out so that you can endure it (1 Corinthians 10:13).

4. God’s love is greater than anything in your past or future.

For as high as the heavens are above the earth, so great is his love for those who fear him; as far as the east is from the west, so far has he removed our transgressions from us (Psalm 103:11-12).

5. When you take your sins to God, He forgives you. 

If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness (1 John 1:9).

6. God is close to the brokenhearted.

The LORD is close to the brokenhearted and saves those who are crushed in spirit (Psalm 34:18).

7. God has made you His child. 

See what great love the Father has lavished on us, that we should be called children of God! And that is what we are! The reason the world does not know us is that it did not know him (1 John 3:1).

8. God knows everything. 

If our hearts condemn us, we know that God is greater than our hearts, and he knows everything (1 John 3:20).

9. All things are under God’s control.

And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose (Romans 8:28).

10. He knows what you need and He provides. 

And do not set your heart on what you will eat or drink; do not worry about it. For the pagan world runs after all such things, and your Father knows that you need them. But seek his kingdom, and these things will be given to you as well (Luke 12:29-31).

Article by New Spring Church

As with all our posts, please be guided of the Holy Spirit in all things.  God will never lead you wrong and if ever in doubt about anything pertaining to your soul salvation, seek the Lord in prayer and wait on Him for an answer

Photo Credit by: Gif Sec and KCCFamily

If this article has been a blessing to you, please let us know by leaving a comment below.  Thank you for visiting our page. Remain blessed in Jesus!

When God is Silent

Elijah had been used of God to hold back rain from the people for over three years, because of their sins. Obviously, he was not well liked as a preacher. I can imagine the stress he experienced during those years.

Something strikes me, however, that seems to further complicate Elijah’s situation.

Consider 1 Kings 18:1:

“After a long time, in the third year, the word of the LORD came to Elijah: “Go and present yourself to Ahab, and I will send rain on the land.”

According to a couple New Testament passages, this “After a long time” was actually three and a half years. The famine was three and a half years long. For three and a half years, the people apparently continued to sin, Elijah continued to hold on by faith, but God said nothing. God was apparently inactive… not speaking… even to His great servant Elijah during this time.

Have you ever been there? Has the silence of God in your life ever been eerily strong?

Imagine you had been faithfully serving… God is using you… you are in constant communication with Him… and then suddenly… everything is quiet. You have to wait.

The separation must have seemed unbearable. Elijah is not liked and unpopular. He’s an outcast from the people and the One he trusted most was seemingly absent.

God would soon do a miracle through Elijah… one he couldn’t even imagine… certainly not script, but during this period all Elijah could do was wait.

If you have been follower of Christ very long, you have had periods where it seems God is nowhere to be found. We often call them periods of spiritual dryness. Sometimes I refer to it as being in a spiritual funk.

What should we do during the times of silence, before the miracles of God come through for us?

If you are like me, you can figure out how to celebrate a miracle. You don’t need much help doing that. The tough part of life is figuring out what to do during the years of silence… during the years when miracles are seemingly nowhere to be found.

What do we do during the spiritually dry periods of life when we don’t hear clearly the voice of God?

Here are 7 suggestions for those times:

Don’t ignore the silence – Some of the biggest moves God has made in my life have come after a period of spiritual dryness… when it seemed like God was doing nothing in my life. Stay very close to God and watch for Him to eventually display His power. He will in the fullness of time.

Confront known sin in your life – This wasn’t the problem of silence for Elijah, but the problem for the Israelites was that they were chasing after other gods and living lives in total disobedience to God. Sin may not be the reason you don’t sense closeness to God right now, but if you have known sin in your life it will affect your intimacy with God.

Go back to what you know – Get back to the basics of the faith that saved you. You’ll do it 100s of times in your life, but you must remind yourselves of the basis of faith… which is the very character and promises of God. God is in control. He really is… even when it doesn’t seem that He is anywhere to be found.

Make a decision… Choose sides – You can’t adequately serve God and the world. (Consider Joshua 24:15.) Something happens in life, often sin, busyness, boredom, or a tragedy… but if we are normal, we have periods where we grow away from our close relationship with God. God hasn’t moved, but if you’ve shifted in your obedience, get back securely on the right side.

Trust More… Not less – Times of silence may be filled with fear, but ironically, these times require more faith. Times come in our spiritual life when our enthusiasm isn’t as real as when we began our walk with God. That’s not an indication to quit… it may be that God is using that time for something bigger than you could have imagined… but whatever is next will most likely require a deeper level of trust.

Listen and Watch Closely – Some day God is going to make His plans known to you. Don’t miss them. He may come to your personally, through His Word, circumstances, or another person. You’ll need to be in a position to know that God is moving. (Read THIS POST if you need help discerning God’s will.)

Get ready to receive – God will break the silence some day… and when He does it WILL be good. If you mope around in your sorrows, you’ll be less prepared to receive the good things to come. Not because of your circumstances, but because of your faith, clothe yourself in joy as you wait for God to bless you after the period of silence.

Are you in one of those periods of silence today? How do you handle these periods of time?

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Article by Ron Edmondson

As with all our posts, please be guided of the Holy Spirit in all things.  God will never lead you wrong and if ever in doubt about anything pertaining to your soul salvation, seek the Lord in prayer and wait on Him for an answer

Photo Credit by: Shutterstock

If this article has been a blessing to you, please let us know by leaving a comment below.  Thank you for visiting our page. Remain blessed in Jesus!

Are You a Disciple or Not?

We all have the ability to witness to the world about the love and salvation offered from Jesus, but do we eagerly take advantage of opportunities to witness?

Joanna says she loves the Lord, but doesn’t witness to those in her family or people she comes into contact.  One day, Joanna’s friend Michelle called her crying about a situation.  Joanna listened and countless opportunities to tell Michelle about Jesus arose during the conversation, but Joanna held her tongue.  Another opportunity arose when her sister, MaryAnn came by her house and confessed to her she was troubled and felt empty inside.  Again, Joanna didn’t take the opportunity to witness about God’s love and salvation

Ever read about the ‘Great Commission’

Jesus in Matthew 28:19-20 instructed His disciples to “Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost: Teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you: and, lo, I am with you always, even unto the end of the world”

Just as He instructed them, He is still instructing us today.  We are privileged to be called disciples, but we must not be slothful disciples.  Every day we should eagerly grasp opportunities to share the ‘Good News’ with those who are searching for peace.  We were chosen with a purpose.  Serve God in all that we do, which means to share what we have with those who are lost

We were lost one day and someone told us the ‘Good News’  We must do the same for others

God doesn’t want us to hide our salvation, but tell the world about it.  Be eager to share it!

Disciples don’t run and hide, but we run and tell of the ‘Good News’ in hopes of blessing someone else with the gift of Salvation we were privileged to receive

Are you a disciple or not?  If you are, get out there and tell someone about Jesus and all He has to offer

Thank you for visiting our blog.  We pray today’s post has inspired you to become the best disciple of Christ Jesus you can be.  Remember, always strive for that which is good in Jesus name.  God continue to bless you today and always!

Inspired by Laraine Turner

Become a FAN of Blessed Magazine today on Facebook and Twitter and be inspired and encouraged daily through God’s Word!

One Life to Live

Many who hear this phrase will automatically think of the day time soap opera, but there is something much more important about this phrase; you!

And the Lord God formed man of the dust of the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and man became a living soul- (Genesis 2:7)

God gave us our most precious commodity; breath of life, directly from Him to us which indicates we have a part of Him inside us that keeps us alive and ticking

Today, my focus is this; ‘what are we doing with this life God so preciously has given to us?’

We all have one life.  When our time is up, there is no second go-around, no second chance at another life; only this life and with this life, it must count or we will be lost forever separated from God

One life to serve God the way He desires.  One life to receive the precious Holy Spirit!  One life to get it right!

In the bible, there is a parable Jesus told His disciples about a rich man and a beggar named Lazarus (Luke 16:19-31)

In this parable, Jesus illustrated how the rich man lived a life of luxury while the beggar (Lazarus) lived in poverty.  The rich man had ample means to help Lazarus, but failed at the task.  When they both died, the rich man went to hell while the beggar when to Heaven.  When the rich man opened his eyes, he saw the beggar in Heaven, not being tormented and desired for the beggar to give him some relief with water

In this life which God has given us, we must not be selfish, must do what we can for others in Jesus name and pursue a life that pleases the Lord.  We must daily show God we are grateful for His precious ‘Breath of Life’ and are willing to use this life to please Him and those around us, again in Jesus name

One life to live – ‘What are we doing with this life God so preciously has given to us?’

Thank you for visiting our blog.  In all our posts, we pray that you receive encouragement and inspiration to continue seeking the Lord with all your heart.  Continue seeking that which is good always in Jesus name.  Stay encouraged and be blessed.  God bless you!

Inspired by Laraine Turner

Become a FAN of Blessed Magazine on Facebook today and received daily inspirational quotes and inspiring stories!

Failure in Waiting on God!

“I want to get married” stated Thomas to his Pastor while they were repairing a wall in the church.  “Ask God and have faith that God will send you who He wants you to be with” replied his Pastor.  “I have been waiting and asking, but its been over 2 years and I haven’t even gotten a bite”.  “Maybe you’re not ready for a wife Thomas.  Remember, God knows all things and when the time is right, He will deliver…you just have to have faith in His timing”  Thomas was a lonely man and desired a wife.  Someone he could talk to, take walks with and go out for dinner.  Yes, Thomas had been asking God for a wife, but the time has come for him to find her on his own.  Within a few months, Thomas announced his engagement to Frances.  Frances was a long time friend of Thomas’s from his years in college.  Frances had been married twice and both marriages ended in a bitter divorce.  Thomas felt as though Frances’s decisions for companions was wrong because he was the one she should had married.  Well, they got married and less than a year later, were filing for divorce because of irreconcilable differences

Like Thomas, many of us decide to take matters into our own hands.  We lose patience with God and His timing and go off and satisfy our own pleasures only to end up in a mess

I’m not going to state waiting on God is easy, but I will state waiting on Him is essential to our overall happiness and contentment in our lives

God knows what we need, when we need it and who we need it with.  He knows the outcome of all situations and failing to wait on His deliverance for our lives is the wrong approach to happiness

God desires for us to be happy.  He takes great pleasure in seeing us happy, thriving and living a life blessed through Him.  When He created the Garden of Eden, it was for our pleasure.  He desired a life with no cares, no disappointments and no sin.  However, all throughout mankind, it has been the same story over and over….my way and not your way Lord.  This type of response to God is a sure fire way of leading a life of disappointments and definitely sin

Whatever you are asking God for today, wait patiently for Him (James 1:4 states: But let patience have her perfect work, that ye may be perfect and entire, wanting nothing)

Today I pray that God teach us the blessedness of waiting on Him

Please pray this prayer if you are in need of patience and guidance while waiting on your answer from God:

Gracious God, it’s so hard to wait. To wait for new things to happen in my life. To wait for You to answer my prayers. To wait for the open doors that may lead me into a new way of being. During the time of waiting, it seems that all I can think of is having what it is I am waiting for.  At times I feel weary of asking and waiting, and I wonder if You really hear my prayers at all, if You are ignoring me, or if You are simply refusing to give me my heart’s desire. A part of me knows that You want my best, and that Your time is not my time, but Lord, it is still so hard to wait. Deepen my trust, O Lord, during the times when my heart longs for what can only come in the fullness of time. Give me  a calm assurance that Your will for me is grander than anything I could ever imagine. Still my mind and heart in Your love so that I am mindful of the grace You are draping around me every single day, every single moment. I ask this for the sake of Your love

Thank you for visiting our blog.  We sincerely hope that something said within its contents provides hope and a sense of security in your life today.  Remember to seek that which is good in all things in Jesus name.  God bless you!

Inspired by Laraine Turner

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