One Word 2011

On one great blog I follow I saw this button.

I thought it was such a great idea that I wanted to share it too. Basically instead of making New Year resolutions that are sure to fail before the year is over, pick one word that you want to meditate on. Pick one word to focus on that should help you make good choices and grow as a believer. Pray about what word God wants you to choose. "Joy", "Love", "Faith", "Pray", whatever word is on your mind, or maybe you'll have to narrow down a whole list of words. I can't wait to see how God will use my one word.



PS. Thanks Ashley, for sharing this great idea!

Rest

So often times we find ourselves being caught up in the busyness of our lives and we forget what it's like to just to be able to sit back and just find peace in our Heavenly Father's arms. Our minds are most often focused on the next thing we need to do or the next place we need to be and we often forget to hear Him calling us, telling us just to rest. There are times when we need to just sit down and take a break- to just stop and spend time in prayer, to sit at His feet and to simply listen, instead of always trying to run, and be doing things.
He wants us to take minds off of our busy day and just rest. Just resting in Who He is. Not always praying about all of the problems and the things that are going in on our day, but simply resting, just trusting Him. Knowing that He will make everything alright. Know that He has put us in our situation to teach us a lesson or to bless someone else.
Listen to Him, and all that HE is saying to your heart. Listen, and this time drown out all the other noises and the voices that are going off and are buzzing around your head. Until everything is quiet in your heart and in your mind.

Matt. 11:28-30 "Come to Me, all you who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For My yoke is easy and My burden is light."

Song and Poem

Okay the song and poem aren't really related but I thought I'd put them into one post! ; )

I'm not a big fan of Toby Mac but I love the message in this song of his. (There weren't any good videos on youtube anyway!) So the lyrics are all that I'm putting for the post.
Joy (This Christmas)

Now Johnny's never got his wish on December 25th
That's what he said when he left the orphanage
9 years old, but Johnny was an old soul
Gonna spend his first Christmas in a real home

Showed me a picture that he drew the night before
Was a picture of a man standin' outside a door
I asked him who it was and he said someone I only see in dreams
Comforts me when I cry myself to sleep

Father of the fatherless
Be with your sons and daughters this Christmas.

"Believe in angels?" Johnny asked me starin' at the sky
I said, "I do" and saw a sparkle in his eye
Big brother for the weekend respondin' to the season
Took the chance that giving's better than recievin'

Two nights, a new family, some holiday cheer
We laughed and sang, came on a midnight clear
We gave, received, and as we headed to close
We looked to the heavens and it started to snow down blessings

Father of the fatherless
Be with your sons and daughters this Christmas.
Father let us not forget
The children who are all alone this Christmas.

Religion that God our Father
Accepts as pure and faultless is this
To look after orphans and widows in their distress
Merry Christmas everyone!

Joy to the world, the Lord is come
Let Heaven and nature sing (4x)

You ain't livin', you ain't livin'
Father, this Christmas
You ain't livin' till you choose to give


And here is the poem:
Once in royal Davids city,
Stood a lowly cattle shed,
Where a mother laid her Baby,
In a manger for His bed:
Mary was that mother mild,
Jesus Christ, her little Child.

He came down to earth from heaven,
Who is God and Lord of all,
And His shelter was a stable,
And His cradle was a stall:
With the poor, and mean, and lowly,
Lived on earth our Saviour holy.

For He is our childhood's pattern;
Day by day, like us, He grew;
He was little, weak, and helpless,
Tears and smiles, like us He knew;
And He cares when we are sad,
And he shares when we are glad.

And our eyes at last shall see Him,
Through His own redeeming love;
For that Child so dear and gentle,
Is our Lord in heaven above:
And He leads His children on,
To the place where He is gone

Pure Religion Before God -Part II

James 1:27 “Pure and undefiled religion before God and the Father is this: to visit orphans and widows in their trouble, and to keep oneself unspotted from the world.”

Every two seconds another child becomes an orphan,

Every 2.2 SECONDS, another orphan child AGES OUT with no family to belong to and no place to call home

Galatians 4:4-5

But when the fullness of the time had come, God sent forth His Son. . . to redeem those who were under the law, that we might receive the adoption as sons

John 1:12

But as many as received Him, to them He gave the right to become children of God, to those who believe in His name

Our adoption by God is the ultimate expression of His love, and was the ultimate purpose of Jesus’ life on earth and death on the cross. This is truly the Gospel of Adoption, and it is written in Galatians 4:4-5 and John 1:12

If orphan children never experience a family’s love, how can we expect them to comprehend God’s love?
Adoption by a Christian family is the best way for orphan children to become adopted children of God. Not all are called to adopt, but anyone can love and minister to orphan children by helping other families adopt.

Pure Religion Before God -Part I

James 1:27 "Pure and undefiled religion before God and the Father is this: to visit orphans and widows in their trouble, and to keep oneself unspotted from the world."

Did you know that in America people spent $15 billion on bottled water last year?

Americans spent over $7,000,000,000 on beauty products and well over $10 billion at the movies?

Because America produces twice as much food as needed per person 40 percent of all food produced in America is not eaten!

And still 5 million children will die of hunger or hunger related causes this year.

Did you know that 1.1 billion people live on one dollar a day, and that more than 3 billion people live on less the $2.50 a day? That’s almost half the world!

Did you know that:

Well over 80% of people live on less than $10 a day,

22,000 children die each day due to poverty,

An estimated 40 million people are living with HIV/AIDS,

and that one in every two children are living in poverty!

For the 1.9 billion children from the developing world there are:
640 million without adequate shelter (1 in 3)

400 million with no access to safe water (1 in 5)

270 million with no access to health services (1 in 7)

The Lord can use you! Through your life, your prayers, your giving!

26,000 children die of easily preventable causes, every day! That ought not be!

Matt. 25:40,45 ^"And the King will answer and say to them, ‘Assuredly, I say to you, inasmuch as you did it to one of the least of these My brethren, you did it to Me.’ ... Then He will answer them, saying, ‘Assuredly, I say to you, inasmuch as you did not do it to one of the least of these, you did not do it to Me.’ "

(emphasise added)

Most people would agree that Americans are a little spoiled. Or they might say that Americans are "blessed". It is more blessed to give than to recieve.

For the Beauty of the Earth

I've never been a fan of Barlow Girl, but I did like the way they sang this song better than anyone else did on youtube. I hope you like it too!
(Don't forget to pause the music on the side!)

When Love Takes You In

I really like this song, and I hope you do too! I like all of Steven Curtis Chapman's songs, but this one especially because it's about adoption!
(Don't forget to pause the playlist on the side of the blog first.)

Run!

Why does there seem to be no growth in the lives of Christians, no victory? Why is there the same divorce rate in the church, as there is in the world? Is there no conviction? If there is conviction, does it take no hold, have no affect? We need to make a stand for Christ not be like the world “in order to win them to Christ”. Jesus has already told us “Be in the world, but not of it”.

Hebrews 12:1 Therefore, we also, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses let us lay aside every weight and the sin which so easily ensnares us, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us, looking unto Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith, who for the joy that was set before Him endured the cross, despising the shame, and has sat down at the right hand of the throne of God. For consider Him who endured such hostility from sinners against Himself, lest you become weary and discouraged in your souls.
　
We need to run the race we that has been set before us! 1 Corinthians 9:24- “Do you not know that those who run in a race all run, but one receives the prize? Run in such a way that you may obtain it.”
We need to be different. To be salt. To be light. We need a faith that stands firm! A faith that endures. Without faith it is impossible to please God!(Heb. 11:6) Hebrews 10: 36-39 says “For you have need of endurance, so that after you have done the will of God, you may receive the promise:
“ For yet a little while, and He who is coming will come and will not tarry. Now the just shall live by faith; But if anyone draws back, My soul has no pleasure in him.” But we are not of those who draw back to perdition, but of those who believe to the saving of the soul.”
Are we those who draw back? Are we those who the Lord finds pleasure in? He is coming, life is short. “And we desire that each one of you show the same diligence to the full assurance of hope until the end, that you do not become sluggish, but imitate those who through faith and patience inherit the promises.”(Heb. 6:11,12) Don’t grow sluggish, do not get tired of this life, of this walk, of this battle! Be diligent. Rejoice in the hard times. Romans 5:3 “And not only that, but we also glory in tribulations, knowing that tribulation produces perseverance; and perseverance, character; and character, hope.” The hard times bring perseverance and character and hope!
A runner who really seeks to win loses as much weight as possible without hurting performance. This race we run in is not a physical race, likewise the weights we have are not physical weights. Back to Hebrews 12:1 up at the top, we read “let us lay aside every weight and the sin which so easily ensnares us.” Let us lay aside things which slow down our spiritual growth: anger, covetousness, pride, filthy language out of your mouth. (To name a few.) Such things will make "running the race of faith" difficult, if not impossible!
“And let us run with endurance” The "race of faith” is a marathon, not a sprint. It does not require one quick burst of energy, in which the race is soon over. This "race" requires a sustained effort over a long period of time. Do not loose faith. Gain, strength, hope and resolution.
Jesus told us ahead of time that we would need patience. “And you will be hated by all for My name’s sake. But he who endures to the end will be saved.” (Mt. 10:24) “But He who endures to the end shall be saved” (Mt. 24:13) He gives us Abraham as an example, “after he had patiently endured, he obtained the promise.”(Heb. 6:15) Our patience will grow through Scripture(Rom. 5:14) “For whatever things were written before were written for our learning, that we through the patience and comfort of the Scriptures might have hope.”
As we read of the faithfulness of God Who fulfills His promises and of the ultimate end of those persevered in faithfulness we can see that endurance is required for successfully running this "race of faith"! Paul wrote that eternal life would be given "to those who by patient continuance in doing good seek for glory, honor, and immortality"(Rom 2:7)
Our best example is Jesus: “looking unto Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith, who for the joy that was set before Him endured the cross, despising the shame, and has sat down at the right hand of the throne of God. For consider Him who endured such hostility from sinners against Himself, lest you become weary and discouraged in your souls.” (Heb 12:2-3)
If you want to be distressed -look at yourself! If you want to be defeated -look back! If you want to be distracted -look around! If you want to be dismayed -look ahead! If you want to be delivered -look up! We must consider how He endured. His time on the cross and His time before! How He "endured such hostility from sinners against Himself" This hostility is something He was constantly experiencing. Meditating upon our Lord will prevent us from becoming "weary and discouraged in your souls". But as we consider the Lord and His example (a form of "waiting upon the Lord"), we shall not grow weary nor faint Because when we wait on the Lord, we will renew our strength, “mount up with wings like eagles” and “run and not be weary”.(Is. 40:31)
Get going! Run the “race” with endurance and strength. Make a difference in the lives of others.
Hebrews 12:1 Therefore, we also, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses let us lay aside every weight and the sin which so easily ensnares us, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us, looking unto Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith, who for the joy that was set before Him endured the cross, despising the shame, and has sat down at the right hand of the throne of God.
For consider Him who endured such hostility from sinners against Himself, lest you become weary and discouraged in your souls.