"Only Life Changes"

In the day of my trouble, I will call upon Thee: for Thou will answer me. Psalm 86:7
{Prayer}
Help me, Lord, to act with Your love in the seemingly impossible situations of life in Jesus Precious Name Amen.

Father God, let this touch someones heart in Jesus Precious Name Amen.

Let’s say I am riding down the street and I see a turtle walking across the street. I stop my car and put the hazzards on . I get out of the car and run over and pick up that turtle, go and put it in the floor board of the car. I shut of my hazzards and proceed to drive off. I take the turtle to the lake. I take that turtle out of the car and put the turtle down in the grass. I watch as that turtle gets in the water. When the turtle is safe I leave.
What I am saying is I took the time to make sure that turtle was safely home. Even though I had to go some wheres else. This is what God does for us. He don’t wait till a car runs us over and then pick us up. He takes that time to guide us home. It’s a wonderful thing to know that God would save us. It is even greater thing to know that we can be saved and know that we’re saved.
How you think that turtle felt once he was able to be back in the water. The turtle was at home. The turtle knew he was saved. We don’t have to say, “I hope I’m saved,” “I think I’m saved,” or “Maybe I am saved.” We can Thank and praise God knowing that we are saved. Not only can we be saved and know that we’re saved, but we can also know without a shadow of any doubt that we can never lose our salvation. Not only does God save us by His grace. He also keeps us by His grace. Our submission of faith is to him alone. We bind ourselves to him even as that means going to Jerusalem and witnessing his passion. Moreover, as Paul reminds us, we bind ourselves to him in the midst of our own tribulations. And we do so know that he has also irrevocably bound himself to us. The Bible tells us that God reveals Himself to humans in four primary ways. All that God has created in nature discloses who He is. Our consciences (the human mind and heart) bear witness to the existence of God. He reveals Himself to us through His Word and the person of Jesus Christ.
It reads in Ephesians 1:2-14, Grace and peace to you from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. Praise for Spiritual Blessings in Christ Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in the heavenly realms with every spiritual blessing in Christ. For he chose us in him before the creation of the world to be holy and blameless in his sight. In love he predestined us for adoption to sonship through Jesus Christ, in accordance with his pleasure and will, to the praise of his glorious grace, which he has freely given us in the One he loves. In him we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of sins, in accordance with the riches of God’s grace that he lavished on us. With all wisdom and understanding, he made known to us the mystery of his will according to his good pleasure, which he purposed in Christ, to be put into effect when the times reach their fulfillment, to bring unity to all things in heaven and on earth under Christ. In him we were also chosen, having been predestined according to the plan of him who works out everything in conformity with the purpose of his will, in order that we, who were the first to put our hope in Christ, might be for the praise of his glory. And you also were included in Christ when you heard the message of truth, the gospel of your salvation. When you believed, you were marked in him with a seal, the promised Holy Spirit, who is a deposit guaranteeing our inheritance until the redemption of those who are God’s possession, to the praise of his glory.
“The longest sentence in the Bible.” It begins with grace, and it ends with glory. This is the most complete statement in the Gospel. In these verses, the Apostle Paul mentions God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit and what part each have in our salvation and unity in all things in our security. The Apostle Paul can’t stop talking about what we have in the Lord Jesus Christ and praise to the Trinity. Paul speaks of God the Father. Praise to the Father and praise to the Son… Paul speaks about what God the Son has done.God the Father planned our salvation before He laid the foundations of the world. Paul speaks of the Holy Spirit. Our Salvation was planned by the Father. When did He choose us? God the Father planned our salvation before He laid the foundations of the world. Our salvation was always in the mind of God. God is love, and love is not content to live alone. We have been chosen.

Different kind of life and death. It is called “death” and “life” because it is similar in many ways to physical death and life. Paul’s letter to the Ephesians is one of the most comprehensive letters written by Paul to explain to us the nature of God and God’s great plan and purpose for His creation, especially the future of mankind. Sadly, it has been greatly misunderstood by almost everyone who reads it. ” Back to a turtle in the road. If I drove down the street and saw a turtle that was run over by another car. I would be upset because I was unable to be there before that turtle was crushed. God wants all of us to be saved before you are crushed. This gift God gives us freely with no strings attached. How awesome is this?

It reads in Ephesians 2:1-8,~ And you were dead in the trespasses and sins in which you once walked, following the course of this world, following the prince of the power of the air, the spirit that is now at work in the sons of disobedience, among whom we all once lived in the passions of our flesh, carrying out the desires of the body and the mind, and were by nature children of wrath, like the rest of mankind. But God, being rich in mercy, because of the great love with which he loved us, even when we were dead in our trespasses, made us alive together with Christ, by grace you have been saved, and raised us up with him and seated us with him in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus, so that in the coming ages he might show the immeasurable riches of his grace in kindness toward us in Christ Jesus. For by grace you have been saved through faith.

{Let’s Pray}
Father God, I love You, thank You, praise You and give You all the honor and glory for this life to soften my heart to receive Your peace and grace. Let me focus on the works that You have prepared for me. Give me Your provision, humble spirit and deeper understanding. I believe that Your Spirit will more and more open my understanding to this unique gift that is mine from You. Make me bold in proclaiming the saving blood of Lord Jesus to those that are born dead in their sins and use me in the furtherance of Your plans and purposes. I want to rest in Your mercy in Your Precious Name Jesus Amen.
{Power Verse}
I love the Lord, for he heard my voice; he heard my cry for mercy.
Psalm 116:1

Humble yourselves in the sight of the Lord, and He shall lift you up.

James 4:10

“Prayer”
Lord, help me to be honest and humble enough to acknowledge my need of moral and spiritual help from others as well as Your divine help in Jesus Precious Name Amen.

“The Lord knows how to deliver the godly out of temptations.”

2 Peter 2:9

(Prayer)

Dear God, help me to withstand the temptation of self-righteousness, and all other temptations that keep me from knowing Your will in Jesus Precious Name Amen.

“When I sit in darkness, the Lord shall be a light unto me.

Micah 7:8

(Prayer)

Thank You, Dear Lord, for Your precious light. Keep my vision clear, that I may only travel on Your lighted path in Jesus Precious Name Amen.

Delight thyself also in the Lord; and He shall give thee the desires of thine heart.

Psalm 37:4

(Prayer)
Father, Author and Giver of life, to believe in You is to accept life with all its potential and hope and happiness in Jesus Precious Name Amen.

And I will pray to the Father, and He shall give you another Comforter, that He may abide with you forever.
John 14:16
(Prayer)
Dear Father, thank You for the Holy Spirit and for the help He gives. Teach me how to fix my thoughts on You and Your love and power in Jesus Precious Name Amen.

The Lord is my strength and my song, and He is become my salvation.
Exodus 15:2
(Prayer)
Lord, make me strong, not for the sake of possessing strength, but to make me sufficient for the crisis moments in my life and in the lives of others who reach out to me in Jesus Precious Name Amen.

I will give unto him that is athirst of the fountain of the water of life freely.

Revelation 21:6
(Prayer)
Heavenly Father, fill me with Your joy so that there will be a constant overflow to attract others to Yourself in Jesus Precious Name Amen.

Father God, let this touch someone’s heart and let them know they can do anything good with all their heart and soul. I thank You in Jesus Precious Name Amen.

I would like to speak of Artists a few minutes. Artist in their lifetime were rarely appreciated. A few lucky ones had supporters that would sponsor them allowing them to work at their leisure, on their own special talents. If an artist was working it was usually on a consignment basis, when they were able to get paid work, creating something for the church, for businesses, events or a wealthy family back in the day. Most artists were barely able to obtain recognition for their well-deserved talents. Most of them were uncommon, dealing with some form of addiction, physical or mental illness and alcohol problems. Most of the famous artists we know today were not recognized and celebrated within their lifetimes. They may have sold some paintings, but few achieved the state of fame that some of them did after death. They were rarely able to support themselves let alone a family. Most of the artists on this list introduced something new and were not without disagreements surrounding them and their work. This is why many struggled.
The artists on this list below died in poverty and relative unimportant to society but important to God. What is really interesting is researching each one of these artists and their works. Something I love to do.

El Greco known as “The Greek” was a Greek painter, sculptor and architect of the Spanish Renaissance.
James Barry born in Ireland in 1741
Jean-Honore Fragonard: was a French painter and printmaker whose late Rococo manner was distinguished by remarkable facility, exuberance, and hedonism.

Amedeo Modigliani: Was an Italian painter and sculptor who worked mainly in France. He is known for portraits and nudes in a modern style characterized by a surreal elongation of faces, necks, and figures that were not received well during his lifetime.
Johannes Vermeer: Was a Dutch Baroque Period painter who specialized in domestic interior scenes of middle-class life. During his lifetime, he was a moderately successful provincial genre painter, recognized in Delft and The Hague.
Eugène Henri Paul Gauguin: Was a French Post-Impressionist artist. Unappreciated until after his death, Gauguin is now recognized for his experimental use of color and Synthetist style that were distinct from Impressionism. Toward the end of his life, he spent ten years in French Polynesia.
Vincent Van Gogh: Dutch painter, generally considered the greatest after Rembrandt van Rijn, and one of the greatest of the post-Impressionists. The striking color, emphatic brushwork, and contoured forms of his work powerfully influenced the current of Expressionism in modern art.

Gustave C. Langenberg: Was probably one of the most widely traveled painters from the Düsseldorf School of Painting, who, after stints in Munich and Paris, also undertook very productive trips to North and South America.
Rembrandt Harmenszoon Van Rijn: Rembrandt’s portraits of his contemporaries, self-portraits and illustrations of scenes from the Bible are regarded as his greatest creative triumphs. His self-portraits form an intimate autobiography. Rembrandt’s foremost contribution in the history of printmaking was his transformation of the etching process from a relatively new reproductive technique into an art form. His reputation as the greatest etcher in the history of the medium was established in his lifetime. Few of his paintings left the Dutch Republic while he lived, but his prints were circulated throughout Europe, and his wider reputation was initially based on them alone. In his works, he exhibited knowledge of classical iconography. A depiction of a biblical scene was informed by Rembrandt’s knowledge of the specific text, his assimilation of classical composition, and his observations of Amsterdam’s Jewish population. Because of his empathy for the human condition, he has been called “one of the great prophets of civilization”. The French sculptor Auguste Rodin said, “Compare me with Rembrandt! What sacrilege! With Rembrandt, the colossus of Art! We should prostrate ourselves before Rembrandt and never compare anyone with him!”

All 10 of these artists let their light shine while they were alive for Christ and when they went into heaven was unable to take pennies with them. But each one of them have a past and have an eternal future with God. It is heartbreaking that they will never see just how celebrated their art and talent has become over the years. It is so amazing how their paintings sell now for millions of dollars and are displayed in museums, galleries, restaurant’s and people’s homes from around the world. People fight to buy them for themselves. See they found that these precious art works are the shade of happiness on the walls of those who appreciate them and their works. God has proved His masterpieces in all ten of these artists. Even an artist cannot paint what God has already created. But God can create master pieces out of all of us.
So, they left behind signs of God’s wonders through their time talent and treasures, if you look on each name and research them, you will find history they kept God’s wisdom in view and their eyes on God’s will for their lives.
Letting your talents and treasures do God’s work.
In all this I hope you see how all that we give or do right is not taken for granted.

“Today is “International Friendship Day” This should be every day, just like Christmas should be everyday where everyone gives of themself and to others in kindness, love and compassion.
God is your best, most perfect friend. He is always available, willing to listen to your complaints and show you a way out, a solution to your problems. He never gets tired, He never exasperates. If you search Him, He will be there for you to patiently assist you. When He is rejected by ignorance or human rebellion, He discreetly awaits.

“The Lord bless you and keep you; the Lord make His face shine upon you, and be gracious to you; the Lord lift up His countenance upon you, and give you peace” Numbers 6:24-26
“The Lord bless you and keep you” is a striking blessing that has been used by Jewish people and Christians throughout history. It is a way to invoke and call upon God’s blessing of provision and guarding of those who believe in him and follow him.
God really bless you if you tithe.
The only logical answer is, because tithing isn’t for God. Meaning, the tithe doesn’t benefit God, it benefits you. Tithing Helps You to TRUST God “Bring the whole tithe into the storehouse, that there may be food in my house. Some people will say! I want to see that church’s financials. Usually, it is someone who has no knowledge of what it takes to run a church because they have one wife at home running their household and they think that a church can be run the same way. They don’t see the bills, debts or what the church does to give to the community back what it gets in tithes. It takes a lot of people volunteering and a lot of employees to run a church. Takes a lot of work without giving up.
So, if you live in a home. You have to pay all the bills to keep the home running, clean it and take care of its surroundings. Take care of whoever lives with You also. Whoever lives with you should contribute also?
Same with a church. I have seen church’s open and close cause no one contributed but the people who opened with all they had. I have seen churches built and then the next year tore down. I see a church for the past several years be built by two people who was working making a paycheck and then their family members were doing the same to get that church-built piece by piece. They opened the church had people in it. Services in it. I got to watch bulldozers tear that church down in very little time. I have prayed for those people all these years and I still have been praying for them from my heart. A Spanish church that was on Hwy 242. A church is not a building, but the Children of Christ are the church going the same way eternally. God’s children should meet together as community.
Hear these quotes with me because they are so true.
“A church is a hospital for sinners, not a museum for saints.” Whole body of Christians standing on Holy ground with Christ.
“You are no saint,’ says the devil. Well, if I am not, I am a sinner, and Jesus Christ came into the world to save sinners. Sink or swim, I go to Him; other hope, I have none.”
Quote by Charles Spurgeon
“My evidence that I am saved does not lie in the fact that I preach, or that I do this or that. All my hope lies in this: that Jesus Christ came to save sinners. I am a sinner, I trust Him, then He came to save me, and I am saved.” Quote by Charles Spurgeon
As mentioned in the other answers, when God shines his face on us it means that he is pleased with us, our relationship with him is intimate and personal, plus we are living in obedience to his commands. The bible also says in Exodus 33:11 that “The Lord would speak to Moses’ face to face, as one speaks to a friend. “Make his face shine – This is an enhancement of the preceding benediction. “The face of God” imports not merely God’s good will in general, but his active and special regard. With the “face” or “eye of the Lord accordingly is connected alike the judicial visitation of the wicked. Peoples of the Ancient Near East would speak of the shining face of a king or a god. This image may have been based on the way in which a smile “lights up” one’s face. Or it could have been related to the shining of the sun.
To be gracious means ‘to favor,’ ‘to show kindnesses’ to an inferior, and ‘to be compassionate.’ In the Old Testament of the Bible, this adjective applies to God, indicative of His favor and mercy, His long-suffering and general inclination of favor and kindness. It has three main meanings: to lift up anything, to bear or carry (especially guilt for sin), and to take away (often of removing sin). This phrase, “lift up His countenance upon you” involves God taking us into His presence to see His face.

(Let’s Pray)
“‘Our Father in heaven,
hallowed be your name,
your kingdom come,
your will be done,
on earth as it is in heaven.
Give us today our daily bread.
And forgive us our debts,
as we also have forgiven our debtors.
And lead us not into temptation,
but deliver us from the evil one.’

{Power Verse}
Therefore, confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you may be healed. The prayer of a righteous person is powerful and effective.
James 5:16