Invitation for the thirsty

Isaiah 55:1

"Come, all  you who are thirsty, come to the waters; and you who have no money, come, buy and eat! "
      The world offers us pleasures that last only a short time and only meets our physical needs.  What God offers us- when he says come to the waters, is "living water". God's salvation is food for our soul and will keep us fed for eternity. Without this "living water" we will starve spiritually. Salvation is free it will cost you nothing. Following Jesus will cost you everything. But the rewards are greater than we could ever imagine. Eternal life. No pain, no suffering, no heartache. Wow- how could anyone turn that incredible offer down?
Isaiah 55:6
" Seek the Lord while he may be found; call on him while he is near.
      God tells us often, that he will NEVER leave us nor forsake us. It is us that moves away from him. Satan is a thief, who wants to steal, kill, and destroy us. He wants nothing more than to separate us from God. When we stray from God, our hearts become hardened. When we allow our hearts to be hard and cold, sin crawls itself into our lives. Very few fall suddenly from the spiritual wagon, the gradual fall, which is so much worse. The gradual way to HELL is harder to recognize and often starts with our tolerance for sin.
Amy

LENT.............................

Many Christians choose to fast during the lent season......but now I am learning that the focus should not be on depriving yourself of something as it should be on devoting yourself to YHWH......

Found this amazing book on Ann Voskamp's blog site....(a woman who has been used by God to change my life)..........more than she will ever know....whispering gently thank you God for Ann..........................

Taking in the cross....the grief........the crucifixion.....looking at my own life a friend and betrayal.....Oh how I am so much like the Peter....(all passion and no commitment)......ready...ready... to cut the ear off of anyone who messes with YHWH....

broken YES....desensitized YES with all the suffering in this mess we call life.....

Where is the beauty for ashes? Where is the beauty in suffering? Are we truly mourning? mourning the death that our very own sin has caused? Are we seeing our spirituality in things that are instant gratification? Living in a world that's all about tickle your ear the feel good kind of religion? That "new age," kind of religion........

"All of God's plans have the mark of the cross on them, and all His plans have DEATH to SELF in them.....-E.M. Bounds (1835-1913)

Lent is truly one of my favorite times; because it directs my attention toward my sin and God's grace........................................

This season has had a POWERFUL...effect on my personal walk with Jesus......Scripture is the heart of what I am doing......made a very hard decision to put seminary on hold for a while....crushed me hard.

Wanting change from deep...down to the core of who I am......

Oh how the blood...deals with me.........and that old rugged cross shows the real me...the ugly me................

I am always telling Amy; "We are our own worst enemies!" how true that rings.....how clever we are at turning everything around and making it all about us!

This lent season has challenged me......led me down a soul searching journey.....praying for three things..

1) Surrender-(how to surrender my mind to God)

2) Self-denial-(wanting to have no room for pride, vain or glory....)

3) Heart-transformation(wanting to be rid of any pride or the wanting of praise)

jumping off that spiritual treadmill...of running in place in my safe little space...of being a good bible student, teacher, speaker, writer.....

laying down the self......

my life is pretty from the outside....but when looking in it becomes the dark night of the soul....one who craves the easy....

one who is the taker instead of the giver.......

one who is lost...

one who is hollow....

one who feeds the flesh......

but.....

one who is seeking that blessed hope...

one who is seeking that glorious appearing of our Great God...

one who is seeking the reality of the cross.....

as I whisper again and again....God's grace, God's grace......more please....more...

I the taker......but one who knows

"my redeemer lives"

and God so graciously whispers into that stone cold heart of mine....

self-denial...........the remedy of it all....that causes MERCY to fall.....

wanting so badly to FALL.....fall into the arms of his grace....

All of grace,

Robbie

Kimyal New Testament launch in Indonesia

This is a gift of scripture to an Indonesia tribe that used to be head hunters and cannibals....NOW they are brother and sisters on a Bible Journey!!!! Praise God.....Incredible...please turn our music off and get your tissues ready....This is truly a miracle of God....
Just as the sign of Mary carrying GOD in the flesh inside her womb....this is truly a sign to remind us that ANYTHING  is possible with our God..........
May this weekend be one of remembering that Mary conceived JESUS without ANY help from man.......place your hope in Jesus......do not look to man......
Take time this weekend to be one of finding Christ in the unexpected places.....
All of Grace,
Robbie

for it is written, “As I live, says the Lord, every knee shall bow to me, and every tongue shall confess to God.”(Romans 14:11)

Feed the people..........

"taste and see that the Lord is good............."

 for He is the goodness of everything.............

Maria Skobtsova, a twentieth-century nun remembered in Russia as "Mother Maria," said:  At the Last Judgement I shall not be asked whether I was successful in my ascetic exercises, nor how many bows and prostrations I made.....Instead I shall be asked if I fed the hungry, clothed the naked, visited the sick and the prisoners?"

If time is truly short, how much different would you live your life? Am I being true to who I am in Christ? Am I living my life giving? Am I surrendering?

 Or am I just content.......content to live in my safe little space.......with  my busy little life?

What is it that God is requiring of our very soul?

SELF-SURRENDER.........

Am I simply claiming to be something I am not?

I claim I am a Christ follower..........but have I surrendered my heart?

If I have surrendered my heart, am I laying down self?

When Christ comes back what will He find in my heart?

Will he find me.......me who takes care of her own?

I am a wondering Israelite........who can see that there is a God......and I still forget...

hoarding and storing away for my own....is the empty....the emptiness of my soul.....

It takes the every out of everyday to come hungry to vision that cross to picture the blood that dripped from His body the one true and final sacrifice........

Help us Lord to remember that possessions, power and fame are not ours but Grace is for all.....

to remember what Easter is truly all about during this lent season....the laying down of self.....surrendering to the one who gave His all.......
wanting so badly to self-deny

All of Grace..

Robbie

Spiritual Strength....

  This is what I woke up to this morning in my front yard!!!! So precious...........



Look at that face.........



 What kind of week are you having? Has it been exhausting? Emotional? Professionally discouraging? Financially challenging? Depressing? Physical rest alone is not the answer. Prayer where you cry out to God; I just can't do this anymore! HELP! I don't mean the kind of cry where you are demanding. I mean the desperation cry. The more desperate we become for God the more he will show Himself to us.

     Have you ever doubted? I know I have! I am so thankful for Mark 9:24; God, I believe, help my unbelief. I love that scripture, and I praise God that He included it. It is like it is an invitation from God. He is saying be real with me. Don't pretend. He already knows anyway. So be Honest!! Sometimes I wonder where are you God? That is where the faith comes in. This is where God is the same yesterday, today and tomorrow. He is who He says He is. So many people have had to walk a path in life that is hard and they are still struggling with that today. This is where the darkness is. (the dark night of the soul) 

When you don't spend time in prayer alone you are robbing yourself of spiritual strength that you need to overcome or endure something. One reason we need to spend time in prayer everyday is because the spirit realm is real!! Satan is waiting like a roaring lion to devour us. Do you understand that he wants nothing more than to keep us from drawing closer to God. It is a dark world out there and in the spirit realm those of us that belong to Christ have a light inside of us and it is a red flag to satan. He wants to put that light out. Do you ever wonder why or have you ever seen someone who isn't a believer and their life always seems to go so smoothly? Well they don't have a light the "Holy Spirit" inside of them. So satan doesn't mess with them, they are already his so he is coming after the ones who have the Holy Spirit in them. So when trials and tribulations come praise God. Spend time looking for God in the dark times of your life. Remember that when you feel disconnected with God he may being doing his best work. Just because he is silent doesn't mean that he is not there. Sometimes you have to look for God in the darkness. In the dry places of your life. And if you hang on long enough you just might see the back side of his glory pass you by. Sometimes the quickest path to the light is actually to run into the darkness! Look at Psalms 23:4; Even when I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I'll fear no evil because You're with me. It takes courage to run into the darkness. God is faithful. Sometimes you are not going to feel it. Your not going to understand it. None of us will ever fully grasp it. Just praise him! PRAISE him in the darkness. He gives and He takes away. Somedays you are going to feel like you can't go on. When the waves hit and knock you flat on your back get up and say Father I trust You!! Read God's promises back to him. PRAY.
     If you and I want more of his peace that passes all understanding, especially when we are confronting a crisis or under a lot of pressure, then we need the spiritual strength and refreshing that only comes from spending time in prayer and reading his word. There are no secrets. Access is for all believers.
by grace alone........

PRAYER.........FOR THE SOUL................

True, whole prayer is nothing but love.....-St. Augustine....................

He longs for our presence.......

I continue upon this journey with a stiff-neck and a hard-heart..........so how do I continue in this race called life without damaging the ones I love the most?

Why do I feel the need to flee this thing called; "motherhood?" is it my girls- the woman-child looking girls who yell and fight over who is wearing who's clothes? Or is it my own evil, that rages inside of me that is brought out by running in circles....my world is fast and noisy, sometimes blurry....toilet's clog,  dog poops in closet, the goldfish is floating upside down, the youngest is screaming and crying because her goldfish is upside down, the cat coughs a fur-ball up on the back porch (that looks like a dead rat), the service engine light is on again, ball practice, laundry...dishes piled high in the sink,  trash overflowing,  dentist appointment, ......husband on a plane to Dallas....the dog needs exercise........ but in the midst of this craziness I keep hearing a whisper.....God's Grace.....god's grace.................I start to say it over and over again...god's grace...

I am lost in the wilderness......just like the Israelites....I close my eyes today....as the sun hits my face....I whisper to myself remember..............remember God's grace... I say it again as I try and picture it.....God's grace.......

If Jesus is the gateway,  (the gateway to heaven...)  then how do I get to the gate?

"prayer and thanks-giving!"

Our problems are discussed more with people rather than God.............

Luke 18: 8;

when the Son of Man comes, will he find faith on the earth?”

Are we loosing heart????

loosing the desire to pray?......because of the chaos of our life?

What will He find when he comes? Just Sunday worshippers? Just a good bible study student? Someone who can quote scripture? None of these things will take you to the gate........

PRAYER IS THE ONLY THING........

Never, ever is a prayer offered in Jesus' name in vain.........

Never do our prayers just fall to the ground unnoticed...

So why is it so hard to find the time to pray?

the spirit is willing but the flesh is weak......

the flesh does not want you to pray....anything but pray......

Romans 8: 5-8;

Those who live according to the flesh have their minds set on what the flesh desires; but those who live in accordance with the Spirit have their minds set on what the Spirit desires. 6 The mind governed by the flesh is death, but the mind governed by the Spirit is life and peace. 7 The mind governed by the flesh is hostile to God; it does not submit to God’s law, nor can it do so. 8 Those who are in the realm of the flesh cannot please God.

Prayer produces Peace.......in our minds and our hearts....

Prayer lets us rest easy knowing that God is solving the problem.......maybe not in our timing but in His.....

Prayer is food for our soul's......and it strengthens us in our labors......

If you are longing for peace that surpasses all understanding.....

it's simple......just stop and PRAY......

Pray without ceasing.............is the only way to survive.......this craziness called life...

by grace alone............

the chain that holds me up in the days to come....around my neck it gently rings as a reminder.....by grace alone

I

Inner vs. Outer

Don't you feel sometimes that you have earned an "UGLY"? I know I have. The more I get to know God the more I realize how strong my flesh is! The Flesh and Spirit cannot co-habitat with one another. One will bow down to the other, and my flesh is usually the one who wins. In Romans 7, Paul teaches that a civil war rages within every child of God. The opposing forces are the power of the flesh and the power of the Spirit. Paul refers to them as the " inner man" and the "outer man." What is at stake here? It is the control of the child of God! When we yield ourselves to the control of the Spirit, then love, joy, peace, patience, etc will begin to take root and bear fruit in our lives. As we yield ourselves to the control of our unrighteous promptings, then anger, jealously, impurity, etc, begin to take root and bear fruit in our lives. It is a choice!! Sometimes not a fun choice!

If someone hurts you then often the flesh within you cries out for REVENGE! I know I have wanted someone to pay for what they have done to me before. I have felt that "an eye for an eye" I even will go so far as how I would love to extract some kind of return for the injury. I think I might even enjoy carrying this grudge for a while.

Jesus reminds me today when I am hurt by someone that vengeance is not mine. When we are asserting ourselves and demanding our rights, we are insisting upon the privilege and status that we feel we have before others...PRIDE.. Wow that hurts to even write about it. That is the one thing God himself despises more than anything - PRIDE.
God himself laid aside all his GLORY, all of his divine rights and privileges out of LOVE, the greatest gift of all. If we say we are "CHRISTIANS", then we to have to lay aside our rights and serve others. Think about the incarnation which was the act of the preexistent Son of God VOLUNTARILY assuming a human body and human nature WITHOUT ceasing to be GOD. He became a human being, the man called Jesus. He did not give up his deity to become human, but he set aside the right to his glory and power and he didn't demand people to respect him. He did not seek it. He did not insist upon it and he, Jesus himself, died on that cross for you and me. Don't you think he had earned his "UGLY"? There was tens of thousands of angels with their swords drawn, the scene was so bad that some of the angels couldn't bare to watch. Some were angry. Yes Angels have emotions and they love God . At anytime Jesus could have commanded them to come down and strike all of them down. The angels were ready. They would have saved him in a flash. But God didn't call them. He cried out "Forgive them Father, for they know not what they do". He died for you and me. He took the sins of the entire world upon himself that day so that you and I could have everlasting life.

So the next time I feel like I have earned my "UGLY" I am going to stop and think of what my Father laid aside not asking for anything. FOR YOU AND I. I am going to remember what he took...the beatings, the people spitting in his face, being nailed to the cross, and that's only a glimpse of it. We have no idea what he really took for us on that day. Our minds cannot fathom it. I am going to remember...it is not about ME. I have always heard that SALVATION IS FREE. IT WILL COST YOU NOTHING. TO PICK UP YOUR CROSS AND FOLLOW JESUS WILL COST YOU EVERYTHING.

Are you willing to live a life set by example that Jesus himself has set? What kind of fruit is your tree bearing?
     Praise God this day for all your wonderful blessings. Then take some time to confess and ask the Lord to help you keep your life free from sin.
PSALM 25: 6-7
     Remember, O Lord, Your tender mercies and Your lovingkindness, For they are from old. Do not remember the sins of my youth, nor my transgressions; according to Your mercy remember me, For Your goodness sake, O Lord.......
His Grace,
Robbie