Pain, pain everywhere,
I went to the kitchen,
and sat on a chair,
and to my surprize,
the pain was still there.
Pain, pain everywhere,
I drove to the doctor,
in the waiting room,
I sat on a chair,
yes, the pain was still there.
Pain, pain everywhere,
O, please, tell me a place,
where the pain won’t be there.
Pain, pain everywhere,
then, I thought,
I know a place,
that place is prayer.
CONFIDENCE IN GOD: Mankind down through the pages of time have tried to find confidence in many things, but some have never found the confidence they need until they came to know GOD and placed their trust in HIM ALONE. He re are a few verses about why we can trust in GOD OUR CREATOR.
*Psalms 27:1The Lord is my light and my salvation; whom shall I fear? the Lord is the strength of my life; of whom shall I be afraid?2 When the wicked, even mine enemies and my foes, came upon me to eat up my flesh, they stumbled and fell.3 Though an host should encamp against me, my heart shall not fear: though war should rise against me, in this will I be confident.
*Psalms 71:5 For thou art my hope, O Lord God: thou art my trust from my youth.
*Psalms 112:7 He shall not be afraid of evil tidings: his heart is fixed, trusting in the Lord.8 His heart is established, he shall not be afraid, until he see his desire upon his enemies.
*Jeremiah 17:7 Blessed is the man that trusteth in the Lord, and whose hope the Lord is.8 For he shall be as a tree planted by the waters, and that spreadeth out her roots by the river, and shall not see when heat cometh, but her leaf shall be green; and shall not be careful in the year of drought, neither shall cease from yielding fruit.
Phil.1:3 I thank my God upon every remembrance of you,4 Always in every prayer of mine for you all making request with joy,5 For your fellowship in the gospel from the first day until now;6 Being confident of this very thing, that he which hath begun a good work in you will perform it until the day of Jesus Christ:
*Hebrews 13:5 Let your conversation be without covetousness; and be content with such things as ye have: for he hath said, I will never leave thee, nor forsake thee.6 So that we may boldly say, The Lord is my helper, and I will not fear what man shall do unto me.
*1 Peter 3:12 For the eyes of the Lord are over the righteous, and his ears are open unto their prayers: but the face of the Lord is against them that do evil.13 And who is he that will harm you, if ye be followers of that which is good?14 But and if ye suffer for righteousness’ sake, happy are ye: and be not afraid of their terror, neither be troubled;
I trust you will be blessed as you have read these verses and your confidence will be strong in HIM! [ prepared by Winston Staples ]
Today we are opening the Scriptures to a few verses and see what they say about His followers becoming like HIM. As we search the Scriptures we see that there is only one way for us to get to Heaven. That way is by faith alone, in Christ alone, there are no back doors into Heaven; Christ is the only door into Heaven’s glory. As His followers, the closer we walk with HIM, the closer we get to being more like HIM. Below are a few Bible verses I want to share with you and I trust you will be blessed.
* Acts 3:19 Repent ye therefore, and be converted, that your sins may be blotted out, when the times of refreshing shall come from the presence of the Lord.
*1 Cor.6: 9 Know ye not that the unrighteous shall not inherit the kingdom of God? Be not deceived: neither fornicators, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor effeminate, nor abusers of themselves with mankind, 10 Nor thieves, nor covetous, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor extortioners, shall inherit the kingdom of God. 11 And such were some of you: but ye are washed, but ye are sanctified, but ye are justified in the name of the Lord Jesus, and by the Spirit of our God. [ as we walk close to Him we are sanctified or set apart from the world].
*Romans 5: 1/Therefore being justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ:2 By whom also we have access by faith into this grace wherein we stand, and rejoice in hope of the glory of God.3 And not only so, but we glory in tribulations also: knowing that tribulation worketh patience;4 And patience, experience; and experience, hope:5 And hope maketh not ashamed; because the love of God is shed abroad in our hearts by the Holy Ghost which is given unto us.
*2 Cor.1: 21 Now he which stablisheth us with you in Christ, and hath anointed us, is God; 22 Who hath also sealed us, and given the earnest of the Spirit in our hearts.
*1 Peter 3:8 Finally, be ye all of one mind, having compassion one of another, love as brethren, be pitiful, be courteous: [ May we be steadfast in our close walk with Jesus and as we walk with Him we will be more like Him].
5 Therefore being justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ:
2 By whom also we have access by faith into this grace wherein we stand, and rejoice in hope of the glory of God.
3 And not only so, but we glory in tribulations also: knowing that tribulation worketh patience;
4 And patience, experience; and experience, hope:
5 And hope maketh not ashamed; because the love of God is shed abroad in our hearts by the Holy Ghost which is given unto us.
My Creator: Looking out my window, what wonders I see, Chickadees and Blue jays at my feeder, Woodpeckers and Nuthatches in my tree. I see the hills of beauty, evergreens covered in snow, and I think about the riches, God, our creator bestows. He sent His Son, Jesus, born in a stable, a King in a manger, the wise men came to see; He came to earth as a baby, because He loves you and me. He lived many years as a carpenter, repairing broken things, and at the age of thirty, He taught the good news, that only God’s word can bring. He healed the blind, the deaf, and the lame, and those the devil possessed, at the tomb of Lazarus He wept, He brought the dead to life, because to Him they only slept. After His ministry was complete, He was betrayed by Judas, and to Roman soldiers given, He died for our sins, so those who believe, will go to Heaven. ~ Winston Staples
Today’s word we are exploring is the word DOUBT, something we all have experienced in our life, some more than others. The dictionary says doubt is:a/ [noun]a feeling of uncertainty about the truth, reality, or nature of something. [verb] to be uncertain about; consider questionable or unlikely; hesitate to believe. Now it is time to see what God’s word says about doubt. Turn in your Bible to the following verses and mark the things that stand out to you as you read along.
3 Now the serpent was more subtil than any beast of the field which the Lord God had made. And he said unto the woman, Yea, hath God said, Ye shall not eat of every tree of the garden?
2 And the woman said unto the serpent, We may eat of the fruit of the trees of the garden:
3 But of the fruit of the tree which is in the midst of the garden, God hath said, Ye shall not eat of it, neither shall ye touch it, lest ye die.
4 And the serpent said unto the woman, Ye shall not surely die:
5 For God doth know that in the day ye eat thereof, then your eyes shall be opened, and ye shall be as gods, knowing good and evil.
6 And when the woman saw that the tree was good for food, and that it was pleasant to the eyes, and a tree to be desired to make one wise, she took of the fruit thereof, and did eat, and gave also unto her husband with her; and he did eat. [ I believe doubt to be the sin that started man’s downfall.]
Gen.21:6 And Sarah said, God hath made me to laugh, so that all that hear will laugh with me.7 And she said, Who would have said unto Abraham, that Sarah should have given children suck? for I have born him a son in his old age. [ Sarah doubted God’s message ].
Numbers 11:21 And Moses said, The people, among whom I am, are six hundred thousand footmen; and thou hast said, I will give them flesh, that they may eat a whole month.22 Shall the flocks and the herds be slain for them, to suffice them? or shall all the fish of the sea be gathered together for them, to suffice them? [ Moses doubted God’s provision ].
Mark 8:17 And when Jesus knew it, he saith unto them, Why reason ye, because ye have no bread? perceive ye not yet, neither understand? have ye your heart yet hardened? 18 Having eyes, see ye not? and having ears, hear ye not? and do ye not remember?19 When I brake the five loaves among five thousand, how many baskets full of fragments took ye up? They say unto him, Twelve. [ The disciples doubted Jesus could feed all the people ].
Luke 1:18 And Zacharias said unto the angel, Whereby shall I know this? for I am an old man, and my wife well stricken in years. [ Here we see doubt that God could do as the Angel said!]
John 3:18 He that believeth on him is not condemned: but he that believeth not is condemned already, because he hath not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God. [ those who doubt the truth about God’s Son will not be saved ][ unless they repent ].
John 20:25 The other disciples therefore said unto him, We have seen the Lord. But he said unto them, Except I shall see in his hands the print of the nails, and put my finger into the print of the nails, and thrust my hand into his side, I will not believe.26 And after eight days again his disciples were within, and Thomas with them: then came Jesus, the doors being shut, and stood in the midst, and said, Peace be unto you.27 Then saith he to Thomas, Reach hither thy finger, and behold my hands; and reach hither thy hand, and thrust it into my side: and be not faithless, but believing.28 And Thomas answered and said unto him, My Lord and my God. [ Thomas doubted until he saw ].
James 1:5 If any of you lack wisdom, let him ask of God, that giveth to all men liberally, and upbraideth not; and it shall be given him.6 But let him ask in faith, nothing wavering. For he that wavereth is like a wave of the sea driven with the wind and tossed.7 For let not that man think that he shall receive any thing of the Lord.8 A double minded man is unstable in all his ways. [ we are to ask not doubting when we pray ].
[ prepared by Winston Staples ]
As I gaze,
over the hills,
the sky is dark,
the air is still.
The birds are flying,
flying to and fro,
to my neighbors feeders,
feeding their hunger,
before it snows.
The wind is beginning to blow,
blowing from the North,
soon we shall see,
see November snow.
~ Winston Staples
The topic of this exploration is being faithful to the end; I trust we will be enlightened as we search the word of God.
Luke 12: 35 Let your loins be girded about, and your lights burning;
36 And ye yourselves like unto men that wait for their lord, when he will return from the wedding; that when he cometh and knocketh, they may open unto him immediately.
37 Blessed are those servants, whom the lord when he cometh shall find watching: verily I say unto you, that he shall gird himself, and make them to sit down to meat, and will come forth and serve them.
38 And if he shall come in the second watch, or come in the third watch, and find them so, blessed are those servants.
39 And this know, that if the goodman of the house had known what hour the thief would come, he would have watched, and not have suffered his house to be broken through.
40 Be ye therefore ready also: for the Son of man cometh at an hour when ye think not.
1 Timothy 6: 12 Fight the good fight of faith, lay hold on eternal life, whereunto thou art also called, and hast professed a good profession before many witnesses.
13 I give thee charge in the sight of God, who quickeneth all things, and before Christ Jesus, who before Pontius Pilate witnessed a good confession;
14 That thou keep this commandment without spot, unrebukable, until the appearing of our Lord Jesus Christ:
Titus 2:11 For the grace of God that bringeth salvation hath appeared to all men,
12 Teaching us that, denying ungodliness and worldly lusts, we should live soberly, righteously, and godly, in this present world;
13 Looking for that blessed hope, and the glorious appearing of the great God and our Saviour Jesus Christ;
James 5:7 Be patient therefore, brethren, unto the coming of the Lord. Behold, the husbandman waiteth for the precious fruit of the earth, and hath long patience for it, until he receive the early and latter rain.
8 Be ye also patient; stablish your hearts: for the coming of the Lord draweth nigh.
9 Grudge not one against another, brethren, lest ye be condemned: behold, the judge standeth before the door.
1 Peter 1: 13 Wherefore gird up the loins of your mind, be sober, and hope to the end for the grace that is to be brought unto you at the revelation of Jesus Christ;
14 As obedient children, not fashioning yourselves according to the former lusts in your ignorance:
15 But as he which hath called you is holy, so be ye holy in all manner of conversation;
[ prepared by Winston Staples ]
Today’s word we are looking at is comfort and some things the Bible says about it.There are many things that cause us discomfort, like, broken relationships, loss of loved ones, etc. No matter what, we must say thank you for all things as we ask our Father in Heaven for comfort. Below are a few verses that speak about comfort; I trust that you will be encouraged and comforted by these words from God’s word.
Job 15:11 Holman Christian Standard Bible (HCSB)
11 Are God’s consolations not enough for you,
even the words that deal gently with you?
Psalm 71:19-21
19 Your righteousness reaches heaven, God,
You who have done great things;
God, who is like You?
20 You caused me to experience
many troubles and misfortunes,
but You will revive me again.
You will bring me up again,
even from the depths of the earth.
21 You will increase my honor
and comfort me once again
Psalm 86:17 (HCSB)
17 Show me a sign of Your goodness;
my enemies will see and be put to shame
because You, Lord, have helped and comforted me.
Psalm 94:19English Standard Version (ESV)
19 When the cares of my heart are many,
your consolations cheer my soul.
Psalms 119:50 This is my comfort in my affliction,
that your promise gives me life.
76 Let your steadfast love comfort me
according to your promise to your servant.
Isaiah 40:1-2 English Standard Version
Comfort for God’s People
40 Comfort, comfort my people, says your God.
2 Speak tenderly to Jerusalem,
and cry to her
that her warfare[a] is ended,
that her iniquity is pardoned,
that she has received from the Lord’s hand
double for all her sins.
2 Corinthians 1:3 English Standard Version (ESV)
God of All Comfort
3 Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of mercies and God of all comfort,
Hebrews 6:18English Standard Version (ESV)
18 so that by two unchangeable things, in which it is impossible for God to lie, we who have fled for refuge might have strong encouragement to hold fast to the hope set before us.
[ prepared by Winston Staples ]
When we become followers of Christ we should start producing the fruit of the spirit.
today we are going to look at several Bible verses about producing fruit beginning with:
Psalms 1:Blessed is the man that walketh not in the counsel of the ungodly, nor standeth in the way of sinners, nor sitteth in the seat of the scornful.
2 But his delight is in the law of the Lord; and in his law doth he meditate day and night.[We should have a hunger for God’s Word!]
Micah 3:8 But truly I am full of power by the spirit of the Lord, and of judgment, and of might, to declare unto Jacob his transgression, and to Israel his sin.
Matthew 13:22 He also that received seed among the thorns is he that heareth the word; and the care of this world, and the deceitfulness of riches, choke the word, and he becometh unfruitful.[ one not completely grounded in God’s word bares no fruit.]
23 But he that received seed into the good ground is he that heareth the word, and understandeth it; which also beareth fruit, and bringeth forth, some an hundredfold, some sixty, some thirty.[one where the word is firmly planted brings forth much fruit.]
2 Cor.3:15 But even unto this day, when Moses is read, the vail is upon their heart.
16 Nevertheless when it shall turn to the Lord, the vail shall be taken away.
17 Now the Lord is that Spirit: and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is liberty.
18 But we all, with open face beholding as in a glass the glory of the Lord, are changed into the same image from glory to glory, even as by the Spirit of the Lord.
Gal.5:22 But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith,
23 Meekness, temperance: against such there is no law.
Ephesians 3:14 For this cause I bow my knees unto the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ,
15 Of whom the whole family in heaven and earth is named,
16 That he would grant you, according to the riches of his glory, to be strengthened with might by his Spirit in the inner man;
Phil.1:6 Being confident of this very thing, that he which hath begun a good work in you will perform it until the day of Jesus Christ:
2 Peter 1:3 According as his divine power hath given unto us all things that pertain unto life and godliness, through the knowledge of him that hath called us to glory and virtue:
4 Whereby are given unto us exceeding great and precious promises: that by these ye might be partakers of the divine nature, having escaped the corruption that is in the world through lust.
5 And beside this, giving all diligence, add to your faith virtue; and to virtue knowledge;
6 And to knowledge temperance; and to temperance patience; and to patience godliness;
1 John 3:Behold, what manner of love the Father hath bestowed upon us, that we should be called the sons of God: therefore the world knoweth us not, because it knew him not.
2 Beloved, now are we the sons of God, and it doth not yet appear what we shall be: but we know that, when he shall appear, we shall be like him; for we shall see him as he is.
3 And every man that hath this hope in him purifieth himself, even as he is pure.
4 Whosoever committeth sin transgresseth also the law: for sin is the transgression of the law.
5 And ye know that he was manifested to take away our sins; and in him is no sin.
6 Whosoever abideth in him sinneth not: whosoever sinneth hath not seen him, neither known him.
7 Little children, let no man deceive you: he that doeth righteousness is righteous, even as he is righteous.
8 He that committeth sin is of the devil; for the devil sinneth from the beginning. For this purpose the Son of God was manifested, that he might destroy the works of the devil.
My friends let us be a witness by showing those around us the fruit of the spirit as we walk life’s trail!
Wint68 