Are you struggling? Are you overwhelmed? Ready to give up? God says you are “more than a conquerer“! Whatever you are going through – Be encouraged! God is with you!
Remember that He “is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to his power that is at work within us …” Ephesians 3:20
Mandisa auditioned for American Idol in 2006. Idol judge Simon Cowell made several comments about Mandisa’s weight after her successful audition. He first quipped, “Do we have a bigger stage this year?”
When Mandisa presented herself to the judges prior to the final cut-down to the season’s 24 semi-finalists, she told Cowell: “What I want to say to you is that, yes, you hurt me and I cried and it was painful, it really was. But I want you to know that I’ve forgiven you and that you don’t need someone to apologize in order to forgive somebody. I figure that if Jesus could die so that all of my wrongs could be forgiven, I can certainly extend that same grace to you.” Cowell told Mandisa that he was “humbled” and apologized to her immediately.
Mandisa was eliminated from the top 9 American Idol finalists even though she had never landed in the lowest three. However, she went on to be nominated for a Grammy for Best Contemporary Christian Album five times. She won the Grammy in 2014 for the album Overcomer.
Mandisa – Overcomer
“Therefore encourage one another and build each other up …” 1 Thessalonians 5:11
“… everyone born of God overcomes the world. This is the victory that has overcome the world, even our faith.” 1 John 5:4
” … in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us. For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord.” Romans 8:37-39
“But he said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.” Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ’s power may rest on me.” 2 Corinthians 12:9
“He tends his flock like a shepherd: He gathers the lambs in his arms and carries them close to his heart …” Isaiah 40:11
“Let us fix our eyes on Jesus, the author and completer of our faith, who, for the joy set before Him endured the cross, despising its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God. Consider him who endured such opposition from sinful men, so that you will not grow weary and lose heart.” Hebrews 12:2-3
“Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid or terrified because of them, for the LORD your God goes with you; he will never leave you nor forsake you.” Deuteronomy 31:6
“I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me.” Philippians 4:13
With Love,
Cindy
This Is My Journey Unscripted.
Do you want to become a Christian? Click this link to learn more: Who Is Jesus?
Integrity means doing what is right even when it hurts. It means being honest and dependable, all the time. It means people can always trust you to do the right thing. It’s the best reputation you could possibly have.
“Integrity is doing the right thing, even when no one is watching.” C.S. Lewis
The Bible teaches us to have integrity in everything we do.
“Because of my integrity you uphold me and set me in your presence forever.” Psalm 41:12 NIV
“The integrity of the upright guides them, but the unfaithful are destroyed by their duplicity.” Proverbs 11:3 NIV
“Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for human masters, since you know that you will receive an inheritance from the Lord as a reward. It is the Lord Christ you are serving.” Colossians 3:23-24 NIV
In May of 2005 American professional tennis player Andy Roddick was playing Fernando Verdasco, of Spain in the Masters tennis tournament in Rome, Italy. Roddick was the number one seed in the tournament and a heavy favorite to win the match.
Roddick dominated as expected and had triple match point when something extremely unusual happened. Roddick couldn’t return Verdasco’s hard second serve but the linesman called the serve out and awarded Roddick the point and the match.
With the crowd cheering Verdasco ran to the net to shake Roddick’s hand and congratulate him on his victory. However, Roddick knew something that the linesman, the umpire, the cheering crowd, and Verdasco himself didn’t know. The serve had not been out, but had hit on the line, making it in.
Roddick could have kept this information to himself and accepted the victory. Instead he informed the umpire that the ball had been in and offered to show him the mark on the clay where the ball had hit. The umpire reversed the call and awarded the point to Verdasco.
Having been given a second chance Verdasco made the most of it. He came back to win the game, the set, and the match giving him a highly improbable victory, especially considering not long before he had been standing at the net ready to concede.
Sportswriter Frank DeFord estimates Roddick’s honesty cost him “tens of thousands of dollars;” perhaps much more if he had gone on to win the tournament. Integrity was clearly more important to Roddick than either winning or money.
Do we do the right thing, even when it isn’t to our advantage?
It is imperative that we model integrity for our children. Mark Musser said, “Children who see parents model care, love, respect, generosity, self-control, integrity, and faith in Christ are much more likely to exhibit those traits in their own lives.”
It is amazing how much children copy their parents. This is nowhere more evident than in the school setting. I’m pretty sure a teacher must have thought up the saying: “The apple doesn’t fall far from the tree”!
I suspect that if we really knew how true this was, we would be far more careful how we conducted our lives.
The Bible says, “Train up a child in the way he should go; even when he is old he will not depart from it.” Proverbs 22:6 NIV
Teach us Lord to have integrity in all that we do. Create in us the character of Christ. Renew our minds according to your Word.In Jesus’ Name, Amen
With Love,
This Is My Journey Unscripted.
Do you want to become a Christian? Click this link to learn more: Who Is Jesus?
“Who is a God like you, who pardons sin and forgives the transgression of the remnant of his inheritance? You do not stay angry forever but delight to show mercy. 19 You will again have compassion on us; you will tread our sins underfoot and hurl all our iniquities into the depths of the sea.” Micah 7:18-19 NIV
With Love,
This Is My Journey Unscripted.
Do you want to become a Christian? Click this link to learn more: Who Is Jesus?
When you are dealing with grief, suffering, or pain, Jesus can relate to you in a very personal way. He has experienced it himself. He understands your hurt. Let Him comfort you.
Who is this great Comforter? God calls Him, “my righteous servant“. (Isaiah 53:11)
“He was despised and rejected by mankind, a man of suffering, and familiar with pain.” Isaiah 53:3
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Did you know that the Lord can set you free in an instant, just like that? That’s what happened to me. After years of believing a lie, I am finally free. What was Satan’s strategy to defeat me?
It was getting me to think that the “one thing” I couldn’t have was what I needed to be happy.
You would think I could have figured that out, but I didn’t, not until the Lord revealed it to me Himself.
After a time of prayer, I don’t know why, but I decided to look up Charles Stanley on YouTube. I had heard of him, but had never listened to one of his sermons, and someone had mentioned him at my Bible Study the day before.
I picked a sermon called, “Satan’s Strategy to Defeat Us.” Totally unaware of what was about to happen, I listened to the sermon. Have you ever experienced this? In a sermon, the minister says one specific thing and you know God is speaking directly to you. You almost want to slyly glance around and see if everyone is looking at you!
That’s what happened to me that day. Dr. Stanley said that if you are hungry, angry, lonely or tired, that’s when you are vulnerable for a Satanic attack. My ears perked up. Then, Dr. Stanley explained that Satan’s strategy was to make you want the one thing you can’t have. I knew God had led me to this sermon. It was no accident.
Remember what happened to Adam and Eve? Satan got them to believe that they needed the one thing they couldn’t have. There was only one thing they couldn’t have: fruit from the tree in the middle of the garden. I have a feeling that fruit looked a lot tastier than it actually was. (Is it possible that we magnify that “one thing” and make it bigger and better than it really is?)
The woman said, “The serpent deceived me and I ate.” (Genesis 3:13)
Satan is still deceiving people with that same lie. He will make you think that to be happy, you need the one thing you can’t have. That is a lie. There is no “one thing” you need to be happy, except the Lord Jesus Christ.
On the same day, I just happened to be on Isaiah 54 in my daily reading plan.
“For your Maker is your husband— the Lord Almighty is his name— the Holy One of Israel is your Redeemer; he is called the God of all the earth.” Isaiah 54:5 NIV
“Though the mountains be shaken and the hills be removed, yet my unfailing love for you will not be shaken nor my covenant of peace be removed,” says the Lord, who has compassion on you.” Isaiah 54:10 NIV
The “one thing” you think you need to be happy could be any number of things: a baby, a spouse, a home, fill in the blank. But that is Satan’s strategy to defeat you. Don’t believe it. You are not condemned to a life of sadness, ever!
And, if you hear someone say, “The Lord is all I need”, those words might mean more than you ever imagined. There might be a story that brought her to that realization and now she can say with confidence,
“You may never know that Jesus is all you need, until Jesus is all you have.”
Corrie ten boom
With Love, Cindy
Do you want to become a Christian? Click this link to learn more: Who Is Jesus?
While at the beach one summer, my two sons insisted on renting a small boat. They were told to stay close, but eventually they began to drift. We started yelling at them and waving our arms, but they didn’t see us and kept drifting farther and farther away, unaware.
That’s the bad thing about drifting, you can end up far from where you started and unaware of how far you’ve drifted.
“… we must pay much closer attention than ever to the things that we have heard, so that we do not [in any way] drift away from truth.”Hebrews 2:1 AMP
Today we have the entire Bible to keep us on course, but do we neglect it? C.S. Lewis said,
As a matter of fact, if you examined a hundred people who had lost their faith in Christianity, I wonder how many of them would turn out to have been reasoned out of it by honest argument? Do not most people simply drift away?”
Mere christianity
We can so easily drift away from God and toward the ways of the world: thinking like the world, acting like the world, even speaking like the world. How? Compromise, open-mindedness, tolerance for what is evil in the eyes of the Lord, the desire to fit in.
“Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is–his good, pleasing and perfect will.” Romans 12:2 NIV
Thinking back on my past, I can see how drifting away from God was a result of drifting farther and farther away from God’s Word. Drifting happens so easily, not because of anything we do, as much as what we don’t do. We neglect Bible study, neglect church fellowship, neglect worship, neglect prayer.
My boys finally saw us waving wildly and came back in, but others have not been so lucky.
In his article, 9 Fortunate Souls Who Survived Being Lost at Sea, Avery Thompson said this,
“The sea is like a wet desert. There’s no food. There’s no shelter. Nothing to drink. In every direction, the view is the same: nothing. Plus, dangerous predators lurk just beneath the depths. A shipwreck out on the open ocean can be a death sentence. If rescue doesn’t come in the first 48 hours, it probably never will.”
We can compare this to drifting spiritually. No spiritual food to eat, no living water to drink, demons lurking just beneath …
That’s why the writer of Hebrews says, “we must pay much closer attention than ever to the things that we have heard“. We must be reading our Bible and renewing our minds. These words are as true today as they were when first written.
The worse thing about being a drifter is that you probably won’t even notice what you’ve become or how far you have drifted. So in this time, as in the first century, Christians “must pay much closer attention than ever.”
Are you paying attention?
Love, Cindy
Do you want to know more about Jesus? See my page Who Is Jesus?
Over the last few months, I’ve thought a lot about what I look at and listen to. For example, television, music, news, talk shows, Facebook, etc. How does it all affect me? How does it influence my thinking and my attitudes?
The Bible says, “Above all else, guard your heart, for it is the wellspring of life.” Proverbs 4:23 NIV
What does that mean exactly? I decided to dig in.
A wellspring is the source of a spring or abundant supply. OK. Above all else, I should guard my heart because it is a spring of abundant supply of something called “life”. Hmmm. I still didn’t get it, so I dug in more. I found some clues.
“Guard your heart above all else, for it determines the course of your life.” NLT
So, how well I guard my heart determines the course of my life. Well, that’s certainly been true enough (and sometimes in a bad way).
“. . . out of the overflow of the heart, the mouth speaks.” Luke 6:45
My mouth reveals what’s in my heart. Can’t argue with that, either.
“The Lord does not look at the things man looks at. Man looks at the outward appearance, but the Lord looks at the heart.” 1 Samuel 16:7
Sometimes we think God only looks at our actions, but what he really examines is our heart. Well, that’s certainly something we should think about! That tells me that no matter how many good works I perform, He is still going to look at my heart.
“. . . the Lord searches every heart and understands every motive behind the thoughts.” (1 Chronicles 28: 9
He knows me better than I know myself.
If I’m to guard my heart, I must be careful what I allow to influence me. After years of being a “news junkie”, I rarely even look at the news anymore. Honestly, it doesn’t do anything positive for my attitude. However, I’ve learned that the more I listen to and sing Christian music, the closer I feel to God.
“Enter his gates with thanksgiving and his courts with praise; give thanks to him and praise his name.” Psalm 100:4
“Praise the Lord. Praise the Lord, O my soul. I will praise the Lord all my life. I will sing praise to my God as long as I live.” Psalm 146: 1-2
My heart is the spring that nourishes my life. Is that spring sparkling clean or is it polluted by the things of this world? Well, I guess that depends on how well I guard my heart.
With Love,
This Is My Journey Unscripted.
Do you want to become a Christian? Click this link to learn more: Who Is Jesus?
Memorizing Scripture may have more benefits than you think!
It renews your mind, enabling you to know God’s will.
Romans 12:2 says, “Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is–his good, pleasing and perfect will.” (NIV)
I had never connected this verse to memorizing Scripture until now. But, how better to renew our mind than by memorizing Scripture! That is filling our mind with God’s Word, not something we read once, but something we know by heart! Reading the Bible is important, but memorizing Scripture is important, too!
The Holy Spirit will bring to your remembrance the Scripture you need at a particular time.
Dallas Willard, Professor of Philosophy at the University of Southern California wrote,
“Bible memorization is absolutely fundamental to spiritual formation. If I had to choose between all the disciplines of the spiritual life, I would choose Bible memorization, because it is a fundamental way of filling our minds with what it needs.“
For example, when people have hurt my feelings by what they said or what they did, the Holy Spirit has brought to my remembrance a verse memorized long ago.
“A man’s wisdom gives him patience; it is to his glory to overlook an offense.” Proverbs 19:11 NIV*
it has practical advantages
Chuck Swindoll stated, “I know of no other single practice in the Christian life more rewarding, practically speaking, than memorizing Scripture. . . . No other single exercise pays greater spiritual dividends!”
Do you ever have trouble going to sleep because you can’t quiet your mind, and you can’t stop thinking about all you have to do? I still remember the 23rd Psalm from memorizing it in childhood, 60 years ago! Sometimes, when I can’t sleep, I recite it and meditate on the verses. Nothing is more calming and quiets your mind like reciting and meditating on the 23rd Psalm. I bet many of you learned it as a child, too.
Sometimes the KJV is easier to learn and easier to remember, too. I was just trying to remember Psalm 119:105 and realized that I remember it in the KJV, but not in the NIV. As soon as I said, “Thy word”, it all came back to me!
“Thy word is a lamp unto my feet, and a light unto my path.” Psalm 119:105 KJV
Another Scripture I rely on when I’m worried or afraid is Psalm 91. (It really isn’t that hard to memorize!)
“He who dwells in the shelter of the Most High will rest in the shadow of the Almighty. 2 I will say of the Lord, “He is my refuge and my fortress, my God, in whom I trust.”
3 Surely he will save you from the fowler’s snare and from the deadly pestilence. 4 He will cover you with his feathers, and under his wings you will find refuge; his faithfulness will be your shield and rampart. 5 You will not fear the terror of night, nor the arrow that flies by day, 6 nor the pestilence that stalks in the darkness, nor the plague that destroys at midday. 7 A thousand may fall at your side, ten thousand at your right hand, but it will not come near you. 8 You will only observe with your eyes and see the punishment of the wicked.
9 If you say, “The Lord is my refuge,” and you make the Most High your dwelling, 10 no harm will overtake you, no disaster will come near your tent. 11 For he will command his angels concerning you to guard you in all your ways; 12 they will lift you up in their hands, so that you will not strike your foot against a stone. 13 You will tread upon the lion and the cobra; you will trample the great lion and the serpent.
14 “Because he loves me,” says the Lord, “I will rescue him; I will protect him, for he acknowledges my name. 15 He will call upon me, and I will answer him; I will be with him in trouble, I will deliver him and honor him. 16 With long life I will satisfy him and show him my salvation.” Psalm 91 NIV (1984 edition)
MyTop 5 Tips for Memorizing Scripture
Write it and doodle while you repeat it out loud several times. (I like this idea!)
Learn one verse, and then add another verse to it. Keep adding on one more verse. Always go back to the beginning and recite everything you have learned so far. You can learn long passages this way. (This is how I memorized Psalm 91.)
Play a memory game. Using dry-erase markers, write the verse on a dry-erase board. Read the verse a few times, then erase 2 words at a time. Keep saying the verse until all the words are erased.
Go for a walk and recite all the verses you have learned so far.
Make the wallpaper on your phone the verse you are learning.
Well, I hope you’ve been motivated to start memorizing. I know I have!
Some passages to memorize:
Philippians 4:6-8
John 7:37-38
John 8:31
Romans 10:9-11
Psalm 56:3-4
Psalm 86:11
Do you have any memorization tips?
What passages do you recommend memorizing? Please share!
With Love,
This Is My Journey Unscripted.
Do you want to become a Christian? Click this link to learn more: Who Is Jesus?
We don’t have to visit a temple made by man to be in the presence of God, as the Israelites did. As a Christ Follower, we are the temple of God and He dwells within us. Isn’t that an amazing thought? As I read about the building of the Temple, I was struck by the great wealth and incredible planning that went into it. It took Solomon seven years to build the temple. (See 1 Kings 5-8)
Solomon used 8,100,187.5 pounds of gold and 76,275,000 pounds of silver. The gold and silver alone was worth $216,603,576,000. This does not include all the precious metals, bronze, iron, ivory, or cedar wood used in the temple. Extrapolating from the number, the total cost of Solomon’s temple including the labor costs (153,000 forced laborers) would have been well over half a billion dollars! Pure gold was everywhere! Even the wick trimmers were made of pure gold! No detail was overlooked.
The Living God doesn’t live in a building. If you are a Christ Follower, He is literally living in your body! Take a moment to let that soak in.
“Do you not know that your bodies are temples of the Holy Spirit, who is in you, whom you have received from God? You are not your own; you were bought at a price. Therefore honor God with your bodies.” 1 Corinthians 6:19-20 NIV
You may think the temple that Solomon built came at an incredible price, and it did. But God purchased you at an even greater cost, the precious, priceless blood of Jesus Christ. So what does that mean to us today?
We must recognize that we are the temple of God and that we belong to God. He has a plan for us. We have been commissioned to go out and make disciples. We are to love the Lord our God with all of our heart and love our neighbor as ourselves. This is obedience to the One who owns us, to love one another. We must examine ourselves to see if we are honoring the price He paid.
Just as the Lord paid careful attention to how His people treated His temple, so He takes note of the choices we make, our priorities, and the directions we pursue. Our bodies are no longer “our own” because we no longer belong to ourselves but wholly and completely to God. This is the single most important truth about our lives.”
dr. David Jeremiah
“. . . the mystery that has been kept hidden for ages and generations, but is now disclosed to the Lord’s people.To them God has chosen to make known among the Gentiles the glorious riches of this mystery, which is Christ in you, the hope of glory.” Colossians 1:27 NIV
“Through the power of the Holy Spirit who lives within us, carefully guard the precious truth that has been entrusted to you.” 2 Timothy 1:14 NLT
“For this reason I kneel before the Father, from whom every family in heaven and on earth derives its name. I pray that out of his glorious riches he may strengthen you with power through his Spirit in your inner being, so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith.” Ephesians 3: 14-17 NIV
We may look around at our world and blame our problems on the culture, drugs, TV, violent video games, and any number of evils in the world. But we must remember that revival doesn’t start in the world, it starts in the hearts of God’s people, the Church.
What would happen in our world today if all Christ followers in this generation chose to be Christ-centered instead of self-centered?
With Love,
Cindy
This Is My Journey Unscripted.
Do you want to become a Christian? Click this link to learn more: Who Is Jesus?
Thy Word I love, O Lord. Tis my greatest delight. Early I rise to seek you And wait for the morning light.
Thy Word I receive, O Lord. Tis my daily bread. It feeds my broken heart And prepares for the day ahead.
Thy Word I will keep, O Lord. Tis my strength for each day, You are the solid rock. I will follow all your ways.
Thy Word I need, O Lord. Tis the joy of my heart. You draw me closer to You, To teach and Thy Truth to impart .
I give thanks for this wonderful gift. More precious than silver and gold A treasure of promise and love, My Bible, whose worth is untold.
How shall I know my own heart, if I do not read God’s Word?
“For the word of God is living and active and full of power [making it operative, energizing, and effective]. . . . exposing and judging the very thoughts and intentions of the heart.” Hebrews 4:12 AMP
How shall I learn, if I do not read God’s Word?
“All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness, so that the servant of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work.” 2 Timothy 3:16-17 NIV
“For whatever was written in former days was written for our instruction, that through endurance and through the encouragement of the Scriptures we might have hope.” Romans 15:4 ESV
How shall I have faith, if I do not read God’s Word?
“So faith comes from hearing, and hearing through the word of Christ.” Romans 10:17 ESV
How shall I be obedient, if I do not read God’s Word?
“This Book of the Law shall not depart from your mouth, but you shall meditate on it day and night, so that you may be careful to do according to all that is written in it.” Joshua 1:8 ESV
How shall I find my way, if I do not read God’s Word?
Your word is a lamp to my feet and a light to my path. Psalm 119:105 ESV
How shall I fight the devil, if I do not read God’s Word?
“Then Jesus was led up by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil. And after fasting forty days and forty nights, he was hungry. And the tempter came and said to him, “If you are the Son of God, command these stones to become loaves of bread.” But he answered, “It is written . . . Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that comes from the mouth of God.” Matthew 4:1-4 ESV
How shall I keep myself from sin,if I do not read God’s Word?
“I have hidden your word in my heart that I might not sin against you.” Psalm 119:11
How shall I have peace,if I do not read God’s Word?
“Great peace have they who love your law, and nothing can make them stumble.” Psalm 119:165
My Prayer
Lord, Give us a love for your Word. May we hunger for it more every day, that we may serve our family and answer our calling in truth and love.
“I delight in your decrees; I will not neglect your word.” Psalm 119:16
With Love,
Cindy
This Is My Journey Unscripted.
realchristianwomen.blog
Click this link to learn more about Jesus: Who Is Jesus?
I have a very specific reason for writing this post. A friend wrote to me and said she didn’t understand why God had not answered her desperate prayer. This post is for her.
Teach me about your love the gift that's from above. When sorrow fills my heart, your comfort alone can part the sea of pain. You lead me on dry ground to the Promise Land. In this life, you will provide the manna and the quail. That nourishes my soul until I see the Promise Land.
” . . . as for me, I trust in the Lord. I will be glad and rejoice in your love, for you saw my affliction and knew the anguish of my soul.” Psalm 31:6-7
“He humbled you, causing you to hunger and then feeding you with manna, which neither you nor your ancestors had known, to teach you that man does not live on bread alone but on every word that comes from the mouth of the Lord.“Deuteronomy 8:3 NIV
“Every word that comes from the mouth of the Lord” refers to spiritual food. It is your relationship with God through the Word of God and the Holy Spirit, who teaches us all things.
Jesus said, “In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world.” John 16:33NIV
Abundant life is relationship with God. It is knowing the Almighty God, the Creator of the Universe, the King of King and Lord of Lords. It is being able to talk to Him at any time and in any place. It is the privilege of saying, “My Father” and knowing He is listening intently. It is for now and forever.
“The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full.” John 10:10 NIV
A relationship with God should never be trivialized. Nothing can compare to such a glorious blessing, certainly not things (cars, houses, etc.). Our God is not Amazon.com. He isn’t here to be our Cosmic Santa Claus. Jesus didn’t sacrifice His life in order for us to prosper materially here on Earth. He didn’t have to die to accomplish that. He died to give us eternal life through a right relationship with the Living God which will last forever. May we know the true gift of God.
“For Christ also suffered once for sins, the righteous for the unrighteous, to bring you to God.” 1 Peter 3:18 NIV
“You guide me with your counsel, and afterward you will take me into glory. Whom have I in heaven but you? And earth has nothing I desire besides you. Psalm 73:24-25 NIV
Sometimes, God does not do things the way we want. Why? We may never know while here on Earth. But many times, we understand later, even years later. God is more interested in our character development than in giving us a cushy life here on Earth. We must trust Him.
I had a friend once who was desperate to save his marriage. He was convinced that by going to church and “believing” God, by having enough faith, God would save his marriage. He gave it his all.
But God did not save his marriage. No matter how hard he tried to “just have faith”, it didn’t happen.
Guess what happened to him? He left the church and was never seen again. From his perspective, God and faith didn’t work. That’s because he saw God and faith as a way to get what he wanted. He didn’t understand the true gift of God.
Do you see the disillusionment this can bring and why it causes people to abandon their faith in God? And this is the point! Truth is vital. That’s why we must be like the Bereans, who . . .
“received the message with great eagerness and examined the Scriptures every day to see if what Paul said was true.” Acts 17:11
Jesus said, We must “worship God in Spirit and in truth”. As you read the familiar passage below about the Samaritan woman, I want you to notice four things.
Jesus reveals to her the “gift of God”. (v. 10)
She thinks Jesus is talking about natural things, but he is talking about spiritual things. (v.11)
Jesus shows her the superiority of a spiritual gift compared to a natural gift. (v.13-14)
Jesus reveals to her the kind of worshippers the Father seeks. (v.23-24)
“When a Samaritan woman came to draw water, Jesus said to her, “Will you give me a drink?” 8 (His disciples had gone into the town to buy food.)9 The Samaritan woman said to him, “You are a Jew and I am a Samaritan woman. How can you ask me for a drink?” (For Jews do not associate with Samaritans.[a]) 10 Jesus answered her, “If you knew the gift of God and who it is that asks you for a drink, you would have asked him and he would have given you living water.”11 “Sir,” the woman said, “you have nothing to draw with and the well is deep. Where can you get this living water? 12 Are you greater than our father Jacob, who gave us the well and drank from it himself, as did also his sons and his livestock?” 13 Jesus answered, “Everyone who drinks this water will be thirsty again,14 but whoever drinks the water I give them will never thirst. Indeed, the water I give them will become in them a spring of water welling up to eternal life.”15 The woman said to him, “Sir, give me this water so that I won’t get thirsty and have to keep coming here to draw water.” 16 He told her, “Go, call your husband and come back.” 17 “I have no husband,” she replied. Jesus said to her, “You are right when you say you have no husband. 18 The fact is, you have had five husbands, and the man you now have is not your husband. What you have just said is quite true.” 19 “Sir,” the woman said, “I can see that you are a prophet. 20 Our ancestors worshiped on this mountain, but you Jews claim that the place where we must worship is in Jerusalem.” 21 “Woman,” Jesus replied, “believe me, a time is coming when you will worship the Father neither on this mountain nor in Jerusalem. 22 You Samaritans worship what you do not know; we worship what we do know, for salvation is from the Jews.23 Yet a time is coming and has now come when the true worshipers will worship the Father in the Spirit and in truth, for they are the kind of worshipers the Father seeks. 24 God is spirit, and his worshipers must worship in the Spirit and in truth.”25 The woman said, “I know that Messiah” (called Christ) “is coming. When he comes, he will explain everything to us.” 26 Then Jesus declared, “I, the one speaking to you—I am he.” John 4 NIV
Lord, Help us to study your Word daily and love the Truth. Help us to appreciate our relationship with you and to understand your love.
“Thy word is a lamp unto my feet, and a light unto my path.” Psalm 119:105 KJV
With Love,
This Is My Journey Unscripted.
Click this link to learn more about Jesus: Who Is Jesus?
Real Christian Women 