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Posts Tagged ‘Wake up’

Life, Life and More Life – Quotes from Gianna Jessen

Posted in Christian, Christianity, tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , on May 8, 2010| 1 Comment »

“We are in an interesting battle, whether we realise it or not, in this world.  It’s a battle between life and death.  What side are you on?”

“I know, along my journey, I am already hated because I declare life!”

“How much are you willing to take, and how much are you willing to risk, to speak the truth in love and graciousness, and stand up and, at least, be willing to be hated?

“There was not a radical feminist, standing up and yelling about how my rights had been violated that day.  In fact my life was being snuffed out in the name of womens rights.”

“There are things that you are only able to learn by the weakest among us.  And when you snuff them out you are the one that looses.  The Lord looks after them but you are the one who will suffer for ever.”

“And what arrogance, what absolute arrogance, and it has been an arguement for so long in this human place that we live, that the stronger should dominate the weaker, should determine who lives and dies.  The arrogance of that!  Don’t you realise that you cannot make your own heart beat.  Don’t you realise that all the power that you think that you possess you really possess none of it.  It is the mercy of God that sustains you, even when you hate Him.”

“We misunderstand how beautiful suffering can be.  I don’t willingly sign up for it, but when it comes, we forget that God is in control and God has a way of making the most miserable thing beautiful.”

“Men, you are made for greatness.  You are made to stand up and be men.  You are made to defend women and children, not stand by, and turn your head, when you know murder is occurring and do nothing about it.  You are not made to use women and leave us alone.  You are made to be kind and great and gracious and strong and stand for something because men, listen to me, I am too tired to do your job.”

“Women, you are not made for abuse.  You are not made to sit and not know your worth and your value.  You are made to be fought for, forever.”

“So now is your moment, what sort of people are you going to be?  I trust, incredible.  I trust, men, you will rise to the occassion.  To the politians listening, particularly to the men, I would say this, you are made for greatness, set your politics aside.  You are made to defend what is right and good, this fiery young girl will stand here and say, now it your moment.  What sort of man do you want to be?  A man obsessed with your own glory or a man obsessed with the glory of God?  It’s time to take a stand, Victoria.  This is your hour.  God will assist you.  God will be with you.  You have the opportunity to glorify and honour God in 2008.”

“Some of you might be slightly annoyed that all I keep doing is talking about God and Jesus but how on earth can I walk about, limping through this world and not give ALL my heart and mind and soul and strength to the Christ who gave me life!  So if you think I am a fool, it’s just another jewel in my crown.  My whole intent in living here is to make God smile.”

Gianna Jessen, abortion survivor speaks at Queen’s Hall, Parliament House, Victoria (Australia) September 8 2008 on the eve of the debate to decriminalize abortion in Victoria.  Gianna’s visit was sponsored by the Ad Hoc Interfaith Committee – Part 1

Gianna Jessen, abortion survivor speaks at Queen’s Hall, Parliament House, Victoria (Australia) September 8 2008 on the eve of the debate to decriminalize abortion in Victoria.  Gianna’s visit was sponsored by the Ad Hoc Interfaith Committee – Part 2

“I have given them your word and the world has hated them, for they are not of the world any more than I am of the world.”  [John 17:14]

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Life, Life and More Life! – Aborted Foetus Speaks Out

Posted in Christian, Christianity, tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , on April 24, 2010| 1 Comment »

As if an aborted foetus could speak!

That is never going to happen!

And so their voices go unheard

God is the only one who hears their cries.

Goodness! – what a title for a post!  I hate the word foetus.  It SO depersonalises the BABY in the womb.  The baby in the womb isn’t an ‘it’ or a thing.  Let’s dispense with the word foetus!

I’m thinking, what if the baby in the womb could speak!

Or what if an aborted baby could speak, what would they say?

What if they could passionately and articulately argue for their right to life.  Wouldn’t we have to listen?  Wouldn’t things be different?  I mean, if they could speak and argue their existence it would be a no brainer.  We would have to say “Well done, intelligent and articulate baby.  We can see your reasoning.  You are just like us.  We can see you have a right to live.  Welcome to this life!”

However, this is but a fanciful dream.  In reality, babies in the womb are helpless and vulnerable and cannot speak for themselves.  So…

Babies in the womb need an advocate!

Babies in the womb need our help!

Gianna Jessen was aborted at birth but, through a series of miracles, survived to become an advocate for babies in the womb.  She is a testimony of passionate survival and courage through the trials in her life.  Gianna loves Jesus and lifts Him higher at every opportunity.  This message is not just ‘pro life rhetoric’ but a heart felt, God breathed, cry for LIFE, LIFE and MORE LIFE!  Life in abundance.  Life in all it’s fullness.  It’s a call to drawing a line.  It’s time to take a stand.  Enough is enough!  Be a man of God!  Be a woman of God!

Are we standing up and fighting for the things that matter?

Gianna Jessen, abortion survivor speaks at Queen’s Hall, Parliament House, Victoria (Australia) September 8 2008 on the eve of the debate to decriminalize abortion in Victoria.  Gianna’s visit was sponsored by the Ad Hoc Interfaith Committee – Part 1

Gianna Jessen, abortion survivor speaks at Queen’s Hall, Parliament House, Victoria (Australia) September 8 2008 on the eve of the debate to decriminalize abortion in Victoria.  Gianna’s visit was sponsored by the Ad Hoc Interfaith Committee – Part 2


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Coming to an Understanding of God’s Grace and Truth

Posted in Christian, Christianity, tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , on April 13, 2010| Leave a Comment »

In the Apostle Paul’s letter to the church in Colossae he writes in Col 1:6:

“All over the world this gospel is bearing fruit and growing, just as it has been doing among you since the day you heard it and understood God’s grace in all its truth.”

The gospel is bearing fruit and growing because people are not only hearing the good news but they are understanding the good news of God’s grace in all its truth.  I believe what this verse is saying is fundamentally important in the Christian faith.  Believers must personally not only hear the good news but also come to an understanding (or revelation) in their hearts of the good news and of God’s grace and truth (through Jesus Christ).

John 1:17 says…

“For the law was given through Moses; grace and truth came through Jesus Christ.”

So God’s grace and truth came through a person – Jesus Christ!

Salvation comes through an understanding (or revelation) of the truth revealed of the grace of God through Jesus Christ.

Just a few verses back, in John 1:14:

“The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us. We have seen his glory, the glory of the One and Only,  who came from the Father, full of grace and truth.”

Jesus is full of God’s grace and God’s truth.  When we truly know this deep in our hearts; when we come to repentance in awe of the love of the Father and the sacrifice of the Son; when the Spirit brings revelation of this to our hearts; we are truly set free by the man of grace and truth, Jesus!

“Then you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.” [John 8:32]

Do you “understand” the message of God’s grace and truth?  Does something deep inside you say YES! to the truth of the gospel?  Do you want to accept God’s free gift (grace) of salvation and eternal life (knowing the Father through the Son by His Spirit)?  The Bible tells us that all of us have fallen short of God’s expectations and that we need to repent (turn away) from our sins and accept Jesus as our Lord (master) and Saviour (Jesus took the punishment for our sins on the cross) and receive His Holy Spirit.

Father, thank you for opening my eyes to the good news about your grace and truth coming through Jesus.  I am truly sorry for all of my wrong doings, I turn away from all of them and I turn to you Jesus.  You are my new master.  You are my saviour.  You have saved me from the penalty of my sins.  Thank you Jesus.  I want to follow you Jesus.  Come live in me by your Spirit and take control of my life.  I want to bear much fruith for your Kingdom, Amen.

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Taste and See that the LORD is Good!

Posted in Christian, Christianity, tagged , , , , , , , , , , on November 30, 2009| Leave a Comment »

Hi!

This verse from Psalm 34:8a keeps coming up in my prayer times and my comings and goings with people…

“Taste and see that the LORD is good”

I believe the Psalmist is challenging all of us to “taste the LORD for ourselves”.  I believe this verse is coming out of the Psalmists experience of the Father’s goodness.  In other words the Psalmist is saying, “I know the LORD is good because I have experienced this to be true in my life – I am challenging you to experience the LORD’s goodness for yourselves.”

I have a story…

Years ago, the ‘207’ bus used to travel from Newcastle to Merewether.  So, when you saw ‘207’ on the front of the bus you knew where that bus was going.  If you weren’t sure where that bus was going you could always pickup a timetable or a map and find out the route that the bus was taking.  Or, you could just simply ask someone else where the bus was going.  Perhaps it would be wise to ask someone who has travelled on that bus before.

So, you could find out all about the bus and where it was heading by the information you could obtain and the testimony of those that travelled on the bus.

BUT….

to really know for yourself or to really experience where that bus is travelling to and to reach the destination of that bus it is necessary to hop on that bus and go on that journey.

Similarly, it is not enough to know about the Father, is is not enough to read about the Father, it is not enough to hear about the Father.  It is necessary to taste for yourself (and myself) the goodness of our Heavenly Father.  In other words, to taste and prove the goodness of the LORD for yourself.

Deut 4:29 says…
“But if from there you seek the LORD your God, you will find him if you look for him with all your heart and with all your soul.”

And where is the ‘there’ in the “But if from there”, it is moving from a place of distress and dispair, a place of trouble and strife and abandoning God, to a place of surrendering your complete heart and soul to the Living God.

The Lord bless you! – Steve

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Finding Yourself

Posted in Christian, Christianity, tagged , , , , , , , , , on October 31, 2009| Leave a Comment »

Finding out who we are…

Isn’t this one of the BIGGER questions?

But how are we going to find out who we are?

Well, let me suggest to you that you could go down many roads trying to find out who you are.  Let me give you a pointer and a testimony.

For me, life has no meaning outside of Christ.

I mean, just looking at this objectively for a moment, how can the ‘created’ find meaning disconnected from the ‘Creator’?  It cannot do so.

Life radically and completely changes when we are connected to our Creator through the sacrifice of Jesus.

Our Heavenly Father always had a plan for your life.  Repent and commit your life to Jesus and you will not only find out who you are and ubundant, overflowing life but you will find that being in Christ IS your life.

Life is not all about you it is all about Him!

Whoever finds his life will lose it, and whoever loses his life for my sake will find it. [Matt 10:39]

For you died, and your life is now hidden with Christ in God. When Christ, who is your  life, appears, then you also will appear with him in glory. [Col 3:3-4]

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The Lord wants to Sing Over Us

Posted in Christian, Christianity, tagged , , , , , , , , , on October 17, 2009| Leave a Comment »

Zephaniah has three chapters mainly speaking about ‘the day of the Lord‘ when the Lord pours out His fierce anger and wrath on those who worship other gods, those that don’t seek Him, those that place their wealth in material things, the proud and arrogant and haughty, those that falsely represent Him, those that refuse to accept His correction, etc.

And then He says this in Zephaniah 3:17 to His people…

“The LORD your God is with you,
he is mighty to save.
He will take great delight in you,
he will quiet you with his love,
he will rejoice over you with singing.”

The Lord’s whole ‘mood’ swings (if you would allow me to crudely put it this way) from fierce anger and wrath to great love and tenderness and delight.

You see, here is the Lord’s great desire.  He wants to to be close to us and save us.  He wants to take great delight in us.  He wants to quiet us with His love  And He wants to rejoice over us with singing!  Say what?   He wants to rejoice over us with singing! This is His hearts desire!

The only thing that gets in the way of the Lord singing over us is US.

‘Even now,’ declares the LORD,
‘return to me with all your heart,
with fasting and weeping and mourning.’
Rend your heart
and not your garments.
Return to the LORD your God,
for he is gracious and compassionate,
slow to anger and abounding in love,
and he relents from sending calamity.

Joel 2:12-13

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‘Normal’ People Doing Extremely Evil Things

Posted in Christian, Christianity, tagged , , , , , , , , , , , on May 9, 2009| 1 Comment »

On any given day, scan the news, and look closely at what you find – supposedly ‘normal’ people doing extremely evil things.  Take today, for example, a child sex ring has been exposed and, so called, normal people are found out to be leading double lives and the parents of the children are horrified.  Or maybe the story of the soldier in Iraq who, with his friends, killed an Iraqi family and raped and killed their daughter.  I could go on and on and on.  And all of us would be horrified.  There is so much evil lurking in the shadows, lurking in the hearts of men and women, that needs to be brought out into the light.

But here is the thought, we are quick to point the finger, but the truth be known, each one of us is inherently wicked.  Each one of us has the potential within us to be the most horrenously wicked man or woman on this earth.  Look at the atrosities of war – normal people become monsters!

It is not until we come to the fact that it is not everyone else who has a problem but we are all part of the problem. Jesus highlighted our sin condition.  He said “You have heard that it was said to the people long ago, ‘Do not murder,  and anyone who murders will be subject to judgment.’ But I tell you that anyone who is angry with his brother  will be subject to judgment.” (NIV) [Matt 5:21-22]  And here, Jesus says:  “You have heard that it was said, ‘Do not commit adultery.’   But I tell you that anyone who looks at a woman lustfully has already committed adultery with her in his heart. If your right eye causes you to sin, gouge it out and throw it away. It is better for you to lose one part of your body than for your whole body to be thrown into hell. And if your right hand causes you to sin, cut it off and throw it away. It is better for you to lose one part of your body than for your whole body to go into hell.” (NIV) [Matt 5:27-30]

We(ie: the human race) are the problem!  We all need Jesus to transform us from the inside out.  There is no other solution to our human condition.  Each one of us needs to come to the place of acknowledging our sinful condition and repenting and inviting Jesus to come into our lives and transform our very beings, from the inside out, by His Spirit.  There is no other way!

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Do What You Want!

Posted in Christian, Christianity, tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , on May 8, 2009| Leave a Comment »

The human condition(ie: the sin condition) and the human heart

Relevent Verses:
Jer 17:9
“The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately wicked; who can know it?” (NKJV)
Prov 21:2
“Every way of a man is right in his own eyes”… (NKJV)
Prov 14:12
“There is a way that seems right to a man, but its end is the way of death.” (NKJV)
Prov 3:5
“Trust in the Lord with all your heart, And lean not on your own understanding;” (NKJV)
Prov 28:26
“He who trusts in his own heart is a fool,” (NKJV)
Matthew 15:19
“For out of the heart come evil thoughts, murder, adultery, sexual immorality, theft, false witness, slander.” [ESV]

The below are comments from blogger Binu Abraham (he says it very well):

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These verses don’t exactly paint a picture of the type of heart that most people tell us to listen to, does it? That’s because “the heart” that we’re told to listen to is not the type of heart that we actually have. Our heart is sinful; it’s often self-centered, deceiving, and the root of evil. And yet many of us use this very heart in making decisions and finding direction in life. Listen to what Spurgeon has to say about the heart:

“There have been men who have asserted that sins are merely accidents of man’s position. But the Savior says they come out of his heart. Some have affirmed that they are mistakes of his judgment—that the social system bears so harshly at certain points that men can scarcely do otherwise than offend—for their judgment misleads them. The Savior, however, traces these offenses not to the head and its mistaken judgments, but to the heart and its unholy affections. He plainly tells us that the part of human nature which yields such poisonous fruit is not a bough which may be sawn off, a limb which may be cut away—but the very core and substance of the man—his heart.”

The heart is wicked, but so many of us live according to it. David confesses “surely I was sinful at birth, sinful from the time my mother conceived me.” The heart, the core of who we are, has always been sinful and needs to be transformed. This can only be accomplished by trusting in Jesus, the sinless one, to transform us from the inside out. Our heart needs to be broken and reshaped to reflect the character of Jesus. This process begins at the moment we are born-again through faith, and it continues as we are in fellowship with Him and dying to ourselves – daily.

David pleads: “create in me a clean heart, O God…” and that needs to be our prayer as well. We need to understand, as David did, that such change can only happen when God works in and through our lives.

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The Day of the Lord is Coming

Posted in Christian, Christianity, tagged , , , , , , , , , on May 7, 2009| Leave a Comment »

Isaiah 2:6-22
[6]  Surely [Lord] You have rejected and forsaken your people, the house of Jacob, because they are filled [with customs] from the east and with soothsayers [who foretell] like the Philistines; also they strike hands and make pledges and agreements with the children of aliens.
[7]  Their land also is full of silver and gold; neither is there any end to their treasures. Their land is also full of horses; neither is there any end to their chariots.
[8]  Their land also is full of idols; they worship the work of their own hands, what their own fingers have made.
[9]  And the common man is bowed down [before idols], also the great man is brought low and humbles himself — therefore forgive them not [O Lord].
[10]  Enter into the rock and hide yourself in the dust from before the terror of the Lord and from the glory of His majesty.
[11]  The proud looks of man shall be brought low, and the haughtiness of men shall be humbled; and the Lord alone shall be exalted in that day.
[12]  For there shall be a day of the Lord of hosts against all who are proud and haughty and against all who are lifted up — and they shall be brought low —
[13]  [The wrath of God will begin by coming down] against all the cedars of Lebanon [west of the Jordan] that are high and lifted up, and against all the oaks of Bashan [east of the Jordan],
[14]  And [after that] against all the high mountains and all the hills that are lifted up,
[15]  And against every high tower and every fenced wall,
[16]  And against all the ships of Tarshish and all the picturesque and desirable imagery [designed for mere ornament and luxury].
[17]  Then the loftiness of man shall be bowed down, and the haughtiness of men shall be brought low; and the Lord alone shall be exalted in that day.
[18]  And the idols shall utterly pass away (be abolished).
[19]  Then shall [the stricken, deprived of all in which they had trusted] go into the caves of the rocks and into the holes of the earth from before the terror and dread of the Lord and from before the glory of His majesty, when He arises to shake mightily and terribly the earth.
[20]  In that day men shall cast away to the moles and to the bats their idols of silver and their idols of gold, which they made for themselves to worship,
[21]  To go into the caverns of the rocks and into the clefts of the ragged rocks from before the terror and dread of the Lord and from before the glory of His majesty, when He rises to shake mightily and terribly the earth.
[22]  Cease to trust in [weak, frail, and dying] man, whose breath is in his nostrils [for so short a time]; in what sense can he be counted as having intrinsic worth?[ Amplified Bible]

Malachi 4:1-6
[1]  FOR BEHOLD, the day comes that shall burn like an oven, and all the proud and arrogant, yes, and all that do wickedly and are lawless, shall be stubble; the day that comes shall burn them up, says the Lord of hosts, so that it will leave them neither root nor branch.
[2]  But unto you who revere and worshipfully fear My name shall the Sun of Righteousness arise with healing in His wings and His beams, and you shall go forth and gambol like calves [released] from the stall and leap for joy.
[3]  And you shall tread down the lawless and wicked, for they shall be ashes under the soles of your feet in the day that I shall do this, says the Lord of hosts.
[4]  [Earnestly] remember the law of Moses, My servant, the statutes and the ordinances which I commanded him on [Mount] Horeb [to give] to all Israel.
[5]  Behold, I will send you Elijah the prophet before the great and terrible day of the Lord comes.
[6]  And he shall turn and reconcile the hearts of the [estranged] fathers to the [ungodly] children, and the hearts of the [rebellious] children to [the piety of] their fathers [a reconciliation produced by repentance of the ungodly], lest I come and smite the land with a curse and a ban of utter destruction. [ Amplified Bible]

The Day of the Lord is Coming – Get Ready!

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Teaching to the Flesh or Preaching to the Spirit?

Posted in Christian, Christianity, tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , on April 28, 2009| Leave a Comment »

Can you tell the difference?

Preach the Word; be prepared in season and out of season; correct, rebuke and encourage — with great patience and careful instruction.
For the time will come when men will not put up with sound doctrine. Instead, to suit their own desires, they will gather around them a great number of teachers to say what their itching ears want to hear. NIV 2 Tim 4:2-3

Can you tell when men teach to tickle your ears and to appeal to your flesh and when preachers preach the Word of God?

For the word of God is living and active. Sharper than any double-edged sword, it penetrates even to dividing soul and spirit, joints and marrow; it judges the thoughts and attitudes of the heart. NIV Heb 4:12

Chances are, if you are having your ears tickled and your flesh fed (and you are enjoying it) and the teaching focuses on this world and this life (and the pride of man and focusing on self) rather than eternal things, the Kingdom of God, your sacrifice and self denial, your sin and your repentance, your complete crucifying of the old man and by faith living a holy and pleasing and acceptable life for the glory of the King of Kings and Lord of Lords, then there is not a lot I can say or do because what I am saying to you is a Spiritual message and you enjoy ‘flesh teaching’ rather than the ‘Spirit preaching’.  Only the Spirit of God can penetrate and enlighten our hearts but He is a gentleman and will not force Himself upon us especially if we block our ears to anything that interferes with our self justified and self centre lifestyle.

It seems to me, that when the Spirit is absent, men have to resort to preaching to the flesh in men and use all sorts of public speaking tricks to get results (ie: worldly results).

Conversely, when the Spirit is present, preachers preach prophetically in the power of the Spirit and this speaks to the spirit in men resulting in conviction and repentance, revival and salvation and the Word produces fruit that will last (a great harvest for the Kingdom).

I beg you that when I come I may not have to be as bold as I expect to be toward some people who think that we live by the standards of this world. For though we live in the world, we do not wage war as the world does. The weapons we fight with are not the weapons of the world. On the contrary, they have divine power to demolish strongholds. We demolish arguments and every pretension that sets itself up against the knowledge of God, and we take captive every thought to make it obedient to Christ. NIV 2 Cor 10:2-5

What troubles me…

The ‘people of God’ being disempowered and distracted and still living for self and this world and buying into all the faulty (and ‘nice’ looking and sounding) teaching that feeds the flesh rather than the spirit.  May the reader be enlightened and have understanding.

I am sorry, I was going to go in depth about this but the Lord has told me to move on from this topic.  There are plenty of resources and articles and messages on the internet to study over.  The Lord bless you and wake your spirit, Steve.

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