Those of us who have faith in God through Yeshua the Messiah, with confidence, look forward to the promise of eternal life…

John 3:16 (NKJV)

¹⁶ For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life.

However, Christians, even though some may not admit it, can still experience anxiety and fear from the fact that none of us have ever died before. Even though we are eternal, spiritual beings who are simply occupying our current temporary bodies, its difficult to see beyond what our consciousness has allowed us to experience.

Ecclesiastes 12:7 (NKJV)

⁷ Then the dust will return to the earth as it was,
And the spirit will return to God who gave it.

We are only ‘aware’ of when God allowed us to step into the continuum of ‘time’ and the physical world when we were born.

Many people think about the thousands of years that occurred before we lived and the fact that we have no consciousness of those years.

Many may sometimes wonder if we will return to the ‘nothingness’ of before the moment when God ‘quickened’ us into consciousness or gave life to our spirits and we stepped onto the stage of the world.

But, think about this…

None of us can remember the day we were born or even our first birthday, but we were all most certainly aware, conscious and ALIVE.

None of us can remember when we were in our mother’s womb, but we were most certainly aware, conscious and ALIVE.

So, our existence can’t be limited to what we can remember experiencing. The fact that eternity is something we can’t currently comprehend is confirmed in the word of God…

1 Corinthians 2:9 (NKJV)

⁹ But as it is written:

“Eye has not seen, nor ear heard,
Nor have entered into the heart of man
The things which God has prepared for those who love Him

Now consider this…

How many times have you gone to sleep and slept for hours and when you woke up, you didn’t even realize how long you had slept? You couldn’t even remember what you dreamed.

Have you ever been ‘put to sleep’ with anesthesia? If so, all you remember is possibly counting backwards and waking up. You remember nothing about the surgery and activity going on around you while you were ‘out’.

Why?

Because in both instances, just like God, your temporarily existing outside the continuum of time. You have no concept of seconds, minutes or hours. You have no concept of time or the physical world around you.

Our consciousness while we sleep is a partially spiritual consciousness.

Notice what the bible says about what will take place when Yeshua returns…

1 Thessalonians 4:13-18 (NKJV)

¹³ But I do not want you to be ignorant, brethren, concerning those who have fallen ^[a]asleep, lest you sorrow as others who have no hope. ¹⁴ For if we believe that Jesus died and rose again, even so God will bring with Him those who ^[b]sleep in Jesus.

¹⁵ For this we say to you by the word of the Lord, that we who are alive and remain until the coming of the Lord will by no means precede those who are ^[c]asleep. ¹⁶ For the Lord Himself will descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of an archangel, and with the trumpet of God. And the dead in Christ will rise first. ¹⁷ Then we who are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. And thus we shall always be with the Lord. ¹⁸ Therefore comfort one another with these words.

Those who are dead in Christ will be resurrected first. So, it’s very possible that just as when we go into a DEEP SLEEP and don’t notice how much time has passed, it’s very possible that when the Lord returns, those who died 2000 years ago will be no more aware of the time they were ‘sleeping’ than someone who died 20 minutes ago.

It’s very possible that as soon as you ‘die’ you immediately experience waking up to Christ’s return even if it’s 1000 years from now. You’ve just simply stepped out of ‘time’ and the ‘physical’ world.

God is preparing us for death each time we go to sleep.

So, if you feel some anxiety or fear of when you experience your last moment in this body, don’t be too hard on yourself. God knows that the spirit is willing, but the flesh is weak (Matthew 26:41).

BE BLESSTIFIED!

It’s been said that “hurt people, hurt people”. How many times has someone hurt you…disrespected you…betrayed you…embarrassed you…abused you, or hurt, disrespected, betrayed, embarrassed, or abused someone you love — and you wanted to see them hurt too?

You want to see them experience the same pain that they caused. You want them to know how you feel, and regret how they treated you or your loved one. This is wrong, but this is natural and one of the burdens of our sinful nature.

There is a classic example of this in the bible. Easu, Isaac’s first born twin, was enraged at is brother Jacob for taking his birthright and stealing his blessing…

Genesis 25:29-34  (NKJV)

²⁹ Now Jacob cooked a stew; and Esau came in from the field, and he was weary. ³⁰ And Esau said to Jacob, “Please feed me with that same red stew, for I am weary.” Therefore his name was called ^[a]Edom.

³¹ But Jacob said, “Sell me your birthright as of this day.”

³² And Esau said, “Look, I am about to die; so what is this birthright to me?”

³³ Then Jacob said, ^[b]“Swear to me as of this day.”

So he swore to him, and sold his birthright to Jacob. ³⁴ And Jacob gave Esau bread and stew of lentils; then he ate and drank, arose, and went his way. Thus Esau despised his birthright.

Genesis 27:1-29  (NKJV)

27 Now it came to pass, when Isaac was old and his eyes were so dim that he could not see, that he called Esau his older son and said to him, “My son.”

And he answered him, “Here I am.”

² Then he said, “Behold now, I am old. I do not know the day of my death. ³ Now therefore, please take your weapons, your quiver and your bow, and go out to the field and hunt game for me. ⁴ And make me ^[a]savory food, such as I love, and bring it to me that I may eat, that my soul may bless you before I die.”

⁵ Now Rebekah was listening when Isaac spoke to Esau his son. And Esau went to the field to hunt game and to bring it. ⁶ So Rebekah spoke to Jacob her son, saying, “Indeed I heard your father speak to Esau your brother, saying, ⁷ ‘Bring me game and make ^[b]savory food for me, that I may eat it and bless you in the presence of the Lord before my death.’ ⁸ Now therefore, my son, obey my voice according to what I command you. ⁹ Go now to the flock and bring me from there two choice kids of the goats, and I will make savory food from them for your father, such as he loves. ¹⁰ Then you shall take it to your father, that he may eat it, and that he may bless you before his death.”

¹¹ And Jacob said to Rebekah his mother, “Look, Esau my brother is a hairy man, and I am a smooth-skinned man. ¹² Perhaps my father will feel me, and I shall seem to be a deceiver to him; and I shall bring a curse on myself and not a blessing.”

¹³ But his mother said to him, “Let your curse be on me, my son; only obey my voice, and go, get them for me.” ¹⁴ And he went and got them and brought them to his mother, and his mother made ^[c]savory food, such as his father loved. ¹⁵ Then Rebekah took the choice clothes of her elder son Esau, which were with her in the house, and put them on Jacob her younger son. ¹⁶ And she put the skins of the kids of the goats on his hands and on the smooth part of his neck. ¹⁷ Then she gave the savory food and the bread, which she had prepared, into the hand of her son Jacob.

¹⁸ So he went to his father and said, “My father.”

And he said, “Here I am. Who are you, my son?”

¹⁹ Jacob said to his father, “I am Esau your firstborn; I have done just as you told me; please arise, sit and eat of my game, that your soul may bless me.”

²⁰ But Isaac said to his son, “How is it that you have found it so quickly, my son?”

And he said, “Because the Lord your God brought it to me.”

²¹ Isaac said to Jacob, “Please come near, that I may feel you, my son, whether you are really my son Esau or not.” ²² So Jacob went near to Isaac his father, and he felt him and said, “The voice is Jacob’s voice, but the hands are the hands of Esau.” ²³ And he did not recognize him, because his hands were hairy like his brother Esau’s hands; so he blessed him.

²⁴ Then he said, “Are you really my son Esau?”

He said, “I am.”

²⁵ He said, “Bring it near to me, and I will eat of my son’s game, so that my soul may bless you.” So he brought it near to him, and he ate; and he brought him wine, and he drank. ²⁶ Then his father Isaac said to him, “Come near now and kiss me, my son.” ²⁷ And he came near and kissed him; and he smelled the smell of his clothing, and blessed him and said:

“Surely, the smell of my son
Is like the smell of a field
Which the Lord has blessed.
²⁸ Therefore may God give you
Of the dew of heaven,
Of the fatness of the earth,
And plenty of grain and wine.
²⁹ Let peoples serve you,
And nations bow down to you.
Be master over your brethren,
And let your mother’s sons bow down to you.
Cursed be everyone who curses you,
And blessed be those who bless you!”

So, because of this, Esau comforted himself daydreaming about killing his brother…

Genesis 27:42 (NKJV)

⁴² And the words of Esau her older son were told to Rebekah. So she sent and called Jacob her younger son, and said to him, “Surely your brother Esau comforts himself concerning you by intending to kill you.

Even if you didn’t want to see them killed, how many times have you comforted yourself with the thought of seeing someone else hurt?

Be careful! When you judge in your heart that someone else deserves pain because of the pain they caused…that’s condemnation and judgement. And, we all know what the bible says about when we judge (condemn) someone else…

Matthew 7:1-2  (NKJV)

7 “Judge^[a] not, that you be not judged. ² For with what ^[b]judgment you judge, you will be judged; and with the measure you use, it will be measured back to you.

You are pronouncing that judgment on yourself!

Remember, we have all hurt, disrespected, betrayed, embarrassed, or abused someone. Even if we didn’t intend to do so, their pain was real.

When those thoughts enter your head, immediately ask God to forgive you, then pray and ask God to forgive them and touch their hearts with His love. Bless them…

Luke 6:28-36  (NKJV)

²⁸ bless those who curse you, and pray for those who spitefully use you. ²⁹ To him who strikes you on the one cheek, offer the other also. And from him who takes away your cloak, do not withhold your tunic either. ³⁰ Give to everyone who asks of you. And from him who takes away your goods do not ask them back. ³¹ And just as you want men to do to you, you also do to them likewise.

³² “But if you love those who love you, what credit is that to you? For even sinners love those who love them. ³³ And if you do good to those who do good to you, what credit is that to you? For even sinners do the same. ³⁴ And if you lend to those from whom you hope to receive back, what credit is that to you? For even sinners lend to sinners to receive as much back. ³⁵ But love your enemies, do good, and lend, ^[a]hoping for nothing in return; and your reward will be great, and you will be sons of the Most High. For He is kind to the unthankful and evil. ³⁶ Therefore be merciful, just as your Father also is merciful.

BE BLESSTIFIED!

I strongly feel that one of God’s spiritual purposes for allowing COVID-19 to interrupt in-person worship is so we can pause and take a good look at how we approach worship and our traditions.

One of the reasons the religious establishment sought to kill Jesus was because He challenged their traditions.

Matthew 15:3 (ESV)

³ He answered them, “And why do you break the commandment of God for the sake of your tradition?

He also made it clear that God demands that we worship Him in spirit and truth, not just what we choose to believe…

John 4:24 (NKJV)

²⁴ God is Spirit, and those who worship Him must worship in spirit and truth.”

One of those traditions that I think that God wants us to reconsider is what we call ‘Good Friday’ or the day when Yeshua was crucified and buried. I can’t count the times I’ve heard or read arguments trying to make Friday through Sunday 3 days and 3 nights. And quite frankly, it always sounds like trying to fit a square peg in a round hole.

Many Christians feel they have to justify making two days into three because they don’t want to contradict what we have been taught… a tradition.

It’s like trying to fit a square peg into a circle.

Consider this.

Take another look at the account of the day Yeshua was on the cross taking into consideration that the Jewish day began at what we call 6pm or sunset to sunrise.

The Gospels say that Yeshua cried out and breathed His last breath around the 9th hour, or 3pm…

Mark 15:33-37 (NKJV)

³³ Now when the sixth hour had come, there was darkness over the whole land until the ninth hour. ³⁴ And at the ninth hour Jesus cried out with a loud voice, saying, “Eloi, Eloi, lama sabachthani?” which is translated, “My God, My God, why have You forsaken Me?”

³⁵ Some of those who stood by, when they heard that, said, “Look, He is calling for Elijah!” ³⁶ Then someone ran and filled a sponge full of sour wine, put it on a reed, and offered it to Him to drink, saying, “Let Him alone; let us see if Elijah will come to take Him down.”

³⁷ And Jesus cried out with a loud voice, and breathed His last.

As we move forward to verse 42, it is now EVENING and Yeshua is still on the cross as Joseph of Arimathea asks Pilate for the body.

Mark 15:42-43 (NKJV)

⁴² Now when evening had come, because it was the Preparation Day, that is, the day before the Sabbath, ⁴³ Joseph of Arimathea, a prominent council member, who was himself waiting for the kingdom of God, coming and taking courage, went in to Pilate and asked for the body of Jesus.

Upon the arrival of evening, it’s no longer the same day as it was when Yeshua was crucified.

Genesis 1:5 (NKJV)

⁵ God called the light Day, and the darkness He called Night. ^[a]So the evening and the morning were the first day.

God gave us His word from a Jewish perspective. Problems arise when we try and view it through the lens of our western perspective.

Notice everything that had to take place after before Jesus could be placed into the tomb after 3pm…

John 19:31-42 (NKJV)

³¹ Therefore, because it was the Preparation Day, that the bodies should not remain on the cross on the Sabbath (for that Sabbath was a high day), the Jews asked Pilate that their legs might be broken, and that they might be taken away. ³² Then the soldiers came and broke the legs of the first and of the other who was crucified with Him. ³³ But when they came to Jesus and saw that He was already dead, they did not break His legs. ³⁴ But one of the soldiers pierced His side with a spear, and immediately blood and water came out. ³⁵ And he who has seen has testified, and his testimony is true; and he knows that he is telling the truth, so that you may believe. ³⁶ For these things were done that the Scripture should be fulfilled, “Not one of His bones shall be broken.” ³⁷ And again another Scripture says, “They shall look on Him whom they pierced.”

³⁸ After this, Joseph of Arimathea, being a disciple of Jesus, but secretly, for fear of the Jews, asked Pilate that he might take away the body of Jesus; and Pilate gave him permission. So he came and took the body of Jesus. ³⁹ And Nicodemus, who at first came to Jesus by night, also came, bringing a mixture of myrrh and aloes, about a hundred pounds. ⁴⁰ Then they took the body of Jesus, and bound it in strips of linen with the spices, as the custom of the Jews is to bury. ⁴¹ Now in the place where He was crucified there was a garden, and in the garden a new tomb in which no one had yet been laid. ⁴² So there they laid Jesus, because of the Jews’ Preparation Day, for the tomb was nearby.

Remember, harmonizing with Mark 15:42, it was EVENING when Joseph of Arimathea asked for the body of Yeshua. This was AFTER the soldiers came to break His legs (this was evening too) and realized He was already dead. This was after he was given sour wine to drink before He died. All this was after 3pm and took time. It took time for Joseph to go to Pilate, ask for the body, get His linen cloth, properly wrap His body in the cloth, get the body of our Savior off the cross, and take it to the tomb.

This all happened after evening had arrived…the next biblical day according to the Jewish perspective of a day beginning in the evening rather than at 12 midnight.

So, with the ARRIVAL of evening came the Day of Preparation, or what we call Friday, which means everything that happened BEFORE evening was on the previous day, what we call Thursday.

If the crucifixion occurred on what we call Thursday, then one can easily justify three days and three nights… no trying to fit a square peg into a circle.

Of course, some are so devoted to a tradition that doesn’t make sense, they will ask, “What does it matter?”

It matters because God demands to be worshipped in spirit and truth.

It matters because we don’t want to be guilty of teaching, preaching and believing a lie.

It matters because the Adversary wants to pervert everything holy (NAMES MATTER (WHY WE SHOULD STOP CALLING EASTER…EASTER).

I’m sure some ‘seasoned’ theologians will read this and try and make me seem as though I don’t know what I’m talking about…and that’s exactly what happened to Jesus.

Think about it.

BE BLESSTIFED!

One of the favorite arguments of atheists is the ‘foundations of the earth’ language in the bible. And, honestly, this is one of those things in the bible that’s difficult for believers to understand explain too.

Let me help with a very practical explanation.

First of all, the bible acknowledges that the earth is round…

Isaiah 40:22 (NKJV)

²² It is He who sits above the circle of the earth,
And its inhabitants are like grasshoppers,
Who stretches out the heavens like a curtain,
And spreads them out like a tent to dwell in.

I think everyone will agree that circles are round. But, what about all the language referring to the ‘foundations of the earth’ such as…

Psalm 104:5 (NKJV)

⁵ You who ^[a]laid the foundations of the earth,
So that it should not be moved forever,

Think about this. Even though the earth is round, the home in which you live still requires a foundation. Every building that we build requires a strong, immovable, preferably flat foundation. The very flat ground that we walk on, build on…live on has it’s own layers or ‘foundations’.

The fact that the world is round does not prevent the ground from being flat and requiring foundations.

Did people in the ancient world think the world was flat? Yes. But the fact that God didn’t reveal the fact that the world was round to everyone at that time doesn’t negate the fact that He is real and He lives. Think about all of the mysteries of the physical and spiritual worlds that WE still don’t know.

Don’t allow your blessings of intelligence and sense of logic be a curse to prevent you from understanding and accepting the mysteries in the word of God.

BE BLESSTIFIED!

The painting portrays the evening that the Lord ate the Passover meal and instituted the Lord’s Supper with His disciples before He was betrayed.

Remember, Jesus Himself told us that God is a spirit and demands to be worshipped in spirit and TRUTH…

John 4:24 (NKJV)

²⁴ God is Spirit, and those who worship Him must worship in spirit and truth.”

We also live in time when people claim to love THE TRUTH and reject FAKE NEWS.

So, with all that being said, what’s wrong with the famous painting, THE LORD’S SUPPER, based on these scriptures according to the Complete Jewish Bible translation…

Mark 14:18 (CJB)

¹⁸ As they were reclining and eating, Yeshua said, “Yes! I tell you that one of you is going to betray me.”

Matthew 26:20 (CJB)

²⁰ When evening came, Yeshua reclined with the twelve talmidim;

According to the scriptures as well as the context of culture and time…THEY WERE NOT SITTING. THEY WERE RECLINING.

Of course there will be some who say, “Why does this matter?”

Those of us who claim to be Christians can be the worst at sometimes deciding ‘that doesn’t matter’ when it threatens our traditions and what we choose to believe.

So, why does it matter?

Because the painting does not depict the way it happened, and that’s not truth.

Because every painting or picture intended to portray Jesus has influenced thought for centuries.

Because every painting and picture intended to portray Jesus has shaped what and how people believe and has had an influence on the faith.

Because it shapes the way people ‘experience’ their faith and what they think is correct and incorrect.

Do you want people publishing images of you depicting an event in your honor wrongly, falsely or inaccurately? Of course not. Why should our Lord and Savior be any different?

The fact is that when you present some people with the truth, they are reluctant to, or refuse to accept it because they have been influenced by art that very well MAY NOT have been commissioned by God.

Maybe this is why He clearly commanded in regard to likenesses of Him…

Exodus 20:4 (NKJV)

⁴ “You shall not make for yourself a carved image—any likeness of anything that is in heaven above, or that is in the earth beneath, or that is in the water under the earth;

BE BLESSTIFIED!

We experience the physical world through our 5 senses. Would you even know you that the world was real if you had not ONE sense?

No sight?

No hearing?

No smell?

No taste?

No touch?

As real as this world is, we only know it’s real because of our five senses. We experience the world through our senses. They make us aware of the evidence that the world is real.

Faith is the spiritual equivalent to all five of our spiritual senses. It is our faith that enables us to experience the spiritual world that we can’t see.

Atheists claim God isn’t real because they say there is no evidence. This is because they aren’t exercising the measure of faith that God has given all of us, so just as a person with no senses can’t experience the physical world, they can’t experience God

Romans 12:3 (NKJV)

³ For I say, through the grace given to me, to everyone who is among you, not to think of himself more highly than he ought to think, but to think soberly, as God has dealt to each one a measure of faith.

Think about it, God’s word confirms that faith is our sixth sense through which we see, hear, touch, smell and even taste God…

SEE

2 Corinthians 5:7 (NKJV)

⁷ For we walk by faith, not by sight.

Hebrews 11:1 (NKJV)

Now faith is the ^[a]substance of things hoped for, the ^[b]evidence of things not seen.

HEAR

Romans 10:17 (NKJV)

¹⁷ So then faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the word of God.

John 10:27 (NKJV)

²⁷ My sheep hear My voice, and I know them, and they follow Me.

TOUCH

Matthew 8:3 (NKJV)

³ Then Jesus put out His hand and touched him, saying, “I am willing; be cleansed.” Immediately his leprosy was cleansed.

Matthew 17:7 (NKJV)

⁷ But Jesus came and touched them and said, “Arise, and do not be afraid.”

SMELL

2 Corinthians 2:14 (ESV)

¹⁴ But thanks be to God, who in Christ always leads us in triumphal procession, and through us spreads the fragrance of the knowledge of him everywhere.

Ezekiel 20:41 (NKVJV)

⁴¹ I will accept you as a sweet aroma when I bring you out from the peoples and gather you out of the countries where you have been scattered; and I will be hallowed in you before the Gentiles.

TASTE

Psalm 34:8 (NKJV)

⁸ Oh, taste and see that the Lord is good;
Blessed is the man who trusts in Him!

Psalm 119:103 (NKJV)

¹⁰³ How sweet are Your words to my taste,
Sweeter than honey to my mouth!

And just as our physical senses need to be enhanced through wearing glasses, contact lenses, hearing aids etc., so does our faith need enhancing through prayer, studying God’s word, praise and sincere worship.

So, please don’t neglect your spiritual sixth sense!

Feed your faith!

Exercise your faith!

Take care of your faith just as much as you do your 5 physical senses.

One day a man who had been walking, catching rides and using Uber to go to work every day was given a car by a family member. He was so thankful. All he had to do was have a few things fixed. As he drove it home, he stopped to get gas and the car wouldn’t start. Wow! He had to have the car towed to the shop. After they fixed it, as he drove it home he let the window down and it wouldn’t come back up. He said, “Are you serious!!!!”

As he drove back to the shop so they could fix the window he noticed stains on the seats.

He said, “Why does everything I get have to have something wrong with it? Always ‘STAINED’?”

He then immediately remembered that he had transportation to work, the store or to take his lady friend out on a date. He also remembered the fact that the price he paid for the repairs was still better than having a car payment for years. He immediately thanked God and asked him to forgive him for so quickly allowing frustration to take away the excitement of his blessing.

So many times God will bless us and if it’s not exactly the way we wanted it or comes with some imperfections, inconveniences or responsibilities, we can find ourselves with an unthankful attitude.

The bible reminds us that every gift God gives is perfect…

James 1:17  (NKJV)

¹⁷ Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, and comes down from the Father of lights, with whom there is no variation or shadow of turning.

The next time you begin to see stains on your blessings, remember that every gift from God is perfect.

Any stains we see are on our eyes and not the blessing.

BE BLESSTIFIED!

We inherited all of our emotions from God…we were created in His image, so we can experience His emotions. God gets frustrated at us when we willingly sin.

So, He understands that we will sometimes feel frustrated at life… at some of His decisions… at what He allows.

Jeremiah 12:1 NKJV

Righteous are You, O LORD, when I plead with You; Yet let me talk with You about Your judgments. Why does the way of the wicked prosper? Why are those happy who deal so treacherously?

Sometimes we can feel guilty over our frustration.

But remember, getting frustrated isn’t a sin unless…

It causes us to be ungrateful.

It causes us to be in thankful.

It causes us to complain rather than lament.

It causes us to doubt God.

It causes someone else to doubt God.

It causes us to lose our faith.

It causes someone else to doubt God.

When you feel frustrated or even angry at yourself, others, life or even God…do a Google search for Psalms of Lament.

Notice how God teaches us to responsibly express our frustrations as long as we always end with expressing our trust in Him.

Psalm 13 (NKIV)

13 How long, O Lord? Will You forget me forever?
^(A)How long will You hide Your face from me?
² How long shall I take counsel in my soul,
Having sorrow in my heart daily?
How long will my enemy be exalted over me?

³ Consider and hear me, O Lord my God;
^(B)Enlighten my eyes,
^(C)Lest I sleep the sleep of death;
⁴ Lest my enemy say,
“I have prevailed against him”;
Lest those who trouble me rejoice when I am moved.

⁵ But I have trusted in Your mercy;
My heart shall rejoice in Your salvation.
⁶ I will sing to the Lord,
Because He has dealt bountifully with me.

Ephesians 4:26 (NKJV)

^{26 (A)}“Be angry, and do not sin”: do not let the sun go down on your wrath,

Don’t let your frustrations keep you down.

BE BLESSTIFIED!

Let me say first that I’m not excusing adultery, fornication or any other sexual sin. These sins also result from an innate, natural desire that we don’t ask for, and people make a choice to commit these sins based on that desire.

However, there are many people who are now trying to defend homosexuality by saying that Jesus never addressed it, or forbade it. They say only the Apostle Paul addressed it, and some even try to contend that he wasn’t really talking about homosexuality.

I’m going to keep this short and sweet.

We all know there are several sins that Jesus never directly addressed…

Rape…

Incest…

Domestic Abuse…

Bestiality…

Gossip…

Jealousy…

To name a few.

Jesus didn’t even say directly that getting drunk is a sin. It was indirect.

He did address marriage, fornication adultery and divorce.
And, no one disputes that the LORD only permits sex within marriage.
In Matthew Chapter 19, Jesus repeated what He Himself said as The Living Word in Genesis 5:2 , yes He was there in the beginning (Elohim, the name for God in Genesis is a plural noun)…
Matthew 19:4-5(NKJV)

4 And He answered and said to them, “Have you not read that He who made[a] them at the beginning ‘made them male and female,’[b]5 and said, ‘For this reason a man shall leave his father and mother and be joined to his wife, and the two shall become one flesh’?[c]

The context of the conversation here is marriage and divorce. Jesus specifically calls out MALE and FEMALE in the context of marriage. This is not a cherry picked scripture.  It is Jesus in perfect harmony with what God established in the beginning. 

Jesus clearly says let HIM (male) be joined to his WIFE (female), because some try to contend, ‘who says that a wife has to be a woman’.

This undeniably defines marriage as between a man and woman.

These verses (Genesis and Matthew) define marriage as between a man and woman. And, since God only permits sex within marriage, sex with any partner, heterosexual or homosexual is sin.

So yes, without saying the word ‘homosexuality’, Yeshua, Christ Jesus addressed it. Any other conclusion is conjecture…reaching…trying to fit a square peg into a triangular slot.

For those who say that it’s okay because some people are born that way, click this…JUST BECAUSE SOMEONE’S ‘BORN THAT WAY’ DOESN’T MAKE IT OKAY…

For those who want to bring up slavery in the bible to justify their argument to defend homosexuality, click this…LET’S TALK ABOUT SLAVERY IN THE BIBLE…

And remember, no matter what sin someone is struggling with, God expects us to love everyone without excusing or condoning the sin.

BE BLESSTIFIED!

Spiritual maturity is realizing that there are some things that caused you so much pain — you’ll never get OVER them. It doesn’t mean you don’t forgive. It just means the thought will always hurt you.

Every time it comes to mind — the thought will hurt you.

Whenever something or someone reminds you of it — you will feel pain.

People spend years of energy trying to make a horrible memory— not hurt.

That’s wasted energy.

You will never get OVER it.

But, you CAN get past it.

You can control how the pain controls you, and how you react to it.

You can prevent IT from preventing YOU from moving on.

Even God Himself felt pain when He thought of how His chosen people consistently turned their backs on Him…

Notice how God sounds like a ‘hurt lover’ as He expresses His pain against how they have treated Him…

Micah 6:3-5 (NKJV)

³ “O My people, what have I done to you?
And how have I wearied you?
Testify against Me.
⁴ For I brought you up from the land of Egypt,
I redeemed you from the house of bondage;
And I sent before you Moses, Aaron, and Miriam.
⁵ O My people, remember now
What Balak king of Moab counseled,
And what Balaam the son of Beor answered him,
From ^[a]Acacia Grove to Gilgal,
That you may know the righteousness of the Lord.”

Remember, just because God said He will forget our sins doesn’t mean that He CAN’T remember them.

He is all powerful!

You will never remember something that our all powerful God can’t. It’s just a figurative way of saying that He will never hold our sins against us once we truly repent. WHEN GOD FORGETS, IT DOESN’T MEAN HE CAN’T REMEMBER…

I really believe this is going to set someone free…

Accept the fact that you will never get OVER some things.

Understand that some thoughts will ALWAYS cause you pain.

Ask God to help you get past the pain and move on.

Ask Him to help you to be strong enough to not let painful memories control you.

Ask God to help you move on, just like He moves on when we hurt Him.

BE BLESSTIFIED!

Are your children ever disobedient or disrespectful? Come on, now even ‘good’ kids have their moments.

Are your adult children ever unappreciative, disconnected or disrespectful?

Mark 7:8-13  (NKJV)

⁸ For laying aside the commandment of God, you hold the tradition of men^[a] —the washing of pitchers and cups, and many other such things you do.” ⁹ He said to them, “All too well you reject the commandment of God, that you may keep your tradition. ¹⁰ For Moses said, ‘Honor your father and your mother’;^[b]and, ‘He who curses father or mother, let him be put to death.’^[c] 11 But you say, ‘If a man says to his father or mother, “Whatever profit you might have received from me is Corban”—’ (that is, a gift to God), ¹² then you no longer let him do anything for his father or his mother, ¹³ making the word of God of no effect through your tradition which you have handed down. And many such things you do.”

Most if not all Christian parents love to remind their children of what the bible says about being obedient to parents…

Ephesians 6:1 (NKJV)

6 Children, obey your parents in the Lord, for this is right.

 Colossians 3:20  (NKJV)

²⁰ Children, obey your parents in all things, for this is well pleasing to the Lord.

And, most parents get frustrated and angry when their children…

Disobey them…

Disrespect them…

Deny them…

Embarrass them…

Don’t appreciate them…

Don’t ask for their advice…

Don’t take their advice…

Don’t talk to them…

Respect others more than them…

Or, even rebel against them.

Have you ever had, or are you going through any of these situations as a parent? Did you put your parents through any of these situations?

All parents want their children to listen to them…to honor and respect them. And, they don’t want it to be a ‘burden’ to do so. They want them to do it freely out of love for them.

So, parents, the next time you are frustrated because your children aren’t listening, or aren’t giving you the respect you deserve, remember this verse…

1 John 5:3 (NKJV)

³ For this is the love of God, that we keep His commandments. And His commandments are not burdensome.

Then, I ask you to join me in asking yourself, “Is this how God feels when I…

Disobey Him…

Disrespect Him…

Deny Him…

Embarrass Him…

Don’t appreciate Him…

Don’t ask for His advice…

Don’t take His advice…

Don’t talk to Him…

Respect others more than Him…

Rebel against Him…

Don’t listen to Him?

Why should we expect any more out of our children than we give to God?

Maybe, just maybe, God is sometimes trying to teach us a lesson through our children.

BE BLESSTIFIED!

Do you know anyone who seems to love drama? Dysfunction? Chaos?

Do you know anyone who confuses peace with boredom?

Some people can become so used to toxic environments, cultures and behaviors that they consider that to be normal. They are so used to negativity that they begin to unknowingly enjoy it. They enjoy creating it. They enjoy watching it. They enjoy talking about it….that’s why I think reality shows are so successful now.

They can create their own poison to what would be a good relationship…friendship…job. They sometimes aren’t even comfortable with peace within themselves because they anticipate something bad is going to happen.

I hope this is not you. We must be very careful that we don’t reject the very peace that God seeks to GIVE us. We must not be uncomfortable with the peace that God GIVES us through our Lord and Savior Christ Jesus. Not only does He give us peace…He gives us HIS peace…

John 14:27 (NKJV)

²⁷ Peace I leave with you, My peace I give to you; not as the world gives do I give to you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid.

His peace is more powerful than any trouble or fear that we have the tendency to allow to overwhelm us.

Think about it. The enemy, just as he did in the book of Job roams around looking to disrupt the peace that God has given you…

Job 1:7 (NKJV)

⁷ And the Lord said to Satan, “From where do you come?” So Satan answered the Lord and said, “From going to and fro on the earth, and from walking back and forth on it.”

1 Peter 5:8 (NKJV)

⁸ Be sober, be vigilant; because^[a] your adversary the devil walks about like a roaring lion, seeking whom he may devour.

 God has given you the power to ‘be the peace’ in any given situation.

Matthew 5:9 (NKJV)

⁹ Blessed are the peacemakers,
For they shall be called sons of God.

Claim your own peace. Be comfortable with it, and walk in the authority God has ordained for your life.

BE BLESSTIFIED!

Here’s a quick story. One day years ago while working a previous job, I was in the office, and I didn’t do a particular job to meet my direct manager’s expectations. That’s just a reality of work and relationships. We will not always meet each other’s expectations.

That particular manager became very angry, slammed his fist on the desk and said very loudly in front of everyone, “You will NOT do this like this again!”

I remained calm, and went to the bathroom to pray and ask God to give me the wisdom to handle the situation.

I then calmly returned to his desk and said, “Listen, my name is not Chris (his son’s name is Chris). I respect your authority, and you can write me up, suspend me, or even fire me, but you WILL NOT DISRESPECT ME AGAIN! The reason we are both here is to provide for our families, and your position does not give you the right to disrespect me.” He spent the rest of the day apologizing to me, and thank God it never happened again.

It’s amazing how some people equate being loud, mean, and difficult to strength, leadership and assertiveness.

Notice that what God defines as the Fruit of His Spirit, the evidence that we are in relationship with Him, are qualities that are considered weak in ‘Western’ culture.

Galatians 5:22-23 (NKJV)

²² But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, ^23 [a]gentleness, self-control. Against such there is no law.

When did it become acceptable for leadership to get a pass on being respectful?

It reminds me of the pass that so many in society gives coaches to use profanity and disrespect to coach their children… https://beblesstified.com/2019/04/06/why-its-not-okay-for-coaches-to-curse-your-children-3/

It’s amazing how some people are impressed with cursing, profanity, insults, condescension, and even blasphemy, even people in the Body of Christ… https://beblesstified.com/2019/10/21/5-catastrophic-implications-of-when-christians-cuss-4/

God expects us to remain in His character, especially when we are in positions of leadership. And, when we work with people who don’t have a relationship with God, it’s our responsibility to hold them accountable.

You can be an influence on the culture of your workplace by how you respond to the negative, difficult situations.

Pray for discernment so you can know in which situations to speak up, and in which situations to remain silent.

You can respond in God’s love, but also in His authority. Control your emotions, choose your words carefully, speak calmly, and be prepared for the consequences of you standing your ground.

Proverbs 15:1  (NKJV)

15 A soft answer turns away wrath,
But a harsh word stirs up anger.

Quiet doesn’t always mean silent…

NOTHING INTIMIDATES A LOUDMOUTH LIKE THE QUIET STRENGTH OF HUMILITY.

BE BLESSTIFIED!

.

Posts and statements like the one in the image are encouraging, get a lot of amens, and ‘LIKES’, but they are dangerous.

BE CAREFUL when people QUOTE FOR GOD as if He said it word-for-word.

Be careful when people say, “God told me to tell you.”

Especially when…

1. It’s not scripture.
2. It’s too universal. It’s not true for everyone who reads this… “THIS WEEK” as stated in the image. Some people are going through storms, discipline, and ‘dry seasons’.
3. God doesn’t bless everyone the same way at the same time.
4. If a miracle doesn’t happen this week, it can cause people to lose faith. It can cause people to lose faith and discredit our faith much like television ‘faith-healers’ who seem to never go to the hospital.
   There’s a difference in being inspired by God and QUOTING as if He said it verbatim.
5. Even Old Testament prophets weren’t always able to give the exact how, when and where.
   

There’s a difference in being inspired by God and quoting Him with our words as if He said it verbatim.

2 Peter 1:20-21 (KJV)

²⁰ Knowing this first, that no prophecy of the scripture is of any private interpretation.

²¹ For the prophecy came not in old time by the will of man: but holy men of God spake as they were moved by the Holy Ghost.

No prophetic statement will contradict God’s order.

BE BLESSTIFIED!

How much are you worth? Can you really quantify your value to…

Your job?

Your family?

Your church?

Your relationships?

Your world?

God has created us and gifted all wonderfully and uniquely. No one else can be as good at being you than you!

Psalm 139:13-14 (NKJV)

¹³ For You formed my inward parts;
You ^[a]covered me in my mother’s womb.
¹⁴ I will praise You, for ^[b]I am fearfully and wonderfully made;
Marvelous are Your works,
And that my soul knows very well.

It’s our responsibility to recognize, nurture and perfect what God has placed inside of us. And to use it not only to sustain our lives, but to build God’s kingdom and make the world a better place.

Luke 12:48  (NKJV)

⁴⁸ But he who did not know, yet committed things deserving of stripes, shall be beaten with few. For everyone to whom much is given, from him much will be required; and to whom much has been committed, of him they will ask the more.

God has created us all with great value!

So much so, that no one should ever be able to pay us what we’re worth.

How much money do you make? What’s your salary? What’s your hourly wage?

Do you feel that’s ALL your worth?

Do you feel that’s ALL you bring to the table?

We should all be irreplaceable…

Not only in our job descriptions but also in the intangibles. There should be a void any time we leave a workplace, relationship, church etc.

Your energy, positivity, love…your very presence should be missed. You should bring those things that can’t be trained or taught….

Those things that go beyond experience, such as being the person everyone looks to in a crisis.

Even if they can replace YOU, they should never be able to replace WHAT YOU DO!

Anytime you feel you aren’t bringing enough to the table…YOU AREN’T.

We’re placed here to be God’s representatives in every environment and relationship we occupy. God blesses us to bring glory to God through the anointing on our lives, the gifts He’s giving us and the seeds we sow.

And that’s priceless.

Now, are you being underpaid?

BE BLESSTIFIED!

It happens every New Year. Many preachers giving promises of peace and prosperity from the pulpit. First of all let me say that sometimes God does send prophetic proclamations of good news to His people, but not every year.

There are many preachers out there who make the same promise every year…

“This is your year!”

“This is your season!”

But, the prophets in the bible didn’t always deliver good news. In fact, many times they were tasked with warning the people of what was to come. God is loving enough to not let His people be caught off guard without warning.

But, beware of preachers who deliver only good news.

Promising prosperity and good news every year plays on the emotions and hopes of those who God has entrusted to watch over their souls.

Unfortunately, many preach through their flesh whether than God’s Spirit…

Some to feed their egos…

Some to keep members engaged…

Some to manipulate money out of the people…

How is EVERY YEAR GOING TO BE YOUR SEASON?

Remember what God told Ezekiel…

Ezekiel 33:1-9  (NKJV)

Again the word of the Lord came to me, saying, ² “Son of man, speak to the children of your people, and say to them: ‘When I bring the sword upon a land, and the people of the land take a man from their territory and make him their watchman, ³ when he sees the sword coming upon the land, if he blows the trumpet and warns the people, ⁴ then whoever hears the sound of the trumpet and does not take warning, if the sword comes and takes him away, his blood shall be on his own head. ⁵ He heard the sound of the trumpet, but did not take warning; his blood shall be upon himself. But he who takes warning will ^[a]save his life. ⁶ But if the watchman sees the sword coming and does not blow the trumpet, and the people are not warned, and the sword comes and takes any person from among them, he is taken away in his iniquity; but his blood I will require at the watchman’s hand.’

⁷ “So you, son of man: I have made you a watchman for the house of Israel; therefore you shall hear a word from My mouth and warn them for Me. ⁸ When I say to the wicked, ‘O wicked man, you shall surely die!’ and you do not speak to warn the wicked from his way, that wicked man shall die in his iniquity; but his blood I will require at your hand. ⁹ Nevertheless if you warn the wicked to turn from his way, and he does not turn from his way, he shall die in his iniquity; but you have ^[b]delivered your soul.

Think of all the pride, arrogance, curses, blasphemies, abominations, insults that are released daily. Much of this behavior comes from those who call themselves believers.

How much it comes from you?

So many times we expect to give our worst and receive God’s best.

This type of preaching is like quenching your thirst with cola or alcohol. It may feel refreshing, but it’s actually dehydrating you.

I pray that God grants you a year of peace and prosperity…but I can’t promise it.

BE BLESSTIFIED!

There are many ‘cliche’s among believers that have become almost as revered as scripture. Some are more common in different Christian subcultures. From “LET GO AND LET GOD” to “GOD CAN DO ANYTHING BUT FAIL”, those who call themselves to be a part of the Body of Christ encourage, admonish and hold one another accountable with several spiritual cliches. For example, saying “PRAYER WORKS” can reduce prayer to a gimmick. However, we must be very careful with how we use these phrases.

Two of the most popular of these phrases among many Christians are the cliches…

“SPEAK IT INTO EXISTENCE!” or “NAME IT AND CLAIM IT!”

These are popular spiritual inferences that are drawn from several scriptures such as:

Proverbs 18:21 (NKJV)

²¹ Death and life are in the power of the tongue,
And those who love it will eat its fruit.

Matthew 21:21 (NKJV)

²¹ So Jesus answered and said to them, “Assuredly, I say to you, if you have faith and do not doubt, you will not only do what was done to the fig tree, but also if you say to this mountain, ‘Be removed and be cast into the sea,’ it will be done.

We must be very careful when we take scriptures and ‘turn them into what we want’. The fact is that when we ‘add to’ what the bible says, it can often do more harm than good.

There are no bible verses that explicitly say we can simply say things and they will happen. And, inferring that some verses mean that we can ‘name it and claim it’ is a dangerous conjecture.

Here are 2 quick reasons why we should be careful before we say, “Speak it into existence” or “Name it and claim it..

1. IT CAN CAUSE SOMEONE TO QUESTION THEIR FAITH

Yes, Yeshua the Messiah (Jesus Christ), told us that whatsoever we ask according to His will, shall be done for us, but, we all know that no matter how many times we pray for something that isn’t according to God’s will, it will not happen. And, having intimate conversation with God in prayer isn’t the spiritual equivalent to arbitrarily saying something out loud so that it will happen. The fact is that a prayer doesn’t even have to be ‘spoken’ or verbalized because God knows when we are speaking to Him in our thoughts without words. So, if someone ‘speaks it into existence’ through prayer, and God doesn’t do it…it can cause someone to question their faith in both God and prayer.

2. ‘SPEAKING IT INTO EXISTENCE’ CAN ACTUALLY ‘SPEAK IT INTO RESISTANCE’

Remember that Satan, his fallen angels and his emissaries on earth are not omniscient nor omnipresent. They aren’t all knowing and can’t be everywhere at the same time. The devil or demons CAN’T know your thoughts unless you make them known to them.

Notice how the bible reminds us that Mary didn’t share what God had told her verbally…

Luke 2:19 (NKJV)

¹⁹ But Mary kept all these things and pondered them in her heart.

Notice how the angel of the Lord acknowledged the spiritual resistance and battle taking place in the ‘spirit world’…

Daniel 10:12-14 (NKJV)

¹² Then he said to me, “Do not fear, Daniel, for from the first day that you set your heart to understand, and to humble yourself before your God, your words were heard; and I have come because of your words. ¹³ But the prince of the kingdom of Persia withstood me twenty-one days; and behold, Michael, one of the chief princes, came to help me, for I had been left alone there with the kings of Persia. ¹⁴ Now I have come to make you understand what will happen to your people in the latter days, for the vision refers to many days yet to come.”

The angel of the Lord dispatched to Daniel met resistance from a high ranking, territorial fallen angel identified as the Prince of Persia. The angel was delayed three weeks!

Notice how Hannah prayed silently when she wanted a child, so that even her husband couldn’t hear.

There are some things we can’t even let our loved ones know we are praying FOR THEM about…because they will get angry or offended.

“I DON’T NEED YOU PRAYING FOR ME!”

“DON’T PRAY FOR MY MARRIAGE!”

“DON’T PRAY FOR ME! GOD MADE ME THIS WAY!”

The truth is sometimes, we say I’M PRAYING FOR YOU as a ‘slick’ insult.

When we verbalize…

Our intentions…

Our hopes…

Our dreams…

Our frustrations…

Our anger…

…God isn’t the only one who hears it. The enemy also hears it, and just the same as a human enemy can respond to undermine, frustrate or harm you based on what you make known with your mouth…so can the devil.

Many times when we arbitrarily SPEAK INTO EXISTSANCE, we’re inviting SPIRITUAL RESISTANCE.

Some things are meant to be between only you and God, spoken in the spiritual language of your heart. One of the beautiful benefits of a relationship with God through Jesus Christ is the fact that His Holy Spirit, (Ruach HaKadosh), speaks for us nonverbally when we don’t know what to say.

Remember, spiritual cliches are NOT scripture.

BE BLESSTIFIED!

We have all been there. Those moments when you aren’t angry at God. You aren’t angry at God. You aren’t angry at the world…you’re angry at yourself and the sins, bad decisions and mistakes you have made.

Most of the time we feel this way because we’re living out the consequences of those mistakes, or it’s because we are silently noticing how our decisions have had a negative affect on those we love.

Yes, there are things beyond our control. Yes, there are times the world hasn’t been fair to us. And, yes there are times that God could have moved on our behalf and He didn’t.

But when we’re honest with ourselves, much of the difficulty we face in life is a result of our own sins or bad decisions.

When we admit this to ourselves, it can lead to moments or seasons of depression. So, what do you do?

1. REMEMBER THOSE USED BY GOD IN THE BIBLE WERE FAR FROM PERFECT

Remember that everyone in the bible who was used by God was far from perfect. From Abraham, Isaac and Jacob to the patriarchs. From Noah to Moses to David to Peter to Paul. From Sarah to Rebecca to Miriam to Job’s wife…the men and women in the bible made horrible mistakes. However, they were still used by God.

2. YOU DIDN’T CATCH GOD BY SURPRISE WHEN YOU MESSED UP

God was not surprised when he sinned with Bathsheba. God knew that was going to happen when He anointed David king years before. Also know that YOU didn’t catch God by surprise when you messed up. Especially if it’s due to one of the weaknesses that He gave you. Many of our weaknesses are innate. Some people are naturally horrible with managing money. Others have an unquenchable appetite for sex that can only be controlled with the help of God’s Holy Spirit. While other people have a natural tendency to quickly get angry and act before thinking. These are all weakness that we need God’s help to overcome. This is His way of nurturing a relationship to keep us close to Him…but too many times we allow our weaknesses to overpower our strengths. Never forget that His strength is made perfect in our weaknesses…

2 Corinthians 12:8-10 (NKJV)

⁸ Concerning this thing I pleaded with the Lord three times that it might depart from me. ⁹ And He said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for My strength is made perfect in weakness.” Therefore most gladly I will rather boast in my infirmities, that the power of Christ may rest upon me. ¹⁰ Therefore I take pleasure in infirmities, in reproaches, in needs, in persecutions, in distresses, for Christ’s sake. For when I am weak, then I am strong.

3. GOD MADE YOU AND KNOWS THE CHALLENGES OF LIVING IN ‘FLESH’

God knows that the spirit is willing but the flesh is weak (Matthew 26:41)

He has compassion on us when we are repentant about our ‘human’ moments…

Psalm 103:10-14 (NKJV)

¹⁰ He has not dealt with us according to our sins,
Nor punished us according to our iniquities.

¹¹ For as the heavens are high above the earth,
So great is His mercy toward those who fear Him;
¹² As far as the east is from the west,
So far has He removed our transgressions from us.
¹³ As a father pities his children,
So the Lord pities those who fear Him.
¹⁴ For He ^[a]knows our frame;
He remembers that we are dust.

4. GOD CAN DELIVER US FROM THE CONSEQUENCES OF OUR SINS, BAD DECISIONS AND WEAKNESSES

God is a keeper ( Yehovah Raah, The Lord is our Shepherd) and is able to sustain us in spite of our mistakes. There are those who have made the same mistakes you have and have lost much more… have suffered much more… and some didn’t even survive. But, He kept you…sustained you… nurtured you… and had mercy on you through your weakest, darkest moments. David remained king after he repented and remained a man after God’s heart. God restored to Job twice as much as he had after he prayed for his friends who made his ordeal much worse (Job 42:10-17). After denying Christ, Peter went on to be one of the most influential Apostles. No matter what you’ve done, if you repent and it’s God’s will, He can deliver you from the consequences of your sins, bad decisions and weaknesses. Especially if it’s an innate weakness He gave you. Make this prayer a part of your regular prayer life:

“Heavenly father, I truly repent of how I have let you down. Please forgive me and if it’s your will deliver me from the consequences of my sins, bad decisions and weakness.”

5. REMEMBER THAT GOD ALLOWS US MOMENTS TO LAMENT AS LONG AS WE STILL PROCLAIM OUR TRUST IN HIM

One of the most beautiful things about the Psalms is that they teach us how to express our regret and even question Him in respect as long as we end those moments reaffirming our trust in Him.

Psalm 13 (NIV)

¹ How long, Lord? Will you forget me forever?
    How long will you hide your face from me?
² How long must I wrestle with my thoughts
    and day after day have sorrow in my heart?
    How long will my enemy triumph over me?

³ Look on me and answer, Lord my God.
    Give light to my eyes, or I will sleep in death,
⁴ and my enemy will say, “I have overcome him,”
    and my foes will rejoice when I fall.

⁵ But I trust in your unfailing love;
    my heart rejoices in your salvation.
⁶ I will sing the Lord’s praise,
    for he has been good to me.

So, don’t be too hard on yourself wen you’re feeling down and depressed. God made you and He knows you. Just as parents don’t enjoy seeing their children cry when they are truly sorry of their mistakes, God is compassionate. Do just what David did as he lamented the kidnapping of their women and children and bore the blame of those closest to him. Encourage and strengthen yourself in the LORD and keep it moving! Remember, God gave him the victory then too.

1 Samuel 30 (NKJV)

Now it happened, when David and his men came to Ziklag, on the third day, that the Amalekites had invaded the South and Ziklag, attacked Ziklag and burned it with fire, ² and had taken captive the women and those who were there, from small to great; they did not kill anyone, but carried them away and went their way. ³ So David and his men came to the city, and there it was, burned with fire; and their wives, their sons, and their daughters had been taken captive. ⁴ Then David and the people who were with him lifted up their voices and wept, until they had no more power to weep. ⁵ And David’s two wives, Ahinoam the Jezreelitess, and Abigail the widow of Nabal the Carmelite, had been taken captive. ⁶ Now David was greatly distressed, for the people spoke of stoning him, because the soul of all the people was ^[a]grieved, every man for his sons and his daughters. But David strengthened himself in the Lord his God.

BE BLESSTIFIED!

Do you remember in the first chapter of 1 Samuel when Hannah, Eli’s wife, prayed silently and he thought she was drunk because he only saw her lips moving?

God heard that prayer and granted her a son.

The more I learn about how things work in the spirit world and how they effect the physical world…

The more I learn about the spiritual battles that take place over our lives by angels and fallen angels…

The more I realize that some prayers need to remain silent. Some things, some plans, some goals, and especially some fears need to remain between you and God.

Notice what happened when Daniel prayed about one of his visions, the angel that God dispatched to give him revelation was detained 3 weeks by a high ranking fallen angel…

Daniel 10:10-14 (NKJV)

¹⁰ Suddenly, a hand touched me, which made me tremble on my knees and on the palms of my hands. ¹¹ And he said to me, “O Daniel, man greatly beloved, understand the words that I speak to you, and stand upright, for I have now been sent to you.” While he was speaking this word to me, I stood trembling.

¹² Then he said to me, “Do not fear, Daniel, for from the first day that you set your heart to understand, and to humble yourself before your God, your words were heard; and I have come because of your words. ¹³ But the prince of the kingdom of Persia withstood me twenty-one days; and behold, Michael, one of the chief princes, came to help me, for I had been left alone there with the kings of Persia. ¹⁴ Now I have come to make you understand what will happen to your people in the latter days, for the vision refers to many days yet to come.”

Notice how Yeshua reminds us that we all have angels who minister to us daily…

Matthew 18:10 (NKJV)

¹⁰ “Take heed that you do not despise one of these little ones, for I say to you that in heaven their angels always see the face of My Father who is in heaven.

You can’t believe in God without believing in angels and fallen angels (demons). These demons partner with the adversary (the devil) in being our aggressive antagonists.

Matthew 18:10 (NKJV)

¹⁰ “Take heed that you do not despise one of these little ones, for I say to you that in heaven their angels always see the face of My Father who is in heaven.

The devil is our spiritual adversary, but he does not have the ability to know our thoughts. But, just like any physical human adversary, he can react to what you say to antagonize and hinder you. He and his fallen angel cohorts can react to what you say.

That’s why people can’t throw around the common Christian catch phrase, SPEAK IT INTO EXISTENCE too loosely. 2 REASONS WHY WE SHOULD BE CAREFUL BEFORE WE SAY ‘SPEAK IT INTO EXISTENCE’ or ‘NAME IT & CLAIM IT’…

Just as a physical enemy will react to your words, so will the devil and demons. So, be very mindful that some things DON’T need to be said out loud.

Some prayers need to be spoken in your heart as you pray silently, just as Hannah did.

God has knowledge of what you need even before you ask.

His Holy Spirit steps in when words can’t be expressed or don’t need to be expressed…

When you pray silently it’s just like whispering in God’s ear.

Romans 8:26 (NKJV)

²⁶ Likewise the Spirit also helps in our weaknesses. For we do not know what we should pray for as we ought, but the Spirit Himself makes intercession ^[a]for us with groanings which cannot be uttered.

Be careful how and with whom you share your plans…

Be careful how and with whom you share your hopes…

Be careful how and with whom you share your fears…

Pray for wisdom on what should be spoken out loud and when you should whisper in God’s ear.

BE BLESSTIFIED!

Remember this.

Forgiveness doesn’t mean that you will never think about what they did to you anymore.

It doesn’t mean that you won’t hurt when it crosses your mind.

Forgiveness means that you won’t condemn them anymore for what they did. It means that you no longer want to get even, or see them ‘get what they deserve’ for what they did.

Forgiveness means you want them free from the guilt of what they did. But, that doesn’t mean that it still doesn’t hurt or make you angry when you think about it. Especially if it’s someone who you truly love.

Yes, the bible says that when God forgives us that He forgets our iniquities and remembers them no more…

Hebrews 10:16-17  (NKJV)

¹⁶ “This is the covenant that I will make with them after those days, says the Lord: I will put My laws into their hearts, and in their minds I will write them,” ¹⁷ then He adds, “Their sins and their lawless deeds I will remember no more.”

Micah 7:18-19 (NKJV)

¹⁸ Who is a God like You,
Pardoning iniquity
And passing over the transgression of the remnant of His heritage?

He does not retain His anger forever,
Because He delights in mercy.^[a]
19 He will again have compassion on us,
And will subdue our iniquities.

You will cast all ^[b]our sins
Into the depths of the sea.

But, do you think that means that God no longer knows what we did? Of course not. If our All-Powerful God can no longer remember something that we can remember, that gives us more power than Him in that area.

When God forgives ‘and forgets’ it means that He no longer condemns us for that sin as long as we have truly repented. Notice that God would often remind Israel of the sins He had forgiven when they backslid because their repentance wasn’t real.

YES, EVEN GOD SOMETIMES BROUGHT UP THE PAST AFTER HE FORGAVE…

Do you think that when the Apostle Paul said, “forgetting those things which are behind…” that he meant he could no longer remember how he persecuted the church? No. It means he no longer let those thoughts rule him or influence his future.

Philippians 3:13  (NKJV)

¹³ Brethren, I do not count myself to have ^[a]apprehended; but one thing I do, forgetting those things which are behind and reaching forward to those things which are ahead,

So don’t beat yourself up because you still feel pain or occasional anger over something that you have forgiven. Just don’t linger on those thoughts. Remember, forgiveness is a continual process. You will continue to forgive ‘them’ in your mind over and over again.

The key is that they never know it.

WHY WE SHOULD STOP SAYING, “FORGIVENESS ISN’T FOR THEM, IT’S FOR YOU…”

LET’S TALK ABOUT WHEN FORGIVENESS IS REDUCED TO A SELFISH ACT…

ARE YOU EASY TO APOLOGIZE TO…?

WHY A PUBLIC EMBARRASSMENT DESERVES A PUBLIC APOLOGY…

BE BLESSTIFIED!

Genesis 1:3

3 “Then God said…”

God doesn’t need a language to speak.

What is HIS language?

Who was there when God ‘SAID’ “Let there be…”? There was no audience. Moses wasn’t there…the revelation of creation was given to him much later.

The Hebrew word for “said”, AMAR, according to The NAS Old Hebrew Lexicon means, to say, to answer, to say in one’s heart, to think, to command, to promise, to intend.

When God wills it…God says it.

God’s will is His words. He wills and it happens.

Jesus Christ, Yeshua, IS the living word. Jesus was there in the beginning as the Word and later became flesh. Just as your spirit, your essence of life, is invisible but your body is the image of your invisible spirit. God is a Spirit and Jesus Christ is not only the Word that was there in the beginning, He is the image of the invisible God.

Colossians 1:15 (NKJV)

15 He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn over all creation.

John 1:1-3, 14

In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. 2 He was in the beginning with God. 3 All things were made through Him, and without Him nothing was made that was made. 14 And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we beheld His glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father, full of grace and truth.

But what is ‘word’? The Greek words RHEMA and LOGOS are used as equivalents for the Hebrew word DABAR, as the Word of God or Divine Word.

God’s will is His words. He wills and it happens.

God can place His will, thoughts and desires inside of us, it is us that must use language to communicate. Language is for us, not God.

Language is what we use to communicate our thoughts, our intents…what’s in our hearts. We use language to communicate…God doesn’t have to. God is not limited to English, Igbo, Spanish, French, Portuguese or any other language.

His ways our not our ways and thoughts our not our thoughts. God can communicate with us through a thought. God knows your thoughts…does God hear them in a language? Or, does He just KNOW what’s in your heart.

Yes, we confess with our mouth, for the benefit of others, but we aren’t saved until we believe in our heart that God raised Jesus from the dead. How does God know you believe? Does He need a language to do that?

Many times people are critical when someone says, “The Lord told me”… And rightly so, because people tend to say that very loosely…too loosely. People will critically and sarcastically say, “What did God SAY to you?” Did you HEAR His voice?”

Yes God has spoken audibly at times for our benefit…Moses, The Mount of Transfiguration…but God doesn’t have to SPEAK audibly to SPEAK…

Nehemiah 2:12 (NKJV)

12 Then I arose in the night, I and a few men with me; I told no one what my God had put in my heart to do at Jerusalem; nor was there any animal with me, except the one on which I rode.

Jeremiah 31:33 (NKJV)

33 But this is the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel after those days, says the Lord: I will put My law in their minds, and write it on their hearts; and I will be their God, and they shall be My people.

Matthew 16:17 (NKJV)

17 Jesus answered and said to him, “Blessed are you, Simon Bar-Jonah, for flesh and blood has not revealed this to you, but My Father who is in heaven.

Hebrews 8:10 (NKJV)

10 For this is the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel after those days, says the Lord: I will put My laws in their mind and write them on their hearts; and I will be their God, and they shall be My people.

Revelation 17:17 (NKJV)

17 For God has put it into their hearts to fulfill His purpose, to be of one mind, and to give their kingdom to the beast, until the words of God are fulfilled.

Remember. Those who rejected Jesus (Pharisees, Scribes etc.) heard Him with their ears… They heard Him speak in their language…but they didn’t hear Him in their heart.

BE BLESSTIFIED!

We’re Both Using Scripture, So Whose Right?mi mi

It’s undeniable that sincere, devoted Christians don’t always agree on the interpretation and application of God’s word…the bible.

How many times have you been in a discussion and someone uses scripture to support ‘their’ point and you think to yourself, “Ummm, that’s not what that means.

One of the main reasons that there are so many different groups  or denominations within Christianity is because sincere Christians don’t agree on what was meant by what God said in His inspired word.

“Once Saved Always Saved”

No music instrumental music in worship service

Speaking in Tongues

Proper dress for men or women

Female ministers and pastors

Proper day to worship

Should we celebrate holidays

Tithing

Clean and unclean foods

Should there be priest in church

Is it a sin to drink alcohol

These are just a few of the points in which sincere Christians disagree, unfortunately sometimes to the point of contention. Whether it be huge doctrinal issues or individual disagreements in navigating ‘real life’ situations, too many times Christians are at odds when the word of God clearly said…

1 Corinthians 1:10 (NKJV)

¹⁰ Now I plead with you, brethren, by the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that you all speak the same thing, and that there be no divisions among you, but that you be perfectly joined together in the same mind and in the same judgment.

Jesus Christ Himself was continually called a devil because He challenged how the religious elite interpreted and viewed the scriptures.

So, how do you know who is right and who is wrong?  NO ONE!

It’s not about US being right or wrong, but who is in harmony with God’s truth. We must be careful not to fall into the mindset of trying to prove we are right. We didn’t create the world. We didn’t die on the cross. We have no authority to be ‘RIGHT’.

So our goal isn’t to be right, but to be in agreement with God’s truth. We can only have unity in the body of Christ when we adopt this mindset. Here are a few ways to tell who is in harmony with God’s truth.

Those who are willing to…

ACCEPT NO GROUP HAS IT ALL RIGHT

It’s interesting how groups and denomonations are so different, but each thinks they are ‘the closet to the truth’. As we grow in our faith, we realize that God doesn’t change, but our theology evolves and changes. That’s what Jesus did. He challenged their theology. Look at some of Jesus’ statement I Matthew 5…

Matthew 5:17(NKJV)

17 “Think not that I am come to destroy the law, or the prophets: I am not come to destroy, but to fulfill…”

27 “You have heard it said…”

31 “Furthermore it has been said…”

33 Again you have heard it was said to those of old…”

We have to mature and secure enough to realize that we can challenge our theology, grow and change our thinking without implying that the word or God has changed. Every group, just as the religious leaders in the New Testament has to be willing to accept that they are currently believing and practicing some things that ARE NOT in harmony with God’s truth.

HOLDING ON TRADITION

TRYING TO JUSTIFY WHAT WE WANT TO BELIEVE

God is a forgiving God and He is willing to forgive us of all our sins as long as we truly repent and have a forgiving heart towards others.

But, sometimes we can wonder if we will ever recover from the consequences of our bad decisions.

Let me give you a quick reminder that God loves us and He is bigger than or bad decisions.

Any parent who has punished or disciplined their child will look on them in pity and remove the punishment or give them relief from the consequences if It’s in their power to do so.

God does the same thing…

Psalm 30:5 (NKJV)

⁵ For His anger is but for a moment,
His favor is for life;
Weeping may endure for a night,
But ^[a]joy comes in the morning.

Psalm 103:9-11 (NKJV)

⁹ He will not always strive with us,
Nor will He keep His anger forever.
¹⁰ He has not dealt with us according to our sins,
Nor punished us according to our iniquities.

¹¹ For as the heavens are high above the earth,
So great is His mercy toward those who fear Him;

So if you’re living out the consequences or results of a bad decision and you have truly repented, pray that God deliver you from the consequences.

Pray that God gives you relief and peace. But, make sure you pray that He does so to his glory and for His names sake…

Psalm 25:10-11 (NKJV)

¹⁰ All the paths of the Lord are mercy and truth,
To such as keep His covenant and His testimonies.
¹¹ For Your name’s sake, O Lord,
Pardon my iniquity, for it is great.

Psalm 143:11 (NKJV)

¹¹ Revive me, O Lord, for Your name’s sake!
For Your righteousness’ sake bring my soul out of trouble.

Isaiah 48:8-10 (NKJV)

⁸ Surely you did not hear,
Surely you did not know;
Surely from long ago your ear was not opened.
For I knew that you would deal very treacherously,
And were called a transgressor from the womb.

⁹ “For My name’s sake I will ^[a]defer My anger,
And for My praise I will restrain it from you,
So that I do not cut you off.
¹⁰ Behold, I have refined you, but not as silver;
I have tested you in the furnace of affliction.

Once I was driving at night and didn’t see a small ditch. I drove right into it! I had to drive IN the ditch for a while until I could find a place to drive OUY of it. Sometimes you have to remain in a ditch until you can find a place to be pulled out our pull yourself out.

Even though you may remain in a ‘ditch’ because of you’re a bad decision, God can pull you out.

BE BLESSTIFIED!

The fun and rush of the holiday season can be intoxicating. The trill of seeing someone open a gift that they really wanted can provide quite the emotional high. If this one done within our budget, then all is well but…THEN comes December 26th..

If we spent money we couldn’t afford…used money for our bills…borrowed money for gifts or simply over spent, we can come down hard off that high straight into anxiety, worry, buyers remorse, stress and even depression…You’ve got a HOLIDAY HANGOVER.

When the real world comes calling…we remember that bills, obligations and commitments didn’t stop for Christmas.

If you do have a holiday hangover, I offer the same remedy as for a hangover from alcohol…time.

And just as someone whose been drunk with liquor…next year remember how you feel right now when you’re tempted to drink from the same bottle of HOLIDAY SPIRITS next year.

Proverbs 23:29-35 (MSG)

Who are the people who are always crying the blues?
    Who do you know who reeks of self-pity?
Who keeps getting beat up for no reason at all?
    Whose eyes are bleary and bloodshot?
It’s those who spend the night with a bottle,
    for whom drinking is serious business.
Don’t judge wine by its label,
    or its bouquet, or its full-bodied flavor.
Judge it rather by the hangover it leaves you with—
    the splitting headache, the queasy stomach.
Do you really prefer seeing double,
    with your speech all slurred,
Reeling and seasick,
    drunk as a sailor?
“They hit me,” you’ll say, “but it didn’t hurt;
    they beat on me, but I didn’t feel a thing.
When I’m sober enough to manage it,
    bring me another drink!”

BE BLESSTIFIED!

Years ago, when I was in the radio industry, a prominent doctor was scheduled to record his own commercial in the studio. He arrived on time, but the studio was running behind and he was furious because he had to wait…

Think about it…A doctor was furious that he had to wait about 30 minutes after his scheduled appointment time. Think of how long doctors‘ patients have to wait for them.

In America, children have traditionally been asked, “What do you want to be when you grow up?”

“What do you want to be?” instead of “What do you want to do?”

It’s at that point we begin to program future adults that we define ourselves by what we do for a living. This unfortunately feeds a class system that bases peoples’ value in society on what they do every day whether than who they are every day and what KIND of person they are.

Think of how many people who claim to love Jesus Christ today, that if they are honest with themselves, would have looked down on Him if they lived during His earthly ministry because of His ‘social status’ . 8 REASONS WHY MANY OF TODAY’S ‘CHRISTIANS’ WOULDN’T HAVE FOLLOWED ‘CHRIST’…

Too many people get so caught up into their job title and authority ON the job, that they forget that they are EQUAL to their subordinates in the roles of father, mother, son, daughter, sibling etc.

They forget that on any job, in any school, in any office, in any manufacturing facility, in any organization we are all EQUAL in the role of just being people earning money to sustain our lives and families. Too many people begin…

“Smelling themselves…’

“Believing their own press…”

…and go to work seeking to get their egos ‘fed’ by others.

This is one of the reasons I feel that no adult has the right to ‘CHEW OUT’ another because they didn’t meet expectations or to discipline them at work. There is a process of consequences that can lead to termination. These consequences can be administered with respect…even when one feels that the employee doesn’t deserve it. WHY A BOSS SHOULD NEVER ‘CHEW OUT’ AN EMPLOYEE…

In some cases people expect other men, women, fathers, mothers to ‘kiss their butts’ because they are their ‘boss’. WHEN SOMEONE EXPECTS YOU TO ‘KISS THEIR BUTT’…

I’ve seen people in authority interrupt their ‘subordinates’ conversations at work, or duties they themselves assigned for something trivial, while they expect the same people to wait by their office door while they talk to their spouse on the phone, or joke around with another employee.

Unless it’s important, interrupting is rude,disrespectful and arrogant no matter what your job title.

From the CEO to custodian, principal to paraprofessional, manager to machinist… all employees of an organization are CO-WORKERS trying to earn a living, and the organizational hierarchy and authority stops when they are not doing job duties…and even when they are, no one trumps anyone else when it comes to deserving respect.

Never let your occupation or career TOTALLY define ALL of who you are because God could change that in an instant, and remember this…

We didn’t receive our gift of salvation because Jesus was a carpenter.

Mark 6:2-3 (NKJV)

² And when the Sabbath had come, He began to teach in the synagogue. And many hearing Himwere ^(A)astonished, saying, ^(B)“Where did this Man get these things? And what wisdom is this which is given to Him, that such mighty works are performed by His hands! ³ Is this not the carpenter, the Son of Mary, and ^(C)brother of James, Joses, Judas, and Simon? And are not His sisters here with us?” So they ^(D)were offended at Him.

There’s more to you than what you do.

BE BLESSTIFIED!

As the thought of watching thick, fluffy snowflakes fall creating a beautiful blanket on the ground makes the holiday seem more cozy to some…

It strikes the deepest dread, fear and anxiety into the hearts of the homeless.

As one parent asks, “What are we gonna eat tonight” wondering what snacks they’ll munch on while enjoying the snow with their children…

Another parent asks himself or herself, “What are we gonna eat tonight” because they’re wondering if they’ll have anything to feed their children.

As one child counts the money they have gotten for Christmas…

A homeless parent counts the dollars they were able to collect at an intersection, along with sneers, stares, insults and judgement as to how they got in that situation. They are trying to decide should we eat with this little money? Or try to get into the homeless shelter.

So, before you watch the weather forecast hoping for snow at your address…

Think about…

Pray for…

And if possible, do something to show love to someone who has no address.

Proverbs 21:13 (NASB)

¹³ One who shuts his ear to the outcry of the poor
Will also call out himself, and not be answered.

BE BLESSTIFIED!

John 4:24 (NKJV)

²⁴ God is Spirit, and those who worship Him must worship in spirit and truth.”

The traditional ‘nativity scene’ depicting the night that Yeshua the Messiah (Jesus Christ) was born is a favorite Christmas decoration and reenactment.

Of course it features Mary, Joseph, the Baby Jesus, the shepherds, and the Magi or ‘wise men’ from the East.

There’s only one problem…

The Magi or ‘wise men’ were not there that night…not yet.

When you read the account closely, the location that the wise men found Jesus was not a stable, and He was not in a manger. He was no longer an infant, and Joseph was not present when the wise men visited.

Matthew 2:11 (NKJV)

¹¹ And when they had come into the HOUSE, they saw the YOUNG CHILD with Mary His mother, and fell down and worshiped Him. And when they had opened their treasures, they presented gifts to Him: gold, frankincense, and myrrh.

Luke 2:15-16 (NKJV)

¹⁵ So it was, when the angels had gone away from them into heaven, that the shepherds said to one another, “Let us now go to Bethlehem and see this thing that has come to pass, which the Lord has made known to us.” ¹⁶ And they came with haste and found Mary and Joseph, and the Babe lying in a manger.

It says very clearly that they arrived at a house, that Jesus was a young child, and His father wasn’t there at the time. At the scene of the birth Jesus is called a Babe, while at the scene with the wise men He is called a small child.

Notice also that the events recorded in Matthew 2:1-12 took place AFTER Yeshua was born. And, one must consider the took some time…

Matthew 2:1-12 (NKJV)

Now AFTER Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judea in the days of Herod the king, behold, ^[a]wise men from the East came to Jerusalem, ² saying, “Where is He who has been born King of the Jews? For we have seen His star in the East and have come to worship Him.”

³ When Herod the king heard this, he was troubled, and all Jerusalem with him. ⁴ And when he had gathered all the chief priests and scribes of the people together, he inquired of them where the Christ was to be born.

⁵ So they said to him, “In Bethlehem of Judea, for thus it is written by the prophet:

⁶ ‘But you, Bethlehem, in the land of Judah,
Are not the least among the rulers of Judah;
For out of you shall come a Ruler
Who will shepherd My people Israel.’ ”

⁷ Then Herod, when he had secretly called the ^[b]wise men, determined from them what time the star appeared. ⁸ And he sent them to Bethlehem and said, “Go and search carefully for the young Child, and when you have found Him, bring back word to me, that I may come and worship Him also.”

⁹ When they heard the king, they departed; and behold, the star which they had seen in the East went before them, till it came and stood over where the young Child was. ¹⁰ When they saw the star, they rejoiced with exceedingly great joy. ¹¹ And when they had come into the house, they saw the young Child with Mary His mother, and fell down and worshiped Him. And when they had opened their treasures, they presented gifts to Him: gold, frankincense, and myrrh.

¹² Then, being divinely warned in a dream that they should not return to Herod, they departed for their own country another way.

After the LORD was born, the wise men traveled to Jerusalem after seeing the star and inquired of where they could find Jesus…that took some time.

After hearing of this, Herod gathered the chief priests and scribes and asked them where Christ was born…that took some time.

Herod then secretly requested that the wise men come to him. After determining when the star appeared, he asked the wise men to CAREFULLY (take you time) search for the “young child”… that took some time.

After finding the LORD, the wise men didn’t return to Herod, but went straight to their own country, further implying a longer journey…that took some time.

Consider this from my post, “Accepting That Something You’ve Sincerely Believed Is Wrong”…

1. According to verses 9-10, when they came to where the star stood over where the YOUNG CHILD was (not baby), they came into THE HOUSE (not stable) and found Jesus with His mother (Joseph wasn’t present at the time).
2. According to verse 12, after being warned in a dream, they departed into their own country…you can’t do all of that in one night’s time.
3. In verses 16 Herod ordered that all male children age 2 and under be killed…because that’s when the star first appeared.
4. After the wise men leave, that’s when Joseph’s name reappears as he takes his family into Egypt.

Some people are so accustomed to believing the wise men were there in the stable, that rather than accept that may not be true and they came later, we start trying to find a way to prove what wish to believe is true…rather than seek the real truth.

The fact is that the shepherds and wise men visited Jesus on two different occasions, possibly separated by about two years.

Many of those who have the traditional nativity scene ingrained in their minds may ask, “What does it matter?”

Again, because God said that anything done to worship Him MUST be done in spirit and not truth. Unfortunately, Christians are notorious for twisting and compromising to fit traditions and their will instead of God’s.

If you’re going to celebrate the Son of God’s birth, do it in SPIRIT AND TRUTH!

The traditional nativity scene is not truth.

BE BLESSTIFIED!