To Where You Are

Chloe Agnew sings to her (our) forever love...so beautiful! Her voice is so light and clear, like a spring breeze:

Contemplating Gifts from God

This morning I awoke pondering what it must have been like to find out your baby is REALLY special. Every mom thinks their baby is special (well, the normal ones do, anyway...these days that isn't always true I guess). What I mean is, Mary had a miraculous conception and birth. "Ordinary" childbirth is already miraculous, however Jesus's birth was doubly (at very least) miraculous.

link to photo

Luk 1:26  And in the sixth month the angel Gabriel was sent from God unto a city of Galilee, named Nazareth,
Luk 1:27  To a virgin espoused to a man whose name was Joseph, of the house of David; and the virgin's name was Mary.
Luk 1:28  And the angel came in unto her, and said, Hail, thou that art highly favoured, the Lord is with thee: blessed art thou among women.
Luk 1:29  And when she saw him, she was troubled at his saying, and cast in her mind what manner of salutation this should be.
Luk 1:30  And the angel said unto her, Fear not, Mary: for thou hast found favour with God.
Luk 1:31  And, behold, thou shalt conceive in thy womb, and bring forth a son, and shalt call his name JESUS.
Luk 1:32  He shall be great, and shall be called the Son of the Highest: and the Lord God shall give unto him the throne of his father David:
Luk 1:33  And he shall reign over the house of Jacob for ever; and of his kingdom there shall be no end.
Luk 1:34  Then said Mary unto the angel, How shall this be, seeing I know not a man?
Luk 1:35  And the angel answered and said unto her, The Holy Ghost shall come upon thee, and the power of the Highest shall overshadow thee: therefore also that holy thing which shall be born of thee shall be called the Son of God.
Luk 1:36  And, behold, thy cousin Elisabeth, she hath also conceived a son in her old age: and this is the sixth month with her, who was called barren.
Luk 1:37  For with God nothing shall be impossible.
Luk 1:38  And Mary said, Behold the handmaid of the Lord; be it unto me according to thy word. And the angel departed from her.

The Glory of the Lord

Hab_2:14  For the earth shall be filled with the knowledge of the glory of the LORD, as the waters cover the sea.


Yesterday (Christmas Day) was a little gloomy for me... well, I had to work, not my favorite place to be by any stretch of the imagination ESPECIALLY on Christmas Day.....and I was also thinking about all the various people that would just love to do away with Christmas altogether, baby Jesus and all.....so I'm driving to work, and the sky is covered by small gray clouds with little peekholes into the bright blue sky behind it, and the sun was extremely bright behind and above those gray clouds, causing bright and beautiful rays of sunlight to shine through in long ribbons to the ground. It was extraordinarily GORGEOUS!!! and it made me so sorry that I couldn't capture it with my camera (left it at home)...besides, I was driving on the expressway so taking a picture would have been risky and probably wouldn't have turned out good either, lol.... but it sort of looked like this (only even more beautiful)

....and then the thought that all the dark, little, gray clouds in my life that I find so troublesome and cumbersome are there to help me see God's glory shine even more brightly in everything....and He reminded me of Romans 8:28.

God is sooooo good. :)

Merry Giggling Christmas :)

I saw this on CPR Ezra's blog...I LOVE IT :D

The Humble Miracle of God's Birth Into Flesh

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Luk 2:4  And Joseph also went up from Galilee, from the town of Nazareth, to Judea, to the city of David, which is called Bethlehem, because he was of the house and lineage of David,
Luk 2:5  to be registered with Mary, his betrothed, who was with child.
Luk 2:6  And while they were there, the time came for her to give birth.
Luk 2:7  And she gave birth to her firstborn son and wrapped him in swaddling cloths and laid him in a manger, because there was no place for them in the inn.
Luk 2:8  And in the same region there were shepherds out in the field, keeping watch over their flock by night.
Luk 2:9  And an angel of the Lord appeared to them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were filled with fear.
Luk 2:10  And the angel said to them, "Fear not, for behold, I bring you good news of great joy that will be for all the people.
Luk 2:11  For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Savior, who is Christ the Lord.
Luk 2:12  And this will be a sign for you: you will find a baby wrapped in swaddling cloths and lying in a manger."
Luk 2:13  And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God and saying,
Luk 2:14  "Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace among those with whom he is pleased!"
Luk 2:15  When the angels went away from them into heaven, the shepherds said to one another, "Let us go over to Bethlehem and see this thing that has happened, which the Lord has made known to us."
Luk 2:16  And they went with haste and found Mary and Joseph, and the baby lying in a manger.
Luk 2:17  And when they saw it, they made known the saying that had been told them concerning this child.
Luk 2:18  And all who heard it wondered at what the shepherds told them.
Luk 2:19  But Mary treasured up all these things, pondering them in her heart.

**** from my e-sword: used English Standard Version (ESV)****

Declan Galbraith!!!

This was about 10 years ago...he's 20 now (born in 1991)

I love this song!

This was the one I meant to post:

This next one is sung by Peter Auty (to compare), also nice but I like Declan's much better, too much rolling of the "r" in Peter's version

Jesu Joy of Man's Desiring

Another Celtic Woman favorite (I adore Chloe!!!), this one is from Johann Sebastian Bach...from the Youtube description:

Performed by Máiréad Nesbitt and Celtic Woman in HD with stunning sound quality.

This is from the 10th movement of the cantata "Herz und Mund und Tat und Leben", BWV 147 composed by Johann Sebastian Bach. Written during his first year in Leipzig, Germany, this chorale movement is one of Bach's most enduring works.

Contrary to the common assumption, the violinist and composer Johann Schop, not Bach, composed the movement's underlying chorale melody, "Werde munter, mein Gemüthe"; Bach's contribution was to harmonize and orchestrate it. Lyrics follow:

Jesu, joy of man's desiring,
Holy wisdom, love most bright;
Drawn by Thee, our souls aspiring
Soar to uncreated light.

Word of God, our flesh that fashioned,
With the fire of life impassioned,
Striving still to truth unknown,
Soaring, dying round Thy throne.

O Come All Ye Faithful

The Tree of Life

Genesis 3:22  Then the LORD God said, "Behold, the man has become like one of us in knowing good and evil. Now, lest he reach out his hand and take also of the tree of life and eat, and live forever--" 

 3:23  therefore the LORD God sent him out from the garden of Eden to work the ground from which he was taken. 

3:24  He drove out the man, and at the east of the garden of Eden he placed the cherubim and a flaming sword that turned every way to guard the way to the tree of life. 

Really think about what is said there for a few moments. Was this cherubim placed there to keep people out? Is that what this verse says? Does it say "to keep people out and away from the tree of life"? 

Now that I've got you thinking a little bit about that verse, look at this one, and compare it with Genesis 3:24

John 14:6  Jesus said to him, "I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.

Do you see that the words "way" "truth" and "life" are in both verses? No?

Here's another hint:

Hebrews 4:12  For the word of God is living and active, sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing to the division of soul and of spirit, of joints and of marrow, and discerning the thoughts and intentions of the heart.  

 4:13  And no creature is hidden from his sight, but all are naked and exposed to the eyes of him to whom we must give account. 

and:

John 17:17  Sanctify them in the truth; your word is truth. 

(another place you can find "truth" being represented by a sword is in the armor of God in Ephesians chapter 6)

Do you see it yet? The way to life is guarded by a flaming sword which is truth.

The way to the tree of life is guarded by a flaming sword of truth that exposes every part of us to the penetrating gaze of God. Without some way prepared God's gaze would kill us instantly because His eyes would slay us...but we have Jesus blood covering us, healing us with His wounds, just as the Israelites were protected by the blood on their doorposts on that first Passover by the blood from the wounds of the Passover lamb.

Ephesians 2:13  But now in Christ Jesus you who once were far off have been brought near by the blood of Christ. 

 2:14  For he himself is our peace, who has made us both one and has broken down in his flesh the dividing wall of hostility 

 2:15  by abolishing the law of commandments expressed in ordinances, that he might create in himself one new man in place of the two, so making peace, 

2:16  and might reconcile us both to God in one body through the cross, thereby killing the hostility. 

 2:17  And he came and preached peace to you who were far off and peace to those who were near. 

 2:18  For through him we both have access in one Spirit to the Father.

Transgression came by the partaking of the fruit of a tree (of the knowledge of good and evil) and forgiveness and restoration comes by the partaking of another fruit of another tree.

Partake of the cup of His suffering with Him, all who are His will also suffer with His suffering (although I personally think it is not to the same degree that He suffered, I don't think it would be possible for any of us to endure that degree of suffering).

1Peter 4:12  Beloved, do not be surprised at the fiery trial when it comes upon you to test you, as though something strange were happening to you. 

 4:13  But rejoice insofar as you share Christ's sufferings, that you may also rejoice and be glad when his glory is revealed. 

4:14  If you are insulted for the name of Christ, you are blessed, because the Spirit of glory and of God rests upon you. 

4:15  But let none of you suffer as a murderer or a thief or an evildoer or as a meddler. 

 4:16  Yet if anyone suffers as a Christian, let him not be ashamed, but let him glorify God in that name. 

 4:17  For it is time for judgment to begin at the household of God; and if it begins with us, what will be the outcome for those who do not obey the gospel of God? 

4:18  And "If the righteous is scarcely saved, what will become of the ungodly and the sinner?" 

 4:19  Therefore let those who suffer according to God's will entrust their souls to a faithful Creator while doing good.

Escape out of Hinduism

I followed some links from a LUF entry "Christian Yoga? Apostasy Disguised" and from there found the link to Lamb and Lion Ministries videos to watch the videos by  Caryl Matrisciana and her thoughts on Hinduism, her testimony of how the Lord brought her out of it, and her thoughts on "Christian Yoga". I'm so glad Jred brought this up because I didn't really think it was as deadly as I now realize it is...just as I am also somewhat lax about the witchcraft in Harry Potter and fantasy type films and books. They do not have power over us, they are just imaginative "stories" and fables, and if we are in Christ, that is all they remain, nothing harmful, right?

Well, there is a bit more to it than that, and of course, YES, Jesus protects us from all kinds of harm and nonsense... but the devil is very clever, and he knows how to disable us from being effective (at very least) if not completely taking over... he is not so benign as I (and many people) tend to want to think. When we think he is powerless is when he actually has the most power.

Anyway, when you have time, listen to what Caryl has to say, she has a powerful testimony, and makes sense out of why and how Eastern mysticism is as harmful as it is.

http://www.lamblion.com/television/programs_religion8.php

http://www.lamblion.com/television/programs_religion9.php

Punishment

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The past couple of years have been very troublesome for me, to say the least. Last night I got another blow, which I won't go into details but suffice it to say, I was heartbroken, again. Sometimes I wonder: Am I being punished? Am I doing something that greatly displeases Jesus to the point that He's punishing me?

This morning I awoke to thinking about Job. Remember Job? He did everything right, to the point that the devil felt it necessary to tell God that Job was good only because God blessed him, but if God took everything away, Job would be as bad as everyone else. I'm no Job, I have plenty of areas that definitely need an overhaul...but does God correct us through punishment?

I am a believer in "tough love"...and I do agree that tough situations call for tough measures, HOWEVER, when I think about Job's situation, and how Job's friends kept telling him how he was being punished for something he did, and Job's denials, it makes me realize there is so much to this that I really don't know enough about. Job was a human being, so of course he wasn't perfect, only Jesus could say that He was, and Jesus never flaunted that at anyone, He didn't have to. I find it interesting with many of the cults such as the JW's that bring up the fact that Jesus never said He was God. True...but, if you are perfect, why would you have to keep reminding everyone of it?..., it is just a fact. If people were paying attention (some were) they would have known that Jesus is God incarnate, and that it had to be so to fulfill all the prophecies, which Jesus did.

Anyway, at the end of Job's narrative, we discover that God tells Job that he isn't as perfect as he thinks, but that this wasn't the reason he was going through what he was going through. In the end, Job's friends are humbled by God to realize they were wrong about their assumptions about Job. And in the end, God doubled Job's blessings from what he had before all this trouble hit him. What is interesting is his cattle were all doubled in numbers, but the children which he had after this period of testing were equal in number to the number prior to this testing period.  A bible teacher once pointed out that he had double children too, because this was revealing that his previous children were all saved by God, WOW, that is a huge blessing!

What really stood out to me this morning is that a period of testing is to be endured...you just must suffer through it, praying, trusting, growing in His likeness. 

Jas 1:2  Count it all joy, my brothers, when you meet trials of various kinds,
Jas 1:3  for you know that the testing of your faith produces steadfastness.
Jas 1:4  And let steadfastness have its full effect, that you may be perfect and complete, lacking in nothing. 

Rom 8:14  For all who are led by the Spirit of God are sons of God.
Rom 8:15  For you did not receive the spirit of slavery to fall back into fear, but you have received the Spirit of adoption as sons, by whom we cry, "Abba! Father!"
Rom 8:16  The Spirit himself bears witness with our spirit that we are children of God,
Rom 8:17  and if children, then heirs--heirs of God and fellow heirs with Christ, provided we suffer with him in order that we may also be glorified with him.
Rom 8:18  For I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worth comparing with the glory that is to be revealed to us.
Rom 8:19  For the creation waits with eager longing for the revealing of the sons of God.
Rom 8:20  For the creation was subjected to futility, not willingly, but because of him who subjected it, in hope
Rom 8:21  that the creation itself will be set free from its bondage to corruption and obtain the freedom of the glory of the children of God.

The royalty that monarchs of this earth enjoy is nothing compared to the glory that will be enjoyed when we are with Jesus. We are sons and daughters of the King of kings, we are the true royalty. The royalty of this earth is a sham and a fraud. We are heirs to God's throne! Hallelujah!